Born in the Apocalypse 2: State Of Ruin (10 page)

Chapter 25

The first thing I felt was wetness. I tried to open my eyes, but only one obeyed the command. The other one was swollen shut. My tongue explored my mouth and found a dozen cuts, but no loose teeth. I slowly explored the damage to my body and thankfully found not broken bones. My sides were sore as hell and my head felt like Judy had used it repeatedly for a stepping-stone. There was a sharp pain in the small of my back, and it puzzled me because I didn’t remember getting hit there.

I did remember walking into an ambush, and I mentally cursed myself for it. All I had to show for me being quick on the draw was the loss of everything I owned, and a hell of beating. Thankfully, I was in pretty good shape, and the muscle on me helped protect me from broken bones. My right hand was sore where someone must have stomped on it, but thankfully, the ground beneath my hand was soft and absorbed the impact.

I looked up and saw the sun was well into evening. I didn’t recognize where I was from my first glance, but my attention was refocused by a harsh voice in my ear.

“Wakey wakey! Time fer yer next beatin’!” The voice was harsh and smelled awful, but that wasn’t what concerned me as much as the punch to the head that drove my skull back into the ground. I tried to ward off the blows that rained down on my head and body, but it was a feeble effort.

After a while, I was numb to the pain and the punches stopped. I was pretty sure my nose was broken and I could feel blood in my mouth. I shifted a little and was thankful my ribs weren’t broken yet, but given time, that was coming.

A second voice penetrated my consciousness as I lay there trying not to pass out.

“You sure pissed off Mort, kid. We got orders not to kill you, just beat you until you can’t move, then leave you here to die.” This voice wasn’t as harsh as the first, but it was deep, like it was older than most.

“You thinkin’ you some kind o’gunfighter, kid? Wearin’a rig like this?” I couldn’t see, but I figured the Harsh Voice was wearing my gunbelt. “Mort gave me your gun seein’ as you kilt my brother. ‘Time I’m done with you, you’re gonna beg me to kill you.”

I kept my eyes closed hoping they would think I was unconscious. I was in a bad way and it was only going to get worse. I couldn’t think of any way out. If I could get to my feet, I might have stood half a chance, but they would shoot me just for laughs. I needed a weapon.

My back really hurt down by my belt and I tried to think of when I was hit down there. My heart suddenly leapt into my throat. That little .25 was back there! They must have missed it when they took my gunbelt off me. It was attached to my other belt and my shirt must have covered it.

I lay there waiting for the sun to slip behind the hills. I had nothing but time, and I needed to get this right on the first go. Anything else would be the death of me.

The light grew dimmer and I knew it was the best time to move. The human eye had a hard time at dusk alternating from a light sky to a dark ground. Those few seconds of adjustment would be critical.

As I lay there, I slowly stretched a hand out to a nearby rock. I had to roll slightly on my side to do this, and when I did, I slid my other hand behind my back. In the dark, I hoped it looked like I was trying to defend myself and my other arm was useless.

“Whatchu grabbin’ at? You lookin’ to hit me with thet little bitty rock?” Harsh Voice had returned and kicked at my hand. “I oughtta break your goddamn arm fer that.” Harsh Voice drew his foot back and that’s when I moved.

I pulled the gun out from behind my back and aimed at what I could see. I fired three shots into Harsh Voice’s crotch and gut, and he went down screaming. I turned quickly to see the other man grabbing at his gun, and I fired three times in his direction. I don’t know where I hit him, but he went down as well.

I rolled to my hands and knees, heaving a little as my head spun and my gut roiled. I spat out a little blood, and looked over at Harsh Voice, who was still screaming and grabbing his nuts. Blood was everywhere, and I was surprised he was still kicking. I knocked his hands away as they grabbed at me and yanked my gun belt and Colt off his waist before he bled all over it.

The movement twisted my side and I gasped aloud at the pain. I could still only see out of one eye, so it was going to be difficult. But I had to get Judy back. I owed her my life several times over.

I felt better as I put my gun belt back around my hips. I checked my Colt and saw it was still loaded. The belt was still full of cartridges, so I was well-heeled to go after my horse. I wished I had my rifle, but then I wished I wasn’t so beat up, either.

