The Layover--author notes & WARNING ABOUT STORY CONTENTS!

[millwright]

I started reading this over at SB, glad you moved it here.

Have been reading Bitsmith's story, but he is a big slacker and can't turn out a chapter every 5-6 hours to keep the moar-monsters at bay

I guess you are in the harassment rotation now.

MOAR

[biggkidd]

I keep checking back everyday for more.
Larry

[millwright]

May 20, 2014 11:27:09 GMT -6 biggkidd said:

I keep checking back everyday for more.
Larry

Yeah me too.

Here we are giving generously of our time to read this story and what do we get???

TEASED, I tell ya.....

The lack of progress on this story is starting to hurt my feelings......both of them.

JEEEEEEEZ

Next, willc is gonna claim he drives a truck and can't type because he's on the road.....what an excuse.

Where's the justice??



ETA:Where's the MOAR?

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 17
Beaverton, Oregon
July 1th Thursday

God hates me....or likes giving me a wedgie. In your "normal" Hollywood movie, last night was when Jennifer & I should of snuck off some where and "done it" because I saved her several times. Seen advertisements of movies where the fat guy gets the beautiful girl....heck, remember seeing that tv series about the fat UPS guy married to that good looking woman, but to me, it and those movies are unrealistic. Though I did like that one with John Candy, Maureen O'Hara & Anthony Quinn in it with Allen Sheedy being John's love interest. I know John & Anthony have been dead for a number of years, but what happened to all the rich & famous? Like the women on the "reality" shows about the women of Atlanta, Dallas, etc.? Noticed that NONE of them had kids. Were their husbands impotent or something, cause I'd be nailing a wife like that several times a night and 3-4 times each on Saturday AND Sunday.

Anyway, I was beat when I went to bed last night. Got the dogs guarding Jennifer & Herbert and just dozing off to sleep about 20 feet away from them as normal when I realize Herbert's looming over me. Says he can't sleep and can he sleep with me? Kind of surprised, but figure it's okay considering the cr*p the kid's been thru, but tell him he has to ask his mom. Runs back to Jennifer, talks with her, then runs back....to say it would be okay, but instead, said mommy asked why don't I sleep on the tarp with them? So get my stuff and I'm laying on the tarp with them. Made sure I removed a round from the pistol & rifle so I couldn't accidently fire them, but did keep the magazines in them. It might take me a second or two in loading them, but wanted to make it safe as possible for the 3 of us. So there I am, finally "sleeping" with Jennifer....just not in the way I imagined. There's me & Herbert in my bag and next to him is Jennifer. At least Herbert doesn't toss/turn like I thought he would.

Woke up just as the sun's coming up and find I'm kind of jammed in the sleeping bag. Herbert's scrunched next to me and find my arm not only over him, but during the night, Jennifer's moved over next to us and my arm is over her too. My arm wasn't resting near/on her t*ts (thank God), but some where between her belly button and there. Pulled it back real quick and that's when she woke up. Only good thing was Herbert having his arm next to mine, also holding her and I'm thinking if I'm lucky, she'll think my arm was his. Once she got up, I was able to, but left Herbert wrapped in my bag. Started stretching to get the kinks out, but quit when I saw her doing the same thing....and started getting a hard on. Able to squelch that with some castration thoughts, but it wasn't easy. Says I must look a mess and told her not only no, but hell no. Told her she had enough pretty for 3 girls which brought a smile to her lips. Yeah, she had some bags under eyes from sleeping and her hair was all messed up, but there was no way I was going to commit some sort of suicide in saying so. Besides, she's still hot looking to me. Grabbed/loaded the guns and had the dogs watch Herbert while we took care of business at the porta potties and on the way back, asked if there was anywhere she could get a bath?! And that brought all sorts of images to mind and had to do some really violent thoughts "down there" to keep it limp. Told her that I'd see what I could do, which she said okay and would make breakfast for us which would take 15-20 minutes.

Said okay and started thinking about baths. Checked in with the guard at the gate and got 2 small pallets from a pile of them, then took it back to the 4 wash stands. The guard had set things up so the water would drain into a small gully/wash, then went back to get 2 of the plastic tarps I had gotten from Home Depot. The hard part was coming up with some boards because I kept thinking of 2x4's, nails, etc. Then realized I only need 2 boards to make this thing work. Head back to Jennifer who has breakfast ready (chili & rice) and says it's nice to have coffee in the morning, but she really misses having a cup of tea instead. Told her I could take care of that and you should of seen the look on her face when I took her coffee and poured it into my cup! Told her to heat up more water, then went to bob and after digging around, came up with the package of 100 tea bags I had vacuum sealed at home and a bunch of honey packets I found at the KFC. Said here you go. Was surprised/shocked when she gave me a hug and kissed me on the cheek, saying I was wonderful....and couldn't wait to see what I had come up with for her bath. I liked the hug/kiss part, but that bath part was going to give me mental hemorrhoids. Then remembered kiss: keep it simple, stupid. Told her I'd be back in a bit and headed for Home Depot with the bike/cart.

This time didn't have to make out a receipt, but did anyway just in case. There was a lady guard and a civilian woman watching everything this time, not that there was much traffic getting supplies at this time of morning. Explained what I wanted and why and they both said it was a great idea. Cart was never designed to haul 2x4's, so had to lash them to the bike/cart and awkwardly pedal back. The others (John, Benny & Marcy) were up when I got back and saw me head to the wash stands, so the guys came over to see what was up. Explained what I was trying to do. My idea kind of sucked, with John coming up with a better design. So with the hammers, nails, boards and tarps we were able to make a privacy curtain around one of the wash stands. Took the boards off the pallets to fill in the gaps of the other one so there would be no gaps on it. Of course, there was a kind of gap at the bottom of the tarp where the entrance was, but not everything is perfect. And you'd have to be a fool to try and peek thru that gap if you wanted to see anything more than a foot or part of a leg. Got a piece of cardboard and wrote in large letters HAPPY LADIES BATHING HOUSE---WOMEN ONLY on it and the cheap nylon rope I got Monday afternoon held it in place.

Back when I was a 291XO, remembered one of the training manuals said the best way to pass information quickly as possible was to use a telephone, telegraph or tell a woman. Bet that last part went out the door years ago....in any case, women must be telepathic because all of sudden there were 6 women wanting to use the "bathing house" and could see more coming and that included a couple of women national guardsmen. Came down to the ladies needing 3 gallons of water to get themselves cleaner. Not like a regular bath, but a lot better than nothing. They'd pour the water in the sink, splash themselves wet, use a little soap, then splash themselves off again. Jennifer said she'd need a towel and since I had one.... So the one I had in the overnight bag and smaller one in bob got volunteered and dug out another Hooters t-shirt for her. Sh*t, if I had my way, I'd of volunteered to wash/dry her back.....twice; just to make sure she was squeaky clean. Heard later on that 2 guys were guarding the water bladder and don't know what the ladies said/
threatened, but the guys let each woman have their 3 gallons along with their daily 1 gallon of water ration. Herbert also got a "bath" along with some clean clothes she had brought with us on Tuesday. I heard him saw awwww, Mommmm when she told him he was going to take a bath.

My rice & chili was cold, but it was still good. Fed/watered the dogs and saw Jennifer coming back and she was different. The bags were gone from under her eyes and her hair combed....and looked like she was wearing some makeup?! Figure the ladies got to sharing what they had with each other because I saw some of the other ladies coming out from the bathing house looking a bit better than when they came in. She saw the way I looked at her and just kind of smiled like a cat does when the dog gets the blame for something the cat did. Said the Coleman propane tank was empty and had to start using the other tank. At least she didn't say anything about the clean t-shirt and what it said on the back.

