Chapter 12:

The drive back to the cabin was shit, to say the least. Tyler had that uneasy feeling in his gut that Jess wasn't going to hold her tongue. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and glanced over at Seb. He was picking at his nails nervously and had a blank and emotionless expression on his face, as if it had been drained of life. The sight slightly reminded Tyler of the Angels, just brain dead and with all apparent life taken from their bodies. Tyler tapped Seb on the shoulder and watched him snap back into action.

"Hey Seb," Tyler said softly. "You ok there?" Seb shook his head and ran a hand through his hair.

"No," he said with a certain gruffness to his voice. "I've just given away our secret with Faith just because I was worried about you." Tyler smiled gently at the sentiment, it was nice to know that someone was looking out for him and his safety.

"Look," Tyler said as he stopped the truck and began to reverse it into the trees they usually hid it in. "At least Jess doesn't know the half of it, so let's at least try and keep it that way." Seb hummed in agreement and opened the door and hopped out of the car. He took his AR-C out of the backseat and tossed Tyler his AK-M.

"Well, as long as they don't know what we know…" Seb said.

"But they won't know that," Tyler interrupted. "We will only tell them the small details. Not the investigations we've done. Not the goals we have for her, ok?". Seb nodded and holstered his weapon. The two men turned around and headed towards the Youth Camp. Tyler had the uneasy feeling tingling in the back of his head that as they walked through the outpost, the Resistance members were glaring daggers at the back of their heads. On the way up the hill, Seb was the first to smell the faint scent of smoke. He stopped in the middle of the path and held his breath. Tyler walked into him from behind and was knocked out of his thought cloud.

"You smell that?" Seb said in a whisper. Tyler stopped and sniffed the air. He eventually caught that same scent.

"Smells like a bonfire or something," Tyler suggested. "Too much time out hunting 'eh? Out in nature too long?" He laughed to himself but Seb wasn't convinced. The wind was blowing towards them which meant that the smoke was ahead of them. The smell was sweeter as they got nearer to their cabin. The smell reminded Seb of all the times he witnessed a roadkill being burnt on the side of roads in the middle of summer. It was the smell of burning flesh. Panic set in and Seb pulled Tyler by the wrist and started running.

"We have to go now!" He yelled. Tyler still looked confused but ran with Seb up the path. There was a smoke stack rising up from the trees where the cabin was and the panic turned to cold dreaded fear. As the two men laid eyes on the cabin they realised something bad happened. The entire building was engulfed in flames and the wood was starting to crumble. On the lamppost next to the cabin was a horrific sight. A blackened corpse was strung up on the post with its stomach split open. It was obvious it was a woman as her breasts, or what was left of them, were exposed and charred. A bag was over her head and a small flame was still burning away at her legs. Tyler was the first to run up to the body and removed the bag quickly.

"Fuck!" He screamed as he reeled back in disgust at the mangled and crackled remains of the woman. He was confident he recognised this woman. He'd only met her once and he was getting flashbacks from the first week he spent in the Henbane. He knew who it was. Although the last time he saw her she was wearing the traditional clothes a cult Priestess wore. It was the VIP Faith sent to him with the radio frequency. Tyler put a hand gently to her face and instantly upon touch her cheek crumbled into ash. This was too much for Tyler and he turned over to the side and was sick. Whilst his eyes were sill on the ground, he noticed a slightly browned piece of paper. He recognised the writing too.

Fuck you two. We've left for good and if we catch you with those fucking Peggies you can expect a painful death. We've left that stupid dog of yours, just to show we ain't soulless. Hope you liked the sentiment and parting gift you fucktards. – Jess.

Tyler tore the note in half and threw the pieces away. The cabin with all of their equipment was burnt to the ground. Nothing would've survived. He watched silently as the fire continued to consume the cabin and within the next few minutes, the cabin was no more. Just a pile of cinders and smoke. All of his hard work. All of the months he spent in this County, getting stronger to tackle the cult and all the resources he gathered, all gone. All Tyler had now was his handgun, his rifle, bow, satchel with his journal, phone and binoculars, his backpack with a water bottle and a single first aid kit, a radio and a shot up Kevlar vest. His map, food, intel, ammunition and temporary home were all gone in an act of impulsive wrath. He was fuming and angry at the actions of his old allies. If he could call them that anymore. For all he knew, Jess could've spread the word widely and now almost the entire region would know about Faith and his friendship. He was brought out of his thought by a faint bark. He remembered that Jess had said that they left Boomer. The grey dog rounded the corner around the house and saw Tyler. He ran over quickly and jumped up on his hind legs and started licking his owner affectionately. Tyler smiled and scratched him behind the ear. The dog wagged it's tail excitedly and returned to the ground.

"You need to let her know." Seb said suddenly. "It's only fair on her that she learns about her." He pointed to the burnt and naked corpse. Tyler nodded and pulled out his radio. He tuned in on the frequency and hit the talk button.

"Faith," he said. "You there?" There was a small silence but then the radio crackled.

"I'm here Tyler," Faith said in a husky voice. "You ok?"

"No," he said bluntly. "You need to come to the Youth Camp now. I have to show you something terrible." Faith sighed on the other end before speaking again.

"Sure, I'm leaving now. I'll meet you by the road to the east of the Camp." Tyler clicked off the radio and cursed. If there's anything that Tyler hated about the Resistance, it would be just how easily they killed and treated cultists. People who were once neighbours, friends, innocent people indoctrinated and even some members of families. It was the lack of mercy and empathy that made him only slightly hesitant when it came to being a fully fledged member of the Resistance. The two men and Boomer turned around and headed down the hill towards the Youth Camp to wait for Faith.

