I know it was not something you wanted to do. I know my reputation precedes me. I value the friendship we started. Please know, with you, it was more intimate and on a love making level than sex. With other men, I released urges through sex. With you, I released emotions I didn’t know I had. I am sorry if this hurt you.
Misha’s stomach churned and twisted. There were three more paragraphs of writing left to read, but she didn’t get to do so because she heard the tromping of Hector’s boots on the porch outside the front door.
Hurriedly, she refolded the note, placed it where she found it, slammed the drawer closed as she stood up, and did a ‘cover up’ leap across the dining room.
The front door opened just as Misha was placing a box on the dining room floor.
“Hey.” Hector smiled. “Sorry I’m late. I got held up with a stubborn batch of onions.” Still smiling, he took off his coat and walked over to Misha. “I only have a second. I have to go get Nick from . . .” Hector’s body nearly spun as Misha zipped by him. “What’s wrong?”
“I just . . . I just noticed the time,” she said nervously, walking backwards to the door.
“Are you all right? Did you work too hard here? I told you, you didn’t have to do . . .”
“No,” she cut him off suddenly. “No. I . . . I just promised Andrea I would come to the clinic.”
“It’s your day off.” Hector stepped to her.
“I know, but it is cold and flu season and she is . . .” Misha grabbed her coat. “I must go.”
“Ok, then I’ll see you . . .” Hand extended, Hector felt the blast of cold air as the wind whipped in from the open door. “. . . later.” He stepped to the door to watch Misha make her way quickly down the street. Feeling a little dejected for not getting a moment, Hector understood. He realized it probably was a sign so he put on his coat again and walked out of his home to retrieve Nick.
^^^^
There was a tear in Joe’s eye. It wasn’t a tear of sadness but more a tear of hysterics. He wiped his index finger under his eye and caught the moisture before exhaling a breath lost in his laughter.
Oddly, Andrea looked across the crowded table at him. “Why are you laughing?”
“Shock,” Joe chuckled. “The shock is making me laugh.”
Pausing in his eating, Dean shook his head confused. “Shock of what?”
“That this surprises all of you.” Joe stood up with his empty plate. He gathered Elliott’s, Alexandra’s, and Billy’s plates and took them into the kitchen. “Come on now. We’re dealing with Frank.” He returned to the dining room, hesitated in making a comment about how slow Dean was eating, then sat down between his grandchildren.
“Sweet Jesus, Joe,” Andrea spoke. “He could have been killed.”
Joe lifted his hands with a shrug. “According to Frank, he has nine lives now thanks to Dean.”
Chuckling himself, Dean leaned back in the chair. “I keep telling him it’s a cat that is said to have nine lives, not a jackrabbit.”
Elliott interjected with a smile, “Ah, but wouldn’t Frank say, ‘same difference’?”
Dean lifted his glass to that comment. “True. Joe, you’re right. It’s Frank. Could we . . .” He pointed to the tape player that set on the counter between the kitchen and dining room. “Could we listen to that one more time?”
“Oh, absolutely.” Joe stood up. “You know, I’m very grateful that Danny Hoi tuned in to their transmissions. He’s brilliant.”
Elliott interjected, “No disrespect to the brilliancy of Mr. Hoi, but perhaps it isn’t Danny as much as it is the satellite. Maybe, in the initial setting up of that satellite, its full capabilities were . . .missed?”
Pressing the ‘rewind’ button, Joe nodded. “Excellent point but for now, I’ll give Danny credit. Hell, my boys and Ellen are out there. I sat for days worrying. Now I can hear exactly what is going on, good or bad. In a sense, I’m with them.” Joe pressed a button to play the recording of the radio transmissions.
Static.
“Frank!” Robbie called out.
Gunfire. Static.
“Where is he!” Hal shouted.
“There! Now he’s . . . there!”
“What’s he gonna do . . . jump for it!”
“Uh . . . I’d say yeah.”
