5

Rhett

 

                Rhett scurried up to the roof with Ralph’s hunting rifle as fast as he could. Rodge had instructed them to stay in the house as he rushed out the door but Rhett couldn’t just sit. They had woken Ralph up with all the yelling and after Rodge left while Rhett was loading the rifle’s magazine he waddled out of his room wearing nothing but pants and asked rather groggily, “What-“ he stopped, looking at Rhett. “What the hell are you doing with that?” he yelled, pointing at the weapon in Rhett’s hand. At that moment Rhett had finished loading the magazine and slapped it into the receiver. He stood up and looked at Ralph unsure what to say so he just pushed past him to the stairs. Sten was sitting on the couch with Judy. Rhett could hear Sten behind him telling Ralph about the Reaper.

                As Rhett reached the deck heard the shotgun blast, Sariah’s scream, and the wail of the Reaper. He placed the stock of the weapon on the railing of the deck he caught his father’s gaze as he brought his eye to the scope. The shotgun blast had brought the Reaper to a knee, and as it stood up Rhett placed the cross hairs on the Reapers skull. In the split second before the pulled the trigger he realized he had never fired this weapon. He knew its functions as it was just a bolt-action rifle. But his mind comprehended that this rifle in particular he had never fired, and that it was the largest that Ralph had collected, which is why he grabbed it first.

                He squeezed the trigger and felt the searing pain in his shoulder as the recoil ripped through him, throwing him backwards onto the deck.