Life Goes On by Tayell, Frank (large ebook reader txt) 📗

The gunfire had become an ignorable background patter, but as her brain switched modes from proto-general back into suspicious-cop, she became aware of the shooting again. She counted the time between shots as she walked over to the Landcruiser where Luis was frantically addressing the soldiers who’d disembarked.

Three soldiers: a driver and a passenger, both armed with some variety of Kalashnikov, as was the third, standing in the back, weapon resting on a semi-circular steel shield.

“G’day,” Tess said. “Glad to see you. Worst seems to be over. Police Commissioner Tess Qwong, out of Australia but here with the U.N.”

“Captain De Silva,” the driver said. “You will need secure transport to take the injured women to the city. We will give you one of our trucks.”

“Our bus will do the job,” Tess said, looking back at the remains of the convoy. They were full of people and supplies. But some of the people were children. Few of the supplies looked to be defensive. Yes, there were water containers, but there were also spare tyres, fuel cans, ropes, chains, shovels and picks. The suitcases were as likely to contain clothes as ammo, while she couldn’t think of a single strategic purpose to the three chickens in the cage atop the rearmost Landcruiser.

Tess turned back to the bridge where the nurses were boarding the bus. A shot came from the dozer. The newly arrived captain made no move to reinforce the bulldozer-barricade. Tess looked up at the crane. Even if she immobilised the dozers, they could easily be hauled out of the way.

“Did you bring the radio?” Tess asked, turning back to the captain.

“There is a radio in the Landcruiser,” he said, waving to one of vehicles behind, less heavily loaded than the others. “It is a good car. Better than your bus.”

“I’m sure it is,” Tess said, stalling for time. “Do you have anyone who knows how to drive a bulldozer?”

“Yes, but they need too much fuel,” De Silva said. “So does a bus like yours. Take our Landcruiser. You need to get back to the city quickly, yes?”

“Not so quickly we’d leave our people behind,” Tess said. Behind her, the engine purred, and the bus sped towards them. “You best get your people in position. Our ammo and rifles are up on the dozers.”

“Ah. You left the guns? Then you will have room for these injured women,” De Silva said. “You won’t need our Landcruiser?”

“No worries, you’re all right. Good luck.” Tess gave a half smile, and turned to the bus, waving it down. “There’s an injured woman on the roof. Double quick, get her inside.”

“With me, Sergeant,” Hawker said, throwing himself up the ladder.

With her and Clyde below, they had the nurse off the roof and into the back.

“Drive now, drive fast,” Tess said, holding onto the doorway, even as Laila tended to the unconscious woman.

“Only speed I know,” Zach said, from behind the wheel.

When they were beyond the parked convoy she began to relax.

“Don’t slow,” Tess said. “But don’t race. I don’t want to crash, but I don’t want them to try to catch us.”

“You mean the zoms?” Zach asked.

“No, those soldiers,” Tess said. “Maybe I read the situation wrong, but they brought their kids. The commander sent them, but they brought their kids to the bridge. They must have come to Inhambane looking for an evacuation. An airlift was promised, but only one plane arrived. Now, they’re looking to escape. They wanted our bus for the ammo and carbines.”

“Oh. Were we supposed to leave them behind?” Zach asked.

“Nope,” Tess said. “We’ll need them to protect the city.”

“We have to protect the bridges,” Laila said.

“If we stayed, we’d have fought over the guns,” Tess said.

“We’d have won,” Oakes said.

“We’d have made those kids orphans, and we’d still be defending the bridge, but with even less ammo. We’d have had to retreat anyway. No, we can’t start killing each other. Not now. The commander said she was sending reinforcements to hold that bridge. When we get to the city, we can ask her to send the helicopter to check they’re still there. But those were the best people she could find, and I’m pretty certain they plan to run, not fight. Maybe they will hold the bridge for a while, but when they leave, it won’t be to return to Inhambane.”

Chapter 9 - Almost Paradise

Tofo Beach, Mozambique

The new walls of Inhambane were rising around the city’s outskirts, but not fast enough.

“Where do we go?” Zach asked, slowing the bus as he drove around a pile of rubble over which a team were pouring cement. The labourers, like her driver, should still be in school.

“Good question,” Tess said. “Laila, where’s the hospital?”

“The old cathedral,” she said.

“I will guide you,” Zendaya said.

If Inhambane had known busier decades, the old cathedral had seen better centuries. The paint had skinned, the plaster had creviced, and the mortar had powdered while the three-storey tower was one amen away from collapse. A fresh red cross had been painted to the left of the doors, a red crescent to the right, while from inside came the soft moans of the dying.

As the nurses carried their injured sisters inside, and Dr Avalon went to assist, Tess leaned against the bus.

“Water,” Hawker said, holding out a bottle.

“Good on ya,” Tess said. “How long can we hold this city?”

“As long as we have to,” Hawker said. “Mick’ll need to bring in about a hundred and fifty flights. They achieved fifteen hundred a day during the Berlin airlift. Now, fair dinkum, their logistical system wasn’t as ropey as ours, but we’ve got no shortage of planes back home. No shortage of pilots. We’ve just got to get them to Perth. Everyone here came from somewhere else, so there’s no refuge within easy