Went to bob and dug out the connecting hose. Never thought I'd use it and had given some serious thought about leaving it, thinking it was going to be an unwanted piece to carry. Went to one of the barbeques and used a tank to refill the bottle. Worried I might not do it right or even get a leak from the Coleman bottle, but it worked/filled okay. That's when I saw Blevins coming towards me and I'm thinking, oh sh*t, I'm in trouble now.

Wanted to know why I didn't see him yesterday, what was going on with the receipts & money he had been given and what the hell was going on over at the wash stand area? Told him I was beat with one thing and another. The receipts & money was to show I bought the stuff and not stealing/looting. That I had done the same thing just after the earthquake hit and he wanted to know about that, so told him about getting stuff from the mom & pop store, etc. Then it was about me buying a lot of supplies before the emp hit. Told him that I didn't know how long I'd be here or if I'd even have a chance to get a meal at a restaurant/truck stop. When I got to thinking that we had been hit by an emp, it would be better if I had more supplies to cook/eat in case. Wanted to know how I could buy stuff with no electricity and therefore, no lights/registers working. Told him about the Indian/Pakistani guy and the lady at the bicycle shop. Then it was where was I sh*tting all this money from? Said I hit a slot machine at the Ka La Na Indian casino north of Weed for $6,000....he said okay, that jived with what Reginald and the guys had told him. And knew I was off the hook for that stuff. Then he started on me about the wash stands and before we both knew it, had about 2 dozen women surrounding us and they started giving the Sgt. Major sh*t about don't even THINK about taking it down. They'd go with out a bath such as it was every 3-4 days , but BY GOD they were going to have/keep it. I ain't EVER seen or thought a Sgt. Major would back down from anything or so quick in my life. He said okay, okay and we both beat a hasty retreat from them. As we left, I turned to see the ladies giving each other high fives.

Asked Blevins how long the water in the water traps would last and he said they were actually spring fed, so long as we didn't really suck out the water, we would be doing okay. Enough to set up a day so the ladies could have their "baths" and maybe increase the water rationing to 2 gallons a day. Blevins was on me joining the guard, especially since The Captain said so. When he said The Captain, it wasn't like he said the Captain, so knew he had Blevins respect which put him higher on my food chain of respect.

Blevins & I talked, but we had to see Mendoza about my conditions. Told Mendoza that I'd join, but there were conditions and he wasn't too happy about them, but after thinking it over, agreed. I'd work as an adviser and wouldn't be used on work details gathering supplies unless absolutely needed. I'd check in with Blevins, Millar or him before taking off so they knew what I was up to and where I was at. But told I'd have to take the 4 horsemen with me where ever I went and had no idea what/who they were talking about until Blevins said it was Reginald and the guys. Told Blevins that Jennifer lived just north of Sheridan and said that would work out okay as they wanted me to check out the trains at the museum down there. That she & the boy were my primary concerns and once I knew they were safe, I'd come back. Mendoza said no need as there's another guard unit down there. He'd give me a letter explaining who I was and all of that. And I'd not only have the guys for additional security, but he'd send 2 more troops with us. Told him some of the people I brought up here were armed, but didn't know how many would be going back with us. Told find out, then get back to Blevins.

Mendoza & his people were getting shot at about 4 hours after the emp hit and that didn't make any sense. The attack at Beaverton was beat off because the guard went to full alert right after the emp hit and closed the base to everyone not in the guard and that's when the shooting began. They lost 2 people, but killed 9 attackers who had nothing but pistols. Said this is wrong....I've NEVER heard of any gang attacking/shooting a guard unit in ANY riot/looting situation before. Now I wondered if someone in one of the gangs figured out what happened when the emp hit and figured if they could take over an armory, even if the vehicles didn't run, they could really establish a base/take control of the area and even if they had to leave, think of the firepower they'd have. And who were those people at Home Depot, Tuesday night? People trying to stock up or something entirely else? Mendoza thought I was letting my imagination overboard, till Blevins said it's something to think about. I said if it's a gang or gangs, security needs to be tightened up around here. It would also help if we got in contact with the cops. Told they were probably gone, busy covering their families. I said maybe....but what about any files they may have on gangs? The more we know about them, the better off we'll be. And speaking of cops....do they have a jail/holding area for prisoners and if so, what happened to those people? Are they still locked up or did the cops let them go? What happened to the cops weapons, Kevlar, etc. used by their SWAT teams that may have been stored in their armory? That's when Blevins & Mendoza both looked really unhappy.

Well, got sworn in. Been 42 years since I took the oath the first time....and still gave me the chills when I repeated it. A heavy, serious oath to take. Surprised me though it being a little different since I was swearing in for the guard. Blevins asked me what I needed for equipment as he wasn't sure if their uniforms would fit me as I was....as I was as he said. He was being polite about me being fat. Said the most I'd take was an extra large, short sleeve shirt, but all I wanted on it was the Oregon national guard emblems on it like everyone else did. No helmet, web gear or boots as I wasn't used to them and this wasn't the time to start doing so. Wanted the people with me to have 9mm pistols with at least 2 loaded magazines, 9 loaded magazines for their rifles, PLUS a loaded one in their rifles. If they had 'em, give the guys/guard not only 2 grenades each, but did they have any smoke or tear gas grenades? If so, 2 of each of them too. All I'd want is 2 boxes of .45 and 2 each of smoke & tear gas. Asks wasn't the 4 boxes of ammo I hade gotten earlier enough and that's when I knew he had someone get them to me. Told him about swapping pistols with Benny and that I wanted to make sure he had enough ammo. And thanks for what he did give me. But was there someone who could teach Jennifer the basics of firing a pistol since I was going to be gone for a bit? And did they have an optometrist? Said maybe they had a set of glasses put aside for a guard who's not here and maybe I can use them as a backup set? Said he's see what he could do. Also asked for some foot & baby/
talcum powder. Was told it would be about an hour or so before everyone was briefed, outfitted and ready to go. No glasses though. Asked him to have everyone meet at our camp.

Found out real quick you just can't stick smoke/tear gas grenades in your front/back pockets, ended up with a Molle chest rig which felt weird....like I was wearing back brace backwards. But it not only held the grenades in place, but also some of my magazines for the rifle. Was worried though what if one of the grenades/magazines took a hit and realized if that DID happen, it'd be the least of my worries. Which is when I decided to take one of those chest plate things. Now I was really feeling awkward and trying to get used to it and turned that stuff back in. There was just enough room for 1 of each type of grenade in my ammo bag and figured that would have to do. I just didn't want to be weighed down with a bunch of cr*p/stuff I wasn't familiar with or used to carrying. When in doubt, run away and/or hide. I might be a chicken, but I wanted to remain a smart, LIVING chicken.

