The Badass Protector

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“YOU OKAY in there?” I checked them since they suddenly went silent.

Earlier, Iris gulped when I pointed at the dirtbike. She said she rode a bicycle when she was a kid but never on a motorcycle. We didn’t have a choice-either we walk or ride with this thing-and this was a matter of life and death. The longer we stayed here, the closer those bastards were to find us.

I was still suppressing my pent-up emotions, and I couldn’t afford to risk their lives. I used to handle physical pain but not heartache.

Tears had already dried in my eyes, but the pain in my chest was still fresh-it was unbearable, and I didn’t want to go through that over and over again. It felt like someone knifed my heart and left me slowly bleeding. It fucking hurts.

That moment she floated inside the car crash, I thought I’d died there, but the misery I felt constantly reminded me that I was still alive, bearing the excruciating pain. At that moment, I knew that I was in love with Iris.

“Hell yeah! Better than walking.” Gael yelled. I was thankful despite his losing a leg. He was able to fight back and save our lives while I was trying to resuscitate Iris.

Laughing out loud, she said, “My thighs are numb. It’s noisy, but I like the feeling of the wind blowing my face.” Her voice vibrated through me as her body pressed against my back, and her arms wrapped tightly around my waist. She was sandwiched between Gael and me, and the warmth of her skin reminded me she was still with me and very much alive.

“Just hang on tight. We can take a rest once we get a little bit far. We might need gas along the way.” I checked the fuel gauge. “This thing won’t take us back to our camp.”

“I don’t mind. The bike is a running dryer!” And that made Gael laugh. It was true-our clothes dried on our skin, and even my eyeballs-they itched.

As we ventured through the endless road for hours, we had not passed by any kind of vehicle. We had no choice but to hang on to this for the time being until Iris sighed behind me.

“What is it, twig?”

“I’m worried about them.”

“They’ll be fine. They can take care-” Before Gael could finish his words, he shouted, “A car is coming!”

I quickly turned off the road. The dirtbike jumped against the bumpy weeds, and I almost lost my balance as the weight lessened on my back, causing it to get rougher-Gael perhaps fell or jumped off the bike because I could feel Iris was still with me.

I instantly turned the engine off and kicked the stand. Iris hopped off hurriedly.

“It’s them!” Gael shouted, limply running back to the road.

Shit! This didn’t look good.

As I turned the bike around, he waved toward the passing car while Iris stood still in her place.

“Stay here and keep your head down. I’ll be right back.” I pulled out my pistol and off the safety.

Tires screeched from a distance, and I realized what Gael was saying was Darick’s SUV.

Something happened back at the camp.

My heart was pounding wildly when it stopped in front of us. Something was off. I hoped it was not bad, or so God helped us.

I gulped, feeling my throat clogged. Watching Gael’s shoulders sag told me only one thing-bad news. Darick jumped off the car, and Lois followed, running toward Iris. Frost stayed in the driver’s seat, acknowledging us with a short nod.

“What happened?” Gael asked, face masked with worries. He knew exactly that something was wrong, and it was showing crystal clear on their faces.

“You all look like shit,” Darick blurted out as he shook hands with Gael.

“I’m glad you’re all okay. I was worried. We all are.” Lois squeezed Iris in a hug. The moment she pulled herself away, tears were running down her face. She then came to me. Her brown eyes inspected my face. “You’re hurt.”

“I’m fine.” I gave her a subtle nod. I couldn’t even think of what to ask first, which definitely didn’t look like a search or a welcome home party.

Lois wiped off her tears, took a deep breath, and let it out slowly.

“Guys, get in the car. Let’s get out of here!” Frost popped his head out, waving at us.

“Glad you made it.” Darick shook my hand and gripped it tightly as if he was sending me a message. He was already carrying our duffel bag he had taken from Gael. “We’ll talk in there.” He gestured to the car, not anymore meeting my gaze.

Darick and Gael settled at the back while Lois and Iris were in the middle. I chose the passenger seat and let Frost continue driving.

The silence stretched out inside the car, and none of us wanted to break it-that was what I thought. We needed a moment. We needed to process.

We headed forward-obviously without destinations. From silence to the tension, and dragged into the sadness, and the only emotion filling the car, it was harder to breathe and even to think. One thing I knew for sure was that what we left behind, we couldn’t go back there anymore.

Darick cleared his throat. “We can’t go back to the camp,” he started. “Uh, Frost, would you like to tell them?”

Frost shook his head with a single flat no.

Darick gulped, finding himself hard to start. And I wished I didn’t have to hear this, either of us, but I knew none of us could run away, and we had to face it eventually.

“Okay. There was a group of men who came knocking on our camp. Lois, the Fischers, and the Hamids were the only people there. Frost and I were still looting when they arrived. Lois said those men offered some goods and sweet talks to Anna and Fischer, pretending they were Iris’ brother’s comrades and wanted to meet her.” He then ran his fingers through his hair and glanced at Frost. “Come on, man. Do the talking.”

Frost remained stoic, staring at the road ahead of us. I knew many things were going on in his mind, and I could feel it-he took all the blame on himself.

“I was in the garden when I saw them walk in. I watched them, maybe six or seven men, discreetly. The Fischers were ecstatic with the offer and said Iris would be glad to see her brother’s friends. God, how could they easily believe them?” Lois cried in dismay. “They asked where Iris was, and Anna told them without hesitation that you went to trade.”

“I shouldn’t have told Fischer about the trade, but I swore transparency among us. He was the one who listed the things I took for the trade,” Gael said with regret, blaming himself.

“Anna was overwhelmed by the offer. They came in carrying a lot of boxes to the camp. Then suddenly, I heard a gunshot. I watched Anna fall to the ground.” Lois shook to sob. Iris gasped and froze for a moment with the guilt glinting in her eyes.

Iris wrapped her arms around Lois as she cried with her. “Oh, my God! I’m so sorry.” I watched her tears roll down her face, and so as Lois.

“A-And I couldn’t help her. T-Them. I just watched her, Iris, then the kids ran toward their mom and cried there, then, t-they shot them, too. They’re just kids. My God, they’re evil.” Lois hiccuped, and I imagined what they did to Ashley and Ashton in horror.

“They burned the camp down,” Darick added.

Jesus Christ!