Roads Less Traveled: The Plan

by C. Dulaney

  “Oh, you’re welcome sweetie. I’m just happy you’re feeling a little better this evening,” Nancy said.

  “Where’s Kasey?” Mia asked. Nancy tried to smile, tried to hide her fear, but failed miserably.

  “To be honest, I’m not sure Mia. A few days ago she and Jake headed out to Gibson, to find medicine for you, and they haven’t come back yet. I’m sure they’re fine, probably just ran into some roadblocks or something, and had to take the long way around.” As she spoke, her confidence began to return. Mia, however, did not share her optimism.

  “They did what?” she asked and tried sitting up. Nancy took her by the arms and gently pushed her back until she was resting against the bed again. “No, this is bullshit! I’m not worth that, not that! She’ll get her damn self killed,” Mia said. She may have been sick, but there was still a lot of fight left in her. Nancy was glad to see it.

  “Now you listen to me. You know Kasey better than any of us, so you know if anyone can get into Gibson, fight through whatever it is that I’m sure they’ve had to fight, and get back here safe and sound, Kasey can.” Nancy was firm as she spoke, and her grip on Mia’s arms was tight enough to let the younger woman know her elder wasn’t just blowing smoke up her ass.

  Mia quieted down and studied Nancy for several minutes before asking her about the others, and what was being done to safeguard the house.

  “I was just about to send Zack and Ben down the driveway, into the woods, to keep watch. With the power out, we can’t see anything coming until its right on top of us. Don’t worry; we have a few backup plans in place in case something happens. You need to rest now, don’t get yourself in a tizzy,” Nancy answered. She waited a moment until she was sure Mia was satisfied with her answer, and then left the room quietly, casting a quick glance at Shannon as she stepped out the door.

  Downstairs, Zack was pacing the floor. Ben sat with Kyra on the couch, his arm around her shoulders, and tried to think of something positive to say. The truth was, he was absolutely worried sick about his friends. All three turned when they heard Nancy coming down the stairs, Zack meeting her at the bottom with his hands on his hips and his face set in grimness.

  “Zack, you and Ben should go down the mountain, not too far, but far enough you can get back here to warn us in time if something comes our way. And stay in the woods,” Nancy said, weariness finally beginning to take over. Zack nodded and immediately went for the rifles. Kyra started to argue with Ben, but he shook her off and prepared to leave.

  “Take walkies, so you can keep in contact with me. If anything happens, you let me know ASAP. Then get your asses back here,” Nancy said as the two boys met at the front door. Each had a walkie and a rifle, and was bundled up in coats and gloves. It wasn’t winter yet, but cold enough for late October. Gus swaggered over from his bed in the corner, sat at Zack’s feet, looked up at the man, and started whining. He also was worried, in his own doggy way.

  “Alright boy, you can come with us. But you have to be quiet, stay close, and do as I say,” Zack said as he rubbed the dog’s head, knowing full well he couldn’t understand English. Gus answered by licking his hand and wagging his tail.

  “Alright, you boys be careful. Report back in an hour,” Nancy said and hugged them both. Gus was scratching at the door as Ben unlatched the bars. No one noticed when the dog suddenly stopped his nervous scratching, or when the hair stood up on his back. Ben barely had the door open when Gus let out a growling bay. Everyone jumped, and Zack scolded Gus before he could stop himself.

  “Gus! Shut up!” he hissed. Gus simply stood in the threshold, hair up, teeth bared, feet planted apart, and growling ferociously. The three of them shared nervous glances, now sure the dog wasn’t messing around. Kyra jumped up and walked over to them, leaning around Ben to look outside. It was dark, but she could make out the faint outline of a horse.

  “Are they back?” she asked, her voice sounding a bit too disappointed. Gus was still being extremely aggressive, even urinating down his leg as he growled.

  “No, it’s not them. Gus wouldn’t be acting like this if it was them,” Ben said. Without saying another word, Zack turned and went straight for the back door, raising his rifle as he left and crept around the back of the house. Ben did the same, only out the front door and in plain view. Nancy told Kyra to get her gun, then stood in the doorway, waiting, until Kyra returned with it.

