by Reed, N. C.
“They tell me you’ll recover fully,” he changed the subject suddenly.
“I’ve been told that, yeah,” she nodded.
“Do you want to continue on in this line of work?” he asked her flatly. “You don’t have to answer now, and you can change your mind if you want. I’m just wondering if this has soured your outlook on working in security. Or working for Greg.”
“No, it hasn’t,” she said firmly. “And yes, I want to continue, just as soon as I can get back on my feet and back into shape. I just don’t know how long that will be, exactly.”
“I’d estimate twelve weeks, give or take,” Clay said at once. “If they’re saying you can be on your feet moving on your own in two months, then I would wager another month and you’ll be back to battery enough to return to duty. Six weeks at most, depending on how fast you recover. You’ll be on light duty almost until Spring,” he chuckled. “Start coming off it just as it warms up a bit.”
“Well, at least there’s that,” she sighed. “If that’s the only silver lining I get, I guess I’ll have to take it and run with it.”
“Do not let this happen again,” Clay turned deadly serious in the blink of an eye. “This or anything else like it. You could have died or caused someone else to be wounded or killed working to save you. We can’t afford a single loss, let alone two. If there is a next time, Amanda, and you don’t die, then you’re out. You can pick vegetables and learn to sew. We don’t need any more funerals. We need live, alert and prepared troopers ready to defend this farm and the people who depend on it. Greg needs live deputies he can depend on being able to help him return at least some form of law and order to this county. People who decide not to wear their gear because it’s uncomfortable are a risk to themselves and everyone around them. You’re too smart for that. Don’t do it again.”
“I swear, Clay, I won’t,” her voice was solemn as she held up her hand. “And I promise you I’d never done it before, either. I…I just had some problems, that’s all.”
“I’m aware of the problem and I’ve already told the seamstress circle to put aside whatever they needed to in order to make sure that you and the others are taken care of in the future,” he told her, nodding. “Don’t ever be ashamed or afraid to come and tell me, or Greg, that something like that is wrong. No one will give you any shit for it, and if they do, I will land on them like an airliner. But I can’t deal with problems if I don’t know they exist. Do you read me?”
“Yes, sir,” Amanda nodded. “I’m sorry,” she said yet again.
“Stop being sorry and start getting better,” he suddenly reached out and ruffled her hair. “Enjoy your convalescence. If you need anything, send word and I’ll see what I can do.”
“Thank you, Clayton,” Amanda said to his back, as he was already on his way out.
“You bet,” he called over his shoulder as he went through the door.
-
There had been a slight hesitation on the part of some about going ahead with the planned Thanksgiving festivities considering the ambush and Amanda’s being wounded, but those were quickly cast aside. If anything, the fact that Amanda was the only one injured, and would recover fully, was more than enough reason to be thankful.
Gordon had decreed that if they were going to do this, they would do it properly. A yearling cow had been cut from the herd, and along with two feeder size pigs were slowly cooked over a hickory fire on spits. The smell permeated the farm until everyone there was almost leaning that direction, mouths watering in anticipation.
Bread, potatoes, and corn, the major staples of the farm for the time being, were cooked in vast amounts, a good deal of the work being done outdoors with cast iron cookware. ‘Just like the old days’ more than one had laughed. Those old enough to remember the old days didn’t laugh much, realizing even if the younger crowd did not that the ‘old days’ were not some kind of great time, and worse, knowing that the ‘old days’ were rapidly returning. But they allowed the younger crowd their fun while they could have it.
They would know soon enough.
Clay and Jose had talked to Gleason, extending the invitation to his troopers to join them for the planned celebration. All the men under his command had behaved extremely well at the small harvest festival celebration they had enjoyed on Halloween, so it was a unanimous decision to invite them again.
Gleason gladly accepted and offered to have at least two of him men join the farm’s watch during the event. Clay informed him that it was covered for now, but that he would keep the offer in mind, in case it was needed.
Everyone who had any areas of responsibility spent the early afternoon ensuring that those responsibilities were met and covered so that everyone could enjoy a good time. Building Two would again serve as the dining area as well as the gathering for cards, dominoes, and various board games.
The younger set would dine at Leon’s club, assuming they wanted to, with everything powered and ready for a night of entertainment. He had also broken out his soda maker and had mixed enough of the ‘elixir’, as it had become known, for anyone who wanted it. It was usually a big hit for the smaller kids, especially.
Ladies once more delved into their recipe books and produced cookies, brownies and hard candies for the young as well as the young at heart, to be enjoyed once the meal was over.
Grateful soldiers walked the buffet style line with their plates, taking only modest amounts of food, all on their best behavior and offering their thanks at being included in the gathering. None of them were in any way out of line or anything less than courteous. As the evening wore on, they would relax a bit and mingle, several of them ending up as participants in the various games being played. Three of the very young men, all still teens, ventured over to ‘Deuce’s Place’ to play video games and mingle with a younger crowd that was closer to their age. All three were very well behaved, almost as if they believed that Gleason could still see them, somehow.
The night did not end until the wee hours of the morning, everyone having a good time and reluctant to stop. In many cases, they didn’t stop and were still playing when the sun began to peek over the eastern horizon.
