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

by Jacqueline Druga

  “Yeah I’m mad,” Robbie said. “We live together. You should have come to me with this. I assumed that’s the way things would be. I asked you to share my house with me right?”

  “Yes, but . . .” Jess’ hand played with the rim of his glass.

  “No buts. I’m all for it.” Robbie told him, turned around when he heard his father snicker then refaced Jess.

  “Really?” Jess asked. “Well that is . . . that’s great. We’ll even ease our way into it.”

  “No need. We’re half way there already. Right?”

  “Right.”

  “Good.” Robbie picked up his drink and stared into it. “I shouldn’t drink this. Take this from me.” He handed it to Jess.

  “Why.”

  “I have to fly.”

  “Emergency?” Jess asked.

  “You could say that.” Robbie looked back at Henry. Dean was pulling a chair out at Henry’s table.

  “I wanna talk to you.” Dean sat down across from Henry.

  “Sure, what’s up?”

  “You seem mad.” Dean asked. “Are you? Are you mad at me?”

  Henry contained himself. “Dean, come on. What do you think? You would be mad too.”

  “I guess you’re right. But I want you to know something Henry. I will never forget what you did for me when I needed Ellen. I won’t.”

  “But you did.”

  “How can you say that?”

  “I can say that because you have an outlook on a situation that just isn’t right. This afternoon you were wrong.. You were very wrong.”

  “Why am I wrong for not wanting to share my wife?” Dean asked.

  “Because it’s wrong in this day in age. I did it. I didn’t want to. We all do it. It is all a fact of life.” Henry tried to explain.

  “I’m sorry Henry. I don’t want it to be my fact of life.”

  “Yeah but it was not a problem when she was with me. Sharing her was not a problem when she was with Frank. No. I’m sorry Dean. I was patient. Things are settled now. I need her back in my life.

  “I’m not saying you can’t be her friend.”

  “But you are saying if it moves towards more than that, then it would be wrong?” Henry stated nearly in question.

  “It . . .it would be cheating.” Dean spoke soft. “And also an impossible dream for you. Think … think back. Ellen ended the friendship with you over something. Something so big that she couldn’t get passed it. Do you think for a second she’d get by it now. Has that much time passed? I don’t think so. Let it go before you get hurt in more ways than one.”

  Henry closed his eyes painfully, and stood up.

  Robbie poked his head in between the two men “Henry, ready?”

  “Yes.” Henry answered.

  “Good. It’s getting late. Let me grab Jess, I’m getting him to go.”

  “I’ll meet you at the hanger.” Henry reached down for his knapsack and looked once more at Dean and headed to the door.

  “Henry.” Dean stopped him. “Where are you going?”

  “Danny ran into difficulties. He needs me.” Henry raised his eyebrows. “I’m going to Bowman.”

  “Tonight?” Dean quizzed him with edge. “It’s dark out. Danny can’t wait until morning for you?”

  “Oh yeah he can.”

  “So why are you going to . . .” Dean nodded. “Ellen.”

  “Yep.” Henry tossed his bag over his shoulder, looked once more at Dean and walked from the social hall.

  “Henry!” Dean ran out after him. “Stop.”

  Henry stopped but didn’t turn around.

  Dean moved to him. “This isn’t right.” He walked around Henry to face him. “This is wrong. You can not be going after my wife.”

  “See!” Henry’s voice raised and though he brought the volume down, the tone remained.. “This is where the problem lies Dean. Right here. Your thinking. I am not going after your wife! I just . . . I just want to be with my friend. And prove to you, we have moved beyond our problem.”

  After a moment of silence between them, Henry moved on.

  ^^^^

  “571-8776.” Danny yelled down to Hal, who stood with a clipboard at the foot of the telephone pole.

  “Got it.” Hal wrote it down. “Continue.”

  Danny waited until he heard no noise. He placed the pen light back in his mouth, looked down at the phone book he held, and dialed the phone.

