She smiled. “It sure did.”
Another pause.
“Good thinking.”
Levi broke into that crooked grin of his. “Now this is the woman I like,” he said. “The one that knows how good I am.”
They both laughed.
She reached up and slugged him in the shoulder. “Jerk,” she said as she comforted herself by patting the handgun hanging on her shoulder.
The pair of travelers continued on their eastward trek as they had done in previous hours. However, they spoke less often and were more aware of their surroundings. Where they were filled with curiosity and awe at what surrounded them before, they were now filled with caution and anxiety.
Another mile behind them, Levi and Arlene found themselves walking parallel to a railroad track that had previously been hidden by trees. There was another town coming up and, if what they had seen earlier in the morning was any indication, there was no telling who they could trust.
It was getting close to lunchtime and what little they had to eat had been taken from them. Should they stay on the highway, go into Lumberton and try to get a little food from somewhere or should they travel along the railroad tracks and stay away from as many people as possible? The deep growl from Levi’s stomach provided the answer.
“Once we get some food in our bellies we can take the railroad tracks for a while,” Levi said in an attempt to give Arlene a compromise. “I know a guy that’s stayin’ in a RV Park just inside Lumberton. I’m sure he’ll feed us and let us rest at his place for a little while.”
“I’ll only stop long enough to eat,” Arlene replied.
“As you wish,” Levi said.
Arlene rolled her eyes.
Both travelers felt uneasy as they came to a more populated area. There were a couple of more old vehicles that passed by, both going toward the west. It was a scare each time one passed but it gave them hope that not everything had stopped working. More people were out and about in yards and along the feeder road. Nobody seemed to be a threat, though. That was a good thing.
Soon enough they reached Hitchin’ Post RV Park. Arlene stumbled a couple of times on the slag driveway. Levi caught her every time. They walked up to the little trailer where Levi’s friend lived. He knocked on the door. Nothing. He knocked again. Nothing. Again.
Nothing.
Across the driveway, sitting on a covered porch, sat a little blond-haired lady with a double-barrel shotgun laying on her lap. “Ya’ll ain’t here to start anything, are you,” she shouted over to them.
“Oh, no ma’am,” Levi answered. “We’re just lookin’ for Doug. You know if he’s around?”
“He ain’t been here in a couple of days,” she said, apparently not too alarmed at the people she was talking to. “Ya’ll want a sandwich and a glass of tea?”
“Praise God,” Arlene said softly. Levi just smiled.
Walking over and climbing onto the porch, the two wet travelers took a seat across from the little lady with the big gun. They learned that her name was Lynette and she was the owner of the Hitchin’ Post. A portable generator provided electricity to the small office building.
“I’m actually glad somebody stopped by to help me eat this lunch meat before it spoils,” she said as she made each of the visitors a sandwich. She poured each of them a glass of sweet tea and then returned to making sandwiches. The rain subsided as they sat on the covered porch and got to know more about their host. They told her about the incident near the bayou.
“Yea,” she said. “Sounds like something some of those boys out that way would do. The Chief-of-Police is a good friend of mine. I’ll tell him about it when he comes ‘round and he’ll make sure them boys don’t do that stuff to anyone else. Ya’ll have another sandwich.”
Levi was surprised when Arlene finished her second sandwich. Nobody was surprised when Levi polished off three, and a bag of chips.
“Aren’t you worried that somebody might try to take advantage of your kindness?” Levi asked during one lull in the conversation.
“Not at all,” Lynette answered. “God’s got my back and this ol’ shotgun has my front side. Besides, people around her know better than to mess around with an old crazy woman.”
About an hour passed while the three sat on that porch and ate sandwiches. Lynette took Arlene’s hand and asked if she would like to change into some dry clothes.
“That would be great,” Arlene said, maybe a little too enthusiastically. The ladies went inside the office, which, it just so happened, also served as a t-shirt shop.
“Welcome to T-Shirt Junction,” Lynette said. “Take anything you want. I’ve got some dry sweats in the back that I’m sure ’ll fit you.”
Within minutes, Arlene was changed into a pair of sweat pants with a matching t-shirt. She had a ball cap on her head with her hair, bunched in a pony tail, streaming down her back. When the ladies returned to the covered porch Lynette offered fresh, dry cloths to Levi. He looked Arlene up and down.
“Ma’am,” he said, “your clothes sure make this lady here look awesome. I appreciate your kind offer but there ain’t no way I’m givin’ up my Wranglers for a pair of girlie pants.” Both ladies laughed.
The conversation flowed freely for the next few minutes with theories about what had happened and wonderment of what was going to happen next. Levi and Arlene finally decided it was time to make their way on to the railroad tracks (which Lynette thought was a good idea) and try to put some miles behind them.
Lynette made the two travelers wait a couple of minutes while she made them both a couple more sandwiches and water-proofed them in baggies. She packed them into a small cooler, along with a couple bags of chips, some cookies, a couple of bottles of water and two 20 oz. Dr. Peppers. She hid the soft drinks at the bottom of the cooler.
