Survive the Chaos (Small Town EMP Book 1)

by Grace Hamilton

  “I’ll be the judge of that,” the man shot back.

  And with that, they were quickly surrounded by the group. They watched helplessly as the man and a few of his cronies started pulling trash bags aside, picking up the pots, blankets, and the extra changes of clothes they had. One of the men grabbed Amanda’s medical bag and opened it.

  “What’s this?” he asked pointedly.

  “I’m a vet. Those are my supplies,” she replied.

  Austin watched the faces of the people who were essentially holding them hostage. The revelation of her profession changed things. He could see it. And while he couldn’t quite put a finger on what was happening, it was clear that there was an undercurrent of malice here—enough to send a shiver down his spine as he waited to see what would happen next.

  “A vet, huh?” one muttered.

  She nodded. “Yes.”

  “Does that mean you know how to work on people, too?”

  She shrugged. “I know the basics.”

  The group exchanged looks then, and Austin knew Amanda’s confession had been a grave mistake.

  “Why don’t you come with us? We have someone who could use your attention,” one of the men said.

  Amanda looked at Austin and then back at the man. “I can do that. In return, I expect you to leave us be and let us pass through.”

  The first man grinned. “Sure.”

  Austin could see the lie written all over his face. “Amanda…” he hissed.

  It was too late, though; she was being pulled off her horse. One of the group members carried her bag. She turned back to look at Austin, and his eyes locked with hers. He moved to get off the horse then, but was stopped.

  “She’ll be fine. You don’t need to worry about her,” a tall man said, putting his hand on Austin’s leg.

  “I’d like to go with her,” he argued.

  “I said, she’ll be fine.”

  Austin looked up and saw Amanda being led around the corner of a building. Glancing around, he took in the restaurants lining the street—diners and fast food joints that would probably have been raided already. They were just on the outskirts of the town. To the side, away from it, he could see a line of trees signifying the river they’d been running parallel to for a while.

  His mind was already searching for an escape route. Through town and into the heart of it was not an option.

  “Where is she being taken?” he asked, unable to see her any longer.

  “Why don’t we go have a drink?” the man asked in return.

  “A drink?” Austin echoed.

  The man chuckled. “We’re not completely uncivilized here. The bar is open!”

  Austin knew it wasn’t really a request—he was being ordered into the bar. He had a feeling he was about to be relieved of his gun, too. As long as they didn’t search him, though, he would be okay. The Glock from Amanda’s house was secured in his walking boot.

  Austin dismounted and grabbed the reins of both horses, leading them to a park bench on the sidewalk in front of the bar. The cart clunked along behind them. He looped the reins over the bench’s armrest, not really securing the horses in case they had to make a quick escape. That done, he followed the man into the bar. It took his eyes a minute to adjust to the darkness inside as he looked around, expecting to be jumped at any minute.

  “Look, I appreciate the offer, but I’d prefer to stick with my horse,” he said.

  “Relax. She’s fine. Have a drink,” the man ordered, bellying up to the bar and gesturing to the man behind it.

  Austin took a deep breath and found a seat close to one of the few windows in the place. He was able to see down the street to where Amanda had disappeared. There was one of those emergency clinics on the right-hand side of the road, with only a single building next to it. He had a feeling that was where they had taken her.

  He glanced back to Raven and Charlie, and their cart—nobody was bothering them or their supplies at the moment.

  “I should get the horses some water,” he muttered.

  “Just hang out a minute,” the man answered, taking a seat across from him.

  Austin sized him up. The guy was big—like, linebacker big. With Austin’s bum leg, exhaustion from traveling, and a lack of real food, Austin didn’t think he stood a snowball’s chance in the desert if he got into a physical altercation.

  “So, is someone sick?” Austin asked casually.

  “You could say that.”

  “Injured? Shot?” he asked, pressing the man for information.

  The guy chuckled. “Yep, got himself shot. Messed with the wrong old lady.”

  Austin raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

  He nodded and sat back as the man from behind the bar came out with a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. The man across from Austin poured each of them a shot, sliding the glass over to Austin as the bartender left them alone once again. Austin took the shot, one eye closing as the cheap whiskey washed down his throat. There was nothing friendly about this situation, though, despite the man’s attempts to make it appear so.

  “Your friend—a real vet, huh?”

  Austin shrugged. “I guess. I don’t know for sure. That’s what she said.”

  “You don’t know her?”

  He shook his head, wanting to play off the relationship. He sensed malice, and his instincts were telling him to keep it casual. The situation was not as it seemed. This drink in a bar was nothing more than a distraction.

  “We met recently, and I offered to travel with her,” Austin explained.

  The man was quiet for a few minutes, slowly drinking down his liquor before pouring himself another shot. Movement outside caught Austin’s attention. It was two more men, younger and wearing camo. One of them made a hand signal. Austin’s head snapped, looking at the man sitting across from him.

  “Well, I believe we have relieved you of your burden,” he said with a smile.

  “Excuse me?”

  “You can take your horse and some provisions, and go ahead and ride out of here,” he said, as if he was granting Austin some huge gift.

  “I’ll wait for my friend.”

