Odd Billy Todd (66 page)

Pete motioned for Terry to follow, and stepped through a nearby door. As the door opened, the overwhelming smell of copper hit Terry full force. There was only one thing that produced that smell.

Blood. And lot’s of it.

He moved quickly, catching up to Pete as the younger man waited outside the doorway to the auditorium. They looked at each other, eyes speaking where words were dangerous. Terry nodded, and hefted the camera.

*****

“Is that what you didn’t want to show us, yet?” Jerry asked. His face was drawn, and hard. He had put a hand on his son’s shoulder, squeezing firmly. That grip conveyed more than any words he might speak to the younger man.

Though no one in the valley knew it, Jerry had fought in Vietnam. One of the last groups of young men to be sent over before America decided it was time for the South to stand on it’s own. He had stayed almost two years, and had seen a good deal of action that would never be recorded into any history book, not all of it in Vietnam, either. Terrified, alone save for his comrades, and far from home, Jerry had never again experienced such heart stopping fear.

He had hoped his son would never be in such a position. That hope appeared to be gone forever. His son looked…haunted. He was still strong, but his illusions were gone now. His innocence, what had been left after this last year, was a thing of the past.

Though proud of his son, Jerry was sad that he had to see something so horrible, so young.

*****

Terry put the camera against the small window in the door. He looked at the small screen as he panned the camera around. What he saw threatened to turn his stomach inside out.

Terry Blaine was a hardened warrior. Had seen combat not only in Iraq and Afghanistan, but the Philippines, South America, and Africa. After twenty-two years and five continents, he thought he had seen the worst mankind had to offer.

He was wrong.

The people that had been herded inside the building earlier had all been slaughtered. And that was an apt description. Their bodies, stripped of clothing, were hanging from a series of meat hooks suspended from the ceiling. Seven people, four men and three women, were ‘working’ on various jobs, literally processing the bodies into. . . .

“shitaa' ch'ÍgonÁ'ÁÍ,” Pete breathed. In his shock, he had reverted to his native language, the language of his True People. Terry had heard him speak Apache only a few times. Most of those times right before Pete exploded in violence.

Before he could finish that thought, Pete was through the door, pistol in one hand, knife in the other. Not the combat knife he carried everywhere, but the huge khukri blade he carried on jobs like this. The same one he had carried on three tours in Afghanistan.

“Pete!”Terry hissed, but it was already too late. The largest of the men turned to see who had entered, and then roared a challenge. Terry shot him in the head without pausing, the pistol much quieter than it normally would have been.

But not silent.

The knife claimed the next two, slashing one way, then another, decapitating a woman, and slicing a man’s throat almost to the spine. Another shot sent a third man to the floor, dead before he finished falling.

Terry was in action by then, forced by Pete’s actions to forgo any chance of subtlety. His pistol coughed twice, the sounds making him wince as he double tapped the last man in the room. His next two shots went into a woman charging him with a cleaver. She took a third shot before hitting the floor.

Pete had already dispatched the last woman. The two stood eyeing the destruction they had caused, breathing heavily. The entire action had taken less than ten seconds.

“What the hell are you thinking?” Terry hissed, grabbing Pete’s arm. “We were supposed to be looking!”

“They couldn’t be allowed to live,” Pete shook his head. “This. . .this is an abomination. We can’t allow it.”

“How the hell do you suggest we stop it?” Terry demanded, fear and anger making his words harsh. “We’re just a little outnumbered, you know.”

“We have to destroy this place,” Pete remained unmoved. “Take the boy and go. I’ll catch up.”

“That’s not going to happen,” Terry told him flatly. “We’re all leaving, together. Right now!”

Pete looked around, eyeing the small generator still running in the far corner of the auditorium. Not far away was a small gas can. He walked to it, picking up the can and sloshing it around. At least half of the five gallons it would hold. Enough, he decided.

“Pete, I said let’s go,” Terry ordered.

“Not until I erase this stain,” Pete shook his head. “We cannot allow this to remain. I told you, take the boy and go.” With that he began to slosh the gas around the large room.

Terry sighed, shaking his head in defeat.

“We’ll wait at the door.” Pete nodded, never stopping.

“Make it fast, okay,” Terry said finally, and turned to leave.

To see Toby Silvers standing in the doorway, his face a mask of revulsion.

“Toby, I told you to stay at the door,” Terry said carefully. “Toby!” That shook the boy from his trance.

“Sorry,” he stammered. “I was afraid you needed help.” With that he turned away, hurrying back to his post. Terry shook his head again. This was his fault. A total breakdown in command.

