by Paul Kane
As Tate got up, relying more heavily these days than ever on his stick, he began his slow and steady walk back up towards the castle, and considered the rebuilding they'd done here after The Tsar's attack. That had been such a horrible time.
While Robert and his men had been going through Hell on the battlefield, Tate, Jack, Mark and Sophie had been trying to keep invading forces out of the castle grounds - and failing miserably. If it hadn't been for Dale arriving with more Rangers, this place would look very different. Russian troops would be guarding the walls and the gate instead of Rangers, and they'd probably all have been hunted down and killed. Tate liked to think it was the power of prayer that had helped Robert recover enough to finally defeat the Tsar.
Whichever way you cut it, they owed the Almighty a big one... Two, actually, if you counted that other battle for the castle when they'd put an end to the Sheriff's reign.
But it seemed as though no sooner had they tackled one insane dictator than another cropped up. The Widow in Scotland, for example, or the potential threat of this Dragon character across to the west. In this post-virus world everyone was staking a claim on their own territories - and other people's. The only thing standing in their way was people like Robert and his Rangers.
As Tate hobbled further up, joining the path, he remembered what the castle had looked like earlier the previous year. The gardens torn up, the castle pock-marked - even a hole in one part of the wall where Adele, De Falaise's traitorous daughter, had left her mark.
The attack had left not only the castle and its grounds devastated, but their souls as well. Left them questioning if they were actually doing any good, or just fooling themselves. Luckily, God had shown them the way. Drawn more people to their cause, who wanted to join Robert's police force. Brought folk with even more useful skills, or given them the ability to learn these, enabling them to repair the damage done.
The physical damage, that was. Mentally, it was another matter.
Yet some of his friends and, yes, family - because that's how Tate thought of them now - had thrived in the months after the attack. Mark and Sophie, for example, had finally acted on their feelings for each other. As if on cue, he saw the boy, walking with his new girlfriend. Boy. You couldn't really describe him as that these days, he'd grown so tall. Tate could remember the first time he'd met Mark, back when Bill had been running the floating markets. He'd only come up to the holy man's chest then, and he wasn't exactly tall himself. Mark had also filled out somewhat since he'd started his Ranger training, working out whenever he wasn't spending time with Sophie or practising his archery and sword skills. By all accounts, the youngster was turning into a pretty decent Ranger, modelling himself on Robert, of course - still going with him on those private trips to the forest.
Tate raised a hand and both of the young people waved back. They looked so happy. For Mark and Sophie things had actually improved since the Tsar's attack.
The same was also probably true of their older counterparts, Robert and Mary, who were closer than ever. Tate cast his mind back to their wedding the previous summer, a small affair but attended by all those who mattered. Tate had presided over the ceremony, where the old bandstand was, and everyone had clapped when he'd finally said: "I now pronounce you man and wife. Robert, you may kiss the bride." There had been little time for a honeymoon, as a spot of trouble with a new wannabe gang in Chesterfield had required their attention, but both had gone off to tackle the problem together. Tate firmly believed that now they were fighting side by side, they couldn't be happier.
Most residents had been left gloomy and miserable by the events, though - Jack, for one, who even now stewed about Adele and how he'd fallen for her. How he'd betrayed their whereabouts because he thought Adele would harm Mary.
Tate, too, had found it a struggle at times - having lost the place he had once called his home, and finding himself estranged from the person he'd failed so miserably to protect not just once, but twice. Gwen, who'd been the Sheriff's plaything once upon a time, snatched from the village named Hope after her partner Clive had been brutally murdered. Who'd returned to the village after the birth of her son at the castle - Clive Jr, who she still maintained was fathered by his namesake, but as he grew bore more and more of a resemblance to a certain Frenchman they'd all known. Gwen, who'd said she never wanted anything more to do with Tate again. His own fault, assuming he knew what was best for her, sending for her because he'd thought she'd be safer at the castle, then putting her in even more danger. When he'd found out that she'd almost been assaulted by Jace, one of De Falaise's former soldiers, Tate could scarcely forgive himself. So why should Gwen? The castle held many terrifying memories for her, and they all must have come rushing back when that thug-
The man was dead now, killed either by Gwen or someone else, they hadn't been able to determine which. The woman was certainly capable. She'd gone after the Mexican, Major Javier, the man who'd shot Clive, finishing him off during the very first fight for Nottingham Castle. But Tate had a strange feeling she'd had help this time. Gwen had also become even harder, if that was the right word, in the time since all this happened. For the most part she'd hidden herself away in New Hope - turning the place into a veritable fortress, its inhabitants into soldiers.
