Page 3 of Marked for Execution

He rubbed his face and threaded back his hair with his fingers. A feminine groan floated out through the curtain, and I raised my eyebrow. He smirked and put his hand behind his head, shrugging.

“Look, you should know this by now.” His dick rose halfway when the next feminine moan came out, making him turn his head over his shoulder.

I punched him in the arm to get his attention back. “Asshole. Tell your pussy to leave. Get ready; we head out in a few. I don’t trust this new fucker. Too young, too stupid, and I ain’t dying today.”

Samuel’s face sobered as he crossed his arms over his chest. “Fuck. Why are they letting the newbies go out? Didn’t we just save them from themselves?”

“I don’t know, and I honestly don’t care. I’m sure it has something to do with making everyone feel ‘welcomed’. I just want to come back alive, you feel me?” In a world gone to shit, we had to watch out for ourselves.

“Yeah, I feel you.” Samuel turned around and yelled out, “Hannah! Get your ass out of here. I need to leave.”

“You asshole!”

He smirked and tilted his head in acknowledgment before heading back inside. The sound of arguments became louder and louder, but I refused to stand and listen. Samuel and his girl went through this every time he had to leave. I honestly thought it was her way of showing him she was afraid he wouldn’t return.

He should be grateful someone wanted his ass to come back at all.

I left his porch and looked over the sea of heads that had accumulated during my short talk with Samuel. I walked past the next few homes, keeping my eyes out for my usual crew. We always scavenged together, and we always came back fruitful. Every time we tried different groupings, the men always came back complaining about someone fucking up the mission, or someone didn’t come back at all.

A dark, familiar head crossed my line of sight. I put out a whistle over the growing crowd around the center of the town, and Reed’s head, over a block down, turned to whistle back.

“We got a group heading out?” he hollered over everyone, making a few turn and scowl.

“Yeah, go find Gunner, and tell him to meet me behind the market.”

We used to have one more to our crew, Khalil, but he was a lone wolf, and couldn’t handle the rapid growth this place brought. That scary fucker was a force to be reckoned with, but his nightmares always got the better of him. A past he never spoke about. I hope wherever he ended up, he was still surviving. We needed more men like him in this place.

Reed threw a thumbs up in acknowledgement and I turned to leave the center neighborhood streets. I trudged back toward my own residence on the outskirts of town, closer to the wall. I could only handle socializing for so long.

A few paces away from my house, I heard her voice.

“Hi, Eliseo.” Mrs. Reyes from three doors down walked toward me, trying to flag me down the way she usually does when I’m outside of my home–one of the many reasons why I don’t hang around here much.

I waved and continued through my front door without looking back. These women and their false sense of security behind the community walls. Didn’t they know that life was not promised to anyone? She could take her plate of alternative cookies to someone else.

Locking the door behind me, I turned to look for my weapons. We were able to collect a lot on our last run, increasing the bullet supply. Grabbing the shotgun and pistol, I checked everything else in the house to make sure nothing was out of place.

Sure, it was nice to be within a walled community. That didn’t stop thieves from being who they were. I would know; I’d thieved plenty in my time.

I strapped up and went around to secure the house. I lived alone here for the past few years; left the previous encampment behind with bad memories of a past I wished to forget.

I could still see her face, coated with blood and fear as I watched her choke and gurgle until her dying breath. I should have never left on the hunt that day.

I walked out my front door and looked left and right to make sure Mrs. Reyes wasn’t waiting for me out here. I appreciated the good neighbor sentiment, but damn, there were things to be done and I didn’t have time for stupid little trysts with women who would only end up clinging to a man like me—a man with no commitment to offer.

I locked the door behind me and quickly made my way towards the main building on the other side. We—the usuals who gathered for these outings—usually liked to strategize and split into groups before we leave the premises. That way we have a plan of attack in a timely manner, keeping our numbers up when we make it back.

“Fucker, hold up!” Samuel’s voice floated behind me, making me stop in my tracks.

I turned and saw he was finally dressed in cargo pants and a henley that had seen better days. At least his dick wasn’t swinging about.

“Where’s Hannah?” I asked.

“Pfft. Off somewhere cursing my name, I’m sure. Don’t worry about her. She’ll be fine. She knows I’ll come back.”

He’d always been a cocky fucker. Let’s hope his good luck streak doesn’t run out any time soon.

“Oi!” Another familiar voice came towards us. We both turned to find Reed walking beside Gunner who was fully strapped with a crossbow and bolts.