Freedom Fight: Beginnings Series Book 9 (3 page)

Henry’s eye lit up. “You know what? I will. Good idea.”

“Sounds like he’s teething, ” Scott commented.

“So why is crying? He should be happy. I know I would want to have teeth instead of just those gums. He probably just misses his mom.”

Scott looked at Henry, laughing. “Ellen? I can’t recall ever seeing her with Nick.”

“O.K., he probably misses Frank. Frank kidnapped Ellen, you know.”

“Yeah, yeah, I heard it all from you this morning.” Scott rolled his eyes. “Can’t you shut him up?” Scott asked as he held his ear closed. “Feed him or something.”

“He won’t eat for me. I think he likes to cry to hear himself.”

At that second, the mechanics door opened and Danny Hoi walked in. He immediately started laughing. “Oh my God, Henry. I bet you were exactly like that when you were a baby, whining all the time.”

“Very funny.” Henry resumed looking at his requisitions.

Danny dropped a pile of papers on the counter. “These are done.” He walked behind Henry and grabbed Nick from the knapsack. Nick stopped crying. “There, that’s better. For as wiry as your dad is, I wouldn’t want to be strapped to his back either.”

Henry looked up and about. “Hey, Nick stopped crying.” Henry seemed surprised, especially when he looked and saw Danny was holding the baby. “Danny, good job. Thanks.”

“He needed to be held. You know what?” Danny asked.

“Huh?” Henry reviewed the orders from the work Danny did. “Excellent job getting these done so quickly.”

“Thanks. Anyway, I think you should let me have this kid,” Danny joked. “He looks more like me than you anyhow.”

“O.K.,” Henry said and set down the work orders, “but just until Frank gets back because Frank likes him.”

“Henry, I’m kidding.”

“Aw.” Henry whined. “You shouldn’t do that Danny on such serious issues.”

“Don’t you want your kid?”

“Not when he’s crying.”

Danny laughed. “Then you must never want your kid, because anytime I ever see him with you, he’s crying. What is up with your hair today?”

Henry ran his hands through it. “Oh, I’m just frazzled.”

Scott heard Henry’s response and he immediately looked at Danny, giving him a warning not question Henry any further.

Danny wasn’t paying attention. “Why are you frazzled? We did all the work.”

“Ha, ha, ha. Funny. No. In case you didn’t hear, Frank kidnapped Ellen.”

Scott’s hands slammed down on the table. “And for those of us who did hear it a million times,
we now have to hear it again.”

“You’re kidding. Frank kidnapped Ellen?” Danny asked.

“Yep. He took her right from Beginnings, left a note and everything,” Henry explained.

“How is something like that dealt with around here?” Danny questioned. “I mean, when Frank gets back, do they let him back in. What?”

“They’ll let him back in, but I’m sure Joe will yell at him really badly,” Henry nodded, “And Dean is going to be so pissed off when he finds out.”

“Dean doesn’t know?”

“He doesn’t realize it’s true. I told him. He thinks I’m crazy but I know Frank took her. They all think he has her somewhere on Beginnings property. I know better because I know Frank.” Henry took a stack of orders over to the file cabinet and laid them on top.

“Since you have to watch your own kid now, does this mean I have to find someone else to help me build more Auralnators?”

“No,” Henry answered, “I’ll find someone to help out with him. In fact, I’ll speak to Joe during our meeting this afternoon.” Henry looked as his watch. “Speaking of which . . . I’d better hurry up and look at perimeter twelve ahead of time. I know Joe will ask about it.” Henry hurried and lifted his tool bag. “See you guys.” He darted out the door.

“Henry. You forgot . . .” Danny held his hand out then dropped it when he saw Henry was gone. Danny looked at Nick in his arms, “…your kid.”

Scott snickered. “He did the exact same thing to me this morning.”

“What am I supposed to do with him? I can’t just . . .” A bright smile hit Danny.

“What? What’s that look for?”

