The Rabid Mind

by Bruce Buckshot Hemming

  The truck came into view from the side, pulled up to the cabin and backed up to the wood shed. The two men started unloading wood. After a while, a woman with long blonde hair stepped out onto the porch and called out something that Mike couldn’t quite make out. The two men finished up and walked into the cabin. Mike whispered to himself, “Okay, we found you. I’ve seen enough for now. We’re getting outta here and finding a place to spend the night back in town.” As they drove back to town, he said, “There’s at least one woman, maybe another inside the cabin. We have to figure a way to get the men outside and kill ’em or take over the cabin when they are gone.”

  “How we gonna do that?” Brad asked.

  “I’m not sure, but we are going to have to study them for a while and figure it out. I’m betting they have enough food and wood to last the winter.”

  Chapter 17

  Matt was thanking his lucky stars that it was his last night sleeping in the SUV. A nice soft couch and a heated room to sleep in would be paradise. He really liked Jim a lot. He might be an older guy, but he was still in good shape, honest and hardworking, not to mention having a daughter that was well behaved, could cook and was pretty to boot. She didn't have that princess attitude he was used to finding in young women that age. It was refreshing, he thought, and she hunts. But he wondered if she was even interested in him at all. He was sure she wouldn’t be until he at least got cleaned up. He smelled like wood chips and sweat.

  He woke up in the morning and headed over for coffee. Jim was on the porch, smoking his camel. “Those things are going to kill you.” Matt said.

  Jim smiled, “I think we have bigger problems on what is going to kill us, son”

  “Good point. So what’s the plan for today, slave driver?”

  “Let’s see, if you don't freak out on us, then I won't have to kill you. It would be nice having you around and helping on the woodpile, so let's finish up the wood today. I figure four more trips should take care of the wood. Then, if you are still alive tonight, you can come inside, get a shower and sleep on the couch. We can start elk hunting next. With the way you eat, we need to get two elk.”

  Matt laughed. “The way I eat? Okay Mr. slave driver, you work me hard so I eat a lot. In a way, it's your fault.”

  “Huh, never thought about it like that. Anyways, I think you’re okay Matt. You look healthy and you’re not showing any signs of being infected, plus you’re a pretty good shot with your tiny .22, but how about a rifle.”

  “I use to hunt elk with 30-06.”

  “Why didn't you have that with you now?”

  “The Feds took it in a raid, but that’s a long story. I was part of the prepper group that was raided.”

  “The one with the big raid, the one with those illegal weapons where all those people died?

  “Yep, that’s the one. It was a set up though. The Feds had an undercover clown bring the stuff there and then raided us. Who knows what really happened when the shooting started? They were all good people and I can’t believe they would have started shooting first.”

  Jim said, “I know, it’s just like when the Feds shot Randy Weaver’s son in the back. Things go bad when the Feds are around. That’s for sure.”

  “I had over 600 rounds for the .22 and it only weighs 2.5 pounds. It was just awesome to carry.”

  They continued to chat as they worked hard all day long and little did they know that the camp was being watched.

  Sandra was getting sick and tired of being stuck in the cabin, so she walked outside after they had left. She looked up at the beautiful mountains, enjoying the fresh air and brilliant yellow on the leaves with the green pines. What a great place to spend the end of the world, she thought. If they were going to be stuck in the cabin all winter, she needed to get out and hunt elk. She had to make some memories.

  She let her mind wander, wondering if Matt liked her? She hoped he wasn’t like most guys that had to have the big-breasted women. He probably thought her A cups were too small. Her friends had always ended up with all of the guys and she was the odd girl out. She’d had one boyfriend in college her freshman year. He was the one that took her virginity and then left her for a girl with bigger breasts. She was real insecure about that. Trying to shake off the memory, she decided it was time to figure out where the elk were.

