by David Nees
Before he could answer, Lori Sue stepped forward beside Billy. “I’m Lori Sue,” she said, giving Jason an aggressive look. “Billy here is my boyfriend. I don’t know what the hell you want, or how you can get the chief of police to run your errands, but he hasn’t done anything wrong and you better not mess with him or you’ll be messing with me.” She stood there, all five foot five of her. “I may not be that big, but I fight hard and nasty. I’ve had a lot of experience dealing with men who try to mess with me, so don’t you.”
Sergeant Gibbs started to grin. Lori Sue saw the grin and turned to him. “You think I’m funny? I’ve had to deal with assholes like you before. You stay out of this.”
Billy was starting to get embarrassed, although Lori Sue’s clear statement of their relationship felt good.
Gibbs held up his hands. “Miss Lori, I’m not laughing at you. But I think you’re getting off on the wrong foot.”
She just glared at him, looking ready to fight. “It’s Lori Sue,” she said.
Jason finally spoke up. “I asked Chief Cook to help me find Billy. I want to invite him to a wedding…my daughter’s wedding.” He looked at Billy. “Lieutenant Cameron and Catherine are getting married, maybe next week, and since I was in town, she asked me to find you and invite you to come. You’re a big part of the valley and your dad gave his life defending it. We’d be honored to have you there.”
Lori Sue turned to look at Charlie standing behind them. “Shit. Why the hell didn’t you say what this was about? You got me all worked up over nothin’.” Turning back to Jason, she continued in a friendlier tone of voice. “I’m sorry about yelling at you, but I got to defend what’s mine, if you know what I mean.”
Jason smiled. “I think I know about defending what’s mine. No offense taken.” He got up and extended his hand. “I’m Jason Richards and I’m glad to meet you.”
Lori Sue grinned and took it.
“Mary, these two haven’t eaten all day,” Chief Cook said.
The older woman replied, “Oh, we can do something about that!” She got up. “Let’s go into the other room.”
She took one of the candles and led them into the dining room with a huge table. Charlie followed, bringing in the other candles. Billy and Lori Sue took chairs next to each other. Mary disappeared into the kitchen, but she returned a moment later bearing two large plates which she set in front of Billy and Lori Sue. The plates were filled with macaroni noodles in an unfamiliar sauce that held bits of meat.
“Go ahead,” Mary told them. “We’ve all already eaten.” They both began wolfing down the food as Mary went back to the kitchen and brought in another plate for her husband.
“Wow, you sure do eat well,” Lori Sue said between mouthfuls.
“This is a lot better than we get at the food centers,” Billy said.
Mary smiled and nodded her head as she took the empty chair to Charlie’s right. Nobody around the table spoke as they ate. Billy barely noticed the quiet.
When Billy, Lori Sue, and Charlie had all finished eating, Jason broke the silence. “Did you get the job you talked about?” He nodded. “So how are you doing here, in town?”
Billy shrugged. “I can’t say I like it a lot. There’s too many rules. But since I’m a hunter, I get to do a lot on my own. I can be out in the woods. It’s better than the city, which is dirty and noisy.” He looked at Lori Sue on his right. “All in all it ain’t bad, though. ‘Specially since meeting Lori Sue.”
“He saved my life,” Lori Sue said. Everyone listened intently as she went on to describe the incident and how Billy’s crack shooting had saved her. Billy felt a little embarrassed and worried. He didn’t know how that information would sit with the chief of police. He could tell nothing from Charlie’s expression. “He’s gonna teach me how to make whiskey too so I don’t have to work the streets.”
“Sounds like you want to do the right thing when you see it,” Kevin said.
“I guess.”
“Billy, what do you think of the militia?” Kevin asked.
Billy looked cautiously at Charlie Cook. “I don’t know,” he said. “They’re all right, I guess.”
To his surprise he saw Charlie smiling at him. “You can speak openly here. I’m no fan of the militia and neither is anyone else in this room.”
“Really? You’re part of them, ain’t you?”
“No, the police are separate. We don’t have any ex-gangsters or looters on the police force. So feel free to speak your mind.”
