by Sally Six
“Teach him to fool with me. Now on to the next raider. Hunting time is here.”
Theo climbed out of the bunker and went hunting.
The other bikers were past Theo’s position trying to find someone to shoot at. They couldn’t figure out why no one was shooting at them when they had clearly heard shots close by just a short time ago. They also heard shots off to the north, but they seemed to be sporadic. They didn’t know there were only five of their own raiders left on their side.
Over on the north side of the ranch, Red was having trouble of his own. He had shot two bikers before they found out where he was. Now the rest were taking pot shots at him and trying to work around in behind him to take him out.
Around at the front gate, the bikers had stormed it at a run and were trying to climb over the fence and gate. Buck just smiled and shot three of them before they got over the fence. The other one he got as he came over on the front of the fence. He saw the raiders were down to four. The only thing that really bothered him was they had women with them. He hated killing women, it just plain went against his grain. A large black haired woman raised her rifle and shot his way. He gritted his teeth and shot her right between the eyes.
Buck grumbled, “Dang it, I hate this.”
A huge lumbering biker gave a bellow and ran over to the downed woman. The large man turned in Buck’s direction and Buck could see a shear look of rage and hate. No way could he let this one get close.
At that moment they were both stunned by rebel yells and guns going off behind the ranch. It sounded like a whole army had just beset the ranch.
Stinger Lukas got an evil smile on his face, roared and charged Bucks position. Buck saw his death in the big man’s hands so he raised his rifle and it barked, then again and again, but the last one hit Luke’s forehead and his momentum carried him forward another four steps before he hit the ground ten feet from Bucks hiding place. Bucks fear had nearly gotten him killed.
The last two bikers saw their gang leader go down. They had been shooting at a shack, but couldn’t seem to get the shooting from the shack to stop. With all the yelling and shooting, they looked at each other, shook their heads, turned tail and high tailed it back across the fence. Of course Canker and Whitey always made sure that they weren’t the first ones to go in anywhere when there was danger of getting killed.
If Buck hadn’t been so shocked at missing a killing spot on the big biker so many times at such an important moment, he would have shot the two bikers that he saw going over the fence when he looked up from the body at the noise by the fence.
“Idiot that could have gotten me killed too. Stopping and not paying attention to what and who’s around me in a battle.”
Canker and Whitey never even stopped to get their new women. They just shot past them jumped on their hogs and roared off as fast as they could. The two women laying on the ground were surprised. So much so that they had almost reconciled themselves to this fate. Now they were lying by the side of the road all tied up and who knows how long they would stay that way. But until all the bikers were gone or never came back, they weren’t going to get their hopes up that much.
Over by Red he looked through the right side slot in time to see a biker coming at him. He raised his rifle only to realize from the noise on the left there was another biker doing the same thing. There was a thud behind him. The biker back there had tripped over a rock.
He thought, “I’m a dead man. Better start saying my prayers.” He knew he wouldn’t be able to take them all out before one of them got him. Red shot the one on the right who was closest. He was turning his rifle when all kinds of heck let loose. He jumped and accidentally pulled the trigger on his rifle and the bullet went into the side of the dugout.
“Good thing it wasn’t pointed at my foot.” But it brought his attention back to where it belonged again and away from all the rebel yells and shooting. Red quickly raised his rifle and shot the man outside at the back of the dugout in the stomach. He went down groaning.
The biker on the left and the three behind him were watching to see how things went. They didn’t like this at all. So one of the women, named Kit, ran back over to the others. They came to the conclusion there was no way that was their men yelling. A larger gang than theirs must now be attacking this place. Colt was lying on the ground shot in the stomach. The others weren’t going to get killed for him or the other gang bosses. His so called friends turned and started to back track the way they had come. All they wanted was to get back to their hogs and get the heck out of here. Reese and Bert came over a hill at that moment and ended that thought for two of them, one man and one woman. The other two women started to zigzag and beat feet out of there. They made it back to their hogs thirty minutes later. They saw the two women laying tied up on the side of the road, hopped on two hogs and left.
Reese and Bert with Greg not far away continued their search for more bikers.
During the same time all this was going on with Red and Buck, Theo was having a good ol time in his hunting. This was his land and he knew it like the back of his hand.
The next biker went down sneaking behind a false shed and dug out. He never knew what hit him. Theo got him right in the heart from the back. He didn’t care if he was back shooting any of them. He knew they would kill him and his family without a thought.
All of a sudden all kinds of shooting and rebel yells could be heard at the whole back and sides of the ranch coming closer. Theo stopped in his tracks, but at least he was standing behind the shed. What did they have even more gang members and they were coming in a surprise attack. Theo saw a head pop up from behind a bush to the right of him and forward. So the biker hadn’t seen him or if he had hadn’t gotten a shot off at Theo before all the yelling and shooting started.
Wait the biker seemed to look surprised too. He was looking around her. Another biker ran up and squatted down beside her. Theo raised his binoculars. There he could pretty well see their faces.