Levi expressed his appreciation for the kindness that had been shone to two wet strangers as she handed him the cooler. He promised Lynette that he would come back soon and repay her for what she had done. Of course, Lynette told him that she would do the same for anybody and to just pass a blessing on to someone else. He assured her that he would.
Arlene had a huge lump in her throat as she hugged the kind lady. She was sure that she had just met a lady that she could very easily be best friends with. Genuinely good people like her were too few and far between. They shared a tender, tearful moment together, standing there on that small covered porch.
One last look. One last smile. “God bless you,” Arlene said as she stepped off the porch.
“Ya’ll be safe,” Lynette said through tear-filled eyes. She watched as the two clumsily made their way down the slag driveway.
“God watch over them,” she prayed silently.
The rain began to fall.
Chapter 11
Beetle and Kay and Bear
Bailey opened her eyes and starred toward the ceiling. It was so hot. She knew it was light outside and could tell that it was still cloudy, if not still raining.
Worst. Night. Ever.
She was still pissed off. She had waited for three whole days to Skype her boyfriend (JD was working overseas) and right in the middle of their conversation everything went dark. At first she thought her mom hadn’t paid the electric bill, but realized that wasn’t the case when she looked outside and saw that nobody around them had lights either.
Ugh. Was the whole world working against her?
She lay there thinking about how quiet it was. All she could hear was her brother snoring in the front room. “Crap,” she said aloud as she grabbed the pillow and pulled it over her head. Maybe she could drown out that damn snoring. No good. She could still hear him.
She got up off her mattress and stomped across the floor of her room, down the hall, through the living room and out the front door. She closed the door behind her as she stood on the little front porch.
“Crap,” she sighed as she realized that she had just gotten her only pair of clean socks soaked. This day was starting out righ
t where yesterday left off. Not good.
“Beetle,” she heard her mother call her by her nickname from the other side of the door. She peeked inside. “Go grab my cigarettes off the kitchen counter.”
What the hell? She was a lot closer to her own dang cigarettes. “Go grab ‘em yourself,” she retorted.
“Baby,” her mom moaned. She knew what was coming next and mouthed the words along with her, “my back hurts so bad.” She wanted to tell her mom that if she would lose some damn weight her back wouldn’t hurt all the time, but figured it was easier to just go and get her smokes.
She went back inside, leaving the front door open for whatever light and breeze that would come in. She threw the cancer sticks at her mom and grabbed the stool from beside the bar, carrying it back out the front door with her. She climbed up onto the stool and slowly peeled the wet socks from her feet, throwing them through the open door and onto the floor.
The breeze felt good on her sweaty feet. She stretched them and wiggled her toes.
“How long do you think the electric will be out?” Bailey wondered aloud.
“How the hell would I know?” her mom answered as she started coughing. Cigarette smoke escaped her lungs with each cough.
As she sat on the porch, Bailey listened to the birds chirping around her. The sound was comforting. Someone down the road was lucky, she could tell, because she heard a generator running in the distance. She listened.
“Where are all the cars?” she asked herself. “And the trains. I haven’t heard a train go by all night.” That was extremely unusual because their rented house was right between a highway and a railroad track. That was the only place they could afford. The noise was annoying if you let it be. She had learned to tune it out, though. She had to.
Bailey Ames was 18-years-old. She was short and slender and very pretty. Her dark hair and forever-tanned complexion came from her Hispanic heritage, although she was born in this very same town and had never been to Mexico. She would be considered beautiful by most, but she didn’t know it. It was probably because she had been raised with ugliness all around her.
When she was just a baby her mother had given her up for adoption. It was either the baby or drugs. Guess which one won? Her adopted mom had a son but had always wanted a daughter. When the opportunity presented itself, she had taken Bailey in.
Maybe it wasn’t really because her mom wanted a girl. Maybe it was because she could get a bigger government check and more food stamps with another kid in the house.
Whatever.
As she grew up, Bailey thought of herself more as a servant than a member of the family. “Bailey,” she heard over and over, “grab my cigarettes for me.” She figured she was grabbing cigarettes before she even learned to walk.
By the time she was in middle school she was a full-time babysitter. Not in the real sense of the word. She had to watch other people’s kids while they went out and did “adult” but didn’t ever even get a thank-you. Of course, through her babysitting she was able to provide enough earnings to her mom for cigarettes to last her between monthly checks. There was even enough left over to support her pot habit.
“Dang,” she thought to herself as she realized how much money she would have now if she had been the one who got paid for her babysitting and not her mom.
Every month it seemed like they moved. She had changed schools more than everyone she knew, put together. Even though they moved all over the country, they always ended up back here in Silsbee.
Boyfriends came in the picture and out of the picture all during her life. Her mom couldn’t keep a boyfriend for very long. She still had the same boyfriend she had for three years.
Three years!
She knew how to be committed. She knew how to love. How to really love somebody. JD would come home soon and take her away from all this … all the ugliness. She would never be a cigarette-getter for anyone else. Ever.
