Solar Plexus

by Victor Zugg

  She had been able to put that out of her mind and move on even though the guy lived in her hometown and she would occasionally run into him when she returned home on leave. But she never let herself be alone with him again. And she became a pretty good judge of character. She could spot the telltale signs of trouble in a person fairly quickly. When she saw those signs, she would back off and steer clear. Plenty of men came on to her in the marines, and she had been harassed more times than she could count, but she had always been able to keep things from going too far. She joked and cussed with the best of them, all the time keeping a wary eye.

  But nothing in her past compared to this situation. All she could do was be ready to strike when the opportunity presented itself. What was that saying? Luck is when preparation meets opportunity. She was definitely prepared; she just needed the opportunity.

  CHAPTER 7

  The man with the ball cap wheeled the buggy along the sandy firebreak through the trees. Earring sat in the passenger seat focused on the trail ahead. Tiff, with her hands behind her back, sat on the rear bench seat next to the bearded man.

  Tiff wrinkled her nose. “When was the last time you guys took a bath?”

  “As a matter of fact, I’ll be taking one tonight—with you,” Ball Cap answered.

  Tiff turned her head to the side, away from the bearded man, as the three men chuckled.

  “I’m after you,” said the earring. Another round of chuckles.

  Ball Cap looked over to Earring. “We need to make a quick stop at the house and then we’ll head out to Jimmy’s.”

  “Food and water?”

  Ball Cap nodded. “Yeah, plus there’s gas in the truck. We can top off this tank at least. And I want to get the trailer.”

  Earring picked up Sam’s rifle and examined it closely. “This is mine.”

  Ball Cap smiled at Earring. “Whatever floats your boat rat brain.”

  Earring frowned. “Don’t call me that,” he said, with a voice in a higher octave. “You might be the oldest brother but it ain’t right.”

  “Okay, okay, don’t get your panties in a wad,” Ball Cap said.

  Earring went back to examining the rifle and held it up to show the bearded man.

  The beard smiled but didn’t say anything.

  Tiff shook her head trying to comprehend her twilight zone situation. On the one hand, it was comical watching these three. But on the other hand, it was deadly serious. She would likely end up raped multiple times and then dead. And setting aside for a moment her dire state of affairs, what about Sam and Chet? They now had no vehicle, no food, water, or weapons. Not even a knife. Tiff shook her head again and clenched her jaw.

  ***

  Birds. Chet heard birds chirping as the fog lifted in his brain and he regained consciousness. And then he sensed a pounding headache. Opening his eyes just added to his pain and confusion. He was face down on asphalt and unable to move. He then realized his hands and feet were tied together. And then he remembered the two men that had accosted him and Tiff. Tiff? What happened to Tiff?

  Chet began to struggle against his bindings and then heard Sam’s voice.

  “I was starting to worry about you.”

  “What the hell happened? Where’s Tiff?”

  Sam shifted in his own bindings, “They took her, along with the buggy, food, water, and all our gear.”

  Chet was able to roll to his side so he could face Sam. “How long was I out?”

  Sam was on his side. “Half hour or so.”

  Chet saw that Sam was rubbing his hands against the asphalt trying to abrade the parachute cord. “How long have you been at that?”

  “Twenty-nine minutes or so—hopefully it’s working.”

  Just then Sam’s hands popped free. Sam rolled onto his back and sat up. He reached into his pocket and came out with a Victorinox pocket knife. He opened the knife and sliced through the cord around his feet. He then hopped up and did the same to Chet’s bindings. Chet got to his feet with Sam’s help.

  “How are you feeling?” Sam asked.

  “Wobbly, but I’ll live.”

  Chet walked over and leaned against the abutment. “Which way did they go?”

  Sam pointed to the opening in the fence on the other side of the interstate. “That way.”

  Chet winced when he rubbed the knot on the back of his head.

  “Turn around and let me see,” Sam said.

  Chet turned around. “I’ll be okay.”

  Sam ran a finger over the knot. “You’ll probably have a headache for a while.”