“Dear, God. He’s gonna . . . shit.” Hal’s voice moved up with excitement. “Holy shit!”
Robbie screamed as if he were watching a sporting event. “He got it. Hal! He caught the chopper!”
“He’s insane. He’s absolutely . . . what is he doing now?”
“Well, he’ll do what he has to do first and take out . . .”
Ellen’s hysterical voice interrupted, “What happened to Frank?”
“He stole the helicopter,” Robbie told her. “Watch.”
Hal’s chuckle came through. “Body number one. Only Frank.”
Joe stopped the tape. “Only Frank.” He smiled proudly. “So you see. You people act shocked, yet it shouldn’t surprise you in the least.”
“Uncle Frank is cool,” Billy commented. “I mean, even though he can now be categorized as a genetically enhance human being, he is really . . .” he smiled. “Cool.”
Joe retook his seat. “But he wasn’t always genetically enhanced and he still did cool things. I remember . . . I remember how much he impressed me when the back room of the cryo-lab caught fire. Henry had . . . Henry was dead.” Joe exhaled. “That damn door was bolted. Frank knocked it down, barged into there with the flames, carried Henry out, and brought him back to life.”
Andrea remembered that. “Flames don’t scare Frank. Remember when he saved Kimmy from the burning house? He impressed me then.”
“Frank has saved my life,” Elliott added. “Ellen, Alex, and I were in the entrance tunnel, overrun with savages. Like a Harley hero, Frank . . .” Elliott chuckled. “Rode in, took control, and saved the day.”
“Wasn’t the first motorcycle rescue tough?” Joe informed. “Frank loved those cycles. What about when Henry and Ellen were surrounded by Moses and his men? Frank and Robbie rode right in and saved the day.”
“He always does,” Alexandra said. “Remember when I was out in the field and the Savages were coming after me? I was with my cat and Uncle Frank fought the Savages, picked me up, and jumped for a rope from Uncle Robbie’s chopper.”
“Frank has a thing about choppers.” Dean smiled in remembrance. “I have two favorite ‘Hero’ moments. If I may?” Dean looked around for the nods. “One was when we were under attack by the Society and a mortar hit the east wing of the clinic where Ellen and I were in surgery. Ellen was trapped. Frank barged right in there, flames and all, and brought her out. The other was when he swung from the chopper and saved her. Now that was a moment.”
Joe closed one eye in his talking. “It seems most of his hero moment revolve around Ellen.”
“Not all,” Elliott said, “but most. How about you, Dr. Hayes? Has Frank ever saved your life?”
“Nothing we can count now since time was rippled,” Dean snickered. “Physically, no I can’t recall him having to jump in and save my butt . . . too much.” He winked. “But right now, right now, Frank is securing that hero status in my eyes. He’s keeping Ellen alive out there like only he can do.” Nervously, Dean picked up his glass. “I don’t think I’ll ever view Frank the same after this. I can honestly say I owe him. I owe him big time.”
Andrea exhaled with pride. “The man . . .” she hummed, “is humble. He does not gloat, does not expect praise, does not glorify . . .” She paused when she saw the sudden looks tossed at her from everyone at the table. “OK, perhaps he does.” She laughed. “Joe, he’s not saved your life though, has he?”
“Yes he has.” Joe peered about the curious faces in the room. “He may not have jumped through flames, rode in on a bike, or dove from a chopper, but Frank saved my life. He saved my life when he was eleven years old and his mother passed away. I remember feeling so lost. I was alone w
ith four boys, no wife and no mother for them. I was sitting on the edge of my bed right after coming home from the hospital, right after Mary died. I was sitting there, just staring out. I was ready to quit. I didn’t want to live. My God, the love of my life was gone. She was suddenly gone and I swear, at that instant, I didn’t know what direction to turn or what answer to seek. Then Frank walked in.”
Alexandra’s tiny voice spoke up. “Did he give you a hug Pap-Pap? Is that how he saved you?”
