Odd Billy Todd (77 page)

“Maria, Rhonda, Debby and I have all agreed to take in one child. We’ll help get them moved this afternoon, so they can begin settling in. If you need help rearranging after this, we’ll send someone along see that it’s done.”

“Also, we’ll each be taking a turn here, once a week, to give you all time to have a day to yourselves. Starting next week. Our goal is to make sure that all of you are included in what’s going on around here, and made to feel as if you’re part of the community.”

“We ain’t really done a good job o’ that, so far,” Rhonda admitted, a bit shame faced. “It wasn’t personal, or even intentional. Just. . .lotta work to get done. Sorry,” she added.

“But I. . .I thought we would be. . .have to. . . .”

“Have to what?” Emma asked. “Raise them all yourself? Heavens no, child. I wouldn’t wish a houseful of kids on my worst enemy,” the older woman laughed. “And besides, how are you six going to have any kind of life, if you’re constantly tied down caring for all these children?”

“Now, let’s get this done, and then we need to set up a schedule. All of us have other duties, so it’s important that everyone knows when they should be here, and for how long. It may be that we have to divide the day, to ensure that. . . .”

As Rhonda watched Emma deal with everything, she couldn’t help but smile. Sometimes there was no substitute for experience.

*****

Trey was a bit hesitant at supper, at first. He was trying to take in the fact that he now lived with his friend Danny, and his family.

“Tomorrow I’ll show ya my horse!” Danny exuded. “Once ya learn to ride, why we can roam all over the place!”

“I don’t know if I’m allowed to ride,” Trey replied. “I’ll have to ask.”

“You’re allowed,” Billy told him flatly. “Fact is, you’ll have to. Lot o' work around here, and you gotta get to it somehow. We’ll have to get you fixed up. Might see to cuttin’ you a pony out tomorrow.”

“Oh, I can’t cut a pony!” Trey looked horrified.

“I meant cut’im out o' the herd, boy,” Billy smiled. “That’s what it’s called when ya separate an animal from the rest o’ the herd. Cuttin’im out.”

“Oh,” Trey dropped his eyes, looking embarrassed.

“Don’t go gettin’ all shy, Trey,” Rhonda ordered. “You’ll just have to learn, that’s all. Same as everyone else does. No one knows anything until they learn.”

“Okay,” he nodded. “I want to learn.”

“And you will,” Billy assured him. “But your schoolin’ comes first. Then chores. Then, when you’re done, you got time to have fun. Includin’ ridin’. And Danny, I reckon we need to talk later about this ridin’ all over the valley,” he added. Danny’s face reddened.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” he promised. “I ain’t never rode no further than the Clifton House, or over to Terry’s. But if there was two of us. . . .” he started hopefully.

“Then there’ll be two o’ ya at the Clifton House, or at Terry’s,” Billy finished for him. “I’ll let you know when that changes. Saves you from havin’ to ask.”

“Thanks,” Danny muttered. He was chafing at the restrictions, but he admitted they were for his own good. Danny had filled out nicely with good food, clean water, and medical attention. Working around the farm had put muscles on him in a hurry, and he felt like he was more man than boy.

Billy really didn’t mind Danny riding where he was of a mind to, since the boy had lived on his own for so long. But Rhonda didn’t want him or Mary, and now Trey, he added, riding too far out on their own. Rhonda had a mother’s instinct, and that meant that everyone had to stay where she could see them. Billy didn’t tell Danny that. He allowed Danny to think that it was Billy who had placed the restrictions on him.

Rhonda was very thankful for that.

“Eat up, Trey,” Billy urged. “You better get it while the gettin’s good.”

“That’s sure the truth,” Mary nodded, helping herself to seconds. “Food disappears fast around here, between Danny and Billy.”

“Hey, I’m still a growin’ boy!” Danny objected.

“And I’m. . .well, I just am,” Billy told her, chewing on a strip of bacon.