  Ring. Ring,

  Danny grinned as he listened to the phone ring in the dead silent town but no one answered. He scratched it out and put an ‘N A’ next to it. He dialed another number. Static. He marked that one out of service and then he dialed again. He listened to the ringing and then finally the call was answered. Danny dropped the pen light into his hand. “What’s your name? Good. Robert, your number is 571-9087. Got that. Good. Hal!” Danny called down. “Robert’s number is 571-9087.”

  Sgt. Ryder walked up to Hal. “It’s coming along nicely.”

  “Yes it is.” Hal showed Sgt. Ryder the clipboard. “The ones that are working are working fine so far. We just have to be quiet so we can . . .” Hal raised his head to the sky when he heard the helicopter approaching.

  “You were saying?” Sgt. Ryder asked.

  Hal shook his head with a smile. “Wait it out. That’s what I was saying. Isn’t this great, Elliott? Help is arriving for something so trivial as a phone.”

  “But to Beginnings, it’s not trivial,” Sgt. Ryder told him. “And we are now part of them. They only want us to have what they do.”

  “Feels good, doesn’t it?” Hal asked.

  “And not just to have the help or the phones,” Sgt. Ryder said. “It feels good to be a part of Beginnings.”

  ^^^^

  Binghamton, Alabama

  Frank closed the file folder and it barely shut. It was stuffed with notes that he took, files that he found, and information he gathered. He rubbed his eyes and stood up from his kitchen table, bringing the folder with him. He stopped in the dining area and stared at the ‘farm’ picture on the wall. How he hated that picture. Setting the folder down, he removed the picture and placed it to the floor. When he did, a square foot piece of wood teetered in the wall. Frank removed that, exposing a hole and in the hole that he and Richie made, he hid his folder and rehung the picture.

  How long had he been working in his kitchen? An hour? Two? He made his way into the living room and reached for the lamp. When he did, he saw it on his coffee table. Frank had been so engrossed with his other work, he never saw it when he walked in.

  A square homemade envelope lay there, Richie’s handwriting on front. ‘Frank, found this in my stuff.’

  Frank missed spending the day with Richie but he knew it was for the best that they didn’t hang around much, or at least when anyone knew. He picked up the note and when he did, a picture fell from it. It landed face down on the coffee table.

  The second Frank lifted it and turned it over was the second his heart dropped. “Oh wow.” It was a face he longed to see. It was a picture of Ellen. “Look how blonde.” His long finger ran down her hair. The picture was old, but it was still Ellen. The face, to Frank, never changed or never aged. The smile upon Ellen’s face stared up at him and he smiled back. A warm feeling swept up Frank, lighting his whole face with a grin and causing his emotions to gloss over his eyes.

  His lips twitched some in his overwhelming of ‘missing and loving’ her at the moment and a lump formed in his throat. It was difficult, but Frank swallowed, held on to that picture, and never took his eyes off of it as he went upstairs to bed.

  Once in his bedroom, Frank laid on his bed, his legs extended, the picture held tightly in his fingers and not too far from his view. He loved the picture and was so grateful to Richie for giving it to him. He needed that picture. Filled with feelings and emotions for Ellen, so over powering, held on to that picture until he fell asleep.

  ^^^^

  Beginnings, Montana

  His hands bro
ught up the blanket over a sleeping Alexandra’s shoulder. Dean bent down, kissing his daughter for what seemed like the hundredth time. He walked from her bedroom and looked at his watch in the hallway’s light. Shaking his head, he moved to the living room. Why hadn’t Ellen called yet? She was supposed to have called nearly an hour before.

  He sat down on the couch and picked up his phone. He checked to see if it was working. It was. Again, Dean looked at his watch. He thought about the fact that Danny had some problems. Maybe the phone lines went back down. So with that thought in his mind, he checked the radio. It was working as well. Surely Ellen would have radioed if she couldn’t call. The night before she had him on the radio forever, missing him, telling him how much she loved him, not wanting to hang up. She had radioed him so many times during the day that it hindered on driving Dean insane. But where was her call now?

  “No.” Dean spoke out loud, placed the radio down, and shook his head. He picked up one of the many work folders that spread on the couch and coffee table. He told himself that he was making too much out of it. Ellen had a long day. She was tired. She fell asleep. Her not calling didn’t mean that anything was wrong.

