War Zone: Homefront

by Thomas A. Watson

  “Nathan,” Amanda whined, and Nathan threw up his hand, stopping the whine.

  “Whores work, providing a needed and appreciated service and you have disrespected the entire profession! No, young lady, you are punished! Now, apologize!” Nathan demanded as Bill vibrated in his chair like he was having a seizure, biting his hand to keep from laughing.

  Rolling her eyes, “I’m sorry to all whores that I called you a whore, Anita, you skanky-ass slut,” Amanda sighed out. Libby and Janice slid out of their chairs, joining Sherry on the floor laughing.

  “Amanda, that was very big of you,” Nathan said in a voice just loud enough to be heard over the laughter under the table. He turned to Vince who was standing with his mouth hanging open. “Vince, I’m sorry my daughter disrespected whores like that. I thought her apology was elegantly phrased.”

  With Nolan cradled in his left arm, Tim let out a howling laugh. Then he started slapping the table with his right hand. “I have tried to teach my kids better than that,” Nathan said with sincerity. “Whores provide a valuable trade and shouldn’t be put down like that.”

  With his mouth gaping, Vince just blinked at Nathan for several seconds, then turned away in shock, slowly walking back to his table. “I’m a good parent and Amanda will be punished! She doesn’t like being second player!” Nathan called out to Vince while he shuffled back to his table slowly.

  Jumping up, Anita stormed out of the reception hall. “Fuck you all!” she screamed, and her husband Floyd jumped up, running after her. Getting very worried, Jasmine still wasn’t laughing as she stared at Nathan’s tense face while his jaw muscles flexed in rage. She had been with him long enough to know, Nathan was way past livid.

  “Why don’t you find your dick and give it to your bitch!” Nathan bellowed as Floyd hit the door running outside. Turning toward the door as his body trembled, ready to unleash, Nathan’s upper lip curled up slightly. Staring at the door hard with narrowed eyes, Nathan’s breathing was steady and deep. “Fuck this,” Nathan spat, and started for the door.

  “Guys!” Bill cried out, climbing over the table. Rusty and Aiden jumped up running while Bill jumped off the table, heading for Nathan as he strolled for the door. Jasmine looked down as Tim shoved Nolan into her arms with Chip.

  When Jasmine had Nolan, Tim took off as Jasmine turned and saw Bill tackle Nathan. Before Nathan could fight back, Aiden and Rusty were on him as well, keeping him down. Leaping in the air, Tim came down on the pile, wrapping his arms and legs around both of Nathan’s legs. Rusty had Nathan’s left arm and Aiden the right while Bill had Nathan in a headlock with his legs wrapped around Nathan’s waist.

  “Apollo, Ares, sit!” Sherry shouted, scrambling to her feet when the dogs moved toward Nathan.

  “Nathan, calm down,” Bill said, and Jasmine suddenly realized there wasn’t any laughter anymore. Janice and Penny came over, taking Nolan and Chip.

  “Go,” Janice told her.

  Turning back toward Nathan, Jasmine saw the dogs sitting down while the posse held him down and Sherry climbed on Nathan’s chest. “Calm down, Nathan,” Sherry told him softly.

  “I’m going to rip that cunt’s head off and shove it up her worthless husband’s ass!” Nathan bellowed.

  Jasmine ran over as Sherry rubbed Nathan’s cheek. “Nathan, she’s not worth it,” Sherry said gently.

  Seeing the guys struggling to hold on to Nathan, Jasmine sat next to Sherry on Nathan’s chest. “Nathan,” she said in a snippy tone, and Nathan locked his eyes on her. Jasmine had a moment’s pause before she continued. “You will leave that bitch alone. Her ass is mine, and mine alone,” Jasmine told him.

  Suddenly, Nathan stopped struggling to get away, shocking the posse. “I’m not kidding, Nathan. Her ass is mine and if you get in my way, you’ll be finding some of those hard-working whores you were just talking about,” Jasmine threatened, and Sherry spun her head around, looking at Jasmine in shock. “I told you, the girls are my responsibility and if I can’t handle it, then you can charge in.”

  Closing his eyes, Nathan took several deep breaths while the posse tentatively loosened their holds on him. “I know, stud, but she’s mine,” Jasmine said in a much softer tone and caressed his face. “She’s not worth your anger, so just let it go.”

