The Independents (33 page)

“Roberto, I will
visit you soon and see what we can do.”

T
he wrecker stopped in front of T
he Manor on the way through town
,
and all of the men hop
p
ed out of the back. Roberto casually wave
d and proceeded to tow the shot-
up pickup to his station. As Bishop
headed
towa
rd the hotel, Terri ambled
out of the gardens and smiled at him. He gave her a peck on the cheek and went to their room to stash the ext
ra weapons. As Terri joined
him,
she asked what he had been up too this morning, “Oh, I am thinking o
f opening a gun store somewhere nearby
. I seem to keep finding these weapons lying around
,
and they
’re
beginning to take up too much space.”

Terri rubbed her chin and looked off into the distance.
“Bishop’s Gun Emporium, kind of has a ring to it.”

“My problem is a good wholesale supplier. My current source is suspect because the previous owners are all dead.”

“I guess that doesn’t bode well for you
r
products, does it? I mean, who wants to own a gun that lost the last fight?”

Without thinking, Bishop said, “I guess I could advertise that people were just
dying
for me to sell their guns.” The remark earned him
both an eye roll and
a punch on the arm.

The couple rocked in the
chairs in front of their room
,
and both seemed lost in thought for a while.
Bishop then relayed
what Pete had told him that morning about the towns
people beginning t
o wonder if Bishop’s company were
a healthy thing.

“Bishop, that’s ridiculous! You saved how many of those people from being burned? How many of them would have died trying to root out those bank robbers from this very hotel?” Terri shook her head, “I can’t believe anyone in their right mind would blame you for all this.”

“You can’t blame them. They are tired, worried
,
and frightened most of the time. This morning, when I went out to the roadblock, it seemed like the men all looked at me like I was the grim reaper o
r
something.”

Terri took her husband’s
hand and squeezed it. She conveyed him a look that
meant,
“
I’m so sorry
.”

Bishop decided to change the subject, “Terri, I’ve got another one of my crazy ideas.
How about I go to Alpha and bring back some medical equipment? It might solve some of our problems and get me back in the good graces of the fine citizens of Meraton.”

Terri started to blurt out “No!” She stopped herself when she saw the
somber
look on Bishop’s face. “How would it solve some of our problems?”

“First of all, I would feel better about you
r
having our child if the doc had better equipment,” he said as he reached over and rubbed her tummy.

“Secondly, if the doc could save
the Colonel
, the kids would have their grandfather. It would also get me out of town in case the Colombians decide they want another go at me.”

Terri’s gaze was focused
on two humming
birds enjoying T
he Manor’s gardens this morning. She watched the graceful creatures move from blossom to blossom and seemed to be ignoring the subject at hand.
Bishop knew she was deep in thought and rolling the whole idea around.

Finally, she looked over at him, “I understand your reasoning. I guess I wo
uld feel better if the doc were
bettered equipped. Not only for birth, but kids do get sick sometimes.
It would help the town
,
and maybe people would excuse some of your bad habits. I just don’t like the idea of you running off on some dangerous adventure and leaving me alone again.”

Bishop nodded, “I understand, but I don’t think it’s that dangerous. I went to high school and college in Alpha. I know the town well. When I was growing up on the ranch, we went to Alpha almost every month. When I was dating, it was those Alpha girls we thought were hot. There used to be a clinic at the college. It’s on the outskirts of town. If I could sneak in there, grab a bunch of medical equipment, supplies or whatever else looks good, I could be back in one night.”

Terri digested what Bishop had just
said for a few moments and then replied.
“Okay, let’s think about this for a second. What makes you think the clinic at the college has the equipment the doctor needs?”

“I can’t be sure about that. It might already have been looted, or the entire campus could be burned down for all I know. There has to be someone in this town who went to college there recently or went to the football games or something. I would have to ask around and gather some more facts.”

Terri gave him a ques
tioning look.
“How would you get the equipment back here? Our truck?”

“I would use the Hummer. The doc would have to draw me pictures and make a list of the stuff he needed. I can’t take him with me – that would be too dangerous and slow me down. The Hummer has a big storage area in the back if you fold down the seats. I have an idea about how to make it even bigger. If the Colombians don’t see the Hummer here in town, they’ll think I’ve left and might leave well enough alone.”

Terri stuck out her bottom li
p and pretended to be hurt.
“Bishop, I thought you brought the Hummer home for me? I always wanted one
,
you know.”

“We can’t afford the insurance on it
,
babe.”

The concept of paying auto insurance in these times made both of them laugh.

Terri got serious aga
in.
“Bishop, I don’t want you going by yourself. I hate it when you run off and do these things all alone. I’m in
,
if you take someone with you.”

