Saving Sam

by Lynnette Beers

  “Yeah, right,” Johnny said and attempted to stand. “There’s no way a kid’s gonna take me down. Me and Fred could easily beat the shit out of you.”

  When Johnny got to his knees, Robert again whacked him in the back with the shovel, which caused him to fall forward onto his face. Then Robert swung again, this time barely missing his head. With both hands gripped on the handle, Robert glared at Johnny who by now held his hands over his face.

  “Okay, you’ve made yourself clear. The three of us’ll be on our way just as soon as I help my brother up.” Johnny crawled over to Chuck then crouched next to him and flipped his body over. From where Sam cowered, she could see, despite Johnny shaking him to try and wake him, that his body remained still. Blood gushed from a giant hole in Chuck’s scalp.

  Johnny bent down close to Chuck’s face and jostled his body one more time. “Chuck’s not breathing.”

  “What do you mean he’s not breathing?” Fred said and kneeled next to Chuck’s motionless body. He gripped his hands around Chuck’s shoulders and shook him hard, but the movement did nothing to wake him.

  Sam scurried back farther into the azalea shrub but peered through the twigs; she saw Johnny again trying to rouse Chuck. Her body shook. Her stomach ached. She fought back the urge to throw up.

  Johnny shook Chuck’s body once more, yelling out his name. “He’s not waking up. Fred, I think that kid killed him.”

  “No...no, this is crazy. Wake him up! Do something. Give him that mouth-to-mouth thing.”

  “You see all this blood? There ain’t no bringing him back now. He’s dead.”

  “That fucking kid killed our brother? He’s gotta pay for what he done.” Fred leaned over the lifeless body then pulled a gun from the waist of Chuck’s jeans and reached into the pocket for a handful of bullets.

  Before Fred loaded the gun, Robert swung the shovel once more, this time hitting Fred in the shoulder and knocking the gun and bullets to the ground. Johnny then grabbed the wooden handle and yanked hard. Robert, despite only being a teen, retracted the tool from Johnny’s grip. Once again, Robert flailed the shovel at Johnny, missing his body entirely, the force causing him to lose his balance and fall to the ground. Now, both Johnny and Fred hovered over Robert. Fred kicked Robert in the face, causing him to roll over and cover his head with his hands. Robert attempted to crawl away, but Fred kicked him hard in the face. But Robert quickly righted himself and faced his attackers.

  Sam crawled toward the direction of the clearing where she’d planned to place a marker for the bird’s remains, found her panties in the dirt, and put them back on, soiled and ripped as they were. Robert charged forward with the shovel, jabbing Johnny hard in the gut. Sam had never seen Robert this strong before.

  Johnny lunged for Robert, hitting him hard in the face. Robert left the shovel in the shallow water then plunged into the Okatoma. With all his might, he swam out to the middle of the creek. He kept treading water as the two men remained knee-deep in the creek, ignoring Chuck who lay motionless on shore.

  “You’ll pay for this, you goddamned kid.” Fred stood in the creek and waved the gun in the air. “You killed my brother, and now I’m gonna kill you.”

  “Don’t shoot my brother!” Sam yelled from her hiding place as she kneeled in the sand. She reached for the trowel and gripped both hands around the handle.

  “Johnny, keep that kid quiet,” Fred said as he quickly loaded the gun.

  Johnny found Sam right away and took the trowel from her hands then yanked her arms behind her back. He looped his belt around her wrists and gripped his hand on her shoulder from behind, shaking her as he spoke. He chucked the trowel far into the woods adjacent to the creek. “You think that thing’s gonna protect you? Goddamned stupid kid. Don’t you move,” he whispered in her ear. “You understand? One word out of you, and I’ll hurt you.”

  Johnny ran back to the shore and pelted stones at Robert, missing him each time. Fred pointed his gun at Robert, pulling the trigger with one loud crack. Another loud pop echoed across the creek. Then he pulled the trigger again. Then two more times. Sam couldn’t see any signs of Robert in the water. With the handgun aimed at the creek, Fred scanned the surface of the water then tucked the gun into his jeans.

  “Well, I done took care of that real fast,” Fred muttered then turned his back to the creek and glanced at the azalea bush.

