Claimed by the Biker Giant (Maxine and Tank) novel Chapter 204

Tank POV

Don was ready to send us on our way, a smile on his face, knowing he had trained professionals on the job. I double-checked our radio before leaving and got the thumbs-up from Don. Each team was given four sections to start on. Ours was map reference forty to forty-four. We started at forty-four, being the farthest away, and would work backwards.

It was hard work getting to our starting point; I slipped a few times on the wet ground, hurt my thigh, but couldn’t stop. Our pace was slower than would have liked. But as I was always told, more haste, less speed. We will get there.

We were puffing hard, having almost finished the sweep of the first grid, we were calling out different boys’ names, hoping one would respond to their name, and we were glad one section was cleared. That was when the call came in, they think they found them, and we changed our direction, heading towards that grid, we could hear the chopper, and headed for a break in the trees, to get a better idea where to go, we could see someone being lowered to the ground, I would say by the size of him, it was Bruiser. He was buffeted by the wind and rain as he was lowered, but managed to make it safely, disappearing into the trees. Savage kept the chopper, more or less steady, not bad considering the conditions, his experience shining through.

We had lights on our heads, lighting up the way, as might started to descend on us.

“We need to go around this small stream, not through it,” I suggested, and the guys followed my lead. It took a bit longer, but it would be stupid to go through the stream, knowing we have had a lot of rain; in a very short time, the stream can turn nto a torrent, and you don’t want to be stuck in it when that happens.

Crying was the first clue we were close, and as much as it was tempting to pick up the pace, I held them back; the rocks in this area were unstable. We were on a slight incline, and one slip could have you tumbling down. Not only would you slide down a fair way, but the rocks would dislodge and tumble down with you, causing more damage to yourself and anyone who fell with you.

Bruiser’s voice was heard next, not too far ahead, using a soothing voice to calm the boys, who appeared to know who he was. Which might be why Fixer chose him to be on the chopper. She knows a lot more about the people around her than I do, and I have been his friend for years, but I had never seen this side of him before.

We broke through to see Jenny busy with the teacher; he looked bad, a branch sticking out of his stomach, and he had bled a lot. A makeshift tent was over him, keeping the rain off him. They had lights set up so they could work on the injured; the chopper had two beams directed down on the area. One looked to be handheld, as it moved around, shining on different sections.

“What do you need us to do?” I asked, Dale, as Bruiser was busy with another child, a broken leg, by the look of it, and two other children, who were sobbing, had broken limbs too; one had his head bleeding, and Dale was busy attending to it.

“We started to make a clearing, but it needs to be larger. Can you clear it for us? These four need to be airlifted; the teacher might not make it.” He said in a lower tone, hiding the truth from the children.

“Mr. Tank, Mr. Tank, we got stuck. Thank you for coming to get us.” Bobby, a lad I had known since he was born, came to give me a hug, and I let him.

“Need to let go now, Bobby. I got to clear some trees, so you hurt friends, and the teacher can get on the helicopter.” He let me go and stood back, his tears still falling, but he was looking interested in what we were doing.

“Here.” I offered him a chocolate bar I had stashed in my jacket. He took it and joined his friends, breaking the bar and sharing it with them, surprising me with his generosity.

The chopper’s beam was lighting up the area we were working on, making it easier, and my thigh was killing me. I was going to pay for it tomorrow.

children. As they ran to their parents, or limped in some cases, they would need to be checked out

by the medical staff, but most should be able to go home. With stories to tell, the kids at school.

“Don, any news on the teacher?” The chopper would have made it to the hospital long before we emerged with the boys.

“In surgery as we speak, was still alive last I heard. The town needs a lot of work, but teams are busy working on it, and heavy machinery has arrived to clear the roads of fallen trees.

We threw our gear into the back of my truck and turned to go into town. We stopped often to clear the road, making it safer, clearing logs, broken branches, and fallen rocks that we had driven around on our way up, because we were in too much of a hurry to stop and clear it completely. took nearly an hour of back-breaking work to make it to town, where we stopped for a break and something to eat. It was late, night had hit hours ago, and I should be in bed by now.

“Go home, get some rest, come back tomorrow. Those whose homes are damaged stay overnight in the civic center, and we will see what we can do in the light of day.” The chief coordinator shouted on a megaphone; the response to that call wasn’t cheers from the workers, just bone-tired relief.

Tired and happy to comply, we made it back, but still no chopper, even though I wanted to wait for Fixer to come home, by the time I had showered and lay down in bed to wait, sleep and exhaustion won, and I fell asleep.