by Leela Ash
“Let’s do this. Marshal and Jimmy, go through the back. I'm going to go through the front.” Billy moved towards the door while the other two slunk around to the back of the small cottage. The man’s heart was beating hard in his chest and he wished that he had never gone away from his woman and child. But he was there and he had to make it work somehow. There had to be revenge, no matter how ugly it might get.
The door was locked when he got to it and his hands went to his jean pockets to find his knife. The night was so quiet that he could hear the sound of the metal pieces jingling in his pocket. Everything seemed amplified and he stopped where he stood when he thought he heard something.
There was a loud bang from behind the house and then the sound of fighting. He heard his friend Jimmy scream and then there was an eerie silence. Billy was frozen in place. He should have gone ahead to see what was going on, but there was a cold fear that ran through him. Billy needed to get out of there. Fast. He was terrified about going into that house, and his worst fears were confirmed when he heard another scream that wasn’t Marshal or Jimmy. Something may have happened to the child, and he was to blame. Not only that, but he knew what Jessa could do and didn’t want to be around when she found out that he had orchestrated the attack.
Billy ran. He was ashamed of himself for doing it, but all he could think about was saving himself. He didn’t know if his friends were alive or dead, but he was not going to be a casualty. That was all that he knew.
His chest was tight and there were sharp pains in his side because he had been running for so long. Billy held his breath for a moment, trying to tell if he had been followed or not, but it was simply impossible over the slamming of his heart in his chest. He had narrowly escaped the bloodshed, but knew that he had to get some distance between the house and himself. If what he thought happened had happened, there was no way that he wanted to cross paths with them again.
He looked back one last time at the cottage in the distance and he could hear yelling and see people scrambling over the yard. There was no joy in the painful wails that he heard. There was nothing but fear in his heart and he could have sworn that there was someone that stopped in the yard and was looking his way. Billy tried to assure himself that he was just being paranoid, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that Jessa knew it was all his fault. And if she didn’t yet, she would know soon enough, she would be coming for him. That was one thing that Billy was sure about.
***
Chaos was the only way that Jessa could describe what was going on around her. She had heard Michael shouting and then he was scuffling with someone. She had barely registered the intruder when another man jumped him from behind. Milo was smacked down twice as he tried his best to stop the dark-haired man who was smashing Mike in the face. Michael was strong and virile, but there were two men on him at once and he just couldn’t physically overpower them.
Jessa called out to him, afraid for his life. When the attacker looked over at her, she instantly knew who they were and why they were there. Billy’s cronies were there because of what she had done at the settlement. Her cry had pulled Michael’s attention as well. When his attention was taken away from the fight, Mike was hit from behind with something large. She heard a sickening thud and Michael fell to the ground. Her heart hammered in her chest, unsure of how badly hurt he might be. Jessa tried to get to him and quickly found herself in her own tussle.
Before she was able to get a handle on the situation, Shane came out of his room, sleepy and confused. She was powerless as Marshal lifted her son and grinned down at her with his prize. She was completely helpless as he sneered at her.“Now what are you going to do Jessa?”
She ordered him to put down her son, but the man just dangled him in front of her. It soon wouldn’t make a difference, and she was relieved to see that Michael had defeated his attacker and was making his way toward Marshal, who was whipping the boy around as if he were just a rag doll.. When he saw Michael, Marshal pushed the small boy to the side and Jessa watched in horror as her son’s head hit the hard wooden beam on the side of the room and crumpled to the ground. She didn’t remember much after that, and Milo and Mike watched in awe as she blacked out in fury, her body taking over to finish the job. She didn’t stop until neither one of the intruders were breathing. Michael had to hold her back from during further damage to the bodies. She was out of it and ended up hitting him in the chest as tears ran down her face. She was mad at him, mad at herself.
Going back to her son, she tried to revive him, but he wasn’t responding. Jessa was heartbroken and so consumed with fear and rage that she didn’t even notice that her head was bleeding. She didn’t know how any of this had happened, but she was angry at the world. “Go out there and make sure there isn’t any more of them. I want them all dead.”
Michael looked at her strangely and then did as she asked. Cradling her son in her arms, she laid him out on the bed. He was still breathing, but his breaths were shaky and shallow, and it seemed like she was on the brink of losing him. There were no hospitals to go to and she didn’t even have any herbs, though she knew that they wouldn’t have helped anyway. It wasn’t a cut or cold that he had, but a head wound. There was a lump on the back of his head and she cursed the men who were responsible. She knew that Billy was behind it.
The men came back in from outside and she could tell there was no one else out there. Michael grabbed the arms of one of the guys on the floor and Milo grabbed his legs. They struggled to get him out of the house while Jessa just looked on in a daze. She felt like she wasn’t actually there, just watching everything happen slowly around her from above herself. Her son still hadn’t moved and Jessa knew that it was going to take some time for him to wake up.. If he ever would.