  “Stay inside. Go upstairs with Mia and Shannon, make sure your rifle is loaded,” Nancy said and stepped onto the porch, the barrel of her twelve gauge pointing at the figure now riding past the garage. The door shut behind her and she could hear Ben telling the rider to stop.

  “That’s far enough, stop right there or I’ll shoot,” he said. The rider stopped, still hidden in darkness, but close enough to Ben and the house to hear his orders. Zack had made his way around the corner of the garage and had his rifle aimed at the back of the rider.

  “My name is Teresa. Jake sent me. I have a walkie talkie he gave me, but the batteries must have gone dead. He told me to radio you before I got here, but I couldn’t,” Teresa said, very nervous and expecting to be shot any second. Ben was shaken when she mentioned Jake; he hadn’t been expecting this. Nancy left the porch and joined him in the driveway, her shotgun still aimed at Teresa’s head.

  “Start talking stranger, and don’t make me tell you twice,” Nancy said. She was angry, scared, and tired. Not a good combination in any grandmother.

  “Like I said, my name is Teresa. Jake and Kasey found me a day ago, just this side of Gibson. They fed me and cared for my injuries, and then after camping overnight with them, they decided to send me back here. Said they had business in Gibson, and it would be safer if I came here.”

  Ben and Nancy whispered back and forth to one another, neither one of them wanting to trust this stranger. How did they know she was telling the truth, that she hadn’t just killed them both and taken one of their horses? They both dismissed that possibility pretty quickly, each of them secure in the fact that this woman couldn’t have taken both Jake and Kasey without getting killed in the process.

  “Step down off that horse and come closer. Slowly,” Nancy ordered once again. As Teresa dismounted and started walking towards them, Zack came around the corner, showing himself, and stood a few feet behind her, his rifle aimed neatly at the base of her skull.

  “How do we know you haven’t been bitten?” Ben asked. They could see Teresa a little better now; she was standing less than five feet from them. She looked pretty beat up, so it was easy for them to assume she had been attacked by deadheads. Although, they also knew if that had been the case, Kasey would have shot the woman as soon as she saw her.

  “I haven’t been. You can examine me, if you need to. Jake told me to let you, that you’re a nurse.” Teresa was slowly poking holes in all their doubts, and convincing them she was telling the truth.

  “Alright, come inside. Ben, you and Zack go ahead with what you were doing. I’ll take it from here,” Nancy said, sharing a look with the men that said be quiet, be still, and don’t share any information as to what you were in the middle of doing when this stranger showed up. They hesitated, not wanting to leave the older woman with someone who could potentially be dangerous, but also knew there could be trouble coming. Zack jerked his chin in the direction of the woods, then moved off. Ben led the horse to the barn, unsaddled her, and then put her in the stall before running to catch up with Zack.

  Nancy watched until the two had disappeared into the woods next to the driveway, and then motioned for Teresa to walk ahead of her to the house. She wanted to keep this one where she could see her, and never lowered the barrel of her shotgun.

  * * *

  “Did you do as I told you?” Nancy whispered to Kyra. The two stood in the kitchen around the coffee pot, while Teresa sat in the living room. So far, everything the woman had said made sense. She even knew a few things she shouldn’t have. Still, Nancy had a bad feeling about her.

&nb
sp; “Yeah, they’re as ready to go as I could get them, considering one is bedfast and the other is, well, whatever she is,” Kyra said. Nancy nodded once and filled another coffee cup. Kyra followed her into the living room and sat in the chair next to the couch. Nancy handed the coffee to Teresa, then went to the study to monitor the radio. Kyra was supposed to stay with Teresa and watch her, but she ended up bullshitting with her instead.

  Nancy sat in front of the radio, which was now running on battery-power only, praying to hear from Jake or Kasey, and praying not to hear from Zack or Ben. She had indeed examined Teresa, and had confirmed her story. She also made sure the stranger didn’t have any weapons on her. Only thing she had was the walkie Jake had given her, and the battery wasn’t dead. Nancy had checked it before putting it in its charging cradle. Either the woman was lying, or she was stupid and didn’t know how to use a walkie talkie. Nancy was swaying towards the former. Her instincts never failed her, and every one of them was screaming for her to run. Of course she couldn’t, she was responsible for the safety of everyone here. She couldn’t and wouldn’t abandon them. But she knew trouble was coming.

