by James Hoch
"Here you go," Vonnie said, handing me an insulated mug. "This will help settle your nerves and get you sleepy. I filled us a thermos in case you'd like some more."
"Thanks."
We sat in silence for a while sipping our tea. Jerky decided to try out Vonnie's lap, approved and curled up tightly.
"How's Heckel doing?" Vonnie asked, breaking the silence.
"I worry about him. He seems to be…I don't know…getting older right before my eyes. I think his hair is turning gray quickly and there are circles under his eyes that weren't there when we first met. He's carrying around a huge bundle of grief and worry."
Vonnie nodded her head in agreement. "I'm sure he is, but we all believe in him and we will hold him up."
"I know. It's nice to have people you can believe in, trust and…um…love again."
"That sure is the truth. I just wish my sister were here. I miss her so much," Vonnie said quietly.
"Where is she?" I asked, blowing on the cup.
"Gone. She died during the drug wars. Remember all that mess?"
"Yeah, that shit had been going on for years before Bloody Super Bowl Sunday and the beginning of the collapse," I said, setting a few smaller logs on the fire. "It was another one of those incidents that killed a lot of people over the years. It was most likely something that Madeline had orchestrated as well."
"So many people got involved in drugs over a span of about ten years. I mean sure there was a problem with drugs in our country for a long time. Remember reading about the sixties? It seems that since the hippie years or even longer people did so-called recreational drugs, but progressively more and more people got hooked and I am sure those drugs were tainted, more powerful and more addictive. Unfortunately, my sister was one of those people. I tried to help her, but she wouldn't let me," Vonnie said with a tremble to her voice.
She paused for a moment before continuing. "The drug cartels coming in from Mexico became bolder and more violent, gaining strong footholds in the southwest. It was a war zone all along the southern borders and the cartels inched farther and farther into the northern states. Madeline was Director of Homeland Security at the time, I think. It was one of her first assignments. She sent in the National Guard and it became a mess all along the southern borders. Lots of innocent people were gunned down. Later, I heard a rumor that she actually was helping the cartels by supplying them weapons. Can you believe that?"
"Actually, yes, without a doubt," I said pouring myself another cup of tea.
"I'll never forget the day my sister died. She was an artist, living down in Sedona, Arizona. She did sculptures, mostly marble, and did quite well financially. Too bad, she pissed all her money away on drugs. Anyway, she was killed during a bust that had gone very bad. As she was purchasing…um…whatever she used, a bunch of undercover agents stormed some deserted warehouse. She was caught between the drug assholes and the agents. Her body was shredded beyond recognition. They said that she looked as if she had gone through a meat grinder. I had to fly there and identify the body. I still have nightmares about how awful she looked. I couldn't even recognize her face." Vonnie stopped talking abruptly and tears streamed down her cheeks.
I got up, sat down next to her and put my arm around her shoulder. "I'm so sorry."
We sat there for a long time just staring into the fire.
"Do you have any other brothers or sisters?" I asked, breaking the silence.
"Yes, I have a brother, but I don't know where he is. I lost contact with him over a year ago. The last time I heard from him he was somewhere out in Montana. How about you?"
"Nope. I was an only child. I think my dad would have liked to have had a son to go fishing and hunting with, not to mention having help on the farm. However, the bond that formed between us was tight, and I got to benefit from all those manly things, like being well taught on how to handle a rifle and hunt. That has come in handy many times over the last year or so."
Jerky stood up on Vonnie's lap, arched her back high into the air and yawned. She gingerly stepped over Vonnie's lap and strolled into the tent. A few minutes later, Heckel poked his head out of the tent. "Everything all right?" he asked, trying to stifle a yawn.
"Just fine," I whispered. "You go back to sleep. I'll be in shortly."
He yawned, and nodded his head slowly as he ducked back into the tent.
"I should be going. I'm sure it's late," Vonnie said, standing up.
"Thanks for the visit. It was great to spend some time with you and get to know more about you," I said, standing up as well.
"Likewise. It's been a while since I had a BFF," Vonnie said giggling.
"BFF? What's that?" I asked.
