Mel
It was September in Jackson and it was still warm, the hottest months had thankfully passed. Mel was looking forward to seeing snow again.
Fern was four months old now and was scarily advanced for her age. She was starting to do little pushups and was rolling all over the place. Gone were the days of lying her down on her back and watching her flail like an upside down turtle. Over the last couple of days she'd even started to drag herself along the ground like a slug, slowly and not very far thankfully, but that was a precursor to crawling.
She was a confident, happy little tyke as well. Always smiling and laughing, no matter who was entertaining her. Something she had probably inherited from her dad Mel thought. It felt like it had been years, so much had happened, but it had only been about six months in reality. She missed Owen, she still felt that pain and she still remembered him bleeding out in her arms. And it wasn't just him, it was all of them, everyone she'd lost. Mel still thought about them a lot and the polaroids in her bedside table never failed to bring her to tears.
Mel found a particularly poignant children's picture book in one of Jackson's unassuming little shops (well as close to what could be described as shops given no currency was ever exchanged). What we'll build: Plans for our future together. Written by a new dad before the plague, It was short and sweet and went like this:
What shall we build, you and I?
Let's gather our tools for a start.
For putting together and taking apart.
Let's build a door where there was none.
We'll build a house to be our own.
I'll build your future and you'll build mine. We'll build a watch to keep our time.
We'll build some love to set aside, and build a hole where we can hide.
A fortress to keep our enemies out and higher walls for when they shout.
But you don't always lose and you don't always win. So we'll build a gate to let them in.
We'll build a table to drink our tea, and say "I'm sorry" "Me too" "Me three"
We'll build a tower to watch the sky, and other worlds that pass us by.
Let's build a tunnel to anywhere. Let's build a road up to the moon.
Let's build a comfy place to rest, for we'll be tired soon.
Let's build a boat that can't be broken, that will not sink or be cracked open.
A place to stay when all is lost, to keep the things we love the most.
We'll put these favorite things beside the earlier love we set aside.
I think that we may want them later when times are hard and needs are greater.
But first things first, let's build a fire, for we've planned a lot and now we're tired.
It'll keep us warm like when we're born, then we'll say goodnight as all's all right.
These are the things that we'll build, you and I.
Accompanied by incredibly cute, brightly coloured illustrations that enthralled Fern whenever she read it to her, it spoke of new beginnings and building a new future, but it also spoke of memories, of loss and of forgiveness. If it was a checklist, Mel felt that she could tick a lot of it off. Here in Jackson she'd found a future for herself and the little girl she loved more than anything in the world and she'd found Jesse, someone who adored her as much she adored him.
The book was now under her bed, wrapped in unassuming brown paper, with Jesse's name written on it. Dina was due very soon now and Jesse was going to be a dad to a little boy. As much as he hid it behind a mask of self-confidence and good humor, Mel knew he was anxious about it, she thought that maybe he could use those words, the blueprint the kids books offered.
Right now however, Mel needed to dance. Alongside the myriad other bits of her personality that Fern was developing was a love for music, and with it the demand for Mom to dance around like a mad thing whilst carrying her. Today Material Girl from the beaten up old Boombox that was currently dominating their little dining table. Fern was in the carrier on Mel's chest, laughing and smiling as her Mom tried to turn getting everything ready into a dance routine. Nappy's were being hurled into a bag, bottles of expressed milk slamming in after them along with changes of clothes (probably far too many), blankets and just about anything else a baby could need, all to the sound of Madonna singing:
'Cause we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl
You know that we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl
It was just for four or five hours, but Mel thought it better to over prepare than under deliver. She was anxious, this would be the longest she'd been apart from her baby since she was born and the first time leaving her with Jesse's parents. His mom used to be a kindergarten teacher and Fern adored her so intellectually she knew it'd be fine, but instinct wise it felt like the opposite of a good idea. Then there was her own deeply ingrained stubbornness and defiance, which had come into play whenever Robin had suggested she might need a break. What if I don't want a break?
