Charlotte Hoaks. . . .(C. A. Hoaks)

Matt walked out of the camper with Mary clinging to his hand. “He nodded at Lawson the only female soldier present. “Take Mary and the three girls to the Rec Center.”

Within the group of women, the younger woman gasped in panic. “Where are you taking my daughter?” An older woman elbowed her.

Matt glared at the crone and growled. “Do that again, and I’ll shoot you.” He turned back to the younger women and added “They’ll be all right. We need to figure out what’s gone on here.”

While the older women cowered, the younger stepped around the group and announced. “I can tell you what’s going on. That bastard is a fucking rapist!”

Matt held up his hand. “I figured that out. Could you tell me your name before we get started?”

“Maggie Sanders. That fat bastard shot my husband and the other men in our camp after they killed the infected that invaded the camp. Billings raped me.”

Billings snorted. “She was doing her wifely duty.”

“I’m not his wife. He forced me into that sham of marriage.” Maggie retorted.

Matt glared at Billings. “I know you’re a rapist. That’s already been established when I saw what you did to Mary.”

“The child is my celestial wife, just like Sister Maggie. You have no business interfering with a blessed union.” Billings argued.

Jenkins kicked out and knocked Billings to the ground, and he pressed the barrel of his handgun to the preacher’s head. “You’re a fucking child molester! We don’t need to investigate this jerkoff.”

“Agreed.” Matt said. “Zip-tie these four to the flag pole.” He ordered, then turned back to Maggie. “What’s the story with those four?” He nodded toward the sour looking women huddled together a few feet away.”

“Two of them belong to Roy. The other two are Billings’ wives.” She looked back to where Jenkins and one of his men were putting zip-ties on the men. “The boys are Roy’s sons. Both of them are dumb as posts, but they do whatever Billing’s orders.”

Matt turned to Jenkins. “I want a guard on those idiots until I decide what to do with them. Put those four women back in that last camper with a guard.” He turned to Maggie. “Is it alright if you and the girls stay in the two bedroom camper?”

“Sure.” She answered. “That bastard took my husband’s guns. I want them back.”

“Tomorrow we’ll clean out that boar’s nest and get your weapons.”

“Fine. We need clothes. I won’t wear these rags a minute longer.” She announced.

“We can probably take care of that. You and the girls may end up in t-shirts and cargo pants or shorts, but they’ll be clean and functional.”

Matt led Maggie to the Rec Center. There, they walk in to see Lawson with the girls. It looked as if all had showered and now wore soccer shorts and t-shirts. Mary sat in front of Lawson. She was working a brush through Mary’s tangled hair.

“Are you girls alright?” Maggie put her arms around two of the girls.

“Fine.” One of the girls answered. The other stood silently just watching Lawson.

Maggie held out her arms, and all the girls stepped to her side. She pulled them close. “We’re free now. Those people can’t hurt us anymore.” Both girls turned and cried against their mother.

“Mary, you and Sarah are part of our family now if you want to be.” Maggie studied Mary and the small girl sitting next to her.

Mary nodded. “We would like that if the old wives aren’t going to be there.”

Maggie laughed. “No, they are NOT going to be anywhere around us, I promise you. We’re free of those people.”

Lawson handed Maggie a stack of clothes and pointed at a door. “Right in there, in the back is the shower. I keep a bottle of conditioner in the last shower on the windowsill.”

Maggie nodded and disappeared into the showers. When she reappeared, the four girls were still sitting with Lawson. All four girls had freshly brushed and combed hire. Lawson was telling a tale of Matt falling in horse poop, and the girls were laughing.

Despite being the butt of the joke, Matt looked up and smiled at Maggie. “If you’re ready, I’ll lead you to your new home.”

Maggie nodded and together with girls, Matt led them to an empty camper and carried a small camp lantern inside. They walked through the camper examining the two little bedrooms. “This is fine. My daughters and I can sleep in the back bedroom. Mary and Sarah can share the second bedroom. We’ll be all right, won’t we girls?” She leaned down and gathered the four girls into her arms.

“If you need anything, just ask a soldier.” Matt turned and walked outside closing the door behind himself.

Jenkins and Larry appeared out of the shadows. “What in the hell are we going to do with the rest of them?” Larry asked.

