Pied Piper III

[mjcmmv]

PART III: The War

Chapter 16

“Come on, what’s the plan, Derrick?” 

Jeremy was almost running to keep up. Things had gone much further than he ever imagined, and he no longer felt as committed to the cause as he had been in the beginning. 

“They’re going to die.”

“Yes, I know, I know. But who is going to die? The football team, right? Coach Butler?” 

“No, everybody. The players, the coach, the parents, the cheerleaders. Everybody.”

 “Cheerleaders, too, eh?” 

“Yeah. You have a problem with that?” Derrick stopped mid-stride and turned to confront his partner.

“Ah, no, not at all. I’m just surprised.”

“Uh, huh. Not getting cold feet now, are you?” Derrick raised the barrel of the rifle ever so slightly, making it obvious he wasn’t giving Jeremy a choice.

“Come on, Derrick! We’re in this together. I just wish we’d worked out all the details before things started happening.”

“Look down there.” Derrick raised the rifle and pointed toward the school building. “They’re all in there, waiting… waiting and defenseless. Don’t you get it? We have the upper hand. We have the firepower. The only threat was the hotshot cop from Miami, and we took care of him. Just think. It’ll be like shooting fish in a barrel, as my Daddy used to say. Kind of makes you feel invincible, doesn’t it, Jeremy?”

The voice was cold and detached. Jeremy was reminded of the robots he used to love to watch on the Saturday morning cartoons. But that was a long time ago, and he was only ten. This wasn’t a cartoon. This was the real deal. He swallowed back the sudden urge to bolt and head back up to the safety of the trees. 

Derrick checked the ammo in his backpack and hoisted the gun back over his shoulder. 

“Let’s go before they bring in the reinforcements. We’ll head for the cafeteria, first and get the rest of our artillery. Then, the gym. Most of them will be there.”

“Okay,” Jeremy said in a small voice.

“Ready? Or would you rather join Steve Cassidy out there on the field?”

“Don’t bust my balls, bro. I just don’t understand the cheerleader part, that’s all. What did they ever do to you, anyway?”

“I guess you forget about Janie Summers and the little prank she played on me last summer. Her and the squad.”

“Yeah, I know. But Pat Jenkins wasn’t even in the school then. Why do we have to kill all of them?”

“Oh, yes. Pat Jenkins. I forgot about how you like her. Well, sorry, Jer. We can’t afford to play favorites.”

“Bullshit! I never agreed to that!” Jeremy growled. He was fired up enough to enjoy this brief moment of bravery.

“Okay. Suit yourself.” Derrick’s cold blue eyes had glazed over like ice on a pond, but he smiled at Jeremy without a trace of anger. “Come on. We’re late for the party.” He picked up his backpack and slung it over his shoulder, never bothering to check if Jeremy was following. 

Jeremy had always considered Derrick the smart one. A guy with all the answers. But it suddenly occurred him, that without the support of a partner, Derrick was nothing. He couldn’t afford to put a bullet in his buddy’s brains. He needed him.

 And with that piece of knowledge offering him some comfort,  the fear Jeremy felt for the last few hours,  vanished into the air, like a puff of  smoke.

 

Chapter 17
 
Caroline sat on the bench by the lockers and watched Billy hug his backpack to his chest. 

“So where is he, Mom?”

“I don’t know. He was on the field when Gina dragged me in here. I wanted to check, but Coach Butler said to stay away from the windows.”

“Did Gina go back out?”

“Yes.”

“Do you think she’s with Dad?”

“I’m sure she is. She’s a cop, too. They know what to do in a situation like this.”

“Mom, Dad doesn’t have his gun with him, does he?”

The question wanted to make her scream. “I asked him to leave it behind.” For the most part, Sonny did what he wanted, but this time, she was certain he’d respected her wishes. 

“Mom?”

“Yes?”

“I think I can help him.”

“What do you mean? How?”

He put the backpack on the floor and began to zip it open. Then he stopped for a moment. Caroline’s heart began to beat faster.

“I … I wanted him to notice, to be proud of me,” he said. “When he didn’t come to see me over the summer like he promised, I got mad. It felt like he didn’t care anymore. I…I guess I wanted to hate him.” 

His anguish broke her heart. “Billy, he’s never stopped loving you.”

“I did something awful Something very wrong.”

“What could be so terrible, Billy. Tell me. Tell me and we’ll work it out together.”

