by W. R. Benton
"Women? You attacked me over women? A man who wants a woman just has to find one, take her and keep her. Women, hell, they're all sluts." He shook his bloody head.
The sound of my shotgun was deafening in the small farmhouse. My shot took him in the middle of his chest and the force knocked him back hard. I walked to his still quivering body and said, "Some men, Patton, love their women and don't like them messed with at all."
"What about you?" I heard Tom say, and when I turned he was talking to the woman in bed.
"I ... I don't want anything to do with this." She lowered her head and added, "I was taken from a small camp about six months ago, and he made me his mistress. I had no love for him. I hated him!"
Tom ordered, "Then get dressed, you'll come with us until we can figure out what to do with you. Now, move!"
Dense smoke was filling the hallway, so I broke the bedroom window out with the butt of my shotgun and instructed Tom and the woman to go out that way. The window was right over the porch, so all they'd have to do is go out and then jump to the ground. In the mean time, I called my dogs and started down the stairs, not sure what I'd find at the bottom. Nonetheless, I refused to leave my dogs.
CHAPTER 6
I could see fire and flickering light from the top of the steps and hoped the living room was not in flames. Over the cracking and popping of the fire, I heard four or five shotgun blasts outside and one or two of what sounded like pistol shots from near the road. At the bottom of the stairs the flames were just starting to eat at the furniture, so we moved through the smoke, out the door and onto the porch. I inhaled deeply the second I smelled the fresh air, but glancing around I saw no one.
Two men rounded the corner of the house, so I raised my shotgun and jerked the trigger. I felt the gun jump in my hands, saw both men collapse on the ground. I pumped another round into the chamber and moved forward, ignoring one man I'd just shot who was screaming in pain.
"John, we're at your two o'clock!" I heard Tom yell and angled slightly to my right.
As I neared, I noticed Tom first and asked, "How'd it go?"
"We need to move and do it quickly. There was a truckload of those jokers that returned just a few seconds ago, and once they figure out where we're at, we're history." Then, turning to Sue, he asked, "Can you walk?"
"I hurt, but I'll walk. I don't ... have a choice, now do I?"
"She took a pistol round through her thigh. I've got a bandage and tourniquet on it, and that'll have to do until we get home," Sandra spoke from the darkness.
"Enough, let's move!" Tom ordered as he pushed me forward.
I was the point man, so I moved forward about twenty yards in front and my pace was fast. While I worried about Sue keeping up I thought, I'll not risk the lives of four people to save one. I just can't. She either keeps up or we leave her.
Just as a false dawn began to change the dark shadows into gray, we neared my place. Sue had kept up, mainly because Sandra had held her up as they walked, but at each break we'd tightened the tourniquet. Loss of blood may kill her now, or she'll go into shock, I thought, and pulled my small hunting binoculars from my pocket. I glassed my house, except I saw nothing unusual, my place was still a mess from the storm. My other dogs were loose and running around, and I knew if anyone were near they'd be barking.
Tom moved to my side and asked, "Quiet down there?"
"Yep, ole Newt and the rest have the place under control." I put my binoculars back in my pocket and gazed into my friend's tired eyes as I asked, "Is Sue okay?"
"She's close to going into shock, and if that happens we'll lose her," as he spoke, his eyes watered and he turned his head away.
I knew Tom loved her dearly, but I never understood how a big conservative like him could end up married to a big-time liberal. When I'd asked him about it, soon after he'd first met her, he'd replied, "Opposites attract, haven't you heard? She's a good woman, only we argue over some pretty silly things, like politics, gay rights, abortion, and gun control."
I slapped him on the back and said, "Come on, let's get home and have a cup of coffee and something to eat. Sandra will have Sue up pestering you in a week!" I gave an ill-felt laugh and then moved toward my house.
Dolly and Skillet were still at my side when we entered the barnyard and the other dogs came running. Newt was jumping on Dolly and the others were all over Skillet, each of them welcoming us home.
From behind me I heard a yell, "She's fainted! Guys! I need some help here!"
