Maria looked at Bob for a moment, then turned to Kathy.

"Is he still using anything for pain?"

Kathy smiled, shook her head and said. "No, we stopped that over a week ago. What he is saying comes from him, not medication."

Maria turned back to Bob. "Of course I'll marry you, you goof. I was beginning to think I would have to propose."

"You don't mind sharing the day with Alex and Michelle?"

"Not a bit." Looking up at Alex, she said. "What are you grinning about?"

"Oh, I was just wondering. Does this mean I'm marrying my sister?"

It was a couple of days later when Michelle caught up with Bob, in the underground room at Todd's' home.

"Bob? What are you doing down here? Planning on blowing up something?"

"Hi Michelle. Not really. At least I hope not. I was just looking around to see what Todd was up to. You never know, something he was doing down here just might prove to be useful."

"How so?"

"Oh explosives have many uses. They used to use them to create avalanches on ski slopes, so that it would be safe for skiers. You know, knock down the extra snow and ice, so that it doesn't turn loose at the wrong time hand hurt people. That sort of thing."

"I see. Bob, can I ask you a couple of personal questions?"

"Certainly. That doesn't mean I'll answer, but you can ask."

"I think you will. When you found out, I mean about the baby, why weren't you upset?"

"My Dear, that isn't entirely correct. I confess, I was disturbed by the fact that you and Alex had been doing what you shouldn't have been doing. At least not before marriage. But the truth is that it was a little late to worry about it. Maybe you two shouldn't have done it, but you did. Now it is the two of you that will have to live with the results. I'll also say that given the fact we are in the end times, I question the wisdom of having a child, but again, it is too late to worry about that. You are going to have a child, and that is that. You and Alex clearly love each other, and a child, or children, is the usual result of such love. But I would have preferred it if you had waited."

"I'm glad you're not the kind to get all stuffy about it. And you're right, we should have waited. But at the time, we didn't have a preacher to marry us, and we do love each other. We just didn't know if there was a way we could have gotten married, and we didn't see a reason to wait, under the circumstances. We didn't plan on this, but we aren't upset that it happened. Would you tell me something else?"

"Go ahead."

"Everybody calls me 'Mike' except you. For awhile, I thought you didn't like me or something. So why don't you?"

Bob smiled. "I'll tell you a secret. I've always loved the name 'Michelle'. If Alex had been a girl, that was the name Nancy and I would have given her. So that is the reason. If you find it offensive, I'll change, but I simply prefer 'Michelle' over the nick name of 'Mike'."

"No, I'm not offended, I was just wondering. One other thing, if you don't mind. Are you going to expect me to call you Dad, after we all get married?"

"That is up to you, Dear. I wouldn't expect you to do that just because I'm marrying your mother. You have a life time of memories with John. I can't ask you to give that up for me."

---

Since Tim was obviously older than Alex, and other young men in the group, it was decided that to pull off the guard act successfully, he couldn't be a Sargent, so here worn captains bars while he manned the checkpoint. As he watched yet another person approach the check point, he thought back on how far he had come since it had all started.

He and Kathy had a nice home, in a nice area of town. Their lives really had been the American ideal. Well to do, if not really rich. Four fine children, who were doing well in school, and the older boys looking foreword to learning how to drive. They had been active in their church, the Boy Scouts, and various activities around their area. They felt so safe, so secure, that they didn't even own a gun. He shook his head when he realized that all of that, which seemed a life time ago, had in fact been less than a year. When they started out on the road, there had been seven of them. Now in this little out of the way town, their group had grown to something like forty-five to fifty people.

He had changed. Back then, they didn't want their children anywhere near a firearm. Now here he was, impersonating a military officer at a check point, and Kathy had decided that it was time for the younger two of their children to start learning how to shoot, and hunt.

He put the thoughts aside, as this newcomer got closer to him.

"Good morning friend." the man called.

"Hello. Can I help you?"

"I certainly hope so, my good Captain. I've heard there is a place up ahead where people like myself might be welcome."

"People like you? What does that mean?"

"Oh, you know. Fellow travelers on this highway of life. People who don't believe these so-called 'space brothers' aren't quite what they claim to be? I'm Brother Winston, by the way."

"Well, 'Brother' do you have a problem reading? Danger and death are waiting down that road. Don't you see the sign?"