That was fine, as there were plans for a three-day celebration. Breakfast food was prepared for that morning, with a warning that only leftovers would be available from there on out. Everyone expressed their thanks to the ladies who had worked to provide such good meals and spent the rest of the time waiting on them in any way they could. The soldiers surprised several by forming a line to wash and dry any cookware and dishes that were dirty, which bought them a great amount of good will from the most important people on the farm.
The cooks.
-
“Okay, gentlemen,” Jose informed the collected group. “Rules are quite simple. From here to the interstate, back, through the obstacle course and back to starting line. Crowding is not allowed and is grounds for disqualification. If someone gets to the course before you, you may pass them so long as you don’t interfere with them. If someone tries to pass you, impeding them is grounds for disqualification. No teamwork. This is not qualifications. This is a competition. Teamworking will be grounds for disqualification. Are there any questions?” A single soldier raised a hand.
“What is the prize for winning?” the young man asked, clearly just curious.
“You get to say you’re the baddest mofo on the place until someone beats you,” Jose chuckled. “Anyone else? In that case, ladies and gentlemen, please take your places. Get set…go!”
A group of five National Guard troops, six of the ‘Amazons’ group, and Corey Reynard took off, racing for the highway.
“You didn’t want to race?” Kim Powers asked Zach as they watched the group running down the road and out of sight.
“Nah,” Zach shook his head before taking a bite of roast beef. “I do that pretty regular, anyway. No need to torture myself.”
“I kind of had the same thought,” she admitted. “Are you standing watch again?�
� she asked, noting his gear.
“I’m about to start, yeah,” he nodded. “I have the Ground Watch from ten until two. I think I have response from eight to midnight, but I’ll have to check. I offered to take someone’s place that wanted to have the time with their kids or significant others.”
“That’s nice of you,” she smiled at him. “You’re always doing nice things like that.”
“I never thought of it as nice,” Zach looked thoughtful. “I just figured those with family ought to have time with them. Well, family or else someone close to them.”
“You don’t have anyone like that?” she asked him.
“Nah,” he shook his head. “I mean, me and the guys are close. Have been all our lives. But that’s a bro thing, so to speak.”
“I thought you and Vicki-,”
“I’d rather not get into that,” Zach interrupted her gently. “Gone and done. No offense or anything,” he added.
“None taken,” Kim promised. “I shouldn’t have said anything. Truth is I was just fishing a little,” she admitted suddenly, blushing slightly.
“What for?” Zach asked, looking at her.
“For you, stupid,” she laughed gently. “I was checking to see if the coast was clear, so to speak. To see if there was someone you were seeing.”
“Oh. Well, no. No, there isn’t,” he assured her.
“That’s good,” she leaned forward suddenly and touched her lips gently to his. It lasted only a second, with her pulling away almost as soon as she reached him. “Damn. I wanted to do that forever,” she smiled.
“Shouldn’t have waited so long,” Zach had just a hint of a smile. “Definitely shouldn’t have started as I was going on watch,” he added with a small laugh.
“Zach, I’m not looking for a playmate,” Kim warned him. “I really, really like you. A lot. If you don’t think you can return that then we can stop here and still be friends. Maybe starting when you were going on watch wasn’t as bad an idea as you thought,” she moved away, still smiling. “You can think about what you might want, too. I won’t be mad if you don’t think of me like that, or else don’t think you can in the future. I’ll be disappointed, but I’ve been disappointed before. I’ll live through it. And we’ll still be friends, regardless.”
“But if you think you’re ready for something more meaningful, something deeper than just a physical roll in the hay, then I just might be your girl. I just wanted to give you something to think about.”
“I’ll definitely be thinking about it,” Zach promised the former cheerleader.
“Good,” she nodded her head once, firmly. “Well, you go and do your watch. Come find me when it’s over. I’ll be around, somewhere.”
“I’ll just do that.”
-
Gleason was frowning as his five men finished the course. The fastest of them had finished in fourth place behind that one teenager and two of the women. Two of them were dead last.
“Well,” he told them, walking down the line as the five tried to catch their breath. “I have a feeling that you thought you were going to wipe the floor with these civilians, didn’t you?”
“I never seen anything like it,” one man replied. “Even during basic. Hell, even AIT.”
“Remember that they’re trained to Recon standards at the least,” Gleason reminded them. “Even the women, before you say anything,” he laughed. “You did good, despite your placement. All of you finished well under the time limit. Good work. I will expect at a minimum a top three finish if we do this competition again, however,” he warned.
“Yes, Sergeant!”
-
“I can’t believe he beat us,” Petra Shannon grumped as she plopped down onto the ground. “I was sure we’d beat him.”
“Why?” Devon Knowles asked.
“He’s such a…a…I don’t know,” she finally gave up. “Joker,” she continued after a second. “That’s it. He’s such a clown all the time. Been shot up twice according to some of the others.”
“Both times defending this place,” Devon reminded her. “Clown or not, he’s basically a veteran at this stuff, Petra. All of them are. We’re getting there, but we haven’t seen any real action other than working with the Sheriff. He’s been off the farm on no telling how many operations.”
