Ceara looked around to him, “Huh?”
“I think we may have company.”
Ceara turned quickly looking out the window, she soon saw what Charlie saw, two motorcycles were heading their way. “Shit, at least it’s only two. But how do we warn the others?”
Charlie crawled over to the edge, snapping his fingers, whispering “I hope this works... Tonto, go to the house.”
As Tonto took off out the back of the barn, Charlie turned and smiled, “That’s how we warn them.” He moved back to the window, “They will be here in less than five minutes.”
Charlie glanced back to Ceara, “I hope the girls play this right, those two are not alone.”
Tonto ran to the back door scratching, drawing Tabitha’s attention. She swung open the door and saw the motorcycles heading down the valley, “Girls, it’s showtime!”
Niz and Beth joined her at the back door. After watching for a few minutes, Niz shut the door. “We are supposed to be alone, they won’t expect us to have a welcoming committee.”
Poncho and Lefty pulled up, “HELLO, ANYONE HOME??”
Tonto growled pacing the kitchen and Tabitha went to the window letting them see the gun barrel first, “YEAH, SMITH AND WESSON! WHAT DO YOU WANT!?”
The two men set the bikes and got off, “Calm down little lady, we don’t mean no harm... we’re just passing through, we are coming from Vegas and saw the vehicles and thought we would take a shot at someone being here.”
Tabitha gave a sarcastic laugh, “So you ain’t seen any cars between Vegas and here?”
The guy shook his head, “No, now don’t be twisting my words. I just meant that me and Poncho were missing real wom....”
Poncho hit him, shaking his head, Lefty quickly changed his wording, “What I mean to say is living people. Are you ladies alone out here, maybe we could join up for protection?”
Niz moved to the window, “If you are just passing through then how would you know that there are ladies, not just a single woman and no men.”
Poncho finally spoke, “Listen ladies, I am Poncho and this idiot is Lefty. We saw you guys from the hillside over there and thought we would come say hello. We don’t have much left in supplies and thought we could beg a few and be on our way.”
Tabitha leaned to the window to get a better look, and looked back to Beth, “What do you think we should do?”
Beth went to the door and stepped out, “Hello gentlemen, do not get any ideas both ladies still have sights on you. What exactly are you asking for?”
Poncho stepped up, shaking her hand “Thank you ma’am, we could sure use some food. Not to take away from you three but we are kind of hungry. Could we have a look in the Wal-Mart trailer?”
Beth shook her head, “I don’t think we will allow that, but I will give you a few cans of food then you need to be on your way.”
Lefty stepped up, “Now that ain’t very friendly.”
Poncho shoved Lefty, “Get on your bike, lady has a right to be protective.” He looked back to Beth, “I would be grateful for anything you can spare.”
Beth walked back in the house and grabbed a few cans, ignoring Tabitha’s look. Passing the cans over to Poncho, “That is all we can spare, now please be on your way.”
Poncho added the cans to his saddlebags, “We appreciate it and we will sure be on our way, I just hate to leave ladies here alone, you sure you want us to leave?”
Beth smiled, “We have done just fine by ourselves and will continue to.”
Poncho and Lefty mounted their bikes and took off.
Beth walked back in the house, “Well, upside is they now believe we are alone, downside is they will be back with the others soon.
Charlie and Ceara watched the entire conversation; Ceara knew Beth handled it great. They kept watching the men drive away, Tabitha walked out the back door carrying laundry. Tonto on her heels, sniffing where the men had been standing. Tabitha started hanging clothes talking loudly, “Did you guys hear?”
Charlie told Ceara to stay at the window then climbed down the loft ladder, leaning against the barn door, “Yeah, we heard... how long do you guys think we have?”
Tabitha positioned a pair of jeans, “Depends on how many they have, could be an hour, could be a day. I want us ready no matter what. Billy back yet? Where is Alden?”
Charlie shrugged then realized she couldn’t see him, “No Billy isn’t back and I’m not counting on him making it even to tell Alden.”
