by Payne, T. L.
The five of them set off in the direction of the shouting. The sheriff and Henson family were ahead of them by several hundred feet. It was pitch black. The smell of pine and a thick layer of needles under her feet confirmed to her that they were in the pines. The light of the moon and stars didn’t reach the forest floor through the thick canopy of pine and oak.
Moments later, they emerged from the thick forest into a lush pasture. For the first time that evening, Maddie saw the moon and stars. Dogs began barking as they crossed the field. A light flickered, and then Maddie could see it bouncing back and forth. Someone was running with a flashlight.
Shouts came from the direction of the bouncing flashlight. Ron sprinted off toward it.
“Maddie, you guys, stay right here,” Lugnut called as he took off after Ron.
Zach didn’t follow his instruction and took off after them, followed closely by Harmony. Maddie shook her head and fell in behind Harmony. They sounded like a herd of buffalo crossing the field. Things rattled and clanked. Her dad would have had a fit that they had not secured their packs and made sure nothing broke sound discipline.
They reached a pipe gate, and Ron had already pushed it open when Maddie arrived.
“Ron, you take that corner. I’ll take Maddie, Zach, and Harmony, and we will go around the barn.”
As Ron ran toward the barn, Lugnut motioned for the rest of them to run to the back of the barn. The shouts grew louder.
“Put the gun down, Austin. Don’t make me shoot you,” a voice called in the dark.
“You three stay here behind the barn, and do not move from this spot,” Lugnut said.
Zach started to protest, but Lugnut cut him off.
“Zach, Harmony isn’t trained yet. She doesn’t have a weapon. Stay here. Stay together.”
Lugnut ran off around the barn and out of sight.
Maddie crept along the side of the old wooden building and peeked around the corner. In the driveway, she could see a man on his knees and another standing over him. A group of people stood just out of the light. She couldn’t make out how many or whether they were male or female. The voices sounded like a mixture of the two.
“Austin, why don’t you put that gun down like the man says. We’ll work this out. No one else needs to die today,” Ron said.
Maddie couldn’t see Ron.
“He has to die. You saw what he did to my sister. He has to die.”
“I didn’t do that. I didn’t do that to her. I loved her,” Derek cried.
“Don’t you say that, you fucking monster. Don’t you dare.”
“He says he didn’t do it, Austin. He wouldn’t do that. My boy ain’t like that,” Derek’s father said.
“It wasn’t me, Austin.”
“She snuck out to meet you. You telling me you never saw her yesterday?” Austin said, pressing the muzzle against Derek’s cheek.
Derek’s eyes were wide with fear. His father moved closer but stopped short.
“She was alive the last time I saw her, I swear. I had nothing to do with it. I just…”
“You just what?” Lugnut asked as he approached.
As Maddie stepped out away from the barn, Zach grabbed her arm.
“He needs backup. You stay here with your girlfriend.”
Maddie ran to the front corner of the barn, her gun in the ready position.
Austin held the boy by his hair and had the muzzle of the gun pressed hard against his cheek.
“It is time to tell what you know before anyone gets hurt here, kid,” Lugnut called out, his rifle trained on Austin.
“And who the hell are you?” someone in the group of people asked.
“I’m the one who is going to keep Austin here from blowing this kid’s brains all over the driveway,” Lugnut said as he stopped behind Austin.
“And I’m the one keeping you from shooting either of them,” Maddie yelled from her concealed position.
“Who’s out there?” the man asked.
Ron stepped into Maddie’s view and approached the group.
“It’s me, Henry. Ron Hillman. We came to get Austin and take him home. His father shouldn’t have to bury two children today.”
“What the hell’s going on, Ron? Austin comes running up in here accusing Derek of killing his sister. Then you guys show up.”
“Clara Henson was murdered yesterday. That man there and I found her body a short while ago. Austin just said that his sister was supposed to be with Derek. That is all I know at this point. Why don’t we all just calm down and let Derek tell us what happened yesterday,” Ron said as he inched closer to Austin.
“Okay, Austin? We’re going to get the answers. Just lower that gun, all right?”
“He did it. I know he did,” Austin pushed the gun down harder, causing Derek to cry out. The group behind the father stepped forward into the light. Maddie could see a mix of women and children and a teenage boy.
“Derek, did you see Clara yesterday?”
“Shut your mouth, Derek,” a girl yelled out.
Everyone turned to face her.
“You better keep your mouth shut and take it like a man,” the girl said, stepping forward.
She was dressed in jeans, a flannel shirt, and boots. A style Maddie had seen from the kids in the area that showed horses at events and rodeos. She did not recognize the girl.
Maddie heard yelling behind her and then saw the beams of several flashlights appear. The sheriff and his men were rushing across the field.
Henry grabbed the girl’s arm. She yanked away and kept approaching Austin and Derek. Lugnut raised his rifle and stepped forward.
“That is far enough. You just stop right there.”
The girl stopped and stared hard at Lugnut, then looked down at Derek. Maddie stepped closer, leaving the concealment of the barn.
“You take it to your grave, Derek,” the girl said as she lunged toward him.