  Chet leaned back against the abutment and rubbed his neck.

  “As soon as you’re up to it we’ll head out,” Sam said.

  Chet pushed away from the wall and gained his balance. “I’m up to it, let’s go.”

  Actually, he wasn’t up to it at all. He probably needed a hospital. He felt wobbly and nauseated. He had the worst headache of his life. His neck was stiff and his legs were like noodles. Pain meds, a soft bed, and the tender touch of a Charlize Theron look-a-like nurse were what he needed. But all of that was secondary to his primary sensations—the need for payback and the need to save Tiff. So he jogged on, putting one foot in front of the other, despite the pain.

  ***

  Ball Cap punched the buggy from the trees and into a clearing. Everything appeared to be the same as they left it. Their non-running pickup was still in front of the cabin. The barn off to the side looked undisturbed. Everything was as it should be, Ball Cap thought. Even better—they now had a running vehicle, more food and water, weapons, and best of all, a good looking girl that would keep him satisfied until he got tired of her, which would likely not be for a long time.

  Ball Cap brought the buggy to a stop in front of the barn and next to an open-air trailer. He hopped out and turned to the beard. “Lift her out of there.”

  The beard did as he was told and set her on the ground behind the tailgate.

  Ball Cap tossed earring the keys. “Top off the tank and hook up the trailer.”

  Ball Cap then walked over and grabbed hold of the girl’s arm. Firm, he thought, not too soft, just right. This was going to be fun. He spun her around to check out her ass. Nice curves.

  Ball Cap glanced at the beard. “Load everything of value into the trailer. That means hand tools from the barn and the food and water from the house. I’ll be inside with fancy pants here.”

  Beard nodded and turned toward the barn.

  Ball Cap dragged the girl toward the cabin as Earring stood watching. Ball Cap threw a hard stare at Earring. “I said, top off the gas,” he said in a slightly raised voice. “Then help your dumb shit brother.”

  Earring turned toward the barn as Ball Cap continued to drag the girl, struggling, to the cabin. Ball Cap opened the front door, pushed the girl inside, and followed her in. He shut the front door and then dragged her to his bedroom, connected to the main room. Ball Cap pushed her onto the dirty-sheet covered bed in the corner and stepped forward.

  With her hands still tied, she spun around to her back, lifted her feet, and started kicking.

  A fighter, he thought. He liked that. He just hoped she didn’t give up too easily. Ball Cap pinned her legs and flipped her to her stomach.

  The girl squirmed. “You’re going to die a painful and slow death you inbred son-of-a-bitch,” she screamed.

  “Someday maybe,” Ball Cap said with a laugh.

  The girl continued to spew obscenities as Ball Cap grabbed her by her belt and waistband, drug her back to the edge of the bed, and then pinned her with his body as he reached around and undid her belt and waistband button. He stood up and jerked her shorts and panties down to her ankles. She continued to wiggle, squirm, and scream a string of obscenities a sailor would be proud of.

  “Keep it up, it makes it more exciting,” Ball Cap said. He planted one hand between her shoulder blades to hold her down on the bed and used the other hand to undo his belt and unzip his pants.

 
Just as he started to lower himself, there was a knock on the door.

  He paused and stood up. “This better be good,” he yelled.

  Earring yelled through the door. “Duncan, the coupler on the trailer is too small for the ball on the jeep.”

  “Danny, you dumb son-of-a-bitch, do I have to do everything around here,” Duncan screamed, as he adjusted himself and zipped his pants up.

  “Sorry Duncan, me and Dale couldn’t figure a way around it,” Danny said through the closed door.

  “I’ll be out there in a minute,” Duncan screeched. Duncan started toward the door. He stopped halfway and looked back at the girl still bent over the edge of the bed. “I’ll be right back,” Duncan said in a soft voice. “Nice ass by the way.”

  He watched the girl slide off the bed and sit on the floor, naked from the waist down. Tears ran down her cheeks. Duncan took a final peek, smiled, and then closed the door behind him. He took some keys from his pocket, locked the door, and then turned to head outside. The image of the girl’s naked ass burned in his mind. The only thing he wanted was to get back as soon as possible.

