“When Sonny gets here I will ask him,” Beck said.
“Ask me what?” Sonny questioned as he walked in.
“Sonny, Alex told me about the Sleeper today.”
“Underwear girl?” he asked, sitting down.
“Yes. Did she do some sort of mating thing to you?”
Sonny looked at me. “Beck, she grabbed my balls.”
“Holy shit. She did hit on you?”
“Yeah. And she wouldn’t leave me alone. Kept following me.”
“What about the underwear thing? Do you think maybe that had something to do with it?” Beck asked.
“I put her in the mood, maybe?” Sonny guessed.
I tried to hide my laughter.
“Sonny, I know we get bored and lonely,” Beck said, “but do you think—”
“Stop,” Sonny halted him. “Before we go any further, what are you talking about?”
“You dressing up the Sleeper.”
“I didn’t dress up the Sleeper!” He looked at me. “Alex, what the hell?”
“In my defense you never said you didn’t,” I said. “You mentioned getting women some underwear, I thought you were trying it on her.”
“Wait,” Beck said, “you suggested bringing the women here some underwear?”
Sonny nodded.
“That’s a great idea. It will pick up their mood.”
I listened to the two of them discuss how the undergarments were going to make a world of difference. I didn’t get it. Then again, that probably explained why I was never married.
Others started arriving, including Danny.
“Tell him,” I told Danny. “Tell Beck. Go on.”
“Tell him what?” Danny asked.
“The little secret you let out in Walmart.”
“What’s he talking about, Danny?” Beck asked.
“I’ve been holding back saying anything,” Danny said, taking a deep breath “but I’m gonna be a father.”
“That’s not the shocking part,” I said. “Tell him who the mother is.”
Beck simply stated. “Patty.”
“Wait,” I said, surprised. “You knew?”
“I guessed, or rather Mera guessed. She told me that Danny was seeing Patty, she just didn’t have confirmation.”
“When did she tell you this?”
“Last night,” Beck said. “She was filling me in on what has happened while I was gone.”
Hearing that threw me a little. Mera conveyed her suspicions to Beck? She never once mentioned it to me.
“Sorry, I’m late,” Levi said, walking in. “Am I late?”
“No,” Beck told him. “We’re just getting started. Danny was telling us about the baby.”
“Which reminds me,” Levi took a seat at one of the library tables, “ultrasound tomorrow. Don’t forget.”
Danny grinned. “I won’t.”
“An ultrasound.” Beck smiled. “I have to see the picture.”
It made me think back to Mera’s ultrasound and that weird 3D one Sonny found. “This is great news,” Beck said. “I’m gonna be a grandfather.”
Sarcastically, I said, “I suppose you want to be Pap-Pap.”
“No,” Beck said. “I want to be Granddad.”
“Granddad?” I asked with a laugh.
“What’s wrong with it?”
“It’s old and gay,” I said.
“Old and gay?” Beck looked at me with a tilted head. “I’ll have you know I called my grandfather Granddad and I assure you he wasn’t old or gay.”
“I called one of my foster grandfathers that,” Sonny said. “Granddad. He was old and gay.”
We all swung to look at him.
Sonny just kept rambling, all nonchalant. “He wasn’t always old and gay, of course. He was young at one point. Gay, I don’t know. I think that came with age. Maybe not. He had a boyfriend. It was one of those things the family never talked about. I always told the story how they moved me from their home because the grandfather was gay.”
Beck’s mouth was partially open in shock. “They took you from the foster home because someone was gay?”
“No, I only told people that. They took me from the home because I electrocuted their cat. Not on purpose. I was still young and not good with electricity yet. How was I supposed to know he’d gnaw on the stripped lamp cord I was fixing?”
I had to pause to think. “How did the cat get electrocuted on a stripped lamp cord?”
“It was plugged in.”
Everyone groaned.
“It was kind of weird. He lit up and made this sound I never heard before.” Sonny proceeded to imitate a screaming cat. “Re-aw!”
“Enough. Okay.” Beck said. “We have a meeting to start.”
Levi shook his head. “And you wonder why I call you the delinquent?”
“It was an accident” Sonny said in his defense.
“Don’t pick on, Sonny,” I said. “He’s having a bad day. He was hit on by a Sleeper.”
“It was more than that, Alex,” Sonny barked. “The Sleeper grabbed hold of my balls and wanted to have sex.”
“I wouldn’t think that would traumatize you,” Levi said. “Considering the amount of time you spent behind bars, you should be used to it.”
Sonny gasped.
“Okay, we need to move on,” Beck said. “Meeting. Sonny, before I get to what I need to discuss, you—”
“How’d I know that was coming?” I interrupted. “You having something to discuss.”
“Alex, please.” Beck shook his head. “Sonny? What was it you wanted to meet about?”
“Rules and laws,” Sonny said. “It dawned on me when you shot those four men point blank, in the head mind you, that we don’t have laws or rules. I’m not saying I look at you like a criminal. You’re not, Beck. I’m using that as an example. I don’t mean to offend you.”
“Why are you cowering to Beck?” I asked. “Are you that scared of him or is this a new timid side coming out after your recent molestation?”
