“Please,” Rusty chuckled, throwing money on the table and Bill grinned, someone was going to bet on him. “We are talking about Nathan’s house. I say he drops Bill in twenty seconds.”
“Really, guys?!” Bill cried out, looking at them and they just grinned.
“Billy,” Nathan sassed, and Bill turned with a scowl to Nathan. “I’m not saying I don’t agree, but you just offered up my mom and dad’s house. I could’ve put enough traps around it to keep out trespassers.”
Letting the sassy call of his name go because he knew it would do no good with Nathan, Bill stared into Nathan’s eyes. “If you want them gone, I’ll kick them out myself, but like you just said, we need all the help we can get,” Bill replied.
“Fair enough,” Nathan said, and finished packing his stuff up.
“Nathan, clear some time out soon and you give us the real briefing,” Bill said, and Nathan nodded with a grin.
“Trust me, I left a lot out that’s just for the posse,” Nathan replied, grabbing his stuff. “You wouldn’t believe the toys the feds have.”
Back at the house, Jasmine looked up when Sherry walked in. Sherry grinned, seeing Jasmine in the recliner and holding Nolan to her chest with Chip and Emma on either side. “Have to say, you make a good momma,” Sherry grinned.
“Trust me, I had to learn,” Jasmine replied as Sherry moved over to get Nolan. “I just got him to sleep, so unless you’re taking him to put in the crib, just leave him.”
Stopping in mid-grab, “Nolan always goes right to sleep after supper,” Sherry said.
“Not when Emma keeps playing with him,” Jasmine corrected, cutting her eyes down at a sleeping Emma.
Fighting off an urge to hug Jasmine, Sherry gave a grin as she turned and sat on the couch. “Jasmine, I have to say, you were an answer to all our prayers.”
“There is no way Nathan was that bad,” Jasmine huffed, and Sherry just stared back with no expression.
“From listening to Amanda, you’ve heard about the girls he dated. I say ‘dated’ because none were girlfriends,” Sherry stated, and Jasmine nodded. “I swear, Nathan always went after the shallowest female he could find.”
“But they were all pretty,” Jasmine almost growled.
“Jasmine,” Sherry sang out. “Almost all of them would’ve been classified as drop-dead gorgeous,” Sherry corrected, and saw Jasmine’s face harden. “That’s why when Nathan pulled up and we saw you…” Sherry paused, waving her hand out at Jasmine. “We, and I don’t mean the posse, I mean the wives, almost started throwing rocks at you.”
Jerking her head as the anger vanished and blinking rapidly, clearly confused, “Huh?” Jasmine mumbled.
“Jasmine, you are a super hottie, just like the ones he dated. Younger, but still a hottie,” Sherry grinned. “Then we watched you and saw you weren’t a shallow puddle emotionally, and actually had a brain. But most importantly, we saw how Nathan doted on you.”
“Sherry, I’ve seen the pictures of some of the girls. I’m not even in the same league,” Jasmine scoffed. “And please don’t mention my age around Nathan. That was his biggest hang-up.”
“That’s my point. You caught him because you wanted him and yes, like I said, I’ve met his hussies,” Sherry snarled the last word. “They were beautiful, but not a damn one had the brain power to change a lightbulb. They thought only of themselves. But I’m not kidding, no one has ever seen Nathan head over heels for anyone. You break his heart, you will vanish.”
Rolling her eyes, “After what I went through to get him?” Jasmine huffed. “I almost had to fight Amanda because she wanted to be his girlfriend, and she was going to cheat, making me go through Ares first.”
Shaking her head, “Sorry, but I would’ve backed off,” Sherry admitted. “Amanda scares me.”
“No, the one you should be scared of is asleep beside me,” Jasmine clarified, glancing down at Emma. “I swear, Nathan was involved in her conception somehow.”
Leaning back and getting comfortable on the couch, “No, I became scared of Amanda after that presentation Nathan just gave,” Sherry told her. “I see her as Nathan used to be, no fear and acting on impulse, thinking she’s ten feet tall and bulletproof.”
“Yep, that’s Amanda,” Jasmine responded immediately, then cocked her head to stare at Sherry. “Was Nathan really like that?”
