CATCHER COVE

[feralferret]

""Well, if you aren’t too remorse, I’d like to take you out to dinner,” Crystal said."

Did you mean morose?


Thanks for another fine chapter.

[ncsfsgm]

Chapter 22


Bob watched with pride as the contractors began cutting the first trees and hauled them out to the sawmill area. It had taken a lot of time, meetings, and paperwork, but the new governor was pro-2nd Amendment, and he fully supported the effort. The first 450 meters would just be the entrance road into the Willy F James Jr. Marksmanship Complex, named after Private Willy James Jr., who risked his life to aid his fallen platoon leader and unfortunately was fatally shot in the process during World War II, receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor. The range would offer multiple pistol and rifle ranges and two 1000-meter ranges, a range house, bathrooms, and a picnic pavilion. Bob and the Governor believed an armed populace was a polite populace. The more people who knew how to use guns, the safer society would be. Too many didn’t believe in gun ownership and were paying the price of letting no one but criminals have guns. Also, the best people in the military had historically been men and women from rural areas who had handled guns when young and knew how to use them. Now they couldn’t even pass a PT test. Bob couldn’t get the teenagers to keep in shape, but they could damn well teach them to shoot effectively. There were several NRA instructors in the area who had agreed to teach marksmanship. Concealed Carry classes along with Hunter safety courses would also be offered, and hunters could check the accuracy of their hunting rifles. Bob stayed around a little longer and watched as the portable sawmill was brought in and set up. Another beauty of the project was they would use the timber cut on site to build the buildings scheduled to be erected. Of course, the sawn lumber had to be trucked offsite to be pressure treated with wood preservative, but money had been budgeted for that and they would get a discount rate. A National Guard Engineer Company would do the site preparation and building of the structures as a training exercise. An excavator was pulling up the tree stumps which were then run through a giant grinder to chip them up to be used in landscaping. Everything had a use. Bob walked over to the contractor’s trailer to see if there were any problems he could help solve.

Archer walked through the 500 square meter area of girdled trees and chopped at shoots with the bush axe. The trees had been girdled before the leaves had died last fall to kill the trees and he wanted to make sure underbrush didn’t take over the next year. Someday, he would have a raised-bed garden here and wanted to get a head start on it. Cutting the trees would take time but time was one thing he had plenty of, although he might use locals to help him. Walking back to the shed, he put the bush axe and gloves away. A pot roast had been on his mind lately since Siobhan mentioned it the other day, so he decided to head up to the Food Rite and pick up the fixings.
Siobhan was on break when Archer walked in. Smiling, she walked up to him.

“Hi! What can I do for you?” Siobhan said in greeting.

“Hi Siobhan! Oh, I just came in to get the stuff to make a pot roast,” Archer said. “It’s been on my mind ever since we talked about it the other day. I bought a cast iron Dutch oven the other day at the hardware store, and I need the things to fill it up.”

“Well make sure you season the pot before you use it.” Siobhan said.

Archer gave her a puzzled look. “What kind of seasonings do I need?”

“No, seasoning cast iron is preparing it for cooking. The seasoning is a layer of carbonized oil that's been baked onto your cast iron pan. It forms a protective layer on top of the cast iron and gives the cookware a natural, easy-release finish and makes cooking and cleaning a lot easier. The more you cook in your cast iron, the thicker this layer of oil becomes.” Siobhan replied.

“So, how do I do that?” Archer asked.

“I could come by after work and show you,” Siobhan offered. “I get off at 2:00 PM.”

“I would appreciate that,” Archer replied.

“Come on, let’s get your ingredients,” Siobhan said.

Jim filed off the machining burs and checked the sear with a micrometer, Perfect! He put a light coat of lubricate and reassembled the pistol. He checked the trigger pull weight with the gauge and it came out to two pounds six ounces. Disassembling the pistol, he added a little tension to the sear spring and reassembled the pistol. This time the gauge read two pounds eight ounces, just where he liked it. He wiped the gun down with a silicon impregnated rag. Jim slid the magazine in, chambered a round, then dropped the magazine out to top the magazine off.

As he entered the house, Katie told him that she needed to go shopping. When Jim asked why she had to go shopping, she blushed and said she needed some new underwear.

“We can go tomorrow morning to Poplar Bluff,” Jim said.

Jim was up early and cooked pancakes, bacon, and eggs the following morning. The smell of cooking bacon got Katie out of bed. She went to the kitchen wearing her pajamas just as Jim put the food on the table.

“Good morning, sleepyhead,” he stated, then poured himself some coffee.

“Morning Uncle Jim,” she replied as she opened the refrigerator to get some juice.

“Are you ready to go?” he asked.

“I will be as soon as we finish eating and I change,” she acknowledged.

“Is there somewhere specific you want to go?” Jim asked.

I can probably find everything I need at Mansion Mall,” Katie replied.

They ate without further conversation. Katie finished eating and went to her room to change.

Jim went prepared for a day of women’s shopping. He carried his iPad and stayed out of Katie’s way. Handing her a credit card, he told her to get what she needed.

Jim sat in the food court and played Mahjong or browsed the internet while drinking coffee. When she returned, loaded with shopping bags, he took her to the nearby Lemonade House Grill for lunch.

Bob followed a convoy of gravel trucks into the range complex road, passing trucks of freshly cut lumber leaving to get kiln dried and pressure treated. Local area hunting clubs had pitched in and donated a lot of materials and work on the project. Bill Hendrix, owner of Hendrix Lumber Company and also President of the Happy Hound Hunting Club, had offered to dry and pressure treat the lumber and logs for the price of the chemicals. The Wayne County Rod and Gun Club offered to pay for the chemicals.

Bob was also getting funding from the recreation fund and Winnie was fielding offers for work from many different companies for electrical work and materials. The structures were being built by Rustic Ozark Cabins in Lebanon and the kits shipped back to the Range for erection. Winnie projected the whole project would be finished for half of what was estimated. She was digging around now trying to come up with a plumbing company to put in a septic system.
The construction manager, Carl Williams, was directing groups of people around. The whole area was covered with groups of volunteers preparing different areas. The VFW and the American Legion were supporting the effort also. Men and women wearing hats and T-shirts of the organizations were clearly evident. Bob was getting ready to leave when Winnie drove up.

“I got the septic system scheduled!” Winnie said. They’ll give us a discount too!”

“You are amazing Winnie! Are you compiling a list of benefactor organizations and businesses for the plaque?” Bob asked.

“Yep, and adding to it daily,” Winnie replied.

“Were you able to get in contact with the James Family?”

“I talked to one of his nephews, they are discussing who will represent the family during the dedication.”

“Have them all come. The more the merrier.”

“I got a call from the Missouri Firearms Coalition and Gun Owners of America asking how they could support the project", Winnie said.

“Invite them down for the dedication. Tell them to bring their display trailers and sell a little of their merchandise and bling. If the NRA approaches you, thank them but I don’t need their help,” Bob said.

“Why not?” Winnie asked.

“The NRA endorsed both bump stock bans and red flag laws, plus recently endorsed some anti-gun legislation. The NRA is the reason why we have some long-standing anti-gun laws such as the NFA. They play politics with our rights. GOA is steadfast in its support of the 2nd Amendment. We’ll take support from any locally trained NRA instructors.”

The total amount of brain trust that Jeremy’s clandestine group had available with its seasoned ex-Special Operations and Intelligence members was more than the whole United States government had, and could no longer effectively amass.

The despondency of many in the three-lettered agencies had filled Jeremy’s organization and he had the best of the best. The drain of qualified people of from the ranks of the politicized government was starting to be noticed. The mainstream media was hard pressed to cover up the blatant criminality of the government.

Andy shut the TV off and tossed the remote onto the couch. He got a bottle of beer and went and sat in the sunroom overlooking the lake. Watching politicians lie by any means pissed him off. He could never be a politician because he wouldn’t lie, or like the common thing today was to change the wording and leave out key information and then it wasn’t a blatant lie, or at least politicians thought. To Andy, not telling the whole truth was just another blatant lie, and the press regurgitated it ad nauseum until it was handled as a truth. There were a lot of people in this world just stealing air.

Crystal found Andy in the sunroom as the sun was going down. She could sense he was ill-tempered about something.

“What’s wrong Andy?”

“I tried to watch some news and got pissed off at the lies. I hate to be lied to and it got my goat. I know it’s stupid, all politicians lie, but I still hate it.”

“Well, not only politicians lie,” Crystal said.

“Oh, you don’t have to remind me of that . “Forsaking all others” is not just some simple, flowery wedding thing. They are called vows because they are just that. There has to be a good woman out there looking for a guy whose only talent is loving her completely, knowing his love and trust will never be betrayed."

“Oh, I don’t know,” Crystal said. “I think you have other talents; I just want to be first in line to discover them myself.”

[iamnobody]

“Oh, you don’t have to remind me of that . “Forsaking all others” is not just some simple, flowery wedding thing. They are called vows because they are just that. There has to be a good woman out there looking for a guy whose only talent is loving her completely, knowing his love and trust will never be betrayed."

AMEN!

Adultery is not a new thing. It is told of in the bible, both the old testament and the new testament, in many verses. And it still stinks and hurts just as bad. Whether a woman or man does it, its wrong.

God says adultery is a sin and it used to be punished. Nowadays a woman commits adultery and the judge rewards her with most of the husbands assets.

The bible says that in the latter days good will be called evil and evil will be called good. We are seeing that all around us.

[gipsy]

Thanks for the update.

[ydderf2]

Thanks

[ncsfsgm]

Chapter 23


Dan maneuvered the tractor and picked another area to clear with the rotary mulching brush cutter. He would be cutting the girded trees in the Spring and wanted to get a head start on the underbrush. Once the tree leaves didn’t come out in the Spring, the brush would get a boost from the sunshine and take over if he didn’t get a handle on it. He had only girded 15 trees last summer, so it wasn’t as if he was clear cutting. Still, he cleared even those areas that didn’t have girded trees. The area was beginning to look like a park. Every so often, Dan would get off the tractor and trim the shoots off of the trunk below the gird strip with a machete. If any shoots came out of the root structure, he cut off all the shoots but the best looking one so the tree could regrow. When he felled the trees, he would cut the trunk on down to ground level. Dan decided to stop for the day and returned the tractor to the shed. He walked over and started the Kübelwagen to let it run a bit to keep the oils churned and to recharge the battery. Tossing his work gloves on a shelf, he got in the car and decided to take a ride and give the car a workout. Heading down the drive, he decided to check out the construction off of 172 to see what was going on. The “Thing” was running well and handled the dirt road well. When he re-entered Lake Wappapello State Park he began seeing signs of improvements being made and was glad because this area had a lot of potential. He soon came to a newly built road with large trucks coming and going. Dan fell into the pattern and followed the trucks in. The further he went the more newly turned dirt he saw and the more people he saw using rakes and other hand tools landscaping the area. He saw someone he knew from the VFW and pulled over.

