“What the hell is going on?” a man asked.
“What was all the shooting about?” added a woman.
“Maggot ain’t the boss anymore!” Bear announced.
“Oh? Who the hell is?” another man snapped.
“He is!” Bear beamed and pointed at Hickok.
“No, I’m not,” Hickok said quietly.
“What?”
“You heard me. I’m not your new leader.”
“But you got to be!” Bear objected. “You’ve beaten Maggot! You’re our new head!”
“Are you, or aren’t you, mister?” a woman inquired.
Hickok moved forward and paused, staring at both groups of Porns.
“Listen to me! I’m not much good with words, but I’ve got some that need to be said.”
“I never disagree with a man holding two revolvers,” a young woman mentioned.
“I’m told many of you don’t care for this scumbag,” Hickok said, indicating Maggot.
“You got that right!” shouted a man.
“The bastard killed my son!” yelled another.
“And my daughter!” hollered a third.
“Then you shouldn’t be too upset when I tell you he’s resigning his post, effective immediately,” Hickok declared.
“What’d he mean by them big words?” one woman whispered to her male companion.
“He said Maggot’s ass is grass,” the man answered.
“None of you know me,” Hickok continued. “I’m not from the Twins. I’ve seen the way you live, and it sucks! I’ve heard many of you feel the same way.”
The Porns were silently digesting every word.
“Do you want to change the way things are?” Hickok swept them all with his intense gaze. “You don’t have to live like animals, never knowing if you’ll live through the day! There is hope! There’s always hope! And I’m here to offer it to you. The people in the place where I come from might be willing to help you, but only if you’re willing to help yourselves. We won’t do it all for you! Spread the word! Talk it over amongst yourselves! Make up your minds. Get all the Porns together and take a vote. I’ll stick around a while longer, until I hear from your new leader on your decision.”
“Our new leader? I thought you said you wouldn’t be our head,” a man noted.
“I’m not your new leader,” Hickok repeated.
“Then who the hell is?” a woman demanded.
Grinning from ear to ear, Hickok turned and faced Bear.
It took Bear a moment to get the message, his eyes widening when he did. “Now wait a minute…” he started to protest.
Hickok raised his right arm over Bear’s head. “Say hello to your new leader!” he shouted.
“You crazy motherfucker!” was all Bear could think of to say.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Four Porns escorted him into a vast chamber on the first floor of the Riker Manufacturing Complex. The room was packed with over a hundred excited Porns. In the center of the north wall, on a salvaged, cushioned chair, sat a huge black, a Winchester on his lap. Six armed men stood nearby.
The escort stopped five yards from the chair.
“This is the one,” the patrol chief announced. “We found him this morning. Said he had to talk with the leader of the Porns.”
Bear studied the newcomer. He wore black clothes, the traditional garb of the Horns. His brown hair was worn long, and he covered his face with a full beard.
“Now why would a Horn want to see me?” Bear asked, suspecting a trick. Possibly the honky was a Horn assassin. “Did you check him for weapons?” he quickly demanded of the patrol chief.
“Sure did. Bear.”
The newcomer stepped forward, smiling. “Greetings, Brother Bear. My name is Joshua, and I bring a message from Reverend Paul.”
“Say what?”
“Before I go any further, I should elaborate,” Joshua said. “Despite my appearance, I am not a Horn. I come from another place…” Joshua stopped short, startled, as the black leaped from the chair and grabbed him by the front of his shirt.
“Wait a minute! What’d you say your name was?” Bear anxiously queried.
“My cognomen is Joshua.”
“But is that your name?”
“One and the same.” Joshua grinned.
“And you’re from the Home?”
Joshua, surprised, drew back. “How did you know that?”
“Ain’t you a friend of Hickok?”
“Hickok!”
“Yeah. Don’t you know him? Ain’t you one of his pards he keeps talkin’ about?”
Joshua gripped Bear’s shoulders. “Hickok is here?” he asked, his face lighting up.