She was torn between the need to get her revenge and her need to stay and wait for Shane to get better. Michael had seen someone in the distance, but the next minute they were gone and he couldn’t be sure. Jessa knew in her gut that it was Billy.
“I want you to go find him, Michael. Find him and end him. It’s Billy. I know it is and he doesn’t get to live.”
Michael was shocked and looked into her eyes, hoping there was a little give in them, but there wasn’t. He didn’t want to leave her alone. They were still close to the city and though she had been fine on her own before him. It didn’t make it any easier to think about leaving her alone with a hurt child. “Do you really want me to go now?”
She nodded without a second thought and he swallowed hard. “At least let Milo stay here with you. I don’t want something to happen.”
“I’m fine. You guys need to go. The sooner you take off the quicker you will be back.”
There was nothing left to argue about and Michael found himself getting used to the idea. He knew that if he didn’t go, she would. He didn’t want to put her in that position, though she had no problem putting him in a tight spot. All it took was a look down at the boy for him to realize that he had to do it. People like Billy and his friends had to be stopped or they would just do it again to someone else. There were no police anymore, so it was men like him that had to make a stand or the country was never going to come back.
“If that's what you want Jessa. But I hate to leave you like this. You’re hurt and Milo is cut.”
“I will bandage him up before you go. Why don’t you go see if you can find anything for your trip while I take care of Milo?”
Michael nodded dumbly. He was getting used to how demanding she could be. When things got hard, Jessa just took over, and he had no choice but to let her. Going against her wasn’t a viable option. It hadn’t done any good in the past and it wouldn’t do any good now either..
“Yeah, that sounds like a plan.”
2
Jessa was nervous to see them leave. It had taken longer than she had hoped. There was almost eight hours between when they had been attacked and when Mike and Milo left. That gave Billy eight hours to be far away. Milo and Michael were supposed to be goo
d at tracking, but she still wished that she could be there. She knew that she had to be with Shane, no matter how much she wanted to be the one to personally take care of Billy. Jessa trusted that Michael would do what was needed to secure her revenge, but she sure wished she could get her hands on him herself.
She looked down at Shane, her brow creased with worry, not sure what was going to happen next. It was the first time that she had been so scared for her young son in a long time. Before the attack, Jessa had just dealt with whatever came her way. She was fine because he was fine. Seeing him like that, so lifeless, made her realize that nothing was okay and if anything happened to him, she would never be okay again.
All she had was time. She had plenty of time to worry and time to watch the blank landscape around her. The house that she had liked because it was off the beaten path, made it harder to find anything to eat, especially because she never wanted to go too far away from the cabin. Jessa was finding it increasingly harder to find food. She wanted to be there when he woke up, and no longer allowed herself to think of any other possibility. But at the same time, Jessa wanted to have something for the boy to eat when he woke up.
So as the first night wore on, she tried to get some sleep, but it was harder than she thought it would be. Every time she heard a noise or felt a movement near her, she would get up. It had been a while since she had been out on her own with Shane and she was spooking herself. There was still the small hope that Mike and Milo would be back later that night.
They never came though, and the sun started to pour into one of the broken windows. Jessa got up and checked the boy’s breathing before she went outside to see how the day was going to look. She needed some fresh air. The cabin was getting stuffy and making her feel slightly claustrophobic.
She wished she could see the pair off in the horizon, but there was no one there. Instead she went back into the house and did another sweep, hoping to find something that she had missed. There wasn’t much food left, which was alarming. If she couldn’t find anything then that meant she would have to try scavenging and leave Shane alone, or take him with her and risk both of their lives.. If Michael and Milo weren’t back by then, she hated to think of how she was going to find what she needed.
As the next day wore on, most of her worries melted away when Shane finally woke up. He was weak and could barely drink any water, but just to see his eyes open was enough for her to settle in her soul. They were both too weak and heartsick to talk, and Jessa spent the rest of the day watching over him.
Several days after the attack, the food had run out and there was nothing left to ration. Shane was hungry and she couldn’t bear to see it. There was no other choice. She had to go out and find something.
“I know you don’t want me to go, but it is pretty safe here. Just stay in the house and I will be back as soon as I can.”
“Okay. I am really hungry.”
She pushed the lengthening hair back from his forehead. “I know you are. And that is why I will be back soon. You know I don’t want to go, but it’s just us right now and we need more than just water. You need some nutrients so that your body can keep healing itself. That is hard work, so I will find or catch something and we will have dinner, okay?”
He nodded, but looked so young while he tried to give her a brave face. Jessa was still not convinced that he was one hundred percent better, but her need for revenge had slackened since he woke up. She had sent Mike and Milo away in anger and felt in some way it was her fault that she had to leave him then. If Michael and Milo were still there, she wouldn’t have to leave Shane alone on the edge of a very dangerous city. Another issue that was her fault and a reminder that she had acted out in anger.