Harsh Voice finally got quiet as he bled out, and I checked on the other man. He was laying in a pool of his own blood, as one of the bullets had entered his neck and severed the artery there. The other two seemed to have missed him completely.

I stumbled out of the small valley and found that I was only a small distance from the barn. It took me a good half hour to work my way down the pump, and I put a lot cold water on my beaten face and managed to open my swollen eye up a little.

As I washed the blood off my face and neck, I could feel a rage building up inside. I hadn’t bothered anyone. I just took over an empty house. Now my horse was gone, my rifle was gone, and all my supplies. I was mad clean through, and I had one name to blame for all my troubles.

Mort Piker.

Chapter 26

As I left the valley behind, I went back up to the house I had used. Inside, I was surprised to find most of my belongings, including my rifle and ammunition. I had placed them under the bed, and I guess in the hurry to beat me they didn’t bother to take the time to go through the house as thoroughly as they would later after I was dead.

I thought about where Judy might be, and I remembered seeing a few horses at the big lodge near the front of the territory. If nothing else, that would be a good place to start.

The sun was fully down when I started walking, and my side hurt something fierce. My head ached with every step, and I had to stop once in a while to get my vision to come back to normal. I didn’t doubt I might have a concussion, but there was nothing for it right now. I needed my horse back and I needed to square things with Piker.

As I walked, I considered my course of action. In all likelihood, I was going to be shot and killed. But there was an anger in me that wouldn’t put it aside for a calmer day. I hadn’t started this, but I was sure as hell going to be there at the end. Fueling my fire were the thoughts I had of the other two places that didn’t want me around.  Both times I hadn’t done anything anyone else wouldn’t have done and I still got run out for it.

This time, I was going to earn it. My grudge was Mort Piker, and if they let me have him, no one else would get hurt. But if they wanted a fight, it was coming to them right now.

I went down a small culvert and looked out at the waters lapping the edge of the road. This little inlet reached out to a bigger lake, one that came up to the back of the lodge. I gave a brief thought to finding a boat and coming up the back way, but I had no idea even where to begin looking for a boat.

I walked up the curving hill, and just before I got to the crest, I heard a couple of voices coming over the top.

“Can’t believe Pete’s gone. Just don’t seem real.”

“You’d believe it if you were there. That gun wasn’t there and then it was. Pete got blown right outta his saddle.”

“How old was that kid, anyway?”

“Hell, he has a young face, maybe his teens? Built like he’s seen some work, though.”

“Why’d Mort push him?”

“Dunno. Mort’s been edgy lately, like he’s got a sore tooth or something. Kid wasn’t hurting anybody, and for sure we didn’t need the horse.”

“Tough way to go, beating him to death.”

“That was Piker’s gift to Walt. Pete was his brother and all.”

“Think they’ll be back soon?”

I stepped out of the shadows with my rifle leveled at their belt buckles.

“No,” I answered. “They won’t be back at all. Drop your weapons.”

The two men stared at me like I was some kind of ghost, but when their eyes found the rifle, they took their guns out quick enough. They put two handguns and two rifles on the ground at my feet.

“You two seem like you want to take a trip. Ever been to Rockford?” I asked, gathering up the guns. I tried not to gasp as my side gave me a new pain to explore.

The men shook their heads.

“Now’s a good time to visit. When you get there, tell Brewster I said hello. Now get lost.” I motioned with the muzzle of my gun and the two men nearly tripped over each other in their haste to get away.

I waited until they were out of sight before I sagged against a tree. My head swam and my gut hurt, but if I showed weakness in front of these men, they’d kill me for sure.

I stayed in the darkness of the trees and looked the situation over. The lodge was huge, with a large parking lot that had been turned into a corral. On the close side of me, there was a small building that used to be a general store of sorts, at least that’s what the sign next to it said. It was dark and looked like it hadn’t been used in years.

Inside the big building, I could see flickering lights of lamps and candles, and shadows moving around like wraiths. I knew Mort would be in there, and I had a score to settle.

I moved among the darker shadows and got closer to the lodge. I had no plan other than to go in and shoot anyone who got in my way. The more I hurt, the madder I got.

