by Nelson, Kip
Grace moved forward so she was standing beside Saul.
“You're wrong. There's one last person who has to die. You. Do it, Saul. End this now,” Grace said. Saul's hands gripped the gun and they started shaking as he tried willing himself to pull the trigger.
“You're the same as you always were, Saul. You never could do anything useful. You messed everything up and you'll always mess up everything. You can't even do this right. You're pathetic. And you wonder why I wanted to leave home?”
“All we ever wanted was to give you a good life! We just wanted to protect you and care for you, but you threw it back in our faces. Mom was never the same after you left. You were her baby. She always loved you more than me, and you had to go break her heart. And look at you, you don't even care.”
“No, I don't care, because I'm better than you. I'm better than all of you!” he said.
By this point he had stepped around slowly so his back was to the tent entrance. Grace yelled at Saul again to pull the trigger, but Saul was unable to do so. Mr. Smith merely laughed and shook his head one last time before he turned and moved out of the tent. Grace glared at Saul and followed, drawing her gun. She pointed and pulled the trigger, closing her eyes at the last moment. Then she heard a cry of pain. When she opened her eyes, she saw Mr. Smith was cradling his leg, but still moving, albeit far more slowly. He was wheezing and she raised the gun again, remembering how he had threatened her and gripped her jaw. Anger rose within her like a viper ready to strike at its prey, but just as she was about to end Mr. Smith's life, Saul was by her side, wresting the gun from her grip. She glared at him once again, but he had a solemn look on his face.
“You don't want to do that,” he said, “let the wild get him.” Grace let her gaze linger at the trail of blood that followed Mr. Smith into the forest. Then she and Saul turned away as they returned to the main conflict.
Chapter Nineteen
In the aftermath of the battle there was much rejoicing from the victors, even though their triumph had come at a very great cost. Sorrow thundered through the camp as people went through the fallen bodies and inevitably found a family member or someone they had thought fondly of. Mack was disheartened to see that Chris eventually had fallen as well, although the horses were still safe.
The camp was a literal war zone with empty bullet shells and corpses on the ground. The fight had raged for hours, and although it was still a bright day the sun soon would dip below the horizon, completing its descent. Mack looked up at it and mused that even though much had happened to the people of Earth, the rest of the universe and time was continuing without any thought of what was occurring to them.
Bullets had torn holes through tents and it would take a lot of work to get the camp up and running again. Mack divided everyone into teams again. They needed to collect all the guns and unused ammo and put them back in the armory, gather up all the dead bodies and make a note of who had died, make sure the horses and other modes of transportation all were accounted for, take stock of the supplies, and generally make sure they all were safe, and that there were no stragglers from Mr. Smith's regime.
After talking among themselves, the people of the camp decided they would burn all the bodies on the bonfire. Even though there were many cultures, they all had come together against Mr. Smith and the best thing to do was to deal with the dead bodies quickly. It pained Mack to see Steve and the man with no name being gathered up together. Now in death they both were corpses, whereas in life they had been two completely different people. Although they all were exhausted from fighting, there was still a lot of work to do and they put in the effort long into the evening.
Shortly after they had been tidying up, Mack was given a morale boost as Luis appeared, half-dazed and looking much the worse for wear. Upon seeing him Mack embraced him tightly.
“I thought you were a goner,” he said.
“So did I for a while,” Luis said, looking relieved.
“It was touch and go there. I wasn't sure we were going to make it, but they're all good people. I was caught in a big brawl, and then a couple of them tried to get away. I chased them through the forest and we got into a fight. Then they ran away. I was knocked down. It took me a while before I came to. I was just lucky they decided not to finish me off.”
“I think most of Mr. Smith's men gave up the cause when they saw that it was lost, and when he didn't appear,” Mack said. Luis asked what happened with Mr. Smith and Mack told him what he had heard from Grace.
“It's a shame he got away,” Luis said. “I would have liked to have made him pay for everything he put us all through.”
“From what Grace said he was losing a lot of blood. So I doubt he made it very far,” Mack said, although deep down he had his doubts, and was afraid they had not seen the last of Mr. Smith.
At that point Danny came over and expressed joy at seeing Luis again, then told him the sad news of Steve's death. Mack left the two new friends to talk with each other. All through the camp he saw scenes like this, of people who had formed bonds in the face of adversity. He knew the camp would be stronger for these people having come together.
After they had taken care of everything and set the bodies alight Mack gathered them all around. The guards who had not been killed had been tied up. They were sitting near them, although far away from the weapons, for Mack wanted to address them as well.
“Today has been a long, hard day, but I'm proud of you all. Everyone in this camp did more than was asked of them. You came together and fought back against the person who had caused you so much pain. A lot of people gave their lives today, people who were close to all of us, and I would like to pay our respects to them now. We will miss them, and we always will remember them. As we move forward and as this camp is rebuilt, it will be with the knowledge that we are only here because of their sacrifices to us.
“And now, for those of us who still live, we have choices to make. We have prisoners here, guards who were working for Mr. Smith. I don't know how justice is supposed to work in this new world. There are still so many things we're going to have to figure out on our own, but I want us to try being the best possible versions of ourselves. So I would like to offer them a choice. Either they can try making it out there by themselves or they can stay here, as long as they promise to behave and give themselves accordingly.
“Now, I don't want to speak for everyone because the last thing you need is someone else telling you what to do. So I suggest you form some kind of committee that can make these decisions. But right now, I just wanted to say thank you to you all for what you've done here today. You all should be proud of yourselves. Let's enjoy the feast tonight!”
