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Post by ydderf on Dec 11, 2023 7:05:39 GMT -6
Thank you
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Post by iamnobody on Dec 11, 2023 9:42:38 GMT -6
The next day he went out to retrieve the wolves he had shot so he could get the pelts from them. He would tan the hides and save them for future use. He made sure his rifle was ready, extra ammo and his backpack. Arriving in the area, he quickly seen that the dead wolves were all tore up where the other wolves had ate them. He would of loved to of had the wolf hides, they make great trims around hoods. Soon the snows and cold would be happening so he decided to walk around and look. Peace and quiet everywhere. He saw the pile of bones where the group had froze to death. Bones were scattered where the wolves had chewed on them. No sign of human disturbance anywhere he went.
Winter was bad again. Snowstorms every few days with high winds swirling the snow around and bitter cold. There wasn't much to listen to on the shortwave radio. The government had hunted down the people broadcasting the truth and killed them. All that was left were the government propaganda stations saying everything was all skittles, rainbows and unicorns. According to them, people were living the good life under the benevolent government taking care of them. Dillon sadly shook his head, thinking of the billions of people that would of died from this cold age.
The government knew there was a lot less land available with the snow. So they cut the outlying areas off from food and electricity. The big cities on the fringes had been taken over by gangs and the cities had literally burnt down around them til nothing and no one was left in them. The different governments sat in their capitol cities living like kings while a few people did the menial tasks. The last Dillon had heard, there was no one older than age 35. When a peon reached 35, they were euthanized for the “greater good” of the remaining people.
He read his bible every day and many other how-to books during the long winter. He took to talking to himself out loud to keep his speaking up to date. He hadn't spoken to another person since that guy he had shot that had been attacking his neighbor nor had he seen a living person in that same time. He didn't really miss the socializing with all the drama of Kevin and Karen causing problems.
By March 2, the snow had let up and it warmed up to daytime highs of 28F so he went out for a walk. He took his rifle as always but doubly so because he had heard the wolves howling the day before. That was surprising because the winter wasn't over. The wolves must be desperate to be this far north this early in the year. He shouldered his backpack, checked to make sure his rifle was loaded and extra ammo and he fixed the bayonet on the muzzle of the rifle. Donning his snowshoes he started out. He guessed there was at least 13 feet of snow on the ground. He was glad for the snow googles, it was mostly cloudy but every so often the sun peeked out and was bright.
He was about ¼ mile from his home when he heard the wolves snarling right over the hill in front of him. He eased up over the hill and saw the wolves had a person backed up against a rock wall. The 6 wolves were circling, looking for an opening to attack. All the person had was a wooden club to defend themselves. Dillon broke over the hill, yelling at the wolves. He shot 1 of them before they could recover, another 1 charged him, leaping to try to rip at his throat. Dillon caught him on the bayonet, sinking the bayonet all the way through the wolf and slinging it behind him. Another wolf had leaped at him, he used his rifle sideways in both hands to block the wolf, catching it in the throat and he heard the neck snap. Shouldering the rifle he was able to wound another one as they ran away. He replaced the rounds he had shot and checked to make sure the wolves had really left, then checked to make sure the wolves were dead, he wanted no surprises.
Only then did he approach the person with the club. Up close he could see it was a woman, just as she collapsed. Dillon couldn't see any wounds so he picked her up to carry her. He could feel she was light and knew she hadn't been eating often. He kept watch around in case the wolves returned. He finally made it back home, placing her on his bed. Setting his rifle and backpack aside, he took off his cold weather gear. Then he started on her. She only had a thin coat on, hat, pants and regular shoes. She was still unconscious. He stripped her naked and saw that she was very thin. He pulled the blankets around her and stoked the fire up so it would be warmer for her recovery. He could see she was suffering from hypothermia. Then started making a chicken soup for her to drink when she woke up.
He slowly spooned some broth into her mouth over the next 2 days while she remained unconscious. Then on the 3rd day she woke up. She groaned and tried sitting up but failed. He pushed her down, telling her to remain calm as he tucked the blankets back around her. She mumbles that he should of left her out there to die. He asked how she came to be out there in the snow, who she was and wasn't her husband looking for her. She laughs and says no husband as she looks around. She sees a small place and then sees the open bible that he had been reading on the stand next to the bed. Then with a downcast look, says to call her Rahab.
