Kildar pos-2 Read online

  It felt good. The run had been long and not particularly slow and some of the hills to the north had been steep, not even mentioning the damned road up to the caravanserai. But he still felt good. Back in form. Yakov had even gotten the girls in town cleaned up, if not the house, and Mike was back to getting his ashes hauled on a regular basis. Life was good.

  He dropped the sweats on a table in the foyer — it was nice having servants — and headed up to his room in sweat-soaked shorts and a T-shirt. After a shower and shave he got into jeans and flannels and headed back downstairs.

  He’d taken to eating in the kitchen, much to Mother Griffina’s initial shock and horror. But at this point she’d gotten over it. By the time he made it back downstairs the sweats had been whisked away, coffee was brewed and Mother Griffina was ready to serve up his “barbarian” breakfast of eggs, bacon, hash browns and biscuits with gravy. It helped that he’d gotten various German appliances shipped in, at exorbitant cost. The kitchen had all new stoves and an industrial refrigerator and freezer. In the attached cellars there was a zero degree freezer he intended to fill up during the year as meat and vegetables became available. He’d also gotten a couple of sets of washing machines and dryers so Mother Savina and her helpers wouldn’t have to do all the laundry by hand.

  “There was a call from a shipping company,” Mother Savina said as he entered the room. “There are two containers on the way, both full. They should be here a little after noon.”

  “The militia’s equipment arrives,” Mike said, sitting down at the kitchen table and nodding to Mother Griffina in thanks as she poured coffee. “We’re going to need a bunch of strong backs.”

  “And Genadi called from Tbilisi and asks that you call him back,” Mother Savina added.

  “I’ll call him after breakfast,” Mike said, as Mother Griffina set the heaping plate in front of him. Between the cold and the run he was famished.

  After breakfast he took a cup of coffee to the office and dialed Genadi.

  “Kildar,” the farm manager said when he answered the phone. “It is good to hear from you.”

  “What’s the situation?” Mike asked. When they’d last spoken the local Ford dealer only had two models that they needed. They’d placed an order for the rest.

  “All of the trucks are in,” Genadi said. “And the SUVs are supposed to be on the next ship. When do you want to start delivery?”

  “What about the tractors and sundry equipment?” Mike asked.

  “I’ve gotten the entire list rounded up,” Genadi said, happily. “They can be delivered at any time.”

  “Monday,” Mike said. “The militia equipment is coming in today. I’m going to store it in the cellars for the time being. Bring it in on Monday and we’ll make an event of it. There’s not much going on at the moment.”

  “The weather report expects a thaw to start next week,” Genadi said. “There will be the floods starting maybe. We can use the time to train people on the equipment.”

  “The trainers are going to be arriving week after next,” Mike said, thoughtfully. “We’re not going to start serious training until we have some idea how the new equipment works with the planting.”

  “We will work it out,” Genadi said. “Can do.”

  “Can do,” Mike replied. “Schedule delivery of all of it for Monday. And don’t forget my SUV. The Mercedes is awfully comfortable but I’m tired of not being able to drive anywhere but paved roads.”

  “I won’t,” Genadi said with a chuckle.

  “Later,” Mike said, cutting the connection. “Come,” he added at a knock on the door.

  “The Keldara will be here a little before noon,” Mother Savina said.

  “Ask Mother Griffina to prepare to feed them, if we have the food in the house,” Mike said. “I’d like to take every opportunity to feed them when I can. That cuts down on the stores they have to draw on.”

  “I’ll pass that on to Griffina,” Mother Savina said, nodding.

  “There are about twenty people arriving next week,” Mike said. “We’re going to have to lay in stores for them as well. Make sure there’s plenty of beer; most of them are going to be beer drinkers. Get some wine as well. And get the upstairs rooms cleaned up, most of them will be housed in there. They will be staying for some time. I’ll get some helpers for you while they’re here; I’m not sure I want to mix Keldara women in with these guys until I get a better read. I need to go talk to Yakov.”

