by Harley Tate
“Yes, sir.”
The colonel handed the radio back to the other soldier and the man clicked it on. “Echo 6 Romeo to Echo 7, are your orders clear?”
“Yes. House-by-house clearing in sections eight, nine, and ten. Shoot hostiles on sight. Confiscate all weapons and critical supplies. Over.”
The radio fell silent and Colt rocked back. He might as well have been clocked upside the head with a baseball bat. The National Guard unit stationed at the University of Oregon wasn’t part of the United States Army anymore. It had gone completely off protocol. They weren’t here in Eugene, Oregon to protect the town or set up communications. They were here to turn the little town into their own private fiefdom.
At least that was Colonel Jarvis’s plan.
The thought made Colt sick. How could the man do such a thing? He had to have close to twenty years in the service. Now he wanted to use that experience against the very people he swore to protect?
Women and children lived in this town. Men who never picked up a gun and who didn’t know the first thing about defending themselves. How could Jarvis just declare the whole place part of his kingdom?
Colt brought the binoculars back up and stared into the apartment. The radio had gone silent, but Jarvis still paced back and forth. Could Dani have heard what they were planning? Was she pretending to sleep, but listening in?
If so, she knew the danger she was in. Even if her grandmother were receiving the best care at the university hospital, she had to know it wouldn’t last. Men like this didn’t do anything out of kindness. They took Dani and Dorris because they wanted something.
Colt frowned. They wanted him.
For whatever reason, Jarvis saw him as a threat. Maybe it was the fact he was a former SEAL or his causal questions about their unit that rubbed Jarvis the wrong way. If he was disarming ordinary civilians, it made sense to disarm Colt, too.
Now that he’d killed four of Jarvis’s men…
He set the binoculars down. As long as Colt roamed the streets, Dani wouldn’t be safe. They would use her to get to him. He had to get her out of that apartment before they moved her somewhere he couldn’t penetrate.
Colt forced himself to stand and walked over to the dark kitchen. He pulled the first aid kit out of his pack and opened the bottle of pain pills. Four went down his throat along with a half a bottle of Gatorade. Screw staying off medicine. Colt needed to block the pain to do what had to be done.
Digging out the duct tape and another bandage, he stripped to his underwear and tore strips of the tape long enough to wrap around his leg. With the bandage on top of his stitches, Colt wrapped the duct tape around his thigh, securing the bandage and covering the entire wound.
It wouldn’t be good for breathability, but if he blew a stitch, he wouldn’t bleed out. After it was all over, he could treat the wound again. He popped another antibiotic and washed it down with the rest of the Gatorade before pulling out a few energy bars.
Colt ate them in systematic fashion, fueling his body for the grueling night ahead. After he finished, he turned his attention to the apartment he stood inside. It appeared to be another college student’s place, full of things like used textbooks and dirty laundry. A college boy’s apartment.
Thankfully for Colt, a guy’s place would have everything he needed. After a few minutes of searching, he compiled his supplies. Colt spread it all out on the floor of the walk-in closet, stuffed a pair of towels beneath the door, and turned on a portable lantern.
It wouldn’t take much to put the necessary equipment together, but Colt needed the light. He started with the matches, pulling the paper backs off the packs, each one from the same bar in Eugene. A dive, probably. He taped the lot of them to the bottom of three aerosol deodorant cans, duct taped them all together, and set the bundle aside.
Thanks to an apartment dweller who liked to play his fair share of college drinking games, Colt had a whole pile of ping pong balls. He cut the majority of them up into little pieces and shoved the bits into five he’d punctured with a knife. Wrapping aluminum foil around each one, he shoved a rolled-up wad of paper towels and a match into the hole left behind and smiled.
College kids always had the best supplies.
After collecting all the magazines from each of the M-4s he’d stolen from the army attackers and stuffing his cargo pants full of them, Colt assembled everything he made. He was still outnumbered. Four army men inside a locked apartment versus a former SEAL with a wounded leg.
