Paradox Valley

by Gerri Hill

  “What is it?” Dana asked.

  Corey reached for her binoculars. “Thought I saw something,” she said as she pulled her horse to a stop and turned around, facing the ridge. Her eyes widened as she saw three people running, coming toward them. She looked past them, wondering if something was chasing them, but there was no movement anywhere behind them. She was about to tell the others when she looked again. Yeah, they were running. But they were as fast as a horse.

  “Is that somebody running?” Dana asked.

  “Jesus…Christ,” Corey muttered as she continued to stare through the binoculars.

  “They’re running pretty fast, aren’t they?” Butch asked as he, too, held binoculars to his eyes.

  “Corey?”

  She finally lowered her binoculars and turned to the others. “Three people, two wearing army fatigues. The other a civilian, an older woman.” She glanced at Jean. “A woman about your age. Gray hair, looks like it’s pulled back in a knot or something.”

  “Looks like Rebecca Milstead,” Butch said.

  Jean looked back at her with frightened eyes. “Yes, that sounds like Rebecca, Carl’s wife. She has long gray hair that she always twists up into a bun,” she said. “But she can’t run. She had hip surgery not more than two months ago. She was still using a cane to get around.”

  “Oh, God,” Dana said. “That means—”

  “That we need to get the hell out of here,” Corey said. “And fast.”

  They kicked their horses into a gallop, but as she looked over her shoulder, she could tell that they were gaining on them. If anything, they appeared to be running faster now. But how could that be?

  “Keep going,” she yelled as she pulled her horse to a stop again.

  “No! We stay together,” Dana yelled back at her as she, too, pulled Gretchen to a stop.

  “Goddamn it, Dana…get the hell out of here!”

  She took one more look with her binoculars, thinking that the people chasing them looked like ragdolls running, their legs flopping about as they practically flew across the ground.

  “Corey…come on,” Butch said urgently. “Let’s go.”

  “They’re going to catch us,” she said quickly. She pulled out her gun. “Keep going,” she said. “I’ll take care of them.”

  “Corey, no,” Dana said.

  “Go!” she said more forcefully, pointing ahead of them.

  “Dana, let’s do as the captain says,” Jean said, her voice shaking with fear.

  Butch pulled his rifle out. “I’ll stay too.”

  Corey glared at him. “You ever shot anybody, Butch? This isn’t a goddamn movie. Now get the hell out of here. You take care of Dana and Miss Jean. Let me do my job.”

  He nodded curtly, then turned his horse, tugging two of the extras behind him. Dana held the reins of the third horse, but she stopped and looked back at her.

  “I’ll be so pissed if something happens to you.”

  Corey gave her a quick smile. “Not half as pissed as I’ll be.” She motioned to the others, who had already headed out. “Go on. Take Lucky with you. I’ll catch up.”

  She didn’t wait for a reply. She turned and headed back the way they’d come, shocked to see how close the three were to her already. She rode fast, straight at them, only then noticing that two of them had weapons dangling at their sides. When she felt she was close enough, she took aim with her Glock, praying the shot wouldn’t spook her horse.

  She fired six rounds in rapid succession, knocking all three to the ground. Her horse reared up, kicking his front feet out, and she held on tightly, trying to steady him. He danced excitedly, his hooves pounding the ground, causing dust to stir around them. She urged him closer, seeing one of the soldiers moving and trying to sit up. There was no blood on any of them so she had no qualms about shooting them again. She managed a shot to the head for each of them before her horse twirled around, trying to toss her off.

  “Easy, boy,” she said. “It’s okay. All over with.”

  But he wouldn’t settle down so she turned him and gave him a swift kick. He took off like a lightning bolt, nearly losing her in the process. She let him run as she bent low in the saddle, her face nearly touching his mane as they galloped through the valley, trying to catch up with the others.

  * * *

  “Here she comes,” Dana said as she pulled Gretchen to a stop. “Thank God.”