“Beetle,” she heard her mom calling again. She hated it when she called her that. That was the nickname her uncle had given her. It was her own, special nickname.
“Bring me a glass of water,” the familiar voice begged. Bailey shook her head as she slid off her stool. She felt the wetness beneath her feet as she tracked across the living room floor to the kitchen.
- - -
Kay sat silently in Alice’s bedroom as Roxie washed the breakfast dishes in the kitchen sink. She was worried about her mother-in-law but didn’t know what, if anything, she could do to help her. The oxygen bottle that Harold had used as a replacement this morning hadn’t been a full bottle, and the gauge indicated that it wouldn’t be long before it, too, was empty. Even with the oxygen on, she could tell that Alice was having labored breathing.
The ailing lady hadn’t opened her eyes all morning. That wasn’t really that unusual, but something was different today. Maybe the stress of what had happened with the power was causing Kay to have unfounded fears. Maybe she was reading more into everything than she should be. Maybe Alice would open her eyes and ask for something to eat.
Maybe.
A bead of sweat rolled down Alice’s cheek; or was it a tear? Kay leaned forward and wiped the face of the sleeping lady with a cool, wet handcloth. She could tell that the gesture was appreciated. Alice’s breathing became somewhat more steadily.
“Our Father who art in heaven,” Kay said softly, “hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
She held Alice’s hand as she washed her wrinkled face.
“Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us or trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,” she continued as a warm tear rolled down her own cheek. “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever.”
Kay sat upright in her chair, finding a newfound strength from her prayer. “Amen.”
Alice’s breathing seemed to level out a little. Kay wept silently.
- - -
If you ever met Bear Ames you wouldn’t know right away if you should be intimidated or entertained. Standing average height, he didn’t really tower over you, but his overall girth made him seem much larger than average. His baby-face was almost welcoming, but the constant scowl he wore on his face was anything but.
His attitude matched his overall appearance. One minute he seemed like the life of the party, laughing and smiling with those around him. At the turn of a hat, though, he could be a complete and total jerk. When he was in a bad mood he made sure everyone around him was as miserable as he was. It seemed like he spent the bigger part of his time in a bad mood. No wonder he couldn’t keep a girlfriend.
He lay across his bed, sweating his big ass off. He could hear Bailey stomping around the house, being the defiant little bitch that she always was. His mom asked her to get her a glass of water; that was it. Why did she have to be so damn difficult? He didn’t want to have to get up, but the bed was soaked with sweat anyway.
He fought to roll his heavy body over and sat on the edge of the bed. “Just get her some water,” he yelled through the open door. He grabbed a cigarette out of the pack next to the bed, stuck it in his mouth and fired it up. The smoke swirled around his face.
“There ain’t no water,” Bailey shouted back at him.
“Shit,” Bear yelled. He took another drag off his cigarette and held it between his dry lips as he fought his way off the bed. Once on his swollen feet, he waddled his way through the door and down the hall. “You better hope there ain’t no water ‘cause I’m gonna’ drown your skinny ass with it if there is.”
Bailey stood solidly in her place as Bear entered the kitchen and walked over to the sink. He grabbed a relatively clean glass and held it under the faucet. The knob didn’t turn, since it was already turned on wide open. He looked over to Bailey and growled.
“I told you, fat ass,” Bailey smirked as she turned and walked back out the front door.
“Where�
��s my water,” her mom moaned as she walked past her.
“The prodigal son is getting’ it,” was the reply.
Bailey sat perched on her stool for what seemed to her to be days; probably more like an hour. She couldn’t remember it ever being this quiet since they moved here. It was clear that someone had a generator (lucky ducks) and probably had a fan blowing on them right this moment. Most likely there were plenty of people with generators cooling them off in this dang heat.
Not us.
Those same people probably had bottled water, too. And snacks. Oh, what she wouldn’t give for an ice-cold Dr. Pepper and a big bag of Doritos right now. That would really hit the spot.
Why did they have to be so poor?
As she sat there on her perch, Bailey heard a truck coming from the direction of Beaumont. She bolted upright and looked up the highway. She could see an old green truck heading her way. She jumped up and ran barefoot off the porch, stepping right in the middle of a huge mudhole. She didn’t seem to notice, or, if she did, really didn’t care. She wanted to see who was about to pass by.
The pickup slowed as it approached the young lady standing anxiously beside the road. The young man in the passenger seat smiled slyly as the truck stopped by her. Bailey smiled.
“What you doin’, pretty girl,” the boy asked.
“Oh,” Bailey said as she looked the two guys over, “Just enjoyin’ the day.”
“Wanna’ come for a ride an’ enjoy the day with us?” the driver giggled as the passenger talked up the girl.
“Nah,” she said. “My brother probably wouldn’t like that too much.” The boys in the truck looked toward the house and saw a rather big man standing in the doorway. He filled the entire opening.
Bailey looked in the back of the truck and saw that it was full of what appeared to be fencing material. “You boys been shopping?” she asked. They giggled.
“You might say that,” the driver spoke. He looked at Bailey like she had seen a lot of boys look at her. It made her sick.
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