by Eric Vall
“Get down!” I yelled, but before I could even finish the command, the guy went down after one final spray of bullets, and I looked over to see Bailey giving me a thumbs up.
“Clear the building,” I shouted, and the girls all ran toward the front door, except for Bailey; she stayed in the tree with her eye in her scope.
I stepped over the man with the AK and went inside and flanked to the right, Anna flanked left, Paige right, and Tara left.
The house had a terrible stench of rotten eggs and citrus, and I felt my nose crinkle as I scanned the area. The living room was clear, but the walls were lined with poorly taxidermied animal heads, and the eyes followed me as I moved around the room.
“Bedroom,” Anna whispered, and she nodded to a door to her left.
I nodded at the redhead, and she kicked the door open and burst in. There was nobody inside, but the smell of nasty, sweaty sex assaulted my nostrils. I quickly closed the door and moved to the next room, again there was nobody inside, and this one had a smell all its own, it was like salt mixed with wet dog.
“What the fuck is going on with this house?” Tara asked, and I turned to look at her expression of repulsion.
“Right,” Paige agreed. “It’s like each room smells worse than the last.”
“Yeah,” Anna agreed. “Was that the last room?”
“I believe so,” I said. “But let’s do one final sweep before we head out.”
“Okay,” the redhead said, and we all dispersed once more and double checked that there were no others around.
Just then I heard the crack of Bailey’s rifle and I ran toward the door to see a young man that looked exactly like the Blondie Tara had taken down earlier. The man was clutching his stomach, so I ran over to him and grabbed him by his hair.
“Who else is out here?” I hissed.
“Nobody,” the man breathed. “Please don’t kill me.”
“Are you lying to me?” I asked, and I felt my jaw clench.
“No,” the Blondie twin said, and I saw that he had started to cry. “Everybody else is dead.”
“What about scouts in the woods?” I asked.
“I was watching the old man’s house,” he cried. “But nobody came to get me so I went to the college and I saw… you killed everybody.”
The man trailed off with a ridiculous sob, and I shook my head and unsheathed my tanto blade.
I put the blade through the underside of his chin and up through his brain. His eyes went wide and still, and I removed my knife and let his body drop to the ground.
“Good shot, Bailey,” I yelled.
“Thanks,” the blonde called, and she hopped down from the tree. “Is it all clear inside?”
“Yeah,” I said, and I looked over to Briar and saw that he was still passed out in the chair. “Shit.”
“I’m on it,” Paige said, and she ran over to the old man.
“He’s still breathing,” Bailey called out since she had gotten there first.
Paige and Bailey untied the old farmer, and as the brunette checked over the old man, he started to stir.
“What the hell happened?” Briar asked, confusedly, and he looked around at my group.
“You got taken by crazy ass hillbillies,” Tara told him.
“I knew that,” Briar grunted, but then he took a deep, steadying breath. “I’m guessing y’all saved me?”
“You’d be guessing right,” Anna said.
“Well, thank you,” the old man said with a nod.
“How do you feel?” Paige asked.
“I’m alright,” the old farmer said, and he tried to wave her off.
“It’s important to be honest,” I told him. “Is there anywhere that hurts?”
“No,” he said, and he shook his head. “I’m sore, but I’m more hungry than anything.”
“How long has it been since you had water?” Paige asked.
“I got a drink yesterday,” Briar said. “But that was it.”
“Fuck,” Paige said, and she reached into her backpack and pulled out a bottle of water. “Drink slowly.”
“Thanks,” Briar said, and he tipped the bottle up.
“Let’s get you to Marla,” I said, and my eyebrows pinched together. I knew the old man said he was fine, but I’d rather he be checked out.
“Usually I’d say I don’t need a doctor,” Briar sighed, and he wiped water from his mouth. “But I’m too weak to protest at the moment.”
“Good,” Bailey told him with a smile, and she helped him up.
“We’ll come back here tomorrow and go through things,” I said. “Right now we need to get Briar to the Miller’s house.”
“Let’s go,” Anna commanded.
Bailey and I each took one of Briar’s arms and helped him walk. It was already late afternoon, and the sun would be going down soon, so we needed to get him to the Miller’s quickly. Nighttime in the woods was cold and full of danger, and I figured the old farmer had had enough excitement for a year.
We maneuvered through the boobytraps and started the walk toward the Miller’s. I wasn’t fully confident in where the farm was, but I knew the general direction to head toward and I had my compass, so I led the way with Briar and Bailey next to me.
The sun began to set while we walked, and by the time we reached the Miller’s, it was fully dark. The only way I could see the farmhouse was through some small cracks in the drapes in the windows.
“Anna,” I said. “Run down there and let them know it’s us.”
“On it,” the redhead said, and she took off toward the house.
I waited for her to call out that we were in the clear, then we made our way out of the tree line and down the hill toward the farm house.
“Oh, Briar,” Marla said as we approached the house, and she ran toward us.
“He seems okay,” Paige said. “But we thought you should check him out.”
“Come on,” Marla said. “Bring him inside.”
“Don’t make a fuss, woman,” Briar griped, but Marla waved him off and opened the door for us.
