by E. E. Borton
“But we can’t go home until the general is dead,” I said. “It’s that simple for us. You know him well enough to know he’s going to come back for us. He’ll bring every man he has to wipe us out. He’s going to kill our children and everyone we care about. Our towns are full of good people who look out for each other just like yours. We have to stop him from making it back to Signal Mountain.”
“Someone will just take his place,” said Tom. “Killing him isn’t going to stop them from coming after you.”
I sat in silence. I needed to choose my words carefully. If I didn’t, it would cost Tom and Angie their lives.
“You’re right, Tom,” I said. “Someone will be taking his place. Someone we know. Someone who is waiting for us to finish the job.”
“A friend of yours?” asked Angie.
“I wouldn’t go that far,” I said. “But I do think he’s a better man for the job. He’s nothing like Castle either. He seems to be a good man. He gave me his word our towns will be safe. I believe he’s someone we can work with. All of us.”
“Who is he?” asked Tom. “Maybe I know him.”
“Maybe you do,” said JD. “You see the problem with that?”
“Ah,” said Tom, grinning. “You’re not going to tell me who it is unless I untie you and give you your guns back.”
“Wouldn’t be too smart of us to give up that name in our current situation, now would it?” said JD.
“I’m not stupid,” said Tom.
“I know you’re not,” I said. “We kept our word. We didn’t hurt you or take anything from you, and we had plenty of opportunity. Even after you turned on us, we told you about our men and saved your lives and the lives of your children. What else do we have to do to show you that we’re not the bad guys?”
“We take out the general, and our guy takes the throne,” said JD. “We start lookin’ out for each other instead of killin’ each other. You know we have a train and can move food and supplies up and down the line between us and others. We got a real shot at makin’ this place safer for all of us. You two will have a shot at sleepin’ at the same time.”
“Have you ever seen this much snow and ice?” I asked. “Has it ever been this cold?”
“Never,” said Angie. “Never in my life.”
“Mine either,” I said. “It’s only October. It’s just going to get worse. We can’t grow any more food until spring, maybe later. Do you have enough to make it through a long winter? Does your town?”
“We have enough to get by,” said Tom.
“No,” said Angie. “We don’t.”
“Castle is traveling with enough food for a hundred men,” I said. “Do you think he’s going to leave some of it for you? Any of it? With what you have, it would be enough for you to survive the winter. We’ll leave it with you. Would Castle?”
“You would do that for us?” asked Angie.
“Baby, they’ll say anything right now,” said Tom, looking over at Angie, lowering his gun. “If they had their guns, they wouldn’t be offering us anything. You can’t trust them. You can’t trust anyone anymore. How many times do I have to tell –”
As soon as I saw JD tense his shoulders, I lunged for Angie’s gun sitting on the table. When Tom raised his weapon to stop me, JD was on top of him. He pushed Tom’s gun hand into the back of the couch while wrapping his arm around his throat. The cushions muffled the sound of the shot.
JD released his grip on Tom’s throat when he gained control of the gun. Angie reached for hers, but she wasn’t fast enough. As JD and I took a few steps back, Tom covered Angie with his body. I guess he thought we were going to execute them.
“Tom, get off of her,” I said. “She can’t breathe.”
He kept his arms around her, but turned his head to look at us. We had already lowered our guns. Well, their guns.
“How did you –”
“Does it really matter?” I asked. “We’re not going to shoot you.”
“Jury’s still out for me,” said JD. “Kind of a shitty thing, using cake to lure me in.”
“What are you going to do with us?” asked Tom.
“Well,” I said, “for starters, you’re not getting your guns back this time.”
“Nope,” said JD. “You done lost that privilege.”
“Not until we’re gone,” I said. “And to answer your question, Angie, yes, we’re going to leave those supplies for you. Can we all relax now?”
Tom moved in slow motion. He was still trying figure out what had just happened to them. He was still trying to figure out why they were still alive. So was I.