Back at camp, could feel that crotch rash really starting to get to me and knew I'd have to deal with it before leaving for the police station. Got that wet washrag out and Jennifer says she wants to ask me something and I just said yeah, yeah....give me a few minutes will ya and hurried to some near by bushes/brush. No one's around, so drop my pants, pull down my underwear and start rubbing on the rash with the intention of putting the baby powder on it. Next thing I know is hearing Jennifer's voice saying Andy, what's wrong with....OH MY GOD, ANDREW THADDAEUS THOMAS, ARE YOU MASTURBA, when she shut up. Scared the sh*t out of me when she spoke and almost turned around automatically, but didn't. I roared back, GOD D*MN IT WOMAN, I GOT A CROTCH RASH AND TRYING TO TAKE CARE OF IT! CAN'T A MAN HAVE SOME PRIVACY?! Threw some powder on my thighs, zipped everything up and turned around....and f*ck me again. God's pulled another wedgie on me because there's not only Jennifer but the 4 guys?! My face was redder than a beet and then it got worse....the guys giving me sh*t about my middle name AND saying it in a high, falsetto pitched voice from time to time. Told them to f*ck off/kiss my a$$ but that didn't help....seemed to egg them on even further. So I told them the truth. That Mom thought/hoped for whatever reasons, I'd become a priest and named me after a saint. Sampson was really bad, using a high pitched voice and waving his arms with limp wrists like some fagot from Frisco. I told him, listen to me real good Godzilla, I owe you, but if you keep it up, you're going to regret it. Of course, he wanted to know what he might regret about. Told him the next time we get shot at, I was going to hide behind his big a$$ and scream at the shooters: shoot him, shoot him. He's a LOT bigger than me AND easier target to hit. He didn't that was funny, but the other guys did. And the guys finally let it drop, but....knew they'd pick it up some other time just to give me sh*t. Now I have to find some dirt on them to kind of level the playing field.

Go see Jennifer and she's kind of red in the face too. Said the reason she followed me was because I had left my wallet behind by the sleeping bag and happened(?) to see my full name on my license....and of course, my birth date.(?) She didn't know I was 60 as she thought if it wasn't for the white in my beard, she thought I was in my late 40's. Along with returning my wallet, she wanted to know if I was trying to tell her something about the 2 t-shirts I had given her to wear. Actually, I hadn't....they were just 2 of several favorite t-shirts from Hooters I liked to wear. One was from Amarillo with those 2 cowgirls saying they were from the double D ranch and of course, they had a good set of knockers/cleavage showing. The other was pirate girl from Joilet in her skimpy pirate outfit, with a lot of cleavage showing and 1 shapely leg resting on a treasure chest with the words SURRENDER THE BOOTY above her. So I kind of lied. I hadn't thought of the message on them when I gave them to her and her....you know, your build. She just looked at me and said unh hunh.

Blevins had some guy give us a quick briefing. Basically, the police station was only a couple of miles from her and our group had actually passed it on our way here. Reason we didn't see it was it was a street or two over. Told it would be another 30 minutes or so before we would be leaving, so went back to camp and doing all this writing. Jennifer's talking with Marcy, with Queenie next to her, while Prince is watching Herbert. Time to go.

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 18
July 11th Thursday (contd)

Guess Blevins/Mendoza weren't going to mess around as they sent 5 guardsmen to our camp and they're all loaded for bear, including one of those modified M-60's, grenades, etc. Add the 4 guys, a total of 9. What surprised me was a woman was leading them....which really shouldn't of. From what I've read online, women have been pulling triggers since invading Iraq/Afghanistan where there is no front line. She introduces everyone to me and realize there are 3 more women in our group. Maybe I should use the word squad, but no idea how many are in one....maybe 6 or 12? The leader is Janet Burrows and said she's heard about what I've done and I was wondering if that was a good or bad thing. Apparently good, as she said to let her know if I had any ideas or feelings about how things were around us on our trip to the police station. Said Paterson was an example of what NOT to do and didn't want to make the same mistake. Asked if they had any comm with the base and said no, but hoped to have some later this evening. Asked if they would mind if I took my bike & cart and told it wasn't a supply mission and not to bring it. Told her it's going to serve up to 3 purposes. What if there's a bunch of paper files on gangs....how are we going to carry them and what will we do with them if we get shot at? So this is an intelligence gathering mission and the cart can carry any/all files, keeping everyone's arms free and ready to shoot. Second what if someone gets hurt/shot...it'll serve as a make shift ambulance in getting someone back to the base quicker instead of having to carry that person. The third is also the possibility of finding guns, ammo, etc. left in the police station armory. How do we get it back? Walk back to base with some of us holding the fort down then coming back with the Hummer and a cargo trailer? What if we don't have the time/luxury of doing that for what ever reasons? Janet looked at the guys and Reginald said see, he doesn't think like normal people. She said they/I was right, bring the bike/cart.

Once again the guard are leading with me in the middle and the guys around me. Asked Janet what were their orders as to what we could/couldn't do. She said, you mean our ROE's? Reginald said it meant rules of engagement and I really didn't care for that as I remember all the ROE's the people went thru while fighting in Vietnam and onwards. Apparently, Mendoza & Blevins said if we're shot at, shoot back. Don't stop any looting unless it's any place that sells guns such as sporting goods store, pawn shops, etc. Anyone caught trying to burn down a building (arsonists/crazies who like to see things burn) get shot, but it was up to her to decide each case. Any rapist: shot. Pretty open & shut. Told the police station was about 5 miles away, in the towns city hall. Leaving the base/warehouse district, see a few malls. There are people....scurrying is the best word to describe it. Seeing some people start to leave a store and upon seeing us, went back inside till we passed. If I had thought of it, I'd of had a pole or something mounted on the cart with a couple of flags...like Oregon state and national guard. Let the people know the guard/government was still in business.

Was thinking about water and asked the guard about rivers, streams, etc. around here as I was worried about the amount of water in the 2 water traps. That's when they started talking about the different rivers/streams around Woodburn. Told that the Pudding & Brandy Wine rivers weren't that far and both eventually fed into the Willamette River, but that was way over on the west side of I-5. Suggested to Janet that Blevins should know about this, but also if it wasn't too far, to have the guard check it out. Not just for the water, but to see what people were doing there. Also, we should be on the lookout for bicycle & motorcycle shops as that would give the guard better mobility. She looked at me like I was crazy till I explained when the 2nd world war started, contrary to belief, the majority of the German infantry wasn't mechanized. They were either hauled in trucks or rode bicycles. The other thing, motorcycles weren't computerized like todays cars/trucks. Said she'd talk with Blevins about this too.

What surprised me were the people we met when going thru residential areas. Some times all I'd see were curtains being moved, with other people, they were pushing carts with their worldly possessions....like the photos I've seen of people in Europe. They were all heading for the nearest lake/stream/etc., some of them 10 miles or so away. And they all wanted to know what was happening, something Janet wasn't prepared for. Thing was, she started giving out some governmental spiel how the government was organizing itself even as we speak, that supplies should be coming in town with in the next few days. The people wanted to know about Obama, was he alive, had the U.S. been nuked/invaded, why didn't their cars run, etc. She's getting overwhelmed and that's when I stepped up. Explained who I was and about the EMP effect. That right now, their best bet was to go to the nearest water source with as much food & shelter they could carry. That they'd have to look out for each other as the guard had been attacked by a gang or gangs in the Portland area. The guard in Woodburn was working on getting several vehicles running and they soon hoped to have some semi-trucks & reefers also going. Once that happened, they were going to need volunteers to gather crops that are in the area and then set up distribution points for this food. Told them about what I heard on the radio before everything went to sh*t and how we walked to the guard base. Some of the people were all for heading to the guard base right then & there and told them not to bother as there were several hundred people already there and food was tight enough as it was. But getting to a water source was more important, because they could fish. The other thing was sanitation. They'd have to dig holes as latrines because if the water supply got contaminated in any way, they could get cholera and I don't know what else. Saw some of the people were armed and suggested they provide security for those unarmed. When asked why, I said if you don't stand together, you WILL fall because what happens if 3-4 guys who are armed, just shoot you in the back? What happens to your families then? You men and women would be like sheep dogs guarding the flock. Start asking who the people are around you instead of being so stand offish. Told them about me sharing what I had with those who didn't and why. Don't know if it made any difference to their way of thinking, but did see some people start talking with other people and all I could do was wish them luck. Did ask the various groups if they had any news of what was going on as we headed further west and it wasn't good. Said they heard a lot of gun fire Tuesday night....right in the general direction we were headed for.

