They walked into the living room. Someone had removed all of the furniture and stashed the beds from upstairs in every corner. Why? They had enough beds for most of the people in Atlas. Vixen could've sent a few people on a run to find more beds. In fact, she should've done that instead of taking them captive. "I thought you said Vixen wanted to see us?" Randi motioned to the room. "Where is she?"
"Upstairs in her office. First door on the right."
She cleared out at least part of the upstairs for her own use? What a piece of work. She didn't care one iota about the people under her rule. Why couldn't they see that the woman was a tyrannical dictator?
Their captor rapped on the door and pushed it open. "Vixen, we have Bryan and Randi here to see you."
She motioned for them to come inside. Their captor closed the door as he left them with Vixen. Randi eyed the woman. Could she kill her without her making a sound? If so, she'd save these people from whatever evil plans this leather-clad cat-woman wannabe came up with. She was going to get her entire town killed if she kept up with her plans to avenge any perceived slight.
"What do you want, Vixen? You've got the camp, murdered Mary Anne among others, so you've gotten your revenge." Bryan stabbed the air with his forefinger. "Why can't you leave us alone?"
She stared at him for several long moments. "I won't rest until every last one of you is dead."
Chapter 25
Josh urged Xever toward the cabin. At the door, the older man turned and met Josh's gaze. "Where is Randi?"
"Uh. She and Bryan left. I think they went to find more supplies."
"Right." He glared at Josh. "You're telling me you allowed my daughter to leave knowing what a hothead she is? You do realize she's probably out for revenge right now. She's going to die, and then I'll only have Adriana left. Will you be happy then? Or do you want me to be all alone? Like that would ever be punishment enough for murdering my son."
Josh counted to five reminding himself this was Xever's grief speaking. He put his hand on the man's arm. "I didn't know she'd left until Adriana told me. Randi said she was going outside to talk to her sister."
"And you believed her?"
"I had no reason not to."
"She's Randi. That's reason enough." Xever slammed the door open. "You're going to need to put a tight leash on that woman if she makes it back. Keep her under control."
Did Xever even realize what he was saying? No one put a tight leash on Randi. She did what she wanted when she wanted and dared anyone to object. Xever's grief over Miguel and Faustina clouded his judgment. Josh needed to remember that and give him some slack. He'd come around eventually.
They walked into the bedroom where Ethan lay on one bed and Gabriele on the other. Her face glistened with sweat and her damp, limp hair clung to the pillow.
She flung her arm onto her forehead. "I hope you have something more than a hydrocodone."
"Yes." Uncle Reginald adjusted the IV drip. "I looked up all of the IV drugs we have. ondansetron and lorazepam I'll give you the maximum dose now, but you'll have to wait a while to get anymore. I'll keep giving you pain meds at the right times." His hands shook. "You're sure I can do this?"
"You have to. The bullet shattered the bone. We don't have any way of fixing it. Just make sure to give me plenty of antibiotics. Use the ax right above the area that's shattered. You need to cut through intact bone, so it'll take a strong swing. Maybe more than one. I don't know. I've never seen an amputation done with an ax."
He turned green and sweat beads popped out on his forehead. "Okay. I'll check on the tools to cauterize it. Mark's working on that and sharpening the ax. Let me go wash my hands."
"Wait." She snaked her hand out and grabbed Reginald's arm in a vice. "Wait. I'm sorry, Reg."
"It's okay. I need to wash my hands."
"Not, yet. I have to do this now in case I don't make it. I'm sorry. I tried to come between you and Mary Anne from the start. It was a despicable thing to do. I know you loved her, and I'm sorry. I'm sorry I lied to you about being from France. I..." She swiped at the tears running down her face. "I don't blame you if you hate me. I just wanted what you had with her. You loved her and your family so much. I never had that. Instead of admiring you, I set out to get you. I guess I thought I could take your wife's place, but she was a good, strong woman. Not like me."
"Shh." He pushed her hair out of her face. "Let go of the guilt. What's in the past is in the past. You're forgiven. Mary Anne forgave you before she died, too. Let it go." He walked out of the room.