In the end, she did want a break, as guilty as that made her feel and Jesse had been going on at her about teaching her to ride a horse, so she'd acquiesced. It would be only the second time in the last six months that she'd been outside the town wall. Tommy, who had been itching to get out there and was still off the patrol rotation, would be tagging along with his minder, Ellie. This was a last minute addition to their little trip and not one that Mel was super enthused about. Ellie and her had made their peace with each other, but she still felt uneasy about Tommy, the usual mixture of guilt and resentment. The latter had become more prominent since she'd learned that it was Tommy who had killed Manny.
They'd been close. After Salt Lake City, Manny had taken her under his wing, keeping a watchful eye on the shy, anxious young woman who would patch them up. Melon, he called her. He loved to fight and he loved to love, but he always found time for Mel when she needed someone to talk to, or more often when she needed someone to not talk to. He could spend hours just sitting next to her, happily reading one of the manga or watching one of the anime he loved, while Mel worked her way up to voicing what had been eating her. What fresh horror Seattle, the Scars, the WLF, Isaac had thrown at her. Where the others might sigh and roll their eyes at jittery, sensitive Mel, Manny would just listen, acknowledge and give her a warm hug. He'd never offer unsolicited advice and he'd never judge. Always the peacemaker, he was the glue that held the Salt Lake Crew together. Now he was gone, like the rest of them.
Mel had to remind herself that it was only for a few hours and Jesse was really excited about it. Maybe it'd be fun?
The knock on the door came just as the song ended. Flicking off the boombox on her way, before the next track started, she opened the door to Jesse and his mom.
"Hi, hi. Ummm here's her bag, she's just had a feed and a new nappy, but she'll be due for another feed in about an hour. She woke up at five fourty, so she'll be due for a nap around nine maybe. There's some spare clothes in there if there are any accidents and there are some backup bottles as well… How are you?"
"I'm great. We're going to have a wonderful time" Robin smiled, acknowledging the stream of information that had just been hurled in her direction and taking the bag.
"Wow, looks like you packed for a week" Jesse laughed, gesturing at the large bag that was now encumbering Robin.
"You'll find out all about this soon" Robin said menacingly.
Mel just smirked as she braced her little girl and unclipped the front pack, handing it to Robin. They were about the same wise, so Jesse's mom was able to quickly fling it on without the need for any adjustment. Mel gently passed Fern over and once she was safely ensconced on Robins chest, gave her a kiss on the head.
"We're really into music lately, so if you have any trouble, just put on something with a good beat and she should be okay… or you know, just feed her…" Mel added as she pulled her boots on.
"We'll be fine" She replied, obviously trying to sound reassuring but coming across a wee bit exasperated to Mel, who just gritted her teeth and smiled.
"Come on, we've got horses to ride and shit to shoot" Jesse said ripping that bandaid off and gently drawing her away.
They met Tommy and Ellie at Jackson's heavily fortified armory. It was located inside what was formerly the town's Police station, which now also served as something of a command centre for Jackson's patrol force. While most of Jackson's citizenry had access to their own firearms, rifles, shotguns, handguns and the like, the town also maintained its own arsenal.
Her companions were talking to the man behind the armory's front desk, Frank. He must have been about Tommy's age, with a thick black beard and sporting an eyepatch and a nasty looking burn mark down the right side of his face. He passed Ellie a well maintained looking Remington M700 bolt action rifle with a high magnification scope through a small slot in the thick bulletproof glass that separated them. Jesse and Tommy were already bearing their own rifles and sidearms.
Behind Frank, Mel could see rack after rack loaded with guns. Further back, she could see glimpses of some of the town's heavier weapons: big tripod mounted heavy machine guns and even the unmistakable profile of an automatic grenade launcher like some of the WLF trucks had mounted on them. She remembered hour after hour field stripping rifles, drilling firearms safety, reloads, weapons flow, and shooting targets. Not great memories. She was kind of sick of guns.
"And one for her" Tommy said.
She turned to see him gesturing at her.
"Ah, I'm good thanks"
"We're going a bit beyond the walls, it's not really an option"
"We'll be fine Tommy" Ellie interjected.
"I don't make the rules, if we're going as far out as the range, she needs to be armed"
"Come on Tommy, as if you give a shit about rules. She doesn't want one" Jesse said.
