Them Holler Boys (A Southern Outlaw Series Book 1)

by Girty Thompson

  “Yes, Sir,” Mr. Brubaker replied.

  Paul drove back home, and JJ sat quietly in the seat as he watched the mountainside fly by through his window. Paul watched JJ out of the side of his eyes as he drove. JJ hadn’t been himself lately, and Paul was starting to get worried.

  “Do you want to finish out the school year here?” Paul asked.

  “What?” JJ responded. “I only have a couple of months left until graduation. It would be nice to finish here.”

  “You could get a jump start on the Ivy League school,” Paul replied. “You’re already in. I saw the paperwork on the kitchen counter.”

  “I’m sure I still need to take final exams and all,” JJ said.

  “It was just a thought,” Paul said. “You seem like you need a break from the holler.”

  A few minutes went by in silence.

  “We can pack you up to go right after graduation,” Paul offered.

  “Trying to get rid of me?” JJ asked with a laugh.

  Paul chuckled. “No, I’d just like to see you with a smile, is all.”

  “There hasn’t been much to smile about lately,” JJ replied.

  “I know,” Paul spoke quietly.

  They drove past Clear Fork Rd, and JJ pointed it out.

  “You missed the turn, Pops.”

  “I’m taking you somewhere that I should have a long time ago,” Paul replied.

  They drove through Whitesville and then hit a small little suburbs section with white picket fences. JJ looked at the expensive houses as they drove by them, each one getting bigger than the last. Paul took a right down a dead-end street and stopped in the cul de sac, shutting the engine off to the car. They sat in front of a three-story, old plantation looking house. It looked similar to the one they had in NOLA except not as bayou.

  “Where are we?” JJ asked, looking at the address on the mailbox.

  The name on the mailbox read Jay.

  “This is your grandparents’ house,” Paul replied.

  JJ glanced from his father to the house outside of the car.

  “Do they even know I exist?” JJ asked staring at the house lit up by the full moon light.

  “I am most certain your mother told them she had you,” Paul replied. “They might not know who you are by face or by what you have achieved thus far in life, but they knew you were born.”

  “It didn’t change anything,” JJ murmured. “They still shunned Mama. They still shun me. I am not their family.”

  The car was quiet for a moment before Paul spoke.

  “One day, when you have made it. When you graduate college, get your degree, and make something of yourself, I want you to come here. I want you to show them that you did all of that, and you did it without them. You did it because your mama pushed you to do it. Understand?” Paul replied.

  JJ nodded. “Ok, Pops.”

  Paul started the car and pulled out of the cul de sac.

  “What about your parents, Pops?” JJ asked. “Where are they?”

  “You need not concern yourself with my family either,” Paul replied.

  “Are they alive? Dead?” JJ asked.

  “They’re alive,” Paul replied. “And live right across the street from your mama’s parents.”

  “Then why…” JJ began.

  “That’s enough questions for one night, son,” Paul replied quietly. “I am not up for this talk tonight.”

  JJ didn’t understand why they just couldn’t go in and say hi to his dad’s parents. JJ didn’t even know they were still alive. His dad never spoke about them. The ride back to the holler was quiet and ordinary until they reached the drive to the holler. There were a couple of cars sitting around the end of it and a few men standing outside of the cars. Paul eased into the drive and shut the engine off after recognizing Mr. Brubaker there with the rest of the men.

  “Hal, what’s going on?” Paul asked as he got out of his car. He glanced around to the men that stood silent, and his eyes landed on the bum from the bar. “How can I help you, gentlemen.”

  “Well, if I understand everything correctly that my bartender told me,” one of them began, “you all paid for this piece of a shit junkie to eat my food, drink my beer, and live it up while he owes me money.”

  JJ hopped out of the car and watched the tension between all of the men hang in the air.

  “My apologies,” Paul said. “My son was just trying to help someone out that he felt was in need.”

  “That your boy?” the man asked as a couple of guys walked over to JJ, surrounding him.

  “Yes, that is my son, but I wouldn’t provoke the devil,” Paul warned. “He doesn’t need me to take care of his problems.”

