Silent Interruption (Book 4): Of Tragedy and Triumph

by Russell, Trent

  Preston chuckled. “What, you’re dying for pearls of wisdom from a bleeding-heart liberal?”

  “Well, pearls of something.” Tara smiled. “I’m starting to miss it a little.”

  Preston lightly coughed. “I guess I’m not as huge a believer in the goodness of humanity as I used to be. I’m just feeling my way through life now. Taking it all one step at a time.”

  Michael looked around. “Hey, where are Harold’s two boys?”

  “They’re in the diner across from us. Doctor Wales has set up a small room inside there to treat the wounded and sick. They should be back here soon.”

  Matt rubbed his head. “Doctor Wales says I’m doing fine. No red flags or anything.” He spoke to his brother as he walked past small groups of survivors resting in booths or around tables. “But I should tell her if I ever feel any weird pains or if I get dizzy and it doesn’t seem right. You know, if I’m not too hot or something.”

  Thomas smiled. “I’m sure Dad will be happy.”

  Matt looked past his brother’s shoulders to the forest beyond the diner. With the gathering clouds, a rainstorm might be inevitable. He worried for his father and the others. They likely would have to pitch tents to make shelter if rain broke out.

  However, something else caught his eye. It was as though a quick-moving shadow had run across a large tree trunk. The shadow could have been cast by someone running past the diner.

  “Hey.” Matt ran up to the window. “Did you see that?”

  “See what?” Thomas asked as he pressed against the glass.

  Matt blinked rapidly. “I could have sworn I saw someone out there.”

  “The East Creek men are outside on patrol.” Thomas then sniffed loudly. “Hey, do you smell something?”

  Matt sniffed the air. “I don’t know. The air feels hot in here.”

  Thomas turned to the door. “Let’s go outside and check it out.”

  The two boys looked up the side of the diner. “I don’t know.” Matt inhaled deeply. “I think I smell something.”

  Thomas looked to their left, then right. There was no sign of anyone. “I think we should split up. I’ll check the diner. I want you to go to the paint store where Miss Tara and Mister Preston are.” He looked at the gun on Matt’s belt. “If you run into trouble…”

  “Don’t say that.” Matt winced. “I really hope this is nothing.”

  Thomas silently agreed. He and Matt then split up, leaving Thomas to check around the diner. He was greatly suspicious of that odor. It reminded him of the many times he would help his dad with the lawnmower that he owned before his dad finally got rid of it last year. More specifically, Thomas thought of how he helped his dad refuel the mower.

  Refuel…

  Thomas gazed up the side of the diner close to the back door. A wet slick dripped down from the top gutter down to the ground. He leaned close and inhaled. Definitely gasoline.

  Thomas’s heart quickened. This wasn’t an accidental spill. Someone had flung gasoline up the side of the diner. The only reason someone would want to do that was to set the whole building on fire!

  He turned and ran around the diner toward the paint store. He had to warn Matt, Tara and the others. There was a saboteur in their midst, and now the Adam’s Point survivors were in jeopardy. It must be Ben. Somehow, he had found his way into East Creek and was planning an attack.

  However, he cut his run short when he spotted someone lying against the trunk of a tree. Was he hurt? Thomas hurried to his aid. His skin went cold when he saw it was Chip. The man was staring off into space, his eyes wide, his chest rapidly rising and falling. Chip had unnerved Thomas ever since the teen had laid eyes on him, and now his suspicions were inflamed encountering Chip out here.

  Even so, why did Chip appear so scared? He looked as though he had seen the bogeyman. Thomas kept his distance, allowing Chip to speak up first. “Thomas?” he asked. “You shouldn’t be out here.”

  “Why?” Thomas asked. “Why are you out here?” He tried not to sound accusatory, but it was hard. Everyone had been directed to stay indoors. What was Chip doing out here by himself?

  Chip shook as he answered. “I saw him. I was outside peeing and then I saw him.” He felt the bruise on his head. “He’s wearing a dark coat. A mask, he’s got that too. Black.” He waved his fingers over his face. “It’s black.”

  “If you saw him, why didn’t you call for help?” Thomas asked.

  Chip turned to look Thomas full in the face. “He doesn’t let me. When Ben wants to play, he will play.”

