by L. Ann Marie
When she’s done I hug her and tell her she did perfect. I have names, places and women she saw. Some are vague descriptions, but I have them. She did fuckin’ awesome. Tess laughs and Maryellen’s head snaps to her. Tess holds her eyes and sits on the table in front of her. “Beautiful Tess?” Maryellen asks and Tess nods.
“I’m here to take you home Maryellen. We have all you need to start living free. I’ve been free for a long time, but never saw you. I’m so happy Eliza helped get you back. Now I can show you how happy free is.” Tears are running down her face, but her dog sits by the door watching. It’s a little weird but these are a something people so I guess he fits right in. Tess laughs. Her little musical laugh has Jeremy laughing. Maryellen moves away scared. “Jeremy is the last person you should be afraid of. God gave him so many gifts, he is our very own archangel. He helped you when it was hard. You are going to meet so many men and kids that help to make life right and happy Maryellen. Some of them look scary, but they’re just big teddy bears when it comes to kids and women. Trust me.”
Maryellen cries, but nods her head. “Thank you, child.” She holds Tess forever crying. Jeremy leans over and puts his hand on her shoulder again. She sits up and touches his hand without looking. “I’m all done crying Tess. It’s time to learn about living.” She’s not looking at her, but she sounds stronger than the crying. I think she’s going to do this and be happy. Damn, that feels good.
Jeremy laughs and puts his hand on my cheek. I feel the heat move through me and smile up at him. “What is in you that fills my body with heat Jeremy?”
He smiles with his beautiful eyes. “Love, Eliza.” I nod, it feels good. He reaches in his pocket and hands me a cuff. “Tracked. Made just for you.”
He doesn’t talk much, but he talked to me with his hand on my cheek. “Thank you Jeremy. I won’t take this one off.”
“You won’t.” He lets me go and takes a bag from Anita. Before he walks out he looks at me. “It happened as it should for you to become who you need to be. Like here.” He’s talking slow and it looks like it bothers him.
“Thank you Jeremy. I’ll keep heading that way.” He nods with a relieved smile walking out.
I turn and thank Anita for staying with Maryellen. She hugs me with tears. “You stay strong little Eliza. Like Jeremy said there will be women who need you.” I nod because I don’t know what to say.
Maryellen hugs me, thanking and blessing me again. “This isn’t going to be easy Maryellen. You always had your faith to get you through shit. You wrap it around you and keep moving forward. I believe you’re going to make it.”
She looks up at me. I smile. Her eyes say she will. Tess hugs me and everyone leaves. Holy shit. I sit on the couch and lift my foot onto the table. I need a rest before I walk home. Sheila walks in. “I’m glad you’re all right,” she says.
I smile. “I’m glad you are too. Darren said you cracked a rib and had a concussion.”
She waves me away. “The kids fixed me up.”
I nod. “Me too with some help from Mitch.”
She sits in front of me. “I need to say this so let me finish before you jump in. Yeah?”
I look at her. I know she feels responsible, I know she got her ass handed to her by Prez and Jessie. I also know it will gnaw at her to keep it inside. “Yeah.”
“I knew you had bad with the Outlaws, but not what. You didn’t talk about it and I didn’t ask. I thought at the church classes you were strong to get away and make a life. It wasn’t until we were in holding that I got what happened to you.” Tears are running down her face, but she keeps going. I can’t do that and I wonder how she does. “Dakota got it from the fuckin’ pussy you were staring down. You stood right there never letting him win. It was all I could do to keep standing.” I nod. Wanting to tell her, me too, but I promised her her time. “Every one of them. You stood there looking them in the eye and I was so fuckin’ proud of you, but I couldn’t talk.” I hand her the box of tissues and take one. I’ve got this right now, but I’m not sure for how long. “When I heard Maryellen I should have stopped, but she screamed and I saw you again. I couldn’t stop. Nothing in me would let me. It was like my brain stopped working and I had to save you from everything I didn’t save you from before. I know it doesn’t make sense, but it’s how I was thinking.” I nod because it makes sense to me. “When you woke me up on the ship I knew how bad I fucked up. You didn’t stop for a fuckin’ minute. You killed a guard and got me down. You still won’t lay down for those pussies. I can’t even imagine what that felt like being chained up again. You still have the scabs on your wrist too. I did that. Your ankle was broken and you were still shooting. You lost your baby.” She stops and I grab her knee. “I did that. Even after all that you sit here and help a woman learn to be free. You have so much patience. Compassion. I am so fuckin’ sorry and I understand why you wouldn’t want to see me. I hate PD, but want so bad to be your partner. You keep showing me how to be better. The guys don’t give training for what you have. I am so sorry I fucked up your life. Please give me a chance to try and make right all I did wrong.” She hugs me bawling. Shit.