  JJ’s fists tightened into balls as he looked around counting how many of them were surrounding him and the men laughed at his daddy’s comment. His dad kept his eyes on him, and JJ nodded, understanding their silent arrangement. He wasn’t to make a move until Paul decided that the situation had escalated too far to talk their way out.

  “How much does the gentleman owe you?” Paul asked, pulling his wallet out of his coat pocket.

  “He’s about two grand in the hole,” the man stated.

  Paul pulled out a stack of one hundred-dollar bills and counted them out, handing them over to the man. It was then that Paul noticed the gun they had pointed at Hal.

  “This should take care of it. It’s more than enough to settle his debt,” Paul said.

  Another man took the money from the boss and counted out the one hundred-dollar bills, nodding to confirm it was the right amount and then some.

  “Can we call this little fiasco done?” Paul asked.

  “No, not yet,” the man said. “I want to teach your boy a lesson about charity to strangers. Around here, you never know what you are paying for.”

  The men closed their circle and got closer to JJ. Paul gave the nod, and JJ nodded back in return. He was given the permission he needed. As soon as the largest one of the men stepped close enough to him, JJ kicked his foot out landing the hit squarely in the thug’s knee, sending him to the ground howling in pain. JJ punched the next one that rushed him, sending him sprawling on the ground with a loud thud. Another one came from the side, and he did a roundabout kick and caught him in the side of the face, taking him down with one strike. The last one popped a switchblade out and started slicing through the air at JJ. JJ jumped out of the way of the blade twice before catching the dude’s arm, snapping his wrist so he would drop the blade, and then headbutting him to the ground. In one swift move, he bent down, stood up, and tossed the blade at the guy standing beside the boss man. It sank into the guy's bicep, and he howled in pain.

  “And there is your lesson, mister,” JJ hissed. “I don’t take kindly to threats of bodily harm on me or anyone that I feel is my family. Now, get the fuck outta my holler, or the next blade will sink so deep in your chest that the coroner will have to cut it out.”

  The boss thug nodded, and those that were still standing and hadn’t been dropped by JJ’s deadly fight training helped drag the unconscious ones into the car to drive off. Mr. Brubaker stood shaking as the cars peeled off and released the breath he had been holding.

  “They grabbed me before I could even leave or shout out to you,” Mr. Brubaker stammered. “I thought they were going to kill me.”

  “It’s ok, Hal,” Paul replied. “I’ll take you back to get your car. JJ?” Paul asked.

  “Yea, Pops?” JJ replied.

  “Take your friend back to our house. Get him some stuff to shower, some clothes, and show him a room to stay in,” Paul ordered.

  “Yes, sir,” JJ replied.

  Paul and Mr. Brubaker climbed into the car, put it in reverse, and backed onto the road heading back to the restaurant.

  “I’m mighty sorry for the trouble I caused you good folks,” Buddy stammered.

  “It's alright, man,” JJ replied. “Follow me.”

  JJ led Buddy down the gravel drive into the holler. It only
took about five minutes for them to reach the house. JJ walked Buddy in and ran off to the laundry pantry. He came back and handed Buddy a towel, a washrag, and a bottle of 3 in 1 soap. JJ scampered off to his room and grabbed Buddy a plain white t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants that he had in his dresser that he never wore. He brought those back to Buddy as well, laying them on top of the towel and washrag, and then showed him where the shower was located. He listened for the shower to turn on before heading back out to the living room to wait for Buddy to get done.

  By the time he had finished in the shower, Paul had just turned down the drive. JJ watched the headlights sweep across the living room wall. Buddy stepped out of the bathroom when Paul opened the front door.

  “I bet that shower was refreshing, wasn’t it?” Paul asked with a smile.

  “Yes, sir, it was,” Buddy replied with a grin.

  “Follow me, and I will show you where you are sleeping,” JJ stated.

  JJ walked through the living room back toward the shower and showed Buddy the room at the back of the hall that had a bed already made up.