“No, sweetie. It wasn’t a hug. He asked me something. He walked in my room, saw me staring in desperation, and Frank asked me something that made me see which direction I had to place my thinking.”
“Ah.” Andrea tapped Joe’s hand. “He asked about his mother.”
“No.” Joe shook his head. “At the worst time in my life, my lowest point, Frank walked into that room . . . he walked into that room and asked me how many captain crunch cereal balls would he have to shove up his nostrils in order to break the world record because he had already shoved over a dozen and wasn’t quite sure he could fit anymore.”
No one really wanted to laugh or chuckle. Nervously, Dean spoke up. “You . . . you found comfort in that?”
“No, I found humor in that,” Joe answered. “And I laughed. I really laughed. Then I took him to the emergency room to have them removed, of course. But that stupid, moronic move took me from my self-pity and showed me where I had to concentrate, on my boys. Yeah, they were a handful, but they became my focus and my life. And yeah, they still do stupid moronic things, but you know what?” Joe spoke softly. “Each of them, in their own way, every single day, save my life because they make me want to live.”
^^^^
Hal looked once over his shoulder at Robbie who loaded the last bag into the helicopter. “I think we should be pretty safe from any more attacks tonight, Frank.”
“Yeah I think so too,” Frank said. “I don’t think the Society is going to risk anymore of their guys, not tonight. Not with three days left.”
“I have to agree. Well . . .” Hal exhaled. “Robbie’s ready.”
“You guys can fuel up there then head off to the meeting place. You have the fuel pump, right?”
“Got it. The truck should be good for gas for you too as well. So I should see you two in about . . .” Hal looked at his watch. “Four hours?”
“Give or take. We’ll definitely be there before midnight.”
“Good.” Hal extended his hand. “Be careful, big brother and remember to take care of that little thing.”
Frank smirked when he noticed Ellen’s look of curiosity. “No, El, he’s not talking about you.” He shook Hal’s hand. “The chopper should be assurance, but yes, I’ll take care of that.”
“Good. See you in a few.” Hal kissed Ellen on the cheek then backed up.
“Frank?” Ellen asked of him after Hal boarded the chopper. “What is it you have to do?”
“Nothing. Don’t worry about it.” Taking Ellen’s arm, he brought her to the truck. “Why don’t you wait inside for a second?”
“OK. So tell me, why are you driving me and not Hal.”
“El, please.” Frank opened the car door. “You get four or five hours in the cab of the truck alone with me. It’s bonding time.”
“Oh, God, you’re gonna try to brainwash me again.” Ellen slipped into the truck.
“No, El, I prefer to call it . . .” Frank smiled. “Dean-washing.”
^^^^
Holding it by the tip with wings flapping, George spun the dart around and around in a taunt. “Henry,” he sang Henry’s name. “Hmm?”
“Oh, you think you’re funny.” Henry was snippy. “Just because you were the best dart player in Beginnings.”
“I probably still would be.”
“I’ll have you know that people play now. We even have leagues. I myself am in two leagues. And . . . I am very good.”
“Show me how much you improved.” George raised an eyebrow. “Come on, Henry. It’ll be like old times. We’ll make some stupid wages, relax, have fun, and forget our two homes are at war. What do you say?”
Henry stared in contemplation at that dart. “You know what? Yes, I’ll play.”
“Good.” George, with a turn, placed his hand on Henry’s back and guided him to the door. Just as they moved in that direction, Bertha stepped inside.
“Sir.” Bertha saluted, then moved to an ‘at ease’. “Radar picked up a definite flight signal.’
“Chopper?” George asked.
“It appears that way. It was lifting from the vicinity of where the Beginnings squad last was sighted. The bird is now in flight sir. We have a trail. There’s no flying around in an attempt to cause a stir. It’s a direct route and we got it.”
“Excellent.” George clenched his fist and moved closer to the door. “They messed up and left a trail.”