Maddie was too far away to see the knife the girl held concealed in her hand. She fell upon Derek before Lugnut and Henry could constrain her. Maddie heard the shot and rushed over. Derek lay on his back, looking up at his father. The girl lay beside him with a hole in the top of her head. Austin had shot her as she stabbed Derek.
Ron rushed over and handed Maddie his rifle. He dropped to his knees and tried to stop the bleeding from Derek’s knife wound.
“Pop, I didn’t kill Clara. I promise. Brittney and her friend, Kim, did it. I left to go feed cows, and when I came back, Clara was dead. I wanted to bring her home to her family, but Mark Jewell came out of the house. He said he’d kill all of you if I said anything.”
“He let you put the body in the woods, though?” Lugnut asked.
“Yes, I left her where it would be easy to find after I got away from them.”
“But you didn’t…” Austin said.
Austin’s father and the sheriff arrived before they could finish their interrogation.
The sheriff questioned Derek as those gathered listened to the gruesome details of the Henson girl’s last moments. The killers had been her friends. Three girls her own age. Brittney, jealous of Clara’s relationship with Derek, was evil enough to kill her for it. Then Brittney's brother, Mark, was a three-time convicted felon with a rap sheet a mile long filled with arrests for assault and other violent crimes. Those charges were all dropped due to lack of witness cooperation. He threatened to kill their families if they testified against him.
Drug and robbery charges are what sent him to prison. Just back from his latest stint, he was living at home with his mother and little sister. What role he played in the Henson girl’s death was yet to be determined.
“What are you going to do about this, Sheriff?” Mr. Henson asked.
“Right now, we are going to get you and your boy home. Tomorrow, I’ll take some men and go find Brittney and Mark Jewell and search for evidence.”
“Let’s get out of here. We have a long ride back in the dark. I don’t think we should stick around her
e much longer,” Lugnut said, not even slowing his pace as he passed them.
“Why? What’s wrong, Lug?” Maddie asked.
“We are outsiders here, Maddie, and tempers are already flaring. It is just better not to be in the middle of this.”
Maddie picked up her pack and rifle and hustled after him. Zach and Harmony did the same.
Harmony had been uncharacteristically quiet since the discovery of the girl’s body. Maddie hadn’t realized it until that moment. Harmony and Zach were fifteen-year-old kids. They’d seen and been victims of more violence in the last week than most adults had in a lifetime. Days like these were difficult for anyone to process, let alone young teenagers.
The light on Ron’s rifle panned left and right as he walked. Lugnut had dropped to the rear, and his light bounced around the forest as they went. Maddie was concentrating on not falling over things on the forest floor as she considered the possibility that teenage girls had kidnapped and killed the Henson girl.
“I still think it was the boyfriend,” Lugnut said, breaking the silence.
“You think he is lying about the girls doing it?” Maddie asked as they walked.
“No, I just think he was in on it too.”
She stopped and turned to face him. Maddie stared at the circle his light made on the ground as he answered.
“The brutality of the killing suggests a great deal of anger. It was personal. They took their time,” Lugnut said.
“I agree,” Maddie said.
“Now we know that we have three psychopaths living in the community. Left unexposed, they are a great danger because they can move among us and learn what we have and when best to attack us. They would eventually come at us. And with their kind of sick, I cannot imagine the sick crap they could come up with.”
Maddie shuddered at the thought. She’d seen evil already with the killers in Chicago and in the Goff brothers who’d held her captive, but she agreed that these girls were different and more dangerous. She hoped the sheriff caught them before anyone else got hurt.
Ron turned and shined his light in front of them.
No one spoke as they walked toward the Henson’s barn to retrieve their horses. The ride back to the cabin seemed twice as long as it had been in the daylight. Maddie didn’t think it possible, but the sound of the horses’ hooves drowned out the croaking frogs. When they reached the hidden gate, Zach hopped off his horse. After pulling the post from the ground, he walked backward, yanking on the strands of barbed wire dragging the ground to move them out of the way.
Maddie remembered coming through this gate with her captors, convicts who had wound up opening her dad’s booby-trapped stash. Maddie shuddered as she remembered the sound of the explosion and the feel of the flesh, blood, and bones raining down on her as she lay prone in the creek bed. That was the second time she’d escaped and her captors were killed. A small victory—she’d focus on that instead of the blood and guts.
“Lugnut, we need to do something more permanent about this gate. The tire tracks from the humvee and mom’s jeep are still visible too. It could lead people right to our door,” Maddie said, as Zach closed the gate behind them.
“I’ll get on that first thing in the morning,” Lugnut said.
“I can drag the harrow over the field and hide the tracks if you want,” Ron said.
“That would be great, Ron. Thank you,” Maddie said.
No one spoke as they rode up to the barn.
After dismounting, Lugnut handed Ron the reins of his horse.
“You can stay the night, Ron. You can bunk with Rank and me,” Lugnut said.
“I still have animals to feed and milk tonight—and again in the morning. I best get on home.”
“You can leave the horses here. I’ll bring them to you in the morning.”
“Thanks, Lugnut. I think that would be the best plan. I could come get them, though, and maybe get another bowl of that peach cobbler,” Ron said, looking to Harmony.