"Best Friends Forever. Remember the whole texting business?"
"Oh, sure, that's right. I never did that texting thing much. Didn't have a BFF that I remember."
"Well, you do now," Vonnie said, giving me a strong hug. "Sleep well."
"Thanks. You too."
I watched Vonnie slip away into the shadows. It felt good to have a BFF. I moved a few of the big logs around to help the fire go out and looked up into the night sky. The stars were especially bright. "Ah, the Milky Way," I muttered as I admired the heavens. After I crawled into the tent, I pulled off my pants and slid into the sleeping bag. Heckel was warm; it felt wonderful to spoon him. I kissed his neck and immediately fell asleep.
The sun warmed the insides of the tent quickly. I pushed the sleeping bag off me and felt for Heckel; he was gone. A momentary panic set in until I heard him whispering to Jerky outside the tent. I stretched, yawned and rolled onto my back to sleep some more. That idea fizzled when I felt Jerky walk on my legs. The heavy cat inched its way up my belly and sat on my chest. She looked at me and I swear, she smiled. "Well, good morning to you too," I mumbled. "You're a tad heavy." A nip on my nose, followed by the sandpaper-like tongue on it, pretty much ended my idea of getting any more sleep. "What's for breakfast?" I asked the cat. The mere thought or mention of the word food could send Jerky into a tailspin. The cat bolted from my chest and darted out of the tent.
I shielded my eyes as I emerged from the tent. "Wow, it's so bright." A gentle breeze danced on my cheek, playing with my hair. The air smelled like it had just been born.
"Good morning, sleepyhead. How do you feel?" Heckel asked as he stirred a pot of oatmeal.
Yawning and stretching, I said, "Like I could eat a horse."
Heckel flashed a look of concern.
"Oops…poor choice of words. Oatmeal sounds fabulous."
"Did you have a nice visit with Vonnie last night?" he asked as he hugged me.
"BFF," I muttered.
"Huh?"
"Yes, we did. It's been a long time since I had a girlfriend to talk with."
"Yeah, I really like Jack too. It feels good to have people you can trust again."
"So, what's on today's agenda?" I asked as I spooned some brown sugar on my oatmeal.
"Well, I think we're going to meet with the leaders of the ABQ group and plan our next move." Heckel said mumbling with a large mouthful of oatmeal.
"Vonnie and I are planning to do some laundry today down by the creek and maybe do a little hunting later."
"Great. So Vonnie's a hunter as well."
"No, she's never been before, but wants to learn."
"Well, she's got a good teacher," Heckel said planting a kiss on my cheek. I giggled; he always made me giggle like a little kid. I loved it!
It was midmorning after I cleaned up the breakfast dishes, washed up, fed the horses and aired out our sleeping bags. Jerky had gone off hunting. Heckel was at the meeting.
"Sleep well?" Vonnie asked as she walked into our camp carrying a large laundry bag.
"Like a log. How about you?" I asked as I finished putting my hair into a ponytail.
"It took a while. I guess I was a bit excited thinking about my first hunting expedition. Am I dressed properly?"
Vonnie had on a pair of old camouflage pa
nts, a dark green sweatshirt and hiking boots.
"Where did you get camouflage pants?" I asked with a grin. "That's so cool."
"They're actually Jack's pants. A little big," Vonnie said as she rolled up one of the pant legs higher up on her ankle.
"You look perfect. Give me a second to grab our laundry and soap."
We chatted about the weather and other innocent topics as we made our way to the stream. Other women greeted us as we approached the water. The winter's runoff was abundant. The water was cold and flowing strong.
"How's this spot?" Vonnie asked, dropping her laundry bag.
"Good as any." As I pulled out our clothes, I said laughing, "Not much need to sort whites and coloreds, huh?"
Vonnie laughed. "I'm just glad we can get them clean for a change."
We hurried with getting things washed and wrung out. Back at camp, Heckel had set up a line for me to hang the clothes. As soon as I draped the last of our clothes over the line, Vonnie came hurrying over.
"I'm ready for my first lesson," she said practically jumping up and down.
"Let me get the rifles and we'll head out."
