Radioactive

Maybe you're right, maybe i'm all wrong, but the world's been dead to me for too long."

--

Harper blinked open her eyes, groaning at the pain she could feel in the back of her head. She attempted to bring her hands up to shield out the little light that she could see, but she could feel that her arms were tied down. "Amaryllis?"

It was quiet for a moment before she responded weakly, "hey."

"Hey?" Harper forced herself to chuckle, trying not to focus on the fact that she was tied to something hard, her arms and legs both restrained. "No, yay, you're alive?"

"Yay, you're alive!" Amaryllis replied, mimicking her voice before letting it fall silent between them.

The door opened before Harper could ask any questions about what was going on. The only light in the room came flooding in from the door, blocked by the thick and thin silhouettes of Buck and Lester. The two men alone weren't scary, but the sharp knives they clutched in their hands sent a shudder of fear down Harpers spine. She remained quiet as they walked into the room and Buck found himself by her 'bed,' which she could tell now was just a table made of wood. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest as he leaned over her and grinned.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Matt wrapped the leash tightly around his wrist to keep Super close to him. They avoided the driveway that lead back to the house, instead pushing through the trees. A branch whacked Taniss in the face, and he groaned, swatting it away. "I can't believe we're doing this to save a couple of girls we just met."

"A couple of hot girls who swim in their underwear." Matt corrected, shooting him a grin.

"Okay, good point." Taniss replied with a sigh, stifling a smile. They pushed on through the trees, reaching the edge of them in only minutes. "Redneck territory." He pointed out in amusement.

The unusual log house didn't appear to be very big. There was a shed, and a fenced in area with a few dobermans, but other than that the yard was empty. "Think anyone's in the RV? Or the shed?" Matt asked, surveying their surroundings.

"Doubt it. They're probably inside doing who knows what." Taniss told him, monotone as he pulled out his gun.

Matt swallowed loudly, "we'll have to get by the dogs. We could wait until night fall--"

"They may not have the time." Taniss interjected. "Just come on." Without further planning, he darted straight out into the open towards the house. Matt only had a moment of hesitation before he followed.

They had only dived behind the air conditioning unit when they heard the front door open. "Shut up, you mangy mutts!" Someone called out in a southern drawl.

Matt leaned over towards the porch, feeling Taniss gripped his arm in an effort to pull him back, but he managed to see the man at the door, holding a bloody bandage that he brandished in the air as he spoke. He leaned away as the man turned to go back inside, getting an annoyed look from Taniss. "Be more careful. We wouldn't be helping anyone if we got caught."

"Whatever, hold Super." Matt demanded, passing the leash over. He carefully pulled himself up onto the porch and peeked through the nearest window. He could see someone slumped on the couch, and could hear groaning and the clinking of bottles as someone in cowboy boots and a plaid shirt poured alcohol into a shot glass. Ducking down, he rolled beneath the window to glance through the window on the door. There was a long hallway leading into the kitchen. Surely they'd be able to get inside somehow. Carefully, he ducked beneath the window again, settling down to wait where he could easily sit up and peer inside.

Taniss was glaring at him and muttering under his breath, but he didn't dare raise his voice, afraid of alerting both the dogs and the rednecks.

Matt could hear shuffling inside. "Pa, I'm gon' go deal with those girls now."

"Yeah, Pa, we'll avenge you!" Another voice drawled.

"I'm not dead, you idiots! Get out of my sight!" More shuffling and then everything went quiet except for the painful and drunken groans that must've been coming from the man they called pa.

After a few minutes, Matt glanced through the window. "Taniss, come on."

Taniss joined him on the porch seconds later, and they crawled beneath the window to the door. Matt turned the door knob, and it easily opened with a creak. He could only hope that the man was too drunk and injured to come investigate.

Taniss passed Super back to Matt as they crept inside, carefully shutting the door behind them. He peeked around the corner into the living room, pleased to see that the man on the couch had his eyes closed, one arm thrown loosely over his eyes, the other clutching a bottle of beer. He simply walked right into the kitchen, earning himself an annoyed hiss from Matt, who had almost tripped over a loose floorboard. The house was cluttered, and it was difficult not to step on anything that'd make noise.

