Hope On The Rocks/Issue 68

This is Issue 68 of Hope On The Rocks, entitled "Forever".

606, Forever
I am with Doug and Peter behind a small, white trailer. I am not happy about this. I really want Esther back, but I don’t want to die. “You see that black guard over there?” Peter pants, reloading his rifle. I take a quick peek. Three guards are shooting at us. One black guard in his 30’s, and a fat caucasian guard in his 50‘s. “Yea?” I say, getting back to hiding. “I’m going to shoot him.” Peter says, sounding exhausted. “I want you to shoot the other one.” I nod, biting my tounge. I feel the adrenaline pumping as I cock my pistol. Doug is sitting, looking from right to left, as I close my eyes to get ready. I have never killed a man, and I hoped that I would never have to. But here we go. I am doing this for Esther. “Ready?” I hear Peter asking. I nod, but feel dumb since he can’t see me. “Yes.” I then say, and Peter fires. Within two seconds, I get up just in time to see the black guard getting shot in the shoulder. I aim at the fat guard who is now shooting at Peter. I fire, hitting the guard in his stomach. He falls to the ground, and I return to hide behind the trailer. “Oh my god...” I say, knowing that I might just have taken a man’s life. “It’s allright, son.” Doug says, placing his hand on my shoulder. “Think about your wife.” I smile. I did propose to Esther, but she said no. It’s a long story, and I don’t want to tell it to Doug right now. It’s really not the time. “Just my girlfriend.” I say with a friendly smile. Doug nods understanding, and removes his hand. He then gets up, and so do I. Something terrible is going to happen now. I just know it. “Don’t move!” I hear Peter yelling at the man who is approaching. It is the man who also shot Miles. I think his name was Junior. However, he is not alone. He has Esther at gunpoint. A naked Esther with something that looks like a brand mark on her left breast. “Don’t you fucking touch her!” I yell, walking furious towards Junior. Doug holds me back, though. I think that is a good thing, because Junior looks like someone who is ready to kill Esther on the spot. “Easy now, boy.” Junior says with a creepy grin. “Don’t try anything stupid, allright?” I wrist myself free of Doug’s hands, and drop my gun. “Whatever you say. Just don’t hurt her.” I plead. “I would never dream of it.” Junior says, still with a big grin. “Then I’d have nothing to play with.” I am raging. I really want to kill this man on the spot, but I can’t. Not as long as he has that gun on Esther’s head. “What do you want?” I ask, trying to stay calm. “I want you and your friends to leave right fucking now.” Junior says, his grin fading. “And then you give us our friends?” Doug, who also has dropped his gun, asks. “Hell no, old man.” Junior says, making a fake laugh. “We just won’t kill them.” I swallow hard and look at Peter and Doug. Both are looking at me. I open my mouth to say ‘okay’, but I can’t get myself to do that. It’s not right. Not for me, not for Esther, and not for anyone else. I remember one time where Esther and I was on a date. She asked me what I wanted the most. I still remember how I answered that I wanted to be with her forever. She blushed, flattered, and said that she wanted to be with me forever as well. That’s when I proposed, and when she said no. I am going to do as her. “No.” I say, and get down to take up my gun. I aim it at Junior and say “No way.” Junior’s grin is now completely gone, and his head is red. He looks at me, and I look at him. I watch in pain as he shoots Eshter in her neck. The bullet goes through one of her pretty eyes, and she dies instantly. I drop to my knees, sobbing. I then feel a bullet going through my shoulder. I don’t care. All I want is to be with Esther.

Deaths

 * Esther Tricker

Credits

 * Ridley Johnson
 * Peter Armstrong
 * Douglas Tallie
 * Esther Tricker
 * Graham Junior