“What’s going on Bill?”

“They are building a firing range here. We all came over to volunteer however we could. It’s going to have pistol and rifle ranges and the VFW is sponsoring a youth shooting team. The boys and girls around here can take a championship or two.”

“That’s good Bill. Looks like there are a lot of volunteers.” Dan said.

“Oh, yeah! A lot have thrown in because they don’t cotton to what the gun haters in this country are doing. We’re going to advertise this is a 2nd Amendment county. A lot of people are showing interest in this. Even the private schools are getting involved with the project. A couple have agreed to sponsor shooting teams tied to the student’s grades. They have to maintain their grades to be able to stay on the team.”

“That’s good Bill. Stupid people shouldn’t be on the range,” Dan replied dryly.


"Are you ready for bed?" Holly asked. The meaning was unambiguous, and Dan nodded his head. Holly walked ahead of him to the back of the house and entered the bedroom first.

“Well, we need to tell your mother,” Dan said.

“Mother already knows. I was going to ask you to marry me if you did not ‘get off the pot’.”

In sotto voce Dan said, “I was waiting to get your ring size.”

“You could have asked me to go with you,” Holly said.

“Well, I’ve never done this before, so excuse my ignorance.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll train you Sugar-Pie.”


Andy raked around through the leaves and found the partially decayed Osage Orange fruits here and there under the big tree. Someone in the past must have had the idea to put a hedge across the peninsula because so far he had counted 15 Osage Orange trees almost in a row, spanning the peninsula. He’d asked at the plant nursery about saplings, but they said they didn’t carry them, but was told if he could find a tree or hedge, he could gather partially decayed fruits that contained seeds that could easily be sprouted. Andy had begun gathering the seeds and had some pots sprouting in the sunroom and would begin transplanting them soon. He was also transplanting the three different kinds of Greenbriar rhizomes that grew in the area into the hedge. Crystal had gone out with him a few times with baskets gathering rhizomes. Once grown into a hedge, it would definitely slow anyone down who tried to slip through the woods at night. It would be nicer looking than ribbon concertina wire.


The Sergeant Major had called for Andy as soon as they had torn the pallet down and put their gear away. He reported to the SMAG’s office and the old soldier broke the news to Andy about his wife.

“Now SSG Blake, we have unofficial protocols we observe when something like this happens. First, are you planning to re-enlist?”

“I don’t think so, Sergeant Major,” Andy said. “Not now.”

“In that case, we can arrange for you an early out, but you can’t go home; for your own good. There is another program that had to be implemented when a couple of guys from the squadron came home and killed their wives after their less than faithful activities. To keep men out of prison or the chair, we arrange for them to disappear with new lives. We go through your psychological profile and determine where you might fit in best, but as far away from your spouse as we can get you. Is there somewhere you’d prefer to relocate to?”

Andy had shrugged, “The Midwest, I suppose, but I also like trees.”

“Well, we’ll get you started as soon as we can. You know she’s going to try to come crawling back and begging for forgiveness?” The Sergeant Major said.

“Probably so,” Andy had agreed. “But after the evidence gathered so far, she’s damaged goods to me.”

“Good attitude,” SMAG said. “Once a cheater, always a cheater. They sure aren’t thinking about you when they are being a punchboard while you are fighting just to stay alive. It took us a while to put things together after those two operators killed their wives after they returned back home. We want to put you on the road to recovery.”

The events that had unfolded still amazed Andy. All his financials were taken over by lawyers and accountants so he wouldn’t lose out to badly. His wife, thinking he was on a mission extension, continued her affairs and didn’t question his absence.

“Well, she knows now,” Andy thought out loud.

He’d had several days to compile the letter that was sent to her a month after Andy had left for good. He had explained why he wasn’t coming back and included with his letter was a pack of date-stamped photos revealing practically every aspect of her cheating.

When Andy had finished gathering the seed and rhizomes, he returned his tools and basket to the garden shed. Late next summer he would gather the Greenbrier and Catbrier berries to scatter in the hedgerow. Andy went onto the porch and took off his boots, banging the heels together to knock the soil off. Placing the boots on his shoe rack in the mud room, he went to wash up.

The events of the last few months continued to swirl through Andy’s mind as he checked the package of four pork chops he had set out earlier to thaw. Going to the pantry, he took a pound of turnip greens out of the freezer, an envelope of Idahoan Instant garlic mashed potatoes, and a box of Shake and Bake Original Pork coating. He didn’t know whether Crystal was going to come by for supper or not, but if she didn’t, that would just mean he’d have some leftovers for tomorrow.

Andy had already coated and placed the pork chops in the oven and was sipping on a beer and flipping through a Guns and Ammo magazine at the kitchen island when Crystal arrived. She knocked on the back door and came in.
“O-o-o-o-o something smells good!” Crystal said.

“Shake and bake pork chops.” Andy said.

“I hope you have enough for me!” Crystal said.

“Crystal, I planned a while ago that when I cook a meal, I might as well cook for two. In case you don’t show up, I’d at least have some leftovers to eat later.” Andy replied.

“You are so sweet!” Crystal said, kissing Andy’s cheek.

“Just being practical, Dear.” Andy said.

"I was hoping you’d come over so we could spend some quality time with each other and talk about us.” Andy said.

“You’re not talking about ‘clothing optional quality time,’ are you?”

“As much as I would like that, and I do mean really, really like that, I am still married for now and I can’t bring myself to take us that far yet," Andy said.

“I was hoping you’d say that because it confirms to me the kind of man you are, but my libido and strong attraction to you is fighting my sense of propriety," Crystal said.

“Let’s just keep it simple for now,” Andy said. “But I warn you, you are rapidly beginning to occupy places in my heart that had long been reserved for my slut ex-wife, Ann.”

Andy opened a bottle of wine for Crystal, and they carried their drinks into the sunroom. Andy closed the French doors behind him and opened a couple of vent windows and the ventilated skylights to let a little air circulate. It was in the low 40’s outside right now but the temperature was 64° F in the sunroom. Later, they could lay on the lounges and watch the meteor shower through the skylights. They lay there until the cooking timer went off, which Andy had set for enough time to prepare the mashed potatoes, turnip greens, and cornbread before the pork chops were done.

Crystal set a kettle of water on to boil, and Andy slid a cast iron skillet into the oven to heat up for the cornbread batter.

After dinner, they finally did sit out and watch the meteor shower, but Crystal slid over into the same lounge as Andy.

“You be nice, now,” Andy said, grinning.

“I’ll be nice, I just want to snuggle a little,” Crystal giggled.

[gipsy]

Thanks for the update.

[ncsfsgm]

Chapter 24


Jim took the baffles out of the tumbling medium, checking each one with the micrometer and laying them on the tray. He sat the tray on the shelf with the rest of the parts, stripped the latex gloves off, and cleaned his hands. He always wore latex gloves when handling the parts, but they did make his hands sweaty. Drying his hands, he checked his watch and walked to the house. Katie should be through with her schoolwork by now.

Katie was warming up the beef stew they’d had last night and toasting sourdough bread slices.

“Well! Thank you for preparing dinner, Katie. Are you finished with your studies?”

“Yes sir.”

Jim went to get the examination binder and brought it to the kitchen. Katie groaned.

“Why do I have to take a test every day?”

“To evaluate what you learned that day and to help you to train how to take a test,” Jim said. “Next week we have an appointment for you to take your Stanine ranking test and you need to prepare.”

“Why can’t I take it here?” Katie asked.

“Well, it is required that it be administered by people with certain qualifications, so the scores are always objective and reliable.”

“I still don’t see why you can’t give me the test here; you are the smartest man I know,” Katie said.

“Well thank you, but be that as it may, they already have people designated to administer the tests; I’m just another everyday uncle who is slightly biased and they might not think I’d be objective.” Jim said.

Katie gave the pot another stirs and began ladling the stew into bowls. Jim took the toast out of the toaster oven and spread butter on the slices.

“Tomorrow after the test we’ll go get you some new shoes.” Jim said.

“Can’t they just put new bottoms on them?” Katie asked.

“What we’re going to do is get you a new pair of Red Wings for riding and have them double-soled. The way you like to drag your right foot at times, you wear the sole down and start walking like a peg-legged pirate.”

Katie giggled. “I can’t help it; I don’t realize I’m doing it!”

“Well, the double-soles will help anyway.” Jim replied.

Jim’s phone beeped with an alert from his calendar. His type 1, 6, and 7 FFL licenses were coming up for renewal in 90 days. He’d have to download the renewal forms and get those mailed out.

They finished their meal and quickly washed their dishes. Jim took the test out of the proctor manual and handed it to Katie, who sat down at the island with her scratch paper and #2 pencil, then started on the quiz.

After Jim had graded the quiz, he released Katie to go riding on the quad and went back to his shop. He took down the bins of parts and began assembling the 5.56mm suppressors on the worktable. Once he had assembled six of the suppressors, he got a M4 carbine out of the gun safe and screwed on a suppressor. Taking out a magazine of Hornady Black ammo, Jim set the Digital Sound Level Meter on the shooting bench and set the rifle up to fire into the bin of sand he used for tests. When he fired, he checked the meter, and the decibel range was in the range he wanted. He tested all the suppressors and was satisfied with the design. He had tried some new types of washers and they worked perfectly. Jim would continue to test different thicknesses of fiber washers to see if he could improve the silencing. His next project was to make suppressors for the more common hunting calibers used and design suppressors for them.

Archer cruised along the flats next to the old St. Francis River channel and kept his eye on the fish finder. He stopped occasionally and usually ended up with a few white crappie, most between 7 and 9 inches long. He stayed on the lake until the cold wind got the best of him and took 12 fish back through the chop in the lake. He cleaned the fish at the cleaning station near his dock and tossed the rock-weighted burlap bag of scraps back into the lake. The scraps drew flathead catfish into the area. He took the cleaned fish back to the house, then prepared the fryer, and cut some potatoes up for fries. A package of Zatarain's Hush Puppy Mix would round out his meal. During his preps, Siobhan arrived and helped him finish the cooking.