“Okay, that’s true,” Petra allowed. “My mistake was underestimating him, I guess. Still,” she lay back, looking at the sky. “I just really wanted to beat one of them.”
“We will,” Devon promised. “We just have to keep working. They didn’t start out where they are. We can’t either. If we want it, we have to work for it. That’s all.”
-
“Thought you might like a plate,” Greg smiled as he entered the clinic to see Amanda sitting up very carefully in her bed. “Assuming you can have, like, real food?” he glanced over to Jaylyn Thatcher.
“She’s okay,” the doctor promised. “Don’t overdo it, but she’s fine to eat.”
“Yay!” Greg’s fake enthusiasm was funny as he set the plate down on her small table. “Here ya go, Deputy Dawg!”
“Deputy Dawg?” she looked at him askance. “Really?”
“You prefer Mavis, then?” Greg teased.
“Deputy Dawg it is,” she laughed carefully. She wasn’t so touchy about the subject of her name anymore. Any teasing she received now was sincerely good natured and not malicious. That made a real difference she had learned.
“Anyway, you can’t grow up all big and strong without eating properly,” Greg chuckled, adding a large glass of tea and some utensils to the tray. “Never let it be said that I do not take care of my men. Women. Deputies,” he finally settled on a neutral word.
“I get it,” Amanda chuckled, picking up her fork. “I definitely want to get big and strong so I can kick the ass of the people who put me here,” she growled as she stabbed at the food on her plate. She was hungry.
“Ah,” Greg suddenly turned serious. “I guess I thought you already knew.”
“Knew what?” she looked back at him; fork raised halfway to her mouth.
“Didn’t X and Zach visit you earlier?” Greg asked her rather than answer.
“Yeah. Why?” She had lowered her fork back to her plate, food still impaled on the tines.
“Amanda, there’s no one left for you to get even with,” Greg told her simply. “Xavier and Zachary found them and killed them all, the same night you were wounded. You were probably still in surgery when they left. Pushed an old truck to the interstate before starting it so no one could stop them.”
“Really?” Amanda looked stunned.
“Really,” Greg promised. “Burned the bodies, freed a woman and four girls who were being held prisoner and looted the place. They were just finishing up when we got there. I can’t believe they didn’t tell you,” he shook his head. “They may not have wanted you to know. Sorry.”
“Hell, don’t be sorry!” Amanda exclaimed, then grabbed her incision. “Wow,” she added, more softly. “I owe them big time for that.”
“I doubt either of them would agree,” Greg shook his head again. “In fact, had I not told you, I don’t know when you might have found out.”
“I can’t imagine Clay was happy about that,” she mused. “Or you either, comes to that,” her eyes rose to meet his.
“I didn’t care either way so long as they didn’t get hurt,” Greg shrugged. “Clay was a little miffed, but Zach pretty much told him ‘tough’ and ‘get over it’.”
“Oh my God,” Amanda almost whispered. “What did Clay do?”
“He got over it, I guess,” Greg huffed out a little laugh. “He hasn’t said anything else about it and helped them load up their loot. Anyway, the problem of who shot you and why has been dealt with. So, all you have to do is get better. Which starts with a good diet!” he smiled and pointed to the plate he had brought her.
“Yeah,” she nodded thoughtfully. “Thanks again, boss.”
-
“Not
a bad throw down, aye?” Jose told Clay as the two sat watching the outdoor part of the day’s festivities.
“Nope,” Clay agreed, drinking from a cup that smelled suspiciously of alcohol. “Not at all.”
“This will be a good break for everyone, I think,” Jose continued. “And a big deal for the young Guardsmen as well. They seem to be getting along just fine,” he nodded in their direction. Clay could see several of the young men interacting with farm residents, including, he saw, a handful of the Amazon squad.
“I’m really going to have to stop calling them that,” he muttered to himself.
“Calling who, what?” Jose asked, lowering his own cup that had a similarly suspicious smell.
“I keep calling the girls the ‘Amazon Squad’,” Clay told him, shaking his head. “It stuck in my head back before they started training and I keep using despite trying not to. Sooner or later I’ll say it in front of them and probably make them mad. I don’t want to do that. They’ve worked too hard to think that they’re being disrespected in some way.”
“Who’s to say they’ll be disrespected by it?” Jose asked with a shrug. “Amazons were badass women warriors, man. Those girls are definitely heading in the right direction. Come to think of it, maybe ‘girls’ is wrong, too. But ‘young women’ is a mouthful and sounds as if we’re talking down to them or about to chew them out. Ladies seems derogatory to me, almost mocking, to be honest. So, I try to treat them the same way I treat the boys. By which I mean, I call them boys, so I call the girls, well, girls.” He lifted his cup to take another drink.
“Sounds as if you got it all worked out, don’t you?” Clay laughed.
“Not even ten percent of it,” Jose shook his head.
“I’ll think of something.”
-
“What do you think they’re talking about,” Danica Bennet asked, using her chin to point to where Clayton Sanders and Jose Juarez sat. She was currently standing in a group that included Talia Gray, Kim Powers, Freda Fletcher and Jena Waller.
