Full Circle, Chapter Thirty Five, Part One
DIsclaimers: In Chapter One
Warning: The next several chapters are pretty intense in many ways. Some strong language and some pretty major emotional, action-packed and suspenseful scenes. If you'd like a brief synopsis of the previous chapters, check them out here.
Full Circle, Chapter Thirty Five
Three weeks later
Morning dawned already warm and humid threatening to be another miserable, hot summer day in July for Jericho, Kansas. A warm haze hung over the land, even this early in the morning. Birds were singing their morning songs as the sun was rising slowly in the eastern sky chasing away the last shadows of night.
Jake walked with Heather as they made the two mile hike out to the Green family ranch. Since they had built a bigger pasture last year, they only needed to come out to the ranch a couple of times a week to feed and water the horses. Usually, he and Heather would make the trip, enjoying the chance to spend time together though occasionally Eric or his mother would come with Jake. Heather and Jake were following the road, just off the road since they could already feel the heat coming off the asphalt. A regular dirt path had cropped up by the side of the road from everyone walking and using horse-drawn wagons as they traveled in and out of Jericho. The only ones really using the roads anymore were the military and Ravenwood and those with bicycles.
"Have you convinced Mrs. Jones to stop running her air conditioner?" Heather asked Jake, her voice full of humor. They were not holding hands while walking. It was too hot plus Ravenwood had put a quick stop to that tradition.
Jake chuckled, remembering his encounter yesterday afternoon with Mrs. Jones. He had gone with Jimmy to visit Mrs. Jones at her strange house on the outskirts of Jericho. "Jimmy threatened to throw her in jail. I think that finally got her attention."
Jimmy had been filling in as acting Jericho sheriff for the past two weeks, a trial period to see how he did. If it worked out, he might get the position permanently. Gray had first asked Jake if he would serve in the role and while Jake had been tempted, he had declined, knowing that he had to keep working with Hawkins and might have to leave Jericho. Besides, Jimmy deserved it for all the hard work he had been doing for the past year. So, Jake had had a serious heart to heart talk with Jimmy, telling him how he needed to step up and not be afraid to step on toes and anger a few people as sheriff, including himself and even Gray Anderson if needed. Thus far, Jimmy was doing fairly well, both in keeping the sheriff's office running smoothly, leading the rest of the deputies and in standing up for Jericho against Ravenwood. Jimmy had developed a knack for dealing with Goetz that even made Jake shake his head in amazement. Though while Gray Anderson was out of town attending the federal constitutional convention, even Jimmy was finding his patience strained as the hazy days of summer made people restless and their limited resources were becoming evident. It had been ten months since the bombs had gone off and very little had changed in how much help they were getting from their new government or any other outside resources. Most of their improvements had been self-made, with the wind turbines, charter and workshops were they were devising ways to get by without outside supplies as much as possible.
But this latest heat wave in Jericho was almost as difficult as winter had been. The temperature had been nearly 100 degrees for almost a week with occasional thunderstorms that did little to alleviate the heat but only seemed to make it worse, filling the evenings with muggy humidity. The elderly and the young were taking it pretty hard. Even with the additional wind turbines Heather's plant had built, power was still limited and Mayor Gray Anderson had passed an edict forbidding the use of air conditioning unless medically necessary. They closely monitored power around Jericho to ensure that residents weren't abusing their limited power from the wind turbines. It didn't help that they didn't have battery power to store power for when the wind wasn't blowing. And during this heat wave, the wind had dropped off making power even more limited. Some of the wind turbines were barely spinning most of the time. They sometimes didn't even have enough power for refrigerators and lights let alone air conditioning. Fortunately, Russell had made a trade deal with a carbon dioxide processing plant in Colorado exchanging one of their first tradeable wind turbines for liquid carbon dioxide and dry ice they were now using to help keep their refrigerators cold until power picked back up.
The military kept promising that the power grid would be up soon but even the military outpost was using one of Heather's wind turbines to power their camp in addition to their solar power and generator. Ravenwood had put in an order for a wind turbine as well for their own camp. They had crews visiting each house to further tune power consumption though it was a painful and time-consuming process. People were coming up with all kinds of creative ways to beat the heat including swimming parties and field trips to the quarry and salt mines where they could go underground where it was cooler. Work on the farms had slowed and was being done during the early morning and late evening hours. Heather and Jake were supposed to go out to the Richmond farm later that night to help water and till the soil around the many rows of tomato plants Stanley had planted as well as recover roots on many plants that the daily thunderstorms were washing away.
"Well, maybe this heat wave will break soon." Heather said hopefully. She wore shorts and a cool summer top that left most of her shoulders and arms bare and dipped low in the front much to Jake's enjoyment. She also wore an old straw hat that kept her head covered though it hadn't stopped her adorable freckles from coming out all over her face and body. She carried her backpack everywhere nowadays, but as usual, he carried it for her this morning. Thankfully, he had finally convinced her to start carrying a gun which was packed inside the backpack along with Heather's array of tools and the lunch she had packed before leaving the house. He wasn't always able to go with her as she went out and worked on wind turbines and on the other various projects for Jericho, so it gave him a small measure of relief to know that Heather now had a gun with her.
Today, Jake was in his usual jeans and t shirt but could already feel sweat running down his back where the backpack rested against him. He figured by the end of the day, he'd have his shirt off despite the interested stares he got at his still-healing gunshot wound. He did enjoy the sizzling looks that Heather sent his way when he had his shirt off, however.
His plans for the day included working with Jimmy at City Hall to go over complaints, checking to see if Eric needed help as acting mayor, then helping at the rations center that afternoon to sort through inventory and go over the charter credit reports they maintained there. A lot also depended on how the bi-weekly meeting at City Hall went today, where Lt. Brady and now Goetz would meet with Eric, Jimmy, Larry Stevens and Jake. It had been fairly quiet lately, so he hoped the meeting would be the usual check up on complaints and progress of the charter and supplies as well as the status of the ongoing hunt for Hawkins. Jake hoped to get more information about what was happening outside of Jericho as well, at least the version that Lt. Brady liked to spin. Since the Fourth of July, Jake had been hearing more news from the Underground that made him nervous, mostly about how the new government was courting whole groups of people and certain towns to get them to buy into their new government and plans. They were bringing more people up to Cheyenne for the next phase of their project to continue work on the new constitution. Gray had been surprised when he had gotten an invite and had left ten days ago to head up to Cheyenne, leaving Eric in charge. The news they heard was that Cheyenne was also busy building housing and other facilities around Cheyenne to deal with the burgeoning population. People had migrated to Cheyenne in large numbers seeking shelter, safety and jobs and many of them were in tent cities while housing was built, but Jake wondered how their new federal capital would hold up once winter came. Winters in Wyoming were harsh, long and cold. Though right now, he wouldn't have minded a little cold weather. The summer heat was a sharp contrast to seven months ago when he had nearly frozen to death out on the road pinned under Stanley's truck.
At least with the heat, people were more focused on keeping cool and helping the town rather than what was happening outside of Jericho. There was some talk about the outside world, but thanks to Jake and Eric, they tried to keep the information about what was really going on outside mostly positive despite the reports and rumors of war and hardship elsewhere in the country. They had started getting a list of requests from people asking them to pass on messages to Cheyenne and anywhere where they might be able to possibly reach missing family members and friends. They had supplied a list of missing persons to Cheyenne a few months ago but there hadn't been any word on whether the government was actually doing anything with it. Jake had made sure to add Heather's brother to that list though she hadn't known that he had. Heather rarely talked about her family but sometimes he would see her staring wistfully at him and Eric as they talked about old times and growing up together.
The past weeks had been a rollercoaster. Jake relished his time spent with Heather, walking to the plant or ranch, or to church or out at the Richmond's to work on the farm. They had even had time for those field trips of hers, going out riding to look for minerals and caves and making several maps of where resources could be found and sending more parties out to explore and bring back supplies. They had had long talks and walks again and more than a few nights watching movies and making out on the couch or out on a blanket on their picnics or breaks out at the farm. But their good times were frequently becoming overshadowed by the aggravation of Ravenwood. Jake knew it was getting to Heather as well.
Since the Fourth of July, Ravenwood had been a thorn in Jake's side. Ravenwood seemed to be taking out their dislike for the town of Jericho and how they had embarrassed them last year through subtle harassment. They were frequently underfoot and more obvious than the military had ever been. Goetz had been revisiting the terrorist investigation, checking out anyone who had shown up in Jericho since the bombs had gone off. They were also revisiting the murder investigation of Sarah Mason. To Jake's amusement, the Ravenwood commander had yet to get the security clearance he needed to further the terrorist investigation and access confidential files in Jericho and in the Cheyenne government's databases. Emily wasn't sure why, but not even Major Williams had been able to clear his access and according to Emily, the major was feeding the commander some information that he shouldn't. But at least it slowed down Goetz's investigation.
Overall, the town of Jericho was feeling the pain of the changing of the guard from the military to Ravenwood and not many were happy about it. Eric and Mayor Anderson were receiving several complaints a day about them, complaints that Jimmy was dutifully tracking and bringing to their attention as well as speaking to Goetz about them, though it wasn't doing much good. Jake had had to hold back the urge to say 'I told you so', knowing his brother was trying his best to maintain the peace. But after several failed attempts to reason with Colonel Hoffman about Ravenwood, Jake had been forced to mind his tongue and stop pushing lest he hurt his chances of getting that job working for Cheyenne. Jake hated it. He was supposed to be casual and not caring as much about Jericho, wanting to leave. Hawkins had warned him that he was going to have to swallow his pride as he became more enmeshed in their plan. And Jake knew that this was just the beginning. It was just harder when it was personal and affected those he cared about.
