The Game

Hey everybody!! Sorry about the delay...midterms, writer's block, the flu and other assortrd BS has caused problems for me. Enjoy!!
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The following morning dawned with me, in my closet. I opened the gun cabinet and pulled out a steel lock box. I quickly left the closet and moved straight to my car. I put the box in the trunk and closed it with a satisfying thump. I went back into the house and pulled out my brother’s old military uniforms. I checked to make sure all the insignias and patches had been pulled off, folded them and tucked everything into a duffel bag on the coffee table. I went into the kitchen and poured my fourth cup of coffee. I was wired and ready for the day.

Col rang the bell right at seven o’clock. I had him grab the basket of food from the dining table, while I grabbed the duffel bag. He glanced at it curiously but didn’t say anything. We carried our respective burdens to my car and climbed in. I pulled a blindfold over Col’s eyes and tied it securely.

“No peeking…my game, my rules. The penalty for cheating will be a bare-assed spanking with a wooden paddle,” I said jokingly. He laughed and nodded as he got into the spirit of the game. I started the engine and pulled out of the driveway.

I made several loops through the city so he wouldn’t be able to figure out that we were headed for the hills. Ken’s parents died and left him twenty-five acres of undeveloped land. As kids, Ken and I had spent countless summers, playing with our friends, out in the hills. There were shallow ravines and hollows that meandered in between the trees. Ken’s dad had refused to cut any trees down, so I imagined the greenery to be pretty substantial. Ken assured me that he went out regularly to cut trails for the hunters who leased the property during deer season. There would be new prey to stalk before I was done.

We quickly arrived on the property and I stopped the car. Col turned his head in my direction as I started to speak; “Okay, we’re here. You stay in the car while I get everything set up. Remember, don’t spoil the surprise.” I grabbed the duffel bag from the backseat and headed for the shed. I moved the beat-up wood panel by the door to get the key. I opened the shed and did a quickie inventory: several rifles, paint ball ammo, rope and an old roll of red electrical tape. I smiled at the memory of what we used to do with the tape; we'd spent months playing guerrilla snipers and we used the tape to tag the ‘killed in action’. I hurriedly picked up the items I needed, left the shed and locked it behind me.

I walked back to the trunk of my car and removed the lock box. I flipped through my key ring until I found the right one. I unlocked the box to reveal my pride and joy: a custom-made paint ball pistol. It was small, lightweight and designed to exert a decent amount of force for the projectiles. I had only used this in target shooting but this day would be very special. I emptied the box of all the ammo I had stored in there and put everything into the bag at my feet. After, I closed the trunk, I moved to an area circled by trees. In the old days, the center of the ring was designated as neutral territory-no killing allowed.

I opened the duffel and pulled out a rifle, some ammo and one set of uniforms. I changed into a set of my own and loaded myself down with my pistol, ammo and the rope I had found in the shed. Finally, everything was ready. I went back to the car and opened the passenger side door. I took Col’s hand in mine and carefully led him to the center of the circle. I turned him to face me and had to stop him from removing the blindfold.

“Okay, here are the rules. You keep the blindfold on until you count fifty…no cheating. When you get to fifty, take off your blindfold. You’re smart so I think you can figure out what happens next.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, confused. “What are you up to?”

“Remember…my game, my rules. Start counting.” I told him and ran off.

I climbed a tree that gave me a clear view of Col’s position. I loaded up my pistol and ran the layout of the property in my head. There were a couple of places that were ideal for ambushing him but I wanted more. He had to be off his game so much, he would make that fatal mistake and his ass would be at my mercy. I hated losing and payback would be an absolute bitch. I muttered under my breath; “Forty-eight…forty-nine…and fifty.” I watched as Col removed the blindfold and took in his surroundings. The smile that had begun to form faltered as he looked for me. Then, he saw the equipment on the ground. I called out, “What’s the matter? Are you afraid of a challenge?” I watched as he spun around and tried to locate where I was.

“The name of the game is ‘Sniper’. First person who gets caught is at the other’s mercy. Like you always say, baby, anything goes.” He shook his head and bent to retrieve the uniform from the ground. I dropped from the tree as he started to get dressed. I figured that he would move to the path that led directly away from the car.

