by Eric Vall
“You probably won’t be able to hit them,” I told her. “But keep shooting into the hallway anyways.”
With that I rushed out the door while Anna and Tara laid cover fire from the side of the doorway. The smell of sulfur was heavy in the hallway as I reached Paige, scooped her up, and rushed back into the classroom.
“Close the door!” I shouted as I ran in.
The firing continued in the hallway, and Tara and Anna quickly shut the door and grabbed a desk to put against it.
“Are you alright?” I asked and I set Paige down on a desk.
“I’m fine,” she nodded.
“Where the hell did they come from?” Anna asked as she rushed to Paige and me.
“I don’t know,” Paige answered. “All of a sudden they were just in the main hallway.”
“They couldn’t have come from outside,” Tara added. “Bailey and Rolly would have got them.”
“Unless…” Anna trailed off.
“No,” I shook my head. “They’re fine. We would have seen light come in from the main doors if they came that way.”
“Is there a hallway we don’t know about?” Anna asked.
“Oh my god,” Paige said, and her eyes grew big.
“What?” Anna pushed.
“There’s probably a way to get into the office from the teachers’ lounge,” she said.
“How do you know?” Tara questioned.
“I was a TA in high school,” Paige answered. “I didn’t think about it until now, but I remember there was an entrance to the teachers’ lounge from the back of the office. There’s probably one here too.”
“So that’s how they came around,” Anna said.
“I’m so sorry,” Paige said as she looked at me. “I didn’t think about it.”
“It’s okay,” I told her. “You did nothing wrong. We know now.”
“But how do we get out of here?” Tara asked.
“Yeah,” Anna said. “We’ve kinda lost control of the situation now.”
“Not yet,” I said, and I gestured to the windows at the back of the classroom.
“Of course!” Anna said. “We can go out the windows and go around and surprise them.”
“Yes,” I nodded. “These windows are at the back of the school, so if we sneak around, we’ll be able to catch them off guard.”
“What about Rolly and Bailey?” Tara asked. “I really don’t want to get shot today.”
“Don’t worry,” I told her. “Rolly and Bailey both have good scopes. They’ll see that it’s us.”
“We have to trust them,” Anna added.
“Okay,” Tara said. “Let’s do this.”
I moved to the windows and tried to open one, but it looked like it had been painted shut, so I pulled out my knife to pry it open. We needed to do this quick, the gunfire was still going on in the hallway, and the door to our classroom was taking quite the beating.
Once the window was open, I helped Anna, Paige, and Tara through, and handed each of them their weapons after they landed on the other side. The girls fit through easily and waited for me, but I threw one leg out the window and realized I was too tall to crouch through, so I pulled my first leg back in and tried to put both legs out, but my chest was too large.
“Fuck,” I cursed.
“Tav’s too big,” Anna chuckled.
“Yeah he is,” Tara said and even though I couldn’t see her face I could hear the sexual tone in her voice.
“Now is so not the time,” Paige groaned.
“I told you guys you can’t set me up like that,” Tara smiled, and I could see her white teeth in the darkness.
“You’ll have to do this alone,” I told them as I put my head through the window opening. “I don’t like it, but there’s no way I’m going to fit.”
“We got this,” Anna assured me.
“Yeah,” Tara said. “Let us save your ass for once.”
“Be careful,” I told them. “Go in hot but remember your positions and aim for the head. These guys could have put vests on.”
“Okay,” Anna said as she took charge of the situation. “Let’s do this quick.”
“I’ll shoot from in here,” I told her. “It won’t make much of a difference, but it should keep them facing this direction.”
“Let’s go girls,” Anna said, and they disappeared around the building.
It had only been maybe three minutes since the soldiers attacked in the hallway, but they wouldn’t keep shooting forever with nothing to shoot at. I closed the window, aimed my rifle at the door, and started shooting. The gunfire in the hallway grew as they realized I was shooting back.
“I think there’s only one left alive in there,” I heard one of the guys shout.
“Let’s hope it’s one of the girls,” another laughed.
“Get that fucking door open!” someone yelled.
I kept shooting at the door, but I heard the firing die down outside, and the door started to bulge as someone on the other side tried to kick it open. I let off a couple more rounds to try to keep them coming for me.
“They’re still shooting in there!” someone yelled.
“So bust down that fucking door and take care of it!” another man called out.
“Who the fuck put you in charge?” I heard yet another man ask.
Military discipline seemed to have totally broken down, except for The Colonel. These douchebags were ridiculous, and I let off two more rounds at the door while they argued.
“Fuck this,” one guy said, and the door bulged once more.
It was going to break soon, and I didn’t want to be in their line of sight when that happened, so I moved to the far corner of the room along the wall that the door was on. I knew if anyone got in I would have a good line of sight to take them out before they saw me, so I reloaded my pistol.
The door bulged again, and the desk in front of it screeched along the floor as they finally got the door open. The first guy pushed his way in gun first, but as soon as his head was in view I took the shot, and his brains splattered on the wall behind him.
“Ah, shit,” one of the soldiers yelled. “Davis is down!”