We brought Briar inside and set him on the couch, and Marla started to look him over, with Paige watching her every move.
“So, how did it go?” Justin asked from behind me, so I turned around to face him.
“It went well,” I said with a smile.
“Well, you got Briar back,” the black haired man said, and he smiled at me. “That’s all that matters.”
“Yeah,” Bailey said. “We got him back and took out the people who had him.”
“Sounds like a long day,” Justin chuckled, then he looked past me to where Marla worked on the old farmer on the couch. “I know that he’s a grumpy old man, but he’s family. Thank you for getting him back.”
“He’s our family too now,” I said, and I placed a hand on Justin’s shoulder.
“I’m sure Marla can take it from here,” Justin said. “You all should head home.”
“Actually,” Anna said, and she bit her lip. “Could we trouble you for a ride?”
“Of course,” Justin said, but his eyebrows pulled together.
“We walked to the house in the woods where Briar was,” I clarified.
“Okay,” the black haired man said. “Whenever you’re ready.”
“Paige,” I said. “Are you ready to go?”
“Do you need my help?” the brunette asked Marla.
“No, dear,” Marla told her with a smile. “You go ahead.”
“I’m going to take them home,” Justin said, and he gave his wife a kiss.
“Be safe,” Marla said, then she turned her attention back to Briar.
“Good to have you back,” Justin told the old farmer.
“Good to be back,” Briar said softly. “Now, can somebody get me some whiskey?”
“I’m sure Marla can get you some once you have a clean bill of health,” Justin chuckled, then he headed outside, and the rest of us followed.
“Would you mind if we swing
by Betty’s?” I asked. “I just want to let her know that the threat has been eliminated.”
“Of course,” Justin said, and he fired up the engine of the old truck. “We appreciate everything you all do.”
“Don’t worry about it,” I said. “Like I said before, you’re all our family now.”
The black haired man smiled at me, then he headed down the driveway and turned onto the road.
I rolled down my window as we drove and breathed in the cool night air. The sky was full of stars, and it smelled like it might rain once more, but I was just glad to have all of my tribe safe.
We pulled up into Betty’s driveway, and I waved my hand out the window and saw Betty come out from the house.
“Is everything okay?” the old woman asked, and she came rushing to the passenger door before I had a chance to get out.
“Everything is fine,” I assured her. “I wanted to let you know that we took out the people in the woods.”
“All of them?” Betty asked. “You’re sure?”
“Yes,” I told her. “Nobody will be watching you tonight.”
“Thank you,” Betty said, and she put her hand on my cheek, then she turned to all the girls. “Thank you all.”
“You don’t need to thank us,” Anna said.
“But if you did want to, we will gladly accept thanks in the form of bread,” Tara said, and we all chuckled.
“I’ll make you as much bread as you want,” Betty laughed, and she wiped away a tear. “I’m just happy to be rid of those people. I was so worried about my grandkids.”
“I understand,” I said with a soft smile. “You can sleep well tonight.”
“Thank you, Tav,” Betty said, and she smiled back at me, then she looked around the truck once more. “Where’s Rolly?”
“He’s on guard at the campus,” Bailey said.
“Oh,” Betty said with a frown. “Well go home and let him know I love him.”
“Sure thing,” Paige said, and she smiled at the woman.
“And if it’s not too much trouble I’d like to see him tomorrow sometime,” she said.
“No trouble at all,” I said. “We’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Okay,” Betty said. “Be safe.”
I smiled at the old woman and Justin gave her a wave before he turned the car around and headed back down the driveway.
The drive home was short, but I enjoyed the sight of the well-lit sky, and the sound of the girls breathing next to me, their breath was long and leisurely from their adrenaline crash, and I couldn’t wait to get them all home.
We pulled up to the campus, and I saw Rolly and Winchester on the roof waving at us.
“Thank you, Justin,” I said as I hopped out of the truck.
“No,” he said, and he shook his head. “Thank you.”
“We’ll check in tomorrow about Briar,” I said.
“He’s in good hands.” Justin grinned.
“I know.” I smiled and I closed the door after we were all out, then I waved to Justin, and he took off down the driveway.
“I’m guessing it went well,” Rolly called down, and Winchester let out two quick barks.
“Fuck yeah it did,” Tara hollered up.
“I’ll come down and let you all in,” the old man chuckled, and he disappeared.
The girls started to head toward the dorm building, but I stopped them and pulled them back to me and wrapped my arms around them all.
“Tav,” Anna chuckled against my chest. “Are you getting sentimental on us?”
“I’m just happy to be home with all of you,” I said, and I kissed each of them on the top of their heads.
“It is good to be home,” Bailey said, and she snuggled against my shoulder.
“I feel like I got a bad spot in this hug,” Tara pouted, then she squeezed through the other girls and ignored their protests as she squirmed right up against me. “That’s better.”
“You are so selfish,” Paige chuckled.
“You’re just mad that you didn’t think of it first,” Tara laughed.
“I have plenty of hugs for each of you,” I said.
“So sentimental,” Anna said, and she rolled her eyes, then she leaned over to kiss me on the cheek.