  She looked over at Jean, whose knuckles were white as she gripped the saddle horn. She didn’t even have a hold of Daisy’s reins but thankfully Daisy had stopped.

  “You okay, Miss Jean?”

  Jean shook her head. “No. I’m scared.”

  Dana nodded. “Me too.”

  “I counted nine shots,” Butch said. “You think she killed them?”

  “I don’t know. I hope so,” she said, not caring how callous that sounded.

  Corey slowed her horse as she got closer, finally bringing him down to a trot, then a fast walk. The white stallion was breathing hard and foam flew from his mouth as he shook his head several times. Dana met Corey’s gaze, wanting to ask a hundred questions.

  “I think they’ve been disabled,” Corey said. She looked over at Jean. “They were like Hal. There was no blood when I shot them.”

  “Oh, dear Lord,” Jean murmured. “And Rebecca was one of them. That means that…that Carl must have gone to her like my Hal came to me.”

  Corey nodded. “I have no idea what’s happening here or what we’re up against. My guess is they sent a squad of ten, possibly twelve soldiers in to look for the helicopter. Five were dead, up on the ridge. This is two more. So if we assume ten, then three are unaccounted for.”

  “Carl is unaccounted for too,” Butch said. “Right? If he…if he visited Rebecca like we think.”

  “He could have visited all of our neighbors by now,” Jean said, her voice cracking. “God only knows how many of them there are. They could be out here…watching us, waiting for us.”

  Dana heard the fear in her voice but didn’t know what to say to ease it. Hell, she was eaten up with fear too. Not just fear for themselves—fear for her parents, fear for Butch’s parents as well.

  “We keep going,” Corey said. “We ride all night.”

  “Where to?” Dana asked.

  “We’re going back to Jean’s place.”

  “Do you think it’s safe?”

  Corey nodded. “It’s safer than being out here, that’s for sure. We need a place to rest and we need some food. We can get both of those at Jean’s.”

  “Then what?”

  “We’ll decide that once we get there,” Corey said.

  “We should go back to Paradox,” Butch said.

  “That’s probably safest,” Corey said. “Or we can try to reach the checkpoint.”

  “Where they dropped you off?” Dana asked.

  “Yes. I’m guessing it was at least thirty miles or more down that road, though,” Corey said. “Maybe more. Unless we really push the horses, that means we’d have to camp at least one night.”

  “I’m not crazy about that idea,” Dana said honestly. “I say we push the horses.”

  “Yeah. And I’m not crazy about riding into Paradox only to find out that Carl Milstead beat us there.”

  Without another word, Corey gave her horse a nudge, riding past her. Dana sighed. What the hell had they gotten themselves into? She should have taken her mother’s advice and stayed with them. She’d be completely oblivious to what was happening out here then. That is, until someone—something—came up to the house.

  Of course, that thought made her worry more for her parents. What if Carl Milstead hadn’t gone into Paradox? What if he’d gone past the road to Paradox and continued on to her parents’ farm?

  She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, pushing those thoughts away. Her parents were safe. Surely, they were safe.

  Chapter Forty

  Anna Gail made her way to the back door of the store with supper, as had been her c
ustom for the last several evenings. She knew Richard was inside, facing the front door, a rifle in his lap, scaring away any potential customers. Of course, she relieved him in the mornings and she always propped the front doors open invitingly. Their neighbors would come by then, picking up a few items which they promised to pay for later. She had no problem with writing IOUs. But really, most who came by didn’t really come to shop. Most came to gossip and complain that the power wasn’t back on yet. She assumed that most missed having TV or, like Holly, missed their fancy cell phones.

  She knocked twice on the back door before opening it.

  “Richard, it’s me,” she called.

  She brought her picnic basket to the counter, not even noticing that Richard hadn’t so much as looked her way yet. Tonight’s supper was simple and everything out of cans. Richard always thought she fussed over this casserole whenever she made it, but elbow macaroni and a can of chili was the base to which she added beans, tomatoes and corn and lots of cheese. Richard loved it, so whenever she wasn’t in the mood to cook or lacked the time to put out a proper meal, this was her fallback.

