RUDE NIGHT BEFORE IRAQ

(NOTE: This story was for a contest which stipulated that I had to incorporate the first sentence as given.)

The fog cloaked everything in new garb; even the most innocent sapling turned dark and sinister.

We came out to the woods with our case of beer, our loud and raucous rock and roll and our endless laughs to keep the boogie men away. It was about 3:00 a.m. and no one seemed tired yet. Maybe it was the coke. There was plenty of everything. What a great party. Guess we had Billy to thank for that. He was leaving for Iraq tomorrow, and he wanted to go out in a big way.

"Hey, Billy," I yelled to get his attention over the music. "Who the hell is going to drive us home? We sort of forgot to pick a designated driver, like that would ever happen with this crew."

"Hold on, Diane. I'm getting an idea. Give me your cell phone a minute. I'm going to call my sweet baby sister, Liz. You know she's sitting home sober and clean."

"Are you really going to let her see us like this thought?" I couldn't help but wonder. Normally he was so protective of Liz.

"Yeah, sure, why not. Hey, tomorrow I'm off to war. She's gotta know I'm a grown up and I do grown up things."

Just then Markie came stumbling out of the weeds where he must have been called to do his duty. "Diane, Billy, what problems of state are you solving now?"

"Nothing, Markie, but we don't have anyone sober enough to drive us home.

"The hell with it then. I say we spend Billie's last night sleeping in a field under the trees. He'll probably be doing the same thing in Iraq but with sand." He looked like he was going to start crying again. I wondered how to distract him from it.

"You know, Markie, I think Kathleen is sweet on you. Did you notice her chasing you around earlier tonight? Where is she now anyhow?"

"She's passed out, that's where. That's the kind of girls that go for me. The ones who are blind drunk and then pass out. I never have a chance with the ones who remember the night before the morning after."

"Billie, you're too quiet over there," Markie yelled to him. "Start dancing or something."

"Who's got the coke?" Billie wanted to know. "It's my last night you know."

"Like you haven't told us that a hundred times tonight. Does that mean you get to O.D.?" I asked him.

"I'm turning off the damn music. It's giving me a headache." Markie staggered over to Billie's car stereo and turned it off. "Well, yeah, if you really want to know, I'm feeling fucking sorry for myself. I think I have that right. The bullshit recruiter promised me I'd be an officer in Germany and instead I'm looking at being a private in Iraq. How do they get away with such whopping lies? Diane, give me that phone."

I handed him my phone, but I thought he was too drunk and high to even see to dial the tiny contraption.

A few minutes later I heard him talking to his old girlfriend Linda. He must be really stoned. She had broken up with him for another guy six months ago and broken his heart. That was the main reason he'd enlisted in the first place.

I could hear his drunken rap to her, "Baby, I miss you so much. I'm only going into the army because you broke my heart. It's the truth. Are you still with Mack? Yeah, well that's too bad then but I'm happy. You just don't know what you did to me."

I couldn't take it any more and went looking for the ladies section of the field. The truth was I had been half in love with Billy since we were kids together. I had hoped he might think of me in a new way after Linda turned him loose, but no such luck. And now he was leaving for two years probably.

Markie had fallen and didn't look like he could get up. He was snoring loudly. Snoring and scratching his belly like some old man. I noticed what a big gut he had on him. All that beer he was always drinking had not made him any prettier.

When she came back she noticed that Billie had gone to sit in his car to have privacy while he moaned some more into the phone. The other two girls were somewhere passed out and I was on my own. I pulled up a tree stump and had a seat while I continued to swig my beer. Damned cocaine. I wished I felt tired. I'd like to be passed out about now too. This party had definitely turned into a dull affair.

Then I saw headlights coming down the forest preserve's road. Who the hell could that be at 3:30 in the morning I asked myself.

The car pulled up directly behind Billy's car for some reason although there was free parking galore not around anyone. Two guys with long hair in leather jackets got slowly out of the car. They both brandished beers. They were staggering too. Welcome to the party I thought dryly.

They walked up to Billy's driver's window and started talking at him like he was just sitting there and not on the phone. I couldn't make out what they were saying from my tree stump. I could see from Billy's expression that he wasn't too pleased about the intrusion.

They just went on talking until finally Billy, still on the phone, got out of the car to walk away to some place quieter I guess. But that was not to be if these two creeps had anything to say about it. The larger one grabbed Billy's arm. I started moving in closer now to make out exactly what was going down.

