by Bella Knight
Gregory brought over a very pregnant Katya, with the boys Luka and Ivan, and Mimi and Ree. Luka and Ivan were walking, and ran around like monkeys, getting into everything. Jie was terrified at first, but the pizza and babies won her over. She played on the floor with Ryder, and then stole Kiya and wouldn’t give her back. The music was soft and calming. The Owl Pack went up to see the baby and were then waited on hand and foot after being given the best seats.
Spontaneous soccer and baseball games broke out outside, simultaneously, bringing the noise inside to a dull roar. Gregory took Luka and Ivan outside to practice with their own miniature soccer ball, and they were soon running and yelling, just like real soccer players. Nantan and Chayton came downstairs, proclaiming both the mothers and the new baby (Tarak) asleep. Everyone congratulated them, and they went outside to relieve Gregory with the little boys. Tam and Little Nico were with them, flush with the knowledge they were now big brothers. Katya fell asleep on the recliner. Elena played soccer, then came in to meet Jie. They sat on the floor, and played with the babies, giving the moms a break.
Ivy and Ace got out early, leaving the bar in Cougar’s capable hands. They met the sleeping infant, ate like pigs, and circulated. Ace took his own Rose Ivy, and he played with her on his lap until she slid into sleep. He repeated this with Colin, who hated the entire concept of sleeping; he might miss something, of course. Ivy sat with Lily, Callie, Bao, and Katya, who were engrossed in a recitation of who got the most Mommy Points that week.
“That’s a thing?” asked Ivy.
Lily laughed. “Rose Ivy tried to eat a button, Colin never sleeps. Two points.”
Katya joined in. “I’ve got more. Ivan is very quiet, but very sneaky. He get into trouble when you are not looking, no?” All the moms nodded. “Luka talks more. He is very honest and gentle, but he doesn’t want to get his brother into trouble. So, when Luka goes silent, I know Ivan is in very big trouble. A week ago, Ivan wanted to go on top of refrigerator to find cookies.”
“Did anyone fall?” asked Lily, aghast.
“No, caught him trying to balance second chair on first. Told him we are not family of acrobats. Took them both to tumbling lessons while Elena is in school. Now, I have pads on floor, they are rolling around like soccer balls. I tell my Gregory, no need to buy soccer balls, we will just use the children.” Everyone laughed until they had tears in their eyes.
“That’s at least four points,” said Lily.
Callie jumped in. “Yesterday, I had Aiden try to climb directly over his sister. Kiya licked him. Not bit, licked. He screamed as if she’d nibbled off his leg.” They all laughed at the image. “Wait, there’s more. The girls decide to-finally, I might add, for Grace —to make glitter glue lava lamps in water bottles. So, rather than drink the water like normal people in the desert, they dumped off the excess in the sink, then started pouring in six kinds of glue glitter on my table with no mat down. No newspaper, no plastic, nothing. Hu finally figured it out that they were making a mess. Damia tried to clean it up, but she got blue glitter glue in her hair. Ever try to wash that stuff out?”
Ivy cringed. “I came in to see Grace with a scrub pad, Damia crying her eyes out, Hu trying to calm Damia down, and Jie thinking she’d entered the crazy circus.” She grinned. “And my wife here gets all the mommy points, because she got the glue out with peanut butter, she took her time to wash Damia’s hair, and got everyone else to finish the project.” She pointed over at the girls, who were on floor pillows, engaged in an Uno card game. Beside each girl was a water bottle filled with blue, pink, purple, or silver sparkles.
“Oo, pwitty,” said Ryder. She slid out of Aunt Callie’s lap, ran over, grabbed the purple one, and turned it over and over, making the water sparkle. Luckily, she took Hu’s bottle. Hu had an identical one at home and gave it to the excited Ryder.
“Just remember to tape the tops with sparkly tape as well as gluing them shut,” said Callie. “Or you get that stuff all over your kid and your couch. Not yay.”
“Where’s Mimi and Ree?” Ivy asked Katya. Katya pointed with her chin. April fed Ree Cheerios while Mimi told April something, hands waving, in the kitchen.