“Jesus Christ,” I said, retaking my seat. “You have no idea how unnecessary all of this was. I can’t believe I’m saying this, Tom, but sometimes you just have to trust people. You have to take them at their word.”
“That’s a big step for him to say that,” said JD, taking his seat as well. “He’s been dealin’ with some trust issues lately.”
“Now we have to deal with another one,” I said. “The militia will be here soon. My trust issues are really going to be put to the test.”
“You think your guy on the inside will be with them?” asked JD.
“We’re in trouble if he isn’t,” I said. “I hope he was smart enough to ask Bear our names.”
“And if he didn’t?” asked JD.
“I’m working on that.”
“I trust you,” said Tom. “I’m sorry I didn’t believe you. I do now. What can we do to help?”
“Too soon, buddy,” I said.
“He’s serious,” said Angie. “I can tell. Let us help you. It’s the least we can do.”
“Sure is,” said JD. “You want me to go fetch the boys? We’re gonna need ‘em.”
“Yeah,” I said. “We are.”
JD stepped out onto the porch. A few moments later, he came back inside with Tucker and Doug. I felt better having them with us, but all I did was bring them into the same sinking boat. At least it gave Tom and Angie more evidence that we were telling the truth.
“These are the guys that woulda killed you,” said JD. “About time you started believing us, huh?”
“Normally, I’d be introduced by my name,” said Doug, extending his hand to Tom. “I’m Doug and this is Tucker.”
“You’re JD’s brother?” asked Angie.
“Told you he was,” said JD. “Damn.”
“He’s still pissed,” I said. “They have trust issues like me.”
“Nobody has trust issues like you,” said Doug.
“I’m learning,” I said. “Baby steps, man.”
“I really am sorry,” said Tom. “I’m just trying to look out for my family.”
“I know that, Tom. It’s the only reason you’re still alive.”
“Sounds like we missed a lot,” said Tucker.
“You have no idea, brother,” said JD. “Thanks to these kind folks, the militia is on their way here to grab us up.”
“Are we all good now?” asked Doug, cutting his eyes over to Tom.
“We are,” I said.
“Yes, we are,” said Tom. “I swear on my children, we are.”
“Good enough for me,” said Doug. “We need to get moving if they’re on their way.”
“Here’s where it gets complicated,” I said. “It may be to our advantage to wait for them.”
“Maybe we’re not so good after all,” said Tucker. “Wait for them here? They’ll have the advantage.”
“Not if my guy is with them,” I said.
“If he isn’t,” said Tucker, “we’ll be fish in a barrel.”
“Pretty much,” I said. “But they’ll be coming across a clearing. We’ll have our answer then. Depending on how many are coming, it’ll buy us enough time to either take them out, or run like hell.”
“You’re putting a lot of faith in this guy,” said Doug.
“No other options at this point in the game,” I said. “Either way, Castle knows we’re here. If he wasn’
t cautious before, he will be now. This is our only hope for making contact with our guy one on one. As soon as any shooting starts, Castle is going to run for home.”
“And he’ll probably try it on horseback,” said Tucker. “It’ll be a lot harder to catch up with him and there’s almost no hope for an ambush.”
“The ambush ship has sailed, Tucker,” I said. “We’re going to have to work this out on the fly.”
“I think I liked it better when I was outside and didn’t know anything,” said Tucker.
“You being outside bought us the time we needed and saved this family from an unhappy ending,” I said, putting my hand on his shoulder. “I can always count on you. Thank you for that.”
“Anytime, Henry,” said Tucker, giving me a wide smile.
“You two ready to help us out?” I asked, looking over at Tom and Angie.
“Whatever you need,” said Tom.
“Make her leave,” I said. “Right now. Send her to wherever you sent Bear and Ashley.”
“What?”
“You heard me,” I said. “This is over for her, and it’s almost over for you. I appreciate you offering your help, and I’m going to take it. She doesn’t need to be here, Tom.”
