The Returners (8 page)

Jacob spent the day helping Jessica out around the cabin doing repairs and odd jobs that needed to be done. Emily had spent most of the day curled up in a blanket reading a book. Normally she would have been helping, but Jessica wanted her to be able to just be a kid and enjoy a nice lazy day to herself. Emily hadn't said much other than complimenting Jacob on how handsome his new haircut looked.

Jacob couldn't help but think what a nice change of pace today was. Compared to what he had been doing for the last year or so, he would take doing chores in fine company any day. It seemed like the last year had been nothing but running through the woods. Always having to watch your every move and waiting for something or someone to attack you.

Every time he looked at Jessica his mind wandered to what had taken place this afternoon. What had transpired between them was still so freshly etched in his brain. He was happy and couldn't help but have a constant smile. Could it finally be things were starting to turn around?  After everything started and turned bad, this was the last thing he thought would ever happen to him. Frankly he was amazed he was still alive at all and often thought to himself why he'd made it when so many others hadn't.

"I'm going to go get some wood and bring it in. Figure we should get enough in for the night before it gets too dark," Jacob said as he leaned against a wall watching Jessica doing laundry in the sink.

"That's a good idea. Emily and I will start dinner,” Jessica said as she wrung out a shirt she was cleaning. She looked up to him and lowered her voice. “I have to talk to you about something a little later once Emily's gone to bed."

"Is everything alright?" Jacob asked. Wondering if it was about this afternoon or something else.

"Everything's fine, just something that's been bothering me. I don't want to worry Emily." She put the shirt down and gently squeezed his hand. "Now go get that wood," Jessica said, holding his hand for a moment before letting go. Their eyes met and both of them smiled.

"Yes ma'am."

Jacob went to the door and headed outside. Jessica walked over to Emily who was still caught up in the book she was reading.

"How's your book?" Jessica asked. Sitting beside her daughter who hadn't looked up and still had her nose buried in the book.

"It's pretty good. It's about a shark and a sheriff trying to stop it." Emily finally looked up at her mother and held the book up for her to see. The cover of the book said JAWS and had a picture of a woman swimming with a giant shark coming up underneath her.

"Well I'm glad you like it, that was one of my favorite books growing up. I must have read it ten times and it always scared me. I didn't dare get in the water for a whole summer because of that book. Can I get you to help me make dinner? You can go take a shower later, Jacob and I got the water all ready for you."

"Alright." Emily folded the corner of a page to mark her progress, then set the book down and got up to help her mother.

Jessica and Emily walked back to the kitchen and began preparing dinner. Tonight they were going to have green beans, venison from the bear and spaghetti with stewed tomatoes. Jacob came in and out of the cabin a couple of times bringing armloads of wood with him, stacking most of it near the fireplace. He brought an armload and placed it near the cooking stove before headed back out to grab one final armload. 

As Jacob placed the last bundle of wood in his arms, he got the feeling he was being watched again. Stopping what he was doing he peered into the woods, scanning carefully, but still saw nothing. The light in the sky was slowly beginning to fade as darkness fast approached. Jacob made one last visual sweep across the woods with his eyes, but still didn't see anything. Grabbing the last few pieces of wood he needed he walked back inside.

********

Joe watched the man once again look directly at where he was hiding. Luckily for him the man didn't appear to see him, but it was obvious he was suspicious something was up. Otherwise, why would he keep stopping what he was doing and scanning the woods. It had to be close to six o'clock now and was starting to turn dark. He was beginning to wonder where Ray and the others were, when he he heard footsteps behind him. They were soft, but in the dead silence were unmistakable. He looked to see Ray, Dave, Kyle and Jimmy a short distance from him. Soon all four men were crouched next to him.

"Anything happen while we were gone?" Ray asked as he looked down upon the cabin.

"Nothing eventful Ray. They've just been going about their business." Joe didn't feel like there was any need to tell them about seeing the woman undress and get into the shower. It had nothing to do with anything they needed to know.

Nor did he want to mention the man stopping and scanning the woods. That might set Ray off and that was the last thing he needed. Better to keep that part quiet, it didn't matter much now anyway. Everyone was here and they would soon be doing what they had come here for.

"Good. We wait here until it's completely dark. Remember when we go in I want everything we can salvage," Ray said, continuing his fixed gaze upon the cabin.

Joe knew the answer to his next question before he even asked it, but he asked it anyway. "What happens if they don't cooperate with us?"

The old man turned his head towards him and their eyes locked.

"Then they die. Pretty plain and simple, it's survival of the fittest out here Joe." The response to the question was brutal and blunt, his voice calm showing no emotion.

That question made Ray decide it would be best for Joe to hang back while the rest of them went to the cabin. He wanted to make sure the kid wasn't going to do anything stupid. If he got any dumb ideas, he would be out of the equation of the raid.

When Ray was satisfied the kid understood what he was saying he broke eye contact and looked at the others. "Now we wait."

The five men hunkered down as they waited for nightfall to completely blanket them. When it was time Ray would give the go ahead to proceed with the plan. Then and only then would they make their move.

********

Emily, Jacob and Jessica sat around the table finishing their meal. Other than Emily excitedly telling them about the book she was reading tonight's dinner had been quiet and relaxed. Jessica was happy to see her daughter get excited about something. There hadn't been much in her life to get excited about for a long time and It was amazing how something as simple as a book could do that.