  “No, you won’t. You’ll leave, just like I told you to.”

  Austin studied the man’s face, his beady eyes cold and dangerous. He wasn’t going to win this round. It was more than likely that there were people situated behind the bar, just waiting for him to argue, and even more outside. He was outnumbered, and likely outgunned.

  “You want to tell me what’s going on here?” Austin asked, working hard to keep his voice casual.

  The man grinned and gestured down to the clinic Austin had guessed they’d taken Amanda to. “It’s not difficult to figure out. Your friend, the good doctor, she’s going to be sticking around here for a while. We’ll need those medical supplies she’s brought along. You can take a horse and keep moving to wherever it was you were headed. I think we’re being rather generous. You don’t want to insult us by refusing our offer.”

  Austin swallowed, glancing at the men outside. “You’re keeping her against her will?”

  He looked back to an evil smile.

  “She’s a doctor. Don’t they swear an oath to take care of folks?”

  Austin fought the urge to roll his eyes. “She’s a vet. I don’t think she made an oath to be held hostage to take care of a dude who got shot because he was up to no good.”

  “Same difference.”

  Austin wasn’t going to win. He looked outside, noting the intersecting streets and the clinic where he suspected Amanda was being held before looking back at the man. He took note of the empty lot behind the clinic, too, making a point of not looking too obvious as he surveyed the area by trying to give equal attention to everything in sight, from the clinic to the abandoned convenience store and fast food joints.

  “Alright. I guess I have to see your point. I’ll take the deal and head out,” he said.

  “Perfect. Why don’t I help you sort through the stuff and se
e what all you need and what we’ll need here?” his so-called friend said, standing.

  It wasn’t a question, but a statement. Austin was going to lose both his gear and his partner.

  They walked out of the bar. The two young men who’d been on the other side of the road drifted across and began pulling at the bags in the cart. In the end, Austin was allowed to keep his canteen, some of the jerky and nuts they had, and some basic gear. The cart was staying, along with Amanda’s horse, Charlie. He didn’t put up a fight or argue.

  Austin climbed onto Raven and rode out of town, not looking back. He could feel them watching him. There was a stand of sagebrush and locust trees up ahead, about three miles past the outskirts of town, and he’d head there; it would provide some cover.

  He only allowed himself to glance back once, about two miles out, and the men had already walked off at that point. He faced forward again, and guided Raven into the trees and dismounted, giving himself a minute to think.

  Amanda had given away too much information about herself—they should have foreseen how valuable someone with medical knowledge would be, and that she’d be held captive if someone got the opportunity. The moment she’d opened her mouth, Austin had known it was too much. Now, he had to decide if she was worth the trouble of trying to save. It was hard to put it in those terms, even in his own mind, but he had a bum leg and his daughter was counting on him. If he went back, there was a good chance he would be killed or taken prisoner himself. He was only one man against what appeared to be a good-sized group of people who would all be armed. They hadn’t taken his Glock, which meant he had two handguns. Amanda’s rifle had been deemed hers, which by default meant it had become theirs, and therefore he hadn’t been allowed to take it.

  If he was captured or killed, he would never see Savannah again. His dad heart was telling him to get back on the horse and keep riding. His sense of right and wrong was telling him he couldn’t leave Amanda behind. She had saved his life, and she was only out here because of him. He owed her.

  “Crap,” he muttered, rubbing a hand over his face.

  He wasn’t a hero. He wasn’t trained military. He knew nothing about covert operations. How in the world was he supposed to rescue her? Raven gave a soft neigh as she moved to a patch of green grass and began to munch. He watched the mare, realizing that, with only one horse, they were going to be on foot. Catching up to Savannah would be extremely difficult, or impossible—they’d just be heading to his brother’s and hoping she’d stopped there. He could feel himself practically being torn in two over the decision now and had to tell himself that it wasn’t an either-or thing. He wasn’t choosing Savannah over Amanda if he left, or choosing Amanda over Savannah if he stayed. He was just… changing the timeline. And that was what he had to do, he realized.

  He couldn’t abandon Amanda.

  He’d have to go in under the cover of darkness. He could find his way back to the clinic, though there was a chance she wouldn’t be there. She could be held anywhere, but the sooner he went back, the better a chance he’d have that she was still there. Streaks of orange were already racing across the sky, telling him nightfall was coming soon. He was only going to get one chance to save her.

  With his mind made up, he sat down and got comfortable, waiting for it to get dark.

  Austin made the decision to leave the horse about a mile outside of town. Raven was too loud, and would draw attention to himself. He removed the walking boot, as well, testing his weight on his leg before putting on the boot that had been hanging from his saddle. It felt good to wear a real shoe again, at least. He needed to be covert and unencumbered, and the boot was neither of those things. Meanwhile, as it had gotten darker, he’d come up with a plan and hoped it would work. The clinic was fairly isolated, and he’d taken a wide berth coming up behind where he estimated the clinic to be, the empty lot directly in front of him.

  There was only a sliver of a moon in the sky, which made navigating difficult, but it also served to help him stay hidden. He squatted behind a car, straining his eyes to see clearly. He hoped he was in the right area as he dashed across a road. It was eerily quiet, making every step he took sound much louder than it actually was.

