The Encampment

by Edward Kendrick

  “You trying to drown?” Vin called out when the current caught Davie, pushing him faster than he could swim against it. Seconds later Vin was in the water. He grabbed Davie’s arm, pulling him safely away from the fallen tree scant inches away.

  Regaining his feet after Vin dragged him closer to shore, Davie took a deep breath. “Thanks. I guess that wasn’t my smartest move.”

  “Not really. Damned good thing I was here or you’d dancing with the tree branches. They make a lousy partner.”

  Davie bit back a laugh, even though he knew what Vin was trying to say. “That was almost poetic.”

  “Yeah, well…” Vin waded back to shore with Davie right behind him.

  Exhausted and suddenly scared when he realized what could have happened if Vin hadn’t been there, Davie dropped to his knees, taking in several shaky breaths.

  He felt a hand on his shoulder, then Vin said, “Next time, don’t.”

  “No kidding. Guess it comes from being a city boy. The only places I’ve swum were swimming pools.”

  “Now you know.” Vin squeezed Davie’s shoulder. “We should probably get back and get out of our wet clothes.”

  At that point, Davie realized that except for his shoes Vin was still fully dressed, and soaking wet. The way his T-shirt clung to his chest reinforced what Davie had noticed several days ago—Vin definitely was no slouch when it came to muscles. He gaze slid down. He quickly raised it again, not wanting Vin to get the wrong idea. He’s all muscle—everywhere. Well, not certain about everywhere and for sure I’ll never find out. “Yeah, home sounds good, fish or no fish.”

  “Maybe next time,” Vin replied.

  Davie donned his shirt, they both put on their shoes, and then picked up the poles and began the long, and very silent walk back, as Vin had apparently decided he’d done all the talking he was going to for the time being.

  * * * *

  “What the hell happened to you?” Grey asked when Davie came into the cabin. Davie told him, eliciting a, “You and Vin are getting real chummy.”

  “He’s a good guy and for whatever reason he seems to trust me.”

  “More than he does anyone else here, from what I’ve heard.”

  “Some people are like that,” Davie replied as he headed to the bathroom to get out of his wet jeans. He took a very quick shower, dried off, and with the towel wrapped around his waist went to his bedroom to put on clean clothes. At that point he realized he needed to do laundry, so he stuffed everything in his backpack, got his dirty towels as well, stopped long enough to ask Grey if he wanted him to do his, too, which he didn’t. He picked up the fishing rod to return it and walked across the clearing to the laundry cabin.

  He’d just put everything in the washer and turned it on when the cabin door opened. Turning, he saw Ran standing there.

  “We need to talk,” Ran said, “but not now. I want you at my cabin first thing in the morning.”

  Davie sucked in a breath. “Did I do something wrong?”

  “Nope.” Ran smiled. “Like I said, we have to talk. I’ll see you around eight, or whenever you finish breakfast.” With that said, he left.

  Davie hurried back to his cabin, wanting to tell Grey about Ran, but he wasn’t there. “Of course,” he grumbled. He decided to fix a sandwich while his laundry was washing, did, and took it with him. He finished eating then paced until it was time to put the laundry in the dryer. Once that was done, he went to his cabin again only to find it still empty, so he got his book and sat outside at one of the tables to read. Glancing up at the dark clouds overhead, he hoped the rain would hold off for a while longer.

  “You look lonely,” Ace said and he and Will came over, both of them carrying dirty clothes wrapped in bundles.

  “Naw. Waiting for the dryer to finish doing its thing is all,” Davie replied.

  “Whew.” Will grinned. “If we’d been half an hour earlier, we’d have had to hang out until your washing washed.”

  Ace shot him a look. “Washing washed?”

  “You know what I meant. Damn.”

  “Next week it won’t be a problem, according to Maddox,” Davie said.

  Will pumped a fist. “Yeah! Saturdays are when most of us do our laundry. Don’t ask. I have no clue why. Probably habit from when we were growing up.” His expression darkened momentarily. “Anyway, we’d better get in there before someone beats us to it.” He strode over to the cabin with Ace right behind him.

