None of them knew that Andy was lying in the fetal position in the closet. He wanted to cry himself to sleep, but he was terrified. They were content knowing that he was hiding. In reality, he was awake and fearing for his mother’s safety. He hadn’t heard her voice for some time and was worried that she’d been shot and killed in the gunfight. Opening the door to check on her was on his mind, but it wasn’t a chance he was willing to take.
Downstairs, Darrick and Marcus were discussing the next course of action.
“We’ll need to go light,” Darrick said. “We’ll need a distraction out back. Whatever it is, we’ll leave out the front door and head across the way to the glade where you met up with me. If we have time, we’ll make gear adjustments and head for Pontybridge.”
“What kind of distraction did you have in mind?”
A few minutes later
Cornelius was out cold when Marcus kicked him in the ribs. “Hey, Rev. Wake up!”
He attempted to stand, but failed. His wrists and ankles were tied together with 550 paracord. “What is this? What’s happening?”
Cornelius couldn’t see anything for the darkness, but the voice he heard was a familiar one. “Marcus, is that your voice I heard?”
“It is, and you’re no longer welcome here,” Marcus answered.
“We saved your life; now you’re going to save ours,” Darrick said.
“Something about the way you’ve got me tied up leads me to believe your intentions might be sinister,” Cornelius said.
“Don’t be silly,” Marcus answered. “There’s a mob of angry men on the front lawn, calling for your blood. We’re going to give you a head start, though. When that back door opens, you’re going to run as fast as you can.”
“Please don’t do this,” Cornelius pleaded. “I can be of use to you, Marcus. I know things about the Enclave.”
“There’s nothing you know that I don’t,” Marcus answered.
Darrick was being quiet and taking in all the information.
“I know something you don’t,” Cornelius rebutted.
Marcus’s attention was captured. “I’m listening.”
Cornelius knew that if he shared what he knew about Denver, then he’d be of no further use to Marcus. He was now wondering what he might do and how he might use his knowledge as a bartering chip for his safety. He couldn’t think of anything. He had one card to play, but it wasn’t a winning hand. “Promise me that if I tell you, you won’t send me out there?”
“No can do,” Marcus said.
Darrick had no reason to hold his peace. He just didn’t have a part to play at this stage of the plan. “What do you know?”
Cornelius heard the new voice. “Who’s that?”
“My name’s Darrick Mitchell. This is my property.”
Cornelius considered the possibility that this might be the man the Enclave had been looking for. “Are you the man responsible for Denver’s missing men?”
“Before I tell you anything or do anything for you, you’re going to have to prove your value. Tell me what you know that Marcus doesn’t.”
Cornelius felt it was an even trade and considered it a deal. “Rueben and Denver are one and the same.”
“What are you talking about?” Marcus said.
“Rueben is Denver. Denver is Rueben. He’s a paranoid schizo who looks in a mirror for advice.”
“How does that help things?” Darrick asked.
“Well, for one, you’re not going to have to run deep into the company of the Enclave to take out Denver. Rueben will be here soon. If you take out Rueben, you’ve cut the head off the serpent.”
“Darrick,” Kara said, “don’t do it. We need to stick to the plan.”
“Who’s that? What plan?” Cornelius asked.
Darrick sighed. He knew Kara was right. He’d made too many bad decisions that cost lives. He was going to stick with the group plan.
“I’m sorry, mister,” Darrick said.
Kara cut Cornelius’s ankles free. Marcus and Darrick grabbed him by the pants and armpits and lifted him to his feet. They walked him to the back door and quietly opened it.
Flick.
“What was that?” Cornelius asked. It was the very distinctive sound of a match strike. “What are you doing?” Cornelius’s hands were still bound, so he was unable to reach back behind him to feel what was happening, but he saw a flickering light and realized he was being set up. He was shoved out the door.
“Run,” Marcus said.
“Please reconsider,” he begged.
Carissa was standing in the darkness. She put the box of matches back in her pocket. Tonya, James, Andy, and Kara positioned themselves near the front door. Tonya and Kara worked together to keep elder Mitchell silent. Tonya’s hand was over his mouth. He was struggling with them, but lacked the strength to resist her. Carissa joined them, and they waited for the signal.
“I said RUN!” Marcus said, kicking Cornelius out onto the back porch. Darrick pulled his pistol and shot it into the ceiling. It startled Cornelius into compliance.
He ran out the back door as fast as he could; all the while a light flickered behind him. He heard what he thought was the sound of gunshots directly to his rear. He felt the sting of what he thought was bullet wounds. It didn’t take but a couple of moments for him to realize the sound was firecrackers, not gunshots, and they were latched to his belt. It was at that point he knew he was a decoy. He saw the first flash of light from the tree line that signaled to him he was being shot at. He heard the sound, then felt a sting in his side and saw several more flashes of light and felt the stings that he recognized, undoubtedly, as impact wounds.
Everybody that was hiding outside with a view of the front yard left their positions to join in what sounded like a gunfight in the backyard. The blasts drowned out the silence. It was the signal Tonya, Carissa, and Kara were waiting for. The front door flew open and they ran out, struggling with elder Mitchell as they went. They were joined by Darrick and Marcus, Darrick being the one to pick his dad up into a bear hug to carry him out.