"Let it go. If only it were that easy."
Xever sat on the bed bedside her and clasped her hand. "You have to forgive yourself."
"How? I'm afraid that's not the worst I've done. I'm a horrible person."
"When I was younger, I was an alcoholic. When I drank, I turned mean."
Josh slipped out the door. He didn't need to stand by and watch as those two shared their pain and tragedies. Maybe they could help each other. Xever needed people to care for, and she needed to experience unconditional love for once in her life.
Uncle Reg stood by the fireplace with arm resting on the mantle and his head on his arm. Josh put his hand on his uncle's shoulder. "You can do this."
"I'm not sure I can." He shook his head. "It's too much. After losing Mary Anne and David, now to have to chop someone I care about into bits."
"Why don't we do this?" Josh rubbed his uncle's back. "Let me do the chopping. You and Xever hold her down."
"I can't ask you to do that."
"You aren't. I'm offering." The thought made him want to vomit, but they had to take care of their own, and this was the only way to help Gabriele. "Okay?"
Uncle Reg nodded.
Josh scrubbed his hands as best he could. "Where's Mark?"
Adriana pointed to the porch. "He'll be here in a minute. He's trying put a razor edge on the ax to make it a little easier." She shuddered. "Not that it will be easy. What can I do?"
"You can help your dad and Uncle Reg hold her down. We probably need to move her to the floor, too so I have solid surface under her. On the bed, she'll move with the downward pressure." Churning rocked his gut again. Lord, help me do this in one swing.
Adriana took Josh's hands in hers and bowed her head. She prayed over him and over Gabriele, and then she added, "Lord, please watch over my idiot sister and don't let her get herself killed. I really want to see her again." Her voice broke at the end of the prayer, and Josh pulled into his arms to comfort her.
Mark walked in with the ax, so Josh scrubbed his hands again.
They all went into the bedroom and moved Gabriele to the floor. Uncle Reginald cut Gabriele's pants leg even higher and touched an area on her leg. "Here?"
She raised her head and nodded. "Intact bone. Don't miss. If you have to chop again, do your best to hit the same area again."
Adriana scrubbed Gabriele's leg with what looked like an iodine solution. She left the iodine stuff painted across the area. Maybe that would help keep her from getting an infection.
Mark poured the iodine solution on the axe, then handed it to him. "Don't let the tourniquet loose no matter what. After the amputation, I'll bring the blade in to cauterize the wound, but I want to leave it in the fire as long as I can."
Josh uttered another silent prayer, lifted the ax, and swung it downward. The ax connected with Gabriele's leg, and she let out a chilling scream then passed out. The blade had sliced through the bone, but the muscles and tissue on the other side was still intact.
"Here. I was afraid that might happen, so I sterilized this one as best I could." Mark passed him a long bladed knife.
Josh took a deep breath, sliced through the remaining tissue, and leaned back. "I guess it's time to burn it?"
Mark ran out of the room and returned with a glowing red skillet. "Use the flat bottom. Press it and hold it for a few seconds."
Xever lifted her stump, and Josh pressed the skillet to her leg. The skunky stench of bu
rning flesh permeated the air. He pulled it away and bits of tissue stuck to the pan. Mark held up a finger in the wait motion, took the skillet and disappeared. He returned with a knife he'd heated. "Press this to any areas that look like they might bleed."
Josh did as Mark instructed. Mark loosened the tourniquet. "Watch for bleeding. If she's bleeding, I need to tighten this again.
"No bleeding."
"Good. This wasn't the best way to do it, but without the proper tools, it's the best I could come up with. If y'all will help move her to the bed, Adriana and I'll dress it and take care of her from here out."
"Am I dead?" Gabriele clung to his arm as he picked her up.
"No. Don't you think you'd wake up in a better place than this if you had died?"
"It doesn't get much better than having people who love you enough to chop off your leg."
Josh let out a little laugh. "That sounds so wrong."
Ethan groaned, so while Josh and Mark made Gabriele comfortable, Adriana and Uncle Reg tended to him.