I moved as quickly and quietly as possible. Ken must have been out recently; a lot of our old, hidden trails had been cleared. Only he and I knew about those trails. I wondered if Ken had some idea of my plans for the day. I would have to thank him with a story, maybe. I ran across something unusual for the terrain: camo paint. I loved that guy…he knew me so well. I applied as much as I could without slowing my pace.

Very soon, I came upon a shallow, leaf-filled ravine. Col would be running past at any moment. I jumped down, lay on the ground and covered myself with leaves. Only my eyes remained exposed. I heard heavy breathing and swearing coming in my direction. Someone sounded pissed off…oh well. Soon, he came stalking by; “What the hell is she thinking? I can’t lose…she has got to learn her place: at my side or beneath me.” He paused by the ravine and caught his breath. I held as still as possible and barely breathed. I thought to myself; I’m beneath him all right. I watched as he turned to survey his surroundings. He moved north along the trail. When I estimated him to be roughly one hundred yards away, I slowly sat up and aimed for his ass. I carefully squeezed off four rapid shoots: bull’s-eye! I dove back under the leaves before he could see me. “Where the fuck are you?” I heard him yell as I slithered on my belly to move out. “This isn’t funny any more!”

I quietly moved away from where I had hidden. He sounded shook up and off his game a little. Soon, very soon, I would put him out of his misery and in his place. I spent the better part of the day moving across the property and took as many cheap shots as possible. I climbed trees, hid under leaves and even covered myself with mud by hiding next to a log in a puddle. I also wondered about how much Ken figured out of my misadventures. I found beef jerky, trail mix and bottles of water along paths only he and I knew about. Needless to say, I wasn't too surprised when I came upon a two-way radio with a note attached to it: ‘Go to channel thirteen and use you call sign.’ What the hell? This wasn’t part of my plans.

I switched the radio on and spoke, “This is Leopard Queen…who’s got my twenty?” A familiar voice drawled over the speaker…Ken!

“This is Wolf Boy…what kept you? Over.”

“Wolf Boy! What the hell are you doing out here? Over.”

“Leopard Queen…you looked strange the day I saw you at the library. I did some checking at the Nut House and all the squirrels kept talking about was you and some guy. You’re freaking them out…I was instructed to pass that message along. Anywho, I put two and two together and came up with trouble. I’ve been watching you for a while now. Nice to see you haven’t lost your touch for drama. By the way, your tits and ass look fabulous. I had to sneak a peek when you cleaned off the mud, over.”

“Thanks, you jerk. It’s also nice to know the squirrels can’t keep their traps shut. Are you currently at lookout point Xeno? Over.”

“Roger that…get your ass up the tree. He’s on your six and moving in fast.” I moved quickly and complied. Col passed by me with no clue I was just a couple of feet above his head. That was almost too close.

“Wolf Boy…what do you need to know? Over.”

“Nothing yet, Leopard Queen; you can tell me when you’re ready to confess your sins. It will be interesting to hear. What bee do you have in your bonnet? Over.”

“Check out Dead Man’s Curve. I need to find the quickest way there without being seen. Over.”

“Shit, Leopard Queen. You know the answer to that without my help. Go through Suicide Point and up A-hole’s Gulch…duh, over.”

“I’m aware of the route, jackass. I need your Wolf’s eyes to go Eagle, over.”

“Roger that…eye is in the sky. Be ready to move to you next location in three…two…one. Move out; I’ll keep an eye on Target Turkey, over.”

“Hey, didn’t we call one of your bros by that handle? I remember him saying he’d rather be called Bubba than Target Turkey. Do you remember why we did that, over?”

“Get focused, Leopard Queen. We can rehash memories when you aren’t waist-deep in crap of your own making. Wait, hold your position…he’s coming back.” I shook my head; Ken was always there for me, even if I never said a word to him about my problems. I watched as Col moved away from my position once again. “Go ahead…he just cleared the rise.” I dropped from the tree after I slid the radio in the huge cargo pocket of my pants.