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Post by gipsy on Dec 11, 2023 12:02:48 GMT -6
Fine update.
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Post by prepguy on Dec 11, 2023 21:30:17 GMT -6
Interesting! Really enjoying this
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Post by ydderf on Dec 12, 2023 12:35:50 GMT -6
Thank you
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Post by rep1270 on Dec 12, 2023 19:00:52 GMT -6
Thank you for the great story. Ralph
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Post by iamnobody on Dec 13, 2023 10:07:58 GMT -6
Rahab? That was an odd name, then he realized what she was referring to, Rahab the prostitute from the bible. Dillon said “oh, I see.” She told him she would leave and he wouldn't have to have her in his home and besides, she didn't want to lead the people looking for her to him. He perked up at that, asking her how many and how far behind her. She said 2 men and they were several days behind her but they would find her because of the tracking chip in the back of her hand. He took her hand, looking at the small bump on the back of her hand. He told her that he could remove it if she wanted to and if she trusted him to do it.
She looked at him for a minute, searching his eyes. Seeing no malice, he nodded her head yes. He went to his medical cabinet, getting out a single blade razor, some band aids, cotton balls and a bottle of alcohol. Putting alcohol on the cotton ball, he used it to wipe the razor blade and the back of her hand over the bump of the chip. He told her that this was going to sting some, was she ready? She said yes and he said “good” because he had already made a quick cut and the tracking chip was already in his hand. She gasped, saying she hadn't felt a thing. He smiled at her while looking at the thing in his hand. It was about the size of a grain of rice. His mind was already thinking of how to get rid of it and throw attackers off.
Again she said she would leave so that he wasn't offended by her presence and trying to get up out of bed. He told her she could stay but he would help her to use the bucket behind the curtain for her bathroom needs. Pulling back the blankets she realized all she had on was her underwear but she had been naked with many men before, so it was no biggie to her. She noticed that he averted his eyes from her, helping her to the “toilet.” There wasn't much in her bowels because of lack of eating, so she was done quickly. Back in bed, she found herself wiped out and very tired from the walk, due to the hypothermia. She wanted to sleep but he made her drink the chicken soup broth before she did. Then she was soon asleep.
Dillon put his plan into action. He took a chuck of meat from the deer he had shot the other day, about a golf ball size chunk. He pushed the tracking chip into the center of the meat and set it outside his home. He had seen the fresh wolf tracks this morning and was planning on the wolves eating the meat and tracking chip, thereby taking the chip inside their body, carrying it far off before “depositing” it somewhere. It took 2 days for the meat to disappear but it was now somewhere else.
Then the snows and bitter cold rolled back in and no sign of anyone. Rahab was slowly gaining some strength and wasn't sleeping 24/7. What he could piece together, she had been on the run for weeks, heading north to escape her pursuers. He was feeding her nourishing foods and she was saying she would repay him. She said that she had no things so she could offer him physical but asked him to give her some more time to heal before sleeping with her. He told her he wasn't interested in that and then walked away. She stared at his retreating back, wondering what had happened in his life.
It was taking her a while to get used to this life. Squatting over a trench in the outhouse and “baths” with a washcloth and a bowl of warm water, it was different than the running water and flushing toilets in the big city. Dillon had gotten her story out of her over the weeks as she recovered. When she was younger she had lived with her grandmom due to her parents having died. Her grandmom was a Christian, always reading the bible and teaching it to Rahab. She wasn't allowed to go out partying like all her friends did every week. When she turned 16, she had ran away with her boyfriend, living on the streets, panhandling and odd jobs for money.
But she loved it, no more strict grandmom telling her she couldn't do things. They drank when they could afford the cost, got drugs by doing “favors” for gangs. Her boyfriend had her start selling her body for money, she didn't like it but when she refused, he would beat her. Then things started getting bad with the governments moving to the warm areas. Her boyfriend knew some people in the government and was able to get them a place in the cities with the government. Their lives were now controlled by the government, physical money was taken from them and everyone had a digital money watched over by the government. With the connections her boyfriend had, he started a “service company” hiring out her and other women to the wealthy government officials. Her and the other women were checked every week for STDs. And “his women” all had tracking chips in their hand so he knew where they were at all times. Her boyfriend was sleeping with all the women he had in the company. After years of this, Rahab saw an opportunity to escape and took it. She had traveled for weeks, headed north into the “badlands” hoping to escape her boyfriend or at worst, die, at least she would be free from her boyfriend. He would be trying to get her back because she was the most popular woman in demand by the government officials.
