A goofy grin filled Nathan’s face. “Wow,” he chuckled like a stoner as the posse and their families watched in shock. “There’s been something I wanted to do, but just didn’t know how because I’ve never thought about it till I met you. But if you like, don’t mind, and I want you to… know you don’t have to and can live in my house forever, but I was wondering if, um…., you would like to, maybe think about or just do it…,” Nathan kept on stalling as Jasmine felt dizzy and started panting.
“… sometime in the future, or now, I’ll do what you want-” ‘BAMM’ sounded and Nathan jumped in the air like a startled cat. Landing on his toes ready to brawl, he spun toward the source and saw Rusty with his hand on the table because he had slapped it hard.
“Will you just spit it out?!” Rusty shouted. “You’ve been stalling for ten minutes!”
“Oh,” Nathan panted, turning back to Jasmine. Swallowing hard, Nathan held out his hand and a ring lay in his palm. “I want you to be my wife,” Nathan blurted out, and then gave a sigh like the world fell off his back.
With tears running down Jasmine’s face, Amanda took Chip from her lap. “I never thought you would ask!” Jasmine wailed out and threw herself over the table, wrapping her arms around Nathan’s neck. “I would love to marry you!” she cried out and before the others could cheer, Rusty leapt in the air with his feet landing on the table.
“YYYYYEEEESSSSSS!” he bellowed with his hands held high in triumph, freezing the rest of the table in their chairs. Except for Nathan and Jasmine, everyone turned to Rusty as he vaulted off the table and landed on the floor, dropping down on one knee and pumping his arm in the air. “YYYYYYYYEEEEEEESSSSSSS!” he bellowed, then looked up at the ceiling. “I WON! THANK YOUUUUU!”
“I am the greatest!” Rusty shouted, bending over and spanking his rump as he danced in a circle. Both his boys looked around nervously, then slid out of their chairs and hid under the table.
“Libby,” Bill said, and turned to see Libby with her head on the table. “What’s wrong with Rusty?”
“None of your fucking business,” Libby snapped as Rusty jumped on the table again, looking down at her. Libby lifted her head up. “They haven’t said when,” Libby popped off.
“Oh, no! The bet was, HE, would ask before August. That was the bet, and it’s not AUGUST!!!!!!!” Rusty finished in a shout, throwing his head back and raising his arms in triumphant praise.
“What the fuck did you bet?” Janice asked somewhat worried.
Libby didn’t answer as Nathan and Jasmine realized Rusty was dancing on the table, spanking his own butt.
“Wow, I knew they’d be happy, but that seems a little extreme,” Nathan admitted, then held up Jasmine’s hand and put an engagement ring on her finger. “It was my mom’s. I’m not going to lie, I never thought I would use it.”
Looking at the ring, Jasmine just sighed while Rusty danced from one end of the table to the other. “Rusty, will you get the hell down?!” Libby shouted, shaking her head.
Leaping over Natalie’s head, Rusty landed on the floor and spun around, holding up each index finger. “Tonight is number OOONNNNEEEE!”
Glancing over, Libby saw both of their boys under the table hiding. “Rusty, you’re embarrassing the boys,” Libby snapped.
“That’s how they were CONCEIVED!” Rusty cheered, and Libby’s face turned from red to maroon.
Hearing snorts, she turned to see Bill, Aiden, Tim, and even Nathan smirking. “You guys gossip worse than women!” Libby huffed, trying to fight the blush down.
“One hundred times of my CHOICEEEEE!” Rusty shouted, jumping in the air and throwing his right fist up.
Hugging Jasmine tight, Nathan saw Libby’s face, and now her neck turning red. “Were pom poms involved in this bet?” Nathan asked, and Libby dropped her head down, banging her forehead on the table.
“YYYEEEESSSSSSS!” Rusty sang out. “One hundred times, baby, when I WANT!!!!”
Spinning to Nathan, Rusty pointed at him with each hand. “You da man!!!” he declared.
“I think Rusty’s almost as happy as I am,” Jasmine admitted.
With his arm around Penny, Aiden nodded. “That just shows you the power of Libby’s cheerleader outfit.”
Penny gave a nod. “Yes, and I don’t think Rusty needs control of that power,” she said, and the others busted out laughing. “Because, as Peter Parker will tell you, with great power comes great responsibility.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Moving along a small trail in the morning sun, Bill and Rusty were walking back from the lookout where the MEW2 was. “I like that damn thing,” Bill said.