“Are present from Gregory,” said Katya. “Gregory will make sure that the bad woman who hurt little one will not come for us. We will take guardianship of girl, raise her and little Ree.” She smiled dreamily. “Ree is very funny. When first come, girl afraid of shadow of mouse. Now, she wants to walk everywhere, wants to do everything herself. ‘I am big girl,’ she says. Spend time in park with her mama Mimi and April, take boys too, and one more Wolfpack. Spend much time in sun, get stronger.”
“Ryder loves her,” said Callie. “They sit on the floor and play with blocks and horses and dollies, for hours. They build farms and make the dollies take care of the horses, like Inola does.”
“Is not enough room in house for her to stay here,” said Katya. “Plus, babies love other babies. She tries to read to the dollies and to Ivan and Luka as if she is mama.”
“That one’s a smart one,” said Inola. They all scooted over and made room on the couch for Inola. April wiped off Ree, and Ree came running, hands up. Katya picked her up, squeezed her, and kissed her. The girl giggled, squealed, and ran off to see Inola.
Inola picked her up, and Ree turned her face to Inola. “You have baby?” asked Ree.
“Yes,” said Inola. “Two.” She held up two fingers. “Ryder, and Tarak.”
Ree grinned, put her head down on Inola’s shoulder, and went to sleep.
“Good heavens, another baby whisperer,” said Callie.
Bao grinned. “True. Ivy does it with her singing, Inola with her secret Paiute magic.”
Inola laughed. “Wish they worked on Ryder. That girl likes to go to sleep at dawn.” Ryder was now attempting to learn Uno, but would rather eat the cards, not play.
Henry ran over, picked Ryder up, gave her the new glitter bottle in exchange for the Uno card, and flew her about the room. She giggled, making everyone smile. He flew her upstairs with Numa for her bath and, one would hope, bed. Inola hoped their singing would be enough to make her active daughter sleep.
Gregory’s head fell forward in sleep, a child in each arm, also dead asleep. Katya got up, got Luka from his father, and brought the sleeping child over. Luka attempted to wake up, then Ivy sang, Rock a bye. She then went into John Mayer’s Daughters, and Ace fell asleep with Kiya on his stomach, and Colin finally slipped toward sleep on his shoulder. She then sang Reba McIntyre’s I Hope You Dance, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.
Soon the games were completed, and the girls were excited and had story time outside with Henry, Vu, and David. The Wolfpack went home to program more video games, then play them. Babies fussed, then fell asleep again. Then the mothers stole out to the fire, to sing and drum the joy of a new child into the night. They came back in, scooped up their sleeping infants, and went home, leaving the Big House quiet. And then, Tarak woke up, hungry and wet, and that was the last time the house was truly quiet, for quite some time.
Gregory and Henry left at dawn for the distant reservation. They had their Harleys, and a paper drawn up giving Gregory full custody of both Mimi and Ree, until Mimi was old enough to leave and support her daughter. Both men were tired; Tarak was a trial, and Ree excited Ivan and Luka. Both boys bid for her attention and were just as happy to do that by hair-pulling and squalling than by any other means.
Ree had joined the boys’ tumbling class, and now the mats in the corner of the playground were nearly constantly in use. It was a long ride; they had lunch in Pahrump at Tallee and in Kema’s diner.
Sheriff Bob was having lunch with a wide-eyed Dee, Kema’s daughter. “Girl just turned seven,” said Bob, proudly. “Gets her first slice of pie.”
Dee shook her head. “Already had pie.”
“Oh, my goodness. Whatever shall we do?” asked Bob, his hands to his face. Dee giggled.
Henry and Gregory slid in. Kema came over and
handed out menus. “What’s good?” Gregory asked Dee.
She looked at him, wide-eyed. “Who are you?”
“Gregory, at your service,” he said, and held out his hand. She took it gravely.
“This is Henry,” said Bob. “They’re the Nighthawks. Motorcycle club. Friends of the Valkyries, and thus, my wife.”
“Henry has a farm, with real horses,” said Gregory.
They both ordered sandwiches, Gregory a Reuben, and Henry a BLT, and Cokes for their throats, parched from the dry and dusty road.
“Can I see?” asked Dee. “The horses?”
“Don’t see why not,” said Henry. He took out his phone and showed a laughing Damia astride a painted pony.
