They succeeded in getting Goliath’s attention away from the terrified audience but now Goliath had turned on them. Cleetus was back on his feet and swatted Goliath on the nose several times with his bamboo rod. Goliath had seemed to have enough of all the commotion and began to make his way back to his pond. Cleetus followed close behind to make sure he retreated.
Once Goliath was back in the water, Cleetus spun on his heels to stare down Ava and her boyfriend. He grinned wickedly and snorted like a bull ready to charge.
"Fucking Asshole! Whaaaaaak!"
Armand dive bombed Cleetus. Cleetus ducked down as Armands talons scraped the top of his head, a near miss.
Armand perched on a nearby palm frond. Cleetus scanned around looking for the bird, keeping his shoulders square to Ava and Jason. Ava used the distraction to turn the tide. She reached into the backpack.
“Hey Cleetus! NEVER turn your back on the water!”
She threw a one pound bag of M&M’s at Cleetus and it hit him right in the face. Armand was on it before it could hit the ground. Armand flew straight into Cleetus’ face, grabbing the bag of candy covered chocolates, and knocking Cleetus flat on his ass in the process.
Goliath, who had been eyeing up the unsuspecting meal standing at the edge of his pond, saw his victim fall down. Without hesitation, Goliath launched out of the water and snagged Cleetus by the head and began swallowing him whole, and alive. Cleetus would have screamed if he wasn’t already in the back of the alligator’s throat.
* * * * *
Jason grabbed Ava and hugged her close to him so she wouldn’t have to witness the gruesome scene. Ava buried her face in his neck. She wasn’t worried about watching Cleetus get eaten alive; she was too busy melting into the arms of her knight in shining armor.
“Come with me,” Jason implored suddenly.
Ava felt a surge of freedom. With his three simple words, she understood completely that she was a slave here and she had an option. She could go and be free of the servitude. She knew it would be dangerous out there with the dead, but she also came to recognize that it was dangerous in here with the living. Ava would much rather take her chances with the dead.
“Yes, take me away from here, Jason.”
Jason took Ava by the hand and they rushed to join the rest of the group. Everyone had had enough excitement for one day. Jason explained to the leader of his group that Ava would be joining them back at St. Augustine. Everyone in the group was fine with Ava going back with them.
Otis noticed the mass exodus of his patrons. He ran out of the restaurant where he was doing what he always did when everyone was at the show and totally distracted, including Cleetus and Ava. Otis cut the group off as they made their way to the exit.
He was wearing a white butcher’s apron; it was smeared almost completely in blood. He held a large cleaver in his hand. He motioned, with his free hand, for everyone to stop.
“Where are you all going? Did something happen at the show? Where is Cleetus?”
Nobody responded but they all stood, defensively, watching Otis freak out, with a cleaver waving menacingly around, as he asked questions. Ava stepped forward, Armand perched on her shoulder and Jason at her side. She had some questions of her own.
“What are you up to, Otis? What's with the butcher’s outfit? What goes on in that building you don’t want me to see?”
Otis lowered the cleaver, realizing he was scaring everyone with it. His shoulders slumped. He shook his head.
“Girl, you don’t really think the miniscule bits of food these people bring us are enough for us to survive on do you? Those chickens and other game fowl they bring in... think about it girl, does dinner really taste like chicken?”
Ava’s eyes widened.
Otis continued, “They say it tastes like chicken. And, if you don’t know any better, then it clearly does. But gator meat does taste a bit different, if you know what it is you’re eating. That’s right, girl, we’ve been eating gator. We’ve been sustaining on gator. We’ve been surviving on gator.”
Ava was incredulous. “This was a no kill farm, Otis! That’s why my parents came here because they wanted their entertainment to be humane. You’ve insulted the spirit of this place. I’m leaving; I’m going with these people. I won’t be a part of this anymore.”
“I kept you alive!” he cried, “I took you in when your parents turned! You can’t leave girl, you’re mine!”
