Dark Days | Book 2 | Retribution

by Davis, James

  "Don't think they're here for the party. Any ideas?" he asked. Dan looked back at Clay in silence for a long moment before speaking. "Well, if I were a religious man, I guess I'd say it's a pretty good time to start praying."

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  “Clay and Hank Mitchell, get your asses out here right now!” Sharp’s voice sounded over a bullhorn. Dan looked over at Clay and started to shake his head.

  “I’m sorry honey. You were right. I should have just kept my old ass off that bike and stayed home.” Dan said in a low voice to himself.

  “We need to get back over to the house where the weapons are. Can you run?” Clay asked.

  “Yes, I can run! I’m not that old yet.” Dan replied.

  “Alright on three, we haul ass. Ok?” Clay asked. Dan nodded his head and Clay shouted.

  “THREE!” They bolted out of the door and sprinted toward the house as fast as they could. When they reached the bottom step, Sharp started shouting for them to stop but they ignored him as they spanned the few steps and burst through the front door. Hank was standing by the door when they came through and he went flying across the room and landed on a small wooden table. The table exploded in a shower of wooden chunks and splinters as Hank smashed through it.

  “Clay, don’t make me come in there! If I have to come get you, I swear I'm going to put a bullet in your brother’s head just like I did to that bitch wife of yours!” Sharp’s voice sounded again. Heat rose up in Clay’s face causing his face and ears to turn bright red with anger. He grabbed his rifle that was leaning by the front door and started to walk back outside. He was going to kill that son of a bitch once and for all. Dan put a hand on Clay’s shoulder and stopped him. Clay turned and glared at the man.

  “Get your hands off of me!” Clay growled. Dan squeezed his shoulder tighter.

  “You just shut up and listen to what I have to say! Now you know damn well he is just trying to get you stirred up so you will go out there, guns blazing. If you walk out that door you won't make it a hundred feet before you’re shot down like a damn rabid dog.” Dan explained as he locked eyes with Clay. He could see the pain and anger battling for dominance in Clay’s eyes and Dan knew that feeling all too well.

  “Think about your little girl, Emma is still here son. If you get yourself killed, she won’t have anyone left.” Dan added. Clay’s anger eased back at the sound of his daughter’s name.

  “You’re right. I’m sorry I snapped on you.” Clay said as everything Dan had said finally broke through Clay’s murderous thoughts.

  “What the hell are we going to do now?” Hank asked as Dub helped him up from the floor.

  “Best be gettin ready for one hell of a fight!” Dub said.

  “Y’all follow me.” Dub said before rushing off toward the back of his house. The group followed and watched as Dub lifted a rug in the laundry room revealing a trap door.

  “This is my quick escape route to the bunker. We need to get armed with more than just a couple of rifles.” Dub stated. Everyone just stood there looking at him confused.

  “Why didn’t you tell us about this before?” Clay asked.

  “Hell, I don’t know… just get your asses down in here!” Dub scolded. They all climbed down a small ladder to a short concrete tunnel that led out toward the shed behind the house. The door to the bunker looked like something you would see on a submarine. The door had a large circle handle at its center and it bowed out away from the door frame. Dub gave the handle a few quick spins and pulled the door open. They all rushed in and Dub closed what looked like a bookshelf on the inside.

  “Is that everybody? Even the sick people?” Clay asked as he looked around the room. Jeff and Randy came down the steps from the main entrance.

  “Everyone get armed, they just breached the fence!”

  General Mason, watched as Sharp shouted through the bullhorn at the people inside this farm. He was getting tired of this guy’s shit real fast. What kind of general was he if he didn’t stop this tyrant from hurting and killing innocent people? The thoughts raced through his mind unchecked as he watched Sharp command the trucks forward and through the fence. They stopped and loads of armed soldiers poured out of the vehicles and started to ease forward towards the house. A rifle report sounded and a man's head exploded in a shower of gore on the front line, coating his buddies in the bloody mess. They all stood there, stunned, until another shot rang out and another head exploded. This got the soldiers moving. They all scattered like roaches taking cover behind anything they could find. Clay led everyone capable of fighting out of the bunker and they immediately began taking heavy fire. The sniper was steadily picking off the U.N. troops one at a time but no one could figure out where the shots were coming from or who was behind the rifle.