  * * *

  Ben hit the light on his indiglo watch and saw it was only 8:30. It sure felt later than that, but of course sitting out in the cold, dark, and damp night had a way of making it feel much later than it really was. He and Zack had set up watch half a mile from the house and about two hundred yards from the driveway on the steep and rocky hillside. They were nestled between two big oak trees, trying to stay warm, and hadn’t said a word to one another since picking out their spot. It was so damn dark in the woods, there was no way they would see anything if it came knocking. They would have to depend on their ears to alert them.

  Unfortunately, they didn’t have to wait long.

  * * *

  “Hey man, you alright?” I asked Jake. We were half a day from the house, riding in the near-pitch dark of night. I was relying heavily on the horses’ sense of direction; I couldn’t even see the stars through all the clouds to determine it myself. Jake was still suffering from his fall earlier, though it had been quite amusing.

  “Yeah, I’m okay. Guts feel like they’re on fire, but I’ll make it. How close do you think we are now?” he asked.

  “I’d say about half a day. I’ll know more once it comes daylight.” I was worried about him now. What if he had internal injuries? It wasn’t like we could go to the hospital. I was already sure he had a broken rib; he had screamed and grabbed his side earlier when getting into the saddle. But Jake was stubborn and wouldn’t admit he was hurting, or rather, wouldn’t admit to the extent of his pain.

  “You think we’re close enough to call them on the radio?” he asked. He was grunting every time the horse had to step over a rock or dodge around a hole, and it sounded like he was trying to hold his breath when he spoke.

  “Yeah, we’re probably close enough. I’ll give it a try.” I pulled the walkie out of my jacket pocket and called for Nancy. No answer. I waited a moment before trying again, growing more nervous and certain by the second that Teresa had led trouble straight back to the house.

  “This is Nancy, it’s so good to hear your voice, Kasey,” she finally replied. Nancy didn’t sound good, and it scared me.

  “We’re about half a day’s ride from the house, we’re basically okay and we have the medicine. Is everything okay there?” I slowed Daisy to a stop and heard Jake doing the same beside me.

  “That woman is here, the one you sent. Did you send her, Kasey?”

  “Yes, we sent her back a day or so ago. She made it?” I asked. I was dreading whatever Nancy had to say next. Waiting for the shoe to drop, so to speak.

  “Yes she made it. Zack and Ben are keeping watch down the mountain, to make sure she didn’t bring company. So far, I haven’t heard from them, so I’m assuming we’re in the clear.” Nancy was slowly sounding more relaxed as she talked to me.

  “We’ll be there soon, be careful and keep an eye out. And on Teresa, just in case. How’s Mia?” I finally asked. I was afraid she was already dead, and that all this had been for nothing.

  “She’s actually doing better than expected. She was lucid and talking to me earlier. As a matter of fact, she was pretty pissed off at you for going to Gibson,” Nancy said, a slight laugh tinting her voice. I smiled at this; if Mia was pissed, there was still hope.

  “Sounds good. We’ll radio when we’re closer. Kasey out.” I signed off, tucked the walkie back in my jacket, and looked over at Jake. He was grimacing, but smiling just the same.

  “Let’s go home,” he said. I agreed and got Daisy moving again. The closer we got to home, the better I would feel. Not just for Jake’s sake, but for some reason I couldn’t determine, for all our sake’s.

  * * *

  The crunching of leaves, snapping of twigs, and Gus jumping to his feet caused Zack to sit upright, rigid and breathless. Ben had fallen asleep some time ago, so Zack kicked his boot a few times to wake him up. He quietly told Gus to be still and slid closer to Ben, putting his hand over his mouth before the boy could voice his protests over being woken up. The noise Zack had heard was getting louder, not closer really, just louder. That told him there were several something’s headed their way. He leaned closer to Ben so he could whisper in his ear.

