Day 33
Herbert had taken up the bulk of the watches since yesterday’s visit, and Darlene had fought him about it. She might not be a hundred percent, but she was healthy enough to sit on a fence and watch the road.
They were both on the porch, rifles in hand, talking quietly, when Aiden came running up the driveway. Austin and Aiden had argued as much as Darlene about being part of the watch, and Herbert had finally relented. The boys would work as a team, but as soon as they saw trouble they’d both need to race back and let everyone know.
“Where’s your brother?” Herbert asked, standing.
“He’s hiding in the bushes near the fence with his rifle,” Aiden said, out of breath. “Two trucks are coming. Lots of men.”
Darlene groaned. Why hadn’t Austin come with his brother? They needed to stay together. “I’ll get Austin. You head out the back.”
Herbert shook his head. “We stick together.”
Darlene groaned. “Then we all die, old man. Take your family and run. They’re not going to knock again. They’ll shoot first and ask questions later. Meet us at your gas station. Got it?”
Herbert seemed to hesitate but he finally nodded.
Darlene, still favoring her side, took off toward the fence line.
She turned back to see Herbert already gone inside.
Good. Get as far away as you can, Darlene thought. I’ll take care of Austin and we’ll meet you. We will.
Darlene could hear engines getting closer and wondered if they were the same ones the boys had spotted or even more Sawyers coming to take the farm.
At first, she panicked, because as she got to the fence she couldn’t see Austin. She didn’t want to call out or even whisper because she saw at least a dozen armed men, huddled at the back of a pickup truck.
Austin stuck his head out from behind a bush, tears in his eyes.
“Shh,” Darlene whispered in his ear, hugging the boy. “We need to run back to the farmhouse. Can you do that?”
Austin shook his head. “I’m scared.”
“So am I.” Darlene knew it might be too late anyway, because a few of them were already heading toward the driveway. All heavily armed.
This isn’t going to work, Darlene thought. She was too big to hide with Austin. As soon as the men got past the fence all they’d have to do is look to their right and she’d be a sitting duck.
Darlene knew she didn’t have enough ammo on her to stand and fight. She didn’t think she had another option, though.
Through a small break in the bushes she counted thirteen armed men, all smiling and pumped to kill women and children. Darlene didn’t recognize any of them. They all looked the same: cowboy hats, flannel shirts and rifles.
We’re fighting one another while the world burns around us, Darlene thought.
She glanced at Austin. “Can you shoot when I tell you to?”
Austin had his handgun in hand. He stared at it.
Darlene needed the boy to respond. She needed his help, even if it wouldn’t be enough. If she were going to die in a hail of bullets, trying to protect the boy, she hoped he’d at least help her, too. The more they could take out the better Herbert had of getting everyone else to safety.
“Can you shoot?” Darlene asked Austin, who finally looked up. She saw the fear in his eyes but he nodded. “Only if you have to.”
Darlene hoped it wouldn’t come down to that. If they had to run and shoot they might be able to scare a couple of them, but the thought of seeing Austin shot down in cold blood made her shake.
I didn’t put this boy in danger, she tried to reason. The world has thrust a weapon into this child’s hand.
“Are you alright?” Austin whispered.
Darlene smiled and nodded.
She got in position, watching down the fence line. If they took three steps onto the property she’d open fire. Anything past that and they’d definitely be seen. She hoped they were far enough down the fence line and had enough coverage with the bushes they might not be immediately seen. The bushes weren’t going to stop a hail of bullets, though.
Austin crouched down next to her. He was sweating and she knew it wasn’t just because of the heat.
The men were talking quietly near their trucks. She could hear the rifles being loaded. Shotguns and pistols readied.
How many taken out would be enough? All of them, Darlene thought, knowing it wasn’t going to happen. This wasn’t a video game with unlimited ammo. Even if she made every shot she’d could take them all out. By the time she was empty they’d return fire, and there’d be no time to reload. Unless Austin was a great shot under pressure, she doubted he’d do more than wound a couple and hopefully make a few hesitate.
“You boys ready to do this?”
Grunts and whoops were the man’s acknowledgment.
“Remember, she’s a feisty, crazy woman. Buck says she’s unstable,” the man said to the others. “If she steps out with a rifle I want Paulie to shoot her. Take her out so we can get in and get out and take whatever we can use. I want two teams of three to move to the left and right.”
Through the break in the bushes Darlene could see them again.
“She should be the only trouble, but you never know. Time to go shopping,” the man said and spit on the ground. “Leave three back at the pickups. We don’t want any surprises. Let’s go.”
Darlene took a deep breath and nodded at Austin, who was shaking.
But he looked ready to fight, which was good.
The men made their way to the driveway and the fence.
Darlene knew there was no going back. With the three staying behind, they’d have an easy time shooting her and Austin down, too. As if this wasn’t bad enough, fighting on two fronts was now part of this deal.
A radio squawked and the men stopped.
“Kenny? I need to talk to Kenny. Now.” It was definitely Buck Sawyer.
The lead man was apparently Kenny, because he jogged back to the pickup and answered.
“We got a problem over at the Laine Farm. Seems we got a group that opened fire. We think it’s Herbert and the survivors,” Buck said.
Kenny shook his head. “All the way across town? I doubt they got that far. Hell, we’re at the Boyette Farm now. They might be inside.”
“They might be or they might not be, Kenny. What I do know is we’re pinned down behind the damn barn and taking fire, so get your ass over here.” Buck sounded more annoyed than scared. “And bring that dynamite you’re carrying around. We might need it, too.”
Kenny looked pissed but he gave the call to mount up. In seconds they were gone, kicking up dust as they headed down the road.
“Now what?” Austin asked.
“Now we run.”