Not seeing any movement, Arthur climbed up on the dock and eased over to the pedestrian door. This was their third visit to this store because it’d taken two trips just to get the big stuff he’d needed. All the stores he knew they were coming back to, Arthur had always left another door unlocked and if it wasn’t unlocked, he could get inside easily.
With the dogs beside him, Arthur gently turned the knob and sighed as the door opened. Letting the dogs in first, Arthur eased in before closing the door. “Heel up,” he said softly, passing the dogs and they moved along with him.
It was beyond dark as he moved into the store and stopped, letting his eyes adjust. When he could make out the aisles, Arthur pulled his AR to his shoulder and headed across the store to the door he had opened. That was the best ambush spot.
Halfway across he froze, hearing voices far off. Glancing down, he saw the shadowy forms of the dogs looking to the front of the store. Moving down the household aisle, Arthur weaved around some of the boxes they had packed, praying the kids hadn’t left anything to trip over.
Reaching the first cross aisle, Arthur turned to head toward the voices that were getting louder. “I’m telling you, Chase, they knew we was here,” Arthur heard and moved down the paint aisle, heading to the front of the store.
“How, Levi? We put the rock back and that little piece of paper,” Chase barked.
“Hello, boys,” Arthur mumbled to himself.
“You saw how fast they took off?” Levi asked. “I’m telling you, they knew we was in here.”
“Bullshit, that Arthur ain’t a ninja,” Chase argued. “We’ve seen them check on buildings before and then come back. You watch, they will pull back and load up all these storage bins and boxes. Every time we watched, they always loaded big stuff first. They were just checking the area. We’ve seen them do that plenty.”
Reaching the end of the aisle, Arthur eased out and looked toward the exit doors past the checkouts and saw two figures looking outside. With more than enough light now, Arthur eased closer to make sure they were alone.
“We should try to join them again,” Levi said, looking out the door.
“Arthur knows he has a good thing and ain’t going to let two hard legs join up,” Chase shouted and punched Levi in the shoulder. “We take out Arthur and that husky kid, and we can take over that group. He’s done taught them to drive, so we can just sit back and make them go out and get what we want.”
“I want that redhead,” Levi chuckled and Arthur fought not to pull out a knife. “I bet she’s going to scream.”
Moving past the return counter, Arthur eased past the checkouts while holding his AR on the two figures outlined in the light coming in through the door.
He saw Chase sneer at Levi. “You can have that little girl. I want that dirty blonde,” Chase said and then turned to look outside. “She can’t be twenty yet. I just hope Arthur hasn’t put the stank on her yet. He don’t seem the type, but you never know.”
“If this don’t work, let’s join up with that group down near Morrilton,” Levi suggested as Arthur was about to pull the trigger, but stopped.
“Fuck that,” Chase snapped. “I ain’t nobody’s bitch. I join anyone, I’m joining up with that group in Mayflower. They don’t have the size yet, so I can get in near the top.”
“I’m just saying, if this don’t work out because what people that are left, talk about Arthur just smoking folks who piss him off,” Levi said. “Nobody wants to move around Clarksville.”
“You can move around, dumbass. Just don’t try running game on anyone if you see those trucks moving around,” Chase said.
Levi turned to Chase and took a breath to speak when the other side of Chase’s head exploded out and blood hit Levi’s face. Before he could turn around, “Boy, you so much as twitch and the dogs will get supper early,” Levi heard and knew that voice.
“Now, get on your knees and you might live through the day,” Arthur told him, moving up and putting the suppressor on the back of Levi’s head. As Levi knelt down, he saw the two Rottweilers move in front of him. Both had their teeth bared, giving off low growls.
When his knees touched the floor, Levi felt his AR pushed off his shoulder and heard it clatter on the floor. “We just wanted to join,” Levi whimpered, feeling his legs get soaked. “There are crazies out there that just attack and people are staking out claims.”
Patting Levi down, Arthur tossed a revolver and a pistol to the side and then stepped back, avoiding the growing pool of piss between Levi’s knees. “Where is the group in Morrilton holding up?” Arthur asked.
“All I know is they are near the river,” Levi answered, never taking his eyes off the dogs.
“The Mayflower group?”
“They ain’t in the city. They are just north, set up in a building just off the interstate,” Levi replied, closing his eyes and praying that Arthur would let him go.
Thinking for a minute, “What about the two groups here in Conway?” Arthur bluffed.
“I don’t know about any groups here,” Levi blurted out and felt the suppressor against the back of his head. “Look, man, people have seen your trucks and know to stay away. I only know of regular people around here. One guy shot at you last week and you shot up the store and then burned it down. Shit like that makes people leave you the hell alone.”
Remembering the sniper that had taken