“He sure is,” Bear replied. “He’s restin’ right now, and recovering from his wounds.”
“Is he hurt?” Joshua demanded, his concern flaring.
“Hey, take it easy, Joshua! You’re hurtin’ my shoulders.” Bear pried loose from Joshua’s hold.
“Is he okay?”
“Oh, he’s doin’ all right,” Bear stated. “He was shot and jumped by rats and beat on, and he even managed to get pissed on, but, ’cept for that, he’s just fine.”
“Where is he?” Joshua eagerly scanned the chamber.
“He’s in another room, sleepin’. Don’t you worry none,” Bear assured Joshua. “We ain’t about to let anything happen to him. Hickok is the best thing that’s happened to the Porns since who knows when!”
“You sound as if you really care for him,” Joshua observed.
Bear smiled, nodding. “I do. He’s the one who got me here, as head of the Porns. If the old head, Maggot, was still kickin’, you’d be dead right now.”
“What happened to Maggot?” Joshua inquired. “I was told he was in charge here.”
“Who told you that?”
“Reverend Paul.”
“Ahhh. Well, Reverend Paul ain’t up on the latest. Maggot is dead.”
“Did Hickok kill him?”
Bear chuckled at the memory. “Sure did. He marched Maggot down to this pit under the building and made him stand on a beam for a while, drippin’ his blood into the pit.” Bear laughed.
“I don’t understand,” Joshua confessed. “He bled to death?”
“No. No, man.” Bear contained his mirth with difficulty. “After a while, see, after the pit was filled with ’em, with hundreds and hundreds of the bastards, attracted by all the blood, Hickok gave Maggot a little shove and down he went. Right into the middle of ’em.”
“The middle of what?” Joshua still didn’t comprehend.
“Rats, man. Hundreds and hundreds of rats. They’ve probably cleaned him to the bone by now.”
“Hickok did that?” Joshua asked, horrified.
“Yeah. And you know what?” Bear leaned over, lowering his voice confidentially. “I think Hickok enjoyed it. He stood by the pit for the longest time, watchin’ them rats eat Maggot.”
Joshua shuddered simply imagining the scene.
“Yeah, I know.” Bear noticed the tremor. “I couldn’t stand to look at it either. The way Maggot was screamin’ and beggin’ for mercy and all.
Pitiful.”
“Have you seen my other friends?” Joshua thought to ask, to change the gruesome subject. “Blade, Geronimo, or Bertha?”
Bear shook his head. “Nope. We haven’t, and all the Porns been told to be on the lookout for them.” He draped his right arm across Joshua’s shoulders. “Now what’s this message you’ve got?”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Armed messengers, bearing white flags, shuttled among the three factions, exchanging proposals and counterproposals, and two days later a consensus was reached. A momentous summit meeting of the leaders of the Porns, the Horns, and the Nomads would be held at noon the next day in Nomad territory. Nomad turf was selected for several reasons. The general animosity between the Porns and the Horns, a century of accumulated hatred, might erupt into violence if either side ventured onto the other
’s turf. The leaders pledged the meeting would be conducted peacefully, but they entertained reservations about the self-control of some of their followers. No-man’s-land was out of the question, simply too dangerous. The Wacks weren’t invited, the prevalent belief being it would be a waste of time, not to mention the certain loss of a messenger, if an invitation were extended to the crazies. The only area remaining was Nomad turf, the ideal choice. The Nomads were comprised of former Horns and Porns, all tired of the incessant fighting, all eager for an end to the hostilities. The Nomads were particularly receptive to the summit conference, and Zahner guaranteed the safety of all parties concerned. The Nomads had established a summer camp on the eastern shore of Moore Lake, comprised of crude huts and makeshift tents. This camp was picked as the summit site.
At noon, under the rules previously agreed upon, each leader, accompanied by two cohorts, climbed a grassy knoll in the center of the camp. Guards were posted around the perimeter of the knoll to insure privacy and prevent any attacks. At the top of the knoll, under the bright sun and blue sky, four wooden benches were positioned in the shape of a square. The Nomads, Zahner and two associates, sat on the eastern bench.