  ***

  Sam and Chet, with sweat dripping down their face and their shirts soaked, jogged down the middle of the firebreak. Sam kept his eyes on the buggy’s wheel tracks which were easily discernible in the soft sand. The firebreak weaved back and forth to avoid major tree trunks but generally continued in one direction—west.

  Sam heard a distant metal clang coming from the direction they were going. He stopped and cocked his ear. Chet stopped next to him.

  “Did you hear that?” Sam asked.

  “I did,” Chet replied, breathing hard.

  They took off at an even faster pace.

  Five minutes later Sam heard another clang. They were getting closer.

  They jogged a hundred yard farther along the firebreak and came to an abrupt stop. Sam could see a clearing through the trees, a compound with a cabin, barn, truck—and the buggy. Sam stepped carefully as he approached the tree line. Chet followed close behind.

  Sam could see the three shitheads through the trees. Two were trying to attach a trailer to the buggy; the third was walking from the cabin toward the other two. All three were focused on the task and were not paying any attention to the tree line.

  “They obviously didn’t expect us to get loose this quick,” Chet whispered.

  Sam nodded as he and Chet moved forward slowly, ducking from tree to tree.

  Finally, Sam stopped behind a large trunk at the very edge of the tree line. Chet pulled up behind him.

  “I don’t see Tiff,” Chet said with barely a whisper.

  Sam nodded, looked around on the ground, and picked up a thick dead limb about four feet long. He placed one end on the ground and pushed softly in the middle with his other hand to test for strength. Satisfied, he looked at Chet and then pointed to the right. “I’m going to make my way around and come in from behind the barn.” He whispered. “Work your way to the left and approach from behind the truck. We need to take them out fast before they know what’s happening.”

  Chet nodded, and they moved off in their respective directions. Sam placed each foot with care.

  ***

  Danny and Dale were bent over fiddling with the trailer hitch when Duncan, revolver tucked in his waistband, walked up. “That won’t work, you pea brains. You can’t chain a trailer to a jeep like that. Just use the ball from the truck!”

  Danny stood up. “We thought of that; it’s rusted tight.”

  “Danny, get me the two biggest wrenches we have and some WD-40,” Duncan said, as he stomped off toward the pickup truck. “Dale, get that chain off of there!”

  “Will do Duncan,” Dale said, as he bent down and started removing the chain.

  Danny ran off while Duncan examined the ball on the truck. A couple of minutes later Danny returned from the barn and dropped two large wrenches and a can of WD-40 on the ground next to Duncan.

  Duncan picked up the can of spray. “The mount is welded but maybe we can get the ball off,” he said, as he bent down and sprayed the ball. With the nut underneath the mount dripping with the oil, Duncan applied the largest wrench and began heaving.

  ***

  Tiff scrambled to her feet with her shorts and panties still around her ankles. She hopped over to a dresser on the opposite side of the room. Porno magazines littered the top along with some loose change, an ashtray with cigarette butts, a greasy comb, and a lighter. Tiff turned her back to the top left drawer and pulled the handle. She turned around to check the contents and saw only socks. She turned back around and pulled open the top right drawer. “Thank you, God,” she said, as she peered into the drawer.

  Inside was an old Kabar pocket knife among other miscellaneous junk. With her hands still tied behind her, she reached in and retrieved the knife. Careful not to drop it, she pried open the small blade with her thumbnail and then fingered the knife until the blade was against the cords. She sawed as best she could given her awkward hold on the knife. The blade was dull, but even so, after a couple of minutes, she felt the cords loosen. She continued sawing back and forth until finally, her hands were free.

  She immediately pulled up her panties and shorts and fastened her belt. She massaged her wrists as she ran to the door and tried the knob. Locked. She then bent down and tried to jiggle the doorknob lock with the knife blade. After thirty seconds she realized that would not work, so she inserted the knife blade between the door and door jamb and tried to pry back the latch bolt.

