Flavian's jaw was flexing furiously.
Ranger slowly walked up to us. He looked at me when he spoke, "Is everything alright, Dana? I don’t mean to be presumptuous, but I got the distinct impression you were in bad company.”
By the look on Flavian’s face, I thought he might take a swing at Ranger, but he managed to control himself. Ranger wasn't a small guy, by any stretch of the imagination, but he wasn't half as big as Flavian. And Flavian was armed. Still, Ranger didn't look like he was the least bit intimidated by the blond guard.
“It’s okay, Ranger,” I said, “Flavian was just leaving.”
Flavian stared firmly at Ranger, but his words were directed at me, "Yes, we'll talk later, Dana. We have all the time in the world to discuss our future." With that, he cleared his throat and stomped away.
Ranger watched him leave intently, then put his knife away and glanced down at me. I started trembling all over, as the adrenaline faded. Why had I been so stupid, mouthing off at Flavian? And why did that lunatic have to care for me? I felt weak in the knees. Without saying a word, Ranger offered me his hand. I took it, in spite of myself. Before I knew it, I had buried my face in his chest. He put his arms around me... I just stayed there... for a moment... It was pathetic, I was simply exhausted, mentally. I couldn’t take it anymore. I just couldn’t... not anymore... Tears started rolling down my face, I started sobbing... then crying... hopelessly.
"It's going to be okay, Dana," he whispered, "Do you want me to take you to Bibi or Stone?"
"Bibibi," was all I managed to say.
On the way, I didn’t even care if people stared, I just cried my heart out. Bibi came out, with Xandy, and gapped at me. She demanded to know what had happened. Xander started crying when he saw my tears. But I couldn’t stop. I just held him close and we cried together. Ranger explained on the way back to my place. She almost lost it when she heard the name “Flavian”. She looked like she wanted to kill him, like, for real, actually end his life.
“This is un-fuckin’-believable,” she said furiously, “Hey, Ranger, will you be a dear and go get Stone for us?”
Ranger left and Bibi hugged me tightly.
“Don’t you fuckin’ worry, Doll,” she said, “We’re gonna find a way to get through to that fuckin’ psycho, even if I have to cut all his fuckin’ finger off. I swear it.”
When Stone arrived, he looked even more pissed than Bibi. They started discussing what to do. I felt weak, frail... broken. They were talking about me like I couldn't take care of myself anymore. And it was true, I needed some time to process everything. Then I remembered.
“Ranger,” I called on him, still sobbing, “I almost forgot, I was supposed to meet Mouse and Lexa at the hut. We were, um... We were going to discuss the last round of the trials. Could you go tell them... tell them...” I trailed off.
“I’ll tell them, Dana,” he reassured me with a meaningful look, “Don’t worry. In fact, you don’t have to worry about a single thing. For now, just rest.”
I knew what he meant. He had realized it wasn’t just Flavian that had gotten to me. I had put myself under so much pressure... with the trials... the election... the letter... everything. He left before I could say a word. A while later, Ranger returned with Lexa and Mouse. Bibi told them what had happened. Then Bibi left, saying something about telling the other guards. Stone went out with her. Even Xandy looked like he was trying to comfort me.
At one point, of course, Singer dropped by as well... it only made it worse. On top of everything else, I felt guilty as hell. I couldn’t even look him in the eye, but he stayed there with me... as always.
When Bibi and Stone came back, they had some other guards with them. They wanted me to make a formal complaint against Flavian, they had forms and everything. It caught me completely off guard. I could have anticipated Stone, or maybe Singer wanting to do things by the book... but Bibi? Never.
I pulled her aside and said, "Bibi, what the fuck? I can’t do that. No one will ever believe me! The whole town thinks Flavian is a freakin' saint."
But she was absolutely adamant, "We have to let people know about this fuckin' creep, Dollface," she argued, "With a formal complaint, we'll have a signed document on our side if he ever tries anything again. Also, you have a witness now, right Ranger?"
“Right you are,” he confirmed warmly.
Stone added, "For once Bibi and I are on the same page, kid. This shit has gone far enough."