“Alex!” Beck shouted. “Can you…” he took a deep breath to calm down. “Please. Just stop.”
“It’s not funny,” Sonny said. “It was freaky.”
“What was freaky?” Beck asked. “Me shooting those men?”
“No, having my balls grabbed by a Sleeper. And he keeps making fun of me. I hope to God, Alex, one day you’re out there and a Sleeper grabs your balls. See how much you laugh then.”
“Really, Sonny?” I asked. “Do you hear yourself?” I shook my head. “Okay. I’m sorry, I’ll stop joking about your balls.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“We good?” Beck asked. “Okay, Sonny, tell us your thoughts. Law
and rules.”
“Yes.” Sonny nodded. “See, Beck,” he folded his hands on the table, “basically it’s the rule of law. A society without rules is a society in chaos. Laws instill a sense of morality and humanity.”
“Hey, that’s pretty good,” I said.
“I’m paraphrasing Kirk Cameron.”
“For real?” I asked. “You just quoted Kirk Cameron?”
Sonny waved his hand dismissively. “In Grace, I don’t know that we had rules. Maybe we did, perhaps unspoken. They need to be spoken. They need to be established and we need clear cut leadership and designated roles if we are going to succeed as a society and move forward.”
Beck sat back and ran his hand over his face. “Me shooting those men made you think of that?”
“Yes, because I wouldn’t have shot them. I would have used them for information then sent them into Sleeper territory. But that’s different views, different opinions,” Sonny said. “We can’t determine punishment if there is no rule on the law broken. Plus,
who says what the punishment is?”
Danny added, “Like how can we tell someone they broke a rule and did something wrong if we never established rules?”
Sonny nodded. “Exactly.”
“Just curious,” I said. “Do these rules and laws apply only to us, or if your molester comes to the gate do we arrest a Sleeper?”
Everyone groaned.
Man, they needed to chill. It was getting way too serious and Beck was taking the reins.
Beck said, “You thought about this. So how do you propose we go about it?”
“Start basic,” Sonny said. “Ten commandments thing. Look at those as a guide, then determine the punishment to fit the crime. After, we as a society will determine who governs, and who sets the rules. A panel, a counsel, a leader. For example, Beck, if you’re elected to counsel or as leader, you can’t run off for the Beckoning.”
“When do you want to do this?” I asked.
“The sooner the better,” Sonny said.
Beck nodded. “I agree. Anyone have a problem with this?” Beck looked at the faces in the room. “Then how about when we do Walmart distribution day we tell everyone? We hold an election. Top five vote getters run things. Person with the most votes is leader, next highest is next in charge and so forth.”
Everyone seemed in agreement.
“Anything else, Sonny?” Beck asked.
“No. I’m good. That was bothering me,” Sonny replied.
“It was good thinking, like the underwear,” Beck said. “Now, to what’s bothering me. This place. I love it, it served its purpose, now it is a dangerous place to be. We need to move onward. Start preparing a move.”
“Where would we go?” I asked.
Beck looked at Sonny. “I want to know if you would lead the search for a new home.”
“Me?” Sonny asked. “Beck, I only left Grace to find a place because I didn’t like the way things were going. I knew about this place. I haven’t a clue where to start looking.”
“Talk to Ed,” Beck said. “He mentioned places where people have never seen a Sleeper. Maybe he can give you a lead. Take Miles with you, don’t go alone. Will you?”
Sonny didn’t answer. I could see he didn’t want the task. He didn’t want to leave.
“Beck,” Sonny said apprehensively, “the fences need to be repaired, the place needs to be stabilized. You and your guys are going in for cloaking serum treatments. Why me? Can’t we send someone else?”
“Yes.” Beck nodded. “But I trust you, Sonny. I trust you completely.”
Sonny exhaled. “Fine. I’ll go. After the fences get done and you’re out of medical.”
I knew Sonny didn’t want to go. I wouldn’t want to take on that task either. It was a huge responsibility to find a new home. One that was safe, had growth potential, and could sustain life. What was probably running through Sonny’s mind was “Why can’t we stay here?” I was thinking the same thing, although I knew better.
Yes, we could make a kick ass sanctuary, but it would be no less than a prison. Isolated from the world. A world Beck and the Beckoning was trying to make safe.
If there was a place out there, Sleeper free, a place to suit our needs, like Beck, there was only one person I trusted completely to find it. That person was Sonny.
9. Mera
It was nice having the afternoon visit from Renee and Bonnie. Right after lunch they came to see me and Hope, brought me lunch, and fussed over the baby while I enjoyed the gumbo that Renee concocted. It may not have had all the real ingredients, but it was amazing.
Javier had just been in to see me and I shared the news with them that should everything keep going the way it was, me and the baby would be back in our little section of Haven the next morning. Both Hope and I were doing well. We just had to keep coming in for blood testing.
“Is this pudding?” I asked, lifting the small bowl after finishing the gumbo.
“It is,” Renee answered. “Egg custard.”
“Oh my God, it’s so good.” I brought the spoon slowly to my lips, savoring every bite.
Bonnie stared down to the baby in her arms. “She is so beautiful, Mera. I will gladly take a shift or two a day to help you out.”