For the first time in his time in the County, the rain fell. And it fell hard. The trees Tyler and Seb we standing under offered little to no protection. Within 10 minutes after the call ended, Tyler could make out the lights of car headlights through the thick sheets of rain. A white Peggie truck pulled over and two men who were both unarmed stepped out of the truck and dashed to the passenger door to open the door and help Faith out. As soon as the water his her, Tyler saw each little raindrop glisten on her head. She walked over to Tyler and Seb. She stopped and wrapped her arms around her waist in an attempt to warm herself. Her white dress was thin and offered no protection against the icy cold late Autumn nights, especially in the rain. Tyler felt his common decency kick in and he removed his jacket and put it on Faith's shoulders. She smiled at him and slid her arms through the holes and did the zipper up. She motioned to the two men behind her.

"We'll be alright from here. You two can wait in the car." She said with the same husky sound he heard on the radio. The two cultists nodded and one of them stopped and looked directly at Tyler.

"You take care of her Deputy, please keep her safe." The man spoke with no conviction, more in a protective manner.

"I'll look after her with my life." Tyler responded. The cultists out his hands together in a thank you gesture and he returned to the car. Faith walked closer to the two and looked down at Boomer who was now curled around Tyler's leg for warmth.

"So what was it that you wanted to show me." Faith asked as she bent down to give her hand for the dog to sniff.

"It's up the hill," Tyler said as he picked up Boomer who began shivering around his leg. "It has something to do with what happened earlier today."

"Oh," Faith said quietly. "Well let's go then." The three of them started tracking back up the hill and soon a light fog appeared and obscured their vision a lot. Faith wrapped her arm around Tyler's free arm to keep her balance. Tyler placed his other hand on top of hers and squeezed it gently. As they got close to the cabin, Seb noticed fresh sets of footprints. They were wet so they were recent. Tyler pulled Faith behind a large rock and Seb followed closely behind and pulled out his handgun, Tyler did the same and looked around the rock. He could see 5 men and 2 women armed with assault rifles around the ruin cabin. They were definitely not cultists and they were looking through the wreckage and were looking all of their destroyed utilities. Tyler motioned to Seb to get closer so they both down on their knees and crept into large bushes the right of the rock. They were able to hear the Resistance members talking to each other.

"So what do we do if the Deputy shows up again?" One of the girls asks. A man laughs and responds submissively.

"We shoot the fucker on sight. He's a Peggie, you heard that hooded woman?" The woman sighed and Tyler heard the sound of the rifle being pulled back.

"Such a shame," the woman said. "I had a thing for the Dep. He was a specimen of a man." Two more men joined the conversation.

"He was just like his girlfriend, smooth talker and manipulative as all fuck."

"Who's his girlfriend?" Tyler was now angry. Looks like Jess got creative with the story she told everyone.

"Well, apparently he's been having this fling with Faith Seed." Gasp of shock sounded from the other Resistance members.

"Has he been fucking her?"

"Well he waa apparently spotted at the watchtower near Raptor Peak having a quick session. So I guess he was." Tyler looked back at Seb who was just as angry as him. They both stood up and shit at the two people they originally heard. They both dropped dead instantly and they were seen by the remaining Resistance members. They opened fire and Tyler felt two shots pound into the back of his Kevlar vest. He stumbled as he slid behind the rock. He pulled out his rifle and pulled it back. Faith grabbed his hand out of nowhere and squeezed it tightly. There was pure fear in her eyes. Tyler leaned forward and kissed her quickly on the top of the head before shouldering his rifle and started shooting at the Resistance. They were dealt with within a few minutes and Tyler and Seb both got to their feet and so did Faith. Tyler walked Faith over to their old cabin and showed her the wreckage. She was confused before he showed her the burnt corpse stung up on the lamppost. She looked blank briefly before she too recognised the body. She let out a sharp scream and ran towards the body. She fell to her knees and started to cry. Tyler walked up to her carefully and placed a tentative hand on her shoulder. Faith turned around and hugged his legs tightly.

"What happened to her?" She said in between sobs.

"She was bound, stripped and then set on fire," Tyler explained. Faith looked even more upset at the news and let the tears flow even more. "By my friend who found us no less."

"Of course," Faith said. "You never were really cared about by them. They kept using you and eventually they managed to get to me." Tyler nodded. Seb walked up behind them and put a hand on Faith's shoulder.

"It'll be ok." He said softly.

"I know," she said. "But it does show me more about why this Resistance is futile. Your people don't hesitate to kill and abandon their most senior members without second thought."

"I guess they only wanted to help just so they were able to go out and kill members of the Project." Tyler said.

"Yeah, and I'm glad you both didn't fall down that sinful path both of you. It's one thing taking another's life, but it's a whole other level once you start enjoying it and get satisfaction from it, like your friends here."

"I don't think we're safe here anymore," Tyler sighed. "We have the cult on our asses and now our own allies."

"Neither am I," Faith said. "People in the Project are starting to question my Faith as I've been seeing you a lot recently." Tyler cursed under his breath and rubbed his beardless, unshaven face.

"I guess us three, four if you count Boomer, need to stick together for a bit and hide out." Tyler said.

"I think you're right Tyler." Faith sighed. "But I don't know what I'd be able to do to help." Tyler smiled sweetly and put his hand back on her shoulder.

"You know people, you know the Projects movements and we know the Resistances'. You won't need to shoot anything unless the situation becomes dire." Faith nodded.

"So," she said. "Where do we start?" Tyler looked at Seb for a minute before saying something he was certain would work.

"There's always The Sheriff?"

Note:

Hi y'all. Sorry this was a long wait for this one. I had almost 0 ideas on how to execute this chapter but I think it plays out well. I feel like I've never really seen a complete revolt from the Deputy's GFH's before so this felt like a fresh change. Hope you enjoy reading.