“Billings is a rapist, and Roy is a killer. I’m not turning them loose to do this again. The others, well, they can’t stay.” Matt answered.

Matt returned to the manager’s office to the sounds of a new baby’s cry.

Amy met him at the door. “It’s a boy! Mr. Matt.” She squealed excitedly.

“A boy? Well, ain’t that sweet.” Matt smiled as he collapsed into the recliner.

Heavy steps descended the stairs and Doc with Helen at his side appeared. “Well, we have a new member of our merry little band. A strong little guy nearly nine pounds would be my guess.”

Matt chuckled. “Well, I’ll be damned.”

Doc leaned close. “If I might ask, Jake acts like the father, but the child is not biracial. Is there a story here?”

“Amanda was in that busload of folks we rescued from the roadside park three months ago. Jenkin’s crew was in the same operation. Jake’s been acting like a nervous father the last month or so.” Matt sighed. “I thought she was just being nice, but I guess that wasn’t quite the case.”

“She sure doesn’t look like she minds the attention to me,” Doc answered. “It sounded like there was some excitement outside.”

Brian looked at his watch and cringed. He had been hoping the party would continue to cover the sound of the truck’s return in the quiet of the night. He watched as one after another retrieved bed-rolls then began bedding down. The fire waned and became little more than a red glow of coals. He checked his watch again and realized it had been almost forty minutes. He heard a snap of a branch in the distance and turned to see five shadows making their way toward his hiding place. “Damn!” He cursed under his breath.

He eased back into the shadows and waited. Each of the figures approaching clutched weapons. Real quickly he recognized Leon, Juan, and Billy. Then he saw the two women following a few feet behind the three men.

“Crap.” He whispered as he slipped out of the shadows and duck-walked back down the side of the road to meet the five members of his group at the base of the hill. When he met them, he realized each carried a bladed weapon and a gun.

“We brought both vehicles. They’re parked a quarter mile down the road. The girls didn’t want to be left alone, and after a discussion, we decided it was better to stay together.”

“This is not a fucking democracy!” Brian declared. He took a deep breath through his nose and exhaled through his parted lips. Finally, he spoke again. “Alright, you’re all here, so all the dry-firing is going to pay off or not. We have a dozen bad guys. We have to make sure to take them all out to save the two captives.”

The two women stood staring at him while gasping for breath after running from the vehicles.

“I need to get in shape.” Margo quipped.

“What are you two doing here?” Brian demanded.

“My fault. Leon told us what happened. Those women are going to be scared. We can help.” Margo answered.

“Besides, what if you aren’t successful? If you fail, we’re left to fend for ourselves. We need to help just to protect ourselves.”

“We loaded up the rest of our supplies and brought both vehicles,” Juan announced. “Just in case.”

“Well, that was a vote of confidence.” Admitting defeat, Brian held up his hands, palms out. “When the shooting starts, I’ll take out the guard. You get to the girls. The keys for the chain are in the shirt pocket of the guard. Get them and head back this way. If you see anyone besides one of us coming over the hill, get in the truck and leave. You have the map. Dump the big truck as soon as you can and keep going. Don’t come back because we’ll be dead. Get as far away from here as you can.”

Margo gave a quick nod then she and Paula stepped aside.

“Okay boss. What’s the plan?” Leon asked.

Brian outlined his plan. “We got twelve men, four are on guard duty. We each take care of a guard and take their place. I’ll hunker down from the little rise over there and take out as many as I can with the silenced rifle. Soon as the closest guards are taken out, Margo and Paula gets the girls and, take them out of here. I only have half a dozen shells, so we take out the rest by hand. No guns if we can help it.”

Leon leaned close. “Stab them?”

“Use the knife.” Brian pointed to his back at the kidney. “The pain will keep them from calling out giving you time to grab their head and slit their throat.”

“Shit!” Juan whispered.

Brian looked to Billy then studied each Leon and Juan. “If you can’t do this, we walk away. Billy and I can’t do this by ourselves.”

“No.” Leon looked at Juan, and he nodded. “We can do it, boss.”

“What are we going to do?” Leon whispered.

Brian stepped back pulling Leon with him as he replied. “We can’t do anything right now.”