Ava walked up to Otis. She stood toe to toe with him for the first time. She stared him dead in the eye. It was the first time she ever saw fear in Otis’ eyes.
“I am leaving Otis. I will not be back. After I tell everyone I can on the outside, not many will be back. You may as well pack your things, Otis, and move on. Let these gators all go, set them free and help everyone on the outside for real.”
“Whaaaaak, fucking asshole!” Armand echoed Ava’s sentiments perfectly.
Ava took Jason by the hand. They walked past Otis without a fight. She walked through the gates and walked on into her new life.
The Trap Line
Sean Slagle
Spencer pointed the bow and arrow at the doe as it stood on a nearby hillside. He didn’t have a clear shot, so he quietly walked through the forest in its direction. Killing this deer could be the difference between surviving the winter and not. So far, the hunting cabin had provided the perfect hiding place. The undead seemed to stay along the main roads and urban areas. And why not? That’s where most of the living were, or, at least, had been.
Suddenly, the doe raised its head and sniffed at the air. It knew Spencer was near but just wasn’t sure where he was. Spencer froze. He didn’t want to screw this up. William would kill him if he screwed this up. The doe started walking in the opposite direction. Spencer continued to follow at a safe distance. They traveled along the hillside toward a small overhang of rocks. It stopped, sensing it was no longer in danger. Spencer was too far away for the kill, but . . .
The doe let out a scream as an arrow pierced its body right behind the front shoulder. It jumped into the air and kicked its back legs up before darting down the hillside.
There was a whoop and holler from behind the rocks as William raised his head and smiled. It was a clean shot. William was one of the best marksmen in the county. Both guys watched the deer as it slowed its pace, eventually walking like it was drunk, then falling over to its side.
“Perfect shot!” Spencer yelled as he ran up to William.
“What else did you expect?” William had always been a little cocky, but when it came to hunting, he had a right to be. Ever since he married Katie, Spencer’s older sister, William had been teaching Spencer how to be a better hunter. Who would have ever thought those skills would keep them alive as they became true mountain men living in the wilderness?
That evening Spencer and William cleaned the deer and placed it in the smokehouse while Katie grilled three steaks over the fire. It was the best eating they’d had in a while and the rest of that deer would last them deep into winter. At night, the three of them slept in shifts as they took turns on the night watch.
Long after midnight, Spencer sat on the cabin roof and smoked one of the last cigarettes in his stash. He would soon have to travel into town to stock up. He scanned the surrounding forest. The moon was bright, making it easy for him to see anything that moved along the edge of the trees surrounding the cabin. Nothing moved. But all was not quiet. William and Katie took advantage of their time alone and had some wild sex inside the cabin. Spencer knew they had been in survival mode for so long that they needed that release. And that was good for them, but not so much for Spencer. The only thing worse than listening to his sister screw her husband was the fact that he wasn’t able to have sex. Spencer kicked at the roof. “Quiet down in there. You’re going to get us killed.”
The only reply was a loud moan from Katie and a gasp from William. The romp was over, at least for now. There wasn’t a round two, and all was quiet. They fell into the deep
sleep that only sex can provide. Lost in his thoughts and memories of when the world used to be normal, he kept his vigil until the sun rose in the east. They had survived another night. He climbed down from the roof and knocked on the window. “Get up, you sluts!”
They answered with some grunts.
“I’m walking the trap line. Get up!”
After a few more groans, Spencer was sure they were getting up. He headed down the trail behind the cabin. The trail led to the headwaters of the Auglaize River and the path was a natural wild game run to the water. Spencer and William had set some snares along the path. So far they had caught enough meat to keep them sustained, but the game would eventually run out, and with winter approaching, Spencer usually worried about how they would make it. But not today. Today he was revived with the thought of the deer hanging in the smokehouse. Things were finally looking up.
