The Failed Coward (43 page)

Authors: Chris Philbrook

BOOK: The Failed Coward

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He sent me home with the three girls that I talked to that day I recon’d the school looking for vagina. He was also kind enough to stick a note in my holster with their names and basic description so I didn’t look like a fucking dolt. This guy will have claim to any kids I have at this rate.

The names of the girls are Siobhan, Sarah, and Jenna. They are all really thin, fairly pretty, and almost 100% forgettable. In my vicodin haze I found all of them lacking on some level. Not sure why. I mean, they’re all pleasant, but I’m not feeling like going out of my way to bang any of them. Don’t get me wrong, if one of them jumped on my cock I wouldn’t ask them to stop.

Actually I might, because that shit could hurt my chest right now. Most anything hurts my chest right now. Sigh. Even typing that hurt a little bit.

The fourth person I came home with was a younger guy named Chris. He’s tallish, pretty thick, a little nerdy, and his skin is loose. He looked almost deflated now. The girls were saying earlier he used to be HUGE, like, orca fat, and with this whole “end of the world” thing going on, he’s lost all the weight. Once they said that it made sense. He reminds me of the people from those weight loss shows that lose it too fast, and have saggy skin. It’s kind of funny as well, because he had glasses originally, had them broken, and now he can’t see for shit. He’s always squinting.

Saving grace: he’s damn funny, and strong as a motherfucker. Ollie was chummy with him back at the school, and the two of them paired off immediately today to work on the fences.

I guess the four folks are here for a few days. I think they said until tomorrow, which makes a few days. Yay vicodin. Not making much sense right now.

Taking a break. Yay naps.

-Adrian

April 29
^th(2
^ndentry)

A few hours of rest via nap does the brain wonders. I’ve managed to trade mental clarity for pain though. Vicodin wears off, and I can think clearly. But then the Vicodin wears off, and now I can’t see straight because every little thing I do feels horrible.

Protip: long movies are awesome when you can’t move for shit. I got myself up and moving a minute ago and put the first Lord of the Rings movie in. What’s that? Two and a half hours of hobbit-licious entertainment? Score. Up next: Blackhawk Down. (masturbatory high five)

That’s assuming I don’t pass out first, which at best is 50-50.

Where was I?

Right, the four folks are going back to Westfield tomorrow. Succinct eh? Clarity ftw.

Drama today though. Like a motherfucker. It was drama bukkake all over our faces. It was high school Friday dance right after the most popular cheerleader dumped the starting quarterback drama here. Not just because we are +4 chicks either, this drama has fuck all to do with our current estrogen levels. I know, weird right?

We were scheduled to meet Blake today, and obviously I wasn’t in any shape to go for the meet, so Patty and Gavin went in my stead. Actually Gilbert went as well. Maybe my clarity isn’t as hot as I thought. Afk, Advil.

Took me three minutes to move to the side of the bed, get four ibuprofen, take them, and then shimmy my way back to position to continue typing. I’m sweating like a Catholic Priest in a daycare. Twenty minutes and I’ll be good to go. Gilbert visited me earlier for more than an hour and filled me in on the trip to Blake’s. He wanted to make sure I heard it straight from the horse’s mouth.

I guess Blake has arranged the cars around Mike’s garage into a defensive pattern not unlike the one at the Westfield school. It’s serviceable as a defensive barrier according to Gilbert. Gilbert also said that Blake has obviously spent a lot of time working on the garage, and he was very skeptical that Blake has actually spent any time observing the farm as we’d asked him to do. That caused some friction, especially in light of his “report” on said farm.

According to Gilbert, Blake was “agitated” during their meeting earlier. Blake said that he’s seen the same kids that he originally saw back in the fall. Remember them? The parents apparently traded a daughter and son in to the people at the farm for food, or supplies or something? And we theorized that the farm was essentially trading for slave labor?

Well Blake says those kids reappeared the past couple days, and they’re working in the field outside. On the surface based on the information he has supplied, this seems like a fairly minor change in the details. We suspected the kids had been there all along, and confirming that fact doesn’t strike Gilbert or I as particularly game plan changing.

Apparently Blake feels otherwise.

