Desperate Times (25 page)

“The road is too dangerous. We can’t risk
losing the two of you. This little gal here needs you to come back
safely. The three of you saved our bacon last night. We’d all be
dead if it weren’t for you three,” Ken said with an unsteady
voice.

Jimmy leaned over and gently kissed Julie on
her bandaged forehead. He then turned and followed Ken who was
wheeling through the French doors toward the kitchen.

Cindy ran to him as he entered the living
room. She put her arms around Jimmy and squeezed with all of her
strength. “How is she?” Cindy asked.

“I don’t know,” said Jimmy truthfully. “Jon
and I are going to go into town to bring back a doctor. I need you
to look after her while I’m gone. Can you do that for me?”

“I will, I promise I will,” said Cindy,
squeezing him with renewed strength. “Just promise me you’ll be
careful, okay? Promise me that you’ll come back.”

“I promise,” Jimmy said, confidently. “I’ll
be back before you know it.”

Patty and Rita buzzed around the kitchen like
flies. They sat Jimmy at the table, filled his special cup with
steaming coffee and laid out the best breakfast he’d eaten in
weeks. He hadn’t felt hungry, but his mouth watered at the site of
it. He ate hungrily, the women doting over him as if he were
royalty. When he’d finished, the plate was nearly clean. He pushed
himself away from the table and kissed each woman on the cheek.
“Thank you,” he said. “That was excellent.”

He then went outside and lit up a cigarette,
smoking it while he rifled his tent for some clean clothes. He went
inside and took a hot shower which further revived him. He shaved,
brushed his teeth and quickly dressed in blue jeans and his last
clean shirt. He exited the bathroom, ready to take on the day. Jon
was waiting for him at the table.

“Ready?” asked Jimmy.

“Ready,” replied Jon.

The compound was quiet except for the sound
of the wind in the trees. The sky was a dull gray and the air was
cool. Jimmy’s watch told him it was just after ten. They walked
around the side of the house, stepping over spent shell casings.
The two of them met Ken down at the open garage door. Patty, Rita,
and Cindy followed.

“Take these,” Ken said, handing each an M-16.
“I put the straps on them, but you’ll have to adjust them
yourselves. There are six fresh clips inside each of the backpacks.
The women packed some food, medical supplies and some camping gear.
You never know. That should be enough to get you there and back.
Listen up. The doctor you need to talk to is Ted Benson. He’s an
old friend of mine and he’s the guy who took care of me when I was
laid up there. He owes me a favor. Don’t forget to tell him that.
I’m calling in my marker. Don’t worry, he’ll understand.”

“And he’ll be at the hospital?” asked
Jimmy.

“He was when I left,” Ken said, staring off
into the distance. “But that was days ago and it’s anyone’s guess
what’s gone on since then. For all I know he could be in Canada by
now. You’ll know him when you see him. Great big fella… looks more
like a lumberjack than a doctor.”

“We’ll find him,” said Jon.

“I pray you do,” said Patty. “We’ve got a lot
of people counting on you. We don’t need to tell you that.”

“Especially me,” quipped Rita, with a wicked
grin. “I won’t be able to sit down until you guys get back.”

They all laughed at that. Jon and Jimmy
strapped on their heavy backpacks and hefted their rifles. Cindy
hugged Jimmy one final time which brought on an entire wave of
hugs. Ken firmly shook both of their hands. “Good luck,” he said,
“and Godspeed to you both.”

The women waited at the gate. They shouldered
the heavy log and carefully leaned it against the wall. They then
pulled open one side of the gate.

And there stood the Peterson clan. Carl stood
at the back.

“Jimmy!” cried Paula, and she rushed into his
arms.

Jimmy’s knees buckled.

People talk about the annual federal deficit,
but they seldom speak of total outstanding federal obligations.
This is borrowed money that our creditors expect to be repaid. This
number and our government’s ability to cover these loans, is in
serious question.

