Emotionless, but calculating.
Alex watched him walk through the bushes in front of the walkway toward Ed’s yard. A second man dressed in black jeans and a faded woodland patterned camouflage jacket joined him as he reached the far left edge of Alex’s house. The second man’s bright red and blue knit cap stood in stark contrast to both of their outfits.
Patriots fan? Come on in, boys!
Alex scrambled back into the kitchen, nearly knocking over the shotgun, and grabbed the cordless phone. He dialed Ed’s number.
“What’s up, man?” Ed answered.
“I don’t have time to explain, but whatever you do, do not answer the door in the next couple of seconds. Don’t even go downstairs. The nutcases we saw last night just cased my house and rang my doorbell for like ten minutes. The guy I talked to at the door looks like a pure sociopath. Real scary.”
“I’ve been watching them work their way around the block. One guy goes to the front door, and the other guy snoops around the back. I don’t think anyone’s answered their door,” Ed said.
“We need to start calling around the block to make sure no one does. I’m telling you, man, the guy at the front door looked scary. I’ve seen his look before and it scares me to see it again. This is not the kind of guy you want setting foot inside your house. Trust me,” Alex said.
“I believe you, man. I didn’t plan on letting him in—”
“I wouldn’t even show your face. A guy like this feeds on fear. If he senses hesitation, a lack of confidence, any weakness at all, he’ll act on it immediately. At the minimum, he’ll exploit it later, when he’s truly desperate, which might not be too far away. I don’t think they brought any food with them.”
“Shit, he’s already ringing the doorbell. Alex, I’ll call you in a little bit. I need to make sure no one answers the door.”
“Gotcha. I’m gonna let these assholes know you’re not going to answer. That nobody is. Start making calls to everyone on the outside of the loop. I’ll take the inside,” Alex said.
“Okay, will do. Later.” Ed hung up.
Alex returned to the mudroom and contemplated what he had just told Ed.
I’m going out there?
He deliberated for a few more seconds. He had two main concerns. His first consideration was the third male adult that Charlie had seen in the car. If a third guy was following a few houses behind the first pair, he could be taken by surprise from behind. Ed had only seen two guys, but Ed probably wasn’t looking for a third.
He doesn’t think like that.
He reached behind his lower back and adjusted the sweatshirt to cover the pistol, just in case the third man was watching.
The other concern was less immediate, but no less troubling. He was fairly confident that he’d already made this man’s shit list, but by drawing even more attention to himself, he was likely to end up at the very top of the list.
If I don’t do this, someone will get robbed or killed today.
He slipped on his sandals, unlocked the mudroom door’s deadbolt, and stepped through both doors onto the mudroom stoop.
Wow, that’s cold.
A frigid wind whipped into the semi-enclosed stoop, biting into his hands and stinging his face.
Once again underdressed.
He looked down at his feet. “At least I have socks this time,” he muttered.
He stepped down onto the walkway and turned left, facing the Walkers’ house. The Walkers’ mudroom stoop was blocked from his view by their garage, so he moved several feet into his own front yard. He could see the backside of one man standing at the Walkers’ mudroom door, the man’s outfit confirming that he was the same man that had rung Alex’s doorbell.
The other guy’s already peeking through windows.
“Here we go,” he said to no one in particular. “Hey, Manson!” he yelled over the wind.
The man turned around slowly and took a few steps toward Alex. He wasn’t exactly sure how he’d react if the man continued to move toward him. The man didn’t answer, only nodded his head upward once, and stared at Alex.
“The word’s out, and nobody’s gonna answer. You’d be better off moving on to a happier hunting ground,” he yelled at the man.
“And I have you to thank for this hospitality?” he asked, reaching quickly into his coat pocket.
Alex stiffened and fought every impulse to grab his pistol. In a fraction of a second, Alex’s logical side overrode the irrational. His hand only managed to move a few inches back along his right leg during the mental battle. He knew that if the man drew a gun, he could negate the man’s advantage by darting to either side and pulling his own weapon. At that point, it would be an even shooting match…or maybe not. The man could be an excellent shot, or he could have no experience at all. Alex figured it more likely that the man knew his way around firearms. Either way, his instinct was to actively avoid a pistol duel at twenty meters with anyone, especially out in the open.
A flash memory of the man’s yellow legal paper, located on the same side of the jacket settled the struggle, and his hand stayed alongside his leg. The man pulled the notepad and pen out of a pocket inside his jacket, and Alex felt his body start to relax.
He started to write in the notepad again.
He’s making a list and checking it twice. Gonna find out who’s naughty or nice. Manson Claus is coming to town.
“You gonna give me a ticket for my lack of hospitality?” Alex asked with the start of a grin.
“Just keeping track,” Manson said and put the notepad back inside his jacket.
Alex watched the man’s movements closely and decided to head back toward his house.
“Not much left here to go around. You might have better luck up north. Less people, less problems…”
“We ain’t goin’ nowhere. Not with a storm coming in,” the man interrupted, looking up at the thick gray sky.