  Taking his arms from around Nathan’s head, Bill gawked at Jasmine. “Where in the fuck have you been?”

  Letting out a sigh when Nathan opened his eyes and looked at her, “Waiting on him,” Jasmine smiled.

  “I’m good,” Nathan sighed, and the gang stood up as Sherry grabbed Jasmine, pulling her up. Bill put his arm over Nathan’s shoulder along with Aiden, and Rusty and Tim moved to the doors, holding them open. They all walked outside with Nathan.

  “You are awesome,” Sherry beamed, then hugged Jasmine.

  “All of you were laughing!” Jasmine cried out, pushing Sherry back.

  Nodding, “Yes,” Sherry agreed. “Half the time, that’s enough to stop Nathan when he gets pissed off. That’s the Nathan we know. The eternal teenager with the temper of a two-year-old, and the ability to fight like a fucking rabid ninja.”

  “Oh,” Jasmine mumbled. “So you knew he was mad?”

  “Please,” Sherry scoffed. “Tim and I haven’t been with Nathan as long as the others, and it shocked us the first time. What’s really bad, is when one of the others get mad with Nathan. The last time was a concert we went to in Portland.”

  Rolling her eyes, “Holy shit, some asshole pissed off Nathan and Bill,” Sherry paused. “That was the biggest fight I’ve ever seen in my life. Aiden and Rusty jumped in, then Tim. The band stopped playing when the entire arena erupted in a brawl. I’m two months pregnant, jumping in the fight with Penny, Libby, and Janice to hit anything close to the posse. We are so lucky we didn’t get arrested.”

  Turning to the door, “I don’t like it when Nathan’s mad. He doesn’t think,” Jasmine said.

  “Duh,” Sherry sang out, grabbing her by the shoulders and turning Jasmine to face her. “That used to be Nathan. Always walking around with a chip on his shoulder, daring someone to knock it off,” Sherry told her slowly. “Now, you see why we love you so much. Nathan has a purpose now. All of you!”

  Cutting her eyes toward the door, “He’s going to be okay now?” Jasmine asked softly.

  “Oh, yeah,” Sherry grunted with a smile. “You just have to reason with the teenager. When we get home, make him take some ibuprofen, or he’ll get a migraine in the next few days.”

  Jasmine jerked her gaze to Sherry. “Yeah, that’s why he gets migraines,” Sherry nodded. “Now you see why Tim and I were shocked Nathan just didn’t shoot anyone who crossed your path. I asked him. Want to know what set him off? It wasn’t the night vision or the thermal.”

  Shaking her head, Jasmine stopped and slowly nodded. “Nathan was getting mad at all the fighting around him, and he felt helpless protecting all of you,” Sherry told her. “No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t steer all of you clear of the fighting. Stupid on his part?” Sherry asked, raising her eyebrows. “Very. But I’m proud of him because he continued acting like an adult. That’s when I knew you were the one, and he saw those kids as his own.”

  At a loss for words, Jasmine just stared at Sherry. “Jasmine, Tim and I love Nathan with all our hearts, but holy shit, he could act like a child,” Sherry sighed. “Even this,” she said, waving her hand around, “wasn’t like the old Nathan because it normally takes me half an hour to calm his ass down. You come over and did it in minutes. Sorry, but you aren’t going anywhere. You try to leave, I’ll handcuff you to the fireplace.”

  A smile finally sprang up on Jasmine’s face. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  “Can I tell Nathan I’m sorry?” Amanda asked, walking over.

  Turning to Amanda, clearly confused, “Why are you sorry?” Sherry asked.

  “For making Nathan really fuckin’ mad!” Amanda cried out.

  Reaching out, Sherry pulled Aman
da into a hug. “Babygirl, you didn’t piss him off,” Sherry laughed. “Vince did. That’s why he’s sneaking out the back door to apologize.”

  Lifting her head up from Sherry’s chest, Amanda turned with Jasmine and saw Vince slipping out the back door. “Granted, Anita and Floyd are going to pay for it,” Sherry laughed. “But I don’t care. I hate that bitch anyway.”

  “Why is he mad at Vince?” Amanda asked.

  Grabbing Amanda’s chin and turning it to face her, “Vince disrespected you, and basically said Nathan wasn’t being a good parent,” Sherry clarified.

  “I’m going to kick his ass,” Amanda said, pushing back from Sherry.