  She finally realized that Richard hadn’t spoken, and she glanced over at him, seeing him staring out the windows.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “Carl Milstead from over in Squaw Valley,” Richard said, motioning outside. “Walking down the street like he’s in a hurry.”

  Anna Gail followed his gaze. It wasn’t dark yet, but evening was fast approaching. “I wonder where he’s going at this hour?”

  “Looks like he’s heading over to the feed store.”

  “You think Tommy is still open?”

  “He sleeps there,” Richard said. “They’d have stole him blind if not.”

  “Oh, Richard,” Anna Gail said with a shake of her head. “Carl looks filthy, doesn’t he? You think they’re without water up there too?”

  “Hell, he’s got the creek right there by the house,” he said. “You’d think he would have at least cleaned up before he came to town.”

  Anna Gail went back to her picnic basket, pulling out the still-warm casserole. “You don’t think he walked all this way, do you?”

  “He’s got horses. Why would he walk?”

  Anna Gail shrugged and scooped out a large portion of the casserole onto a plate and handed it to him.

  “Where’s Holly? She over at the neighbor’s again?”

  “No. She’s at the house, cleaning up the kitchen. I told her I’d come back and have dinner with her. I want to get back before dark.”

  He nodded as he took a bite, his moan telling her that he liked it. Richard was never much for compliments, but his quiet moan was enough for her.

  Anna Gail looked back out the window, but Carl was out of sight. “We should have called Carl over and asked if he ran into Butch and those gals,” she said.

  Richard shook his head. “No need for him to come over. He’ll probably want to come in and take food.”

  “Well, if they need food, we’ll write up a receipt like we’ve done for the others,” she said.

  “We’re never going to see a dime of that and you know it.”

  It was a statement he said frequently, and now, as usual, she ignored it. It did no good to contradict him. He wasn’t going to change his tune.

  “If you’re ready for lights, I’ll get the generator going,” she said, already heading out to the back to start it. They ran it periodically now. They didn’t have much left in the coolers and what they could, they froze. The freezers were holding up, even running it as sparingly as they did.

  The generator cranked on the first pull, and she noticed that Richard had chained it and the three gas containers to the post in the back, as if thinking someone would come by to steal it. She didn’t know of a single person in town who didn’t already have a generator and now that Gilbert had his pumps working, no one would run out of fuel. What Richard was so paranoid about, she couldn’t fathom.

  Darkness was settling around her, and she knew she needed to hurry if she was to make it back home before full dark. She went back inside to get the casserole dish before taking her leave.

  “I’ll take another helping of that,” Richard said, holding his plate out to her.

  “Sure. There’s plenty,” she said as she scooped out another large serving.

  She’d just handed the plate back to him when the bell jingled over the front door. Carl Milstead stood there, staring at them.

  “Oh, my goodness,” she said before she could stop herself. He smelled something awful, and she very nearly covered her nose and mouth from the stench. His clothes were absolutely filthy, and the smell reminded her of when that old white dog of theirs had rolled in that deer carcass one year. They couldn’t stand to be around him for nearly a week.

  “Damn, Carl, you smell like you haven’t bathed in a month or more,” Richard said bluntly. “Get the hell out of my store.”

  Anna Gail frowned as Carl stood there, staring at Richard as if he didn’t hear him. Then…quick as a cat, Carl lunged at Richard, his hands going around Richard’s neck, choking him as Richard’s arms flailed around, hitting Carl hopelessly on his shoulders. Anna Gail dropped the casserole dish and screamed as she ran toward Carl. She grasped his arm, but Carl flung her hard against the wall as if she was nothing more than a fly he’d swatted away. She felt herself falling, sliding down the wall as if in slow motion. She tried to hold on to consciousness even as the light started to fade around her. She watched in disbelief as Carl Milstead tossed Richard’s limp body over his shoulder and hauled him out into the night. As her eyes started to close, she knew what she’d seen was impossible. Richard was thirty years younger and at least fifty pounds heavier than Carl Milstead.