I feel tears on my face, but I can talk. “Jeremy said, ‘It happened as it should so I can become who I should be.’ He seems pretty smart so I believe that. I’m not going to lie; I feel the loss of the baby or fetus or whatever, but his words help. Seeing Maryellen, I hope I can help more, but just being able to protect them is enough for me. I am no counselor so I can’t do much else. I have two weeks before I get the robotic and can get to work. I’m in the PD for a week then on the job. I’d be honored to have you as my partner. I think everything happened the way it’s supposed to. Maryellen wouldn’t be free today if you would have waited. They didn’t have time to take her. That’s what you did. Thank you for that.”
She sits up looking at me like I’m crazy then her features smooth out. “Thanks Eliza.” She cleans her face and stands. I grab my notes and follow her out. She has an SUV waiting and holds the door for me. “He’ll get you home. Jess is waiting there for you. Thanks for the chance Eliza,” she whispers and walks to her bike.
Wow. She’s really upset. I hope I eased that for her.
As soon as I get in the house Jess hands me a phone. “Darren.”
“Hi honey I just walked in the door. I have the information from Maryellen I was going to scan it and send it...”
“Eliza stop!” he yells. Damn. I stop because he sounds pissed. “I am so fuckin’ proud of you. I thought I was going to have to shut down Ops, but you showed every fuckin’ person how strong you are. I’m proud of you babe”
Umm shut down Ops? “You have the house wired?”
He laughs. “Yeah. All shelters are wired so the women know they’re safe. As soon as they aren’t alone the feeds run. We need what you wrote down. We couldn’t get half the shit she said.”
“You know Sheila will shoot people if she finds out.”
He laughs. “Don’t give a fuck. My old lady will shoot back.”
I crack up. “I’ll send you the notes.”
“Thanks babe, I’ll get dinner.”
I hang up looking at Jess. “They are all crazy. I used to think of this place as Oz. Now I call it home. I think I’m as crazy as them because none of it seems odd to me anymore.”
She laughs. “What did he say that’s so crazy?”
I think about that for like three seconds. “Okay maybe it’s just me, but my deaf husband called me on the phone using futuristic glasses to talk to me about me shooting anyone that aims for him and he’ll get dinner.”
She cracks up. “Let’s get your foot up. My mom says you need to be still the first couple of days so the muscle doesn’t shift on the metal. Jeremy will be by later to help with that. You can tell me everything that’s happened. Jessie is gone and I’m bored. We were supposed to go cliff diving today and I’m stuck here alone while Dakota is flying people from the hospitals to open shelter beds.”
Because
this is normal too. Back to Oz.
***
Darren
Fuck. Sheila comes in and I don’t know if I should shut it down. “No. They need this,” Prez says from behind me putting his hand on my shoulder.
We watch and I’m blinking back tears. My wife has been through fuckin’ hell. She smiles and I know she’s good. I hold my breath when she starts talking. Prez’s hand tightens then loosens as he lets out a breath. She trusts in Jeremy. I’m so fuckin’ relieved; I’m smiling and don’t give a fuck about the tears in my eyes. I blink to see what she just said. “What’d she say?”
“Maybe Sheila was sent there to save Maryellen,” Prez says.
“Maybe.” When Sheila stands up and starts for the door people clap. My glasses say clap but not what was said. “What happened?”