And another thought hit me, but couldn't do anything about it till after checking out the police station. Took us 3 hours to get to it, but part of it was talking with groups of people wanting to know what was going on. I think just the presence of the guard bucked up a lot of peoples confidence. Janet said I did good talking with the people; much better than she did. Told her not to lie, bullsh*t or play games in talking with the people. That's how rumors start and panic begins. Then homes began to thin out with small malls appearing again and individual stores too. Thing is, there was no movement/people of any kind the last couple of blocks nearest the first strip mall and I started seeing a lot of graffiti painted not only on some of the homes, but even more on the buildings.

Get to city hall and that's when we see the dead bodies. Janet's going to just walk right up the street and told the guys get to the left so we would have cover and we did. Janet saw us and I pointed to her and to her right, so she took her 4 people over there. Now I'm wondering if the bike/cart was such a bright idea because I had to find a place to stash it. Locked the bike with the chain & padlock to an older truck which had an actual door handle instead of the flush type. Getting closer to the bodies and snapped my fingers a couple of times to get Janet's attention. Held up my fist which I thought meant to stop and it must be, because that's what she did. None of the guys had binoculars so put my flat hand over my top of my eyes like I was scouting/looking for something. And then made circles with my hands like I was wearing glasses. At least she had binoculars and started looking around. After a few minutes, she waved us to go forward. Had the guys hang back while I started checking out the dead when Janet came over with her 4 and suggested she keep them at a distance just in case we get hit. Better for only 2 of us to get shot/shot at, than 6. So she had them spread out. Several (4) cop cars were there and they had been shot to sh*t. Several of the bodies were either in the cars or nearby. Thing is, they were all naked. I don't mean naked, naked....just no clothes on except for underwear and stuff like that. Counted 7 bodies, 3 of them women and even the women were stripped and all had been shot multiple times. Asked Janet if they had heard any gun fire in the last couple of days and was told they thought they heard some from this was Tuesday night, but figured it was echo's from the firefight we had at Home Depot. Checked the cars....hoods popped with parts of the engine beat to sh*t & gone.....even the radiators had holes in them from either gunfire or something. Trunks also popped and found some blankets and flares that had been left behind by someone which I put in the cart. Janet said it didn't make any sense and told it actually did. Told her what if the same gang or organized gangs decided to hit the police stations the evening of the EMP effect or maybe a day or two later? But why would they take clothes off the cops because the stores are filled with them she asked. Camouflage was my reply and she had no idea what I was talking about. Then asked her what would she be thinking if she saw a couple or even a small group of armed cops walking up the street? Would she be suspicious or think the cops have returned to help restore order? She still hadn't figured it out....till I said, that's when the so called cops open fire and start killing you and your guys for your equipment and uniforms. It's like having a politician start telling the voters the truth....something you just wouldn't expect. Can you imagine some of these people knocking on doors and people seeing cops and being so grateful for seeing them....and what happens to those people and their supplies? Janet was looking kind of sick, then looking pi$$ed off. Told her Mendoza and Blevins will have to start using passwords for all patrols going out and that includes not trusting cops until they know for sure they are cops.

She said they had to check the building and to stay outside until they said it was all clear and I had no problem with that. But did ask that Sampson stay with me so we would have 2 sets of eyes looking around and she ok'd that. Took about 15-20 minutes before Montana came out to say Janet wanted me inside and he'd stay with Sampson. Inside, it stank of death and decay. And wanted to puke because of it, but didn't. Everyone was looking a little green and noticed there were a couple of piles of puke in different parts of the room. Janet says one of the people with the clothes on was the mayor. He and some of the others had been shot in the head, while others had to be from being shot. Thing is, I only saw 2 dead women and they had been stripped of clothes. Again, something wasn't right and Janet asked me what was wrong. I asked her, where were the women and she had no idea what I was talking about. You've got a building filled with 2 dozen or so dead guys and only 2 women? Maybe a bunch of cops were still trying to get back here and the EMP....the mayor's here....where are the secretaries? Thing is, how as this gang/gangs getting around so quick and if they are organized, what are they using for communications when the EMP fried everything? And look at the clothes taken....you just don't walk down the street with clothes while carrying a gun. And look at the bullet holes in the walls. That $hit's done by automatic weapons....so where are they getting THAT stuff from?

Neither of us had any idea what was going on, but not liking what we saw. Found some information on gangs....some on paper, other unknown stuff on CD's and some thumb drives. Didn't know what was on the CD's/thumb drives, but took everything. There were 2 dozen cells and what I figured was the drunk tank. There were 4 dead guys (not stripped) in 2 of them....but in 6 other cells, I saw the bodies of 6 women who had been obviously raped and throats cut. Didn't hang around there, but the dark side was out and I agreed with it.

Go to the armory and see where people had tried breaking in, but it had a thick steel door. Someone(s) even tried by passing the door by hitting the walls thinking maybe they were nothing more than sheets of dry wall. It was nothing more than a false wall with cinder blocks which I figured was filled with cement. Who ever designed it to begin with, wanted to make the armory and the basement as secure as possible. Had hoped there might be a survivor or two hiding in there, so hit the door a couple of times with my fist and said we were the Oregon national guard. No answer. Maybe we could get some heavy duty, battery operated drills and then punch out the lock? That's when Montana came in to say they've got movement outside.

[hamrad]

Hi Will,

I see the fan base is growing here.

Kev

[biggkidd]

MOAR

MOAR


MOAR

[joseywales44]

Great story...I don't really see the problem that got you removed from SB. The story is raw and unedited, but realistic in it's content. I, along with your other readers want more story and look forward to devouring it as quickly as you can post it. Thanks for a good read.

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 19
July 11th Thursday (contd)

Janet started giving orders and has Montana bring in Sampson. Followed him and when they're inside, started shoving/dragging desks in front of the 2 entrance glass doors. They start to help till I tell them to block other doors that lead into the main room so if they're bad guys, they won't infiltrate the building as we'd have no idea where we're being shot from and one of them to tell Janet what we're doing. Sampson had to help me lift the 3rd desk so it also laid sideways on the first 2. Then went looking for Janet who tells me where access to the roof is at. Find 2 guard up there and go sneaking to see what I could see over the roof top.

See 6 cops walking down the street about 2 blocks away with M-16's....but are they real or Memorex? Ask the guard if they were also checking the area behind the courthouse/police station? They didn't have binoculars either. They hadn't, so scurried over and on the street behind us, about 2 blocks away, I could see at least 2-3 dozen people headed our way....and it looked like they had bicycles with carts, motorcycles or mopeds, a couple of them with baskets on the rear seats. Then one of the women actually stood up, waved and said "God, we're glad to see you fellows". One of the "cops" said very loudly, Hey, it's the Army and it's a girl. We're glad to see you too honey. How many are with you?" That's when I see the other group dismount and started spreading out and they're ALL armed with rifles and/or pistols and they're not dressed as cops. The guard woman tells the "cops" there's 9 of us from the national guard base down the road. That's when I saw a small piece of a 2x4 left over from some construction that must have been going on when things really hit the fan on Monday. Threw it at her, hitting her in the a$$. She was pi$$ed and wanted to know why I did it. Told her about the other group coming up the street....and the woman changed real quick. She told the "cops" to stay where they were until her squad leader met with them. Told me to tell Janet what was going on and I did. She heard what the woman on the roof top said....but didn't know about the other group until I told her. That's when she ordered some of the guard to cover the rear of the building. Told her I was going back to the roof.

