Forsaken World (Book 5): Homecoming

by Watson, Thomas A.

  Turning in the seat toward Robin, “You want to bitch and whine at the risk of upsetting them before they leave to hit a large group that would kill the men and take you women. And you know they wouldn’t take you women to go shopping!” Heath shouted. “Do I like the fact that me, a grown man, knows he’s not in the same league as those ‘boys’?” he lisped.

  Starting loud and raising the volume with each word, “Fuck no, it makes me feel like a useless bitch! And you want to complain that they are risking too much? It’s us who’s not risking enough, and here’s the kicker, they don’t want us to. Hoping eventually, we will be worth the effort they have put out for us!” he bellowed.

  Turning away from Heath, Robin wiped tears from her eyes. “It’s just wrong,” she mumbled.

  “Really?” Heath said flatly. “Robin, you really think you’re the only one that has come to that conclusion? You think everyone else in this forsaken world is going about life thinking, this is a nice change.”

  Shaking her head, “No,” Robin mumbled.

  Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly through pursed lips, Heath shifted in his seat before looking ahead and speaking normally. “Robin, I’m sorry I got mad, but you can’t pester them with bitching and whining. We voiced our complaints and they acknowledged them, even though they didn’t have to. They took the time and explained why we would only endanger them. No, I don’t think they would throw the kids out to return home with us and stop helping us if you bitched and whined.”

  Shaking his head, “They would see it as disrespectful for doubting them,” Heath told her. “One thing I’ve learned about those boys, they believe respect is earned and honor among family and friends means everything. I don’t want them to see you as disrespectful for all they have done and are still doing, and they would.”

  “Heath,” Robin said in a breaking voice, but just stared out at the area. “I know I’m being a bitch, but I just don’t want them to get hurt. Denny worships the ground they walk on and he’s barely a year younger, but they are light years older than he is. All I can see is Denny and Lori joining them on one of these dangerous missions.”

  Scoffing loudly, “Really?” Heath huffed. “That’s it? Dwain and I will be going on missions before the kids. Lance and Ian won’t let anyone do something unless they know that person can. Or I should say, they won’t let that person do something with ‘them’, unless they know that person can. Knowing how to shoot has very little to do with actual fighting. The ability to think and adapt is what wins.”

  Feeling better hearing that, “I won’t say anything,” Robin promised. “Wish their parents would hurry up and get here.”

  Walking up beside Heath, “You two about done?” Dwain asked. “We did call them and said we were on the way. I really don’t want them to stop what they’re doing to come looking for us.”

  “We’re done,” Heath said, gripping the steering wheel. “Robin, I hope you don’t think Lance and Ian’s parents are goin’ to stop ‘em. The only thing I see them doing is going out with them. But if Lance and Ian think they don’t need to, they will lose them like Rhonda lost our asses when we tried to follow her and help.”

  After Dwain was back in his ride, Heath pulled off. “I used to think we were good parents until those two. When their parents do get here, I’m going to sit down and talk to them on just what in the hell they did for the boys to turn out like they did,” Heath told her.

  The fact that they were expecting the parents to make it may have seemed ludicrous to others. But after seeing what the boys could do, it was just impossible for them to believe the parents wouldn’t make it.

  As Heath pulled off the main road to take the road up to the build house, Robin reached over and patted his arm. “If you ever see me doing something they will see as disrespectful, let me know.”

  “I will, but you always talk it out with me thankfully, and they look at you and Kathy with more respect than Dwain and I,” Heath told her, slowing for a turn.

  Cocking her head to the side and trying to understand that, “Really?” Robin asked.

  “Yeah, you and Kathy knew your babies needed knowledge and wanted to rectify that, asking if they could stay at the cabin. They know mommas have the final say ninety-nine percent of the time,” Heath explained.

  As Heath pulled into the yard of the build house, Robin understood. Robin and Kathy were willing to let their kids out to learn, trusting them with Lance and Ian. Coming to that realization, Robin saw none of her previous doubts really had merit, other than just worry for the boys’ safety. She trusted the boys with her kids, so she trusted their judgement.