The first four snares were empty, but when he came over the last hill leading to the water, he saw a rabbit hanging from the snare. The twitch-up snare had worked, jerking the rabbit into the air and snapping its neck in the process. A part of him felt pity for the rabbit. It was just living life and going about its business, but Spencer was also thankful that its life had been sacrificed for them. It was how the world worked. Those higher on the food chain fed on the creatures below them. He took the rabbit from the snare and placed it in his pouch; then he reset the snare. He had one last snare to check on the water’s edge.
Suddenly, a noise snapped him to attention. Someone or something was down by the river. There was a large splash followed by smaller splashes. Was there a deer along the banks? Were the undead coming across the river? Leaving the path, he made his way through the trees and underbrush until he had a clear view of the water.
The noise wasn’t caused by an undead sloshing through the water, nor a deer getting a morning drink, but by a woman bathing along the shore. Spencer lowered the bow and watched carefully, hoping the woman would rise above the water. Her breasts were round and firm. When she stood, her lower body remained under the water, leaving that part to Spencer’s imagination. She slipped back under the water and ran her hands up and down her arms and over her body. Every once in a while her hand disappeared under the water and Spencer could imagine what she was doing. She closed her eyes and moaned just slightly. Spencer began to get hard. It had been too long since he had been with a woman. He wanted nothing more than to walk down there and somehow become a part of her life, if for only a little skinny dip. He decided life was too short, especially now. He rose up and started heading down the hill.
He threw up a hand when the girl looked surprised to see him. He held a finger up to his lips to tell her to be quiet. She lowered herself further under the water and even crossed her arms.
“What the hell, dude!” she said. “Quit looking at me.”
Spencer shook his head. He couldn’t help but look at her. He put the bow and arrow on the ground. “What are you doing out here?”
“Taking a bath. Now why don’t you get out of here and let me finish?”
“I’m not going to hurt you. Let me join you.”
“No,” she screamed, a little too loudly, when he took off his shirt. She took a quick look at his crotch and knew he was ready for her. She held her hands up to block her view. “Please don’t do this.”
“We’re only doing what comes natural.”
Suddenly, he felt the hard muzzle of a pistol on the back of his head. “See something you like, asshole?”
Spencer sighed.
“Don’t move,” the voice said. Spencer obeyed. A hand reached around and pulled the Glock from his belt. There must have been two men, because the muzzle stayed on Spencer’s head while a set of hands patted him down and pulled the knives from their hiding places.
The man whistled and the young woman in the water got out. The man spun Spencer around, making sure Spencer didn’t get a real good look at the woman. The man was larger than normal with a long beard and bushy black hair. He wore black sunglasses, making him appear even more ominous. The other “man” was probably in his mid-teens and pointed a shotgun at Spencer. The older man stepped up in Spencer’s face. “You some kind of pervert or something living out here in the woods?”
Spencer shook his head. “I’m no pervert.”
The man spit some tobacco juice on the ground. A little ran down his beard and stopped at some of the crust along the edges. “Then what you doing staring at my daughter?”
“I just heard something and came to investigate. I didn’t mean no harm.”
“You were about to get naked, you little shit.” He looked down at Spencer’s crotch. “You were going to rape my daughter.” He cocked the gun.
“No,” the girl said, stepping up behind Spencer. Unfortunately, she was dressed. “He was being a gentleman.”
The man lowered the gun and stared at Spencer. “You got some food?”
“No. I’m starving, just like everyone else.”
“You don’t look like you’re starving.” He motioned with his head. “Check him.”
The boy put his gun on the ground, then checked Spencer’s pouch. Spencer closed his eyes and tried to slow his breathing. He wasn’t going to let these hicks get the best of him. He would kill them when the time was right.
The boy pulled the rabbit from the pouch and held it up. The man hit Spencer across the face. “That’s for being untruthful.” The man hit him again. “And that’s for looking at my daughter.” Spencer fell to the ground and held his cheek.