Bishop hadn’t thought about that. It was hi
s turn to watch the two humming
birds having breakfast. After a bit, he said, “Terri, I don’t know about that. The town is already short two men from last night. Everyone is on edge about the Colombians…I don’t know if it’s a good idea to ask someone to go with me.”

“I’ll go,” a voice said from behind them. Both of their heads turned around to se
e David standing in the doorway
. “I can drive
and
fly a plane. I know how to shoot
,
and I want to help grandpa. I want to go. I feel useless around here
,
and Sam
’s
driving me nuts
anyway
.”

A pillow flew out of the room and hit him in the back of the head causing him to turn
around and snap, “Sam, quit it!
Go back to sleep.”

Sam’s face appeared beside David in the doorway, “I’ll go too. I can help. You’ll see I’m not just some sissy girl!”

Bishop
immediately
began to
tell both of them there was absolutely no way they were going, but paused.
The Colonel
had warned him about underestimating people just the day before.
After all, if a man as demanding as t
he Colonel
placed hi
s life in the young man’s hands, who was he to dismiss the notion?
Bishop also remembered being sixteen and what a difficult time that was. He decided there was no wa
y David was going with
him, but he would break it to the lad gently, logically. Besides,
one day soon, he might need
the experience o
f working with kids, given he had one on the way
.”

Terri surprised the hell out of him by saying, “I think it’s a good idea for David to go with you. I need Sam to stay here and help me, but he w
ould make a good partner for you,
Bishop.”

Bishop gave Terri a look of “
W
hat the hell are you saying
,” but she wasn’t messing around. She knotted her brows and simply replied, “Think about it.”

Bishop was puzzled by Terri’s reaction, but d
ecided to avoid the subject altogether.
“Well, no one is going anywhere unless we
can
learn more about Alpha. I’m not
driving all the way there until
we can be reasonably sure it
’s
worth the risk.”

No one could argue with that logic
,
and Terri was hungry. Bishop said
he was heading to Pete’s to
gather information while Terri and the kids went to the
hotel office to see if Betty were
cooking.

Pete’s
Place
, as usual, was bustling with activity. As Bishop entered, he couldn’t help but notice people were looking at him
differently.
Maybe I’m just being silly
,
and it
’s
all in my mind.

It took a while for him to explain to Pete what he was thinking about doing in Alpha. There w
as
a constant flow of people interrup
ting the two men with questions and
status reports
,
and a few even wanted a warm cup of
ale. After Bishop
finished,
Pete lowered his gaze to the floor.
“Bish
op, no one knows what’s happening
in Alpha. We know there was an explosion at the chemical plant
,
and that a lot of people were killed by a poison gas cloud. Since then, other than a couple raiding parties we
think
came from Alpha, no one really has any facts.”

“Pete, there could be medical equipment there that would save lives. It might be just sitting there
,
rusting away. If I can find someone here in Meraton who knows the lay of the land
,
it
c
ould be worth
check
ing
it out
.”

Pe
te thought about what Bishop
said for a few minutes and refilled a customer’s glass. “Old man Parker was a season ticket holder for the football team there.
We all teased him about
watch
ing
the cheerleaders and not the game. He’s the only person I can think of that went to Alpha all the time.”

“Where can I find Mr. Parker?”

Pete gave Bishop directions and warned him that old man Parker had been a little quick on the trigger lately. He also added that the old man’s eyes were not so good
,
and he had failed to hit anyone so far.

The Parker residence was only seven blocks away, close to the city park. As Bishop walked through this part of Meraton, he saw people were mostly outside working. Freshly washed clothes were being draped on makeshift lines, a few scatter
ed
children were playing
,
and
the smell of roasting meat filled the air.
The aroma made his stomach growl.

Mr. Benedict
Jefferso
n Parker’s residence was a small one-
story ranch style home
,
cover
ed in vinyl siding and in need of a
new roof
.
Bishop, weary of Pete’s warning, stopped some distan
ce away and studied the layout,
trying to determine how to safely approach Mr. Parker.

The yard was surrounded by a common chain link fence with red reflectors on the corners
,
and a rusty old gate
stood
in front by the mailbox. Bishop wondered if the weeds growing along the fence line were a recent addition
,
or if the place looked the same as it always had.

The front yard, that was
mostly sand and gravel
, was adorned with
two neglected
flowerbeds
. Small clumps of green dotted the
area
, probably due to the recent rain. The driveway was occupied by
an ancient pickup truck and an even
older lime green Ford Crown Victoria. The car didn’t look like it had been driven in years, and wore a thick coating of dust
,
topped by a peeling
,
black
,
vinyl roof. One tire was completely flat. The only unusual feature of the estate was a larger than normal hardwood tree that provided shade for the front of the house. Bishop didn’t think the tree was native to the area and
wondered
how it had survived all these years.
You’re not h
ere
to
provide a real estate
appraisa
l for the house
– go talk to
the man
and get this over with.