Asked the girl on the roof what was going on and told the cops were still walking towards us. That's when Janet shouted to stop right where they were until they were properly identified. The guy says "Hey, you stupid Army bitch. We work here and you don't tell us what to do." Listening to what's going on and realized that there weren't cops not only from the guys attitude, but they're not wearing cop shoes. One's wearing what looked like cowboy boots (?!) and 2 more are wearing tennis shoes. The other thing was NONE of the "cops" were surprised/unhappy in seeing the dead out on the street like they were. Scurried back to the rear of the building and the gang is within 100 feet or so of the bui9lding with guns drawn....and all of them are trying to be near cover as they walked towards us. When I saw a couple of them wearing Kevlar vests and helmets like the guard wear, I screamed as loudly as possible: NOT COPS! NOT COPS!, drew a bead on the guy at the rear of the group and pulled the trigger.

Got him and then 2 more before the group realized they had lost anyone and then wounded a 4th because they were thinking someone was shooting at them from behind them. I've read where G.I.'s talk about bullets whizzing by their heads and remember the sounds of bullets in the movie The Search For Private Ryan....it's a lot f*cking scarier when it's real. Add some rounds hitting the raised area (wall?) on the roof throwing small chunks of concrete splinters.... Dropped like a rock and rolled over to my left till I was at least 10 feet away from where I had been kneeling/peering over the edge of the wall. We were in a good position, not only being able to look down on them, the building had streets on all 4 sides of the building AND we were the tallest building. The others were only 1-2 stories tall. Peered over the edge and could see several people several blocks away where they had parked their bikes/mopeds and one was holding his hand to his ear and looked like he was talking. HE was my next target and missed all 3 shots. Forgot about the range difference in height and distance between us. The problem with the .223 is it might go thru a car door, but not always thru both doors, especially when/if it hit's the roll up parts for the window. There's world of difference if shooting at a stationary target and one that's moving at such a distance.

The woman (Becky) who was ever so friendly with the "cops" earlier came crawling over to me and wanted to know what was happening, so told her. Then happened to see the flag slowly fluttering in the wind from the roof top pole. Took a quick look at some of the flags/banners left over from the 4th and realized the wind was blowing at an angle towards us. Told her what I was thinking and she said that's crazy. Said yeah, but this time you people have REAL rocks to throw. She went off to tell Janet what we were doing, came back and this time she had the guy with the modified M-60. We spread out and after peering over the edge, pulled back to where we could stand, but not be seen. We might have been seen by those with the bikes, but the odds of them even hitting us I considered very slim. Becky and I started throwing our smoke grenades almost as far as we could so they'd land on the other side and up the street just past the parked cars. With 4 smoke out, it only took a minute or so before it was going past the parked cars and towards us. Then we threw 4 tear gas grenades just past the smoke and real quick after that, we started hearing people choking/swearing. That's when we threw our grenades. Hearing screaming now and seeing movement thru the smoke/tear gas and when I could, fired while Becky did the same. But that M-60....that b*tch could sing. Told the guy to try for the bikes down the street more than anything else because if we took their mobility away, it'd be easier to take them down. It was working till someone with the bikes (the talker?) tossed several smoke behind him and that area was soon covered and they started pulling out down a side street with buildings between us and them. Last thing I wanted to be doing was chasing them....good way to be ambushed.

It took awhile for the smoke/tear gas to clear (5 minutes?) before Janet sent out 3 people to start checking our side of the street with her leading. Thing is, she made sure she stayed within sight of us and sent a guard to join us on the roof top with her binoculars to really check the area out. No idea what their hand signals meant, but eventually the guy said Janet said the area was clear. So while everyone else stayed in the building, went downstairs to see what happe4ned. Find 9 dead bodies and some blood trails on our side. None of the dead were wearing the Kevlar body armor or helmets though. Would have been nice to know if they were wearing black ones like SWAT guys do or Army o.d. I just don't remember the color of what they were wearing when it all started. Started checking the bodies and basically all had at least several tattoos. No idea what they meant and Janet looked at me strangely when I pulled off these guys shirts, so I explained I wanted to try and draw the different tattoos they had in the hopes maybe there would be something about them in the cops gang files. Find out that one of the women is a commercial artist, so Janet had her make drawings. Then I started checking the pockets of the dead. Money....LOTS of money ranging from at least $100 to someone with over a thousand. Was taking all the money (including change) with the idea of giving it to the guard to use for their families when things returned to normal....if it ever does. And if not, maybe they could use it to buy stuff for the families. It wasn't till I was searching the 7th guy, that I thought something was funny about the change. Took me a couple of minutes to figure it out because I sorted everything by denomination and Janet was going to say something till Reginald saw that I was concentrating and told her not to bother me. It was the quarters: they had either a line or lines scratched on the head part. Checked the other 2 dead and they also had 1 quarter each with a line thru the head or tail part. Janet asked what I was doing....like I was some sort of coin collector or what? And what was I going to do with the money? Told her about giving it to the guard, but more important, the quarters weren't just quarters, but a recognition coin. She and the guys had no idea what I was talking about, so explained it gave the holder a way of identifying themselves to others. In the military, if you were challenged by someone to produce your coin and didn't have it on you, you had to guy the challenger a beer. And the lines weren't just scratched willy nilly across the face....someone used a ruler and noted how some of the lines were at different angles than others and one of them had TWO lines across the face. Maybe the lines indicated some kind of hierarchy/rank? The 2 dead "cops", again with tattoo and defaced quarters. Made sure we took the cops uniform shirts so they couldn't be used by anyone unless they were a real cop. Janet wanted to know how I knew these guys weren't cops and showed her the tennis shoes and cowboy boots. Then we go to check the bad guys wheels. But got my answer from the cowboy boot guy on their communications. He had a small radio on his belt with an ear plug and mic near his mouth. I unplugged the battery from it just to make sure it wouldn't transmit. Found out later it has a range of maybe a mile or so? There were 4 bicycles (2 with carts like mine), 3 mopeds and 2 motorcycles left behind, but the mopeds and motorcycles were shot to sh*t....with blood every where. But the bikes weren't damaged. The smoke grenades used by the "talker" weren't like the Army ones. Told they were a civilian make and one of the guard said sometimes they're used by people in "war games" when using their paint guns.

When the guard started collecting weapons, I called dibs on them. Janet was saying no way, but told her I was taking a group of people south of here and most of them will be unarmed. How'd she like to be with unarmed after this? Saw my point, but said I'd have to talk with Mendoza. About this time, one of the guards on the roof said they could see 2 6x6's and a Hummer headed our way, but it was coming from the bases direction. Everyone scattered for cover just in case. It was Blevins, Mendoza and a bunch of troops. I started looking around while Janet talked with the two of them and then wandered over to a Ace hardware store which was on the side of the building where the group of bad guys tried sneaking up on us. And realized the guys were following me. The place was trashed/
looted, but found what I wanted and then went looking for the girl who could draw. Told her what I wanted and she agreed. Under the words of Woodburn City Hall, she spray painted in VERY large letters:
Fort Apache
Oregon National Guard: 11
Punks 0
(send more punks)

Right after she did this, I took the can of spray paint from her because I didn't want her getting into any possible trouble, which was good because here comes Blevins and Mendoza. They both looked at what was painted, with Blevins kind of smiling and Mendoza just shaking his head. Blevins asked if I did this and said yes. Blevins looked at me and then at the girl who had done it and said, right. Looked at the girl and realized she had bits of spray paint on her finger tips. At least he didn't say anything more about it. Mendoza said if I could do all this damage by throwing "real" rocks, he wondered what would happen if I used military ordinance. Asked if I could have the rifles/pistols the bad guys had left behind and told he'd have to check them out to make sure they weren't military issue, something I hadn't thought of. Of the 6 rifles, 4 were AR's, 2 were AK's....but 2 of the AR's were military and Blevins was going to check the serial numbers out. They also found 2 9mm's that were Army issue, but got 2 more 9's for our group going south along with 3 .45's. The pistols all had a couple of spare magazines while the rifles had 5 each. Not much ammo though, but Blevins said he'd get us some. Also got to keep the bikes/carts while the motorcycles/scooters were total destroyed by the guard so they couldn't even be used for parts. Blevins said he'd bring the bikes/carts back to base for me.