“Don’t talk with your mouthful,” Rhonda and Mary said at once to both of them. Trey sat and watched the back and forth quietly.

“Better dig in,” Billy warned again. “And you’ll get used to us. Same as we’ll have to get used to havin’ you here all the time.”

“Yes, sir,” Trey nodded, and returned to his plate.

Rhonda smiled inwardly at how easily Billy took control, and made Trey feel at home. While she wasn’t angry anymore with Regina, she was still glad to have the boy out of the house. Trey was a good boy, and he’d make a fine addition to their little family.

*****

With four children gone from the Clifton House, things were much calmer, and the women who worked there began to get out more, and socialize more. Trey and Danny now had the ‘job’ of keeping the heavy work done at the home each day after class, which meant getting firewood up, taking care of the trash (burning all the paper goods, and separating cans and bottles for possible re-use later. The women cleaned them, and kept them separate from the trash).

It wasn’t long before Regina and Ben Kelvey were spending more and more time together. At first they thought they were being ‘smart’, but Howie saw everything from the security shack, and the two of them walking and holding hands couldn’t get past him and his electronic eyes. Ben just shrugged, saying they would ‘see what happened’.

Jon could see the writing on the wall, however, and started thinking about what to do. If his brother moved into Clifton House, there was no way to justify him staying where he was. With Howie and Liz already gone, Jon decided to start looking for a bachelor pad.

Dillon and his sister, Barbara, were still living with Terry, and they didn’t want to enter the winter like that. With Pete gone there was room, barely, for them all, but Dillon didn’t want to keep crowding the Blaine family. They had been good to the two siblings, and he didn’t want to abuse their hospitality.

Realizing that they had the same problem, the two of them decided to put their heads together, and see what came of it. Jon had been ready to give up the Smith house, but if Dillon and his sister made their home there, then he would stay with them, the two decided.

That still left the fact that two families were living in the Franklin place, and something needed to be done about that. Pete and Shelly would soon be newly weds, and Billy was determined that the two of them would have the George house to themselves. He refused to even discuss the matter, even when Pete suggested it.

“No,” he had said flatly, and that was that. No one wanted to argue with Billy, since he rarely objected to anything, anyway. He and Danny had worked long and hard, in the little free time they had had, making the place livable. Rhonda, once she realized they had done so, had taken Mary, and gone to help Shelly for an entire day cleaning and organizing.

The trouble was, there was no more nearby housing at all. The nearest home from the intersection that wasn’t occupied was two miles back toward Cedar Bend. And that was a long way on foot or horse back. Both Amy and Debby needed to be nearby, due to their impact on the community as a whole, so that wasn’t workable. The home was fine, really, but Billy was uneasy with anyone being that far away from the community as whole, thinking it was just too risky.

When Ben had learned of this discussion, he had just shrugged and suggested they build a house.

Build a house?” Billy looked stunned. “How?”

“Uh, nails, lumber, things like that,” Ben said, his eyes twinkling at the chance to catch Billy off guard for once. “Billy, I’m a carpenter. We built the blockhouse from logs. We can build a house the same way. We just make it nicer, and more comfortable. It ain’t that hard to do. Just takes a little work, and the right materials.”

“Do we even have the stuff to do it?” Billy asked, warming to the idea.

“Pretty much,” Ben had nodded. “We’ll need to split some logs for the floor, or else find some lumber for it. I’m not sure we have enough, depending on what size house we build. We’ve got furnishings, and fixings, too. The only thing we won’t be able to do is power it.”

“What if we build it near a creek?” Billy asked, thinking. “Howie can put some o’ them waterbugs o’ his there. That’ll give it some power, anyway.”

“There’s an idea,” Ben nodded. “We just need to get started pretty soon, is all. With all hands on deck, we can probably have it together and finished in less than a week, once we’ve got everything together.”

“Well,” Billy breathed a bit. “Guess we need to start gatherin’.”

