by James Hunt
The tears started to flow now. All of the memories of his childhood, being with his father, collided with the reality that he’d never see his dad again. He would no longer be able to ask him for advice, to hear his words of comfort and wisdom when he needed them most. A pillar in Mike’s life was struck down, and for the first time he wondered whether he would be able to go on.
“I never knew, or will ever know, a better man, husband, or father than my dad,” Mike said.
The first tear that hit the dirt was followed by a rain that Mike couldn’t stop. He’d never cried like this before. Each sob was a stab digging into his heart.
Kalen came over and wrapped her arms around him. Mike clutched his daughter and held her tight. Just as he had held her earlier, she was holding him now.
Sam began shoveling the dirt back into the hole. After Mike composed himself, he picked up the other shovel and helped.
They packed the dirt tight. Mary picked some flowers she found along the side of the road and arranged a small bouquet. She laid them down on the fresh mound of dirt.
“Okay,” Mike said. “Let’s gather up any weapons and ammo we can find. Grab anything that’s high quality or in good condition. Sam, do you know how to ride a motorcycle?”
“I had one when I was in the Rangers.”
“Good. If we can’t get the Jeep running, we’ll take the bikes back to the cabin.”
“Nelson?” Sam asked.
Mike turned around and saw a man running down the highway toward them. His arms flailed wildly at his sides, and his legs wobbled.
Nelson collapsed in Mike’s arms when he made it to him and brought the two of them to the ground. Nelson could barely speak he was so out of breath.
“Ken… took… supplies,” Nelson said.
“What?”
“Katie… Anne… Sean, Freddy… they’re in trouble.”
Mike closed his eyes. Jung wasn’t the only one going back on his word.
Night of Day 13 (the Farm)
It took Ken twice as long to bring the supplies back to the farm than when he left. Beth was still awake when he got home. She helped him unload the supplies and bring them in the house.
“What happened to him?” Beth asked.
“He got away,” Ken said.
“You didn’t kill him?”
“No, but I killed the friend they had at the cabin.”
“He’s going to come back, Ken.”
“Only if Mike’s still alive, which I doubt. Besides, even if he does come back, we have his guns, ammo, and supplies.”
“And his family.”
Ken stopped. He set the case of 9mm bullets on the kitchen counter and turned to his wife.
“You didn’t kill them?” Ken asked.
Beth said nothing. When she turned to pick up the rest of the supplies, Ken grabbed her arm.
“Where are they?” Ken asked.
“I put them in the storm cellar.”
“Goddamn it, Beth, we talked about this. You weren’t supposed to keep them alive.”
“And you weren’t supposed to let one of them get away, but it happened.”
There was viciousness in her words as she jerked her arm out of Ken’s grip and stormed outside to the cart. Ken followed her.
“What happened?” Ken asked.
“I know why we’re doing this, Ken. I do,” Beth said, turning around to face him. “You’ve been responsible for keeping this family safe, but… what if we don’t have to hurt people like we have? What if there’s another way?”
“Did they talk to you? Get in your head?”
“No, but we can’t keep going on like this forever, can we?”
“Of course we can! The moment we let guilt slip into our minds is the moment we start digging our own graves.”
Ken grabbed one of the rifles out of the back of his cart along with a box of ammo. He started loading bullets into the rifle’s magazine.
“What are you doing?” Beth asked.
“Your job.”
“Ken, the boys, they’re no older than Joey. You ca—”
“It’s them or us, Beth. There can’t be both.”
“What if they come back? What if they managed to kill the bikers? We’ll need a bargaining chip.”
Ken stopped. On the slim chance that Mike did manage to kill the bikers, he would come looking for his family. Mike didn’t strike him as someone who forgave easily, and with the knowledge of how prepared he was, Ken figured that Mike knew how to handle himself in a fight. He set the rifle back down on the cart and grabbed a box with first aid supplies.
“We give it one day,” Ken said.
***
The only light in the storm cellar was a single candle. It was a small, cramped space, not meant for an extended stay, and Anne had no idea how long they’d be there.
The boys finally fell asleep, but she, Fay, and Katie couldn’t. Anne twirled her wedding ring on her hand, watching Freddy’s slow breaths.
“Mike will come back,” Fay said.
“I know,” Anne replied.
That’s what she kept telling herself. He would come back. He wouldn’t let them suffer a fate like this when he had the ability to save them. She knew her husband better than any soul on Earth, and the one thing she learned about him a long time ago was he never quit, no matter what. As long as Mike had air in his lungs, then they had a chance of getting out.