The Porns, Bear and two friends, occupied the southern bench. Reverend Paul and two brothers of the First Church of the Nazarene, all three attired in the black apparel customary for the Horns, sat down on the western bench. Joshua and Hickok, as the outsiders and the mediators, used the bench on the north side of the square.
As they were taking their places, Zahner approached Hickok and offered his hand.
“Hello.” Zahner smiled. “I’m pleased to meet you. You must be Hickok. Your party arrived only an hour ago, and I’ve been too busy with preparations to properly introduce myself.”
Hickok shook, sizing the Nomad leader up, liking what he saw. A man of integrity, of confidence, reflected in the unwavering blue eyes. “And you’re called Z,” Hickok stated. “Someone pointed you out to me earlier.”
“I’ve heard a lot about you,” Zahner said.
“Oh?”
“Yes. One of the messengers told us about the gunfight. He said you killed twenty men,” Zahner remarked.
Hickok grinned sheepishly. “Only nine.”
“Only?” Zahner nodded slowly, impressed. “I’ve also heard a lot about you from someone else.”
“Really? Who?”
“Bertha.”
Hickok quickly glanced at Bear, who was sitting on his bench talking with another Porn. He hadn’t heard Zahner’s statement.
“Bertha is here?” Hickok inquired casually, suppressing his excitement at learning she was apparently safe.
“Yes.” Zahner eyed Hickok quizzically. He turned and pointed at a tent fifty yards to the east. “She’s in there, and she said she would like to see you as soon as you had the chance.”
“Thanks. I reckon I’ll see her when I get around to it.”
Zahner’s brow furrowed, and he shrugged. “Whatever is best. I look forward to talking with you later myself.”
“You got it,” Hickok promised him, sitting down.
Zahner nodded once and took his seat.
Joshua was the only one still standing. He stood in the center of the square, smiling broadly.
“I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to each of you,” Joshua began his presentation, “for having the courage and wisdom to attend this historic meeting. You have accorded us the singular honor of being your mediators.” He indicated Hickok with a wave of his hand. “My brother has expressed his wish that I conduct this conference and do most of the talking. The gift of gab comes naturally to me anyway, so I agreed.”
Joshua grinned at his joke, then hastily continued when none of the others smiled. “We’ll get right to the point for being here. All three of you have expressed a desire to terminate your friction, your warfare, a sentiment shared by the majority of your followers. And who can blame you for wanting peace? For craving a better life? Your entire lives are one continous struggle for existence from the day you are born until the day you pass on. I can only imagine how this brutal environment must affect you, how it must harden you and inhibit you from enjoying the happy, harmonious life that is your birthright as a child of our loving Creator.”
Reverend Paul and Bear listened attentively, nodding in agreement at times. They had already covered this topic with Joshua several times. To Zahner, who had not spoken with Joshua before this minute, the experience was a revelation. He hung on every word, amazed.
“You’ve allowed yourselves to become trapped in a rut,” Joshua was saying. “Your lives are dictated by the forces and circumstances surrounding you, instead of you forging the life you want to pursue. You’ve permitted the hatred of two men, men who lived one hundred years ago, to be perpetuated in your lifetimes. Like a poisonous snake, this hatred has wound down through the decades, destroying countless lives with its toxic bite. How much longer must this insanity be perpetuated? I say it should end now, today! Let there be an end to the senseless bloodshed!
Take your destiny in your own hands! Forge a new alliance, a bond of mutual respect and brotherly sharing. Together, you could alter the course of history.” Joshua paused, waiting for a response.
“Nice words,” Bear finally said. “But I ain’t too high on words. Action speaks louder than words.”
“I agree with you in principle,” Reverend Paul somberly intoned. “But how do you propose to achieve your goal? How can we change the way things are?”
