Poverty Hill
Copyright© 2026 by Asa Strong
Chapter 30
The only good thing about the situation we were in, were that the morning sun wouldn’t be in our eyes. The hill we were on were close enough to the mountain to the east, that by the time the sun peeked over the top, it were gonna be high enough in the sky to be outta our eyes.
During the night, we’d figured out that there were four men attackin’ us. They had managed to work themselves into concealed positions and now had us surrounded on four sides.
“How much ammo you got for the 30-30?” I asked Lisa.
She stuck her hand in her pocket, and then answered, “About six, or so.”
I nodded and then handed her my MP7.
“Take this, I’ll use my rifle.”
I paused for a minute, and then said. “If’n you run out of ammo, and have to use you’re pistol, let ‘em get in close before you shoot.”
She nodded her head and took my MP7.
I moved back across the top of the hill. Lisa were watchin’ the north and east sides of the hill, and I were tryin’ to keep an eye out on the south and west sides.
There weren’t much we could do but wait. The time dragged on; each minute seemed like an hour. Finally, at midmornin’, I heard Lisa’s MP7 cough. I couldn’t see what she were shootin’ at, so I kept my focus on my side of the hill.
Then the two men on my side of the hill started shootin’. One would fire, while the other would advance. I managed to get a couple of shots off, but didn’t hit either of them. I could hear shootin’ from Lisa’s side of the hill.
Things were lookin’ mighty grim.
I turned around and hollered, “Lisa, what’s a goin’ on over there?”
I turned around to keep my eye on the two men advancin’ on my side. I heard her reply, “They’re moving up. I can’t keep them back!”
For the next fifteen minutes, the shooters played fire and move. They must have been doin’ the same on Lisa’s side of the hill. I heard the MP7 cough a couple more times, and then the flat echo of her 30-30. She must have expended all her ammo for the automatic.
I figured that they would work their way closer, usin’ the snowdrifts to hide behind. Eventually, they would work themselves into a position where they had a clean shot at us. It would all be over at that point, and it didn’t look like there were no way to stop them.
I were reloadin’ my rife, with the last of my ammo, when I heard automatic rifle fire commin’ from the edge of the woods. The guy to the south of me broke outta his cover and started runnin’ for the woods, further down the clearin’. Automatic rifle fire echoed through the clearin’. He made it about fifteen feet before he went down.
I couldn’t see the guy to the north of me, but there were no shortage of puffs of snow bein’ thrown up from the fire comin’ from the woods. They must a hit him, as they quit firin’.
I turned around to look at were Lisa were at, she were hunkered down, and you could hear the automatic rifles barkin’ from her side of the hill. Soon, all of the gunfire stopped and an eerie silence descended upon the clearin’.
I worked my way over to where Lisa were at, peeked my head over the small rise in the hill. I seen nothin’!
“What’s going on Amos?” Lisa asked.
I looked at her, and answered, “I don’t have a clue.”
We waited on top of the hill, waitin’ to see what were comin’ next. This didn’t make no sense. If’n the shooters in the woods were friendly, how come they didn’t show themselves?
We sat and waited. There weren’t much else we could do.
“Amos, someone’s coming!” Lisa shouted.
I moved over to her side of the hill, and seen a snowmobile with a single person headin’ towards us.
Lisa pulled her rifle up and were about to take aim. I pushed it down, “Hold on Lisa, let’s see what happens.”
The snowmobile pulled up to the bottom of the hill; the guy a ridin’ it, shut the motor off. He then reached into his snowsuit, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, pulled one out and replaced the pack inside his snowsuit jacket, then pulled out a lighter and lit the cigarette.
After he lit the cigarette, he stood up, turned around in a circle with his hands in the air, and then sat down on the snowmobile. It were obvious, he were showin’ us he weren’t armed.
I sat my rifle next to Lisa and started to get up.
“Amos, what do you think you’re doing!” Lisa barked out.
I paused after I stood up, looked down at her, and said, “Well, it looks like this guy went to a lot of trouble to meet us, might as well see what he has to say.”
Lisa started to say somethin’ else, but I cut her off. “Lisa, I don’t think he’s gonna try anythin’ stupid. If’n he wanted us dead he wouldn’t be a standin’ out there all by hisself in the open. Just keep an eye on him; OK?”
She nodded her head and I turned around and walked down the hill.
The guy on the snowmobile watched me walk down the hill. Except for takin’ a drag on his cigarette, he didn’t move.
When I got close, he smiled, held up the cigarette in his hand, and then said, “A cigarette Mr. Chipin?”
“No thank yah, don’t use the thin’s myself.”
He nodded, took another puff, and then flipped the cigarette into the snow.
He looked back at me and said, “You’ve been a nuisance, Mr. Chipin. Your actions have caused quite a rift in my family.”
I was somewhat puzzled. The man was obviously Latino, but his English were perfect, with only a hint of accent.
I answered, “Is that so? Since I don’t know your family, it’s kind of hard for me to understand your position.”
He laughed, shook his head, and then said, “Ahh, well it seems you caused Mr. Ascentia to forget what business he was in.”
He shook his head again, and then pointed to the east, where I could see a body layin’ in the snow.
“Unfortunately for him, he doesn’t have to worry about it any longer.”
I nodded my head, and then said, “And just who is your family, and who do I have the pleasure of talkin’ with?”
He laughed again, “You ask too many questions, Mr. Chipin. But, you can call me Joe. It’s a name I use from time to time.”
“OK Joe, where do we go from here?”
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