(1) When We Collide (T. Stark)

Chapter Six

The Benders are crowded around Dean, who is sitting in a chair, with his hands tied behind his back. He wakes up, groaning.

"Come on. Let us hunt him" Lee begs.

"Yeah, this one's a fighter. Sure would be fun to hunt" Jared agrees, Pa laughs.

"Oh, you gotta be kiddin' me. That's what this is about? You -- you yahoos hunt people?" Dean asks.

"You ever killed before?" Pa asks him.

"Wh--" Dean laughs. "Well, that depends on what you mean" he offers.

"I've hunted all my life. Just like my father, his before him. I've hunted deer and bear—I even got a cougar once. Oh boy. But the best hunt is human. Oh, there's nothin' like it. Holdin' their life in your hands. Seein' the fear in their eyes just before they go dark. Makes you feel powerful alive"

"You're a sick puppy" Dean tells Pa.

"We give 'em a weapon. Give 'em a fightin' chance. It's kind of like our tradition passed down, father to son. Of course, only one or two a year. Never enough to bring the law down, we never been that sloppy"

"Yeah, well, don't sell yourself short. You're plenty sloppy"

"So, what, you with that pretty cop?" Pa asks. Missy looks up at her brother with a smile. "Are you a cop?"

"If I tell you, you promise not to make me into an ashtray?" Dean asks. Pa looks angry. Lee walks over and punches Dean.

"Only reason I don't let my boys take you right here and now is that there's somethin' I need to know" Pa walks to the fireplace and takes a hot poker.

"Yeah, how 'bout it's not nice to marry your sister?" Dean tells him.

"Tell me—any of the cops gonna come lookin' for you?"

"Oh, eat me. No, no, no, wait, wait, wait—you actually might" Dean answers, Jared walks over to Dean and holds his head in place.

"You think this is funny? You brought this down on my family. Alright, you wanna play games? We'll play some games. Looks like we're gonna have a hunt tonight after all, boys" Pa tells his sons then turns to Dean. "And you get to pick the animal. The girl or the cop?"

"Okay, wait, wait—look, nobody's comin' for me, alright? It's just us" Dean tells them.

"You don't choose, I will" Pa places the hot poker on Dean's shirt. Dean screams in pain. Pa removes the poker.

"Ah, you son of a bitch!" Pa places the poker barely an inch from Dean's eye.

"Next time, I'll take an eye"

"Alright, the girl, the girl! Take the girl!" Dean answers. Jared lets go of Dean's head, and Pa moves the poker. He takes a key from around his neck and hands it to Lee.

"Lee, go do it. Don't let her out, though. Shoot her in the cage" Lee walks to the door.

"What? I thought you said you were gonna hunt her. You were gonna give her a chance" Dean argues.

"Lee, when you're done with the bitch—shoot the cop, too" Lee nods and leaves, with his rifle. "Better clean this mess up before any more cops come runnin' out here" Dean looks scared.

...............

Lee enters the barn and walks over to the control panel. He inserts the key and twists it.

"What are you doing?" Spencer asks as the door to her cage opens, Lee walks towards her. Spencer notices the bracket on the floor and grabs it. Lee opens the cage door and aims his gun at Spencer.