“Think of painting. Think of the image you want to create,” Mr. Rowan instructed, watching the boy nervously stumble across the room. “Work your sword like your brush.”
The boy’s movements turned fluid as he envisioned all the colors he would add into the landscape.
“Good, now learn to work outside of your palette. Feel the emotion behind the strokes and let them flow out the end of the sword,” Mr. Rowan suggested.
Daniel spun across the floor in a crazed fury, striking his imaginary opponents. His mind envisioned the reds, pinks, and purples of blood thrown through the air. The thoughts of the man shooting Megan’s mother and his friends spun around in his mind. He was a scared child, desperate for survival. His parents left him to protect his grandparents and he was embarrassed he couldn’t have done more. Without the few actions his fear caused him to take, they would’ve been kidnapped and held hostage in exchange for his mother’s life. He knew she would have given it. He never wanted to feel that vulnerable again, ever. Tears fell down his face as his energy left his body. Mr. Rowan caught him as he collapsed.
“Good, Daniel, that’s very good. You must know yourself inside if you expect to influence the energy outside of you,” Mr. Rowan told him.
“I couldn’t stop them, Mr. Rowan. They killed my friends. Shot them down like they were nothing. I saved my grandma, but I ran away and hid. They would have captured me to get to my mom. It would’ve been my fault.”
“Sounds to me like you let wisdom and your brilliant colors guide your life. The path before us is not always clear but if we put one foot in front of another, the strokes on the canvas become an inspiration for others,” Mr. Rowan assured him. “And now, my young student, you must let your feet carry you home. We have much to learn tomorrow.”
Daniel looked up and saw that the sun was indeed setting. He thought he had more time. “Thank you, Mr. Rowan.”
“I’ll expect you right after lunch tomorrow,” the old man commanded.
“Yes, sir. I’ll be here,” Daniel concluded, heading out the door.
He ran through the gate of the homesteaders’ camp. His feet flew across the dirt, and the boy noticed that he felt better, lighter, somehow. He couldn’t wait to learn more from Mr. Rowan. As he passed the rows of tents, he saw Carmen out in front of his tent.
“Hi, Carmen,” Daniel greeted him warmly.
“Hi, Daniel. Where are you coming back from so quickly?” Daniel’s friend wondered.
“Oh, I was just out drawing. You know me. There is so much activity here,” Daniel replied.
“I haven’t seen you at all after morning PT. We are going to have a big soccer game after PT tomorrow. You gonna play?” the boy wondered.
“I don’t think so, Carmen. I told this lady I would do a portrait of her,” Daniel replied.
Carmen looked blankly at him. “What’s up, dude? You haven’t been acting like yourself lately.”
“I know, Carmen. I just need time to think. It’s nice to be able to relax once in a while, and SSgt Merkley is always on me at PT. I just need a break,” Daniel replied.
“That guy sure does have it out for you,” Carmen laughed. “I think maybe he’s just pissed his dad put him in charge of training the kids, but why you?”
“He knows my mom,” Daniel admitted to him.
“Oh . . . that makes sense,” Carmen said, connecting the dots. “Or . . . his underpants are too tight, and his balls are getting crushed all day,” Carmen suggested laughing.
Daniel laughed at his joke, thinking of the staff sergeant with tiny little underpants.
“Carmen, I gotta go. My grandma and grandpa will be waiting for me,” Daniel admitted.
“I think we’re all going over to dinner together anyway. Let me tell my mom what’s up and I’ll go with you,” Carmen said, eager to spend some time with his friend.
“That would be great!” Daniel agreed, stepping into the tent so they could tell Penni.
“Hi, Daniel,” Penni greeted him. “I haven’t seen you around in a while.”
“I’ve been busy,” Daniel said shortly.
“I guess so. Your mom just left to go get cleaned up for dinner,” she informed him.
“We’re going to go over to meet them there. Is that okay, Mom?” Carmen wondered.
“Sounds good to me,” Penni answered.
Daniel smiled at her response and the boys headed out the tent. Daniel had missed spending time with his friend and was eager to do some catching up.
