“Was that the last of them?”
She nodded.
“Are you okay?”
“It probably looks worse than it is. That bastard got the jump on me; I got a few good hits in before he put me through the glass.”
“I can see that. How’s Jeb?”
“He’s shot up. He took a few with him.”
Dominic sighed. “Okay, grab that gun and hang back. We’re almost done here.”
She could barely keep her balance. She stumbled to the window and tugged the rifle from the dead man’s grip.
Dominic pulled Mother back up to her knees. “You’ve heard the truth, from all three of these men. You’ve been deceived. We’re here to offer you freedom. The Union wants to unite these lands—”
“The Union? You want us to join the Union?” Even with a bullet in the shoulder, the burly man was on his feet again, waving his fist.
“The Union burned my settlement. They killed my wife and my kids. It’s the reason I had to come here in the first place. I’ll never join you people; do what you will to me.” The old timer was calloused and gray; it’d take more than one bullet to move him.
“They killed most everyone in my settlement!”
“Union shot me and killed my parents!
“They raped my little girl!”
“Ya’ll ain’t no better!”
Blake tried to plug the leak before the water got too deep. “Listen to me; I sympathize with all of you. But surely, you can’t want this. We’ve been deceived. People that we’ve known and loved have been executed over self serving lies. The Gospel of Multiplication, the Creator, Mother as His divine prophet, it was all a lie; they were her words and her hands, nothing more. You can’t want that.”
The guy with the bullet in his shoulder was still going strong. “Why can’t we want that? She’s kept us safe, hasn’t she? We’ve got food, water, and shelter. I know I sleep sound at night. It’s better than being out there. At least in here, with Mother, I can see death coming. I know where I stand with her.” The man turned to address the crowd. “I don’t know about the rest of ya’ll, but I ain’t joining these people. They ain’t got enough bullets to stop us all. Let’s take back Reeman, are you with me?”
That was all the encouragement the crowd needed. They rose from their seats and began to push forward.
Dominic yanked Mother up by the hair, aiming his rifle with one hand. “Get back, all of you! Get back or I’ll kill her!” Dominic began moving off the stage, followed by Blake. He was circling to the left side of the room. “Everyone shift to the right!” He fired a shot into the ceiling. “I’m not going to ask again, move your asses to the other side of the room!”
“You heard him, you want to get shot?” Blake was like an old man with a cane, poking and prodding the crowd.
“Zach, open that door. Lerah, lead us out of here.”
The crowd was sufficiently riled and looking for a fight, but three rifles locked on their position was enough to keep them at bay. Yeah, there wasn’t enough ammo to go around, but no one wanted to risk being the first to catch a bullet.
“You’re never going to make it out of here.” Mother’s voice trembled as Dominic pulled her along by her hair. “Let me go and maybe, just maybe, I can call them off.”
When Dominic got to the door he let Blake and Lerah file out first. “I better not see any of your faces outside of these doors. You wait until we’re gone. First face I see, I shoot, and then I shoot Mother.”
“Just who in the hell—”
Dominic gunned the man down where he stood, three bullets, right to the center of the chest. He fell to the ground, stone cold dead in a matter of seconds. “Anyone else?”
The rage still hung thick in the air, but the will to act on it had been drained.
“Good. Pull the door shut behind us.”
Zach nodded and followed him out, yanking the double doors tight before turning to join him. “Where are we going?”
“We’re not going anywhere,” Dominic said, pulling Mother along behind him like a badly behaved dog.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean you’re not going. We’re leaving; your ass is staying here.”
“These people will kill my ass.”
“Your problem, not mine.”
“Bullshit, I helped you. I helped your girl. Without me, ya’ll would be dead.”
“Our goals aligned, nothing more. You’re a sadistic piece of shit, that hasn’t changed.” Dominic turned his back on Zach and rounded the bend. Lerah appeared by the front gates, waiting for him. Blake was inside the gatehouse working on getting them open.