  The cold mornings would be driving them down the mountain. The elk typically came right by their camp, but at times they didn't and avoided it. Either way, there was no excuse for not getting an elk. She decided she was going to talk her dad into letting her sit by the hidden spring, her favorite spot, where she shot her first elk when she was 14. Ah, the memory of the 5 x 5 point elk walking up through the forest, bugling to the harem bull above her...the excitement and feeling were still there.

  She remembered it well. Suddenly, out of the woods the 5 x 5 had stepped into view, his breath coming off in a heavy steam as he bugled again. He had been about 75 yards away when she leveled the rifle on him. He was bouncing all over in the scope and she had to tell herself to calm down. Steadying up against a tree, she finally got the crosshairs to settle down. He was below her, quartering off just a little. Her .270 echoed across the valley and the bull dropped to one knee. She shot again, aiming for the chest and he dropped, sliding down the hill. She jumped up and did a little ‘I got ‘em’ jig dance, bouncing around. Her dad never told her that he had the monster 7 x 7 main bull elk coming to him and he had been one step away from dropping him when she shot. The big bull disappeared in a flash.

  He had walked down and could hear her long before he saw her. He knew she had connected and he thought it would be some spike elk. The good thing was that she was only about 1/4 of mile from the logging road. It wouldn’t be too bad hauling it downhill to the truck.

  The memory of that day had stirred her up. She was ready to go out and get some action going, hunting elk. Enough of this other stuff. Come on dad, she prayed, hurry up with the wood.

  That night after dinner, Matt was invited inside. He brought his sleeping bag in, but Sandra wasn't having that. She put a sheet out on the couch, with a pillow and comforter. She showed him how to heat up the water and cool it down to a good temperature, before pouring it in the solar shower bag.

  “Run the water for a while to get wet, shut it off and soap up, then rinse off.”

  Matt felt like a new man after that shower. He wished he had three water bags to use, but one was great. He would have saved two gallons of the hot water to just enjoy running over him, but rinsing his hair took up most of it. Still, he was happy. God, he must have stunk bad, he thought.

  Sandra was reading a book when he walked out of the bathroom. Wow...he was good looking cleaned up, she thought.

  Jim said, “Man, you look half way decent now. No bites, you’re not insane, so I guess we can keep you around for a while.”

  Matt smiled, “That felt wonderful. Definitely the best I’ve felt in weeks.”

  Jim said, “Well tomorrow Sandra and I are going elk hunting. Unfortunately you will have to stay and guard the place. We have come too far to risk losing it to looters. Besides, Sandra and I work great as a hunting team and we understand the area.”

  Matt replied, “No problem. What do you want me to do when you’re gone, split wood?”

  “Good idea.” Jim smiled. “See, you are fitting in around here just fine.”

  Jim went to bed early. Sandra and Matt spent the evening talking on the couch, before heading off to bed.

  Chapter 18

  The three meth heads had taken up camp in a trailer house off the main road. Mike left the two morons to set up the meth lab. They needed to cook up a lot of meth to get through the winter. The pills they were popping just weren’t the meth fix they needed, but he was now clear headed enough to decide how to take over the camp, or at least grab the girl.

  Mike watched the camp at about 10 that morning. One of the guys was splitting wood and the truck was there, as well as the SUV. The other two must be in
side, he thought. He watched and studied, trying to come up with a plan. In his confused state he was thinking that maybe just grabbing the girl and getting out of there would be the right way to go. Why risk getting killed? Soon they would have meth and enough food from the abandoned house to get through the winter, but they just needed a woman to complete the plan.

  Three days later, Sandra came running into camp shouting, “I got him. I got him. A nice spike elk. I got him and now we’ve got meat for the freezer.” She was flushed with excitement.

  “Where’s Jim?” Matt asked.

  “He’s gutting and skinning the elk. Come on, we have to grab the packboards and now the work begins.”

  “How far away?” Jim asked.

  “Not far. Just a couple of miles.” She ran over, kissed him and then ran off to get the packboards so they could haul the elk meat out.

  They put on the packboard packs, designed for hauling heavy loads of meat, and she was bouncing around, still excited.