But I wasn't convinced. "Guys, I know you mean well, but we're all outsiders here, remember? This will only worsen our situation. The guards will all hate us for accusing one of theirs... And what if they end up winning that damn election? What then, huh?"
"Look, Dollface," Bibi said firmly, "I know you're scared shitless, but that asshole is dangerous. Hiding is just NOT an option here. This town is too small. We need to fuckin' shut Flavian down while we still can."
"And we're all going to sign the complaint," Stone pointed out, "together. It's not going to be just your word against his. We've all seen how he hounded you before. Who knows? Maybe this way, he'll finally see the light and leave you the hell alone."
Their arguments made sense, but I still thought there was a downside to it we couldn't predict. "I... I need time to think... about this," I said unsure.
"No!" Bibi cried, grabbing my wrists, "Dana, please... listen to me. If anything ever happened to you, I... I wouldn't know what I'd do, okay? We're fuckin' family dammit! Don't you realize that? You, me, Xandy, everyone, even fuckin' Stone here! We are a fa-mi-ly."
Few times before had I seen that fearful look in her eyes, and she never, ever called me “Dana”. She was dead serious. Stone put a hand on my shoulder and another on Bibi's, reinforcing her words. Ranger and Singer were side-by-side... looking at me.
"Please, Dollface," Bibi insisted, "You HAVE to sign this thing. The sooner we get this officialized, the better. Fuck the rest of the town. And fuck Flavian and his bitchass groupies. I won't let any of them scare you into silence or submission. It’s about time we made ourselves heard in this shithole anyway. What do you say, Doll? Are you with me?"
I smiled at her and replied, “I’m with you.”
She went over to the guards, snatched the form and a pen and set them on my desk. I was freaking out.
One of the guards guided me through it. He told me to write down, in my own words, everything that Flavian had said and done. He didn't seem too worried about me besmirching another guard's reputation. It was good to see at least some of them were decent people. I still felt lame and ashamed, it wasn't like Flavian had done a whole lot. Sure, he had threatened me... but that was it.
When I was done, Bibi spoke with the guards, going through the technicalities of the procedure. It looked like she was on pretty good term with them. When they were gone, Bibi came and gave me a big bear hug.
"You're my baby sister, bitch," she said, "No one fuckin' messes with us, you hear me? No one!"
She had to go back to her duties. Buba helped out, keeping Xandy company for me. As the hours went by, ever so slowly, I started to feel more and more confident that we had done the right thing after all. Flavian was going to be furious, but if he did anything to me, anything at all, it would only prove that my statement was true. He'd have to lay low if he wanted to keep himself out of trouble. My only fear was him losing it and coming after me anyway. He had a temper, I knew that much.
Mouse was so cute, they way he told me, "I know you have a tight circle of friends, with Bibi and Stone, but we're all here for you, Dana. If you need anything, ever, you can count on us. And I swear, that douche ever touches you again, I'll fucking kill him myself."
"Don't say that," I advised, "I'd hate to see you get in trouble Mouse. Thanks though."
"Hopefully,” Lexa considered, “Flavian will be smart and it'll never come to that. If it does though, there's more than one way to get rid of a dead body."
"Jesus!" I cried, "You guys are freaking scary. Se
riously though, you don't have to worry so much. I'll be fine. I guess I just needed to let it all out, you know?" I glanced at Ranger and Singer. My eyes were still burning with the tears.
Everyone stayed at my place until it was dinner time. I was nervous, heading out to the cafeteria, but Flavian was no where in sight. Some of the people around us kept giving me strange looks though. The news was probably already spreading. I tried not to let it bother me.
Bibi showed up late for dinner, as always. She was all excited, told us that Flavian was being questioned at the guards’ headquarters. “His goose is fuckin’ cooked, my friends,” she celebrated.
We ate in peace and it seemed things were going to be okay after all. On our way out of the cafeteria, after dinner, we saw Flavian talking with some other guards. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but Flavian was even smiling. It looked like he was okay with the whole thing... or at least, that’s what he wanted everyone to think. When he saw me, he didn’t try to come talk to me or anything. He didn’t even look angry.
When it was time to head home, I got up and told everyone, “Guys, thanks for everything today. You’re all great friends, every last one of you.”