Bishop move
d
his rif
le around to his back and proceeded toward the residence
, careful t
o stay in the middle of the street,
and
keeping his eye on the ditch just in case the old man came out shooting. When he was even with
the mailbox, he faced
the house
, yelling
, “Mr. Parker, are you home? Mr. Parker, Pete sent me. My name is Bishop. Anyone home?”

A voice
answered from an open window.
“Tell
that
Pete I’ll pay my bill as soon as my social security check arrives. No need to send a bill collector down here.”

Bishop thought, “
That’s not good. He thinks he is going to get a social security check. Worse yet, he hasn’t noticed there isn’t any mail
.”

Bishop tried to keep his voice friendly.
“Mr. Parker, I’m not here to collect any bill.
I’d like
to ask you a few questions and then be on my way. Could I talk to you for a moment
, sir
? It’s important.”

Bisho
p heard movement inside the house,
and then the front door opened
,
revealing an older man carrying a shotgun. Mr. Parker didn’t come out on the front porch but elected to stand in the threshold. “What do you want?”

“Sir, the doctor in town needs medical equipment. I’m thinking of going to Alpha and maybe bringing some back. Pete told me you went to Alpha often
,
and I was wondering if you could provide any information about the town. I’ve not been there for years.”

“My grandson played for Alpha State’s football team until he got hurt last year.
I went to the games, but that was about it. I don’t know how I
’d
be of help to you.”

B
ishop decided to engage the man.
“What position did he play?”

“He was the starting tight end – at least he w
as until his
leg got broken. God
,
that was a nasty
looking leg
. I saw the
pictures of the bone
in the locker room and knew he wasn’t going to play anymore.”

Bishop’s head snapped up.
“X-rays? They took X-rays in the locker room?”

“No, it didn’t look like those TV shows where the doctor holds up film to the light and whistles or
such
. This was a contraption that had a fancy computer screen. They rubbed his leg with a piece of equipment
,
and you could see the broken bone on th
at
computer. When they rubbed his leg
with that doohickey
,
that big kid yelped like a kicked dog. That’s why I remember it so well.”

Bishop had no clue what he was talking about. He tried to ask Mr. Parker questions about the layout of the town,
where
new buildings
had been
constructed,
and anything else that may have
changed. Mr. Parker really wasn’t an
y help. At one point, Bishop moved
close
r to the man so he could
draw a map in the dirt
.
W
hen he took a step forward, th
e old gent
raised his shotgun
menacingly
and warned Bishop off.

Frustrated, Bishop thanked the man for his
help
and spun around, heading
back to Pete’s.
What a waste of time.

As Bishop ambled back to Pete’s Place, his attention was drawn
to the activity
around him.
A group of children was
gathered at one house, playing on an outdoor swing set. Neighbors were talking over a fence
, apparently negotiating an
exchange of laundry and what appeared to be butter
.
It all looked so normal until a
bright
flash
caught Bishop’s attention. He froze for a moment, thinking it
might be
th
e sun reflecting off of a rifle
scope or binoculars. As he scanned,
there didn’t appear to be
anyone or anything that would have caused
the effect. He studied
the terrain one last time wh
en
an arm wave
d
at him
from what appeared to be a roof
top air conditioner. Bishop smiled at the ingenuity of the hide. Someone had painted a box to look like a common AC unit
, but inside was really an over
watch sentry, keeping an eye on the neighborhood.
Bishop waved back.

Bishop headed straight for
T
he Manor to find Doc Hopkins. As he navigated
the garden
’
s
path, the healer exited
the Colonel
’s room. The doctor saw Bishop approaching and greeted him, “Good day
,
Bishop. Your friend in there is not going to be with us much longer
,
I’m afraid. The other patients you brought me are doing well though. They both would like to talk to you whenever you get time.”

Bishop nodded.
“Doc, I
’ll
stop in and see everyone later. Right now, I need to know if you could draw me pictures of the equipment yo
u need. I might have an idea
where to find
some
medical equipment. A list of the drugs
you need
might help too – at least anything that doesn’t need
to be
refrigerated.”

A serious look came across the doctor’s face.
“
You’re not
going to bring me more patients
,
are you
,
Bishop?”

“I sure as shit hope not.
If anyone needs
you this time
, it’s going to be me.”

“I can do one better than
give you horrible artwork
,
Bishop. I can
get you pictures from some of the
medical journals I brought from Houston. I
’ll
also make you
a list of
medications. When do you need all this?”

“Early in the morning would be best. I plan on leaving at dawn.”

The doctor considered that for a minute before answering.
“You got it.
If I don’t see you before then
, I’ll
leave it outside your door.”

Bishop thanked the man and then verified it was okay to visit
the Colonel
. After he was informed that the p
atient was sleeping, he left
to find Terri.