It didn't help that Ravenwood was occasionally tailing him as he went about his usual activities, such as walking Heather to the plant or out talking to people about the charter. Jake knew it was Goetz's revenge. As he wasn't up to anything suspicious about town, he didn't think it would be a problem until it started affecting his relationship with Heather. Fortunately, the ranch was just outside the roadblocks and Ravenwood usually didn't go out that far except on road patrols. But they had to pass through the roadblock on their way unless they took the back trails which took longer. Ravenwood had been forbidden from trespassing on private property unless they had an 'exigent circumstance' as Eric called it, in case of emergency or called in to help by the sheriff's office or at the request of the property owner. That was one rule Gray had been adamant about and Ravenwood thus far had mostly adhered to it as far as they knew. Thankfully, a good many places Jake frequented, such as the Richmond farm and the ranch, were away from the public roads and eyes.
Still, putting up with Ravenwood had been extremely difficult, especially for his relationship with Heather. Jake had had to limit their physical contact and his own behavior when out in public with her. He still wanted to keep the military and now Ravenwood in the dark about his feelings toward her, especially with Goetz in charge. The tension and distance between he and Heather had grown and she often grew quiet around him when they talked about the military or Ravenwood. Many times, Jake had been reconsidering his decision to not tell Heather the truth. Instead, he tried to make it up with her by showering her with attention and since he had much more free time while waiting for news on a job from Colonel Hoffman, it had been easy to do.
He worried at times that he was feeling too much for Heather, too soon and too fast. He used to tease his friends about settling down with one woman, believing they had found "The One" for them, never believing that such a thing existed for anyone. He had loved Emily, but it wasn't all consuming like his friends liked to brag about. Now, he understood. He thought his attention would stray, especially after realizing how much he loved Heather that night at Stanley's, but instead, it had only become more focused. He woke up each morning looking forward to seeing her at the breakfast table and had even started getting up earlier in the morning just so that they could spend more time together. He would walk her to the plant each morning or they would come out to the ranch. In the evenings, when they didn't have workshops or town hall meetings or work at the Richmonds, they would watch movies or read together. Weekends were spent working at the Richmonds and in their joint gardens, or going to church followed by a relaxing Sunday afternoon. She made him laugh and feel positive about the world and progress they were making keeping order in Jericho despite the questionable news they heard in trickles from the outside world. When they weren't together, he often found himself wondering what she was doing, wishing they had working phones so he could just call and say hello and hear the sound of her voice. His daydreams and even night dreams revolved around Heather and the things they worked on together and were going to do together. He dare not dream too far in advance, but he often found himself wondering what it would be like to settle down, get married, have those grandkids his mother wanted and live happily ever after with Heather here in Jericho. He worried that he was becoming obsessive, yet all he had to do was compare their relationship his parent's relationship, which had been strong and enduring. He felt comfortable with his relationship with Heather, though he still had his doubts because of his past and what he was planning with Hawkins and the secrets he had to keep. They both worked and got along so well together that they rarely disagreed or argued. Fortunately, Heather had mostly backed off pressuring him to talk about what he was up do, even despite another trip away. He hoped that she had just finally let it go, trusting him as she usually did with most things.
He could postpone his work at the rations center and other work for today, especially since they had more help at City Hall thanks to the charter. Jake smiled suggestively at Heather. "How about a picnic lunch and swimming for today?"
"That would be nice." Heather gave him a knowing smile back. He saw the affection and a flash of desire in her eyes as she met his eyes then shyly looked away. It made his heart beat faster knowing that underneath that shyness was hidden passion. "I doubt we'll get any work done at the plant again today anyway."
He knew what that look meant and was already looking forward to seeing Heather in one of her cute swimming suits and perhaps even nothing at all again. They occasionally went swimming at the old creek that ran through the ranch or at the lake where his grandfather and father used to fish. Sometimes Eric, Mary, Stanley and Mimi would join them. Their private times together were fun, with a lot of teasing and playing in the water, followed by a make-out session on the dock, which then required another dip in the water to cool off again. He had stolen Heather's swimsuit the last time, walking out of the water with it and collapsing on their blanket as he laughed at her astonished expression. Heather had protested and complained about protecting her modesty for a while until she had totally floored him by walking stark naked out of the lake toward him. He hadn't been able to take his eyes off her amazing body. Firm, full breasts that fit perfectly in his hands, a narrow waist and flat stomach, curving hips, a great set of legs and dark hair covering the one place that he had yet to touch more than occasionally over her panties yet. She was a perfect mixture of lean muscle from all the physical labor she did and womanly softness, though he thought she was still a bit underweight. And as he had discovered, her freckles covered the rest of her body, though not as much on the areas that didn't get much sun. He still wanted to explore and kiss every one of them. She had gotten her own revenge by seeing what an affect that had had on him as she had walked up to him just out of reach and sat down on the blanket next to him. Not even the water had been able to cool him off. The image still haunted his dreams and stirred his imagination whenever he looked at her. Jake had to drag his thoughts away from where they were heading and thought again about Jericho.
With the exception of the difficulties dealing with Ravenwood, the past several weeks had been relatively quiet in Jericho for once. With the warmth of long summer hours, the success of the charter so far, power and other supplies coming along thanks to the turbine plant , workshops and trading, and with food plentiful again and people busy working, one could almost forget that the bombs had happened. With Jonah Prowse and many other criminal groups around Jericho gone, morale about town had improved. People had settled in a routine with their work roles according to the town charter system. Spring and summer crops had been planted with the same acreage as previous years, thanks to a lot of manual labor and impromptu greenhouses and trading that had provided enough seeds and plants for everyone to use and have their own gardens. The spring and summer rains had been good this year so far and the crops were doing well. Already, they were getting early vegetables and berries. Workshops had taught them how to freeze and dry fruit and vegetables as well as canning as much of the food as they could find jars and tops. The poultry farms had successfully raised several thousand chickens and Jericho had real meat on a semi-regular basis. Even the livestock farms were doing well and were promising pork and beef by early fall. Now, they just had to continue their discipline of rationing and saving the food so it would last throughout the winter. There had been a workshop last week on drying and curing meat. Fortunately, they had a whole salt mine at their disposable to help with the curing process. Thanks to the charter, they also had a good way of measuring town resources and how much they had to spare and trade. They still didn't have much to trade especially with the government still demanding their share. But they had other resources they were starting to trade, including salt, stone from the quarries, and the wind turbines and other metal products from Heather's plant. They were also learning to hide exactly how much they did have so that the government wouldn't demand more.
Despite his occasional work for the military as well as working at City Hall, Jake found himself with more free time finally, and he had been enjoying spending his extra time with Heather. He had had one more meeting with Hawkins in the past weeks, taking Emily with him, but had returned to find Heather worried but glad to see him. She made it worth coming home. Jake was enjoying this brief respite from the outside world while he and Hawkins tried to figure out their next steps and began to plan what they might do if Jake didn't get that job.
When he wasn't doing something with Heather or working at City Hall, Jake had started spending more time with the border patrol updating his military training and keeping their skills up to date just in case they were needed one day. He had been spending more time out at the Richmond farm, which also allowed him to occasionally check on the military outpost and their maneuvers. Emily provided some information and between Emily and Angie both working at the outpost, he had more solid information that the Cheyenne government was gearing up for a Civil War. Colonel Hoffman had started rotating several of his units in and out of Jericho for training rather than using Fort Riley as a base, which struck Jake as odd. Then again, they had ample water, a pleasant climate and a peaceful community. A variety of soldiers were coming and going often, taking leave in town at Baileys and even helping with various town projects in exchange for fresh fruit and vegetables paid for by their charter system. The soldiers also caused a bit of trouble on occasion, something that Ravenwood was actually quick to take care of. Despite all the military activity, Colonel Hoffman was still working on that job for Jake, only saying there was a lot going on in the government and it was going to take time. Jake was beginning to have doubts that he would get the promised job but Hawkins kept reminding him to stay patient and focused on the goal.
They turned a bend in the road and Jake saw the roadblock in front of them, being manned by Ravenwood. He didn't notice any of the Jericho border patrol with them this morning. Usually one or two border patrol members worked the roadblocks, helping the Ravenwood men identify residents and keeping an eye on the military contractors. But over the past weeks, the border patrol had often stopped coming, citing harassment and difficulties working with the military contractors. Jake heard the complaints in the border patrol training sessions but hadn't reacted, trusting Larry Stevens to follow up on any complaints or issues. He had to stay out of things now, just one more thing he was regretting.
"Maybe we should just go around them," Jake suggested. They sometimes took overland routes that bypassed the main roads but those routes were longer, going up and down hills and having to walk around fields and pastures. With the heat today, he had been hoping to quickly get to the ranch before it got much warmer and get back in time for the meeting at City Hall.
"Too late, I think they see us," Heather replied. And sure enough, there was a flash, like light reflecting on glass as one of the men appeared to be looking their way using binoculars. Several of the men looked up as the one with the binoculars pointed at them.
The Ravenwood men were cooling their heels under a small copse of trees just off the road. Two large military trucks blocked off most of the road and barbed wire fences reinforced with deep steel poles were set up to discourage anyone from trying to drive around the roadblock. On both military vehicles were artillery guns. It looked like several of the men had been playing cards around a card table with chairs. Several stood up as Jake and Heather approached. One set the binoculars on the table.
"Mornin','" Jake called with a half-salute, trying to be polite as they walked by. He often walked through the roadblocks with little difficulty, though they often glared at him and made snide remarks that he could clearly hear. These first several weeks had been rough as Ravenwood got set up and familiar with the local residents. Everyone seemed to know who he was, however.
"Stop." One of them ordered. The man walked over to stand in front of Jake and Heather, shrugging on his uniform jacket as he did so. He looked like he must be the one in charge. He looked rather young, perhaps in his early twenties with sandy brown hair and a healthy tan.
Jake saw the name Cagle on a label on the front of the man's jacket. The Ravenwood uniforms looked like they were old Marine uniforms from the time before Afghanistan. There were hand-me-downs most likely or some they must have purchased from the government at some point. Many contractors provisioned their people in a similar fashion. Unfortunately for Ravenwood, the uniforms were not quite as effective at keeping them cool in the heat as the Desert Combat uniforms the U.S. military had been using in Iraq and Afghanistan. Two of the other men got up from the table and pulled on their uniform jackets and picked up their rifles. Another two stayed seated at the table, setting down playing cards amid poker chips on the table and watching them curiously. The rest stayed under the tree in the shade.
