Arid

by Joyce, Anne

  “My head hurts,” Emily moaned. Blood dripped from her ears.

  “My ears are ringing and I feel dizzy,” Jethro said.

  “Don’t move. I’m sure you both have concussions.” Chad held up his hand.

  “The ledge is half gone!” Patrick pointed at the crumbled remains of their barrier.

  “They’re trying to make us vulnerable and easy to kill,” Dickie said.

  “Maybe we should go back inside,” Emily suggested.

  “You’re not thinking straight. They’re going to knock down this building. If we go back in, we’ll be buried beneath it,” Moustache said.

  “If we stay up here, we’ll fall down with the building. We’re damned if we do and damned if we don’t,” Dickie replied.

  “What do you want to do, Chad?” Patrick sat up.

  “Let’s take—” A flurry of bullets whizzed in their direction.

  “Get down!” Joshua cried. Patrick threw himself on the roof. Chad fell, holding his arm.

  “CHAD!” Jerin crawled to him and inspected his wound. “You’re bleeding a lot.”

  “I have another bandana in my pocket,” Chad said. Jerin pulled it out and tied it around his arm.

  Relentless gunfire pummeled the building and ricocheted off the broken ledge. Dickie crawled behind a pile of rubble and peered over. “What are you doing?” Chad called.

  “I’m trying to see where the shooters are,” he replied. Patrick, Julio, and Joshua scooted over beside him. The van’s front doors were open and a Purifier was stooped behind each of them.

  “I can’t believe they’re using a car door for cover,” Patrick remarked.

  “I think the newer vans are made from a bulletproof material,” Dickie said.

  “It’s going to be harder than hell to hit them from this angle,” Julio said.

  “I can do it. This side of the roof is the best angle we’ve got.” Patrick raised his rifle.

  “Let me take the shot,” Dickie said.

  “I’ve got this.”

  “I’m a military veteran. You need to let me do it. This might be our only chance. I want you guys to keep them distracted. If you can get one of them, that’s great. If not, it’s all right,” Dickie said.

  “How are you going to take down both of them by yourself?” asked Patrick.

  “I learned a few things in the Marines. Just get to the other side and keep them occupied.”

  “I’m on it.” Joshua hurried to the other side of the roof with Patrick and Julio.

  “What about us?” Moustache called. He and Jerin were slumped against the wall next to Emily, Jethro, and Chad. Jerin applied pressure to Chad’s injured arm.

  “Take care of the wounded,” Joshua called back. “Aim for the one closest to us. We don’t have a good enough shot at the other guy. On the count of three.” Joshua positioned himself behind a pile of concrete and brick. “One… two… three!”

  They fired at the second Purifier behind the passenger door. Bullets flew past his head and shattered the outside mirror. He whirled around and turned his gun on them. Joshua and Julio ducked behind the rubble while Patrick kept shooting. “Take cover, man!” Julio cried.

  “He needs more time.” Patrick glanced at Dickie, who inched closer to the ledge.

  “Hurry up and shoot them!” Julio called.

  Patrick fell on his side and dropped his gun. His body flailed and his legs twitched. Blood sprayed out of a hole in his neck. “They got him!” Joshua yelled.

  Jerin scurried to her friend and put her hand on his neck. “I need something to stop the bleeding!” Julio tossed her a rag from his pocket. She pressed it to his neck. Patrick stopped struggling and stared at her. His eyes were wide with fear. “It’s going to be okay.” She stroked his hair.

  ***

  Dickie’s bullet pierced the eye of the Purifier on the passenger’s side. His carcass hit the ground with a thud. The other Purifier opened fire on Dickie like a mad man. Dickie fell on his back, writhing and holding his left shoulder. “I’m coming.” Jethro scooted over on his belly. He grabbed Dickie’s right hand, and hauled him toward the wall.

  “My hat fell off!” Dickie reached for it.

  “Forget the damn hat. We’ve got bigger problems.” Jethro wrapped his arms around Dickie’s torso and set him beside Chad.

  “Jethro, I told you to stay put!” Chad said.

  “Someone had to get him out of the line of fire.” Jethro leaned against the wall and panted.