---

The two security detail members provided by the U.S. Marshal’s Service exited the Sierras Grill & Taqueria first. One of the men went over and talked to a member of the security detail posted near the corner of the building, while the other went directly to the Suburban and opened the door for Stanfield Gilbert, Director, Office of Intelligence and Analysis for the Department of Homeland Security. As Director Gilbert turned to enter the vehicle, he suddenly collapsed, his face bouncing off the running board. The closest guard grabbed him and turned him over to check for a pulse. There was one and he continued to check for any wounds. Others called for medical evacuation while others scanned around. It wasn’t until a few moments later that the guard found the bullet hole just below Director Gilbert’s Level IIA body armor. After quickly applying a QuickClot bandage, seeing no exit wound. Before the ambulance could get there, an enormous data dump of information was sent to all the major news networks, independent news agencies, the White House, and the FBI. The information detailed Director Gilbert’s involvement in the collaboration between the news media and certain branches of the government on spying on citizens in the United States and overseas, interference with national and some state elections, and outlined the thread of corruption that was winding its way through the government. Director Gilbert flatlined as the ambulance reached the closest medical facility.

---

Andy completed his morning ablutions and went to the kitchen. He put on a pot of coffee, made a pot of oatmeal, and put bread on to toast. He checked the Weather Channel on TV and decided to do more gathering of materials for the hedge. It looked like his time in the forest would be short-lived. Andy prepared his oatmeal flavored with maple syrup, and toasted buttered bread and ate it quickly. He rinsed out his coffee mug, bowl, pot, and spoon and picked up his small military cutter mattock, hand pruning shears, and an Adirondack Pack Basket that had been in the basement. Heading out into the state forests, he looked for Greenbrier shoots and dug the rhizomes up to transplant into the Osage Orange hedges. By noon, the wind picked up and the temperature had dropped, but Andy had dug and transplanted a half of a pack basket of rhizomes into the hedge. Andy chuckled. Come Spring, those shoots would be practically jumping out of the ground. Then his time would be spent weaving the fast-growing vines into the hedge at least once a week.


Dan cursed when he heard the weather report. More sleet and snow. It shouldn’t be a surprise though; they were close enough to the plains and prairies to get the winds and cold fronts that brought the bad weather. He went down to the Food-Rite and got a gallon of milk. He didn’t habitually use the whole milk powder he had stored, but if you started with a gallon jug, you could add the powder and water to the milk jug and couldn’t tell it was powdered milk. Again, as usual, the fronts were going to come through as moisture was being drawn up from the Gulf. Funny how it followed the Mississippi River. He checked his supplies and didn’t really need anything else, but stopped by the liquor store to browse. Hopefully, this would be the last big storm of the year. Of course, the weather prognosticators could get it wrong, and it would just be some rain, but you had to prepare for the worst. He checked the condition of his tire chains and before he came home, filled his truck at the service station rather than using the fuel out of his tank at the farm. Before going home, Dan stopped by the VFW to get a delicious greasy burger and fries. As Dan was driving home, light sleet began falling. He parked the truck in the garage, then took an armload of firewood into the house for the woodbox, and settled in. The sleet didn’t last long and turned into a light rain. Dan made a drink and sat down to read “New Madrid Earthquake: A Disaster Thriller “ on Kindle.


From where he stood on the shoreline overlook, he could see mist rising off the water to the south. A ‘smoky’ haze blanketed the late evening hilltops in the distance to the southeast. Andy took another sip of his coffee and turned around to return to the house. There was a mix of light rain and sleet that bounced off his hat as he treaded his way back. The chill was seeping through his Gortex rainsuit. The weather geeks were saying there would be bad weather coming tomorrow and Andy planned to keep close to the home front. He had plenty of firewood and supplies and had no need to go traipsing around for anything. He’d hold up and let what would be, be.

When he got back to the house, he took off the rain suit and shook it out. Hanging the suit in the mud room, he went in and set his thermos cup in the sink and made a hot mulled rum.

Andy went into the great room and picked up his copy of “The Frontiersmen” by Allan W. Eckert and began reading.

Around 6:30 PM, Andy began feeling hungry and went and pulled out the corned beef and cabbage leftovers in the fridge. He had just taken the pot out of the fridge when his phone rang. He answered the cell and Crystal asked, Whatcha doing Sugar?”

“Warming up some leftovers for supper." Andy replied.

“Warm some up for me too.” Crystal said.

“All right. Be careful of the roads,” Andy said.

‘Bye, bye, sugar pie!" she said. “See you soon.”

[feralferret]

Thanks, ncsfsgm!

[ncsfsgm]

Chapter 25


Bob Dennison watched as the Cat K2 dozer shaved and tamped the berm while a loader dumped fresh buckets of soil where the dozer operator wanted them. They were making 6’ berms down the sides of each range. The intermittent rains made the soil moist enough that the driver was able to pack the soil firmly. With safety procedures in place and followed, they shouldn’t have anyone shooting over the berms. He turned as Winnie spoke to him.

“The garden club and the nursery are donating Asiatic jasmine for the berms.” Winnie said.

“That’s a lot of plants,” Bob said.

“Actually, the nursery will be hydroseeding the seeds. The plants are drought resistant, and deer don’t like them,” Winnie said.

“That’s good. I certainly wouldn’t want the shooters to have to run the grazing deer off the range before firing. I’m getting hungry, let’s go grab some lunch,” Bob said.

“Sure. Crabb & Company have a BBQ plate on special today,” Winnie replied.

“Sounds good,” Bob said.


“Come on Sweetie. Let’s go out to lunch,” Jim said.

Katie jumped up from her desk and grabbed her jacket.

“Where are we going?” Katie asked.

"Crabb’s has a BBQ plate special I want to try out,” Jim replied.

“I want to get some of those gator bites and fried catfish!” Katie said.

“Whatever you want, Honey.”

The parking lot was plenty full when they got there, and the seating left consisted of a picnic style table. They took a seat, ordered the iced tea, and looked at the menu. Jim ended up ordering the special and Katie ordered the fried catfish plate and a side of gator bites for two to share with her Uncle Jim. The waitress brought out their tea and the basket of gator bites when a couple came in and asked if they could share the table. Jim said, “Sure” and noticed the man was dressed in a forest service uniform. He glanced down at the pistol he carried on his left hip and commented, “I notice a slight burr on your pistol. If you’d like to get it taken out, I could do it for you.”

“Yeah, last week, I was down at the marina and one of the boaters lost control of his sailboat mast in a wind gust and it caught me. I dove to the side, but the mast came down on my hip.”

“You were lucky. Have you fired the weapon since then?”

“No, I haven’t. I’ve been waiting until the range complex is finished so I could use it when it opens.”

“Range complex?” Jim asked.

“Yes, we’re opening a range in the Wappapello State Forest. They are finishing up the work in a week or two. Are you a gunsmith?”

“Something like that. I’ve got all the FFL tickets to build, sell and maintain guns, and design parts for guns.” Jim said, handing Bob a business card.

“You know, if you were to make yourself available, especially on the weekends, when the range is open, you could probably pick up some easy beer money from the shooters with gun problems.” Bob said.

Jim chuckled. “Money isn’t something I am short of, but I could probably come and help out with problems they run into,” Jim said.

“I’m sure they would appreciate it," Bob said.

“Just where is this range located?” Jim asked.

Bob looked in his phone notes and wrote down the GPS coordinates of the range entrance road.

“I hope this helps, if not here’s my phone number. I’ll call you and see when you can check my pistol out,” Bob said.

“You can bring it over any time. I have nothing but time on my hands these days,” Jim said.

They finished up their lunch, and Katie and Jim had a bowl of banana pudding for dessert. Winnie and Bob left, and Jim and Katie sat and enjoyed the pudding. Jim received the bill and was getting up to pay it when Katie squealed “SHAYLYNN!” and went running toward a woman walking toward their table from the back of the restaurant.

The woman grinned as Katie grabbed and hugged her, the woman hugging her back. Jim looked at the pair, puzzled.
“Uncle Jim! Don’t you know who this is?!” Katie said breathlessly.

“No, I don’t believe I do,” Jim replied.

“This is Shaylynn Debois, actress and singer!” Katie said with a hint of exasperation.

“Ma’am, I apologize. My niece can get quite excited at times,” Jim explained.

Shaylynn smiled. “No apology necessary. I’m surprised anyone recognized me here.” Holding out her hand she said, “Hi, I’m Shaylynn Debois, recent transplant and Wappapello Lake resident.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Shaylynn,” Jim said, shaking her hand.

People in the restaurant began stirring and Jim blushed.

“I’ll go pay our bill and get out of here. I think we’ve caused a bit of a stir,” Jim said.

“Yeah, me too,” Shaylynn said.

They paid for their meals and walked outside.

“I apologize for not recognizing a celebrity as yourself, but my niece’s genre in music and mine don’t always match up.”

“That’s okay, I’ve enjoyed my anonymity but occasionally someone recognizes me.”

“Do you live on the lake?” Jim asked.

“No, I have a place near the dam. When I want to get out, I take my kayak over to Eagle Point to launch."

“We don’t live on the lake either, but we have a beautiful creek and a mill pond.” Katie said.

“A mill pond?” Shaylynn, her eyebrows raising questionably.

“Yes, I use it to generate electricity.” Jim replied.

“Oh? Interesting.” Shaylynn said.

“Do you want to come and see it?” Katie asked, excitedly.

“Katie, I’m sure Miss Debois has more interesting things to do.”

“No, I’m serious, I find it interesting,” Shaylynn said. “Could I get your address? I’ll call before I come.”

Katie jumped into the truck, wrote the address down on a piece of paper, jumped out and handed it to Shaylynn. “Please come to see us. I’d like to talk to you about your movie 'Princess Dove',” Katie said.

Shaylynn giggled. “Well! You really are a fan!”

She looked at Jim and asked, “Would Saturday be all right? I take the weekends off from writing.”

“You don’t really have to if you don’t want to,” Jim said.

“Oh, no! I’m looking forward to it. It is refreshing to have such a young fan,” Shaylynn said.

Katie walked with Shaylynn to her Jeep and watched as she drove out of the parking lot.

Jim got in the truck followed quickly by Katie.

“Isn’t she beautiful?!" Katie squealed.

“She’s all right for a girl from Wappapello,” Jim replied.

“Oh, Uncle Jim! You wait! I’ve got her movie on DVD that we can watch tonight.”

“She was in only one movie?” Jim asked.

“Yes. I read in People’s Magazine online that she didn’t agree to some of the things the producers wanted her to do and left California and just disappeared. Did you know she is a real Native American? Or it’s maybe First Nation because she’s from some tribe in Canada.”

Jim drove along listening to Katie drone along, grinning at her excitement.