  ***

  Sam peered around the corner of the barn and saw Dale, the man with a beard, trying to unhook a chain from the front of the trailer. The other two were bent down behind the pickup engaged in something that occupied their full attention.

  Sam eased around the corner and made his way along the side of the barn. Dale, with his back to Sam, worked on the chain as Sam silently stepped up behind him. Sam glanced over at Duncan and Danny, still occupied with their task and saw Chet crouched in front of the pickup. His hands gripped a tree limb.

  Sam swung his limb in a wide arc and connected with the side of Dale’s head with a loud whack. Dale fell over the trailer hitch out cold. Sam then raced toward Duncan and Danny who had jerked their heads in Sam’s direction. Danny stepped from behind the truck and met with a loud whack on the side of his head from Chet’s tree limb. Danny’s body bounced against the tailgate of the truck and sank to the ground out cold.

  Duncan, facing both Sam and Chet with tree limbs drawn back ready to swing, backed away from the truck and pulled the revolver from his waistband. “I can see I should have left you two dead.” He raised the revolver.

  Sam and Chet stopped their advance and were about to dive to the side of the truck when suddenly Duncan stiffened. His arm holding the revolver fell to his side and then he fell, face first, into the dirt. A kitchen butcher knife protruded from the base of his skull.

  With Duncan out of the way, Tiff became visible, standing rigid, behind where Duncan previously stood. “Sorry you couldn’t die slowly like I promised,” she said. “You inbred piece of shit.”

  Sam and Chet stood frozen, staring at the scene, eyes moving from Duncan to Tiff and back again. Finally, Sam marched over to Duncan, knelt, and placed two fingers on his neck.

  Sam looked up to Tiff with the two fingers still on Duncan’s neck. “He’s dead alright.” Sam then stood facing Tiff. “I’m wondering how many times you’re going to save my life on this trip.”

  “I’m wondering how much of this shit we’ll have to wade through on this trip.”

  Sam raised his chin in agreement.

  Chet motioned toward Danny and Dale. “What about them?”

  Sam started toward the buggy. “I say we tie them up while they’re out and get the hell out of here. They won’t know what happened.”

  Sam stopped short and looked back at Tiff. “Are you okay?”

  Tiff glanced at Sam and then returned her gaze to Duncan. “
I will be.”

  Chet looked at Tiff. “Did they—“

  Tiff cut him off. “Shithead here came close but was interrupted before he could do any real harm. Like I said, I’ll be okay.”

  Chet joined Sam at the buggy, grabbed some cord from the back, and proceeded to tie up Danny and Dale who were still out cold.

  “Think they will live?” Chet asked.

  “Don’t care,” Sam said, as he continued tying Dale.

  Sam, Chet, and Tiff met at the buggy and visually checked their gear.

  Chet picked up Sam’s rifle. “It all seems to be here, even your rifle.”

  “I think so,” Sam agreed, as he picked up his M&P, Tiff’s XDs, and Chet’s Glock from the floor of the buggy’s bed and handed their respective weapons to Chet and Tiff. He then found his knife and Chet’s Kephart in the buggy’s center console and handed Chet his knife. All three checked their gun’s chamber to ensure they were still loaded.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Sam said, as he slid into the driver’s seat.

  Chet took his usual seat while Tiff jumped in the back. Sam glanced back at Tiff to make sure she was settled, started the buggy, and pulled away in the direction of the firebreak.

  CHAPTER 8

  Tiff reclined on the bench seat as much as physically possible. With the small amount of space, it wasn’t easy. Her butt on the seat, her feet wedged against the side of the buggy, knees up, and head and shoulders against the pile of gear, her mind wandered as she relished the sun on her face and the wind in her hair. She thought about the life she left behind in Orlando. She thought about her friend, Megan, and what she was doing right then. She thought about the report she left half finished at work. She thought about what she would do when she reached Ohio and how her Mom and Dad were doing. She tried to think of anything other than Duncan. It didn’t work. His scraggly face, his stench, and his hands kept coming back into focus.