  “It was beautiful. Daddy spooked the herd and they ran down the hill right into me. There were cows and calves running all around me. I was waiting for the bulls in the back, when this spike stepped out 50 yards away. One shot, one kill. Oh man, it was so awesome. I can't believe it...and a nice young tender bull. He is going to be such good eating.”

  Sandra and Matt hiked up to where Jim was. Jim had one side skinned and was cutting off the back leg.

  “Give me a hand Matt.” Matt grabbed the leg and Jim expertly cut the bone, just above the joint. “Okay, put that on your pack and don't let it touch the ground. Keep the dirt off of it.” Sandra helped him strap it to the packboard. “Okay Sandra, I’m cutting the front leg off for you to haul and when you come back, bring the other packboard and we should be able to finish it off.”

  It was dark by the time they finished. The meat was hung out on the porch rafter to age overnight. The weather was still too warm during the day to let it age for 5 days, but they needed to get it cut up and in the freezer, or they could lose it to a bear.

  The next day was spent cutting it up into just meat, with no bones at all. Sandra cooked the liver and heart for lunch and dinner. It was surprisingly good and Matt wondered why he had never saved the liver or heart from his elk before.

  All three took the next day off. Matt wanted to cook dinner for them for a change. Something he knew how to cook was elk steak.

  They talked over dinner. “Okay, our main meat problem is solved. If we get lucky and shoot a second elk, we can probably get the steaks in the freezer, but we’ll have to make jerky out of everything else.” Jim said.

  “I would like to hunt this time, if you would let me.” Matt said.

  Sandra replied, “What’s the matter, don't like being shown up by a girl?” She smiled.

  “No, that’s not it. In fact, I’ve always wanted to date a girl that hunted.”

  Sandra’s eyes got bigger and she said, “Date? We are not dating!”

  “Sorry. I guess that just came out wrong.”

  Jim interrupted the two, saying, “Yeah. I think that’s a good idea. You have worked hard and you deserve to have some fun.” He looked over at Sandra with the “drop it” look.

  “Thank you. I appreciate that.”

  Laundry was up to each person. They had one of those sit on the counter hand washers, with the handle you spin around. It handled about one person’s set of clothes. They would put the clothes, water and soap inside, rotate it with the handle several times and let it soak for a few minutes before draining and refilling it with rinsing water, repeating the actions as necessary. Once the clothes were cleaned, they hung them out to air dry, after wringing out as much water as possible by hand. Sandra washed her clothes first thing in the morning and hung them up on the clothesline to dry outside. It was a habit for her to do it every morning.

  After four days, they gave up hunting.

  Jim said, “Let's give it a break and let the elk calm down. We’re just wasting time chasing them. There should be more around, but who knows...they might not be in this area for another week.”

  That night Matt and Sandra were sitting up talking after Jim had gone to bed. As they were sitting close, glancing at each other on and off, one thing led to the next and soon they were making out. Matt tried unbuttoning her blouse, but she pushed him off. “Not yet Mister. Slow down. You haven’t earned that right.”

  Matt was confused. “What’s the matter? I thought . . .”

  She interrupted. “Well you thought wrong. It’s not going to be that easy.”

  Sandra bolted off to bed, leaving Matt in his confusion. Women, he thought, you just can't figure them out. Hell, she was the first one to kiss him out of the blue. Maybe she was a virgin. Either way he was going to have to play by her rules. He drifted off to sleep.

  The next day it was as if nothing had happened and she acted normal. Matt was surprised, but realized he should be pleased.

  The following evening, after they quit hunting, Jim and Matt were sitting on the porch and they heard an elk bugle up the mountain above them. Jim smiled. “Told you that second herd was due through tomorrow. We’ve got to find out where they are hanging out and hopefully, within a day or two, we’ll get the next elk for the freezer. By the way Matt, how are you and Sandra getting along?”

  “Great, as far as I know.”

  “Well just remember our little talk. I don't want her to end up pregnant.”

  “I don't think you have to worry about that, sir.”

