by M. C. Allen
“Okay, Joseph and I are moving out. Angel will come from your right. If you see anyone making a move toward him, let him know. I’m going silent. You call out any changes you see.”
My hands were shaking slightly, and I could feel a flutter in my abdomen. As we moved out into the forest, my legs started to shake slightly. I always get those right before I have to do something like this. As we got deeper into the forest, and I started paying attention to everything around me, the pre-combat jitters went away like clockwork. It had always been that way for me. Right before football games in high school, I would have to use the restroom every few minutes, but as soon as I put on that helmet and slammed into something, it all went away. During my first honest firefight in Iraq, I was calm. In the morning getting ready for that patrol, I was a nervous wreck. We are all wired a little differently in the head.
Kofi broke the silence. “There is a third person out there. They are about two hundred yards out, watching these two. I can’t tell if the rifle has a scope, but he has not acted like he sees you yet.”
I stopped to consider the new wrinkle to my plan. Murphy’s Law had struck again. If it can go wrong, it will go wrong. I was wondering when something like this was going to happen. Luckily, we had something. I went ahead and broke my silence. “Kofi, did you put the suppressor on the Remington?” Another of my major purchases was to thread the barrel of the rifle and install a muzzle brake that accepted the suppressor. Kofi could pop it on in just a few seconds.
“Yes sir, like always.”
“When I hit the transmit button twice, I want you to eliminate the threat, please.” I hate putting Kofi in these situations, but I can’t be in two places at once. This will not be his first time taking a life with that rifle. His first time using it was over two months ago, and he was a quick learner. He had a range card on the stock of the rifle that was graduated out to a thousand yards, but he didn’t need it for these distances.
Joseph and I started moving again, a little more cautious now that there was another player in the mix. We should have been getting close to our targets. There they were! Trying to crawl along the forest floor unaware that we had them observed almost the entire time. I hit the transmit button twice. I heard a thump from the woods. We waited a second for Kofi to fire again, but instead he clicked twice and said, “Target down, your two crawlers have stopped and look a little confused. You might want to go get them before they try to run off.”
I popped to my feet and rushed forward, my rifle held diagonally across my body. When I saw the first intruder jump upright in front of me and struggle with his rifle, I tapped him in the forehead with the butt of my own rifle. He went down limp.
The second lurker was still on the ground but clawing at the sling of his own weapon. I pointed the muzzle of my rifle at his face and said, “Hands up! Roll over with your face in the dirt!”
I searched the conscious captive and found little of value. One rifle, AR-15 pattern, three full magazines stuffed in his pockets, a folding knife, and a rusty revolver.
“Put your hands behind your back. We are going to detain you for questioning.” There. Make it sound like I was going to be all reasonable and he would be more likely to comply. I didn’t have handcuffs for this. I used wire. In my hat, there was wire around the inside of the headband. It served duty as material for snares, but it would serve for my purpose. I snipped off two sections and started tying up my first captive. The one I had smashed in the head was still taking a nap, but Joseph was watching that one for me.
I tied the wrists together then used the pliers to tighten them up to the point where blood stopped flowing to his hands. I would loosen them later. This wasn’t going to take long.
“Watch this one while I secure sleeping beauty.” Getting hit in the head with the butt of a rifle made of steel and walnut is not something you just shake off. It was a heavier rifle than the plastic and aluminum AR-15s these guys were carrying, but it was welcome when you had to blast through walls, trees, or cars. My M-14 had served me well, but it was not the rifle I had planned to carry all this way. It was heavy and the magazine only held twenty rounds. It was a civilian version of the military rifle the US had adopted as an upgrade following the Second World War. I let Kofi have my AR and Dale had my wife’s. I paused what I was doing and took a breath. Keep focused on what you’re doing. Don’t start thinking about those things now.
The second idiot had about the same items as idiot number one: an AR pattern rifle, three magazines, a decent sheath knife, and a semi-automatic handgun. I found no water containers or canteens on either of the men. I had a feeling that these two may have been out to snatch someone from the watering hole or they were scouting what the shooting was about earlier. Either way, one of their party was dead, and these two were going to fill in any gaps.
“Angel, come to our position.”
“On my way,” he replied calmly.
“Joseph, take Sleeping Beauty over there behind that tree and wake him up for me, would you?”
None too gently, Joseph grabbed his captive by one leg and started dragging. Once he got behind the tree, I could hear a few light slaps.
“He’s awake. Try not to hit the next one so hard if you could.”
“No promises.”
I focused on movement to my left. “Hey, Angel?”
“Yup.”
“Do you think you can find the third one back there? He should be next to a tree, cooling off. We want to get their gear and anything useful. Also, look for any packs. Neither of these two morons were carrying water, or really anything but the basics. They may have dropped them back there. Kofi can provide security from where he is.”
“That’s fine.” He triggered the radio and addressed Kofi. “Hey, I’m going to check on number three, can you keep an eye out for me?”
Kofi responded, “On it. I haven’t seen any other movement out there so far.”
Angel nodded to himself and started quietly moving without any hesitation. I could see why Joseph had him on his security team. He was a natural in the woods.
