The Big Ten: The First Ten Books of the Beginnings Series

by Jacqueline Druga

  “From sun up this morning to sundown I have been doing nothing but . . .”

  “I suggest.” Frank raised his voice more. “You take that tone and leave this office.”

  “You’re not listening.”

  Frank sprang up. His huge hands slammed on the desk with a thunderous crash. “And you are not listening. Do not come in here and talk to me like that. Who the hell do you think you’re talking to?”

  “Someone that is not doing what they are supposed to be doing.”

  Frank’s facial muscles tensed up. “I’m not going to tell you again. Leave the office before I throw you out. And be forewarned, I will not be gentle with you.” As Frank lowered himself into his chair, he watched Lt. Merrick walk to the door. “Another thing, Lieutenant. The UWA soldier interrogations that you have been handling, you aren’t handling them correctly. From now on you are relieved of that duty. I will handle them. No one but me.”

  Lt. Merrick turned around. “Yet another thing you’re doing.” He had such anger in his voice. “Aside from running your staff into the ground, I heard what you were saying to the men about training. That is not the way I was told to train them.”

  “Perhaps that is the reason these soldiers suck. Make no bones about it, soldier, this is my detail, my battalion and I will run it and train it as I see fit without any questions asked. Is that understood?”

  “I’m letting the President know what you are up to.”

  “You do that. You go right ahead and do that. Now, that will be all.”

  “You don’t think I . . .”

  “I said!” Frank blasted. “That will be all!”

  The door slammed loudly when Lt. Merrick raged out. Frank calmed himself and picked up the cigarette that was burning away. He stared at the closed door and thought of what Lt. Merrick had said and he realized Lt. Merrick was a problem, one Frank would have to deal with as soon as possible.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  September 16

  Binghamton. Alabama

  Frank’s lit cigarette twirled as he tossed it while waiting for the guard on the building where the UWA soldiers were held. He walked down the long hallway to the end where they were. It was cold and damp and the darkness of the place seemed to make it worse.

  “Keys.” Frank held his hand out to the soldier who guarded the door.

  A little nervous, he handed them to Frank. “Sir, you should wait until we have more men here to go in there with you.”

  “For what?” Frank asked.

  “For your protection, sir.”

  Frank nearly laughed. “I need no protection against these prisoners. You just watch the door.” Frank unlocked the door and handed the soldier the keys. He opened it, stepped inside, and pulled the door closed.

  Tired, thin and looking bad, Link, Kyle, and Jeff looked up to Frank upon his entrance. Frank just stared at them.

  ^^^^

  Beginnings, Montana

  Joe walked with Robbie towards the clinic. They moved at a brisk pace.

  “Just make sure you keep track of anything you can find out.” Joe instructed Robbie as the neared the clinic. “No matter how minuscule.”

  “I know that. We’re gonna meet every Thursday for a Bible study.”

  Joe snickered. “Sorry. Do you need to borrow Andrea’s to brush up.”

  “Dad, please, it’s the Bible. How hard can it be?” Robbie opened the clinic doors for his father. “What time is this wedding today?”

  “Four. I’ll tell you, it couldn’t come at a worse time no matter how small it’s supposed to be. I move in two days and my house is a disaster. Thank God Jess is helping Andrea cook. I feel bad that it’s their wedding and we have to have the dinner there but . . .”

  “They have the biggest house.”

  “True. Why are you here at the clinic, Robbie?”

  “Helping Ellen out. Dean’s testing her today on her stitching. See, how serious those two are taking it when they’re both working the day of their wedding?”

  “It’s nothing new to them,” Joe said. “They’re just making it official for a while.”

  “For a while is right.” Robbie stopped in front of the examining room where he was to meet Ellen.

  “Well, I’ll leave you. I want to check that new guy. They’re releasing him to containment tomorrow. Have fun and don’t be late. It’s just our family there today and I’d like everyone to be there.”