"She's right here" Mel chided "It's fine, can we just get moving"
A bemused Frank went to one of the racks, pulled off a little Ruger .22LR varmint rifle and passed it through to Mel along with a small box of ammunition.
"Jesus Frank. I know she looks like she's twelve, but that's a grown ass woman. Might as well give her a potato gun"
"What are you talking about Tommy, that's a great rifle"
Mel pulled out the empty magazine and pulled back the bolt, checking the chamber was empty before gently squeezing the trigger. After what felt like an age, she finally felt and heard the click of the trigger. She charged the bolt again, still holding the trigger and down and then slowly released it until she felt the reset. It was squidgy, quite possibly the worst trigger she'd ever felt. She replaced the magazine and passed the weapon back through the slot.
"Can I grab something else?" she asked politely "SKS maybe?" pointing at a worn but solid looking Norinco carbine with plastic furniture, a forward mounted variable magnification scope and a folding stock. Frank grunted and reluctantly passed the short rifle through. Mel unfolded the stock and repeated the process. Much better.
"This is fine" she announced.
Frank handed through a box of ammunition to match and a small pouch containing a few stripper clips which Mel attached to her belt. She signed the requisite forms and slung the weapon safely over her shoulder as they left. Next stop the front gate and the stables.
Mel slowed down, trailing behind Ellie and Jesse who were busy talking about something until Tommy caught up with her. His limp was now barely noticeable, the lack of left arm below the elbow not so much.
"Thought you'd be the last person to trust me with a gun"
He looked at her and snorted.
"Exactly why I made a big deal about it"
She chewed that for about half a minute.
"Have to admit I'm a little confused"
"So was I when I woke up at the lodge and found y'all had beaten by brother to death with a baseball bat"
Mel opened her mouth to reply, but couldn't form any words. Her heart rate rose abruptly but she quickly moved to nip what was forming in the bud, focussing on her breathing and walking.
"You know I was a Firefly as well? Once upon a time" He went on.
"No. I didn't"
"In Boston. Left because of the violence. Weren't perfect, you know?"
"Never thought we were"
"He knew the past would come back to bite him"
"That make it better?"
"No. Y'know I only started to figure something was off about you people when I shook your hand. You've got a shitty poker face. The way you looked at Joel when I introduced him. If looks could kill she wouldn't have needed that golf club"
"I didn't want it to be like that. Didn't think it'd go the way it did"
"Then you were a fucking moron. Anyway I went to Seattle looking for justice. I remembered all your faces, but none more than hers and yours. Got close to getting her. Might have killed you if things had gone different"
"And you killed Manny"
"The Hispanic one? Yeah, I did. And the young Asian fella"
"Nick" She grimaced.
"Vengeance isn't justice. Should have been old enough to remember that" He sighed "Then at the aquarium that smug face you had in my mind wasn't there. That journey was over anyway. On the way back, I could have gone with y'all. Wasn't even my fucking horse. Needed the space to think about that and what Joel would have wanted. Probably would have gone with if I knew I'd lose an arm"
"So it's all forgive and forget?"
"I think you know that's not how it works, but you're a Jacksonite now, as much as I am"
"So I get a gun?"
"So you get to borrow a gun"
She had been half expecting to be given a little pony, like Jesse had joked, but she was instead presented with an old brown gelding called Glen.
"You're serious? Glen? Is he a middle aged human man?"
"Well not every horse can be a 'Thunderbolt' or a 'Shadowfax'" Jesse replied shrugging "Sometimes you need a Glen"
"He's not fast, but he's calm and experienced" Tommy added.
They were right. Her anxiety melted away as she offered him up a carrot and he gently took it from her hand, slobbering all over it. She scratched his forehead and he grunted softly. His big dark eyes seemed particularly nonplussed at her presence.
Despite her small size, mounting the big old horse was more straightforward than she had imagined. Once she got one foot in a stirrup, she was agile enough to lever herself over. Taking the reins she listened intently to Jesse's instructions, how to use the rains, how to use her body and balance to help tell Glen where to go and to keep her shoulders stacked over her hips.
