Tall and heavy shrugged. “Whatever we want.”
Sam didn’t like the smartassed answer and eyed the men suspiciously.
A woman wearing socks snuck up behind Sam while he focused on the danger confronting him. She swung a medium size cast iron skillet at the back of his head; the flashlight fell to the floor noisily as he collapsed instantly to the wood floor.
“Now what do we do with him?” the woman asked.
“Decide that when he wakes up. We’ll find out where he lives and decide if he might have anything we might want. Tie his hands.” Tall and heavy nodded toward spools of rope hung on a four foot long piece of pipe. In the dim light filtering through the front windows, she pulled a hunting knife from a sheath on her belt to cut a three foot length of 3/8 inch rope, then sat on her haunches and tied Sam’s hands behind him where he laid on his side with his back to her.
JR stood out of sight on the small back porch near the unused generators listening, observing, thinking, and worrying. She had approached the doorway as the woman sneaked upon Sam and swung the skillet. She heard Sam hit the floor, then heard two men talk in soft tones as the woman sat behind Sam with a rope in her hand and a smirk on her face. She appeared to be young, twenty or twenty-two, scrawny, and rough. The men sounded somewhat older.
JR squatted close to Smokey. “Heel Smokey,” she whispered. She untied her boots and sat them against the building. Sneakiness appeared to be the order of the day. Fearing for Sam’s safety, she cautiously snuck inside the store keeping out of sight behind shelves beside the aisle where the people were. The three strangers were still talking. She stepped around the shelves and from thirty feet shot tall and heavy in the forehead with a double tap and then shot short and thin in the chest three times. At her third shot the shotgun raised and roared as flames belched at her. Lead shot splattered the wall behind her and three feet to her right. She shifted the sights to the woman and froze. The knife was at Sam’s throat.
The pimple faced blonde smirked. “Shoot me and I’ll rip his throat out before I die.”
“Where I’m from we call this a Mexican standoff. I’m JR, what’s your name?”
“Sil, for Sylvia. If you want this guy to live, holster your gun and we’ll work this out.”
JR knew she couldn’t hold a firing stance with her arms extended indefinitely, so she lowered her gun to her side. She saw Sam move—the gun blasts must have brought him around. “Okay, how do we end this?”
Sil pushed for an advantage. “Holster your gun, then we talk.”
JR shook her head. “No. This is as far as I go. Talk to me.”
“If you don’t do like I say I’ll cut his throat right now. Holster it.”
“Cut him even a scratch and you’re dead. I’ve grown use to him, but in this world men are a dime a dozen; I’ll find another one by suppertime . . . but you’ll be dead. Those two corpses prove my shooting accuracy. My only offer to you is this, move the knife, stand, and walk out of here alive. That’s all I have to say. Finito”
Sil squinted. “How do I know you’ll let me go? You might shoot me as soon as he’s safe.”
“Because we’re making a deal, and I’m giving you my word. Makeup your mind fast; I intend to have a man in my bed by dark.”
Sil seemed to relax slightly but still had a hard look.
JR didn’t trust her and made a quick, risky decision. She didn’t see another solution and prayed she was right. Smokey was at her left. A diversion was needed. “Smokey, attack!” She took two fast sidesteps to the right for a clear shot.
Smokey snarled and lunged forward as JR raised both arms and yelled, “Stop Smokey stop!”
Sil raised both arms in self-defense and squealed in fright at the canine’s unexpected snarling attack, but Smoky slid to a stop five feet from her. Sil was exposed with the knife in front of her. JR fired four times in quick succession starting at Sil’s chest, then walking each shot upward toward her forehead to hit all the major strike zones. Sylvia’s wasted body rolled sideways to the wood floor two seconds after her knife clunked down.
JR rushed to Sam and picked up the knife and cut his binding. He tried to stand but JR was all over him hugging and kissing. “Oh, my god Sam, I thought I might lose you. I realized then how much I love you and need you.” Smokey was entwined with them both busily licking exposed skin.
When the two lovers stood, Sam hugged her tightly and said, “By supper time, huh?”
“If I knew you didn’t have a concussion, I’d smack you in the head for that. I’d say damn near anything to save your handsome ass. How are you. Got a headache I bet. She moved her left hand to his skull and felt a large bump. His hand joined hers as he blinked, grimaced, and shook his head.
“I assume she hit me. What the hell did she use, a Louisville Slugger ball bat?”
“Worse.” JR pointed to the skillet where it lay on the floor. “That. It’s just like her: hard and dark.”
She squatted. “Now thank Smokey; he created the diversion I needed to tap that cold bitch. He performed perfectly. That obedience training paid off and saved you.”
After paying attention to Smokey, the lovers reaffirmed staying closer together,
