Johnson Junction

by J. W. DeBrock

  They left the truck stop after some further discussion and drove over to the apartments. Tony and Rafe walked upstairs to the boy’s home. Rafe knocked, and the young man answered. “Hola, amigos, como estas?”

  Rafe and Tony exchanged glances. “Pretty good, Cristian. Look, we need to come in and talk.”

  Tony sat on the sofa, Rafe took one of the bar stools at the pass-through between the kitchen and living room. Cristian remained standing, his arms crossed. He looked back and forth between the men.

  Tony sighed. “Cristian, I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but your mom died last night giving birth.”

  The young man dropped into a chair and hung his head. “Dios Mio,” he said softly. He started to cry.

  Tony looked at Rafe, who went into the kitchen and brought back some paper towels. He handed them to the boy, who tried to suppress his grief. “Gracias.”

  “Look, kid, you got any alcohol in this place? Maybe a beer or something?” asked Rafe.

  “Yes, one in the frig.”

  Rafe went back to the kitchen and brought the beer to the boy, opening it for him. “Here, man. Drink this.”

  Tony began to speak. “Cristian, there are a lot of things going on around here that I don’t have time to explain. I know you want answers, but we can’t give them to you.” He paused and exchanged looks with Rafe, who nodded. “Believe me when I say that Rafe and I are taking a big chance, just being here with you right now.”

  Cristian’s face registered surprise. “Why?”

  “That is something we just don’t have time to go into, and don’t care to, ever. Just trust me when I say that Rafe and I have come here to help you.”

  The boy seemed to accept this and understand. “Okay. I feel like you were pretty straight with me and Mom. This whole thing has felt kind of weird, anyway.”

  Rafe spoke. “It is weird, man. But that’s not your concern right now, and not ours. The reason we have come here is to help you get away.”

  “What about my Mom?”

  “We’ll take care of what needs to be done, chico. You don’t need to worry. She will have a proper burial.” Tony’s eyes met Rafe’s. “We need to get you out of here, kid. What I want to know is, do you have any other relatives anywhere?”

  Cristian thought a few moments. “Mom has a brother who lives in Oregon. We haven’t seen him in years, though. I don’t really remember much about him, but I think we have his address here somewhere.”

  Tony got up from the sofa, parted the curtain at the front window, and looked up and down the street. “Well, kid, here’s the deal. Rafe and I gotta get you out of here – right now.” He let the drape fall back into place. “You gotta pack just what you can carry. It’s time for you to man up.”

  The boy sat and looked at Tony. Dim recognition began to light his face. “I knew that as soon as the baby came, mama and I would be leaving this place. But you guys were supposed to bring her money and papers –“

  Rafe spoke up, his speech rapid. “Cristian, we are going to get your money and papers RIGHT NOW. You’ll be seventeen pretty soon – in this country, you can be on your own. Soon as you turn eighteen, you’ve got it made.” His voice became urgent. “We got to go, boy. Pack your stuff right NOW. Tony and me are getting you out of here. No questions!”

  The boy rose from his seat and went into a bedroom. Tony could see through the door that he was gathering and tossing items quickly into a duffel and backpack. He looked at Rafe, who raised his eyebrows, and continued his vigil at the window.

  When the boy was finished, Tony opened the door a crack and peered out. He went out, the other two behind him. Rafe closed the door quietly and the three crept down the stairs. They piled into Tony’s expensive sedan.

  Pulling up in his circular driveway, Tony wiped sweat from his brow. “Jesus. I know it’s too early for Richard, and since I’m in charge of Manny, we’re good.”

  Rafe and Cristian followed him into the house and back to his office. Tony opened a cupboard, and pushed the combination of buttons to open his safe. He reached inside and pulled out a wad of cash with a band around it. “Cristian, this is ten thousand dollars. It’s what you and your mom would have gotten for the baby. I’m giving it to you now, kid, and you gotta work with it and make a life for yourself. It will take you to Oregon, if you want to look for your uncle. It’ll take you anywhere else, too – just be sure it is fucking far away from here – and don’t ever come back! Are we clear?”