Jake and Heather stopped in the middle of the road, right on the double yellow line. Jake could feel the heat simmering up from the pavement.
"Is there a problem?" Jake asked, trying to remain calm and civil.
"Need to see your id," Cagle replied, eying Jake.
"We're leaving town, not entering." Heather reminded the man before Jake could. He could hear the irritation in her voice. Just a few minutes ago, Heather had been relaxed and content. This was his fault, Jake knew. They might not have stopped Heather if he hadn't been with her.
"Sorry, we just need to make sure who we're letting in and out of here," Cagle stated with a smirk. The man was a little shorter than Jake but a bit heavier. He looked to be sweating beneath his uniform. Jake didn't feel sorry for him.
"Absolutely," said another man nearby. "Gotta make sure we don't let no wanted criminals slip by."
Jake felt sure that comment was directed at him. Goetz had casually mentioned to Gray that Jake had been wanted by the FBI prior to the bombs. That had led to an awkward explanation of what had happened to him in San Diego with Ravenwood, as Eric hadn't even known about it. It was the same Ravenwood that was working with this new government and now was in Jericho. Jake felt eyes looking at him, sizing him up. He thought a couple of the men looked familiar. But he also saw their eyes on Heather and not her face either. His temperature began to rise from more than the humid heat.
"Id?" Cagle impatiently snapped his fingers at both of them.
Jake fought down his instinct to protest. Heather was holding her breath as she looked at him expectantly. He only looked at her nodding, silently telling her to just play along and not make a scene. Heather raised an eyebrow at him.
He slid Heather's backpack off his shoulders and handed it to her. Taking off her hat, she dug in the front pocket of her backpack and pulled out her driver's license and handed it to the man. She put her hand back in her backpack and Jake thought he heard a click come from it. He worried that she had just clicked off the safety of the small pistol Jake had given her. But she didn't look at him to give him any clue of what she might be up to. She set the backpack on the road within easy reach along with her hat. Jake reached into his back pocket and pulled out his old wallet and withdrew his identification paper from it.
Cagle glanced between the license and Heather several times, eyes running up and down her figure. "115 pounds huh? I would have put you at 125."
Jake was offended and his pulse began to quicken with anger. Like most residents of Jericho, many had lost weight in the past year since the bombs, including Heather. They were still carefully rationing food along with trying to put some away in case of emergencies and to prepare for the winter. His mother had helped Heather adjust some of her clothes to make them fit for the summer. He also knew from their make-out sessions that she was thinner than she should be. Then again, so was he as his own belt had been tightened several notches in the past year.
Cagle scrutinized Heather's face. "But 27. Tsk tsk. Little old for most of us, right guys?"
There were a couple chuckles and murmurs of agreement. But Heather didn't respond. Instead, she was still looking around at the men, studying them closely as she squinted her eyes in the bright morning sun. He thought it looked like she was mumbling, her lips moving but saying nothing.
Cagle asked Heather. "Got any kids? Maybe you'd be a MILF."
Anger turned to rage. Jake stepped forward, readying a punch, but stopped himself. Heather glanced at him with alarm then continued mumbling as she looked around at the men. But his movement got Cagle's attention.
"And where's your license, buddy?" Cagle asked Jake.
Jake had lost his passport and license a long time ago, the day of the bombs when he had left his bag in his car after the accident. He had hoped that a search of Jonah's compound might turn them up but the military hadn't reported them in the inventory results so far. It wasn't like he could run down to the local DMV and get a new one. Instead, they had started issuing identification papers for all the residents of Jericho at City Hall.
"No driver's license, no admittance." Cagle laughed at him, taunting Jake with Heather's license.
"That's right." "Uh huh" said several of the men, a few snickering.
Jake knew that they knew the procedure. Either a passport, driver's license or id paper was required to get into Jericho. They also had a list of Jericho residents they could use if needed. Jake had used his paper several times to go through the roadblocks though everyone in Ravenwood seemed to know who he was. They just liked to try to annoy him and he did his best to not let them get to him. He knew they were also keeping track of him. Goetz had asked him several times about what he was doing when he went through the roadblocks or when he was out visiting people to talk about the charter.
"It's a valid identification paper." Jake told him, barely controlling his anger. The heat coming off the road only added to his growing frustration.
"Ah yes, the paper." With this other hand, Cagle forcefully yanked Jake's id paper out of his hand, strong enough to rip it though it stayed intact.
Cagle read the paper carefully. "Jake Green? Hey, Dunlap, isn't Jake Green the one who got you and Rusty in trouble a few weeks ago?"
"Hell, yes. Goetz made me and Rusty do double watches for a week for losing the binoculars." The one named Dunlap replied.
Jake looked at the owner of the voice and vaguely recognized him as one of the men he had caught watching Angie outside of the Pines the night of Emily's party. And the other one, with red hair, looked like the other. He saw the name Callahan on his uniform. Gray had filed a complaint with Ravenwood after listening to Jake's version of the story. He had heard later that the men both told a different story about how Jake had harassed them for the binoculars so he could spy on the party and watch the women. It had been Jake's word against theirs and nothing had happened in the end. It was just one of many complaints that had gone nowhere but Gray had kept the binoculars in his office. Jake had seen these two men around town since then but hadn't run into them personally until today.
"You'll have to give us a few minutes to look over this, check your name on the list, you know, make sure you are who you say you are." Cagle informed Jake and there were several snickers from the men. He held the paper out but his eyes didn't leave Jake. "Rusty, go and run this against the list."
A man with curly red hair and the Callahan name tag on his open uniform jacket stepped forward and took the paper. He gave Jake a sinister look then stepped over to the truck, pulled out a thick three-ring binder and acted like he was scanning every single page in it, one page at a time. Jake knew that the list was alphabetized and the man could have easily found his name. There weren't many G's in Jericho.
"You know who he is." Heather stated. She had stopped her looking around and was glaring at Cagle now.
"You can go, sweetheart." Cagle handed her license back to her with a wink.
"Yeah, go down on your knees for me, baby," said a voice among the men and there were several laughs and catcalls.
Jake was pretty sure he saw which one said that, one of the ones still seated in a canvas chair around the card table. He couldn't hold back any more. To hell with Hawkins and all they were working on. Jake made a beeline for the man, not caring that that there were three of them standing nearby with guns. No one should talk to a woman that way, especially his Heather.
"Jake, stop!" Heather called but it was too late. He was already in motion. The man in the chair was laughing but his eyes widened in disbelief as Jake approached.
"Jake, stop!" Someone mimicked in a high-pitched voice.
Jake tackled the man. They both fell backward taking the chair with them. Their legs knocked the card table over sending the binoculars flying, the cards and poker chips scattering all over the ground. The man's body hit the ground, cushioning Jake's fall. Fortunately, the ground was soft beneath them but it was enough to knock the wind out of the man's lungs. The two rolled across the ground freeing them from the chair. Jake ended up on top.
There were shouts around them egging them on but Jake ignored it. He thought he heard Cagle ordering someone named Jason to grab him.
He laid a heavy punch against the man's jaw causing his head to hit the ground. He felt a knee rising to hit him in the groin and instinctively moved his thigh to block it. But it was enough of a distraction that Jake missed the punch the man threw that landed against Jake's still sore ribs. He cursed with the pain, grabbing the man's wrist and twisted it, blocking the next blow that was headed toward his jaw.
Strong hands grabbed him by the shoulders and yanked him back hard. As Jake struggled against the interruption, the man was able to jerk his wrist free. Another jerk on his shoulders and Jake was flying backwards. He landed a few feet backward on his side and shoulder and moved to scramble to his feet again. Jonah had taught him to never get caught on the ground if you could help it. Fluid and quick movements. The man he had punched, with the name tag of Peters, was rubbing his jaw as he slowly sat up on the ground. Jake climbed to his feet and felt the adrenaline pulsing through his veins. He was willing to take on the entire group of them if he had to. He looked at the three of them standing around him, looking for the next likely candidate. A big, blond man stepped in his path. Jake started toward him and found two rifles in his face.
"Jake!" Heather called.
"That your boyfriend, honey?" Cagle called from the middle of the road and that stopped Jake. Jake paused, unsure. The words broke through his rage and reminding him of his need to not make waves. Plus, they might hurt Heather if he kept it up.
"No." Heather answered simply. "We're just friends."
Heather denying their relationship hit him like a stake in the heart.
"Hear that boys? Pretty lady here is available." Casey laughed. "Jason here, he's looking for a little lovin'. Think you could help him out?" He pointed to the man that now stood in Jake's way. The man didn't have his uniform jacket on so he wasn't sure what his last name was, but there was one jacket on the back of one of the chairs that likely belonged to the man.
Jake clenched his fists. Just the look of the guy made Jake nervous. He had been leering at Heather most of the time, eyes barely leaving Heather's chest. He was tall and muscular and easily outweighed Jake. He might have trouble if he had to fight him. Jake felt for his gun and found it had slipped deeper into his pants but was still within easy reach. He didn't want it to come to having to use it. Often, physical violence was more effective for making your point. Jonah had taught him that.
"Sure." Heather slipped her license back into her backpack and placed it on the road. Jake stared at her in surprise, taking a slow deep breath to try and catch his breath and decide his next move. Heather smiled mysteriously as she sauntered over toward the man named Jason.
"Heather, don't!" Jake yelled. Even though it was cooler off the road in the shade of the tree, he felt hotter than ever, his t-shirt clinging to his back from the sweat of fighting. But a chill went through him at the thought of Heather being pressed to do something she didn't want to. Angie's story of the things she had had to do as a sex slave came back to Jake.