Jessa looked back and waved to him. She had a bad feeling, but she had to push it down. They needed to eat and there was nothing closer that she could bring back for her son, so she had to go out further. Jessa wished that Michael was back, wished that things weren’t the way they were, but she reminded herself that someone had to go. She had never been one for self-pity, but she had to fight back tears that threatened to fall. How had things gotten so crazy?
***
Mike and Milo had been walking for hours and though there were still signs of Billy every now and then, he was moving fast. Michael was afraid that he was going to lose him all together. He didn’t want to go back without doing what it took to keep those around him safe. Michael hadn’t been able to keep his own family safe and he wasn’t going to let anything happen to Jessa. He didn’t want her to have to live with the unease of knowing that the person that had hurt her family was still walking around. It was a hard pill to swallow; he had been doing it for years and he didn’t want her to feel the same way. Michael wanted to save her from any kind of pain, even if the world was so full of it that the task was impossible.
“What are we going to do when we find him Mike?”
Michael shrugged. Milo knew what it was that they had to do, but the boy was getting antsy with all of the quiet. He was new to the group and though he was fitting in, Milo was still not used to going after people. The poor kid had always tried his best to stay away from people because most didn’t like the looks of him. Michael didn’t seem to mind him though and he wanted to do everything he could to keep it that way.
“You know Milo, there is no need to put it in words. Men like that have to be stopped or they will continue to hurt people. We are just trying to keep everyone safe.”
“And get revenge for Jessa?”
Michael nodded again. Milo may have seemed slow at times, but his mind was sharp. Undoubtedly, he could see through the lines. “She has had a run in with them before. That is why they attacked us. They were getting their revenge for their friend.”
Milo shook his head. “Just seems like it's never going to stop at this rate. There aren't too many of us left.”
Michael had much of the same sentiment, but he knew that men like Billy wouldn’t give up. Who was to say that he didn’t get more friends and come back? Michael was unwilling to live with that concern looming over his head. He didn’t want to look behind his shoulder every day. “It does, but the only way to stop a situation sometimes is to take one of the parties out of the equation.”
“I hope that Shane is okay.”
“Me too, Milo. If there is anything that Jessa can do, she will do it. They are tougher than they look.” Michael had to believe it, trying to convince himself with his own words. But she had been doing fine when he met her. There had been issues, ones that had followed her, but Michael was going to take care of those.
The two went back to the silence that made Milo a little jumpy. The tracks were getting fresher and Michael was convinced that they were actually gaining on him. It was getting dark though and there was something he kept hearing behind him that had his hackles up. They would have to stop soon, so he started looking for shelter. As much as he wanted it to end that evening and be done, it looked like Michael was in for a couple of nights without her.
“Keep your eyes out for somewhere to stop Milo. I am worn out.”
The young man immediately went to the task, happy to be of some help. It wasn’t long before they found an apartment building that they could get into. It was high on a hill over the small town outside of the city and it gave them the advantage of high ground to see what was coming. If Michael could have, he would have kept going, but something told him that they needed to hunker down for the night. He didn’t say anything to Milo as they ate their tins of food, but he had a feeling of presentment. Something was about to go wrong.
3
His fears were realized a few hours after the sun went down. They were staying on the second floor of the apartment building. It was high enough that they were protected from anything that might try coming through the windows, but low enough that they could jump out if they needed to. He didn’t like being so close to the city or any urban center.
The sounds outside were of animals. It had been the same grunti
ng sound that he had heard behind them as they walked earlier in the day. He realized then that while they had been tracking Billy, something else had been tracking them. Moving towards the window, he looked back to find Milo fast asleep.
Michael saw shapes and shadows, but nothing definitive. The animals in the fallout zones had changed, and the longer he waited, the less inclined he was to want to see them. It was them. There were several more shadows, and each time one or two made a sound, he heard more coming from other directions. Before long, he was convinced that they were surrounded by the beasts, but they hadn’t attacked yet.
As they moved into the building, his eyes went to the door. He was torn between putting something up to barricade them in, but not wanting them to hear him moving and give away their position. Sounds of claws scratching on the floor got louder as one animal managed to make it to their level and he heard breathing on the other side of the door. It was too late for him to do anything and instead he tossed a discarded can lid at Milo.
The boy’s eyes opened and he looked at Mike, about to say something, before he saw the finger in front of his lips. It was clear that he wasn’t supposed to speak and after the silence took over, he heard what Michael heard. Milo was more familiar with the city though and he knew what to do immediately. He knew that the animals could smell them and there was nothing they could do to stop that. Silence didn’t take away their smell and he started to move towards the door.
“We have to push something in front of this door. Before more get up here.”
Michael could see that Milo was shaking and since he was always trying to appear so tough, it was hard for him not to be affected as well. Michael too had a bad feeling, but it occurred to him that Milo had more than likely dealt with the packs before. He couldn’t imagine the things the kid had had to do for so long by himself.