On the way home, Jim got a call from Bob Dennison asking if he could drop his pistol off that afternoon. Jim told him sure, he was on his way home then. Ten minutes later Jim pulled into the garage. Katie went inside the house and Jim headed to his shop. A few minutes later, Bob parked in the parking area and Jim stepped out of the building. Jim shook Bob’s hand and invited him in. Jim asked Bob for the revolver and was pleased to see Bob clear the weapon and hand it to Jim with the gate and cylinder open. Jim took a receipt book out of a drawer and wrote down the serial number, dated the receipt, and put the time on it, then handed the receipt to Bob and kept the carbon copy. Jim then quickly disassembled the piston and removed the hammer. He inspected damage done to the hammer and checked to make sure it wasn’t bent, then took the hammer over to a garnet grinder and after putting a pair of magnified flip-up safety glasses, began polishing the burr off the hammer. After doing some work with a small file and finishing it off with some fine polishing, he wiped the hammer down with a silicone cloth and reassembled the revolver. Jim got six rounds of .38 Special out of a new box of ammo and handed them to Bob.

“Load it and come over to the shooting barrel,” Jim said.

Bob walked over to the barrel, loaded the revolver, and pointed the into the sand filled barrel.

“Thumb the hammer back each round and see if you can feel any irregularities.” Jim instructed Bob, handing Bob a set of electronic earmuffs.

Bob fired all six shells, thumbing the hammer back each time.

“Nope, can’t even feel where that nick was,” Bob said, shucking the shells into a brass box and reloading with his .357 duty ammo. They walked back over to the chest-high desk and Jim asked for Bob’s receipt back. Jim annotated the date/time the job was completed on Bob’s receipt and his carbon copy.

“What’s the deal with the date/time on the receipts?” Bob asked.

“It’s to cover my own ass,” Jim explained. “The receipts have to match the video recording being taken right now. This place is under video surveillance 24/7. You wouldn’t believe the B.S. ATF pulls when they are trying to go after you.”
“I can understand that” Bob said. “Well, how much do I owe you?”

“Nothing, it was a pleasure, but don’t let it get out I do things for free. I was thinking of setting up a repair trailer and taking it out to your range to fix any problems people have with their guns.”

“Load up on sights,” Bob said. “You’ll probably find almost every complaint will be about needing new sights.”

Jim grinned. “I’ll do that.”

When Bob left, Jim went inside and searched the internet for nearby dealers in cargo trailers. He’d like to have one like a concession trailer and put his own cabinets and workbenches in. He could go ahead and order the equipment and tools he would need and buy the cabinets later to fit or have a cabinet maker build them. An RV air conditioner would be needed and a tongue-mounted generator.

---

The three-man team began tailing the target as he left Melbourne Orlando International Airport. The man apparently wasn’t very concerned about security. He didn’t attempt to do any security checks of his car that was left in long-term parking between trips, so they basically knew where he was headed but he did stop at a liquor store on the way to his house on the Indian River. So far, there have been no surprises. This was the third time in the last two months he had flown in to spend four days in the sun.

---

[feralferret]

Thanks, ncsfsgm!

[gipsy]

Thanks for the updaate

[ncsfsgm]

Chapter 26


Jim found Poplar Bluff Trailer online and went down to visit them. He was going to treat Katie to some shopping as a reward for passing her grade equivalency test. The dealer didn’t have quite what Jim was looking for, but he showed him a manufacturer’s website where they could order one custom built. Jim looked through the models they could build and picked out an 8.5x18 foot model. It had everything he was looking for including AC and heating, generator platform and stabilizer jacks. He went ahead and ordered it with a promised completion date of three weeks.

Katie wanted an iPad, so they went to the phone store and bought her that, an iTunes card and a Dell Laptop computer. It was all she had wanted so they headed back home. On the way, Katie unpacked the iPad, plugged it in to charge and using Jim’s hotspot, went online and found Shaylynn’s songs. She played them for Jim and sang along as they drove. Jim had to admit she had a wonderful voice, and she sang songs that were more or less ballads instead of the crap that now most played. Katie even Face Timed with Shaylynn before they got home. Katie asked Shaylynn to come over before noon on Saturday because she had a lot to show her. Shaylynn laughed and promised she would be there before 11:00 AM.

When they got back home Jim got out some graph paper and scaled the trailer interior out to decide where he wanted cabinets placed. He had the business card of a custom cabinet maker up near the VFW who said he could build whatever he wanted. When he had the layout he wanted, Jim began ordering grinders, tools, and other equipment he could fit in there comfortably and still have workspace. Rifle and pistol vises were a must, plus a magnified, clamp-on work light or two. He wouldn’t have a lot of power requirements, but he might have to upgrade the inverter and batteries in the trailer. Getting his head back in it, Jim ordered various sights and gun accessories from Midway USA. Once he saw what guns were being used in the area, he could stock up on parts that were the most common. Extractors and springs broke the most, so he ordered a couple of spring kits from Numrich, along with firing pin and extractor blanks. Added to his orders were Hoppe’s Universal field cleaning kits, solvents, oils and patches.

Shaylynn arrived at Asher Creek at 10:45 Saturday morning. Katie ran outside to greet her as Jim waited on the deck. Katie led Shaylynn onto the deck as Jim rose to greet her, offering coffee or tea. She selected coffee and Jim poured her a cup and moved the sugar bowl and the milk pitcher toward her. She drank her coffee black as Katie excitedly told her about the things she was going to show her. Then Katie disappeared into the house, saying she was going to make a cup of hot chocolate.

“So, you are writing now?” Jim asked Shaylynn.

“Trying, it’s something new I picked up after my sojurn into the film industry.” Shaylynn replied.

“Katie said you disappeared after that one movie.” Jim said.

“Well, yes. Producers and Directors expected me to exchange sexual favors for key parts in movies and I wasn’t going to do that.” Shaylynn said.

“I’m sorry you were put in that position,” Jim said. “Katie insisted I watch your movie and I was impressed with your acting abilities.”

“Thank you,” Shaylynn said. “It was with sadness I left my short acting career. I had nothing to look forward to in Canada, so a friend mentioned about Wappapello and that I could become anonymous here. I checked it out, liked the area, and settled.”

“And here you were outed by a 12-year-old girl,” Jim said, grinning.

“Yes, that is so, but she is a darling.”

“That she is,” Jim agreed.

"So, how did she come to be living with you?” Shaylynn asked.

“Her parents were killed in a bridge collapse in Connecticut a few years ago,” Jim replied.

“Oh, my goodness! The poor thing!" Shaylynn exclaimed.

“She recovered well. I just try and give her all the love I can,” Jim said.

“She is fortunate you were there for her,” Shaylynn said.

Katie came out with her mug of chocolate and sat next to Shaylynn.

“Uncle Jim, can I take Shaylynn down to the pond in the side-by-side?”

“Well, I need to go down to check a couple of things. Why don’t you ride your bike down and Shaylynn can ride with me?” Jim asked.

“Okay!” Katie said. "I’ll get you a helmet Shaylynn that you can pull your ponytail through!” Katie said, jumping up from the table.

Shaylynn chuckled. “She’s a real ball of energy, isn’t she?”

Jim grinned. “She is at that. Come on let’s go to the garage.”

Katie met them in the garage where she handed Shaylynn a helmet. She helped Shaylynn put it on, pulling her ponytail through a hole in the back. Shaylynn, in turn, helped Katie pull her ponytail through on her helmet. Katie checked her bike then got on, pulling out, and waiting for the two to follow her. Jim and Shaylynn buckled in and followed Katie down to the mill pond.

Katie led Shaylynn down along the pond to a bench by the penstock, where they were listening to the water race down between Katie’s jabbering.

“This must be beautiful in the summer!” Shaylynn said.

“What made you decide to produce your own power?” Shaylynn asked Jim.

“Because the electrical CO-OP wanted to charge me more for running power into here than it cost to have my system put in. I have solar as backup, but the main power comes from the hydro generator.” Jim replied.

“I’m thinking of putting a gazebo here to have cookouts and such, maybe a hammock or two. It is really restful here with a breeze blowing in the warmer months with the sound of the water lulling you to sleep.” Jim said.

“I can only imagine!” Shaylynn said dreamily.

Jim and Katie switched vehicles and Katie took Shaylynn around to her favorite parts of the property. They finally returned to the house, and while Katie was showing Shaylynn her room, Jim made Hot Chocolate for them all (with Bailey’s Irish cream liquor for Shaylynn and Jim and Irish cream flavored coffee creamer for Katie). Jim brought the tray of drinks into the great room and sat it on the coffee table and waited for the females there. He heard Katie’s familiar footsteps (that awkward gate of a pre-teenager) and they entered the room.

“You have a beautiful home!” Shaylynn exclaimed.

“Thank you. Katie helped add things to make it a little homier.” Jim said.

“Well, you both did a wonderful job!”

“Kati says you are of Native American heritage.” Jim commented.

“Yes, I am Chipewyan.” Shaylynn said.

“Chippawa?”

“No, Chipewyan. Different tribe. Chipewyan are a Northern Athabascan group of Dene.”

“What’s ‘Dene’?” Katie asked.

“Dene is the common Athabaskan word for ‘people’.”

“There are two main groups of First Nation tribes in northern Canada all the way to Alaska, the Dene and Inuit. For the most part they get along well, except for some hunting land disputes.” Shaylynn said. “The Chippewa, also known as Ojibwe, Ojibwa, or Saulteaux live in in what is currently southern Canada, the northern Midwestern United States, and Northern Plains. They are the second-largest First Nations population in Canada. I’m originally from Deni´nu Ku´e´ ("moose island place"), a hamlet in the South Slave Region of the Northwest Territories. The community is situated at the mouth of the Slave River, on the shores of Great Slave Lake."

“Shaylynn, we’re having Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato sandwiches on sourdough bread for lunch, is that okay?” Katie asked.

“That sounds wonderful, Katie!”

“I’ll go start the bacon, Uncle Jim.”

“Okay, thanks Honey.” Jim replied.

“Well, you know the reason for my expatriate status, now what is yours? Katie mentioned you two came from Connecticut.” Shaylynn said.

“Yes. I was a design engineer at an arms manufacturer there. I just got tired of the congestion, Home Owner’s Associations, deceit of if some of the people, and wanted to just get away. I told a couple of good realtors what I was looking for and they found me this property.” Jim said.

“So, you are happy here?” Shaylynn said. “I feel there is more to the story.”

“Well, I wanted a safe place for Katie. Things are getting worse in the country and our government isn’t doing anything to help. If we were to get into a big war, the government has plans to save itself, but hasn’t a plan for the common people, that means anyone who doesn’t have a connection to the government or major political party will have to fend for themselves until the government can get their act together. I’ve tried to come up with something that keeps Katie safe and happy. I haven’t told her exactly what I am doing. I don’t want her to worry. She’s too young to understand right now. And yes Katie is happy too, especially now since you also live in the area.”

“She is such a sweetheart. But she seems like a smart girl too,” Shaylynn said.

