Welcome To Corbin's Bend

by Thianna D

  “Then why are we turning right? Why don't you want to go to the hill?”

  “Because I’d rather go to the park and buy from the homeless hippies. May as well give a little back right?”

  “Good a place as any I guess,” Jen said. “How much money do we need?”

  “I’m not sure but I think it’s around twenty five dollars for a bud.”

  “What’s a bud?” Sienna asked.

  “How should I know? That’s why I don’t know how much it’ll be. We’ll have to take a look at it and see if it’s enough.”

  “How much is legal?” Jen asked.

  “About an ounce.”

  “Well an ounce of butter is about a tablespoon isn’t it?” Sienna asked.

  “I don’t think you can compare butter and pot,” Erin said. “One’s like dried leaves and one’s dense and fatty.”

  “Maybe like tea?” Jen asked. “How much tea is in a tea bag.”

  “You people are just not fitting into my hippie daydream at all. I don’t think hippies drink tea or measure their hash on spoons. I don’t think they need to know how much butter is in an ounce ever.”

  “They do if they make hash brownies,” Sienna said.

  “She has a point,” Erin said with a grin. This whole conversation was so ridiculous that it was funny.

  Carol rolled her eyes. “I think we’re nearly there.”

  “How do you know?” Jen asked.

  “I see a park,” Carol said.

  They parked the car and got out.

  “What exactly are we looking for?” Erin asked.

  “Homeless hippies,” Carol said.

  “Do they look like homeless hippies from our time or are they still the same as the seventies?” Sienna asked.

  “You know what? I don’t know. I don’t think they have a dress code,” Carol said.

  They wandered through the park until they saw a group of young people sitting against a tree. They had a sort of homemade tent thing that Erin guessed was where they slept. One guy had a weird mohawk, another had cropped blue hair and the last guy and girl both had dreads. They smiled like they already knew what the girls had come for.

  “Hi,” Carol said.

  “We would like to know if you have any pot for sale,” Sienna said.

  Carol glared at her.

  “Sorry,” she mouthed. “But you don’t get if you don’t ask right?”

  “Would you know where I could get a bud?” Carol asked.

  “Sure can,” The guy with the dreads said. “Lemme see your money.”

  “How much?”

  “Twenty five.”

  “Is one bud enough for four people?” Jen asked.

  “Pends on which four people.” The guy chuckled.

  “Well I guess we would like to make one joint each,” Sienna said. “But you might need to show us how to make it.”

  “Roll it,” Carol said with a roll of her eyes.

  “No problem,” one of his friends, a filthy girl with dreads, said.

  The guy got out their stuff and they all chipped in to pay for it. “Did you raid your piggy banks?” the guy asked.

  “Hey, if I want sarcasm with my sale I’ll go to Walmart, and take a full cart through the express lane,” Carol said.

  “Keep your shirt on,” the hippy slurred.

  “I’ll make it for five dollars,” the dread locked girl said.

  Erin’s eyes widened. This girl was dirty. She wouldn’t eat a sandwich that somebody made her with those hands so she certainly wasn’t going to put a smoke in her mouth that she’d touched. “I think we can manage,” she said.

  “Really?” Sienna asked.

  “How hard can it be?” Erin mouthed. Should she tell them she knew how to roll a joint? At least she used to.

  “Thanks man,” Carol said. She took the baggy, gave the guy the money and they ran back to the car.

  They sat there for a minute with the bag of dope, not really sure what to do next. “Do you have the little pieces of paper to wrap it up in?” Sienna asked.

  “No, we better go get some,” Carol said.

  “You didn’t bring any? They sell those in the market or the gas station I’m pretty sure,” Sienna said.

  “Like I was going to get them anywhere close to home. It would have gotten back to Crystal for sure.”

  “True,” Sienna agreed. “I think we should get some food, too. Don’t you get the munchies or something after?”

  “You can’t have any, hon,” Jen said to Sienna. “You’re driving.”

  “I’ll be okay. Things don’t affect me. I’ll just have one or two puffs to see what it’s like.”

