by Hunt, Jack
There was a young girl, late teens, tucked into a bed.
Nothing else in the room.
At the sound of the door opening she looked at him.
Something wasn’t right. Her eyes. Her eyelids looked heavy.
She’d been drugged. “Who are you?” Alex asked. She couldn’t even respond. He moved back to the door and she didn’t seem too bothered. Curious to see who was in the other rooms, he went from one room to the next, all the while avoiding the camera that kept dipping and turning. In the next was a male, older, mid-twenties, in the same drugged-out state. A third room revealed another woman, older, late forties, the same condition. Who were these people? Why were they drugged and locked up?
One after the other, he entered seven rooms, all the same.
It was on the eighth that his jaw dropped. Alex rushed to the side of the girl’s bed.
“Meadow.”
She was in a fetal position buried beneath the blankets and wearing nothing more than a thin nightgown. He noticed marks on the inside of her arm. She managed to open her eyelids but couldn’t recognize him. “I’ll get you out of here,” he said flipping back the covers. He slung the rifle around his back and then scooped her up in his arms and carried her out. No sooner had he exited than the lights started flashing red and a siren wailed. He’d been spotted. He glanced at the rooms. He wanted to free them all but it wasn’t like they could run.
Alex hurried, making his way back to the steps that led up to the catwalk. He hoisted Meadow over his shoulder in a fireman’s hold and ascended. Even though she couldn’t have weighed more than a buck twenty wet, his legs were burning as he scaled up, trying desperately not to lose his grip.
He’d made it to the catwalk when suddenly a bright light shone on him.
“There’s our little mouse,” Abner said, strolling out into the opening below him and looking up. Right then several guys appeared on either end of the catwalk; rifles aimed at him. “And I had such high hopes for you, Alex. Still, there is Sophie and the others. I’m sure they will learn to accept you leaving just like others before you.”
“What sick game are you playing?”
“A game? Oh, this is not a game, Alex. No, this is deadly serious.”
Alex scowled. “You have all these people believing you are some kind of god but you are nothing more than a terrorist, a murderer.” He glanced at Meadow. “How could you do this? She’s just a teen.”
“A teen that was asking too many questions, like her uncle and brother. But, she’ll be given another chance. But you, I’m afraid this is the end of the road.”
Alex reached for his handgun but those on the catwalk thrust their guns at him.
“Yeah, I wouldn’t do that,” Abner said. “However, you wouldn’t be the first to have tried.”
Quickly the men moved in on him, removed Meadow and then led him down. Abner got close to him and smiled. “Don’t worry. Sophie is in good hands.” Alex lunged at him but was held back by two armed guards. Abner tutted. “Take him down. Give him his own room and a little something to keep him relaxed.”
Alex cursed as he was dragged away at gunpoint.
26
It felt like he’d been hit in the chest with a sledgehammer. When the initial shock wore off, he expected them to be on him but they weren’t. Garcia heard the staccato of gunfire and figured Andre, Liam and Elisha were covering him. He rolled to his side, groaned then got right back into it, delivering a three-round burst before rolling out.
Pain still emanated from beneath his bulletproof vest as he crawled to his feet. In all his years in service he’d yet to be shot but if it was anything close to this, he didn’t want to know. Dropping down to his belly, he brought the rifle up and set the barrel on a tree root and peered through the scope. His eyes frantically scanned the terrain.
“Garcia,” Andre yelled.
“Still here,” he replied.
Silhouettes darted in and out, rounds tearing up the dirt near him.
Then again it stopped.
“Hey Garcia. This only ends one way.”
He tried to get a bead on who was doing all the talking. They were behind one of the sedans. “You’re right about that.” He engaged, peppering the vehicle, taking out the tires, a side mirror and the windshield. After, he removed a magazine and palmed another in, making sure a round was in the chamber before moving into a new position.
“Andre. How bad is it?”
“Bad.”
Thick smoke filled the air from where one side of the cabin was on fire.
“There’s medical supplies in the cupboard below the counter.”
“No good, man. I’m not gonna make it, brother.”
“Don’t you talk like that,” he muttered to himself as he darted at a crouch into a new position to fire off two more rounds. One of them took out a guy who stuck his head out from behind a tree.
His mind flashed back to the past. Having gangs roll up and open fire was a way of life in the ghetto. The constant threat of death lingered but was rarely talked about. It was a given that most would die on a street corner dealing drugs. It was accepted. That’s why these assholes hadn’t turned tail and run, that and they must have figured they had them outnumbered. But it wasn’t about numbers as much as it was about skill, precision and a refusal to flee. If he didn’t end it here, others would come.
Under fire, Garcia reached the main door of the cabin, coughing hard because of the smoke. “Andre.”
He burst in as rounds splintered the door, and another round hit his bulletproof vest in the back and sent him down. Andre kicked the door closed. Garcia groaned and rolled. There was minimal light inside, mostly coming from hand-crank lanterns. “You son of a bitch. Why the hell would you come back here?”