Just then Rolly opened the dorm building door, and Winchester bolted over to us and jumped on the group. We all went down in a tumble of laughter as he pranced around to each of us and licked our faces.
“Whoops,” Rolly chuckled. “Maybe I should’ve warned you.”
“Nah,” Bailey said, and she stood up and laughed.
Everyone else headed into the building, but I grabbed Anna by the arm so she hung back with me.
“What’s up?” the redhead asked, and she looked to the dorm building door that was closing behind the others.
“I need to talk to you,” I said.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, and her eyebrows pinched together.
“What you did today was dangerous,” I said seriously.
“That was kind of the point,” Anna said with a wry smile.
“You could have gotten yourself hurt,” I sighed. “Or someone else.”
“What do you mean?” she asked. “I was the one fighting him.”
“Yeah,” I said. “But what if you had distracted one of the other girls? Or if you had gotten injured, you know Paige would have ran over to help.”
“Yeah,” Anna said, and she looked down. “I hadn’t thought about that.”
“I need you to be a good leader and set a good example for the other girls,” I told her. “If Tara, Bailey, or Paige had tried to engage that man, you would have yelled at them for not using their gun and taking him out at a safe distance. You know better.”
“You’re right,” the redhead sighed. “I wasn’t a very good team player today.”
“No.” I shook my head. “You weren’t.”
“I just wanted more of a challenge,” she said. “I just wanted to use my knife skills, I didn’t think.”
“Nobody got hurt today,” I said. “So don’t be too hard on yourself.”
“But they could have gotten hurt,” Anna said, and she looked like she was about to cry. “If they had gotten hurt because of me I would never forgive myself.”
“I know,” I said, and I pulled her close to me.
“I’m so sorry,” the redhead sobbed into my chest.
“I know you are,” I said, and I kissed the top of her head. “And I know you won’t do it again. That’s what matters.”
“Why aren’t you furious with me?” she asked, and she looked up at me with teary eyes.
“Because you’re still learning,” I told her with a soft smile. “We all make mistakes, the important thing is not to make the same mistake twice.”
“I won’t,” Anna said hurriedly, and she wiped a tear away.
“I know you won’t,” I said. “Now don’t let this ruin your victory today. Let’s head upstairs.”
“Okay.” The redhead nodded, and I leaned down to give her a kiss.
We headed into the building and up to the roof where everyone else was.
“Where did you guys go?” Tara asked as we took our seats.
“We were just talking,” I said.
“Okay,” the platinum blonde said, but she raised her eyebrows at us.
“Do you want a drink?” Bailey asked, and she handed us some cups.
“I think we earned one,” Paige said as she set the bottle of flavored vodka down with a grin.
“I would say so,” I said.
“Especially Anna and Bailey,” Paige said. “You two were awesome today.”
“Excuse you,” Tara sneered playfully. “I stabbed a guy in the dick today, I think I deserve an awesome.”
“You all did awesome,” I laughed.
“Yeah,” Paige said with a nod. “But Anna took out the dad with a knife which was totally badass.”
“That was pretty good,” Tara agreed as she poured herself a drink.
<
br /> “It was difficult,” Anna said, but she looked down, and I could tell she was still upset from our talk. “I thought about using my gun but I really wanted to use my knife.”
“It worked out,” I told her with a smile. “But you always had the option of your gun, and I’m glad you knew that.”
“Hang on just a second,” Rolly said, and he looked incredibly confused. “Tara, did you just say you stabbed a man in the genitals?”
“Dick,” Tara clarified seriously. “Yeah, I stabbed him in the dick.”
“Remind me to stay on your good side,” the old man chuckled.
“Just keep making me coffee, and you’ve got nothing to worry about,” the platinum blonde said with a wink.
“It was unnerving,” I said, and I poured myself a drink. “She took the guy down with a shot to the gut and when he started pleading with her, she gave him a swift stab to his junk.”
“That does sound unnerving,” Rolly chuckled.
“Yeah,” Tara said. “But Paige is right, Anna was a beast with her knife today. And Bailey took out the guy that opened fire on us, we could all be dead without her.”
“I was just doing my part,” Bailey said with a soft smile, but even in the dim light I could see that she was blushing.
“Don’t sell yourself short,” Anna told the blonde. “You kicked major ass today.”
“Yeah,” Bailey said. “But you and Tara get so close, I’m kinda jealous I can’t do that.”
“Don’t you think we’ve all been jealous of your sniping skills, like, forever?” Tara asked with a raised brow.
“Your talents are just as valuable,” I told the blonde with a smile. “And the fact that you each have different skills is what makes you all a wonderful team.”
“It sounds like you all did great today,” Rolly said. “I’m really proud of all of you.”
“Thanks Rolly,” Bailey said, and she grinned at the old man.
“How’s Briar?” Rolly asked.
“He’s alright,” Paige said. “He’s at the Miller’s right now, Marla is checking him out.”
“Good,” the old man said with a nod.
“I propose a toast,” Tara said, and she raised her cup of vodka. “To being a badass.”
“Mmmm,” Anna groaned, and she cocked her head to the side.