“What?” Leon queried. “You can’t be serious. You know what’ll happen to those two girls.”

Brian eased back down the hill. When he was out of sight of the mayhem beyond he jogged toward the truck with Leon close on his heels. At the truck, he pulled a sniper rifle, a combat knife and extra magazines from behind the seat.

“We can’t save everyone, but I’m not willing to abandon those two. Take the truck back and get Billy and Juan. Gear up and get back here as fast as you can. Park down the road about a quarter mile and make your way to the place where we were.”

Leon jumped into the truck and cranked the engine. Brian leaned close. “Don’t use the lights or race the engine until you’re out of earshot. I don’t want them hearing the truck. You got an hour. I’ll keep an eye on them and meet me here. Tell the women to be in the van ready to head out, just in case.”

“Got it.” Leon shoved the truck in gear and pulled out onto the broken asphalt and quickly disappeared.

Brian carried his personal arsenal to the crest of the hill to watch the camp when the two women were led to a truck where they were chained to a bumper. Brian watched the man with the key and noted he spread out a sleeping bag and settled down for the night not far from the girls.

The felonious crew passed around two more bottles and a second man had found in a truck. They scrounged food and laced metal cups of coffee as they sat around the fire. The drinkers grew steadily louder. The celebrating would soon obscure any distant rumble of the returning truck. It would all depend on how long the boss let the party continued.

Brian ignored the mosquitos buzzing and lighting on his bare skin as he slowly screwed the silencer on the end of his rifle. He hadn’t done any serious distance shooting other than at the range in a really long time. He hoped he was up to the task if the need arose. He watched the celebration spin up into a full blown party.

The men toasted each other for a well-executed ambush, and the plethora of supplies gathered from the victims including the women. As the salutes grew more raucous, one of the men approached the women rubbing at the front of his jeans. The guard jerked upright and growled curses while pointing a gun in the man’s direction. The would-be abuser crept back to his friends amid a myriad of laughter.

Brian slowly released his breath as he watched one of the men shove his way through the celebrating group breaking up the party. He talked to four people, and they headed off to stand in the shadows at the edge of the camp. The drinking suddenly slowed, and the party began to wind down.

Randy reached out, but Harry turned away. “Lead out.”

Randy turned to the other. “You three come along, but be quiet.”

Meanwhile, three women had appeared on the front porch. The younger woman rushed down the step to begin examining Liz. “Is she bit?” She asked.

“No,” Harry growled. “She’s pregnant. We had an accident a few days ago.”

Randy pushed his way past her to reach for Liz. “It’s Liz. Will’s daughter.”

Wilma reached toward John and the kids. “Let’s let them take care of Liz. If you come with me, we’ll get you cleared and a snack, okay.”

John looked at her and scowled. “We ain’t bit.”

Wilma held up her hand to let Randy, Harry and Cassie disappeared into the building. Just then two men, both Hispanic and wearing sidearms appeared from behind the building. “I’m sure that’s true, but we have a process and everyone, and I mean everyone who walks in this door gets inspected. You can relax and make it easy for everyone or….” She let her voice trail off then continued while giving John a big smile. “My friends will assist either way.”

John sighed. “Fine. But ain’t no man checkin’ HER out.”

“Of course not.” Wilma led them into the main room of the lodge.

All three of the newcomers looked around in awe. Their footsteps slowed as they took in the massive room with two fireplaces, and an open stairway to a second story.

“Quite a little hiddy hole,” John turned to Cody and whispered. “Not what I expected for sure.”

Wilma led them to a hallway and to a side door across from a first aid station where voices spoke in hushed whispers. “This way, please. Mr. Edmond’s daughter is in good hands. Our doctor is my little girl.”

At the next doorway, Wilma pointed inside and stepped back. “You and the boy can go in there. Jose will give you a quick once-over then you are free to wander around. Maria is gathering drinks and snacks.”

The men disappeared into the room, and the door closed. The second man stopped outside the door.

She turned to the preteen girl. “Hi, my name is Wilma. What’s your name?” Trace answered then Wilma continued. “We’ll go in here then make sure you have no bites or sores that need to be treated.”

They stepped inside, Wilma completed her inspection then helped the young girl right herself, and they stepped outside chatting like old friends. John and Cody stepped out of the room.