  Cristian nodded somberly as he accepted the money. “I understand, Senor Tony. And I thank you both. I will never forget what you do for me.”

  Tony sat at his desk and opened one of the drawers. He pulled a manila envelope out. “Here are the papers. I give you yours, and your mama’s as well. You may need her papers to prove how you got into the country. The only thing you won’t have for now is her death certificate – but that can’t be helped. Keep these safe, kid, and be safe – your mama paid for it with her life.”

  Rafe said, “We’re taking you to the airport now. You decide where you want to go. Oregon is nice this time of year, a good place to live. It’s time to be a man.”

  When Tony came back home from the airport, he placed a call to Manny on his secure land line.

  He then called and finally located Waverly at the Junction, where he was taking care of some ordering problems with the gift shop manager. Richard answered; “Waverly.”

  Tony swallowed hard. “It’s Tony. The boy has been taken care of.”

  As he hung up the phone, his hand shook.

  19

  The next morning Tony opened his front door to Waverly, who walked in with the baby girl in her carrier. The lawyer went out to the car as usual to retrieve her other things. Under his breath he mumbled, “I’m a fucking valet.”

  He walked back to his den, where Waverly had set the baby on the carpet in front of the couch. He was standing at Tony’s bar mixing himself his morning libation. He turned to look at his accomplice.

  “You look like crap today.”

  “Thanks, Richard. It’s good to see you too.” Tony set the bag down next to the baby and then sat himself down on the couch. He peeked beneath the blanket that nearly covered the baby’s face, curious. She awoke and rubbed her tiny face with covered hands that were tucked into her long sleeves. She was absolutely gorgeous, perfectly flawless olive skin and just a light dusting of dark hair on her head. She opened her eyes a bit, and her tiny jewels sparkled at Tony. He smiled at her.

  “You’re quiet this morning. Something bothering you?” said Waverly.

  “Not in the least,” Tony lied, “Just peachy.”

  Richard came and joined him on the couch, comfortably crossing his legs. He sipped his morning alcohol, watching Tony.

  Tony looked back. “Something on your mind?”

  “Oh, I’m fine. Slept like a baby once Manny left.”

  Tony rose and went into his kitchen, looking in his refrigerator to mask his shaking from Waverly. He returned with a tall glass of orange juice and headed to his bar. “You know, a little something might be just the ticket after all.” He poured a healthy amount of vodka into the juice.

  Richard sighed, contentedly. “This has been a great week. I love the feeling of so many dollars dropping into the old back account.”

  Tony sighed as he sat down behind his desk. He consulted his Rolex. “Speaking of that, our clients will be here within half an hour. Can’t let the ladies see the daddy.”

  Richard clucked his tongue at Tony and remained comfortably seated.

  Tony’s eyes wandered to the safe cabinet. He jerked them away as Waverly shifted his weight and the couch creaked.

  “You really should do something about that matched set of luggage under your eyes, Tony. Maybe a lift or something. Not good to look like you’ve been on a bender.” He laughed a harsh, self-satisfied chuckle. “By the way, how’s Rafe coming along with the new girls? That last one was almost fun.”

  When Wave
rly left, Tony wrinkled his suit as he sat in the living room waiting for the lesbian couple. He was nervously restless.

  He spent the remainder of his afternoon working at home in his office. He paid particular attention to his files, concentrating on the eleven pairs of prospective parents – those with deposits for the eleven babies that were currently in utero.

  Auggie had figured that he wouldn’t have much to do for the next few weeks. I saw him every day, after that first night together. I finished my shift each afternoon at two; I’d go to my room, freshen up, and then walk over to his trailer. He’d have an adult beverage waiting for me, surprising me constantly with a variety of drinks I’d never tasted.

  I had never imagined that just being with a man could be such fun.

  We sat in the deck chairs out back, and he’d given me a blanket to cover up with as there was a chilly breeze. “Something bothering you today, love?” He leaned over and kissed my forehead.”

