by P. A. Glaspy
“Me, too, buddy. Now let’s go see if these douche bags are out of the fight so we can get to our families. If anything has happened to any of our people, none of these assholes are getting out of here alive.”
****
Monroe was in the barn with Luke and Brian when the shooting started. Ben was in the loft on watch. Monroe yelled up to him as he brought his rifle around. “Ben! What’s going on out there? Can you see anything?”
Ben had a pair of binoculars but with the waning light his vision was limited. “A little bit, Uncle Monroe. I can see people down there, and the flashes from the guns going off. Should I come down?”
As Monroe was about to speak, the interaction between Jim and Mike came over the radio Lee was holding. Luke started for the door but Monroe grabbed his arm. “Hold on, son. Don’t run off half-cocked.”
Luke jerked his arm away. “Casey is alone in our camper! The door won’t even be locked! I have to go, Monroe!”
“I understand that; I’ve got a wife over there, too. Let’s just make sure we get to them in one piece. Okay?”
Luke paused, took a breath, and looked Monroe in the eye. “Fine. How do we get over there then?”
Monroe pulled his rifle up and held it out to Luke. “This scope has a night vision setting. You’ve got younger eyes than me, so take it over to the door, open it a crack and see if you can see anybody. But don’t shoot! Remember what Mike said. Verify first.”
Luke took the proffered gun and hurried to the barn door. Staying as close to the wall as possible, he pulled it up and scanned the area. “I see at least six guys in all; two by the house, two behind the bunkhouse, and two … at the campers! One of them is about to open the door to my camper!”
Just as he was about to click the safety off the rifle, in the hopes he could hit the man from there, he saw whoever was trying to enter his camper shoot backwards to the ground after a flash of light and the unmistakable sound of a shotgun blast. He watched in awe as the door closed and the light inside was extinguished.
“Holy shit! She shot him! She blew him away!” Luke turned to Monroe and Brian with a big grin on his face. “My woman is bad ass!”
Monroe laughed at him. “All of our women are bad ass. Why, if that had been my Millie, she would have—”
Just then, Rusty ran through the barn door. “Uncle Monroe! Aunt Millie! She’s …” He stopped, unable to tell the beloved old man that his wife was gone.
He didn’t have to. Monroe knew by the look in his eye. “What? Millie? My Millie’s dead? No, no, you’re wrong, boy. She’s fine. I’ll just go check on her.”
Rusty stood in front of Monroe with tears streaming down his face. “She’s gone. Kate checked. Someone shot her through the kitchen window. I’m sorry, Uncle Monroe, I wasn’t able to protect her.” He was crying so hard now he couldn’t speak clearly.
Monroe’s face was unreadable. “Did she say anything, before she … died?”
Rusty nodded. “She said to tell everyone that she loved them. And to tell you that you were her life. I’m so sorry.”
Monroe ruffled Rusty’s hair. “It’s not your fault, son. But somebody’s gonna pay for this. Now.”
He reached out his hand to Luke, who turned the rifle over to its owner. He checked the breach to make sure the round he already knew was there still was, and walked out the barn door. Brian yelled for him to wait, but he couldn’t be heard over the angry shouting. “You bastards killed my wife, the sweetest woman to ever walk the face of this God forsaken earth! None of you will leave here alive! You hear me? You’re all dead, you just don’t know it yet! C’mon, you thievin’, murderin’, good-for-nothin’ cowards! What, are you afraid of an old man? Come out from behind them bushes so I can—”
Two shots rang out, one from outside the screen porch at the back corner of the house, the other from the side of the bunkhouse. Monroe might have lived through one of them, but not both. He fell to the ground as Matt was taking out the shooter behind the house. He had snuck around to get the drop on the guy. When Monroe started yelling, he knew he had the distraction he needed and was taking aim to fire when the guy shot Monroe. The shot startled Matt, but he quickly calmed himself enough to finish the man.