“You won’t understand.”

“Why don’t you try me?”

He reached into his pack and pulled out a gun. She cringed when she saw the metal pick up the reflection from the light overhead. 

“So. You were involved.” Sonny was standing in the doorway. 

“Dad… I didn’t mean … I know I made a mistake. I didn’t know how to give it back. Derrick is pretty nasty, and he makes threats all the time. I thought I could sell it to someone else. I … I’m sorry.”

“Sonny, you’ve been hurt!” Caroline cried when she noticed the bandage and his blood-stained jacket. 

“It isn’t so bad.  Gina was hit, too. The bullet just grazed her side, thank God, but she’s out of commission for now. We have no time to talk. The gunmen are on the move and they’re headed for the school.”

“But there are so many of us, how can they possibly hope to kill us all.”

“They have the weapons. They’ve blocked off the exits and have effectively bottled us up in a small section of the school. I’d say we have quite a problem on our hands with all the wounded lying defenseless in the gym.” He held out his hand to his son.  “Let me have the gun, Billy,” she heard Sonny say. “And the ammo, if you have any.”

The boy’s face brightened. “Good thing I brought it, huh Dad.” 

“I’m going to need your help here, son.”

“Sure. What do you want me to do?”

“I can’t move my right hand so, I can’t load this. And I’m not sure I can even shoot. Did you learn how to use this from anyone?”

“Yeah,” he admitted, turning he head away. Derrick let me practice with him out in the field.”

Caroline moaned, “Oh, Billy….”

“Caroline! Not now!”

Sonny sat down next to his son and handed him the pistol. “I’m glad to see it isn’t loaded. There are magazines here, most likely left over from your shooting practice. Let me see you load it up. Careful now. Remember what I said about respect for the weapon. That’s always first and foremost whenever you handle a gun.” 

 

Chapter 18

On a normal school day, food and drinks were delivered to the school’s main kitchen around eight am. This past year, Jeremy had worked off some of his conduct demerits by helping the cafeteria aides unload the heavy crates of canned goods from the trucks and stack them in the storeroom. Jeremy was familiar with the layout and he and Derrick managed to stash extra weapons and loaded magazines on the shelves late Friday afternoon after the staff went home for the weekend. 

“So, the magazines are behind the sacks of rice, and your Dad’s box is on the bottom shelf, way in the back.” Jeremy told him as they hurried around to the loading dock by the southwest corner of the school.

Jeremy aimed at the kitchen door lock and shot a huge hole over the doorknob. Derrick broke out into hysterical laughter. “Outstanding!” he screeched. “What a rush!” He kicked the door, and they reached in to flip on the light. Large metal shelves lined the walls, loaded with large canisters of flour and sugar. Metal cans of cooking oil rested on the bottom shelf next to sacks of rice and macaroni. 

The boys yanked the sacks aside.  When they got what the needed, Derrick knelt on the floor. “This shelf?” he asked. 

“Yeah.”

Derrick shoved huge cans of spaghetti sauce aside and reached back as far as he could. 

There were two boxes. One held the grenades, the other was full of memories.

“Careful,” Jeremy warned. “I don’t trust the pins on those things.”

“What do you know!” Derrick snarled. 

His old man had returned from Nam with shrapnel in his back. Unable to work, he became a bitter and disillusioned man. He drank and on occasion, beat his terrified wife. Derrick managed to stay out of his way but there were lonely nights when the man sought his eight-year old’s company and he’d tried to impress the boy with his deadly mementos. 

Then, they sent his father to the maximum-security prison. Derrick took the box of grenades and hid them in his room, sensing that one day, he might need them for a mission of his own. 

“We have plenty of ammo, but even so, don’t waste it unless you have a clear shot,” Derrick said to Jeremy. 

The main door from the kitchen to the cafeteria was right in front of them. Jeremy tried to push the swinging door open but found it was locked. Then, they heard frightened voices coming from behind the doors. Derrick and Jeremy’s eyes locked. 

“Some stragglers found their way to the cafeteria.” Derrick commented thoughtfully.

“Wanna shoot the door down?”

“Naw. That’s no fun. I want to see their faces.”

“There’s another way in,” Jeremy said. “Follow me.”

They spilled out into the hallway. 

“Okay, we’re here, you dumb shits!” He and Jeremy burst through the cafeteria’s side door. 

