by Bobby Akart
Coach Carey summoned a couple of two-man teams to guard the jail while Beau and Alex searched for the keys to the vehicles. Their next target was critical. If they took command of the bridge, Stubby’s goal of isolating Junior could be achieved and Coach Carey’s goal of storming Cherry Mansion would be easier. Ma would be cut off from her minions.
Coach Carey gathered his troops in the parking lot of the jail and laid out the plan. There was no cover to approach the west bridge without being seen. He planned to surprise the guards on the bridge with an approach from the rear. They loaded into three cars and sped toward the river. He hoped the men would assume the vehicles were reinforcements for Junior, as no one else in town had operating vehicles.
Colton drove one pickup truck while Alex acted as the shooter from the passenger’s side and Chase was in the back. Coach Carey drove another vehicle with Beau hanging out the passenger’s side with a shotgun. The Bennetts drove the third car. They were the replacement guards for the west bridge.
Once the shooting began, there would be no turning back. With the leaves fallen from the trees surrounding Cherry Mansion and the remaining charred remains of vegetation providing no sound cover, the head of the snake could be alerted.
Now, the Tiger Resistance had become the aggressor. Coach Carey called in the play.
“Tiger Tails, Tiger Tails, Savannah full. Blitz. Ready. On snap. Repeat. Savannah full. Blitz, on snap!”
The play would be set in motion on the first movement, in this case, the bevy of bullets shot in the direction of the west bridge.
Coach Carey led the way until he was within a hundred yards and then he waved Colton to pull up alongside him. In the darkness, he couldn’t make out how the men guarding the bridge were reacting. Chase held onto a roof rack on top of the pickup and studied the bridge through his scope.
“Two men,” he shouted to Coach Carey. “They’re turning toward us. Just say when.” Chase remained disciplined.
They approached the bridge and the men came into view. They were both hunkered down behind the concrete barriers with their weapons pointed toward the oncoming vehicles. Coach Carey flashed his bright lights in their direction. This caused one of the men to let his guard down and he rose to get a better look.
“Open fire!” shouted Coach Carey.
Everyone fired. The man’s body twisted and spun as he was ripped to shreds with a variety of bullets. Who fired the kill shot was anybody’s guess.
Tiger Resistance—3. Scumbags—0.
“Hold fire!” instructed Coach Carey. He led the two-car procession slowly toward the blockade. There was no movement. As they got closer, a man darted from between the concrete barriers, zigzagging through the maze toward the embankment leading to Cherry Mansion.
Alex took a couple of shots, but the man ducked, avoiding the rounds flying over his head. Alex flung the door open and ran toward the man, firing her weapon, but missing badly.
“Alex, wait!” shouted Beau as he scampered to join her. The man slid down the wet, grassy embankment and began to run toward Cherry Mansion. Alex didn’t hesitate and followed. She turned and looked toward her dad.
“No, Alex, you can’t!” he shouted to her.
“I’ve got this, Daddy,” she shouted as she leaped over the edge, her blonde ponytail being the last thing seen of her.
Coach Carey shouted to Colton, “Come on, we’ll draw attention on the other side to give them cover. Let’s go.”
The Bennetts jumped out of the car and took up their duties as the new guards of the west gate. Coach Carey recalled a team to help them. The bridge was secure. Now, for the coup de grâce.
Chapter 32
Late afternoon
Veterans Day, November 11
The Hornet’s Nest
Shiloh
The sporadic gunfire eventually stopped, but the fighting did not. In the mud and darkness of the Hornet’s Nest, men slashed at each other with knives and pounded each other with fists. Screams filled the air as death came slowly for some. The fighting lasted for hours and well into the dark of night.
Stubby’s men had the benefit of knowing the lay of the land. They’d lived, worked and hunted around these woods for years. They also had motivation on their side. This was their fight, unlike the hired guns employed by Junior, who did his bidding in exchange for a better meal or a little power.