As she circled the practice ring, Ellie and Tommy looked on with bated breath, seemingly taking bets as to how long it'd take for her to fall off. They would be sorely disappointed. She was by no means a natural, but she wasn't awful either. Jesse had chosen the right horse for her.
Once she'd gotten more comfortable, they all mounted up and trotted out the front gate, out into the wilds of Wyoming. They didn't rush, letting Mel and Glen trot along at a comfortable pace, along an easy route, through firs and pines up onto a ridgeline. Mel looked back down over the valley at Jackson. Last time she had seen it from this perspective it had been night and the ground was thick with snow. Best not to dwell.
Over the ridge was Tommy's 'range'. Essentially a roughly rectangle shaped clearing about a thousand yards long, kept clear by the town's many firearms enthusiasts. Tommy and Jesse rode to the end and began setting up simple targets for them to take pot shots at.
Ellie and Mel dismounted and sat down next to each other on a small overlook. Mel took unpacked the stripper clips and began loading them, pressing round after round into them. Ellie began chowing down on what looked like on one of Seth's steak sandwiches.
"Settle a bet for me?" She asked, mouth full, breaking the silence.
"Sure"
"Dina thinks you swing both ways, I reckon you're as straight as a ruler and she's just confused by your haircuts"
Mel could feel herself turn red as she self-consciously brought her hand up to her hair. She'd been growing it out and now had a fringe with an undercut on both sides and her longer hair out back tied into a practical plait. She had no idea what Ellie was talking about.
"She think she's got some kind of gaydar?"
"I dunno, you tell me" Ellie smirked
"I 'swing' whichever way I feel like"
"So…?"
"I think there's more than two 'ways'. It's all a spectrum and I'm attracted to who I'm attracted to"
"Sooo…?" Ellie repeated, feigning increasing boredom. Mel sighed loudly.
"Fine. Dina's more right than you are. I crush on girls as easily as I do on guys"
"Really?! Wouldn't have picked it. When did you realize?"
"At Saint Mary's… A friend, Leah. I realized I felt something different. I misread things and it was embarrassing… But she was kind about it. First of many crushes"
Mel remembered that little event like it was yesterday. Tall, beautiful and elf-like, Leah was a close friend. She was kind, thoughtful and funny. Mel had found feelings she had only felt for boys welling up inside her when she was around her. Leah was the kind of person who shared her love freely with her friends. That she was so at ease with physical touch, hugging, grasping hands, playing with her friends' hair and the like, was probably one of the reasons that Mel misread things. After many weeks, she built up the courage to talk to Leah. Mel had felt crushed and embarrassed when Leah had gently let her down. She wasn't Leah's type, "wrong bits" she'd said jokingly. But Leah had understood how big a deal this was for her shy, nervous friend, so she'd stayed with her and helped her unpack what it had all meant.
"How'd that go down in Seattle… With the wolves?" Ellie asked, snapping Mel out of her memories.
"It didn't, not for me at least. Never went both ways. But there weren't many Seth's if that's what you're asking" Mel replied pointing at Ellie's sandwich "How's the bigot sandwich?"
"Tasty. I like to watch him squirm" she chuckled "He's not alone though…"
"I guess when you don't have to worry about just surviving you get time to worry about other things"
"Yeah maybe"
"I don't think anyone in Seattle had the time for it. Except for the Scars, they'd make Seth look like a saint… you'd think all that bullshit world have died with the old world"
"Nah, hates one of the only things that survived" Ellie replied with just a hint of sadness "From what I've seen at least"
"Hmmm. When did you realize?"
"I think I always just knew… But yeah, I had my first, Riley… Don't really want to talk about it"
Mel could see pain behind that stoic facade but before she could say anything else, the thumping of galloping horses drowned out her thoughts as Jesse and Tommy returned.
They were all excellent shots, but it was Tommy who really stole the show, popping shots into the smallest and most distant of targets with terrifying accuracy. He was slower to cycle the bolt and move between targets than the others, but it was incredibly impressive for a man missing half of one of his arms. Jesse and Ellie competed with each other to hit targets in progressively more ridiculous ways; shooting while running, jumping and on horseback. They were evenly matched for the most part and it was all in good fun.