“Thank you,” I said.
“How do you think things will be?” Bonnie asked. “Now that Beck is back. You can tell me it’s none of my business, but I’ll keep asking anyhow.”
I laughed. “It’s confusing. Alex and I got close, yes, but we never crossed a physical line.” I saw both their faces and knew they were thinking about the baby. “Okay, I know Hope wasn’t conceived by immaculate conception. I’m talking about since Beck broke it off with me.”
“You have to understand Beck’s mindset,” Renee said. “He needed to focus on the Beckoning and you were carrying another man’s child.”
“Your opinion is biased,” Bonnie said. “You don’t like Alex.”
“No. No I don’t,” Renee said. “He drives me nuts.”
“Alex drives us all nuts,” I laughed. “That’s just him, and I think I’m not gonna commit yet to either, or lead either of them on. It’s not fair to them. It would make things awkward for Beck if I am with Alex and vice versa. We all get along well, we’re a family, and I’d rather have that than romance. Make sense?”
“That’s not gonna go over well with Alex,” Bonnie said. “But I think he’s expecting it.” She shrugged. “His mood is good though. I heard they are having a distribution day party just for women.”
“Really?” I asked.
Renee nodded. “While they were out on the run, Sonny decided to get items for women.” She reached over and took the baby into her arms, paused in awe, then raised her voice to a high pitched one, talking to me and looking at the baby. “Sonny is a sensitive man. Yes, he is. He is sensitive. He bends over backwards for us.”
Bonnie cleared her throat.
“Oh.” Renee winced. “Yeah, that may be a wrong word choice.”
“What?” My eyes shifted back and forth between them. “What did
I miss?”
There was a moment of silence and exchange of glances, then after Renee gave a nod to Bonnie, as if given permission, Bonnie explained. “While the men were out, Sonny had an…incident.”
“What happened?”
“I’m not sure of all the details,” Bonnie said. “We just know that a Sleeper…molested Sonny.”
I gasped.
“I heard the Sleeper was on him before he knew it,” Renee took over. “Overpowered him. I also heard Alex did nothing.”
“That can’t be true,” I said. “I can’t see Alex standing around.”
“According to Randy,” Renee said, “and you know he doesn’t lie, Sonny was upset with Alex for doing nothing.”
“Poor Sonny,” I said. “No wonder he’s not been in here.” I looked up when there was a knock on the door. My bed was positioned near the entrance in the large room.
Levi walked in. “I need to steal the baby for some tests before we release her tomorrow.”
“Is it true?” I asked.
“Yes, I have to test her,” Levi said.
“No,” I said, “I mean about Sonny. Did a Sleeper molest him today?”
Levi sighed, irritated at my question. “Yes. Yes that happened. We’re dealing with it.”
“How is that possible?” I asked.
“They act on instinct. Eat. Sleep. Shop. Try to procreate. Sexual urges are natural. Seems if a Sleeper gets the urge they take what they want. Sonny was the recipient today.”
I gasped again, as did Bonnie and Renee. ‘It’s horrible. I know he has to be upset.”
Levi grumbled again.
“What about physically?” I questioned.
“Really?” Levi scoffed at me. “The man was institutionalized. Unwanted sexual
advances should not shock him or hurt him. I think he took it well.”
His callous tone and words shocked the three of us and we all blasted him.
“Oh my God!” Renee shouted. “You insensitive bastard!”
“Have some tact for Christ sake!” Bonnie yelled.
“What is wrong with you?” I snapped.
“What is wrong with me?” he asked. “No, what is wrong with you ladies? My goodness, so what, a Sleeper molested Sonny. He needs to man up and deal with it and not cry about it. Don’t baby him. I’m quite sure it’s not the first time someone got frisky with him that way.” He reached down and took the baby from Renee’s arms. “I’m getting out of this room before you three emotionally scar me with your overreacting.”
“Oh, yeah, run,” Renee stood up. “You emotionless future twerp.”
With Hope in his arms, Levi paused at the door to huff before leaving.
“Can you believe that?” Renee sat back down. “All that Sonny does for us, that is the attitude.”
Bonnie ran her hand over her brow. “Oh, that just set my hot flashes off.”
“We need to do something nice for Sonny,” Renee suggested. “Make him a nice meal that no one else will get.”
“He likes Western romance novels,” Bonnie said. “Maybe I should suggest we do a group reading.”
I shook my head. “As nice as that sounds it may bring back painful memories. It’s too soon.”
“Yes, you’re right. I’ll think of something,” Bonnie said. “At least we know to treat him extra special.”
Bonnie and Renee stayed a while longer. No matter how much we steered the conversation elsewhere it ended up back at Sonny. We all felt bad and came up with a list of ways to make him feel better.
After they had left I couldn’t stop thinking about Sonny and his horrible experience. I actually poured a drink. Although, it never took much to get me drinking.
Poor Sonny.
I kept seeing him as the victim. In anguish, crying out for help, vulnerable. Scenes from Pulp Fiction, Shawshank Redemption and Deliverance played in my head.
Just before supper time, it surprised me when Sonny came into my room.
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