Broken Lands (Benny Imura 6)

“Don’t forget my li’l ol’ slingshot,” said Riot with a sour grin.

Morgie did not return her smile. “All we’d be is casualties.”

“No,” said Nix. She walked over to stand beside Chong. “When we found out the Night Church was taking an entire army to the Nine Towns, there were only five of us, and look what happened.”

Morgie’s fists were balled at his sides. “This is different.”

“I don’t know,” said Riot. “Night Church, Night Army. Kind of has a theme. Feels like old times.”

“What are you saying?” demanded Morgie. “Don’t tell me you’re thinking of doing this too.”

“Morgie,” she said, “I’m getting tired of always talking you into doing the right thing. I mean, I love ya and all, but you are a lot of hard work.”

She went and stood with Nix.

Lilah bent and picked up her spear. “If my town boy wants to fight, then I’m going to fight with him.”

Morgie turned pleading eyes to Benny. “Come on, man . . . you always act like you got elected leader of our gang. Maybe you can talk some sense into them.”

Benny walked over to him and clapped Morgie on the shoulder. “I was on his side before he even said anything.” He joined the others.

Morgie stood his ground.

“Face it, sweet cheeks,” said Riot, “you know you’re going to cave. You always do. You always know we’re right.”

Morgie slid the bokken through his belt, then bent and picked up the dead killer’s timber ax and straightened, laying it over his shoulder. The others were grinning.

“No,” he said.

They stared at him, and Riot wore a half smile, waiting for him to deliver the punch line to the joke. Morgie’s face was stone.

“I love you, Riot,” he said. “I love all of you, but you’re wrong about this.”

“What are you saying?” asked Riot, her smile crumbling.

“I’m saying you guys go do what you think you have to do,” said Morgie. “I love you guys for wanting to do this, but it’s the wrong call. There’s a town here, sure, but the whole American Nation is back east. So, you do what you got to do, but I’m going to Asheville.”

With that he turned and walked away, vanishing into the mist. They stood staring in disbelief. Riot took a couple of quick steps after him, stopped, looked back, and seemed caught between two terrible choices.

“It’s okay,” said Chong. “Go with him.”

She lingered a moment longer. “I . . .”

That was all she said, and then she whirled and, light as a dancer, melted into the mist. After a long, silent minute they heard the sounds of two quads roaring to life. They turned to follow the noise as the machines moved away and slowly, slowly faded to silence.

“Oh my God,” murmured Nix.

Lilah grabbed Chong, spun him toward her, and kissed him very hard on the lips, then shook him hard enough to rattle his teeth. “You’re not allowed to die,” she snarled. “Now or ever. If you get killed, so help me I’ll . . . I’ll wait for you to reanimate and then I’ll beat you to death.”

She shoved him back and stalked toward the quads. Nix ran to catch up.

Chong stared after Lilah in total confusion. Benny clapped his friend hard on the shoulder.

“That was pure poetry,” he said. “Ought to make a love song out of it.”

They walked over to catch up with the girls. Two minutes later the four quads burst out of the misty forest and turned northeast, following a dead man’s directions to a doomed town.

Interlude Seven