“And leave you to have all the fun?” Garcia said. “We need to get you out of here. The smoke is getting worse.” He could feel the heat of the flames even though he’d there were steel panels behind the wood outside.
“No man, just go.” Andre coughed hard, then a smile started forming.
Garcia shuffled over to his friend. “Where are you hit?”
Andre pulled at his jacket and showed one round had struck him in the gut, and another in the upper leg. He’d used a tourniquet on his leg but his pant leg was covered with blood. It was bad. Even if he could have gotten him to a hospital the chances of surviving were getting smaller by the minute. Most of the color was gone from his face.
“Hang in there,” he said. He moved over to a window and stuck his gun out as Andre did the same on the other side. They continued to empty magazines, one after the other until Andre fell back gripping his stomach.
Garcia shifted over to him and applied pressure to the already covered wound.
“Hang in there, man.”
Hands gloved in blood, he wrapped a hand around Andre’s neck and placed his forehead against his friend’s.
“Been one hell of a ride, hasn’t it?” Andre said.
“That it has,” Garcia replied.
More gunfire erupted, and yelling came from Liam. It sounded as if they were trying to get closer to the cabin.
“The kids?” Andre asked.
“Yep.”
Andre gripped his hand tight.
“Give him hell,” Andre said. He coughed a few more times, blood trickling from the corners of his mouth before his eyes glazed over and Garcia heard his final breath leave his body. Garcia teared up, coughing even harder.
“See you on the other side, brother.”
His nostrils flared, rage filling his being.
He stared at Andre for but a few seconds then scooped up his rifle, palmed another magazine in. He went over to a box of items they’d brought in and fished through it. Taking out a flare gun, he loaded it and headed over to the window. As the continual barrage of gunfire assaulted the cabin, he set the barrel on the edge of the opening and aimed for one of the sedans.
Click.
A burst of red shot out and
exploded upon impact, lighting them up.
He swung the rifle around and one after another, he squeezed off rounds. Then he loaded another flare and switched out, this time it missed the car and flew up into the sky, exploding above them.
Under a barrage of gunfire, bodies dropped, but was it enough?
Taking hold of the door handle, he glanced over at Andre one last time before darting out, firing as he went while sprinting for the cover of trees. “Elisha. Liam!” He heard their voices for but a second as he came around the cabin, then out of nowhere he felt the full brunt of a rifle to the side of his head.
Then his world turned to black.
27
“His bag is gone,” Sophie said to Thomas.
After returning later that evening to her room she’d noticed Alex wasn’t there. After checking in with Ryan, who said he hadn’t seen him, she went over to Thomas’ room.
“Everything’s gone?” he replied.
She nodded, arms folded, an expression of concern.
Perched on the edge of his bed he shrugged. “He did say he wanted to leave.”
She raised an eyebrow at him.
“That was Asheville.”
“C’mon Sophie, you saw how fired up he was this morning.”
She shook her head. “No, he said he would stay a few more days.”
“Maybe he changed his mind.”
She turned to exit.
“Where are you going?”
“To speak with Abner.”
Call it a gut instinct, and years of being married to him, but she could tell something was off. Sure, there was a possibility he could have left, and maybe she could have believed that except after her therapy session with Abner she’d spoken with Alex. His concern for Meadow’s whereabouts was what had given her pause for thought, that and the conversation with him the previous night.
Had he gone looking for her?
On her way down, she passed Star who had a magazine in her hand.
“Everything okay?” Star asked.
“You haven’t seen Alex, have you?”
“Earlier this morning. He asked about Meadow.”
“And?”
“I said I would look for her but I didn’t have any luck.”
“So she’s gone?”
“Appears so.”
“Okay, thanks, Star. Look, if you see Alex tell him I want to speak with him.”
“Will do.”
It was a little after nine, and most had retreated to their rooms, or were conversing in the common room, a huge area of the mansion that had six white sofas, colorful bean bags and recliners. People sat around drinking tea and chatting. It had a very hippie feel to it.
Making her way out into the night, a light breeze brushed against her cheeks as she headed up to Abner’s office on the hill. A warm yellow glow emanated from the windows. Outside, Pete and Eric, Abner’s security, rose to greet her.
“I’m here to see him.”
“Hold tight,” Eric said. He walked to the door and gave a knock. A moment later Eric opened the door, muttered something, then waved her on in. Inside, Abner sat behind his desk. He closed a large book in front of him and removed spectacles from his nose. He’d changed out his regular attire and was wearing what looked like navy silk pajamas with a thin white stripe around the collar. “Sophie. What can I do for you?”
“It’s Alex. I can’t find him. His belongings are not here.”
He offered an expression of concern and gestured to the couch. “Take a seat.”
“I’d prefer to stand.”
“Fine. Can I get you a drink? I was about to have warm water with lemon.”
“No, I’m good.”
He crossed to a large wooden cabinet where he prepared his drink.
“I’m worried.”
“Of course you are. However, you must have expected he might leave after his outburst this morning.” A spoon clinked inside the cup as he poured steaming hot water into it and stirred.