  Ace returned a few minutes later, sitting across from Davie. “Mr. OCD has to watch the machine, in case something goes wrong,” he explained when Davie asked.

  Davie nodded, then asked the question at the top of his mind. “Do you know why Ran wants to talk to me?”

  “Nope. Probably wants to get to know you since you’re new here. He’s like that. He wants to be sure you understand the rules about boundaries, the real ones that is, and can accept them.”

  Davie frowned. “He already explained about the fence and what he does.”

  “Well, be ready for him to do that again,” Ace said. “When I first got here he laid down the law. It’s just him.”

  “Okay. That’s a relief, I guess.”

  “If you were in trouble, you’d be facing Maddox, not Ran.” Ace changed the subject, asking what Davie was reading. When Davie told him, he said, “When you’re finished, I’ll trade you for one of mine, if you want.”

  “You’re on.”

  They chatted a bit about books they liked until Will came over to tell Davie his laundry was dry.

  “Is that a hint I should come and get it so you can use the dryer?” Davie asked with a grin.

  “Maybe? Well, yeah.” He sighed when the first raindrops hit the ground, making a dash back to the laundry cabin.

  Davie was right behind him. He gathered his clothes, stuffed them in his backpack, and raced to his cabin as the rain began pelting down. Grey still hadn’t returned, so Davie folded his clothes before he settled on the sofa to read. He must have been tired because he fell asleep, awakening when he heard the cabin door open.

  “What, you don’t have dinner ready?” Grey said in obviously feigned dismay.

  “Yeah, yeah. Give me a minute,” Davie replied, wiping the sleep from his eyes. He went into the kitchen area to see what was available while Grey disappeared into his room.

  “Hamburgers or sloppy Joes?” Davie called out. “Or if you don’t mind waiting, I can make a meatloaf.”

  “That sounds good,” Grey called back.

  “Which?”

  “Meat loaf.”

  Davie got what he needed, mixed everything together in a small pan, and put it in the oven to cook. While it did, Grey made a salad. When everything was ready, they sat down to eat.

  “What did you do while I was doing my laundry and napping?” Davie asked once he’d made inroads into his meal.

  “Helped Lon plan Buzz’s birthday. He wants it to be special because Buzz is turning eighteen.”

  “A mere kid,” Davie said with a laugh. He could say that because he’d been eighteen for the last four months.

  “Watch it,” Grey growled. “I may not be that old yet, but I’m no kid.” Then he grinned. “Though I’ll admit I can act like one at times.”

  “No kidding. I think I’m going to feel like one tomorrow, like it or not.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yeah. Ran said we have to talk, which sounds ominous.”

  “Eh. He’s probably going to reiterate what he told us the first time you met him. He does that with everyone.”

  “Yeah, that’s what Ace said, too. I hope that’s all it is.”

  “You haven’t fucked up, so relax.”

  “True. I’ll try.”

  Chapter 5

  At eight on the dot Sunday morning, Davie raised his hand to knock on Ran’s door, hesitated, and then did after telling himself to grow a pair. A moment later, the door opened and Ran let him in.

  Looking around, Davie said nervously, “Nice pla
ce.”

  Ran snorted. “If you like basic comfort. I’m not big on decorating.” He nodded to the sofa, which had utilitarian brown cushions on a stainless steel frame. The armchair across from it looked a hell of a lot more comfortable but Davie wasn’t going to argue—especially when Ran sat in it. Davie perched on the edge of the sofa, watching Ran.

  “Okay, first things first,” Ran said. “I’ve already told you about the protections we’ve set up on the Encampment, so we don’t have to go over them again unless you have any questions.”

  “Not that I can think of.”

  “Good. I want you to meet someone.” As soon as Ran said that, the door at the far end of the room opened. A tall, blond man stood there, studying Davie. Then he came across the room to take a seat at the other end of the sofa.

  “Davie, this is Slade,” Ran said by way of introductions.

  With bravado he really didn’t feel, Davie replied, “So you’re the infamous protector Grey’s told me about.”

  Slade chuckled. “I am.”