  * * *

  Mike found the pimp in his usual spot, hanging out by the door hoping for customers.

  “Mr. Jenkins,” Yakov said, happily, as he opened the door for the former SEAL. “It is good to see you in the house again.”

  “Glad to be back,” Mike said as they walked into the main room. It was early so the girls were probably still in bed; the room wasn’t occupied anyway.

  “I can wake up Inessa,” Yakov offered. The redhead was Mike’s “regular” although he switched around to keep all the girls in spending money. Even the cold-eyed blonde who was good in bed, but a maven for tips. The problem with screwing her, though, was every time Mike got it stuck in he was half afraid there’d be a razor waiting for him. The girl was just trouble. He’d seen it in how she treated the other girls and even Yakov, who apparently had no control over her.

  “Not right now,” Mike said. “The reason I stopped by is that I’m going to have some visitors. They’re going to be staying for a while. Now, I could send them to town for the joys, but I’d rather not. Nothing against your house; it’s a security issue. What I’d like to do is borrow some of the girls for the time they’re here.”

  “You mean rent I hope,” Yakov said, his eyes narrowing. “Borrow is a different meaning.”

  “Rent then,” Mike said, sighing. “And they’re going to have to help with some stuff around the house, especially with everyone that’s going to be there. Actually, I’d like to leave just one with you, maybe Katya, and take the other four.”

  “If you take Katya it’s a deal,” Yakov said. “I’ll keep Esfir. If your friends get tired of the other girls, you will perhaps send them up here?”

  “Be sure of it,” Mike said. “The guys are arriving week after next. Go ahead and send the girls over middle of next week.”

  He left the brothel whistling. Having the girls around would keep the troops happy and he wouldn’t have to go visit the girls in this crappy “house.” He should have done this a long time ago.

  He stopped whistling as he realized he was going to be letting Katya in his house. That wasn’t going to be fun. But he could handle her. And if she couldn’t be handled, well, there was a backhoe arriving on Monday.

  * * *

  “Father Kulcyanov,” Mike said, shaking the old man’s hand, then going on to the other elders. “It is good to see you,” he continued, louder, looking over the crowd of Keldara gathered outside the houses, “all of you.”

  There was a cold wind blowing but not as cold as it had been, and it was blowing from the south. The temperature was well above freezing and the ground was slushy and nasty. But it was Monday. He stepped back onto the dais so he could see the whole group and nodded.

  “When I first spoke to you, I said that I would promise nothing,” Mike said, reaching down and hitting the transmit button on the radio at his side twice. “I said you would have to see what I would do. Last week, the men of the Keldara helped unload two containers of material. This gear is now housed in the caravanserai until trainers arrive. But they could see what was in the boxes. Uniforms, boots, ammunition vests, communications, guns and ammunition. All of the things that we will need to make this valley secure from any threat.”

  He paused as there was a brief buzz and didn’t look over his shoulder as the buzz got louder and people began pointing behind him excitedly.

  “But there is more to this valley than its security,” Mike continued as he heard the sound of truck engines revving on the flat. “This is a farm, first and foremost, and a far
m cannot function without tools. So now you see the other side of what I have not promised, but have been able to deliver.”

  He stepped down as the first of the tractor trailers negotiated the turn into the valley and then kept going down into the flats. He’d had the Keldara plow and gravel a large area, completely mystifying them, but it now gave the six tractor trailers room to maneuver into place.

  Two were car carriers loaded with pickup trucks and SUVs, red diesel F-350 flaresides and black diesel Expeditions. The others were loaded with tractors, including one monster for pulling a combination harvester. The combine was going to be delivered later since there hadn’t been enough trucks to bring everything at once. There was also a large container truck that pulled in next to them.

  Mike joined the group of Keldara that crowded forward to see the arriving equipment and smiled at their talk. The equipment was a big hit.

  He smiled even more broadly when Genadi pulled up in a big black Expedition.