With a serious expression, Sherry turned to Jasmine. “On patrol one time, Nathan walked into a biker bar to make an arrest, not waiting for backup. He beat down nine, sending four to the hospital before the first backup arrived. And that’s just one story among many. After listening to the presentation he just gave, at least now, Nathan thinks out his actions along with the risks, and I can tell that’s thanks to all of you.”
Shaking her head, “Sorry, that just doesn’t sound like the Nathan we know,” Jasmine objected.
“Then you should see why we all love you guys so much,” Sherry laughed. “You made him grow up some.”
“Where’s some batteries?” Amanda asked, walking down the hall.
“You mean to tell me, you don’t know?” Jasmine gasped.
“We haven’t unpacked the Warthogs,” Amanda snapped. “I don’t know where everything’s at here.”
“I’m shocked,” Jasmine chuckled.
“What kind do you need?” Sherry asked.
“CR123,” Amanda answered. “My tactical laser light on my M4 is weak. And I need four for my night vision.”
“Amanda, what are all of you doing back there?” Jasmine asked with a sigh.
“Duh,” Amanda said, rolling her eyes. “Cleaning our gear and getting ready to fight. Nathan says, ‘Always be ready to run’.”
Turning to Jasmine, “That is new to Nathan, I assure you,” Sherry said, getting up. “The old Nathan told everyone, ‘When in doubt, beat the shit out of everything around you and if anything continues to move, kill it’.” She headed to a metal locker and opened it up. “Here you go,” Sherry said, exposing stuffed shelves of different batteries.
Walking over and grabbing several packs, Amanda scanned the shelves. “The meeting is over?” she asked, then closed the locker.
“Yes. You guys had a fight getting here,” Sherry said, heading back to the couch.
“We were doing good till that cock-wipe shot Casey and me,” Amanda popped off. “I’m going to find his family and burn them alive,” Amanda snarled, then spun around heading back down the hallway.
“And you wonder why she scares me?” Sherry mumbled.
“Oh, she’ll have to get in line because any family we find of those men, belong to me first,” Jasmine snapped. “You don’t shoot my girls and expect me not to kill your family, your neighbor, the kid who sat beside you in kindergarten, and your dog. And when I’m walking out of the house over the bodies, I’m going to rape the goldfish. I’m tempted to find all the kids they went to Sunday school with and skin them alive.”
“Okay, so Amanda has some competition in my fear,” Sherry mumbled.
“Sherry, how much did this cost?” Jasmine asked, motioning to the house or more appropriately, the bunker.
“Why?” Sherry asked.
“I’ve been in the rest of the gangs’ houses and each one is barely over a thousand square feet. Nathan’s seems twice that.”
“No. With the basement, it’s over six thousand square feet,” Sherry told her. “About the cost, I don’t know, but Tim says Nathan forked over three hundred grand just for this to be built.”
“I’m not surprised,” Jasmine muttered. “How much are the dues Nathan talked about?”
“The group dues?” Sherry asked, and Jasmine nodded. “A grand every four months.”
Jasmine barely raised her eyebrows, then Sherry continued. “But there are always projects they were putting in. The hydro generators, solar panels, wind turbines, composting toilets, equipment, and the list goes on. In the time we’ve been with Nathan, a year hasn’t gone by when he didn’t fork over an extra
five grand for other dues.”
“And the rest of the posse could afford that?” Jasmine gasped.
“No, not all at once. Nathan paid their share and they paid him back,” Sherry answered.
“I was wondering what they paid cops up here,” Jasmine admitted.
“Nathan never cashed any of the checks they paid him monthly with,” Sherry told her. “I know because I’ve seen them in the basement safe when we tried to pay him some for the new tractor the group voted on. The same one that’s broken now,” she huffed, then narrowed her eyes.
Leaning over the armrest, “He won’t take cash because we tried that,” Sherry snarled. “The son of a bitch went and bought two four-wheelers for me and Tim when we tried. Oh, and let me give you some free advice; don’t ever try to not take a gift from Nathan. Think of the worst two-year-old tantrum you can imagine, and you aren’t even close. You will push the sweetest elderly lady you’ve ever known in your life down a flight of stairs, just to get him to shut the fuck up.”
“Okay, I’ve seen some of the tantrums,” Jasmine admitted. “I didn’t want to push an old lady down any stairs, though.”