In the backyard, the string of firecrackers had all exploded and the gunshots were subsiding. Silence was regaining its dominance. Cornelius was lying on the ground with multiple bullet wounds, slowly dying from blood loss. He hadn’t received a single fatal wound, but the sheer number of hits were enough to seal his fate. Several men were beginning to reveal themselves from their covered positions and making their approach toward the downed man. Others were keeping a watchful eye on the back door as they waited for more people to keep running out. It never happened.
“We got him,” one of the men yelled. “It’s Cornelius.”
They gathered around him to confirm that they’d finished their task. Three or four men maintained security on the back of the house while the rest watched Cornelius breathe his last breath.
“There were more,” a man said. “At least three or four more.”
“Everybody, into the house. We need to make sure it’s done,” a man named Chad said, taking charge of the manhunt.
A large group of men entered the house. Within a few seconds, the verdict was announced.
“There’s nobody here.”
“Spread out and find them. They’ve got to be here somewhere.”
“Who was covering the front door?” the self-appointed leader asked.
When nobody owned up to the question, he commanded them, saying, “They fled out the front door, you idiots. Go get them.”
The group of men ran off across the front of the property and spread out to cover the vast amount of land. Several went down the graveled road, and others entered the woods.
***
Darrick and Marcus let the women, elder Mitchell, and Andy take the lead so that they could provide rear cover and fend off any would-be pursuers. They maintained a steady-paced trek through the woods that would take most of the night. They were well aware of the dangers and possible conflicts that could happen in a darkened forest
, which was why Darrick and Marcus gave them such a substantial lead. It wasn’t long after they had entered the woods that they started to hear the voices of men as they passed through.
The plan had been discussed before they ever left the house. They agreed to let the women take Andy and James ahead while Darrick and Marcus took out the trackers. Knives only was the agreement. Only as an absolute last resort were they to use guns.
Darrick and Marcus were about twenty feet apart when the first of the trackers came by. Darrick was wearing a white T-shirt that lit him up like a lightning bug against the dark forest. He used the trees as cover, being sure to keep a tight profile against an oak as a tracker walked by. Once he passed Darrick’s position, Darrick quietly stepped out from behind the tree and knocked the man’s rifle out of his hand and stabbed him in the throat. The wound was deep enough to open his windpipe so that the man couldn’t yell. He didn’t even fight. He used both of his hands to control the bleeding and dropped to his knees when they weakened from blood loss. Darrick knew it was fatal, so he moved on away from the man.
Marcus was wearing a blue-colored shirt, so it wasn’t as visible as Darrick’s. As long as he remained motionless, the trackers would just walk by him. When they did, he slit their throats from behind. Each one died the same way. They would drop their rifles and grab their throats.
There were several men who were well spread out. The darkness and the fact they were outnumbered made it an impossibility to take them all out. Everything seemed to be going fairly smoothly except for the fact some made it past Darrick and Marcus. It was Tonya’s scream that alerted them to a problem with the plan.
Oh no , Darrick thought, hearing the scream.
Marcus heard it, too. They each moved as fast as they could through the forest. The cloud cover began to break up, revealing bits of moonlight. It was only a momentary relief that enabled them to pick up their pace. The moon vanished behind the clouds once again, and the first drops of rain were heard landing on the green canopy.
Darrick and Marcus weren’t the only persons running through the forest. Tonya’s scream was heard far and wide. It alerted the rest of the Enclave war party, who were also headed in the direction of the women, Andy, and elder Mitchell.
Darrick arrived first, having a head start over Marcus. When he arrived at the approximate location of the scream, he stopped running and stood silently listening. All he heard was Marcus running up from behind him.
“Marcus?” Darrick asked.
“Yeah, man. It’s me. Where are they?” he whispered.
“Down here,” Kara whispered.
Both Darrick and Marcus headed toward the sound of Kara’s voice. As if on cue, the moon gave forth her light. Darrick saw Kara sitting in the woods, with Tonya resting on her back, her head being supported by Kara’s knees. She was unconscious.
“What happened?” Darrick asked. Marcus made his way over to them.
“One of them grabbed her in a choke hold. I hit him on the back of the head with my rifle. He’s over there,” she said, pointing in the direction of the man’s body.
Darrick went over to the man and cut his throat in his sleep. When the deed had been done, he returned to Kara, Tonya, and Marcus. “Where’s Andy?”
“I don’t know. He ran off, and Carissa chased him. Your dad made a break for it, too. I’m sorry. They went in opposite directions.”
“Marcus,” Darrick said, “can you head southeast? I’ll head southwest.”
“Sure,” Marcus answered, heading off.
“Kara, can you get Tonya to Pontybridge? It’s not safe here.”
“Yeah,” she answered.
“We’ll catch up to you. Keep moving and don’t stop.”
“I will.”
Darrick gave her a hug and ran off. He felt his way through the woods with the limited amount of light that was afforded to him. His knife was tightly gripped, so much so that he had to remind himself to relax on his squeeze. He pushed through the woods, moving as silently as he could, until he heard his dad’s voice yelling through the darkness.
