Chapter 8
Deb sat at the table in the center of the safehouse, bouncing baby Jimmy on her knee and making funny faces at him to keep him entertained. The tactic seemed to be working, and her son smiled and laughed in response to her efforts.
She was glad Jimmy was so young couldn’t understand what was happening around them. She couldn’t imagine having to explain to an older child that society itself was collapsing around them and that the ugliest parts of humanity were rising out of the sewer, making this new world their playground.
In some ways, Deb thought the idea of a world without technology sounded refreshing and almost welcomed the concept. Sure, running the ranch would be more difficult, but there was something to be said about the simplicity of it.
There’d be no more social media cesspools of ignorant people spreading lies and misinformation, no more spread of intolerance on a global scale.
People would be forced to look up from their devices and engage with one another again.
Pollution would decrease exponentially, and the planet would be a cleaner and more sustainable place.
There was a lot to be optimistic about in this brave new world.
But there was also a lot to fear.
The worst of humanity would always find a way to rear its ugliness, regardless of how the world worked at any given time.
She was seeing that on display right now.
This was a time when humanity should be banding together, picking up the pieces, and creating a new society.
Instead, people were clawing at one another in an attempt to keep themselves afloat.
It was disheartening. Deb had always tried to see the best in people.
It was an optimism passed down to her by her father.
She remembered him telling her early in life that people were good underneath it all, that when the chips were down, there was a compassion that existed in all mankind.
He believed the default setting of humanity was one of kindness and that a desire to help one another and build one another up would ultimately break through the darkness like rays of sunlight through the clouds.
“Oh, Daddy,” she sighed to herself, looking around at her dismal surroundings while she continued to bounce the baby up and down, “I’m glad you’re not here to see this.”
As if answering her musings, a fresh round of explosions could be heard, blasting off somewhere in the distance.
These were closer than some of the others had been, and the room shook with the force of it.
Dust fell from the ceilings and some of the shelves, and Deb reached up to cover Jimmy’s head.
“Da…Dada,” Jimmy said up at her.
She had no idea if he was actually speaking a word there or just making sounds. And if he was actually calling out for his father, was it Vin or Sean he was referring to?
In all likelihood, it was Sean. Vin supported them financially, always sending whatever he could. He sent so much that, at times, Deb worried he wasn’t keeping enough for himself. However, he wasn’t a steady presence in Jimmy’s life.
She wasn’t sure where they had gone wrong. She knew Vin carried a lot of internal strife centered around his time in the service. He had returned from the Middle East a changed man. He had been grievously injured and had believed that his country would take care of him.
It wasn’t a misguided hope, as far as Deb was concerned. It was what he was owed. The man had risked his life fighting for this country, and the country showed its true colors by denying him his disability rights, medical care, and pension.
And there was seemingly no reason for it. Vin was just another in a long line of wounded veterans who were denied the care they needed for no damn good reason. It was disgraceful and soured Deb on the government’s bullshit propaganda about respecting and supporting the troops.
Sure, they supported them verbally while campaigning for office, but they also denied them the care they needed and subjected them to toxic burn pits in the desert, which caused untold health problems for years to come. It was disheartening for her, but it was world-shattering for Vin.
The poor man had retreated inward, pulling away from her and Jimmy, who was only an infant at the time.
That distance turned to resentment on both of their parts, and the arguments had started.
Before Deb had even known what was happening, lawyers were getting involved and they were splitting up assets.
That hadn’t been a stressful process. Vin was very giving and wanted her to have everything.
It didn’t seem like he no longer wanted to be with her.
Rather, it seemed as though he might have believed himself unworthy of her and Jimmy.
That broke Deb’s heart to pieces. Vin was a good man, and she wanted above all else to help him through the issues he was having.
His injuries had healed, though it took a long time, and she wondered still if he had lingering health issues caused by them.
But the mental scars left on him were something else entirely.
She thought their love could be enough to weather that storm.
She thought that by being supportive and listening and offering advice that she could somehow fix what was wrong with him.
But that wasn’t the case. Not at all. She had lost her husband to these issues, and she was still bitter about it.
Then Sean came into the picture. He had always been there, working on the ranch since they were teenagers.
Sean had also come back from war bitter and angry, with a serious distrust for the government.
In the beginning, it was possible that her relationship with Sean had started as a rebound.
He was, on the surface, a lot like Vin, and as bad as it sounded, she was seeking a replacement.
But once you dug deeper into the mystery that was Sean Miller, you started to see that he and Vin were very different people.
In Sean, she had found a caring and loving partner who took no crap from the outside world but was infinitely gentle and patient with both her and Jimmy.
Sean had many of the qualities she always wanted Vin to possess.
He was forthcoming about emotions when it was just the two of them.
He was passionate in the right ways and forceful in others.
He was a good and kind man beneath a very thick wall of stoic hardness.
But still, Deb often found her thoughts drifting to Vin. She wondered what he was doing, where he was and worried endlessly for his safety. He was capable, surely, but she worried that the physical rigors of bounty hunting would prove too much with some of his lingering injuries.
She never told Sean about her thoughts of Vin or how often they dominated her mind. She knew he’d be incredibly offended and fly off the handle, and she suspected that would be justified. She certainly felt guilty about those thoughts and worried endlessly that she might never get over that man.
Her worst nightmare was Sean and Vin coming to blows over her.
She knew it was possible. Both were alpha personalities and prone to anger.
Sean, in particular, had a nasty temper and had shown a pre-disposition toward jealousy wherever Deb was concerned.
The two of them had been closer than brothers since their teen years, but now they never spoke.
She didn’t think Vin held any animosity toward Sean for marrying her.