  “Bennett should’ve done it.” Chad glared at Moustache.

  “I think my shoulder is shattered,” Dickie groaned.

  Another loud boom rocked the building. Brick and concrete crumbled below them and rained on the ground. They were thrown around like they were in an earthquake. “They’re trying to make the building fall!” Julio shouted. He curled up behind the concrete pile next to Joshua.

  Patrick wheezed and grabbed Jerin’s arm. His body went limp and he closed his eyes.

  “Patrick, don’t leave me!” Jerin shook him, though she knew it was useless. Her brown eyes filled with tears. She rested her head on his chest and sobbed.

  “What happened to your grand military maneuver? Patrick was covering for you!” Bennett shouted at Dickie.

  “This isn’t his fault. If you want to blame somebody, blame yourself!” Jerin pointed an accusing finger at Bennett. “They killed him while you sat there and did nothing!”

  “Well, I’m doing something now.” Bennett picked up his gun and crawled to the ledge.

  “Where are you going?” Chad called.

  “There are four able-bodied people here and only one Purifier. That tank’s got to reload. This is our chance. You two stop cowering behind that rubble and fight like men.” Bennett glanced at Joshua and Julio. “Jerin, get over here!”

  Jerin ignored him. She knelt beside Patrick’s body, crossed his arms over his chest, and said a quiet prayer.

  “The fact that he’s hiding behind bulletproof armor kind of tips things in his favor,” Julio said.

  “This is a bad idea. You just saw how it turned out,” Joshua agreed.

  “We’re going to do it right this time.” Bennett got on his knees and raised his rifle. “Pick up your guns and fire!”

  “Get down!” Julio pushed Joshua’s head to the floor when he heard the Purifier’s gun again. Bullets tore through Bennet’s body like he was made of paper. His body flopped from side to side before he collapsed in a pool of blood.

  “Oh my God!” Emily wailed. Chad huddled with his wounded comrades on the ground.

  “What the hell are we going to do now? Julio cried.

  “We’ll have to wait until he runs out of ammunition,” Joshua said.

  “There’s a real possibility we’ll be dead by then.”

  “What other options do we have? This guy’s on a rampage.” They lay beside each other, with their hands over their heads. The gunfire continued

  “Guys, what’s that noise?” Jerin raised her head when she heard a strange sound over the gunshots.

  “Are you trying to get yourself killed?” Emily hollered.

  Julio turned his head and listened. “I hear it too. Is that what I think it is?” They peeked around their barrier and saw a garbage truck drive into the front yard. It picked up speed and headed straight for the van. The Purifier spun around and fired at the truck. He struck the windshield several times, cracking it like a hardboiled egg. Blane stomped his foot on the gas. The startled man dropped his gun and tried to run.

  The truck plowed into the van, pinning the Purifier between them. His head and arms dropped onto the hood. Blood oozed from his mouth. “They got him!” Julio called.

  The tank turned its barrel toward the garbage truck. Joshua’s heart dropped. “Guys, look out!” he screamed. Blane, Skylar, and Maria leapt from the truck and scattered across the yard. The tank’s shell sailed into the truck, smashing it like a tin can. Pieces flew across the yard. Julio fired at the tank. Bullets bounc
ed off and did little damage to it. The barrel spun around and pointed at the prison. Blane ran to the tank, grabbed onto its side, and climbed to the top of it.

  “Hold your fire!” Joshua yelled.

  “Blane’s got something in his hand,” Julio said.

  “I think he’s got the grenade!” Joshua squinted.

  Blane pulled the pin, threw the grenade down the open hatch, and jumped off. He landed on the ground with a hard thud. A low boom came from the tank. A cloud of gray smoke poured out of it. “He did it! He destroyed the tank!” Julio shook Joshua.

  “What happened?” Emily yelled as she, Dickie, Jethro and Chad sat up.

  “Blane just saved us!” Julio cheered. “Blane, you crazy SOB. You did it!”

  Blane waved back at him.

  “We need to leave while we have a chance.” Joshua stood and brushed himself off. “Are you going to be all right?” He walked over to the injured guards.

  “I think so. We need to get to the infirmary if it’s still standing,” Chad said.