It wasn’t much of a contest. The only problem would be keeping Dani safe. He didn’t know if he could take all of them out before she became a hostage, but he would have to try his best. Colt slung the daypack loaded with gear over his shoulder and stepped into the hall.
Time to play action hero.
Chapter Twenty-Six
DANI
52 Houghton Street, Apartment 310
Eugene, Oregon
11:00 p.m.
Dani thought the soldiers might never fall asleep. Were they hopped up on a stolen supply of Red Bull or using nicotine patches like the fentanyl one they gave her mom to stay awake?
Whatever it was, they seemed close to super human. Their failure to yawn or even think about a bed drove Dani insane. She tried not to sleep, but curled up in the oversized, round chair, she couldn’t help it. When she woke up, it was quiet.
The only light came from a single glowing spot by the far windows. A cigarette. She waited until her eyes adjusted to the light. One of the younger soldiers.
He sat by the window, sticking his lit cigarette out into the dark in between puffs. At least she had some confirmation he was human after all.
With only one of them awake, now was her chance. She knew there was one way out of that place. Colt picked the apartment for her, not just because of the view of the surrounding streets, but for its relative security. The metal door would withstand a million pounding feet, the concrete walls any type of fire.
Even if Colt saw the X in the window, he wouldn’t be able to rescue her. And Dani needed to get out. She couldn’t let them take her back to the college. Now that she knew they weren’t in this to keep Eugene safe or help anyone but themselves, she couldn’t let them use her.
Users never cared about the people they took advantage of, they only took and took and took until there was nothing left. She learned that the hard way. Dani sniffed as she thought about Gran. Her mother even managed to take her away in the end.
But Dani wouldn’t let that beat her. She was stronger than that. Somewhere between getting caught by that soldier in the street and telling Colt goodbye, she realized she was stronger than she thought possible.
Colt had given her that strength. She would get out. She would warn him and together they would get away. Even if he didn’t want to be her dad or even her friend, she would make sure he was far, far away from these thugs who claimed to be the good guys.
She owed him that and so much more.
Dani sucked in a breath and lifted her arms over her head, stretching like a cat coming alive from a nap. There was only one way out of that apartment and she was going to use it.
As she pretended to come around, the soldier didn’t move from the window. Dani sat up casually, rubbing at her face like she couldn’t wake up.
After a moment, she cast a glance his way, settling on his cigarette light. “Hey!” she whisper-shouted in his direction.
“What?”
She bit her lip and glanced around, acting the embarrassed teen. “I’ve got to pee.”
“Hold it.”
“I can’t, mister. I’ve gotta go real bad.” Dani squirmed in the chair, crossing her legs one over the other. “I don’t think the colonel wants to wake up to the smell of it all over this chair.”
The soldier grumbled under his breath and Dani caught a few creative curses as he stubbed out his cigarette and stood up. “I’ll get you a bottle of water, so you can use the toilet and flush with it.”
“Thank
you!” She bounced in the seat like she did when she was little, hopping up and down to make it clear she had to go.
As he retrieved the water, Dani wrapped the blanket around her shoulders, pretending to shiver in the already warm room. “What is it about having to pee that makes you so cold?” She bounced some more, adding in a stream of useless chatter as the soldier walked back to her.
She’d learned a long time ago the more a kid talked, the more a grown-up tuned her out. They didn’t want to hear about the salamander you found one time in the backyard or the time some kid in your class broke his arm on the monkey bars.
He didn’t say a word when he handed her the bottle or when she stood up with the blanket. “Thanks.” She eyed the water and glanced at the hall. “It might take a minute. I’ve got to um… you know… do a little more than pee.”
The soldier rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Just don’t wake up the colonel. He’ll be pissed.”
“Good to know.” Dani hustled into the bathroom and locked the door. She didn’t have very long.