And the boy had seen the room.

“God help us,” he murmured softly, then followed Toby out. The two of them waited near the entrance, not speaking, careful to keep an eye out. Two minutes later, Pete appeared still sloshing gas. Finally he set the can down, then tipped it over. He had a rag in his hand, and now took his lighter from a pocket, and lit it. He made sure the rag was burning, then turned to Terry.

“Go!” he ordered, and then tossed the rag.

Flames erupted all through the building as the fire followed the trail of accelerate. They had cleared the door before the fire reached inside the can, igniting the remainder of the fuel, and the vapors around it with a ‘whoosh’.

“Get back to the hill!” Terry urged. They were running flat out, hoping to get out of sight before anyone appeared to investigate.

They had only barely settled into their hide when the first people began to show up.

*****

“Oh my God,” Rhonda said softly, he hand coming to her mouth. Shelly lost the battle she was having with her stomach and bolted for the hall bathroom. Ralph headed out the back door for the same reason. Rhonda lasted a minute linger, and then hit the stairs for her own bathroom.

The others sat very still. Billy hadn’t moved, nor had Jerry. The Kelvey brothers looked ashen, no doubt wondering what might have happened to people they might have know in Franklin.

“Did it burn?” Billy asked softly. “The building? Did it burn down like you wanted?” he asked Pete. His friend nodded slowly.

“Yes, their spirits are free,” he almost whispered back. “Among. . .among my people, cannibalism is the vilest of crimes. One. . .one small tribe once practiced it, many generations ago. They were ostracized, and finally hunted down. Only a few lived. We. . .we are taught from childhood to fear them. Despise them. They are unclean.”

“Sounds like a good policy,” Billy agreed. “Good job.”

“No, it wasn’t,” Terry shot back. “It alerted those. . .people. . .that someone’s around. That is not a good thing.”

“They’d have found us sooner or later, I imagine,” Billy shrugged philosophically.

“That is not the point,” Terry grated.

“I know that,” Billy nodded. “Still, I agree with Pete. That had to be done. And it just might tell them. . .people. . .they might not be the only dog on the block. Might just make’em hesitate. And that’ll give us some time to get ready.”

The others began to return then, Ralph first. He settled into his chair, looking a but green.

“Sorry about that,” he grinned weakly.

“Ain’t nothin’ the rest of us ain’t done,” Toby assured him.

Shelly and Rhonda returned just then, neither looking all that well. Rhonda poured herself, Shelly and Ralph something to drink before sitting back down.

“Is that all?” Jerry asked.

*****

As the three of them watched, men and women arrived in groups of two or three, along with a fire truck. They worked hard, but were disorganized and without training. After an hour, they gave up. The truck had long since ran out of water, and the water mains that supplied the hydrants hadn’t worked in nearly a year.

As they watched, two men and one woman met in the parking lot. From their shouted orders, it was obvious they were in charge. The woman was the same one who had taken the women and children away. The men were new to them.

There was no way to hear their animated conversation, but it was obvious they were pissed, and looked to be trying to blame one another for what had happened. Others around the building actively avoided them.

“I think it’s time we thought about leaving,” Pete whispered. Terry nodded.

“I was just thinking that myself. I’d say we’ve overstayed our welcome. Toby have you been getting all of this?”

“Yes, sir,” the teen nodded. “All of it.”

“Well, this will at least give us an idea of how many there are,” Terry sighed. “Okay, Pete, take point, and get us back to the Hummer.”

*****

“It took us about three hours to get back, taking it slow and working our way out. We took a roundabout way, just in case. And we sat on the truck for a while, to see if there was any action around it.”

“Once we realized it hadn’t been disturbed, we saddled up and hit the road. We stopped several times on our way out, making sure we weren’t being followed. And, here we are.”

The others sat quietly for a time, no words coming to them. Finally, George asked the question that was on everyone’s mind.

“What do we do?”

“What can we do?” Jerry asked, leaning forward, his elbows resting on the table.

“We should try and help those people,” George shrugged. “If we can.”

“I don’t see any way to do that,” Jerry replied. “I admit, it’s a bad thing, all around. But what can we do?” he repeated.

“There’s a lot of’em,” Toby put in.

“Sounds like a rough outfit, any way you slice it,” Ben Kelvey put in. “I wonder if anyone’s left that we know?”

“You can watch the video, I guess,” Toby shrugged. “See if you can recognize anyone. I’d fast forward through the stuff inside, was I you,” he added.