I got there just in time to here every dumb bad guy's question, "So where do you think you're going, bud?"

Billy just tried to pull the guy's hand off his arm and keep walking. But he was too drunk and he lost his balance from the effort of it and fell face down on the ground. He also dropped the phone which the jerky guy picked up and took away from him.

"Hey bud, " he was yelling now, "I asked you where you thought you were going?"

"Man, I'm going to Iraq tomorrow. Give me a break and leave me alone." Billy was mad now.

"Too bad, motherfucker. Iraq is for saps. What did you enlist for you fool?"

"Just fucking leave me alone and give me that phone." Billy was yelling now too.

The other creepy guy wanted in on this action and he came up to Billy and with no apparent motive or reason just punched him in the gut as hard as he could. Billy tumbled over and again fell on the ground. This time both asshole guys pinned him down and kept him there. The one who joined the fight late started spitting on Billy and even kicking him in the ribs. Billy was moaning now.

I was angry. I stepped up to the two and screamed in their faces to leave Billy alone. "Your his little girlfriend, huh?" the larger loser asked me. "Think you're a pretty touch broad do you--out here drinking and doing who knows what in the middle of the night? And who's going to protect you now?"

I decided to play nice so I could calmly go to Billy's car and get my gun out of my purse. I was raped last year and I don't play anymore.

"You two big lugs are just having such fun aren't you?" I said, managing a smile. Let them guess if I even cared. Just then the wind started whipping up and some clouds blocked the stars. A big storm was coming and soon.

"You boys are going to get stuck out here in the storm. The mud will do bad things to your car tires," I warned them.

"I don't mind if I'm stuck out here with you, baby," the smaller one mumbled. "Get me another beer, bitch, why dontcha? Got any coke?"

"Yeah, we might have some coke, but it's only for friends," I told him looking him square in the eyes. "Do you have a problem with that or anything?"

"Sure, honeybunch, I have a big problem with that. Let me take care of your boyfriend here and then I'll work on getting the coke from you," he tried to threaten me.

And with that they both started kicking and punching Billy hard. They were kicking him in the groin. Billy was screaming now and pulling his knees up into his chest. I tried to pull them off of him, but they slapped me back like I was a fly.

I ran over and woke up Markie praying that he was sober enough to help in this situation. He blearily came to and took a long time to understand what I was saying. He careened into me as he attempted to go over to save Billy, and I didn't have much faith in him.

Markie grabbed the smaller guy by his coat and pulled hard. Because the guy was drunk too he managed to temporarily get him two feet away from Billy. Then he went back for the larger guy, but by this time the smaller one had already coldcocked Markie to the ground and was standing on him. I decided just to go back to my plan B and started walking to Billy's car.

No one noticed my being gone, or at least they didn't seem to care right away. I walked faster but tried to make it look like I wasn't in a hurry. I was touching the door handle of the car when I heard one of the assholes yelling after me, "You better be going to get that cocaine. Don't try any tricks or you'll be as sorry as your boyfriend is right now."

I decided to ignore them. I wondered how many bullets I had in the gun. I hadn't had to use it in a while. I hadn't even been to target practice. How was I going to take them both down? I only knew I was mad and determined enough to do it.

Just then the lightening started with the accompanying thunder and then the rain started coming down in torrents. I have always been afraid in storms. I worked hard not to lose my courage now. I had to kill two men, like it or not, and I had to do it now, no matter what was going on.

I felt inside my purse for my gun and grabbed it. I made sure to turn the safety off. I wish I had cleaned it recently. I could only pray it was in good working order.

I could hear Billy screaming louder now than before. God only knew what they were doing to him now. I was trembling as I held the gun in my hand and then put it down the front of my jeans. It will be alright, Diane, I told myself. Just do it.

When I got back over there I saw that they had taken off Billy's pants, the better to really hurt him in the balls, and they were pushing their lit cigarettes into his butt cheeks. That was it. I was ready. Slowly I reached in my jeans and got my gun. One, two, three, I aimed for the larger one and shot him in the head at close range. Then four, five six, while shorty was still stunned, I popped him in the chest.

That's all there was to it. Problem solved. I helped Billy with his burns and got him dressed again. I left Markie to sleep it off again. The rain was turning the woods into a giant mud bath and the two bodies were already covered in it. I wondered vaguely who would find them and if anyone would ever come after me for it. I doubted it since Billy was my only witness and he'd never tell.