Odd Billy Todd

by N. C. Reed

  “We’ll try and be here then,” Billy promised. “Say, I meant to ask. You make boots?”

  “You mean cowboy boots?” Ralph asked, and Billy nodded.

  “I can. At least for now. The heels are the hard thing to come by, these days. I’m thinking of starting to make moccasins. They’re easier to make, and faster, too.”

  “If you take our sizes now, you think you can have us a pair each o’ moccasins and boots by next time?” Billy asked.

  “I don’t see why not,” Ralph nodded.

  “What would the cost be?” Rhonda asked. “We may not have hides, that soon, so figure it like you would for anyone else. If we can bring hides, we’ll work something else out.”

  Ralph quoted a price, which Rhonda readily agreed to, and Ralph quickly and expertly took their measurements. As they were getting ready to leave, Billy asked one more thing.

  “If you’re gonna make moccasins and such, I assume you’d make use of deer hides, when you could get’em?”

  “Sure!” Maness nodded excitedly. “They’re much better for moccasins, in my opinion.”

  “I’ll see what we can do, then,” Billy promised. The two men shook hands.

  “We’ll see you next time,” Rhonda said as they shook as well.

  “You folks be careful, hear?” Ralph said as they left. “Man can’t afford to loose any friends, these days.”

  “We’ll mind it.”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  The trip home was uneventful. Billy took a course that kept them clear of the roadblock, just in case. The way he chose was clear, and the group consensus was that they’d try and use that route next time as well.

  Rhonda again looked closely as they drove through Cottonwood. She could still see no sign that anyone was around. That didn’t mean there was no one, but it was a good indicator. There were plenty of decomposing remains, though. Just as had happened in Cedar Bend, some people had simply died wherever the fever had finally taken it’s harsh toll. At the end, there was no one to bury them.

  They managed to arrive back home before dark, beating the sunset by half-an-hour or so. It was later than Billy had wanted, but considering the day’s events, he couldn’t complain.

  Once they had dropped the Silvers off at their home, Billy and Rhonda headed to theirs. Pulling up into the yard, Billy could hear Rommel woofing at the door. Rhonda hurried up to the door, allowing both dogs to go outside. With a day of pent up energy, they quickly did their business, and then started romping in the yard. Billy took the new saddle to the tack room, while Rhonda unloaded the few items she had traded for.

  All in all, Billy was pleased with the trip. They had hit some rough spots, to be sure. But they had made a new friend, or at least laid the foundation for friendship, and made a pretty good business deal for the future. And they had used less than three-quarters of a tank of diesel, which pleased Billy no end. He knew their fuel wouldn’t last forever, but he wanted to stretch it as far as possible.

  Once they had put everything away, the two sat down to a small meal.

  “Billy, I want to go to Cottonwood,” Rhonda said as they ate.

  “Huh? Why?” Billy asked.

  “I want what’s in that gun store,” Rhonda admitted. “And the fabric place. At least. There’s a small hardware store there, too. We might find some of the things Ralph needs there.”

  “You think it’s worth the risk?” Billy asked, after a minute of silent thought.

  “I don’t know,” Rhonda admitted. “I wanted to know what you thought about it.”

  “Do we need it?” Billy asked directly. Rhonda thought before she answered.

  “Not right now, no,” she admitted, almost reluctantly. “But I didn’t like the things Ralph told us. Wally’s is. . .was, a pretty good store. He would have had a lot of reloading supplies, as well as ammunition. And guns.”

  “We got a room full, now,” Billy pointed out.

  “I know that,” Rhonda nodded. “But what we have won’t last forever. And no, if we get what’s at Wally’s it won’t last forever, either. But I keep thinking about what Ralph said. Someone is bein’ pretty systematic about their gathering. I’d like to be in a position to oppose them moving in our direction. If there’s nothin’ to take, then maybe they’ll go on and go.”

  Billy thought about that. He hadn’t liked what Ralph had to say about things either, but he didn’t see how he could change it. If people were willing to live under someone else’s rule, in exchange for relative safety, and comfort, then he couldn’t do anything about that. In fact, why should he?

