Chapter 58

Present – Ben – At the bunker

I finish the chili, let out a loud burp and compliment the chef, "That was damn tasty, I guess I'll keep you." Then I look around the room and add, "But that damn monkey of yours is a dead sucker if I see him again. Now I need to take a couple of these cut shotgun shells out and see if they work. You wanna come along?"

Present – Stacy – At the bunker

Yes Ben is actually asking me to watch him and these weird shotgun shells (I half worry he's going to blow himself up with them!). I look around the room and answer, "Ben I would love to, but I think I need to clean up the mess in this room."

He waves his hand and says, "You can do that later. Right now I want you to come because you might need to fire one of these in defense. Tactical training is more important than cleaning."

Yippee skippy! Tactical training! I have a real need for tactical training (and his name is Guy). However I control my excitement and say, "Well first I at least need to put these dishes to soak in a sink."

I grab everything, head toward the kitchen and almost drop it all when Ben comments, "Stacy you're going to make someone a hell of a wife."

I turn toward him and reply, "Thank you Ben. That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me." Then I turn and head to the kitchen with the biggest smile on my face – 'someone' hell! I'm going to make Ben the best damn wife in the world – he just doesn't know it – yet!

Present – Ben – At the bunker

I can't believe what I just said! What the hell is wrong with me? And why the hell would I ever say that to Stacy because she's just like one of the guys to me! Yeah, that's the problem: She is like one of the guys and we used to say that as a joke to each other all the time. However I don't think she took it as a joke. Somehow I need to find a way to tell her she's just one of the guys to me and after my major mistake it's going to be harder than ever.

But I know what to do for right now. I grab the cut shells and the double barrel shotgun, head into the kitchen and yell, "Stacy, where are your damn weapons!"

She jumps up about three feet, drops the bowls which shatter, then she turns to me and spits...

Present – Stacy – At the bunker

Ben almost scares the crap out of me after being so nice to me. I do make an even bigger mess that I know he will make me clean up so I turn towards him and yell, "You're damn lucky I don't have them right now or I'd shoot your ass."

I can tell right away that was precisely the worst thing to say as Ben's anger flares, "Stacy, don't you ever threaten to shoot me again or I will leave your sorry ass here to play with that damn monkey of yours. Weapons are not play toys! Now get your damn weapons and let's get outside."

Present – Ben – At the bunker

I smile to myself as I head through the stable door: Mission accomplished! Now Stacy is back in her place. I'm going to bring Bo with me because I figure if that damn monkey shows up Bo might just be able to help me kick his ass! That damn monkey! I never did care for him. He's more annoying than the horses – shit he's even more annoying that Stacy.

I chuckle at the thought as I enter the stables. Bo runs over to greet me and I decide that he's not so annoying after all, he's sort of like a big dog. I scratch him behind the ears and say, "We're headed outside to test these shotgun shells and while were out there I want you to keep a lookout for the gorilla. If he shows up we're going to test them on him."

Bo nickers and nods his head. I really wonder if he can understand me or if this is his normal reaction when I talk to him.

I open the stable door then I head outside with Bo. We hear Patches whinny so Bo takes off back inside and leaves me alone. I begin to set up the targets against a berm...

Present – Stacy – At the bunker

Ben is the most damn infuriating man I've ever met! I know what it is. Up until now I've been able to use my feminine wiles to manipulate a man. And if that didn't work, there was always my body which never failed – until now! But Ben's impervious to all my plans, so much so sometimes I wonder if he's a eunuch or a monk! No, I remember the night we both got drunk, I could feel how excited he was with me so he is definitely not a eunuch – but what is it with him?

I dismiss the thought for now, start to gear up and realize Ben was once again correct. I should have had my weapons with me. I do a function check on my pistol, take an old looking black rifle from the rack, perform a function check on it and head out through the empty stables, making sure to lock the doors as I leave. I don't have to hunt for Ben because I hear a big boom and see him and both horses are over beside the hill. He's firing at some targets. I announce, "Ben I'm coming toward you."

He turns, looks at me, smiles and my heart almost melts. He replies, "Stacy, thanks for announcing yourself, you're learning. You're also just in time to see how these work. Follow me."

I fall in beside him as we walk to the target and I see a bunch of tiny holes all over the target so I ask, "I thought these were supposed to be powerful."

Ben looks at me and starts his instruction, "I wanted to show you what a normal shotgun shell does. You can see at twenty-five yards how the shot pattern is dispersed across the target. While this is great if you're trying to kill something like a bird, if you're trying to kill a tiger all this would do is get him pissed off."

I falter and fearfully question, "What's this about a tiger?"

He replies...

Present – Ben – At the bunker

Shit! I messed up now and told Stacy of my concern. I look at her and explain, "Well, that's my best guess as to what killed Knacker. But, it also might have been a large bear. I couldn't find any tracks because the ground was too hard."

Her forehead wrinkles and she says, "Ben perhaps we should just stay in the bunker until all these animals are gone."