Dead On Arrival: Episode 16: Nothing Left

Episode 16: Nothing Left

I faced Vince and our captors now. The fire still going steadily beside us. I tightened my grip on my weapon and prepared myself to fight, but Vince pleads had me rethinking my strategy.  "Audrey. Run. Go,“ he begged.

“No!” I shouted back without little thought.

“Audrey. I’m telling you this ain’t your fight, so just leave. Get out of here!” he continued looking pained, but I didn’t move and I had no intentions to. The guy just went through an inferno for me.

Unfortunately, the old guy aiming at Vince’s head didn’t find our conversation heart-tugging, to say the least. He snorted rolling his eyes, “This is touching, but no one going anywhere.”

Vince shook her head in disgust. “Haven’t you done enough? This place was this girl’s home and it’s burning down as we speak. Let her go! It’s me you want.”

“It’s obvious the little lady doesn’t want to go”, the old man said smiling as he pushed Vince towards his men and came close to me. “Hell, where are manners? My name’s Roy sweetie.”

He then extended his hand for a shake, but I spat at him. He scowled turning red. “OK, maybe I earned that. I’ll give you that one, but you better start acting more ladylike girl or you’ll be sharing a grave with your friend over there.”

I laughed, “You’re the leader right? You want to know where your son is?”

“Audrey! What are you doing? Shut the hell up and get out of here already!” Vince shrilled fighting to get out of his captor’s grip.

Roy froze widening his eyes, “Shut up, boy. Now, what did you say?”

“He pleaded. He begged. He moaned like a little bitch and I cut him up real good. With the same sword who fucked him up before. His brains are all over the floor of my bunker right about now burning up with the rest of the shit.”

“You….”

“Please kill me. Pleaseeee kill me,” I mocked.

He rushed forward angrily, but my sword stopped him in his tracks. His men crowded around me pointing their guns at me. I stood my ground wondering if I had brought Vince a chance of freedom, but bullets began ringing out. I closed my eyes just knowing that they had hit me, but I open them seeing men fall and scattered around me. I turned around to see Mark smirking at me with a rifle.

Vince luckily took this chance to disarm his captor and tackle Roy to the ground. He raised his fist and began punching him over and over again. When he was done Roy laid on the ground bloody and helpless. His rifle lost in the scuffle. His men lost in the shootout.

“I didn’t need your help!” I snapped at Mark.

“You didn’t need my help? Bitch, please. You would have been Swiss cheese without me.”

“Enough!” Vince huffed. He then turned his direction back to Roy. “You! Why?”

“Fucking cowards. All I’ve done and they do this to me?!” Roy mumbled watching the mayhem as he fell to his knees alone now.

“I asked you a question, so get to answering asshole. Why me? Just why man? Why all this?”

“The virus. The dead. People from the city brought it here. People like you. It didn’t start here,” he bemoaned. “We were a tight community. Everyone knew everybody. My wife helped deliver half the kids here. My daughter was a bright girl who played with everyone. Then the sick came.”

“Sick?”

“We heard reports about some strange virus or disease making waves in the city. Didn’t think nothing of it. Just thought it would be fixed before it hit here. It seemed like we always lucky when came to this community. City problems we called it. Then one day the world just stopped. Surrounding cities grew dark. Radio, Tv’s phones, computers…. they didn’t work anymore. Then like a tidal wave, they all began flooding into our community. Some just wanting shelter while some gravely ill seeking medical aid. The army even came and took over. It was chaos….”

“Go on. We’re listening,” Vince said softening as he listened intently.

“One by one I watched my friends and neighbors die or worse turn, but nothing could prepare me for when it hit my family. Do you have children? Any of you?”

Vince spoke up, “I have a daughter.”

“Then you know how it feels to be a parent. Well, imagine how it would feel to hold your daughter in your arms as she died. She…died in my arms and there was nothing I could do. Nothing.,” he whimpered. “Then I watched my wife die the same horrible way. The love of my life gone within minutes. Both turned into monsters. Just me and my boy, Clyde made it out alive. Now it’s just me..”

“So you blaming me for that just because I took some damn food?”

“No. I’m blaming you because you’re all like the others. They came here bringing hell on earth, took what they needed, and left us with nothing when it all went to shit. You fucking city folk. The fucking army. You brought this here! My wife. My child would still be here if they hadn’t opened their arms to you!” he seethed. “Now you fucking scavengers just come through to pick from the bones you left, hide like cowards out in the forest, and steal from the living.”

“It’s not our faults!” I screamed finding my voice.

Vince injected, “No it’s not. It wasn’t that camp’s fault either. Those poor people who’s camp you stole from after you butchered them. Remember them?“

“They stole from us…,” he said wearily. “My son saw them do it with his own eyes.”

“Yeah the same fucker who tried to rape me?  Sure. You can definitely trust his word,” I sarcastically said feeling a rush of anger again. “You’re pathetic.”

Vince stopped me again by shooting me a look, “Roy. I actually pity you. You’re a crazy fuck, but it sounds like you’ve lost a lot too. How about we call it a truce and you let us leave in peace.”

“What? No!” I protested as Roy remained silent staring at the ground.

“Audrey. Look at him. He’s nothing without his men”, he said pointing at the broken figure before him. “We can walk away now. There’s nothing here for us anymore. It’s all gone. Let’s just go.”

I sighed wanting nothing more to finish this Roy guy off, but Vince had his mind made up. He kicked Roy’s rifle aside and started to guide me away. As I looked back I saw Roy raise from the ground with a clenched fist. He picked up a large knife, and without warning, he charged towards us. I barely could get out Vince’s name before Roy was in front of us. It all seemed to happen in slow motion despite it happening it like a flash. I fell to the ground with a push from Vince and the two men collided in a violent matter. I saw blood streaked the ground.

I feared the worse, but Vince backed away and the knife protruded from Roy’s chest. As the old man fell to the ground Vince took hold of the machete and yanked it out. He looked down at it as his hands shook. His face a mixture of fear and disgust.

“Vince?”

Never killed nobody. Not with my bare hands….” he said quietly. “But it couldn’t be helped I guess.”

He then turned around and began walking away leaving me and Mark frozen in our spots. Then he stopped looking over his shoulder forcing a smile on his face as he spoke, “Ani’t you coming?”

No new poll for this one, but you can still vote on the previous poll. Ch17 with a poll will be posted tomorrow ...er Monday hopefully when I have some more peace.