  “Good to see you, Genadi,” Mike said as the farm manager got out of the SUV.

  “Yours is the first to be unloaded,” Genadi said, pointing at one of the car carriers as the driver got out and started undoing the chains.

  “Just getting this stuff unloaded is going to be a chore,” Mike said. “Especially the container vehicle.”

  “There is a forklift in it,” Genadi said, smiling. “The equipment is on pallets. A bit more expensive but we should be able to get it unloaded quickly.”

  There was more than tractors on the flatbeds; they were loaded down with attachments. As it turned out, even with the willing help of the Keldara it took more time to unload the flatbeds than the rest of the material combined and when all the equipment was down off the trucks and the trucks were gone, Mike shook his head.

  “I need to see the elders,” Mike said. “And Oleg for Kulcyanov.”

  When the group was gathered Mike waved at the equipment.

  “There is one forty-horsepower tractor for each family,” Mike said. “Most of them have a forklift attachment, a dozer blade, a bush-hog, a hay cutter and a couple of other minor attachments. Spread them out to your houses and barns. The big tractor is for the farm in general; there will be a harvester and some planting devices delivered next week. Each family gets a truck and an SUV. The SUVs are for the fathers so they can move around and they can let people use them as they wish with one exception: they are also for the use of the militia when we get it going. The militia has first call on the SUVs. The pallets have general tools that Genadi thought would be of use. There are shovels, hoes, axes, chainsaws and other items. Distribute them equally among you. Yes, I own them, but you are to use them as you would use your own tools. Use them to cut wood until we can do something better for heat, use them in your gardens. Do not think that this is debt; you will surely use them in service of the farm in general as well.”

  “Kildar,” Father Shaynav said, nodding at him. “We thank you for these items.”

  “If the farm has good tools, good seeds and good people, it will prosper,” Mike said. “There was no way that we’d be able to make anything better without the proper tools. Next week the trainers will be arriving. They will take a few weeks getting acquainted and looking at the land to figure out where to do training and some projects I have in mind. With the tractors many of the young men will be available for training even during planting. When the trainers get here I’ll come up with a schedule and get it to you. While we are still unable to work the fields, however, we’ll start introductory weapons training with some of the Keldara. I’ll run it, starting tomorrow,” he said, handing Oleg a sheet of paper.

  “That is a list of the first group to be trained,” Mike said. “I would like to see those men at the caravanserai tomorrow morning about nine. Genadi has another list of Keldara who will start training with the tractors tomorrow. Put the gear away today and I will meet with those men tomorrow.”

  Chapter Eleven

  “Oleg, Vil, Pavel, Sawn, Padrek, Yosif,” Mike said, shaking hands with the group when they got to the caravanserai. Each was from a different Family and each had shown enough intelligence and initiative in the time he’d known them that they might make good leaders for the militia. “We need to get some gear and set up some stuff. Petro has some wood to set up target boards. For today, we’ll probably just work on setting up the range up here. Oleg, you brought the Kulcyanov tractor with the posthole attachment and a wagon?”

  “I did,” Oleg said, his normally somber mien breaking into a grin for a moment. “I liked driving it.”

  “We rode up in the wagon,” Vil added. “I felt as if I was being lazy.”

  “There will be work enough today,” Mike said.

  There was a cargo door to the cellars on the north side and Mike led them down to the cellars, then over to it.

  “Oleg, get the tractor and bring it around,” Mike said, looking at the pile of material he’d gathered near the opening. “We’ll start hauling this stuff up.”

  “What is this?” Vil asked as he picked up a large and heavy cardboard box.

  “Steel target system,” Mike said. “You’ll see. I should have gotten Dutov up here.”

  They loaded up the tractor, then hauled all the material over to the long lawn on the south side.

  “I’m going to want to berm all these walls eventually,” Mike said, directing Oleg over to the wall. “But this one will be first. It’s going to take a beating in the meantime.”