Matt gave Supers leash a tug, and he took this as an order, pressing his nose to the ground. He seemed to know they were trying to be quiet, and stepped over the discarded trash littered across the floor. He lead the boys towards a door that he assumed lead back outside. They were about to ignore it and move onto another room when they heard a scream--an unmistakable girl scream that could only come from Harper--and they wrenched open the door and charged down the steps without a second thought.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Buck smoothed some hair out of her face as he leered down at her. Lester stood on the other side of the table, although he didn't make a move to do anything to her. Buck continued to stroke her hair as he spoke in a soothing voice, "you have a lot of guts. Care to explain to me what that was for?"

He sounded considerably less frightening because of his accent. "You think I'd actually kill Amaryllis?" Harper forced herself to sound brave. "Would you kill..Lester, if it came down to it?"

"Probably." Buck answered honestly, receiving a grunt from his brother.

"Well that's sick." Harper spat.

Buck was not satisfied with her answer. He pressed the point of the knife against her stomach. "I'm hungry." He told her, his eyes flashing dangerously.

"May I suggest a nearby McDonalds?" Amaryllis said in a panicked voice, pulled at her restraints.

Buck only laughed. "They don't serve the kind of food I like."

Amaryllis stopped shuffling for only a moment before she began jerking more wildly, trying to free herself from the clutches of the cannibalistic rednecks. "Great, so you guys are cannibals?"

Buck only shrugged, tracing shapes and letters against Harpers stomach, not enough to cut through the clothing, but enough for her to feel the pressure. "Please, we--"

"Begging isn't going to help. That's my favorite part." Lester drawled, rubbing his hands together as he watched.

Buck didn't say anything else. He positioned the knife against her stomach, and pressed the tip into her skin. She inhaled deeply, squeezing her eyes shut, refusing to cry out. But as he slid the knife down towards her belly button, a cry of pain escaped her. Blood welled to the tip of the shallow cut as she pulled against the restraints, but the boys seemed unphased. He only repositioned the knife so that she would have an X in the middle of her stomach. This time, he pressed deeper, and she tilted her head back as she cried out in discomfort, but the sound still didn't please them. He lifted the knife high above his head, and she let out an ear splitting scream.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Matt dropped Supers leash as they barged into the basement. Buck dropped his knife in alarm, and Lester dived under the table.

"Taniss!" Amaryllis cried, still pulling at the restraints. "If you don't untie me right freaking now!"

Taniss dived forward for the knife that Buck had dropped, right as he made to grab it. They both scrambled around for it, their hands meeting for one awkward moment. He glanced up, brought his free hand back, his fist meeting his nose.

Buck cried out in pain as Taniss lurched to his feet.

"I'm going to give you five seconds to untie me." Amaryllis yelled from her table, whereas Harper was still screaming as if Buck hadn't stopped.

Matt held up the gun, but Lester crawled out from the table and tackled him around the waist before he could use it. It slid across the floor, and Matt flipped over on his stomach to scramble after it. Lester grabbed him by the back of the shirt and jerked him backwards, sending him sprawling onto his back.

Taniss darted to Amaryllis' side, "Shut up, okay?"

"Excuse me?! EXCUSE ME?!" She shrieked angrily, "I have every right to scream at you!"

"You do not!" Taniss worked at the rope tying her to the table, the sharp knife slowly fraying it.

"You saw me in my underwear!" She yelled, causing his face to turn red, although he tried to play it off. Both her hands were free, and he moved onto her legs. "Oh, give me that," she snapped, snatching the knife from his hands to free the rest of herself.

His legs were knocked out from under him before he could think of a sarcastic response. Buck pulled back a fist, punching him in the stomach. He doubled over, the air knocked from him. Matts gun was inches from him, and he reached out a hand to grab it as Amaryllis' jumped down beside him and kicked the gun towards him. He wrapped his fingers around it just as Buck held the knife above his head. He pulled the trigger, and the knife fell from his grasp.