“Pudge? You’re gonna get it, boy. You’d better show yourself or you’ll get it twice as bad.”
Darrick ran as fast as he could safely run toward his dad’s voice.
“This is the last time I’m going to tell you!” James yelled under the cover of darkness.
Pinpointing his location was difficult. The woods were thick, and the land was hilly. His voice was being refracted by the terrain. In a panic to find his dad, Darrick bumped into Carissa, knocking her to the ground. In the confusion, Carissa pointed her rifle at Darrick and he pulled his knife on her. The confrontation only lasted a second before they realized who they were.
“Where’s Andy?” Darrick asked.
“He’s close. I was following his footsteps when I ran into you,” she said, still breathing heavily from the chase.
Immediately, Darrick knew Andy was headed for his grandpa. “Oh no,” he said, taking off again in the direction of his dad.
A few seconds later, Darrick was close enough to see his dad if lighting conditions were any better. The rain let up and it became deathly silent. All except elder Mitchell’s yells. They were ear-piercingly loud. A ravine was all that separated Darrick from his dad. He would have descended it and crawled up the other side if not for the voices of two men he heard who were approaching his dad’s side of the ravine. The canopy opened enough to let the moon’s light shine on elder Mitchell’s position. A bright green color in the tree above James gave away Andy’s position.
He must’ve become frightened and hid from Dad, Darrick thought.
Elder Mitchell was confused. He thought he was looking for his son, but in truth he had seen Andy in the woods at night and was taking on his old role as authoritarian. Two armed men were making their way to where elder Mitchell was yelling.
When Andy saw his dad, he started to climb down the tree. Darrick was trying to persuade him to stay where he was, but he was watching his way down the tree instead of looking at his father.
Darrick’s heart began to race. His mind was pumping with ideas on how to deal with the situation at hand. The men were aiming their rifles in the direction of James, but their view was obstructed by trees. They would stop, listen, and advance. Darrick decided to advance on his dad’s position when the armed men advanced, hoping their footsteps would drown out the sounds of his.
When Darrick reached James and Andy, he grabbed Andy first and pulled him down into the ravine. Then he climbed back up the ravine and grabbed his dad, pulling him down. Elder Mitchell became so loud that he threatened to give away their position more than he had before. Darrick grabbed him by the mouth to try to silence him, but he fought with his hands and legs. Darrick had to make the ultimate decision of life and death. To leave things as they were, they would be heard, spotted, and shot. He looked at his son. Andy was terrified.
“Look away,” he mouthed to his son.
Andy knew what had to be done, so he turned his head and covered his eyes.
Elder Mitchell was lying on Darrick, facing outward. He was fighting his son’s attempts to keep him silent by trying to pull his hands off his mouth. Darrick knew he was making too much noise and there was nothing he could do except silence him. “Dad, please stop,” he whispered with tears in his eyes. “Dad, please don’t make me do this.”
Elder Mitchell fought back the best he could, but he was feeble. That didn’t stop him from kicking the earth beneath him and flailing his arms about. Darrick locked his dad’s arms into position by putting them in the folds of his knees. With both of Darrick’s hands now free, he was able to hold one hand over his dad’s mouth and the other over his nose. Darrick closed his eyes, as if not seeing it would block the awful deed from his memory. James continued to kick violently. It was a sound that he was certain could be heard by the armed men who were already dangerously close to their hiding spot in the ravine.
Darrick cried. There was no other way. To sav
e his son, he had to stop his dad from making so much noise. The men drew closer to the sounds. Closer yet.
“Do you hear that?” one of the men asked the other. They both stopped moving. “I don’t hear the voice anymore.”
“Me neither.”
Both men were standing just over the top of Darrick, Andy, and James’s now lifeless body, as Darrick held him tightly. Darrick was still crying, but he dared not make a sound. His facial expression was one of torment and great pain.
“Let’s keep moving,” the man said. With that, both men left the area and Darrick saved his son’s life.
Enclave Camp
The next morning
August 18th
Rueben was sitting on the porch of the ranch house, picking the grime from beneath his fingernails with the file of his fingernail clippers. The wooden rocking chair had a slight squeak to it, but not enough to disturb his peace of mind. He was wondering why his war party was taking so long to return when word finally came to his ears.
“Boss,” a man called out from the far side of the front yard.
Rueben looked up to see a sweaty man standing on the other side of the gate.
“They’re back.”
Rueben stood up and walked to the gate, where he met the men. “Roll call,” he sounded off.
The men were tired from a long night of manhunting, fireworks, and gunfights. They came together in a loosely organized formation. Rueben looked at them once, then squinted his eyes. The numbers weren’t right.
“Chad,” Rueben called out. He knew Chad was a control freak who loved to take command of situations.
Chad was standing in formation when he heard his named called out. He looked at Rueben, who was pulling his handkerchief from his pocket to cover his nose and mouth. Chad was frozen with fear.
“Chad, come here.”
Chad jumped out of formation. “I’m here, sir.”
After The Pulse (Book 1): Homestead Page 18