“Why you want to know what he thinks?” Lori Sue asked Kevin.
“I’m the U.S. Army. I want to get his perspective on the situation. There’s some friction between us and the militia some times.”
“Well, I don’t really like them,” Billy answered. “They ain’t like you. After I shot that guy trying to rape Lori Sue, his buddies tried to beat me up, maybe kill me. Didn’t seem like the officers gave a damn, ‘bout the shootin’ or ‘bout me nearly gettin’ murdered on the sidewalk. I got to be on the lookout for them all the time now.”
Jason asked, “How about you, Lori Sue? Do you think things are going well?”
Lori Sue didn’t answer for a moment, and Billy looked at her. She was studying the candlelit faces around the table. “You’re asking a lot of questions…all of you,” she said. “You didn’t bring us over here to just invite Billy to the wedding. What do you want?”
“Well, I do want to invite Billy to the wedding…and you, too,” Jason replied. “But I’m worried about the town. We have to do business with them, so I want to get more information, good or bad. No one here is going to pass anything you say on to anyone else. It’s for us and the other valley farmers, so we can better know what we’re dealing with.”
“I can tell you stories,” Lori Sue said. “You know that guy, Leo?” She looked at Charlie, who nodded, his face darkening. “Well, he’s a piece of work, or a piece of shit, really. He’s dangerous, a killer, someone you don’t want to mess with. A while ago I found out he’s keeping a woman, Donna’s her name—”
Mary’s eyes suddenly widening. Charlie grimaced and turned to her, taking her left hand in both of his own.
“She ain’t there ‘cause she wants to be,” Lori Sue continued. “Leo’s got her chained up like a slave. I mean a real chain. And that ain’t all. Got her kid under his control and uses him to make her do what she wants.” She shook her head. The room was silent. “Piece of shit,” she said. Her face was hard as she looked at Mary. “We girls got to stick together. It’s one thing to give a guy a tumble and get something in return, hell it’s fun sometimes…at least till I met Billy.” She put her hand on Billy’s arm. “But it’s bad when someone tries to make you a slave. That ain’t right.”
Billy was shocked. She had not told him anything about this. “You shouldn’t go near Leo,” he said.
“It’s all right. I’m careful, but I have to help her. She ain’t got nobody. I’m visiting her kid to check up on him, let her know how he’s doing. I even snuck my 9mm to her, ‘case things get real bad.”
“This is worse than I thought,” Charlie said. He put his arm around his wife.
The group was silent for a while.
“You ain’t gonna get me in trouble for telling you all this, are you?” Lori Sue asked.
“Absolutely not,” Charlie said. “No one will know you told us. Not unless you tell anyone else.”
“I ain’t telling them bastards anything, and neither is Billy.”
Jason leaned forward and studied Billy and Lori Sue for a moment. “We’d like to help. Help both of you and this woman, Donna, and her kid. Will you help us do that?”
There was a long silence in the room. Finally Lori Sue spoke up. “How are you gonna help?”
“What do you want us to do?” Billy asked.
“We think we can change who runs the town,” Jason said. “There are people in town who want to help change things. You can be part of that. In the process, we can save Donna and
others like her.”
“You talking about a revolt?” Billy asked in astonishment. “Cause if you are, they got too many guns and too many men.”
Kevin spoke up. “No open revolt. Not unless we have to. But we can organize, collect resources, and be ready to change the balance of power if we get the chance.”
Billy shook his head. “I think you’re all crazy. This is…this is a whole town. I ain’t gonna tell anyone, but you’re gonna get yourselves killed.”
“That was your daddy’s first response,” Jason said softly. “But he came and helped, and you did as well. And we won.”
Billy turned to him with an angry look in his eyes. “Yeah, and he died doing it.”
Jason’s eyes were sympathetic, but they did not waver. “I’m sorry about that, I really am. But you didn’t die…and we won.”