Dee watched the video closely. “Who is the girl?” she asked, when their Cokes came. Dee got another glass of juice.
“That’s Damia, my granddaughter,” said Henry. “And the woman standing there with her, that’s Inola,” said Henry. “She’s related to me a little distantly by blood, but I think of her as my daughter.”
“How can she be your daughter, if she’s not your daughter?” asked Dee, very curiously.
“Families can be born into, or you can make your own,” said Gregory.
“Darn straight,” said Bob. “I married my wife and got a lot of wild women with braids in half their hair, and who are now my sisters,” he said.
“I resemble that remark,” said Herja. She pulled up a chair, sat down, stole a fry from Henry, and shook Gregory’s hand. “Herja,” she said to him. “You’re Katya’s.”
“Yes, I am,” said Gregory, proudly.
“Hear you’ve got the fattest, healthiest babies ever,” said Herja. She ordered a BLT and a Coke.
“Absolutely,” said Gregory. He pulled up pics on his phone, and they passed them around.
“Hear your daughter Elena wants to be one of us when she grows up,” said Herja. Her Coke came, and she sipped it.
Gregory said, “That’s her path. She’s a Nighthawks girl now, but we’ll see what she wants. She’s a hell of a soccer player.” He got his phone back and showed the pictures.
“Excellent,” said Herja. They ate for a while. “Whatcha doin’?” asked Herja.
“Mission of mercy,” said Gregory.
He showed the “before” and “after” pictures, including the bruises on Ree, how both Mimi and Ree had been horsing around at the dinner table, and Ree at a tumbling class. Then, Mimi grinning when she passed a class, her hands in the air in the “I win” gesture.
“Ree’s grandma is the culprit, and I want custody until Mimi is old enough and strong enough to live on her own, pay the bills, and have time for Ree.”
“I’m coming with you,” said Herja. She sent a text to someone and finished her sandwich. They washed up, took some colas to go, and hit the road.
It was a blazing-hot, dry, dusty road. They stopped twice more for drinks and snacks. Finally, they entered the res. The trailer was on the far end. It was rusted, looked like it would blow away in a stiff wind. A woman with tangled black hair that hadn’t been washed in a while, sat there, at a round plastic table, on a hard, plastic chair, drinking Jim Beam straight from the bottle.
“You Tassee Lodgepole?” asked Henry.
“Who the fuck wants to know?” said the woman. Her face was lined like a roadmap, her fingers jittery on the bottle’s neck. “You the Child Protective Services people who took my Mimi?”
“Sort of,” said Henry. “Gregory here has them, and they’re safe and dry, and cool in summer, warm in winter. Wife’s got more, too.”
Tassee nodded. “How much you willin’ ta give me?”
Gregory went over and showed the pictures of Ree’s bruises to the woman. “How about not putting you in jail for five to ten for child abuse?” he asked. He took the bottle away from her and stepped back.
Henry stepped forward, a paper in one hand, a pen in another. “Suppose you’re bopping Mimi,” said the woman, glaring past Henry out into the desert. “Girl always was a whore.”
Herja stepped forward so quickly that she was around Henry and in the woman’s face, a blade to the woman’s right eye, before anyone else could react. “That girl is a person. Not trash. You’re the trash, hitting a little defenseless girl. What’s wrong? Life make you angry? Poor fucking baby. You took it out on an innocent, and that I cannot forgive. Now sign the fucking paper before I take off one arm, beat you with it, and then the other. Make a bloody mess of you, and then you won’t be able to sign anything, having bled to death in this desert heat.”
Henry slipped the pen into the astonished woman’s grasp, then put the signature page under the pen. Herja made the knife disappear. Tassee signed and gestured toward the bottle. Gregory put it down gently on the table, his face showing that he wanted to beat her with it.
Just for a moment, Tassee looked up at the cold rage in his eyes, and quailed. “You think you’re so much better than me,” she said. “Try raising a whore with nothin’ out here.”
Gregory stepped back and wiped his driving glove off on his pant leg. “Girl is not a whore. You raised her with no love, so she sought it out, looking for anyone who would treat her with the milligram of humanity you don’t possess. And her name is Mimi.” He stepped into her line of sight. “She has a name. To me, you do not. You are not human. A human could not strike a child again and again.”