“I have some ideas,” Joshua responded.
“And so do I,” Zahner interjected. “There is only one way we can get out of the rut you mentioned, and that’s to get out of the Twins. I’ve heard about the place you come from, this Home as you call it. Why can’t you take us there? We could build our new lives with your assistance.”
Reverend Paul glanced at Zahner. “You surprise me!” he declared. “I’ve already made the same recommendation.” He grinned in appreciation.
“But then, you always were my star pupil.”
“What about it?” Zahner pressed Joshua. “Can we come live with you?”
“He told me it isn’t feasible,” Reverend Paul threw in.
Joshua held up his hands, quieting them. “At this point in time,” he emphasized, “it isn’t practical.”
“Why isn’t it?” Zahner questioned.
Joshua sighed. “I would that it were possible, but preparations must be made before an exodus as large as the one you contemplate can be realized. Given time, you could evacuate the Twin Cities, if you wanted.”
“No jive?” came from Bear. “All of us could just waltz out of this dive?
All of us? There must be…” He stopped, calculating.
“Upwards of twelve hundred,” Joshua stated. “So you can see why my Family would require time to prepare for your coming. The Home, as it is, is not large enough to accommodate all of you. Your coming would change the Home from a small commune to a town, virtually overnight. Give us ample time to prepare. We can erect wooden walls or a large fence, as Brother Paul has suggested. We’ll construct temporary shelters for you to live in until permanent structures can be erected. The Family can also stockpile food so there is ample on hand when you arrive. And remember.”
Joshua swept them with his gaze. “This journey is hundreds of miles in length, and women and children will be along. What will you do for food along the way? How many miles do you think you can travel daily? You couldn’t make the trip in winter. Few of you would survive. You could, however, make the journey in warm weather.”
“What’s your idea?” Bear asked.
“I have several.” Joshua glanced at Hickok for any additional comment, but the morose gunman was staring off to the east, his left elbow on his knee, his chin in his hand. “Hickok and I will return to the Home and present this idea to our Family. They will vote on it, and their decision will be final.”
“How will you get back to the Home?” Reverend Paul inquired. “It�
��s a long way to travel for just two men.”
“We’ll make it,” Joshua replied.
Zahner grinned. Bertha had told him about the SEAL. If the outsiders wanted to keep their vehicle a secret, that was their business.
“Do you think your people will go along with it?” Bear asked hopefully.
“I honestly don’t know,” Joshua answered. “I predict they will.”
“What do you think?” Bear queried Hickok.
Hickok sat still, staring at the tent housing Bertha.
“Hey, Hickok!” Bear called. “You still with us or what?”
“What?” Hickok twisted, surprised. “Sorry. I was thinking about something. What did you say?”
“I want to know,” Bear repeated, “if you think your people will go for the idea of all of us coming to live with you?”
Hickok stood and stretched. “I reckon they might. Even if they don’t, we’ll come up with a better place for you to live than the Twins. There are some small towns not far from the Home, and they might be suitable for our purposes. Don’t worry, pard. The Family will back you one hundred percent in whatever you decide to do.
“What about the Watchers?” Zahner asked.
Hickok patted the Colts in his holsters. “We know how to handle them varmits. Besides, how are they going to stop over a thousand people?”
“And what about the Uglies?” Bear threw in.
Hickok picked up his Henry from the bench. “The Family can provide a Warrior escort, and we’ll take care of the mutates.”
“I’m actually beginning to believe it’s possible,” Zahner said, astounded.
“I thought it was a pipe dream at first.”
“I’ll leave you boys to work out the details,” Hickok informed them. “I’ve got an errand to attend to right now.”
“Where are you going?” Joshua inquired as Hickok strolled off.
“Got something to attend to, pard.”
“He sure is actin’ strange,” Bear commented.
“It’s normal for him,” Joshua observed. He turned back to the others.
“So here is what I propose,” he told them. “First, take a vote of your respective groups and determine if they agree on the relocation.”
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