  He heard a horse neighing and froze, looking behind him and expecting to see Raven following him. She wasn’t there. He moved closer to the building he could see outlined in front of him and heard the soft sound of a horse again. His eyes re-focused, and he realized it was Amanda’s chestnut, Charlie, tied to a dead streetlamp outside the clinic.

  Either Austin had some really good luck, or it was a trap. Did they know he was coming back? Austin raced to the back of the building, pressing his body flat against it when he heard men’s voices.

  “I don’t know anything about horses,” one of the voices said.

  “That lady doc won’t take care of Tim if we don’t bring her the horse,” another voice replied.

  “Side of the road seems like a dumb place for a horse.”

  “You want to take it inside, make it a bed?”

  “Shut up. I just want to know what the hell we’re supposed to do with the thing. Ain’t like none of us are planning on traveling.”

  “I don’t know. I guess we watch it and make sure it doesn’t run off.”

  Austin had to smile. Amanda could be extremely demanding and difficult. He was glad to know she was giving them a hard time, and having Charlie right there could prove very useful for a quick escape, assuming Austin could even get to her and the horse without getting shot. Now that he knew there were two men outside, he had to assume she was probably being guarded inside the clinic, too.

  He pulled his Glock from where he’d placed it in his waistband, his other gun now resting in a side holster. Weapon ready, he began sliding along the wall, feeling for a back door. He knew there had to be one. Finally, his back connected with a door handle. With a deep breath, he tried it, hoping it would be unlocked. His luck wasn’t that good, which meant he was going to have to go through the window he could see a couple feet down, or else go around to the front.

  He moved to the window and rejoiced when he found it about halfway open. Someone was taking advantage of the cool night air. He imagined the clinic would be hot and stuffy with no AC and few windows in the building, so it made sense, but it also worked to his advantage. He removed the screen before leaning his head inside and listening carefully, and immediately picked up on Amanda’s voice. She was talking with someone in what he’d come to refer to as her doctor voice.

  Without wasting another minute, he put the gun back in his waistband and hoisted himself through the window. Not trusting his bum leg to catch him, he let himself down gingerly, but his leg was holding out better than he’d hoped. Amanda had been right that he must have been giving it more exercise than he’d realized, just by riding. Inside, he moved to the room’s doorway and froze, listening intently to make sure no one had heard his entrance. Amanda was still talking. She was close by.

  Austin could make out a desk and what looked like a shelf. He was in an office, the door wide open. The clinic looked to be pitch black beyond the door, which was going to make his rescue mission all the more difficult. He stood against the doorway, listening to Amanda’s voice, and then he stepped out. With one hand on his gun and another pressed against the wall, he slowly followed the wall through the darkness, using it as a guide.

  He came to a closed door and paused with his ear against it. Amanda had stopped talking, stealing away his impromptu guiding light. His eyes darted back and forth in the darkness, but he could see and hear nothing. Standing still wasn’t going to help him find her, though. He kept moving until his hand hit air. He reached out, waving his hand around, and realized he’d come to another hallway. He turned, peering down the black hole that was the hall, and saw a faint glow near the ground about ten feet in front of him. He put his finger on his gun’s trigger, readying himself to shoot.

  Amanda’s voice came through the darkness then, much cleare
r and louder. She was in the room. He took small steps, using his free hand in front of him to check for any obstructions before getting to the open door. Gingerly, inching his face out, he carefully peeked into the room, praying no one was guarding the door.

  With the candlelight in the room, he first saw Amanda, her hair pulled into a ponytail as she used a cloth to dab at a man’s stomach. The man was facing away from them. He could see no one else, though he couldn’t be sure without stepping inside. Taking a chance, he slid in.

  Amanda spun around, her eyes going wide when she saw him. “What are you doing?” she hissed.

  He held a finger to his lips, shushing her.

  “He’s unconscious,” she grumbled.

  “Guards?” he asked in a whisper.

  “Out front.”

  “Let’s go,” he said, not wanting to spend another second inside the clinic.

  She looked back at her patient and, for a second, he thought she was going to tell him no. After all this, though, there was no way he was leaving her here to fend for herself just because some dirtbag had gotten himself shot. He’d pick her up and carry her out of there if he had to.

  “Gun,” she requested.

  He gave her her own Glock and quickly told her how he’d gotten in, and how they’d get out. Together, they moved back down the hall and towards the office.

  “Go,” he hissed when they got to the window.

  She’d jumped up and out the window in mere moments. He was about to follow her through when he heard a shout behind him. He spun around to see light flooding the hallway.

  “Come on!” Amanda hissed.

  He moved up onto the ledge and was trying to figure out how to land on his good leg when he heard the first gunshot.

  Automatically, he jumped, falling to the ground on impact. Amanda reached for him, helping him to his feet.

  “Get them!” he heard a male voice shout.

  Footsteps were already pounding towards them from the right side of the building.

  “Go!” he shouted at Amanda, who dashed to the left, heading for the street.

  The last place he wanted to go was into town, but his exit was blocked. Amanda raced around the corner of the building.