Against the Grain by Ian Daniels Page B

was sure that we were not the first ones. The farther he could walk under his own power away from here, it was that much less his lifeless, bloated body would need to be dragged.  
    He actually gave it a good effort, constantly looking back to see if I was lining up on him or not.  
    Man that’s going to be a big hole to have to dig by hand with only a shovel.
     

Chapter 8
     
    “What was that last shot?” Breanne asked over the radio a few minutes later.
    I had called in to give her the all clear and to get everyone settled down a bit too.
    Yeah what was that last shot? Mercy? Justice? Vengeance?
    “Insurance,” I radioed back to her.
    “Get Drew, Nick and Paul back here... and bring that AK looking gun and magazines from the other guys.”
    “We’re on our way,” Breanne responded.
    While I was waiting for them I walked in a big circle around the house and other buildings. Everything was still intact from the looks of it. I had just taken my first swig of water when the others came into view. They were in one group, walking with their guns slung. I waited for them to join me and tried to remind myself for the thousandth time that they didn’t know any better.  
    Breanne was quiet, but the others all started trying to talk to me at once.
    “Alright guys, here’s the deal,” I started after quieting them all down. “There was one more guy hanging around here. He’s now dead over there.” I pointed to the spot the fat guy had finally dropped. “And Paul, you guys need to get a dog. Get with David and talk to the neighbors, see what you can come up with.”  
    “A dog? But I’m allergic,” Paul whined.  
    “Are you more allergic to dog hair or hollow points? How about a knife to the throat when you’re sleeping? Your place is on the outer edge, closest to the road. You need a better early warning that something is wrong than a bullet up the ass. We should have had some dogs out here a long time ago…” I berated him knowing that it was partly my own fault for not getting them properly set up with a good guard dog in the first place.
    Of course it’s not like those were just laying around in high supply either, but the fact still remained.  
    Not interested in wasting any more time, I turned back to address everyone again. “I’m going to head toward the road and see what I can see. The last guy said that they came in a truck and parked it at the end of the road where we blocked it off.”
    “You talked to him? What the hell were they doing here?” Paul sounded incredulous.
    He was upset; his home had been violated, he was shook up and feeling really insecure, but trying to vent at me right now was not going to go well for him.
    Holding up my hands I tried to calmly address him individually.
    “I know how you feel , but it wasn’t exactly a real good conversation. I didn’t get much out of him… which is why I’m going to go see about this truck, and figure out what sense I can make of this mess.”  
    “Not a good conversation? You didn’t find anything out?” Paul seemed surprised.
    “I asked him a couple questions and got a couple of answers,” my eyes narrowed dangerously.
    “You got a couple answers? What the hell does that mean?” he asked again.
    First he didn’t like that I didn't find much out. Then he didn’t like that I had even tried. Well he was welcome to do better. Ignoring him, I turned back to the others.
    “I think you guys are safe for now, but you might want to do a couple things before you bring Michelle back here.”
    “Like what?” Andrew asked me.
    “For starters, I’d grab some water and shovels and get the blood washed out of the dirt over there.” I jerked my thumb over my shoulder at the spot where I had questioned the lardass marauder.  
    Everyone stiffened and Andrew’s eyes grew wide.  
    “You also might want to do something with the body,” I said evenly.
    “What! Oh man I’m not messing with a dead body!” Paul proclaimed.
    I had