Tate had only seen her once since the Tsar's men had invaded, a few months ago when they'd held the Winter Festival at the castle - an attempt to put a smile back on the faces, not only of the people who lived here, but also those in the outlying regions. Gwen had come only because some of her own villagers had heard about it. The Festival itself - with live music from Dale - had been a roaring success. But it had been the inroads Tate had made with Gwen that proved the most successful from his point of view.
At first she still hadn't wanted to know. In fact Tate thought, when he approached she might just walk off, turn her back like she had when he'd tried to visit New Hope. But something about that time of year, about Christmas, about peace to all men and forgiveness, must have touched her heart. It was the Lord working His magic again he suspected. No, more than suspected, believed completely. For the fact that she'd spoken to him at all must surely have been some kind of miracle.
They'd left it open, with the possibility of talking again at some point; the friendship at least thawing a little. She no longer sounded like she wanted to rip out his throat, anyway. Tate had planned to visit New Hope again soon after and see how the land lay, but up till now things had been so busy at the castle. He'd resolved to definitely go there within the next couple of weeks, though, as spring took hold, because there wouldn't ever be a perfect time. He didn't want to waste the opportunity he'd been given back in December. Instead of rebuilding the castle, he had to now rebuild a few bridges.
He'd talk to Robert when he returned, ask for an escort. Once he'd resolved to do it, he found he was actually looking forward to seeing Gwen again. To talking with her, and maybe, just maybe, persuading her to abandon the path of hatred and anger she was currently on.
To return her to the fold of Christ, where she might actually find tranquillity again.
"Jesus H. fucking Christ!"
Gwen ducked back down as the bullet ricocheted off the wall she was hiding behind. The wall she and the other people of New Hope had built for just such a reason - to keep out intruders.
Like the men who'd shown up here today and were attacking her village. She'd sensed there was something wrong, to be honest. Every now and then spotting unusual movement in the woods which flanked New Hope whenever she was on watch; fleeting glimpses of... she couldn't tell what. Gwen had the feeling that someone was watching their little community, but it wasn't like before. Like last year. Back then she'd felt safe, as if they were being watched over, protected. This time she just felt threatened.
These were only feelings, suspicions, so she hadn't mentioned them to the rest of the villagers. She couldn't be sure of anything, couldn't prove anything. But still she had skipped out on the last couple of foraging miss
ions for new weapons, relying instead on Graham Leicester. Once just an ordinary, gentle guy who'd worked in a garden centre, like her Graham had been changed forever by what happened when the Sheriff's men came to call. Now he was more soldier than agriculturalist. Gwen had seen him strip clean a Colt AR-15 machine-gun in minutes, putting the pieces back together like he was doing a jigsaw puzzle. He knew what he was looking for out there, knew just what they needed to defend themselves. The weapons she'd stolen from Robert's castle had given them a head start, but they were always searching for more.
The wall - a huge brick affair, strengthened by sheet metal on the outside - had been young Darryl Wade's idea. Darryl, whose father had been a handyman and had luckily passed on much of his expertise. He'd been helping Clive fix up the school when Javier and his men had-
Gwen had to keep stopping herself from thinking about that day, those painful memories. While it was true at certain times they'd given her strength, now they twisted her guts up in knots. If she didn't have Clive Jr, son of the man she'd loved so much, she didn't know what she might do. What those memories might drive her to. But she did, and that child was the only thing driving her these days.