Danny nodded his head. “I’ve got a great idea.” He moved to the door with Nick. “It’s time to put Henry’s true paternal instincts to test. See ya.” Danny left with Nick.

Scott shook his head and returned to his work. “Test Henry’s paternal instinct?” Scott chuckled, “He’ll fail.”

^^^^

Ellen huffed. Her arms were folded to her as she stood outside with Frank. He faced one way over a small hill. She faced the opposite way yet they stood close enough their arms almost touched. She peered at the truck twenty feet away and huffed once more.

“Enough,” Frank told her.

“Frank.” Ellen tapped her fingers anxiously. “Do you think you could take any longer?”

“I wouldn’t take this long if you weren’t breathing down my neck.”

“I can’t even reach your neck.” She tilted her head back and peeked at him. “You didn’t even go.”

“How can I go when you keep watching me?”

“Why did we even pull over?”

“I told you I had to go.”

“But you haven’t.”

“That’s because you keep telling me to hurry up.”

Ellen let out a disgruntled breath. “You would think after twenty years you wouldn’t have a problem peeing in front of me.”

“I don’t have a problem peeing in front of you. I have a problem starting when you keep fuckin watching.”

“Then I’ll stand by the truck.”

“Don’t stand by the truck. I want you by me in case there’s trouble.”

Ellen tossed her hands in the air. “Frank, you either have me stand here, telling you to go, or I stand by the truck to let you go in peace. Either way… GO!”

“All right! I’m going.”

“Thank God.” Ellen exhaled and shifted her weight. “You make me stand by you.” She shifted her weight to the other side. “How in the world are you supposed to protect me while you go to the bathroom?”

“Ellen, shut up.”

“What are you gonna do, Frank, hose them down?”

“El, be quiet.”

“Why are you talking to me like that?” Ellen bitched. “Would you please finish. This isn’t a marathon. I’d like to . . .”

“Ellen!” Frank zipped up.

“No, I’d like to get going.”

“I’m done! Now will you shut your fuckin mouth?”

“Fuck you, Frank. I can’t believe you are taking . . .” Ellen shut up when she saw Frank reach into his shoulder harness for his revolver and pull it out. He spun to her, stepped back, and lifted it.

“What are you gonna do. Shoot me?”

“Duck.” Frank laid his hand on her head, shoved her down, extended his revolver, and fired a shot. There was a grunt, followed by a thump.

Ellen screamed, spun to look, and saw what looked like a savage lying not three feet from her. His forehead was now missing from Frank’s shot. “Shit.”

“Where’s there’s one, there’s more.” Frank helped her to her feet and spoke calmly. He checked his clip. “Stay behind me. Hold onto my waist and whatever you do, don’t let go.” He began to move with her.

“Should we run to the truck?”

“No, move with me. With savages, I take no chance. Just stay ready. Don’t be surprised if . . .” A loud hooting, the traditional cry of war from the savages began. “. . . that happens. Fuck.”

One came from the left, two from the right, and another jumped up on the truck. Frank fired straight ahead. It hit the savage on the truck and sailed him backwards. He turned to his right and aimed. A spear came flying at him with a high pitch whistle. Like a batter waiting for his pitch, Frank swung the hand that held the gun and knocked the spear to the side. He rose up again, shot twice, and hit them both. Then he shifted to his right.

The last savage leaped forth as if he were an attack dog. Frank looked more perturbed than anything else, seeing the thin, smaller man lunge for him. Frank merely clenched his fist, grunted in anger, and delivered a hard blow to the savage, just as he neared within inches. The savage’s eyes rolled, his body spun quickly the other way, and then dropped to the ground. Frank reached down with Ellen, still holding her tightly. He lifted the still breathing savage by his hair, braced him, and with a quick jolt of his head, Frank broke the savage’s neck.

Ellen’s face was buried so deeply into Frank’s back, her nose actually hurt. Slowly she lifted her head. “Is it safe?”

“Did you think it wouldn’t be?”

“Oh listen to how cocky you are. See! See, Frank, this is why we shouldn’t be out here.”

