Legend of Mace (23 page)

“Shit,” she mumbled. “You call this being honorable?”

“I’ve got one thing left to hold onto in this life,” Mace said angrily, “and I’d slit your throat before I  let you get close to it.” He glared at her through hardened eyes. His family was his only redemption. Without them, Dawson was right: He was just a fucking psycho killer.

“Fine,” Dawson said as she looked away. “I know your type. You’d rather kill than fuck. You’re all as good a dead anyway. It doesn’t matter how tough you think you are.”

“You forget about one thing,” Mace said, sneering. “We have you.”

“They don’t give a shit about me,” Dawson replied, trying to hide the hurt behind her eyes. Looking down at her left breast, she cringed. She looked up at him spitefully. “You’re an idiot if you think they’re going to risk their lives for some lopsided hooker.”

“I assumed it wasn’t your sparkling personality that kept you in their good graces,” Mace said flatly.

“Fuck you, dickwad,” Dawson replied indignantly as she looked away again. “I’ve done what I’ve had to do to survive. Don’t fucking judge me. You just shot my tit off.”

“Sorry. Was aiming for your heart. The size of your girls threw me off.”

Dawson couldn’t help but chuckle sarcastically. “I’d be better off if you had. Now I’m just a sideshow freak.”

“Something tells me the boys you travel with would take one breast over  none. Now start moving. We’ve still got a ways to go.”

“I can’t walk that far,” Dawson complained again. “I just can’t. I fucking hurt!”

Mace shut off the bike’s engine. “Every piece of information you give me buys you riding time. Interested?”

“Doesn’t matter,” she said flatly. “You’re all dead anyway. It won’t matter if I’m with you. I told you, my life doesn’t mean shit to them.”

“Well then, what can it hurt? If you want a ride back to our compound, I suggest you start talking. What makes them so dangerous?”

Dawson was done walking. She started spilling everything she knew. "You mean besides their numbers? That’s a trained army. They’ve got weapons you could only dream of.”

Mace eyed her carefully, watching for any signs of deception. “Go on.”

“Ever heard of a Suitcase-Nuke? That’s what Razor calls them. They picked up seven of them in New Mexico. Some abandoned government facility out in the middle of nowhere. Area something-or-other. He said they could blow the shit out of anything.”

Doing his best to read her, he didn’t think she was lying, although they could have also just been feeding her stories. “Where do they keep them?”

“They keep them in an ambulance for protection. They’re locked in a crate.”

“Ambulance?” Mace asked, his eyebrows lifting.

“Yeah, it keeps the Goons from attacking. Razor said it makes them more stupid than they already are.”

“There are no more Goons,” Mace said, using her term. “Where is the ambulance?” If he could figure out how to switch it with the one they'd  hidden, it might give them the upper hand.

“Oh, there are still Goons. It’s probably what they’ll send in next.”

Confused, Mace shook his head. “What are you talking about?”

“They’ve got a whole semi packed with them. They used the ambulance to capture them, then stuck them in the trailer.”

For the first time in years, the hairs on the back of Mace’s neck stood on end. It felt amazing. “So why didn’t those Goons die?”

“I don’t really know. Razor says once you lock them in the dark, they stay fresh.”

Thinking back on the airport hanger, tingles covered Mace’s body. The ones left in the dark remained in a state of hibernation. Once freed, the toxin flowed strongly once again. The bikers had figured the whole thing out.

Roger stumbled backwards, stunned by the hotel collapse. Everything remained dark gray as dust swirled around the hotel. He felt disoriented as he squinted at the massive pile of broken concrete that loomed a few feet away through the thick haze. Lifting his shirt over his mouth to try to filter out some of the dust, he could barely breath.

Hearing a noise, he listened closely as someone crunched over the debris in boots. They were moving in his direction. His first thoughts centered around Tom, but he kept quiet as the crunching-noise drew closer. He needed to be certain.

Making out a human form in the distance, he squatted low to the ground. It was too large for Tom. He reached for his weapon and realized it was gone.

Staying completely still, Roger made out Razor’s features as the biker drew closer. The biker looked fearsome. Razor would spot him any moment.