Since Vonnie had never fired a rifle before, I gave her a crash course in hunter safety as well as instructions on how to fire a rifle. "As soon as we are a good ways away from the area, I'll show you how to fire this baby," I said handing my rifle to Vonnie. I carried the one I had given Heckel. We took off into the woods, past the stream where a number of people were either washing clothes or themselves. We were stopped a number of times to chat with some of the folks we had met. They all wished us luck.
About a half hour later, we came to a ridge and looked out across a wide field. "Let's stay on this ridge for a while and then make our way down to the edge of that field," I said pointing. "But first, let's get you comfortable with shooting." I walked over to Vonnie and demonstrated how to hold the rifle, take aim and fire. "Try not to tense up. Just stay relaxed and squeeze the trigger. Aim at the tree over there. Take a shot and see how it feels. You're going to feel it on your shoulder. Go ahead."
The shot reverberated across the field below. The slug slammed into the tree.
"Ouch," Vonnie said. "Holy crap, that smarts."
"Yeah, but you get used to it. Try a couple more."
Vonnie got more excited with each shot and surprisingly she was a natural.
"Outstanding. You hit the tree each time. Good shooting. Ready to see what we can get for dinner?"
"Absolutely," Vonnie replied with that same little giggle I heard last night.
We continued walking along the ridge, gradually making our way down to the edge of the field. Crouching down, I pointed and whispered, "There's a deer over there by that small brook. You go for it."
Vonnie gave me a slightly panicked look.
I nodded encouragement. "Try to aim toward the front of her," I whispered.
"I'm shaking. I'm so nervous."
"Stay focused. Breathe. Relax. Remember, just gently squeeze the trigger when you feel you have her in your sights."
The deer jerked its head up, spotting us, just as Vonnie shot. The deer bolted off into the bushes.
"Damn. I missed," she said.
"That's okay. You did well for your first try. Let's walk a little farther."
An hour passed before we saw another deer. I had Vonnie lie down on her belly and prop her elbows up to hold the rifle. "Okay, Vonnie. Now remember what I said about staying relaxed. Breathe slowly, aim and squeeze. Try setting your sights a little higher this time," I said whispering.
I could hear Vonnie muttering to herself, trying to relax. A few minutes later, she gently squeezed the trigger. The deer went down.
"Nice shot. You did it," I shouted.
Vonnie jumped up and down. "Wow, what a rush!"
"Not to mention dinner," I said proudly. "That was a perfect shot. Let's gut it and…"
"How do we get it home?" Vonnie asked.
"If it's not too heavy, we can carry it. The deer will be lighter after we gut it."
"Oh, joy," she said. Then a sad look spread over her face. "I killed it. Why all of sudden do I feel bummed?"
"It's not so bad. Don't think of it as Bambi's mother or anything. Remember survival of the fittest and these days hunting is more than a sport. It's a necessity. Just think of it as food that's going to taste so good grilled tonight."
After I showed her the finer points of gutting a deer, we decided that it was too heavy to carry or drag.
"Let's go back to camp and get the horses. Hopefully, there are no bears around that will steal your kill."
Vonnie bubbled with excitement as we walked back to camp. She couldn't wait to tell Jack and Missy about her first hunting experience.
Heckel met us as we approached the camp. "How'd it go?" he asked taking the rifle from me.
"Vonnie's a natural. She bagged a pretty good-sized deer. We have to go back with the horses to get it."
"Congratulations," Heckel said slapping Vonnie on the back.
"Of course, you'll join us for dinner," she stated proudly.
"Yum, venison steaks," Heckel said. "Do you need any help?"
I shook my head and told him that we could handle it. As soon as Tempest and Hope were saddled, Vonnie and I rode off to claim her prize. It didn't take us very long to get to the spot where we covered up the dead deer.
"Now what?" Vonnie asked.
"I think the two of us can get it up on Tempest. We'll drape it over his back. It should be fine. We'll ride slowly on the way back."
The first attempt to lift it up onto Tempest's back failed miserably, but we had a good laugh. It was the third attempt that we actually got it up high enough so that we could push it the rest of the way.