He took a seat in a comfy chair as if he was ready to dish out therapy again. His monotone voice was consistent, almost hypnotic.
“Well certainly but he…”
“I’m afraid Alex left this afternoon, Sophie.”
“What? Why didn’t you say anything?”
“Sorry. I assumed he would have told you.”
“No. No he didn’t,” she said taking a seat, letting it sink in.
“Yeah, I guess after this morning he must have given it some more thought and decided to head out. I imagine he didn’t want to start another argument. I mean, you had mentioned arguing.”
“Yes but…”
Abner leaned forward and placed a hand on her leg. Sophie looked him in the eye and she could tell it was more than just a reassuring pat. She stood up and paced, stopping by a window as her eye caught sight of a fire glowing in the darkness. “It doesn’t make sense.”
“What doesn’t?” he asked.
“Alex was concerned about Meadow. He said she wanted to leave with us in the morning. He said…” she hesitated but felt it was important to continue. “Meadow told him that you take people to the barn and they’re never seen again. She was scared.”
“And what do you think, Sophie?”
“I don’t know what to think. I don’t get that impression.”
He gave a confident smile. “A few things you should know about Meadow,” he replied as he set his drink down and crossed the room to where she was. “She has a wild imagination and tends to blame. Ever since she arrived here she’s struggled to fit in.”
“Really? Because she seemed quite relaxed around Star.”
Abner clasped his hands behind his back and looked out the window at a bonfire that had been lit. Roughly ten people were sitting on logs surrounding it. “Let me guess. She blames me for her uncle and brother leaving?”
“Yes.”
He nodded, a smile forming. “Her uncle came to me the day before he left to ask if I would look after Meadow while he went to collect the rest of his family. He took her brother with him for support because as you know, not everywhere is as safe as this place.”
“Then why did she think they went missing?”
“Because they didn’t tell her. Her uncle knew that she would react and so he left in the night with his nephew. The next morning, Meadow was of course upset and was looking for someone to blame. Since then she’s refused to help around the ranch and concocted a story that she tells everyone who shows up here. We had Star take her out on trips into the city with the hope she would rub off on her. Even though Star is young, she’s ahead of her years.”
“Star’s parents. What happened to them?”
“They’re dead. Star has been with us for several years, long before this event. Anyway, I imagine Meadow followed through with her plans to leave and took off. I mean, we’re not going to stop her. No one is a prisoner here,” he said.
Sophie nodded and gazed out, past the bonfire, across the lake to the barn.
She pointed. “So what goes on in there?”
He laughed. “Even after what I just told you, you still have your doubts.”
“No. I…” she trailed off. “Yes.”
“Okay. Fine. Let’s go.”
“Where?”
He crossed the room and paused at the door. “To the barn of course. You want to see it, right? I mean, I could be holding people prisoner there. Unless of course you’re worried you won’t come back.” He laughed and she gave a nervous chuckle. “Come on, we’ll chat on the way down.”
They stepped out. Abner locked up, and told Eric where they were going before they made their way down the steep hillside. She breathed in the aroma of burning wood. Along the way, Sophie continued. “This place is beautiful, Abner, but eventually I’ll need to leave and head back to California. Alex was right. Our daughter could be alive and if she is, she’ll need us.”
“Of course. Whenever you are ready.”
Maybe it was his disarming manner
but she never got the impression that he was anything more than a kind, genuine person. Sure there were a few things that were odd about the ranch but no more than some of the spiritual retreats that were offered before the bombings. If offering spiritual help was a crime, thousands of spiritual teachers would have been guilty. In her mind it was no different than that. As for why they looked up to him, it was simple — in times of desperation and questioning, those who provided answers and a sense of security were seen as a strong anchor. “The drones. Alex said that you were involved.”
“Not in the manner he was alluding to. I’m not a terrorist, Sophie.”
“Then how is it that those drones don’t touch your people or that Jeep?”
He sighed. “Do you believe the world has mysteries, things that we can’t understand? That makes no sense and defy logic?”
“Of course.”
“Do you have faith?”
“I do.”
“Even though you can’t see?”
“Of course.”
“And would you agree that what I have built here is helping people?”
“Seems so.”
He looked deep in thought. “Do you recall Moses leading the Israelites through the Red Sea?”
She nodded.
“Do you believe that happened?”
She didn’t answer right away. Her upbringing had been one grounded in faith but in her mind they were all just stories, perspectives told by a different culture, open to interpretation, certainly not to be taken as fact. But she would have been a fool to deny that she hadn’t witnessed remarkable things in her own life that made her believe. Before she could reply, he answered.
“This event is like the Red Sea, and I am safely leading people through it. I don’t know how or why me, but I know those who come in contact with me are protected. Call it what you will, a divine intervention, the hand of God or a calling. That includes you, Sophie.” He stopped and took her hand. “I hope over the coming weeks to get to know you more.” He ran his thumb over her hand. It could have been taken in any number of ways. “I believe you have a great calling on your life.”