“How many people came to the fire?” Jon asked.

“I didn’t count, since we had the film,” Terry admitted. “I’d guess it was forty, at least. But that is just a guess.”

“Well, that pretty much settles it, then,” Jerry leaned back again. “I don’t see what we few can do about all that.”

“There’s got to be something we can do,” George shook his head. “And we need those people they’re keeping captive. If we can release them, they would probably help us. The men, anyway. Can’t expect those kids to. Some of the women might be able and willing though.”

“We don’t even know that the men are,” Terry argued. “What happens when we release’em, and they just go running for the hills?”

“They’d be a distraction, at least,” George offered. He looked around the table.

“Look, I know it’s a long shot. But we gotta face some facts, here. These. . .people. . .are systematically stripping everything around them. Sooner or later, they’ll come here. It’s better to fight them where they are, than wait until they’re here, where we live.”

No one disputed that assessment. In fact, most agreed. That still didn’t mean there was anything they could do about it. Or was there?

“I think we need to go about this a little different,” Billy offered finally. He hadn’t said much as the discussion traveled back and forth, other than his observations about what Pete had done.

“Such as what?” Terry asked.

“Well, it ain’t like we can rush’em, is it?” Billy asked. “There’s a bunch o’ them, and just a few o’ us. We got to go about this a little smarter.” He looked at Pete.

“You interested in goin’ back?”

CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN

“This is a bad idea.”

Pete looked around at Terry from packing his warbag.

“You’ve said that before,” was all he said.

“And I’ll keep saying it, until you listen,” Terry shot back. “This is a crazy, no, it’s a stupid idea. I know you and Billy are friends, but this is one time you need to call him, and stop this idiocy.”

“My being his friend has got nothing to do with it,” Pete said easily. “George is right. This needs to be done. Sooner or later, we’ll have to face them. It’s better to do it there, than here.”

“It’s better to make sure they don’t find us at all!” Terry exclaimed. “We need to be working on that, not running off trying to wage war against a group that size.”

“So work on it,” Pete shrugged. “You don’t need us for that. Meanwhile, we’ll be keeping them so busy, they won’t have time to bother you.”

Disgusted, Terry shook his head and walked out. Pete watched him go, then continued packing.

*****

“I’m begging you, Billy. Don’t do this.”

Rhonda was in tears. Holding them back through force of will alone, a few were leaking out anyway.

“Rhonda, I ain’t gonna just sit here, waitin’ for them people to come and take you away like that. Nor Mary and Danny, neither. I ain’t.”

“You don’t even know that they’ll find us!” she almost wailed. “You’re just doing this because you think you have to!”

“I do have to,’ Billy replied gently. “Ain’t nobody else. And I don’t want to, ya know. If I had my way, I’d never get within ten miles o’ them people. But I don’t see another way. We can’t let them get close to us. Let alone find us. There’s too much to risk. We got all these kids here, too. That bunch is preyin’ on kids.”

“Then you should stay here and protect’em!” Rhonda shot back.

“I can’t,” Billy sighed, and sat down. “Don’t you think I ain’t done thought about that? You think I tried ever way in the world not to have to do this?”

“No, I don’t,” Rhonda snorted. “I think you see a chance to run off an do somethin’ stupid, and you’re takin’ it!” Billy’s face went slack at that.

He stood abruptly, and Rhonda took a step back instinctively.

“Is that what you think o’ me?” he asked, his voice soft.

“Billy, I. . . .” Rhonda choked off her reply.

“You listen here,” Billy kept his voice calm, and Rhonda could see that he was struggling to keep his temper in check. “I’ve done thought about this ever way I can see. There’s a simple fact, here. I can’t keep you safe here, against a mob like that. We ain’t got the people. Period.”

“A buncha no goods like’at ‘ll go through this valley like a dose o’ salts, Rhonda. Sure, we’ll kill a bunch of’em. But it won’t be near enough. We lose one o’ us for ever five o’ them we kill, still won’t be enough. All it’ll do is make it easier on ‘em to stay fed. And with what we got here, they’ll be fat and happy for a long time. What happens when they look in the barn? Huh? What happens when they find all that stuff we been hidin’?”

“It ain’t just about us, no more,” he said firmly. “Don’t you see that we can’t have no kinda life, them kids can’t have no kinda life, with this hangin’ over us? We’ll be fearful all the time, day and night. And sooner or later, we’ll let our guard down, just a little, and sure as God made little green apples, that’ll be the time they hit us.”