Frank took Ellen by the arm and led her back to the truck. “No, this is exactly why we should be out here.”

“What? So we can be killed.”

“No, so we can stay busy.”

Ellen laughed in ridicule as they arrived at the truck. “You are not Indiana Jones, Frank. Life isn’t just one big adventure. You can’t swing in on a rope and save . . . O.K. maybe you can. But you can’t jump in . . . well, you do that too.” Ellen got in the truck and Frank stayed at the door. staring at her with one raised eyebrow. “What if a group of . . .eh, you could.”

“Your point?”

“My point is . . .” Ellen paused to think. “My point is we aren’t stopping any more. No more. Let’s just get going.”

Frank smiled and closed the truck door. He walked over to his side, got in, shut his door, grabbed Ellen, and kissed her hard and long. He pulled back with a slight moan, kissed her quickly again, then started the truck. He grinned at her. “Having fun yet?”

“There is just something wrong with you.”

Frank gave a chuckle, shifted gears, pulled away.

Ellen brought her hands to her lips as the truck started to move. She slowly and silently let out the frightened breath she held. She hid her fright from Frank, but the fact remained, whether Ellen was with the safest person she could be with or not, she had just been scared. Though it didn’t seem to faze Frank, they were beyond the walls of their home and Ellen wondered what else could be waiting for them out there.

^^^^

The house next to Henry’s used to be where Andrea lived, three doors up from Dean, first row of houses in the living section. Now that house, so nice and feminine, belonged to Robbie. He wanted to make a stop there after watching training and before going to see Joe. He walked from the house with Jess Boyen, a Caceres Society defector, now a full fledge Beginnings resident who sported a security uniform. Jess was the man who had led the defection. The knowledge he knew of the society and their works, he shared with Beginnings. That, along with his twelve years in the Canadian Army Special Forces division, pretty much shooed him into the security position Frank had assigned him.

Jess stood nearly as tall as Robbie but had a slightly thinner build. Though he was four years older than Robbie, he looked much younger, because he just didn’t look as rugged and worn. Short, cropped, wavy blonde hair, Jess was what the women in Beginnings described as ‘the guy who could give Blake the soap opera god a run for his money’.

“Robbie, I appreciate this,” Jess spoke in his soft and slightly
Canadian accented voice.

“I needed a roommate. In Beginnings, unless you’re Josephine or you win the single dwelling structure lottery, you’re out. You have to share. Hey, I figured since we hit it off right away and you’re in security, you’d be the man.”

“I don’t think you’ll find me too difficult.”

“I don’t either. I usually know which people I click with right away and I clicked with you. Besides, Frank put you on night and evening shifts, walking the living sections so how much will we see each other? Of course, I lived with my father forever, so I can live with anyone.”

Jess laughed as they walked. “O.K. So you’re headed back to work?”

“I’m head of security now.” Robbie lifted his shoulders. “But I have to be careful I don’t show my brother up. He’s getting old and he’s starting to suck at it. Then again, man, I do have to work a lot now.”

Jess shook his head with a smile. “I’m checking out the different distribution areas, you know, see how they run. Do we need anything at the house?”

“Like what?”

“Like food or are we good on our share this week?”

Robbie paused in his walking. He blew with a flutter of his lips, raised his eyebrows, while he scratched his head. “I don’t think I ever went to distribution for food my entire time in Beginnings. No wait, I’m lying. I got milk for El. I guess my Dad took care of that so I never thought about it.” He shrugged and started walking again.

“What about now since you lived alone?”

“Andrea feeds me.”

“Then I’ll just let distribution be one of my responsibilities in the house because I don’t think Andrea will feed me too,” Jess said.

“She might. You never know. She gets pretty loopy.” They had reached the edge of town. “This is where we part ways. I have to see my dad. I should have been there an hour . . . or more . . . ago. See ya’ later.” Robbie gave a swift pat to Jess’ arm as he moved a little faster to center town.