Herja twirled the knife, then made it disappear again. “If anyone asks, Child Protective Services took them away.” She looked out at the desert all around. “You don’t have long on this earth, anyway,” Herja said. “You’re turning yellow-eyed, got a distended liver. You’re going to die screaming, holding onto a hospital bed, if you bother to go. Chances are you’ll die out here, where no one can hear you scream.”
They all turned away. Henry gave the paper to Gregory, who folded it up and put it in the hidden pocket in his Harley jacket. The woman kept up a steady stream of curses as they put on their helmets, got on their bikes, and then they were gone, out into the desert for the long ride home.
They ate dinner in the diner. This time, Sheriff Xenia was there. Freya had Xenia’s daughter (Diana) in her arms and was making the girl giggle by blowing on her stomach. Dee was doing her homework in the next booth down, along with Chance and Rhodes, who were apparently learning Latin.
“Latin?” asked Henry, sitting his road-weary ass down in the booth next to Xenia.
“They want to read Marcus Aurelius in the original Latin,” said Freya. She rocked the baby Diana, and then started humming an Old Norse lullaby.
“Can’t fault the girls,” said Herja, who sat down next to Freya, forcing Gregory to pull up a chair.
“Your mission of mercy go well?” asked Xenia.
“Got the paper,” said Gregory, patting his pocket.
“She wouldn’t have lasted long anyway,” said Herja. She took a menu and ordered the clam chowder and a chicken salad sandwich. The men ordered pulled-pork sandwiches and the mushroom soup. “Woman’s got end-stage alcoholism. Only thing that would save her is a liver transplant, and I don’t know who’d give an active alcoholic one.”
“Good, because the situation left Bob in a bind. Has to investigate, you know?” Xenia said.
Kema came up and poured coffee. “You save those girls?” she said.
“Of course,” said Gregory. “Had a Valkyrie on the case.”
“Apple pie’s on the house,” said Kema, and she walked away.
“Well,” said Herja, “That ended well. You guys have more Soldier Pack? One of ours moved to Hemet, California. Said she liked being in a quiet place. Another one married one of your guys, is moving north, to just past Reno. Cycling two more through, thinking about a third if we can get Tito to find and rehab us another house.”
“It’s a good late-fall project,” said Henry, “But, nothing soon. They’re so busy, they’ve hired two new subcontractor teams, both companies run by women. One of ‘em specializes in rehabbing apartments, one
in houses.”
“Tito and Nico both need clones,” said Gregory. “Or time travel.”
Henry groaned. “Me too.”
“I’m being pressured to go back to work,” said Xenia. “Not by the brass, but from my own people.”
“The girls are too old for the playroom,” said Freya. “Thought I was adopting younger before I caught wind of those two,” she said, gesturing over her shoulder to her daughters behind her. “We can set up a crib, and I can watch Diana part-time while these sharp-brained girls work their magic in school,” said Freya. “Rhodes wanted to transfer to her sister’s school. Now, they are helping each other with their studies, and doing a metric ton of make-up work to get them caught up from moving around so much.”
“Two hours a day to start,” said Xenia. “Don’t know how I can get through that long. Then, bit by bit, a little more until I’m at six hours. Two hours is doing paperwork, and I’m gonna do that at home.”
“Or put her in the station house under your desk,” said Herja.
Xenia laughed. “No one would do anything, just pass her around like a football. Great for morale, poor for the work getting done.”
“Sounds like you could use our Voice,” said Gregory.
“Better than ‘Spider,’” said Henry.
“Who?” asked Xenia. “Oh, Wraith. Heard she cleaned your security company up, exceptionally well.”
“She did. We run far more efficiently. Frighteningly so,” said Gregory. “She could get you cleaned up in no time, but she’s mine. You can borrow her, but you can’t have her.”
“And then Robin will steal her from me,” said Xenia. “Give us a proposal. Something really short, like a week or so. Things chill out a bit in the fall right before the holidays. Too cold to be starting shit. That’s a good time.”
“I’ll ask,” said Gregory.
“No, I will,” said Xenia. “As a Sister, I have some pull.”
“Woman power,” said Herja, and they all touched fists in the middle of the table.
“I have never figured out why women aren’t ruling the world,” said Henry.