Chapter 16
Bennet knew the time to take Denver was fast approaching. He would miss spending his afternoons with Michelle. She brightened his days in ways he hadn’t experienced for many years. However, he was committed to Erika’s safety and the success of the mercenary army’s efforts. Sitting in the tent, snuggling Michelle in his arms, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Erika was up to something.
“I gotta go,” he told Michelle, standing up and putting his uniform back on.
“Why? The afternoon is still young,” Michelle countered.
“I know. I just can’t shake a feeling and I gotta go check it out,” Bennet replied.
“You worry about her too much,” Michelle told him.
“With good reason,” Bennet replied, chuckling. “You saw what she did to the mayor’s wife because that grunt couldn’t keep his eyes on her. She only needs a minute to get into trouble.”
“Why is it your problem, Patrick?” Michelle wondered.
Bennet sat back down on the edge of the cot and held Michelle’s hand.
“Erika is my responsibility. I molded that woman for the resistance. I trained her to be the killer she is. When you create something like that, you can’t just let it run wild,” Bennet told her.
“You give yourself too much credit. You don’t think that existed in her before you got ahold of her?” Michelle wondered at his arrogance.
“I know it did, but I honed it, bred it, encouraged it. I needed her story, her tenacity, and her heart. She turned me into the man you love as I was helping her make a stand,” Bennet admitted honestly.
“Then I guess I should be thanking her,” Michelle conceded. “Go do what you gotta do, but take it easy on the woman. She’s been through a lot.”
“I will, don’t worry,” he said with a smirk.
Michelle didn’t believe a word of it.
Bennet left Michelle’s tent headed for the training field where Erika was supposed to be. SSgt Gleeson was approaching through the back door of the gym by herself.
“How’s she doing, Staff Sergeant?” he asked as he approached.
“Oh . . .uh . . .good, sir. She’s in the bathroom right now, though,” Victoria answered.
“That’s fine. I’m headed over to talk with LtCol Virgis. I’ll be back,” Bennet told her.
Victoria and Erika had a plan in place for this type of emergency, and Victoria went and placed a bandana by the rear gate. As Erika was running home, she found it and instead of coming in the back entrance of the gym, she climbed in the bathroom window that Victoria left open. Bennet returned from talking with LtCol Virgis as Erika was exiting the bathroom.
“Wow, cupcake, that must have been one hell of a bomb you dropped in there,” Bennet teased, eyeballing her.
“I’m not really feeling that good,” Erika told him.
“You are looking tired and your eyes are all bloodshot. Maybe it’s allergies or something. You should go see your father-in-law,” Bennet told her.
“I think I’ll just go back to the tent. I can talk to him when he comes home,” she told Bennet.
“I’ll walk you there,” Bennet volunteered.
“No, really, 1st Sgt, it’s fine,” Erika told him.
“I insist, Erika,” Bennet commanded, standing over her.
“Well, if you insist, then let’s go,” Erika acquiesced.
Bennet was sure something was going on. Where is her normal attitude? he wondered.
“You’ve been hitting it hard lately, right?” he asked.
“Every afternoon while you’ve been out playing smoochy-face,” she teased.
“Let’s see what you’re pushing these days, then,” Bennet said.
“Honestly, I haven’t been in here much. I’ve been out on the field practicing martial arts forms, sprints, and working on agility,” Erika countered.
“Sounds like excuses to me,” Bennet said.
She looked at him curiously. “Are we gonna train or argue?” Erika snapped.
“Don’t get all defensive. I was just checking on your progress,” Bennet told her, unsure why she was reacting this way. “I’m actually going to go spend the afternoon with Michelle. I was just seeing how you were doing.”
“You two are getting really close, aren’t you?” Erika asked.
“I like spending time with her. It’s been a while since I found a woman like that,” Bennet told her.
“That’s good, Bennet,” Erika told him. “It’s about time.”
“Well . . . I’ll catch up with you later,” he told her, leaving the gym with a suspicious look. He paused in the hallway and ducked around the corner where they could not see him.