  Sam peered through the thick foliage and searched for Robert. When she saw no sign of him in the creek, she glanced over at Miss Patterson’s property to see if maybe Robert had made it up the embankment and hid over there. She scanned the water once more then saw what she hoped was Robert way downstream, but she couldn’t be certain if it was his head or just a rock jutting through the surface of the water. Shivering, she somehow managed to crawl over to a bush, the tiny pebbles on the sand bloodying her knees.

  “Now that I’ve gotten rid of your brother, I’m gonna take care of you,” Fred said and pulled the handgun from his waist and waved it in the air. “Don’t make me use this. Don’t make one move. You hear me?” Fred took off his flannel shirt and tossed it onto the azalea bush, then unfastened his belt buckle. After he unzipped his pants, he pushed Sam onto the ground then kneeled down.

  Sam groaned as she tried to escape from Fred’s grasp. The glint of the metal from the tip of his handgun caught the late afternoon sun. Fred’s sweaty, shirtless torso reeked—a sour, putrid stench that made Sam feel sick.

  Johnny stood nearby, arms folded, as he cheered on Fred. After he took another swig of beer, he stepped closer to Sam, creating a dark shadow over her body.

  Fred nudged her with his knee. “I’m gonna finish what my brother started. They think I’m not man enough for this, but I’ll show them. You move, and I’ll kill you. And you tell anyone ‘bout this, and I’ll kill your daddy. John and I know where he works. You understand?”

  Sam’s body became paralyzed, but she craned her neck to search for Robert. When she didn’t see him in the creek, terror washed over her. Fred jerked her head into the ground. The back of her head ached; her body continued to tremble.

  “I told you not to move.” Fred gripped both hands on Sam’s shoulders and pressed her hard onto the gravel.

  Suddenly, the crack of a gunshot rang out nearby. Fred glanced behind him and sat up on his knees. Then another shot pierced the air. And another. After the third shot, Sam felt the body atop her go limp. His gun lay at his side. After she squirmed away from his body, she rolled over to the azalea bush.

  “Fuck, man,” Johnny said and ducked down low. “They’re shooting at us! They done shot me. Probably those fucking cops.” He grabbed his shoulder where blood dripped onto the ground as he crouched down to pick up the gun. “Fred, come on, let’s get the fuck out of here.”

  Another shot sounded. Sam glanced at the river and saw Robert treading water. Relieved to see he was fine, she remained quiet. But more gunshots were fired from somewhere nearby. She noticed that Robert dove under the water as those shots continued. After a short pause, another shot rang out. As she huddled in the shrub, her breath became shallow. A few feet away, she noticed Fred moaning and attempting to stand.

  One more shot sounded. Johnny wailed out a yelp and grabbed his elbow. Blood dripped onto the rocks beside the creek. The blood washed downstream into the current, the dark crimson turning to a clear red as the water carried it away.

  Nearby, Fred stood and staggered a few paces toward the creek. With a hand clasped to his chest, he righted himself and looked at Sam huddled in the bushes. A fire raged in his eyes as he limped closer to the shrub. Each heavy step thudded on the ground the closer he got to her.

  Sam cowered farther into the prickly brush, the sharp twigs cutting her arms and legs. She searched for Robert but couldn’t see him. One more shot sounded, this time causing Fred to fall face forward onto the nearby rocks. She was close enough to notice blood pooled around a gaping hole in his back. Suddenly all got quiet. No more shots sounded—just the ge
ntle river churned by.

  “Goddamn kids,” Johnny muttered, using his shirt to wrap around his elbow. He stood on shore where Robert tread water a couple yards away. “You’ll pay for what you done to my brother. I ain’t done with you.” Johnny stepped toward the creek then lifted the gun in air and pulled the trigger. Only a click could be heard. No pop, nothing but an empty, hollow click.

  Sam shivered as she crouched under the scratchy shrub. She tried to get her arms and legs to stop shaking, but the more she tried to keep still, the more her body shook.

  “This is your lucky day, you fucker!” Johnny yelled then shoved the gun into the waist of his pants. “But we’re coming back for you. For both of you! Come on, Fred.” Johnny nudged the still body with his foot then kneeled on the sand. He patted Fred’s face and then shook him by the shoulders.