  Licking his suddenly dry lips, Davie asked, “Why are you here? Or more, why are we here in the same room?”

  “I wanted to get to know you personally. I’m aware of why you’re at the Encampment, of course. I also know something of your life since you left home, thanks to Grey.”

  “Blabbermouth,” Davie muttered.

  “That was part of his job. I have to find out as much as possible about young men who need my help.”

  “Then it shouldn’t have been any surprise to you that the bastard came looking for me.” Davie paused, shaking his head. “It was for me, though, after more than six months.”

  “He was hospitalized for three of them, in a coma.” Slade smiled dryly. “You pack quite a, well not a punch, but…”

  “Do the cops know it was me?”

  Slade nodded. “They do, but given what your mother told them and the note you left her, they decided you acted in self-defense.”

  “No shit! Apparently he doesn’t believe in forgive and forget.”

  “I’d say not, especially since your mother kicked him out of the house a month after he’d recovered.”

  “A day late and all that, but still.” Davie shook his head sadly.

  “Indeed. How did you feel about what you did to him?”

  “That he deserved it! All right, that was part of it. I was also scared that I killed him, which is why I called 911. I’m not normally violent but he was trying to rape me, so I defended myself.”

  “I might debate your claim of non-violence considering how often you defended Grey and other kids who needed it,” Slade replied.

  “I couldn’t turn my back on them, God damn it.”

  “Most people would have, and some did, I’m sure.”

  “Yeah, well that’s not me.”

  Slade turned to Ran. “What do you think?”

  “He appears to be telling the truth.”

  “Appears to be?” Davie scowled at Ran.

  “I can only judge by your tone of voice and body language. I can’t read your mind.”

  “If you could…” Davie’s scowl deepened.

  “You’d try to punch me out?”

  Davie nodded. “It occurred to me, at the spur of the moment,” he admitted.

  “You’d have been on the losing end if you did.”

  “It’s happened before. I’m still alive,” he said tightly.

  “Davie, calm down,” Slade admonished him. “I have a proposition for you. Or rather I will, if Ran tells me he thinks you can handle it. In order for him to do so, he’s going to have to work with you to teach you some of the finer aspects of self-defense.”

  That piqued Davie’s interest. “Like what?”

  “Like how to survive no matter what,” Ran replied.

  “Sure, why not? I won’t be here forever and when I get back to the streets it might come in handy. Especially if the bastard’s still around and looking for me.”

  “Very well,” Slade said. “When can you start, Ran?”

  “This afternoon.”

  Slade looked sternly at Davie. “This is between the three of us. Understood? As far as anyone else is concerned, Ran is going to be taking you with him when he patrols the fence line looking for any problems. That way, you can do it yourself if he has to leave for any reason.”

  Davie chuckled. “That’s what we though was happening with Pace, until he left.” He looked inquiringly at the two men.

  “He’s helping me with something,” Slade said.

  “Which is all you’re going to tell me.”

  “It is.”

  “Okay, Davie, go home for now,” Ran said. “Tell Grey your story, if he asks, eat, and we’ll meet back here this afternoon. Dress in something you can move in comfortably.”

  “No tux shirt and bow tie?” Davie replied sardonically as he got up.

  Ran laughed. “Somehow I doubt you own either of them.”

  “No kidding.”

  * * * *

  “What did you tell Grey?” Ran asked as soon as Davie arrived at his cabin.

  “Just what you suggested, nothing more. He seemed to believe me.”

  “Good.” Ran beckoned for Davie to follow him, taking him into a room off the main one that had Davie looking around with a combination of shock and interest.

  “I didn’t know there were this many different kinds of weapons.”

  “Davie, these barely scratch the surface of what’s out there.”

  There were two steel cases, with glass doors, that held four rifles each. A similar case had several handguns, some of which Davie recognized from TV shows he’d watched before leaving home. On the opposite wall, also behind the glass doors of a steel case, were a variety of knives of varying sizes and shapes.

  “Are these something you collect?” Davie asked as he studied the knives.

  “Nope. They’re all ones I use or have used, depending on the situation.”