They went into the kitchen. Jim got out the lettuce and tomatoes out of the fridge. He began slicing the tomatoes while Shaylynn tore the leaves off the head of iceberg lettuce.

Katie finished the bacon, and got the bread slicing guide out of the pantry, and sliced bread to toast. When everything was ready, each built their own sandwich and sat down with a glass of semi-sweet, iced tea and a handful of potato chips to go with the sandwich.

“OH MY GOODNESS! Did you get this bread at Food Rite?” Shaylynn asked.

Katie grinned. “We baked it Wednesday.”

“You two baked it?!”

“Yes ma’am. I mixed it and Uncle Jim kneaded it.” Katie replied. “We make four loaves a week.”

“It is so good!” Shaylynn said.

“We’re not shy around bread,” Jim said. “Sourdough keeps a lot longer than store-bought bread.”

“What we have left we give to the birds,” Katie said.

“You’ll have to give me the recipe and a bit of your starter so I can build my own.” Shaylynn said.

“If you could come back next Wednesday, I could show you,” Katie said.

Jim chuckled and shook his head. He had a suspicion of what Katie was doing, and strangely, he wasn’t opposed to it, for now.

“I’d like that,” Shaylynn replied.

“Good! We start making the dough at 09:00,” Katie said.

“Have you been back to your old home since you left California?” Jim asked.

“Yes, I headed for there in my motor home and stayed there for a couple of months, but I found I had little in common anymore and decided to head elsewhere and write music. I’ve been here for six months now.”

Katie had disappeared, and Jim excused himself to go check on her. He found her laying on her bed, haven having fallen asleep listening to music on her iPad. Jim opened a bottle of Chardonnay and took it and a couple of wine glasses out to the great room.


Archer tossed the two camouflage tarps on the pile of gear for his last cache site in the Mark Twain National Forest across the lake he would be emplacing tonight. The ten caches he’d emplaced would keep him going a long time, if needed.

[gipsy]

There seems to be some catching going on in Catcher Cove. Thanks for the update.

[ncsfsgm]

Chapter 27


Jim and Shaylynn drank a glass of wine and then Jim showed her the shop.

“Oh, I have a pistol, a Walther PPS.” Shaylynn said.

“9mm or .40 caliber?” Jim asked.

“9-millimeter,” Shaylynn replied.

“Well, if you ever have any problems, bring it to me and I’ll fix it for you.” Jim said.

“I like it. When I took the class, I was very accurate with it, but the trigger pull is like 6 pounds, I think they said.” Shaylynn said.

“I can make it easier to pull if you want. Wait a minute,” Jim said, pulling a device out of a drawer that looked like the lower of a pistol. Jim turned a dial to put 5 pounds of pressure on the trigger and handed it to Shaylynn. “Try this. We can find out the trigger pull you’re most comfortable with.”

Shaylynn pulled the trigger. “That’s a little better,” she said.

“Jim dialed it to 4 pounds and had her pull the trigger again. “That’s even better,” she said.

Again, Jim turned the dial and reduced the trigger pull to 3 pounds. She pulled the trigger and said, “That’s perfect!”

“Do you have your pistol with you?” Jim asked.

Shaylynn nodded. “Yes, it’s in my car.”

“If you go get it, I can fix it in a few minutes.” Jim said.

Shaylynn went to get her pistol and already unloaded and had the slide locked back. Jim checked it for himself then disassembled the pistol and took out a couple of parts. Shaylynn watched as Jim polished the parts on the polishing wheel and wiped them down with a silicone cloth. Reassembling the pistol, Jim used the trigger pull gauge, he checked the weight, and it came out to 5 pounds. Jim disassembled the pistol again, checked the parts with a micrometer and polished the parts a little more. After assembly and checking, the weight came to 3.15 pounds. Jim took the magazine from Shaylynn, unloaded her carry ammo, and loaded three rounds of ball he had in the cabinet into the 7-round magazine. He walked her over to the sand barrel and had her slowly fire the three rounds into the barrel.

“That is much better!” Shaylynn exclaimed. “Do you know if there is a range nearby?”

“In another week, a range is opening up in the Wappapello state park north of here,” Jim replied.

“I’ll have to get up there and start practicing again,” Shaylynn said.

Katie had awakened and came out looking for them, munching on a Cashew energy bar.

“Are you hungry?” Jim asked Katie.

“A little,” Katie replied.

“I’ll go start the grill for burgers if you can start putting everything else together,” Jim said.

“Deal!” Katie said.

When they got back in the house, Shaylynn retrieved her wine glass, added a little wine to it and followed Katie into the kitchen. Jim went out and started the grill. When he went to the kitchen, Katie had Shaylynn peeling potatoes as Katie was forming patties from a 2-pound pack of ground beef.

“Katie conned you into peeling potatoes!” Jim said, grinning to Shaylynn. “She hates peeling potatoes. We could have had chips.”

Shaylynn grinned. “Oh, fries are much better than processed chips.”

“I don’t want you to think I tried to take advantage of you Shaylynn. I just didn’t want Uncle Jim to eat potato chips again today and start getting fat.”

Shaylynn grinned and looked at Jim, giving him the once-over. “Oh, I don’t think he looks even close to getting fat.”

“You’ve never seen him sit and eat a whole bag of Salt and Vinegar chips while reading.” Katie said.

“Aw, I don’t do that often." Jim said shyly.

“Just making sure,” Katie said.

Jim got the fry-daddy out and added oil. Katie stirred kosher salt into a bowl of water, added the cut fries and ice, setting the large bowl aside. Jim got his wine glass and bottle and brought it to the kitchen and checked his watch. “We’ve got about ten more minutes before the coals are ready.”

“Katie, I’m surprised you don’t have a dog out here in the country,” Shaylynn said.

Katie’s eyes twinkled. “I was going to ask Uncle Jim, but he has given me so much lately I didn’t want to ask just yet.”

Shaylynn grinned at Jim who just shrugged. “Maybe for her birthday,” Jim said.


Dan was weeding the garden and transplanting some plants from the greenhouse.

His tomato vines had small green tomatoes on them, and the onions and garlic were doing well. The lettuce in the greenhouse was doing exceptionally well. It wouldn’t be long before he would be getting all his salad ingredients out of his garden rather than buying part of them at Food Rite. Dan began preparing his tea drip bottles for the tomatoes. The bottles were just 2-liter soda bottles with some spikes that screwed into the top. The “Tea” was compost tea made from leaching water through compost. The spikes were pushed into the ground next to the tomato plant and the tea drained slowly down through the spike, taking the nutrients to the roots of the plant. He did this once or twice a week. Bees were flitting through the garden, pollinating the plants. He checked the soil moisture in the corn rows and decided they need to be watered. Rolling out the drip hoses, he laid them out and connected the hose from the IBC to the drip hose. He had added several gallons of compost tea to the IBC earlier. The corn was tasseling and could use the extra nutrients. While checking the drip hose, Joe Covington, a local apiarist, came by to check the hive. Dan leased a hive from Joe to pollinate his garden.

“Morning, Dan”

“Morning Joe, how’s it going?”

“Fair to middlin’,” Joe replied. “Do you want to order honey again this year?”

“Yes, I’d like to order a 2-gallon bucket of raw and a 2-gallon bucket of raw with the comb,” Dan said.

Joe grinned. "Got ya a sweet tooth since last year, hunh?”

“To tell you the truth Joe, until last year when I took my first taste of your raw honey, I’d forgotten just how good it was. The stuff you get in the grocery store is nothing as good as raw honey.”

Joe nodded and wrote his order down in his notebook then began inspecting the hive.

“Yeah, the things they make you do to market it just takes the true flavor right out of it,” Joe said. “I’ve been selling most of my honey at the farmer’s markets.”

Dan continued emplacing the tea feeders on the tomato plants, then walked Joe back to his truck.

Dan was filling the chicken feeders and waterers when around 11:30, Holly drove up in her Willys, her red hair in a ponytail and a big paper bag in her hand.

“I hope you have some iced tea made ‘cause I’ve got Chunky Boyz pulled pork sandwiches with slaw, like you like them, and fries.”

“Well, I was going to warm up the pinto beans I cooked yesterday, but I like your idea better,” Dan said, grinning.

They went inside and Holly laid out the food on the kitchen island. Getting out two mini ramekins, she filled the two with catsup and took the tops off the sauce containers provided with the meals.

“So, what brings this on?” Dan asked Holly.

“I was hungry, I didn’t want to eat alone, and I was right there at Chunky Boyz, so I pulled in.” Holly said smiling mischievously.

“Uh hmm,” Dan said, dipping a fry into the ramekin.

They ate silently for a while then Dan took a drink of tea and cleared his throat.

“What are you doing tomorrow?” Dan asked Holly.

“I was thinking of getting my hair cut. Why?”

“I was wondering if you wanted to ride with me to Poplar Bluff to pick out a ring,” Dan replied.

“What time do you want to leave?” Holly asked, breathlessly.

“Come over early and we can have breakfast before we go.” Dan said.

“Or I could stay here tonight, and I could make you breakfast in the morning.” Holly said, grinning.

“As you wish,” Dan replied, dipping another fry in catsup.

“This ketchup tastes different.” Holly said.

“That’s because what you are eating is catsup. Slightly different ingredients and less sugar. I’ll bet you have a bottle of that Yankee commie Heinz ketchup in your fridge. Look at my bottle, I use Del Monte catsup.”

“I thought they were all the same,” Holly said.

“Well, some people interchange the names, but the ingredients are different for each, similar, but different.” Dan replied.


Andy smiled as he stirred the crumbled country ham into the bowl of pasta salad. This was one of his favorite outside meals; pasta salad with a smoked ham, lettuce, and tomato sandwich on farmers bread with Miracle Whip (NOT MAYONNAISE!), and an ice-cold beer.


Katie asked Jim if they could order a Sourdough Starter Crock she found on Amazon. She wanted to give it to Shaylynn as a present. He pulled up the Amazon app on his phone, logged in and had Katie pick out the crock she wanted. Jim selected “Buy now” and because he had Prime, the crock would be there on Tuesday, just in time for their bread baking class.

When the crock arrived, Katie washed and dried it thoroughly and set it aside. She’d wait until Shaylynn was there before putting the starter in so she could show her how to get her batch of starter going. It wasn’t a big thing to Jim, but Katie was thrilled to be able to share experiences with Shaylynn.

Shaylynn had prepared herself for her baking class. She read up on starting cultures and maintaining the starter. She collected many interesting sourdough bread recipes and was looking forward to working with Jim and Katie. Plus, the bread they made was delicious!

“Uncle Jim, do you like Shaylynn?” Katie asked.

“Yes, she is a nice person.” Jim replied, filling the flour container.