  Sam searched the creek again for Robert. The incessant movement of the water filtered past her. Then she caught another horrid glimpse of Johnny shaking Fred’s motionless body.

  “Come on, man. Get up!” Johnny yelled and peered along the creek bed then stared at Fred. He wasn’t moving. He knelt down and shook Fred by the shoulders. “Ah, shit! Those goddamned cops! They fucking killed him. What the fuck, man? We rob a gas station for a couple hundred bucks, and then this happens?”

  Johnny glanced from the creek to the shrub where Sam hid. After he stomped across the sand, he towered over her, pressing his boot onto her hip and pinning her to the ground. “I’ll be back for you and your brother. Trust me, I’ll be watching you. Like Fred said, you tell anyone about this, and I’ll kill your daddy. I know where to find him.” Then he crouched down close to her. He ran a rough finger across the top of her chest, lingering on the strap of her dress. He scraped his fingernail under the top of it then stood up and spit on the ground next to her.

  He paced from Fred’s lifeless body and rubbed his hand across the scruff of his face, kicking the dirt and stepping back to the dead body. Then he glanced at Chuck’s lifeless body nearby. Johnny muttered something that Sam couldn’t hear, and then he pulled Fred by the boots and dragged the body a few feet from the creek. Huffing and sweating, Johnny stopped for a moment and glanced back toward the creek. He gripped Fred by the feet once more and managed to move the body a couple yards.

  But then another gunshot echoed into the air, the sound causing Johnny to cower close to the ground. One more shot resonated, resulting in Johnny bolting along the creek and then into the woods. Within seconds, his footsteps became quiet. Sam trembled in the bush. Completely still, she peered through the foliage looking for any signs of Johnny’s return. She’d never seen a dead person before, but here before her lay two. She glanced down the creek then heard a thunderous engine start to rumble, and within seconds, she noticed dust rise up from the dirt road. The vehicle sounded a lot like Daddy’s, but she knew he wasn’t due home for a while.

  Since her dress and panties were soiled and ripped, Sam worried about Mama finding out. This wouldn’t have happened had she not been foolish enough to venture over to No Man’s Landing to bury that dead bird. With the leather belt bound around her wrists, she remained huddled in the azalea bush. Worst of all, she feared Robert had drowned.

  Sam heard rustling in the bushes nearby. Too scared to cry, she squinted to try and see if Johnny had returned. Not able to fully catch her breath, her breathing became rapid and shallow. She concentrated as best she could on her breathing like they taught her last summer in swim class. The tips of her fingers started to feel tingly. Wobbly at first, she attempted to stand. She managed to release her wrists from the belt but then lost her balance and swayed into the scratchy foliage.

  She glanced to the right in the direction of where Johnny had run, then to the left where Fred’s body lay. Maybe the person with the gun had now come for her. Now she felt pins and needles in her hands. Unable to move, her feet felt prickly as well. Soon, her lips became tingly. She glanced at the Okatoma, her vision becoming hazy and dark. Sam focused her sight on the near vicinity—the shimmering surface of the water, the rocks along the edge of the creek, the twigs and gravel under her feet. Then things started to look murkier as her head became even more fuzzy. Soon, her knees gave out as everything then started to go black.

  Chapter Ten

  Mississippi: Summer 2014

  SAM LEANED OVER Robert’s bed and examined the tubes and wires that ran from his body to the machines next to him. The breathing tube kept his mouth in a permanent open position, the rigid plastic at the end pressing on his lips and causing sores. A naso-gastric tube, inserted into his nose and down the throat, connected to a plastic bag of liquid nutrients hung from an IV pole. A thin tube ran from the back of his left hand and another one from the crook of his right arm. A Foley catheter inserted into his urethra carried urine from his bladder to a clear plastic sack hung at the side of the bed. A thick, wide hose inserted into his rectum transported runny feces into a fecal bag hung on the other side of the bed.

  Sam told her mom to go home to eat dinner and rest, that she’d stay until the shift change at seven o’clock. As she leaned back in the chair, Sam rested her head on the paper towel dispenser and texted Kim.

  What are you up to tonight? Besides missing me? ;)

  I’m heading to Gossip Grill later tonight for drinks with a friend.