I stayed downwind of the corral, not wanting the horses to get alarmed. One of them spotted me and raised its ears in question as to who might be intruding. It walked over carefully, and I waited, hoping it would go back. I couldn’t see very well, but I began to feel a small glimmer of hope as a walking mare, as familiar to me as my own hands, made her way over to my side of the corral.

I placed hand out onto a warm nose, and tried to stop the small flow of tears as relief flooded through me. The only family I had left was right here in front of me and she had found me again.

“Hello, girl. I sure am glad to see you’re okay,” I said quietly. Judy nickered softly, then walked away, returning to the other horses. I think she knew what I was about to do, and it was better she was away from the lodge.

I checked the loads in my rifle and made sure it was full. I loosened my Colt in my holster, and flexed my hand a few times to make sure it was limber. I took a deep breath and stepped into the lodge.

Chapter 27

I didn’t see anyone in the front, and light and shadows danced around in a frenzy of red and yellow and black. I heard several voices coming from another room, and made my way over there. I rounded the corner of a great stone fireplace and let the light of the other room cover me completely.

In front of me, there was a long table, and several men were sitting there eating and drinking. They didn’t notice me for a minute and that was fine. I noted my target was sitting at the head of the table, drinking heavily from a large glass.

The room suddenly got very quiet. No one moved at all, save for their eyes, which seemed fascinated with the muzzle of my rifle. Some eyes traveled to my face, which was swollen and bruising. I was sure I looked like hell, but at the moment I didn’t care.

I looked at Piker. “You worthless son of a bitch,” I said, my voice loud in the room. “You beat me for no reason. Your men were going to beat me to death for no reason at all. I didn’t bother anyone, I didn’t hurt anyone. But you were going to have me killed.”

I transferred the rifle to my left hand and rested the muzzle on the shoulder of the man nearest to The barrel was pointed right at the man’s neck, and he froze in place, sweating profusely and not daring to move.

I looked at Mort. “Your turn to try it on your own. Not one of your dogs. You.” I spat the words at him and waited.

Mort’s face was red with anger, and he put his hands on the table.  He heaved his bulk upright, and stood facing me. I kept my hand near my Colt, and I was ready for any move he was going to make.

Mort looked at me and then at his men. They were alternating looking at me and looking at him. The tension in the room was palpable, and the only sound came from the fireplace, where a log fell on the grate and caused a burst of sparks.

The long silence was broken by Mort himself. He sighed long and hard, then he raised his hands and sat back down. He put his hands in front of him on the table and looked down.

I was frustrated and I was mad. I wanted to kill him so bad it hurt almost as much as the beating I took. I vented my anger in the fury of cursing and swearing. I called him every vicious name I could think of and invented a few more. I cursed him for a coward and promised him every sort of pain I could think of.

When I finished, I told every man in that room that I was going to stay until I healed, then I was gone. If any of then so much as breathed in my valley, I’d kill them where they stood.

I stepped back and swung my rifle to the table. Out of sheer anger, I fired five rounds into the wood of the table, scattering plates, food, and men. I shot the main lamp hanging overhead and stepped out after it fell.

Outside, I gathered up Judy and kicked two boards loose of the corral. I walked her out, not caring if the other horses left or not. Served the sons of bitches right if their horses took off on them.

I rode Judy back to the house and gathered up my things. I couldn’t stay here and I was sorry to go. This was a comfortable place. But I was a marked man now and needed to leave.

I took Judy up the back trail to the abandoned schoolhouse and we shared the small space. I let her graze outside for a bit before bringing her in, and used the time to heat some water to bathe my face again. I fell asleep after securing the door and windows.

In the morning, I woke up to a hurt head and hungry horse. I led her outside to the small slope above the school. There was a nice sheltered area there that had a lot of good grass for her. It also was shielded from the road and valley, so no one would see her there.

I crept out of the woods and carefully made my way over to the barn. Once inside, I was able to use the cover of the buildings and the tall grass to make my way to the well and get some water. I filled two buckets and got back to the house.