Once they had her settled on the bed with Mark by her side, Josh checked on Ethan. He had his eyes open, but was still ashen and frail looking. "Hey, man. We've missed you."
Ethan forced a chuckle. "I thought the next time I opened my eyes it would be to streets of gold."
"Sorry to disappoint, but God must think we need you around here as much as we do." Adriana dropped a kiss on his forehead. "Can I get you something to eat?"
Josh walked outside. He needed air. The sun hung low in the sky, and the temperature dropped. Where was Randi? If she got herself killed, Xever might not ever get over it. She was his baby after all.
Cooper walked out and handed him a jacket. "Katie saw you out here and thought you might be cold."
"Thanks. The kids okay?"
"All but Toni. We're having a hard time calming her down. She's afraid the monsters got her mommy. You know she lost both parents. Actually, she saw her dad die. She's latched onto Randi, now, and nothing we can say or do will comfort her. Do you know where Randi is?"
"No. I'm praying she didn't do something stupid. Something that will get her killed."
Arthur!" Vixen yelled at the closed door.
Bryan glanced behind her as the door opened. The man who'd kidnapped them and brought them to Vixen walked in.
"Yes, ma'am?"
He resisted the urge to deck the man and tell him to grow a spine. Why did these people continue to follow a woman who held herself in esteem above them? Not only that, she sent them in to battle people they didn't know. Crazy. He'd wised up. Why didn't the others?
"Take these two to the basement. When Alton returns he can join them. At sunup, we'll have a good old-fashioned hanging in the town square. Well, in the outer area where there's a nice, tall tree."
"Since you're going to kill us, you might as well explain why you took over the entire upper floor and left your people to crowd together in the rest of the house. It makes no sense." Randi shrugged. "If you get extra beds, fill the upper rooms so everyone has a place to sleep. That's only fair."
"I am the leader." Vixen stood and placed her hands flat on her desk. She leaned forward and narrowed her eyes. "I must have space to think, plan, and execute those plans."
"Who're you invading next?" Bryan asked. "Another innocent group?"
"These people weren't innocent." She pointed her blood-red nail at Randi. "Reginald kidnapped Mary Anne and the gi--"
"Save it." Bryan sneered. "I talked to Mary Anne, so I know the truth. She left because you used a whip on Belle."
Arthur gasped and Randi turned to look at him. "She has scars on her back. Vixen will tell you they came from an older child who attacked Belle, but that's a flat-out lie. She had y'all attack us because she was angry that Reginald and his wife had the nerve to leave to protect their girls. This woman couldn't stand it. If you have children, watch out for them. If they cross her, she'll beat them, then she'll tell them if they say anything to you she'll kill you. Mental and physical torture. That's what sweet little Belle endured at this psycho's hands."
Vixen fluttered her hands in a shooing manner. "Hurry up and get them out of here. Put them in the basement and lock the doors behind them."
They walked down the stairs, and Arthur cleared his throat. "Is that true? About Belle, I mean."
"Yes." Bryan rubbed his neck. "Why do you think I joined Reginald's group to try to help them?"
"Vixen really hurt her?"
"You can ask it in different ways, but it doesn't change the truth." They walked down the narrow stairs toward the basement, and the sound of voices wafted up to them. Alton was wrong about the kids. They weren't still at the older town. The evil woman had stowed them all down here.
Children of all ages filled the basement. Most of them were in the lab area, but a few hung out in the open. "Look at this." She pointed to the kids. "They should be outside running and playing. Where's the laughter? Instead, Vixen has you locking them in the basement. That's sick."
"Just until we get the fences fixed."
"Then why aren't you out searching for fencing material instead of kidnapping us? How long are you going to leave the fences down? Infecteds are already roaming inside the perimeter. It's only a matter of time until the entire place is overrun. Vixen doesn't care about you or them or you. She's out for herself."
"Get in there, and don't bother trying to get out. I'm locking the door behind me." He turned and left, but from the way his face went pale, her words had hit home.
Randi motioned for Bryan to follow her to an empty corner. "I want to talk to the kiddos in a bit, but after it's good and dark, we're getting out of here."