  “We’ve got trouble. I don’t smell anything, so I’m guessing its people. Live people. And a lot of them. Let’s sneak out of here and get back to the house. Try not to make any noise, and keep your head down. Follow me,” Zack said and started moving, Gus staying right at his feet, before Ben could ask any foolish questions. He liked Ben, but sometimes the kid could be so dense.

  Instead of dropping back into the driveway, Zack kept them in the woods, slowly creeping parallel to the road and staying in the trees. He doubted whoever it was would hear them over all the noise they were making, which was substantial now, but nevertheless he tried to walk quietly. Quietly, but quickly. Whoever was behind them was moving faster than they were, which told him they had to be on horseback. He and Ben hadn’t been able to get far enough away yet to use the walkie, to warn Nancy, but if they could just make it to the house ahead of the danger, they could get the women out and to the place Kasey had told them to go in case of trouble.

  The house was just coming into view when the shouting began behind them. Men were giving orders, and Zack could hear horses coming, and fast. He grabbed Ben’s arm and started running. Gunshots rang out, but Zack didn’t falter. He knew whoever was shooting would have a hell of a time hitting either one of them in the dark, especially when they were running in a zigzag fashion through the woods. As he ran, he jerked the walkie out of his coat pocket and yelled for Nancy. She answered immediately.

  “What’s going on, did I hear gunfire?” she shouted.

  “Get the girls out of the house! Fall back to the cellar, we’re almost there!” Zack shouted back. He wasn’t sure, but he had a sickening feeling the people behind them were the escaped cons from Cedartown. They finally broke through the tree line as Zack was stuffing the walkie back in his pocket and making a mad dash for the front door. Gus was hot on their heels, not barking or growling, just hauling ass.

  Shots were still ringing out as they hit the porch, and Zack thought he had seen movement in the tree line, but in the darkness he couldn’t be sure. What he didn’t know was that these particular prisoners on horseback were just a small raiding party. The main body of the group was standing by some seven miles to the west, waiting for a predetermined amount of time before heading out and moving to the next location. The objective of this raid: get in, get what supplies and women they could based off of the small amount of information gathered from Teresa, and get out, then meet up with the main group and move on, as quickly and efficiently as possible.

  Ben ripped the front door open and screamed out a curse when he saw the bars were all latched. “Open the goddamn bars!! Hey!” He was kicking against them, Gus was starting to whine, and Zack was watching b
ehind them. They both shrank back and almost fell over the banister when several shots hit the side of the house, sending vinyl and wood shards flying.

  “Where are they? I can’t see them!” Ben shouted. Zack had opened fire, shooting in the general direction of the attackers. In the background he could hear footsteps tromping down the stairs and someone yelling at Ben. That’s when he was jerked inside by his coat sleeve and the door slammed behind him.

  “They’re trying to surround us. We need to get out the back and into the cellar, now!” he ordered. Nancy had her arms around Mia and was helping her walk. He was impressed Mia could even get to her feet, but apparently the lady had a lot of fight left in her. Kyra was leading Shannon, who had started screaming and struggling to get back upstairs. Ben had grabbed Teresa by the arm and was dragging her off the couch, swearing at her the whole time. The noise outside now was deafening; gunshots and shouts filling the air.

  “You did this! How? How did they follow you?” Ben was screaming into Teresa’s face. She simply smirked at him and didn’t answer. Zack had the others gathered at the back door and was ready to open it, make a run for it. Gus was ready too, prancing around and whining.

  “Ben, leave her! Let’s go!” Nancy shouted. Ben threw Teresa to the floor and jerked his gun from its holster. Her eyes grew wide with shock and she opened her mouth to protest, but was cut short by a bullet between the eyes. Her head snapped back but she remained poised on her knees for a moment, Ben still holding his pistol on her with a disturbingly steady hand. Then Teresa slowly crumpled to the floor. Blood pooled on the floor beneath her head and soaked her once beautiful red hair, turning it a muddy brown color. Ben continued to stare at her until Zack finally spoke, breaking the shocked silence.