Without Law 5

by Eric Vall

  Once I laid down, the girls snuggled against each other to get closer to me.

  Paige nuzzled her face into my neck and kissed my collar bone.

  “Goodnight,” she whispered.

  “Goodnight Paige,” I said, and I kissed the top of her head.

  Our work was far from done, but we had done a good job today, and I was proud of my team.

  Chapter 15

  I woke to the light of dawn. The morning light shone through the window and illuminated the small, white classroom. The girls still slept around me, their mouths were open, and their breathing was steady.

  I stretched and yawned before I noticed Rolly in the corner. He had rolled his sleeping bag up and was digging through his pack.

  “What’re you searching for old timer?” I asked.

  “A little pick me up,” the old man said and then he looked up and grinned at me.

  “Isn’t it a bit early for booze?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.

  “Not booze,” he laughed. “Though I could use a drink once this is all over.”

  “Amen to that brother,” I said as I ran my fingers through my hair.

  Rolly pulled out the small propane stove and a small pot from his pack along with a small bag of coffee grounds.

  “You sly dog,” I said. “That wasn’t in the requirements for this trip.”

  “No,” he shook his head. “I hope you don’t mind. I still had room in my pack and at my age I figured I might need something to keep me awake.”

  “As long as you packed everything you should have I can’t be mad,” I grinned. “Actually, I’m pretty happy at the moment.”

  “I figured you might be,” he chuckled. “Thought we could all use some caffeine after last night.”

  “Did someone say caffeine?” Bailey asked with her eyes still closed.

  “It should be ready soon,” I told her. “We’ll wake you when it’s done.”

  “Okay,” she yawned and snuggled closer to Anna.

  The redhead’s long hair had been removed from its braid, and it spread across the top of her sleeping bag like a halo.

  I smiled at the sight of the small blonde hippie snuggled against the muscular redhead, then I gently removed Paige’s arm from across my legs and walked over to where Rolly sat by the small stove.

  “They deserve the rest,” he commented as he smiled at the girls.

  “Yeah,” I said. “So do you though. You did good last night.”

  “You know I hate to sleep anywhere but a bed,” he shook his head. “Besides, these old bones don’t need as much recuperation as their young ones do.”

  “Seems like it should be the opposite,” I laughed.

  “Maybe so,” he grinned. “But now I’m like a shark, I gotta keep movin’ to stay alive.”

  “The shark part I can agree with,” I grinned.

  Rolly nodded at me as he stirred the coffee grounds into the water.

  “Real sad about the Burlington camp,” Rolly said after a few moments.

  “Yeah,” I agreed. “It’s amazing what evil things people will do when they’re put in charge.”

  “Like the Stanford prison experiment,” he nodded.

  I remembered that from a long time ago, it was something I had read about. They tried to set up a makeshift jail at the school and had half the group be prisoners and the other half be guards, but it hadn’t ended well.

  “Give someone a bit of power, and they become a monster,” I said.

  “I’m glad you were around to save my old butt,” Rolly laughed.

  “You’ve done plenty of saving yourself, old timer,” I grinned.

  “Always so humble,” he said as he rolled his eyes.

  The coffee had begun to boil, and we watched as the small bubbles popped among the grounds.

  “Smells good,” I said.

  “I don’t mean to brag,” Rolly chuckled. “But I make a mean pot of coffee.”

  “Mmmm,” Paige smiled as she sat up from our makeshift bed.

  “Is that coffee I smell?” Tara asked from against her small sleeping bag pillow.

  “Coffee?” Anna muttered as she stretched.

  “Is it ready yet?” Bailey asked as she rolled away from Anna and stretched herself.

  “Not quite,” Rolly smiled.

  “Seems your idea is a hit,” I laughed and clapped him on the shoulder.

  “I feel bad not sharing with the civilians,” he said with a frown. “But I didn’t bring that much.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” I told him. “We’re going to get them set up today.”