“NO! I mean do you like, LIKE her?” Katie asked.

“Katie, you’ve been around me enough, I take seriously any emotional connections. I only go out with a woman if there is a mutual attraction.” Jim replied.
.
Katie squirmed around a bit. “She’s beautiful and you are handsome. I have seen her give you looks when you were not watching, and I have seen you look at her when you think she is not looking. So, what’s the problem?”

“Well, looks are nice, but it takes more than that to build a relationship.” Jim explained.

Thoughtfully, Katie walked to her room.


Shaylynn arrived bright and shiny at 08:55. As soon as Katie heard the gravel crunching, she ran out of the house. Jim had set two large stainless-steel bowls on the island and set two extra cast iron bread pans with lids with the others. The girls came in, laughing and talking. This was going to be Katie’s show, so he let her take charge. She began talking about how to make a starter from scratch, how to feed it, and that you could quicken the process by using starter from another batch. They were going to make their dough first, then Katie had their recipe with instructions printed on note cards that would make two loaves of bread for Shaylynn. Katie instructed Jim on how to weigh and mix the ingredients and just as Jim began to mix everything together, Katie shouted, “WAIT! Uncle Jim, you forgot the ‘Special Ingredient’.”

Katie reached over the mixing bowl and said, “POOF!” And made a starburst gesture with her hand.

“Shaylynn, you have to add Love to every batch.” Katie said. “That’s what makes the bread taste especially good.”

Shaylynn chuckled and said, “I’ll remember that!”

Jim mixed the dry ingredients first with a fork, then switched to just using his fingers. They measured out the water and added it. After mixing thoroughly, Jim let the mixture sit covered for an hour to allow the flour to absorb the water. While waiting, Jim peeled a bag of oranges and Katie ran them through the juicer to make fresh orange juice. When the mixture had autolyzed for an hour, Jim added the sourdough starter and sea salt and worked it into the dough. Instead of kneading the dough, Jim stretched and folded the dough over itself, over and over again. “Covering the bowl with a damp linen towel, Jim placed the bowl on the counter where he knew it would stay around 70 degrees for three hours or when the dough formed bubbles.

“We’ll let the dough rise for three hours or until about six. The longer it rises, the better the flavor will be.,” Katie explained.

Then it was Shaylynn’s turn to do her dough. She stepped up and followed the written and Katie’s spoken instructions and things went much quicker. Once she had her dough rising, she asked, “So, what do you do while we wait?” Shaylynn said.

“Well, for one, I’m going to start cleaning up and by the time I’m finished, I could take the two prettiest ladies on Asher Creek to lunch,” Jim said.

Katie and Shaylynn quickly jumped in and helped Jim clean up the kitchen.

Jim took them to Crabb & Company. They all ordered iced tea and Jim ordered their “Brush Pile” appetizer; a pile of fries smothered with chipotle BBQ sauce and topped with sautéed smoked brisket, onions and bell peppers, then covered with cheese. They slowly ate the appetizer and when the waitress came back, Shaylynn ordered a Pulled Pork Salad, while Katie ordered the Country fried boneless chop, smothered in gravy, with corn on the cob and red potatoes. Jim ordered the Shrimp and Crab Etouffee, with corn on the cob and coleslaw.

[gipsy]

That sounds like a real feast. Thanks for the update.

[feralferret]

Thanks, ncsfsgm!

[ncsfsgm]

Chapter 28

Shaylynn was back out at Asher Creek early, having been invited to breakfast with the Collingwood's. After breakfast, the bread dough was taken out of the refrigerators and Jim floured the kitchen island work surface. Katie was in a constant narrative in her role of instructor. Jim gently scraped his bowl out on the surface and patted flour on it and let it sit for 30 minutes, allowing the dough to form a skin that would bake into a good crust. Finally, he cut the dough into four equal parts with a dough scraper and formed each part into a loaf. After lining the cast iron loaf pans with parchment paper, he set the loaves into the pans and stepped aside. Jim handed Katie a single edged razor blade and Katie cut a cross into the top of each loaf.

“I do this for each loaf, in remembrance of Mom and Dad,” Katie explained to Shaylynn.

Shaylynn looked at Jim, her eyes starting to water. Jim placed the lids on the pans and put them in the pre-heated oven, to begin baking.

Then it was Shaylynn’s turn to do her loaves. She was a fast learner and mirrored everything Jim had done. Shaylynn picked up the razor blade and carefully cut designs into the tops of her loaves. When the loaves were ready, they were placed into the second oven. Soon the kitchen was filled with the aroma of baking break. Everyone’s mouths were watering, so they took their orange juice out on the deck to enjoy the morning. Katie kept the kitchen timers with her. Jim had an unopened half-bottle of champagne so he opened it and he and Shaylynn had Mimosas.

Shaylynn and Jim had been lost in thought and conversation when Katie announced that it was time to take the lids off. Shaylynn’s bread still had 15 minutes. They went back inside and Jim pulled the loaf pans out of the oven and took the lids off so the bread could develop a golden crust. A few minutes later they, or rather Shaylynn, took the lids off of her two loaves.

Katie got the butter, bread plates, butter knives, and bread cutting guide out and sat them on the island. As soon as the first loaf came out, Jim took it out of the pan and juggled the hot loaf into the guide for Katie to cut. Katie cut the choice heel off, buttered it and slid the plate over to Shaylynn. “This is the best part,” Katie said, grinning.

Shaylynn gingerly took a bite and agreed it was delicious. A few minutes later, Shaylynn took her loaves out and cut a heel for Katie and gave it to her. They placed the bread on cooling racks and relaxed.

“What was that you cut into your bread?” Katie asked Shaylynn.

“They are symbols of my people,” Shaylynn replied. They are for blessing the land, the heavenly being, and the Dene.

“Is that what your necklace does too?” Katie asked.

Shaylynn reached up pulled the chain around her neck out of her blouse. “This pendent was given to me the first time I left the Dene by the Shaman of the village. It is supposed to protect me and make me wise of the outside world,” Shaylynn said.

“Well, it looks like it worked quite well,” Jim said.

“What kind of stone is it?” Katie asked, fingering the flat stone inlaid in the silver pendant.

I had a gemologist check it out and she said it was an Epidote. Strangely, Missouri and Alaska are two places in North America where it is found. I suppose some Inuit traded it to one of my people at some time in the past,” Shaylynn said.

“I don’t think so,” Katie said, still studying the pendant. “I think it is from Missouri.”

“Why do you say that Katie?” Jim asked.

“Because it brought us all together,” Katie replied.

When the bread had cooled, Jim got out a box of bread bags and bagged the bread.


Jeremy drove up to the gate leading the trucks hauling the two 20-foot cargo containers. He buzzed the gate and Andy let him in. Jeremy directed the trucks to back up to the warehouse and Andy opened up the big door. The building was tall enough that the tilt-bed trucks could easily offload the containers. Once the trucks left, Jeremy explained what was in each container and their use. Andy understood and they sat for a while and drank iced tea and caught up. It wasn’t long before Asher drove up to the dock in his boat.

“Where’s your fish?” Andy asked, grinning.

“Catch and release today, though, if I found a bait of bluegill, I would have kept them.”

“So, how has the fishing been, Asher?”

“It’s good, when I can go. I’ve found it has been better in the early mornings. How are things going with you?”

“Busy as ever, the Marxists and crooks aren’t letting up and neither are we.”

"Is there ever going to be an end?” Andy asked.

Jeremy shook his head and took a drink of tea.

“We have an incompetent government that cannot provide law and order, will not provide for the common defense, meddles in ways that wreck the economy and ruins peoples’ lives, occupies itself ordering you around, banning incandescent light bulbs, trying to ban gas stoves, issuing all manner of micro regulations over your life. This is standard operating procedure with narcissistic incompetents; they can’t solve any problems, but in their unearned self-regard can only blame and bully others in order to maintain their delusion of superiority. It’s nothing but a raw struggle for power, frantically pursued by incompetent lowlife thugs. They will not stop until they are stopped. But we are working on it,” Jeremy said.

"Well, if there is anything I can do, just yell,” Asher said.

“I’m depending on you guys keeping things stable in this area,” Jeremy said.

“Seems there are a few politicians biting the dust lately,” Andy said.

The lives we take are not taken indiscriminately. Unlike the government, we don’t tolerate collateral damage. They aren’t even the worst of the worst, but they are near the top. We will thin them out as we go. We will thin out the shrieking atheists and woke incompetents from the halls of government entirely and set things right. An existential conflict is at hand in this country and in the world. The left has decided it will lie, cheat, and steal to establish the authoritarian oligarchy it wants. For our own sake and that of our children and grandchildren, we must not, and will not submit.

“Well, I’m hoping things turn out for the best.” Archer said.

“Hope is not a plan. If an enemy is trying to kill you, hoping for the best will only get you overrun or killed.” Jeremy said. “After the obese 74-year-old man who had made threats against the (P)resident and was shot 37 times in a pre-dawn raid by the FBI, the warning flags were already there. The FBI refused to say whether or not he was armed, refused to release any video footage, and refused to explain why a pre-dawn SWAT-style raid was necessary for a man who needed a cane to get around at all. It looked more like an execution than an arrest at that stage of things. Before the vans that brought in the federal SWAT team had dispersed back to their staging area, two drones, each carrying an M18 Claymore mine, landed on the roofs of the vans while enroute away from the scene of the crime and exploded. We must be prepared for ever-increasingly frequent and violent depredations by a federal occupying force that has concluded that we will not submit voluntarily so they must use force and coercion to bring the dissenters to heel.”

“It could get really nasty,” Dan said.

“You can’t let the fear of death and the unknown be a part of every decision that you make", Jeremy said. “Not fearing death or failure gives you a lot of options. Have you ever made a good decision while in a state of panic? They exist but are rare and more pure blind luck than anything else. If that is your general modus operandi, you will sink soon enough.”

“Could this be done in an easier way?” Andy asked.

“The easiest way would be a neutron bomb over the capitol building during the State of the Union Address, but time is running out,” Jeremy said. “Gentlemen, As Billy Joel might say, we didn’t start the fire.”

