Operation Z by Szepanski, G.D. (well read books .txt) 📗

At least four bodies laid on the ground when Jim finally arrived. The pickup truck posse took cover on the same side Jim approached from. One of the new corpses that littered the street belonged to a member of their group, and he hoped to add four more shortly. Big Jim knew the element of surprise disappeared when the bullets started bouncing off the bucket. Their small arms wouldn’t be able to penetrate the heavy metal of the bucket, so Jim drove on.

A bullet punctured the radiator of the backhoe, producing a stream of steam from in front of the hood. It only needed to stay running a few more minutes. A member of the pickup truck posse had taken cover behind a car and they now had threats on both sides of them. Before he could decide where to go, Jim used the bucket to cut the man in two. Another point for Big Jim. Three more points needed for victory.

Another man hid behind the car, parked in front of the vehicle Jim just crashed into. Big Jim downshifted and used the torque from the machine’s screaming diesel engine to push the two cars together. The attacker’s soft body produced no resistance and popped like a balloon. Two more to go.

Bullets continued to bounce harmlessly off of the backhoe’s bucket. The two remaining attackers hid across the street, so Jim had to back away from the crashed cars. Steam continued to pour from the radiator. He cut the wheels hard to the left to redirect the attack. When the two remaining men saw the backhoe coming at them, they renewed their attack on the advancing machine. A bullet struck the left front tire, and even Big Jim couldn’t pull the steering wheel back to center. While he tried another bullet struck the right front tire, stopping the backhoe in its tracks. This was the reason he had wanted a bulldozer instead of the backhoe. You can’t flatten metal tracks with bullets.

Big Jim leapt off the far side of the backhoe and unloaded three shots at the closest combatant. He hadn’t had time to aim, only provide cover fire for himself as he sought safety. Sometimes you get lucky, and this time Jim did with a shot finding its mark and dropping the fourth gunmen.

As quickly as it started, the gunfire stopped, and an eerie silence fell over the town. Jim didn’t know if they all ran out of ammo or if the last gunmen saw the futility of his situation. He knew the Mossberg only held three more shells. There was a box of shells in the cab, but they might as well be back at the house.

Jim shouted, trying to take control of the situation. “Throw your gun down and I’ll let you go.”

“Let me go. You assholes flattened my tires. If you hadn’t, we’d all be long gone by now. Now my buddies are all dead.”

“You need to find better friends. This is my town now. You can stay and die or surrender your weapon and leave in peace.”

After a few moments, the last gunmen responded. “Ok. I’m going to put my gun down and walk away. I hope you all rot in Hell for what you did here.”

He placed the gun on the ground and stood up from his position under cover. Jim kept the Mossberg trained on the man. With a shake of his head, he turned away from the others and took a step away. Three shots rang out, and the man staggered and then fell onto his face.

“What the hell, Corinne? He was giving up.”

“Isaac, if you had the balls of our big savior, we wouldn’t have lost Adam and Dani in this godforsaken town.”

Jim peered around the backhoe and saw the man and woman from the ATVs arguing with each other. Four bodies laid on the ground surrounding them. The teenage girl Jim met previously at the supermarket, sat in a heap rocking on her haunches, hugging herself with her arms.

“Shit!”

“Thank you, big man. I won’t shoot you. You can come back to our camp with us.”

The woman’s voice, Corinne, had an ear-piercing whine to it. There was something about her Jim didn’t like already, but he had to check on the teenage girl. He retrieved the box of shells from the cab and kept the shotgun ready for action as he eased around the front of the backhoe.

“My, you’re cute too.” She had a wanton look on her face that made Jim’s stomach churn.

“Corinne, really.”

“Shut up, Isaac. I’m a woman, in case you didn’t notice, and I have needs.”

Jim ignored the two and walked over to the teenage girl. “Are you ok?”

She looked up at Jim and blinked quickly. He noticed the tears streaming from the corners of her eyes.

“It’s ok. My name is Jim. You’re safe now.”

Her eyes darted between the bodies of her two companions. She still didn’t speak, but suddenly leaped to her feet and threw her arms around Big Jim. The hug touched Jim's emotions, but he could almost feel her grief. Then the annoying voice spoke again.

“Jimmy. Leave her behind and come with us. We have a place in the mountains. I’d love to get to know you better.”

“I think we need to talk about this Corinne.”

“Shut up, Isaac. He just saved our lives. Your pansy ass can’t say that.”

“Stop it, both of you.” Both of their heads snapped toward Jim at his harsh words. This wasn’t getting them anywhere.

“Look, we’re both going with you. If your place is any good, we’ll stay. Otherwise you two are on your own. You’d better not be lying to me.”

“Sorry. Don’t mind Corinne. We’ll take you back with us, but Max runs the camp. You or the girl staying will be up to him. Is that ok with you?”

“Sure. Let’s get going.” Jim spoke to the girl. “Can you ride an ATV?” She shook her head. “Ok, you can ride with me.