Dare’s Christmas Gifts

by AKM Miles

  "Be still, you little shit, or I'm gonna smack ya!" JC didn't know if it was the threat or being called a "little shit" that made him madder, but he jerked hard and got away, turning to run for help. He only got a few feet across the grass before he was grabbed again and pulled off his feet. Mitch dragged him back to the car. He popped the trunk and threw JC inside, dropping Brandon in with him and slamming the lid down before they could move.

  Brandon was crying hard now, obviously scared to death. It was black-dark inside the trunk. JC heard the car start seconds before they were thrown together as it took off flying.

  "Brandon, hey. Shhh. Come here. Quit cryin', okay? I gotta think."

  "I'm cold. I'm scared. I want my mom." Brandon's answer was all whimpered between big sobs. JC reached out to find him and touched his back.

  "Come on, now. Let's hug each other. It's s'posed to make us warm. I'll take care of you 'til they come save us. You know Ryan and Dare will get us outta here. They won't let the mean man keep us."

  Brandon moved until he was huddled against JC as they rocked in the fast moving car. JC looked up and saw the thingy hanging down from the roof of the trunk. He knew about that! A policeman had come to the class and talked to them about what to do if this ever happened. He told them about newer cars having a thing that glowed in the dark that you could pull and it would open the trunk. He almost reached up to pull it, but stopped. They were going so fast. What if they fell out and got run over?

  "Hey, Brandon, look up. See that yellow thing hangin' down? That will open the trunk. We can get out. We might be able to get away, but not while we're goin' so fast. A police guy told us about it. He said we should break out a tail light, too. But with what?"

  JC began to feel around on the floor of the trunk. He panicked when he couldn't find anything to hit the tail light with, but he almost crowed when he felt something soft and thick at the back of the trunk. It felt like a blanket or something. Cool. He grabbed it and pulled it to him. Brandon wasn't crying out loud any more, but he was still whimpering in between deep breaths.

  "Here. Look, I found a blanket. It'll keep you warm, huh? I'm gonna keep looking for somethin' hard to hit the tail light with, okay?"

  "There's…there's…somethin' ha…hard under me," Brandon managed to get out. JC felt him move away a little and he reached down and felt around. Yea! It was long and hard and very heavy. JC didn't know what it was, but he tugged with both hands until he had hold of it. He pulled it into his lap and felt all over it. It was curved on the end with a break in it. That end was sharp, too. That was good.

  "Brandon, you scoot over and get under that blanket. I'm gonna try to hit the light so somebody might see it." JC crawled over and tried to figure out how to position himself so he could hit the light. He was afraid if he made a lot of noise Mitch would hear him. But the policeman said to do it, so he sat close to the light and held the big thing with both hands and tried to hit it.

  Over and over, he struck it, and it didn't break. It was heavy and his arms were getting tired. He was so cold he was shivering, too. Maybe it wouldn't break. JC got mad and tried one more time and heard it crack. He wanted to shout. All of a sudden he had more energy. He tried again and again and soon there was a big hole where the light had been, but now it was even colder. He dropped the heavy stick and crawled back over to Brandon.

  As he moved, he felt something in his pocket. The cell phone his dad gave him! He almost cried when he thought of it. Why hadn't he remembered? He was shaking with cold as he made it back to Brandon, but he reached in and got the phone out.

  "Brandon, let me in. I'm freezin'. Look, I remember the phone. We can call Dad. Will you help me with the blanket? I'm kinda shakin'." He and Brandon got the cover around both of them and they huddled together.

  When he touched the phone it lit up and he could see the face of it and the numbers. He felt tears gather as he thought of his dad. He punched in the number one and hit the little green phone button. He held it to his ear.

  "It's ringing," JC declared triumphantly.

  "I want Mom," Brandon whimpered.

  "I know. I want my dads, too."

  His dad answered the phone.

  "JC? JC! Honey, is that you?"