“Kill him son! You kill him and you’re safe, the Father will forgive your sins. It’ll be just like it was before.”
Nothing chilled the blood quite like the sound of a round being chambered into an unseen weapon. “Not another step, Union boy!”
Dominic puttered to a stop. He took the slack out of Mother’s hair, wrapping the excess length around his wrist and ignoring her pain ridden protests. “You really want to do this?”
“You’re not giving me much choice.” Zach was only aiming with one hand, but the distance between them was small, a blind baby could hit the shot.
“I gave you plenty of choice. Stay here, maybe you live. Maybe you don’t. But what you’re doing right now, well, that’s not leaving me much choice. Are you catching the drift of what I’m saying?”
“Drop your gun and let Mother go!”
“Afraid I’m not going to be able to do that.”
“I’m not gonna ask again!”
“Alright then, let’s do it the hard way.” Dominic sank low. As he came down he turned on his heels, he cranked Mother’s head back and used her body as a shield. Zach panicked and fired at the sudden movement. The rounds blew through the top of Mother’s body and exited just above Dominic’s head, drenching him in fat chunks of bloody flesh. He released her hair and shoved her towards Zach. She stumbled and fell across the top of his rifle, forcing it towards the ground as it let loose its next bark. Dominic sent a bullet soaring right through the bottom of Zach’s jaw. It swam up through his face and lodged somewhere behind his right eye; the pressure blew it out of the socket. Zach hung there for a second, with Mother slumped over in his arms. His mouth was a black hole filled with broken teeth, his right eyeball dangled, leaving little red smudge marks as it rolled back and forth on his cheek. Then he fell, taking Mother with him. They lay intertwined on the ground, lifeless, her face against his chest.
“Dominic, come on!” Lerah shouted at his back.
He looked up and saw that the congregation had left the church. They were stampeding towards him, called to action by the gunfire. Toby was out front, along with a couple of other men. They cradled weapons that they’d retrieved from the dead fingers of their fallen comrades. They were stopping every few feet to pop off shots. Dominic started backing towards the gate, returning fire, and sending the herd diving for cover.
“Come on, Dominic!”
He turned and started to run as bullets zinged past his shoulders.
The gates were open.
Blake was crouched in the doorway of the gatehouse, engaging the mob. “Take Lerah and go!”
Dominic slid to a stop, flinching as a bullet buried itself in the ground next to his foot. “Bullshit, you’re coming with us!”
“No, I’m not. My place is here. I want to be with my family, but first, I want to take as many of these bastards with me as I can.”
“You’re a good man, Doc.”
He shook his head. “No, I’m not. So, you get your ass back out there and try for the both of us.”
“Take care, Doc.”
Lerah hadn’t waited for him. She was beyond the gate and halfway down the hill by the time he made the exit. They didn’t stop running until they reached their backpacks, until Reeman was just a distant shadow beneath the moonlight. The gunfire echoed beneath the neon sky for another half hour and the
n it fell silent.
“Doc put up a hell of a fight,” Dominic said. His eyes were glued to the shadowy outline of the distant settlement.
“For whatever that’s worth.” Lerah was still breathing heavy, the adrenaline of battle still pulsing in her veins.
“Out here, it’s everything.”
45
They took turns, alternating watch duty while the other closed their eyes, but their rest was brief and superficial. Dominic found himself gasping awake, reaching for his gun, positive that they were being overrun. Lerah’s body was a series of angry cuts and bruises, which made it difficult to find comfort on the hard bed of sand. The moon was still perched in the sky when they decided to give up on sleep and move out.
“What was the point in all this?” Lerah asked.
“Is that a philosophical question?”
“No, it’s not. Here we are, both of us are beat to shit, people are dead, and we’ve got nothing to show for it.”
Dominic shrugged. “That’s how this sort of thing works. You’ll get used to finding black holes at the end of the path. At least you’ve got some scars to show for it. You’re not really a soldier until you’ve got scars.”
