The Forsaken

“I left for a lot of years,” Lillie said. “You, too. Don’t let the bastards raise their fucking flag.”

Qui

“Did he stink?”

“Who?” Qui

“LeDoux,” Lillie said. “Who else?”

“I’ll let you cuff him and you can decide for yourself.”

“You’re a true gentleman, Qui

She cut her eyes over at him and they shared a smile, rolling straight ahead, two vehicles following, Qui

Since they’d checked out the clubhouse, two trucks had parked nearby and a couple bikes.

“Fuck,” Lillie said.

“Come on,” Qui

Qui

Two men stepped from the clubhouse. Qui

Qui

“Ke

“God damn, they’re ugly,” Lillie said, shotgun up in her arms as natural as can be.

“Is LeDoux in that trailer?” Qui

The bikers had their hands up but didn’t say a word. They were young and scruffy. And silent. They were also drunk and wobbled on their feet.

Qui

Qui

LeDoux had his face to the floor of the trailer, the room lit only by the deputies’ flashlights. He was laughing like a crazy man. “I wondered when you were coming.”

“How the hell would you know?” Qui

LeDoux couldn’t stop laughing.

There was a rumbling outside, the sound of guttural engines gu

From a quarter mile away he could see the lights of the bikers shining bright.

The nurse brought Joh

“You need to sit on the commode and make a deposit?”

“No, ma’am,” he said. She held him up as he did his business, the woman saying not to be shy, she’d seen it all. She walked back with him, supporting his weight, as he moved slow, with her helping him settle into the bed.

“You need something, Mr. Stagg, just press that red button,” she said. “You see it on the side? Yes, sir. Just press that button you need to go again. They’ll be around in a little while with breakfast.”

Stagg figured he could send Ringold to the Rebel for some good food, hopefully not having to stay here for long. He’d hire some help at the house. And he’d hire more help for himself. If he could get a man like Ringold, he could get a dozen just like him.

He’d be rid of LeDoux and rid of Colson. He wished things could’ve been simpler, easier. But with the Mexes coming in, cutting off a man’s head and such, he needed violent men to do violent chores.

An orderly lay down a tray on the rolling table. She opened the cover as if revealing the finest meal ever made—some ru

“Ma’am,” Stagg said. “I’m not hungry just now. Do you mind?”

The woman left and Stagg lay there, watching the morning news from Memphis, waiting to hear maybe some news about Craig Houston or the burning of those biker clubhouses. Surely Houston’s people were ready for more. But there was nothing, only talk about the rain coming in later that day and Grizzlies returning to top form.

Stagg thought of the humiliation of being beaten down by that biker and those Mexican boys. He recalled his daddy taking him behind the woodshed and taking a fat branch to his exposed backside, whipping him good until the welts began to bleed.

Stagg reached for the fork, hands shaking, having to bend his mouth down to the food because his shoulder and elbow weren’t working so good. He scooped up a little bit more the next time, some grits with eggs, and lifted it slightly higher. He chewed and swallowed, a little bit more light shining from outside that hospital window.

He’d just as soon burn down all of Jericho than surrender to them bikers and bean eaters.

•   •   •

Qui