“Fuck this guy!” one of the soldiers yelled, and a spray of bullets came through the doorway.
“Get the fuck in there!” someone yelled. “She can’t shoot all of us!”
“You fucking do it then,” the other guy responded. “I’m not taking a bullet to the head.”
“I’ll fucking shoot you myself if you don’t get your sorry ass in there!” another yelled.
“Fuck you!” I heard the other guy shout.
They were in a panic, so as long as the girls came in soon they could take advantage of the soldier’s fighting.
“Just get the fuck in there!” the wannabe NCO shouted.
“You get in there if you want it done so bad,” the other guy said.
“I swear to fucking God--” the first guy’s words were cut short by the loud bang of Paige’s shotgun, and I knew the girls had made it.
“How many of these fucks are there?” one of the soldiers yelled.
I stayed in position in case any other guards wanted to try to hold up in this room, but no one tried, and I heard the gunfire in the hallway get louder.
“What the fuck!” one of the soldiers yelled.
“They’re in the office!” another one called out.
“Fuck them up!” someone hollered.
“Come and try!” I heard Tara call back, and I smiled at her sassiness.
It sounded like my girls were doing well out there, but the sound of gunshots continued for another minute before the guys figured they had enough.
“Fall back!” someone yelled.
“Get to the lounge!” another called.
I rushed to the door of the classroom and stepped over the unlucky bastard who had tried to make his way in, then I turned and fired at the men running down the hallway. I took down two of them before the others made their way into the teachers’ lounge.
“You okay?” Anna asked as she ran over to me.
I knew the soldiers had retreated, but it was good to hear her voice. I wouldn’t feel complete relief until I knew Tara and Paige were okay too, though.
“I’m okay,” I said. “Everyone accounted for?”
“All good,” I heard Paige call out before she emerged from the hallway and made her way to Anna and me.
“Aren’t you going to thank us for saving you?” Tara laughed as she joined us from her post in the office.
“You did great,” I said as I grinned at the girls.
Just then I heard a door shut down the right hallway and the girls spun around with their pistols aimed high.
“Shhh,” I put my finger to my lips and motioned for them to follow me.
I grabbed Anna’s shoulder and pointed at the main door and the hallway leading to the teachers’ lounge. Anna nodded her understanding, and I led Tara and Paige down the hallway to the right.
I stopped at the first classroom door and listened but heard nothing. The next door was the same, but when I paused at the third door, I heard heavy breathing on the other side.
I turned to Tara and Paige and when Tara moved to speak I held up a finger to stop her, then I reached for the door handle and slowly turned it. The only sound was the small click as the handle turned.
I listened for another moment and I could hear the man breathe, I was sure he was just on the other side, so I pulled my knife from my hip and shoved the door open as hard as I could. The man stumbled and fell to the ground but before he could raise his automatic rifle, I was on him and had my knife at his throat.
“Please don’t kill--” his words were cut short as I sliced through his jugular. I felt his hot blood land on the arm that I held him with before I dropped his lifeless body to the floor.
Paige stood in the doorway and Tara stood next to her with her hand on her hip as she smirked at me.
“No fair,” she said as I walked past her and made my way to Anna. “If I knew you were going to take him out with your knife, I would have done it myself.”
“Don’t get greedy now,” I laughed. “You just took out the guys in the hallway. I had to do something. So what’s the damage out here?”
“We got about half of them,” Anna said. “The others ran into the teachers’ lounge.”
“Did you get a count?” I asked.
“There were about twenty of them in the hallway,” Paige answered.
I looked down at the floor and counted nine bodies, and the one in the other room made ten.
“Good work,” I told them. “I’m really proud of you. Is anyone hurt?”
“I have a little graze on my arm,” Anna said with a shrug.
“What!” Paige whispered fervently, “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It’s not a big deal,” Anna said.
“Let me see it,” I said, and I shined the flashlight on her.
“It’s pretty mild,” Paige said after she inspected the wound. “I’ll need to clean it up though.”
“That’ll have to wait,” I said. “We need to take out the guys in the lounge.”
“You can thank us later for saving you,” Tara said with a wink.
“I’ll be sure to do that,” I laughed.
“I’ll take a thank you too,” Anna said with a wry smile.
“Me too,” Paige grinned.
After all the work the girls had put in, they deserved some R&R once this was over. Unfortunately, we weren’t out of hot water yet.
“Let’s take care of the guys in the lounge first,” I chuckled.
Chapter 13
“So do we clear this hallway now?” Anna asked as she tossed her head to the left.
“No,” I said. “We know they’re in the teachers’ lounge now. The Colonel has got to be in there with them.”
“Do you think The Colonel has information on the EMP?” Paige asked.
“I hope so,” I answered. “He may have information on the National Guard camp too.”
“Right,” Tara said. “Maybe we can figure out what it’s like there.”
“We may have more civilians to save,” Paige said.
“Yeah,” I agreed. “But let’s focus on getting through this first.”
“Okay,” Anna commanded. “Let’s get in formation to breach.”