‘Messed up?’ The bizarre thought immediately flipped through Henry’s mind. There was no way that Frank would be so careless as to mess up and leave a trail. Why would they do that? Why would they risk flying that chopper and leaving a trail? It didn’t make sense.
“Henry?” George called. “You coming?”
“Um . . .” Henry snapped from his thoughts. “Yeah, George. Lead the way.”
“I will,” George said with a hint of humor. “I’m gonna lead you right into the George dart trap.”
Henry paused in his crossing of the door’s archway. Lead. Trap. Thinking of what George just said and those two key words caused Henry to relax some and he smiled.
^^^^
“I’m sorry, I don’t know what you want me to confirm,” one of Hector’s agriculture worker’s told Misha just before he excused himself and walked away.
It was the same thing, the same response she received from every man she approached.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about?”
“If Hector has been involved with any men, I don’t know about it.”
“Why do you care?”
“Don’t ask around about stuff like that.”
“You’re barking up the wrong tree.”
“Hector’s business is Hector’s business, not mine. Sorry.”
The answers were all the same until she ran into a Hector foe, yet a trusted ally that she knew well from working competitively with in New Bowman. Ben from Fabrics.
“He’s a slut,” Ben told her. “Hector was the biggest slut I knew. He just used men, that’s all. Sex Kitten. If I’m not mistaken there was a rumor about his taking advantage of Henry when Henry was drunk. It pushed the limits of assault, I can tell you.”
Misha questioned until she received the confirmation she wanted and then she searched no more. She sought out Hector.
It was cold and she had no intention of standing outside for long, nor did she have any intention of going into Hector’s home. She stayed firm on the porch when Hector answered the door.
“Misha.” Hector was holding Nick and he opened the door wider. “Wow, you’re working late. Come in.”
“No.” She shook her head.
Nick squealed a sound of delight and extended his arms.
Misha’s head turned to the right and away from the baby.
“What’s wrong?” Hector asked.
“We are, Hector.”
“I don’t understand what . . .”
“Us. You. Me. We are wrong. You . . . are wrong for me and I was so misled. I cannot see you anymore. I cannot have any more dealings with you.” She removed the ring he had given her. “Please do not try to talk to me.” She reached to him and shoved the ring in his hand. “It’s over.”
“Misha, I . . .” Hector watched Misha run from the home. He hurried from the porch. “Misha, wait!” he called out. He had the fullest intent on chasing her until Nick started to scream his loudest. Hector halted. In the middle of the frigid street with a wailing Nick in his arms, he stared down at his hand and to the ring clenched within his fist. Slowly he parted his fingers
and exposed the band. A snowflake, thick and heavy, fell upon it and melted across the gold and onto Hector’s palm. He curled his fingers and after a long saddened blink of confusion, Hector turned and went back into his house.
^^^^
Heber City, Utah
“Dean.” Frank plopped down to the sleeping bag.
Ellen groaned as she dropped backwards onto hers. “Can we talk about home without bashing Dean?”
“No, we cannot.” Frank shook his head. “Dean is the source of all evil. He’s probably married to Misha by now.”
“Oh, you are so full of shit.” Ellen sat up again. “When will Robbie and Hal get back?”
“Soon. They had to hide the supplies again.”
“See, this makes no sense to me. We hid them and left them behind. Then we went back for them and are now hiding them again.”
“Yeah. So?”
“Why are we hiding them if we are gonna go get them again?”
“El, we had to go get them. What if we need them?”
“Exactly. So why are we hiding them?”
“I don’t know.” Frank shrugged. “Protecting them, I guess.”
“OK, so you’ll hide supplies to protect them from the Society and they remain safe. The Society doesn’t find them. Right?”
“Right.”
“So why can’t you hide me?” she asked.
“For?”
“For, gee, I don’t know. Maybe so the Society doesn’t find me and kill me.”
Frank laughed. “That would never happen.”
“They’ve come close, Frank.”
“That’s only because we made errors. We won’t make errors again, I don’t think.”
The Next Ten: Beginnings Series Books 11 - 20 Page 287