  “Who is out there sniping these bastards?” Clay shouted over the barrage of gunfire.

  “I don’t know, but I’m damn glad he’s on our side!” Hank shouted back. The fight was hopeless for Clay’s people, as they were greatly outnumbered something like three of four to one. The only saving grace they had at this point was the unknown sniper that seemed to be shooting from every angle. Clay glanced out from behind Dub’s Jeep and looked for Sharp.

  I’m going to kill that motherfucker if I can get my hands on him! Clay thought as he searched the area. He noticed that not one of the American soldiers even had their guns raised.

  “What the hell?” Clay muttered to himself. He spotted Sharp standing in front of a Humvee with his arms crossed in front of his chest and a huge grin on his face. Clay aimed the rifle right at that bastard’s face and touched the trigger but before he could fire a volley of bullets slammed into the front fender of the Jeep.

  Dan and Dub were behind the barn taking pot shots at any of the blue hats that tried to flank the rest of their men. They had already killed around a dozen of them.

  “That’s some mighty fine shooting Dan!” Dub stated, giving Dan a pat on the back.

  “Not too bad yourself, old timer.” Dan replied.

  “You’re lucky we’re the same age. I smack the shit out of the youngins for call me old!” Dub chuckled between shots.

  Hank watched Clay dive behind Dub’s Jeep and then took off toward the line of trucks they had sitting off to the side. As he approached the vehicles, a U.N. soldier came around the back side of the trucks in an attempt to get the drop on them. Before the soldier ever saw Hank, his brains were leaking out of a large hole in his head. Hank dropped down next to the corpse and started ripping full mags of ammo from the man’s vest. Once he had everything he could use, he leaned out and began firing in short bursts at the rapidly approaching soldiers.

  “Why aren’t they helping?” Hank said to himself as he spotted the American soldiers standing back away from the fight in a small group. They looked like they were discussing an important matter from all the intense hand gestures being used. Hank shook his head and turned his attention back to the blue hats.

  Clay leaned out from cover and fired several rounds catching a soldier in the gut, the wounded man fell to the ground screaming.

  "Look at this shit!" He shouted to his brother. Hank peeked out and watched as the group of U.S. troops broke their huddle, raised their rifles, and began firing. They mowed down the back line of U.N. soldiers. Seizing the opportunity, both brothers stood from their cover and began firing. President Sharp's eyes widened and his gleeful expression quickly morphed into a terrified visage as he watched fresh wounds open up in the backs of the soldiers closest to him. The army of confused blue hats scrambled to turn and fight the new enemy.

  "Fucking rats takin off!" Hank shouted, as Sharp turned and ran toward the open gate. Hank lifted his rifle and peered through the scope. "Got him!" he said, moving his finger to the trigger.

  "Don't you even think about it! He's mine!" Clay roared, jumping to his feet, completely leaving his cover. Sharp jumped into a still running white Jeep and quickly reversed, slamming into the truck behind him, making enou
gh room for himself to make a u-turn, and sped away.

  Clay stepped out into the open, ignoring any danger and dead set on ending this. He spotted the Jeep speeding down the road away from the farm and made a beeline for his newly acquired bike, fishing the key from his pocket as he sprinted toward it. Slowing as he reached the Harley, he quickly mounted it and inserted the key and started the bike. The engine roared to life, only barely audible over the constant stream of gunfire and sniper rounds going off. He took off and expertly maneuvered the bike between the gate post and a Jeep parked right inside.

  Clay turned onto the road and straightened up the bike before burying the speedometer to one twenty. The cool air chilled his bare arms and the wind blew through his hair. The sound of gunfire grew distant as the back of the blue Jeep quickly drew near. An arm came into view out of the driver’s side window as Sharp held a pistol out, blindly firing several rounds toward Clay. He swerved a little, attempting to avoid the bullets.