Alex’s eyes followed skyward as another gust of frigid northern air washed over the neighborhood, bathing him in arctic air. He fought the urge to shiver and thought about the impending storm, a low pressure burst of warm, tropical air, soon to collide with this stationary high pressure system.
Disaster for sure.
He shrugged and started to back up toward his mudroom door, never turning his back on the man. Just as he reached his mudroom, the second man came into view from around the far side of Ed’s house. He walked up to Manson, and they started talking. They both stared at Alex with intense hatred for several seconds before walking across Ed’s yard to the Andersons’ house.
I hope Todd already warned them.
He stepped inside the mudroom and locked both doors, then entered the garage to verify that the garage door was still locked and deadbolted. He also tested the three windows to make sure they were secure.
Don’t need any surprises.
Satisfied with the garage, he walked back into the mudroom and locked the door behind him, doorknob and deadbolt. Then he walked back over to the mudroom entrance door and checked the locks again, despite the fact that he locked them less than two minutes before. He looked at his watch.
“Captain’s log. 8:27, Saturday, December 1st, Alex Fletcher is officially declared paranoid,” he stated aloud.
Just as he finished his proclamation, an overwhelming urge to recheck the garage rose within him. He glanced at the garage door again and shook his head, kicked off his sandals, and headed upstairs to check in with Kate. After that, he’d start making some calls to the neighbors on the inner loop. He rounded the bedroom corner and saw Kate and the kids burrowed under the covers. He heard Kate’s voice surface.
“What was going on out there?”
“Oh, nothing. Just the new neighbors. The Manson family replaced the Murrays,” he said.
“That bad?” she asked, poking her head out of the covers.
“Maybe worse. Their front man looks extremely dangerous. I haven’t seen a wild look like that in a long time. We’ll need to have a
serious talk about nighttime security around here. Hey, I gotta make some calls. Ed and I are warning the neighbors not to open their doors to these guys,” he said and started walking out of the bedroom.
“How about some heat before you start riding your horse around the block? The kids are frozen,” she complained.
“Just for the Paul Revere reference alone, I give you heat,” he said and adjusted the thermostat before he left the room.
“Not because I’m the love of your life?” she asked.
“Let’s not wear that one out,” he said and vanished down the stairs.
**
Alex peeked out of the rightmost window of the family room and scanned down the street toward the right, then the left, peering between houses and letting his eyes settle on stationary objects to activate his peripheral vision. He saw nothing out of the ordinary besides an increasingly menacing dark gray sky. The neighborhood was once again quiet after the surprisingly brief influx of refugees from the south.
Maybe they blew up the bridge?
He had convinced himself early on Friday that they would be forced to deal with slow-moving vehicle traffic for days and was now pretty sure that the weather forecast had something to do with the absence of travelers. He heard footsteps on the staircase.
Must be Ryan.
He turned toward the foyer opening just as Ryan stepped down off the stairs.
“Grab a seat, buddy,” he said to Ryan.
“What about?” Ryan asked and rolled over the back of the couch onto Emily.
“Ouuuch. Cut it out, jerk!” she cried, kicking out both legs simultaneously.
Ryan caught both feet directly in the chest while upside down and was propelled off the couch, landing on his back. He sprung back up to retaliate, but was brought right back down to the ground by Kate, who had jumped up from her cozy leather chair a few feet away from Ryan. Alex watched Kate take Ryan off balance and gently ease him back down to the floor.
“That’s enough for now,” she said calmly.
Ryan didn’t physically protest and instead verbally lashed out at Emily. “That’s not fair! She had no right to kick me for real. I was just playing, and she could have paralyzed me!”
“Quit being a baby!” Emily taunted.
“Take it easy both of you!” Alex said.
“But, Dad, she’s such a little—”
“That’s it! I’m not kidding. If she doesn’t want you crashing into her ten times a day, then lay off. And you need to be more careful. This isn’t an ultimate fighting arena.”
“But, Dad, someone needs to beat him down,” Emily said.
“Nobody’s beating anyone down except for me,” Kate proclaimed, still holding Ryan to the ground. “If I let you go, do you promise not to attack your sister?” she asked.
“Yes, Mom,” he answered unconvincingly.
“I think you should just sit on him for the next few minutes,” Alex said, eliciting a shrill laugh from Emily.
“Dad, you told her to knock it off, and now she’s laughing in my face!” Ryan cried.
“Promise your mother you won’t retaliate, and mean it,” Alex said forcefully.
“All right, I won’t bother her anymore. Sorry,” he muttered.
“Thank you.” Kate released Ryan’s sweatshirt. “Now grab a seat away from your sister. We just need to go over a couple of new rules for the house. Something has changed, and we need to be more cautious.”
“Is it those skuzzy people that moved into the Murrays’?” Ryan asked as he walked over to the other leather chair.
“Yeah. Your mom and I are a little concerned.”
“What’s wrong with them?” Ryan asked.
“Are there any kids?” Emily added.
“Uh, I’m not completely sure…about the kids. There might be some, but the problem is that one or more of the adults look dangerous. Not the kind of people we’re used to having around here at all.”