Hand-to-hand combat, by its nature, became very personal. Your opponent was trying to kill you, so as you defended yourself, you got angry. What motivated one man to fight was most times different from another man. But when defending yourself against any attacker, once you got angry, your will to destroy the enemy became more than self-preservation, it converted to an obsession to win.
Stubby could hear the fighting in his subconscious, but his focus remained on finding Junior. He conjured up his skills of combat tracking, which was not unlike hunting an animal except in one respect—humans were cunning and skillful, fully capable of concealing their path.
Despite the distractions of rain, darkness setting in, and the brutal battle to his left, Stubby moved methodically, looking for the telltale signs of a man muddling his way through the unfamiliar thicket of the Hornet’s Nest.
The first thing Stubby observed was the fact Junior made no effort to cover his departure from the woods. Junior was heading north toward the highway without regard for a path or the signs he left in his wake. Stubby got into Junior’s mind and determined that he was scared without his entourage to protect him. In the end, Junior was a coward who was now running home to his mommy.
The tracks left in the mud were obvious. When Junior turned off a trail, he bulled his way through the underbrush, leaving broken twigs and mud wiped on fallen branches.
Every once in a while, Stubby raised his scope and scanned the woods in front of him through night vision. With no sign of Junior, he pressed forward, certain that his skills wouldn’t let him down.
Gunfire rang out in the distance. A flurry of activity that stopped as quickly as it started. The noise came from the northeast—Savannah! Their operation was underway. The timing couldn’t have been better. It was too late for Junior’s men to retreat and assist. There was only one way out of the Hornet’s Nest for them—in surrender.
Another low-lying area full of muck appeared before Stubby. The footprints were closer together now, indicating that Junior was tiring. Stubby used these indentations left by Junior to pick up speed on his prey. He was getting closer, he could feel it.
Then, suddenly Stubby stopped. He crouched down and searched the woods through his scope once again. Nothing. He remained still and listened. The sounds of battle behind him had faded. Only raindrops pelting the earth around him could be heard. Carefully, he reached down and retrieved a boot stuck in the gooey mud. The inside was still warm. Junior had lost his right boot while making his way through.
This gave Stubby new resolve. This had just happened. In addition to the boot being warm, it wasn’t rain soaked yet. Junior was close by.
Stubby moved quickly up an embankment and toward the peak of a hill. He slowed near the top and prepared for an ambush. As he reached the crest, he heard Junior’s heavy breathing. The snap of a twig down the other side confirmed his hopes.
“There you are, coward!” Stubby mumbled aloud.
Descending a trail toward the base of the hill, Junior was hobbling, using trees for stability. He must be injured. Take your time and play it smart.
Stubby used his scope to study Junior’s movements. He was favoring his shoeless foot. He was also armed with a pistol. This was not going to be easy. Stubby began trailing him but made an unforced error by stepping on a fallen branch.
SNAP!
He knew the moment that sound reached Junior’s ears, the game would change. Like a cornered animal, Junior would turn instinctively to confront his pursuing predator.
BOOM—BOOM—BOOM!
Junior fired three rounds out of his antiquated .357 Magnum revolver in Stubby
’s direction but missed badly. Stubby inched closer, hoping for a clear shot, but the overhanging saplings were soaked with rain and prevented a clear path for the bullets.
Junior began to hop down the trail, groaning in pain, but putting distance between them nonetheless. Stubby picked up the pace, not out of concern that Junior might escape. He didn’t want Junior to find a rock outcropping to use as cover. There was too much potential for surprises in the Hornet’s Nest and Stubby didn’t want history to repeat itself on this night.
He began to trot down the trail and Junior must’ve sensed the gap closing. He turned and fired two more rounds, which were nowhere close to Stubby’s position.
“Give it up, Junior! It’s over for you now. Stop!”
“Screw you, Crump!”
Stubby was becoming winded and his lower back was screaming, but he pushed through the pain. He slowed his pace and walked through a tree canopy at a low crouch. Junior fired again.