"I'll follow your lead."
"Do you think she's keeping the kids locked up here for their protection or to keep them out of her sight?"
"Vixen only cares about Vixen. She loves dogs. That's why she stole Fritz from the girls, but despises children."
The door opened again and someone shoved Alton toward them. Guess he wasn't lying about wanting to eliminate Vixen.
He stomped the rest of the way down the stairs, spotted them in the corner and headed for them. "I'm sorry. I had no way of knowing she had Phil following me. He saw me talking to you." Alton rubbed his eyes. "Instead of eliminating the evil woman, I've gotten y'all locked up in here waiting to hang."
Bryan watched him for a while then tilted his head to Randi. He wasn't lying. The distress was genuine. He knew Alton well enough to notice his tells.
"We're not staying. I won't tell you how we're getting out until we're ready to leave because I don't trust you." She motioned to Bryan. "He does, so you can come with us, but you'll have to follow us on blind faith."
"Can't say as I blame you for not trusting me. After what I took part in..."
"That's enough talk about us. How about we show these poor children how to have fun despite being in captivity." Randi walked across the open area and said something to a tall girl. What was her name? He'd seen her around Atlas, but had he ever talked to the young lady?
"Why does she have the children stuffed down here?" To Bryan this amounted to child abuse. If his children were here, he would leave and take them with him.
"She doesn't like kids."
"Why? What's her deal?"
"One night she was feeling vulnerable, and she opened up. That's why I stuck with her for so long. Growing up she had a rough home life. Her father died when she was an infant, and her mom married a raging alcoholic. I'm not sure what he did to her. She clammed up when we started down that road. She pretty much raised herself. I don't think she had any friends except for a German shepherd. She couldn't ask any kids to come to her house or anything with her stepdad falling down drunk and worse.
"She grew up in a small town. All of her clothes come from some ladies group. Hand me downs so the other kids in school knew she was wearing old clothes. Anyway, she grew up and married an abusive cop. He used to beat the snot out of her all the time. She was six month
s pregnant with twins the last time. He got mad at her about something that happened earlier in the day. She woke to him stabbing her in the belly. She lost the babies and had to have an emergency hysterectomy. I guess she can't handle seeing children knowing what happened to her babies. Not an excuse for what she's doing, but maybe it's why."
Reginald sat at the table in the RV. He had his arm around Belle as she cried. Katie sat on the other side of her with her head on her shoulder. The three of them almost took up half of the u-shaped dinette.
Adriana walked through the door and took a seat across from them. Her eyes were red and puffy and grief etched her face. Still, she reached across and took Belle's hand intent on comforting her. "Honey, I'm sorry about your mom."
Belle looked up at her. Her eyes were so puffy she could hardly see. "Your mom died, too."
"Yes."
"How do you not cry all the time?"
Adriana patted her hand. "I don't think I have any tears left."
This sweet young woman had lost so much. How did she handle it? He wanted to scream and throw things. "You deal with it so well. I'm not coping. How were you able to cope when your husband died?"
"Cope?" Adriana gave a laugh. "You saw me. I was mean and cruel to my sister." She furrowed her brow. "I guess you didn't see the worst of it. Josh and Mark did, though." Tears filled her eyes. "I said horrible things to her." She put her face in her hands. "I blamed her for Leon dying, and I even slapped her. The worst thing, though? She asked me what I wanted from her, and I told her I wanted her dead instead of my husband. What kind of person does that?"
Belle looked at her with wide eyes. "Really? You were that mean to her?" She gave Adriana a soft smile. "Mom once said that you were as tough as Randi, you just hadn't figured it out."
Reginald gave Belle's shoulder a squeeze. "Mary Anne was right. Give yourself a little credit."
"Right now, I would settle for being a better sister. The guilt at the way I treated her is eating at me. I did apologize, but I can't take it all back."
"I guess we both have some reasons for guilt in our past." Reginald couldn't believe he'd fallen for Gabriele's charms and strayed from his wife. "Regrets are a dime a dozen. All we can do is move forward. Somehow."
Inquisition Page 24