  “What?” Thomas stepped back, nearly tripping over a tree root. “I don’t get that. Was he holding you prisoner?”

  Chip quaked even harder. “I’m sorry. I never should have come here. I never should have joined you.”

  Thomas stepped over the tree root to separate himself even more from Chip. The man seemed on the verge of a breakdown. Thomas feared what Chip would do.

  Chip suddenly stood to his feet. Though his injured leg shook, Chip remained at full height. “Damn him. He’s targeting you.” Then he spun his head to look right at Thomas. “Run. Run, now!”

  Thomas did not need any encouragement to bail out of there, although now he was wondering if Chip was more of a victim than a possible accomplice of Ben. Perhaps Ben was holding one of Chip’s relatives’ prisoner as inducement for Chip to remain under Ben’s control. Thomas would have to settle the question later. He did as Chip said and ran back toward the house.

  As he approached the store, Matt came running out towards him. “Thomas!” Matt called.

  “Matt!” Thomas waved to Matt. “Ben’s here! He soaked the house with gas! Chip’s in the forest.” Thomas slowed down as he reached his younger brother. “I don’t know what’s wrong with him! He’s, I don’t know, out of it. He says he saw Ben.”

  Matt looked over Thomas’s shoulder. “Where is Chip? I don’t see him!”

  Thomas turned around. Even from this distance, Chip still should be in sight, yet there was no trace of him.

  A scream then rang out from the forest, from somewhere closer by. “That sounded like Chip,” Matt said with dry breath.

  “Ben!” Thomas said as he drew his gun, with Matt also drawing his weapon. “Hurry, go back and warn everyone! I have to help Chip.”

  Any protest that Matt could make quickly shattered along with a piece of a nearby tree. Splinters and flakes of wood spread over their bodies. That was a gunshot! A new figure emerged from the woods beyond. He was, as Chip had described, wearing a dark coat and a black mask.

  Ben was here.

  Thomas’s instincts overrode his desire to flee. He turned and fired in Ben’s direction. However, Ben was too far away to get an accurate shot, and it struck a low-hanging tree branch instead.

  Ben, on the other hand, did not miss with his next shot. His bullet struck Thomas in the arm. The teen let out a cry of pain as he fell backward into a nearby tree.

  “Thomas!” Matt cried. He was so mortified that Thomas was hit that he didn’t turn and fire. Thomas was still awake, but he had dropped his gun and was clutching his right arm under the shoulder. The bullet must have hit there.

  “Damn,” Ben said as he slowly approached the pair. “Didn’t quite smear his brains over that tree there, but no worries. I got plenty of ammo left.”

  Fury overtook Matt. “Damn you!” He turned and fired his gun at Ben. But Ben had anticipated return fire and dove for the ground. A tree was very close and took the three shots from Matt. Ben then spun around the tree and returned a shot over Matt’s head. The shot hit so close that it hurt Matt’s ears on impact.

  “What’s the deal, boy? You’re that eager to kill again? You shot one of my boys. Gave you a taste for blood, didn’t it?”

  Matt’s hold on his gun shook. He tried not to think about shooting at Ben’s men, even though he knew they deserved it.

  “Here’s the situation, Matt. I want your brother first. I want to nail his hide to the wall for shootin
g me in my goddamn leg. I’ve been in a lot of pain getting all the way over here, so he’s earned the biggest payback. You nailed one of my boys, so you’re next. And Soldier Boy, oh he’s definitely getting his. So, do me a favor and try to die in the right order.”

  Ben revealed himself again. Matt shot at him but missed. However, the gunshot was enough to scare Ben into retreating, although Matt doubted it would last. “Thomas, run! Get out of here! I’ll cover you!”

  Thomas still pressed against his wound. Tears streamed down the teen’s face. He never had been shot before. That kind of pain must be indescribable to someone who never had felt it.

  Matt turned his gun back in Ben’s direction. As Thomas broke and ran, Matt fired again. But this time Ben turned and fired to the boys’ left. Thomas turned away from the house and fled into the woods. Ben kept raining down rapid fire toward the house. The brute was trying to keep them away from the other survivors.