Cagle warned him. "Better calm down, buddy, or it might take Rusty there a bit longer to verify your papers. I really don't believe you're that Jake Green we've all heard about." Cagle's eyes ran up and down Jake's lean form making him feel subconscious. He knew he was slim compared to the rest of these men, especially since they had carefully rationed food in the past months, he knew he had lost more weight, but had put on muscle due to all the hard labor he had been doing at the Richmond's and the drills with the border patrol. Even Heather had noticed, teasing him about becoming a body builder. "And you fight like a girl, ain't that right, Pete?"
The man Jake had tackled was still stroking his jaw as one of his friends helped him to his feet. "Yeah."
Heather didn't stop, but walked right up to the man called Jason. Jason had to be a least six foot five, towering over Heather. She made a motion for him to bend over a little bit, as if inviting him in for a kiss or a whisper. The man's eyes looked down, straight down the cleavage of Heather's top. Jake stepped forward, intending to put a stop to this, but a gun barrel pressed against his chest and the man holding it gave him a warning look.
Her mouth inches from the man's face, Heather grabbed the man by the shoulders as she pulled herself up toward him. She quickly lifted her knee as she did so, hitting the man in the groin with it. Some of the Ravenwood men flinched. Jason doubled over with pain and hit the ground, rolling back and forth in the gravel by the side of the road, and cursing up a storm. He groaned in pain as he yelled. "God damn fucking bitch!"
Jake vaguely recalled that that had been a technique they had been teaching at the self-defense classes. He had practiced it with Heather several times. He just never thought she would ever have to really use it.
Grabbing Jake by the wrist, Heather pulled them away from the guns, backing them up toward the middle of the road again by her backpack and hat. She turned around to address the men. "Now, I don't know about where you all come from, but where I come from, the boys learned better manners in kindergarten."
The man named Jason slowly struggled to his feet and made a move toward Heather. Jake reached for his gun and Heather quickly stepped behind him. Jake loosely aimed his gun, not sure if he could actually shoot fast enough to defend both of them.
Heather reached down to pick up her backpack again. "Touch either of us and I'll be sure to add it to the report I'm filing."
"Hah, it will be your word against ours." Cagle replied, though he finally looked a little worried.
That had been the problem with most of the cases and complaints thus far. There were few eyewitnesses to what Ravenwood was doing and no proof, thus it had been difficult to prove any of the cases. Most of their complaints began with the phrase 'I don't mean to sound like I'm complaining but...'. and Jake had learned that there was usually more to these stories and a pattern had been developing. But worse, they hadn't been able to do much about it since it was usually the word of Jericho residents against a number of Ravenwood men and the Ravenwood men complained that they were just trying to do their job while having to deal with uncooperative residents. Jake now knew how local residents abroad must have felt when dealing with corrupt military contractors.
Heather reached into her backpack and pulled out a small tape recorder. He had seen her using it lately to speak notes when they went on surveys or to record workshop sessions and later write up notes from it. He could hear the slight sound of it running. The click he had heard earlier was Heather turning on the tape recorder. "Yours and mine as clear as day on this here tape."
"God damn it!" Cagle took a step toward them, clenching his jaw and squinting his eyes in anger. There were several worried glances around the men.
Jake turned off the safety and aimed his gun at the man. "Touch her and I will use this."
Jake wasn't sure if that would really stop all of them. How far would these men go to get away with the things they just did? They already had their guns aimed at him. Would they really shoot over this? But Cagle backed off, his hands in front of his chest in a calming gesture.
"And I'll be sure to mention the swearing and name calling and inappropriate staring. I seem to recall there's supposed to be a professional code of conduct that you're supposed to follow." Heather stated. They had announced that at the townhall meeting when Goetz had been introduced. They had been finding out that the code of conduct didn't amount to much.
"Now let my friend Jake and me here continue on our way and maybe I'll re-use this tape for something more useful, like recording the sound of me and my latest boytoy having hot summer sex." Heather spoke the last words with a deep, sultry voice, one she usually reserved for Jake only. It was a big turn on for him usually.
And not just for him, Jake realized as he glanced around. All of the men were staring at Heather, most with looks of astonishment.
God I love this woman. He was head over heels in love with her. He stared at her with a mixture of shock and amazement.
Cagle stared at Heather. "You do that, ma'am. Don't mention that tape to anyone and we'll be sure to make sure your pet here doesn't have any more problems."
Jake's mind began to race with the possibility that the recording presented. They would finally have proof of the ill behavior of Ravenwood. But even so, would the Cheyenne government actually do something about it?
"You do that." Heather responded with her best sweet smile.
A minute later, they were on their way, Jake's id paper back in his wallet in his back pocket and Heather's tape recorder turned off and back in the backpack. Jake could feel the eyes boring into his and Heather's backs as they walked away. In their haste to leave, Heather had picked up her hat and backpack and was now carrying them. After they had put several hundred yards between them and Ravenwood and turned a long bend in the road out of sight of the men, Heather stopped and handed him her hat. She pulled out a pen and notebook out of the front pocket of the backpack. Setting the backpack on the ground, she began writing furiously.
Jake asked her. "What are you doing?"
"Writing down their names." Heather answered. "Peter Can't Coddle Turkeys in South Dakota"
"What?"
"It's how I made myself memorize them."
"You remember them all?" Most wore their names on their uniforms, but Jake hadn't noticed them closely except for Cagle, Callahan, Dunlap and Peters, the one he had tackled. He had never caught the last name of Jason, then again, he was far too distracted with keeping an eye on the man as he leered at Heather. Had she been memorizing their names when she had been mumbling?
"Peter Can't Coddle Turkeys in South Dakota." Heather finished scribbling then rattled off her list. "Peters, Cagle, Callahan, Tetley, Sanchez, Dunlap."
"You are amazing." Jake stared at her, shaking his head. He had felt useless, unable to do much of anything against the men. Anything he did would no doubt get back to Goetz and maybe even Colonel Hoffman. But Heather had persevered and brilliantly stood up for them.
They were out of sight of the roadblock. He wanted to kiss her madly. He had rarely seen this side of Heather. She stood up when needed, but never like this. He never knew she had that in her. That should have never happened and wouldn't have if it hadn't been him with her. And he had been helpless to stop it. He only hoped that the news that he had attacked that man wouldn't get back either. Maybe Heather's tape would protect them both.
"I'm sorry you had to do that." He told her as he tried to move closer to her, to pull her into his arms. He had been apologizing too much lately.
"Jake, this is getting ridiculous!" Heather sighed giving him a cold look that set him back on his heels. By the tone of her voice, he could tell she was angry, not just at the men, but at him as well. She returned the pen and notebook to her backpack and picked it up again, walking quickly away, fast enough that Jake had to lengthen his stride to catch up with her.
"I know," Jake called out to her, still carrying her hat and jogging a few steps to bring himself in step with her. "Maybe we should avoid the roadblocks from now on."
"It's not just that. It's everything." Heather explained. She sounded exasperated. She didn't slow down but kept walking fast. Jake was afraid that she was going to bring the whole matter up again, his not telling her everything, his trips, why he was hiding their relationship. But fortunately, Heather seemed to be referring to Ravenwood. "They get away with that crap because they can, because there's no one in the government really overseeing them and we can get to make sure they behave."
"You have the tape." Stepping in front of her, Jake held out his hand to her to take her backpack back.
"Yeah, but who's going to do anything about it?" Heather stopped, looked at him then reluctantly handed him the backpack. He traded her hat back in return but she didn't put it back on. He didn't move from standing in front of her.
"They seemed to think that you could. It's something at least." He put the backpack back on his shoulder and gave her a reassuring rub on her shoulder, her bare skin warm and slightly moist. He felt her trembling beneath his touch. Again, he moved to take her into his arms, needing to hold her and reassure her that everything was okay now, even if he wasn't so sure himself. He suddenly felt useless for being unable to protect her from Ravenwood.
"Yeah, but is it enough?" Heather put a hand on his chest to stop him, glaring up at him.
"Give it to Eric and we'll see." Jake suggested. He wasn't entirely sure what Eric would do either. Lt. Brady was already getting tired of them complaining about Ravenwood and Eric was worried that military would pull Ravenwood out and leave them on their own again. With the rumors of Civil War and organized groups of people taking over farms across the Midwest, and New Bern occasionally sneaking in to steal from and sabotage farms, Jake wasn't sure it was a good idea either to not have some sort of protection in Jericho, even if it was Ravenwood. At least they could call in the military if needed to help out.
"And why aren't you doing anything about them anymore?" Heather stared quizzically up at him, tilting her head to the side. "The Jake I thought I knew wouldn't have put up with Ravenwood acting like this."
The accusation stung, especially coming from Heather who knew him best. Jake paused, struggling to come up with an answer. He didn't want to confess that he was trying to avoid making waves. That wasn't his usual behavior. Time to deflect again. "They just did that because it was me. Because Goetz lets them. Hell, he probably encourages them."
"I know, but it's not just you. A couple of my plant workers live out of town and every day, they give them hard times about coming and going. Even the farmers have a rough time with them." Her hand drifted from his chest to absently stroke his bicep, nearly distracting him. Her hand was warm and familiar against his bare skin. Heather loved to stroke his muscles and it nearly drove him to distraction, even now when she was trying to have a serious conversation with him.
"They're just doing their job." Jake added with a husky voice. But he couldn't believe he was trying to defend Ravenwood. So he added, "It has to suck being stuck out on the hot road every day."
Heather gave him an incredulous look then brushed past him to continue walking down the side of the road. Again, he fell in step beside her. "God, Jake, when is this nightmare we live in going to end? Is it going to keep getting worse? What are we going to do if the military pulls out fully?"
Jake didn't have an answer for her, not yet. He and Hawkins were still working on it. He would have to mention this to Eric and see if Heather would let him give the tape to Eric and Gray. He needed to check with Larry Stevens and talk to the border patrol about why they weren't showing up to help on the roadblocks. Maybe increasing the charter rate for the border patrol would get more people willing to put up with Ravenwood and keep a closer eye on them.