  Pulling his own pistol from its holster, he pointed toward the Jeep, firing three rounds, shattering the back window, but otherwise missing their mark entirely. He quickly fired two more rounds toward Sharp, the Jeep veered to the side of the road stirring up dirt and dust before veering back onto the road and sending around several rounds toward Clay.

  "Shit!" Clay exclaimed as a bullet shattered the round mirror in front of him, dislodging it and sending it flying to the road behind him. He raised his own pistol again firing two rounds toward the Jeep.

  A loud explosion boomed through the area as the bullets found their mark. A large piece of rubber flew by, narrowly missing Clay's face. The rubber was followed by a stream of sparks washing over him as the Jeep’s front rim scraped across the pavement. Clay slowed, matching Sharp's pace. The Jeep swerved left and veered right, while the driver futilely attempted to regain control of the vehicle.

  Suddenly, the Jeep swerved, tipped over, and began rolling. It rolled more times that Clay could be bothered to count, finally settling on its side, an almost flattened heap of its former self. He pulled the bike to the side of the road and jumped off, sprinting toward the overturned Jeep. Fluids leaked from several points, draining out onto the road and plumes of black smoke billowed from beneath what used to be the hood. Clay dropped to his knees and peered inside just as Sharp started to raise his pistol.

  “Give me that damn gun!” Clay barked as he reached in and snatched the gun from Sharp’s quivering hand. He tossed the pistol to the side and reached back into the mangled Jeep and grabbed Sharp by the collar and ripped him out of the vehicle with as much force as he could. He drug Sharp across the road and let his body slam to the ground hard. Clay leaned over and grabbed a handful of Sharp’s hair with his left hand and started beating him in the face with his right. Blow after blow smashed into Sharp’s face as Clay screamed with frustration. Everything Sharp had done, every feeling of hopelessness, pain and anger came flooding out of Clay at that moment. Sharp was out cold by the time Clay had stopped beating him in the face.

  The sound of several engines caught Clay’s attention, causing him to look down the road. Hank, Dub, Dan and several other group members rolled to a stop behind Clay’s bike. The military guys rolled up right behind them and they all piled out of the vehicle and stared at Sharp’s broken body. Not one person spoke up for Sharp in that moment. They all wanted to see that bastard dead.

  “You alright brother?” Hank asked as he walked up to stand next to Clay.

  “I’m fine.” Clay replied as he stared down at Sharp’s unconscious body.

  “You need me to do anything?”

  “Nope. I got this under control.” Clay said with a long sigh. He dropped to a knee and grabbed a handful of Sharp’s hair.

  “Wake your ass up you son of a bitch! You’re not getting out of this that easy!” Clay growled as he smacked Sharp across the face several times to wake him up. Sharp groaned as the pain came flooding into his body. He tried to speak but the words came out slurred and choppy.

  “Shut the fuck up!” Clay shouted, slapping Sharp hard across the face once more. He pulled the pistol out of his holster and heard a few people behind him gasp as he pressed the barrel to Sharp’s forehead.

  “Killing me changes nothing! Do you really think any of this will stop after I’m dead?” Sharp shouted after the fog left his mind. Clay ignored his pleas and stared directly into his eyes.

  “See that’s where you’re dead wrong! Killing you changes everything. Once word spreads that President Sharp has been killed, all of the people that have been helping you behind the scenes will be in a power struggle to take over your position. When that happens, we will be there to water the tree of liberty with the blood of tyrants!” Clay shouted as he slammed the barrel into Sharp’s mouth several times. Sharp was now gasping for breath and gagging on his own broken teeth. Blood poured down his chin as Clay shoved the gun into Sharp’s mouth and placed his finger on the trigger.

  “You took the only woman that I have ever loved you piece of shit! See you in hell!” Clay growled just before he squeezed the trigger. The bullet smashed through the top of Sharp’s skull at a ferocious rate sending brain matter and bits of skull all over the road. His eyes rolled to the back of his head and blood gushed out of his mouth and nose. Clay stood up and turned to see Hank staring down at Sharp’s body. He looked up to Clay and sighed.