“I’m sure Nelson will be back too,” Anne added.
Katie hadn’t said much after they were put in the cellar. Anne was worried about her. She knew what it was like to have your family back and then immediately be ripped away from them, not knowing if you’d ever see them again.
“Why are they doing this to us?” Katie asked.
“Because they’re assholes,” Fay replied.
“They think this is the best way to survive. They think it’s the only way to survive,” Anne said.
“What is wrong with people?” Katie asked.
“They’re assholes,” Fay answered.
“Fay,” Anne said. “Please.”
Fay crossed her arms and leaned back against the wall. Anne sat and watched the flame flicker. The orange and yellow light danced in the darkness, causing shadows to drift over their faces.
“What do you think they’ll do?” Katie asked.
“I don’t know,” Anne said.
Anne had been trying to answer that question since Beth threw all of them in here. She just couldn’t make sense of it. The family didn’t seem desperate or in need of anything. In fact, it was Mike who came to them for help in the first place.
Whatever fate would fall upon them, Anne only hoped Freddy would be okay. Maybe she could bargain with them, strike a deal to keep him alive.
“You know, I never thought I’d see him again,” Katie said.
Katie was looking at her son, Sean.
“A part of me wishes I never did,” Katie added.
“You don’t mean that,” Anne said.
“I know, and I feel ashamed for saying it, but there’s a part of me that does mean it. When I first came back to the house after Sam and I finally made it out of the city I thought, ‘This is it. They’re gone,’ but when I finally saw the letter there was a hope that burned inside of me. The hope that I could see them again, and it raged within me, propelling me to keep moving forward, to keep pushing, no matter how hard it was.”
“That’s a good thing.”
“Is it? It did keep me going forward, and, yes, I did find my family again, but how many of us let that hope burn and consume them? How many never find what they’re looking for? It can lead you on an endless quest of pain.”
Maybe Katie was right. Letting a false hope fuel you could be more dangerous than the alternative, but that meant taking away every chance, and Anne couldn’t do that. She had to believe. She had to take every chance she could.
***
Billy’s parents didn’t see him watching them argue from the second-floor bedroo
m window. He knew they were bickering about his mother letting the family live.
When his mother came and woke him up to ask him for his help, he dreaded what she would make him do, but then when she told him her plan of keeping them alive, he felt a burst of pride rush through him.
He might have actually gotten through to her. Maybe she was starting to understand what he was telling her.
They couldn’t keep going on like this. Sooner or later everything they’d done would come back to haunt them, he was sure of that. But he also knew it wasn’t too late for them to change. He could still save his parents from the violent fates they were heading toward.
Billy thought of his brother and how much he idolized their father. If he could change his dad, then his brother would change too. It could be done. He could do it.
Dawn of Day 14 (the Farm)
The sky was lightening. The sun would be coming up soon. Mike wanted to use the darkness to his advantage, so he’d have to move in quickly.
He knew if Ken was going hunting, he’d be up by now, getting things ready, but if he had to haul the supplies back by himself, it would have taken him most of the night, so there was the chance he was still asleep.
Even in the physical state Mike was in, between himself, Sam, and Nelson, he was confident they’d be able to take Ken out. Sam could probably do it singlehandedly, but Mike wasn’t going to let one man be the deciding factor in his family’s fate.
Mike made sure everyone was loaded down with weapons. He gave a pistol to Mary and Kalen but told them they had to stay hidden.
Kalen didn’t argue. Mary simply nodded. After everything that happened, now wasn’t the time to question him.
“Where do you think they’re keeping them?” Nelson asked.
“Wouldn’t they just be in the house?” Sam asked.
“No, I’ve been inside. There isn’t any space for them to hide in the house. They’ll have to be somewhere else on the property. Nelson, did you see anything when you left? Anywhere they would keep them?” Mike asked.
“No, I didn’t see anything.”
“Most farms around here would have a storm cellar, I would think. It’d be out of sight, no windows, one door. It’d be a good place to hide them,” Sam said.
“That’s as good a place to start looking as any,” Mike answered.
Mike followed the forest line that faced the side of the house. He wanted to approach from there because it had the fewest windows and areas to spot them coming.
“Okay, Sam, you look for the storm cellar, if you find it before we do, then take everyone to Kalen and Mary’s location. We’ll catch up with you. Nelson and I will handle the house,” Mike said.
