Joshua saw the men running across the bridge toward his family below. He had seen them sitting and smoking cigarettes at the opposite end of the bridge before his father even approached the road block, but he saw no way to warn him in time other than by firing a shot.
He tracked the approaching men in his rifle scope, not sure if his father wanted him to fire or not. Joshua couldn’t even see his family now, only knew they were somewhere at the bottom of the hill.
He saw four men running their way, one tall, thin and fleet in the front, the other three trailing behind. At the very end was an old codger who couldn’t have been a day less than seventy, carrying a double-barreled shotgun. The two in the middle looked like they were brothers and Joshua could easily spot the resemblance from his vantage point two hundred yards away.
Joshua tried to think. Normally his father initiated all the action, but maybe he hadn’t foreseen this. If those men got to the road block, saw what happened, and then took up covered positions, they would be in the same situation they were when they first approached except without the element of surprise. Retreat would be difficult at best. They probably also didn’t want the men to escape now that they were in the open. If they escaped, they could run back to their barricade at the other end of the bridge and prevent them from crossing. They needed to take these men in the open before they reached defensible positions on either side of the bridge.
The tall thin man in Joshua’s scope slowed to a jog as he saw the bodies. His arms sagged and he looked around in disbelief. He didn't look to have any thoughts of a possible threat nearby, only staring at his dead comrades in disbelief. Joshua knew his shock could wear off quickly. He also knew he should look for stationary targets and “Mr. Tall and Thin” was now standing still less than twenty yards from the barricade.
Joshua forced himself to slow his breathing and his heart rate. He closed his eyes and then opened them again, sighting on his target. He drew in a deep breath, held it, then let it all out slowly. As the last of the breath left his lungs he began to pull the trigger slowly and steadily. When the rifle jumped against his shoulder it was a surprise, like always.
*******
You bumbling fool, Nathan thought of himself. Of course, they would block both ends of a long bridge like this one. It would do no good to only bottle up one end! He heard the approaching men’s footfalls and muffled yells although he could not yet see them. He needed a plan.
If he attacked them now in the open it would be touch and go. He didn’t even know how many men he faced. Joshua might give them an advantage on the hill, but he would be waiting for Nathan to make a move. Nathan couldn’t let these men occupy the position they had just cleared or they were dead.
“Cover me,” he whispered to Bethany and signaled to David. Bethany looked at him in alarm seemingly to ask him if he were crazy. Nathan just shrugged. He would have to count on the element of surprise and hope there weren’t too many to deal with.
He saw a tall thin blond man come into view and then stop in his tracks. His eyes were wide and he looked like he could not believe what he saw. The man just drank in all the bloodshed and horror. Sudden comprehension showed in his face and he pulled the rifle up from his slack hands and began looking around at the tree-line. His eyes met Nathan’s a split second before a bullet tore through his chest, sending him to the ground in a crumpled heap.
The silence was deafening. Nathan couldn’t see anyone else; maybe there was only one. That thought left his head as he heard other shouts from beyond the barricade and then another shot from Joshua. He couldn’t wait any longer.
Nathan sprinted up to the parked cars and carefully peeked over one of the hoods. He saw the tall thin man trying to crawl under one of the cars, bleeding badly. He also saw an older man around the middle of the bridge lying on the ground without moving, evidently a result of Joshua’s second shot. There were two other men who looked a lot alike at the edge of the bridge, using the concrete barrier as protection. They appeared to be in a heated discussion. One looked to argue for heading back over the bridge and the other for the closer protection of the road block. As they were arguing, Joshua took out the man on the right drawing a scream of frustration from the other.
The remaining man wasted no time and began running towards the road block. Joshua took a shot at him, but it hit the road behind his churning legs. The man sprinted and dived near the cars and then cautiously lifted his head up to get a look at the sniper just as Nathan stuck the barrel of the shotgun over the hood of the old Chevy Nova. The poor man’s eyes showed comprehension, seeing the barrel of the shotgun only three feet from his face, as Nathan pulled the trigger and took his head off.
Nathan quickly scanned the bridge for other movement, but saw nothing. He went around the other side of the car and saw that the tall man had already bled out. He collected weapons, ammo, and anything else of use as quickly as he could. He then ran back to where Bethany and David were. Nathan jumped down between them again and soon Joshua approached them from the hill to their rear.
Joshua was breathless, “That’s all of them that I can see, the other end is clear. I’m also starting to get low on ammo for the Weatherby.”