  Matt was so scared that he crouched down against the tree. Ben’s weapon was too powerful. He didn’t stand a chance unless Ben ran out of ammo.

  Then, the gunfire stopped. Matt looked out into the woods. He couldn’t see Ben. Was he going after Thomas?

  Rapid footfalls drew Matt’s attention. He turned to his left. Ben was running toward the house. But at the same time, Preston, Michael and Tara were emerging with drawn weapons, likely prompted by the gunfire they had heard outside. Why was Ben running toward them?

  Ben slowed down. It then became clear that he was holding an Uzi in his right hand while carrying a lit lighter in his left. A rifle was strapped to his back. As Preston, Michael and Tara closed in, Ben shouted, “Stop!” He held up the lighter. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

  “He’s soaked the house in gas!” Matt shouted.

  “The boy’s right. I borrowed this little trick from your Marine buddy.” Ben dangled the lighter over the grass. “He set my house on fire, so I’m going to burn yours. All your friends are going up in flames.”

  “One shot from us should take care of that,” Tara said.

  “Miss Tara! He shot Thomas! He fled into the woods! And Chip’s out there, too!” Matt called to them.

  “Thomas!” Tara gritted her teeth, “You son of a bitch!”

  “Keep your temper, redhead!” Ben dropped his arm close to the grass. “Even if you shoot me, it won’t do you any good. I soaked this whole ground with gas. It’s going to spread damn quick. So, if you want to save your friends, I suggest you take those guns off me and evacuate everyone from those houses.”

  “Matt!” Tara called, “Go find Thomas!”

  Matt fled into the woods. Ben chuckled. “Go ahead. Let him go. It won’t do you all any good. He’s probably bleeding to death as we speak.”

  “Tara, let’s just drop this bastard. We can stop the fire before it gets too bad,” Preston said.

  At that moment, some of the East Creek men arrived. “Quick, get everyone out of the house!” Tara shouted. “That man’s soaked it with gas!”

  As Tara finished her sentence, she and several of the men sniffed the air. Smoke was rising from behind them. One of the East Creek men ran around the house. “The first house! It’s on fire!”

  Ben laughed. “I gave myself some insurance. Seems I already started some fires before I went hunting. Made sure they were slow burning to buy myself enough time!”

  Ben then sprayed the air with bullets. Tara, Michael and Preston hit the ground, as did some of the East Creek men. By the time they spun their weapons around to shoot, Ben already was dashing back into the woods. Despite his injured leg, he still managed to flee behind the cover of a thicket. The East Creek men fired some shots after him, but with the cover there was no way to see if they had hit their target.

  “Damn!” Michael shouted as he climbed to his feet.

  “Matt. Dear Lord.” Tara sprung up, with Preston rising beside her. “We have to go after them. Ben will kill them both.”

  “Hey!” Michael, had his binoculars to his face, pointed to the woods.

  “Do you see Ben or the boys?” Preston quickly asked.

  “No,” Michael replied. “It’s Harold! He’s in the woods, and he’s headed in the same direction as Ben.”

  “Harold’s good, but he doesn’t know Ben’s out there.” Tara turned to Michael. “We have to go help him.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Harold quickened his pace, knowing that the three safe houses that held his sons and the rest of his friends were nearby. The clouds above had extended so far that his surroundings almost were shrouded in darkness. Harold dreaded the thought that it might rain. A storm would provide Ben with ample cover to escape or to attack.

  Then he slowed his pace. Up ahead, a dark coat lay draped over a low-hanging tree branch. Harold approached it and studied it. The coat looked smooth, as if it had not been worn or used much. Harold then bent over to pick up something just under the branch. It was a dark face mask. It reminded Harold of the kind of masks Ben and his men wore to cover their faces.

  Ben. He must be out here.

  Harold looked at the forest around him. His heart quickened. Should he go to the safe houses or continue the search in the forest? If Ben just had left these clothes here, then Harold might be able to catch him. It was worth a shot.

  Conscious that a deadly foe might be close by, Harold stuck to the trees, using them as cover as he checked the ground for tracks. He did spot something almost instantly—a drop of blood. Someone was bleeding. Perhaps Ben had been struck by someone’s bullet.

  Another drop of blood lay a few feet away. Harold now had a sense of the person’s direction. He broke into a run. He had to catch Ben.