“Now, you folks are probably hungry. If you go to the dining room to the left of the stairs, Maria and a couple ladies will bring out refreshments in no time. Dinner won’t be for a couple hours and Jose, and I have some people to clear.”

John and the kids headed off to where they were directed while Wilma stuck her head in the exam room where Randy and Harry stood aside while Cassie inserted a needle into Liz’s arm.

“You two can’t do anything more. Randy, I think we need to get inspections done then figure out what we’re doing with all these folks. Will won’t be back until dark, so it’s left up to you.”

“I want that ultrasound you snagged at the vet office, too,” Cassie added.

“Right.” He looked to Harry. “Come on, Harry. We get folks checked out then settled in.”

The caravan headed for a metal structure that appeared in the middle of an open expanse between the edge of the forest and a distant camp. The road angled toward the structure, and a ravine that ran the full width of the canyon entrance became more evident.

“Well, that’s a hell of a ditch,” Harry commented. “It looks like someone went to a lot of trouble.”

John pointed toward the left canyon wall. “It looks like there was a natural arroyo part way across the entrance of the canyon. They used heavy equipment to extend the trench all the way across before laying out that razor wire on the far side. It’s good to see the old man used the natural terrain to fortify the compound. Now it looks like only one way across the arroyo, that metal bridge.”

Randy’s truck pulled up across from a guard shack and waved. A man appeared at the gateway, gave a wave, and headed for a nearby metal structure and raised bridge.

“It looks like there’s a metal bridge of some kind,” Harry commented.

With the angle of the approach to the rock-strewn landscape, Harry and John could watch the guard reach out and turn a huge metal wheel at the side of the metal support structure. As the wheel turned, chains at the top of a tall metal structure extended and a skeletal platform began to lower toward the abyss of the gap.

“Fucking drawbridge?” Johan asked.

“Looks like it,” Harry answered.

Randy headed down the length of the caravan. When he got to the camper, Harry opened the side window. “Follow the rest and park the vehicle in front of the big building. We have a procedure in place to ensure we’re not bringing infected into the compound. Just stay inside the vehicle, until we get to you.”

“No problem.” Harry nodded. “A few more minutes is not going to kill any of us.”

“I’ll be taking Liz in first. Her father would have my hide if I didn’t. Besides, she needs to see the doctor.”

“Agreed.” Harry hesitated then asked. “Is that bridge sturdy enough for this rig?”

“Shouldn’t be a problem. May not take a loaded 18-wheeler, but it’s designed to carry a good size load. We already had the sides reinforced. Just take it slow and keep moving.”

“Now that’s promising.” John laughed.

A few minutes later the caravan pulled up in front of the Lodge. Harry got out from behind the wheel and walked toward the back of the camper. “You kids sit tight for now.”

“Yes, sir,” Cody answered.

When he got to the back bedroom, Harry used his knuckle against the door frame. Liz lay still. Harry whispered. “Lizzy? Lizzy, girl you’re home.”

She lay still. Harry walked to the side of the bed ready to jostle her awake, but when he saw her face, he stopped still. Liz’s face was flushed and glistened with moisture.

Harry reached down to lay his hand on her shoulder. He shook gently. “Lizzy, wake up now. You’re scaring me.” Liz lay still.

“John, holler at Randy. Liz is unconscious. We need to get her inside right now.”

Harry slid an arm under Liz’s shoulders and then behind her knees. He grunted and struggled to his feet. John rushed into the bedroom just as Harry turned to walk out. “She doesn’t weigh hardly nothing,” Harry complained as he sidestepped through the door and made his way to the side door. “We should have noticed how much weight she’s lost.”

“John followed behind Harry. “We have been a little busy if you’ll recall. You were gimpy, and I had a busted rib or two.”

“We let her take care of us like we were a pair of geriatrics.” Harry lamented as he stepped aside to let John open the side door. Harry stepped out with John, the kids, and dog close on his heels. The dog ran in circles, while the kids danced around excitedly.

Randy appeared. “What the hell are you doing? I told you….” He turned toward the kids. “Quiet!”

“She’s unconscious. You said you have a doctor.” Harry demanded. “She needs to see him now.”