Several muffled screams could be heard coming from the far corner of the room. Cafeteria tables had been knocked over on their sides in a desperate attempt to provide protection. 

Derrick was amused. “Come on,” he laughed. “You don’t really think those cheapo plywood tables will do any good now, do you? Cut the crap and come out, now!”

They could hear a woman crying, and then a voice said, “Derrick Connors! Holy shit!”

Derrick seemed pleased. Someone recognized him. 

Good. Very good.

“Yes. Derrick Connors And, now that I have your attention, I’d like to make some introductions.” He waved his hand at Jeremy with a flourish. “This guy here, in case you didn’t know, is my bud, Jeremy Sullivan. Take a bow, bud! Take a bow!”

Jeremy nodded with a self-conscious grin.

“And this…” Derrick pulled the assault rifle off his shoulder and held it up for all to see. “This is my other bud.”

With a sudden war whoop, he pointed the barrel of the gun toward the ceiling and pulled the trigger twice. Pieces of acoustic ceiling tile scattered around him sending up clouds of dust into the air.

“Knock it off, Connors! You got women and kids in here!”

Derrick’s stared. The voice came from the area by the candy machines. Calmly, he walked over to see who it was. 

“So, Ricky Hammond. How’s it going, bro? Long time no see.”

The basketball star was folded under one of the cafeteria tables. His hands were over his head and he was trembling.

“Scared now, are we? My, my. Last time we saw you, you were laughing at us from the back of a pickup truck. Not so brave now, are ya?”

“I didn’t mean it. Come on, Derrick. This is crazy.”

Derrick set his jaw and aimed the rifle directly at the terrified student, emptying two rounds into his head. The vibration from the gun blast made the glass in the cafeteria windows rattle. 

“Crazy, is it?” Derrick said. “See you in hell, my friend.” 

He noticed Jeremy’s shocked expression. 

“Man, shooting the spectators and football players from the woods was kind of like playing a video game in the arcade. Shooting them up close? That’s a whole ‘nother thing, bro.”

“Better get used to it. We’re just getting started.” 

“I hear sirens.” Jeremy turned toward the cafeteria windows.

“Yeah? So?” 

“Well, maybe we better tell them we have hostages, and they’d better stay away. We don’t want them bursting in here just yet, now, do we?”

“Well, you got a point there, my man!” He turned to leave. “Don’t go way!” he called out to his remaining survivors. He shot into the air once more.

Jeremy trailed after him.

“What time ya got?” Derrick asked when they paused outside the doors.

“Eight thirty.”

“We’ll split up and patrol the school first to catch any more stragglers. Then, we can meet up at the gym and finish the job.  Be there, no later than eight forty-five.”

Jeremy looked doubtful. “But the cops…” he began.

“Stop your worrying. It‘ll take time for the cops to set up. They don’t have a clue what’s going on, and they’ll want to be cautious. I’m going to the hallway by the auditorium, you check out the classrooms.” 

“What about the rest of them in the cafeteria? They might come out and cause trouble.”

“Are you kidding? After what they just saw? No way.”

“Watch your back,” Jeremy said with a frown of concern. He didn’t like what he was seeing, and Derrick might be too agitated to be careful.

“Watch my back? What’s with you?! Can’t you see? No one’s going to get in our way! They are all scared shitless!”

Derrick’s hysterical laughter echoed down the empty hall as he headed toward the center of the school. 

“Here I come, everybody!” he sang. “Ready or not!”

Chapter 19

They heard the shots.

“It’s coming from the cafeteria. My God!” Caroline cried. 

Sonny shook his head. “I can’t risk this,” he said.

“But Dad…”

“Our gun can’t compete. They’ll mow us down before we could get off one round. I’m going to have to figure out another way. He took back the pistol.

“You need me,” the boy said. 

“I need you to stay here and protect your mother. Barricade the doors with anything you can find . Then stay over to the side in case they try to shot their way in.”

“What about Gina? Who’s gonna watch over her?”

“Coach Butler’s doing the same in the gym. You guys should be able to hold out until the Swat team gets here.” He was trying to sound confident for the boy’s sake. “I’ll be back,” he said, and he hugged him with his good arm.

When he stood, he was relieved to find he wasn’t lightheaded.

 “What are you going to do? No, please Sonny! Stay here!” Caroline started to whimper. Sonny looked at her for a moment. “Don’t,” he said.  He pulled her to him and kissed her hard on the lips, then opened the door and slipped out into the darkened hallway.

