The elder smiled at the look in Andrew’s eyes, he then gave him a map. Making him memorize the spot for meeting Conzie Monroe in a few days. He went home with a heavy heart, but with a flame of determination inside. He was going to do it, even if he must work with a cannibal maniac.

Before he opened the door to his house, he stepped back and went into a different direction. He went up the the door, and knocked. A man he knew well now opened the door, seeing his serious face he led him to the couch to sit.

“I need a gun, it’s for protecting my family.”

Willis nodded at it, he wasn’t against the idea or for it really. They only had a few guns, with some double barrel shotguns still being not used, he didn’t ask anything. Just going into his bedroom pulling a double barrel shotgun out, with a bag of gunpowder and metal balls for it.

“I will lend it to you, give it back in a few months.”
“Thank you, I’m sorry but can you teach me how to use it.”

Willis nodded seriously, he knew something else was up. It wasn’t to protect his wife, if it was he would have asked for a gun earlier not now after being married this long. Something was up, he knew it. Instead of digging deep, he just agreed to teach him outside the town. After leaving the town shooting a few shots, reloading it, cleaning it, learning how to stash it he was good.

“Get more ammo, those fifty shots won’t be enough.”
“Okay.”

He didn’t think he would use it more than fifty times, Willis was serious though. So he went to the military armory buying four hundred shots worth, better to listen to a war vet than nothing he was thinking. He returned home with the double barrel shotgun, in a sack in one arm and a sack of ammo in the other.

“Honey….”

His wife saw him put the gun on the table while he began working on cleaning it, Silvia was worried deeply. Her husband left in the morning came back almost late at night with a dead serious face, with a double barrel shotgun and a big sack of ammo. He stopped working when he heard her, and smiled at her.

“Don’t worry, soon the bad men will go away for good. Just wait at home for me, I’ll be fine.”

She remained silent, he saw her face looking down with her fist clenched. Getting up he hugged her, and she tried to push him away. Her tears were coming out, while she started sobbing.

“Stay, don’t do this!”
“I have no choice, I will protect this family.”

His hand reached to her womb, she hugged him back crying. It was hard, very hard for her. She hated the idea of the person she loved, the only person that cared for her to die in some place for her sake. She knew it, he was going there for her, with the hope of one day coming home to a family that was safe.

The next few days they spent every waking moment in their each others passionate embrace, she tried and even begged for him to stay. Nothing got through to him, he was firm, absolute in the belief this was the right thing. The day came, she saw him getting ready to go with a pained expression.

“How long, just tell me how long until you come home.”
“I wish I knew.”

He left the house after saying that, she fell to her knees when the door closed. The world felt like it was a cruel machine designed to take the only people she loved from her, now her husband was going off to war with no clear sight of his return. She hoped dearly the potion she drank worked, while she rubbed her belly it was her last shot at hope.