Murphy's Law (Roads Less Traveled Book 2) by C. Dulaney Page B

a criminal, or a psycho. I’d been wrong before.
    “Lower your weapon, ma’am,” he said.
    “How about you lower yours first?” I countered.
    Out of the corner of my eye I could see both Mia and Nancy looking back and forth between me and this man. They’d already lowered their rifles. Way to back me up, guys.
    “I won’t ask again, ma’am. Lower your weapon before someone gets hurt.”
    Since I was the only one still pointing a barrel at these guys, I figured I might as well do as the man said. It was also getting dark, and the things we’d seen earlier were worse than these guys could ever be. I sighed, took another hard look at the men surrounding Zack and Jake, and lowered my rifle. I set my jaw and stared at the man in front of me, who had lowered his weapon immediately. He seemed relieved I had done as he’d requested; he held his rifle casually in one hand hanging at his side and put his other on his hip.
    “Thank you. Now, who are you people and where are you headed?”
    I thought about lying to him, but my thoughts came back to the issue at hand. It was dusk and we needed to get the hell out of the open. These guys looked as though they’d been taken care of, so I assumed they were from Blueville. If that was the case, we could kill two birds with one stone: get to our destination before dark, and stay relatively safe with a group of decent-looking folk.
    “We’re travelers, and we’re headed that way.” I pointed down the road behind him.
    He glanced at his men, then raised an eyebrow at me. “If you’re going that way, then you’re coming with us. But listen, we don’t want any trouble. You look like honest people, but you’ll understand if I don’t take your word for it. You’re welcome to stay the night with us. We’ll feed you, give you a place to sleep. Then you can be on your way tomorrow. If that’s satisfactory to you, then hand over your rifles. You can keep the sidearms I’m sure you’re all wearing. But you should know this: if you start something, or even look like you’re going to try, we shoot first and ask questions later. Understood?” He wrapped up his speech by sliding the sling of his rifle over his shoulder and crossing his arms. I had to admit, I was impressed.
    “Yessir. Now let me tell you something.” I leaned forward in the saddle and rested both my arms on the horn. “We’ve been on the road a helluva long time, mister. We’re tired, we’re hungry, and we’re not in the mood to be threatened. So if you or your buddies try something, or even look like you’re going to, we shoot first and say the hell with the questions. Now, am I making myself clear?”
    It was a ballsy move, and thankfully Mia and Nancy didn’t try to argue. The man looked shocked at first, then tilted his head in a nod.
    “Crystal, ma’am.”
    He led us to the others, who then proceeded to retrieve their horses from the woods, take our rifles, and fall into position around us. From what I’d seen so far, these men seemed experienced at this sort of thing. They almost reminded me of military.
    “Are you sure about this?” Zack asked under his breath, falling in beside me.
    I chanced a quick look around; the men didn’t seem threatening. They were simply riding along with us, their guns raised, and keeping an eye not on us, but on the surrounding area. The Mouth was in front talking into a walkie. I assumed he was informing someone back in town they were bringing home some stragglers.
    “Yeah, I think we’ll be alright. And you can’t blame them. We’d react the same way if the situation was reversed, and you know it. Let’s just focus on staying safe tonight. We’ll figure out the rest later,” I replied. Jake, Mia, and Nancy kept glancing at us as I spoke. I gave them a firm nod, ending the conversation and turning my focus on the encroaching darkness.
     
    * * *
     
    “What’s going on?” Jake asked. I just continued riding along, except now all my senses were on