“Yeah, all over my face and stomach, not my first choices.”
He looked her over, sliding his jaw back and forth. “Yeah, I really liked your stomach.”
“Oh, it’s past tense now?”
He fell back a few paces. “Your ass is still in one piece, so that’s good news.”
“Oh, really?”
“Really, it’s a great ass.”
“Well as long as you’re happy with it.”
The narrow bridge stood below them in the distance, stretching across the great chasm. The path leading down through the rocks was just ahead.
Lerah took his hand. “Listen, when we get close to Genesis, you should split.”
“I figured you’d at least wait a few days before trying to dump me.”
“Dominic, that’s not what this is and you know it.”
“Do I?”
“Yeah, what the hell do you think this is?”
“I think it’s you sparing yourself the indignity of being seen with an Outlander. I think this was all just some fantasy for you. You got to go outside and get your hands dirty. You got to play war and you got to fuck a member of the other team. Now it’s dark out and it’s time to go in and wash up.”
“You’re an idiot.”
“What, then? You tell me. What is it?”
“I care about you. I care about you a lot, more than I’ve ever cared about anyone else, and I don’t want to see you get hurt, okay?”
“I’m a big boy, Lerah.”
“I know. You’re god with a gun. You can kill a thousand men with a flick of your little finger, but I’m telling you, if you go back to Genesis they will lock you in chains and bury you under the foundation.”
“So, let’s not go back.”
She shook her head. “What?”
“We can make a life out here, together.” He wrapped his fingers through hers, desperately hoping to feel her do the same, but her hands just hung there in his grasp, like a prisoner that had given themselves over to the shackles. “Let them have their war, or whatever. We can put all of this bloody shit behind us and just be together.”
She dropped her head and began trying to pull her hands free. “Dominic, I can’t. My father… my life… I can’t, I’m sorry.”
“I get it. You’re Union. I’m an Outlander. We’ve had our fun and it’s over, back to reality.”
“No, you’re not listening—”
“Please, just call it what it is. Stop insulting me.”
“You thick headed bastard, don’t you get it? I care about you and don’t want to see you hurt, but I’m not in a position where I can just leave my life and my family. I know you don’t understand that because you don’t—”
“I don’t what?”
“That’s not how I meant it.”
“No, finish the sentence. I don’t have any family. I’m just some lonely Outlander, worthy of a moment’s pity and nothing more.”
“It came out wrong, I’m sorry.”
“No, forget it. You had your say, let’s move.”
“Actually, let’s not move.” There were two of them crouched near the mouth of the path leading down through the rocks. They were holding Lerah and Dominic in their rifle sights. Four more men moved up between them, fanning out to form a firing line.
One last man emerged from the path. He stood, blocking the mouth, a crooked smile on his face. “You two gave me a hell of a run.”
Dominic pushed Lerah back and stepped forward. “I didn’t think I’d be seeing you again, Monte.”
“Likewise, I thought you were dead.”
“Never trust a rumor.”
“And now, here we are.”
“Here we are.”
“You know, I was quite disappointed when I found out that one of the finest Saboteurs I’ve ever known was running with the Union.”
“It’s not what it looks like.”
“It looked pretty clear to me when I found my men butchered in that shithole inn.”
“You sent them?”
“What did you expect? You know we’ve got eyes all over. You come roaming into a place like that, a blonde bitch on your arm, her skin as soft as lamb pussy, you think we’re not gonna take notice? You know how we handle Union.”
“Well, then I think the response you got was reasonable.”
“Reasonable would have been your ass not being there to begin with; that’s reasonable.”
“Like I said, it’s not what it looks like.”
“Is she your wife? Did you win her in a poker game?”
