2283, age 15
"You're insane," Winlock shouted, throwing the mascot head aside.
"We had a deal, Winlock," Bosco laughed maniacally, loading his gun. "You're supposed to leave us the fuck alone-"
"And your part of the deal was to keep a steady load of supplies coming our way. But greed takes over sometimes, I get it." Winlock snarled, stepping closer.
Bosco aimed his gun at Winlock's forehead. Winlock shot his gun, hitting Bosco in the chest. He dropped to his knees, pushing his hands to his chest to stop the bleeding.
"Dad!" I yelled, trying to run out. Nico held me back. "Nico, let me go!"
"Sara, you'll do something stupid if I let you go-"
"He just shot our fucking father!"
Nico wouldn't let me go. I looked up. Winlock was standing in front of my father, his arms crossed as he gave my dad a look filled with pity. "You aren't so tough now, are you, Bossy?" He said, kneeling in front of him. With a shaky hand, my dad put his gun to Winlock's forehead.
"Go ahead. What are you waiting for? Shoot me." Winlock threw his gun aside. He spread his arms out. "You won't do it."
A gun went off. I flinched. When I opened my eyes, it took a second for me to recognize the sight in front of me.
When I did, I screamed.
There was my dad, dead on the floor with blood pouring from his head and his stomach.
My vision was blurred from tears, but I still looked around to see where the shot had come from.
I saw a boy, no older than 18, still looking through the scope of his sniper. He sat up and pushed his green hat up so it wasn't covering his eyes anymore.
Nico let me go, dropping to his knees in shock.
I stood up and started running towards the boy. "You son of a-" One of the gunners put an arm around my neck, covering my mouth. I put up a fight and ended up getting away after placing a lucky punch on the guy's jaw.
I looked around desperately at the chaos unfolding around me. The people I grew up with, my family, all laying dead on the floor or being shot. Some were being chained up, either willingly or unwilling.
"Clear em out," Winlock yelled to his gunners. "The strong ones are coming with us. The weak ones-" he made a gesture towards his gun.
As another gunner started towards me, I heard Nico's voice. "Run!"
I looked towards him, and he was looking right at me from the grip of a gunner. "Run."
I didn't hesitate. I dodged the gunner, jumped out one of the windows, and didn't look back.
~~~~~~~~~~
2287, age 19, The Third Rail, Goodneighbor
"Hey, look who it is," I said, approaching the bar. "The best bartender in the Commonwealth. How's it hanging, Charlie?"
"Ah, the only Raider I ever tolerated. Howzit been for ya out there, love?"
"The world's an unforgiving place sometimes, that's for sure." I picked at the sleeve of my sweater. "Can you get me a Nuka Cherry?"
He handed one to me. "On the house," he said. I nodded in thanks and sat at a nearby table. I took a sip of the sweet liquid, almost instantly feeling better.
I heard a commotion from the VIP lounge. Curious, I cautiously walked down the hallway.
"I was wondering how long it would take your bloodhounds to track me down. It's been almost three months... don't tell me you're getting rusty." I heard a man speaking in a sarcastic tone, before it became more menacing. "Should we take this outside?"
Another man responded snarkily, a hint of anger in his tone. "I'm just here to deliver a message."
I recognized that voice. My heart started beating faster. I edged my way to the corner of the entryway, getting a clear view of two large men standing over another one, much smaller than them, who was in the process of standing up from a chair.
The smaller man crossed his arms, shooting the other two a firm look. "In case you forgot, I left the gunners for good."
"Yeah, we heard. But you're still taking jobs in the Commonwealth." He snarled hatefully, "That isn't gonna fly with us."
"I don't take orders from you anymore. Go ahead and take your girlfriend, leave while you still can."
The man that hadn't said anything yet spoke up. "Are you fuc- Winlock, tell me we don't have to listen to this shit."
Winlock. I exhaled deeply as he spoke in a sinister tone. "Listen up, MacCready." He paused, taking a small step forward. "The only reason we haven't filled your body with bullets yet is because we don't want a war with Goodneighbor. See, we respect other people's boundaries; something you haven't learned."
The smaller man, MacCready, smirked. "Glad to have disappointed you."
Winlock laughed deeply, not in a funny way. "You can play the tough guy all you want. But, if we hear you're still up and running in gunner territory, don't even think for a second you'll take another breath. Got that?"
MacCready scoffed. "You finished?"
"Yeah, we're finished. Come on, Barnes."
Winlock and Barnes started making their way towards the exit, and Winlock walks right into me. I was a lot more surprised than I should have been, considering that he was at least a foot taller than me and probably didn't see me. The impact pushes me into the wall, and he looks down at me.
"Watch it." He growled. Then recognition flashed in his eyes. "Hey, I know you."
I ducked my head, avoiding eye contact. "I don't think you do-"
"No, I think I do." He grabbed my wrist aggressively, his grip so tight it hurt. "You're Bosco's kid. You should be dead."
I inhaled sharply at the mention of my father. "With all due respect, Winlock. Fuck. Off. "
He raised an eyebrow in a 'you really want to get on my bad side?' style, and tightened his grip on my arm. If I'm being honest, I thought my wrist was going to break.
"You want to test me, bitch?" He said, glaring daggers at me. He skillfully pulled a blade from from his pocket and flipped it open, holding it to my neck. "Like I said, you should've been dead already. One wrong move..." He used the knife to air-trace a slit across his throat. After a few exaggerated seconds, he forcefully let go of my arm, throwing me into the wall again. I watched him as he and Barnes sauntered up the stairs. When I faintly heard the door slam shut, I breathed a sigh of relief.
I finally walked into the VIP zone, where MacCready was sitting on a small lounge chair in the corner, nursing a beer. I hummed, sitting on the couch across from him and taking a sip from my once full Cola. He looked up at me and raised an eyebrow, then sighed.
"Look, lady, I really hope you didn't come here to preach about Atom, or look for a friend, or something, because this isn't the place. But, if you're looking for a hired gun..." He looked me up and down, scoffing at my disheveled appearance.
I rolled my eyes. "Name your price."
"250 caps, up front. No negotiating."
"Fuck it, what have I got to lose?" I started weighing some caps in a bag.
"The caps," he mumbled jokingly. I heard him and chuckled, to which he grinned for a split second. "So, how do I know I'm not gonna end up with a bullet in my back?"
I hesitated, mulling over my words. "You don't. That's part of the risk, right?"
He smirked. "I guess so."
I weighed out the 250 and handed it to him. He weighed it for good measure, then put it in his pocket.
"What's your name, anyway?"
"Sara." I stuck out my hand. "Sara Benn."
"Alright, Sara Benn." He shook my hand. "Or, Boss. Let's head out."
