gunshots in the street or the yelling men and women. A crowd came up and formed a semicircle around the boy and the charred body. The church continued to burn.
A middle-aged man put his hand on Brian’s shoulders. “People heard the shots and came running. Others saw the smoke and knew the church was on fire.” He knelt down beside Brian. “I’m sorry, son, he’s gone.”
Brian kept his eyes on Kendell and grieved in shocked silence.
A man in his early thirties rushed up. Catching his breath, he said, “We killed one of ‘em. Two others we caught alive.”
Hate overcoming grief, Brian grabbed his rifle and pushed up off the asphalt. He straightened and stood. His short stature notwithstanding, he looked the man in the eye and asked, “Where are they?”
The man pointed.
Brian rushed through the crowd. The look on his face seemed to generate an invisible force that pushed them aside and created a lane for him to pass through. He found them on the sidewalk, being shoved along at rifle point by four angry men. Their hands were tied behind their backs. They appeared to be in their early twenties. Before the crowd closed the lane Brian had just passed through, the prisoners were able to see across the parking lot, where Kendell lay. One looked over at Kendell’s smoking body and gave a feral sneer.
When Brian got within ten yards of the men, he raised his rifle. Sensing the danger, everyone pulled back out of the way. The two men had just enough time to understand what was about to happen. The sneers vanished just before Brian shot twice, hitting both between the eyes and killing them before they hit the ground. Without a word or a glance at the others, he turned back to Kendell. The opening once again formed ahead of him like the bow of a ship parting waves. He kneeled down and took his jacket off, placing it over the charred remains.
The world had changed Brian, but it had changed those in the crowd, too. No one said a word of protest. After they had time to think, a murmur rose up. People in the crowd near the two dead men argued, fingers pointed, and hands flailed the air. After a few minutes, they came to an agreement. Someone untied the dead men’s hands. On by one, they fired a shot into each of the two bodies. There were over thirty men and women in the crowd, and by the time they were through, the men had been shot to pieces.
Brian watched in half-interest for a few seconds and then turned back to Kendell’s still smoking body. Tears washed two trails down his smoke-blackened face, as he sat on his heels, appearing to be in shock. Finally, he said, “You saved my life. You could’ve saved yourself.”
~~~
Nate scanned the building across the street with binoculars. No one had fired for ten minutes, giving soldiers in the area time to arrive. As Nate watched, soldiers stormed the building the sniper had fired from.
“He’s gone,” Mel said, not waiting for the soldiers to complete clearing the building. “I bet this was all about luring us here for some reason.”
“Well, there’s still a fight going on downtown.” Deni moved from her position to stand beside Nate. Gunfire could be heard in the distance. “They didn’t want us helping the others.”
“And what was the point of burning the sheriff’s office?” Mel asked. “I think all of this was about luring us here and away from someplace else.”
Nate put his binoculars down, letting them hang from his neck. “We were at a church getting married. What, now there’s a cult or political movement that’s against marriage?”
Deni smiled. “I guess we shouldn’t be surprised by anything. There are a lot of messed-up people out there. The plague and its aftermath left all of us scarred.”
They watched soldiers spill from the building, obviously not finding the sniper inside. They rushed out in an expanding circle, trying to find him before he got out of the area. A Black Hawk circled above, providing eyes in the sky and
A middle-aged man put his hand on Brian’s shoulders. “People heard the shots and came running. Others saw the smoke and knew the church was on fire.” He knelt down beside Brian. “I’m sorry, son, he’s gone.”
Brian kept his eyes on Kendell and grieved in shocked silence.
A man in his early thirties rushed up. Catching his breath, he said, “We killed one of ‘em. Two others we caught alive.”
Hate overcoming grief, Brian grabbed his rifle and pushed up off the asphalt. He straightened and stood. His short stature notwithstanding, he looked the man in the eye and asked, “Where are they?”
The man pointed.
Brian rushed through the crowd. The look on his face seemed to generate an invisible force that pushed them aside and created a lane for him to pass through. He found them on the sidewalk, being shoved along at rifle point by four angry men. Their hands were tied behind their backs. They appeared to be in their early twenties. Before the crowd closed the lane Brian had just passed through, the prisoners were able to see across the parking lot, where Kendell lay. One looked over at Kendell’s smoking body and gave a feral sneer.
When Brian got within ten yards of the men, he raised his rifle. Sensing the danger, everyone pulled back out of the way. The two men had just enough time to understand what was about to happen. The sneers vanished just before Brian shot twice, hitting both between the eyes and killing them before they hit the ground. Without a word or a glance at the others, he turned back to Kendell. The opening once again formed ahead of him like the bow of a ship parting waves. He kneeled down and took his jacket off, placing it over the charred remains.
The world had changed Brian, but it had changed those in the crowd, too. No one said a word of protest. After they had time to think, a murmur rose up. People in the crowd near the two dead men argued, fingers pointed, and hands flailed the air. After a few minutes, they came to an agreement. Someone untied the dead men’s hands. On by one, they fired a shot into each of the two bodies. There were over thirty men and women in the crowd, and by the time they were through, the men had been shot to pieces.
Brian watched in half-interest for a few seconds and then turned back to Kendell’s still smoking body. Tears washed two trails down his smoke-blackened face, as he sat on his heels, appearing to be in shock. Finally, he said, “You saved my life. You could’ve saved yourself.”
~~~
Nate scanned the building across the street with binoculars. No one had fired for ten minutes, giving soldiers in the area time to arrive. As Nate watched, soldiers stormed the building the sniper had fired from.
“He’s gone,” Mel said, not waiting for the soldiers to complete clearing the building. “I bet this was all about luring us here for some reason.”
“Well, there’s still a fight going on downtown.” Deni moved from her position to stand beside Nate. Gunfire could be heard in the distance. “They didn’t want us helping the others.”
“And what was the point of burning the sheriff’s office?” Mel asked. “I think all of this was about luring us here and away from someplace else.”
Nate put his binoculars down, letting them hang from his neck. “We were at a church getting married. What, now there’s a cult or political movement that’s against marriage?”
Deni smiled. “I guess we shouldn’t be surprised by anything. There are a lot of messed-up people out there. The plague and its aftermath left all of us scarred.”
They watched soldiers spill from the building, obviously not finding the sniper inside. They rushed out in an expanding circle, trying to find him before he got out of the area. A Black Hawk circled above, providing eyes in the sky and
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