Mendoza had Blevins set up a burial detail for the people inside city hall and they were buried in a small park not far from city hall. They got shovels and picks from the Ace hardware store. The punks got buried in a mass grave with no marker and I must of looked unhappy as Janet asked what was wrong. Told her if I had my way, I'd of cut their heads off, stuck 'em on a pike around city hall with a sign saying reformed punks. She thought I was barbaric till I reminded her of the women in the cells.

Asked Blevins if I and the guys could wander around to see what we could see....and Blevins is ever so suspicious of my request. Wanted to know what just what I wanted to see and told him there were some things I wanted to check out, but didn't want to talk about it yet. It was more of a personal matter this time, but maybe we could find/use more supplies at the base. He thought it over and said okay....but I was to take Janet, her troops and the guys with me. He made sure we were resupplied with grenades and ammo.

[willc453]

May 24, 2014 16:39:29 GMT -6 joseywales44 said:

[/p]

Reason for SB removal was bypassing the language filter: using b*tch instead of *****. I thought it was okay, but then it was my fault/responsibility to check what was/wasn't permitted in a story before submitting it. Told that SB is a friendly family site and all the words I used were not permitted. Two chapters has Andy describing sex with a woman. When those chapters come up, I'll be explaining why they're there. And also give everyone a heads up at the top of those chapters.

---------
Sorry, thought I was making a separate post (quoting yours instead of editing) and I ended up deleting some of your post - I greatly apologize!!
Admin

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 20
July 11th Thursday (contd)

With a city map and phone book from city hall, headed for nearest Walmart. Thing is, seeing very few people and the Walmart had graffiti sprayed on it, but this time it looked like the same stuff we had seen earlier. It had been trashed, but picked up a bunch of stuff that others could use on our trip south and John, Marcy & Benny could also use. Janet wanted to know what was going on and told her why I was taking this stuff. She understood, but why coloring books, crayons & balloons of all things? Said the first two were for the kids, the balloons could be used to carry water in a pinch, but also something else. And that's when I started huffing and puffing on some of the balloons and made her a dog. Which meant I had to make 2 more for the other girls. I knew the guys/guard wanted one, but they were too "macho" to ask, but told them I'd make more when we got back to base.

Headed to the nearest fire department and had the guys take the axes and other hand useable equipment which went into the cart which was about half way full. Then went to the animal shelter and it wasn't good. Was really surprised to find 3 women still there. They were Mary, Estelle and Beverly and glad to see us. They had been living off the snack machine, bottled water and what they could steal from nearby stores. They had no idea what was going on and things weren't helped with no transportation/information. They felt they owed it to the animals to take care of them, but had run out of water yesterday. They had been using 5 gallon water jugs gotten from several warehouses earlier, but when they heard the shooting on Tuesday, they decided to just stay inside with the doors locked. Told the ladies what had been happening and they had to let the animals go. They were against this till I told them if they didn't, the animals would die of thirst/hunger because there was no way to supply them with food or water like it used to be. They finally agreed. The problem was, there were 4 cats with kittens and 3 dogs with pups. They also had 10 puppies who were eating solid food, along with several dozen fully grown dogs & cats. What really surprised me was finding an ostrich, 2 llamas, 3 horses PLUS some chicks/chickens/ ducklings and 2 dozen rabbits. Knew what I'd be eating tonight.

All the mama cats/kittens were placed in different buildings. Then the dogs were let out. The new born pups were placed in my cart with mama dogs anxiously following us when we headed back to the base. Montana got harnesses on the llamas and horses. The shelter had some carts that we loaded with dog/chicken/rabbit food, but also made sure we got all the medication they had. No idea what any of it was good for (the 2 vets had taken off on Monday along with the other people), but maybe the medics would know? Not only did we have the 10 puppies following us, but it seemed like, most of the grown up dogs. The guard, guys and ladies had their hands full trying to keep some sort of sanity/order as we headed back to base. All the animals got watered before we left by using a spanner(?) from the fire station on one of the nearby fire plugs and 5 gallon buckets from the shelter. Pain in the a$$ to carry so much water, but knew if they had water, they'd be better off at least in the short run. Left the fire hydrant leaking just a little bit with 6 holes punched in near the bottom of one of the 5 gallon buckets. Put 4 watering bowls under the bucket and hoped that when the bucket filled, the water would drip into the pans giving the dogs/cats a chance for water.

Montana was riding one of the horses bareback, with the llamas and horses being pulled by a rope tying each of them together in a string. Made sure Sampson got the ostrich, something he didn't like until I talked with him about it. Then he said okay. I truly enjoyed the amount of $hit that bird gave him on our way back. Call me Thaddeus will he?

When we got back to the base, my feet were killing me and it didn't matter if I rode the bike or not. Blevins about had a cow when he saw us and wanted to know if I was actually Dr. Doolittle or Noah in disguise. He was a bit pi$$ed about the troops being used this way and said in the future, he'd make sure where/what I was doing. But made some brownie points when I gave him 4 flare guns and about 2 dozen red and green flares from Walmarts boating section. Said if any scouting party didn't have or lost comm with the base, they could shoot a flare. A bunch of people came out and it took an hour or so before everything got settled down. The ducklings went to the water traps. Pearl Diver said she'd take care of the mama dogs/pups and find homes for them with other drivers or someone else. The puppies got homes right off the bat, along with the adult dogs and dog food got distributed. Blevins had my bikes/carts at the camp. The horses & llamas went to John, Marcy and Benny. They and the ladies from the shelter were now partners with the ladies kicking in the horses and llamas, but Montana said he wanted to ride one of the horses when he could which was agreeable.

Thought that Jennifers eyes were big when she saw us, but Herberts was even bigger. He wanted one of the puppies and Jennifer said okay. He named it Albert. Had John, Mary and Benny give out some of the coloring books/crayons to the kids and then started making balloon animals for them and the guard guys who had wanted one earlier. Some of the stuff from Walmart I kept, but most of it went to John, etc. to help them out in future trading. Benny got one of the bike/carts while I kept the other and one of the bikes, the other bike going to the shelter ladies so they'd have some transportation. Figure on giving one of the bikes to one of the people going south with us. Gave the bike/cart to Jennifer so we could carry all this stuff a lot easier and maybe get additional supplies on the way home. Benny took off for Home Depot to get chicken wire and some wood to make a pen for the chicks and rabbits....and was wondering how to say something in that I wanted one. Not that I was going to tell them (the ladies from the animal shelter) that one of the rabbits was going to be my supper either tonight or tomorrow.

Jennifer was a bit pi$$ed because not only had I been in a middle of a bunch of shooting (again), but because I hadn't come back with the main group. Gave me a hug and said while she could maybe start loving me, I stank and needed a shave. Go take a bath. $hit....I had just shaved the day before, been running around, getting shot at and I'm being nagged? Kind of liked it, but doubted she really meant it when she said she could maybe start loving me. Get my gear, headed for the mens wash area and stopped dead in my tracks when I heard a truck start up.