  “You know this won’t bring her back, right?” Hank asked. Clay gave a short nod as Hank stepped forward and wrapped his brother in a tight hug.

  “It’s finally over.” Hank said in a low tone. Clay pushed back from Hank and gave a weak smile.

  “It is for now, but there will be another Sharp. Probably sooner rather than later.” Clay stated. Hank sighed as he met his brother’s troubled gaze.

  “I know that, but for now we are all safe. Now let’s go home.”

  Epilogue

  “I know damn well you heard me hollerin’ for you Daddy!” Jeff said as he trudged through the freshly fallen snow. Winter was in full force now and it had snowed all day and night leaving a blanket of white that stretched out for miles in every direction. The snow-covered roofs and undisturbed patches made the farm look like something you would see on a postcard. It had taken a ton of work to get the place back to normal after Sharp was no longer a threat. That had been almost three months ago.

  “You’re right, I did hear you.” Dub replied, with a smile.

  “Uh, then why in the hell didn’t you come in or at least answer me?” Jeff asked in an annoyed tone. Dub shrugged his shoulders and then stood up from the bench next to Betty’s grave. After the Sharp threat was dealt with, they were finally able to lay her to rest and have a small ceremony for her.

  “Well to be completely honest, I just wanted to see how many times you would holler before you got dressed and walked your lazy ass out here.” Dub said with a chuckle. Jeff stared at him for a minute and then turned around and stomped off toward the house.

  “Dinner is ready!” He shouted back over his shoulder before climbing the stairs to the house. Dub stood there chuckling for a moment and then turned back to the grave.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow, sweetheart.” he said before turning and walking back down to the house, enjoying the feeling of the cold wind on his face. He climbed up the few steps and kicked the snow off of his boots before entering his home. As he walked through the door, the smell of the meal they were all about to eat hit his nostrils and caused his mouth to start watering.

  “Smells damn good ladies!” he shouted over the constant chatter of everyone talking. Bailey turned back to see him and smiled warmly before returning her gaze to the large bowl of salad. After the Sharp was finally gone the group kicked their duties into high gear and started harvesting the massive garden they had been forced to plant after the first attack at the airport. Dub took a seat next to his two sons and listened to them argue about defensive strategies for the farm.

  “Would you shut the hell up! No one wants to h
ear you two jackasses argue all night.” Dub barked, slapping Randy upside the head.

  “Damn Daddy, that hurt!” Randy whined as he rubbed the back of his head.

  “It was supposed to hurt dipshit.” Dub said causing the entire table to burst out in laughter. Bailey and Karen walked across the kitchen, each holding a tray or a bowl full of food. They set them down on the table and returned to the kitchen to get the rest.

  “Wow! That looks delicious! Clay said as he mindlessly rubbed Emma's back. Bailey and Karen sat the rest of the food down on the massive table and found empty seats across from Clay and Hank.

  “Everybody, listen up!” Dub said as he stood up and waved his hands. The room died down to a low murmur for a few seconds and then complete silence as all eyes landed on him.

  “I just want to thank everyone here personally for all the hard work you all have put forth to get this farm whipped back into shape. If not for each of you folks this place would just be another old abandoned farm.

  We now have room to add more people to our little community, especially since Clay and Hank’s crew were able to get every single one of the sheds from Wilson’s. In fact, we have more of those sheds than we do people living in them.

  I would like to fill those remaining sheds with good people that need a solid community to stand with. I have been talking with our good friend Johnny, and he would like to move his group here into the remaining sheds.

  Now I’ve already made sure there were enough empty sheds for them, but I wanted to make sure that no one here would be against Johnny and his people joining our community. By a show of hands who doesn’t mind if they join us?” Dub asked as he gazed around the room at each person. Everyone's hands shot into the air and the vote was unanimous. Dub smiled and nodded his head.