"Ta-da," I said triumphantly. "We did it. Let's get back to camp."
Suddenly, we heard a gunshot and some shouting nearby. I quickly pulled my Glock out of my waistband. "Shh," I whispered and motioned for Vonnie to get down. After more shouting, I said, "You stay here and hold onto the horses. I'm going to see what's happening."
"Let's just go. I got a bad feeling about this," Vonnie whispered.
"I'll be fine. Be ready to go."
"Be careful."
I crouched down low and made my way around a crop of rocks. Looking out into a grassy field, I saw a small boy and a man running across it. Three men were chasing them and shooting. I gasped as the boy stumbled and fell. The man stopped to help him up and was quickly overcome by the three men.
My instincts said walk away, but my conscience said otherwise. One of the bad guys had the boy by the arms while the other two were beating up the boy's guardian. I crept through the trees to position myself in back of the three men. As soon as I got into position, I shot a warning.
"Let them go," I yelled. One of the men spun around and fired at me, hitting a nearby tree. I shot back and the slug hit him between the eyes.
The other two men were unarmed. They panicked and took off running into the trees.
I waited a few minutes before doing anything to see if there were any reinforcements from the bad guys.
"You all right?" I shouted.
"Yes. I think so. The boy might have a slight sprain," the man yelled back.
Cautiously, I walked toward them.
"Thank you so much," the man said as I approached. "I don't think we would have-"
"Who were those men?" I asked guardedly as I kept looking around the area.
"I'm not sure. I think they were part of Madeline's army," the man said, holding up the young boy.
"What do you know about Madeline?" I asked.
"Well, I know for one thing, she's got a huge army forming up north of us somewhere in Washington or Oregon, I think."
The hairs on the back of my neck bristled as I clenched the weapon in my hand tightly. "What's your name?"
"Jackson. Jackson Steele."
"My name is Bobby Stewart," the young boy said cracking a smile.
I walke
d up closer to the boy and examined his ankle. "How does it feel?" I asked. Two huge dimples appeared on Bobby's dirt covered cheeks, "Oh, it's okay. Just a little sore."
"How'd you like a ride on my horse, back to our camp?"
"A horse. You have a horse?" Bobby asked excitedly. "Wow, I'd love to. Where is he?"
Jackson carried Bobby over to where Vonnie and our horses were. I yelled to Vonnie that everything was all right.
"Vonnie, this is Jackson and Bobby."
Vonnie flashed me a nervous look, and I assured her they were fine. I explained how they were being chased by some of Madeline's men. After taking Bobby from Jackson's arms, I placed him on top of Tempest in front of the saddle horn.
"Yeah, I knew what they were planning to do," Jackson offered quietly.
"What?" Vonnie asked. I walked closer to listen in.
Jackson leaned into whisper in her ear. "They were planning on killing me and…um…eating the boy."
Both of our faces lit up with shock and disgust. Neither one of us said a word. We just turned to Bobby and smiled as if to assure him that the bad guys were gone.
"Well, you are welcome to come with us. We have a good three hundred people or more camped over there about a mile or two," I said as I took Tempest's reins from Vonnie. "You ride with Vonnie." She rolled her eyes and sighed heavily.
As we rode into camp, Heckel came out to meet us along with Jack. The looks on their faces were guarded.
"Everything all right?" Heckel asked as he took the reins of Tempest.
"I shot my first deer," Vonnie announced proudly as Jack came up to pull the deer off the back of Tempest.
"These wonderful women saved us," Jackson said quickly as he dismounted, walked up to Heckel and Jack and offered his hand. "My name is Jackson Steele. This is Bobby Stewart."
"Hello," Heckel said a bit haltingly. "My name is Heckel."
"Heckel, that's a funny name," Bobby said as Jack helped him off the horse.
"It is indeed. Remind me to tell you how I got it sometime," Heckel said ruffling the boy's hair.
"Are you THE Heckel Casey everyone's been talking about?" Jackson asked.
Heckel didn't respond. I could tell he was getting embarrassed again. Luckily, Jack jumped in and asked, "Where have you heard about Heckel?"