Gilbert said he was agitated, and based on Gilbert’s account of what he said and how he acted, I think that description might be an understatement. Gilbert essentially said that Blake stopped just short of demanding that we take this more seriously. Blake wants us to start putting our own eyes on the farm day in and day out to see what’s happening first hand. Now, based on what he’s fed us for info so far, there isn’t anything out of the ordinary happening there.

Just like Gilbert pointed out when I was all hot and horny to take this place down back when we first learned about it, we haven’t heard or seen shit that tells us it’s necessary. So far the evidence says they have a fortified farm that’s well guarded, they’ve traded other people food and supplies, and they took in a pair of kids, and now those kids are working on the farm.

Where’s the drama? Why the urgency from Blake? Furthermore, if he had the time to find the keys to or hotwire all the cars around Mike’s Auto to get them set up, when the fuck was he observing the farm to see all this shit?

Doesn’t pass the sniff test for Gilbert or I. Fishy, plain and simple.

Patty (ever the diplomat) managed to appease him when they showed him all the stuff we got from the auto parts store. I guess he got all kinds of giddy, and immediately dropped the subject. Once they unloaded everything into the shop and he took inventory, he put in a new order for the remainder of the shop’s contents. I’m not sure whether he was kidding or he was serious about that. It doesn’t make much sense to risk another run to the store for parts we probably won’t need. We’re thinking he’s getting greedy.

It makes sense right? He’s getting all this stuff off of us, apparently isn’t doing all the work he should be doing to earn it, and we stock his entire garage (more or less) as easily as 1-2-3, and it seems like he’s not quite appreciating how much effort we’ve put in to get to where we are today.

Of course we’re not observing him 24/7 either, and we can’t make assumptions like this. There are too many variables in this equation, and I think I’ve said I suck hardcore at math. Need to me to analyze the trajectory of a 700 yard shot? I can figure that out in my head. Figure out all this interpersonal politics or graph a math problem?

Might as well ask me to cure cancer. It ain’t happening.

Something else that struck me as really weird was when Gilbert said that Blake and Gavin were shooting the shit like two old buddies. Last time they met it was awkward at best, hostile at worst. Two young rams butting heads or something like that.

It doesn’t sit well that things are suddenly all good between the two of them, although weirder shit has happened, and recently to boot. Maybe they realized that bygones are bygones, and friendship is superior to animosity.

I’ve got a bliver here for you Mr. Journal if you think that’s the case.

Our next meeting with him is on the 3
^rdof May, and I plan on being there to assess his ass firsthand. If he’s sketchy, I’m calling his ass out.

And for the record… this whole farm business creeps me out. I've got a bad feeling about it.

Sleepytime.

-Adrian

- About The Author -

C
HRIS
P
HILBROOK is the creator and author of
Adrian’s Undead Diary
as well as the popular webfiction series
Elmoryn
and
Tesser: A Dragon Among Us
.

Chris calls the wonderful state of New Hampshire his home. He is an avid reader, writer, role player, miniatures game player, video game player, and part time athlete, as well as a member of the Horror Writers Association. If you weren't impressed enough, he also works full time while writing for Elmoryn as well as the world of Adrian’s Undead Diary and his newest project, Tesser; A Dragon Among Us.

- Find More Online -

Visit
adriansundeaddiary.com
to access additional content. Learn more about Adrian’s world, contact the author, join discussions with other readers, view maps from the story, and receive the latest news about AUD.

Check out Chris Philbrook’s official website
thechrisphilbrook.com
to keep tabs on his many exciting projects, or follow Chris on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/ChrisPhilbrookAuthor
for special announcements.

Read more by author Chris Philbrook in
The Kinless Trilogy
. Explore Elmoryn, a world of dark fantasy where death is not the end. The story begins in
Book One: The Wrath of the Orphans
, available in print, Kindle, and online. Visit
elmoryn.com
to learn more about Elmoryn, view concept art, and much more.

Follow Chris Philbrook’s latest epic series as it unfolds in
Tesser: A Dragon Among Us
. Meet Tesser, the Dragon. He who walks in any form, and flies the skies free of fear. He has slept for millennia, but now he has awoken in a world ruled by human hands, where science has overshadowed even the glory of old magic. Follow Tesser as he seeks to understand why he slept for so long, and where all the magic has gone. Visit
adragonamongus.com
to learn more.

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