He was mumbling to himself. “Well I’ll be darn. They’re scared. So this isn’t part of their biker gang. Wonder what we’re in for now?”
Theo looked around. There was another two bikers around here somewhere. He scanned the area around the ranch. He needed to know where the other two were when the two behind the bush darted out and started running back into the hills away from the ranch. Theo didn’t like the idea of them staying alive to come back another day with more people. So he ended that ability for these two. He would have to come to grips with having to shoot women later but for now it could mean their lives not to do it.
“There are more here somewhere. Now where are you?”
He stayed where he was and just watched his surroundings.
Meanwhile the shooting and yelling was getting closer and closer to the ranch proper. A biker popped up from behind one of the walls that they had put up just fifty feet from Theo and closer to the ranch house. The biker was also scanning the area. He had to have heard the two shots that took out the other two bikers Theo had just put down. But the raider may not have seen it happen or where the shooting came from or the whys of it.
The biker shot out running from behind the wall, grouched down and tried to zigzag his way across the open ground. Theo got a bead on him and another biker slid onto the ground.
“Okay last one. Show yourselves to Grandpa.”
This last biker had seen his buddy fall to the ground. He was standing on the back side of the ranch house and was sure enough gonna get the heck out of here. This had been a very deadly mistake. He went to the middle back wall of the ranch house and went to the left trying to stay out of the shooters sights. What he missed was David coming in from the left of him. Not to mention Kate. The raider was shocked when he heard shots and saw a couple of blood stains start to spread across his own chest and then another. He looked up to see a man walking in, but never saw Kate and he fell to the ground.
Theo had heard feet running across the ground behind the house and had
started that way; he came around the house to see David standing over that biker he heard running.
He yelled trying not to be too loud. “David get out of there. Who knows how many more there are. Get over here.”
Then Theo saw Kate with a wicked smile on her face pop up from the log wall.
David ran over to his grandfather and gave him a hug.
Theo groaned. “Watch it boy. You’re gonna break my ribs. Good to see you too. Where did you come from?”
Theo realized he didn’t hear anymore yelling or shooting.
“I don’t hear anymore yelling and no more guns going off. Who is attacking us at the same time as the bikers? I wonder who and where are they. Gall dang it who would think we could be attacked by two different groups at the same time? I just wonder how many bikers there are still around and now how many for this new group. I sure am glad you’re back boy. Now where is everyone else and the people you went to get? We sure could use their help.”
Theo looked over and saw the huge grin on David’s face.
“What in the world are you smiling about at a time like this? You look like the Cheshire cat.”
The families were still paying attention to their surroundings not knowing if there were more bikers or not. David decided he best tell Gramps who the other gang was that was whooping, hollering and shooting and he did so before someone got shot that shouldn’t.
“Well I will be horned swaggered. It was all of you all along. Well praise be.”
Neither one of them had heard any more shooting since David and Kate took out the biker lying in the dirt not far from them. Theo saw movement coming from the left back, but realized it was one of his great grand boys. He saw the boy was being careful and was trying to keep down as he moved. He spotted someone else further over and he didn’t recognize this person, but she was young. Another teenager and dressed in a heavy flannel green and brown shirt and jeans. She didn’t look like a biker to him. They had been dressed mostly in leather. “Idiots.”
Another 20 minutes went by and no other bikers were seen sneaking around. Most of the family and new family were somewhere around the ranch buildings by now. Everyone was keeping low.
Red hadn’t seen anyone else in a while and he was sure grateful for the men that took out those bikers. It sure was gonna be good to have other men around to help handle things if anything like this came up again. Not to mention the ranch work as his grandma used to say, many hands make light work.
After another 20 minutes, Gramps started to whistle the all clear and he sure hoped it was.
“David would you find Olive? You and her go out to the northwest bunker and get Red. She knows where it is. Tell him I think it’s safe to come in.”
Buck was already trotting up to the ranch house and was sure glad to see Theo in one piece. Kate came out from the log wall and made her way to her new Gramps for a big hug.
Chapter 24
Clean Up
After David and Olive brought Red in, everyone was introduced to each other. Theo thought it would be a good idea if they split up into teams and checked out how many bikers were lying around the place. Then meet up and go over to where the bikers had their hogs. Theo got a gleam in his eyes.
“I know everyone would like to stop now for the night. I wish we could but we can’t. This has to be done before we can eat, get cleaned up and get some rest. When the boys get back with the wagons, maybe we will know just how many bodies we will have to collect and then at least eat. Then we will unload a wagon and pick the bodies up before the animals get a taste of human meat. Now there are a few horses we broke last month so I don’t know just how gentle they are going to be. I am sure that would be preferable to walking back out there and looking around on foot. I know it is for me.” That brought a smile to most of their faces as they headed out to do a hard job.
Theo was thinking, “It looked like they were going to have some motorcycles after all.”
Reese called William, Tyler and Bert over. The three were dispatched to go get the wagons which included their very own scum bucket and bring them in. He turned to talk to Carla and realized something.