  But she could hold on no longer, and she surrendered to the blackness, falling into an unconscious heap on the floor.

  Chapter Forty-One

  Corey was dog-tired and knew the others were as well. She’d tried to keep the conversation going, hoping to keep them from falling asleep in their saddles. However, what little conversation she tried was met with fewer and fewer replies. They’d stopped several times to rest and walk around a little. The moon was a little brighter, nearly half-full, and it cast enough light for them to see. Following the creek had been easy, but they had the deep canyon to navigate. Butch suggested they head up to the Jeep road on the ridge and that had taken them awhile to reach the top. Once on the road, conversation again ceased and she finally gave up. Once past the canyon, they could have gone back down and followed the creek again—it would have been shorter. They decided to stay on the road, thinking it was safer than trying to get down the steep embankment in the dark.

  She looked up into the sky now, guessing it was two or three in the morning. Their pace was slow and methodical. Even Lucky was laboring as he followed along beside her. She’d thought about stopping and taking him into the saddle with her, but they were getting close and she didn’t want to take the time.

  After what seemed an eternity, Jean—who Corey suspected was nearly asleep—pointed weakly ahead of them.

  “There’s the road. We’re almost there.”

  The Jeep road dumped into the county road they’d taken that first day when she, Butch and Dana had left Paradox heading to Squaw Valley. If her memory was right, they’d pass the Milsteads’ place first.

  “It’s so dark…and quiet,” Jean said. “I don’t guess I’ve ever been out here this late at night.”

  “Or maybe this early in the morning,” Corey corrected.

  “Wonder what time it is? I feel like I could sleep for a couple of days,” Dana said. “After I eat, of course. Don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m starving.”

  “Yeah. Let’s hope Jean still has something left in her freezer.”

  “The chest freezer in the utility room has plenty of food,” Jean said. “It may be starting to thaw by now, but it should still be okay, I’d think.”

  Corey’s stomach rumbled a
t the thought of food. She couldn’t decide what she wanted more…sleep or a meal.

  When they passed the lane that would lead to the Milsteads’ place, all four of them looked down it. Corey wondered what they might be expecting but all was quiet. They kept going and before too long, they came upon Jean’s lane. The trees that lined the road cast shadows and blocked out the moon’s light, but Lucky led the way and the horses followed behind. She could almost feel the tension leave them when Jean’s house came into view.

  “Didn’t know I’d miss the old place so much,” Jean said as they neared. “Wonder how my chickens made out? Hadn’t seen a fox in a while but that doesn’t mean they’re not around.”

  “I hope there are plenty of eggs to choose from,” Dana said. “I wouldn’t mind three or four for breakfast.”

  “No wonder you gained seven pounds,” Butch said with a laugh.

  “I’m fairly certain I’ve lost every bit of that and more on this trip,” Dana replied.

  “And you didn’t even have to succumb to eating a rabbit,” Corey added.

  Dana laughed. “I’m so hungry, I’d eat one right now.”

  They stopped in the front and unloaded their packs, dropping them on the ground beside the horses.

  “Miss Jean, if you and Dana could get the generator going, I’ll help Butch with the horses,” Corey said.

  “I think sleep is going to win out over food,” Dana said around a yawn. “Shocking, I know, but I think I’m too tired to eat anything.”

  “Yeah. Go get some rest,” Corey said. “We’ll have to take turns keeping watch. Just in case,” she added.

  “We’re all exhausted,” Dana said.

  “I’ll take first watch,” she said. “We can’t take a chance, Dana. We don’t know what’s out there.”

  Dana nodded. “Okay. You’re right. We’ll take turns.”

  Corey and Butch led all seven horses to the barn, with Lucky walking beside them. The moon was getting lower and she thought it wouldn’t be long before it dropped out of sight…taking what little light there was with it.