Journal Entry #5 (Original Dystopian Story)

August 9, 2023 7:48

Well I have had a very busy couple of weeks. I’ve not had much time or inspiration to write but I decided today, of all days I need to bear my soul to this ink. Today, for the first time in months I saw a man, I shot him 3 times through the chest. If I am to be judged, I want at least to have an accurate telling of what happened from my perspective. There’s nobody to speak for the dead but of all people, I wouldn’t lie to you. This is my best account of what happened.

I awoke to a loud thud. I immediately assumed it was one of the rakes, but after seeing the sun was already starting to rise I knew it likely wasn’t. You see they seldom venture out of their nests in the daylight. They aren’t incapable of doing so, they are simply much more efficient hunters in the dark of night. I crept out to investigate what was happening. That was when I saw a large man with a prybar trying to force his way into my car’s trunk. He didn’t initially notice me but I made my presence known and he made it clear to me that he had no intention of being friendly. He drew a hell of a knife, serrated and mean looking. He ran at me so I shot him, three times through the chest from my Sig P320 and that was that. Those .40 caliber 165 grain hornets left their mark in more ways than one. I realized immediately that firing those shots was a mistake. Not in the sense that I felt remorseful for having shot a man, but in those terrible seconds following that moment I heard a young voice cry out in terror. I looked in the direction I heard it and saw the backs of a woman and a young child running into the wooded area near the house. That was when I realized I had just done something terrible. I was clearly threatened with my life and acted solely in my own defense but at that moment I wished he had plunged that knife through me. After a couple minutes of careful deliberation I decided I had to try and help them. I started toward where I last saw the woman and child. I searched for hours to find them, all day in fact, until it became too dark to risk staying out any later. I’m not sure exactly what I’ll find tomorrow when I resume my search, but tonight, for the first time in a long time, I prayed to whichever God is on call to keep them safe.

Journal Entry #1: https://steemit.com/fiction/@akuda/journal-entry-1-mountain-money-original-work-2017719t121847784z

Journal Entry #2: https://steemit.com/fiction/@akuda/journal-entry-2-original-dystopian-story

Journal Entry #3: https://steemit.com/fiction/@akuda/journal-entry-3-original-dystopian-story

Journal Entry #4: https://steemit.com/fiction/@akuda/journal-entry-4-original-dystopian-story