“Wait till you see a real one,” Sherry grunted. “Tim and I love Nathan with all our hearts,” Sherry told Jasmine. “He’s like the older brother I wish mine would’ve been, but at times, acts like my younger sisters on the rag, all at the same time.”
Nodding, “Yes, I can see that as well,” Jasmine agreed. “But Nathan said he wasn’t rich, Amanda asked him several times.”
“Jasmine, Nathan’s idea of rich is being on the Forbes list,” Sherry corrected. “Now, he wasn’t a billionaire, but he damn sure was a millionaire. I found that hard to believe at first, seeing the way Nathan spent money, but he also invested and saved. The money he got from his parents, he turned into a small fortune.”
“Amanda got some of that.”
With a sly grin on her face, Sherry arched one eyebrow. “To answer the question you aren’t asking, yes, that’s why many of those girls dated him,” Sherry told her, and Jasmine’s cheeks turned red, embarrassed Sherry had figured it out. “Yes, Nathan is a hunk, but they saw a rich haul. They knew he was a nurse and a deputy because he wanted to be, not because he had to. Many wanted him to buy a ‘real’ house and thankfully, that’s when Nathan started looking for the next one.”
“I’m that shallow?” Jasmine asked.
Giving a laugh, Sherry reached over patting Jasmine’s leg. “No, you’re finding out about him from others because I can tell, you came from money.”
“My family wasn’t rich!” Jasmine gasped.
The sly grin fell off as Sherry rolled her eyes, not believing that. “Oh, you two were so made for each other,” Sherry sighed. “And before you ask, yes, I told some of the skanks to ask Nathan to buy another house just to get rid of them. Well, I didn’t, Tim did. But I didn’t object. Tim is a guy, and if he thought the hotties were skanky, money-hungry whores, I wasn’t going to argue.”
Feeling Nolan stirring in her arms, Jasmine started rocking. “I hope you know, Nathan sees you and Tim as his family.”
“We know. He introduces us as his brother and sister,” Sherry snorted. “Let me tell you, that has gotten Tim and I some very serious looks. What kind of family do they have? Nathan’s younger brother and sister are married with a kid?”
The front door opened, with Tim and Nathan walking in. Tim stopped to look at the kids piled on and around Jasmine. “Why didn’t you get Nolan off her?” he asked Sherry.
Seeing Sherry narrow her eyes at Tim, Nathan walked past him. “I would shut up if I were you,” Nathan advised. “She hits like a man and bites like a pit bull.”
“Put me in a headlock again,” Sherry challenged Nathan.
Shaking his head, “Not even on a bet,” Nathan declared with dignity, putting his laptop bag on a desk. “My dogs don’t bite that hard,” he mumbled, walking over and kissed Jasmine. “You look uncomfortable.”
“No, I was only uncomfortable when Emma and Chip were awake,” Jasmine said, hearing running footsteps down the hallway. “I swear, they can smell you,” she mumbled as Amanda, Casey, and Natalie ran in before wrapping their arms around him.
“I can put my M4 back together blindfolded in two minutes,” Natalie stated proudly.
“All right,” Nathan said proudly, hugging the group tighter.
Turning to Sherry, “One day, I’m going to see his girls pee standing up,” Jasmine said with a straight face.
“I can pee standing up,” Amanda popped off.
Closing her eyes as she shook her head, “I rest my case,” Jasmine sighed.
Ignoring Jasmine, Nathan looked down at the girls. “Amanda, Casey, you have an appointment with Vince tomorrow, so he can check you out.”
Pushing back, Amanda looked up with a scowl. “You’re my doctor.”
“I’m a nurse, and you don’t become the doctor to your own family if you don’t have to because you could make a mistake,” Nathan said.
“I don’t want a shot,” Casey said in a little voice, stepping back.
“That, I can’t promise because he will probably want bloodwork, but I thought you were tough,” Nathan told her. Casey poked out her bottom lip, breaking out the puppy dog eyes.
“I don’t like shots either, but I don’t whine about it. Just do it and get it over with,” Nathan instructed, wanting the sorrowful expression to be gone.
“Will you be there?” Casey asked, and Jasmine gave a snort.
“Why in the hell wouldn’t I be there?!” Nathan cried out in shock.
“Oh, I see future boyfriends trembling in fear already,” Jasmine chuckled.
Leaning close, Amanda looked up at Nathan. “Jasmine’s being weird,” she whispered. “I didn’t do it, before you ask.”