Jimmy couldn’t believe his eyes, yet here
they were. He hugged Paula. The group looked ragged and tired.
Their clothes were soiled and their faces were dirty. Carl had
managed to keep himself cleaner than the rest of the group. His
black hair, while oily, was impeccably combed and his face looked
to have been freshly scrubbed. Stanley and Mary Peterson looked on
the brink of exhaustion. They looked absolutely foreign to Jimmy,
who had never seen them outside of what he considered to be formal
wear.

“These are the Petersons, Paula’s parents,”
said Jimmy, who was still in a mild state of shock, “Stan and
Mary.”

“I’m Carl LeBeau,” said Carl, reaching a hand
out to Jon. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Yes,” said Jimmy. “And that’s Carl. How did
you get here? How long have you been waiting at the wall?”

“Jimmy,” scolded Patty. “There will be plenty
of time for that. Let’s get them inside and get them fed. We can
talk later.”

“Sure,” said Jimmy, turning to Jon. “Do we
have fifteen minutes?”

“I don’t think fifteen minutes will hurt,”
Jon said.

“What do you mean?” asked Paula.

“I’ll tell you later,” said Jimmy, wondering
how he could explain everything in such a short amount of time. He
and Jon set down their packs, closed the gate and replaced the
timber into the lock. Paula latched back onto Jimmy’s side as soon
as he’d finished.

“Come on,” said Ken. “You’re all welcome to
stay with us. Let’s get you fed and find you some fresh clothes. It
looks like you need them.”

“Thank you,” said Mary Peterson. “Thank you,
so much,” she repeated. She then began to weep and nearly fell
over. Stanley held her up and they followed the group up to the
house.

Fifteen minutes turned into nearly an hour.
Once inside the house, Paula went straight into the bathroom. She
showered and Patty found her a fresh change of clothes in Jill
Sandberg’s duffel bag. The two were very close to the same size and
Patty, being practical, saw nothing wrong with giving Paula the
entire wardrobe. The transformation was unbelievable. Paula emerged
from the bathroom looking like her old self.

Paula and Jimmy sat in the back yard. He
watched as Paula ate her breakfast with unusual abandon. Jimmy
spoke as she ate. He told her as much as he dared. He mentioned
that a woman was wounded on the porch, omitting her name. Paula
would instantly recognize it. She had been extremely jealous of
Jimmy’s prior relationships, especially the one with Julie Hartman.
She’d even insisted that he throw away all of her old pictures he
had held onto.

No, Paula would find out about Julie after
he’d gone.

Paula told Jimmy of how they’d fled the
cities, barely escaping with their lives. She relived the horrors
of riding in the back of the military truck all the way to Duluth
and their long, treacherous journey to Bear Lake Campground where
she was certain they’d all be killed. She even told him the story
of the moldy bread and how grateful she’d been to eat it. She then
went on to tell him about their journey out of the campground.
Jimmy asked her if the militia had been defeated, but they had
escaped the campground under the cover of night. Paula had no idea
of who had won the battle.

Jon sized up Carl and offered him a fresh
change of clothes. Carl accepted gratefully. He and Jon visited
while Carl ate his breakfast. They sat across from each other at
the picnic table next to Paula and Jimmy. They discovered they had
a common friend and they both laughed about how small the world
was. Jimmy didn’t think he’d ever heard Carl laugh before; in fact,
he was sure of it. Paula finished her breakfast and stared into
Jimmy’s eyes, expectantly.

“Stay here,” she begged.

Paula was insisting that he stay, but Jimmy
wasn’t listening. He explained to her how desperately they needed a
doctor and repeated that they’d be back the following day. She
pouted about this and took him by the arm and pulled him from the
table.

“Walk with me,” she said.

Jimmy left Jon and Carl at the table,
following Paula around the side of the house. She wore a white
cotton shirt and a pair of tight-fitting khaki shorts; on her feet
was a pair of women’s hiking boots. Her blonde hair was pulled back
behind her ears and she had applied a dab of makeup. She looked as
fresh as a spring daisy and Jimmy felt his heart pound when she
took him into her arms.