  Glad that Robin was pacified, Heath climbed out and saw the first battle bot they had pulled from the field, in the yard under a portable awning. The panels were off to expose the internal bays, with an engine hoist parked over the bot. “How long have they been working?” Robin asked, getting out. The battle bot hadn’t been stripped down that much yesterday.

  “Didn’t ask,” Heath shrugged.

  Walking past and stomping her feet, “I told you we should’ve come over earlier,” Rhonda growled.

  “It’s fucking seven o’clock!” Heath cried out. “We have shit to do in the morning.” Spinning around to walk backwards, Rhonda flipped Heath off and then spun back around, walking under the tarp.

  Moving around the side by side, Heath glanced back to see Dwain and Kathy get out of the other side by side. “Told you, I should’ve come over with Rhonda earlier,” Dwain said. “The only reason Rhonda didn’t come over is Ian and Lance say moving alone is stupid unless you have no choice.”

  That Rhonda was even concerned what someone thought was impressive to Heath. Rhonda did what she wanted, but really sought this group’s approval even more so than the rest. The others wanted to be seen as assets; Rhonda wanted to be seen as an equal, and was willing to learn and push to do it.

  Every night, Rhonda would watch the videos while practicing, and read what Lance and Ian had sent over. Neither Heath nor Dwain had ever seen this kind of response from Rhonda. They loved their little sister and weren’t ashamed to admit, she could kick their asses. Rhonda had been in shape when this had started.

  She had never worked out in her life. Rhonda was just very active. Now, after reading, watching training videos, and practicing late into the night, Rhonda was up before dawn in the gym at the house, pushing iron and running on the treadmill. It was very noticeable that Rhonda was packing on muscle. Everyone else was also, but not to the degree Rhonda was, and Heath thought they needed to change that.

  Thinking about that, he saw Dwain and Kathy trot off and that broke his daydreaming. Turning to where they were heading, Heath saw a rather large open wall tent, the kind seen for revivals and festivals. Not understanding what his eyes were seeing, he trotted over.

  Walking into the tent, Heath slowed. Railroad ties were stacked four high, making a twenty feet box on the ground that took up most of the tent. 2x12 boards were over the box with the ladybugs and Jodi laying on them and working on a military sandbox. “Whoa,” he mumbled. The detail of the model was really good, complete with hills, trees, and then he saw miniature semi-trailers forming an outline that reminded him of a liver. “Hey, that’s what Ian said the Pirates’ camp looked like!”

  “Duh,” Carrie sang out. “You can’t go after your target without making a model to plan.”

  If that would’ve been his daughter or even Jodi, Heath would’ve said something about the attitude. But others were scared of the ladybugs for good reason. The fact that Lilly, Lance’s girlfriend, walked softly around the ladybugs, didn’t go unnoticed by anyone.

  All three girls had their hair pulled back and were looking at 8x10 pictures and sheets of paper with handwritten notes, then worked on the model. Allie put a cut-out of cardboard that had ‘RV’ in bold letters. When she put it down inside the wall of tiny semi-trailers, she picked up a ruler to measure it from the wall and another cut-out cardboard piece that had �
�5th Wheel’ written on it.

  “Wow, you girls are doing good,” Kathy said, kneeling down.

  “Thank you,” all three said, looking up at her and smiling.

  Moving closer, Heath tripped and threw his arms out, catching the stacked railroad ties that outlined the sandbox before he fell into the map. Allie spun toward Heath with a scowl. “You mess this up and you’ll be my bitch!” she informed him. Not turning his face away from Allie, Heath moved his eyes to look at Carrie and Jodi, only to see both with cold scowls.

  “Don’t look at me, Uncle Heath,” Jodi told him. “We’ve been working on this for five hours. I’m not asking Allie to change her mind.”

  Having no idea what being an eight-year-old’s bitch involved, but was certain he didn’t want to find out, Heath lifted his hands up. “Sorry, if I would’ve messed it up, I would’ve fixed it,” he assured them.

  “I know,” Allie snapped. “And then you would’ve been my bitch!”

  “Allie, be nice,” Jennifer said, coming over.

  Whipping her head to Jennifer, “You mess this up and you’ll be my bitch,” Allie told her.

