by Tim Miller
Garrett screamed as the man pulled him free. Every bone in his body felt as if it were broken or bruised in some way. Once he was outside of the Bronco he realized what happened to Jean-Pierre. The Frenchman was hanging half in, half out, of the passenger’s window. The Bronco had rolled over him several times, popping his head like a zit while squashing his torso. His head looked like it had been blown off by a shotgun with only his lower jaw remaining, just dangling by a piece of bone. Organs and entrails were flopping out of a hole in his side in a goopy mess.
The man was holding a flashlight and looked down at Garrett. In the light he could see the other truck on the hillside. It was a dump truck with extra lights affixed to it. He never stood a chance against that thing.
“Hi Ranger Garrett,” the man said as he knelt down. “I’m Cole. You made a big mistake.”
“So just staying there and letting you all kill me would have been better?”
“Yes, it would have.”
Cole walked over shining the light behind the Bronco to a large canvas bag. He opened the bag and reached in, pulling out a little girl. Dorothe Wallander. Her hands were taped behind her back and there was duct tape wrapped around her whole head covering her mouth. Cole dragged her over in front of Garrett. Tears ran down her face as she tried to scream but only made muffled squeals.
“No!” Garrett said. “Don’t hurt her!” Yelling hurt Garrett’s chest and he coughed up blood, spitting it out as he spoke.
“I’m not hurting her. You did. The instant you let her help you.”
Dorothe continued to scream as Cole took out a pocket knife and calmly thrust it into her chest. The little girl squealed and bucked as he sliced from her belly button up to her rib cage. He folded the knife and put it back into his pocket as he reached into the opening in her stomach and began pulling out her intestines, letting them fall to the filthy ground.
Garrett was not only horrified by what he was witnessing, but at how calm Cole was in doing all of this. You’d think he was changing the oil on a car as casually as he was pulling Dorothe’s organs free. The acidic smell of her stomach along with the squishing sound of the blood and slippery organs made Garrett’s stomach lurch. He didn’t want to vomit though, no telling how much more that would hurt.
Dorothe screamed and thrashed as Cole reached into her stomach again, digging around as if he’d lost something inside her chest cavity. She let out a gasp and one final heave as he ripped his hand free, holding her tiny heart in his hands. He let her body fall to the ground as he tossed the heart aside as if it were a soda can.
Garrett felt tears run down his face. Not only the helplessness of his own situation, but the fact he’d just gotten that little girl killed. This wasn’t like the Hell, Texas he’d encountered all those years ago. Those were a bunch of stupid rednecks and simpletons. This was a new breed of something else entirely. They had vehicles, weapons, and were more ruthless than Garrett or anyone could have ever imagined. Garrett began shivering as Cole knelt down next to him again, shining the light in his face.
“You have a bad skull fracture. I can tell by the blood coming out of your ears some serious brain damage too. The shivering is from the internal bleeding you’re suffering. You’ll be dead in a few minutes. I want you to know something though. I really should thank you. For what you did here all those years ago. I mean, yeah you killed everyone in the old town, but they needed it. They were too set in their ways. Now they had to create me and others like me. Or similar to me at least. Now as you can see we are nearly unstoppable and there’s way more of us. Plus, the kids. We have a whole generation of Hellions we are raising. You are the one who built this town, Ranger. You can die knowing that.”
Garrett took in the things Cole said as his vision began to fade, and darkness settled in. His brain would soon be saturated in blood, which would take his life. Cole walked back up the hill leaving Dorothe’s dead and broken body lying just inches from Garrett. In the darkness, he could see her dead eyes open as if they were staring at him accusingly. He wanted to tell her he was sorry. If nothing else, hold her dead body for a minute if for nothing else than to comfort himself. Neither of those things happened as his organs continued to shut down and the darkness finally took him.
Chapter 25
Nash heard the rumbling outside and the roar or an engine, startling him awake. He looked over and Jade was still sound asleep on her side of the mattress. Lying in between them was the dead girl they’d been playing with the previous night. She wasn’t dead when they started. The girl was one of the town’s teenagers. Both he and Jade had long had a taste for younger girls when it came to rough sex.
Last night they had gotten a bit too rough. Not that Nash cared. He didn’t want to send the message to other kids in town they were in danger of being killed. But they all knew they could be called to his bed on any given night. Last night he’d had plenty of pent up frustration. He’d shoved his cock down her throat, which she didn’t take very well. Usually they got the hint and at least went along with it. This one kept crying and gagging until she threw up all over his dick.
From there he started beating the shit out of her until she stopped moving. Once she was out, he and Jade fucked every single orifice in her body with his dick along with anything else they could find. Somewhere along the way she’d stopped breathing but they kept going. Fuck it. He fell asleep snuggling the girl’s body as if she were a big teddy bear. Jade had passed out and she wasn’t as soft as the girl anyway.
He rolled the naked body off the mattress as he jumped up and pulled his pants on. Running outside, he saw the dump truck roaring past town and down the trail. Fucking Cole.