Sue was down and Tom and I ran to her side.
"Pick her up and move her to the barn, gently." Sandra said as she quickly turned all nurse.
Tom kept mumbling over and over, "Don't you die on me, baby. You hear me? Don't die! You hang tough, Sue!"
I didn't say anything because I'd heard it often enough in the war. I'd heard the same sort of language from medic's as they worked to keep our wounded alive and after a few minutes I no longer heard it, because I'd stopped listening to it completely. I glanced down at Sue's face. I had her arms and Tom her legs, and she gave me a slight smile.
"Keep talking to her, Tom." I said and noticed he was moving faster now that we were near the barn door.
"Take her in and place her flat on the floor, where the blankets are," Sandra ordered as she opened the door for us.
Sue was no sooner on the floor than Sandra was kneeling at her side. After a minute or two she turned to Tom, gave him a mean glare, and with narrow eyes said, "Enough with the don't die on me bullshit! I need you to help, so boil some water, pull our medical supplies, and fix the rest of us something to eat. Then, leave me the hell alone so I can save your wife."
Over the next hour we did as instructed and even gathered up enough wood to keep the wood-stove burning for a week. Tom was anxious and I knew it, so I made small talk to keep his mind off Sue, "What made you walk up to that man in the hallway and ask him about shift changes?"
Glancing at Sandra's back, then turning to me, Tom replied, "I figure a lot of the men still alive are prior military, you know, because we're about all that survived the first year. Have you ever seen a military man come looking for his relief on a shift?"
"No, not in any army I was ever in. You stayed at your assigned post until properly relieved, or something like that. I remember it from a general order in basic training. Let's move to the table and have some coffee."
"Yep, that's exactly what general order five says, The man knew I had no reason to be looking for my relief, but I honestly couldn't think of anything else to ask him."
"Any problems with the walking guard?"
"Not once he stopped and lighted his pipe. I saw the flare of the match and knew where he was."
Sandra stood and made her way to us. Giving Tom a slight trace of a smile she said, "She's stable, but lost a lot of blood. If we can give her a couple of days of rest we'll know more."
"Thank God," Tom said, and gave a big grin.
"Who is the woman?" She asked as she pointed to the woman from Patton's bedroom.
"We found her in Patton's bedroom, and according to her she wasn't there by choice," I replied and motioned for the woman to come to us. She'd sat on the floor by the door unmoving since we'd arrived.
She was thin, but most folks were these days with obesity unheard of among survivors. Her hair was auburn and as she neared I noticed she had blue eyes. Once at the table, I handed her a cup of coffee.
I took a sip of mine and then asked, "What's your name?"
"Martha, but my friends call me Marty."
Tom, looking over the rim of his cup asked, "Marty, do you know how to shoot?"
She nodded and said with a flat voice, "My husband, before he was killed by Patton, taught me, only it's been a while."
Smiling, I replied, "It's like riding a bicycle, once you learn you know how to do it the rest of your life."
Reaching behind him, Tom pulled out a double barreled shotgun that had been sawed off right in front the fore-stock and said, "P
ack this, and I mean every single minute of the day and night. You need to always have it within reach."
He turned once more and placed a dozen shotgun shells on the table. Meeting her eyes he asked, "Do you honestly think you could kill a man?"
She gazed back hard and replied, "In a heartbeat. I'll never go back to being what I was yesterday."
This is not the frightened woman I saw in Patton's bed. She'll do, I thought as I took a long pull of my coffee. I need to get some sleep, but should determine the guard first. The dogs could do the job.
"Look, we can all talk much more later, but right now we all need some rest. I'm sure we can all sleep, with the dogs running free outside, except to make sure, I'll call Dolly into the barn," I said, and then made my way to the door. I called her and a couple of minutes later Dolly was at my side.
As I moved toward my blankets, I heard Marty say, "Thank both of you for what you did for me."
I simply waved to her and heard Tom reply, "No one should be kept where they don't want to be. If you ever decide to leave us, just give me back the gun and go. I won't try to keep you, but guns and ammo are hard to come by."