“How many actual fighters we got Rhonda? We got a lot o' people here, nowadays, but how many can we depend on? House full o’ young’uns, old folks, cowards like March and Williams that already failed once, ag'in just two men? When you start addin’ up real numbers, we ain’t got’em.”

Rhonda listened to him as he rattled off the facts, and despaired. He was right, damn him. They had only a handful of people who could actually fight against anyone who attacked their hideaway. They could stay hidden for a while, but he was right. Fear would be their constant companion. She dropped her head, and gave up the fight to keep her tears at bay. She literally shook with sobs.

Billy frowned, feeling responsible. But he couldn’t help what he couldn’t help. Facts was facts, and he couldn’t change them. He stepped to her, and wrapped her in his arms. She leaned against him, burying her face in his chest, and cried.

He rubbed her back gently while she did, talking softly to her about anything and nothing at the same time. He’d grown a lot in the months since the world had gone to hell. A year ago he wouldn’t have done anything. He wouldn’t have known how.

Finally her sobs subsided. She looked up at him, and he felt pain at the look in her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” he said softly. “I hadn’t shoulda said all that. It’s. . .I live with that fear ever day. Ever day I worry ‘bout somethin’ just like this. Somethin’ I can’t protect you from. Protect the kids from.”

“I ain’t but one man. I ain’t a soldier, ain’t too smart, either. I know what my limits are. Been livin’ my whole life knowin’em. Ain’t no gettin’ round the facts. But this here is somethin’ I can do. If nothin’ else, we’ll buy some time for the fellas to get the work on the road done. They do a good enough job, even somebody knows it’s there have a hard time findin’ it.”

“Please, please, promise me you’ll be careful,” she pleaded softly. “Please don’t go there and get killed, an’ leave me here all alone.”

“I promise I’ll do my best,” he replied. “And ole Pete, he’ll be lookin’ out for me. He’s right smart, and was a soldier. He won’t let nothin’ happen to me.” He smiled to show her he was confident, but the truth was, he wasn’t.

Billy didn’t have any real expectations of what was to come. He knew that he and Pete had a good chance. But that’s all it was. A good chance.

“Do you think you can stop all this for a while?” Rhonda asked him, her eyes pleading with him.

“I imagine so,” he nodded, his voice as soft as hers.

Without another word, she took his hand and led him toward the stairs.

A similar discussion was taking place not far away.

“Why are you doing this?” Shelly Silvers asked, as she and Pete sat on the porch swing at her parent’s home.

“It has to be done,” Pete told her simply. “Billy’s right. We can’t wait for them to come to us. We just don’t have the manpower to stop them. They’ll ride through this valley and kill us all eventually, no matter how hard we fight.”

“They might not,” Shelly replied. “They might not even know we’re here.”

“But they will,” Pete assured her. “They’re being very methodical. I think if it wasn’t for your father, making sure no one was on the radio, they might have found us already. I think the people they had the other day were people who had been using their radios. Easy to track that kind of thing, if you know how.”

“You don’t know if they can do it or not,” Shelly pointed out.

“That’s true,” he nodded. “But we can’t take the chance. Or any chance, for that matter. We have to do what we can, now. Summer is campaign weather. They’re using the good weather to move, and do their damage. If we let them have free reign to do as they please, Shelly, they’ll find us. They can’t miss us.”

“Why does it have to be you?” She was trying not to whine, but she really didn’t want him to go.

“Who else is there?” he asked. “George and Terry both have kids. The Kelvey’s are needed here, and they don’t have the know how for something like this, anyway. Your father might, but he’s too old. Ralph’s a great guy, but this isn’t his thing, and he’d be the first to admit it.” He shrugged.

“Leaves me and Billy.”

“It’s not like you two don’t have anyone here, you know!” she struck back. “And Billy and Rhonda have Danny. And Mary.”

“And they’re both near grown for the times we live in now,” Pete replied calmly. “It’s not that we want to go, you know,” he pointed out. “It’s just that we’re the two best qualified to do it. There’s no way to get around that, honey.”

“Billy ain’t a soldier!” she said suddenly. “He’s not even. . . .” she broke off sharply, her face reddening. Pete frowned.

“I hope you weren’t about to say what I think you were,” he said, his voice firm and unyielding. “Billy may not be smart the way you see it, but I’ll tell you straight out. I’d have traded three or four of the guys I fought with in Iraq and Afghanistan for one like Billy Todd. I don’t know how he knows as much as he does, but I can promise you he’s smart. And he’s a better shot than I am, especially at long distance.”