“Cole! Goddammit!” Nash called out. Why in the fuck would he be driving that dump truck like some bat out of Hell in the middle of the night? He only had to look just past his shack to see the answer. The post the Ranger had been tied to was empty. Walking to the spot and kneeling down, he saw the ropes were lying on the ground. The ropes had been cut, meaning someone had helped him.
Nash kicked the ropes away as he ran toward the trail, following the sounds of the huge rig just ahead. He jogged down the trail for several minutes. Eventually the rumbling stopped followed by a loud crash. He wondered if Cole hadn’t gotten himself in a wreck. Part of him would be happy with that. Cole was good at what he did and a stone killer. Yet he was getting harder and harder to control. Nash worried about the day Cole decided he wanted to be in charge.
Nash was tiring out as he saw the dump truck parked along the ridge just ahead. He made his way there and looked down the hill. There was a white truck smashed at the bottom. Cole was running down the hill carrying a flashlight and a big duffel bag over his shoulder. Nash stood and watched things happen at the bottom of the hill.
He watched as Cole killed some girl before leaving the Ranger’s body there. The Ranger must have died in the crash. He waited for Cole to make his way back up the hill and confronted him as Cole reached the dump truck.
“Just what in the Hell is going on? What do you think you’re doing?” Nash asked, stepping into Cole’s face in an attempt to intimidate him.
“Get out of my way old man. I’m tired.”
“Well that’s just too fucking bad. Why is the Ranger down there dead? How did he get out? I had something special planned for him tomorrow.”
“The little girl cut him loose. I watched her do it. She told him where we keep the cars and he tried to get away. I stopped him. He lost control of the Bronco coming around the ridge, rolled it downhill, and died of his injuries. Some other guy I’ve never seen before was in there too. I have no idea where he came from. I grabbed the girl and gutted her like a fish in front of the Ranger before he died. So it’s all done.”
“What about the others?” Nash asked.
“What others?”
“You thought the Ranger would bring others once he found us.”
“There are no others. Not now anyway. There will be. Eventually more will come a
nd it will be just like before. You can’t stop it. There is only for us to move forward but you’re too blind to see it.”
Cole pushed past him and headed for the dump truck, climbing into the cab. In the horizon the sun began to peek out over the hills.
“Don’t walk away from me! What the fuck you mean it doesn’t matter? Of course it matters! And why did you kill the girl who helped him? You know the rules? You betray the town, you get crucified.”
“I wanted him to watch her die.”
“We need to send a message! Make her an example. I’m really sick of your shit Cole. You forget who runs this fucking town.”
Cole ignored him as he sat in the cab trying to pull the door shut, but Nash was holding it open.
“You listening to me?” Nash continued. “I’m sick of you acting like shit don’t apply to you around here. Maybe we need to put you up on that cross!”
Cole stopped pulling on the door and looked at Nash before slowly climbing out of the cab.
“What did you just say?”
Nash immediately realized threatening Cole was a huge mistake, but wasn’t going to back down and lose what little credibility with Cole he’d had. If any.
“Now look. I’m not saying we were going to do that.” Nash took a few steps back.
“You’re going to put me on the cross? A crucifixion? Of me?”
“That’s not what I said, Cole. Let’s not get carried away. Look, it's late, we’re both tired. Maybe we can get some rest.”
Cole reached up and grabbed a handful of Nash’s hair and lifted him until only Nash’s toes were touching the ground. Nash took a swing at Cole who swatted his fist away like a minor annoyance.
“I think I might be done with you, Nash. You have no vision. You can’t see past your own need for control. It took a while, but I have a vision. Not for this town, but the people in it. You want to stick to your old ways. You want us to stay up in these hills and just wait for the outside world to come for us again. Your old town got fucking blown away living the way you expect us to. There’s a better way. I was willing to let it play out, but seeing the crazy in your eyes tells me it’s time to act.”
“Cole! Don’t do this! I’m in charge. You know what they’ll do to you if you hurt me?”
Cole looked at him like a little boy about to tear the wings off a fly.
“You think you’ve been in charge this long because people respect you? You’ve remained in charge because I’ve left you in charge. People see me listening to you so they listen to you. You’re a figurehead, a mascot.”
Cole threw Nash to the ground and reached into the cab. Nash tried to scramble to his feet but was too slow. Cole emerged from the cab with a tire iron. Before Nash could reach his feet, he’d smashed the tire iron into Nash’s kneecap. Nash screamed as the iron rod crushed the bone in his knee. The old man flopped to the ground on his face as Cole grabbed another handful of his hair, hauling him up onto his good leg.
He dragged Nash to the cab and tossed him inside. Nash screamed and yelled each time his broken knee moved or touched anything. Cole shoved him to the passenger side, climbed in himself, and started the engine. The dump truck roared as Cole put it into gear. The sun was showing brighter over the hillside as he headed back into town. Cole had known deep down this day would come sooner or later. It was happening sooner than he thought, but it was what needed to be done. If the town and the people of Hell, Texas were to survive, it would have to be this way.
Chapter 26
Cole drove the truck into town and pulled up just feet from the post where the Ranger had been previously tied up. He began honking the horn, which sounded through the entire town. He pulled the cord as the horn blasted and blasted until people began emerging from their trailers, tents and shacks. Cole climbed out dragging Nash with him.