In some ways, she always suspected Vin was happy there was someone looking after her and Jimmy.
But Sean definitely felt a lot of animosity toward Vin.
He likely feared that one day Vin would ride into the ranch, seeking to reclaim his family.
Of course, Deb knew Vin wasn’t that kind of man, and the mere idea of him doing something like that was just silly and unfounded.
It was illogical on every level. Anyone who had ever met Vin would know that he’d never do anything so…
dishonorable. And Sean knew Vin better than almost anyone, save for her.
A loud banging on the bay door drew her attention, and Deb’s head snapped toward the noise.
“Help!” someone called out from beyond the barrier. “Please, is anyone in there?” The banging was frantic now, and she could hear loud footsteps on the other side. “Please, no!” the voice rang out, and the sounds of a scuffle could be heard.
Deb put Jimmy down on the floor and ran over to the door. There was a small viewing slot within, and she had to stand on tip toe to open it and peer out.
There was a man out there, much older than she. He was being dragged away from the building by four armored soldiers.
“Shut the fuck up!” one of them screamed at the man, wrestling him to the ground and handcuffing him. Another soldier came up and kicked the man hard in the side of the head.
“You’re in violation of curfew,” one of the soldiers said, pointing her gun down at the man’s head. “As such, you’re under arrest by order of the United States military.”
Deb winced at seeing this, her anger and sorrow mixing together into a storm cloud of emotions. Here was the government flexing its muscles again, oppressing people while giving nothing back to the people who were supposed to be the true power behind democracy.
She remembered Sean’s words, how he’d told her not to open the door for anyone and not to draw attention to herself. She looked back at Jimmy as he sat on the floor, not a care in the world. Then she turned her attention back to the poor man being detained illegally on the street.
Her father’s voice rang through her head, telling her how people were inherently good and decent. How there was something to be said about helping people in their times of need. Everything she had seen on this day flew in the face of those teachings, and it stirred something deep within her.
“Shit,” she muttered to herself, stalking back over to the table and picking up the shotgun she had chosen from the shelf. She knew how to load a weapon, how to aim, how to fire. But she didn’t have a lot of practical experience, and she had never handled a firearm this big and powerful before.
It was huge and heavy, and her arms ached as she heaved it up. For a moment, she thought about grabbing a handgun or something lighter from the shelves, but she thought that a weapon this imposing would help her make the point that she needed to make.
Deb stormed toward the bay door and pulled on the chain that opened it. As soon as the door was open, she raised the shotgun toward the soldiers as they continued to wrestle the man to the ground.
“Gun!” one of the soldiers shouted, and they froze in their tracks.
“Get away from him,” Deb said, pointing the barrel of the gun threateningly at the soldiers. “Right now!” she commanded.
“Ma’am, lower your weapon right now,” one of the male soldiers commanded her, not daring to move.
“I said, back away from him.”
“Help me!” the man shouted from beneath the pile of soldiers, but they made no move to release him.
“This man is a criminal in violation of martial law,” the female soldier said. “And you are threatening soldiers of the United States military. Now drop your weapon while you still can!”
“No!” Deb cried out. “This isn’t right. This isn’t what people do to people!”
“Lower your fucking weapon!” another soldier cried out in rage, though they still didn’t move.
Deb had no intention of firing on them. She didn’t think she was capable of taking a life. But she needed these people to think she meant business.
She aimed over their heads, cocked the gun, and fired off a booming round from the shotgun.
However, Deb failed to realize how powerful this weapon truly was.
The kickback from the shotgun slammed into her shoulder, sending coursing, painful waves of agony screaming up her arm.
It was so powerful that it blew back her thin body, and Deb found herself tripping and landing hard on the safehouse floor.
The soldiers were on her in an instant, kicking away her gun and piling onto her. She had hit her head upon landing, and the room was spinning. She could hear the sound of Clomper neighing in panic and rearing up.
“Get that horse!” one of the soldiers screamed, and a shot rang out, much to Deb’s horror.
Clomper dropped like a sack of rocks and slammed hard into the floor. Jimmy was now screaming and crying as Deb’s mouth hung open in shock and terror.
“Shut that kid up!” one of the soldiers yelled.
“No, don’t touch him!” Deb screamed, flailing under the weight of one of the soldiers, who kneeled heavily on her back, pressing her into the floor.
She watched with wide eyes as one of the soldiers walked forward and scooped up her son.
“No!” she cried out, fighting like crazy, but she was completely immobilized.
Clomper’s blood was leaking out now, pooling outward along the concrete floor. It reached her as she struggled, and she soon felt the sticky substance coating her cheek.
“Holy shit,” one of the soldiers said, looking around the safehouse. “This is some next-level weapons locker.”
“Whoa,” another of them said, looking around. “We’re gonna need a team down here to confiscate all of this.”
The soldier kneeling on top of Deb drew his gun and pressed the muzzle into the back of her head. She continued to fight madly, the pain in her shoulder now reaching agonizing levels. But she only had eyes for the soldier holding her baby.
“What should we do with this one?” the soldier atop her asked, cocking his weapon to fire. “Should I execute, sir?”
“No,” the commanding soldier said, looking around the room. “Take the woman and the kid. I want to know more about where all this crap came from.”
Deb was roughly picked up, feeling handcuffs click around her wrists.
“Let go of my baby!” she screamed, thrashing against the soldier who detained her, even though every movement sent waves of pain through her right side.
As she opened her mouth, the grotesque taste of Clomper’s spilled blood could be tasted on her tongue, and she spat out the gore as it fell over and into her right eye.
“Let go of my baby!” she cried out again as the soldiers dragged her kicking and screaming from the safehouse.