He reviewed what Billy told him about the layout of the school. There was an open-air courtyard in the center where the kids congregated during breaks between classes. The gunman would have to pass it to get to the gym. He glanced inside and was happy with what he found. It had some pillars and alcoves; perfect for concealment. He might get one clean shot. If he was lucky, he’d get two.

The pistol was in his left hand. He’s been trained to shoot left-handed,  in case he was injured and forced to switch.

 Like now

Even so, it felt strange when he tried to aim. 

“It’ll have to do,” he thought. 

Dropping to both knees, Sonny tried to get comfortable. He was exhausted from the pain, and loss of blood, but he forced himself to take deep breaths in order to stay alert. 

He heard the sound of a shot and then a door slamming. It was pretty close. Or maybe the vibrating echoes along the long empty corridors just made it seem that way.

“Dad?”

Sonny’s head snapped around.

“Billy. My God, what are you doing here!” 

“I came to find you, Dad. You can’t shoot. You need me.”

“Damn it! You should have stayed in the locker room with your mother.” 

He wanted to send him back, but the shot he had heard could have come from anywhere.  “Get down, Billy. Here, behind me.” 

The boy scooted around his father and positioned himself behind the pillar. Sonny raised his head just high enough to be able to see out of the atrium glass window. He knew it was only a matter of time before they’d see a gunman coming toward them. 

Billy slipped his arm around his Dad’s waist and hugged him. “I love you, Dad,” he said. “And I’m sorry.”

“I love you too, Billy.” Sonny saw raw terror in his eyes. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “I’m here, and between the two of us, we’ll lick them good!”

A small smile lit up Billy’s face. Sonny put his hand under Billy’s chin and tilted the boy’s head back. It was like looking into a mirror. He saw his own blue green eyes, the golden hair. Then, he saw Caroline’s mouth. There was that funny sprinkle of freckles across his nose, and those feathery lashes.

He barely knew him. His little boy had become a man, and Sonny wasn’t there to see it happen. Instead of being the center of Billy’s universe, another man was molding his son’s character and teaching him right from wrong. 

No, I’m the one who’s sorry, Billy.

There was so much promise in this child, so many dreams Sonny had for his future. It crushed him to think it could all be destroyed in a second by the simple whim of a gun-toting madman.

“Keep an eye on the back hallway, will you? And tell me everything you see.”

“Okay. I got it, Dad.”

They were a team, he and his boy. Even if this was the end, at least they’d be together. It was a chilling thought, but it did comfort him a little.

Screams could be heard from far away, followed by several loud gun blasts. 

“The gun, Dad. Give me the gun!”

“Not yet. I might still be able to use it. If I get into trouble, I’ll let you know.”

He used his left hand to pull the gun from the waistband of his pants. The movement felt  awkward and uncoordinated.  “I’ve got feeling in my shoulder and some tingling in the elbow. Now if I could just…” he lifted up his right wrist and placed the heavy pistol against the palm. Gritting his teeth, he closed his eyes and stubbornly willed the lifeless hand to close around the handle. The fingers moved slightly, and Sonny let out a gasp from the exertion. Beads of sweat popped out on his forehead as he made a second attempt. 

More screams from down the hall, a women this time, pleading for mercy.

“Damn it!” Sonny cried. “Come on!”  His fingers were stiff and swollen and as his injured muscles flexed, fire-like pain shot up his arm. Biting his lip with frustration, he watched helplessly as the gun slipped from his grasp.

“It’s okay. I can do it, Dad, honest. And you’ll be there to help, so it’ll be fine.”

Billy picked up the gun and held it by his side. “Now Dad. When we see the guy, I’ll just point and aim, like this.” He held the gun in front of him, aiming at an imaginary target. 

“See? Aim, squeeze and fire, just like you taught me.”

It hurt to see him pointing a gun, getting ready to kill someone. But Sonny  knew there was no other way. 

Glancing out into the hallway, he saw someone coming. A heavy-set young man was strolling along, turning his head from side to side. Slung over his shoulder was what looked like a heavy assault rifle. 

Sonny turned to Billy. “Get ready,” he whispered.

The gunman must have heard something. He was crouched down a little, moving slower.

“Wait until he’s closer. You’ll only have one shot. Aim for the head. We don’t want to give him a chance to fire back.”