  However, as he crossed a gap between trees, he was greeted with a horrifying sight.

  His son Thomas was on the ground, clutching his right arm. A sliver of blood was trickling down his arm. Matt was right behind him, his hands raised. Harold turned to the right. Chip was standing under a tree with an Uzi trained on them.

  “Chip,” Harold said, “What are you doing? My boys!”

  “Dad!” Matt cried out.

  “Thomas!” Harold’s skin grew cold even under his jacket as he took another look at Thomas’s arm. “My God! Chip, he shot you?”

  “Ben,” Chip said quietly. “Ben did it. Ben did it all.”

  “Damn you!” Harold turned his gun on Chip. “Why? How could you do this to my family? We took you in, we helped you!”

  “I’m sorry.” Chip fought to stop his quivering. “But Ben wanted revenge. He would not be denied. I couldn’t stop him.”

  “Dad, shoot him!” Thomas cried out. He was in anguish, but he still managed to muster some courage to tell his father to take out this madman, even if it cost him his life.

  “I wouldn’t do that!” Chip steadied himself. “No. No, you can’t. Harold, you said…you said that you wouldn’t put your boys in danger again.” Chip then swung his gun around, pointed at Harold’s face. “You got to choose. One of you can take Thomas away. Only one. The other one has to stay with me.”

  “Dad!” Matt cried out.

  “I said choose!” Chip shouted, “Do it now!”

  Harold had no doubt who the choice should be. “Matt, take Thomas and go!” he shouted.

  Matt nodded amid heavy breaths. “Okay.” He grabbed Thomas by his good arm and hoisted him up. Thomas had enough energy to walk under his own power, leaving Harold alone with Chip.

  Harold held up his hands. “Are you helping Ben? So, Seth, he wasn’t the accomplice. You were?”

  “You didn’t buy what I told you?” Chip asked.

  “It all made sense. The trail in the forest ended with you,” Harold said. “But why? We never saw you when we rescued Tara and Shyanne. No, wait, everyone’s face was covered. I never saw everyone without their masks. You were there the whole time. You were one of Ben’s gang. You must have escaped during the battle.”

  Chip chuckled. “No. Chip was never there. Chip never tried to
hurt you, your boys, your friends. Chip can’t do a damn thing. Chip is the world’s doormat. So, no, Chip wasn’t there. You haven’t figured out the puzzle yet?”

  “What puzzle? For God’s sake, why are you doing this? What’s your connection with Ben?”

  “You know, the world isn’t the only thing that’s gone mad around here. Some of us never were whole.” Chip almost sounded like he was crying. “So, if you can’t figure this out soon…you’re going to die!”

  “Chip, whatever is wrong with you, we can talk about this. No one has to die tonight.”

  Chip laughed. “No one has to die.” Then he flipped the gun around at his face. “No one has to die?”

  Harold’s eyes widened. “Chip, wait! Put it down!”

  Chip then stopped. He did not push the gun any closer toward his flesh. “You have one last chance to solve this puzzle and escape. It’s almost time.”

  “Time? For what?” Harold didn’t get what Chip was trying to tell him.

  And then, in an instant, something changed in Chip’s countenance. It was as if a switch had turned on in the man’s head.

  “Chip never killed anyone.” Chip’s voice was different. “But Ben has killed a lot of people. Including you.”

  He turned and fired three shots at Harold.

  Harold had figured out the mystery. Sadly for him, he figured it out as he lay on the grass with blood gushing from his open wounds. If he had figured it out a minute earlier, he could have wrestled Chip for the gun. He even could have fled.

  Because whatever Harold did, whatever action he took to defend himself, Chip was not going to kill him or his two sons. The gun in his hand was a bluff. Chip was truly as helpless as he seemed.

  It was only when Chip changed into Ben that he was a true menace.

  And, unfortunately, Harold would take that secret to his grave.

  “C’mon, keep moving!” Michael called as the last of the Adam’s Point survivors ran out the back door. The East Creek men were busy trying to extinguish the flames that now had encompassed half of the diner. For safety’s sake, the other safe houses were being cleared out as well. Unfortunately, the paint store also had been lit on fire, though it was not burning as badly as the diner.