To be continued in Part Two (thankx LJ!)
Warning: The next several chapters are pretty intense in many ways. Some strong language and some pretty major emotional, action-packed and suspenseful scenes. If you'd like a brief synopsis of the previous chapters, check them out here.
Full Circle, Chapter Thirty Five
Three weeks later
Morning dawned already warm and humid threatening to be another miserable, hot summer day in July for Jericho, Kansas. A warm haze hung over the land, even this early in the morning. Birds were singing their morning songs as the sun was rising slowly in the eastern sky chasing away the last shadows of night.
Jake walked with Heather as they made the two mile hike out to the Green family ranch. Since they had built a bigger pasture last year, they only needed to come out to the ranch a couple of times a week to feed and water the horses. Usually, he and Heather would make the trip, enjoying the chance to spend time together though occasionally Eric or his mother would come with Jake. Heather and Jake were following the road, just off the road since they could already feel the heat coming off the asphalt. A regular dirt path had cropped up by the side of the road from everyone walking and using horse-drawn wagons as they traveled in and out of Jericho. The only ones really using the roads anymore were the military and Ravenwood and those with bicycles.
"Have you convinced Mrs. Jones to stop running her air conditioner?" Heather asked Jake, her voice full of humor. They were not holding hands while walking. It was too hot plus Ravenwood had put a quick stop to that tradition.
Jake chuckled, remembering his encounter yesterday afternoon with Mrs. Jones. He had gone with Jimmy to visit Mrs. Jones at her strange house on the outskirts of Jericho. "Jimmy threatened to throw her in jail. I think that finally got her attention."
Jimmy had been filling in as acting Jericho sheriff for the past two weeks, a trial period to see how he did. If it worked out, he might get the position permanently. Gray had first asked Jake if he would serve in the role and while Jake had been tempted, he had declined, knowing that he had to keep working with Hawkins and might have to leave Jericho. Besides, Jimmy deserved it for all the hard work he had been doing for the past year. So, Jake had had a serious heart to heart talk with Jimmy, telling him how he needed to step up and not be afraid to step on toes and anger a few people as sheriff, including himself and even Gray Anderson if needed. Thus far, Jimmy was doing fairly well, both in keeping the sheriff's office running smoothly, leading the rest of the deputies and in standing up for Jericho against Ravenwood. Jimmy had developed a knack for dealing with Goetz that even made Jake shake his head in amazement. Though while Gray Anderson was out of town attending the federal constitutional convention, even Jimmy was finding his patience strained as the hazy days of summer made people restless and their limited resources were becoming evident. It had been ten months since the bombs had gone off and very little had changed in how much help they were getting from their new government or any other outside resources. Most of their improvements had been self-made, with the wind turbines, charter and workshops were they were devising ways to get by without outside supplies as much as possible.
But this latest heat wave in Jericho was almost as difficult as winter had been. The temperature had been nearly 100 degrees for almost a week with occasional thunderstorms that did little to alleviate the heat but only seemed to make it worse, filling the evenings with muggy humidity. The elderly and the young were taking it pretty hard. Even with the additional wind turbines Heather's plant had built, power was still limited and Mayor Gray Anderson had passed an edict forbidding the use of air conditioning unless medically necessary. They closely monitored power around Jericho to ensure that residents weren't abusing their limited power from the wind turbines. It didn't help that they didn't have battery power to store power for when the wind wasn't blowing. And during this heat wave, the wind had dropped off making power even more limited. Some of the wind turbines were barely spinning most of the time. They sometimes didn't even have enough power for refrigerators and lights let alone air conditioning. Fortunately, Russell had made a trade deal with a carbon dioxide processing plant in Colorado exchanging one of their first tradeable wind turbines for liquid carbon dioxide and dry ice they were now using to help keep their refrigerators cold until power picked back up.
The military kept promising that the power grid would be up soon but even the military outpost was using one of Heather's wind turbines to power their camp in addition to their solar power and generator. Ravenwood had put in an order for a wind turbine as well for their own camp. They had crews visiting each house to further tune power consumption though it was a painful and time-consuming process. People were coming up with all kinds of creative ways to beat the heat including swimming parties and field trips to the quarry and salt mines where they could go underground where it was cooler. Work on the farms had slowed and was being done during the early morning and late evening hours. Heather and Jake were supposed to go out to the Richmond farm later that night to help water and till the soil around the many rows of tomato plants Stanley had planted as well as recover roots on many plants that the daily thunderstorms were washing away.
"Well, maybe this heat wave will break soon." Heather said hopefully. She wore shorts and a cool summer top that left most of her shoulders and arms bare and dipped low in the front much to Jake's enjoyment. She also wore an old straw hat that kept her head covered though it hadn't stopped her adorable freckles from coming out all over her face and body. She carried her backpack everywhere nowadays, but as usual, he carried it for her this morning. Thankfully, he had finally convinced her to start carrying a gun which was packed inside the backpack along with Heather's array of tools and the lunch she had packed before leaving the house. He wasn't always able to go with her as she went out and worked on wind turbines and on the other various projects for Jericho, so it gave him a small measure of relief to know that Heather now had a gun with her.
Today, Jake was in his usual jeans and t shirt but could already feel sweat running down his back where the backpack rested against him. He figured by the end of the day, he'd have his shirt off despite the interested stares he got at his still-healing gunshot wound. He did enjoy the sizzling looks that Heather sent his way when he had his shirt off, however.
His plans for the day included working with Jimmy at City Hall to go over complaints, checking to see if Eric needed help as acting mayor, then helping at the rations center that afternoon to sort through inventory and go over the charter credit reports they maintained there. A lot also depended on how the bi-weekly meeting at City Hall went today, where Lt. Brady and now Goetz would meet with Eric, Jimmy, Larry Stevens and Jake. It had been fairly quiet lately, so he hoped the meeting would be the usual check up on complaints and progress of the charter and supplies as well as the status of the ongoing hunt for Hawkins. Jake hoped to get more information about what was happening outside of Jericho as well, at least the version that Lt. Brady liked to spin. Since the Fourth of July, Jake had been hearing more news from the Underground that made him nervous, mostly about how the new government was courting whole groups of people and certain towns to get them to buy into their new government and plans. They were bringing more people up to Cheyenne for the next phase of their project to continue work on the new constitution. Gray had been surprised when he had gotten an invite and had left ten days ago to head up to Cheyenne, leaving Eric in charge. The news they heard was that Cheyenne was also busy building housing and other facilities around Cheyenne to deal with the burgeoning population. People had migrated to Cheyenne in large numbers seeking shelter, safety and jobs and many of them were in tent cities while housing was built, but Jake wondered how their new federal capital would hold up once winter came. Winters in Wyoming were harsh, long and cold. Though right now, he wouldn't have minded a little cold weather. The summer heat was a sharp contrast to seven months ago when he had nearly frozen to death out on the road pinned under Stanley's truck.
At least with the heat, people were more focused on keeping cool and helping the town rather than what was happening outside of Jericho. There was some talk about the outside world, but thanks to Jake and Eric, they tried to keep the information about what was really going on outside mostly positive despite the reports and rumors of war and hardship elsewhere in the country. They had started getting a list of requests from people asking them to pass on messages to Cheyenne and anywhere where they might be able to possibly reach missing family members and friends. They had supplied a list of missing persons to Cheyenne a few months ago but there hadn't been any word on whether the government was actually doing anything with it. Jake had made sure to add Heather's brother to that list though she hadn't known that he had. Heather rarely talked about her family but sometimes he would see her staring wistfully at him and Eric as they talked about old times and growing up together.
The past weeks had been a rollercoaster. Jake relished his time spent with Heather, walking to the plant or ranch, or to church or out at the Richmond's to work on the farm. They had even had time for those field trips of hers, going out riding to look for minerals and caves and making several maps of where resources could be found and sending more parties out to explore and bring back supplies. They had had long talks and walks again and more than a few nights watching movies and making out on the couch or out on a blanket on their picnics or breaks out at the farm. But their good times were frequently becoming overshadowed by the aggravation of Ravenwood. Jake knew it was getting to Heather as well.
Since the Fourth of July, Ravenwood had been a thorn in Jake's side. Ravenwood seemed to be taking out their dislike for the town of Jericho and how they had embarrassed them last year through subtle harassment. They were frequently underfoot and more obvious than the military had ever been. Goetz had been revisiting the terrorist investigation, checking out anyone who had shown up in Jericho since the bombs had gone off. They were also revisiting the murder investigation of Sarah Mason. To Jake's amusement, the Ravenwood commander had yet to get the security clearance he needed to further the terrorist investigation and access confidential files in Jericho and in the Cheyenne government's databases. Emily wasn't sure why, but not even Major Williams had been able to clear his access and according to Emily, the major was feeding the commander some information that he shouldn't. But at least it slowed down Goetz's investigation.
Overall, the town of Jericho was feeling the pain of the changing of the guard from the military to Ravenwood and not many were happy about it. Eric and Mayor Anderson were receiving several complaints a day about them, complaints that Jimmy was dutifully tracking and bringing to their attention as well as speaking to Goetz about them, though it wasn't doing much good. Jake had had to hold back the urge to say 'I told you so', knowing his brother was trying his best to maintain the peace. But after several failed attempts to reason with Colonel Hoffman about Ravenwood, Jake had been forced to mind his tongue and stop pushing lest he hurt his chances of getting that job working for Cheyenne. Jake hated it. He was supposed to be casual and not caring as much about Jericho, wanting to leave. Hawkins had warned him that he was going to have to swallow his pride as he became more enmeshed in their plan. And Jake knew that this was just the beginning. It was just harder when it was personal and affected those he cared about.