  Something was indeed bothering me. “Auggie, yes. Actually, there’s something I need to confess.”

  He looked at me with blue eyes full of concern. “Yes, go on.”

  I sighed, dread pinging the inside of my head like a wayward pinball. “Augustus Blackburn, I’m in love with you.”

  He stood up and kneeled before me. “Madeleine Brown, I’m in love with you as well.” He leaned forward and gave me a long, lingering kiss that made my lips tingle.

  The pinball banged against my frontal lobe. I looked deep into his eyes, wanting to crawl into them and never let him make me leave. “Auggie, dearest. There’s good news and bad news.”

  He stood up and then sat back down in his chair, sipping his drink. “Well then love, on with it.”

  I leaned forward and scooted my chair as close to him as I could get, dragging my blanket along. I reached for his hands and held them in mine. “I have never, in this lifetime, known a man like you. You are the man of my dreams.” I watched as his beautiful blue eyes began to tear. “Please, it’s a good thing, a wonderful thing. A blessing from the Universe, something I prayed for and wished for all my life. My feelings for you are a bond I wish to never break. Never.”

  He kissed me again. I bolstered my resolve.

  “But I must tell you how Bry and I came to be here.”

  He caressed the side of my face with his hand. “I can tell from the tone of your voice that something substantial is behind that BUT.” He rose from his chair. “I’ll be right back.” He soon returned with the bourbon and glasses, pouring us each a shooter. “Cheers, love.” We clinked the little glasses together and upended them.

  The pinball was giving me a headache. “I’m married, Auggie. To a real shithead, a fucking bastard and poor excuse for a human being that I ran away from. I took my son and left in the middle of the day. I drove away in my little car that doesn’t run anymore, and we disappeared.” His eyes became tinged with sadness and I felt like a dirty dog. “I’m sorry, but I have got to tell you the whole truth.”

  He shook his head and continued to hold my hands. “I’m alright, love. Please, I want to hear your story. Go on.”

  I leaned forward and kissed his cheek.

  I continued. “Dale Brown and I met at a truck stop, seven years ago. I was even further down on my luck then than I am here, if you can believe it. I thought he was dashing, he was good-looking, had a killer Southern accent, and was charming and funny. He attracted me and made me feel like I was wanted. I should have shot myself instead.” I released his warm hands and sat back in my chair.

  “I was living with a woman friend, a successful lady with her own business. She’d taken me in when I got so far down. She helped me find a job at the nearby truck stop, close to her house, waitress in the graveyard shift. It was the first job I’d had in a while and I was happy for the work, even though I’d never worked nights and had a hard time adjusting to the sleeping schedule.” I tucked my hands into the blanket; they were chilly. “Dale came into the restaurant in the middle of the night for coffee. One thing led to another. It seemed like a good idea at the time.”

  Auggie poured us both another shooter. I was grateful for the anti-freeze and the numbing sensation.

  “I hooked up with him. One thing led to another, and pretty soon I was pregnant with Bry. The pregnancy was hard on me – I was sick day and night for about four months and had to quit my job. He managed to find us a ratty apartment that smelled of vomit in a sleazy part of town.” A shiver ran down my back as the memory was fresher than I would have liked. The pinball began to slow its assault. “I had no medical care. I was scared, but I felt that I would know if something was wrong with the baby. I ate as well as I could, given the circumstances. Dale managed to keep us in groceries – with the help of the food pantry – and I use those terms loosely.” I signed and looked at Auggie. He was rapt.

  “Anyhow, when I was about seven months along we decided to get married for the sake of the baby. Went to a local justice of the peace. Big mistake, that. I should have had the baby by myself. I hate that saying, ‘seemed like a good idea at the time.’ Fuck that shit.” A sour taste developed in my mouth.