“Look,” Kevin said, “if this group gets more powerful, no one will have any freedom. Lori Sue could be put in a brothel, her freedom taken away. You think they’ll listen to you? You say you’re going to teach her how to make whiskey. What if one of the bosses, Leo or someone else, says no, he’s got people to make whiskey, he wants her in a whorehouse, servicing the men? What’re you going to do then?”
Billy could think of nothing to say. He could feel Lori Sue’s body grow tense next to him. He stared back at Kevin.
Kevin went on. “Right now you think you got the run of things, you’ve got the best of the situation even though you have to keep ducking that guy’s friends. You think you can keep doing what you like best. But don’t fool yourself. Being able to do what you want is not where this is headed. That isn’t what Stansky has in mind. He wants everyone doing what he wants…or what Leo says to do.”
“On top of that,” Jason said, “they’re planning to attack the valley, to steal our seed.”
Billy couldn’t hide the shock he felt. Jason’s eyes bore into him. “They don’t have seeds that breed true. They just have hybrid seed, and they don’t seem interested in waiting until we can share with them. And now it looks like their talk of wanting to cooperate was just a pack of lies,” he said. “Charlie here tells us they’re set on attacking us. And I expect that attacking us means killing all of us. If they can get non-hybrid seed of their own they think they don’t need us, so we’re better off dead.”
“That don’t make sense. Why would they do that?” Billy asked.
“Because the valley represents freedom,” Kevin answered. “An alternative future to what Stansky’s planning. You didn’t see the crowds when we went around to the food centers on trading day. They were all excited to see Jason and Anne.”
Jason nodded, his eyes on Billy. “They’d like to get us out of their hair and they’d like to get our seed. That’s enough for them to kill everyone in the valley. These are people you know, people who have stood with you, people you fought alongside of. Are you going to let that happen?”
“I don’t know.” Billy squirmed in his chair. His mind raced. “Don’t know what I can do to help.”
“I’ll help,” Lori Sue said unexpectedly beside him. Billy turned to look at her. “I don’t know if I can do anything, but if I can help shove a stick up Leo’s ass, I’ll do it.” She turned to Billy with her eyes afire. “You should be in too,” she told him. “I know I’m not gonna let someone put me in a whorehouse like that. No way. That bastard Leo, keeping Donna chained up like that. That’s fucked. We girls got to stick together.”
Billy felt as if he were falling, the ground crumbling away under him. Life had been pretty good, even if he had to keep a sharp eye out for the friends of the guy he had killed. He had Lori Sue, and she had opened up a world of female delights for him. He was completely in love with her; she was good looking, exciting, and she made him feel special, like no one ever had before. They ate pretty well, and they had a place of their own. Now it all seemed ready to come apart.
He finally looked back at Jason. “Is Catherine really getting married? Or was that just to get me here?”
Jason laughed. “Yes, she’s really getting married and she wants you to be there. But now you know it wasn’t the only reason to talk to you tonight.”
Chapter 31
___________________________________
U h oh, what do we have here? Captain Roper thought as he looked across his desk at the four serious faces. Seeing Jason surprised him; he’d had no hint that he was back in Hillsboro. But his real concern was Charlie Cook. Charlie knew all about his involvement with Stansky, the bribes, the cover-ups. Roper couldn’t have that coming out in front of Cameron and Gibbs. Roper kept his features expressionless. Charlie’s face was the same.
But had it already come out? Not if the Chief was still looking out for his own hide. Either way, the thing was to play this as if it hadn’t.
And then there was the surprise they had brought him.
“It’s going to happen after Mason gets you to pull the platoon out,” Lieutenant Cameron told him. “I don’t know how soon, but, based on what I know of Stansky, I don’t think he’ll wait long at all. He sees this business with the seed as an obstacle, and he sees the valley farmers as an obstacle. He doesn’t like obstacles. And he can get everything he wants right away if he just takes the valley and kills everyone in it.”
Roper let the lieutenant finish explaining. Knowing Joe, his own estimate matched Cameron’s. That son of a bitch. How was he going to play this out?
“What makes you think I’ll go along with Mason?” he asked when Cameron stopped.
“Frank seems to think you’ll agree,” Charlie said. His choice of phrasing was interesting. It looked like the policeman was going to play along and not expose him.