It didn't help that Ravenwood was occasionally tailing him as he went about his usual activities, such as walking Heather to the plant or out talking to people about the charter. Jake knew it was Goetz's revenge. As he wasn't up to anything suspicious about town, he didn't think it would be a problem until it started affecting his relationship with Heather. Fortunately, the ranch was just outside the roadblocks and Ravenwood usually didn't go out that far except on road patrols. But they had to pass through the roadblock on their way unless they took the back trails which took longer. Ravenwood had been forbidden from trespassing on private property unless they had an 'exigent circumstance' as Eric called it, in case of emergency or called in to help by the sheriff's office or at the request of the property owner. That was one rule Gray had been adamant about and Ravenwood thus far had mostly adhered to it as far as they knew. Thankfully, a good many places Jake frequented, such as the Richmond farm and the ranch, were away from the public roads and eyes.
Still, putting up with Ravenwood had been extremely difficult, especially for his relationship with Heather. Jake had had to limit their physical contact and his own behavior when out in public with her. He still wanted to keep the military and now Ravenwood in the dark about his feelings toward her, especially with Goetz in charge. The tension and distance between he and Heather had grown and she often grew quiet around him when they talked about the military or Ravenwood. Many times, Jake had been reconsidering his decision to not tell Heather the truth. Instead, he tried to make it up with her by showering her with attention and since he had much more free time while waiting for news on a job from Colonel Hoffman, it had been easy to do.
He worried at times that he was feeling too much for Heather, too soon and too fast. He used to tease his friends about settling down with one woman, believing they had found "The One" for them, never believing that such a thing existed for anyone. He had loved Emily, but it wasn't all consuming like his friends liked to brag about. Now, he understood. He thought his attention would stray, especially after realizing how much he loved Heather that night at Stanley's, but instead, it had only become more focused. He woke up each morning looking forward to seeing her at the breakfast table and had even started getting up earlier in the morning just so that they could spend more time together. He would walk her to the plant each morning or they would come out to the ranch. In the evenings, when they didn't have workshops or town hall meetings or work at the Richmonds, they would watch movies or read together. Weekends were spent working at the Richmonds and in their joint gardens, or going to church followed by a relaxing Sunday afternoon. She made him laugh and feel positive about the world and progress they were making keeping order in Jericho despite the questionable news they heard in trickles from the outside world. When they weren't together, he often found himself wondering what she was doing, wishing they had working phones so he could just call and say hello and hear the sound of her voice. His daydreams and even night dreams revolved around Heather and the things they worked on together and were going to do together. He dare not dream too far in advance, but he often found himself wondering what it would be like to settle down, get married, have those grandkids his mother wanted and live happily ever after with Heather here in Jericho. He worried that he was becoming obsessive, yet all he had to do was compare their relationship his parent's relationship, which had been strong and enduring. He felt comfortable with his relationship with Heather, though he still had his doubts because of his past and what he was planning with Hawkins and the secrets he had to keep. They both worked and got along so well together that they rarely disagreed or argued. Fortunately, Heather had mostly backed off pressuring him to talk about what he was up do, even despite another trip away. He hoped that she had just finally let it go, trusting him as she usually did with most things.
He could postpone his work at the rations center and other work for today, especially since they had more help at City Hall thanks to the charter. Jake smiled suggestively at Heather. "How about a picnic lunch and swimming for today?"
"That would be nice." Heather gave him a knowing smile back. He saw the affection and a flash of desire in her eyes as she met his eyes then shyly looked away. It made his heart beat faster knowing that underneath that shyness was hidden passion. "I doubt we'll get any work done at the plant again today anyway."
He knew what that look meant and was already looking forward to seeing Heather in one of her cute swimming suits and perhaps even nothing at all again. They occasionally went swimming at the old creek that ran through the ranch or at the lake where his grandfather and father used to fish. Sometimes Eric, Mary, Stanley and Mimi would join them. Their private times together were fun, with a lot of teasing and playing in the water, followed by a make-out session on the dock, which then required another dip in the water to cool off again. He had stolen Heather's swimsuit the last time, walking out of the water with it and collapsing on their blanket as he laughed at her astonished expression. Heather had protested and complained about protecting her modesty for a while until she had totally floored him by walking stark naked out of the lake toward him. He hadn't been able to take his eyes off her amazing body. Firm, full breasts that fit perfectly in his hands, a narrow waist and flat stomach, curving hips, a great set of legs and dark hair covering the one place that he had yet to touch more than occasionally over her panties yet. She was a perfect mixture of lean muscle from all the physical labor she did and womanly softness, though he thought she was still a bit underweight. And as he had discovered, her freckles covered the rest of her body, though not as much on the areas that didn't get much sun. He still wanted to explore and kiss every one of them. She had gotten her own revenge by seeing what an affect that had had on him as she had walked up to him just out of reach and sat down on the blanket next to him. Not even the water had been able to cool him off. The image still haunted his dreams and stirred his imagination whenever he looked at her. Jake had to drag his thoughts away from where they were heading and thought again about Jericho.
With the exception of the difficulties dealing with Ravenwood, the past several weeks had been relatively quiet in Jericho for once. With the warmth of long summer hours, the success of the charter so far, power and other supplies coming along thanks to the turbine plant , workshops and trading, and with food plentiful again and people busy working, one could almost forget that the bombs had happened. With Jonah Prowse and many other criminal groups around Jericho gone, morale about town had improved. People had settled in a routine with their work roles according to the town charter system. Spring and summer crops had been planted with the same acreage as previous years, thanks to a lot of manual labor and impromptu greenhouses and trading that had provided enough seeds and plants for everyone to use and have their own gardens. The spring and summer rains had been good this year so far and the crops were doing well. Already, they were getting early vegetables and berries. Workshops had taught them how to freeze and dry fruit and vegetables as well as canning as much of the food as they could find jars and tops. The poultry farms had successfully raised several thousand chickens and Jericho had real meat on a semi-regular basis. Even the livestock farms were doing well and were promising pork and beef by early fall. Now, they just had to continue their discipline of rationing and saving the food so it would last throughout the winter. There had been a workshop last week on drying and curing meat. Fortunately, they had a whole salt mine at their disposable to help with the curing process. Thanks to the charter, they also had a good way of measuring town resources and how much they had to spare and trade. They still didn't have much to trade especially with the government still demanding their share. But they had other resources they were starting to trade, including salt, stone from the quarries, and the wind turbines and other metal products from Heather's plant. They were also learning to hide exactly how much they did have so that the government wouldn't demand more.
Despite his occasional work for the military as well as working at City Hall, Jake found himself with more free time finally, and he had been enjoying spending his extra time with Heather. He had had one more meeting with Hawkins in the past weeks, taking Emily with him, but had returned to find Heather worried but glad to see him. She made it worth coming home. Jake was enjoying this brief respite from the outside world while he and Hawkins tried to figure out their next steps and began to plan what they might do if Jake didn't get that job.
When he wasn't doing something with Heather or working at City Hall, Jake had started spending more time with the border patrol updating his military training and keeping their skills up to date just in case they were needed one day. He had been spending more time out at the Richmond farm, which also allowed him to occasionally check on the military outpost and their maneuvers. Emily provided some information and between Emily and Angie both working at the outpost, he had more solid information that the Cheyenne government was gearing up for a Civil War. Colonel Hoffman had started rotating several of his units in and out of Jericho for training rather than using Fort Riley as a base, which struck Jake as odd. Then again, they had ample water, a pleasant climate and a peaceful community. A variety of soldiers were coming and going often, taking leave in town at Baileys and even helping with various town projects in exchange for fresh fruit and vegetables paid for by their charter system. The soldiers also caused a bit of trouble on occasion, something that Ravenwood was actually quick to take care of. Despite all the military activity, Colonel Hoffman was still working on that job for Jake, only saying there was a lot going on in the government and it was going to take time. Jake was beginning to have doubts that he would get the promised job but Hawkins kept reminding him to stay patient and focused on the goal.
They turned a bend in the road and Jake saw the roadblock in front of them, being manned by Ravenwood. He didn't notice any of the Jericho border patrol with them this morning. Usually one or two border patrol members worked the roadblocks, helping the Ravenwood men identify residents and keeping an eye on the military contractors. But over the past weeks, the border patrol had often stopped coming, citing harassment and difficulties working with the military contractors. Jake heard the complaints in the border patrol training sessions but hadn't reacted, trusting Larry Stevens to follow up on any complaints or issues. He had to stay out of things now, just one more thing he was regretting.
"Maybe we should just go around them," Jake suggested. They sometimes took overland routes that bypassed the main roads but those routes were longer, going up and down hills and having to walk around fields and pastures. With the heat today, he had been hoping to quickly get to the ranch before it got much warmer and get back in time for the meeting at City Hall.
"Too late, I think they see us," Heather replied. And sure enough, there was a flash, like light reflecting on glass as one of the men appeared to be looking their way using binoculars. Several of the men looked up as the one with the binoculars pointed at them.
The Ravenwood men were cooling their heels under a small copse of trees just off the road. Two large military trucks blocked off most of the road and barbed wire fences reinforced with deep steel poles were set up to discourage anyone from trying to drive around the roadblock. On both military vehicles were artillery guns. It looked like several of the men had been playing cards around a card table with chairs. Several stood up as Jake and Heather approached. One set the binoculars on the table.
"Mornin','" Jake called with a half-salute, trying to be polite as they walked by. He often walked through the roadblocks with little difficulty, though they often glared at him and made snide remarks that he could clearly hear. These first several weeks had been rough as Ravenwood got set up and familiar with the local residents. Everyone seemed to know who he was, however.
"Stop." One of them ordered. The man walked over to stand in front of Jake and Heather, shrugging on his uniform jacket as he did so. He looked like he must be the one in charge. He looked rather young, perhaps in his early twenties with sandy brown hair and a healthy tan.
Jake saw the name Cagle on a label on the front of the man's jacket. The Ravenwood uniforms looked like they were old Marine uniforms from the time before Afghanistan. There were hand-me-downs most likely or some they must have purchased from the government at some point. Many contractors provisioned their people in a similar fashion. Unfortunately for Ravenwood, the uniforms were not quite as effective at keeping them cool in the heat as the Desert Combat uniforms the U.S. military had been using in Iraq and Afghanistan. Two of the other men got up from the table and pulled on their uniform jackets and picked up their rifles. Another two stayed seated at the table, setting down playing cards amid poker chips on the table and watching them curiously. The rest stayed under the tree in the shade.
