“There’s some aspirin and Tylenol in there.” Buck hooked his thumb back toward the bathroom.
“Get her some, please.” Bob nodded to him. He turned back to Keri. “Do you think you can take it?”
“My stomach feels better.” She sniffed hard again and swallowed another large gob of blood. “Actually, I’m feeling really hungry now.”
Bob smiled at her. “I imagine so. You threw up everything earlier, but…I can’t remember if you feed a cold or feed a fever,” he said softly as he folded the rag over and wiped at her forehead.
“Oh, no…don’t, Dad.” She pushed his hand away. “That’s too cold.”
“Honey, it’s barely room temperature.” He tried to wipe again.
“I said, DON’T!” she yelled and shoved him hard away from her. “Jesus, don’t you fucking listen?”
“Language, dammit!” Lucky yelled from the bedroom.
“Fuck off, you bitch!” Keri yelled from the bed.
“Keri.” Bob stood up. “I know you aren’t feeling well, but you do NOT talk to your mother that way.”
“What the hell do you know?” she yelled again, redirecting her anger. “She’s banging anybody with a stiff dick while you’re at work, and then you come home and listen to her bitch, and you cave and give her whatever the fuck she wants!”
Lucky threw open the bedroom door and slammed it hard against the wall. The anger painted across her face was evident, and Bob wanted nothing more than to crawl under the bed himself rather than face her when she had that look in her eyes.
“What did you just say?” she hissed through clenched teeth.
“You heard me, you lying, cheating bitch,” Keri barked. She stood up on the bed and pointed at her mother. “I told you to fuck off!”
Lucky began her stomp march toward Keri just as Buck popped his head out of the bathroom really quick to see if he might be imagining what he had been hearing. Nope. It was real. He ducked back inside and slammed the door.
Before Lucky could reach the bed, Keri launched herself at her mother with a feral growl, fingernails digging into flesh and teeth clicking. Bob stood stunned for just a moment as Keri growled and screamed, hands flashing and nails tearing at her mother’s face and breasts. Lucky tried to grab at the girl, but she was much stronger than she could ever have imagined.
By the time Bob came to his senses and grabbed Keri off of Lucky, the blood was blossoming through the thin nightshirt and running down her neck from a nasty bite on her ear. “The little bitch BIT me!” Lucky screamed. She reached back to slap her just as Bob pulled her back and literally flung her across the bed.
“She’s not in her right mind, Lucky!” He tried to come between mother and daughter. “She’s delirious with fever!”
“I don’t give two shits what’s wrong with her, she has no right to speak to me like…what the fuck is wrong with her eyes?” Lucky gasped.
Bob turned to catch a glance at Keri, almost sure what Lucky had just seen. He took a step back as he noticed the blood that had pooled in the whites of her eyes had receded, but the blue green of Keri’s eyes, once one of her most beautiful features, were now blood-red.
Keri crawled slowly back up onto the bed and stared at her parents as if she had never seen them before. She opened her mouth and the most ungodly wailing scream that either of them had ever heard emitted from their child.
Buck threw open the bathroom door and stepped behind them. “What are you doing to her now?” he began and stopped dead in his tracks as he stared at what once was his sister crawling across the bed toward them. “Holy fucking jezus, Dad, she looks like one of those zombies.”
“Back up,” Bob said quietly. “Slowly, Buck. Toward the bedroom. She ain’t right in the head.”
Buck turned and bolted for the bedroom. Keri’s head snapped at his rapid movement, catching notice. Bob cursed under his breath and began pushing Lucky back behind him as he moved quicker. “Back!”
Keri launched herself off the bed and screamed a guttural growl as she hit the floor and pounced once more. Bob pushed Lucky hard behind him and reached for the bedroom door. He was pushing it closed just as Keri hit it with all of her weight. The thin RV door was not made to sustain that kind of damage and was cracking at the hinges.
“Buck, grab the bedspread!” Bob yelled as Keri kicked and clawed at the slick surface between the two of them.