Jeremy stayed a while and then both he and Asher left. Andy sat and thought a while longer before getting up and going to the freezer and taking out a package of Bird’s Eye spinach to thaw. He got out a bag of red potatoes and weighed out 2 pounds and began cutting them into wedges. He filled a large measuring cup with tap water and stirred in kosher salt, poured it over the potatoes, and covered them with water, adding ice to chill the potatoes. He left them sitting on the counter and got out his shallow enameled Dutch oven and a two pound pack of ground beef and broke the beef up into pieces in a large stainless-steel mixing bowl. Chopping up onion and bell pepper, he then used his hands to mix the pepper and onions into the meat; then mixed in garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, four ounces of tomato paste, and an egg. He left the meat in the bowl and covered it. Getting out a stainless-steel pot, Andy mixed more tomato paste, brown sugar, water, vinegar, black pepper, a dash of sea salt, and butter to the sauce and stirred over low heat until the butter melted. Andy formed the meat into a loaf in the Dutch oven, then poured the sauce over the meat loaf and placed the lid on. He put the Dutch oven in the oven to cook at 350 degrees and set the kitchen timer. Getting a Yellowjacket out of the fridge, Andy went out on the shady patio with his beer and timer and lay in the hammock, sipping on his beer, enjoying the slight breeze of the afternoon. He was jolted out of his nap by the timer alarm and quickly got out of the hammock. Taking the empty can and timer into the house, he slid the rack out of the stove and removed the lid from the Dutch oven. Taking a large spoon, he ladled the sauce over the meatloaf and slid the rack back into the oven, for another five minutes. Four more times he repeated basting the meatloaf before he removed the pot and sat it on the stovetop and placed the lid back on. Andy drained the potatoes and patted them with paper towels. Melting butter, he tossed the potatoes in a bowl with the butter and bacon crumbles, then spread them out on a baking sheet and sprinkled them with Parmesan cheese. He placed the potatoes in the oven to roast while putting the spinach in a pot and heated it with butter.

Crystal walked in from the patio and was instantly washed with delicious smells.

“Hello?”

“In the kitchen, Crystal,” Andy responded.

“What ARE you cooking?” Crystal asked.

“Saucy Meatloaf, roasted potatoes and spinach.” Andy replied.

“Are you going to share?” Crystal asked meekly.

“Well, I only cooked two pounds of meat and two pounds of potatoes, but I guess I could share with a pretty woman.” Andy replied.

Crystal grinned and kissed Andy on the cheek. “You’re a sweety. Is there anything you won’t do for me?”

“I won’t grow a beard for you,” Andy said, grinning.

“Well, since I’m not a pogonophile, I’ll let that be,” Crystal said, kissing Andy on the cheek again.

[gipsy]

Thanks for the update

[feralferret]

pogonophile

Learned a new word today. Thanks for the lesson, and the chapter.

[ncsfsgm]

Chapter 29


The noise of the seaplane changed as it banked around and set up for a landing in the mouth of Lost Creek. Andy didn’t notice it at first until the sound of the plane’s engine grew louder as it neared the dock. Jeremy and the pilot got out of the seaplane and Jeremy took a large, and apparently heavy case out of the plane. Andy trotted down to help him.

“What the hell is in here? A Ma Deuce?” Andy asked.

“Not quite,” Jeremy said, grinning.

Andy carried the case up to the patio and set it on the picnic table. Jeremy flipped the latches on the case and opened the hinged lid up. In the case laid a rifle Andy had never seen before.

”What is this?” Andy asked.

“This is a Chinese QBU-10 anti-materiel rifle. Captured from pirates in the South China Sea.” Jeremy replied. “With your abilities, I thought it might come in handy some time.”

“I hope not, but thanks for thinking of me.” Andy said, grinning. “What’s it chambered for?”

“12.7x108mm,” Jeremy said. “I have 2000 rounds of match ball, AP, and APHE in the plane for you to play with.”

The scope had a laser rangefinder, and a night scope was included.

“How did you get hold of this?” Andy asked.

“Don’t ask, don’t tell. The PLA has been outfitting the pirates to keep things stirred up in the Spratly Islands and our Navy has had people down there taking them out,” Jeremy explained.

"Are the Chinese about to invade Lake Wappapello?” Andy asked.

Jeremy chuckled. “No, just hang onto it in case things get crazy.”

They unloaded the ammo and put it in the UTV and at the last second, Jeremy handed Andy an envelope. Andy looked at Jeremy and then opened the envelope and unfolded the papers inside.

DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE

Andy folded the paperwork up and placed it back into the envelope. “Thanks.”

“From what I understand, there is a new range complex opening up around here with some 1000-yard lanes. You may want to check it out,” Jeremy suggested.


Jim walked into the house and Katie was talking to someone on the phone.

“Oh, here’s Uncle Jim, just a sec….Uncle Jim, it’s Shaylynn,” Katie said, handing the handset to Jim.

“Hello?”

“Jim, I want to get a different vehicle, something a little more rugged that can take the unpaved roads around here a little better. Could you and Katie ride with me Friday to Cape Girardeau to look for something?”

“I guess so. What time do you want to leave?” Jim asked.

“After breakfast would be fine,” Shaylynn said.

“Well, since our times for breakfast may be different, why don’t you come over and have breakfast with us, say 07:00, and we can leave from here,” Jim said.

“I’ll see you then. Thanks,” Shaylynn said.

"Hey kiddo, you need to double up on your schoolwork. Shaylynn wants us to ride to Cape Girardeau with her Friday morning to look for a new car for her,” Jim said.

“NEAT!” Katie said and went to her room to get ahead of her work.


Dan and Holly had gotten up early, made breakfast, cleaning as they went, and cleaned the kitchen before they left at 09:00. Dan knew right where he wanted to go… Moritz-Reusch Jewelry. The attendants were top notch and catered to Holly like she was a queen. It didn’t take her very long to decide what she wanted. She wanted a nice ring, but nothing too showy. Once she picked out the ring she liked, Holly cried when in the private viewing room, Dan dropped to his knee and asked her to marry him. She accepted, of course. The saleslady was slipped Dan’s card and she left them alone to have some private time while she did the paperwork. Holly used five or six tissues before calming back down. Their next stop was at Cabela’s. No man goes to St. Louis and bypasses Cabela’s. Dan even bought her a pair of cropped jeans with a top she liked. They stayed around for lunch at a Salt + Smoke for some St Louis-style BBQ before heading back to Wappapello.


Bob Dennison rode around in the range cart inspecting the newly completed range. Bob was pleased with what he saw. Eric Hanson, the range manager that had been hired, had made sure everything was top notch. Bob even used the restroom, and everything was clean, even after being used constantly during the last stages of range construction. The concessionaire was stocking up and Bob bought a bottle of cold water from her. Flyers had been placed all over the county and the seven adjoining counties for the Saturday Grand Opening and invited everyone out. Care had been taken to make sure there was plenty of parking areas and the driving areas were well graveled with limestone gravel to keep the dust down. Yes, Bob was pleased with what he saw. He had contacted several of the state’s gun clubs to make sure they were aware of the opening and invited them to set up membership stations near the concession building. Eric already had an area set aside and marked for that.


Shaylynn had breakfast with Jim and Katie before their jaunt to Cape Girardeau. Katie and Jim had already partially cleaned the kitchen so when they finished eating, all they had to do was rinse the dishes and start running them in the dish washer. A quick wipe-down and they were on the road by 08:30, Katie was thrilled to be spending more time with Shaylynn. Katie had brought along her iPod and had Jim run it through the stereo on his truck. Of course, it was a lineup of Shaylynn’s songs. She begged Shaylynn to sing along with her. Between songs, Jim broke in and asked Shaylynn, “Is there a special reason you wanted to look in Cape Girardeau?”

“I saw a listing in a classic car site on the internet. I liked the look of the vehicle, and it made me feel good about it.” Shaylynn replied.

“Looking cute isn’t exactly the criteria I would be using for a rugged vehicle,” Jim said.

“Is a Land Rover ‘cute’?” Shaylynn asked, frowning.

“What year is it?” Jim asked.

“It’s a restored 1990 Land Rover Defender 110 hardtop with a V8 engine. The vehicle had 178,600 original miles on it,” Shaylynn replied.

“Cute!” Jim said.

Shaylynn punched Jim in the shoulder.

“Okay, if restored right, it could be a good vehicle,” Jim admitted.

Shaylynn programmed in the address where the vehicle was, and Jim continued on their way. The address was actually between Cape Girardeau and Scott City but there wasn’t that much difference in trip time. Jim merged into I-55 and right across from the airport, a Harley-Davidson dealer was apparently having a sale. It had almost a carnival atmosphere to the area.

“Uncle Jim! Can we stop there on the way back?” Katie asked.

“I guess so. Let’s look at this ‘cute’ vehicle first,” Jim said.

Shaylynn punched him in the shoulder again.

They got to the address in just a few minutes and pulled up to a nice two-story house with a handsome three car garage. A man came out to greet them and walked them over to the garage. When he opened one of the garage doors and drove the Land Rover out, Jim was pleased with what he saw, and Shaylynn was almost hopping on her toes. The man pulled a binder out of the backseat and opened it for them to see what all had been restored. Jim saw they had completely torn the body down and sand blasted, checked the frame with a frame alignment jig, had a zirconium sealer wash to prevent future rusting followed by a phosphate wash to prepare the frame for powder coating, and powder coated. The axles had been disassembled, checked, washed, and regreased. All the original suspension was removed. New Terrafirma All Terrain springs, spring retention clamps, shocks, shock struts and control/link arms were installed. All bushings are replaced with a polyurethane version. The suspension now sat 2” higher than stock to allow room for the slightly oversized tires.

Jim and Shaylynn browsed through the binder, Shaylynn asking the occasional question on things she didn’t understand. Jim was convinced they had done a professional job on the Rover.

When the man quoted $79,800 for the Rover, Shaylynn countered $75,000 cash, right now. The man looked at her quizzically. “You have it with you?” He asked.

“Try me,” Shaylynn replied, smiling.

“Okay, I’ll accept $75,000 if you have the cash,” The man replied. Shaylynn reached into her big purse, you know the kind…she could carry everything up to and maybe even a concrete truck in. Anyway, she took out seven straps of $100 dollar bills and one of $50 dollar bills and handed them to the man.

“Damn!” The man said.

“Fresh from the bank,” Shaylynn said.

The man went inside and printed a Bill of Sale, signed the Title, and handed over two sets of keys. Shaylynn shook the man’s hand and got into her Land Rover.

“Let’s stop by the Harley dealer!” She yelled at Jim.

Jim backed out and headed to I-55 with Shaylynn following. When he got to the Harley-Davidson dealer, he pulled in and found two parking spaces next to each other and pulled in. Shaylynn parked and Katie skipped over to her and took her hand.

“How does it drive?” Jim asked.

“Wonderful!” Shaylynn replied.

Jim had never been in a Harley dealer this big. There were rows and rows of bikes parked inside. The bikes the dealer was pushing that day were parked outside, most were used. They walked down the rows, just looking, when Jim hesitated at the trikes. Jim was looking over a used cherry-red metalflake 2019 Tri Glide that sparkled in the showroom.