  One of the main things his parents had hammered home to him was that once you gave up your independence, it was hard to get back. If you let someone get in a position where they controlled your life, then your life, in effect, became theirs. You lived how they wanted, instead of how you wanted.

  Billy didn’t aim to live like anyone else wanted. Well, except Rhonda. He had to start remembering that. He wasn’t alone any more, and he had to start thinking on that. Not just when he thought of it, but all the time.

  But other than her, Billy aimed to live his life as he seen fit. Period. He didn’t look for trouble, and didn’t want any. He was a simple man, by choice and by nature. He couldn’t change the problems that had caused him to be the way he was. He had worked hard to overcome them, and he was almost certain that he was a lot better, now, than he had been just a few short weeks ago, when he’d found Rhonda Higgins.

  As long as other people left him be, then Billy would leave them be. That made him think of people like Big Dirty. And Nate Blaine. And even that one smart mouthed constable at Franklin.

  People like that weren’t going to leave him be. Someone like Billy, and Rhonda, and the Silvers, were a challenge to the way they thought the world should be now. People like that couldn’t have someone challenge them.

  Like Big Dirty, Billy thought. All he had to do was move them trucks, and let me pass. But did he? No. He couldn’t let me challenge him. And then he had to look at Rhonda like she was a piece of meat. Billy felt the blood rush to his ears, and his heartbeat echoing there. Just thinking about it made him angry all over again, and he had already killed the man!

  Stop it, stop it! he chided himself. You can’t keep doin’ this. It ain’t the way you want to live. Calm, calm, calm. You already took care of it.

  But, deep down, Billy knew why it still made him mad. Big Dirty wasn’t a one time thing. There were others, too many others, just like him. Out there, waiting. If he wanted to avoid them, he’d have to just stay on the farm.

  And even then, trouble might find them.

  Rhonda’s right, he told himself finally. Them same people, or others just like’em, will come eventually, lookin’ to keep others from havin’ what they need. And if they find us, then they’ll try to take from us. And I don’t aim to have it.

  “If you want, we’ll go,” he said finally.

  “Are you sure?” Rhonda asked.

  “I’m sure,” Billy’s voice was firm. “I was wrong. We can’t just sit here. I seen that today. We have to be part o’ the world. We need to be. We had fun today. And we deserved it. I don’t aim to just sit here, and let people force me to hide, and I sure ain’t aimin’ to let them tell me how I gotta live.”

  “So, we’ll go.”

  “Okay,” Rhonda nodded. She’d not seen Billy like this. He had obviously worked his way through a problem. But there was no pacing, no circles, no nothing. Was that a good sign? She didn’t know, but she was hopeful.

  “When do you want to go?” Billy asked.

  “Sooner the better, I guess,” Rhonda shrugged. “You want to see if Jerry want’s in?”

  “I’ll leave that up to you. He didn’t seem to cotton to it, today, though. Whatever you decide, I’ll go with. We can go tomorrow, if you want,” he surprised her by adding.

  “Tomorrow?”

  “Day’s ain’t gettin’ any longer. It’s up to you. Just tell me a day ahead o’ ti
me, so I can get things ready.” Rhonda studied him for a minute. She hadn’t seen him like this before. She knew that once Billy set his mind to something, that was it. But she’d never seen him make a decision like this. He was completely decisive.

  I don’t know what he thought of, she pondered to herself, but whatever it was, it’s got him worked up.

  “Tomorrow, then.”

  *****

  They were up early, long before dawn. It was cool, but clear, stars still twinkling in the sky. They dressed, ate a simple breakfast, and gathered their gear. Billy laid a crowbar and bolt cutters in the truck, and a bag with enough food, water, and gear to get him and Rhonda home, if something happened to the truck.

  Rhonda had decided not to tell Jerry. He had been reluctant to consider it, the day before, and she knew that was not likely to have changed, after the problems they had incurred along the way to the market, and after they’d arrived. She had checked the phone book for businesses in Cottonwood. There was a small hardware store, just as she’s suspected. She decided to try and limit their time by focusing solely on what they could make the most use of.

