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Creek ran his hand over his face and leaned back in his chair. Head shaking a bit at his failed standard.
“Were you gonna post up at a mailbox?” he asked.
“Fine, I’m a damn idiot and I can’t even blame baby brain,” he said.
“It seems as if each and every camera is in a location anyone can find them. We need to redo every one of them. Hide them in places nobody can see them. Then we need to have someone watch cameras twenty-four seven. It’s too easy for someone to get onto this ranch. You guys protect a lot of people, I would hate to see something bad happen.”
“Can you help me?” Hack retrieved a notebook from his messenger, followed by a topographical map and pushed it toward Mike. “I’ve got our boundaries marked out and major structures.”
“Sure. Let’s get this done.”
They worked for hours on the new security system. Creek coordinated via text with Baldy to assign prospects and members to a rotating schedule on top of the current patrols. With a few quick clicks monitors were ordered and the two reviewed the space across the hall from the room they called church.
“I’m thinking no more than nine cameras per monitor,” Mike said as he glanced between the screen size and divided. “With the four on this wall you should have a hundred percent coverage on all the access points along the border. But motion detectors are going to have to be put in place.”
“Between the wind gusts and wildlife we’re going to be setting off alarms all damn day.”
“What’s the alternative?” he asked. “Rather take out a few deer than let the enemy cross.”
“Deer? Or an itty-bitty bunny rabbit.”
Mike’s face flushed with heat. “You know what—” he wagged his finger at him from the embarrassing memory. “That thing was probably rabid.”
“Then why did we eat it?” Creek joked as the two men fell into a round of laughter at the memory.
“Y’all working or jackjawin’?” Mountain asked as he wandered in the room.
“Sorry, just giving Hanover here some shit,” Creek said, as another round of laughter burst through from the story of days gone by. “Battlefield bullshit they don’t share on the nightly news.”
Nearly seven years had passed from the time they were rotating sentry duty when a damn blizzard hit. The man, named for being a natural landmass crossed his arms.
“Got drummed out myself,” Mountain said with a sigh. “Barely into my first year, never made it to a battlefield. Now, if Y’all want to share shit on shingle recipes that’s another story.”
“Shit, as long as it ain’t Brick’s I might take it,” Creek said, then explained. “Guess Brick got KP duty more than once and earned his name from his culinary skills.”
“Thanks for the heads up,” Mike said, then glanced at Mountain still standing just inside the doorway he’d had to duck under to get in. “Why’d you get drummed out, couldn’t fit in a tank?”
“Basically, late growing spurt,” Mountain explained. “Who knew they stopped making Army boots at size fourteen? I felt bad for a minute until I heard about David Robinson who grew too much for sub duty and was discharged from the Navy.”
“At least he got a cool nickname out of it,” Mike said. “All praise the Admiral of the court.”
“What had you two cracking up?” Mountain asked.
“Oh, this man here,” Creek said giving Mike a hard slap to his back and gripped his shoulder. “Is who you want on sentry duty all the time. No man, nor beast, or fluffy tailed creature will breach your perimeter.”
“Fuck you.” Mike shook his head. “You’re an asshole you know that.”
“Tell him the tale or is it tail?” Creek wiggled his index finger. “Of the night that shall live in infamy among those who serve.”
“Fine, fine, I’ll tell.” Closing his eyes for a moment he gathered himself hoping he could make it through without pissing his pants from laughter at the moment. “Everyone snuggled into the makeshift shelter we’d created along a ridgeline. I was freezing my ass off because a damn blizzard had decided to bare down on us, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t be watching everyone’s six.”
“Those of the third appreciate your service and sacrifice.”
“Did I say fuck you in the last three minutes, if not, fuck you Creek.” Mike continued. “Cold as fuck, wind whipping all around me as I try to find the ground in front of me. Normal day I should be able to see miles into the canyon below.”
“Oh, that’s your excuse,” Creek said covering his mouth as laughter bubbled up inside him.
“On the horizon line I see this body moving. It’s a sea of white with the dark figure, moving between belly crawling to straight up because it had to orientate itself.”
