The Chosen Ones Book 4: A New Enemy

Chapter 19

That same day, after everyone crashed around five a.m, Matt woke up around ten. He made everyone breakfast as they slept. He had peeked into Phil's bedroom to find Shannon still sleeping on her side with Sierra in front of her and Casey spooning her.

Phil was sleeping on the chair in the corner of his room, waiting for Shannon to wake up. Tyler was the first one to come downstairs.
"Good morning." Matt said to him.
"Morning, Dad."
"Hey, take a walk with me. I want to check out my house now that it's daylight."
Tyler grabbed a couple pieces of bacon and followed Matt out the door.

It was a beautiful day so they decided to walk the trail. The truckster would make too much noise anyway. No sense drawing attention to his house where dozens of dead men were strewn all over the premises. It just showed the seclusion of their cabins and the small town. The amount of gunfire last night would have drawn the national guard anywhere else.

"You okay?" Matt asked him as they walked.
"I'm good."
"It's a lot, I know. We've all been through it. I'm glad you finally felt what it was like. This Gabriel guy, there could be more like him out there that you might run into one day. It might be next year, hell, maybe ten years from now. Point is, you can never get too comfortable." Matt explained.
"I understand." Tyler said.

"I don't know what I would've done if I lost Shannon." Matt admitted.
"If we were a few minutes later coming back she would have died. I might not have been able to bring her back."
"We were lucky. There were times in the past that we weren't." Matt told him. "Losing someone has always been the cost of winning."

They could see the cabin in the distance. Matt stopped and faced his son.
"Hey, uh, have I been a good father?" He asked, abruptly.
Tyler was taken off guard by the sudden question.
"Yeah dad. Where is this coming from?" He let out a laugh.
"I don't know. We never faced an enemy like this. I guess with Shannon's near death experience I started thinking. If anything happens to me, I wanted to make sure I've done right by you." Matt replied.

"Even with your flaws, I couldn't ask for a better father. I see how hard it's been, and must've been, even back when mom was killed. Phil and Shannon told me it was hard on you. I knew that couldn't have been easy. You and Casey are the reason I am who I am today. You worked hard and kept me safe. I love ya." He hugged him, a brief but meaningful hug. And with it, Matt breathed a sigh of relief. It's what he needed to hear, and what every dad WANTS to hear.

"Alright, c'mon." Tyler said. "Before this gets awkward."
Matt laughed with him and they finished their walk up to the cabin. It was a sight to see. Last night in the dark didn't do it justice. Bodies were everywhere, especially piled up by the front door. Phil and Shannon took out a couple dozen as they tried to get in, then Gavin and Sam took out the rest.

"Jesus Christ, look at this place." Tyler said.
"We gotta get these bodies out of here." Matt told him. "Can you take care of it? Put them in the lake out back."
"Yeah, but I can guarantee one day they won't resurface."
"Put some river rock on top of them, the lake's bank is filled with them." Matt mentioned.

He watched as Tyler made dozens of men float through the air and then under the water, just by moving his finger. He dropped hundreds of rocks from the lakeside bank on top of them, preventing them from floating back up, at least for now. If they ever did resurface Matt and the others will have been long gone.

Matt walked back into the house. He noticed Shannon's sword stuck in his wall. He couldn't imagine how it got there. He pried it free. She would want it back when she woke up.
Tyler finished up and came back in. A sudden noise from behind them made them both reach for their guns.

"Holy shit." Matt said, with no emotion. He stared down at the ugly old pug.
Tyler picked him up. The dog snorted its pig snort and licked his face.
"How'd he survive last night?" Tyler asked.
"I don't know." Matt replied. "You know who he looks like?"
"Who?"
"Star Wars, the little green guy...."

Tyler laughed. "I know who you're talking about, dad. And we're not calling him that."
They headed back to Phil's cabin. Matt really hoped Shannon was awake. When they got there everyone was eating the breakfast Matt had made, all except Shannon.

Sam got up and ran over to Tyler at the sight of the dog. "There he is!" She gushed. "I thought you were dead."
"Looks dead." Phil remarked. "Hey, what did you guys do over there?"
"Got rid of the bodies." Matt replied.
"How the hell did you do that?"
"Tyler buried them in the bottom of the lake." Matt told him.

"C'mon man, I fish in that lake." Phil said, disappointed.
Tyler and Gavin laughed.
"Food for the fish." Gavin said. "They did you a favor."
"I can't fish in there now." Phil said. "That's fucked up."
"You can, and you will." Casey said. "You have no shame."
Phil shrugged. "Yeah, you're probably right."

Sierra hugged Tyler.
"She okay?" He asked her, referring to Shannon.
"She's awake and out of bed. She's just not ready to come down." Si replied. She took his arm. "C'mon, let's sit out back. It's nice out." She led Tyler to the back deck.

Matt kissed Casey. "I'm gonna go see her."
"She was asking for you." She told him.
When he went upstairs and opened the bedroom door. Shannon was standing by the window staring out into the lake. When she turned and saw him she hurried over and hugged him tight.
"What took you so long?" She asked, as she started sobbing into his shoulder.
"I wanted to give you time." He replied.

"I don't need time. I need you to tell me everything is going to be okay." She replied.
"Didn't Casey and Sierra tell you that?"
"I need to hear it from you. It feels different when you say it." She told him.
"It will be." He said. "YOU will be."
"It's weird." Shannon said. "I know I'm healed, but I still feel everywhere that Gabriel hit me. I'm afraid to move."

"It'll take a little time." Matt explained. "But you're gonna be fine.
"I don't know if I am. I don't know if I can face him." She admitted.
"Hey, he wanted a fight, now we're going to bring the war. And you're going to lead the charge."
Matt expected Shannon to be vowing revenge when she woke, not her doubting herself. This was very unlike her. Matt realized he had underestimated the trauma Gabriel had caused her.

"You're the strongest person I know." He looked her in the eyes. "You can face him..... and you will."
She nodded, although unsure of herself.
"Hey, uh, there's something I need to tell you, about when we got the dagger."
"What is it?" She asked, sensing his uneasiness.
"When we opened Amy's casket, she looked like she did when she was alive. I mean, she looked alive, like she was just sleeping." He explained.

"How can that be, Matt? She's been dead for seventeen years."
"How can any of this be, Shan?" He replied. "None of this makes sense, does it? Tyler, our powers, I mean, why us?"
Shannon thought about it. "Because for whatever reason, we're special. Anyone that has a part in Tyler's life, his survival, is special." She said. "We're the Chosen Ones."
For whatever reason Shannon's explanation made sense, even if it didn't.

"Did you get the dagger?" She asked.
"We got it."
"Good." She said. "Now let's kill this motherfucker."
"That's more like it." Matt said, with a grin.