I stayed there with Judy for about four days, resting as well as I could. I slept most days when I could, and trapped when I needed to. Several times, I heard large parties of horses moving around the valley, but they never came up this old trail.

On the fifth day, I took Judy out and led her up the trail. The trees were full of leaves and it was a shady walk in the morning. The trail was barely visible as a small path of rocks, and on the right side of the trail, the landscape fell away down a steep hill. The canopy was full overhead, and kept us from being seen by anyone not on the trail. Ahead, the path led towards the ridgeline, and on that end, the brush covered the trail pretty well.

I was deep in enemy territory and I knew it. But I also knew there was another way out of the territory, one that would take me out away from the lodge. I headed that way now, hoping not to encounter any of Piker’s men. I was going to have to stick to the low areas, and keep out of sight as much as possible. My best chance was head north, then west.

I put my rifle away, and strung my bow, putting my quiver on my back for easy reach. I knew a shot would be heard for miles, but my arrows could get the job done silently.

Judy was happy to move, having spent the last four days stuck in a small glade and building. I was hoping to slip away and never come back. Part of me wanted to hunt them all down, but another part, maybe the adult part, said retreat was the better option for all involved. In a gun battle, I could get injured or killed, and the same for Judy. It wasn’t worth the risk.

Another day of moving and I reached a road called Stagecoach. It ran somewhat north and south, and I looked at it for a while before making a choice. I didn’t need to head to the corner of the wall. I knew what a corner looked like.

I turned Judy’s head south and pulled up short. Four men on horseback were blocking the road, and one of them was Mort Piker.

“Well, now! Did you think you’d just leave without saying goodbye?” Mort’s smile was nasty, and he held a gun in his hand.

“Doesn’t have to be like this, Piker,” I said. I was in a bad spot and didn’t see how to get out of it. If I was on the ground and away from Judy it would be different, but there was no way not to get her or I killed.

“You’re right. It doesn’t. But I like it this way,” Mort said. “You came into my house, and shot up my room.
If
you’d have gone off and just licked your wounds, I might have forgiven you killing two of my men. But you came to
my house
!” Mort shouted the last words and I knew this was going to be bad.

“Well, I know I can’t ask for an even break from a coward like you,” I said. “But maybe there’s a chance…”

I didn’t finish my sentence since I was kicking Judy in the sides. She jumped forward, crashing through the brush on the other side of the road. I didn’t even know what was in there, I just needed to move.

Bullets crashed through the air behind me, but I kept Judy running. We dodged around trees and a few bullets whined past my head as the men fired blind. There was shouting and the thunder of hooves in pursuit, but I had changed the odds. I kept Judy moving, circling towards the south, keeping to the heavy brush.

I stopped for a second and waited to see if I could even things out even more. I could hear one horse moving closer, and I caught a glimpse of a red shirt as it moved through the trees. I drew back my bow and waited, then let it go. The arrow struck the man in the shoulder, right below his collarbone. He screamed as he tumbled from his horse, spooking it into running away.

I kept moving, listening to the man yell and scream for his comrades. Heavy thrashing told me the riders were converging on the wounded man. I could have killed him, but if he was wounded and alive, he would be a burden on his comrades. Dead they could just leave him and get him later. It also gave them something to think about. They would have no idea where the next arrow might come from, and that might slow them down further.

I could hear cursing as I moved further away, and there were shots as somebody fired randomly and wild. One hit a tree close to Judy’s head, and I got her to move a little faster away from there.

I guided Judy through some thicker brush, and we emerged back out onto the road. I could hear the sounds of horses moving through the woods behind me, so I gave Judy her head and we lit out of there like we were running from Trippers. A quarter of a mile later, I pulled Judy back to give her a rest. We had managed to escape and I was proud of her. I told her so and I got a mane shake in return.

We kept moving at a good pace, and all I was thinking was getting more and more distance from Piker. Man to man, I could take him, but he didn’t play by those rules. Maybe one day we would meet again, and things would be different, but for now, I was moving on.

Half a day later, as the sun was finishing its work for the day and contenting itself with casting long shadows across the land, I was standing next to my horse. Fifty feet in front of me was the Mississippi River. Ten feet behind me was a railroad track.

I had some thinking to do.