Prez laughs. “She just showed why she’s your old lady. Brother, they’re proud.” He slaps my shoulder and walks out.
I am too. I pull my phone to tell her. Fuckin’ women with balls of steel. “Tiny would be proud,” I say as I’m dialing.
“I sent it to him VP,” Brantley says.
“Fuck!” I hang up and grab him. “No sending our shit anywhere! What the fuck is wrong with you? Sheila will kill you if Jessie and Dakota don’t!”
He puts his hands up and pales. “I thought that was just for Jessie. Fuck. She’ll kill me. I didn’t know VP. It was a good thing.”
I let him go, he’s scared enough. “No Officer has their business broadcasted. NONE!”
“I got it, we’re proud. It wasn’t meant bad.” He sits hard and watches tracking. I bet he’s following Sheila.
I call my girl to say I’m proud without the interruption this time. Fuckin’ Brantley.
Chapter Seventeen
Three weeks
Darren
I watch her walk a woman and her kids into the house. Sheila waits at the bikes. She looks bored making me smile. Bull comes in and I’m glad; this side sucks, not much happens in Security so watching their boards is like watching paint dry.
“No alerts, everything is running right.”
He smiles. “I had them up on the way in. I love my fuckin’ truck.”
I laugh. “I’m glad. You deserve it. Jared is kitting out one for Prez. After he saw yours he wanted one too.”
His smile falls. “Why didn’t he take that one and just build me another one?”
He’s serious. “He wanted you and Driscoll to get them together and he didn’t want it until he saw yours. You know Prez, last to eat and all that, he wouldn’t take anything first.”
He nods. “Yeah, he should though, he deserves it. I can’t believe how it all came together. He did a great job getting us up and running so fast and we’re making money.”
He did. “He learned from the MC mistakes and made sure we didn’t make them.” He nods again. “Did you get anything from Mitch and Kevin?”
“No. The satellite hasn’t been touched since the breach at the Home Show. There haven’t been any alerts according to Brantley so we had nothing to report. They haven’t had any either. Brantley stayed, but my part was done.” He gets his headset and starts checking tracking.
I like that procedure calls for every Ops manager to check tracking against the schedule. If someone is away from where they are supposed to be they get an alert. I know he has three and watch him check them. He leaves Sheila for last. “Sheila is at the shelter?”
“Waiting on Eliza. They’re picking up the clothes Te Jess sent down for the women and kids they just dropped there.”
He nods. “It’s good we’re working with them. Deidra loves working there.”
I was told. “Eliza says she’s doing a good job.” He smiles. They love that woman to death. She was always quiet, but she’s happy working at the Center. She’s been coordinating who goes where and getting the houses ready for the women. “My wife loves your old lady. Says she’d be the mom she’d pick if she had the choice.”
He laughs. “Deidra loves them too. She likes the Badass under the girly she said. I’m glad they get along. She’s happy here.”
He’s done with his checks. I give him the clipboard. “You’re all happy here. I’m glad. We never could have done this without you and Driscoll. Now Deidra at the shelters. You need anything let me know.”
He slaps my back. “Thanks Brother I will, but we’re good. There are so many others that aren’t.”
I shake my head walking out. They are so alike. Him and Driscoll would never ask for anything. I drop my paperwork on my desk and walk into HS seeing activity that shouldn’t be. “What’s going on Jason?”
He laughs. “Eliza just kicked the shit out of some pussy. She’s waiting for transport now.”
Fuck! “She kicked him with her robotic?” Jesus she just got it a week ago. I see her standing talking to Sheila on the sidewalk.
“Other foot, but it held her up when she needed it. I swear she broke his jaw. I’ll play it back for you.” He’s excited.
“No, I don’t need to see it. Why is she kicking the shit out of anyone? They were at the shelter.”
“They were stopping to get some Tylenol for one of the kids. He’s allergic to aspirin and is running a fever. When she came out he was sitting on her bike. When he got off he held her waist and said something in her ear. It was all downhill from there.”