Now I had to ferret out some of these jokers’ darkest secrets. Joy. I didn’t like this part, but I didn’t farm out these jobs. I took a second to screw up my nerve. Depending on how these two unknowns responded, this could get bloody and loud quickly.
I took out my pliers. This is a really handy thing to have. It cuts wire, has a knife and a screwdriver, and a claw for cutting seatbelts if your car is in an accident. I only needed the pliers for this part.
Moving to the idiot and potential cannibal who hadn’t been clubbed like a baby seal, I helped prop him up against a tree and started talking to him politely. “Hey there. Sorry about this, but you can’t be too careful these days. My name is David, what’s yours?” I wasn’t expecting a reply, and I was mildly shocked when he did.
“My name is Burt Sanger. We didn’t mean no harm.”
“That’s fine, Burt. I just need to ask you some questions, and the sooner we get through this the sooner I can cut that wire off your wrist. I’m sorry, but I don’t have any handcuffs on me, otherwise it would be more comfortable for you. We just need to ascertain some information and determine if you represent a potential danger to my team.”
Burt told me a long, convoluted story that was probably mostly lies. Liars like to put some truth to their story to make it believable. He was too well fed for one thing. My next clue was his eyes. Burt was batshit crazy. I had run into this special breed of crazy back in the city, so I was more prepared for this. Being willing to kill and eat fellow humans must really screw with you psychologically. Listen to me go on about crazy. I was probably in line for a therapist soon if any were still alive. I regained my focus on Burt.
“Okay, buddy, here is what I want you to do. I want you to start screaming in pain like I’m tearing your fingernails out with these pliers. Make it believable or I’ll do it for real. Do you understand?”
“I don’t get it. You want me to act like you�
��re torturing me?”
“Yes, Burt. Start now.”
Burt let out a half whimper. Nope, that wasn’t going to cut it. I reached up and latched onto one of his incisors and jerked it out. The tooth broke off, leaving a stump just above the gum line. Burt screamed in pain.
“Good job. Now keep screaming like that, or I’ll come back and finish the job.” My face had changed from helpful to a mask of rage. Oh, probably bipolar, or just crazy. That was my self-diagnosis. I was a bit of a sadist when it came to murdering bastards. I screamed at the wailing Burt. He was really getting into character now that he saw my true nature. I kept that part hidden from most people.
“That’s not good enough! Let’s see what your buddy has to say! Hey, Burt, what’s his name?” I said that last bit quietly so only Burt could hear.
“Devin,” he whispered, clearly in pain and confused by my sudden mood shifts. It was all an act. Going from calm to crazy back to calm in just a few seconds just messed with people’s heads. Sure, just an act. Keep telling that to yourself. Denial is also a river in Egypt. I had created a new stage of grief: insane rage, and I was fine letting it slip out when I needed it.
I spoke to Burt calmly again, just above a whisper. “You stay here and keep crying out in pain. I’ve got something for your tooth. Sorry about that, but you needed to get into character and that was a way to motivate you.”
I moved over to where Joseph was watching over Devin. Joseph was a little freaked out. All he heard was me yelling at Burt and his screams of anguish. I winked at Joseph and nodded to the wailing Burt.
“Switch with me? Burt is getting lonely. Tell him if he is a good boy, I’ll let him go just as soon as I torture the information out of Devin.
“Hey, Devin. You are going to tell me everything I already got out of Burt. I just need you to confirm everything. If I catch you in a lie, I’ll make you suffer. Right now, you just have a bump on your head. If you are truthful, you take Burt back with no more pain. Am I clear?”
Devin was pale. He was scared of me. Good. That’s the correct response.
He told me everything. After a few minutes, I started to go through parts of his story again for clarification. As I thought, Burt was lying through his teeth about what their little group of misfits had been up to.
Burt was one of the bandits who had raided the camp last week. He was here to guide in Devin and Raymond. Oh, the dead guy that Angel went to check on. Nice to put a name to a dead bad guy. Devin, Raymond, and Burt were part of a larger group of men who were living north of here, near the creek like Joseph’s people were. Their water source was rapidly drying up, and they had run short of food. They were killing their weaker members and taking people from other nearby groups to stay fed. I didn’t trust everything he said, but the basic story told of horrors that needed a response. This had my attention.
I let Devin go on for a bit until I needed a break. I didn’t want to ask, but I had to. “Why is it just men?”
“The women don’t survive longer than a few days, and when they are used up, they’re eaten.”
“How many are there now?”
“Counting me and Burt there is fourteen of us. Did you really kill Raymond? I liked him. He was funny and liked to play practical jokes on us.”
What kind of practical jokes did cannibals play on each other? I really didn’t want to know.
After a bit I could see that I wasn’t going to get anything else useful out of Devin, and Burt had proven to be an unreliable source. I got Devin up and moved him over to where Burt was sitting against the tree.
“Okay guys, we are going to move you into our camp and get you cleaned up and on your way. I have some pain medication for your tooth, Burt.”
They both looked at me curiously. Burt asked, “You really have pain meds?”