She'd got her first actual proof that the village was being observed five hours ago, when Graham had returned from his latest foray in her jeep. He'd unexpectedly drawn fire from several locations in the woods. Andy Hobbs, another founding member of Hope, shouted for her to come quickly - which she'd done, leaving Clive Jr in the capable hands of Dr Ken Jeffreys, who'd joined them from a group in Worksop. When she got to the lookout post on the wall, shouldering her M16 rifle as she climbed the ladder next to the gate, she saw why Andy was so concerned.
Flashes of light from the woods, bursts of automatic gunfire which were spraying the jeep Graham and his team were in. The vehicle was barrelling down the country lane, barely big enough to accommodate it, and Gwen watched as Graham leaned out of the side, returning fire. Whoever was shooting at her people was dug in well, using the trees and surrounding woodland for cover. It was only what they did themselves, the countryside concealing them from any passing unwanted attention. Javier had been a one-off; they'd never encountered another wandering army like that here since. It crossed her mind briefly to wonder whether the shooters out there had come specifically for them.
"Unlock the gates!" Andy shouted down, pointing to the wrought iron monstrosities that were also Darryl's brainchild.
"Wait," Gwen said, brushing a strand of auburn hair out of her eyes. "What do you think you're doing?"
"We have to risk it," he replied.
Andy was right of course, she knew that. Graham was one of them, she'd known him almost as long as she'd known... would have known Clive. But there was still that nagging part of her wanting to keep the rest of them - wanting to keep Clive Jr - locked up behind those gates, behind these walls. Risk was a thing she had a problem with when it came to her son's life.
"It's Graham," Andy said, as if that was all he needed to add.
Gwen nodded, allowing the men below to unbolt the gate.
"Get ready," called down Andy. If this was to work they had to open them at just the right time. The jeep had sped up and was now pelting towards the gates, trailing fire behind it. Andy held up his hand; it was shaking. "Ready..." he repeated and she heard the catch in his voice. "Now!" he barked and let his hand fall.
The men below swung open the gates, just in time for the jeep to come crashing through the gap. It scraped the side of the opening and, for a second, Gwen feared it might collapse them completely. But Darryl's handiwork was stronger than it looked. Everything held, long enough for the doors to be shut behind the jeep - bullets pinging off the metal. Gwen hoped their enemies didn't have anything that could ram those gates down.
As she got to the bottom of the ladder, Graham was stumbling out of the jeep. He dropped his gun and fell to his knees, the khaki jumper he was wearing stained red at the front. "Oh no," she heard Andy say from behind. "Fetch the doc."
By now several of the residents of New Hope had emerged from their homes to see what was going on. Gwen waved to Darryl, told him to get Jeffreys, and to stay with Clive Jr. Minutes later and the medic was examining the man's wound.
"He's been lucky, it went right through, just missed his lung. But he's bleeding badly. We need to get him to my surgery, as quickly as possible. Here, keep pressure on the wound." Four people picked up Graham, and set off down the road with him. Jeffreys turned to Gwen. "What's the devil's going on? Are we under attack?"
"Yes," Gwen said.
"We're not sure yet," Andy broke in, looking at her.
"Tell that to Graham."
The sound of gunfire was still echoing loudly from outside. And it wasn't long before more lookouts confirmed that there were several shooters at the back wall as well. These too were keeping out of sight, but if anyone stuck their head above the 'parapet' they were setting themselves up as a target. In fact, shooters had been positioned around the whole wall, it seemed - either the same men circling, or quite a number of them in fixed positions.
"We're under siege," Gwen stated after they'd called an emergency meeting in the Red Lion pub. Clive Jr was nearby, happily banging plastic bricks together in a playpen.
"But why?" This came from Karen Shipley, a thirty year old ex-receptionist who'd joined them about six months ago. "I don't understand."
