Hissers II: Death March by Ryan C. Thomas Page B

believe.”
    “You’re named after fungus?” Jimmy/Teardrop asked.
    Amanita scowled at him. “I’m surprised you know anything about fungus besides what’s in your ass.”
    “Oh yeah, we forgot to tell you,” Jimmy said, “she’s kinda feisty.”
    Harold waved them off. “Okay, you two get out of here. You’ve done enough. Poor girl looks tired and scared.”
    “What about our pay?”
    “When you bring me what I asked for. Not before.”
    “But we brought her.”
    Harold nodded. “And I’ll take care of her. Properly. Like a gentleman. Not like you two. Now please leave us.”
    Annoyed, Spider Neck dropped Amanita’s backpack on the ground, and then both men headed back into the woods to follow the trail back to the van.
    As Amanita watched them go, Michelle came up and put her arm around her, directed her toward the house. “C’mon inside, we’ll get you cleaned up and fed and then we can discuss what your plans are.”
    “I’d rather just leave,” Amanita said. “I don’t like being forced into people’s homes. I was brought here against my will and I want to leave. Now.”
    “Fair enough,” Harold said. “We were just trying to help. You’re free to go. There’s your backpack. But I’ll tell you this much, these woods are big and it’s a long way to civilization. If you wait until tomorrow I’ll drive you into town myself and you can be on your way. Promise.”
    Amanita looked around, saw no cars. “With what car?”
    “It’s parked back out near the road. Honest.”
    “Then why wait, let’s go now.”
    Michelle spoke up, “We can’t right now. It’s time for dinner. It’s been cooking all day and we don’t waste around here, especially not since them monsters showed up.”
    “We have mouths to feed,” said Harold. He yelled into the house. “Hey , everybody, come on out and meet Amanita.”
    Sl owly, four people stepped out from the cabin in a neat line as if it were some sort of ritual. Two boys around ages ten and eleven, a small girl around six, and a teenage girl maybe a couple years older than Amanita. They all said hello.
    “These are our children,” said Harold. “ Have you set the table, kids?”
    They nodded in unison.
    “And you’re welcome to have dinner with us,” Harold said to Amanita. “We also have a couple extra beds. I was you, I’d partake of the delicious meal we’ve prepared and get some rest. Like I said, I’ll drive you to town tomorrow. I promise.”
    The youngest girl approached Amanita and took her hand. She wore pink bows in her hair and was dressed in a long white sundress. “I’m Kelly. You can sit with me. Is that okay, Daddy?”
    “It’s up to Amanita,” Harold said, smiling at his daughter.
    “Don’t worry, the little snot is harmless,” said the younger of the two boys. He didn’t offer his name. “She just likes attention.”
    “That’ll be enough, Luke,” Harold warned the boy
    “Will you sit with me?” Kelly asked again.
    Amanita looked at the family. They were clean, friendly, hospitable. And yet, something was wrong. They were somehow unreal, as if they’d been modeled after nuclear families from children’s books. And of course the elephant in the room was staring back at her: why were they living in a hidden cabin in the woods. Were they just hiding from the hissers? Or had they always lived here? Beyond that, what was Harold paying those two goons to look for, and why did money even matter anymore? She was weighing whether or not to leave and walk through the woods when, for the first time, she smelled the aroma of barbecue coming from inside the house and it made her mouth water.
    “It’s a brisket,” Michelle said, as if reading her mind. “It’ s been simmering all day.”
    F inally, realizing she would have both a roof over her head and food in her belly tonight, Amanita relented. “Okay, I’ll sit with you, Kelly. But tomorrow we go, right?” She looked at Harold.
    “Promise,” he