He raised his eyebrows. “I would only leave Hillsboro if I got a direct order from Colonel Stillman, or if I felt things were stable enough that our presence wasn’t needed.”
“It seems that you’re getting ready to make that call, sir,” Cameron said. “I get the impression that you feel things are under control here and that we can move on. I know you didn’t like getting left here.”
“What I like is irrelevant, Lieutenant,” Roper said. He looked harder at Cameron. “I do my duty, as I expect you to do yours.”
“But now you know what’ll be behind Mason’s request when he makes it. How does that fit into your assessment of the situation? Seems to me that planning to attack and murder civilians makes his leadership criminal in nature.”
“You’re getting ahead of yourself,” Roper said. “And why,” he said turning to Gibbs, “are you involved in these discussions? Your job is to keep the troops in line, to carry out orders. I don’t remember elevating you to strategic planning.”
“Sir, Sergeant Gibbs is here because I asked him to be. He can give us valuable information on our own readiness and strength in the event that we have to oppose the town’s authorities. Ultimately, if we decide they’re acting criminally, we have to take over.”
Roper ignored Cameron and focused on Gibbs. “Sergeant, you are dismissed. Please see to the platoon. Make sure everyone is inspection-ready. And while you’re at it, get me an inventory of our materiel and prepare a report on our battle readiness. That will be helpful while I discuss strategy with the Lieutenant here.”
Gibbs saluted and left the room.
“Sir, that wasn’t called for. Sergeant Gibbs has been invaluable throughout this deployment,” Cameron said.
“Do not question me, Lieutenant. Gibbs has a job to do. I sent him to do what you should have done immediately after hearing of this threat. I’m surprised you didn’t realize that. It seems as though you’ve become sloppy in carrying out your mission.”
Cameron stiffened but didn’t respond.
“You,” Roper said, turning to Jason. “I don’t know what you’re doing here either, beyond the fact that you seem to have become a local hero. I’m afraid that doesn’t qualify you for sitting in on military strategy discussions. Even though Lieutenant Cameron seems to want to include you, I ha
ve to ask you to wait outside. My officer and I have important matters to discuss. The Chief of Police can stay as a representative of local law enforcement. Since you don’t have any official title, I can’t include you in those discussions.”
“My family and I are going to be on the receiving end of this attack, so I have more than a little interest in the discussion.”
“Nevertheless, this is a military discussion with my junior officer here. No civilians allowed.”
Jason gave the captain a long hard stare. Roper didn’t flinch. Jason finally stood up and with a glance at Cameron, left the room.
“So you’re going to take action on what we told you?” Charlie Cook asked when the door closed.
“No. I’m going to wait to have this conversation with Frank that you say is coming.”
Charlie shifted uncomfortably. “I’d appreciate it if you don’t let on about what you know. He’ll know it came from me.”
“Are you concerned about upsetting your comfortable arrangements?” Roper asked blandly.
“No more than others might be,” Charlie replied. He gave Roper a pointed look. Roper understood the threat implied. Fair enough, he thought.
He leaned comfortably back in his chair. “I’ll get back to everyone after Frank talks with me…if he does.”
“Sir,” Lieutenant Cameron said, in a voice that failed to conceal his anxiety. “He will talk with you. Probably pretty soon. I urge you to not give him an answer until we can discuss our options.”
Roper gave Cameron a reassuring smile. “I’ll play this by ear.” He let a trace of grim concern into his face, then looked at Cameron and said sharply, “You get with Gibbs. I want a full inventory of our situation. And I want it by tomorrow.”
With that he dismissed the two of them.
He sat in his empty office, Joe, what the hell kind of mess are you creating?
The next day Jason rode back to the valley with Kevin and Tommy Wilkes, who sat in the back. Gibbs had stayed to complete the task Roper had given him. Captain Roper had quickly approved the trip. “I don’t want him hanging around the compound. He’s not part of our decision-making.” He gave Cameron a stern look. “Diesel is a scarce commodity. After this trip, I don’t want you ferrying those people around anymore.”