"I've heard that not everyone that comes this way is turned back. They continue on to the place I spoke of."

"It's not my job to stop anyone, just to warn them. You want to keep going, then go on. Just be aware nobody is going to try to recover your body."

"I'm a man of faith, Captain. I have no fear."

"Man of faith? Are you one of those Christians?"

Brother Winston didn't answer at first, he only smiled broadly at Tim. Then he continued. "Captain, you know as well as I do that anyone claiming to be one of them can be killed on sight. If I were one, do you believe me so foolish as to admit it?"

"Look, 'Brother', I couldn't care less what you may or may not believe. You want to go down this road, then go. At least you can't say you weren't warned."

"Thank you Captain. I shall continue my journey." With that 'Brother Winston' walked past Tim and continued his trek. While his 'Brother Winston' had his back to Tim, he signaled Alex in the snipers nest, some sixty yards away not to shoot. Shortly after that, he picked up the radio and called in.

"Base. This is the check point. Come in please."

"Base here, go ahead." Bob answered.

"You've got one coming in on foot."

"What do you think?"

"I don't know. He's a strange one. I asked him point blank if he was a Christian, but he didn't give a straight answer. Just kind of danced around the question. All I got out of him was he's a 'fellow traveler'."

"Fellow traveler. Are you sure that is what He said?"

"Certain. He said he was a 'fellow traveler' on the highway of life. Why? Does it mean something?"

"It could. It could be just a poor choice of words. I'll check him out. Thanks. Base out."

Bob turned to Michelle, who was sitting at a desk.

"Who's up for escort duty?"

"Mr. Timmons."

"Find him please. Tell him to meet me at the observation point."

The observation point was a place on the town side of the ridge, where a person could stand upright, and see into the valley below, while most of their body would be hidden by the ridge. With tall brush growing up behind the person, it help to hide even the head from the view of anyone coming into town. It was here that Mike Timmons caught up with Bob.

"What's going on?" He asked.

"There's one coming in on foot. From what I was told by Tim, it doesn't sound good. I want to check him out up here rather than in town."

"I agree. No point in letting him see anything until we're sure about him."

Brother Winston didn't see Bob and mike, until he was almost on top of them. When he did, he stopped suddenly, and smiled at them.

"Good day my friends. You startled me. I didn't see you there. Have I come to the right place?"

"I'd guess that would depend on what you are looking for." Answered Bob.

"True enough. You see, I'm a preacher, and I'm looking for a place of real believers. Fellow travelers, you might say."

"There are believers here, that is for certain." Bob crossed his arms over his chest, and smiled back at Winston. "And on behalf of them I bid you welcome." He then casually raised his right hand and waved at Winston, saying "Hi".

Winston saw the sign Bob made with his hand, and smiled. "It is good to see I'm among friends. Are there many of us here?"

"There are a few here. Would you like me to make the introductions?"

"Oh yes, please do."

"Very well. Meet them in Hell." With that Bob drew his pistol and shot 'Brother Winston' in the chest.

Shocked mike cried, "What are you doing?"

"He was the enemy."

"How could you know that? He seemed alright to me."

"Twice he called himself a 'fellow traveler'. That is a term occultists us to identify each other."

"That doesn't prove anything. It could just be a poor choice of words."

"That's true. I wouldn't be convinced by that alone either. You didn't see the sign I gave him did you?"

Mike shook his head.

"It was this." Bob held up his hand for Mike to see. The index finger and pinkie were pointing straight up, while the two middle fingers were crossed over the palm, along with the thumb. "This is a hand sign used by Satanists to identify one another. When I showed him that sign, he said he was glad to be amongst friends. Any Christian preacher worth his salt knows that sign is Satanic. He wouldn't be glad to see it."

"That's mighty thin, Bob."

"Is it? Lets take a look shall we?"

Bob opened the coat that was on the dead man. In the inside pocket was a list of names. It was very similar to lists that had been found on other infiltraors that had been killed. Mike saw it, and knew Bob was right.

"So where did you learn about that sign?"

"Long time ago. While I was in the service. There was a coven of witches in my unit. They tried to get me to join them. When I refused, they didn't say anything to me, but for the next six months my life was a living hell. Every thing that could go wrong, did. I made sure to remember everything I could about them, and their ways. I thought it might prove to be useful at some point. I guess I was right."


BW, Vietnam Vet