Dillon was thinking on all of this info. He had got rid of her tracking chip and it had been snowing and brutal cold for weeks after he had found her. Hopefully he would never know where she was at now or even thought she was dead due to the weather. But Dillon would be extra careful when it warmed up. Now Rahab, whether she stayed or not was questionable at this time. It was a big change for her. He did not share any info on his setup. She did not know of his storage supplies or the number of his chickens. He just brought in eggs every day and had food ready to cook. As she gained strength, she was helping out but was a terrible cook. She was learning how but he had to supervise her or it got burnt. Food could not be wasted. She wanted to pay for her stay in some way since he didn't want her “physical favors.”
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Post by feralferret on Dec 13, 2023 10:45:45 GMT -6
Iamnobody, thank you.
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Post by gipsy on Dec 13, 2023 10:45:48 GMT -6
A companion perhaps? Thanks
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Post by prepguy on Dec 13, 2023 23:02:04 GMT -6
Thank you for keeping this going. Very good story
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Post by ydderf on Dec 17, 2023 19:28:58 GMT -6
House keeper Laundress or maybe a budding musician. Thanks for the update
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Post by iamnobody on Dec 18, 2023 11:04:23 GMT -6
Dillon had let her use some of Granny's clothes since they were about the same size. Sure, it wasn't a perfect fit but better than nothing. Slowly winter was winding down. Rahab had regained her strength and was slowly accepting this kind of life. It was a big change for her from her old life as a prostitute in the big city. There had been running water with flush toilets and hot showers, expensive designer clothes, fancy food when the government officials has taken her out on a “date” before their bedroom time, and janitors that had taken care of cleaning the building. Cooking food and washing her clothes. Here she had to do all those things for herself or with Dillon's help.
The weather was breaking by mid April and the temps were warming up enough that the snow was melting some each day. He was already busy with his garden spots, showing her how to ready them for planting. He realized if she was going to be staying, he would need to make more garden spots. She asked why the “greenhouses” were so small in height instead of the walk in types she was used to seeing. He explained that they were only 12-18 inches high so as to keep the heat near the plants and enable them to grow and produce food in these cold climates, whereas the taller ones would allow the heat to escape the ground where it was needed. Rahab was helping him build the new ones, understanding the extra ones were for her needs. Also marveling at the intelligence and strength of this man that she guessed to be around age 40 compared to her age 25. He definitely was not like the men she was used to in her life. They were only interested in her body and her skills in the bed, while Dillon hadn't even looked at her in a lustful way nor took her up on her offers of “fun” as payment for her staying. All he wanted was her helping out. She figured that some woman in his past had really hurt him but he never said a word about his past.
3 weeks later he told her that he could feel another snow and cold temps coming, that if she wanted, she could come along with him on a trip around the area before they were snowed in again. They dressed for the trip, including snowshoes. It was a balmy 25F. Dillon led the way, paralleling the old road. They could see that there were small bushes and saplings starting to grow in the road. Nature was slowly reclaiming the land. They were about 7 miles out and were getting ready to turn around and head home. They topped up over a hill, doing as Dillon has always done, peeking just his head over the top to see what is on the other side before exposing his whole body.
He froze in place as he saw 2 men about 75 yards away, they both had rifles. Rahab saw him freeze in place and slowly crawled her way up next to him. She saw the 2 men and could recognize them even before Dillon had passed her the binoculars. They were her boyfriend / pimp Chad and his #2 man in charge. Dillon had seen her body stiffen up on seeing the 2 men so knowing she had recognized them, asked who they were. She whispered back that the one was her boyfriend and the other was his right hand man in the operations of the brothel. Dillon picked up on the fact that she said boyfriend and not ex boyfriend. He asked which one was her pimp, she said the one in the red coat. Dillon rested his rifle and lined up the sights on the middle of the red coat.