Pearl Diver and the mechs had been busy while we were gone....forgot washing up and headed for the running truck. Man, I was jealous with it running and mine way down south. But glad for the driver. Was a Freightliner and Pearl Diver said since each manufacturer was different, they were going to concentrate n getting the other 3 Freightliners running. Mendoza had already okayed the use of one of the 6x6's to make a parts run (with armed guard people going) to hit some truck part store around here. Hopefully, within the next day or two, the other 3 would be running. Then they'd have to figure out how to get the Pete's and Volvo's going. But noticed the one running was an older truck.

Next thing I know is Jennifer's holding my hand and something must of shown on my face because she said it's a beginning and hopefully they'll get yours running too. Told her probably not because it's so far south of here. Asked if I missed driving and said yes and she wanted to know why. Said I used to be a computer operator on main frames, but got burned out on it, but with driving, no time card to clock in/out on, only I'm responsible for getting the job done. No boss/supervisor hanging over my head, checking up on me. Good/bad weather, it didn't matter....my view of the world from my office was always changing. Was told maybe so, but I still needed a bath and supper would be ready soon and that's when I realized how hungry I was. Had left early in the morning, but had some fruit bars and coffee for breakfast, but that was it.

Then the woman began teasing/tormenting me, asking how did I like my steak? I'm thinking, jeez, what a b*tch, but figured it was her way of reminding me of what was, so went along with the gag. Said medium rare and if the cow mooed once in awhile, I wouldn't care. Next was: how many potatoes do you want and do you want butter or margarine on it. Asked how big the potatoes were and she held up a fist, so told her 4 with margarine and if she's offering a salad, I'll have ranch dressing please. Told supper would be ready in about 45 minutes, go clean up, don't come back to camp until Herbert came for me.

Saw tarps had been set up at the mens wash area and took a whores bath and shaved. At least the crotch rash was pretty much gone. No hot water, but didn't cut myself shaving and felt better after brushing my teeth. Since I couldn't go back to camp, carried my gear to be with Pearl Diver, but ended up talking with Annette, that girl teenager.

Find out she's 17 and got herself emancipated when she turned 16. Had been going to Oregon state university, going for a degree in chemistry and I think, microbiology? She wanted to know about the horses we brought in and what was I going to do with them? Told her they were going to be used by John, etc. along with the llamas as pack animals. She looked disappointed and knew she wanted something, so asked her why was she interested in them (thinking she'd like to care for them), but she said no. She's familiar with horses as she's been riding them since she was 10 years old and she'd like to get to her parents or grandparents using one. Didn't know if she was bs'ing me or not as far as being able to ride/care for one or not, but told her I'd have Montana check her out and if it was okay with John, etc., she could have one. Said she'd go with us in the morning and then split off with the others who live further south of Jennifers place.

Then here comes Herbert, Prince, Albert and Benny....and Benny's got a sly smile on his face and I'm wondering what the f*ck is up with him? Herberts says supper is ready and is about to say something else and that's when Benny said don't say anything, it's a surprise. Herbert says oh yeah and squirms like the secret is going to make him explode. So we start walking back and as we get near camp, Herbert tells me that mommy says I have to close my eyes and now I'm wondering wtf, so close my eyes with Herbert leading me. But I'm getting nervous being "blind" like this, so kind of open my eye lids just a crack when Herbert shouts: MOMMY, UNKA ANDY IS PEEKING! All I could see was Jennifers back to me and she shouted to me that if I peeked just one more time, my supper was going to the dogs?! Benny looked at me and said we figured you'd look, so we're prepared for that....and whips out a bandana and covers my eyes with it?! The d*ck made sure I couldn't peer thru the bottom of my glasses either. Get helped sitting down at the picnic table (from someones abandoned home I found out later) and started smelling something. My nose is pretty much shot from so much smoking, but $hit, this supper smelled GOOD! Jennifer says take off the bandana and when I did....I see a steak about the size of my hand about thick as my thumb, 4 potatoes wrapped in aluminum foil, a small container of whipped margarine, a salad and a small bottle of ranch dressing! There was also a large bottle of plain ice tea.

To say I was stunned is putting it mildly and when Jennifer asked what I thought of supper, all I could think of/say was: holy $hit. She even had tableware which was some of the things I had gotten from that Walmart earlier. I got ready to dig in, but then asked, did everyone else get a steak? Because I'd be feeling bad if everyone else had eaten the usual chili and rice and me having steak. She said everyone in the camp has had or is getting a steak. Seems there's a Winco distribution center in Woodburn, something I didn't know. But then, it's like the Walmart distribution centers in Washington, Georgia and California....way out in the middle of no where. Seems one of the guard heard Blevins talking about the Winco distribution center south of here and said his girlfriends cousin worked at the one on the outskirts of town. And that's when everyone started remembering it. So Blevins had troops mount up in the 6x6 and hauled a couple of the military cargo trailers behind it. Apparently, other people had remembered it and had planned on keeping it for themselves, until the guard showed up and set things straight. The people there got to take what they could carry, but the rest the guard was going to distribute. The trailers got loaded with basically the fresh food/veggies. Even though the power's been off for a couple of days, the buildings like these are always well insulated. The generators are shot, but the guard is looking at getting them running if possible so they could store any/all food coming off the farms around here, like the acres of corn growing south of here. They also left some troops to guard everything.

Cut the potatoes in half and put a $hit load of margarine on them with a bunch of salt and pepper. Jennifer was on me about using so much salt, but ignored her. She said she remembered how I always ordered my tea, saying I wanted it unleaded (no sweet tea or sugar in it). Then started scarfing the potatoes first because I wanted them hot/warm in my mouth. Tells me to slow down, slow down; you're not really tasting the food. I finally did slow down when I got to the 3rd potato and started eating normally.

When I got done,(and Jennifer couldn't believe it when I gnawed on the steak bone), saw Herbert was also eating and could see Prince eyeing his plate, so when I was done, called him over to give him the steak bone. Forget that $hit....Queenie was there in a heartbeat and almost knocked him on his a$$ to get the bone. Then she went over to Jennifer and laid besides her. Man, felt bad for Prince, so called to him and let him lick my plate clean of the grease, margarine and bits of potato. Jennifer just kind of rolled her eyes and I said what? I'm just trying to help out pre-cleaning the plate to make it easier when it's washed. She didn't say anything, but gives me the look of womanly disapproval. I pretended not to see that.

But when I did light up, I couldn't help but see her disapproval....and glad that Marcy wasn't seeing me light up/start hacking. Jennifer wanted to know why I had to smoke and told her that I didn't lie, bull$hit, take drugs and rarely gambled. Only vice I had was smoking and this was the 2nd one I had had all day. Which now that I think of it, because doing all this walking and trying to smoke at the same time got me to hacking from time to time and didn't want to make a bunch of noise while walking. So had been eating pumpkin seeds off and on during our walk. While her back was turned, Herbert finished his supper and also offered his plate to Prince. Unfortunately for him, Jennifer just happened to see this. And then it was a case of Herbert James Conley, you DO NOT let the dog lick your plate clean. Herbert made the mistake of saying "but Unka Andy did it"....and that's when Jennifer really lit into him. Telling him civilized people didn't do that sort of thing and she wasn't going to have that kind of behavior going on in her household....and that's when she turned and looked at me. And I said okay, okay. She started washing the dishes and Herbert was looking kind of miserable, so called him over to me and Albert soon followed. Queenie went back to Jennifer while us males just sat there.

Herbert wanted to know why Jennifer got mad at him for doing what I was doing. Told him Moms only wanted the best for their kids and there are some things a single man like me can do, but children can't. But now that his Mom said he couldn't do it, I wouldn't either. Herbert said but Mom didn't say anything to you and I told him she had given me "the look" which meant I couldn't do it either....
well, unless she wasn't around. He asked about "the look" and said that's when you're doing something, you turn around and mom's watching you and just looks at you. You know you better stop what ever you're doing before you get into real trouble. My mom did the same thing to me when I was your age. Then got kind of sad in remembering she's been dead for 10 years now. But what's happened to all those people in the nursing homes? Nothing I could do about it. $hit.