“Father!” the girl yelled, then knelt next to Spencer. “What are you doing?”
The man grabbed the girl by the arm. “Get away from him, Anna.”
Anna jerked away. “How do you expect him to help us if you beat him?”
“He ain’t helping us.” The man turned away. “He’s a liar.”
Even though his jaw burned with pain, Spencer managed a smile at Anna. “I can help you.” While Anna helped him up, Spencer kept his eyes on the man and boy. He was ready to fight them both if they tried anything else.
The man pointed to the path. “So where does this trail lead?”
“Put your guns away and I’ll show you.” Spencer didn’t move until the man put the gun in his holster. “It’s this way.” Spencer pointed in the opposite direction and started that way.
“Bullshit,” the man said with a sideways grin. “You came from that way.”
Spencer started to protest. “But the place is . . .”
The man pulled the gun from the holster. “I’ll shoot you dead right now.” He pointed up the path. “Now lead the way.”
Spencer took another deep breath and headed in the right direction. William was going to kick his ass when he showed up with these people. But what choice did he have? Besides, they were all human beings and there weren’t that many humans left in the area. They had to help each other out. If these people were hungry and there was food to share, then it should be shared. William wasn’t going to see it that way, but a beating from William was better than a bullet in the head.
On the far side of the shore, the undead had arrived and began to wade into the river, keeping track of the prey they had been following.
As they walked along the path, Anna tried to get beside Spencer, but her father wouldn’t let her. It had been a while since her desires had been filled and she needed Spencer as much as he needed her. They had animal instincts that couldn’t be denied. When they came to the clearing near the cabin, Spencer whistled to get William and Katie’s attention. William quickly came from the cabin with rifle in hand. The two hicks quickly pointed their guns at me. It was as if they had done this before. I held up my hands. “It’s all right. William, put your gun down.”
“What the hell, Spencer?”
“They just want some food.”
“Well, we’re all out. You best get on your way.”
The father turned his gun toward William while the son kept his on Spencer. “We ain’t going n
owhere. We need to eat.” The men stared at each other, waiting for someone to make the wrong move.
Katie stepped around William. “You boys put up your guns. We don’t have much, but we can share what we have.” She walked to Anna and took her by the hand. “Come on. It’ll be nice to have some female company.” The girls passed the guys, who still had their guns trained on each other.
“All right,” William said, lowering his gun. “You got anything to trade?”
The man smiled through his bushy beard. “We might be able to work something out.”
By the time the men entered the cabin, the women were already at work skinning the rabbit and slicing the meat. They dumped the meat into the pot above the fireplace fire. It was like they were settlers from two hundred years ago. The father and William sat at the table and dickered over what to trade and what each piece was worth. Spencer blocked them out as he watched Anna slice the meat. Perhaps in another time and place, Spencer could have taken her out to dinner and to a movie. They would slowly get to know each other. But now, at the end of the world, all he wanted to do was screw her.
Finally, William exclaimed, “You have nothing we want or need. After lunch, you folks need to move on.”
The father just stared at William. Neither moved for their guns, no matter how badly they wanted to. Spencer doubted that the father would go so easily. And Spencer knew William wasn’t going to give them anything.
“I’ll make a trade,” Spencer said without looking at them.
“Oh, yeah?” the man asked before spitting in a cup Katie sat in front of him.
“A pouch full of smoked deer jerky for a night with your daughter.”
“You must be out of your goddamn mind.” The father reached for the gun, but William quickly blew the man’s brains all over the table and onto Spencer.
William cocked once and turned to the son, who backed away and ran out the door. Anna ran after him, but quickly stopped at the edge of the door. She screamed. Spencer looked out the window to see the brother being bitten by two undead. William grabbed his rifle and rushed to the door. He fired three quick shots, exploding the heads of the undead and the brother. He slammed the door shut. He turned to Spencer. “Get moving.”
Still Dying 2 (Dying Days) Page 4