His words were met with a loud cheer and people started socializing as food was brought out and cooked, away from the bonfire of burning bodies. Now that Mr. Smith was gone, the food could be shared equally, as could the alcohol that he had been hoarding. Soon enough, Dana, the woman to whom Mack had spoken about the state of the city, came up to him. He was glad to see she had survived the ordeal.
“A few of us have been talking,” she began.
“We like your idea of a committee, but we also like the idea of you sticking around. None of this would have been possible without you. I think most of us are going to stay try making a go of it here. Hell, part of the reason why most of us came here in the first place was because we were promised a sanctuary where people were working together to build a community. So we might as well make that a reality. We'd like you to stay, though, and be a part of this. It's still going to take a lot of work to repair the damage Mr. Smith caused. Not just with us, but with the people in the area, and we could use all the help we could get.”
“I appreciate the offer, and I'll think about it,” he said.
Then he promised he'd stay for at least a few days to make sure everyone was okay, and that there were no more surprises in store. As the evening continued he noticed Grace was standing by herself, so he went over to see her.
/> “I was ready to do it,” she said.
“I would have killed him if Saul hadn't stopped me. Most of my life has been spent in cyberspace, and whenever I did something to anyone it always was… removed... detached. It was easier that way. But I was right there and I was ready to end his life.”
“It's okay. I'm proud of you for everything you've done here,” Mack said.
“And Mr. Smith is still alive. You didn't kill anyone. You're not a bad person, Grace. Even if you had killed him, I'm not sure you would be.”
A small smile crept across Grace's lips. “It's funny, isn't it? When we first met I was a bad person, at least in the eyes of the law. If things had gone differently I would be in prison right now, and you'd be with your wife.” She looked directly at him.
“In a way, I'm glad that things happened this way, and that we had a chance to become friends. But Anna is still out there somewhere, and I'm not going to rest until I find her.”
He could tell by the way she visibly relaxed that what he had said made her feel better. He was glad she wasn't going to lose herself in the darkness of self-doubt, for she had been too full of that already.
“You're not going to stay here, then? You could make a pretty good life for yourself here. There are a lot of good people, and they look up to you.”
“They are good people, and I could have a good life here, but it's not my life. As long as there's a chance Anna is still alive I must try finding her. I couldn't live with myself if I didn't. It's going to be hard to leave, though,” he said, and he meant every word.
Even though only a few days had passed the community was already strong. The newly-formed committee had decided to extend the hand of friendship to the guards who had been captured as a way of ushering in a new era of forgiveness. Some of them took it, others decided to take their chances on their own. So they were given rudimentary supplies and shown on their way. The place was abuzz with possibilities and Mack was pleased to see it getting up and running so quickly. It was amazing to think it had been only a few days since the air had been alive with the sound of gunfire, and death had hung heavily all around them.
Patrols were sent out to repair relationships with families in the area, including Willie’s. After hearing that Mack was in the community, he and Margaret came for a visit and Mack was delighted to see them both. Margaret flung her arms around Luis, and the two of them went off together. That made Grace a little jealous, as ever since the farm she had felt as though she and Luis had been getting closer. So she tried ignoring that the two of them were going off to a private place together.
Willie was happy to see the community was growing and was happy to negotiate a trade deal. He and Mack spent some time catching up. The farm still was going strong, and Willie said they all were welcome to drop by anytime they liked. Although Mack mentioned they probably would be moving on soon.
“If I was in your position I wouldn't ever leave this place. You know there aren't going to be many places like this out there,” he said.
“I know,” Mack replied, “but maybe that's why I have to be out there.”
The visit was all too brief, and Margaret was in tears as she walked back to the wagon with her father. Luis was stoic as well. Even in this new world, some things, such as love and relationships, were still the same.
As everything seemed to be in good hands Mack knew he wasn't needed any longer. He wanted to get back out on the road, back on the path to his wife. He gathered most of the people for another address.
“I'm sure these little speeches aren't going to be something you miss, but I'm going to miss you all, and I'm going to miss this place a lot. We've been through a lot together, and that's not something anyone can take away. I know that no matter where I am I'll always be thinking of you and hoping that you're going from strength to strength.
“Ever since my plane crashed and I've had to adjust to this new world, I've been trying to wrestle with the way to act and what it means to be human when we're faced with so much danger every day. It's too easy to give into fear and doubt, but you people and this place are the proof of why we must keep going. You're an example of the best side of humanity. I hope you can stay safe, and I know you're going to build something amazing together. I wish I could stay to be a part of it, but there's someone out there I have to find. Hopefully, someday our paths will cross again.”
His words were met with a round of applause. He went over to Grace, Luis, and Saul. “I guess we're here again, and again you have a choice to make,” he said.
“I won't blame any of you if you want to stay. In fact, I'll be a little jealous.”
“I'm going wherever you go,” Grace said quickly.
“I've never stayed in one place for too long, and my brother might still be out there somewhere. Plus, I feel like I've got a few things I need to make up to you people...” Saul said.
“I've come with you this far, and the whole reason I was out here in the first place is because I wanted to see the country. Looks like you're stuck with us, Mack,” Luis said.
“Damn, I was hoping this place finally would get rid of you,” Mack joked, beaming.
After being loaded up with a generous amount of supplies and weapons, as well as a horse upon which they could load their packs, they bid an emotional farewell to their new friends and began the long walk back to the city. As they left the camp Mack pulled out the dog-eared, tattered photograph of his wife and ran his thumb along her face. Then, his eyes faced forward as they walked off.
Find out what happens in part three! Coming Soon!
To find out when Kip Nelson has new books available and to get exclusive free ebooks sign up here: http://bit.ly/2f5vcyN
