Something to Die For by Kaye Blue

Thirty-Seven

Lucas

“You keep the strangest company.”

At the words, I looked over, surprised.

That surprise turned to happiness.

When they had put me in a different shed and locked the door, I hadn’t bothered to look at the others who were in it. There were three other guys in with me, but I hadn’t paid them any attention.

“Hunter! What are you doing here?” I went over to my cousin, giving him a quick embrace. I hadn’t expected to see him again after the compound, but I was glad he was here, circumstances notwithstanding.

“I got caught up,” he said simply.

He wasn’t a man of many words, but in this case, they weren’t needed.

I glanced around, saw two others, one still, quiet, the other pacing nervously.

The quiet one was paying attention; the pacing one looked like he was about to have a heart attack.

I dismissed both of them.

“Yeah. Those assholes tried to steal my shit. Didn’t like my response to that,” he said.

“Let me guess, brought you back here for repayment?”

“Yeah, same song and dance. And I didn’t even kill any of them. Which I regret now.”

“I might have handled that for you,” I said.

“How many?”

“Five.”

He smacked me on the shoulder and gave me an approving nod.

“So what’s the story?”

“Been here for about a week. As much as I can tell, this is a private outfit. Mercenaries or some shit.”

“And?”

“They run a tight ship. Have some good training. But I have no idea what the fuck they’re doing besides jacking people and bring them back here.”

“Okay,” I said.

There was more to discuss, but not here, with others listening.

“Later,” Hunter said, before he climbed into one of the bunks. “They like to start early. I suggest you get some rest.”

I nodded and claimed the bunk closest to him, though I doubted I’d be able to sleep.

I was worried about Angel, my mind racing over everything that might be happening to her. And I need to figure out how to get us out of this.

I also hated being exposed in a place where I had no way to fend for myself.

It was night now, pitch-black, and still eerily silent.

Still, there was no use trying to sleep.

I lay still, having long ago mastered keeping my body under control, thinking I had mastered my mind but this night proving that not to be true.

“I can hear you thinkingfrom over here. Go the fuck to sleep, Lucas.”

I smiled grimly then decided to take my cousin’s advice.

I lay still, forced myself to empty my mind, promised I’d be ready for whatever came.

* * *

Lucas

“Up and at ’em,”came the loud voice at first light.

Not like I needed a wakeup call.

I blinked when the door was pulled opened then walked out, stretching as I went, the others behind me.

“The latrines are that way. Go to the blue building after,” the man said.

I walked away then, trying to be alert, taking in everything I could.

Others were shuffling about, all clearly intent on a specific task.

I was again struck that everything that happened here seemed to have use, a purpose.

I needed to figure out what that was.

But most importantly, I needed to stay on my toes, and be ready to go.

Something was definitely off here, but I couldn’t let that be my focus. Instead, I’d play their game and bide my time.

But until I could do that, I’d play the game.

I used the latrine and then washed up as best I could in a bucket of dirty-looking water.

After that, I went to the blue building and followed Hunter as he grabbed a tray. Two tired-looking women were handing out hard biscuits and scooping up oatmeal.

“Not the best you’ve ever had,” Hunter said as he sat at a metal table.

“Not the worst either,” I responded as I took the first bite.

He chuckled, and then we were silent as we ate. The shit was terrible, the oatmeal cold, lumpy, and at least two days old, but I knew I’d need the energy. Hunter had told me the bare minimum, but I knew today, all the days after, would be hard.

“Time to load up.”

One of the men who’d been waiting outside of the blue building. I stood after Hunter, and the other two who’d been in our room, along with two others, filed out.

“Hop on.”

The man nodded at a flatbed truck much like the one we’d arrived in yesterday. I got on and the others followed suit, and then off we went.

As we left the compound, I searched for a glimpse of Angel but didn’t see her.

Fought to ignore the worry and disappointment that ached in my chest.

Instead, I looked around as the truck sped down the state highway until it turned off a road. It appeared to be new and there were dozens of houses in the immediate area.

The truck stopped, and one of the guards got out holding six heavy leather belts.

I recognized them well and knew exactly how to stand as he secured the belt around my waist and then did the same to Hunter and the others. He then linked three of us together by threading a chain through the cuff loop at the center of the belt.

“Let’s move.”

I didn’t acknowledge the man who spoke, but instead started walking, Hunter, and the other guy cuffed to us in step.