When Emily finished eating she got up and took her dishes to the sink then walked back to the table.

"Mom I wanna go take my shower now," Emily said.

"Give me a second and I'll go with you. I don't want you out there by yourself after dark. Let me get the lantern." She got up from the table and grabbed an old oil lantern that hung from the wall. Taking the top off, Jessica stuck a match and lit the wick. The glow from the lantern filled the room with a dull orange light as she replaced the cover.

"While you’re doing that I'll get these dishes done up. By the way I noticed you had Monopoly," Jacob said as he looked at a bookshelf with a handful of board games on it. "You want to play a game when you’re done? Monopoly's my favorite."

Emily got excited and spoke up from the next room where she was getting her clothes. "Yes! I do. No one beats me at Monopoly."

Her mother laughed, "She's right Jacob, I don't think you know what you’re getting yourself into."  

Emily came back into the kitchen holding her clothes. "I'm ready mom."

"Let's get going so we can get to that game of Monopoly. You can show Jacob how good you are at it" Jessica watched her daughters face light up with confidence.

The two women walked outside, the oil lamp casting just enough light to let them see what they were doing. They walked side by side until they reached the shower. Emily put her clothes on the small table, undressed and got into the shower. Jessica put the lamp on a nail that protruded from the side of the shack. She stood there looking up at the night sky, admiring the beauty of the stars and moon.

"The moon sure is bright tonight isn't it Em?" It was almost full, and with the clear sky it lit up the night.

"Yep, you almost don't need the lamp it's so bright. Can you show me the different constellations before we go in?" Emily asked as she began to hum the same song she had earlier. The one Jessica didn't recognize.

"We can definitely do that hon," Jessica said as she listened to her daughter hum. Her eyes scanned the surrounding area around the cabin. It had been a while since a Returner had come near here, but she wasn't taking any chances. Letting your guard down could be a fatal mistake, especially at night. Returners always seemed more active when darkness fell.

********

Ray and the others were getting ready to make their move when they saw the cabin door open and light from the lamp appear. They watched as the two women exited and walked to the back of the building. Ray couldn't believe their luck, this was going to be easier than he thought. 

"Okay boys we just lucked out. I know there's a lamp burning, but now's the time to attack. We don't want to miss this opportunity, you all saw where they went. Jimmy and Dave, I want you to work your way towards where they are. Kyle and myself will work our way down to the front of the cabin. Joe you stay here with my rifle, If anything goes wrong you shoot and take em' out. Once we take care of things and it's clear I'll signal for you to bring the backpacks down. Does everyone understand?"

All the men nodded their heads as Ray handed Joe his 30-30 rifle. Jimmy and Dave began working their way towards the two women, while Ray and Kyle worked their way to the front of the cabin. Slowly and methodically they worked their way towards them, the moonlight making it easy to move quietly.

********

Something wasn't right, Jessica could feel it in the pit of her stomach. She couldn't tell what it was, but something felt off. Her hand slipped to her side where she unlatched the strap of the 9mm's holster. Gripping the handle firmly and pulling it out she continued to look into the darkened woods. Using the moonlight to try and catch silhouettes of anything that might be moving amongst the trees.

"Emily you need to finish up," Jessica said. Trying to sound as calm as she could so she wouldn't worry her daughter.

"I'm just washing my hair, be done in a sec."

"Just hurry please." Jessica's eyes continued to peer into the woods. She didn't know what she was looking for, but she knew something was out there. The sound of the  plastic rustling told her Emily was done and coming out of the shower.

"Sorry I took so long, I didn't......" Emily stopped mid sentence as she heard the loud snap of a branch in the woods.

Jessica also heard the snap, her attention now focused on the area it had come from. She saw two figures skulking through the woods. This didn't feel like when she met Jacob, this felt wrong. There was nothing good about this situation and she knew it. Instinct took over as she raised her pistol and fired at the first silhouette, a male voice screaming out as the bullet struck home.

Ray and Kyle heard the shot and saw the muzzle flash from the gun. They both immediately dropped down into a crouch, weapons at the ready. They were still out of sight and didn't want to make any sudden movements that might give away their positions. 

Dave saw Jimmy fall to the ground as he heard the gunshot ring out. Without thinking he yelled, "Holy shit!" As he dropped to the ground. Without aiming he raised his shotgun and fired in the direction of the women. 

The pellets from the shotgun blast struck the side of the shower. They made a loud thumping noise as they tore into the wood, barely missing Emily and Jessica.

"Emily get inside the cabin now," Jessica yelled. All she could think about was keeping Emily safe and nothing else.

Emily was frozen with fear, but the sound of her mother yelling for her to run snapped her back to reality. She ran as fast as she could towards the cabin. Jessica aimed her pistol at where she'd seen the muzzle flash from the shotgun and fired two shots.

Dave felt the bullet slam into his shoulder. The force of it making him drop his gun, incredible amounts of pain shot through his body.

"Fucking bitch, you’re dead, you're fucking dead." He grabbed his gun, stood up and stepped out from the tree line. His gun raised and aimed at Jessica.

"Your dead bit...." He never finished his sentence as Jessica fired two more shots at him. Both bullets struck him in the chest. One last breath escaped his lips as he fell to his knees and then forward, crumpling to the ground in a lifeless heap.