I sat on my blanket, glanced in Marty's direction only to find her smiling. I leaned back on my blanket and it felt good to stretch out. I wonder what she is smiling about? I thought, and within seconds I was asleep.
*****
I awoke hours later and immediately heard rain hitting the tin roof of the barn. I loved that sound when I was a kid. I raised my head and looked around. All were asleep, except Tom and he stood guard by the door. Dolly was beside me and when I moved, she looked at me. I smiled, patted her gently on the head a whispered, "Stay." A small candle was the only light and it was on the table.
I stood, stretched, and then made my way to my friend, "What time is it?"
He glanced at his old windup watch and replied, "0300, so it's still a bit before first light."
I thought of the old watch and how Tom had replaced his expensive battery powered watch years ago, claiming there would come a day when the batteries would not be found. He was right.
"How's Sue?"
"No change that I can see, but Sandra swears she'd mending well and not to worry."
"To change the subject a bit, do you trust Marty?"
Tom met my eyes and said, "No, not yet. She's got to prove herself to me before I fully trust her, but that would be the same for anyone new. Why?"
"I was wondering if we were thinking the same thing, and we are." I replied and then added, "let me out of here so I can run to the bushes, I have to pee."
Tom laughed and opened the door.
The rain was steady, but not hard and the night air was brisk. I did my morning toilet and as I moved toward the barn, Skillet ran to my side, which startled me a little.
"How are you, big guy?" I asked as I stopped to scratch his ears.
He moved in close to me and placed his head against my thigh. Lawdy, I wish I didn't have to leave him out in the rain like this. He has to stay out, he's our first line of defense, I thought as I started for the door.
Once at the door, I turned, but Skillet had disappeared.
"Quiet?" Tom asked.
"Yep, but the dogs are out in the rain and I don't like it much."
"We ain't got much of a choice really. I figure it's just a matter of time before some of Patton's men figure out who attacked them."
"Maybe, but maybe not, too. I don't think his death meant anything to them at all. He was a paycheck, only he paid with women, booze and drugs. Hell, I suspect they're all fighting over who's the new leader this morning."
"Maybe they are." He replied with a flat tone. He's tired, I thought.
"I'm going to put on a pot of coffee," I said and moved to the table.
Tom was still looking out the door and I was facing a wall filling an old coffee pot with water, when the sound of two pistol shots filled the air. I spun around, brought my shotgun up, to see Sandra holding her pistol like she was on a shooting range. She had both hands on her pistol, and wore a look of complete anger.
"What are you shooting at?" Tom asked from the door.
"Martha, or Marty! She just went out the back door!"
"Tom, stay where you are, I'll look for her!" I yelled as I began to run.
I'd just opened the back door when I heard the dogs barking and then the loud boom of a shotgun. I heard a dog or two yelping in pain, so I moved toward the sound. The rain was harder now, with an occasional flash of lightning, which meant I had to be cautious. At the next flash of light, I saw Marty running toward the woods and I let her go, because I saw I had three dogs down. My dogs meant more to me than catching her, even though I knew she was running to Patton's old farm.
I moved forward and squatted by my dogs. Newt and Benji were both dead, and Skillet was in pain. Maybe Sandra can help him, I thought, as I picked him and moved for the barn.
I'm glad it's raining, because no one will see my tears, I thought and then slipped in the mud and fell to my right knee. I stood and moved toward the barn again.
Staggering like a drunk under the weight of Skillet, I prayed, "Lord, I don't usually ask you for much, but this time I need your help. Let this dog live, Lord. He's a good dog, and I don't ask for me so much as for him. He deserves to live. But, no matter what happens, Thy will be done. This I ask in the name of Jesus, amen."
I entered the barn and was met by Sandra. "Skillet?"
"Marty killed Newt and Benji, and Skillet was hit hard. I couldn't see the injury in the dark and brought him in so you could look at him."
"Put him on my blanket and I'll get the medical supplies."