  Robbie gave a thumbs up, watched his father move down the hall, and then he knocked on the closed examining room door. “El.” He opened it. “Hey, baby, I’m all . . .” Robbie slowed his speech when Ellen turned around with a huge syringe. “ . . . yours. Shit.”

  ^^^^

  Quantico Marine Headquarters

  Stewart was a bit older then Jeremy, but was a face seen more often in the Society. Now he took Jeremy’s place as George’s right hand man. He stood as he watched George pace around the office, holding onto a phone. He watched George nod, smile, and then hang up.

  George laid the phone on the desk. “Jeremy is still out of commission there. He’s being moved back to containment.”

  “Even after he gets out, when will he have telephone access?”

  George shrugged. “There are community phones. We’ll have to wait and see. If he needs to get a hold of me, he will. That’s why he’s there, to take chances I cannot have my inside person take.”

  “Expendable?” Steward asked.

  “If he needs to be. Yes and so are you for that matter.” George sat down at his desk. “Wedding goes off today. The switching of leaders is in transition. Concentration is on the joining of the UWA and Beginnings. However Hal leaves and we now know where they are located.”

  “Are you thinking a full scale attack?”

  George shook his head. “I can’t right now. Not with Ellen going back and forth to there. Anything happens to her all deals are gonna be off with Dean and he has something I don’t want to chance getting. Put it that way. And I want Dean.”

  “So you no longer need the UWA prisoners in Binghamton.”

  George shook his head. “We can dispose of them. I should be hearing from Frank late this afternoon when Marcus arrives there.”

  “Why are you sending Marcus there? I thought you trusted Frank.”

  “Marcus is searching for camp and farm sites for us. He was heading out that way anyhow. So I thought when they unload him and his Jeep outside of Binghamton, he could stop in for a few days and see how things are going with Frank.” George leaned back in his chair. “I trust Frank and my doctor. Dr. Morris assured me he has complete amnesia but it never hurts to have a little added insurance, does it? At least until I arrive back there in another week. And thinking about my reasons for hanging out there.” George reached for the phone. “I think I’ll call that reason now.”

  ^^^^

  Beginnings, Montana

  Henry huddled close to the wall with the phone wedged between his ear and shoulder. Leaning against the file cabinet, whispering, he would occasionally look over his shoulder to an irate Cole. “But Joe . . .”

  “Handle it, Henry.”

  “But Joe, he’s really . . .”

  “Henry. Handle it. Make the decision.”

  “Aw.” Henry whined then whined again when he heard Joe hang up.

  Cole stood with folded arms, his fingers tapping. “Can’t make a decision on your own, Henry?”

  Like he was six, Henry snapped back. “I’m not the real leader yet. So there.”

  Cole rolled his eyes. “Can we discuss this?”

  “Um . . . yeah. Let me take the leader seat.” Henry walked over to the desk and sat down. “Whoa.” He swiveled the chair. “I’m getting Joe vibes.”

  “Henry, I have to . . .”

  ‘Shh.” Henry smiled. “I feel like Joe. O.K., go on.”

  “What is this shit?” Cole slammed down a stack of papers.

  “Um . . . looks like reqs.”

  “For food.”

>   “Appears so.” Henry lifted them. “Is there a problem filling them?”

  “Yeah.”

  “We don’t have enough food to fill them?”

  “No. Yes. Do you people even realize the chain of events you are causing with this order?”

  Henry turned more serious. “Us people? Since when weren’t you part of us people?”

  “Since when did we start feeding people that aren’t ours and people who don’t have to work for it?”

  “I can recall last month throwing out a lot of food and dumping some on a savage camp. When did the savages start working for it?”

  “You are missing my point.” Angrier, Cole stepped to Henry. “Agriculture doesn’t have the man power to farm what we have as it is. Now we have this order to ship down to Bowman in two days. In two days, I’ll have to pull it from distribution. We have to fill distribution back up, which mean rushing the food from preservation, and rushing more food to them to can. I don’t have the men to do this.”