  “What is on the agenda for today?” Anna asked as she sat up and yawned. Her red hair was tangled from sleep, and the waves from her braid pushed out to form a mane of hair around her face.

  I couldn’t help but smile at the sight of the adorable redhead.

  “The hard part is over,” Paige said as she tossed her brown locks into a messy bun on the top of her head.

  “Yeah, we kicked some serious ass yesterday,” Tara added as she pulled on Paige’s shoulders to lift herself up.

  “I can’t believe it went so smoothly,” Bailey said as she too sat up.

  “Well I do have a shotgun wound,” Anna smirked and held up her arm to show off the bandage.

  “Right,” Bailey said with a frown. “Does it hurt?”

  “A little,” Anna shrugged. “It’s not too bad.”

  “You should let me check it again before we start the day,” Paige suggested.

  “It does suck you were shot,” Tara said. “But it’s also gonna be a totally badass scar.”

  “That’s what I said,” Anna laughed.

  Rolly removed the small pot from the stove and set it on the floor to let the coffee steep.

  “We did good yesterday,” I smiled at the girls. “But there’s still plenty to do today.”

  “Ugh,” Tara groaned. “Why did you have to remind us?”

  “He’s right,” Anna said. “We can celebrate when we get home tonight.”

  “Oh hell yeah,” Tara said. “I could use a good drink. And I mean a good drink, like the shit I brought from the cabin.”

  “Excuse my uncultured taste in liquor,” Anna scoffed.

  “You’re excused,” Tara grinned.

  Anna laughed and pushed Tara down on the makeshift bed, “You’re such a bitch” she said.

  “Somebody’s gotta be,” Tara giggled.

  Paige and Bailey rolled their eyes at the other two girls.

  “Coffee’s ready,” Rolly announced.

  “Great,” I grinned. “Wait, what are we going to drink it out of?”

  Rolly smiled big and pulled out six small dixie cups from his pack.

  “They’re a little smushed,” he said as he popped the cups back into a cup-like shape. “But I think they’ll work alright.”

  “Rolly you are a lifesaver,” Anna said as she rolled up her sleeping bag.

  “I do what I can,” the old man smiled.

  “No, really,” Bailey chimed in. “I couldn’t have manned those guard towers without you yesterday.”

  “Ah, you would’ve been fine,” the old man said with a wave.

  “We’ll be sure to tell Betty all about what a badass you are,” Tara grinned as she rolled up her sleeping bag.

  “Couldn’t hurt,” I said as I nudged the old man with my elbow.

  “Alright,” he laughed. “Come and get some coffee before you start singing about me sitting in a tree.”

  The girls laughed and picked up their cups, then they sipped their coffee and sighed.

  Rolly’s coffee was strong as hell but the bitter black drink was a huge relief after the night before.

  “I think Rolly makes coffee better than you do, Tav,” Paige said.

  “Yeah,” Tara added. “I think you’ve been demoted.”

  “You trying to get my job old man?” I joked.

  “Wouldn’t dream of it, Chief,” Rolly smiled.

  “But he is m
aking the coffee from now on,” Anna smirked.

  We laughed for a moment and enjoyed the treat Rolly had brought for us.

  “Okay,” I started once we all had a minute to get some caffeine. “We need to help the civilians get organized today.”

  “So, is it basically clean up duty today?” Bailey asked from behind her dixie cup.

  “Yes,” I said. “Even if they don’t want to stay here, we still need to clean the place up and gather all the supplies we can for them.”

  “Are we going to give them all the soldier’s guns?” Tara asked.

  “Most of them,” I said. “If you see something you like, take it, but we do want to make sure they have enough to protect themselves.”

  “What about the trucks?” Anna asked.

  “We’ll see if the other one starts,” I answered. “But I think we should leave them with one, regardless.”

  “What about the orders The Colonel got?” Paige asked. “Are we going to look for those?”

  “Yeah,” I nodded. “Any knowledge we can gain on what happened will be extremely useful.”