  "Dad?"

  "Oh, God. You're all right. Where are you? Are you okay? What about Brandon?" JC could hear him trying to calm Jackie down and listen to him.

  "The mean man…you know…Mitch? He took us. He was gonna kill Brandon so I had to come, too. We're in the trunk of a car and he's goin' real fast. I broke out a tail light like the police man said at school, but now it's so cold. We found a blanket, but Brandon really wants his mom. Can you come get us?"

  "Oh, baby. You know I will. Just a minute. Don't hang up, okay?"

  "Okay, Dad." JC held on, trying to hear what his dad was saying, then Dare came on and talked to him.

  "Hey, buddy. You boys okay?" Dare asked.

  JC sort of hiccupped a sob as he answered. "Yeah. We're cold and it's dark in here and Brandon wants his mom. Can he talk to her a minute?"

  "Sure, put him on. Jackie, someone wants to talk to you. Be brave for him, okay?"

  JC put the phone to Brandon's ear and held on to him while he cried at hearing his mom's voice.

  "Mom…Mom, I'm scared and cold and it's dark and…and…yeah, he's here. He's takin' care of me. I will…okay…don't leave…MOM!" Brandon cried harder and JC took the phone. His dad was talking to him again.

  "JC, I've got the police here. They're tracing the GPS in the phone. We'll find you. Can you tell us what kind of car it is? What color? Do you know?"

  "It was a really dark color. I don't know for sure. Uh-oh. Dad, he's slowin' down. What if he gets us out? What do I do? I gotta go. I don't want him to see me with this. He might take it."

  "Put it in your pocket again, but leave it on, okay?"

  JC tucked the phone away and waited to see what would happen next. Was Mitch going to kill them now? Where were they? They'd been in the car a long time. What if he saw the tail light? He'd be mad! JC couldn't help the whimper as he waited for the trunk to open and the man to grab them again.

  Suddenly, he heard noises at the other side of the car, near the trunk. Then he smelled gas. Mitch must have stopped to get gas. Yuk! He put his head under the blanket and covered Brandon's, too. He heard Mitch talking to someone. He stuck his head back out to listen.

  "Hey, dude, you got a busted tail light there," a man's voice said.

  "No shit! Well, I'll be damned," Mitch answered.

  "They might have some duct tape in the station if you ain't got none in yer trunk."

  "NO. No, I don't have any. I might go in and get some soon's I fill up. Thanks." Mitch yelled back to the other man. JC could hear him muttering.

  "No problem," the man said.

  JC heard another car start up and drive away. There were more noises as he finished filling the tank. The car rocked and something hit the top of the trunk, hard.

  "Think you're smart, ya little shit? You better not make a sound. I'm goin' in to pay. Alls you did is make it a lot colder in there, huh?" JC heard Mitch walk away.

  "Brandon, come on. We got to hurry. He's gone inside. We got to run hard as we can. Can you do that with me?"

  "Uh-huh. I want to stay with you."

  "Come on then, here goes." JC reached up for the tag that he'd been told about and pulled it. Nothing happened. He tried again. The trunk stayed closed.

  "Help me, Brandon. We got to get the trunk open and run 'fore he gets back. Here, take my hand. Okay, when I say…you got hold? Okay, one, two, three…pull…hard." They heard a noise and the trunk popped open. Cold air rushed in and JC shivered. He pushed the trunk up and looked around. He turned and saw the station lit up. He took Brandon's hand and helped him down. He grabbed the blanket and wadded it up so he could carry it. He wanted to reach in and get the big heavy stick but was afraid he couldn't carry it, hold Brandon's hand, and carry the blanket.

  "Oka
y, hold on to me, and run!" He drew Brandon in the opposite direction of the front of the station. It was hard to run holding the big bundle and Brandon stumbled once. JC was scared Mitch was going to come out and see them. He saw some doors on the side of the building and recognized the signs for the bathrooms, but was afraid to go in. Mitch would look in there. It was dark toward the back of the building. He could see a trash thing and it was smelly back here. They slowed down and crept past it. There were a couple of old cars and a big old truck sitting past the trash box.