“Oh, sure. I came prepared. We even have some food we can share with you.”
We made our way back to the western side of the camp near where Jordan had taken his shot at me only a few hours before. I stood behind Burt, drew my blade, and cut his throat. I repeated the process with Devin so quickly, he didn’t even know it was coming. Joseph didn’t exactly look shocked, but he looked at me, expecting me to say something.
“There was no way these two were going to live after what they told me. They were so far gone that they didn’t even think what they were doing was wrong.”
Joseph shook his head. “That’s not what I was going to say. We have a place to bury bodies. Now we have to drag them there instead of letting them do the work for us.”
“Oh, well … oops?” I shrugged and cleaned off my knife on Burt’s shirt. I needed to check the edge and make sure it was ready for the next time I needed it.
Joseph grabbed Devin and started getting ready to haul it away. “Come on, let us get them underground before we attract any more scavengers. Angel has the toughest job. He has to drag his body a lot further than we do.”
“Let me check in with him and see how he’s doing.” I keyed the radio. “Hey Angel, how are you doing?”
He replied, “Can you send someone to help? I have their gear, and this guy didn’t miss a lot of meals.”
“I’ll ask Joseph for someone to help. I don’t want to pull anyone off of their security points just yet.”
Joseph dropped his burden and moved into camp. Without direction, I sat and waited. I wasn’t as strong as I used to be, and moving bodies was tiresome. I should have waited for Joseph to give me better directions before ending these two sick bastards. I was huffing and trying to catch my breath. Burt would make a decent resting spot, but that was too gross to consider. I sat on the ground and waited for Joseph to return.
My funeral companion came back in a few minutes looking pissed. When I asked, he brushed the question aside with, “Those lazy morons can’t be bothered to help carry weapons that can be used to defend their own lives! I had to ask three different people until someone finally agreed to get off their ass and carry some guns! Angel is stuck moving the body for now. None in the camp will help with that.”
“How did you get saddled with such a mix of lazy individuals?” I asked.
“I guess I was too soft with them at first. Now they expect to be coddled.” Joseph was disappointed with the group he was leading.
I agreed with his assessment. “Yes, that can happen. That’s why I ended up here. My neighborhood had too many that were just deadweight and didn’t want to carry the load.”
“What happened?”
“Oh, they all died. My kids and I were the only ones with enough sense to get out. The rest were either killed or captured by a mob too large to stop. We got overrun in the end.”
“Do you think that will happen here?” Joseph sounded worried. I got the sense that they must have had deeper issues than just some lazy members.
“With the way it’s looking, a small group of only four or five people could wipe your camp out in one small fight.”
“What can we do?”
“Either fight, or don’t. That’s the only option these days. Fight to protect what you love, or let someone else take them from you by force. You have three more weapons at your disposal. I suggest you let me go over them to make sure they’re in decent condition, then you give them to Jordan, Pam, and Angel. You take the weapons they are currently carrying and use them for additional perimeter security. That means you need to find three more people you can trust with a gun to help defend this place or you will lose it.”
“What do you have in mind?”
We stopped dragging when we got to a spot with recently disturbed soil. “We take out Devin and Burt’s buddies first, then you need to expand your patrols out further so you can cut off these probes from other groups looking to kill you.”
“Are you going to stay to help us do all of that?”
“The killing part I’ll help with. I can also help you with patrols at first. Angel seems to have good instincts, and you move well for someone of your size. As their leader
though, you can’t go out there and creep in the woods all the time. They need you here pulling their collective heads out of their asses.”
Angel finally made his way over to us with his load. I went back to my stack of gear and retrieved my folding shovel. We took turns digging one common grave for the three bodies. We stripped Devin, Burt, and Raymond of anything useful. I was creeped out by taking their boots and clothes, but I didn’t see anyone lining up to open a textile mill or a leather working shop. We had to become excellent recyclers. The environmentalists would be proud; recycle, reduce, and reuse.
I remembered something before we started tossing the dirt over the corpses. “Dang, let me get my wire back. It’s handy for snares and apparently good for restraints.” Crap, I had to crawl in the hole to do it. Next time execute them near where you wanted to bury them, and scavenge everything before rolling them into a shallow grave.
In all fairness, we just didn’t have decent shovels for getting them six feet under. If I were still on the trail, I would have left them where they lay, but I didn’t want to stink up a potential camp if I could help it.
CHAPTER
FOUR
I asked Angel to go collect my team so we could regroup and debrief. They needed to know the complete story, and they got freaked out if they were left in the dark too long. My kids were still getting used to the world’s lack of technology cold turkey, so unlike us oldsters who weren’t born with a smartphone shoved in our hand, they wanted a constant flow of information. That must be one reason they advanced to my “rescue” instead of running away. I didn’t give enough data for them to work on so their “default” setting was to protect the group.
They were still learning. In the Army, basic training was eight weeks for me. I was essentially turning them into light infantry without the benefit of any support except what we could carry ourselves. I didn’t treat them like a drill sergeant. They needed to be comfortable around me and trust that I would be there for them.