  Jerin helped Emily to her feet and went inside with her. “You’ve got a good friend down there. I think that tank was running low on ammo. We’re lucky to be alive… well, most of us.” Dickie struggled to his feet.

  “Jerin’s going to take this really hard. She and Patrick were best friends,” Jethro said.

  “You can worry about that later,” Julio replied.

  “Guys, come here now! This isn’t over,” Blane shouted. Julio and Joshua ran to the ledge. Three Purifier trucks flew down the road like bullets.

  “Get up here now!” Joshua shouted. Skylar, Blane, and Maria ran for the side door.

  “What’s going on?” Dickie said.

  “There are more Purifiers headed this way!” Julio replied.

  Chad picked up the binoculars and looked through them. “Jethro, take Dickie inside. You guys are out of commission.”

  “So are you.” Jethro stared at his wounded arm.

  “I’ve still got some fight left in me.” He grabbed his radio. “Jerin, I need you back outside.” Jethro ushered Dickie into the building. Julio, Chad, and Joshua crouched behind the ledge. Jerin kicked open the door and ran onto the roof with Blane and Maria behind her.

  “Where’s Skylar?” Joshua said.

  “She’s going to the infirmary to help the wounded,” Blane replied.

  “Here they come.” Jerin ducked behind a pile of rubble with Blane. Maria crawled over to Joshua and knelt beside him. The three shiny, silver trucks drove into the yard, where they parked on the grass facing the front of the building.

  “What the hell are those things?” Joshua pointed.

  “That’s a good question. They definitely aren’t ordinary Purifier vans.” Chad stared at the strange vehicles. Their roofs and sides were lined with pointed metal objects. Their razor sharp ends gleaned in the sunlight. “I think those vans are carrying small military-grade missiles.”

  “Whoever this is, they’re prepared to cause a lot of damage,” Maria said.

  “Fire at the windshield. I don’t think anyone’s coming out of those trucks.” Jerin took aim.

  Chad and Julio lit up the first truck’s windshield. Joshua and Maria opened fired on the second truck while Jerin and Blane aimed for the third. Bullets chipped at the glass, but didn’t crack it. “I think these damned things are bulletproof!” Julio said.

  A missile broke free from the truck and whooshed through the air with incredible speed. It sailed through Chad’s chest and shattered his bones like glass. Blood and entrails splattered across the roof. His head flew back and he fell over. A spear no bigger than his arm rolled on the ground beside his broken body. His eyes were fixed and empty.

  “Chad!” Jerin wailed. Another missile whizzed past her head and crashed into the rock pile, sending stones crumbling around her and Blane. Julio punctured the third van’s front tire. It hissed and sank into the grass as it deflated. One of the third truck’s missiles discharged and crashed into the front of the building, shattering the breakroom window.

  “We need to get inside!” Blane yelled.

  “They’ll shoot those things through all of the windows,” Maria protested.

  “We can hide in the locker room or the infirmary,” Blane said.

  “They’ll have us cornered. There’s only one way out of here and that’s through the gate,” Joshua called.

  “Blane’s right. We can’t fight these things. We don’t even know what they are,” Julio said.

  “Follow me.” Jerin crawled on her stomach toward the door. Blane scurried alongside her.

  “Wait! Who the hell is that?” Maria pointed at the road. Jerin and Blane stopped and turned around. A sleek, green sports car with huge silver rims flew toward the prison

  “It’s… it’s Carlos!” Jerin sat up. “I didn’t think he’d show.”

  “Who’s Carlos?” asked Julio.

  “He’s one of our proxy members. He’s the reason we have guns,” Jerin replied. The car flew down the driveway and fired at the approaching drone. The drone spun in circles and smashed to pieces on the concrete. A green light flashed across the drone’s broken screen and the mechanical arm rose. The vehicle’s window rolled down and the driver threw out a gray canister, which rolled under the first Purifier van and exploded with a bang. The van shook and wobbled. Smoke poured from the engine.

  The second van raced down the driveway toward Carlos’ car. Carlos cut the wheel and his vehicle swerved hard to the right. A missile zipped past his car, scraping the driver’s side door. It screeched and sent sparks flying before it hit the ground. Another canister sailed through the air, landing on the ground and rolling underneath the approaching truck. The explosion rocked the big, silver vehicle. They could hear the Purifier truck’s engine rattle and stall as they tried to start their vehicle to no avail.