“I’m lucky to be going with him instead of some of the people I’ve served in combat with,” he finished, giving his friend the greatest compliment he knew.

“I. . .I didn’t mean it like that,” Shelly said softly. “I. . .I used to make fun of Billy, but I haven’t in a long time. It’s. . .it’s just that, this time, I’m depending on him to make sure you come back to me.” Pete laughed softly.

“I’d imagine Rhonda is thinking the same thing about me,” he assured her. “And we will come back. I don’t know how long we’ll be, but we’ve already discussed precautions to make sure that no matter what happens, we’ll get home. Might take us a while, but we will.”

“You know I’ll be sick with worry every minute you’re gone,” she finally said, giving up.

“No more than I’ll be missing you, honey,” Pete promised her. He leaned forward then, and kissed her.

There was no more talk about his trip after that.

*****

Billy was up early the next morning. He had a lot to do today. He and Pete would be leaving in the morning, and there was no real way to know when, let alone if, they would be back.

“I’m dependin’ on you to keep things goin’, Danny,” Billy told the teenager. “You know what’s got to be done, so don’t let things get away from you. You need help, you ask for it.”

“I’ll get it done,” Danny promised. “I wish you wasn’t havin’ to go, though,” the boy admitted. “Scares me a little.”

“Me too, bud,” Billy nodded. “You won’t have to worry too long, I reckon. We’ll be back ‘fore ya know it.”

“Ever thing’ll be here like ya left it,” Danny promised solemnly.

“I want you to take Rommel with you when you’re out and workin’,” Billy told him. “He’s a good dog, and he’ll give you fair warnin’ when somebody’s about. Don’t let him in the pasture, though,” he added, remembering when he’d taken the big dog in with him. “Him and the cows, they don’t get along too well.”

“I’ll remember.”

“Carry your rifle with ya when you’re out. Make sure you got your pistol on you when you walk out the door. And pay a mind to what’s around you.” The boy nodded again, his face as serious as could be.

“All right, then,” Billy slapped him on the shoulder. “Reckon that’s it. You best get to work. I gotta lot to do, today.” Danny nodded once more and headed away to do his chores.

Billy watched him go, and then headed to the barn. He had things to gather up. Just as he reached the barn, Pete rode into the yard.

“Hey Billy,” he grinned, stepping out of the saddle.

“Pete,” Billy nodded.

“Whatcha doin’?” Pete asked.

“Makin’ sure ever thing is ready for me to leave,” Billy replied. “You?”

“About the same, I guess. I wanted to see what you were carrying. No sense in us taking too many different calibers. Make it hard for ammo.”

“Good idea,” Billy nodded.

“We need to work on the cache tubes, too,” Pete reminded him. “We can bury them along the way. Might be good to have a few small one’s we can spread out in town, too.”

“‘Nother good idea,” Billy allowed. “Reckon I’ll take my rifle,” he added.

“Well, yeah,” Pete snorted. “Considering what we have in mind, that’d be a good idea.” Billy reddened at that, but said nothing. He looked into the barn, then back at Pete.

“What is it, Billy?” Pete asked. “You okay?”

Billy considered his options. Should he show Pete the Room? Let him in on the big secret? No, he decided. That wouldn’t do. He liked Pete, and he trusted him. But some things were for him and Rhonda only. And the kids. The Room was one of them.

“I’m just tryin’ to get things straight,” Billy pointed to his head. “Lots to get done ‘for we go. I don’t wanna leave nothin’ undone, and I don’t wanna get there an’ realize I done left somethin’ I need.”

“Yeah, I know that score,” Pete chuckled. “Left my radio behind once. Thought ole Terry was gonna tear my head off.”

“What say we meet up in a couple hours?” Billy asked. “I’ll have Danny bring the truck over, and you can load your gear, then we’ll look over ever’thing good and proper. All we’ll have to do then is load stuff in that Hummer, and take out.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Pete nodded. He could tell Billy was wanting to end the conversation, so he mounted his horse. “See you in say, three hours?”

“Works for me,” Billy nodded.

*****

Billy looked at the equipment he had assembled. His face was as grim as his mind. This would be an ugly thing. He took no pleasure in what was coming, but try as he might he still couldn’t see any way other than the one he and Pete had come up with me.

He shook his head, trying to throw the thoughts out. They served no purpose. The Ford rolled into the yard just then, with Danny bringing Pete along. Pete got out, his jaw dropping at what he saw displayed on the table.