Tugging her clothes off her body, she tied one leg of her jeans to the corner of the blanket, pulling as hard as she could on the ends to ensure the knot would hold. Then she did the same thing with her shirt and sweatshirt, adding as much length to the makeshift rope as she could manage.
They were three floors off the ground. The longer the rope, the less risk of breaking her bones when she landed. She hoped the speck of grass below the window was as soft as it looked.
A knock sounded on the door and Dani jumped. “How’s it going in there?”
“Um…” Dani glanced at the locked door. Would it hold if he tried to kick it down? Probably not. “I… ah… need a few minutes. Those meals you all keep feeding me aren’t helping with the digestion, you know?”
He said something about getting used to it, but Dani wasn’t listening. She relieved herself in the toilet and chugged the water, leaving her pee to stink up the bowl. Serves the jerks right.
With a deep breath she clambered in the tub and dragged the makeshift rope in with her. The window was one of those old crank types with a metal casing and a little lever that stuck up from the sill. She twisted it slowly to minimize the noise and opened the window as far as it would go. She would barely fit.
Tying a free corner of the blanket to the crank, she gave it a hard tug. Whether it would hold or not, she didn’t know. But what choice did she have? Colt needed her. She had to get away.
The soldier knocked again. “Kid, come on. You can’t still be taking a dump. Get out here.”
Dani grabbed the bundle of blanket and clothes and began stuffing it through the window. “Sorry! I’ll just be another minute!”
The handle jiggled. Dani worked faster shoving the fluffy thing through as the soldier worked the door.
“Open up! Right now!”
She ignored him, hoisting her body up to reach the window. It was a little too high. No, no, no! This can’t be happening. She jumped again, ignoring the noise her feet made when they hit the tile.
This time she found purchase, pushing up with her arms until they locked, her palms flat on the sill. Grunting with effort, she lifted one leg and stuck her foot through the window.
She looked ridiculous. Any other time, if someone told her she’d be trying to escape through a third-story window wearing nothing but her bra, undies, and a pair of sneakers, she’d have thought they were as high as her mother. But emergencies did strange things to people.
Just as Dani came to rest, one leg in, one leg out of the window, the door slammed open. The soldier stumbled into the bathroom, leading with his shoulder.
Dani’s eyes went wide and she ducked underneath the open pane, teetering on the edge of the sill. There wasn’t a balcony. Just a wall of concrete and windows all the way down to the ground. If she slipped… If the blanket didn’t hold…
Fear gripped her as the soldier clambered forward, rifle in one hand as he rushed to reach her. Now or never.
Dani grabbed the blanket, about to jump for it, when the soldier raised his gun. “Do it and I shoot. If the bullet doesn’t kill you, the fall to the ground will.”
She hesitated and it was all the soldier needed. He grabbed her by the ankle and yanked. Dani lost her balance. The only thing keeping her from falling was the soldier’s sweaty hand.
She screamed as she fell forward, her face staring straight at the earth. Propelling her arms in frantic windmills, she searched for anything to hold onto. There was nothing.
The soldier grunted as he grabbed her again, his knobby fingers digging into her naked flesh.
His hands were on her calf, then thigh, then right around her middle. He dragged her back into the bathroom despite her struggling against him. The second her feet landed on the tub floor he caged her against the tile.
His breath hit hot on her face. “You thought you could get away? That this little trick would set you free?” One of his hands found her throat, squeezing until she could barely breathe.
“Y-You’re hurting me.”
“That’s the point.” His other hand roved up and down her body, pausing to grope her breast before diving down between her legs.
“I thought you were just some stupid kid, but there’s enough meat on your bones.” His fingers were thick and stubby and Dani scrabbled at his hand.
“Stop it!” She tried to scream again, but the soldier only tightened his grip on her throat.