  “It’s time to send these guys to hell. That’s where Purifiers belong.” Tito shook his fist. Gunshots pounded the side of their car, taking them all by surprise.

  “Shit!” Carlos cried. They looked over to see the end of a rifle sticking out of the first van’s window.

  “They got Emilio!” the scrawny guy yelled from the back seat. The young man next to him twitched and gasped for air. Blood seeped from a hole in his chest. “Hold on, man! We’ll get help!” He grabbed his friend’s shirt. Emilio’s head flopped against the seat and his eyes closed. “No!”

  “You son of a bitch!” Tito shot a round from the passenger’s side. Bullets chipped at the glass and the van’s window rolled up. Jerin watched the third van’s window come down just a crack and the driver’s hands slide through, holding a long, cylindrical object. She fired through the narrow opening. The Purifier dropped the object and fell over the steering wheel.

  “Holy shit! I think that was some kind of explosive device. I saw it in a magazine at the factory. Good shot, Jerin,” Julio said.

  “Rodney, hand me the smoke bomb.” Tito held out his giant hand. Rodney handed him a small, gray stick that looked like a roman candle. Tito lit the end of it and threw it outside. A thick cloud of smoke descended over the yard. “Let’s go!” The three men leapt out of the car and ran toward the first van with their guns drawn.

  “Get out of the truck!” They opened the doors, yanked the stunned men out, and threw them on the ground.

  “No, wait! Please don’t—” Tito stepped on the driver’s back, pressed his gun to the back of the man’s head, and pulled the trigger. The other Purifier staggered to his feet and tried to run away, as blood dripped from his ears and nose. He made it a few steps before he was shot down by Carlos.

  “Put your hands in the air and get out of the truck.” They ran to the second Purifier vehicle.

  “They’ve got the doors locked.” Rodney pulled the passenger’s side handle.

  “Not a problem. Keep your guns on them.” Carlos went to his car and pulled a larger gray canister out of the trunk.

  “That’s our last one,” Tito said.<
br />
  “We’ve got to use it. We can’t risk them coming to their senses and shooting at us.” Carlos tossed the canister under the Purifier truck. The three men jumped back and covered their ears. BANG! The truck jolted so hard, it nearly lifted off the ground. “If those puntos are still alive, they don’t know what planet they’re on now.”

  “Check the last van,” Tito told Rodney.

  “There’s only one in here and he’s definitely dead.” Rodney opened the door and pointed his weapon.

  “Good riddance,” Tito said.

  “Carlos!” Jerin stood and waved at him. “Thank you! We were really in a bind.”

  “Tito heard the Purifiers calling for reinforcement over his scanner. We knew you’d need some help.”

  “Are you guys all right?”

  “They got Emilio. I want to see every last one of them bleed today,” Carlos called back.

  “Chad, Patrick, and Bennett are gone too,” Jerin hollered.

  “That’s a shame. Chad and Patrick were some stand-up guys. You need to take one of the prison vans from the garage and get the hell out of here. More of these pricks could show up any minute. There’s a lot of fighting in town. Stay outside the city limits,” Carlos said.

  “What were those weapons you used?” asked Julio.

  “My uncle and his cartel invented them. The canisters are designed to destroy cars and fuck up the people inside. The smoke bombs just create a diversion. Once you get used to it, you can see through the cloud while the enemy is staggering around blinded,” he replied.

  “That’s pretty amazing,” Julio said.

  “We need to leave. This town’s ours for the taking right now.” Tito turned to Carlos.

  “Good luck to you.” Carlos and his comrades piled inside the car and drove away.

  Julio, Joshua, Blane, Maria, and Skylar helped load the injured CO’s into a prison van and bade them goodbye as Jerin drove away.

  Chapter Twenty

  “It was nice of Jerin to let us take one of the vans.” Maria started the vehicle and sped down the dusty road. Blane sat in the back seat with Skylar and Julio.

  “She’s good people. I hope she and her friends will be all right,” Joshua said.