Razor suddenly stopped, looking intently in his direction. Roger remained completely still as adrenaline shot through his veins. He could tell that Razor wasn’t sure what he was.

Unable to contain himself any longer, Roger suddenly pushed off the ground and sprinted directly towards Razor. Razor took a step back in surprise and reached for his holster. Roger pushed off his left leg and thrust his right leg up as Razor pulled his gun free. In mid-air, Roger turned his body to the side as his right leg straightened. His heel crushed into the middle of Razor’s chest as Razor lifted his weapon. The gun discharged on contact; the bullet hitting dirt as Razor flew backwards from the impact.

Roger rose quickly to his feet and rushed at Razor again as the big biker scrambled to rise. Razor was almost to a standing position when Roger’s foot smashed into the side of his head from a stinging roundhouse kick.

Razor went down hard again and the gun flew out of his hand and bounced into the dust pile. Roger immediately turned and chased after it. Coughing heavily as he ran, the increase in heartrate forced more dust into his lungs. He suddenly couldn’t catch his breath and fell to one knee, gasping as he tried to breathe.

He looked back for Razor, but Razor was gone. Slowly collapsing onto his back as his chest grew tighter, Roger wheezed, struggling for breath. He held his chest as his airways started to close.

Jade heard the gunshot and ran deeper into the dust cloud. She couldn’t see clearly through the scope so she slung the rifle across her shoulder and pulled her Glock. Slowly making her away around the huge pile of debris, she could barely see. Footsteps sounded in the distance and she tried to move a little more quickly as the footsteps proceeded swiftly in the opposite direction.

She was almost directly on top of Roger when she heard him wheeze lightly. Looking down, she could barely make out his form through the grime.

“Roger?” she asked. He wheezed again. Leaning over him, she tried to carefully check him for wounds. She didn’t want to move him.

“Lungs,” he gasped weakly as he tried to take shallow, steady breaths.

“Let’s get you out of here,” she said as she bent down and put his arm around her shoulder. “C’mon,” she said, “I’m going to help you stand.”

Dragging him to his feet, she grunted, “Let’s just move slowly until we can get you away from the thickest dust.”

He barely nodded as she slowly moved them forward.

“Tom,” he panted, lifting his head. 

Jade looked back at the pile of rubble and shook her head. “He’s stuck in there somewhere. It doesn’t look good.”

Dawson stumbled as she walked towards the compound. She was exhausted, wounded, and in pain. Her chest and side hurt from the impact of the bullet and she had a good-sized knot on the back of her head. She couldn't keep her mouth shut long enough to make it to the camp on the back of the bike.

Razor hid behind a small debris pile and watched as Mace pulled her along, a piece of rope leading from the back of his bike to her bound wrists. She stumbled as she tried to keep up. “Please,” she pleaded as she struggled to keep up. “I’m going to fall!” They were close to the gate.

Mace stopped the bike and looked back. “Shut up and keep walking,” he said roughly. The gate opened and Woody, Crockett, and the girls moved out to greet them.

As soon as Mace untied the rope, Dawson moved past him towards the camp, sticking her tongue out as she went. "You're no fun," she said sarcastically.

Crockett’s mouth dropped open at the sight of her. He’d never seen a naked boob before.

Kelly rolled her eyes at the sight. “Close your mouth, pervert, before you choke on a bug.”

Crockett quickly shut his mouth. “What?”

As hurt and defeated as Dawson felt, she still couldn’t help but chuckle at Crockett’s expression. “I see movement down there, young man,” she said playfully, staring at his shorts as she walked close. “If you’re not careful you just might get your pickle dipped.”

Crockett turned bright red as she chuckled and moved passed.

“Take her to the jail and keep guard,” Woody said to Crockett, winking, "and don’t get your pickle dipped.” Woody turned to greet Mace, who rumbled slowly forward on the bike. “See the others?”

Assuming he was talking about Roger and Tom, Mace said, "You really expect somebody to survive that?” Taking a quick glance towards what remained of the hotel, he shook his head.

“Tom’s still alive. He’s somewhere in that rubble. Jade’s out there as well. She just found Roger. We’re just not sure about Bowie.”

“What?” Maced asked, immediately turning back. “When did Jade go out?”