  “Better make that a big bucket of chicken and a lot of fries. She’ll need something to soak it up,” Carol said.

  “It’s not liquid,” Jen said.

  “No, but it will dilute the effects in her bloodstream. Maybe.” She shrugged.

  “We better get this show on the road. We still have to get back to pick up the kids,” Erin said.

  “Once again. You people are messing with my fantasy. For the next couple of hours, we have no children. We are on a road trip, and only answer to our hippie names.”

  The girls giggled. Erin thought this was hilarious. “Can I be Sunshine?”

  “Yes, you can,” Carol said. “Jen pick a name.”

  “I’ll be Rain,” Jen said.

  “Sienna?”

  “Um, I think I’d like to be Stardust,” Sienna said.

  “Great. I’ll be Moonbeam.”

  “Now we’re getting somewhere. Let’s go get our supplies Sienna, I mean Stardust,” Jen said. She poked her tongue out at Carol. “Sorry Moonbeam I forgot.”

  They’d bought what they needed, and were on their way to find a lookout where they could partake of their hippie party in peace. Erin fingered the packet of cigarettes she’d bought and stuffed in her purse without the others seeing. She’d only had pot a few times in college but that seemed a bit more than the other girls had. In fact, she didn’t think they’d done it at all. Maybe she’d forgotten how to roll one, she’d have to try it to find out. What she did know was that you needed tobacco to cut in with the hash.

  “So, Sunshine,” Carol said. “I didn’t know you smoked.”

  “You don’t miss a trick, do you?” Erin grinned. “I don’t smoke.”

  “I’m not judging you Sunshine. Peace out.” Carol held up two fingers on each hand, and Erin burst out laughing.

  “I got the cigarettes so we can cut some tobacco in with the pot,” she said.

  “Hold the phone!” Sienna said, swerving the car a little. “You’ve toked before?”

  “You use words like toke?” Carol asked.

  “No, but Stardust does,” Sienna said with a grin.

  “That’s so outta sight, Sunshine. You actually know how to make a joint. I’m impressed,” Carol said, wrapping an arm around her.

  “Thank you,” Erin said.

  “Time to mellow out,” Jen said as Sienna pulled up under a sign that said Boulder Scenic Lookout.

  Carol tossed the baggy to Erin. “You’re on, Sunshine, do your stuff.”

  “I hope I can remember. It’s been a while. A long while, Moonbeam, but I’ll do my best.” Erin undid the packet of cigarettes and then nervously spread her purse on her lap for a flat surface. She took out four papers. “I’ll make four but to get the true hippie experience I think we should pass one around.”

  “Pass the pipe around…” Sienna sang.

  “Yeah, we don’t have a pipe, hon,” Erin said.

  “I know, but it’s the same thing.” The girls watched in awe as Erin picked out woody bits and sprinkled tobacco over the top of the weed. She rubbed it through her fingers lightly.

  “It’s kind of like making biscuits,” Jen said.

  “I’ve never made biscuits from scratch,” Sienna said.

  “Will you women stop tittering about biscuits,” Carol yelled.

  “That’s not very
chill of you there, Moonbeam,” Jen said.

  “And that’s not very hippie of you, Rain. I think chill is a gangster word.”

  Erin rolled the first paper into a cone shape and sealed the edges. “There, I did it,” she said happily.

  “Right on, Sunshine!” Carol said.

  “Happy to go along, but the hippie talk is a little weird,” Jen said.

  “I get to pick and I pick being hippies,” Carol bit back.

  “For fuck sake,” Jen said, shaking her head.

  “See, now you’re getting into it.”

  “Does anyone have a lighter?” Erin asked.

  “Oh, no, no lighter,” Carol said. “I can’t believe we forgot the lighter.”

  “Don’t panic,” Sienna said. “Stardust to the rescue.” She turned the car back on and pushed in the cigarette lighter.

  “Not just a shiny face stardust are you?” Carol said.

  “Anyone feel anything yet?” Jen asked.

  “Not so much,” Carol said. “You’ve done this before Sunshine? Is this what it feels like?”