  Holding on to Amanda, “No, Vince didn’t mean it,” Sherry said quickly. “He was trying to maintain the peace, but everyone knows ‘don’t piss off Nathan’. He’s not nice when you do.”

  Giving a laugh, “Nathan’s either your worst enemy or best friend,” Jasmine noted.

  “No,” Sherry said. “The posse, all of us and the family he brought back, that’s all who can call Nathan a best friend. For us, we won’t feel his anger. But we still have to deal with the tantrums. My hope is he’ll put those aside because I’m not kidding,” Sherry moaned. “I’ll push a nice old lady down a flight of stairs and beat her to death with her walker, just to get him to shut the fuck up.”

  Walking over holding Nolan, Janice nodded. “Listen to her. I’m a vet as you know, and I love animals, but when Nathan’s throwing a tantrum, I’ll stomp the cutest kitten to death just to make him shut his mouth.”

  Stepping back in shock, “Whoa,” Amanda mumbled. “That bad?”

  “You’ve heard of Peter Pan syndrome?” Janice asked and Jasmine nodded. “It’s an improvement from Nathan syndrome. I’ll give you an example.”

  Giving a smile, “I won’t mention names, but seven months ago, Nathan bought a crib,” Janice said, and Sherry groaned. “The mother complained, and the tantrum started. Robin was fourteen, a fourteen-year-old girl looked at me and said, ‘Momma, he’s whining like a bitch, make him stop’. That came from a teenaged girl.”

  “Janice, the fucking crib had a flat-screen TV and surround sound! I don’t even want to know what he paid for that!” Sherry shouted.

  Turning to Sherry as she bounced Nolan in her arms, “You know, just accept it and shut up, so we don’t have to listen to him,” Janice sighed. “We had to put up with Nathan for five days bitching till you finally told him thank you and hugged his neck.”

  Grabbing Jasmine’s hand, “I don’t want to see a Nathan tantrum,” Amanda confessed. “I’ll deal with pissed-off Nathan. At least, that’s directed outside the group.”

  Giving an approving nod, “Nathan was right. You are a very smart young lady,” Janice smiled.

  “Honey,” Sherry asked carefully, “Not that I mind, but what did Anita say that set you off so…eloquently?”

  Jasmine snickered at the way Sherry phrased the question, but all humor disappeared when Amanda looked at the women surrounding her and gave her answer.

  “After Jasmine said, you know, that Chip said, ‘I love you’, I heard that whor…I mean, slut, whisper to her husband something about ‘it being about time the little retard did something’.”

  A painful silence stretched out for several seconds as the group of women struggled to control their emotions. Finally, Jasmine regained the power of speech.

  “Thank you, Amanda,” she said formally to the teen, then she turned her attention to the other mothers standing in a semi-circle.

  “I know now is not the time, but at some point in the future, all of you realize that problem will need to be addressed, correct?”

  No one needed to even mention the name to know she meant Anita.

  With her face set in stone, Jasmine calmly stated, “When that time comes, I volunteer to pull the trigger.”

  Somber nods greeted Jasmine as she and Amanda swept out of the room with their heads held high. Nothing more needed to be said on the subject, but one last observation needed to be expressed.

  “I do love that girl,” Libby said, and the others laughed as all the air seemed to rush back into the room.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  It was nine in the morning when Nathan yanked the reins back on his horse as a gunshot in the distance sounded out. “Been a while since I’ve heard that,” Nathan mumbled.

  “Nathan,” John whispered, moving up beside him. “That was near Prichard.”

  “No, that came from Prichard,” Nathan corrected.

  Before John could speak, another gunshot rang out. “Want to break out the Mew?” John asked.

  “John, we did that ten minutes ago. We’re still three miles away. Hard miles, because we have to drop off one ridge and cross a draw to climb another ridge,” Nathan said. “Let’s move up to where we have to drop down, then break out the MU.”

  “I got our back,” John nodded as Nathan steered his horse along the ridge. They only made it another hundred yards when they heard a burst of automatic rifle fire. Not stopping, Nathan did slow his horse down, still moving along the ridge. Before he reached the ridge that was north of Prichard, where they had to drop down into a draw to cross over to the next ridge, Nathan stopped and climbed off.

  Tom, John, and Tim all gave a sigh to see Nathan pulling the Mew off and turning it on. “Not good,” Nathan mumbled while looking at the screen, then turned to the ridge to the south that overlooked Prichard. Less than a kilometer on the other side of the ridge and across the river, Nathan saw lots of red and white dots at the three-kilometer mark to the south.