  “The Colonel’s room has got to be somewhere in this building,” Anna said. “We can clean it up and search for the orders.”

  “That sounds like a plan,” I grinned.

  “We should go talk to everyone first,” Bailey said.

  “Yeah,” Anna agreed. “We should see if they have figured out where they want to go yet too.”

  “We should probably figure out their names too,” Paige said, and she bit her lip and looked embarrassed.

  “Yeah,” Tara agreed. “I kinda forgot to ask.”

  “Me too,” I said.

  “I guess names are our first order of business then,” Rolly smiled.

  “Thanks again for the coffee Rolly,” Paige said as she downed the last of hers.

  “Yeah, thanks Rolly,” Bailey smiled.

  “You’re awesome,” Tara nodded before she tipped back her cup to get the last of her drink out.

  “Mhm,” Anna nodded with her mouth still on her dixie cup.

  “Don’t worry about it,” the old man laughed.

  “Are we ready to get the day started then?” I asked with a smile.

  “I’ll clean this up and follow you out,” Rolly said.

  “Let us help,” Bailey offered.

  “That’s alright,” he said with a smile. “This is the easy job.”

  The girls and I headed out to the yard and saw that the group of civilians were already awake. They sat around the fire pit and talked amongst themselves, and as we made our way to where they sat, I realized their conversation was about where they would go. It seemed a decision hadn’t been made yet.

  “Hey everyone,” I said as we approached. “I think our first order of business today should be to introduce ourselves.”

  “Yeah,” Anna added. “Sorry we didn’t do it yesterday, but we’d like to know your names.”

  “To be honest,” the red bearded man blushed, “I don’t remember your names either.”

  “Well now I don’t feel so bad,” I chuckled. “I’m Tav.”

  “Is that short for something?” the older blonde woman asked.

  “My full name is Connor Tavish,” I told her. “But I prefer Tav.”

  “I’m Anna,” the redhead smiled.

  “Paige,” the brunette said, and she raised her hand as if she was in a classroom.

  “Tara,” the platinum blonde said.

  “Bailey,” the blonde hippie said, and she gave a small wave and a smile to the group.

  “I’m Rolly,” I heard Rolly call out from behind me.

  “I’m Jeff,” the red bearded man said.

  “Donna,” the black-haired woman chimed in.

  “I’m Merideth,” the red-haired woman said.

  “I’m Cathy, and this is my daughter Joanna,” the blonde woman said as she stroked her daughter’s hair.

  “Mike,” the black-haired man said.

  The others introduced themselves as well, but I lost track after the first few. There were quite a few people in this group.

  “Nice to meet you all,” I said. “Forgive me if I need to be reminded of your names from time to time.”

  “No worries,” Jeff said. “There are a lot of us.”

  “Oh my god!” Paige shouted and everyone jumped at the outburst.

  “What?” Anna asked with wide eyes.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “Winchester!” she said, and she ran into the woods.

  “Who’s Winchester?” Bailey asked.

  “I’m guessing it’s the dog,” I laughed. I wasn’t too worried, we had given the dog plenty of meat to keep him busy for the night. It was probably better that we got him in the daytime anyways.

  “Oh, I feel so bad we forgot to get him,” Bailey frowned.

  “I’m sure he’s alright,” Rolly chuckled.

  “Are we sure it’s a he?” Anna asked with a raised eyebrow.

  “Paige named him,” I shrugged.

  “Winchester could be a girl’s name,” Bailey countered.

  “Really?” Tara asked dryly. “It’s gotta be a boy or we’re changing its name.”

  We watched the tree line as Paige appeared with the dog in tow and they made their way back to the group.

  The dog looked around as it walked but didn’t seem too upset by the bodies on the ground.

  “Sweet puppy,” Bailey cooed and ran toward the dog.

  “Bailey, wait--” I started, but before I could finish she was in front of the dog calling it to her.

  I didn’t want the dog to get scared and bite her, but I watched as she crouched down and the dog ran right up to her.