  There was a small grocery store as well, and if there was time, they might check it for canned goods, and any long term foods. Rhonda didn’t hold much hope for things like rice and flour. The rats would have long since torn into such things. They didn’t need the food themselves, but after hearing how things were in and around Franklin, she couldn’t help think of the trade value of a truck full of canned foods.

  Both were quiet as the set out. Rommel was in the rear seat. Rhonda had left Dottie in the farm house. She was a good dog, but still young, and her training wasn’t nearly as good as Rommel’s. She was working on that, but until Dottie was better, she’d have to miss trips like this.

  Billy had hooked up their largest trailer, and made sure that the large appliance dolly was on board. He was nervous about the trip, though not hesitant. Once Billy made up his mind, then it was made up. That didn’t make him immune to reality, though.

  The two of them were going into a town that appeared deserted, but that didn’t make it so. There had been no signs of life, but again, that didn’t mean there was none.

  We’ll just have to see once we get there, I guess,Billy shook off his worries, and concentrated on his driving. Using the route they had taken before, he figured it should be no more than twenty minutes, half-an-hour at most, until they were in Cottonwood.

  *****

  Billy stopped the truck on the small rise that overlooked Cottonwood. Rhonda, and then Billy, used a strong set of binoculars to scan the streets visible from the hillside, looking for anything that would be a reason to turn back. Neither saw anything. Finally, Billy looked at Rhonda.

  “Ready?”

  “Yeah,” Rhonda nodded. She was scared, but determined. This was far riskier than what they had done in Cedar Bend. But it needed doing.

  “We’ll pull behind the building,” Billy told her. “We should be able to access both stores from the back. Once we’re done, we’ll decide whether to press on to the hardware place. That okay?”

  “Sounds workable,” Rhonda agreed.. “Let’s get this done. I want to get it over with, and go home.” She was tired. Both of them were. They’d worked almost non-stop for four weeks or a little better. Yesterday had been the first day they’d really taken ‘off’, but after the stresses of what all had happened, they might as well have worked double time.

  Billy put the truck back in gear, and gently goosed it into motion, rolling slowly, and he hoped quietly, into yet another ghost town.

  *****

  The crowbar made short work of the rear entrance to Wally’s. Billy had expected it to be harder, but Wally had apparently depended on his alarm to keep thieves away. The alarm wasn’t working anymore.

  The store was small, but packed to the gills. Wally had less in the way of outdoor clothing and equipment than Rhonda’s father had had in his store, but made up for it with other items. Most notable, at least for Rhonda, were cases and cases of powder and primers for her reloading.

  To say she was pleased would have been an understatement. Billy got the dolly, and the two of them worked in tandem, Rhonda readying each stack of boxes, crates or cartons, and Billy hauling them outside, and up the ramp into the trailer. Rommel say by the back door, as ordered, watching their surroundings carefully. Billy was glad to have him along.

  It took what seemed to Billy an inordinately long time to load the ammunition stocks. When he mentioned it, Rhonda had nodded.

  “He must have just stocked up when the Plague hit,” she whispered. Billy almost laughed at her attempt to be quiet. They had made enough noise coming into town to wake the dead. But he realized it was helping to remind her, and him, to use caution.

  Finally, they had everything except the guns, and their accessories. Rhonda wasted no time in looking for boxes, instead just placing as many as possible into the shooting bags, storage crates and rifle cases that Wally had for sale. She worked far quicker than Billy could load, so once everything was packed, she started helping him load.

  When the last load finally went on board, she was pleased to see that the trailer still had about a third of it’s length available. The goods already aboard were stacked about three-fourths of the way to the top, leaving room on top for the fabric, or any other items that were small enough to fit.

  Since the fabric store was next door, there was no need to move the truck. Billy simply forced the door, and the two entered. Rhonda ‘oohed’ and ‘ahhed’ so many times that Billy became frustrated.