“Why?!” Buck yelled back.
“I want to trap her in it!” Bob yelled back. “Don’t argue with me, dammit. Just do it!”
Lucky and Buck both grabbed the ends of the comforter and spread the blanket wide. “We’re ready,” Lucky said.
“When I pull this door open, try to wrap her up in it like a burrito!” Bob yelled over Keri’s screaming. “Ready?” Bob hoped they were ready, because he couldn’t hear a thing over the commotion that Keri was making as she clawed at the door. “One, two, THREE!” He pulled the door toward him.
He could only see a blur of activity as Keri shot past him, then a flutter of fabric and cursing as his wife and son wrassled his daughter to the ground. He pushed the door out of the way and fell on top of Keri, trying his best to hold her still.
Bob looked to Buck. “Find me something, twine, rope, an extension cord, anything I can use to tie her up.”
“You’re going to tie up my baby girl?” Lucky asked.
Bob gave her an exasperated look. “A minute ago you were going to slap her damned head off for calling you a lying, cheating bitch, now she’s your baby girl?”
Lucky’s eyes widened and she stared open mouthed. “I didn’t hear that part. I only heard her say ‘fuck off,’” she said quietly.
“You were going to slap her silly for telling you to fuck off?” Bob shot her an accusatory glare. “Why would she say you were fucking anybody with a dick while I’m at work?”
The look on Lucky’s face told him everything he needed to know. He didn’t even hear her when she tried to deny it. Buck came running back to the bedroom with a spool of nylon twine.
“I found this,” he offered, breathing hard. He glanced at Lucky. “Jeez, Mom, you’re looking rough.”
Lucky cleared her throat and tucked a strand of hair behind her bit ear. “Yes, well, your sister has some wicked nails.” She stood straighter. “Excuse me a moment while I go clean up.”
“Take your time,” Bob muttered as he cut off a length of twine and tied Keri’s ankles.
He cut off another length and pulled away the layers of blankets. He fished around until he found her arms and pulled them around behind her and secured her hands behind her back. He felt a sick feeling in his stomach as he did it. He didn’t want it to be so tight that it would cut off circulation or cut into her flesh, but he didn’t want it so loose she could get out of it.
He looked to Buck. “See if you can find some duct tape.”
“I’ll look in the storage areas under the rig.” Buck disappeared and left his father with his thoughts and a snarling Keri wrapped in the comforter.
“What do you mean that wasn’t the headliner?” Hatcher yelled. Richardson was either laughing or crying, Daniel really couldn’t tell. “I thought the headliner just got through playing?”
“Sorry, buddy.” Mitch hated to be the one to inform him. “Those were the warm-up bands.” Yeah, he was laughing.
“So we have to sit through more of this crap?”
“Afraid so.”
“Somebody shoot me now and get it over with,” Hatcher moaned.
“Hey, at least the grand majority of the troublemakers have already been dealt with, you catch me?” Mitch shrugged. “The rest of these guys are either too stoned to care or are actually here to listen to the music.”
“You call this music?” Hatcher asked him in disbelief.
“To each their own, my brother.” Mitch was actually smiling!
Daniel sighed and shook his head. “Fine.” He crossed his arms and slumped along the wall. “So we sit through another hour o
r so of this…” he waved at the performers with his hand, “…whatever it is.”
“Enjoy yourself. You didn’t have to pay to get in.”
“You couldn’t pay me enough to sit through it,” Hatch growled.
Mitch laughed and patted his shoulder. “It will all be a vague memory in a few more hours.”
“I certainly hope so.” Hatcher continued to observe from his position along the outer fringe and watched as both rangers and sheriff’s deputies worked their way through the crowds, ensuring their presence was known and that the party goers weren’t doing anything illegal.
He saw Fisher approach and fought the urge to turn and walk away. He waited until the man was closer, then turned to find out what he could possibly want. “We got a report of cars being burglarized,” Fisher said into his ear.