It wasn't really Mel's cup of tea. She was never the marksman, and in Seattle the fighting took place building to building, at much shorter ranges. As the competition moved on to one between Ellie and Tommy, Jesse sat down next to Mel and set up a spotting scope. She was sitting almost side-on to the targets, hand guard resting on her knees, right hand gripping the pistol grip and left hand resting on the stock giving her cheek some padding as she lined up on one of the targets. She exhaled and squeezed the trigger, the semi-automatic carbine letting off a loud crack.
"Low left" Jesse said, peering through the spotting scope.
She adjusted and squeezed off another shot.
"Centre mass. Moving left"
She was happy with that. In the real world, that's where you wanted the bullet to go.
"Thanks for coming out. I know it's not really your scene" Jesse said, turning to her.
"Getting the impression this part is more for Tommy's benefit"
"I don't think he's in a good place. He feels disconnected from everything, like he's not contributing"
Mel squeezed off another shot at the target to the left.
"Centre mass" Jesse intoned.
She was getting the hang of it.
"I saw it a lot in Salt Lake City and Seattle. Soldiers getting knocked out of the war. He's lost his purpose. He's depressed"
"Yeah"
"Guess he needs to find another way of contributing"
"You don't think he'll be getting out on patrols again do you?"
"I don't know how Jackson makes those kind of decisions, but I'm guessing no"
She fired again, twice this time, in quick succession.
"Centre mass and high left, but you winged it. Not bad" He paused "No, I don't think he is either"
"Well someone needs to tell him that…"
"I think he's already worked it out"
"That's not the same, trust me. Someone needs to be honest with him or he's just going to keep pushing and failing"
"Yeah I guess so…"
"It's not your job Jesse, it's Maria's" She interrupted, before letting off five more shots in reasonably quick succession, leaving the rifle dry.
"Sorry, I wasn't looking" Jesse said as he looked down the spotting scope again "Looks like you hit a few, not much of that target left"
"That's enough for me I think" Mel said, clearing the chamber and making the rifle safe before standing up and stretching. Jesse reached up to her.
"Help… me…" he croaked feebly.
She prodded him with her boot before reaching down and pulling him to his feet.
"Alright old man?"
He was looking at Ellie and Tommy, still unloading down the range. Turning back, he was met with Mel's most sympathetic face.
"You can't fix everything Jesse"
Jesse rode alongside Tommy and from their body language, it looked like he hadn't heeded her advice. Tommy definitely had his hackles up. Jesse seemed to be trying to explain something to him, but the older man was having none of it and was gesticulating as wildly as someone missing half an arm could. They were riding faster than she felt comfortable with and she was falling behind. Ellie noticed, pulling back her reins and waiting for Mel and Glen to catch-up.
"Going well then?"
"Classic Jesse" Ellie replied.
"Told him not to"
Ellie just grunted and they rode on in silence.
Autumn was just beginning in this part of Wyoming, but the leaves were already starting to turn the colour of rust, rich reds and auburns. It was nice, the not quite silence, the birdsong, the rustling of squirrels and the branches swaying in the wind. While Seattle was being reclaimed by nature, it wasn't quite the same as the true wilderness she found herself in. There were a lot more people for starters and a lot more explosions. She didn't miss it.
"Hey… can I ask you something else?"
"Shoot"
"Uh, it's pretty awkward. Medical stuff"
"Well you've come to the right place"
Whatever it was, it was clearly incredibly uncomfortable for Ellie to talk about, but Mel was well versed in the art of the empathetic smile. She just waited her out.
"I have really bad periods. Like really bad. Sometimes I can hardly move and they seem to last forever"
"Okay, how longs this been happening for?"
"Ummm, since I was about sixteen I think… It's kind of on and off, but it's been really bad the last couple of months"
"Is your flow heavier"
"Yeah… and not just at the normal times"
"Is it like a cramping pain, do you feel bloated?"
"Hmhmmm and I feel sick, like I'm always about to vomit"
"Okay, last question. How are you bowel movements"
Ellie looked at her and groaned.
