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still just as bad, only now they’re surely pissed off and desperate. We could dig from our end to help them. And as soon as we broke them free we would probably be rewarded for our kindness with a bullet to the head. And what would that solve?
         “And even if we did rescue them, then what? We couldn’t just let them go. They’ve seen what we have and they want it. And they’re probably the type of me n who’d try to exact revenge upon us. If we let them go, they’d just rebuild, find more men. And then they’d come back at us even stronger. Only this time they’d know the layout of the compound, and know not to go into any tunnels.”
         Hannah gave up.
         “I know all that. And I know we couldn’t keep them prisoner for the rest of their lives. It’s just that… well, I don’t feel it’s our place to act as their executioners. That’s all.”
         She started to cry, and Mark wrapped his arms around her.
         “Honey, don’t you worry about those men. They signed their own death warrants when they stepped into that tunnel with the intent of killing us. We have the upper hand now, and we’re going to use it to reduce their numbers. Whenever you feel pangs of guilt, just remember John’s words. He was a cop for a very long time. He knows what he’s talking about.”
         He wiped her tears.
         “Honey, our son survived what could have been a terrible confrontation. He will live to see another day. And I’m sure he’s worried about you. And me. Why don’t you go get the children and the rest of the adults and tell them it’s safe to come out of hiding now. And tell Markie his Daddy loves him, okay?”
         Hannah’s tears kept flowing, but she didn’t argue. She nodded her head and headed to the back recesses of the mine.
         “Is she going to be okay?” Sami asked.
         “Yes. I knew from the beginning that she’d struggle with this. But she’ll be okay. It would help if you and Sarah spent some time with her. I sense that she needs to talk it out with someone who will listen to her arguments, and she knows my mind is made up.”
         “Well, my mind is made up as well, but I’ll let her cry on my shoulder. She’s like a flower when she’s stressed. So delicate, so sensitive. But she’s got a good head on her shoulders. She’ll agree with us in the end.”
         John said to Sami, “Go ahead, sweetie. Go find her and be there for her. I’ll have somebody relieve Sarah so she can join you.
         “And I think we need to keep her away from thes e monitors for the next day or two. It should be a moot point after that.”
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 6
     
         On Buena Vista Drive in north San Antonio, Frank Woodard had no idea of the troubles his friend John faced at the mine.
         Frank had met John while on a hunting trip near Salt Mountain. John had watched that day on his security monitor, as Frank drew a bead on a majestic white tailed buck just outside the compound’s walls.
         But Frank didn’t fire. As John watched him lower his weapon, he wondered why.
         And John, being a retired police detective and a curious man by nature, went outside the gates to ask him.
         “As desperate as my people are for protein, this is the only surviving buck I’ve seen. I’m afraid it may be the last one in the area. If I shoot it, I may doom the deer population in these parts to extinction. It was a beautiful animal, and it pained me to let it go. But I felt I had to.”
         The men became fast friends. Frank was also a retired lawman, and they had much in common.
         John made sure that Frank didn’t go back to San Antonio empty handed that day. To compensate him for the protein he’d given up when he lowered his rifle, he was given several chickens to take back with him.
         Later, they also