  He kept feeling his insides twitching in a sort of nervousness. He shifted his eyes from the phone, to his work, to his watch. He nearly jumped from his skin when his front door opened.

  Josh kicked off his shoes with a ‘thump’ and shut the door. “Hey Dean.”

  “Josh.” Dean, not like he didn’t already know the time, looked at a watch he was tired of looking at. “Where have you been?”

  “Um . . .”

  “It’s twelve-thirty.”

  “It is?”

  “Yes.”

  “Wow.” Josh scratched his head. “I’m late.”

  “Yeah, you are. You’re supposed to be in this house no later than twelve,” Dean told him. “Those are the rules.”

  “But I thought that didn’t count if I was at Pap’s.”

  “It doesn’t. Were you at Pap’s?” Dean asked.

  “Yeah. It was boring walking around, so Denny and me, like, went to his room and hung up these really big paper pictures of guys with guitars and long hair. Uncle Robbie brought them back from the old music store in Miles.”

  “Posters.”

  “Huh?”

  “That’s what they were called. Posters.”

  “Did you hang posters on your wall?” Josh asked Dean. “Robbie said he did and my Dad did.”

  “I think I did.” Dean laid down the folder. “Yeah, I did.”

  “Did you ever hear of the Power Band? That’s the guys that are on the poster.” Josh began to chuckle. “Uncle Robbie said they were from all you guy’s era. He said they were pretty cool. And big. But they looked normal size to me.” Josh snickered again. “Paul said next music run, he’ll find one of their songs.”

  Dean was lost. “The Power Band?” He shook his head. “I don’t recall them. My era?”

  “Well you’re like way older than Uncle Robbie, so maybe not your era. No, he said some guy name Frank Sinatra was from your era. That’s right.”

  Dean rolled his eyes. “I am not that much older than Uncle Robbie and . . . I’m sure if he listened to The Power Band, I would have heard of them. The Power Band.” Dean enjoyed the break from worrying about Ellen. His mind dazzled in trying to remember this band. Had it been that long? Was he that out of it back then? “Will you let me know when Paul finds this song. I’d love to hear it.”

  “O.K., I’m going to bed. Night.”

  “Night.” Dean bit his bottom lip and slowly leaned back on the couch. “The Power Band. Why am I not remembering a band that was big? The Power . . . Aw!” Dean had to laugh. He shook his head and stood up. “Josh.” He poked his head around the hall.

  “Yeah?” Josh hesitated before going into his room.

  “Does the poster say, ‘AC/DC’ ?”

  “Yeah. The Power Band. Geez, Dean. Night.”

  “Night.” Dean watched Josh struggled with opening the door to his room, pushing and pushing and slipping through a small crack. Shaking his head, he returned to the couch. As soon as he sat down, he saw the phone. “Hell with it.”

  Reaching for the phone and looking at the number that Danny said would be Hal’s, Dean dialed. He listened to it ring and then instead of a hello, he was greeted with a loud bang and a thump. Then after a few seconds, a very groggy sounding Hal answered.

  “Yeah?” Hal spoke.

  “Hal, this is Dean. Were you sleeping?”

  “Um . . . yeah.” Hal’s voice was raspy.

  “I’m sorry to wake you. I really am.”

  “No. No, that’s O.K., I don’t hate phones again yet. What’s uh . . .up?”

  “Is Ellen all right? She was supposed to call me over an hour ago and she didn’t.”

  “She’s fine. Want me to get her?”

  “No, don’t wake her,” Dean said.

  “No. If I don’t she may get mad. Let me just go tell her you’re on the phone.”

  “Thanks.” Dean smiled as he listened to Hal walk heavily. Where he was sleeping Dean didn’t know. He could hear Hal knock on a door and call Ellen’s name out and then he listened to the footsteps get closer.

  “Dean.”

  “Is she sleeping?”

  “You know what? She must not have gotten back from her walk with Henry. I’ll write a note to tell her you called. But don’t worry, they’re fine here in Bowman.”

