Damage & Decay

Chapter 54

Part Four: Family Business

"Fear is only as deep as the mind allows."

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"ARMIN!" Eren yelled, not knowing if what he was seeing was real or if he had just gone completely crazy. How was it even possible?

Apache reared up and kicked one bounty hunter un the chest, and the man flew backward, as if he'd taken a double load of buckshot. Another man rushed the horse from the side and tried to pull Armin from the saddle. Armin's sword flashed downward, and the man fell shrieking beneath the horse's hooves.

"Christ!" bellowed Charlie. "That's Armin Jaeger. Kill him!"

He brought his gun up, but Eren came up out of the mud and once more drove his shoulder into the big man. Charlie wasn't ready for it this time, and the impact knocked them both to the ground. Charlie's shot punched a hole through the shoulder of Texas Jon McGoran. As the bullet slammed Texas Jon backward, his finger jerked the trigger of his pump shotgun, and the spray caught Will Bill Fairchild full in the face.

Eren had no chance against Charlie in any kind of fight, but he could at least keep him from shooting Armin, so Eren lunged at Charlie's arm and bit his wrist. Charlie howled in pain, dropped the gun, but then used that hand to punch Eren in the face. Eren felt his nose crack. He kneed Charlie in the thigh twice and then flung himself away from a second and more powerful punch that would have easily broken his neck.

He scrambled to his feet and spun around looking for Nix. She was twenty feet away, and the Hammer was holding her like a shield as Armin advanced on him. The rain faded to a drizzle and then stopped, although thunder rumbled through the heavens and lightning flashed in the west.

"Drop that sword, Armin, or I'll snap this little girl's neck," the Hammer promised. He meant it, too. He had his whole arm looped around her throat and held her so that her feet were inches above the ground.

The other bounty hunters were recovering from the initial shock of seeing Armin Jaeger, back from the dead as a living, breathing, fighting man. They pulled their guns and pointed them at him.

Armin reined Apache to a stop. The buckskin still wore the remnants of his carpet coat, although it looked like it had been gnawed on by every zom from here to the state line.

"You don't want to do that, Marion," said Armin in a voice that was surprisingly calm. "Put the girl down."

"Kiss my hairy butt, Armin. You drop that sword or so help me, I'll pull her head clean off."

Armin flicked his wrist so that the blood that streaked the sword was whipped off. It splashed Joey Duk across the face.

"Eren," Armin said, "are you okay?"

Eren got to  his feet, his head spinning from the punch to the nose. "Yeah," he said breathlessly.

"That's going to cost you." Charlie growled as he also got to his feet. His gun was muddy and useless, but he didn't need one. Armin was surrounded by nearly twenty bounty hunters.

Armin slowly raised his sword until the tip of the blade was pointed directly at the Motor City Hammer. "I'm going to give you one last chance, Marion. Let Nix go."

The Hammer laughed, and so did the other men. "Or what?" He sneered. "You're outnumbered and outgunned, Armin. What the hell do you think you're  going to do?"

"Me?" Armin looked faintly amused. "Hell, I'm not going to do anything. But you will  let her go."

"Says who?"