Hugging the girls, “Go put your gear up and get in bed,” Nathan laughed.
“Can’t we play games or watch TV?” Amanda asked in shock.
“As long as you do it in bed, that’s fine,” Nathan replied, and the girls took off.
“I’m player one!” Amanda cried out, making Nolan stir in Jasmine’s arms.
Watching the trio disappear down the hall, Nathan turned to look at Jasmine only to find her looking up at him with a scowl. “What?” he asked, watching Jasmine rocking Nolan back to sleep.
“You need to tell them to use their inside voices,” Jasmine instructed.
“Oh, this coming from the person who yells out when we’re supposed to be moving ninja-like,” Nathan huffed.
Rolling her eyes, “Nathan, you can take my side every once in a while,” Jasmine whined.
Grinning, Nathan leaned over kissing Jasmine again. “I’ll tell them, but they’re happy, and I don’t want to ruin it,” he told her in a soft voice.
“Alright, but don’t make them feel bad,” Jasmine said quickly.
“Ready for bed?” Nathan laughed, picking up Emma.
“Long time ago,” Jasmine chuckled as Nathan picked up Chip.
“They can sleep with us,” Tim offered, coming over to get Nolan.
Getting up, Jasmine shook her head. “We’ll take you up on that another day, but if Emma doesn’t wake up with Nathan close tomorrow, we’ll all be feeling her wrath. I personally would rather face a hurricane.”
CHAPTER FIVE
The next morning, Nathan already had coffee in a carafe on the counter when he led his four friends into the kitchen. Jasmine had loaded up the younger children, along with Sherry and Nolan for a visit with some of the other ladies at Rusty and Libby’s, while John, Tom, and Amanda, with Ares leading the pack, decided to go check out the fishing prospects at the nearby creek running through the floor of the small valley. In reality, Nathan knew the kids were just exploring. They had all set out within minutes after completing the few chores he had listed for them that morning. Everyone in Nathan’s household knew the subject matter to be discussed and none, not even Amanda, felt the need to be present.
; “Thank goodness for the coffee plants,” Nathan said under his breath as the men all doctored up their cups of coffee. Rusty, as he’d picked up in the Army, still drank his black, but the others in the posse added either cream or sweetener or both.
Finally finished, the men followed Nathan out onto the deck. The deck, situated under the cover provided by a stand of red cedars, offered a somewhat-obstructed view across the width of the valley and added a lovely visual backdrop in contrast to Nathan’s ugly words. He spoke slowly, thinking hard for the proper words while he described, in great detail, the story they had heard the night before in only the broadest of strokes. He started with his first few days at the store, and this time, he left out the funny anecdotes and focused on the cold facts.
They were all experienced lawmen. Plus, Rusty and Bill, had seen combat during their respective services in the Army, so they had some basis to understand what Nathan was saying. When he spoke of the helicopter-inserted troops, both to monitor the opposition forces and outflank them where possible, Rusty simply nodded, since he’d ridden in the back of a Blackhawk doing just that more than once in the dusty hell that was Afghanistan. But that was years ago and thousands of miles away. Not here. Not in America.
The deputies listened as Nathan described the early confrontations he had survived at the beginning of his quest, when he’d dealt with gang members intent on seizing first the store, and later, their packs. And their female traveling companions.
Unlike the group briefing, Nathan left nothing out, describing the rape and rampant murder across the land in gross detail.
These details horrified Nathan’s friends, but what came later seemed to strike an even deeper chord. The description of the race across Arkansas made Bill look particularly distraught, and Nathan remembered Bill had an aunt and uncle who’d lived in Little Rock.
“So, you’re sure this guy really was a major in the U.S. Army? Not just some paramilitary or militia thug playing at the role?” Bill asked, his voice curious but his face drawn with anxiety.
“Uh, yeah,” Nathan replied, almost not wanting to admit what he’d done. They had seen the pictures and video last night but thankfully, those had left out much of what Nathan had done. It didn’t take much imagination, since the men in the video ‘magically’ got worse-looking between each question. At the time, using any force, any action, to gather intel seemed like the right thing to do. Now, sitting here with his friends and drinking coffee in the quiet calm of morning, Nathan began to feel uncomfortable as he continued. “I used enhanced interrogation techniques beyond what you saw in the video.”
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