"Do people need a reason anymore?" Darryl answered, and she looked stung by his remark. Everyone knew she had a crush on Darryl - everyone except the young man himself, apparently. "They see something others have built up, and they want to take it, destroy it." He was quite obviously talking about their experience when Javier had rolled into town; Gwen could empathise. It was the kind of thinking she'd used to motivate these people.
"Hold on. Look, we still don't know what we're dealing with here," Andy commented. "How many men, how well armed they are."
"Pretty well armed going by the state of that jeep," Jeffreys chipped in, as he took another look at it through the window. "Put it this way, I'm glad it's not my patient." He'd managed to stabilise Graham. New Hope had boasted a small local practise, even before the name change. The doctor's trainee assistant, a young Indian guy called Sat, was keeping an eye on Graham while Jeffreys attended the crisis talks. He'd alert him if anything happened.
"Agreed," said Gwen. "And there's something else." She told them about her suspicions that someone had been watching them for a while now.
"You didn't think to mention this before?" Andy asked.
"What was I supposed to say? I didn't know anything for certain. What good would it have done to worry everyone needlessly? Besides, it's not the first time I've thought people might be keeping an eye on the village."
"What?" This was Jeffreys.
"It's okay, I think they were here to help. It's connected to how I got away from the castle last year." Gwen saw that they didn't understand, and shook her head. "You know what; I'm not even going to try to explain. What's happened has happened. But these people obviously aren't friendlies. And they aren't going away anytime soon."
"How long can we hold out for?" asked Jeffreys.
"Food-wise, a week. Maybe two," Darryl informed them. "It's ammo we're running short of. Graham brought back a few more supplies, but not nearly enough. If those guys keep pushing and have more than us..."
"They obviously want something," Jeffreys said.
Andy sighed. "Yeah: us, dead. And they might just get it, too."
Gwen glanced across at her son, playing without a care in the world. "That's not going to happen." She walked towards the door, then opened it, ignoring protests from the people inside. Gwen strode across the village to the front wall and climbed the ladder. Taking hold of her rifle, she crouched down on the ledge. Gwen stuck her head up over the top, and it was then that bullets raked the wall, causing her to duck again. "All right," she whispered to herself, "if that's the way you want to play it." She swung around and returned f
ire with the M16, targeting the flashes. "You like that, eh? All right, have some more then." Her teeth were clenched as she fired round after round, until eventually the rifled clicked empty. Still she kept her finger pressed on the trigger, breathing hard.
There was silence outside. The only sound she could hear was the pumping of her heart in her chest. The hand on her shoulder made her jump, and she almost turned the weapon on whoever it was.
"Gwen, that's enough." It was Andy, his expression full of concern.
"No, I-"
He took the rifle from her. "They're camped out. It's a waste of our ammo."
She stared at him, then said quietly, "We can't let them take us, Andy. Not again. We have to fight back." Gwen looked down and saw that some of the others had followed her out of the meeting. She saw the worried faces of Darryl, Karen, a half dozen more. Some of them knew what it was like to be invaded, some had no idea - yet.
Andy took hold of her, attempting to rest her head on his shoulder. "It's okay. We won't let that happen." Then it was his turn to tense up.
She pulled away. "What?" Gwen followed his gaze, peering at an angle through the gap in the wall.
"I think you winged one," he said.
He was right. One of the shooters had broken cover, staggering about in the open. He was clutching his leg, rifle falling from his hands.
"We need to get to him, get him inside," Gwen told Andy. If they could question this guy they might get a few answers.
"You can't be serious?" said Andy.
"I am, and I know exactly the way to do it."
For the first time that day, Gwen broke into a smile.
Chapter Five
She hadn't done bad for herself, she had to say. Though, obviously, she'd seen it coming.
And while most little girls' childhood fantasies revolved around living in a castle, it had never been hers. This had been an adult fantasy, something that occurred to her later in life when she realised it actually could be achieved. She'd always been a realist, even from an early age.