Less than an hour later, Brodie knocked on the door, then entered. Sam pointed to the grenades in a small box.
“Damn Sam, what the hell are you doing with these? This is a pleasant surprise. Even if we don’t tag any of Riley’s people with them, they’ll make a fine diversion and scare the hell out of our targets, if we need em.”
Sam split the seven grenades, giving Brodie four.
“Is that motorcycle ready to run?”
Sam nodded. “Yeah, I started it earlier. It’s gassed and ready to go.”
“When we get up, we’ll ride about four miles, then walk the rest of the way. The cycle will be slow going on that rough trail in the dark, so the dog will be able to keep up easily. A three-quarter moon was up when I came over, but the air smells and feels like rain is near. That’s a plus for us. Riley surely has people on guard duty if he’s expecting you, and a good rain will likely make them hunker down under cover and get lazy. Even for trained soldiers, it’s hard to stay focused on a threat that may or may not be real.”
“Do you know if Riley or his gang have military or law experience?”
“The last time I saw that bunch, two of them carried themselves like soldiers. The others are likely low down scum who had run-ins with the law. Riley and his brothers avoided military service. Too many rules and regulations. The older, middle brother, Claude, is dumber than a rock and about that hardheaded. Darrell was the most intelligent after Riley, but Patrick was almost as goofy as Claude. Must have been a lot of inbreeding in that bunch at some point before their granddaddy migrated here from Tennessee.”
Sam laid on the bed fully clothed, and Brodie took Mona’s pallet on the floor. Brody’s breathing leveled off and he went to sleep almost immediately. Sam was restless; JR was probably being raped as he tried to sleep. People were going to pay with their lives for that. Being captured put her in danger of being injured or killed when they attacked. He expected Hooper to use her and Mona as shields and bargaining chips if he wasn’t killed in the initial attack. Finally he cleared his mind of what ifs flooding it and fell into a fitful sleep.
JR was awake too. Two women had helped the men strip her and Mona of their clothing shortly after they arrived. She’d been punched and slapped hard for resisting the men’s first advances. Then dog collars on stout ropes were locked around their necks before the ropes were secured to rings attached to the old Victorian era house’s walls. She and Mona had been slapped, punched, pinched, and groped throughout the afternoon and evening until they were worn down and stopped fighting back so aggressively. The same two bitches laughed as they helped subdue JR during her first multiple rape. Then the helpers challenged the rapist to be rougher and more aggressive and viler.
JR and Mona had been subjected to forced sex again earlier in the evening, and now the drunken men were ready to attack them again. Across the room, she heard Mona being raped by two men while Riley Hooper and another man violated her again. A fifth man stood back taunting his buddies while waiting his turn at JR. When they arrived, she’d counted a total of seven men and three women. Riley told two men to stay hidden outside because JR’s husband was expected anytime, but the young punk had no idea of what he was walking into. She’d learned they were rotating guard duty every four hours. JR didn’t know the time of night. She knew they were still in their first day of capture because the sun hadn’t come up again. She prayed Sam would rescue her soon. Sam. What if he attacked and was captured or killed? She pushed that dreadful possibility out of her mind. Her Sam would rise to the occasion. He had to. The thought of him rescuing her and Mona was the only sliver of hope she had to cling to as she was brutally abused.
Sam woke when Brodie shook his shoulder forcefully. “Get up, it’s time to go.” The oil lamp was lit; Sam glanced at his watch. It was just past 04:00.
Smokey sat by Sam’s bed as he grunted, then swung his socked feet to the floor to pull his boots on.
Sam blinked sleep away as Brodie spoke, “I heard thunder a few minutes ago. Think it’s to the north. Using the dirt bike with two of us on it will get hairy if it rains even a little. The trails we’ll use go over ridges and up and down steep ravines. Are you a good dirt bike rider, or do I need to drive?”
“I’m good enough. I won a few first place motocross trophies a few years back before I started college.” Brodie pursed his lips and nodded his acceptance.
Brodie extended a large protein bar. “Eat this and wash it down with several gulps of water before we leave. That’s breakfast. Don’t want to recon or fight on a full belly—makes it hard to stay awake. These are also the last of these I have, so enjoy it.”
As Brodie turned, Sam noticed he had two handguns on his hips. One was definitely bigger than the other. He asked about them as he tied his boots.
“This baby is the .45 caliber Colt 1911, hell of