  “It’s one of our spare rooms,” JJ explained. “Make yourself at home. We don’t really keep much in the freezer or fridge to eat, but we do keep pop, bottled water, and juice in there. Maybe a few things to make a sandwich here and there.”

  “Healthy living, eh?” Buddy asked.

  “Nothing but the best for this body,” JJ replied, grinning. “Goodnight, man. I’ll see you bright and early with a list of chores for you to do.”

  Buddy nodded and closed the door behind him. JJ walked back to the living room, where his dad stood, enjoying a nice glass of bourbon.

  “You better toss some ice in that before you die of dehydration, old man,” JJ teased.

  Paul chuckled. “How about you go get cleaned up instead of judging my alcohol,” Paul rebutted.

  “What do you mean cleaned up? I barely broke a sweat out there,” JJ laughed.

  Paul lifted his arm and pointed to his elbow. JJ turned his arm over and noticed that he was bleeding through his shirt.

  “Damn, how’d I do that?” JJ asked. “I don’t even think it's mine.”

  “You did well out there tonight,” Paul praised. “Not a single one of them laid a finger on you.”

  “Well, you did buy me the best trainers in the world,” JJ replied.

  “That is true. But even when you have the best training in the world, there are mistakes in calculations made in the moment,” Paul said. “But, not with you. You are a fighting machine. You didn’t even break a sweat out there. And the deliverance of that blade to the arm was swift and sent a message.”

  Paul’s smile of approval began to fade. “You shouldn’t have to know how to fight like that at age eighteen.”

  “It’s ok, Pops,” JJ replied. “I find a sense of fun and adventure in it.”

  “That’s what worries me the most,” Paul murmured. “When you graduate, I want you out of this holler. Same day packed up and off to California.”

  JJ was quiet as he sat down on the couch. “Pops…”

  “And I don’t want you to ever come back here,” Paul stated firmly. “You can visit West Virginia. I will meet you anywhere you want to so we can catch up. But you are not allowed to come back to this holler.”

  “What about one day all of this being mine?” JJ replied.

  “It will be one day, but that doesn’t mean you have to be here for it,” Paul said, setting his glass of bourbon down. “Your future is much more precious and important than the gangster and outlaw ways of this place. It’s not good enough for you, and that is why we left here, to begin with.”

  “What do you mean left here?” JJ asked.

  “I’ve said my piece. That’s all you need right now,” Paul replied, finishing his glass of bourbon off. “I’m heading to bed. Goodnight, son.”

  “Night, Pops,” JJ mumbled as Paul left him alone in the living room. JJ made it upstairs and crashed hard after soaking his shirt in stain remover. The next morning, he was up bright and early making some breakfast for himself. He made a quick run out to the store out on Route 3 in case Buddy woke up hungry too. As he cooked up some eggs, sausage, and toast, Buddy found his way to the kitchen and sat on one of the stools at the bar counter.

  “You hungry, man? I think there’s enough here for the two of us,” JJ said, rummaging through the fridge to see what all he had.

  “Do you have any coffee?” Buddy asked.

  “Sure do,” JJ replied, grabbing a coffee cup from the cupboard and pouring some coffee in it.

  JJ handed it over to Buddy that smelled it enthusiastically.

  “Thanks, man. It’s been a while since I had a nice cup of jo,” Buddy said, holding the cup up in appreciation.

  “No problem. Small things like that are always available here. It’s just we don’t keep the fridge stocked with food,” JJ chuckled. “Pops is never home, and I am usually at school or the mine. I keep a few TV dinners in the freezer when we aren’t eating at a restaurant.”

  JJ whipped another plate of food up for Buddy and set it in front of him as he dug into his own food. Breakfast was always his favorite meal of the day. It took him back to the days when his mom was alive. She would always make him pancakes or waffles with toast, over-easy eggs, and bacon or sausage. JJ shoveled the food in his mouth greedily as if he hadn’t eaten in days.

  “This is pretty good, man,” Buddy said as he hoovered his plate. “You should be a chef or something.”

  JJ laughed. “I want to own a restaurant one day where they serve all the food my mom used to make when I was a kid. But that is way into the future.”