  “What if someone breaks in to steal them?”

  “First they’d have to bypass the security on each case. Then, unless they know the combination, they’d have to break the glass, which is virtually impossible.”

  “O-o-o-kay.”

  Ran grinned. “I’d give you a sledge hammer and let you try, but I don’t have one handy.”

  “I wouldn’t try if you did. I believe you.”

  “Good. Now, have you every handled a gun or used a knife for anything other than eating?”

  “No. There are my weapons.” Davie held up his fists. “Well…” he grimaced, “Except once when I grabbed the nearest thing to defend myself, which was a heavy lamp.”

  “Did you wish you’d had something better?”

  “At the moment? Yes, I guess I did. I don’t really remember. I was trying to keep him off me and I suppose if I’d had a knife I might have used it. I don’t know.”

  “What about the street fights you got into? Did you use any found weapons in them?”

  “No. Okay, once I wrestled a pipe away from a guy and used it on him, but only to let him know he’d better get his ass gone, or else.” Davie barely smiled. “He probably ended up with a couple of sore ribs, but it did the job.”

  “That’s what all this is about,” Ran replied, gesturing to encompass the weapons. “Doing the job and coming out alive; and best-case scenario, unhurt.”

  “Makes sense to me, but honestly I don’t know if I could shoot someone.”

  “First you have to learn how to, which is what we’ll start on today.” Ran went to the pistol case, opened it, and handed one to Davie.

  “Why a pistol, not a rifle? That’s what you carry when you’re on patrol.”

  “I carry both,” Ran pointed out. “Up here, that’s fine and necessary. In the city you’d be pretty conspicuous with a rifle slung over your shoulder.”

  “I am not carrying a gun down there. All I’d need would be for a cop…Wait a second. You mean you’re training me so I can do whatever Slade has p
lanned down there?”

  “If we decide you can handle it. I’m not saying you’ll have a gun, but I want you to know how to use one properly and accurately, anyway. Once I’m satisfied you can, we’ll move on to knives, which in my opinion will be more practical and the cops won’t hassle you as long as its blade is legal length or less, which in this state is three and a half inches.”

  “Can we pass on the gun and jump right to the knife?” Davie asked hopefully.

  “Nope. Let’s go.” Ran gave Davie an inside the waistband holster for the pistol, showed him how to wear it, then slung his rifle over his shoulder, holstered his gun and they left the cabin.

  After a good ten minutes of walking, they came to a glade set up as a shooting range with a small shed to one side.

  “If someone sees this, they’re going to wonder what’s going on here,” Davie said, eyeing the three tripod target stands in front of him.

  “If someone makes it over the fence, they’ll have more to worry about than why there’s a shooting range,” Ran replied as he went to the shed. He returned with paper targets that he affixed to the stands.

  With that done, he proceeded to tell Davie what he needed to know about using the pistol by demonstrating and then having Davie mimic his actions.

  “Remember, if you don’t have the right stance, you’ll probably screw up the shot. And breathe, Davie. Breathe naturally.”

  “Easy for you to say,” Davie muttered.

  Ran laughed, acknowledging he was right. Next he showed him how to load the pistol, as Davie had been practicing with it empty. “Now comes the fun part. See if you can hit the bull’s eye in the right-hand target.”

  “How about seeing if I can hit the target, period?” Davie set his stance, held the pistol the way Ran had taught him, and then paused. “What if I miss and there’s a deer or a bird or something out there?”

  “If you hit one, we have dinner tonight. There won’t be though. We haven’t exactly been quiet since we got here.”

  With a nod, Davie fired. The recoil, as Ran had warned him it would, jerked his hands and arms so he missed the target completely. “Fuck,” he muttered and tried again, and again. Third time must have been the charm because he hit the edge of the target.

  He was so concentrated on what he was doing he didn’t realize Ran was behind him until the man put his arms around him, his hands over Davie’s. For a brief second, he wondered if Ran was coming on to him in some weird way. Not that he’d refuse if that was the case. He wasn’t. He adjusted how Davie was holding the gun, and his arms, telling him to bend his left elbow slightly.