  JC pulled Brandon over to the truck and, since there weren't any windows in it he figured no one was using it. He tried the door and gasped when it creaked loudly. He helped Brandon up onto the step thing and pushed him up onto the seat. He passed the blanket up to him and climbed up. It was hard to get up into the seat, but he did it and closed the truck door as quietly as he could. He looked around and saw no one moving.

  "Okay. Now we wait for them to come get us. Oh, I should have closed the trunk. He'll know we're gone. He'll be lookin' for us. I'm so dumb. But what if he heard it? Maybe I did good. Here, Brandon, let's cover up and lay down in the seat. Oh, wait, I'll tell Dad where we're hidin'."

  JC reached into his pocket for the phone and whispered, "Dad, you there?"

  "Yes, baby. We're comin' to get you. We could hear you moving. What happened?"

  "I'm afraid to talk. He might hear us. We got out of the trunk when he went in to pay for gas and now he'll come lookin' for us. I forgot to close the trunk. We're hidin' in a old truck that don't got any windows in it by the back of the building past the stinky garbage thing. I gotta stop talking…I'm afraid he'll hear us. Okay?" JC wanted to keep hearing his dad's voice, but his fear that Mitch would find them was greater.

  He huddled down with Brandon under the blanket. He scooted around so he could get his arms around his friend, making sure the cover was over them completely. Maybe Mitch wouldn't come back here looking for them.

  "JC, I'm scared."

  "Me, too, but they're comin' after us. If we're quiet and still, he won't find us. They'll save us and he'll be in trouble for takin' us. I've got you, okay? You're warmer, aren't ya?"

  "Yeah," Brandon whispered and snuggled closer to JC.

  JC heard something and tightened his arms around Brandon and very quietly said, "Shhh."

  They heard stealthy footsteps walking around back there. They came closer to the truck. The boys froze. JC held his breath. He was proud of Brandon for keeping quiet.

  "Come on out, now, boys. I'm tired of yer playin' around. I'm gonna make you sorry. I'm gonna make yore daddy a lot sorrier. And Jackie? I can't wait to hear her bawlin'. 'Oh, my baby.'" Mitch was talking quiet like he didn't want anyone but the two boys to hear him, and his voice was mean sounding, like he couldn't wait to get his hands on them and…make them sorry.

  JC felt like he'd been holding his breath forever. He held onto Brandon, who was shaking and starting to whimper a little. JC figured it was 'cause Mitch had talked about his mom like that.

  Then they heard Mitch swear with his favorite word.

  "SHIT! Damn it to hell." JC heard him run and then he could hear sirens. They got closer and closer and louder and louder. Then he heard car doors slamming and voices yelling and footsteps running. He was afraid to move.

  Then…

  "JC?"

  Chapter Seven

  Ryan, with Dare and Jackie, ran past the smelly dumpster JC had mentioned on the phone. He saw the cars and the old truck. It was a dead heat as to who got there first. The frantic adults all peered into the truck, seeing the bulky blanket.

  Ryan managed to get out one word.

  "JC?"

  The cover moved and there was the most beautiful sight he'd ever seen. JC threw the blanket off and sat up, turning to them and reaching for Ryan.

  "Dad! I knew you'd find us." Before he reached Ryan at the window, he turned back and took Brandon's hand, pulling him up. "Look, Brandon, it's your mom. See?"

  Ryan was opening the squeaky door and reaching to pull them out. He drew JC into his arms, dragged him off the seat, and turned with him to let Dare join in the hug. Dare's arms came around JC from the back and they stood in the cold, behind the gas station, by the smelly dumpster, and JC was the perfect sandwich filling.

