LAST TIME: Slowly, Cody shuffled off in the direction he'd been instructed to travel. How he wished Sheriff Daniels was there to help him, but he wasn't. Cody wondered if he would ever see the Sheriff again? He knew the chances were real good he wouldn't.

Trapped by this barbaric predator, the defenseless boy was all alone, like he'd been for most of his life.


*******************************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************************


Cody ambled between the two rustic cabins he'd been instructed to pass by. His incarcerator staggered over a furrow he did not see. He crashed to the ground freeing the hammerlock he had on Cody. This was the boy's only opportunity. He sprinted off, pumping his arms and legs as fast as he could move the limbs.

"Get back here, now!" Earl Anthony Schroder vigorously demanded.

For the first time in his entire life, Cody found the bravery to disobey Earl Anthony Schroder.

As he made his retreat, echoing off in the distance he heard: "Run, Cody Michael! Run like your worthless life depends on it! Because it does! When I get my hands on you, and you know I will, I am going to kill you dead like I should have a long time ago! You hear me, you putrid fecal douchebag?"

The words emitted from Earl Anthony Schroder blared at his disappearing prey. Then, he released a sinister, petrifying, chortle.

Cody knew the landscape around Sullivan Lake well. He anticipated his antagonist did not. As Earl Anthony Schroder picked himself up out of the sand where he'd fallen prostrate, Cody disappeared into a canyon.

He ran until his aching lungs burned from oxygen deprivation. Breathing became laborious. Still, he did not slow down. Not one step. Cody ran until his legs sizzled. The raging fire blazed. Nighttime darkness settled in as hushed as a newborn's sleep.

From his vantage point, Cody observed Matt place their bikes into the trunk of Sheriff Daniels' patrol car. He saw his Dad drive away from Buck and Doe's. He knew he should contact the Sheriff's cellphone to alert him to his whereabouts, and to tell him he was okay. But, he wasn't. Not really.

Cody smelled the dirt he walked on. Every bush he encountered cast an eerie shadow in the bright, star-filled West Texas sky. He feared Earl Anthony Schroder lurked behind each one of them. Home would be a safe haven, but he could not risk luring the beast he avoided there. Nor could he jeopardize those he loved. Cody never felt so alone in his life. He pressed on.

Unexpected, something scurried past his feet. Cody leaped sideways to avoid what startled him. In the full moon's light he noticed it was an armadillo. He almost punted the vulnerable creature for spooking him, but the animal scooted off just as though it had as much right to the grassland as Cody did. Off in the distance a screech owl hooted.

Exhausted, Cody found his way to the forbidden Miller's Cave. He was just miniscule enough to squeeze between the stacked boulders and the mouth of the grotto. Violating Sheriff Daniels's strictest decree because of the dangers the quarry presented, Cody had spelunked the rock shelter several times before.

Once inside, he pulled his cellphone out of the pocket of his shirt and called Sheriff Daniels.

"I've been out looking for you all afternoon. Where are you at, Little Man," a worried Sheriff Daniels asked his son.

"I'm in Miller's Cave, Dad. Earl Anthony Schroder can't get me here," Cody responded.

"You crawl as far back inside that cave as you can get. And, you don't make any sounds at all until you hear my voice calling you out. Do you understand me, Cody?" Sheriff Daniels wanted to know.

"Yes, Sir," Cody responded.

The Sheriff softened his tone and said, "I'm on my way, son. Are you okay, Little Man?"

Cody answered his Dad's question with a sincere, "My face is multi-colored from where he slapped the fire out of me. My head hurts real bad from where I banged it on the counter at Buck and Doe's. And, I'm scared, Dad. Please hurry!"

"You stay there until I arrive. I'm on my way right now, son," his Dad encouraged him.

"Yes, sir," Cody replied, his tender youthfulness displayed.

Cody disconnected the call and scampered to the furthest end of the cave he could find. Once there, he plopped down on his haunches, pulled his knees up under his chest, and buried his battered face deep into the crook of his folded arms. In silence, Cody wept.

Before long, Cody heard his name called. He wiped the tears out of his blue eyes with his hands, sniffled, and cautiously made his way to the mouth of the cave. Bit by bit, he poked his head out just far enough where he could see the person calling him was in reality Sheriff Daniels.

Seeing his Dad, Cody scampered out of Miller's Cave. He charged into the Sheriff's waiting arms and clung to him tighter than he ever had before. For a moment, Sheriff Daniels sheltered Cody. He examined the cut on the boy's forehead and his swollen, bruised face.

Finally, he said, "Let's go home where you belong, Little Man."

It was then they heard Earl Anthony Schroder's presumptuous voice call across the dale. Schroder was perched on top of a boulder, cocksure of himself.

He said, "Daniels, take that poor excuse for human waste product home. But, when you get there, I'll be waiting around every corner and behind each door you open. Don't think I won't be. Ask Cody what I'm capable of. He can tell you. When you least expect it, Daniels, I'm going to eliminate you. Then, God help what I do to him!"

Undeterred by the threat, Sheriff Daniels vowed, "If you ever come anywhere near Cody again I will kill you!"

"You aren't man enough, Daniels!" Earl Anthony Schroder taunted him, "I do what I want to, when I want to, and how I want to. There ain't a man alive who can stop me!"

Earl Anthony Schroder dropped off the boulder and vanished into a ravine leading away from Miller's Cave. Sheriff Daniels and Cody watched him disappear. The games had just begun.

(To Be Continued)


**********************************************************************************************
**********************************************************************************************


Cast of Characters:

Cody Schroder - Blond munchkin and main character of the book.

Sheriff Brock Daniels - Long time Sheriff of Astatula and Cody's Dad.

Earl Anthony Schroder - Cody's male sperm donor. Put Cody through ten years of hellacious physical, mental, and sexual abuse in Palo Pinto.

Chapter Word Count: 1,103

Book Word Count: 5,364