He leered, his face so close she could see his pores. “They won’t come to help you. Hell, the other two can’t stop talking about what they’re gonna do with you once the colonel gets what he wants.” His hand dug between her thighs, fingernails scratching her skin. “I told them they were nuts, but now…” He licked his lips. “I bet you’d feel real nice. You want a soldier for your first time?”
He grabbed at his belt as Dani’s vision dimmed. He gripped her throat so hard she couldn’t breathe. Blood whooshed in her ears like a chorus of cicadas.
Help! Help me! She flailed her arms, palm landing haphazardly against the shower walls. It was no use. She sagged against the cold tile.
Dani thought about Colt, and what they would do to him when they found him. Colt.
Strong and capable. Able to fight off how many men at once? Dani shuddered. Feet. Groin. Eyes. I remember!
She made spears out of her index and middle fingers. Steeled her courage.
I can do this.
The soldier cursed as his belt gave him difficulty and he tore his gaze away from her face to look at the buckle. His grip on her throat relaxed as he concentrated. It was the only chance she would get.
Dani sucked in as much air as she could and lashed out, her fingers diving straight for the soldier’s eyes. She screamed as her fingertips made contact and kept going, jabbing into his eyeballs like spoons into set Jell-O.
On and on she pushed, the moment stretching out like it could go on forever. His blood coated her fingers, his eyeballs gushed and Dani didn’t stop. She channeled all of her anger—at her mother, the death of Gran, the lies the soldiers told, all of it—into her force and rage.
The soldier screamed, a high-pitched whine of terror, and released her. He fell to the floor of the tub, his face covered in blood, his eyes no longer functional.
As Dani lunged for the soldier’s rifle, a massive explosion shook the entire building and she fell on top of the wounded man.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
COLT
52 Houghton Street, Third Floor Hallway
Eugene, Oregon
11:30 p.m.
Colt set the three-pack of aerosol cans on the floor outside the metal apartment door. When he’d picked out the place for Dani, he’d been impressed with how secure it had been. Now he was cursing that same security. He didn’t know if the aerosol bomb would blow the door, but it was his best bet.
He needed to rescue Dani and put as many miles between them and the army-turned-militia as he could. Colt crouched in front of t
he door and flicked the spark wheel on a lighter. Holding the flame to the bundles of matches taped to the bottom of the cans, he waited until a good portion were lit before stepping back.
Ducking behind the corner, he took aim with the M-4. A single burst should do the trick. He inhaled, held his breath, and fired. The cans exploded in an instant. A huge fireball whooshed up the door.
The floors rumbled, the walls shook, and the metal door burst open. Bingo.
Colt grabbed the aluminum-wrapped ping pong balls and held the lighter to the paper and match wicks one at a time. As soon as each began to smoke, he tossed them into the apartment.
Noxious smoke filled the air and Colt crouched low to the ground, waiting.
Shouts erupted inside. A girl’s scream. Dani.
He advanced, hugging the wall to keep his back covered, bandana tied around his face to keep some of the smoke out of his lungs. Get Dani and get out. That’s all he needed to do.
The smoke filled the apartment, but it would dissipate soon. He scanned the space, creeping along the edges, swinging his rifle back and forth in slow arcs as he crouch-walked along the wall. Into the kitchen, around the table where he’d seen them working. Empty.
Out of the kitchen and into the living room. The smoke began to ease. More shouts. More screaming. All the activity came from the bedroom and bathroom.
Goosebumps broke out on his arms. They wouldn’t hurt her… would they?
“Dani!” He shouted despite his instincts telling him to stay quiet. “Dani!”
A volley of gunfire erupted from the hallway. Colt dove for the couch, fumbling along the ground as he sought cover. Bullets slammed into the couch, spraying little bursts of feathers into the air. More bullets sailed over his head, hitting the windows and shattering the glass.
The building was too old for tempered glass, so it fell in massive, jagged sheets, clattering to the ground and dumping fresh air into the room. Colt ripped off the bandana and gulped down some air.
