by Ryan King
Chapter 5 – The Surprise
Joshua saw the men running across the bridge toward his family below. He had seen them sitting and smoking cigarettes at the opposite end of the bridge before his father even approached the road block, but he saw no way to warn him in time other than by firing a shot.
He tracked the approaching men in his rifle scope, not sure if his father wanted him to fire or not. Joshua couldn’t even see his family now, only knew they were somewhere at the bottom of the hill.
He saw four men running their way, one tall, thin and fleet in the front, the other three trailing behind. At the very end was an old codger who couldn’t have been a day less than seventy, carrying a double-barreled shotgun. The two in the middle looked like they were brothers and Joshua could easily spot the resemblance from his vantage point two hundred yards away.
Joshua tried to think. Normally his father initiated all the action, but maybe he hadn’t foreseen this. If those men got to the road block, saw what happened, and then took up covered positions, they would be in the same situation they were when they first approached except without the element of surprise. Retreat would be difficult at best. They probably also didn’t want the men to escape now that they were in the open. If they escaped, they could run back to their barricade at the other end of the bridge and prevent them from crossing. They needed to take these men in the open before they reached defensible positions on either side of the bridge.
The tall thin man in Joshua’s scope slowed to a jog as he saw the bodies. His arms sagged and he looked around in disbelief. He didn't look to have any thoughts of a possible threat nearby, only staring at his dead comrades in disbelief. Joshua knew his shock could wear off quickly. He also knew he should look for stationary targets and “Mr. Tall and Thin” was now standing still less than twenty yards from the barricade.
Joshua forced himself to slow his breathing and his heart rate. He closed his eyes and then opened them again, sighting on his target. He drew in a deep breath, held it, then let it all out slowly. As the last of the breath left his lungs he began to pull the trigger slowly and steadily. When the rifle jumped against his shoulder it was a surprise, like always.