The belt was heavy on my waist, but I barely noticed it.

Instead, I was paying attention to my surroundings, trying to spot trouble before we came on it.

Because we would.

I had no doubt about that, just as I had no doubt that I would be ready.

“I want to hit every house on the first two streets of this subdivision by noon.”

The man then tossed us shovels and nodded toward the neighborhood.

I gripped the handle tight, and together, we started walking.

“What do they want?” I asked Hunter.

“Anything that might seem useful.”

“This is bullshit.”

I looked at the third man, really studying him. Early thirties, tall, looked like he could handle himself.

“Military or cop?”

“Military,” he responded. “Prison, right?”

I nodded, and he shrugged.

“Whatever. I don’t have time for this bullshit. I gotta go.” And he looked like he could do just that if he decided.

He’d been cool so far, but I could see his patience was running thin.

“Name?”

“Langley. Noah Langley,” he said, though he looked reluctant.

“Lucas Crowe. Langley, keep your shit together.”

“Why? We could take these three idiots and be a hundred miles away before anybody noticed,” he said.

“Yeah, but…”

“But what?”

“But we’re gonna keep it cool and do what they say, at least for a little while.”

I could see Langley wanted to argue, but I wouldn’t hear of it. He was right, that between the three of us, we could easily handle the guards.

But that would leave Angel in a bad position, and I wouldn’t have that.

“You got somebody back at the camp?” he finally said.

I didn’t respond, and he didn’t press.

“Fine. But as soon as I have a shot, I’m out of here,” he said.

“Fair enough,” I responded.

“Well, that’s decided, so let’s get started,” Hunter said.

We had been walking the whole time and now stood at the front door of one of the houses.

“Unfuckingbelievable. I have to rummage through some poor, probably dead, asshole’s house,” Langley said.

“Yeah. Not the way I want to spend my morning,” Hunter agreed.

Then, he approached the door, his eyes narrowed.

After a moment, he reached out and turned the knob.

He looked at Langley, who looked surprised. “What? Did you expect me to kick it off its hinges and make a big racket?”

“Yeah,” Langley said.

Hunter just smiled and then stepped inside.

There was no way the three of us could walk side by side, so Hunter led the way, Langley and I trailing behind.

“This place reeks,” I said.

“Not as bad as some.”

I didn’t ask Hunter to explain that and instead kept my eyes open and looked around.

Standard suburban shit. The kind of house I’d never lived in and never would.

I saw pictures on the wall—mother, father, two little blonde girls.

I also saw the streaks of blood that had been smeared on the floor, and as we got closer, saw the bodies, or at least what had been bodies, in the kitchen.

My stomach turned, but I swallowed my bile down, stepping over the remains.

“Keep your eyes peeled,” Langley said.

I didn’t need the warning.

I was looking, certain that I’d find something, though I wasn’t sure what.

We went through the kitchen and then deeper into the house.

The first floor was clear, so we headed up, trying to move as quietly as three hulking men chained together could.

Thump.

We all froze, eyes trained toward the ceiling.

Thump, thump.

I looked at Hunter, who nodded, then looked at Langley, who also nodded, and then after a moment, Hunter continued.

We walked up the stairs quickly, making an effort to get out of the choke point as fast as we could. We followed the thumps, shovels at the ready.

We didn’t have long to wait.

First came one, a man, or at least he had been. His formerly white shirt was stained brown and red, his skin an inhuman color.

Then came that sound.

It had been a while since I had heard it, but it was still as creepy as ever.

And it brought with it the second, the wife, wearing a pair of khakis and flannel shirt.

She was also covered in stains, and I didn’t want to look at it closely to figure out what they were.

They approached, eyes milky white, everything about them intent on destroying us.

We didn’t give them the chance.

Hunter moved first, took down the husband, and I finished off the wife while Langley stood guard.

Less than a minute, and both were dead, finally, lying still in the hallway.

“Let’s get the fuck out of here,” Langley said.

I didn’t argue.

Part of me wondered why I could be so calm. I didn’t know anything about these people, but I could imagine they were a nice loving family, and now they didn’t exist.

Then, my father’s words, ones that I had tried to forget like I tried to forget everything about him.

Sentimentality was a weakness, and now I couldn’t afford to be weak.

So I wasn’t.

Instead, I pushed it aside, scavenged that house, the next, all the ones after for anything that was useful.

And I was resolved again, but even more than before, to get out of here.