“She’s got a sniper rifle. She’s on the ground. She’s okay.”

“Keep Fonda Cox there tied up and away from any of the boys,” Mace said, motioning towards Dawson. “She’ll be out of here in twenty minutes if you leave her with Crockett. Have the girls watch her.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Go help Jade.”

“I see them!” JB yelled from atop the wall. He pointed behind Mace. Two dark figures walked towards them from a distance. Covered in dust, they were barely identifiable as their companions.

Mace fired the hog back up and rolled swiftly out to greet them. “What happened?” he asked as he pulled to a stop a few feet in front.

“One got away,” Jade answered as she helped Roger. “They know where the compound is.”

Roger started coughing and Jade patted him on the back. Glancing at Mace, she said, “His lungs are filled with dust.”

Mace took a quick glance around, missing Razor watching them carefully from behind a debris pile. Roger dropped to a knee, locked briefly in a coughing spasm. “Let’s get back and get ready,” Mace said with some urgency. “This one’s gonna get bloody. I’ve got a lot to tell you.”

Crockett stood at the far end of the jail trying to avoid eye contact with Dawson, who continued to badger him. Holding a machete by his side, he swung it nervously back and forth.

“C’mon honey, if you come over here I’ll let you touch it,” she said, rubbing her naked breast as she smiled coyly. “I’ll even let you touch me between my legs. It’s really warm.” When Crockett didn’t respond, she continued working on him. “I know you want to know what it’s like. You're missing out on something really special. I love the young ones. You’re so enthusiastic.”

Crockett’s face remained a deep shade of red as he tried to think of anything else and avoid eye contact. Kelly’s face kept popping into his head, and he couldn’t understand why he felt a profound sense of shame every time he pictured her.

Chelsea, Maya and Kelly suddenly burst through the door. As soon as he made eye contact with Kelly, he felt himself go from fully erect to turbo. He tried to nonchalantly move the machete in front of his erection, his face growing an even deeper shade of crimson.

“Oh God,” Kelly said at the look on his face. “Mace was right. If we left you alone in here for five more minutes, you’d be stark naked and dangling your little turtle-head in front of her.”

Before Crockett could respond, Dawson spoke loudly from her cell. “This one’s been a complete gentleman, girls, although you’re dead wrong about the size of that turtle-head.”

All the girls looked from Dawson to the front of Crockett’s pants, where he continued to shield himself with the machete.

“He did his best to ignore me, but he couldn’t ignore his hormones. That’s what makes the young ones fun.”

Crockett’s head spun from embarrassment and humiliation. He wanted to point the machete at Dawson and threaten her but didn’t want to fully expose his bulge.

“This is just so wrong,” he said nervously. “We need to gag her or something to shut her up. She just won’t stop talking.”

Watching him closely, Kelly felt protective of him. She'd never seen him nervous before. Noticing the bulge in his pants also made her heart flutter. She felt confused. She decided sarcasm was the best recourse.

“It looks like we need to wrap her mouth and wrap your shorts at the same time. There are two things that just won’t stop.”

The hurt look in Crockett’s eyes made Kelly immediately regret the joke. The girls laughter didn’t help.

“Fuck you, Jersey,” Crockett said as he stormed towards the door. “At least I’ve got a bulge. The only bumps you see when you look down are your knees.”

Slamming the door behind him, Crockett paused for a second as he tried to gather himself. He’d never felt so vulnerable. Or so horny.

Inside the cell, Dawson felt a connection with Kelly and tried to work it. She’d been teased non-stop in school over her flat chest.

“Don’t worry, sweetie,” she said. “You’ve got a nice figure. Plus, you’re young and they could still grow.”

Kelly looked at her in disgust. “I don’t need some humongous melon boobs to make me feel better about myself. I’m not like you.”

Looking down at her chest, Dawson smiled sadly. “It’s only one humongous melon boob now.” Looking back up at the girls, she said, “I really need to see a doctor. I’m in a lot of pain.” Staring at Kelly for a second, she added, “That kid really likes you. And I can tell you feel the same way. Quit fighting it and have some fun before time runs out, because trust me, time is running out. You're all gonna die soon.”