“Yeah, I’m with Nathan. We should kick those troops’ asses for wanting his spare,” Rusty added. “I’m tempted to go with Nathan to find another one.”
Weaving around a tree, “Don’t get sidetracked,” Bill sighed. “We have enough to do without looking for magic beans.” When Rusty didn’t pop off, Bill glanced over his shoulder to see Rusty smiling, almost skipping along the trail. “I’m willing to bet that’s the last time Libby makes a bet with him,” Bill mumbled.
Reaching the dining hall, they found Aiden and Tim talking with Vince and Lanny. “Hey,” Bill said, walking up. “Trouble?”
“Nah, just talking about all those new people and how well they’re fitting in,” Vince said.
“Shit, I like it,” Rusty said with a wide grin. “With that MU out up on that mountain top, we only need five on guard duty. It would take fifty to monitor the same amount of area that thing can.”
Rolling his eyes, “Rusty, have you called in your bet every night this week?” Aiden sighed.
With a gasp, “Hell, no,” Rusty answered. “I have to save them up and ration them out.”
Bill glanced around, “Where’s Nathan?”
“At the range,” Tim answered, and the others turned to him. “What? Guys, they practice all the time at the house doing drills. And no, the kids are the ones who started it, not Nathan. He started teaching them martial arts each morning on the way here remember, and he’s continued, but they wanted, well, Amanda demanded that weapon tactics be started.”
The joy slid off Rusty’s face as he cleared his throat. “Um, does that make my kids slackers?” he asked.
“Depends,” Tim shrugged. “Listen to Amanda and it does, but if you listen to John, it doesn’t.”
“Compared to Tom, Natalie, and Casey, how good are Amanda and John?” Rusty asked timidly.
Shaking his head, “Go to the range and see for yourself,” Tim answered. “Jasmine had Nathan put together a SAW M249 for her after that last ambush. She’s tickled pink now she can shoot two hundred times before reloading. That girl loves a belt-fed weapon and when she found out the SAW shot the same ammo the M4s do, she wanted one.”
Bill glanced at Rusty when he spoke. “Who’s down at the range with them?” he asked.
“A lot of the new people and some of ours,” Vince answered. “I let Amanda and Casey off light duty this morning after their workout. Amanda informed the group they were going to the range today to do live fire.”
“I thought Nathan was going to lay out his next patrol,” Bill said.
Giving a curt nod, “Oh, he is,” Vince said. “But Amanda let everyone know real fast she was going, and wanted to make sure she was ready to ‘sling hate downrange’. Her words.”
Rusty turned to look at Tim. “Are my boys down there?” he asked.
“Yep,” Tim nodded. “And both of them are terrified of Amanda, just so you know.”
“Shit, I’m terrified of Amanda,” Aiden mumbled under his breath.
Studying Vince for several minutes, Bill finally spoke. “You sure Amanda and Casey are fine to come off light duty?”
“Bill,” Vince sighed. “They only had two weeks left and to be honest, I could’ve let them off a week or two ago. Call me a bigot, but I just have a problem with young kids eager to go out and,” Vince paused, holding up his hands to quote Aman
da, “‘pop caps in bad guys’.”
“She does seem rather eager,” Lanny added.
“Ya think?” Tim huffed. “None of you had to listen to her after each patrol Nathan went out on! And to make matters worse, Casey follows her around like she’s a living god! To hear sweet little Casey, yell out she wants to ‘scalp some bitches’ is wrong on so many levels!”
Rusty turned to Bill with a serious expression. “We have to end this shit before Emma gets to be a tween,” he declared. “If it comes to it, we just Adam and Eve the entire country.”
“Adam and Eve the country?” Lanny asked, furrowing his brow.
“Kill everyone outside this group, except one man and one woman,” Rusty explained. “I don’t even want to guess how much of a bad-ass Emma will be as a tween. My son Shane tried to wrestle with Amanda two days ago, and she kicked his ass. It really didn’t help much when Randal jumped in, trying to save his little brother, and Amanda put him in an arm bar.”
Letting out a laugh, “She may be skinny, but that girl is strong and tough,” Tim chuckled. The others stared at Tim as he wiped his eyes. “Sherry finally found out what getting bit feels like when she wrestled with Amanda.”