I started to run to the northeast, towards Suicide Point. It was just a pile of rocks to the casual observer but we christened it Suicide Point because many lives were ‘lost’ rather than surrendered. A-hole’s Gulch was a narrow ravine that always got backed up and jammed with people; it was easy to fire a couple of shots and get the blockage moving again. I moved through the area rapidly and entered the potential dead zone. Dead Man’s Curve was best known for last stands. The path came around a blind curve that ended against a small cliff surrounded by trees. It was here that I chose to lay my trap.

I scrambled up a tree at the base of the cliff. In the widest crotch among the branches, I stopped and pulled out the rope. I started to form loops and knots to make a decent snare. When I was younger, I hung out with a bunch of Scouts and the guys taught me a lot of things before the powers that be figured out I was a girl. Oh well, c’est la vie.

I tossed one end over a sturdy branch and dropped the loop end to the ground. Fortunately, the tree I had chosen had cover almost to the bottom. I jumped out of the tree and covered the loop with dirt and leaves to hide it from view. I climbed back up into the tree and pulled out the radio. I keyed the mike; “Wolf Boy…what is the current location of my target, over?”

“He’s sitting under the tree you abandoned a little bit ago. Boy, does he look pissed! Over.”

“Yeah, copy that. Brace yourself…here comes the war cry.” I took a deep breath and shrieked a warbling yodel that had to have carried over to the next county. I had been told that my war cry caused dogs to howl and made eardrums bleed.

“Damn woman…you still send chills down my spine with that cry. It always meant that someone had just bought the farm. Hang on…looks like you got his attention. He’s moving towards Suicide Point.”

“I copy…Suicide Point. When the sparks start to fly, you need to bail. I want no witnesses to the slaughter.” I paused and waited for a reply. “Did you copy that last transmission?”

“No fair! This was just starting to get interesting too. Promise to share the details and I’ll bail. He’s past Suicide Point and enroute to A-hole’s Gulch, over.”

“Sugar…if you have to ask, then you’ve forgotten what kind of person I am. Remember, I don’t repeat gossip so be sure to listen the first time. Position?”

”He’s stopped…do the cry again.” I shouted out once more. “Target is moving in your direction. Damn, now I have goose bumps. You’ll flat out kill me if you do that one more time. I would hate to be in his shoes, over.”

“Now you know why we never hooked-up…one of us would have died from all of the drama.”

“He’s through the Gulch and on approach for Dead Man’s Curve. Get ready…almost there.”

I peered through the branches for a visual confirmation of his arrival. Moments later, Col appeared around the bend, a lot worse for wear. His face was red and his uniform bore witness to my sneak attacks; he was splattered with paint. He moved closer to the tree I was hiding in and then stopped when he noticed the cliff. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?” I called tauntingly.

He moved closer to the tree, stood in the loop unknowingly and looked up. I grabbed my end of the rope and leapt from my position. The loop tightened around his ankle and he was jerked upside-down. I smiled in passing as I went down. I landed in a crouched position and jerked the rifle out of his hands. It wasn’t even loaded…idiot. I ran the rope around the tree and tied it off. He wasn’t going anywhere. I grabbed the radio and keyed the mike once more. “Wolf Boy, this is Leopard Queen. Mission accomplished…get the hell out of here. I better not catch you, understood? Over.”

“Mean old bitch…” I heard him sigh. “Understood…just be sure to hold up your end of the deal.”

Col stared at me as the blood rushed to his head, “You had someone watching this whole time?” I glanced at him from over my shoulder and smiled evilly.

“Something about my personality stirs a protective streak in those who care about me; especially when they think I’m being threatened. To be perfectly honest with you, I had no idea Wolf Boy was even out here until I noticed help along the way.”

“Okay; fine. Fun is fun but I’m fed the fuck up with this bullshit. Now, get me down from here!” he shouted. I pouted as I shook my head.

“No…I’m not done with you yet.” I laughed at the look of shock on his face. I pulled a short length of rope out of my pocket and tied his hands together behind his back.

“Don’t go anywhere…I’ll be right back.” I said as I headed on the path back to the car.
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A/N-This was not meant to be a cliffie!!! This chapter turned into a monster and I had to cut apart. Please forgive...I try not to do that which I despise.