  Not having any fear of the ladybugs, Jennifer took a breath to unload and felt a hand grab her shoulder. Turning, she saw Lilly stop beside her. “I offered to help, Allie, but you said you and Carrie knew how to do this. I would’ve liked to learn,” Lilly smiled.

  Biting her bottom lip and looking so cute and innocent, “We know how to do it,” Allie told her. “We can show you next time.”

  “I don’t like doing the sixty-four,” Carrie sighed, putting a tree in the model.

  With her mind in the wrong frame and in the gutter, “Excuse me?!” Jennifer cried out to her sister.

  Smirking and chuckling, “She’s talking about the scale, Jennifer. 1/64,” Lilly clarified.

  “Oh,” Jennifer said, feeling bad for where her mind had been. “How many of these have you done?”

  Allie and Carrie looked at each other, then Carrie shifted her gaze back to Jennifer. “Never,” she answered.

  Knowing Jennifer, Lilly just squeezed her shoulder to drop it and then knelt down at the edge. “What is your favorite scale?” Lilly asked with a smile.

  “Thirty-two,” they said together with huge smiles.

  “We can put the GI Joe toys in,” Carrie beamed.

  “You don’t like the three hundred, like in the barn?” Lilly asked.

  Both shrugged, “Ian said we aren’t good enough to do those,” Allie mumbled.

  “But you two helped on the one in the barn,” Lilly said.

  “Because Lance said we could,” Allie said with a smile.

  Rolling her eyes, “What a shocker there,” Jennifer sighed.

  Allie and Carrie turned to Jennifer with cold stares. “Hey,” Lilly said softly and Allie turned back to her, softening her expression. “Lance and Ian taught you how to do sandbox models this big?”

  Shaking her head, “No, we watched, and next time we wanted to help,” Allie told her.

  Acting confused, “Allie, you and Carrie couldn’t have been helping doing models long then because Lance said he loves the sixty-four,” Lilly told her.

  Looking off and wondering if this question was giving away a secret, Allie glanced back at Carrie. When Carrie gave a nod that it was okay to answer, Allie turned back to Lilly smiling. “We’ve helped for a whole year,” she said proudly. “Lance likes the sixty-four because the Dungeon and Dragon figures fit in it. They’re just so small, we don’t like them.”

  “A whole year,” Lilly gasped extravagantly. “You and Carrie are really good to only have been doing this a year. I think Jodi can learn it that fast.”

  Lifting her chin up, “She is,” Carrie smiled. “Jodi is going to be a ladybug.”

  The fact they were adding numbers to their ranks, Lilly fought off a shiver. Leaning down carefully so she didn’t disturb the model, Lilly kissed each on the forehead and then stood up. “You have got to get a backbone,” Jennifer groaned.

  With the ladybugs attention diverted from him, Heath eased off to the side where a corkboard stood. There were pictures in neat rows of the camp, but at the top were two individuals. ‘Boss’ was written on a note card stuck at the top of one. The card over the other picture read, ‘Sorry cock-sucking, motherfucker, jackoff, granny fucker over group that broke our shit!’

  Under that picture, Heath leaned closer to the board at another fuzzy photo that was blown up and he couldn’t tell what he was looking at. Looking under it, he saw a game cam picture and knew this had been taken the day the crime had happened, and the picture above it was the section enlarged. Since the Pirates wore masks, he glanced back at the top picture.

  On the man’s neck was a tattoo of a shark and then he looked back at the fuzzy picture and could barely make out the outline of the tail of a shark. About to grin, Heath jerked his eyes back to the top photo.

  “Holy fuck,” he gasped, realizing the man was asleep while leaning back in a lawn chair. Looking at the photo, he knew it was taken from mere feet away from the man. “Oh, dude, you’re so fucked,” Heath mumbled in astonishment at the photo. “They leaned over you when you were asleep and took your picture, just to save you for pain and torment.”

  “Yep,” Lilly said, walking up beside him.

  Pointing at the picture, “How in the fuck did they get that close?” Heath asked.

  Shrugging, “Snuck in,” Lilly told him.