Looking off at the mountains surrounding them, “I feel like I’m a bad father for some reason,” Bill mumbled.
Stepping over, Tim grabbed Bill’s arm. “Don’t. If your kids had been through what Nathan’s have, they’d be doing the same thing. Sherry and I join them for workouts in the morning and training at night, so when we face it, we’re at least better prepared,” Tim told him. “I hate to say it, but those kids are better prepared for close combat than most of us.”
The group just stared at Tim in shock as he turned on his heel, walking off. “Come on, and I’ll show you what I mean,” he called over his shoulder.
“Tim, we had Tom, Natalie, and Casey at the range already,” Rusty said, jogging up and walking beside him. “Yeah, they were more situationally aware, but the others shot better.”
Scoffing, “Dude, that was over three weeks ago. Ancient history to those kids,” Tim replied. “The only time Nathan could really train them was when they were stopped. Even then, they were tired, but they still learned. Here and now, the kids soak up what he teaches and what they study.”
“Study?” Vince asked, catching up.
“Vince, those tactical training books you see out every day when you come over? The kids are reading those. They’ve watched every training video Nathan has, and you know, that’s a large collection,” Tim snorted the last. The entire posse nodded at that.
Walking around the dining hall and into the valley, they followed Tim and could see a large group at the range. They weren’t in a cluster, but in several small groups. When they were fifty yards from the range, Tim stopped. John, Tom, Amanda, Natalie, Casey, and Jasmine each had a group with them, aiming an M4 at the targets. Two people were side-by-side aiming weapons, and each would drop the magazine before racking the bolt back like they were clearing a jam, then slap in a new magazine. After the two ran the drill ten times, another two would take their place and the lesson continued.
“My kids know how to run S.P.O.R.T.S. in their sleep,” Rusty said, watching Randal in Jasmine’s group run the drill.
“Rusty,” Tim sighed, shaking his head. “Just shut up and watch.”
Biting his tongue, Rusty continued watching and then noticed Nathan pacing behind the groups. He couldn’t help but smile, seeing Emma riding Nathan’s shoulders, Nolan in a baby carrier on his chest, Chip holding Nathan’s right hand, and another kid walking along with Nathan holding his left. “Who’s the other kid with Nathan?” Rusty asked.
“Leeann,” Tim chuckled.
“The little girl from the sheriff’s group?” Lanny asked, and Tim nodded.
“Chip has a friend, and she’s really helped him open up,” Tim told them, with some of the joy falling off his face. “I don’t even want to know what Chip’s been through before Nathan got to him.”
“Tim, is Nathan thinking of taking Leeann in?” Bill asked hesitantly.
“No, and he was very clear on that,” Tim huffed, and Bill gave a thankful sigh, thinking Nathan had already taken on more than enough. “Sherry and I are going to ask Nathan if we can adopt Leeann,” Tim said.
Watching the groups start over, Bill shook his head. This time, one person was clearing the M4 while the other aimed their pistol downrange at the target. “Why do you need Nathan’s permission?” Bill asked.
“Dumbass. We live with him, Billy boy,” Tim snapped, and Aiden turned away quickly, snickering.
Spinning to Tim with a glare in his eyes, “You aren’t Nathan,” Bill snarled.
“Well, quit thinking with your ass!” Tim popped off.
Trying not to laugh, Rusty stepped between the two. “Bill, you earned that one. So, sorry,” Rusty snickered. “If you don’t or can’t take Leeann in, we will,” Rusty offered.
Turning away from Bill back to the range, “We’re just waiting for the right time to ask,” Tim said as Bill calmed down.
“Load up!” Nathan shouted out, startling the group.
They all turned while two in each group loaded their M4s and pistols. Seeing red tape on all the rifle magazines, Bill gave a small grin. “Nathan has them using his magazines that double feed.”
“Yep,” Tim answered.
The group started shooting and, in each pair, one M4 malfunctioned and five yelled out, “Gun down!” and went to work clearing it. The second person in each group soon had a malfunction, but instead of clearing the rifle, yanked their pistol to shoot the targets downrange to keep hate on the targets. When the first person cleared their rifle, they called out, “Gun up!” and the pistol shooter ejected their pistol magazine and reloaded.