Daniel sighed and nodded. “Grab a deputy and go check it out. Reports will have to go through their office, anyway.”
Fisher gave him a thumbs-up and ventured off toward the overflowing parking lots. “The joy never ends.”
“What’s with you, man?” Mitch shoved him hard enough to really get his attention. “I know you’re a grouch and all, but damn, this is only one night. Let some people blow off a little steam, have a little fun. This shit ain’t gonna kill you, ya know.”
Hatcher inhaled deeply and held it for a moment before releasing the breath slowly. “Okay. Fine, you’re right.”
“I know it’s a huge pain in the ass, but let it go, man.” Mitch squeezed his shoulder. “It’s one night.”
“All right,” Hatcher exclaimed, tossing his hands in the air. “I’ll try to relax a little.” He continued to scan the crowd and Mitch stood between him and the people rocking out to the sound coming from the stage.
“What?” Hatch asked innocently.
“Why don’t you go back to the center and just chill a bit in your office? Take a break for a while.”
“Hey, if this is the last band, I can tough it out a little longer.”
“I know, but you’re wearing me out just watching you.” Mitch’s brows knitted. “You ain’t relaxing.”
Hatcher studied the large man a moment then shook his head. He snorted a laugh then nodded. “Fine! Mutiny on me, why don’tcha!”
“Go on. We got this covered.” Mitch pointed him toward the offices. “Your ass is so tight I couldn’t pound a needle in it with a sledgehammer.”
Hatcher paused and turned back to the large man. “Do what now?”
“Go on!” Mitch chuckled. “Go hit you a snort from that bottle of whiskey that all supervisors keep hidden in the bottom of their desk drawer.” He laughed harder. “For God’s sake, do something to loosen up a little.”
Hatcher lowered his head in defeat and trudged up the hill to the center. He walked in and made his way to the bare-walled office. He could hear people in the restrooms and was tempted to go run them out since it didn’t sound like they were actually using the restrooms, but rather having sex. He stood for a moment and contemplated his options. Go to the office and just relax, or bust the people for defiling the restrooms. Office…bust the morons. Office…bust the morons.
In the end, he felt like he was proving Mitch wrong as he turned and headed for the office. He pushed open the door and fell into the chair. The lone lamp on the desk being the only light, he could feel the weariness creep into his bones. He closed his eyes and leaned back in the chair. He could almost go to sleep at that moment if it weren’t for the thousands of people outside the building chanting the inappropriate lyrics to a song he’d never heard before. The music that went with it reminded him of a large circular saw being used to cut sheet metal while someone let a monkey loose on a drum set and then amplified it to an ungodly level.
He groaned and reached into the desk drawer to pull out the headache formula that Shelly kept in there for her ‘time of the month.’ He didn’t often need it, but it was the only over-the-counter pills that seemed to knock a dent in the near migraine-level headaches he would often get. He prayed it would work with this one. He pulled the little paper cone from the dispenser and drew a cup of water from the oversized bottle in the corner and used it to wash down the bitter pills.
Rolling his chair back behind the desk, he rubbed at his temples and stretched his neck. Speeding, drug dealers, alcohol to minors, public intox, burglaries, public displays, one guy with a gun-shaped bubble blower that almost got shot… “What more could go wrong tonight?”
“That was my third partner,” Bill said, laughing.
“Sounds like you had a lot of fun while you were with the force,” Richard commented.
“Oh, yeah.” Bill reflected back on both good and bad times. “But there were a lot of bad things, too.”
“Like car wrecks and whatnot?”
“Some.” Bill nodded. “Not all monsters are in the movies, you know.”
Richard gave him a confused look and shook his head. “I don’t…”
“Oh, never mind,” Bill said quickly and gave him a dismissive wave of his hand. “That’s all water under the bridge now…or something like that.”
“No, I…well, it sounded like it was important. I don’t think I understood what you meant, though.”