“I always wanted a Harley trike,” Jim said, rubbing his hand over the seat.

“Why didn’t you get one?” Shaylynn asked.

“Obviously, you haven’t driven in Connecticut,” Jim said grinning.

“Well, you don’t live in Connecticut anymore, what’s stopping you now?” Shaylynn asked. “I tell you what, you buy a trike and I’ll get something, and we all can go riding together.”

“YES!” Katie squealed.

“It’s a deal,” Jim said, waving to get the attention of a floor salesman.

He told the salesman he wanted to buy the red trike and that Shaylynn wanted a bike too. The salesman asked what she was looking for and she told him she didn’t care as long as it was the same color as Jim’s trike. Dollar signs popped up in the salesman’s eyes when he told her he had a used Tri Glide Ultra of the same color and took them over to look at it. It looked almost like Jim’s. It was just one model grade lower than Jim’s. She told the salesman she would like to test drive it first. She didn’t ride far, just to the John Deere place down Old Highway 61 and came back, grinning.

“I wasn’t sure I could remember how to shift. The seat is so comfortable, much better than my old sportsman.” Shaylynn said.

Jim took his trike on a test drive and came back grinning.

Both Jim and Shaylynn paid with credit cards and arranged for pickup on Monday. They were going to the range the next day.

[feralferret]

Outstanding! Thank you for the fine chapter.

[gipsy]

Yippie Trikes. I have a custom build 97 Ultra trike with an S&S 124. Thanks for the update.

[ncsfsgm]

Chapter 30

---

“Gary, it’s good to have you back on the show even if we are taping at 05:00 on a Monday morning. I’ve been trying to slot you for months, but the powers that be always seemed to want to schedule the dud-of-the month politician with a totally uninteresting dialog. So, tell me, what is going on behind the curtains in D.C.”

“Harry, for years there have been rumors of certain people in Washington involved in obviously illegal shenanigans, from human trafficking to insider trading to drug use to pedophilia. Lately, it is apparent these rumors weren’t just conspiracy theories, as the politicians liked to call them and brush the accusations aside, but actual facts. The information about the down and dirty along the Potomac is virtually falling from the sky left and right so fast it is going to take some time to filter through it. Also, a group of psychopomps have started to avenge the good people of the United States. Although this group is extralegal, in the eyes of the laws passed down by possibly these same types of politicians that are having orgies with minors, the government has yet to get an inkling of who they are up against. Just this week, their normal Potemkin sessions of Congress were suspended and Congress went into closed session to discuss their own safety and futures, which was not surprising. Now, this is not surprising because our elected representatives have only been in session for their own self-aggrandizement and not doing what they were voted in to do, represent ALL the people and not just the elites that run in their circles. Our politicians have forgotten that OUR tax dollars pay THEIR salaries and they work for US.”

---

The Asher Creek gang headed back to Scott City and picked up their Harleys on Monday. They strapped down the bikes on the trailer with a little creative placing, had lunch and returned. Of course, Katie just had to take a ride when they got back. She had her own helmet Jim bought her at the Harley dealer and a local guy had airbrushed her name on it. Shaylynn also had her helmet airbrushed along with Katie and then kidded Jim about their helmets being prettier than Jim’s “Old fogy” brain bucket. Although Missouri motorcyclists ages 26 and older can ride without a helmet, if they have both medical insurance and proof of financial responsibility Jim and Shaylynn would wear helmets, leading by example.

They started their ride with Katie riding behind Jim and he led the ride back to the range they had been on Saturday. When they got there, they got off and Katie and Shaylynn went to the ladies’ restroom. Jim could see what he was to expect on future rides. He’d have to plan on pit stops along the way and make sure he had toilet paper in the cargo box on the bike. On the way back home, Katie rode with Shaylynn and they were chattering like magpies over their headsets. Jim rode along listening to Slow Rider by the Wet Bandits and Steely Dan's Gaucho album on his stereo.

Saturday was a lot of fun. Shaylynn was over for breakfast and the three set off for the range at 08:00. Jim gave Katie and Shaylynn their own pair of electronic ear buds for shooters, put his small tool kit in the carrier on his bike and they rode their bikes to the range. They signed up for a pistol range and got one fairly quickly. Shaylynn fired a few rounds. then Jim adjusted her front and rear sights until she was on the mark. She and Jim let Katie fire a few rounds after Jim got permission from the Range Safety Officer. After they had used up their time, Jim talked to the Range Manager and complimented him on the operations.

“Bob said you were thinking of bringing a trailer for gunsmithing out,” Eric commented.

“Yes, I got the trailer and am having cabinets built inside. I should have it back soon. I’ll be able to do most things except for machining of parts,” Jim replied.

“Do you need an electrical hookup?”

“No, I have a solar setup and a generator if I need any more power,” Jim replied. “I’ll stock accessories as soon as I see what people would buy more of,” Jim said.

“I think you could make quite a few sales on those electronic ear buds you use,” Eric said. “Women don’t care to get their hair messed up with muffs.”

Jim chuckled and Shaylynn poked him in the ribs.

Katie wanted a drink so Shaylynn took her over to the concessionaire to buy them a lemonade. "Uncle Jim likes you,” Katie told Shaylynn.

“Well, I like him too. He’s a good friend.” Shaylynn said.

“But do you like, LIKE him?” Katie said.

“Well, it would be nice, but I don’t think he would feel the same.” Shaylynn admitted.

“Oh, I don’t know, I’ve seen him watching you, and I’ve seen you watching him, and not like he was just a ‘friend',” Katie said.

Shaylynn blushed. “Well, only time will tell,” Shaylynn muttered. “Come on, let’s take him some lemonade.”

At 12:00 noon the ranges were cleared, and the range flag came down for everyone to take a break and eat lunch. One enterprising individual had set up a nice BBQ trailer to cook and serve pulled pork sandwiches. He had been cooking shoulders all morning, so the aromas were a constant reminder to the range guests that there was food available. Even those that had brought food with them were forced to forego their own food to get a taste of the BBQ. The owner took care of the cooking of the meat and three teenage girls, who Jim discovered later were his daughters, made, wrapped, and served the food. Also available were French fries cooked in a deep fryer located in the cooking area outside. Drinks were obtained at the permanent concessionaire building. Bob walked over to Jim and chuckled.

“Jesse is going to make some serious cash here today. You need to get your trailer in here. I’ve seen a few people with maintenance problems here today.”

Jim nodded, "yeah I know. I just need to find a hook.”

“A hook?” Bob asked.

“Yeah, Jesse got here early with food already prepared, but began smoking more meat so the smells would either draw the customers in or imprint the smells in their minds. When the lunch break was called, what do you think was on their minds?”

“Oh yeah, I see. Well, spray some gun oil around or something,” Bob said, grinning.

“Funny. I’ve got cleaning kits, cleaning supplies, hearing protection, and some spare parts stocked that I’ll have for sale. I’m thinking about having some signs made up about the value of having a clean weapon and a few company advertisements on sights, triggers, and such. I’ll be out next Saturday for sure.”

“Sounds good,” Bob said.

Jim had ordered and received cases of Hoppes Lead-B-Gone Skin Cleaning Wipes, gun bore cleaner, patches for the most common gun calibers, field cleaning kits, cleaning solvents, and oils. Jim had many styles of shooting hats available on racks to display, lightweight hoodies and jackets that packed into their own pockets, Soft Shell Vests for Ladies (Katie’s idea), all emblazoned with “Archer Creek Gunsmithing”.

Both Katie and Shaylynn offered to be Jim’s “models” and wear vest and hats with his logo on them to hand out printed colored, glossy flyers to advertise his services. Jim had even ordered Recyclable Reinforced Handle Plastic Bags, Collapsible Koozies, Sunglasses, lip balm, Key Lights with Carabiner for giveaways, all with imprinted logos. Jim would have a 10' Event Tent with the Asher Creek logo printed on it, and two folding tables with logo imprinted tablecloths to display the “freebies”. Jims’ accountant keyed him on what he could pay for out of an advertising budget. Shaylynn and Katie also set up a drawing for The North Face Midweight Soft Shell jackets for men and women. They would get the name “Asher Creek Gunsmithing” out into the world for sure.

When Jim got his trailer back on Monday, Katie called for Shaylynn’s help, and they helped Jim stock and label the drawers where the products for sale went while Jim mounted the vices and stored his tools away. The tables, tent, and advertising products went into another cargo trailer that Shaylynn would pull. Southeast Signs and Graphics had made logo half-wraps for both of the trailers.

“Come on Ladies, I’ll treat you to dinner in appreciation of your help,” Jim said, when they were finished.

Katie looked at Shaylynn and grinned. “See, I told you so!”


Andy helped the man and his son stack the firewood in the shed. He had paid for the man’s commercial permit to harvest the wood in the Mark Twain National Forest, then paid for what had been gathered by the cord. He got the wood already split, and except for a few green trees the forest service had marked for removal, all of it was seasoned. The unseasoned wood was put at one end of the shed for seasoning. He had asked for four cords but ended up getting six, two of which were unseasoned. Andy bought all six anyway. When they had unloaded and stacked the wood, Andy paid the man and got a glass of tea. The temperatures were still in the mid-60s, but the sun was setting and it would start getting cooler soon. But the activity had raised a little sweat on his brow. The tea and the slight breeze on the patio were refreshing. He sat there staring across the water when Crystal drove up. She sauntered over to the patio and Andy asked her if she wanted some tea. She said, “Yes,” so Andy started to get up, but Crystal told him to keep his seat, that she could get it.

Crystal came back out and sat next to Andy. Andy took a drink of his tea and cleared his throat.

“I got my divorce papers yesterday and I wanted to talk to you about it. I think you are, at least, fond of me and I’ve grown a great fondness for you too. And that’s the problem. I don’t want you to be my easy rebound from a broken marriage. I respect you too much and it wouldn’t be fair to you. If you want a relationship with me, we need to get to know each other better. I can’t say just yet that I love you. The love word is too easily used these days, and it gets thrown around like a ball. It seems everybody uses it. But when I say it, it means something to me. You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever known. You have a great heart and wonderful personality to go along with that beauty and most importantly, I think I can trust you. You are someone I want in my life.

Crystal leaned over and softly kissed Andy’s lips.

For the first time in as long as he could remember, Andy was in complete ecstasy.

Crystal laid her hand along Andy’s right cheek. “You said some beautiful things to me this evening, Andy. This is a day I’ll never forget for the rest of my life. I’m so happy right now.”

“Me, too,” Andy agreed. “My face is sore from smiling so much!”

The gibbous three-quarter moon was just becoming visible beneath the eaves of the patio cover. It smiled at the couple, on its way to chase the sun.

[gipsy]

Thanks for the update.