Dominic shifted feet. There were no good options. Monte was one of the best Saboteurs he’d ever worked with. His pistol was still in its holster because Monte didn’t need to get the drop on his target, death worked around his schedule. “She’s not my wife. I just got mixed up in some shit at Genesis. They contracted me out to do a little arbitration. In exchange I got to keep my head and a purse full of coin. They’re trying to unite the settlements. It’s not a bad plan, Monte. We’re trying to put a real end to this bullshit war.”
Monte laughed long and hard. “Is that what you think?”
“No, of course not, but it’s the pitch I was given and it sounded a lot better than a grave.”
“You could have taken the coin and run. Is it her? The pussy? Have you been blinded by the sweet pink?”
“You leave her out of this!”
“You should have left her out of this. You should have sacked up and taken whatever punishment they were handing down. Instead you became their bitch. Wandering the Wastes, doing their business, you’re a disgrace to every man we fought beside.”
“Oh yeah, and what are you?”
“I’m a soldier, a Saboteur. I never stopped fighting for us, for our people. You think this shit you’re doing is about uniting the Outland? About peace? No, it’s about control. They’re trying to buy our souls, one chest of coin at a time. It’s the same war, just different weapons. Coin goes deeper than a bullet, you should know that.”
Lerah stepped up, shoving past Dominic. “We’re trying to make a difference. We’re trying to bring people the freedom to live their lives to the fullest, absent struggle and fear.”
“Nah, lady, you’re just bringing them a different kind of struggle, a different kind of fear, one that you and your people can control and manipulate. Dominic, shut this cunts mouth before I do it.”
“Lerah, step ba—”
“You don’t get to talk to me like that. Do you have any idea who I am? Lerah Adams, daughter of Defense Minister Adams, you will show me some respect!”
Monte’s eyes lit up and a smile dawned on his lips.
“Oh, Lerah, what have you done?” Tears began to sting the corners of Dominic’s eyes.
“The Defense Minister’s daughter, tell me
more.” Monte drew his weapon casually from its holster, the leather caressing every inch of the metal body.
“I… well… I…” Lerah realized her mistake, but it was too late. She’d just strapped herself to a target, and Monte was a dead eye.
“She’s nobody; she can’t get you anything I can’t. Leave her out of this.” Dominic was tucking her away behind his back, as if she were some shameful secret.
Monte raised the pistol and dropped the hammer. “Step aside Dominic, the lady is with us now.”
“I can’t let you do that.”
“I never asked your permission. Listen carefully, shrug off the weapon and the bag, and step aside. If you don’t move, I’m just going to drill you and take her. That goes for you too, missy. Shrug off that weapon and pack. Don’t try anything stupid, Dominic here will tell you, I don’t miss.”
“Does he miss?” Lerah whispered.
“No, I’m afraid he doesn’t.”
Monte turned his head, left and then right, cracking his neck loudly. “Last chance, soldier.”
Dominic inflated his chest and raised his chin, as if bravado could stop a bullet. “I can’t, Monte. I can’t just give her up.” Dominic could beat most men on the draw, and if it had been anyone else he would have made a go of it. But Monte wasn’t just anyone else. He was a Saboteur, just like Dominic. But Dominic had stopped fighting once the war was over, he was rusty. For Monte the fighting never ended, he’d never stopped breathing it. While Dominic wandered the Wastes, taking contract work for beer and cigarette money, Monte had kept his elbows in the trenches.
“Okay, I hate for it to go down like this. Nice seeing you again, Dominic.”
“Wait! Wait! Don’t shoot! I’ll go!” She jumped in front of Dominic, arms out.
“No, Lerah, don’t do this.”
She turned, and as she kissed him, she slipped his gun and back pack from his shoulders, letting them fall to the ground beside her own. Her nose was against his, her hands on his face. “I’m taking the hit this time. It’s my turn to save us. You come and you find me, got it?”
“Yes,” a single pair of tears fell from his eyes, “wherever they take you, I’ll come for you.”
The Fall of Man: The Saboteur Chronicles Book 1 Page 36