I gave myself a break and didn’t say anything in particular to the boys. They were both very understanding. Bibi and Stone walked me home. Stone eventually left, but Beebs decided to stay for the night, to make sure I was okay. As she fell asleep on my father’s mattress, I pulled out my journal and began to write...
- - - - -
I’m starting to get the feeling that things are getting out of control here in Harptown...
Entry 12
March 18th, 47
Trap
Dammit... when things start going wrong, it’s like a juggernaut gaining momentum, there’s no stopping it. How did things go so wrong so fast? It’s crazy. After yesterday, with the whole formal complaint thing, I was really jumpy all day long. I kept thinking Flavian was going to get back at me somehow. Throughout the day, the gang tried to calm me. By dinner, they had almost managed to convince me nothing bad was going to happen...
Oh, I almost forgot... the final results of the hunting trials. With what happened yesterday, I ended up postponing the discussion. Lexa and... Mouse... they both wanted to leave it for another day, but I just wanted something to keep my mind busy, even if I could barely focus on anything at all. After breakfast, we finally got around to talking it over. We had seven names, all of which belonged to potentially good bowhunters. It took us hours. When the lunch siren sounded, we still hadn’t agreed on who to cut. And, as we ate, we continued the debate. It was then a thought occurred to me... Why not recruit them all? I mean, fuck it! We need all the help we can get and if they’re all good enough to hunt... Sure, we’ll need to make more bows, somehow get more bikes... And we’ll need to take them out a few at a time at first, but who knows? Maybe some day soon we’ll have two hunting squads... Why not?
I figured I’d promote Mouse to captain... He could put together his own squad, with his buddy Greg or whatever. Mouse... he almost cried when I told him I thought he’d make a great captain. Anyway, it was settled. In the afternoon, we posted the final list at the hut. Overnight, our man power had almost tripled. The new recruits celebrated, at dinner... I guess that’s when I finally forgot about Flavian... kind of...
- - - - -
After we were done eating, I said goodnight to the gang and went home. Bibi escorted Xandy and I.
“So, you recruited them all, huh?” Bibi noted, “Good thinking, Dollface, the more of you there are, the better! Fuckin’ strength in numbers, right?”
“That’s not why I recruited them,” I pointed out, “I just think they’re all going to be good hunters. That’s all.”
“Sure, sure,” she agreed dismissively, “but it doesn’t hurt to strengthen your political power while you’re at it. Maybe now your name will carry more weight in the council.”
“The council?” I considered, “I’m not out to challenge anyone, Bibi. And I couldn’t care less about political power.”
“Oh yeah?” she argued, “What if having that power meant you could call off the fuckin’ election? You shouldn’t underestimate yourself, Dollface. People like you. In fact, I bet you could rally quite a bit of fuckin’ support, if you really wanted to.”
“Well, I don’t!” I insisted, “And people don’t like me, if anything they hate me, especially the hunters.”
“You always focus on the negatives,” she countered, “I’m not talking about the shitheads who feel threatened by you. I’m talking about the good people who fuckin’ eat the food YOU put on THEIR tables! You really think those people aren’t fuckin’ thankful? And what about the scavengers we saved? That meant a lot to some people. Besides, anyone who gets to know you likes you. You’re, like, the most likable person I know, Honeybuns... when you let people in. Trouble with you, Doll, is you close yourself off too much.”
I considered her argument for a moment.
But then, someone behind us called my name, “Miss Brightman!” It was a guard, running up to us through the dark streets.
I couldn’t remember his name, but I’d seen him around the barracks a few times before.
“Laurie?” Bibi greeted him.
“Hi. Sorry to bother you,” he said, “I’ve been ordered to come fetch Miss Brightman. I’m afraid, there’s been a break-in at your hunting hut.”
“A break-in?” I inquired.
“I’m afraid so, yes,” he replied, nodding, “Your friend Lexa is there and, to be honest, she didn’t look too good.”
“What? Why?” I demanded, “Is she hurt?”
“No,” he informed, “just in shock, I think.”
“In shock?” Bibi asked, frowning, “Damn! Just how fuckin’ bad was this break-in?”