“We forgot to tell Theo about Wilbert. I guess that isn’t going to hurt. He will be here soon enough.”
Then both of them headed over to the corral to see if there was anything left for them to ride. An hour and a half later they were all back to the ranch house. The wagons were sitting in the yard and the boys had been taking all the stuff off of one. Reese saw that Wilbert was tied over at the ranch house to the front porch rail where they could see him with his gag still intact. The sun was setting. It looked like the rest of the work tonight would have to be done in the dark.
“Hey Dad and Grandma,” Bert said as Reese and Carla road up and stepped down to the ground.
William and Tyler also said Hello and finished taking the last items off the wagon and hauling them into a cabin. At least Reese thought it was a cabin. From this point it just looked like an old broken down extra-large shed.
Reese looked over to the ranch house and nodded towards Wilbert.
“Has he been gagged the whole time?”
“Naw Dad, I ungagged him and gave him a drink and then he tried to get us to let him go. He whined and whined so I just gagged him again. I think he is just a big spoiled brat who has never had to face the consequences for his actions. Now he is going to learn the hard way and he can’t seem to understand that.”
Reese smiled at his son. He sure was proud of the man he had become, but he was sorry his son and the other boys here would have to grow up much faster now. He didn’t voice what he was thinking. The boys didn’t need to hear any of that kind of thing. They were showing it by their actions. He was sure it was running though their own minds anyway.
Theo had Kate help him and they were breaking out the Coleman and old hurricane lanterns. Olive had gone into the house taking Ruth and Tammy with her. They were making sandwiches and cool-aid. The lantern on the kitchen table helped, but Olive had normally been trying to get dinner before it got dark. She found it made things much easier. It was so good to be home. She hadn’t realized how scary it was out there now. So much for: I can take care of myself thing. That was for the old world. This one was totally different. Her parents had warned her. If there was trouble in the world and the modern conveniences were gone, it would revert to this. She hadn’t believed them. Who knew? She sure hadn’t. She thought this being the 21st Century people were more civilized than ever before. She hadn’t taken into account the other side of life and the people who weren’t civilized. She had just gone on her merry way with life and didn’t bother to really think about what could go on. She thought her parents were just paranoid with their self-sufficient living or at least trying to be.
Everyone else was coming into the living room and spreading out. David came into the kitchen to help haul the food out to the dining room table. As Olive came into the dining room, she saw Wilbert being tied to a dining room chair. His hands were untied and the gag was being removed.
Olive frowned. Well I sure won’t be eating in here. She set her tray of sandwiches down on the table and went back into the kitchen.
It didn’t take long for the family to scarf down the food and drinks and head back out the door. While they were eating, David told Gramps what was up with the kid they had tied to the dining room chair and what he and his friend had done to the others and Olive.
Gramps scowled over at Wilbert. “Maybe we should just do the world a favor and take him out back and put him in the wagon where we’re going to put the rest of the garbage.”
Wilbert heard this and nearly gagged on his sandwich.
Theo saw this. “What’s the matter boy? You didn’t realize in this new situation we’re in that you are either on one side or the other, good or bad. You started off by picking the wrong side. Now you have to pay for picking that side. The raiders and thieves of the earth may win a few battles but in the long run its people like us that win t
he war.”
Theo started to get up. “Ok family are we ready for this? The sooner we get out there and get this over with the better off we will be and the sooner we can get cleaned up and go to bed. Another thing, don’t leave that thing tied to my chair. Take him over to the barn and tie him to a post and make sure he is tied well. I want to get a good night’s sleep and not have to worry about him roaming around. Toby and Bert you take him to the barn and yes he can be sitting down. We won’t take crap from him, but we’re not darn right cruel either.”
David had been thinking that they needed to leave a couple of people here at the ranch to keep an eye on things here, another group to go get those bodies and another to go check out the motorcycles.
He spoke up and mentioned that very thing to his gramps. “I had that very same idea son. I would never leave the ranch unattended. Let’s divide up and take care of all this at once. As for me I sure am tuckered out. I bet the rest of you are too. Buck, Red, Greg, Ruth, Toby and I will go get the bodies. Juan, Olive, Carla, Kate and Tammy will hold down the homestead while Reese takes the rest and heads over to the motorcycles to check them out. Maybe it would be a good idea to start wheeling those into the ranch yard too. Now that we got them we don’t want someone to come along and steal them now do we.”
They divided up the lanterns and waited for Toby and Bert to be done tying up Wilbert. Then split up headed for their different chores. Climbing back in the saddle took some effort. Everyone had come down from their adrenalin highs and were beginning to drag, well mostly the older folks.
Picking up the bodies was a grisly chore but necessary. By the time they got to the last of them, the coyotes were already tearing at the bodies.
The other group headed across the yard and opened the gate. It was locked again behind them. They decided it was best to walk over to the hogs especially since they would be pushing or rather trying to push the motorcycles back to the ranch. They didn’t have far to walk. The gang had stopped a half-mile from the ranch in between low hills so they couldn’t be seen well from the ranch.