Rahab saw what he was doing and clutching his arm, asked what he was doing. Dillon responded that they were out here looking for her, so he was going to kill the both of them and her problem would be over.
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Post by cashless1 on Dec 18, 2023 11:09:01 GMT -6
INTERESTING.
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Post by sniper69 on Dec 18, 2023 13:19:10 GMT -6
oh, will she let him shoot, or will she not? Only another chapter or 20 will tell.
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Post by prepguy on Dec 18, 2023 13:19:58 GMT -6
Nice update. This story really keeps your interest. Well done.
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Post by CountryGuy on Dec 18, 2023 16:59:53 GMT -6
hmmm... time to find out if she is cured or still addicted to the kept life.
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Post by iamnobody on Dec 19, 2023 12:20:25 GMT -6
Rahab said that would be murder, killing them in cold blood. Dillon looked at her and said “what will he do to you if he catches you?” She said because she was popular with the men, he would beat her but not kill her. He asked what would happen to him since he had helped her. She paled and said Chad would kill him, most likely in a very painful way as a warning to other people not to interfere in his business. So what should Dillon do? Rahab told him to call the police and let them handle it. He looked at her in disbelief. Then stated the obvious that there were no longer police out here, plus they both knew that the government officials were corrupt and couldn't be trusted. She said it was still cold blooded murder. Dillon told her that it was war and his survival was at stake, there were no “fair fights” out here. There were 2 of them with guns, looking to hurt or kill him and her. So she had to make up her mind as to whether she was on Chad's side, her pimp that she ran away from, or whether she was on Dillon's side.
With that, he settled his cheek on the stock, lined up the sights on the chest of Chad, let out his breath ½ way and squeezed the trigger. As he was applying the last pressure to the trigger, he heard a loud sob from Rahab. It was loud enough that the sound carried across the silence filled distance and the 2 men heard it, causing them to move apart and Dillon's bullet plucked harmlessly through Chad's coat sleeve material, ripping out a chunk of down stuffing. Dillon cycled the rifle bolt, putting another round into the chamber. Chad had jumped behind a tree, but the other man was still standing there, looking around with his rifle part way up, trying to find a target. Dillon put a bullet right into his heart, tearing a 2 inch hole in it as it passed on out his back, taking a couple of pieces of rib with it.
Now it was 1 against 1. Dillon shot at Chad behind the tree, causing tree bark to explode near Chad's face. Swearing, Chad shot towards him but the bullet was way off. Chad stepped out from behind the tree, aiming at Dillon. They both shot at the same time, Dillon's 175 gr 8mm bullet taking him in the throat and basically almost removing his head from the neck. But Chad's bullet was already on the way, it making a long deep furrow alongside Dillon's head. The 55 grain 22 caliber bullet from the AR15 that Chad had been using, removed a furrow 5 inches long of skin, hair and meat, exposing some bone under the wound.
With blurred eyes and what felt like someone inside his head pounding a sledgehammer against his skull, Dillon looked around for any other threats. Then he staggered towards the 2 men to make sure they were dead. Approaching Chad, he gave the head a kick, which finished separating the head and it rolled several feet away from the body. Turning to the 2nd body, he could see a large puddle of blood seeping out from under the man but Dillon used the bayonet into the body to be sure. He became aware of Rahab kneeling over Chad's body and her crying. Then she saw him and blood dripping down the side of his face along with a flap of skin hanging loose. She tried supporting him as he staggered but he shook her hand off, saying “don't touch me.”
He topped off the rounds in his rifle to make a full load out,making sure the safety was on, then turned and started slowly shuffling back towards his home. She followed along behind him. He made it back just as the snow flakes started falling again and even he could feel the temperature dropping with his numbed body. Inside after removing his winter gear, he looked in the mirror. Dried blood and raw flesh stared back at him. He stoked up the fire for heating water and then fetched his medical supplies. He cleaned the wound with warm water and a mild soap. This was not the time to be using any of Granny's leftover lye soap. He could move his jaw so knew it was not broken
The wound cleaned out didn't look as bad as before. He would have to use the stapler to staple the loose flap of skin back in place. Looking in the mirror, he placed the staples, man did that sting. Then over to his bed to lie down. That's when he noticed Rahab hovering around him. She said he couldn't sleep, she heard sleeping was bad for people with head wounds as they may have a concussion. He glared at her and said her talking was making his head hurt. Rahab said she wasn't going to let him sleep, she was going to keep talking to keep him awake as she made some hot soup for him to eat. She talked for 36 hours before she fell asleep in the chair and he was finally able to relax and get some sleep himself.