  “In two days, you will. Robbie is returning with about thirty men to start.”

  “And I suppose they’ll just waltz right in our gates without going through containment. Without having . . .”

  “Cole.” Henry’s voice was firm as he stood up. “About the only problem I want to hear come from your mouth right now is that we don’t have enough in our fields and greenhouses to refurbish preservation and distribution.”

  “But what about those divisions? They may not . . .”

  “They are not your divisions to worry about, are they?” Henry tilted his head. “Cole, does agriculture have ample growth to refurbish?”

  “What about all these men I’ll have under me?”

  “Cole!” Henry yelled. “I will ask you one more time. Does Agriculture have ample growth to refurbish?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then I suggest you prepare for your new men. Those orders for food are for when they arrive to help you collect it.” Henry picked up the requisitions and nearly tossed them at Cole. “Don’t go off on me again about shit you aren’t informed enough to argue about.”

  Cole wrinkled the requisitions as he headed to the door. “These thirty new men, they’re bullshit. They get a free walk right through our doors. And I’ll tell you, Henry right now, I won’t treat them like I treat the men of Beginnings.”

  “Cole.” Henry called out firmly. “You will treat them like the men of Beginnings because as of five days ago, they became the men of Beginnings. If I hear that you are being any other way to them, I take it as a sign that it’s far too much responsibility for you to handle and I will look for someone else to replace you as head of Agriculture.” Henry stared at Cole who said nothing. A few moments of angry glares exchanged between the two men and then Cole stormed out. On the slam of the door, Henry plopped down in the chair and let out a loud breath of relief. He then smiled and got excited. “Oh. I have to call Joe and tell him.” Giddy, he dialed the phone.

  ^^^^

  In a rare occurrence, Dean was in the clinic lab alone, the blinds drawn, the door locked, and homemade note cards spread about the counter. He mumbled to himself as he read over them and he cursed at the intrusion of his thoughts when his private phone rang. “Damn it.” Dean picked it up. “Yeah.” He reached for his cards.

  “Hello Dean.” George sounded cheerful.

  Dean fumbled the phone and the cards. “George.”

  “Just wanted to congratulate you on today and wish you good luck.”

  Dean held tight to the phone. “You said you weren’t calling back until it was time.”

  “It’s almost time and I’m almost convinced.”

  “I’m not.”

  “What?”

  “It’s been over a week, George. I think I want proof that Frank’s alive or the deal is off.”

  “I have my eye on your children.”

  “Yeah and I have my eye on that weapon I made. Right now the only thing that will tip the scales in your favor is the fact that you have Frank. I want proof or I don’t walk from these gates. Understood?”

  “Arrogance, Dean.”

  “You’re the one who wants it, so deal with it. Proof George.” Dean took slow breaths to hide his nervousness and irritation.

  “You’ll get your proof then I want no more threats or demands against me, you hear. Or the deal is off completely and you and I will be heading in to checkmate.” George took on a meaner tone. “A loss hurts a lot more when it hits close to home. Keep in mind no weapon will ever bring back what you can lose.”

  The moment Dean heard the click of the line, he leaned to the counter to calm his racing heart. He knew he would have to be careful from now on. Without knowing who the person was working for George, Dean didn’t want to cut it so close that he’d end up cutting his own throat.

  ^^^^

  “Ow El. Come on,” Robbie yelled loudly.

  “Quit being such a baby.”

  “You’re putting a needle in my skin. How do you want me to be?”

  “Quiet. Now come on. It doesn’t hurt.”

  “Uh . . . yeah it does. Put more of that numbing stuff on it.”

  Ellen shook her head. “You know Frank never . . .”

  “I’m not Frank. I don’t feed off of pain. Numb it.”

  The door to the examining room opened and Dean walked in. “How’s it going?’

  “Dean,” Robbie said his name in relief. “Is she done? Doesn’t she have to get married to you in a couple hours?”