"Either too hard or too easy… if you know what I mean. What do you think?"
"I think it'd be a good idea for you to have a proper examination. At the clinic"
"Not with Doctor Cosgrove it isn't"
Mel shrugged "That's fine. I can have a look. I'd like to do a laparoscopy… uh a little camera we put up there…" Ellie just about turned white "but an ultrasound is less invasive and should give us a yes or no"
"Words, words, words" Ellie replied impatiently
"Sounds like Endometriosis"
Ellie just stared at her.
"It's tissue build up, the stuff that lines your uterus growing outside of it and on your ovaries, forming cysts. It kind of acts like glue and clogs up your pelvis, sticking tissue and organs together. Hella painful and can cause all of the stuff you've described"
"Uhhh, can you fix it?"
"Well let's not get ahead of ourselves, but yeah. There used to be non-surgical treatments, but the stuff is getting a lot harder to come by, so it'd require surgery"
"You know how to do it?"
"Yeah… and have had it done. Had it really bad as well. When I had my period I couldn't even stand"
"No shit"
"I kind of lived with it, like you, but the WLF didn't like me taking most of a week off once a month… and I wanted a baby. It makes it a lot harder"
"Worked out then I guess?"
"Uhuh, I got pregnant a couple of months after I had the surgery, just gotta hope it doesn't come back"
"It comes back?"
"It can. Not the end world, We can repeat the procedure. Not so easy for me, not a procedure you can perform on yourself" Mel laughed.
"Thanks Doctor Jackson"
"Can have a look tomorrow if you want?"
"I guess. Sorry, I know you're not working"
"Hah, I'm definitely working, just not there…. It's fine, it won't be super intense, I won't need a sitter or anything. I need to go back sooner or later anyway. The Doc has a big list of non-urgent stuff for when I am. Miracle there hasn't been anything urgent since Fern was born. Kinda miss it…"
Mel paused realising she was blabbering. But she had missed it, helping people, diagnosing their issues, making them better. Then again, she wouldn't trade the time she was spending with her baby girl for anything. It was going to be a tough balancing act.
Ellie looked spooked for some reason. Mel went to say something, reassure her that it was fixable, but then she saw Ellie pull her rifle from its scabbard and noticed the silence. The birdsong was gone, only the now ominous creaking of branches remained. Tommy and Jesse were out of sight. Suddenly, as Mel went to draw her own rifle, she heard the rapid thumping and rustling of something running through the underbrush to her left. A massive dark shape sprang forth and slammed into Glen, tearing her from the horse.
She thought it was a bear, it certainly looked the size of one and was covered in thick brown fur, but it stunk of piss, sweat and booze, and the limbs that dragged her by the leg were definitely human hands. She struggled against their grip and lashed out with her free leg connecting with an arm which promptly dropped her. She tried to scrabble to her feet but the massive man, clad in a thick bear-skin suit grabbed and flipped her over, his manic, bearded face looming over hers.
Mel felt a rib crack as one of his elbows pressed down on her chest, she tried desperately to push him off her but he was a lot stronger than her. He drew a hefty looking knife and raised it, but before he could sink it into her neck, a foot connected with his hand sending the knife flying.
"Get offa her" Ellie screeched as she wielded her rifle like a bat, slamming the stock into his face and sending him sprawling.
Ellie swung again, but the mountain of a man caught the rifle and pulled Ellie off balance, unleashing a punch into her abdomen with a guttural roar. Then he was on her, thick merciless hands wrapped around her neck.