BOOM—CLICK—CLICK—CLICK.
Stubby smelled blood as he ran toward Junior. He found him leaning next to a tall pine, fumbling with his cold, wet fingers to reload his weapon.
“Drop it, Junior!” snarled Stubby as he slowly walked to Junior. “You’ll never get the weapon raised before I drop ya. It’s over, so let go of your weapon.”
Junior’s shoulders drooped as he complied. The .357 hit the ground and several bullets clinked against the metal. Junior leaned back against the pine and looked to the sky.
He began to laugh. Stubby gave him a puzzled look and allowed the moment to subside.
“So, Crump,” Junior began, “whadya gonna do, make some kinda citizen’s arrest and take me to my own jail? They’ll gun you down before you can open your mouth.”
“I don’t think so, Junior,” replied Stubby. “You’re done. Your posse’s done. And so is your vile mother!”
“Shut up about my mother,” Junior screamed and lunged toward Stubby, who easily stepped to one side and drove the buttstock of his rifle into the back of Junior’s head. Junior landed facedown in the pine needles, moaning in pain.
Stubby weighed his options. He could put this fool down and walk away with no one the wiser. Or he could let him stand to account in front of all the people he terrorized and harmed in Savannah.
“Get up, Junior. You’ll have to stand before God at some point, but first you’ll stand before the people of Savannah.”
Chapter 33
After dusk
Veterans Day, November 11
Cherry Mansion
Savannah
Beau ran after the guard and was gaining ground when the man suddenly turned and fired at him. The shots struck the trees to his left and Beau reacted by sliding to the ground behind a row of shrubs. The guard continued his escape and Alex raced past Beau in pursuit.
She dashed through the bushes and used the trees as cover to avoid any efforts by the guard to shoot her. Beau jumped to his feet and raced to catch up. Voices could be heard from up ahead and the sounds of vehicles headed from their right grew louder as they got closer to Cherry Mansion.
The man turned and fired again and Beau instinctively ducked. Alex stopped behind a tree, took aim and fired twice. The second round hit the man in the thigh, spinning him to the ground. Alex immediately fired three more rounds, which tore up the sod around the man as he crawled toward the cover of an oak tree.
Alex took a deep breath and squeezed off two more rounds, this time exploding the man’s left knee and severing an artery in his thigh. Blood came gushing out of the wound as Alex left the cover of the tree and ran directly towards his prone body, never taking her gun sights off the man.
Beau ran alongside with his pistol waving in all directions. His adrenaline raced like no other time in his life. The feeling of exhilaration had consumed his body and he was ready for a fight.
As the two caught up with the wounded deputy, the man raised his gun and fired a round toward Beau, who hit the ground to avoid being shot. Alex, undeterred, fired two rounds into the back of the deputy’s head. After quickly confirming the kill, she fell back against a tree and let out a deep breath. Beau hid behind another tree twelve feet away.
“Thanks,” said Beau, breathing heavily after the chase.
“No prob, I owed you one,” said Alex. She dropped the magazine out of her AR-15 and replaced it with another full thirty rounds.
Gunshots rang out from the direction of Junior’s charred bungalow.
“Here comes the cavalry,” shouted Beau.
“Beau, are you ready for this?” asked Alex.
“Yeah, seriously,” replied Beau. “But how do you stay so calm?”
Alex tried to look through the heavily landscaped yard to see the entrance to Cherry Mansion, but her view was obstructed.
“I don’t know,” she replied. “Let’s go after Ma. Our dads and Chase will keep the guards busy. You and I can slip into the house from the side without being seen.”
“Do you remember your way around in there?” asked Beau.
“Oh yeah, I know exactly where Ma sleeps and where she likes to watch. We’re gonna walk right in the front door.”
Alex stopped and knelt at the body of the dead man. She took his weapon and handed it to Beau, who tucked it away. Finding nothing else useful, she condescendingly patted him on the chest and began moving toward the house with her weapon raised. Beau took one glance at the bloodied body and then ran to catch up with Alex.