After holstering the pistol, they went to work on clearing their own jammed rifle. By now, the person on rifle had a malfunction, since they could only reload with the messed-up M4 magazines. Now, they covered with a pistol while the other cleared their rifle.
“He’s running them through combat drills?!” Rusty cried out.
“Yep,” Tim answered as they all watched.
Rusty grinned at little Casey, watching the two in her group on the firing line. Casey shouted at the two and they stopped what they were doing and turned to her. His mouth fell open when Casey pulled her pistol out, racking the slide with one hand, then aimed downrange. She popped off several shots, then ejected her magazine while her other hand yanked another pistol magazine off her vest and slapped it in before firing off more rounds.
Casey holstered her pistol and she talked to the two women on the firing line. “Casey said she had trouble racking the slide,” Aiden blurted out.
“Used to,” Tim stressed. “Nathan caught her using her knees to lock the slide back a week or so ago. So he gave her one of the compact XDs and put a charging handle on it. Then he had Casey sit in the living room as we watched TV and practice racking the slide. Now, Casey doesn’t have a problem running her pistol. Like I said, three weeks ago is a long time for those kids.”
When Nathan called stop, they watched everyone clear weapons and Aiden gave a startle to see his daughter in Tom’s group. “Penny didn’t tell me Gina was going to the range,” Aiden mumbled.
“Hey, Janice didn’t tell me Robin was going,” Bill said, waving a hand out toward John’s group. “Nathan has all the Little Rascals.”
It was on the tip of his tongue to enlighten them, but Tim kept his mouth shut. Be damned, if he was telling the daddies why their daughters were there. In Tom and John’s groups were several of the teen girls from the compound, and the newcomers. If they’d looked really hard, they would’ve noticed there were no boys in either group. When Tim saw Robin step real close to John laughing, he thought he heard a low growl from Bill.
“Stomach upset?” Rusty asked, turning to Bill.
“No,” Bill grumbled.
Following Bill’s eyes, Rusty saw Robin really flirting w
ith John, as only a teenage girl could, and was making no effort whatsoever to hide it. “Oh,” Rusty said, then shrugged. “Bill, don’t get mad, but I like John more than any boy Robin’s ever talked to. But, I’m sorry to say, John doesn’t know she’s flirting.”
Hearing that, the anger left Bill’s body as he studied John closer, and just like Rusty said, John wasn’t aware Bill’s daughter was flirting with him. For some reason, this made Bill rather upset and the fact it made him upset, pissed him off. “What’s wrong with that boy?” Bill snapped. “Robin’s hanging on his arm and he isn’t even talking to her.”
“Hey, guys,” Nathan said, walking up and patting Nolan in the baby carrier on his chest. Tiny Emma was sitting on his shoulders like a queen, regally babbling at all her subjects below her. Not seeing Chip and Leeann, the others looked around and found them with Jasmine and Sherry.
Turning back to Nathan with fire in his eyes, “Is Robin not good enough for your boy John?” Bill blurted out.
Freezing because he wasn’t sure he’d heard right, “Ah, what?” Nathan asked.
Pointing behind Nathan, “Robin’s practically throwing herself at him, hanging off of John, and he’s almost ignoring her!” Bill snapped. Turning his body, Nathan saw Robin was holding John’s left arm. A cluster of teens was with them, mostly girls, just talking. “Nathan, you’d better talk to him. Robin’s prettier than any of those other girls,” Bill said, and Nathan stumbled back as he turned toward Bill. There was no doubt Robin was pretty, but to hear her very overprotective dad say it seemed unnatural.
“What?!” Nathan shouted. “Bill, you tried to convince the sheriff to do a drug raid on Robin’s last boyfriend just because you’d heard he smoked cigarettes!”
Stepping up to Nathan, “We aren’t talking about that!” Bill barked. “Is my little girl not good enough for your boy?”
At a total loss for words and wondering how to address that, Nathan looked at Rusty, Tim, and Aiden for guidance, but saw all three in shock. Then he shifted his eyes to Vince and Lanny. Nathan wasn’t sure, it looked like Lanny was about to pass out from shock, but Vince was snickering softly. Realizing he wasn’t getting help from any of them, Nathan shifted his gaze back to Bill. “Ah, Bill? John’s never had a girlfriend,” Nathan said softly. “The only girls he’s talked to are Amanda, Natalie, and Casey.”
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