Mel had hated the sparring sessions at the Stadium, but she had to do them. Medics were expected to have the same basic training as any other wolf, the same level of fitness and the same resilience. She tried her best, but she was the runt of the litter and always seemed to end up in the dirt, no matter who her opponent was and how fast she was. After one particularly nasty session, Mel found herself nursing a split lip and a black eye. Their hand-to-hand instructor had sat down next to her. His name was Eli, he had an exotic accent, olive skin, a compact but wiry frame and could beat the living shit out of anyone in the stadium. "I'll tell you a secret" he said "It's not about winning, it's about getting back up and doing it again. Out there, it's not a sparring session. You're small, but in the real world, in a real fight, that doesn't always matter. A knife to the throat will ruin anyone's day, no matter how strong they are. You cannot afford to fight fair, you have to level the playing field anyway you can. A knife, a rock, anything can be a weapon"
She drew the knife Jesse had made her, quickly unfolding the blade and leapt on the bear man's back, swinging the blade in, searching for his neck. He bucked like a bull as she tried to stab down and the blade became wedged in one of the folds in the bear-skin suit. He bucked in the other direction and the knife dropped. Ellie was struggling hard, her face bright red as she struggled for air. He laughed, a scratchy, feral noise. "Anything can be a weapon" Mel remembered.
In the struggle his hood had fallen back, exposing more of his head and neck. Mel swung her head round and bit deep into the side of his throat, her teeth stabbing through flesh and cartilage. She tasted copper and felt the warm splash of blood on her face as she tore.
If she had seen his face from Ellie's perspective, she would have seen a look of pure stupefaction. He released his grip on the green eyed girl and recoiled backwards, desperately trying to dislodge the maniac tearing out his throat like a runner.
Ellie grasped at the opportunity and grabbed Mel's fallen knife. With one swift motion, she leapt on him from the front, pressing the knife into his chest and pushing him backwards. He landed with a thump, sending Mel sprawling. It didn't help him, Ellie was on him, stabbing him again, and again, and again. Blade swinging up and down rhythmically, sending sprays of blood all over her.
Finally she relented, puffing from the exertion, soaked in blood. She looked over at Mel who was in a similar state, large brown eyes peering through a blood red mask. Mel spat out a not insignificant chunk of the hunters neck, gagged, but managed to stop herself from vomiting.
"Fuck me" Ellie finally spoke.
Glen was just standing there, staring at the two young women as if nothing had happened. Ellie's horse had bolted, but where it had been, Mel saw the body of another, more conventionally sized hunter who had presumably tried to take Ellie at the same time the big man was trying to take Mel. By the looks of the knife lodged in his throat, Ellie had obviously dispatched him pretty quickly.
They both flinched as they heard a rifle crack in the distance, further up the path.
"The boys!" Ellie shouted, leaping to her feet.
Mel moved as quickly as her ribs would allow her and drew her rifle from its scabbard on the old horse. She struggled to keep up with Ellie and at the same time load her gun. They bound through the undergrowth on either side of the path they had been following, taking pains not to expose themselves. As the sounds of weapons fire got closer and closer, they instinctively slowed down, shouldering their rifles and spacing out, while keeping each other in sight.
The larger group of hunters who had Tommy and Jesse pinned down weren't aware of their presence until Ellie dropped one of them with a well placed shot to the back of the head. The forest here was more open, with younger underbrush and wide gaps between the pines. There were six of them left, all dressed similarly to the two that had ambushed Ellie and Mel, clad in furs and armed with a motley assortment of rifles and shotguns. They fanned out, dividing their attention between Tommy and Jesse, who were returning fire from the cover of a large fallen log, and Ellie and Mel.
Mel darted behind the cover of a pine as a round whipped past her and another slammed into the tree with a loud snick. To her right, Ellie paused mid sprint, skidding through the leaves, and in one smooth motion, straightened up, braced her rifle, sling wrapped around her left arm, and fired. Another hunter fell, a gaping wound in their chest. The hunters that were engaging them moved their focus to Ellie who was now racing for cover, so Mel took the opportunity to slice left around her tree, moving the rifle to her left shoulder, gripping the handguard in a steady c-clamp and squeezing the trigger at one of their attackers who was racing for their own cover. Her first shot went wide but her follow up struck home and the hunter went sprawling, their momentum slamming them into a tree.
The remaining four hunters were in dire straits, facing fire from two directions. Covering from Ellie and Mel's fire left them open to Jesse and Tommy's. It was only a matter of time, but they showed no signs of surrender.