At the same time, Mike was coming in from the back field, Sean right behind, having already downed two invaders themselves. He saw the muzzle flash from outside the bunkhouse, and watched in horror as Monroe crumpled to the ground. Without hesitation, he drew a bead on the spot he had seen the flash originate from and fired until his breach locked open from the spent magazine, running to Monroe the whole time. He slid in beside him and pressed his hands to the wounds on his chest. He looked down at him and whispered fiercely, “Don’t you die on me, soldier. I haven’t given you permission to die!”
Monroe coughed, blood seeping from his mouth, “I don’t reckon I asked for your permission, jarhead. You take care of these people. They’re good folks. Some of the best I’ve ever known. It was an honor to know you, Marine. I gotta go now. My Millie is waiting for me. I see her smiling, holding her hand out to me …”
Monroe stopped breathing. Mike checked for a pulse, knowing he wouldn’t find one. He gently closed Monroe’s eyes, leaned his head back and howled his rage.
****
Alan was hiding behind the old outhouse, watching his crew fall. He didn’t hear any more shots from the front, which meant Rich, Doug, and Junior were dead. Steve had been blown away by that bitch in the camper. Les never came out from behind the barn so he was obviously a goner, along with his new sidekick, Silas. Hell, that whiny bitch probably ran back home when the shooting started with piss running down his legs. Wanted the goods, but didn’t have the guts to get them. The rest of Les’s crew lay where they had fallen around the yard. At least I got that old bitch through the window. That’s what she gets for not letting us in, letting us have the goods. Now I just gotta figure out how to get outta here.
He was looking around behind him for a path of some kind he could use to get away without being seen. He turned back toward the house to see a man standing there with a pistol aimed at his forehead. He started to raise his own sidearm when the man pulled the hammer back on his gun.
“Don’t even think about it. What, did you think you were going to slink off into the night after what you people have done here? No, you’ll be dropping that gun, putting your hands up, and coming with me.”
“The hell I will! You want to stop me? You’re gonna have to shoot me!” Alan raised his gun.
“Fine. Have it your way. Rot in hell.” The man fired point blank into Alan’s face.
****
Lee had been watching from the bunkhouse window, where he had been working on a rough piece of wood that needed sanding. He was just finishing up when the shooting started. He rushed to the door with his pistol drawn, but couldn’t see well and didn’t want to hit one of his own people. He retreated back into the darkness of the bunkhouse and crouched below a window. He saw the marauder yell at Millie to let them in and let them have the supplies. He watched in horror as the evil man stepped back, walked over to the kitchen window and fired a shot inside. He heard him laughing as he ran to hide behind the outhouse. After the hail of gunfire ceased, he opened the door and crept to the side of the outhouse. He raised his gun and rounded the corner. After he shot him, he calmly walked back out into the yard and toward the house, even though his hands were shaking. He needed to check on his family—Aiden and Moira, and Sara and Tony.
****
Ryan ran toward the house just in time to see Monroe fall. He skidded to a stop and looked for hostiles. After two more shots from the other side of the house, things got quiet. No more shooting, just the sounds of anguish coming from Mike. He yelled out, “Sitrep!” He received a “Clear!” from the back of the house that sounded like Matt. Another came from the outhouse. Lee? Brian called it from the barn, Jim from the campground. Russ and Bob ran up behind him.
“Is everyone okay? Has anyone been to
the house? What’s—” Russ stopped, able to see the body in the last remnants of the sunlight. He couldn’t tell who it was, so he rushed over to the spot. He found Mike, still on his knees with Monroe’s head in his lap. Bob was right on Russ’s heels. Seeing his uncle lying there, he dropped down beside him.
“What? Why?” The shock was evident in his tone.
Mike shook his head. “I don’t know. I got here and heard him yelling, but I couldn’t hear what he was saying. He walked right out in the open. Why would he do that?”
Brian and Rusty joined the group. Brian told them what had happened to Millie. Bob was overcome with grief and cried silent tears. He gave himself a moment, then rose to his feet, wiping his face. “I’ve gotta go find Janet. She’s gonna be torn apart by this—losing both of them at the same time.”