He was surprised to see Livia as one of the first people who came out. He hadn’t seen her since he killed Oz. She’d been staying out of sight, which was just fine with Cole. She knew he wouldn’t hesitate to kill her too if she crossed him. Jade came running up and screamed when she saw Cole holding up the wounded Nash.
“Nash!” Jade screamed. “What the fuck happened?”
“Everyone listen to me! You all know me. I grew up here,” Cole announced. “Nash and his rules have been holding this town back for too long. Sure he helped found the new Hell. Only because he survived the slaughter in the old one. He survived because he and Jade ran away while their families were being murdered! He’s not a leader. He never was. Staying here in the hills, waiting on the outside world, the police, or worse, to come for us again will only lead to our final destruction.”
“You let him go, Cole!” Jade screamed. “I’m warning you.”
Cole ignored her and kept speaking.
“So, today marks the end of Nash’s reign over this town, and marks the day Hell, Texas became more than just a town. Livia, bring me the tool kit.”
Livia looked around confused at first before running back to one of the trailers.
Nash stood hobbling on his one leg trying to reason with Cole one more time.
“I’m telling you, don’t do this. I’m warning you.”
Cole replied without looking at him.
“No one cares.”
“Don’t listen to him! Cole is a total mad man! We’ve all seen what he can do! What he’s capable of! He finally has turned on us! I should have put him down years ago. He’s going to destroy this town.”
Nash’s eyes went wide when he saw no one reacting to his words. Cole instead looked to Livia who came walking up and handed him the tool box. He pushed Nash up against the post, picked up one of the ropes off the ground and tied it around his neck, tying him to the post. It was tight enough to keep him still, putting just enough pressure on his throat, but not enough to strangle him. Cole opened the box and removed the large mallet and a single spike.
A collective gasp went up from the crowd as Jade screamed and charged at Cole. She held a knife over her head and ran at him full speed. Dawn Dewey ran at him from the opposite side wielding an axe. Cole ran at Jade as she brought the knife down slicing his arm just above the elbow. It didn’t slow him down as he brought the mallet down, striking her in the forehead. Her skull made a loud crunching sound as she collapsed.
Dawn reached him seconds later with the ax over her head. Cole ducked and struck her in the stomach with the mallet. Dawn doubled over and dropped the ax, almost hitting Cole in the head. He picked up the ax before Dawn could react and brought it down onto the top of her head. The blade lodged into her skull as she fell to the ground. Her body twitched as he placed his foot on her chest to dislodge the ax.
She continued twitching as she made a strange jabbering sound.
“Nananana…nanana,” she blurted over and over until he brought the ax down again onto the center of her face. Her head split open, and her brains oozed out onto the ground. Her body went still except for her left leg which shook rapidly for a minute then went still.
Jade was on her stomach trying to crawl away. Nash against the post tried screaming to warn her.
“Get up, Jade! Run! Don’t hurt her! Kill me! Don’t hurt her!” Nash struggled to yell with the rope pressing against his throat.
Cole walked over, twirled the ax around before bringing it down onto the back of Jade’s head. Her face bounced off the ground as a chunk of her skull shot away from her head. He pulled the ax free and brought it down on the back of her neck. Jade let out a last yelp as her head rolled free and a fountain of blood squirted onto the sandy earth. Looking up at the crowd, including the town’s children, he tossed the ax aside and picked up the mallet.
No one said a word as they watched him with fascination and wonder while he casually did what Cole did so well. Walking over to Nash, he picked up a spike and placed it into the center of his chest.
“Can’t you just kill me?” Nash pleaded. “Just cut my throat, stab me in the heart. Something quick. I deserve that.”
“So now what?” Livia asked. “You gonna kill all of us too?”
Cole turned and tossed the mallet to the ground.
“I’m not going to kill you. All of this is to free you.”
“Free us from what?”
“The way you and Oz were behaving was a danger to this town. Nash was a danger to this town. Fact is this town is a danger to itself. We are the predators. We are the most dangerous. Sure, keep the town here. Teach the children and raise them here. The rest of us, move into the city. Not just El Paso either. San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, and Houston. Don’t hide. Hell isn’t a place in the hills. Hell, Texas is a way of life. Our way.”
As he spoke, Livia’s eyes lit up as.
“Why should we live up here in the heat like a bunch of cavemen?” he continued. We can spread out in groups. We come back here from time to time. Rotate people around. When the kids are old enough we’ll place them in one of the cities. Don’t sit here and wait for the police to find Hell. Take Hell to them. If they do find this place and burn it down again, the rest of us are still out there. We’ll always be out there among them. We’ll no longer just be Hell, Texas. We’ll be Hell on Earth.”
Livia smiled as several cheered and ran to their trailers to begin packing what little they had. And so it was. Over the next several months, a few people at a time the people of Hell, Texas moved into the cities and towns throughout the state. Some even went out of state into New Mexico and Arizona. Hell, Texas was no longer a place hidden in the hills of West Texas. To this day Hell, Texas is in Anytown, USA looking for their next victims on which to unleash their special brand of suffering. You don’t go to Hell when you die. Hell will find you.