Tabitha looked to the barn before she could stop herself, then switched back to the line of laundry, “So we better get a plan and get one pretty damn quick.” She snatched up the basket and headed for the house.
*************************************************************
Alden watched as one of the scouts came riding back towards the group. Alden had stopped them about a mile from the camp, out of sight of the surrounding hills.
As the scout pulled his horse to a halt, Alden shifted in his saddle, “So what are we facing?” The young Indian had sweat pouring down his face as he brushed his long black hair back. A single eagle feather attached to a small leather band around his head hung down on his right shoulder. He wore a light blue jean colored cotton shirt with the sleeves cut off along with buckskin pants and moccasins, “We got two on motorcycles that just rode up to the house. They talked to a brown haired older woman who gave them a few cans of food I guess.”
Colt looked at Alden, “Beth.”
Alden nodded, “What else, Redcloud?”
Redcloud looked at the others and wiped his face with his shirt tail. You got two hiding in the barn. I don’t think the bad guys saw them and one big ass red dog ran from the barn to the house before the motorcycles pulled up.”
Alden smiled a little and looked to Colt. They both said “Charlie” at the same time. Alden looked at his band of warriors. “I need to think on this. Billy said there were four yet two ride up. If the other two were there, they would have sent one or three not two.”
Colt watched the look in Alden’s eyes as he scanned the desert. He knew he was looking for the rest or some sign of them. Alden’s face turned cold, “Colt, you take three of the braves with you. Circle wide and leave your horses before you get to the house. You’ll need to stay low and sneak in the back. You know the lay of the land. Keep covered. We don’t want them to know how many we have. I want them to think it’s only the women. Redcloud, you wait here for Stray Eagle and Running Buffalo. Then move up quietly but stay hidden. Tell Running Buffalo not to attack til he knows he should.”
Redcloud looked at Alden puzzled, “How will he know?”
Alden started but Colt spoke first, “Trust me, he’ll know.” Colt turned to Alden, “What about you? What are you going to do?”
Alden had a small twinkle in his eye, “What I do best.” Alden winked, turned his horse and rode slowly towards the hills.
Redcloud looked at Colt, “What did he mean?”
Colt shook his head, “It’s a long story but let’s just say Alden works better alone.”
One of the younger braves looked at Colt, “My name is Lone Wolf. My grandfather used to tell stories of the old ones who were Medicine men and had great powers. Some could control the wind. Some controlled the animals. Yet the greatest were said to be able to control the spirits. Ghostwalkers he called them. Which one would your Alden be like?”
Colt turned to the direction they saw Alden ride but he was not in sight anymore, even though, it had been less than two minutes. Colt smiled, “I guess you would call him a Ghost Walker” Colt turned his horse and started to ride to the house.
Soon Colt raised his hand and stopped his small group. “This is far enough.”
He dismounted along with the others. Colt unsaddled his horse and took the bridle off. He turned to the three braves, “Stay close, if Charlie is on watch, he’ll spot me. One of the others, I’m not so sure about.”
Lone Wolf whispered to the others, “Niz is there. She’
ll know us, so hopefully we can get in there with little trouble.”
Ceara was watching out the back when she saw movement in the bushes. She turned quickly and whispered, “PSST! Charlie, come here, we got people behind us.”
Charlie stayed low and moved quickly to where Ceara was hidden behind a hay bale. Getting up to her she pointed, “Over there, by those big cactus.”
Charlie leveled the rifle and moved the scope around. He saw something move and began to sight in. He saw the last man first then quickly moved up the line til he saw Colt. He let out a sigh of relief, “Colt’s back with a little help.
Ceara popped her head up over the bale to get a better look then sat back down, “He’s got three kids with him.”
Charlie looked at her with a frown, “He’s got three braves with him and I’d bet they’re every bit as good, if not better than those two yo-yos that were just here. I want you to slip down there and wave them in here for now.”
Ceara gave him a peck on his cheek, “I hope Alden’s nearby.”
Charlie smiled, “If Colt’s here, you can bet the old man’s out there somewhere.”