“Remember the guy that we didn’t like this summer after the Red Sox game?” Kate asked the kids.
“The one that asked Daddy for money, then followed us to our car?”
“While his buddies trailed us, too,” Alex reminded them.
“Yes. This guy reminds your dad of that guy. Something’s wrong with him, and without food or supplies, we think he might be a danger to the neighborhood, and to us.”
“Worse than some of our neighbors?” Ryan asked.
Alex laughed, not really sure if Ryan was serious or joking. “I think this group is way worse,” he said.
“Can we give them some food, Daddy?” Emily asked.
Kate smiled at her. “That’s a nice thought, sweetie, but it’s probably not a good idea…”
“Why not?” Emily pressed.
“Because I think they would want more, and if we couldn’t give them more, they would cause trouble,” Alex told her.
“How do you know?”
“They’re scummy looking,” Ryan yelled.
“Well, it’s not just that they look scummy,” Alex said, glancing at Kate.
I’ll let her handle this one.
“Your dad talked to them this morning—”
“Twice,” Alex interrupted.
Like that justifies my conclusion.
“Twice, and his gut instinct is that there is something seriously wrong with them,” Kate said.
That answer won’t satisfy her.
“But you always tell us not to judge people by how they look, so how can we know that they just don’t need a little help?”
“Sweetie, under normal circumstances you’re right. It’s not fair to judge a book by its cover, but in this case, we have to make an exception. I can’t explain it very well, but I don’t want to take the risk with them. I think the consequences could be disastrous, and I’m not willing to take a chance with your safety,” Alex said gently.
That might do it.
“You should have said that in the first place, Daddy,” she said with a completely happy and innocent look.
“She’s unbelievable,” Ryan commented.
“That’s enough. She’s on the right track,” Kate said.
Alex stepped back over to the front corner window and stared down the street toward the Perrys’ for a few seconds, then down the other side of the street, thinking about all of the doors and windows in their home as he walked over and took a seat next to Emily.
Locked for sure.
“So what we’re going to do is be a little more cautious around the house. Pretty much what we’ve been doing before, but a little different, especially at night. First, like always, nobody answers the door for any reason. Mom and I will take care of answering the door. Second, I want you guys to have one of us with you when you’re downstairs. Day or night, okay?”
“But what if I just want a drink of water?” Ryan asked.
“Then you keep a cup upstairs and get a drink from the bathroom.”
“But Mom doesn’t like us to drink from the bathroom faucet. Something about poop particles in the air.”
“Mom will make an exception in this case,” Kate said.
“But what…”
“Just get one of us to go down with you, all right? One of us is down here most of the day anyway, just be a little flexible about this. I don’t know what these people might try, okay?” Alex said.
“Okayyyy,” Ryan said, barely convincing Alex.
“All shades are open during the day. All shades are closed at night. After dark, kids upstairs, and we keep inside lights to a minimum. The other thing that will be different is that I will be visibly wearing a handgun, and you might see a few of my rifles around the house, and under no circumstances are you two to touch them. Don’t knock them over, don’t move them at all. They will be loaded with real bullets. Here’s what you might see.”
He stood up and moved over to Kate’s chair, reached behind the chair, and pulled out his shotgun and assault rifle.
“Cool,” Ryan whispered.
&
nbsp; “Great, those were behind my chair?” Kate asked.
“This is a shotgun, and this is a rifle. Don’t touch either of them. I may have one of them sitting up against the island, next to one of the doors, or in my lap on the couch. No matter where you find them, or see them, do not touch them. Understand the rules, Mr. Ryan?”
“Why am I being singled out?” he asked with an overly incredulous look on his face.
“Because you’re the only one in the room that said ‘cool’ when I pulled these out, and I know Emily could care less about guns,” Alex said.
“Guns are stupid and dangerous,” Emily said.
“Exactly,” Kate agreed.
“You want me to break them apart and bury them in the backyard?”
“Not today,” Kate said.
Alex raised an eyebrow and smirked. “They might be stupid, but still, don’t touch them. Are we all clear?”
“Yes, Daddy,” the kids said in bored unison.
Alex looked at Kate.
“You’re including me in your solemn swear?”
He nodded his head slowly.
“I gotcha,” she said.
“And if you see something outside that doesn’t look right, let one of us know right away. Like someone peeking from the trees, or even just walking around the neighborhood,” Alex added.
“What’s weird about walking around the block?” Emily asked.
“It’s weird because nobody does it anymore. Nobody just takes a walk for the sake of getting fresh air. If they’re out, they have a purpose, and I want to figure out what that purpose is.”
And that’s about the most paranoid thing I’ve said so far this year. They must think I’m nuts.
“That’s it for me. You got anything, Mommy?” he concluded.
“Nope, this was your show,” Kate said dryly.
That sounded a little patronizing.
“Anything else from the peanut gallery?”
“What’s for lunch, Mommy?” Ryan asked.
“Tuna salad on crackers, with leftover peas and carrots,” she said.
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