  “When I was about eight months along, he got the bright idea that I needed to go and stay with my sister – my only relative – in Nashville so he could get things together, as he put it. He put me on a bus late one night. The weather was very cold and an ice storm came through the area. I was sitting three rows behind the bus driver on a bus bound for Memphis and then Nashville. The ice was two inches thick on the interstate, and it was all he could to keep the bus on the road. My seat partner was an older black man who insisted on talking to me. And then – while the bus driver was so preoccupied – he molested my breasts.”

  Auggie closed his eyes, grasping my cold hands. I welcomed his warmth with my total being. “Another?” he asked. I nodded. He poured.

  I went on, unable to stop myself. “When we got to Memphis, the bus was grounded from the winter storm. Everything was. I was stranded along with so many other people. I ended up calling my sister in a panic, and she eventually flew me from Memphis to Nashville the next morning. A Good Samaritan gave me a ride in his shuttle bus from the bus depot to the airport – and I spent a miserable night in the Memphis airport, dragging a heavy suitcase, with a belly so huge I could hardly carry it myself.”

  He shook his big head, looking at me with such endearment that I wanted him to wrap me in his arms, right then. But I continued speaking instead. “My sister became my savior. She took me in, got me in to see a midwife. The baby was healthy, but very large. There was some talk about gestational diabetes.” He nodded his head, well familiar with what I was saying. “I had Bryan in a welfare hospital – the dirtiest, nastiest medical facility I have ever seen. It was a run-down place where all the indigents and prisoners go. Can’t even talk about it any more.” I pointed to the bourbon.

  “Anyhow, Dale eventually showed up at my sister’s to claim us. Seems he’d managed to rent an old house out in the country – isolation was one of his favorite manipulations – and he took me and Bry away. We lived out there for over five years. We were all each other had, me and Bry. Cows used to wander through the yard.” We upended our shots.

  “Dale is an entity from hell. I know you drink a lot, but he had it refined to an art form. Used to drink a twelve-pack and a fifth every day. Kept himself in booze, and kept us in a bare minimum of everything else. We barely had electricity and scraped the rent together. I really don’t know how Bry and I survived. A lady came by the house one day, a door-to-door evangelist, and we got into a conversation because Dale was gone. She helped me get food stamps, and took us to get groceries now and then.” I got up from my chair and wrapped myself like a burrito with the blanket, sitting back down. Auggie chuckled at me. “More anti-freeze?” I nodded. Actually, I wasn’t feeling a whole lot of pain by then.

  “Good god, Maddy.” Auggie’s face was sad, so sad.

  “Anyhow, I eventually had enough. I couldn’t brin
g myself to kill him – although he deserved it – and instead we ran. And here we ended up. When I left, I left a note to tell him not to look for us. Told him to expect divorce papers in the mail.”

  Auggie rose from his chair, and without saying a word took me by the hand. He led me back to his bed where we lay together fully clothed, holding each other tightly.

  I cried and soaked his shirt with my tears.

  20

  The next afternoon after work, Auggie drove me to the closest town of size east, the county seat. There I was able to fill out a set of do-it-yourself divorce papers, and Auggie paid the filing fee for me. I cannot possibly describe the relief I felt, the burden that was lifted that day from my heart and shoulders. My spirit was freed, and I imagined it flying through the clear desert sunshine on the breeze, a bright red heart with wings. Auggie laughed with me as I described it.

  We got back to the Junction about an hour after the school bus had dropped off the kids. Auggie parked beside his trailer. “Coming in?” he asked.

  “I need to go and check on Bry and the girls, first.”

  “I’ll come with you.”

  We got out of his car, joined hands, and walked down the dusty road toward the rooms. As we turned the corner of the housing row, I stopped dead in my tracks, frozen. Sitting at the picnic table in front of Donna’s room was my son, and his father.

  My voice left me entirely, my mouth hanging open. Auggie tugged my hand until he looked at me and saw I wasn’t moving, just staring. My heart began to race and he felt my skin grow instantly clammy against his palm. He followed my eyes and saw Bry sitting with a man, talking. Bry was casually kneeling on the bench seat on one side, his father on the other.

  “Maddy love,” Auggie whispered, “Is that your husband?”