  “Kinda. We haven’t had that much,” Erin said.

  “Right we should keep passing,” Sienna added with a nod.

  “I think I feel a little more mellow,” Erin said when the joint had been around twice more.

  “Me, too. Mellow yellow,” Carol said. “Oh, I forgot! I have tunes. Rain pass this over to Star …star …”

  “Stardust,” Sienna added.

  “Yeah her.”

  Sienna turned the car back on and put in the blank cd. “What is it?”

  “Bob Marley.”

  “Oooh, I like Bob Marley,” Erin said. “Bob Marley, Bob Marley Bombarli Marly!”

  “La, la, lalalalalalalalala, lalalala, Don’t worry! Be happy!” They all sang along through the song.

  They waited for the next song but it was the same one, starting from the beginning. Sienna tapped the CD player.

  “I think it’s broken,” Jen said.

  “Nope. I did the same song over and over,” Carol yelled when the song finished. “It’s my favorite. Wait, wait, wait. I know what’ll make it so much better.”

  “I don’t know what could be better than listening to the same song over and over,” Sienna said with a giggle.

  “Let’s sit on the roof. If we turn the music right up we’ll be able to feel it through our butts.”

  “Good idea,” Erin said. She had no idea why but it sounded good. Who didn’t like singing and smoking on the roof of a car.

  It took some doing but they finally were all sitting somewhere on the outside of the car. Erin was on the hood. Her eyes opened wide when she spied a car pulling into the area. “Um, guys?”

  “Don’t worry, Be Happy!” they all half-yelled, half-sang.

  “Hey!” Erin shouted. “It’s the police!” The music continued but the singing stopped and Erin realized they were in trouble as a male officer and a female officer strode towards them.

  “Oooh that’s not so good,” Carol said. “What if we get arrested? We have to get the kids.”

  “I’ll text Zach.”

  “What’ll you tell him?” Jen asked.

  “Nothing more than what’s needed.” Erin tapped out a text that didn’t say much; it just asked him to get all their children. She didn’t even look at the finished message, she was too busy watching the police descend on them. Then turned off her phone.

  “Oh man, they look a bit…” Jen started, but lost her track.

  “Hot,” Carol said. “I do love a woman in a uniform.”

  “Yeah,” Jen agreed. “That’s why we’re with firefighters.” Both girls started to giggle and couldn’t stop, while Sienna and Erin looked on, not quite getting the girls joke.

  “Stop,” Sienna said. “You’ll get us in even more trouble.”

  “I can’t,” Carol said, laughing so hard that she slid off the roof and landed on the hood almost on top of Erin.

  “What’s so funny?” Erin asked.

  “Bob Dylan,” Carol said between fits of the giggles. “He’s telling us not to worry, be happy. But we are gonna be in so much trouble.” Erin started to laugh as well, and before long, Sienna joined in.

  “They are gonna spank us!” Carol said.

  “And ground us!” Jen added.

  “We’ll never be allowed out on Wednesday again!” Erin started to cry.

  That made Carol laugh even harder. “Maybe they’ll let us go on Thursday!”

  It was a ridiculous statement, but for some reason it made Erin feel better and she started to laugh again, too.

  “Excuse me, ladies?” The male officer said. “Been having a little weed party, have we?”

  “Us?” Carol asked.

  The officer picked up one of the joints that had been dropped onto the windscreen. “Did you realize that it was illegal to smoke marijuana in public?”

  “Is it?” Jen asked wide eyed. “I thought that it was legal in Colorado now.”

  “It’s legal to buy it, but not to smoke it in a public place,” the female officer said.

  Carol winced. “So sorry hon, it won’t happen again.”

  “Don’t call me hon,” the officer said. “Are you ladies from around here?”

  Carol pouted. “I plead the fifth,” she blurted.

  “You can’t plead the fifth, you’re not in court. Now one of you answer the question.”

  “What was the question?” Erin asked.

  “Are. You. Ladies. From around here?”

  “I’m not sure how to answer that question,” Erin said. She wasn’t born in Colorado. They weren’t from Boulder.