  The others came over, leaving the ladybugs alone. “That picture looks like it was taken really close,” Robin stated.

  “Ha,” Jennifer laughed out. “Ian tied the bitch’s boot laces together after he took the picture.”

  “You were inside the camp with them?” Robin gasped.

  Rolling her eyes, “How in the hell could we watch their backs if we weren’t with them?” Jennifer asked.

  “Heath said you were probably going to sit outside on sniper rifles,” Robin mumbled.

  “That’s tonight,” Lilly said.

  When Robin turned to Heath, she found a hand in her face. “Don’t start because that’s what I thought watching someone’s back was,” Heath told her.

  “Um,” Dwain said, studying the rows of pictures. “Why didn’t they just kill those two last night? They were certainly close enough.”

  “If you have to ask, I can’t explain it to you,” Lilly told him bluntly.

  Looking over her shoulder at everyone around the cork board, “Is that why they are practicing?” Carrie asked.

  “No, Carrie,” Jennifer said, and Lilly was very glad Jennifer did it while sounding polite. “They are evaluating the effectiveness of the technique they want to use.”

  “I want to test my effectiveness,” Carrie nearly whined.

  “Carrie, you or Allie even ask, I swear, I’ll shave your heads. Then neither of you will have to worry about getting your hair brushed,” Jennifer threatened, making Lilly grimace.

  “Stupid head,” Carrie sang out, and both stuck their tongues out at Jennifer.

  Grabbing Jennifer’s arm, “Quit tormenting them,” Lilly told her in a low voice.

  “They keep on and I’m going to kick their asses,” Jennifer warned.

  Both girls jumped up on the boards they were laying on. “Bring it, bitch,” Carrie challenged.

  Never looking away from Jennifer, “Ladybugs, if you leave that model before it’s done, you know they will never let you do another,” Lilly told them. Giving little gasps, both dropped back down before getting back to work.

  “Will you stop antagonizing them?” Lilly whispered.

  Jerking her head back, “Why? They started it. I’m not afraid of the ladybugs,” Jennifer informed her, but was whispering.

  Using a very low voice, “Jennifer, they won’t ever hurt any of us, but they can make life hell for those who piss them off. Like bothering you nonstop, teasing, not doing anything for you, and,” Lilly paused, glancing over to make sure the ladybugs weren’t looking, but both wer
e working on the model. “And piss off the other half for you and worry the other half for me. They do it on purpose and have it down to an art form. Jennifer, they know how to push your buttons to irritate you, piss you off, and make you sad. Ian, they can do it faster. I don’t need to tell you how they have Lance wrapped up.”

  At first, Jennifer was irritated with Lilly for siding with the ladybugs, then realization set in as Lilly continued. Instances from the past flashed through her mind and Jennifer could see what Lilly was saying. “Those little bitches,” Jennifer mumbled.

  “Jennifer, this isn’t a time to pick a battle with the ladybugs,” Lilly advised. “It’s not worth it to us or to Ian and Lance.”

  Cutting her eyes toward the ladybugs, “I’m talking to Ian about this,” Jennifer said.

  “Oh, now that’s smart,” Lilly whispered very sarcastically, and Jennifer turned to her. “You’re going to tell Ian the ladybugs can push his buttons at will? He believes that about Lance, but not him. You do that, Jen, I’m warning you now, expect to get in an argument. A big one. Ian will tell you, man card holders aren’t phased by little girls, especially sisters.”

  Slowly, Jennifer’s eyes grew wide. “They are little bitches,” she mumbled, able to hear Ian in her mind. “When did you figure this out and why are you only telling me now?”

  “I’ve been watching and listening,” Lilly confessed. “I really expected you to brush it off longer and it would take me longer to convince you. Sorry, but you underestimate them like everyone does. In a few years, they will be able to give Lance and Ian a run for their money on deeds. You’ve put some pieces together, but the ladybugs watch Lance and Ian very closely. And they have helped more than you believe. Hell, Ian and Lance don’t see how much they’ve helped on some of the deeds the ladybugs have been privy to. I’ll bet you whatever you want that the ladybugs could pull off a deed right now.”