  He started setting up the range, occasionally consulting a layout he’d drawn. On the west side he dropped steel targets for a pistol range along with the materials for a rolling target system, then set out more target materials for a rifle range on the east. The rifle range was only going to be about sixty meters long, which wasn’t nearly enough, but it would do for “around the house” practice.

  Using the posthole digger attachment on tractor they set up wooden target stands and settled the bases of the steel targets. Both of them they set in concrete from bags of Quikrete Mike had gotten from the hardware store. It took most of the day to finish setting up the range to Mike’s satisfaction, including having Sawn and Padrek set up shooting tables from raw boards. As with any project, they had to go back to the house for stuff Mike had forgotten and at one point he sent Pavel to the hardware store for more Quikrete and nails.

  By the end of the day, though, they had a decent fixed range to shoot at.

  “Okay,” Mike said as the sun was going down. “Back here tomorrow at nine to start classes in weapons.”

  “We can be here earlier, Kildar,” Vil pointed out. “We are up at dawn.”

  “So am I,” Mike said. “Running. Nine.”

  * * *

  Mike was shaved, showered and fed when the Keldara turned up. In addition to the six that had been there before, Oleg had brought another Keldara, an older man, maybe forty or fifty although it was difficult to tell with the Keldara, who was thin and hard looking.

  “Lasko has some experience with shooting,” Oleg said. “I hope you don’t mind me bringing him. He is very good.”

  “Most of the time you have to retrain people who think they can shoot,” Mike said. “But we’ll see. Let’s head down to the cellars.”

  Most of the weapons were still in boxes and Mike had dragged a couple out of the locked storeroom where they were secured.

  “This is the basic weapon that the militia will be issued,” Mike said, cracking the seal on the wooden box and opening it up to reveal some silver pouches, each with the outline of an automatic rifle. “They used to ship these things in Cosmoline, which is a bitch and a half to take off. Fortunately, just about everybody’s gone to vacuum pack these days.”

  He pulled out one of the pouches and slit it, pulling out an AK variant.

  “This is the Skoda AKMS,” Mike said, jacking the slide back and checking the barrel. “Anybody know what I just did?”

  “Checked to see if there was a bullet in it,” Lasko said.


  “A round, yeah,” Mike corrected. “A bullet is the little lead and copper bit that kills. A round is the shell, propellant and bullet. Any time you get handed a weapon, the first thing you do is check the breach.” He closed the breach and tossed the weapon to Oleg.

  Oleg lifted the weapon in interest and started to rotate it.

  “Oleg,” Mike snapped. “What’s the first thing you do?”

  “You didn’t find anything, Kildar,” Oleg said, puzzled.

  “It doesn’t matter,” Mike said. “Check. The. Chamber.”

  Oleg jacked the slide back and a round came flying out.

  The Keldara muttered a curse that Mike didn’t quite catch and looked at the Kildar angrily.

  “I palmed a round and dropped it in when I was closing the chamber,” Mike said. “It’s a very old trick. But I bet you’ll never forget to check it again. Everybody grab one of the rifles and get them out of the foil.”

  The other six got their weapons out and Mike was pleased that all of them checked the chambers as soon as they were clear of the foil.

  “Okay, set them down for now and let’s get some ammo,” Mike said.

  The ammunition was stored in another locked room and Mike pulled out a couple of cases of 7.62x39 along with a case of magazines.

  “Let’s go,” Mike said when they had all the materials.

  They headed up to the range and loaded mags, then laid the guns out without mags in the well.

  “The way the military teaches about weapons is to have you learn everything about them first, live with them, sleep with them, strip and clean them and then, maybe, they let you shoot them,” Mike said. “I think they go about it all wrong. Earplugs,” he said, handing them out. “Always wear earplugs if you can; shooting will take away your hearing in a heartbeat. Now, one thing you have to do with a weapon is zero it. Everybody shoots differently, so every weapon has to be zeroed to their particular form. Oleg, you first.”