Jake and Heather stopped in the middle of the road, right on the double yellow line. Jake could feel the heat simmering up from the pavement.
"Is there a problem?" Jake asked, trying to remain calm and civil.
"Need to see your id," Cagle replied, eying Jake.
"We're leaving town, not entering." Heather reminded the man before Jake could. He could hear the irritation in her voice. Just a few minutes ago, Heather had been relaxed and content. This was his fault, Jake knew. They might not have stopped Heather if he hadn't been with her.
"Sorry, we just need to make sure who we're letting in and out of here," Cagle stated with a smirk. The man was a little shorter than Jake but a bit heavier. He looked to be sweating beneath his uniform. Jake didn't feel sorry for him.
"Absolutely," said another man nearby. "Gotta make sure we don't let no wanted criminals slip by."
Jake felt sure that comment was directed at him. Goetz had casually mentioned to Gray that Jake had been wanted by the FBI prior to the bombs. That had led to an awkward explanation of what had happened to him in San Diego with Ravenwood, as Eric hadn't even known about it. It was the same Ravenwood that was working with this new government and now was in Jericho. Jake felt eyes looking at him, sizing him up. He thought a couple of the men looked familiar. But he also saw their eyes on Heather and not her face either. His temperature began to rise from more than the humid heat.
"Id?" Cagle impatiently snapped his fingers at both of them.
Jake fought down his instinct to protest. Heather was holding her breath as she looked at him expectantly. He only looked at her nodding, silently telling her to just play along and not make a scene. Heather raised an eyebrow at him.
He slid Heather's backpack off his shoulders and handed it to her. Taking off her hat, she dug in the front pocket of her backpack and pulled out her driver's license and handed it to the man. She put her hand back in her backpack and Jake thought he heard a click come from it. He worried that she had just clicked off the safety of the small pistol Jake had given her. But she didn't look at him to give him any clue of what she might be up to. She set the backpack on the road within easy reach along with her hat. Jake reached into his back pocket and pulled out his old wallet and withdrew his identification paper from it.
Cagle glanced between the license and Heather several times, eyes running up and down her figure. "115 pounds huh? I would have put you at 125."
Jake was offended and his pulse began to quicken with anger. Like most residents of Jericho, many had lost weight in the past year since the bombs, including Heather. They were still carefully rationing food along with trying to put some away in case of emergencies and to prepare for the winter. His mother had helped Heather adjust some of her clothes to make them fit for the summer. He also knew from their make-out sessions that she was thinner than she should be. Then again, so was he as his own belt had been tightened several notches in the past year.
Cagle scrutinized Heather's face. "But 27. Tsk tsk. Little old for most of us, right guys?"
There were a couple chuckles and murmurs of agreement. But Heather didn't respond. Instead, she was still looking around at the men, studying them closely as she squinted her eyes in the bright morning sun. He thought it looked like she was mumbling, her lips moving but saying nothing.
Cagle asked Heather. "Got any kids? Maybe you'd be a MILF."
Anger turned to rage. Jake stepped forward, readying a punch, but stopped himself. Heather glanced at him with alarm then continued mumbling as she looked around at the men. But his movement got Cagle's attention.
"And where's your license, buddy?" Cagle asked Jake.
Jake had lost his passport and license a long time ago, the day of the bombs when he had left his bag in his car after the accident. He had hoped that a search of Jonah's compound might turn them up but the military hadn't reported them in the inventory results so far. It wasn't like he could run down to the local DMV and get a new one. Instead, they had started issuing identification papers for all the residents of Jericho at City Hall.
"No driver's license, no admittance." Cagle laughed at him, taunting Jake with Heather's license.
"That's right." "Uh huh" said several of the men, a few snickering.
Jake knew that they knew the procedure. Either a passport, driver's license or id paper was required to get into Jericho. They also had a list of Jericho residents they could use if needed. Jake had used his paper several times to go through the roadblocks though everyone in Ravenwood seemed to know who he was. They just liked to try to annoy him and he did his best to not let them get to him. He knew they were also keeping track of him. Goetz had asked him several times about what he was doing when he went through the roadblocks or when he was out visiting people to talk about the charter.
"It's a valid identification paper." Jake told him, barely controlling his anger. The heat coming off the road only added to his growing frustration.
"Ah yes, the paper." With this other hand, Cagle forcefully yanked Jake's id paper out of his hand, strong enough to rip it though it stayed intact.
Cagle read the paper carefully. "Jake Green? Hey, Dunlap, isn't Jake Green the one who got you and Rusty in trouble a few weeks ago?"
"Hell, yes. Goetz made me and Rusty do double watches for a week for losing the binoculars." The one named Dunlap replied.
Jake looked at the owner of the voice and vaguely recognized him as one of the men he had caught watching Angie outside of the Pines the night of Emily's party. And the other one, with red hair, looked like the other. He saw the name Callahan on his uniform. Gray had filed a complaint with Ravenwood after listening to Jake's version of the story. He had heard later that the men both told a different story about how Jake had harassed them for the binoculars so he could spy on the party and watch the women. It had been Jake's word against theirs and nothing had happened in the end. It was just one of many complaints that had gone nowhere but Gray had kept the binoculars in his office. Jake had seen these two men around town since then but hadn't run into them personally until today.
"You'll have to give us a few minutes to look over this, check your name on the list, you know, make sure you are who you say you are." Cagle informed Jake and there were several snickers from the men. He held the paper out but his eyes didn't leave Jake. "Rusty, go and run this against the list."
A man with curly red hair and the Callahan name tag on his open uniform jacket stepped forward and took the paper. He gave Jake a sinister look then stepped over to the truck, pulled out a thick three-ring binder and acted like he was scanning every single page in it, one page at a time. Jake knew that the list was alphabetized and the man could have easily found his name. There weren't many G's in Jericho.
"You know who he is." Heather stated. She had stopped her looking around and was glaring at Cagle now.
"You can go, sweetheart." Cagle handed her license back to her with a wink.
"Yeah, go down on your knees for me, baby," said a voice among the men and there were several laughs and catcalls.
Jake was pretty sure he saw which one said that, one of the ones still seated in a canvas chair around the card table. He couldn't hold back any more. To hell with Hawkins and all they were working on. Jake made a beeline for the man, not caring that that there were three of them standing nearby with guns. No one should talk to a woman that way, especially his Heather.
"Jake, stop!" Heather called but it was too late. He was already in motion. The man in the chair was laughing but his eyes widened in disbelief as Jake approached.
"Jake, stop!" Someone mimicked in a high-pitched voice.
Jake tackled the man. They both fell backward taking the chair with them. Their legs knocked the card table over sending the binoculars flying, the cards and poker chips scattering all over the ground. The man's body hit the ground, cushioning Jake's fall. Fortunately, the ground was soft beneath them but it was enough to knock the wind out of the man's lungs. The two rolled across the ground freeing them from the chair. Jake ended up on top.
There were shouts around them egging them on but Jake ignored it. He thought he heard Cagle ordering someone named Jason to grab him.
He laid a heavy punch against the man's jaw causing his head to hit the ground. He felt a knee rising to hit him in the groin and instinctively moved his thigh to block it. But it was enough of a distraction that Jake missed the punch the man threw that landed against Jake's still sore ribs. He cursed with the pain, grabbing the man's wrist and twisted it, blocking the next blow that was headed toward his jaw.
Strong hands grabbed him by the shoulders and yanked him back hard. As Jake struggled against the interruption, the man was able to jerk his wrist free. Another jerk on his shoulders and Jake was flying backwards. He landed a few feet backward on his side and shoulder and moved to scramble to his feet again. Jonah had taught him to never get caught on the ground if you could help it. Fluid and quick movements. The man he had punched, with the name tag of Peters, was rubbing his jaw as he slowly sat up on the ground. Jake climbed to his feet and felt the adrenaline pulsing through his veins. He was willing to take on the entire group of them if he had to. He looked at the three of them standing around him, looking for the next likely candidate. A big, blond man stepped in his path. Jake started toward him and found two rifles in his face.
"Jake!" Heather called.
"That your boyfriend, honey?" Cagle called from the middle of the road and that stopped Jake. Jake paused, unsure. The words broke through his rage and reminding him of his need to not make waves. Plus, they might hurt Heather if he kept it up.
"No." Heather answered simply. "We're just friends."
Heather denying their relationship hit him like a stake in the heart.
"Hear that boys? Pretty lady here is available." Casey laughed. "Jason here, he's looking for a little lovin'. Think you could help him out?" He pointed to the man that now stood in Jake's way. The man didn't have his uniform jacket on so he wasn't sure what his last name was, but there was one jacket on the back of one of the chairs that likely belonged to the man.
Jake clenched his fists. Just the look of the guy made Jake nervous. He had been leering at Heather most of the time, eyes barely leaving Heather's chest. He was tall and muscular and easily outweighed Jake. He might have trouble if he had to fight him. Jake felt for his gun and found it had slipped deeper into his pants but was still within easy reach. He didn't want it to come to having to use it. Often, physical violence was more effective for making your point. Jonah had taught him that.
"Sure." Heather slipped her license back into her backpack and placed it on the road. Jake stared at her in surprise, taking a slow deep breath to try and catch his breath and decide his next move. Heather smiled mysteriously as she sauntered over toward the man named Jason.
"Heather, don't!" Jake yelled. Even though it was cooler off the road in the shade of the tree, he felt hotter than ever, his t-shirt clinging to his back from the sweat of fighting. But a chill went through him at the thought of Heather being pressed to do something she didn't want to. Angie's story of the things she had had to do as a sex slave came back to Jake.