  He was happy that he didn’t see any on the ridge to the east of Prichard where they were headed. Turning to John, Nathan waved him up. When John was beside him, Nathan handed him the main unit of the Mew that had the antenna sticking up with the three spaced out balls.

  After John had the tablet, Nathan took the main housing and strapped it to the back of his saddle like he usually carried it. But this time, he didn’t turn the unit off, leaving it hooked up to the tablet. After the main unit was tied down, Nathan climbed up on his horse before taking the tablet from John.

  “Tell Tim not to turn shit on,” Nathan said in a low voice, and John nodded as Nathan gave his horse a kick, guiding it down the draw. After telling Tim, John took up his spot at the back behind Tom.

  Keeping his eyes on the ground, Nathan guided his horse around stumps and large rocks, giving the screen a glance every few seconds. When he started up the ridge that ran to the east of Prichard, another burst of automatic gunfire sounded off and everyone knew it was close.

  Keeping the ridge between them and Prichard, Nathan followed it around and then slowly moved to the crest. On the screen, all the white and red dots were staying in the same spots on the other side of the Coeur D’Alene River. There were so many, the entire area of the screen was red with many white patches. Moving into a saddle on the ridge, Nathan could now hear voices from the houses. Prichard was only a subdivision in the middle of the wilderness.

  Moving out of the saddle between two knolls, Nathan reached the top of the ridge and moved until he could see out through the trees. To the west, he saw the open valley with several fields and houses. Moving back into the trees, Nathan climbed off his horse and shoved the tablet for the MU in his saddlebag. Easing to the east, he found a spot he could see the collection of houses five hundred feet below him. He didn’t need his binoculars to see people splashing in the river and moving amongst the houses.

  Easing back, Nathan rejoined the others, motioning for them to get down. “Smell it?” Tim asked, and Nathan nodded.

  Sniffing the air, “What is it?” John asked. “Smells like someone needs to empty a cat’s litter box.”

  “Meth lab,” Nathan replied. “And if we can smell it this far away, it’s a big-ass operation.”

  “This is real bad,” Tim said, gripping his M4.

  “This area will be camp, string up a rope we can tie the horses to. John, Tim, you take t
he west side overlooking the valley,” Nathan said, turning west. “There’s a group of eleven just off the road near that circular drive subdivision. Find out what they’re doing. We need to know weapons and vehicles, so get pictures. Tom and I will take the east side, watching Prichard. The Mew will stay with the group watching Prichard, since that’s where most are. There are so many there, we can’t even count them with the Mew. The group here will be focused on that. We swap every two hours, so we can stay alert and not get used to faces. At five, one in each group will sleep for a few hours, then trade off when we swap.”

  “Let’s get this over with,” Tom mumbled as another shot rang out behind them from Prichard. “What are they shooting at?”

  “With tweakers, you can never tell,” Tim replied. “What do we do if some come up here?”

  Thinking for a second, “I just can’t see them climbing a near vertical hill, but hey, they’re tweakers,” Nathan shrugged. “Let them get close and kill them,” Nathan said, looking at each person. “We’ll decide to pull out after dealing with the body.”

  Shifting his weight from one leg to the other, “Um, Nathan?” John said. “We ah, can’t use thermals or NVGs with the Mew on, and we have to leave the radio on for ten minutes at the top of every hour, in case the compound needs us.”

  Nodding, “Yeah, I’m thinking on that,” Nathan admitted.

  “How about we turn the Mew on after turning the radio off and leave it on for fifteen minutes. When the Mew is off, one from the Prichard side can move over to the valley side, giving the clear,” John offered, and Nathan raised his eyebrows. “Ten minutes before the top of the hour, one from the valley side can move over to the Prichard side and let them know the equipment is off.”

  Looking at Tim and Tom, “You get that?” Nathan asked, and both nodded. “Then that’s how we operate.”

  Nathan patted John’s shoulder and the group set up a hitch line to tie the horses to, then gathered equipment before moving off. With Tom beside him, Nathan crept up over the ridge to the spot he’d found to watch Prichard. Spreading out his woobie, Nathan turned to Apollo, then looked at the woobie. Walking over, Apollo laid down on the end of the woobie while Nathan and Tom laid on either side of him.