“I’m not leaving him,” said Angie. “I’m not going through this again.”
“Trust me,” I said, “he won’t be here long, and he’s not going to be in the fight. If our guy on inside isn’t with the group, Tom is heading out the front door and not looking back. They’ll have their hands full with us. I give you my word, Angie. Nothing is going to happen to him, but I need you to leave now.”
“Go on, baby,” said Tom. “I’ll be right behind you.”
“Promise me,” said Angie, looking at Tom with tears in her eyes. “Promise me that you’re going to be okay.”
“I promise, sweetheart,” said Tom. “I’m no hero.”
“You are to me.”
It was a long embrace that I didn’t want to interrupt. I knew the feeling well. But I never would have made that promise to Kelly.
Tucker and Doug were already upstairs when Angie left. As instructed, Tom sat on the couch after I went over the plan. JD and I joined our men when I was sure he understood every detail.
“Here they come,” said JD, peering through his scope. “I count six.”
I raised my rifle over JD’s head. Before I could see his face, I knew Braun was with them. He was the guy with the fake limp.
“That’s him,” I said. “Told you, JD. Piece of cake.”
“I never want to hear that word again.
Chapter 48
Crazy Ivan
We weren’t comfortable sitting across from Tom. In spite of his change of heart and promises that he’d help us, I thought it was a still a bit too soon to give him his gun. JD and I were back in the chairs with our hands behind us. The difference being, we were holding our guns as well.
Nobody was comfortable with my plan. Everything we had done, including our current precarious situation, was based on a thirty-second conversation I had with Captain Braun at the militia camp. The fact that he was leading the group to retrieve us was a good sign, but JD wasn’t convinced he was an ally. I wondered if I was trying too hard to convince myself that he was. None of that mattered as the moment of truth came through the front door.
“You must be Tom,” said Braun, speaking to him, but keeping his eyes on me.
“I am,” said Tom, standing and placing his gun on the table. “Glad to see you, boys. These two have been a handful.”
“I bet,” said Braun, looking around the room. “Is anyone else here?”
“No,” said Tom, watching four other men enter his house. “I sent my wife and kids away. It was too dangerous for them to be around this trash.”
“It really is you,” said Braun, stepping in front of me. “Who’s your girlfriend?”
“Her name is JD,” I said.
“She’s pretty,” said Braun.
“Thank you,” said JD.
“You remember our conversation at the camp?” asked Braun, turning back to me.
“I do.”
“You still interested in making that happen?”
“Very,” I said. “It’s why we’re here.”
“Okay, then,” said Braun, winking at us. “It starts now, gentlemen.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw one of his men land a hard punch to another’s throat. He was huge, and his target hit the floor while another one of his men was being choked out. A fifth man came inside from the front porch when the fight started, closed the door behind him, and helped the others finish their work. Tom threw his hands in the air as Braun swung his gun around.
“He’s with us,” I said, standing.
“You sure about that?” asked Braun. “He’s the one who gave you guys up.”
“A lot has happened since then,” I said. “Yes, I’m sure.”
“All right,” said Braun, lowering his gun. “Sorry about that.”
“No problem,” said Tom, exhaling and lowering his arms. “I guess I kinda deserved it.”
“Obviously, the men who are still alive are with me,” said Braun. “Those two were loyal to Castle.”
“That felt really good,” said the giant standing near the door.
“That’s Ivan,” said Braun. “We call him Crazy.”
“Glad you’re on our side, Crazy Ivan,” said JD.
“I said we call him Crazy.”
“Oh, sorry,” said JD. “I’ll call you whatever you want, big man.”
“Just messin’ with you,” said Braun, smiling.
“Great,” said JD. “Another funny guy. No wonder you two hit it off.”
“Those other two thugs are Chris and Palmer,” said Braun. “We’ve all been waiting a long time for this.”