  Bailey scratched the dog behind the ears and cooed to it as Paige crouched next to her and joined in.

  “Awww,” Anna said before she walked over and started to pet the dog as well.

  “Looks like you have some competition around here,” Rolly joked and nudged my arm.

  “You still have my attention,” Tara said with a wink, but when Winchester rolled onto his back for tummy rubs, she ran over to join in as well.

  “Looks like we got ourselves a dog,” I said to Rolly.

  “Looks that way,” the old man grinned. “Even with him, the ladies still outnumber us, so be careful.”

  I gave the girls another minute before I called them back over to the group. Winchester wasn’t going anywhere, and we needed to get these people set up.

  The girls made their way back to the group with Winchester in tow.

  “Sit,” Paige directed our new pet.

  Winchester sat, and his tongue fell out of his mouth. He really was a handsome dog, his brindle fur was short and thick, and his muzzle was a deep black that bled into the fur at his ears.

  “Good boy,” Bailey smiled.

  “Okay,” I turned to the civilians. “Have you all had a chance to decide where you’d like to go?”

  “I think the farm sounds like the best place,” Merideth said, and few members of the group nodded in agreement.

  “I’m keener on the school,” Jeff added, and others nodded with him in agreement.

  “We can clean up this place,” Donna said.

  “I’d rather the farm,” Cathy commented. “This place has a lot of bad energy.”

  “What do you think, Tav?” Jeff asked.

  “It’s ultimately up to you all,” I said. “You can always split into two groups too if you’re comfortable with that. But regardless of what you decide, we should all pitch in to get this place cleaned up.”

  “Okay,” Cathy said. “Even if we decide to split, I still think it’s important to help each other.”

  “Absolutely,” I nodded. “Everyone in this area is working together now, and we want you all to be part of that community too. My team will help when things get tough, but we also expect you to be ready to defend yourselves as well.”

  “That’s fair,” Jeff said with a nod.

&nbs
p; “We’ll make sure you have weapons too,” Anna said.

  “Has anyone here shot a gun before?” Bailey asked.

  “I have,” Mike offered. “I can help teach those who haven’t.”

  “That would be great,” I said. “We can help as needed too.”

  “Right,” Anna took charge, “but for now let’s get this place cleaned up.”

  “What do we do with the bodies?” Cathy asked.

  “We’ll start by loading them into the trucks,” I answered. “Then we’ll drive them somewhere and burn them.”

  “Okay,” Cathy nodded and pulled Joanna a bit closer to her.

  “Don’t forget to go through their pockets and take anything that’s useful,” Anna said.

  “Lighters, flashlights, carabiners,” Paige added.

  “It’d probably be best to just make a pile of everything you find,” I said. “Whatever isn’t useful we can discard or keep for later.”

  “You never know what you might need later on,” Rolly added.

  “Our team will start in the main building,” Anna told the civilians.

  “If you need any help out here let us know,” Rolly said.

  “Thank you,” Donna said, and she stood and led the others toward the bodies in the courtyard.

  “Alright, Alpha team assemble,” Anna said, and she lifted her hand up like an old time soldier would before battle.

  “Easy girl,” Tara grinned. “You’re not a captain yet.”

  “Yet,” Anna winked, and she gave Tara a push.

  I chuckled at the girls as we made our way to the main building.

  “Ugh,” Tara groaned as she pulled the door open and looked at the bodies on the floor. “They smell.”

  “Well yeah,” Paige said. “They’ve evacuated their bowels at this point.”

  “You don’t mean…” Bailey trailed off.

  “They shit themselves?” Tara scoffed.

  “Yeah,” Paige shrugged. “It happens after you die sometimes.”

  “Normally we take care of the bodies too quickly to worry about it,” Anna added.

  “Ew,” Tara said.

  “I second that ew,” Bailey agreed.

  “Don’t worry,” I chuckled. “This shouldn’t take too long.”