I found it super-hot when Anna gave orders like that, but I had to cut her off.
“We’re not going to clear it,” I told her.
Paige and Tara had followed her orders and were already getting in line.
“Why aren’t we going to clear it?” Paige asked.
“Yeah,” Tara said. “There’s only like ten dudes in there. We got this.”
“I believe in us too,” I chuckled. “But ten guys is a lot considering we’re only four.”
“We just took out all these assholes though,” Paige added, and she gestured to the floor that was littered with bodies.
“Yes,” I whispered. “But you had the element of surprise then.”
“They know we’re coming now,” Anna said in hushed tones.
“So what do we do?” Tara asked.
“Should we try to sneak in through the hallway in the office?” Paige questioned.
“No,” I shook my head. “They’ll all have guns pointed at both doors. We would be walking into our own deaths.”
“Do we wait it out then?” Anna asked.
“Follow me,” I grinned. “You’ll know what to do.”
“Wait,” Tara whispered. “You’re not going to tell us the plan?”
“You’ll see,” I said.
I knew once the girls saw what I was doing they would know exactly how to respond. They had to learn how to think on their feet sometimes, and right now they weren’t in any danger. If they needed help, I’d tell them what to do, but I wanted to see how they responded to the situation.
I crept down the hallway to the teachers’ lounge door, then I looked at my girls and noticed how they all eyed me intently. I turned the handle on the door and felt no resistance, but gunshots from inside the room erupted at the door.
“Fuck you asshole!” one soldier yelled.
“Yeah, come in here and face us like a man!” another called out.
I pulled a grenade from my vest.
The girls smiled and readied their guns. Anna and Tara opted for their pistols, but Paige reloaded her shotgun.
“I’ll give you one chance,” I called out. “Where is The Colonel?”
“How about we give you one chance to drop your weapons,” a soldier called out. “And maybe we won’t kill you on the spot.”
“Who the fuck does this guy think he is?” another voice asked.
“Your worst nightmare!” Tara yelled.
I looked at her with surprise, and she smiled.
“What?” she whispered. “I’ve always wanted to say that.”
“Don’t worry,” someone yelled behind the door. “We’ll take good care of those girls you got with you.”
The others laughed, and I felt my jaw clench. These low life scum had pissed off the wrong man today. They thought they were so badass for taking advantage of civilians, and I was ashamed to call them soldiers.
I gestured for the girls to crouch down to shield themselves from the explosion, and they all went into a hunter’s squat, keeping their weapons in front of them.
I pulled the pin on the grenade, opened the door to the lounge and tossed the grenade in before closing the door and crouching low.
“Grenade!” one of the men yelled.
“Get down!” a gruff voice called that I hadn’t heard before, and I figured it must be The Colonel.
The grenade went off, and the sound was echoed by the screams of men.
“You know what to do?” I asked the girls.
“You could’ve just told us about the grenade,” Anna said with a raised eyebrow.
“Where’s the fun in that?” I grinned.
“Let’
s get these fucks,” Tara said.
“What’s left of them anyway,” Paige said with a smile.
“Let’s go,” I whispered and then I stood up and readied my pistol.
I gestured to my girls that I would go left once more. They all nodded, and I was sure they knew what to do, so I breached the room with my pistol in front of me and flanked left. Paige followed to the right, then Tara, then Anna.
I counted six dead men, or at least pieces of them. The others were moaning on the ground drenched in blood. I clicked on my flashlight and scanned the room. None of these men were in any condition to fight back, one soldier reached for his gun, but he started to cough up blood from having to bend his torso, and Tara took him out with a head shot from her silenced pistol.
I continued to scan the area and there, in the right-hand corner across from Paige I saw a man in his full dress uniform barely standing. He was bloody from the grenade, but I managed to spot the silver eagle on his shoulder and a shotgun about a foot away from him on the floor.
“Looks like we’ve found our guy,” I said and I kept the flashlight fixed on the man. He had a grey buzzcut keeping with true military fashion, and his left side was badly burned from the explosion.
“How can you tell?” Tara asked.
“The silver eagle,” I told her, and I shined my light on his shoulder patch.
“Fuck this guy then,” Tara said as she raised her silenced pistol.
“Wait,” I put out a hand to stop her. “We may be able to learn a thing or two from him before he dies. But keep your guns on him.”
“Fuck. You.” The Colonel laughed until he coughed up blood, then he laughed some more.
“This guy is creeping me out,” Paige whispered as her face twisted into a grimace.
I didn’t blame her for being creeped out. Something about this asshole’s laugh was eerie as hell and his appearance only added to the horror movie vibe. His left side was so badly burned it reminded me of Harvey Dent from the old Batman comics.
“Why did you leave the National Guard camp in Burlington and come out here?” I asked the grey haired man.
“Alright,” the old man said. “I’ll tell you…” he trailed off in a fit of coughing then he leaned down to spit up blood but as he did so he reached for the shotgun on the floor next to him.
Before the man could reach the weapon Tara put a shot through his kneecap, and he fell to the floor.