"Hey, ma," Dallas walked into his mother's room. Kara's head lifted sleepily, only to lay down again once she realized who entered the room.
"Hey. Is Tyler back yet?" She asked. He shook his head, and cringed as she started to cough. She gave him a smile, trying to show she was okay.
"No, not yet. I was cutting down some wood, and heard some people."
"What happened?" His mother inquired, trying to sit up to get a better look at him. He sat in the chair next to her bed, taking a deep breath before telling her what had happened.
"It was two girls. They mentioned somebody named Amy, how one of them and her came to this cabin all the time. They turned back around, but are coming back in a few days. Me and Atlas stayed down until they left."
His mom blinked, and looked at the window sadly before speaking.
"You and Tyler should stand guard these next few days then," she sighed. "I can't leave, not in this condition."
"I know, ma. We will, don't worry about it." She nodded, and yawned.
"Could you get me something to eat? I'm hungry," she spoke. He stood, and glanced out the window. The sun was still bright, but was about to start to set.
"I will when Tyler gets back," Dallas said, backing out of her room. Kara followed, probably deciding she had enough of laying around for the day.
"Let her outside, will you?"
"Okay," Dallas replied, closing the door and letting the dog bound into the living room. He opened the front door, and let Kara run out. Atlas stayed put in front of the low fire, eyes closed and body completely relaxed.
Dallas flopped onto the couch, closing his eyes until Tyler got back. Which, unfortunately, was only a few minutes later. He sat up, rubbing his eyes when his brother opened the door.
He came in beaming, though he only held a squirrel. He set it down on the table, and turned back to the door.
"That's all?" Dallas asked, coming off a bit harsh. He'd been gone for quite awhile, demanding that he could hunt alone, and returned with only a squirrel?
"No, I shot a buck!" He exclaimed. "Help me carry it in! I already tried, but it's too heavy."
Dallas hurriedly stood, following Tyler as he walked outside. Together, they managed to get in inside, and relax soon after.
"So, let's start cutting it up," Tyler smiled. Dallas nodded, reaching back into his pocket to retrieve his knife.
"So, I heard people today," Dallas spoke, debating how to cut the buck in front of him. He lined it up with the stomach. "Two girls. I think they have a group not to far from here."
"What exactly did they say?" Tyler asked, leaning against his heels. "Did they mention a group?"
"They mentioned two other people, and that they had been walking for hours. They were looking for this cabin, the one girl said her and a girl named Amy came here quite a bit."
"Well, we better be prepared to guard," Tyler said, looking down at the buck as Dallas cut into it. He reached his knife up, and started to carve into it as well. "How are we on ammo?"
"Dunno. We haven't needed them, what with that dinky bow. But we'll dig them up after dinner, and find a place to stay guard," Dallas responded. "They should just be in the cabinet next to the fire place."
- - -
The majority of the meat went in the cellar. Recourses weren't low, but they weren't the best either. They should have gone hunting far sooner, as much as Dallas denied it and claimed they were fine.
After grabbing the ammo box from under the couch, both boys started to count how many bullets, and which guns were quietest.
"We only have three silencers," Tyler huffed, setting them aside. "Sixteen for the rifles."
"Thirty on the 22," Dallas replied. "I got seven for the rifles. Ten for the shotgun."
"We have nine arrows," Tyler thought for a moment for continuing. "They probably won't go at night, too dangerous for roamers. So at sunhigh we better get up."
"We could sit on the roof. High up, and we'll see them first. And we'll have a wider view range. And with the rifles, we'll see a bit farther."
"Good plan, but we won't be able to take Kara or Atlas up with us."
"We'll keep Kara and Atlas in the yard so they can bark if something we can't see is coming.L
"Yeah, this will work. Arrows can be used against roamers, bullets if people get messy." Tyler nodded. He glanced at he items laid in front of him as he reached for his food.
"Yeah. Okay, we better head to bed so we can wake up earlier," Dallas said, starting to pick up the ammo. "Hopefully before six."
"Good luck with that," Tyler snorted.
In only a few minutes, all the ammo and guns were back in their place, and the two boys were letting the dogs go outside one last time.
Dallas was settling into his makeshift bed while Tyler waited to let both dogs back in. Once closing the door, he sat by the fire as he prepared to stay up for a few hours.
Kara ran into their mothers room while Atlas hopped up on Dallas' bed. Candles were blew out, and a light sleep started to instantly take over Dallas' tired body. He was sore from getting wood, and just laying still felt ten times better to his stif muscles.