************************************************************
Alden had ridden slow and quiet til he was almost on top of ridge that would over look the other hills.
After dismounting, he pulled off his rifle and saddle bags and threw them on the ground with his saddle. He let the horse go and started slowly up to the top. The horse was following for a few minutes then suddenly stopped and snorted. Alden turned quickly back. As he got to the horse, he realized what the problem was.
The horse was backing up away from a pile of rocks. Alden had moved over them just moments before and had awoken a nest of rattlesnakes. Taking the reins, he turned the horse and slapped its rear. The horse skittered away back down the hill. As Alden turned back, he stopped. The snakes were still rattling under the rock but that wasn’t what caught his ears.
“Fucking Bikers again,” Alden said under his breath. Leaping over the rock he moved quickly to the top and laid down in the dirt. Reaching in a saddle bag, he took out a set of binoculars and flipped up the covers to block the sun’s rays from reflecting off the lenses. He searched the road and saw them coming around a bend. He watched as they slowed down and met with another biker who was waiting for them.
Alden laid in the dirt as a scorpion crawled across in front of him, stopping for a moment to look at Alden then it moved on. Alden watched as the bikers gathered. He could tell they were planning something, because the one man was pointing off in different directions, holding up three fingers excitedly.
Alden grinned, “That’s right, that’s right, you go ahead and divide your group.... please divide your group.”
Tony was listening to Poncho as he explained what they found out. Without warning, he suddenly smacked Poncho and knocked him to his knees, “YOU STUPID FUCK, YOU WERE TOLD TO WATCH! NOT TRY AND GET YOUR DICKS WET!”
With that, he kicked Poncho in the groin twice, almost lifting him off the ground with the second one. “The second one was for your brother Lefty. You can give it to him later, and tell him it was from me.”
Tony turned to the group, “Well because of fucktard over there, they’re going to know we’re coming, even if it’s just three women. If they’re armed, and can shoot half-ass good, they’re going to be a problem. I was hoping to hit them from two sides at once in big numbers but I think we’ll switch that up.”
The group looked on puzzled. Tony went on, “We break up into four groups of five each. We hit them from all four sides at once. Watch your crossfire cause there’s going to be shit load of lead flying and I’m sure you all want a little of what’s in those trucks as well as a turn on those women.”
Alden watched as Tony pointed to the men and they started to break off in groups of five, “Yes” he whispered quietly. “Damn I wish I had Tonto but he’ll have to hold his own down there.”
As Alden started to crawl backwards off the top, he heard the rattles again. Stopping he turned and looked back and saw several of the snakes had crawled out from under the rock. He moved a few more feet then stood up. A smile came on his face as he looked at the snakes on the rocks. “I want to thank you for all volunteering for this mission. You will all be rewarded for your service.”
Chapter 5 – War of our World
Ceara paced the loft; each time she turned, she looked at Charlie with more fear. Charlie finally stood up, “Ceara, you need to calm down. You are making me nervous.”
“Sorry, just wish Colt and the others with him would get here”, Ceara responded.
Charlie climbed down the ladder, heading towards the back barn door.
Just as he got there, Colt and one of the young men came in. Before Charlie could tell him anything that had happen, Colt looked around and said, “Hey Charlie! We need to get everyone in position pretty quick.”
Charlie’s brow furrowed, “What are you talking about? I haven’t even told you what’s going on?”
Colt went to the front of the barn and glanced out, “Billy got to us but he was shot on the way, so Alden is pretty sure we are being attacked next. He is covering the high ground and he sent us here to help you guys.”
Ceara climbed down the ladder looking from Charlie to Colt and the third guy. “We saw others with you guys, where are they?”
Colt nodded, “They went around to the house to help Niz and the girls. Last thing we need is everyone in one location.”
Ceara went to the door to look out again, she turned back looking confused, “How are we supposed to fight from here, when we only have these,” as she held up her rifle, “with no extra ammo?”