They reached the corner of the house and observed their surroundings. A gun battle was taking place near the front gate, but all else remained still. The two moved around the corner of the house and climbed onto the front porch from the side, being careful to avoid detection from anyone looking out the windows. They stopped to get their bearings. It began to rain harder and the steady patter on the roof provided them some cover for any noises they’d make.
“They’re probably directing their attention toward the backyard,” said Alex. “Hopefully, they don’t have any additional guards inside.”
“Our guys said there were only two guards here tonight,” whispered Beau.
“Did they mention Bill Cherry?”
“No, I don’t think so. Do you think he’s here?” asked Beau.
“Probably, c’mon,” said Alex.
They took turns slipping past the large plate-glass windows until they reached the front door. Alex slowly turned the handle and found it unlocked. She looked at Beau and smiled.
“Are you ready, QB One?”
“Heck yeah,” he said with a smile.
Alex pushed the door open and waited for a reaction from inside. It was quiet and still. She quickly pushed her way in and hid behind the door jamb of the parlor, where a meeting of Union Generals had decided the fate of the Battle of Shiloh many, many years before.
Beau moved inside as well and gently closed the door behind him. He took up a position in the dining room at the foot of the stairs and then Beau nodded that he was ready.
Alex put two fingers to her eyes and circled her hand around. Then she pointed toward the hallway that led to the back of the house. Beau understood her meaning. They were going to go in opposite directions to clear the first level and then meet up in the middle.
Within minutes, they found themselves together again. Alex whispered instructions to Beau.
“At the top of the stairs, there’s a sitting area. Cherry’s bedroom is to the right and Ma’s is on the left, overlooking the driveway and the main part of the back lawn. I’ll betcha they’re in that room.”
“Got it. I’ll follow you,” said Beau.
“There’s one more thing,” continued Alex. “I’ll know if they’re in the sitting area. I’m gonna kill them both. But if they’re in Ma’s bedroom, I remember that there’s a squeaky board at the top of the stairs. I’m gonna try to step over it, but if I can’t, they’ll know someone is approaching. If the board creaks, we gotta move fast, okay?”
Beau nodded and pointed up the stairs.
“Let’s go.”
“Watch my back in case Cherry comes out of his bedroom.”
Alex gingerly took step by step until her eyes were even with the second floor. She scanned back and forth for signs of life, but the area was empty. She took another couple of steps and then saw the faint light of a lantern coming from Ma’s bedroom. The door to Cherry’s bedroom was open and dark.
Alex turned to Beau and mouthed the words Ma’s room.
As she hit the landing, she took an exaggerated step over the creaky board. Beau followed her foot placement and the two were both safely into the sitting room. They heard muffled voices behind the partially closed bedroom door. The flickering light reminded Alex that Ma probably had built a fire to stay warm.
“Ready?”
“Hit it!” he whispered back.
Alex kicked the door open and ran into the room. Ma and Cherry were watching the gun battle below from a partially boarded-up window. Cherry swung around and started to pull a pistol when Ma grabbed him by the shirt to pull him in front of her.
BANG—BANG—BANG!
Three shots rang out from behind Alex. Beau had shot Cherry three times in the chest, sending him crashing against the wall. Cherry’s mouth fell open momentarily before he dropped his weapon and fell face forward onto Ma’s bed.
Alex remained focused on the old woman’s eyes. She was unarmed. Slowly, she raised her arms over her head and grinned, revealing a missing tooth. Then she let out a cackle. It was a frightening laugh of a woman possessed with an inner evil that Alex couldn’t comprehend.
“Shoot me,” Ma hissed. “Then you’ll be just like me. Come on, hussy, my boy chose you for a reason. He saw something in you that I didn’t before.”
Alex remained unflappable as she slowly walked across the room. Only the crackle of the fire could be heard, as the gunshots outside had ceased.
Alex ignored her as she closed the gap between them.