Erika watched him go. She knew he was up to something, but she was anxious to go fish the pond with her friends.
“He’s poking around a lot,” Victoria commented, as they walked out toward the abandoned practice field.
“He’ll be so busy with Michelle, he’ll never even notice I’m gone,” Erika assured her, before she took off across the field, headed for her secret hole.
Bennet circled around the building and watched them exit out the back. Erika was an expert at evading watchful eyes, but Bennet knew her and the weaknesses in her search patterns. He watched them as they made their way to the training grounds. SSgt Gleeson took her position and Erika darted off across the field. She went to the far fence line and started squirming her way through a patch of blackberry bushes that grew there. Then she popped out on the other side of the fence. He carefully circled around the exterior fence line and watched Erika making her way around the back edge of the camp.
He hustled over to the rear gate and trotted to catch up to her. The woman could move fast and stealthily, but Bennet trained her. He knew the locations she would exploit and soon caught sight of her again as she skirted around the outside of the refugee camp. She followed a path along the exterior of the homesteaders’ camp and entered through a tiny hole in the fence. Bennet was amazed she knew of its location and could even fit through it.
He could not follow her any longer. He didn’t have the clearance to enter the homesteaders’ camp today. He hid his silhouette amongst the trees and watched her navigate through the forest. She ended up at the edge of a lake where she met up with some men. It looked as if they were friends, but Bennet didn’t recognize them. Pulling out his binoculars to get a closer look, he thought maybe he saw them before in the gym. He watched Erika puffing smoke and shook his head. He was guessing it wasn’t tobacco rolled up in that paper. He followed the smoke as it went from individual to individual, trying to identify them. As the smoke passed to Geir, Bennet knew who they were: Geir, Ned, and Graham. They were a particularly stubborn group of men. Elite fighters from the area who would not join sides with anyone. They were the typical security force at the homesteads when security was not being stressed to the max. Loyal only to their families, it made them unreliable on any mission they did agree to help with.
Bennet watched her cast out a hook into the water and sit down to relax by the lake. Oh yeah, she’s been training her butt off, he huffed angrily to himself. She sat down but bounced right back up, reeling in a whopper of a fish. Bennet didn’t even need to use the binoculars to see its size. He smiled at her fighting the tension on the rod, but he scowled as Geir grabbed a net and helped her land it. Geir put the fish into a bucket and congratulated her. Disturbed by Erika’s behavior, Bennet grew tired of watching her and went to find Vince. Heading towards Erika’s tent, he found Nancy at home chatting with Walter at the table.
“Hi, Nancy,” he greeted her.
“Hi, Patrick,” Nancy returned the gesture.
“Is Eddy around?” he wondered.
“No, he should be at the mess, though,” Nancy explained.
“Didn’t he eat with Erika?” Bennet wondered.
“He had to help his mom with a project before lunch, so they ate separately. I know he’s headed out to the homesteads after lunch,” she elaborated.
“Is everything okay, 1st Sgt?” Walter wondered.
“Knowing my daughter, she’s probably off somewhere causing trouble,” Nancy commented sarcastically.
“You know her too well, ma’am,” Bennet replied. “You two take care now.”
He headed for the mess, unsure if he would find Vince, but he’d skipped lunch to make sure he didn’t miss Erika earlier and figured he might as well get some. He grabbed a plate and scanned the seats looking for Vince. He saw him there eating with Greg and Mitchell.
“You guys mind if I join you?” he asked.
“Sure, have a seat, bro,” Greg replied.
“You’re not out with Michelle this afternoon?” Vince asked.
“Oh yeah, Michelle! You’ve been spending a lot of afternoons cooped up with her,” Greg teased.
“Isn’t that Miss Long Legs?” Mitchell added.
Bennet blushed at the young man’s comment.
“Yes, Mitchell, we met in Reno and connected again here. I’m not out with Michelle because I was going to train with Erika today,” he stated casually.
“Where is she?” Vince wondered.
Greg and Mitchell were just finishing up. They looked at one another, well aware that if Bennet was here and Erika wasn’t, trouble was brewing.