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ahsga
New Member
Posts: 34
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Post by ahsga on Dec 19, 2023 14:05:20 GMT -6
Keeping someone awake is old school. Sleep is fine for concussions.
Thank you for the story.
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Post by feralferret on Dec 19, 2023 15:53:31 GMT -6
Iamnobody, thank you.
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Post by NCWEBNUT on Dec 19, 2023 19:00:07 GMT -6
Well she's not wrong it was legally murder, at least she held some Christian/sentimental? value in their lives, but then she didn't stop him either, wonder how this will play out in the future.
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Post by prepguy on Dec 19, 2023 21:37:49 GMT -6
Great update. I eagerly watch for more
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Post by iamnobody on Dec 20, 2023 12:18:47 GMT -6
He was awake before she was. He gingerly got out of bed favoring his head. It wasn't pounding as bad as before but it was letting him know it was still there. He stoked up the fire and started heating some water to make a pan of oatmeal to eat. Putting some in a bowl, he added a few raisins and a bit of brown sugar. He was hungry and ate 2 bowlfuls before he heard Rahab stirring. She gave him a dirty look as she passed him to get some oatmeal. He sighed and knew it had to be addressed. This couldn't continue.
As she sat down, she glared at him and said that he had murdered her boyfriend Chad and his buddy, Dillon was a horrible man. He sighed and asked her if she had told him the truth about Chad beating her and prostituting her. Yes but he loved her and was her boyfriend. He told her “baloney” that if a man loved a woman, he wouldn't beat you nor sell her out for other men's pleasure. Then he asked if she had told the truth when she said that Chad would of tortured and then killed him for helping. She said yes. Dillon told her that meant that she knew Chad had already hurt and killed people before. She slowly nodded yes in agreement. Then he said that he was a known murderer and who was Dillon to call to stop Chad from harming her or him. That they both knew the authorities were totally corrupt and would of sided with Chad and his political connections. Dillon had saved her from dying of the cold, he had saved her from being returned to beatings and prostitution. Dillon had killed a known murderer and pimp, how was he the bad guy here. It wasn't Mr. Roger's neighborhood out here. Nor were Kevin and Karen controlling the area with their “woke” mentally ill rantings. Rahab had to make up her mind of whether she wanted to go back to her past life of slavery or live free out here. Dillon knew she was just like the Israelites that Moses led out of bondage. They complained the whole time that they wanted to go back to slavery because of the free food and being taken care of instead of freedom.
Then he dropped the bombshell on her that she needed checked for more tracking chips because Chad had been close to this place. He had to of been following a signal. Rahab's face turned pale. She said she only knew of the one chip. He told her she needed checked. He didn't think it would be in her private areas nor breasts because of “clients” feeling the bump but he would need to go over the rest of her body. She stripped her clothes off and smirked at his blushing as he started looking her body over for another chip. He checked in her hair, down the back and front, on down her legs, scanning inch by inch with his eyes. He did that twice, then he found what he was looking for. Another small lump between her toes, the left foot between her little toe and the next one. Using a sharp razor, a quick slice and the chip was out and laying in his hand. Taking a hammer, he smashed it into powder.
Now it was time for her to make a choice, stay on his terms or leave and go back to her slavery. If she chose to leave, he would wait until the warmer weather came, then give her supplies to last 2 weeks and she could go. She had 48 hours to decide.
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Post by NCWEBNUT on Dec 20, 2023 13:46:25 GMT -6
Well, that answered that question. Id blind fold that snake and lead her off to some other location far away. ASAP
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Post by feralferret on Dec 20, 2023 17:25:13 GMT -6
I agree with NCWEBNUT.
Thank you for the moar, iamnobody.
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Post by sniper69 on Dec 20, 2023 18:16:45 GMT -6
Or will Rahab turn out like the Rahab of the Bible? Matthew chapter 1 comes to mind (she is mentioned in verse 5).
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