Cagle warned him. "Better calm down, buddy, or it might take Rusty there a bit longer to verify your papers. I really don't believe you're that Jake Green we've all heard about." Cagle's eyes ran up and down Jake's lean form making him feel subconscious. He knew he was slim compared to the rest of these men, especially since they had carefully rationed food in the past months, he knew he had lost more weight, but had put on muscle due to all the hard labor he had been doing at the Richmond's and the drills with the border patrol. Even Heather had noticed, teasing him about becoming a body builder. "And you fight like a girl, ain't that right, Pete?"
The man Jake had tackled was still stroking his jaw as one of his friends helped him to his feet. "Yeah."
Heather didn't stop, but walked right up to the man called Jason. Jason had to be a least six foot five, towering over Heather. She made a motion for him to bend over a little bit, as if inviting him in for a kiss or a whisper. The man's eyes looked down, straight down the cleavage of Heather's top. Jake stepped forward, intending to put a stop to this, but a gun barrel pressed against his chest and the man holding it gave him a warning look.
Her mouth inches from the man's face, Heather grabbed the man by the shoulders as she pulled herself up toward him. She quickly lifted her knee as she did so, hitting the man in the groin with it. Some of the Ravenwood men flinched. Jason doubled over with pain and hit the ground, rolling back and forth in the gravel by the side of the road, and cursing up a storm. He groaned in pain as he yelled. "God damn fucking bitch!"
Jake vaguely recalled that that had been a technique they had been teaching at the self-defense classes. He had practiced it with Heather several times. He just never thought she would ever have to really use it.
Grabbing Jake by the wrist, Heather pulled them away from the guns, backing them up toward the middle of the road again by her backpack and hat. She turned around to address the men. "Now, I don't know about where you all come from, but where I come from, the boys learned better manners in kindergarten."
The man named Jason slowly struggled to his feet and made a move toward Heather. Jake reached for his gun and Heather quickly stepped behind him. Jake loosely aimed his gun, not sure if he could actually shoot fast enough to defend both of them.
Heather reached down to pick up her backpack again. "Touch either of us and I'll be sure to add it to the report I'm filing."
"Hah, it will be your word against ours." Cagle replied, though he finally looked a little worried.
That had been the problem with most of the cases and complaints thus far. There were few eyewitnesses to what Ravenwood was doing and no proof, thus it had been difficult to prove any of the cases. Most of their complaints began with the phrase 'I don't mean to sound like I'm complaining but...'. and Jake had learned that there was usually more to these stories and a pattern had been developing. But worse, they hadn't been able to do much about it since it was usually the word of Jericho residents against a number of Ravenwood men and the Ravenwood men complained that they were just trying to do their job while having to deal with uncooperative residents. Jake now knew how local residents abroad must have felt when dealing with corrupt military contractors.
Heather reached into her backpack and pulled out a small tape recorder. He had seen her using it lately to speak notes when they went on surveys or to record workshop sessions and later write up notes from it. He could hear the slight sound of it running. The click he had heard earlier was Heather turning on the tape recorder. "Yours and mine as clear as day on this here tape."
"God damn it!" Cagle took a step toward them, clenching his jaw and squinting his eyes in anger. There were several worried glances around the men.
Jake turned off the safety and aimed his gun at the man. "Touch her and I will use this."
Jake wasn't sure if that would really stop all of them. How far would these men go to get away with the things they just did? They already had their guns aimed at him. Would they really shoot over this? But Cagle backed off, his hands in front of his chest in a calming gesture.
"And I'll be sure to mention the swearing and name calling and inappropriate staring. I seem to recall there's supposed to be a professional code of conduct that you're supposed to follow." Heather stated. They had announced that at the townhall meeting when Goetz had been introduced. They had been finding out that the code of conduct didn't amount to much.
"Now let my friend Jake and me here continue on our way and maybe I'll re-use this tape for something more useful, like recording the sound of me and my latest boytoy having hot summer sex." Heather spoke the last words with a deep, sultry voice, one she usually reserved for Jake only. It was a big turn on for him usually.
And not just for him, Jake realized as he glanced around. All of the men were staring at Heather, most with looks of astonishment.
God I love this woman. He was head over heels in love with her. He stared at her with a mixture of shock and amazement.
Cagle stared at Heather. "You do that, ma'am. Don't mention that tape to anyone and we'll be sure to make sure your pet here doesn't have any more problems."
Jake's mind began to race with the possibility that the recording presented. They would finally have proof of the ill behavior of Ravenwood. But even so, would the Cheyenne government actually do something about it?
"You do that." Heather responded with her best sweet smile.
A minute later, they were on their way, Jake's id paper back in his wallet in his back pocket and Heather's tape recorder turned off and back in the backpack. Jake could feel the eyes boring into his and Heather's backs as they walked away. In their haste to leave, Heather had picked up her hat and backpack and was now carrying them. After they had put several hundred yards between them and Ravenwood and turned a long bend in the road out of sight of the men, Heather stopped and handed him her hat. She pulled out a pen and notebook out of the front pocket of the backpack. Setting the backpack on the ground, she began writing furiously.
Jake asked her. "What are you doing?"
"Writing down their names." Heather answered. "Peter Can't Coddle Turkeys in South Dakota"
"What?"
"It's how I made myself memorize them."
"You remember them all?" Most wore their names on their uniforms, but Jake hadn't noticed them closely except for Cagle, Callahan, Dunlap and Peters, the one he had tackled. He had never caught the last name of Jason, then again, he was far too distracted with keeping an eye on the man as he leered at Heather. Had she been memorizing their names when she had been mumbling?
"Peter Can't Coddle Turkeys in South Dakota." Heather finished scribbling then rattled off her list. "Peters, Cagle, Callahan, Tetley, Sanchez, Dunlap."
"You are amazing." Jake stared at her, shaking his head. He had felt useless, unable to do much of anything against the men. Anything he did would no doubt get back to Goetz and maybe even Colonel Hoffman. But Heather had persevered and brilliantly stood up for them.
They were out of sight of the roadblock. He wanted to kiss her madly. He had rarely seen this side of Heather. She stood up when needed, but never like this. He never knew she had that in her. That should have never happened and wouldn't have if it hadn't been him with her. And he had been helpless to stop it. He only hoped that the news that he had attacked that man wouldn't get back either. Maybe Heather's tape would protect them both.
"I'm sorry you had to do that." He told her as he tried to move closer to her, to pull her into his arms. He had been apologizing too much lately.
"Jake, this is getting ridiculous!" Heather sighed giving him a cold look that set him back on his heels. By the tone of her voice, he could tell she was angry, not just at the men, but at him as well. She returned the pen and notebook to her backpack and picked it up again, walking quickly away, fast enough that Jake had to lengthen his stride to catch up with her.
"I know," Jake called out to her, still carrying her hat and jogging a few steps to bring himself in step with her. "Maybe we should avoid the roadblocks from now on."
"It's not just that. It's everything." Heather explained. She sounded exasperated. She didn't slow down but kept walking fast. Jake was afraid that she was going to bring the whole matter up again, his not telling her everything, his trips, why he was hiding their relationship. But fortunately, Heather seemed to be referring to Ravenwood. "They get away with that crap because they can, because there's no one in the government really overseeing them and we can get to make sure they behave."
"You have the tape." Stepping in front of her, Jake held out his hand to her to take her backpack back.
"Yeah, but who's going to do anything about it?" Heather stopped, looked at him then reluctantly handed him the backpack. He traded her hat back in return but she didn't put it back on. He didn't move from standing in front of her.
"They seemed to think that you could. It's something at least." He put the backpack back on his shoulder and gave her a reassuring rub on her shoulder, her bare skin warm and slightly moist. He felt her trembling beneath his touch. Again, he moved to take her into his arms, needing to hold her and reassure her that everything was okay now, even if he wasn't so sure himself. He suddenly felt useless for being unable to protect her from Ravenwood.
"Yeah, but is it enough?" Heather put a hand on his chest to stop him, glaring up at him.
"Give it to Eric and we'll see." Jake suggested. He wasn't entirely sure what Eric would do either. Lt. Brady was already getting tired of them complaining about Ravenwood and Eric was worried that military would pull Ravenwood out and leave them on their own again. With the rumors of Civil War and organized groups of people taking over farms across the Midwest, and New Bern occasionally sneaking in to steal from and sabotage farms, Jake wasn't sure it was a good idea either to not have some sort of protection in Jericho, even if it was Ravenwood. At least they could call in the military if needed to help out.
"And why aren't you doing anything about them anymore?" Heather stared quizzically up at him, tilting her head to the side. "The Jake I thought I knew wouldn't have put up with Ravenwood acting like this."
The accusation stung, especially coming from Heather who knew him best. Jake paused, struggling to come up with an answer. He didn't want to confess that he was trying to avoid making waves. That wasn't his usual behavior. Time to deflect again. "They just did that because it was me. Because Goetz lets them. Hell, he probably encourages them."
"I know, but it's not just you. A couple of my plant workers live out of town and every day, they give them hard times about coming and going. Even the farmers have a rough time with them." Her hand drifted from his chest to absently stroke his bicep, nearly distracting him. Her hand was warm and familiar against his bare skin. Heather loved to stroke his muscles and it nearly drove him to distraction, even now when she was trying to have a serious conversation with him.
"They're just doing their job." Jake added with a husky voice. But he couldn't believe he was trying to defend Ravenwood. So he added, "It has to suck being stuck out on the hot road every day."
Heather gave him an incredulous look then brushed past him to continue walking down the side of the road. Again, he fell in step beside her. "God, Jake, when is this nightmare we live in going to end? Is it going to keep getting worse? What are we going to do if the military pulls out fully?"
Jake didn't have an answer for her, not yet. He and Hawkins were still working on it. He would have to mention this to Eric and see if Heather would let him give the tape to Eric and Gray. He needed to check with Larry Stevens and talk to the border patrol about why they weren't showing up to help on the roadblocks. Maybe increasing the charter rate for the border patrol would get more people willing to put up with Ravenwood and keep a closer eye on them.
To be continued in Part Two (thankx LJ!)