  “See that I don't, please.”

  Chapter 19

  The next morning the meth-heads headed out. Mike had figured today might be the day to grab the girl, Sandra. He hoped the two men would be gone, making it easy to send Brad to grab her, pepper spray her, strip her of her weapons and then haul her back to the running SUV.

  Matt was near the top of the mountain, just above where he figured the elk had bugled the night before. The thick forest made it hard to see anything. The cold morning air hit his face with the wind coming up hill as he slowly and carefully walked down, hunting in the brush. ‘Step, stop, listen, and look’ was a slow process, but he knew it was better to take his time than spook the herd before he saw them. Jim had a spot he planned on sitting at where the elk normally come up to bed down for the night. He figured Matt could slowly work his way down the mountain to the cabin. Any elk that he spooked might swing around and come up the hill to him.

  Jim stepped out onto a ledge and could see down around him for a good 75 yards. It was a nice place to sit and spend an hour or so, he thought.

  The three meth-heads drove up near the camp. Sandra was normally out around 9:30 in the morning and the guys normally didn't come back until around noon or dark. Either way, the meth-heads figured they would have plenty of time to kidnap Sandra and have at least a 2 1/2 hour head start.

  Matt was working his way downhill again and it was now 8:44am. He still hadn’t seen anything, but then he heard an elk bugle. His adrenaline started pumping. They were still below him. He quickened his pace, stalking the sound. Closer and closer he crept up on the unsuspecting bull. Every time he got close, the bull would disappear, without him seeing or hearing it run off.

  They played cat and mouse for an hour and, before he knew it, he was right above the camp. He never even saw the ghost bull.

  Sandra was reading a book and had forgotten to rinse her clothes. She got up to take care of the rinse and wring them out, glancing at the clock. It was 9:50am, the sun was out and the day was warming up. It was time to get the clothes out in the sun.

  Dale was hiding near the porch and heard the door open. He ducked down and crept to the edge quietly, listening to the footsteps on the porch. There was a pause and his heart stopped, wondering if she had seen him. He waited and listened, but there was nothing. Then he heard her step down the stairs. As soon as she had her back to him and was walking to the clothesline, he stood up and took off after her. Her hands were full with the laundry basket, so
he had to close the distance between them fast before she could draw and shoot him. His hand was sweating around the pepper spray, so he tightened his grip. When he was about five feet away, she heard him and dropped the basket, swinging around to face the threat. It was perfect, he realized, allowing him to spray her directly in the face.

  Sandra screamed in pain. It felt like thousands of stinging nettles whipping her face and eyes. Her nose began running and she couldn’t see anything because her eyes were tearing up and drool started pouring out of her mouth. She felt a fist connect with her jaw, knocking her to the ground. She could feel him undoing her belt, but the pain prevented her from stopping him. She tried to roll away as he ripped off the belt, her pistol and knife. He grabbed her by the hair and started dragging her. Mike was watching from a distance with the binoculars and he jumped in the SUV.

  “Let's go. Drive up there and turn around,” He ordered Brad.

  Matt heard the engine start up and ran over to see what was going on. From a distance he saw the black Escalade pull up and heard Sandra screaming for help. The Escalade turned around and the rear door swung open. He saw a man dragging Sandra by the hair. He quickly found a log and positioned himself for a steady shot.

  Back in the SUV, Brad was grinning from ear to ear. He couldn’t wait to break this one in. It was going to be so much fun. Mike had the door open with only 20 feet to go. Dale stopped at about 10 feet and picked Sandra up by the arm, shoving her towards Mike.

  Matt’s first shot rang out, shattering the rear window. Mike grabbed Sandra, shoved her in the back and climbed in on top of her. As Brad jumped out of the SUV to help Dale, Matt’s second shot hit Dale in the center of his chest, throwing him backwards, dead. Brad pulled out his pistol and started firing randomly up the hill. Matt’s next shot blew the gun out of Brad’s hand, taking off his bottom finger.