He got to his feet and turned toward the house. Mike looked up at him. “Announce yourselves. They’re going to be jumpy in there.”
Bob nodded and headed off, Russ beside him. Looking straight ahead, he said, “This is gonna be bad, real bad. Janet and Anne …” He didn’t finish the thought.
Russ wiped his own tears away. “Yes, it is, buddy. It sure is.”
****
We could hear Janet’s scream from the basement. She flew up the stairs, Marietta right behind, weapon drawn.
“Aunt Millie? Aunt Millie! Where is she?” As she came through the door, she saw the sheet draped over her aunt’s body, a blood-soaked section in the center. She fell to the floor beside her beloved aunt, sobbing uncontrollably. “This is all my fault! I was the one who suggested bugging out here. We made them a target! If we hadn’t come here—”
I put my arm around her shoulders. “It wouldn’t have mattered whether we were here or not, honey. They would have been found, probably a lot sooner without the fortifications we put in place. And if we weren’t here, those people would have taken this place over. Do you think Millie would have rather that happened? You know she wouldn’t. I know how bad you’re hurting, Janet. I know—”
“How do you know?” She lashed out at me hatefully as she jerked away. “This woman was like a mother to me! Who did you lose that you loved today?”
I reached down under the sheet and pulled Millie’s cool hand into mine. I looked at Janet with tear-filled eyes. “Her.”
Janet broke down again. “Oh, Anne, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to take it out on you. I love you, you know that. It just hurts so bad …”
I put my arm around her again. “I know, sweetie, I know. We’ll get through this, together. All of us.”
At that moment, Russ called from the porch. “We’re coming in. Don’t shoot!”
He and Bob came through the doorway and saw the devastation left behind from a senseless act of violence. Russ pulled me up to him as Bob joined his wife on the floor beside Millie. We both cried ourselves out into the strong shoulders of our husbands. Kate and Marietta were supporting each other as well.
Sara and Carrie came to the top of the stairs and peeked around the corner. Sara asked, “Is it safe to come up? The children are really scared and need to see their parents.”
I lifted my head and looked at Russ. He nodded and said, “Yes, I think we’re clear, but make sure they stay inside the house. We’ll get the parents to them.”
Bob turned Janet’s face up so he could look her in the eye. “Sugar, I’ve gotta tell you something, and on top of losing Millie, it’s gonna be real hard for you to hear.”
“Oh, Lord, what else happened? Is Ben okay? Where is he?”
“Yes, Ben’s fine. He’s still on watch in the loft. No, this is about Monroe.” He stopped, giving her a moment to grasp what he was about to say.
She grabbed his arm as her knees buckled. “Nooooo! Please, God, no! Not both of them at the same time!”
He held her close as they cried their sorrow out together. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house as the knowledge that the matriarch and patriarch of our home had been taken from us by greed and a complete disregard for human life. Mike came in, followed by the rest of our people.
“I think we’re clear. I did a quick sweep with Matt and Nick. No signs of anyone else. We need something to cover Monroe. If you’ll tell me where …”
I moved out of Russ’s embrace. “I’ll get you one. One sec.”
I came back with the sheet to find Lee embracing his children, along with Sara and Tony. Marietta and Brian, Carrie and Ryan, Jim and Charlotte, Ashley and her daughter, Shannon, and Luke and Casey all supporting each other in our time of grief. I handed the sheet to Mike and hugged him. “Thank you for helping to keep us safe.”
He shook his head. “Not everybody. We lost two people.”
I looked around the kitchen at my extended family. I turned back to Mike with a sad smile. “And saved of all these. If it weren’t for you and your knowledge and experience, this would have been a lot worse.”
Russ joined us, with Rusty under his arm. “She’s right, Mike. Without you we wouldn’t have been trained to deal with a situation like what we had tonight. Yes, we lost two—but we saved two dozen. I think that’s something to be thankful for. Regular people like us can’t expect there to be no casualties when we’re attacked. We did our best and we won. The bad guys came and they lost. I think Monroe and Millie would be proud of us.”