“Those are my guys up there,” I said, watching them come down the stairs. “That’s Tucker, JD’s brother, and Doug. His brother, Daniel, is stashed in the woods somewhere. He screwed up his leg taking a shit.”
“I bet there’s a story there,” said Braun, chuckling.
“One he’ll never live down,” said Doug, shaking hands.
“How in the hell did you get ahead of us?” asked Braun. “We’d been humping it pretty hard until that storm hit.”
“We took the train,” I said. “All the way into Chattanooga. We hoofed it from there.”
“That place is a hellhole,” said Braun. “And the bridges are controlled by us.”
“We know,” I said. “We had to do a little work before they’d let us cross.”
“This was a pretty elaborate setup,” said Braun. “How did you know I’d be the one coming for you?”
“He didn’t,” said JD.
“It was a leap of faith, my friend,” I said, patting JD on the shoulder.
“How many are left with Castle?” asked Doug.
“Eleven of his and two of mine,” said Braun.
“Ten against eleven,” said JD. “I like that number a lot better than four.”
“I said it was an elaborate setup,” said Braun, “not exactly a smart one.”
“Why’s that?” I asked.
“I would’ve brought the other two with me, but I had to leave them behind to watch over those kids you sent.”
“Kids?” I asked.
“Why did you send that little girl?” asked Braun. “The boy could’ve given us the message and had a better chance of getting out of there.”
“Tom?”
“I-I didn’t tell Bear to take her,” said Tom, fumbling for his words.
“But you didn’t tell him not to take her, did you?”
“Oh God,” said Tom, reaching behind him for the couch before he fell. “They have my kids.”
“Shit,” said JD.
“Needless to say, after that ass kicking you gave us at the dam,” said Braun, “the general is about as paranoid as you can get. He’s holding on to them until we show up with you. He was worried it was so
me kind of ambush. He’s losing his mind.”
“But he was right,” said Doug. “How old is the girl?”
“Six,” said JD, looking over at Tom. “Goddammit, man. You just don’t think things through, do ya?”
“Easy, JD,” I said. “There was a lot going on.”
“Gonna be a lot more goin’ on,” said JD, putting his gun in the holster. “We have enough firepower to take them out right now, but we can’t. We coulda been heading home today, but we ain’t on account of him. All the shit we’ve been through and now this! Fuck!”
JD kicked over a table full of family photos. Tom didn’t lift his head from his hands. Nobody said anything as JD walked down the hall and out the back door. Tucker followed him.
“It’s been a stressful week,” I said. “None of it’s been easy.”
“Sounds like it,” said Braun.
“I’m sorry,” said Tom, lifting his head. “He’s right. I screwed up again.”
“He’s not pissed at you, Tom,” I said, hoping I was right. “He’s pissed at the situation. We’ll work this out. We’ll get your kids back.”
“How?” asked Tom. “It’s you and JD for them. How?”
“Let us worry about that.”
“My little girl,” said Tom, grabbing his stomach. “My boy. How am I going to tell Angie I let them take our children? What are they gonna do to them?”
“Nothing,” said Braun. “My guys are with them. They’re good men and they won’t let anything happen. They’ll get them out when the time comes.”
“When?” asked Tom.
“Enough with the questions,” I said. “You need to go get your wife and bring her home. She’s in the dark and needs to know what’s going on. Our original plan isn’t going to work now. Don’t tell her about the kids until you’re back here, and don’t talk to anyone. Do you understand me? Don’t talk to anyone.”
“I understand,” said Tom, standing and trying to compose himself. “Our kids are all we’ve got. We can’t live without them. We won’t live without them.”
“We’ll have some answers for you when you get back,” I said. “Go on now. We’re wasting time that we don’t have.”
“What is the plan?” I asked, after Tom left.
“Didn’t really have time to work that out yet,” said Braun. “Figured I needed to take care this business first.”