“Well, I’ve got to get back and check on Penni,” Greg said, dismissing himself.
“I’ll walk with you,” Mitchell interjected, quickly getting up from his chair.
“Well, Bennet, where is she? Vince wondered, watching his friends scramble.
“That’s what I was going to ask you,” Bennet countered, scooping up a forkful of veggies.
“Don’t you have a guard on her?” Vince responded.
“Yeah, her guard is posted out at the abandoned training field where Erika should be. I’ll deal with that later,” Bennet commented, chewing on his food.
“Sounds like you got a problem,” Vince added, knowing exactly where Erika was.
“Vince, we have a problem,” Bennet urged, trying to gain his assistance with dealing with her. “Did you know she goes and hangs out with the fighters from the homesteads? They’re out there fishing and doing drugs.”
Vince chuckled at Bennet. “You mean the Colorado Boys? They’re nice guys, Bennet. She already took me to meet them. Did you know Geir makes knives? Real good ones, too. You’d probably like him. As far as the drugs, it’s just a little weed, Bennet, lighten up. She’s been through hell and now she must hide so she’s not hunted every day. She hates not being able to rally the troops, so she smokes a little weed now and again to fight the physical and psychological pain, who cares?” Vince explained.
Bennet sat there dumbfounded. Vince already knew the truth. He would be no help.
“You’re fine with your wife gallivanting around with men like that? Aren’t you worried?” Bennet asked.
“About what?” Vince asked, wanting him to say it out loud.
“About her cheating,” Bennet responded.
Vince laughed heartily and sat back in his chair. “Okay Bennet, beyond the fact that I trust Erika with one hundred percent of everything that I am, if you got to know those guys, you’d find out they’re family men. They’re no more interested in Erika for that reason than you are.”
“She should be training and preparing for Denver, not filling her days with R & R,” Bennet countered, trying a new angle.
“Look who’s talking,” Vince said flatly, looking him dead in the eyes. “She’s been on lockdown, left alone to train all day, so she met some new friends in the process. She’s safe in their walls.”
Bennet thought for a moment, not knowing what to say. This was why he had always struggled with relationships with women in the past. There was always a constant pull between his duties and his desire to maintain the friendship.
He fumbled to find the right words, “Maybe you’re right, Vince. We’ve all been run through the wringer. Maybe we all need some time to get our souls straight.”
“She’ll be ready when you need her. You know her. She’ll step up to whatever plate you need her to, so don’t be too hard on her or her guard for letting her take a break,” Vince suggested.
Bennet looked at him curiously. “What do you care about her guard?” he wondered.
“Erika and Victoria go way back,” Vince explained. “Victoria was one of the first students at the Las Vegas Camp who Erika trained. The skills Erika gave her landed her in a prison cell where Merkley found her.”
“Those sneaky women. They didn’t say anything about that. I had no idea,” Bennet replied, realizing Erika duped him all along.
“Victoria is loyal to Erika,” Vince continued. “Getting her in trouble wouldn’t do either of them very well.”
“You know what, Vince,” Bennet asked while wiping up the remnants on his plate with a piece of bread.
“What’s that?” Vince wondered.
“It’s a good thing I came to find you before I went off and did something stupid,” Bennet said with a chuckle.
“See, you can teach an old dog new tricks,” Vince teased, laughing.
Bennet looked at Vince crossly. “You know, Vince, it’s been a while since we got in the ring together.”
Vince laughed at him. “That’s because I’m not stupid,” he countered. “I’ll be ready when you need me to, but without getting in the ring with you first.”
Bennet and Vince left the mess together laughing at their jokes. Bennet went to a place that Erika would pass by on her way home and waited. As the sun was setting into early evening she emerged through the hole in the homesteaders’ fence line. He knew the tired look she wore. He saw it often lately. Now he knew why. It was the effects of the smoke she was indulging in. Her steps were light, but she was more careless as she poked her way along.
The Changing Earth Series (Book 5): Dark Days in Denver Page 11