  “Yes she does. El, you’d better be going.” Dean walked over to examine Ellen’s work. “I can’t believe Robbie let you practice on him. Good job.”

  Ellen looked up and smiled. “Thanks. See I told you I can stitch.”

  “Whoa.” Dean peered closer “What happened to your leg, Robbie? How did you cut it?”

  Robbie pointed to Ellen.

  Dean’s eyes widened. “You cut his leg on purpose?”

  “Well I was having trouble getting the real stitch effect.”

  Dean looked to Robbie. “And you let her? Why in the world would you let her slice your leg?”

  Robbie shrugged. “She promised me a blow job . . . ow.” Robbie jolted when Ellen jabbed him. “Kidding, Dean. I don’t know why. I didn’t think it would hurt this bad, that’s for sure.”

  Dean shook his head with a whistle. “I don’t know about you two. El, I’m heading home, O.K.? Be on time for the wedding.”

  “I’ll be on time.” She looked up and kissed Dean. “See you there.”

  With a ‘hmm’ Dean moved to the door, waved, and left. He stepped in the hall and remembered what he had forgotten to tell them. He turned and walked back in. “Geez, I’m sorry. I knew there was another reason for me coming in here.” Dean closed the door. “George just called me.”

  “Ow!” Robbie screamed in pain when Ellen’s hand slipped in surprise.

  ^^^^

  He was communicating with Bowman. The radio broke up a little but Hal figured they would work the bugs out eventually. “So everything is going well?” Hal asked Sgt. Ryder.

  “As well as they did yesterday. Getting ready to return?”

  “Yes and I’m bringing someone.”

  “You didn’t tell me this.”

  “It was going to be a surprise. But . . . we have a doctor coming to help Blue set up.”

  “Really?” Sgt. Ryder sounded impressed. “With medications and things?”

  “Yes.”

  “I look forward to meeting him.”

  “Her.”

  “Excuse me?” Sgt. Ryder asked.

  “Her. The doctor is a woman.”

  “Shall I alert Grace she will be having a houseguest?”

  “No way.” Hal spoke up. “She’s staying with me.”

  “With you, Captain?”

  “Yeah with me. Seems . . . my father had more than my brother to surprise me with. I’ve known this woman for nearly forever. We were quite close.”

  There was a sl
ight snicker of surprise that came from Sgt. Ryder. “You sound as if you like this woman.”

  “Oh she’s great. So much different than ours. Elliott, the moment we saw each other, we embraced, a very warm embrace.”

  “You’re kidding?”

  “No, really I’m not. Wait until you meet her.”

  “I . . . I can’t wait.” Sgt. Ryder was stunned. “And wait until I tell the men that the Captain is returning with a woman, one he’s involved with and likes.”

  Hal paused in silence before correcting Sgt. Ryder. “Yes, I certainly will be envied, won’t I? Well, I must go. I have a wedding to attend.”

  “A wedding.”

  “Yes, they have them quite often here, but I’ll tell you all about that when I get home. Keep me posted of anything you hear.”

  “I will, sir. See you in a few days.”

  “Goodbye, Elliott.” Hal ended the radio call and grinned as he still held on to it. More than the thought of the men being envious of him once they saw that Ellen was nice, he grinned at the thought of Ellen and Grace’s first meeting. And that thought actually made him snicker.

  ^^^^

  It was a summer dress, or at least summer material. It was thin, lose in some places, tight in others. The sleeves were short with just a hint of feminine trim. So old fashioned it looked, so much like the dress Ellen had found at the Anderson Farm, yet Ellen wore it. Jess added the final hem in his bedroom, kneeling at Ellen’s feet, tucking and stitching at the dress that came nearly to Ellen’s ankles. Ellen knew as she stared at her reflection in the mirror, her hair down simply, and the dress looking so nice, that there were two things that told her Trish didn’t make the dress like she claimed to have. One, the general tailoring of the dress and two, the Sears and Roebuck tag in the back.