Ryan pulled her close for a hard kiss and took the longblaster. “Move fast. We lit their armory.”
“Dean, get the horses!” Mildred shouted.
Instantly, the boy bolted from the stand of bamboo and dashed into the darkness of the night.
“Horses? Scorch me, we might live to see daylight yet!” a sec man said, grinning widely.
J.B. tossed Mildred the scattergun. She caught the blaster and pumped the action to chamber a round. Watching the exchange, Colonel Mitchum was impressed that a lowly woman knew anything about blasters.
Just then there was a loud bang and a sec man fell to the ground, a jagged hole in his chest. In unison, the companions turned and fired down into the ville. A group of cannies armed with longblasters took cover in the smoking rubble, and started to reload.
Leading the way, Ryan sprinted along the path through the bamboo forest and found Dean slashing the ropes tethering the horses. Most of the animals were bareback but there was no time to find and cinch on saddles. Clumsily, the people climbed onto the placid animals and rode out the swinging gate. Once outside, they kicked the beasts hard and started to gallop away from the hidden ville at top speed.
The companions and the sec men had just cleared the patch of dry land and were splashing through the beginnings of the swamp when a flash of light lit up the sky. As wind buffeted man and horse, they watched as a column of fire and smoke formed a classic mushroom shape that reached for the stars.
“Mother of God,” Mildred said, watching the mushroom cloud expand over the shaking bamboo. “How much powder did you use?”
“Everything they had,” J.B. replied curtly.
Just then the ground tremors arrived, and the horses reared on their hind legs, screaming in terror. The riders fought to control their mounts.
“Watch for debris!” Ryan warned, even as the first of the wreckage started to plummet from the sky.
Charred heads splashed into the soggy landscape, along with bent blasters and unrecognizable things blackened by smoke and fire. Racing into the trees, the group waited until the grisly rain finally ceased. A reddish light swelled to fill the world, and they could see the bamboo forest was on fire, the flames illuminating the surrounding countryside for miles.
“Which direction to the ville?” Ryan asked, settling the Steyr into a more comfortable position across his back. He was dirty and tired, but they couldn’t make camp until far away from here. A few of the cannies might have survived and could come after them in a nightcreep. Best to get some distance for safety.
Gazing at the stars overhead, Ann turned in the saddle and pointed. “That way. North.”
“No, we should go east from here,” Colonel Mitchum corrected her. “Then north after passing the rad zones.”
Reining in his horse to keep it steady, Ryan studied the two people, debating their answers.
“How far?” he asked suddenly.
“A week on foot,” the girl answered after a hesitation.
“Day or so, on horseback,” Mitchum added. “Easy traveling, flat land, lots of freshwater.”
Moaning across the land, a warm wind blew over the group, rustling the leaves on the trees and carrying the smell of fiery death.
“East it is,” Ryan said, not believing a word said by either of them. Personally, he much preferred fighting cannies. At least you could see them coming.
Chapter Nine
The bedroom was lit only by candles, the flickering light playing across the waiting people. Dried flower petals mixed into the wax gave off a sweet perfume. The only door was shut tight and locked with a heavy wooden bar, and a cheery blaze burned in the predark fireplace, giving off soothing waves of warmth. The window shutters were closed, and the silence was broken only by the soft crackle of the burning logs in the fireplace.
Standing on a small rug in the middle of the room, a slim woman with long blond hair slowly unbuttoned her shirt and let it slide off her body. The cloth fluttered to the floor, and she ran delicate hands across her taut stomach, then upward to cup her heavy breasts. The pink nipples hardened immediately, and the tip of her tongue played along her sensuous lips. Tugging on her waistband, she released her skirt to join the shirt on the floor. She was shaved clean, ready for this special evening, and small tattoos adorned her pale skin, which only made her appear even more naked, if that were possible. A finger was missing from her left hand, and the brand of a slave was burned into the satiny skin of her shoulder.