  “Reckon we can do all that at home?” he asked, but grinned as he said it.

  “Sure,” Rhonda smiled slightly, embarrassed. “Just. . . sure.” She started hauling the bolts of cloth to the trailer, Billy following.

  It took far less time to empty the fabric shop than it had the gun store, but Billy was shocked to see that it was close to eleven a.m.

  Where did the morning get to? He wondered.

  “I think we’re ready for the hardware store,” Rhonda whispered.

  “Are you sure we need it?” Billy asked. “We won’t be able to carry much, and it’s already nearly noon.”

  “We’ll just check for things that Ralph needs, or things that jump out at us as needful at home,” Rhonda assured him. “And maybe check the grocery store for canned goods,” she added, looking away from Billy as she spoke.

  “You didn’t mention no grocery store to me earlier!” Billy almost hissed. Rhonda flinched, but held her ground.

  “I just thought about it this mornin’,” she told him. “I figured we might take it to the next trade day. Or, we could give it to the Silvers if they had need. Or stock the Franklin house if we find someone to live in it. Or. . . .” Billy held up a hand for her to stop. She could see he was. . .well, pissed probably wasn’t too strong a word.

  “We do that, and I mean that’s it,” Billy said forcefully. “This ain’t Cedar Bend. We ain’t got no real clue is anyone about or not. This is it. Get me?” Rhonda nodded, knowing he was right. Exasperated, Billy climbed into the truck after opening the door for Rommel to leap inside. Rhonda climbed into the passenger side, painfully aware that Billy wasn’t looking at her.

  He was right to be angry, Rhonda figured. She was pushing their luck, and his patience. She just had the feeling that they should get everything they could, while they could.

  Billy followed her instructions to the hardware store, where they quickly went through the inventory. There wasn’t much, but Rhonda did find what she’d hope to find. Rivets, rings, and the tools to use them. Items on Ralph’s want list. Even better, this was horse country, even more so than Cedar Bend. On a small shelf in the back of the store she found five priceless rolls of leather thread, and numerous rolls of leather cordage and pigging strips. Everything was loaded hurriedly into the truck.

  Billy paused long enough to grab the knife display, then thought better of it, and checked under the counter.
The inventory was all in boxes, in a neat row. He swept everything off into a bag, then grabbed the display again, heading for the truck. Rhonda nodded in approval. Knives would be good trading material. If not now, then in the future.

  Billy still hadn’t spoken, and Rhonda didn’t try to force conversation on him. She still felt guilty about springing the grocery stop on him. As they got into the truck, Billy spoke for the first time in several minutes.

  “Where’s this grocery at?” he demanded. His tone of voice brought a wince.

  “We don’t have to go, Billy. . . .” she started.

  “Where is it?” Billy grated. Rhonda gave him the directions. Billy drove there in silence, parking behind the store. The two got out, Billy telling Rommel to ‘stay’, and ‘guard’. The big dog wagged his tail stub in agreement, and sat down near the truck.

  Billy and Rhonda entered the store, and Rhonda started to do inventory. Since it was a small store, there wasn’t a great deal of inventory, but there were some things she desperately needed. Canning ingredients, salt, sugar, and other baking needs were unmolested, rats not having made it into the store. She hastily started pointing out items she wanted, and Billy started hauling them.

  It took almost as long as the gun store had, not least because Billy had to work to find room for everything. Finally, though, they had everything Rhonda wanted. She had even loaded three cases of Billy’s favorite; Coca Cola. It was a peace offering, and Billy recognized it as such, grinning at her, and shaking his head. She returned the grin, and wrapped him in a hug, which Billy was glad to return.

  They were about to mount up for the trip home, when Rommel stirred suddenly, growling deep in his massive chest. Billy froze, his head tilted to the side, straining to hear.

  “Listen!” he hissed when Rhonda tried to ask what he heard.

  “Hear that?” he asked. Rhonda tried, but couldn’t hear anything. Billy suddenly dropped to his hands and knees, and placed his ear to the ground.