“We’re gonna have to cut some wood, too.”

*****

It was a simple affair. Everyone gathered together at Billy’s, his place once more pressed into service as the best place for such things. Rhonda was tickled at that, while Billy endured it with good nature. Pete had asked Toby to be his best man, and the teen had agreed. Howie had asked Ben, who had likewise been tickled.

The brides wore dresses put together by the women on short notice. Both looked lovely. Howie looked at ease, since this was merely a formality. Pete on the other hand looked decidedly nervous. For him this was far from a mere formality.

Billy sat to the side watching the goings on. He had no real part to play, and that was fine by him. It gave him a chance to study everyone else.

Jerry looked proud as a peacock, smiling at everyone. His daughter was marrying as fine a young man as he could ask for. And he would get to say the words that bound them together. Couldn’t ask for much more than that.

Emma looked equally pleased. It was evident that she approved of Pete. She cast a glance at Toby every now and then, he noticed. Probably wondering when and where Toby would get the bug. Toby took turns ignoring her and Mary, equally. Billy had to stifle a laugh. Mary was nothing if not determined. But Toby showed no interest. Billy hoped that didn’t cause a problem later.

George and Debby were sitting together with their new daughter. Bethany was a pretty little thing, and it was obvious that both were taken with her. They seemed to have placed their difference behind them for good, and Billy was glad. He like George, and Debby was a great help, teaching the children the valley had acquired. Whatever happened, they would all be educated to at least a high school level.

The rest they’d have to learn from doing.

Trey and Danny were helping Mary with the refreshment table. There had been no bachelor party. Everyone had agreed that it was just too risky for them to be off guard at the moment. There were too many threats out there. There had just been a quiet gathering, where they had all had one good, stiff drink, toasting both grooms.

Doctor Collins was fitting in pretty good it seemed. He was a younger man than Billy had first thought, but he admitted that the Doctor hadn’t been having his best days either time. He guessed Collins was about forty, maybe a little older, but not much. He was beginning to look healthy again, filling out, his skin losing it’s pallor. Billy didn’t want to think about the horrors the man had been through in Franklin.

Ralph and Amy were sitting quietly together, and Billy was pretty sure there was a battle of wills going on there, with a double wedding in the offing. Ralph didn’t look unhappy, but he did look determined. That might change if the two of them ever got a home of their own.

Ben and Regina had surprised everyone by showing up together. Everyone ‘knew’ of course, but the two had been very circumspect with their relationship. Both looked happy, Billy decided. He guessed they had decided to go ‘public’ as the saying went.

Seeing all this made Billy think about himself and Rhonda. Did she want to get married like this? So far as Billy was concerned they were already married. He was set on spending the rest of his life with her, and that was that. He didn’t need a ceremony for that. He looked to where Rhonda was fussing over the food. As if she sensed his eyes on her, she looked toward him, giving him a dazzling smile. Billy returned it, and Rhonda went back to fussing.

Billy decided to see if this was something Rhonda wanted. If it was, then he’d just have to see she got it, that was all.

Someone had managed to come up with a copy of the Bridal March from somewhere, and it suddenly started playing. Everyone hustled to their seats, Rhonda waving for Billy to join her, which he did.

The two women walked out, Shelly first, escorted by Jerry, and Elizabeth, escorted by Jon. Ben and Toby had taken their places alongside the grooms, grinning.

As they arrived at the podium, Jerry stepped up, and turned to look at the small crowd.

“Friends and neighbors, today is a fine day the Lord has given us. Let us all be thankful for our blessings, for roofs over our heads, and for food in our bellies.” He smiled down at the two couples.

“And for the fact that despite all we’ve been through, life does go on. We’re are here today to witness the joining of these two couples in a bond meant to last a lifetime. One that will take them to great highs, and great lows as well. One that will stand the test of time so long as they are true and faithful to one another, and give one another the dignity and respect they deserve.”