  They both held him and crooned to him about how smart he was and how much they loved him. JC put his head on his dad's big shoulder and Ryan thought his heart would burst it was so full. Tears ran down his face, unchecked. Dare moved back a little and reached up to smooth them away for him, though his eyes seemed to be dripping, too.

  "I'll go get their coats," Dare murmured.

  "No!" JC said, pulling his head up and turning in Ryan's arms to reach out.

  Dare took him right up, and Ryan watched as his lover did the same thing he had. Dare held on to JC and cried. Ryan, this time, took over the mop up duties and they smiled in the light provided by the headlights of their car. They both turned when they heard sobs beside them.

  Jackie had Brandon in her arms and was rocking him back and forth. They were both crying and holding on like they would never let each other go again. Brandon had his arms around his mom's neck and was awkwardly patting her back.

  "I love you, baby. I was so scared. Did he hurt you? Are you okay? You're so cold, you're shaking. Brandon, talk to me, honey," Jackie pleaded.

  "I was cold and scared, too, Mom. JC took care of me. He found me a blanket and covered us up."

  "I know, baby. I know. I'll never be able to thank him enough. He's the best friend in the world, huh?" Finally, she looked over to where Ryan and Dare were both loving on JC. With tears streaking down her face, she tried to take a step toward them, but stumbled.

  "Whoa," Ryan said, moving to steady her. It was enough to get him thinking about what needed to be done.

  "Hey, Brandon, you okay, buddy?" Ryan asked, reaching to stroke the back of the boy's head.

  Brandon nodded and clung to his mother. Her arms tightened around him and she looked up at Ryan, her heart in her eyes.

  "Let's get them to the car and get their coats on. I'll get the heater going, and see what's going on with the police. I just want to get these two home. How does hot chocolate and Christmas cookies sound to you guys?" Ryan asked.

  Both boys nodded from their respective shoulders, and they all headed for the front of the station. Soon, the boys were bundled up and they were all in the car.

  The station owner came out to tell them what had happened while they were out back.

  It seemed that as they'd pulled up, following the police cars, Mitch had come flying out to his car and took off. As the parents headed for the boys, one police car took out after Mitch. The other officer was waiting for them, having watched the reunion. Seeing that the boys weren't hurt, he had called and canceled the EMTs he'd ordered, just in case. Ryan hoped they would just be allowed to go home with the boys. He was sure that was too much to ask.

  Ryan watched as another police car approached, this time without the siren. It was coming from the other direction, so he figured they were going to tell them what happened with Mitch. He hoped they'd caught the bastard.

  Ryan got out of the car, not wanting the boys to hear his conversation. It's a good thing he did, he realized. According to the police officer, Mitch had been traveling at a high rate of speed, trying to evade the police, when his car struck the guard rail in front of the bridge. In the resulting crash, Mitch's vehicle went over the edge of the bridge to land upside down onto the ground below. Luckily there were no cars on the road, so no one else was injured. The police officer told Ryan they believed Mitch died on impact.

  Ryan could not find an ounce of sympathy for him. He asked if they could take the boys home without them having to talk right then and was given permission. They would need to give statements, but seeing how upset they were, and how safe they now were, the officers let them go home.

  Chapter Eight

  It was three days later, C
hristmas Eve, and Brandon and Jackie were still staying with them. The boys had told the story over and over, and to hear them, it was a grand adventure. But Dare knew better. This time, the drama had taken a heavy toll. Both boys were afraid to be away from their parents. They became highly agitated when mention of Jackie and Brandon going back to their house was made. Brandon seemed to need JC close in order to feel safe. JC appeared to need the same from Ryan and Dare. So it was decided that they would be a family for Christmas.

  Late that night, the three adults sat around the kitchen table. The gifts were all under the tree, ready for tomorrow. All except a special one Ryan had planned for the boys. Jackie's approval had been given and they were all eager to see the boys' reactions to their presents.