One of the young men stepped up, “With this.” He dropped a bag at Ceara’s feet; she looked down at the bag, startled, “What’s this?”
Charlie knelt down and unzipped the large gym bag, “Holy shit, where did you get all this?”
He handed Ceara a fully loaded M-16 and two clips, then stood up holding one for himself. “Name’s Charlie and this is Ceara....”
The young man smiled, “I’m Mark and that guy over there is Spirit Horse. Your friend, Alden, said you may not be in a position to grab your own weapons, so we came packing.”
Ceara looked from one man to the other, “Mark and Spirit Horse.... How come.....”
Spirit Horse stepped away from the barn door, “The others are in position. As far as your unspoken question about the names go, it all depends on our parents, some are modern, others... like mine, want to keep our traditions going.”
Suddenly all five stopped and looked toward the door; they all heard the same thing. The sounds of engines were coming from several directions.
Charlie looked to Ceara and pushed her toward the ladder, “Get up there and don’t come down, cover us as best you can!”
Beth spun around and leveled her berretta at the two men who came through the door. The first one raised his hands, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, lady calm down. Don’t shoot; we’re on your side.”
Tabitha and Niz ran in from the kitchen. Tabitha leveled the shotgun she had grabbed on the way, “Who the fuck are you!?”
Niz reached over and placed her hand on the barrel pushing it down slowly, “This is Harold, and the young man behind him is my cousin, Frank.”
Tabitha glared at Niz, “They have a funny way of knocking. Beth could have taken them both out.”
Frank stepped forward and looked Niz in the eye. “Billy made it to us; he told us what was happening. He’s been shot but I don’t know how bad. The medicine man was with him when we left. Running Buffalo and the others will be here soon, I hope.
We got bad guys on all four sides and their man Alden is off Ghost hunting.”
Beth looked at him, then at Tabitha. Tabitha spoke right up, “What the fuck is ghost hunting? Did Alden go nuts or something? Great, just when we need him most, he flashes back to Nam or some damn place.”
Niz chuckled a little along with the two new men. �
�No, Tabitha. I’m sure he’s fine. It’s a long story but the reader’s digest version is. Alden will fight or attack in such a way that the enemy will think they are being attacked by spirits.”
Harold had gone to the kitchen and came right back, “We got a clear view of the back, but that will be covered by the guys in the barn so I say let them have that. We have the mountains to the north, that’s where Alden went so we have to trust him.”
He turned to Beth and Tabitha, “Your man, Colt said he’s good. Is he?”
Tabitha chuckled, “Yeah, he’s good. He’s damn good.” She looked at Beth and Beth sighed, “I hate him being alone out there. He’s a little older than us and not as young as he used to be, but I’m sure he can take care of himself.”
Harold looked at Niz, and then Frank with worry in his eyes. He didn’t like the lack of faith Beth had but it was too late to worry about it now. “We don’t have a good view to the west but we do to the north, so I say we concentrate on defending what we can see.”
He turned around and looked at the windows. “We team up to cover the back, keep the bedroom doors open. If you get hit, cry out and someone will help. Frank leaned down and opened the bag he was carrying, “Here put these on, they’ll help. He started to pull out a handful of Kevlar vests. I only have four, so you girls divide them up.”
Harold had moved down the hall to the first bedroom and was listening and watching. The motors were slowing down but he could only see the dust from the tires. Calling back to the others, he yelled, “They’re going to try and sneak in, I think, so let’s get ready.”
Tabitha looked at the vest and then at Beth, Beth was holding her vest and shook her head. Niz smiled and slipped her vest on. She then grabbed the Velcro straps and pulled them tight. Beth put hers on first as Niz stepped up and grabbed the straps giving them a tight pull as she fastened them down.
Tabitha looked at her breasts then at Beth, “Doesn’t that …. err.. hurt?”
Beth breathed out slowly, “Just a little.”
Tabitha started to take it off as Niz stepped up. “No way little lady, if I wear it, we all do.”
Surviving Day by Day (Book 3): Still They Come Page 7