“I’ll make another pan just for you.”
“You better get here early, Ron.”
“Keep your paws off my cobbler, Lugnut,” Ron called over his shoulder.
“Be careful going home,” Maddie called after him as he slowly rode off out of sight.
“Keep your paws off my cobbler, Lugnut,” Ron called over his shoulder.
“Be careful going home,” Maddie called after him as he slowly rode off out of sight.
Chapter 9
Kingman Compound
Kingman, Arizona
Event + 13 days
Maria’s travel trailer was small but tidy. It looked like she had lived there before the lights went out. Pictures hung on the wall above a sofa and magnets decorated the small refrigerator. Photographs sat on a shelf above a short window. Beth leaned in to get a closer look at one of the photos. The picture was of Maria with her sister at the London Bridge in Lake Havasu City. They were laughing and appeared to be having a great time.
Beth felt great sympathy for Maria. She’d lost her father, sister and a nephew. Beth didn’t ask about Maria’s mom since Maria had said that she didn’t have any family left.
“Can I offer you something to drink? I have watermelon Kool-Aid or water.”
“I haven’t had Kool-Aid since my children were little. I’d love some,” Beth said, removing Jack from his carrier.
Jack sniffed the air, sneezed in disapproval, and turned twice in Beth’s lap before settling down to return to his nap.
The sun was setting, and the temperature was just beginning to drop. As Beth sipped the refreshing watermelon flavored drink, she realized that Maria’s trailer was relatively cool. She hadn’t heard any air conditioners running as they entered.
“It is nice and cool in here, Maria. Do you have solar power?” Beth asked.
“Yes, I only run it for a little while each day. Usually, during the hottest hours. I mostly run the refrigerator.”
“That has to be a luxury these days,” Beth said.
“I am storing medications in here, so yeah, it is a huge luxury.”
“Oh, I assumed all the meds were kept at the medical trailer.”
“Not all of them. One is a cancer drug, and the other is a multiple sclerosis medication. Not likely to be useful to anyone but the two people it belongs to,” Maria said, setting her glass of water on the table and taking a seat across from Beth.
Jack jumped down and ran over to Maria. She scooped him up and loved on him for a moment, and then he settled down for a nap on her lap. Beth’s mouth dropped open. Her mother’s furry child had always disliked other people—or so she thought. He growled at her every time she had visited her mother. The memory brought a pang of grief. She hadn’t yet mourned her loss. She was, however, very glad that her mother didn’t have to suffer through cancer in the apocalypse without pain medication.
Beth peered out the tiny window. The area looked like an RV park. She imagined there were at least twenty-five motor homes and travel trailers in this section of the compound.
“It is going to be very tough on medically fragile people. I imagine the loss of life just from the lack of maintenance medications will be staggering in the coming days as supplies run out,” Beth said, returning her gaze to Maria.
“We’ve been trying to gather medical supplies every time we go out, but there isn’t much left out there that the cartel hasn’t taken.”
“Do you think the compound is going to be able to hold them back?” Beth asked.
Maria shifted in her seat, and Jack growled his displeasure.
“I think the advantage the group has is their combat experience. The cartel has numbers, and from what I can see, their ranks are growing by the day. But they aren’t battle hardened like our folks.”
“Has everyone here been in the military?”
“No, but they have had training. Some have had more than others, but everyone here knows how to shoot.”
Beth was silent as she thought about Maria’s plan to g
et her home.
“Do you think we can make it past the cartel and get out of the area?” Beth finally said, breaking the silence.
“I know a way north of here that the cartel hasn’t seized control of yet. We’d need to leave at night and move fast, but we can do it.”
“Can we take Roger’s truck?” Beth asked.
“We can, but I don’t know how we’ll find the gasoline to get very far. Even if the service stations had fuel, with the electricity out there’d be no way to pump it into the tank,” Maria said, scratching Jack behind the ears.
Jack rolled over and allowed her to rub his stomach. Beth rolled her eyes.
“He is such a stinker. He growls at me when I try to rub his tummy,” Beth said. “Roger was able to get fuel from abandoned vehicles. He punctured the gas tanks and filled our jerry cans.”
A knock on the door startled Beth. As she jumped to her feet and grabbed her rifle, Maria stood and walked to the door, cradling Jack in her arms.
“Hey, Maria, I heard a rumor that some of the team was going back out tonight. Can I come?” the male voice said.
“I don’t know where you heard that, but the answer would be, no. You have less than two weeks of training. It is too dangerous out there for a novice.” Maria said, holding the door open for the young man to enter.
“But we are short on people after the last raid. Jared is my cousin. I want to be the one to go and get him and bring his body back for my auntie.”
“The answer is no, Anthony. The team will bring your cousin back. You should stay here and comfort your family.”
“When are you heading out?” Anthony asked.
“Well…” Maria looked at Beth. “You just let the team worry about those details, okay, Anthony. And do not tell anyone. We don’t want the colonel finding out.”
“I thought she was a Marine? I thought they never left a man behind?”
“She has to think about the security of the entire compound. Now go on home and keep your big trap shut.”
“All right, but will you let Marcus know that I really want to go?”
“Anthony, go home.”