  A friend? Sam wondered who that might be, but she assumed it was someone from the Trail Angels. Gossip Grill was the kind of place that all types of lesbians visited—butches, femmes, retro girls, and especially young sporty types like Kim. But this lesbian bar was nothing like the Flame where Sam frequented several years ago. Young at the time, she fit right in at the Flame—the women eager to dance with her and buy her drinks, much to Annie’s dismay. But Sam assumed the attention boosted Annie’s ego. Being there with a much younger woman surely made Annie gloat with pride. But after being together for a few years, they both found they preferred their date nights to be at a quiet restaurant, followed by wine, candlelit massages, and lovemaking at home. Since the Flame had closed years ago, Sam found other lesbian bars like Gossip Grill to be too trendy. She’d become such a homebody after she settled into her life with Annie, but dating Kim revived that longing for going out dancing and drinking until late at night.

  Sounds like a fun night. A drink sounds good right about now.

  Probably won’t stay out too late. Going for an early ride with the Trail Angels up in OC. Training for that 100-miler in Mammoth in early Oct. Lots of elevation gains and difficult terrain.

  I miss my mountain bike. And I miss you, especially your lips on mine.

  Yeah, those were some amazing kisses the last time we were together. You’ve definitely got the moves. So, how’s your brother doing today?

  He’s about the same, I guess. No progress but no extreme set-backs. At least you’re doing well to distract me right now from what’s going on here. Well, I’d say you’ve also got some pretty hot moves yourself. Love what you do with your tongue.

  Sam felt a warm surge go through her body as she recalled that night with Kim. Her heart sped up as she anticipated Kim’s next text. Sam’s hands got sweaty as she stared at her phone awaiting a response. Five minutes passed before she got a text back.

  Can’t wait to see you. I need to get going. Heading to Gossip Grill in a few minutes. Once you’re back, we can hit the trails again. And, hit the sheets.

  Looking forward to both.

  Sam smiled and slipped her phone into her back pocket.

  She suddenly felt drowsy, so she shut her eyes. She needed to decide soon whether she’d return to San Diego to finish the lifeguarding season. As one of the few guards who worked May through October, Sam would still occasionally be called during warmer parts of the year like spring break or during unseasonably warm Santa Anas, but with this only being the second week of September, she could still work a few more weeks until the end of beach season. However, for now, she would stay with Robert until he was moved to an acute rehab hospital�
��if he even made it through the GI procedure tomorrow and the placement of the tracheostomy.

  A firm hand grasped Sam’s shoulder, which caused her to jump and bolt forward. She opened her eyes to see a female police officer. Blurry-eyed, Sam saw that it was Annie—in full uniform. She always found her so sexy when she was dressed this way and used to tell her to not change before heading home from work.

  “Lieutenant Wright, nice of you to stop by the hospital. You know, that does have a nice ring to it.” Sam smiled and looked her over, settling her eyes on her heavy belt with all the gear. “Haven’t seen you in this in a while. Is Lieutenant Wright here to guard me?”

  “Adorable, as always.” Annie pulled a chair closer to Sam and reached over to take her hand. “How’s my girl?”

  “Your girl? Haven’t heard you call me that in years. How am I doing? Well, what do you think?” Sam nodded to Robert. “I’m tired, nervous about Robert getting those procedures tomorrow, uncomfortable in these stiff plastic chairs, and hungry. The food in the cafeteria sucks.” She leaned back and closed her eyes again. “Why are you in your uniform anyway? Thought you said you had a desk job now.”

  “I need to speak to Matt about the accident. The uniform tends to make witnesses more honest. Listen, I’ve got some important news. We found the truck that hit Robert. All we know is that a man was driving it, based on what Greg told us. I’ll verify that with Matt when I talk to him.”

  Sam opened her eyes and leaned forward. “Did they get him? Is the guy in custody?”

  “No, not yet. The truck was reported stolen a few days ago. The owner of the vehicle is an elderly woman who no longer drives the truck and hadn’t realized it’d been stolen till recently. I guess she’s in a care facility but keeps the truck on the property of a house she still owns. A neighbor contacted the police department to let them know the truck was gone. It was abandoned down a remote dirt road, covered up by branches deep in the woods.”