Matt scrambled for the knife Lester had dropped, only to feel the rednecks weight on him. He bucked beneath him, sending him sprawling to the ground beside him. As he got up to retrieve the knife, Taniss pulled Lester off the ground, twisting his arms behind his back so that he had full control. "Kill him."

Matt looked alarmed, "I can't just--"

"He'll follow us, just do it."

Matt hesitated for a moment before twisting the knife around in his grip, and plunging it deep into his stomach. Blood coated his hands when he pulled the knife back out, and Taniss gave him a grim look.

The girls were at their sides in an instant. "We have to leave. I don't know how many of them are still here." Amaryllis told them, wrapping an arm around Harpers waist to keep her upright. She was looking extremely faint. Super nudged her with his nose, whimpering as if he knew something was wrong.

"Let's go." Taniss conceded, picking up his fallen gun, and handing Matts back to him. They started up the stairs when Amaryllis' grunted behind them. "Okay, someone help me, she's only seconds away from fainting and I can't carry her."

With a sigh, Matt shoved the gun into the waistband of his pants, and picked her up. She kept her arms folded at her stomach, groaning.

Taniss lead the way up the stairs and through the kitchen. They were just reaching the front door when Amaryllis screamed. Taniss whipped around, bringing up his gun.

Pa held a knife to her neck, his face glistening with blood. His entire front was coated with the same red substance, and the expression on his face made it clear he was in pain.

"Oh, come on!" Taniss breathed, keeping his gun trained on them. He motioned towards the door without even glancing back. "Matt, get Harper to the car."

Obediently, despite Harpers weak protests, he opened the door, and his foot steps could be heard as he made his way speedily down the steps. "Alright, now I'd suggest letting her go." Taniss told Pa evenly.

Pa laughed bitterly. "My family has got to eat."

Taniss' finger slid towards the trigger, his gun training on his face. "I don't know what kind of game you're playing--"

"You've got the brown headed girl, you can leave this one with me." Pa retorted.

Taniss glanced at Amaryllis, giving her a slight nod. He turned his attention back to Pa. "Look, we don't want in trouble. I just want to take my...wife, here."

"I don't care if she's your wife, cousin, or grandma." Pa was laughing now, grimacing in pain. "She's mine for now, so you might as well--"

Amaryllis brought her heel down on his foot, and he cried out in pain. His grip on her loosened, and she twisted out of his grip, twisting his arm around in an attempt to free the knife. She stumbled on the loose floorboard, and Pa managed to get a grip on the knife again. He slashed wildly in the air. "Amaryllis, move!" Taniss yelled, his finger hovering over the trigger.

"Just shoot!" She demanded, holding her arms above her head as she dodged away from the knife.

"I'm not going to shoot you!" Amaryllis made to dive out of the way, into the living room, when the knife caught her on the back. She cried out in pain, stumbling to her knees. A gunshot rang out behind her.

The pain in her back was overwhelming, and she was unable to get up until Taniss lightly tugged her to her feet, draping her arm over his shoulder. "It's okay," he said soothingly, wrapping his arm around her waist.

"Shut up." She snapped bitterly, gritting her teeth.

They managed to hobble down the driveway to the car, Super trailing behind them and whimpering. Matt was still settling Harper comfortably in the back seat when they arrive. "What happened?"

"Took an arrow to the--"

"I swear, Taniss." Amaryllis snapped, rolling her eyes despite the pain she couldn't help but focus on.

"Sorry." He mumbled, mostly to himself. "She took a knife to the back." Amaryllis refused to let him speak again as he settled her into the front seat and dug around the back for a first aid kit.

"Don't be an idiot, we have to get going." Matt told him, climbing into the car. He lifted Harpers head and settled it on his lap, smoothing her hair from her face.

Taniss grumpily agreed, sending multiple apologies to the girls a he started the car. He pulled out into the road, hitting the gas and getting them as far away from there as he could.