  “I’m sure your dad will help you achieve the finance part of that,” Buddy replied.

  “Nah, I want to do it all on my own. An achievement, you know?” JJ said.

  Buddy nodded. “So, last night, you said you’d have a list of chores for me to do?”

  “Yes, sir, I do,” JJ replied.

  Before making breakfast, he had sat down and drawn up a list that would be done each day by Buddy to repay what his dad had spent to get him out of trouble. It was also his payment for room and board. JJ handed the list over to Buddy and watched him as he glanced over it.

  “Doesn’t seem like too much,” Buddy said with a shrug. “I should have it done before dinner time.”

  “Excellent. Well, today is still part of the weekend being Sunday and all, so I will be around to help you if you need some help with it,” JJ replied. “But tomorrow, I will be in school. So, get familiar with everything on there today and don’t rush through it.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” Buddy replied.

  They finished their food, and Buddy topped his cup off with some more coffee before he headed outside to start his workday. JJ didn’t have any plans for the day, so he pulled out his Playstation console and grabbed his Guitar Hero games, then made himself comfortable in front of the TV for the day. Gaming was one thing not many people knew about him. He loved playing games. Shooting games like Call of Duty or racing games like Hydro Thunder were his favorites. But his all-time love was Guitar Hero. Those games were full of the 70s, 80s, 90s, and modern rock and pop songs as well as some blues and country. One of them even had Hotel California by the Eagles on it.

  It had been a couple of hours of playing games when JJ grew curious as to how Buddy was doing with his work. He stepped outside to look around for him but couldn’t find him anywhere. He wasn’t in any of the spots that list of chores designated him to be. JJ noticed the door of his garage was cracked open, and he walked over to it, pushing it slowly open and peering inside to see if Buddy was in here. The place had been ransacked. All of JJ’s tools appeared to have been gone through; his air compressor was gone. His welder and generator weren’t in the places they had been bolted down in. At his feet laid the list of chores for the day he had given Buddy. He picked it up and balled it up in his hands in a fit of fury.

  JJ grabbed his cellphone out of h
is pocket and dialed his father up.

  “What is it, JJ?” Paul asked.

  “That no good for nothing junkie stole all of my shit out of my garage,” JJ yelled into the phone.

  “Calm down and explain what all happened,” Paul urged.

  “He got up. I made him breakfast. I gave him the list like we talked about, and I played some video games for a couple of hours. I came outside to check and see how he was doing, and he was gone. I found my garage ransacked and anything that could be pawned for some money missing.”

  “And you can’t find him anywhere?” Paul asked to clarify.

  “No, he is gone,” JJ reiterated.

  “I’ll find your stuff, JJ,” Paul said. “Just stay there and don’t do anything stupid.”

  JJ clicked the end button on his phone and was about to toss it in rage when another phone call came through. He thought it was his dad calling back so he answered without even checking to see who it was.

  “Did you find my shit?” he demanded.

  “What shit?” Lynne replied.

  “Sorry, Lynne,” JJ said calmly while rubbing his forehead. “I thought you was my daddy.”

  “If I talked to my daddy like that, I wouldn’t have any front teeth,” Lynne giggled into the receiver.

  “What do you need,” JJ asked, changing the subject. “I haven’t heard from you in over a month. This must be something important.”

  “Remember Ellie and Mason?” Lynne asked quietly. “They disappeared a couple weeks ago? No one had heard from them so their parents reported them missing? The cops filed them as missing persons and went about like it meant nothing, and they were just runaways…”

  “Yea, I had woodshop with Mason and Ellie was in my English Lit class,” JJ replied.

  “They found them,” Lynne said, speaking in low even tones.

  “Well, that’s great!” JJ replied. “Did they come home kicking and screaming?”

  There was silence on the other end from Lynne.

  “Lynne, you still there or did I lose service?” JJ asked as he looked to see if his phone had dropped the call.

  “They found them in a motel on the outside of Huntington,” Lynne explained. “Needles in their arms and blue. They had been dead for a couple days. Luckily, they had the air conditioner running to keep their bodies cold.”