“Roger that,” Sam said.
“Okay,” Nelson replied.
Fatigue was starting to catch up with Mike. He had to force his hands closed over his rifle. The pain in his side still hadn’t let up, and it was getting harder to breath. He closed his eyes and counted to three.
One.
They’re alive. You have to keep moving. They’re going to be okay.
Two.
Push the pain out of your mind. You only have to go a little bit further.
Three.
Done.
Mike led the three of them as they jogged across the field toward the house. They had to weave around some of the cows in the pasture, but it was an easy jog for the most part.
Sam separated himself from the rest of the group and headed around back while Mike and Nelson moved to the front of the house.
As much as Mike wanted to go in and shoot first, he couldn’t risk them hurting his family. He had no idea what he could potentially be walking into, so he kept it quiet.
The wind blew the chimes hanging from the front porch and also rocked a chair that creaked back and forth on the splintered wooden panels.
Each step Mike took was slow, deliberate. He reached his hand for the screen door and gently pulled it open. He placed his hand on the brass knob to the front door and jiggled the handle. It was open.
Mike looked back at Nelson and raised his hand to count down when they’d enter. Five. Four. Three. Two. One.
Mike pushed the door open, rifle at the ready, and stepped inside. The living room was empty. He listened for any sign of struggle, mumbles for help, but heard nothing.
“I don’t think they’re here,” Mike whispered.
The two of them entered the kitchen, their eyes never leaving the sights of their rifles. A thud from upstairs caused the nose of their guns to point upward.
Mike motioned toward the staircase. The old steps creaked with each step up. His hands were aching badly. He could barely control the tremors. If someone came out, he wasn’t even sure if he could keep the gun steady enough to get a shot off.
At the top of the stairs, Mike could see someone walking back and forth through a crack in the door that was opened slightly. He figured that was where the noise came from, but he wasn’t sure who it was.
Nelson was right behind him, matching him step for step. When Mike pointed toward the door, Nelson nodded in understanding. They both lined up on either side, waiting for the person to come out.
Mike couldn’t hear anyone speaking, so he figured whoever was in there was alone. He peeked through the crack. As soon as he did, the door opened and Mike subdued Billy, dragging him back into the room, keeping his hand over his mouth.
Nelson followed quickly, shutting the three of them in the room. Billy was struggling against Mike but stopped once Nelson put the barrel of his rifle to his face.
“Is my family still alive?” Mike asked.
Billy nodded his head.
“Listen to me, Billy. I know you’re not a bad person. I know you wouldn’t try and hurt anyone. I just want my family. Nothing else. I spared your life once. Now I’m asking you to spare my family’s,” Mike said.
Billy’s eyes darted back and forth between Mike and Nelson. His breathing was quick.
“I’m going to let you go, and when I do you’re going to take me to my family, do you understand?” Mike asked.
Mike slowly moved his hand from Billy’s mouth. Billy didn’t scream.
“Where are they?” Mike asked.
“My mom put them in the storm shelter,” Billy said.
“Show me.”
The three of them snuck back down the stairs quietly. On their way out, Billy opened one of the drawers, grabbing the spare key to the shelter.
Billy led them out the back door into the fields. Mike looked around for Sam, but didn’t see him anywhere.
“Over here,” Billy said.
The storm cellar was underground, covered by overgrown grass and bushes; it was meant to be hidden. Billy unlocked the latch and pulled the door open.
When Mike looked inside, it was completely empty.
“Where are they?” Nelson asked.
Mike grabbed Billy by the throat and slammed him to the ground.
“Is this some kind of joke?”
Billy struggled for breath.
“No! They were here! I helped my mother put them here!”
Mike let go. Billy coughed, catching his breath. Mike paced around the shelter, looking in all directions, searching for any sign of his family, but there were none to be seen. Was this how he was going to lose them? Was this how it would end for him?
“Mike,” Nelson said.
Nelson was staring at the ground to the left of the shelter. When Mike went over, he could see several foot prints in the dirt.
“They’re still alive,” Mike said.
“Oh God,” Billy said.
“What?” Mike asked.
“My dad. He must have come and got them after we went to bed.”
“Do you know where he’s taking them?” Nelson asked.
“Hunting,” Billy said.
***
Kalen leaned up against the trunk of a tree. Her mind wandered. Everything felt like a haze. She could see, but she couldn’t understand. She could
n’t comprehend what happened. It was too much. All of it was too much.