“I love you, Jimmy Logan,” she said, kissing
him with furious passion.

Jimmy returned the kiss, but his stomach
churning in knots. He didn’t know what else to do. Paula’s hands
were gripped tightly around his waist.

“Oh Jimmy,” she groaned. “I never thought I’d
see you again,” she said, taking a quick breath before once again
pressing her open mouth against his.

Jimmy slowly pulled away, a wave of guilt
burning inside of him. “I’ve got to go,” he said, looking deep into
Paula’s blue eyes. “I’ll be back.”

“Why does it have to be you?” Paula asked.
“We could send Carl out with your friend. They could bring back a
doctor.”

Jimmy shook his head. “No,” he said. “I’ve
got to go. End of discussion.”

Paula reached out to him, but Jimmy stepped
back. She nodded. “Okay,” she said, taking him by the arm as they
returned to the back yard. “I’m so sorry for doubting you. Can you
ever forgive me? I’ll be waiting for you, Jimmy. I’ll be waiting
right here. And when you get back, you and I have some business to
attend to.”

Jimmy didn’t need to ask her what she meant
by that. His head was spinning and he wanted nothing more than to
be on his way. Jon and Carl were still at the table, Carl chewing
slowly as Jon told him about what had happened the night
before.

“Let’s hit it,” said Jimmy.

“Right,” answered Jon, “nice to meet you,
Carl. I’ll see you when we get back with that doctor.”

“I look forward to it,” replied Carl.

Jimmy walked over to the kitchen window and
called inside. “We’re leaving,” he said. “Can someone catch the
gate for us?”

During the Second World War, relocation camps
in the United States were known as “concentration camps” until the
term was assimilated into the Nazi death camps. Political
correctness aside, the camps were for the sole purpose of
imprisonment. Over 120,000 Japanese Americans were imprisoned
during the war and would testify to the truth of the above
statement.

Many of these detainees have names you’d
recognize.

A patch of blue sky opened up as the two
walked silently away from the compound. They followed the gravel
driveway around the corner. They walked for ten minutes before Jon
spoke.

“What are you going to do about Julie?” he
asked.

Jimmy groaned. “I don’t know,” said Jimmy,
honestly. “I really don’t know.”

“This is going to break her heart. You know
that, right?”

Jimmy rolled his eyes. Of course he knew
that. He also wasn’t entirely sure that it’d be Julie’s heart that
he would be breaking. They had been through a lot in a short amount
of time, and during that time, she’d nearly made him forget about
Paula. Paula had left him to ride this out with her parents. By
some fluke or miracle, they’d escaped the burning cities and made
it to their gate. He didn’t know how he felt about any of it. He
knew he still loved Paula, at least on some level. He also knew he
was still attracted to Paula. She possessed a classic, Nordic
beauty. Her blonde hair, sparkling blue eyes and high cheek bones
still made his heart pound in his chest; this morning had proven
that to him. She was tall and lean and had the flawless body of a
swimsuit model. He tried to push those thoughts out of his
head.

“Julie loves you, Jimmy,” Jon said, breaking
the silence. “And she’s fighting for her life.”

“Stop it,” barked Jimmy. “I get it. I love
her, too. I’ve got to sort everything out. This isn’t easy for me,
okay?”

Jon smiled. “I just thought you should know.
Trying to makes some conversation, you know?”

“Well, let’s talk about something else,”
Jimmy grumbled, picking up the pace as he walked.

“Okay, okay,” said Jon. “What can we talk
about? Oh, why don’t you tell me about Carl? He works for the
Petersons? What do you know about him?”

Jimmy groaned. He hated Carl and he’d always
hated Carl. The little man never let him forget about his station
in life. Carl was a pompous jerk who toyed with Jimmy like a cat
with a mouse. Carl had never had a lady friend the entire time
Jimmy had known him. Jimmy quickly gave Jon a hard look.

“He seems nice,” said Jon.

“Right,” replied Jimmy sarcastically. “He’s a
great guy.”