But he just said, “Please, Miss Brightman, if you’ll just come with me. We’ll see what’s what when we get there.”
“Can I leave my brother at home first?” I asked, “I live just around the corner from here. It won’t be long.”
“Actually,” he suggested, “can you leave him with Bibi or something? This is rather urgent.”
“Fuck no!” Bibi rejected the thought, “I’m not leaving Dana’s side. No offence Laurie, but I don’t trust you.”
“No shit,” he retorted, “you don’t trust anyone.”
“You fuckin’ got that right,” she barked at him.
“It’s okay Bibi,” I offered, “I won’t be long...”
“I said NO, Doll,” she insisted, ”We’re not taking any chances. How fucki’n urgent can this shit be anyway? Come on, we’ll leave Xanderman at home and go there together.”
I looked at Laurie and said, “I’m sorry, will that be okay? I kind of prefer to have her with me anyway.”
He sighed and allowed reluctantly, “Fine, but make it quick, I have to report back ASAP.”
We walked fast. Once we got there, Bibi and I went up, while Laurie waited for us down at the front door.
“Unbelievable,” I lamented, tucking Xandy in, “For Lexa to be in shock, they must’ve totally trashed the place.“
“Doll, am I the only one who thinks this is all kinda weird?” Bibi asked, “I mean, why would anyone break into your fuckin’ hut? There’s nothing in there actually worth stealing... No offence.”
“No, you’re right,” I said honestly, “It’s just the bikes, a few compasses, maps... We bring the bows and knives home with us.” Sitting next to Xandy, I told him, “I have to go with the man, but I’ll be right back, okay baby?”
“Okay,” he said, smiling, “Goodnight, Dana.”
“Goodnight, Xanderman,” Bibi cried on her way out.
Before we headed down, I turned to Bibi in the hallway and whispered, “So, you think this might be some kind of retaliation? Mess up my hut, just to mess with my head? You think Flavian would do something like this?”
“Dunno, Doll,” she said plainly, “but there’s something fuckin�
� off about this shit. You know Lexa better than I do, right? Would she be in shock over something like this?”
I thought about it and then answered, “It’s hard to picture her in shock over anything, she’s usually so zen. You think Laurie is lying about Lexa?”
She stood there thinking it over, in silence.
“Bibi,” I finally said, “snap out of it. The man’s waiting for us downstairs. What do we do?”
“I dunno yet,” she said, “Just stay sharp, and take your hunting knife with you.”
She checked her pistol, making sure it was loaded and ready to fire, then holstered it again, leaving the holster button undone. That made me nervous, Bibi had good instincts when it came to that sort of thing. We headed down and followed Laurie out to the hut.
“So,” Bibi started casually, “a forced entry, huh? Can’t remember the last time we’ve had one of those. You’d think people would be smarter than that. It’s such a tiny little town, everyone fuckin’ knows each other.”
“Some people are just dumb,” Laurie commented.
She continued, “Right through the front door?”
“No,” he corrected, “they weren’t that dumb. Broke in through the back, actually.”
“Backdoor?” she asked surprised, “How the fuck did you guys even find out about it so soon?”
“It was Lexa,” he explained, “She went to the hut to get something, found the door busted and called us.”
Bibi glanced at me, then went on, “I gotta fuckin’ hand it to you Laurie, that was fast work. We were with Lexa not fifteen minutes ago, at dinner. Right, Dana?”
“Yeah,” I agreed automatically.
He shrugged and suggested, “She must have gone straight to the hut from dinner.”
“Right,” Bibi agreed, “Hey, there’s a shortcut to the hut through here, isn’t there, Dana? Come on.” She was pointing towards an alley. “The sooner we get there, the better.”
Of course, that was no shortcut I knew of. And she was smart not to let me answer her question, she knew I was a terrible liar. I got the impression Laurie was catching on to our suspicions though. He seemed nervous himself. Looking down at Bibi’s hands, I realized she had already drawn her pistol. She kept it down beside her leg, on the opposite side from Laurie, so he couldn’t see it. But he was hesitant to go into that dark, narrow path.
Dead End Chronicles (Book 1): Dead End Journal Page 14