The shooter passed the doors to the auditorium and was almost to the courtyard entrance. Sonny didn’t dare whisper again. Partially concealed behind the pillar, Billy held the gun with two hands. Sonny marveled at his self-confident stance. 

“Military style,” he thought. “He learns fast.”

A figure was silhouetted in the entranceway to the courtyard. Sonny could see the assault rifle slung over his shoulder. 

He never expected resistance … he’s not ready to fire

Sonny poked Billy gently and the pistol fired, twice. There was no cry. Not even a gasp. Just the sound of metal hitting concrete and the thud of a body following soon after. 

'“I hit him, Dad. I got him!”

It was sad to hear him rejoice. But there was no time to beat himself up over it. What was done was done. 

From the beginning, he was convinced there were only two attackers. One was down. Now, they had another one to worry about. 

 

Chapter 20

Derrick was getting ready. Holding the grenade in his hand. He crept toward the courtyard.

He'd told Jeremy they should split up and now he was sorry for making that decision. He saw his partner, lying on his back in the hallway. 

“Sorry about that, bro.” 

It didn’t really bother him that Jeremy was dead. The guy had served his purpose. 

He heard more sirens and saw the flash of red on the walls. A guy with a megaphone called out for him give it up and come out. He laughed. “What for? So you can kill me? I’m going to die one way or the other. Might as well take as many with me as I can.” 

He continued down the corridor toward Jeremy’s body. Derrick realized his friend was shot in front of the courtyard. “Someone’s in the courtyard,  and he has a gun,” he thought. This intrigued him. Maybe one of the guys who bought a gun from him, brought it to the game. He waited, listening for sounds. It was deathly quiet. 

“Okay, I know you’re in there,” he shouted. “I don’t care if you shoot me or not. I’ve got nothing to lose.”

He pulled the pin on the grenade and threw it in as far as he could. He heard it strike something hard and then scatter across the smooth tile. 

“Bye, bye, sucker,” he whispered. 

He waited, knowing the blast would be powerful enough to kill him, too. But he didn’t care. It’s like what he said to Jeremy a short time ago. “Better to go out in a blaze of glory than rot in a jail cell for eternity.”

The clock in his mind continued to tick. And still, there was no blast. Now, he started to sweat. He moved closer to the courtyard and peered inside. 

Billy Crockett was standing there, aiming a pistol at him. Behind the kid was the hot shot cop.

“Don’t move, the cop said. “Toss the rifle. Hands on your head and get on your stomach. Now.” Derrick saw Sonny’s arm hanging at his side and knew the cop’s wasn’t much of a threat. He ignored the order and concentrated on the kid holding the gun. 

“Easy there now, Billy boy. You shouldn’t be playing with that thing. It takes a lot of training to know how to use it. And after seeing you shoot at those tin cans, I know you don’t know what the hell you’re doing.”

“Don’t listen to him, Billy. He’s trying to distract you.”

“See my face, my eyes?” Derrick continued.  “I’m looking right at you, bro. Think you can pull that trigger? When someone’s looking right at you? I don’t think so man.”

Billy turned slightly. He crouched into position and pulled the trigger. The bullet hit Derrick's shoe and he began to scream.  “Shit! My foot … my foot!”

“If you don’t do what my Dad said and throw down that rifle, I’ll do it again.”

Derrick rolled back and forth, screaming in agony. The rifle slipped off his  shoulder and slid a short distance away. 

“Go for the gun and I’ll aim for your heart,” Billy said. 

It shocked Sonny to hear him say that. It shocked him to the core. “My God, Billy, he thought. “Did you learn that from me?”

They could hear the front doors crash open and sounds of heavy boots stomping down the hallway. Sonny saw the Swat team helmets and rested his forehead on Billy’s shoulder. 

“It’s over, Billy.”

Billy was still pointing the gun at Derrick. He held it so tightly, his hands were shaking. 

“You did good, son. I’m proud of you.” 

Billy stared to cry.
 

Edited September 17, 2019 by mjcmmv

[vicegirl85]

Terrifying and powerful!  So thankful Sonny and Billy were able to prevent more carnage.  Still worried about those old, unexploded grenades.

[mjcmmv]

1 hour ago, vicegirl85 said:

Terrifying and powerful!  

Thank you! 

 

Edited September 16, 2019 by mjcmmv

[mjcmmv]

Opps. No post here. 

Edited September 25, 2019 by mjcmmv