  “I’m uh . . . I’m not worried.” Dean swallowed hoping his ‘gulp’ was not heard over the phone. “Please tell her I called and to call me no matter what time she gets in.”

  “O.K.”

  “Sorry to wake you. Bye.” Dean hung up the phone then brought it to his lips. He closed his eyes, shook his head and set down the phone. Telling himself he has to be up anyhow to finish his work, Dean looked at his watch one more time and grabbed a folder.

  ^^^^

  Bowman, North Dakota

  Ellen giggled leaning into Henry as she slumped down in the red cushion seat in the Belmont Theater in Bowman. “Even the end credits are great, Henry.”

  “Everyone is watching them.” Henry looked around behind him and Ellen into the packed movie theater.

  “You do know everyone is gonna think you and Danny are the coolest.”

  “We are,” Henry whispered.

  “This was great. I hated this movie when it was out, but it was so great.”

  “Danny wants to . . .” Henry paused when the room filled with applause and the credits ended. “I’d better go shut down up there, huh?”

  “Can I go with you?” Ellen asked.

  “Yeah.” Henry, on the end seat, slid out into the aisle, and waited for Ellen. The men in Bowman that packed the theater all had positive comments to say as Henry walked by them.

  They made it to the projection booth where Danny was. “Hey, Danny.” Henry walked in with Ellen.

  “Ellen. Henry! My Man.” Danny grinned. “We are heroes now.”

  “And we get Neville points,” Henry stated.

  Danny stood by the spinning reels. “So like what do you think it would take to dismantle this place and bring it to Beginnings?”

  “There’s a theater in Miles city. Why don’t we take that one apart,” Henry said. “You know, Danny, I could do this for you.

  “You sure?” Danny asked. “I mean, you got this up and running.”

  “No go on. El and I are just hanging out and talking anyhow.”

  “O.K. Thanks.” Danny walked from the projection machine. “Night, El. Night, Henry.”

  Ellen smiled. “Night, Danny.” She folded her hands behind her back and moved to Henry as he took over the projector. “This was the best evening I’ve had in a really long time.”

  “Really?” Henry smiled at Ellen brightly as he took the movie reel. He wrapped up the end of the film and placed the reel in the large awaiting canister.

  “It was so old world like.”

&nbs
p; “El, as soon as I saw this place, I wanted to get it running. Sorry it took so long.”

  “Are you kidding? You and Danny together were amazing. I was surprised all those men showed up.”

  “Yeah it was packed.” Henry shut off the projector. “Ready?”

  “Yes.”

  Henry held out his hand, motioning to the door. “You lead the way.” He followed Ellen out and from the office to the lobby then out into the street.

  “We need to go to a coffee house now, Henry.”

  “I wish there was one.”

  “There is,” Ellen said, “but they’ve gone out of business.”

  Henry smiled as they started walking down the street. “Aren’t we walking the wrong way back to Hal’s?”

  “Um . . . yeah. I’m sorry. I wanted to take a walk. You don’t mind do you?”

  “No. I’d love it. This place reminds me of Ashtonville.”

  “It does. And . . . this walk reminds me of the one that you and I took. Let’s go up this street.” Ellen pointed to a residential street. “I think that’s why I like Bowman.”

  “Because of this street?”

  “No.” Ellen snickered. “Because it reminds me of Ashtonville so much. I think . . . I think there is nothing more in this world that I would like to do than to go back there.”

  “If I could get you back there, I would. Would you want to go?”

  “How are you going to get me back to Ashtonville, Henry? It’s too dangerous to drive and we’d never be able to bring enough gas supply anyhow.”

  “El . . .” Henry stopped walking . “If I figure out a way to get you there, will you go?”

  Ellen spoke near whisper and with so much wanting. “I would love to go to Ashtonville.”

  Henry smiled slightly. “Then you will. I’ll figure it out. I’ll get you there. But there’s one condition.”

  “What is that?” Ellen asked as she faced him.

  “You have to go with me. When I figure out how to do this for you, I want to be the one that does it with you. Deal?”