One of them, dressed in what looked like wolf furs, her face covered in mud and sweat, made a break for Mel, shotgun shouldered. She didn't get far, a shot from Tommy or Jesse sending her into the dirt. The remaining three decided to push their attack on the nearest threat, moving quickly towards the fallen log as the two men behind it paused to reload. Ellie bagged one, but the other two leapt over the barrier and out of sight.
Mel struggled forward, shooting pain lancing through her chest with every step. The crack of a pistol rang out as they reached the log and leveled their guns on the last surviving hunter. Tommy pushed the body of the man he'd just shot off him and scrabbled to his feet. Jesse was struggling against a feral looking woman about their age, garbed in an assortment of furs: fox, raccoon and a multitude of others. Her dark hair was matted with mud and desperation painted across her face. She had a knife to Jesse's throat and with each movement it cut into him lightly, leaving a small trail of blood trickling down his neck.
"Stop fucking moving" She screamed at him "All of you just stop fucking moving"
They all had their guns leveled at her now and her eyes darted between them wildly.
"Put the knife down now" Tommy shouted back at her.
"I swear to fucking god I'll…" she was silenced mid shout as Mel squeezed the trigger and with a loud crack, sent a rifle round through her neck, around where her trachea was located.
The woman released the grip on the knife as she fell gurgling onto the ground, blood foaming up out of her mouth. Mel dropped her rifle and rushed forward, almost tripping over the log. She reached the woman and pressed her hands down on the wound, but blood was pumping out of it at a prodigious rate, pushing through her fingers and under her palms. There was nothing she could do. The young woman looked up at her with cloudy blue eyes, shock painted across her features. It was over in seconds.
Mel's ears started to ring, drowning out any sound as she lifted her blood soaked hands off the woman and recoiled backwards. The adrenaline that had been driving her forward up until this point now turned against her as her pulse and breath quickened dramatically and nausea overwhelmed her. She fell to her knees and vomited. She could hear Jesse speaking, but it sounded like he was a million miles away.
She sat there, hyperventilating until she felt a worried hand on her shoulder, sending a shiver down her back. Mel bolted upright and paced off in silence.
"Mel…" Jesse called after her.
The two men seemed unsure as to what to do now. They turned at the thump of galloping horses. A posse from Jackson, armed to the teeth. The gunfight must have been heard for miles around, echoing round the hills.
Meanwhile, Mel was off, going nowhere in particular. Shock driving her forward. Her boot became stuck in some brambles and she snapped, kicking furiously and screaming at the offending plant.
Ellie caught up and tried to grab her, but Mel lashed out with an elbow, striking her in the shoulder. She took the hit, quashing the urge to hit Mel back, instead wrapping the smaller woman in a bearhug and pulling her back.
"Mel. Stop"
She didn't quite snap out of it, but she did stop struggling, the sharp pain from her ribs piercing her panic attack.
"Just breathe" Ellie whispered.
Mel concentrated on her breathing. Tried and tested. Blocking out any thought that wasn't focussed on the rise and fall of her chest. Ellie loosened her grip, but continued to hold her.
As the panic attack faded, the waterworks started, tears leaving a trail through the blood crusting her face. She'd been trying to pretend the world out here wasn't the same one she'd always known, that everything wasn't still completely fucked outside of Jacksons walls. Of course life had seen fit to remind her that the world she'd brought her daughter into was a nightmare. Mel just wanted to hold her, to protect her, but she'd left her to come out here and play cowboys.
She felt another hand on her shoulder and turned as Ellie released her. Jesse embraced her silently. Her head resting on his chest, she felt his warmth and heard the rhythmic, calm beating of his heart. He gently sat her down and pushed a canteen into her hands. Still shaking, she took a swig, swirling it around her mouth before spitting it out, flushing the taste of someone else's blood into the dirt. Next she splashed her face and wiping it furiously with her sleeve.
"Mel, it's okay" Jesse said as calmly and softly as he could, grabbing her arm.
"No it's fucking not" She blurted in response
"I'm sorry… We've never had them this close to Jackson… I…"
She just looked at him, as if he was speaking a foreign language. All she could think about was her little girl, laughing, smiling, blissfully unaware of the hellscape she was living in.
"I just want to go home Jesse"