Bill became solemn and shook his head. “In my line of work, you run into all kinds of people over the years,” he said quietly. “You run into good folks and bad folks.”
“That’s understandable.”
“And usually when you run into good folks, and you’re a lawman,” he paused and stared into the flames, “well, you tend to run into those good folks during the worst times of their lives.”
“I see.”
“Worst thing I think I ever encountered, in all my years…” Bill’s voice dropped to just above a whisper, “I was still really a rookie in a lot of ways, but I sure thought I knew everything.” He chuckled slightly. “There was a bulletin of a young child that had been reported taken from a local supermarket. She had been out front riding one of those mechanical horses.” He glanced up at Richard. “You know the kind? You can put a kid on for a couple of minutes for a quarter, and it just sort of rocks back and forth, making all kinds of racket?”
Richard smiled and nodded. “Oh, yeah, I remember them well.”
“Yeah, well, her mom had let her ride it while she shopped at this local market. Small town, everybody knows everybody kind of place.” He paused and his face went slack. “But somehow this little girl just up and vanished.”
Bill sat quietly for a moment and Richard thought that maybe he wouldn’t finish his story. He didn’t want to ask from fear that it dredged up too painful of memories, but then he inhaled deeply and stared up at the night sky. Richard could see how his eyes had teared up, obviously still emotionally involved after so many years. “We all went on a manhunt looking for her. Side by side we beat the bushes of this little town. Searched every house, outbuilding, doghouse, outhouse, shed…you name it. Never found a clue.
“Eventually, this group of hunters brought in these redbone hounds. Those dogs had a nose like you wouldn’t believe. Her momma brought a pair of her little socks in and we started where she was last seen there at the market. They rubbed those socks around on them dog’s noses and they commenced to tracking.”
He looked up at Richard and shook his head. “What happened?” he asked, not sure if he really wanted to know.
“We found her remains. Over by the rail yard. Not far from the tracks, actually.”
“Oh.” It was Richard’s turn to stare into the fire. “I’m sorry she didn’t make it.”
“They ate her.” Bill said softly, his eyes glued to the fire. “Bastards ate her.”
“Oh, my God…”
“We told her momma she’d wandered off and that coyotes must have got her.” He choked a bit then, unable to continue until he blew his nose. He cleared his throat and continued. “They figured out it was some transients. Just some fucking hobos.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me
.” Richard was appalled.
“FBI tracked them further west. I guess they had a taste for eatin’ kids. They eventually caught them.”
“How many—”
“Three,” Bill interrupted. “They didn’t survive the arrest.”
“Good.” Richard’s hands were shaking.
“But having to tell that little girl’s momma that some dumb animal…” he trailed off. He cleared his throat again and looked to Richard. “You can damn sure bet that hobos were watched more closely after that.”
“I can imagine.”
“Still, you can’t blame an entire group of folks on the actions of just a few,” Bill added. “They were crazy. Doesn’t make all transients crazy.”
“Still, I don’t think I could ever trust—”
“No,” Bill interrupted. “Nobody who really knew what happened ever did.”
The two men sat quietly for a moment when Richard looked up and smiled. “Hey, do you hear that?”
Bill shook his head. “I don’t hear anything.” He shrugged. “What are you talking about.”
Richard chuckled. “That ‘music’? It’s gone!” he laughed.
Bill cocked his head and smiled. “Well, I’ll be damned,” he muttered. “There may be hope for the wildlife around here yet.”
The two men stared at each other and smiled for just a moment when the scream of an electric guitar broke the silence of the night and was met with the roar of a crowd. Both men’s faces fell at the same time and they slumped together.
“Well, shit.” Bill tossed another piece of wood on the fire. “You may be here even longer than we thought.”
Richard glanced at his watch and shook his head. “They should be leaving the airport shortly. If I left in the next thirty minutes, I could still beat them home.”
Bill turned toward the sound of the obnoxious noise from over the hill. “It sure sounds like this group is just getting warmed up.”
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