I lowered him to the blanket and gazed into his big brown eyes. I could see his pain and fear, so I rubbed his head and spoke to him, "You're a good dog, Skillet. Good boy."
He whimpered and I heard Sandra say, "You go to Tom and brief him on what happened."
I met Skillet's eyes once more, stood and then walked to the door.
I explained to Tom what had happened and how Marty escaped. He shook his head and said, "I shouldn't have given her that gun yet."
"Well, don't blame yourself, because she was a good liar. I believed her."
Sandra stood and made her way to us. Unconsciously she ran her bloodstained hands through her hair and said, "He's not going to make it, John. He's been hit in the lungs and I can't stop the bleeding. Do you want me to put him down with painkiller?"
I rubbed my tired eyes, fought the urge to scream my anger, and after a few long minutes finally said, "No, we've a limited supply of pain medications."
"You're not going to let him bleed to death, are you?" She asked.
I pulled the .38 snub nosed pistol I'd taken from Larry Patton when I'd killed him, opened the cylinder and checked the loads. As I snapped the cylinder closed I said, "No, I'll do this. He's my dog and responsibility."
"Baby, I know how much " Sandra started saying, but I ignored her and moved to Skillet.
Once at his side, I squatted. I gave him a smile, stroked his wet head, and gazed into his big beautiful brown eyes. He whimpered again and I felt my heart breaking. Lord, give me strength, I prayed as I stood and extended my hand. My arm was shaking so hard I worried about my aim. I didn't want him to suffer any longer.
My shot was loud and my aim true. Skillet's death was instantaneous. I wanted to collapse and cry, but times were hard, and I knew the others were watching me. I had to set an example. I placed the pistol in my pocket, covered Skillet with a blanket, and went to finish the coffee.
*****
Near dawn, Tom approached me and said, "I'm going out to track Marty. I suspect she's heading back to Patton's, but I need to be sure."
Staring into my cold coffee cup and without looking up I replied, "Don't bring the bitch back here. Get the gun if you can, along with the ammo, but if you bring her back, I'll kill her."
CHAPTER 7
Tom had been gone for a little over an hour, when Dolly gave
a low growl and moved toward the main door to the barn. I slipped the safety to off on my shotgun and peeked outside, seeing nothing but rain. Someone or something was out there, or the dog wouldn't have warned me.
Sandra quickly moved to my side. "What is it?"
"I don't see anything, but they might be using the house for cover. You move over to the window and if you see anything, let me know. Dolly wouldn't have growled if it had been Tom, and he's not been gone long enough to return yet." I pushed my old cowboy hat back from my face so I could take a better look.
Sandra moved to the window, and I noticed she switched her gun safety off as well.
Long minutes passed with no further growls from Dolly, and I was starting to think it had been a small animal or something. She's a good girl, but I don't see anything, I thought, as I turned and gave Sandra weak smile.
While I was smiling, Dolly suddenly started barking and I saw the gun in Sandra's hands come up. I turned, looked out the door and spotted four men moving toward us. Then it dawned on me, "Sandra, you cover the front! I'm moving to the back! Dolly, stay!"
I was just about to the back door when it suddenly flew open and in stepped a man with a deer rifle in his hands. I noticed rain dripping from him as I brought the shotgun up waist high, fired and saw him knocked to the ground, where he lay unmoving. I knelt beside some empty 55 gallon drums I had stored and waited, but it wasn't much of a wait. Less than a minute later, two men entered, both fired their shotguns blindly, and as they pump in fresh shells, I raised and fired, taking them both with one shot. The one on the left must have died instantly, but the other fell to the ground screaming, his shotgun landing a good six feet from him. I moved to the door, glanced out, saw nothing, and closed it. I then moved to men I'd shot, with the injured man being first. He'd taken most of the blast in his side, but more than few pellets had struck him in the arm, and he was bleeding profusely. A quick search found an old 1911 .45 Colt Commander pistol in his coat pocket and little else, except a small knife on his belt. I heard a shotgun blast from the front of the barn and finished my search quickly. By the time I'd finished searching him, he was dead.