Mike nodded. “They were.”
Epilogue
Ryan ran across the yard, chasing his children. “I’m gonna get you, Billy Millie!”
His three-year-old daughter stopped, turned, placed her hands on her hips, and scolded him. “No, Daddy! Just my name! Just Millie! He Billy! I Millie!” She pointed at her twin brother, then looked back at her father with a pout.
He laughed and scooped them both up, making them squeal with delight. “Fine, Millie Jean. Billy and Millie. Better?”
She wrapped her chubby arms around his neck. “Better, Daddy. Down! Tickles!”
She tried to wiggle away from the beard he was sporting. He put them both down. Billy ran off after a chicken and Millie ran to her mother on the porch, nursing her newborn baby brother. She peeked inside the blanket.
“Mo eating?”
Carrie smiled at her daughter. “Yes, honey Monroe is eating. Go fetch your brother. It’s almost lunchtime.”
“K, Mommy.”
She went to find her brother as Ryan walked up. Looking over his shoulder to make sure the kids were out of earshot, he looked at his wife with a wicked leer. “Hey, when he’s done, how about some for Daddy?”
She swatted at him. “Ryan Lawton, you bad man! You would take your son’s food?”
He dodged her swat. “Honey, I’m pretty sure there’s enough there to feed a few kids.”
She stood up then to try to connect her swing with his arm. He jumped off the porch backwards, laughing and running after his kids. Carrie shook her head, giggled at her lascivious husband, and turned to go inside. She saw Bob standing there with a big grin and she turned fifty shades of red. He laughed then.
“Ah, it’s alright, Carrie girl. Just means he loves you. You saved him, you know. You brought him back from the dark place. Not sure he would have made it without you.”
She turned to look back at her family. “We saved each other. I didn’t think I’d ever find someone I could stand long enough to live the rest of my life with. He makes me laugh every day. He makes me feel loved every minute of every day. Who would have thought it would take the world we knew coming to an end for us to find one another? I guess you could say we needed the dark to see the light.”
Bob looked at her with a serious expression. “Damn, girl, that’s some deep shit right there.” He held the serious look for a second, then smiled. They both laughed as he held the door for her to come inside. “Since you ain’t sharin’ Mo’s food, lunch is ready.”
She smacked Bob on the arm. “You too?”
“Ow!” He rubbed his arm as he followed her in the door. “Man, marriage gives women some wicked aim.”
/> She replied over her shoulder, “Husbands give wives a reason to need it.”
“Well, yeah, there’s that.”
****
Sara moaned as the next contraction hit her. Their small cabin was heating up with Kate, Carrie, Lee, and pretty much everyone else either inside or standing in the doorway. Kate stood up and yelled, “If you are not directly responsible or involved in this birth, we need some room! Everybody but Carrie and Lee, out! Oh, and Sara.”
There were snickers and laughs as everyone filed out. The cabins had been built close to the house so they could tie into the septic tank. It was closing in on five years since the power had gone off. There were no new updates as to when—or even if—it would come back on. There was fighting across the country, mostly in the larger metropolitan areas between militias and the UN. When we found out our own government had turned out the lights, the people rose up from coast to coast to fight the invading force of the UN and consequently, DHS.
Matt and Nick had left to join the militia unit based out of Nashville, along with Mike. Quite a few of the younger men from town joined up as well, including Clay Glass. That was a shocker. We didn’t think Clay cared about anyone but himself and his momma. Rhonda’s wailing could be heard almost to our place, but we heard Clay stood up to her that day.
“Momma, you ain’t disabled. You’re lazy. You need to get out in the yard and plant some food. I’ll get it started for you, but you’re gonna have to take care of it if you want to eat. The ladies in town will help you put it up. I’m going to fight for our country, Momma. Jay woulda if he was still here. I need to do this. I love you, Momma, but you don’t need me. You need to get up off your butt and do stuff.” Yep, Gary got a kick out of telling us that story. We hadn’t heard she died, so apparently Rhonda was doing okay by herself. We sure did miss our guys though.