Nathan looked at the three rifles he had just collected and selected an impressive Remington .300 Winchester Magnum with a Leopold scope. He handed the rifle to Joshua along with about sixty rounds of ammo recovered from the former owner’s backpack. “This should do you until we find more .270. It’s not sighted in for you, so don’t go trying to take any long shots until you get a feel for it,” Nathan explained.
Bethany moved closer to find out what was going on. David, without being told, ignored the meeting and continued to provide then security scanning the road and the bridge for anyone else who might approach them.
Nathan thought for a moment. “We could cross now. Might even be the smartest thing, but there could be more of them waiting hidden in the trees on the other side. We would walk right into them. Be sitting ducks out there on that open bridge.”
Bethany grabbed his arm, “But we have to get across. Another bridge could be days up or down river. We have to keep moving if we're going to make it.”
“Yes, we have to cross here if we can.” Nathan quickly came to a decision. “Joshua, go back up to that position and watch for any movement. Anyone crosses the bridge you take them out. If no one crosses by sundown, come to us and we’ll make our way over in the dark.” Joshua nodded and took off back up the hill.
Nathan turned to Bethany and told her, “Wait here a minute.” He moved quickly down the road and uncovered their packs hidden in the snow. Gathering them all he ran back to their position. He passed David and Bethany their packs, and traded weapons again with David.
After he briefed them on the plan, they all settled in to wait the few hours until dark. Bethany pulled out an old t-shirt from her bag, wet it in the snow, and began to clean spots of blood from Nathan’s face. “That was pretty foolish of you,” she said.
“Which part?” asked Nathan playfully.
“The part where you ran up to those cars. You had no idea what was waiting for you.” She sighed disapprovingly as she kept cleaning, “Don’t you always tell the boys to know what they are getting into before they jump. Besides, it looked like Joshua had it under control.”
Nathan smiled, “Yes he did, but I wasn’t sure he would act without me telling him to. He did well.”
“You know you’re not alone in this. We’re all together.” Bethany smiled shyly, “Even I can do my small part, although you know I don’t want to have to shoot anyone.”
“Babe, want has nothing to do with it and you know that."
She placed a calming hand on Nathan’s shoulder, “I know, and that’s not what I mean. Besides, you’d be proud of me. I’m pretty sure I winged at least one of the first bunch.”
“Really? You okay with it?” Nathan asked.
“I think so…” said Bethany thinking to herself. “Should I be freaking out over it or something?”
“I’d prefer you didn’t.” said Nathan in a tired voice.
“Besides, I already told you I’ll do what needs to be done.” Bethany searched for words and then continued. “You act as if everything is on your head and it’s not. Some things you just can’t control. Some things even work themselves out…and we’re here with you.”
“Are you trying to say I should have handled things differently?” asking Nathan defensively.
“No. I’m saying you don’t have to be so eager to jump right into danger just because you want to protect the rest of us.” She looked him in the eyes, “We can handle it too, but if something happens to you we’ll be lost. We need you. I need you.” She grinned and said “So use your head,” as she slapped him lightly on the shoulder not knowing it had been grazed by a bullet.
He had forgotten about getting shot, and groaned. Bethany inspected and saw that it was minor but still hissed with exasperation, “That’s exactly what the hell I’m talking about!” The look on her face caused Nathan to laugh and she laughed quietly too.
Bethany cleaned and bandaged his wound with care as they waited in the snowy cold ditch for nightfall.
*******
Shortly after the day’s last rays of sun fled from the sky, Joshua came back down from his sniper position. Nathan decided that he and David would go across first, one on either side of the bridge while Bethany and Joshua following about fifty yards or so behind them. If things went bad, they would flee back to their original position.
They stealthily crossed the bridge under a dark and cloudy sky. Around the middle of the bridge they passed a sign welcoming them to the State of Kentucky. At the other end they found another barricade and signs of long occupation. The remains of a fire was still warm and they spent blessed time warming their hands and feet after making sure the nearby wood-line was clear. Another sign on the road told them they were only a mile from the town of Louisa, Kentucky.
They relaxed for the first time that day, and Nathan even took off his wet boots and socks to dry by the replenished fire, when David jumped up abruptly. He stood still and alert like a deer looked into the woods. David slowly turned his head from side to side with a concerned look.
“What is it?” whispered Joshua.
David paused before answering, pushing the long dark hair out of his face. He nodded his head in decision, “Voices, and not far away.” He then got another confused and uncertain look before saying with surprise, “And a dog.”