He starts typing and I’m fuckin’ pissed. Now I want to see her kick the shit out of him. He sat on her bike? Who the fuck does that? I watch two women from the PD pick the pussy up. He’s bleeding and looks dazed. He doesn’t duck and hits his head going in. The woman laughs. Eliza smiles and waves at her as she starts moving. I’m glad she found her place there. She’s not exactly in the PD but she is accepted by them and Driscoll loves having her. The women looked up to her right from the start. Since she went through the Criminal Justice Program she knows more than I do about the PD and Driscoll gave her that respect right away. He gave her carte blanche to do what she needed. I’m still so fuckin’ proud of her.
***
Eliza
We get to the compound and I switch out my bike for my Jeep. Darren had it waiting when we got home from Mass, but I didn’t even see it until he pulled in the garage. I love it. I only had the bike so this is awesome. I can put shit in it like the clothes and deliver them or get to work when it’s raining or snowing without freezing my ass off. Today we deliver clothes. Jess had them sent down from Mass. This is a safer distance from Meg’s crazy husband. He kept showing at the yard and the MC kept beating the shit out of him. It didn’t stop him though. They sent her here making sure he had no chance at getting to them. I back into the ‘rents driveway and use the keypad to open the garage. Sheila helps me load the boxes and we’re off.
“I like this. I might trade my truck in.”
I’m shocked, she loves her truck. “Why?”
“I’ve had my truck for years. Rich gave it to me when I got my license. I’ve kept it looking and running good, but it would be nice to pick my own now. I like this, it’s fun and sporty.”
It strikes me that they all take care of each other. I’m glad she had that. Nancy must be so proud of her. “We can go look after we drop the clothes.”
She smiles. “Yeah?”
“Why not? We’re done after this. We just need to check out then we’ll go Jeep shopping.”
She nods. “I’ll call into HS, the dealer is grid twenty-three, but they’ll be wondering.”
I pull up to the shelter and we get the boxes in. Meg is happy. Her little guy looks happy too. I give her Nick’s number and let her know he’s coming with a woman to check on the kids. She’s nervous but nods.
Sheila made the call and we head to the dealer.
***
Darren
As soon as I get to my office I get called to Ops. Fuck this is the never ending fuckin’ day. Bikes coming from I395, they have MC cuts. I call Jax. “NH pay for the parts?”
“No VP, I was coming in to talk to
you today. I called earlier and got a run around. Everything was good until this one. When I finally got put through to Deacon he’s pushing for guns, but without the payment I told him he had no chance.”
Fuck! “Close the shop and get all the bikes in. We have NH headed our way it looks like thirty bikes.”
“They wouldn’t have had time to make it here from when I called.”
“Close it down and set your Nomads that are in around the shop.”
“Roger VP.”
I hit my phone. “Prez, thirty NH bikes on their way here. They ran 395. ETA forty-five minutes. No payment has been made and Jax says they were running him around and pushing for guns.”
“Get Dakota and Jared ready for flight. Have Driscoll ready and watching. Get HS called into Security. I am fourteen out.”
“Roger Prez.”
I look at Jason. “Get HS in–I need Josiah and Chevy.”
“Roger VP.”
I open the door to Security. “Bull, 395, at least thirty bikes coming in. Warn Driscoll and get me IT for Ops. I’ll need two for tracking and two for cleanup.”
“Roger VP.” He’s already on his phone.
I call Jared and Dakota. They’re heading to the hangar and will call in flight crews. I find Eliza and watch her spin her Jeep around in the middle of traffic. A guy in a yellow mini starts yelling and Sheila points her gun at him. Jason is laughing. “They’re on their way.”
“I need to get Jax to put a Club emblem on it before Sheila shoots someone. Where were they going?”
He smiles. “Jeep shopping. Sheila wants a Jeep.” Fuckin’ women.
I watch the tracking and see everyone heading here, the hangar, or to the PD.
Josiah shows. “You’re on Air One.” He nods.
Chevy comes in and takes his place with Jason. Brantley runs in out of breath. “I just fuckin’ made it. What did I miss? I need a truck like Bull’s – the laptop just doesn’t cut it.” I just look at him. He went from the lot to the building. What’s to fuckin’ miss?
