slipped off into the darkness of the trees.
~~~~
After navigating the rugged hillside trail with just the moonlight to guide them, they popped onto an old gravel road. “This is Daddy’s driveway,” Vanessa said as she pressed the thumb throttle of the ATV and proceeded up the road.
“How you hangin’ in there, old man?” Jason asked Evan.
“I’m hangin’, but it’s sure as hell not fun,” replied Evan, trying to get a peek at his wound through the tear in his shirt.
“Quit poking at it; we’ll get you taken care of. Let’s keep moving,” Jason said as he kicked his horse into action and raced off to keep Vanessa in sight.
“Damn it,” Evan mumbled under his breath as he followed Jason’s lead.
After a few more bends in the road, they came to an old two-story log home that appeared to have been built a significant time in the past. The rugged old structure had a character that just couldn’t be found in modern construction. The large log home had a natural rock chimney on each end of the primary structure, which Evan immediately noticed; such a layout hadn’t been used extensively since the power grid was established and everyone began to rely on modern furnaces to heat their homes.
As Vanessa brought the ATV to a stop, two tall, rough-looking men stepped out onto the porch. Vanessa lifted Audrey off of the ATV and ran to the open arms of one of the men while the other kept a watchful eye on Evan and Jason, his hands clutching a lever-action rifle with a classically styled walnut stock.
Erupting into tears, Vanessa began to explain in detail the events of the night to her father. A seriously distressed look came over his face as he pointed towards Evan and Jason saying, “Get those two inside right away.” He turned and walked back inside, carrying Audrey in his right arm and his left wrapped around his daughter’s shoulder.
“Come on in, gentlemen,” said the second man while gesturing for them to follow.
As they entered the home, a woman in her mid to late fifties ushered Vanessa and Audrey into the back room while the men remained in the living room to discuss the events of the night. “Fellas, I’ve got to thank you for what you did back there. It’s devastating what happened to Bill, and we will no doubt have a breakdown around here once it all soaks in, but I’m just thankful those bastards didn’t get any further. There’s no telling what they would have done if you hadn’t come along. If that had happened, I’d be a dead man tomorrow because I would have snapped and set out to kill every damn one of them myself. My name is Carl Dennison. This is my brother, Ted Dennison,” he said, gesturing to the other man.
“No problem, sir,” Jason replied. “We would want someone to do the same for our families.”
“Speaking of your families, where are you two from and how did you stumble across my daughter’s home in the middle of the night?”
“It’s a long story, sir.”
“We’ve got time,” replied Carl. “Besides, Vanessa’s aunt—Ted’s wife—is getting some things together to patch up your buddy here. Vanessa told us he was hurt. Catch us up while we wait.”
Acquiescing to Carl’s request, Jason told the tale of their journey from the Homefront with Ed, Nate, Charlie, and Jimmy, as well as their altercations with the UN peacekeeping forces. He kept the details of their location vague for security reasons but told him just enough to ensure the integrity of his story. Considering what they had just witnessed back at Vanessa’s home, he felt confident that he and Evan were in good company and that they shared a common foe with this family.
“I was afraid it was gonna come to this, eventually,” added Ted. “Those sons-of-bitches have been cruising all around Del Rio lately, knocking on doors, harassing people, looking for information on any militia activity. I imagine part of that is compliments of you fellas?”
Evan spoke up and said,
~~~~
After navigating the rugged hillside trail with just the moonlight to guide them, they popped onto an old gravel road. “This is Daddy’s driveway,” Vanessa said as she pressed the thumb throttle of the ATV and proceeded up the road.
“How you hangin’ in there, old man?” Jason asked Evan.
“I’m hangin’, but it’s sure as hell not fun,” replied Evan, trying to get a peek at his wound through the tear in his shirt.
“Quit poking at it; we’ll get you taken care of. Let’s keep moving,” Jason said as he kicked his horse into action and raced off to keep Vanessa in sight.
“Damn it,” Evan mumbled under his breath as he followed Jason’s lead.
After a few more bends in the road, they came to an old two-story log home that appeared to have been built a significant time in the past. The rugged old structure had a character that just couldn’t be found in modern construction. The large log home had a natural rock chimney on each end of the primary structure, which Evan immediately noticed; such a layout hadn’t been used extensively since the power grid was established and everyone began to rely on modern furnaces to heat their homes.
As Vanessa brought the ATV to a stop, two tall, rough-looking men stepped out onto the porch. Vanessa lifted Audrey off of the ATV and ran to the open arms of one of the men while the other kept a watchful eye on Evan and Jason, his hands clutching a lever-action rifle with a classically styled walnut stock.
Erupting into tears, Vanessa began to explain in detail the events of the night to her father. A seriously distressed look came over his face as he pointed towards Evan and Jason saying, “Get those two inside right away.” He turned and walked back inside, carrying Audrey in his right arm and his left wrapped around his daughter’s shoulder.
“Come on in, gentlemen,” said the second man while gesturing for them to follow.
As they entered the home, a woman in her mid to late fifties ushered Vanessa and Audrey into the back room while the men remained in the living room to discuss the events of the night. “Fellas, I’ve got to thank you for what you did back there. It’s devastating what happened to Bill, and we will no doubt have a breakdown around here once it all soaks in, but I’m just thankful those bastards didn’t get any further. There’s no telling what they would have done if you hadn’t come along. If that had happened, I’d be a dead man tomorrow because I would have snapped and set out to kill every damn one of them myself. My name is Carl Dennison. This is my brother, Ted Dennison,” he said, gesturing to the other man.
“No problem, sir,” Jason replied. “We would want someone to do the same for our families.”
“Speaking of your families, where are you two from and how did you stumble across my daughter’s home in the middle of the night?”
“It’s a long story, sir.”
“We’ve got time,” replied Carl. “Besides, Vanessa’s aunt—Ted’s wife—is getting some things together to patch up your buddy here. Vanessa told us he was hurt. Catch us up while we wait.”
Acquiescing to Carl’s request, Jason told the tale of their journey from the Homefront with Ed, Nate, Charlie, and Jimmy, as well as their altercations with the UN peacekeeping forces. He kept the details of their location vague for security reasons but told him just enough to ensure the integrity of his story. Considering what they had just witnessed back at Vanessa’s home, he felt confident that he and Evan were in good company and that they shared a common foe with this family.
“I was afraid it was gonna come to this, eventually,” added Ted. “Those sons-of-bitches have been cruising all around Del Rio lately, knocking on doors, harassing people, looking for information on any militia activity. I imagine part of that is compliments of you fellas?”
Evan spoke up and said,
Similar Books