  “That’s it, everybody get out their ID.”

  “Are we in trouble?” Sienna asked.

  “Yes,” the policewoman said. “If this is your first or second offense you will all get a fine for five hundred dollars.”

  The policeman was collecting ID’s.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I know the place where these women come from,” he said.

  “Oh?” His partner turned to look at him.

  “Corbin’s Bend.”

  Her eyes widened. “That spanko place up on the mountain?”

  “That’s the one.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “Call Brent Carmichael, he’s a friend. These women don’t need a fine, they’ll pay for their actions in a much different way.” He dialed Brent’s number and started talking quietly when the man answered. He turned to tell the girls what was about to happen when the music stopped and the car turned off. “Oh, and Brent, you’ll need a tow truck or a new battery. They’ve been running the car to play music while they toked on the roof.”

  “Oh fuck,” Erin whined. “I don’t wanna wait for Brent. Please, arrest me now.”

  “Charles,” Brent barked.

  “Brent?” Charles answered.

  “We have a problem,” Brent said. “I just got a call from an acquaintance, a cop from Boulder. He’s found four of our ladies at the Boulder lookout, stoned. They’ve been sitting on top of the car smoking and singing. Loudly. The car battery’s now gone flat and he needs someone to come get them and the car.”

  “Damn,” Charles said. “Have you contacted their partners?”

  “Not yet. The cop knows about Corbin’s Bend. He knows we have our own, shall we say, internal justice system.”

  “I see. That doesn’t really protect our people from state or federal laws.”

  “I know that and so does he. I think he was just cutting them a break. The fines are hefty.”

  “Do you think we should ‘cut them a break’?”

  “I’d hardly call it a break. Our ramifications would likely be a lot harsher than a fine that could be dispensed easily.”

  “Yes, I agree. And a large fine actually punishes the family as a whole, not just the women.”

  “Exactly. So what do you want me to do?”

  “What is he proposing?”

  “That we come get ou
r girls out of his hair and make sure that they’re sorry enough that they don’t make the same mistake again.”

  “Done. Go get them, take someone with you to drive back the car and I’ll convene a special meeting of the board.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” Brent said. “See you when we get back.”

  Zach read the text message for the third time. He could only just decipher jumble on the screen.

  Pcki up kdsi all kdsi. Kepe at or hoe. Hme son.

  Was she drunk? It was ten to three. He rang the elementary school and asked them to hold on to the kids he was going to collect. It was lucky that his car was in for service. He’d brought Erin’s family van to school. Otherwise, he would have had to catch the school bus home with all the kids. He quickly finished what he was doing with Charity sitting at her desk staring daggers at him. He could only imagine the embarrassment to a nearly twelve-year-old that had to drive home with a teacher.

  What a great way to start the afternoon. Luckily the twins got picked up by their father or he would have had even more kids. He spied Charity poking her brother. “Who wants to play and who wants to sit at the kitchen table and do extra homework?” he asked. Charity immediately pulled back her hand and looked out of the window.

  “What time is my Mom coming home?” she asked.

  “I’m not sure, Charity, not too late. Your Dad’ll come get you though, I’m sure.”

  “I hope so.”

  Me, too, Zach thought.

  Zach passed out tubs of yogurt and spoons and dumped a plate of cut up fruit on to the middle of the table. “When you’re done put your spoons in the sink and toss your empty tubs into the trash,” he said Once again he tried to phone Erin. Straight to messages. Where could she be? She better have a damn good explanation for this.

  When he got back out the to the kitchen the kids were finishing up. “Who wants to go to the playground?” he asked.

  “I do,” Jordan said.

  “Can we watch TV?” Avvy asked.

  “Yes you can, but stay on the kids channels.”

  Charity rolled her eyes. “No MTV?” she asked.

  “Sorry no cable,” Zach said.

  Jordan was long gone, but the other kids were in the living room trying to find something to watch on television.

  “I want cartoons,” Jack, Charity’s little brother, said.

  “We want to watch our show from last night,” Avvy said.