[admin]

Made a big mistake where I thought I was quoting willc's post and ended up editing it - I do apoligize

Here is what I wanted to say

Well, I am the board owner here and I've been reading this story myself, waiting for new chapters like everyone else.
I've always thought it was funny that some people prefer ***** or even 'b*tch' rather than 'bitch'. We all know what people mean. As I said in the 'rules' section swearing and sex can be a part of stories. That doesn't mean I want X rated stories here (I don't) or characters who swear every other sentence (I don't) but if it makes sense for the characters and the story line than some judicious use of both is acceptable. Most people swear in real life, most people have, have had or will have sex in their life, so it makes sense that characters in our stories will also. I just want its use to make sense to the story line and not just thrown in for shock value.

Anyway I want to thank willc453 for this contribution to our board and of course all the other writers too, we've had an influx of stories lately and we GREATLY appreciate it.

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 21
July 11th (contd)

Remembered/got the miniature construction toys I got just for Herbert and then we started playing with them in the dirt. Jennifer just looked at us and shook her head before walking away. I think what got to her snorting from trying to keep from laughing, was my insisting to Herbert that we make engine noises and most important of all, making beeping noises when backing up our equipment. Even got some twigs and small diameter branches so we could build a couple of bridges for an over pass. So we're minding our own business when I hear a woman saying Andy?, ANDY!? Go to turn around and next thing I know is I'm being knocked to the ground. As I'm falling, no idea who it is, but tried to put my hands up in self defense to keep who ever back from me so I could get on my feet only to find the woman kissing me....and both hands full of t*ts! Then realize it's Patricia?! WTF? We get untangled (I'm on my back with her on top of me) and says she's glad that I was glad to see her too, though she wasn't quite ready for my welcoming her like I did. That's when I remembered having both hands on her t*ts earlier. I was embarrassed, so slapped both hands telling them they were bad hands and not to be doing that again. Patricia said my hands were liars and they enjoyed every minute of it. But as I write this, got to wondering....was she talking about my hands enjoying the feel of her t*ts or were her t*ts enjoying the feel of my hands on them?

When all of this went down, Prince got between us and Herbert and he was just looking at her. Funny thing about it was Albert was standing next to him trying to look all sorts of fierce kind of like Bolt in that movie a few years ago. Patricia saw Prince and said hello and Prince went down from his guarding Herbert stance....and went wagging his tail when she started scratching his ears and rubbing belly. $hit, I'd wag my tail too if she rubbed my belly! Said hello to Herbert who called her Aunt Patty.

Looked around and when I didn't see her parents, asked about them and that's when she started crying and holding onto me, saying they were dead. Cr*p, that's NOT what I wanted to hear. So I'm holding her and stroking her and not really knowing what to say/do when I hear a ahem and realize it's Jennifer. Don't know or actually care what she may think of me holding Patricia, but at least she didn't say anything. Eventually, Patricia came up for air and when the 2 girls saw each other, went to hugging each other and that was a sight to see...and made me wish I was some peanut butter and jelly between those 2 pieces of "bread". With very rare exceptions, from what I've seen at other Hooter restaurants, the girls not only enjoy their jobs, but bs'ing with each other. Which was another reason I liked going there....it was a good/pleasant atmosphere to eat in and of course, the eye candy. Course, I do wish I had heard about them earlier when they wore short skirts about the same length as their current shorts. Not going to see any more then as now days, but still, it gave the imagination so much more to run amuck with.

Jennifer led Patricia to our camp/picnic table and made shooing motions towards me, so I stayed behind with Herbert, but made sure I could watch the 2 girls. I also got my rifle and this time, took the 9 and holster off my belt and unsnapped the strap holding the pistol in place. F*ck me if I'd ever get side blinded again unable to get to any weapon and unaware of my surroundings. Get/keep an attitude of being in Injun country 24/7. About 20 minutes later, Jennifer called to me, so after putting every (the 9, etc.) back in place, had Prince watching Herbert then went to hear Patricia's story.

The day I left her, she didn't waste any time in getting a bob ready not only for herself, but her parents who thought she was over reacting. They were thinking that in a few weeks at the most, things would be back to normal. Having things NOT being normal made Patricia realize that bad things can happen to people, any time, any where even if they didn't think so. Actually went to a local sporting goods store that day, buying 3 backpacks about the size high schoolers use. Looked at hers and it was just a bit smaller than a medium Alice pack with an internal frame. Bought a dozen Mountain House meals for each pack and 3 canteens. Even got a 3 man tent and 3 sleeping bags. Problem was, with the quake, a lot of stuff had already gone out the door....at least the better quality stuff. Maybe it was other people thinking it just might help being a bit better prepared in case something like this ever happens again? As for cooking gear, some family set of camping pots/pans to use between the 3 of them. No Coleman stoves/lanterns, but she did get some flashlights and a led lantern. Didn't think of spare batteries of course. At Trader Joe's, got a dozen granola type bars and a couple boxes of tea. Even snagged a couple plastic bottles of honey. Thought she was set for at least a week. Problem was, she hit a grocery store and stocked up on meat (stead, chicken, etc.) for the house. She was kept busy running around town trying to find all of this and had wished she had talked with me more about not only what was in my bob, but why. Wish I had too.

When the EMP hit Monday, it took almost everyone in her neighborhood by surprise. Nothing worked....no electricity, phones, internet, video games, etc. And that meant the fridges didn't work either and no water was being pumped to the homes. Adding to this, most of the homes had electric stoves, not that it mattered as gas pressure for regular stoves dropped to nothing. A bunch (dozen or so) of their neighbors had gotten together to find out what was going on and that's when one of them told them not only it might be a EMP effect, but what it did. A lot of them didn't believe it....or maybe the truth was too frightful and didn't want to admit it. It was just a temporary thing, the government/gas, etc. companies will have everything up in a few hours, maybe a day at the most was their attitude. More than one woman was worried about their husbands as they couldn't call them to find out when they'd be home.

Patricia did talk with the guy a little bit before he said he had to leave. She asked him just what she should have in way of supplies should the EMP really have effected everything like he talked about. She was surprised how much she really needed not only in long term, but even short. For example, she never thought of something as simple as matches. Only candles they had were those fancy ones you put on a table for a romantic evening/formal dinner kind of thing. And of course, 1 box of those really long matches. They had 3 bicycles, but they were a touring bike kind of thing, not mountain ones. No guns because her parents believed gun control was good, but not using environmentally friendly toilet paper was bad. They had talked for about 5-10 minutes when the guys wife called out to him, saying they needed help with some things. Patricia asked if she could come over later that day or maybe the next to learn more and the guy said he would come over some time Tuesday.

The neighbors of course wanted to know what they had been talking about, so she told them. They thought he was over reacting....like he was some sort of John Rambo kind of guy. Of course, he and his family were always considered a little odd. Didn't believe in gun control, being active in environmental or social issues such as insisting all businesses should go to solar power no matter what the cost or giving amnesty to all illegal immigrants. Their kids were a bit strange too....always saying sir/maam when speaking to any adult instead of calling them by their first name and no cursing. Their kids had to mow the lawn and do other chores to receive an allowance and part of that had to be saved. They had to be home by 5pm for supper and only had one Xbox to share among the 4 kids (1 girl, 3 boys, ages from 6 to 14) and maybe a dozen games to play on their one and only tv. They didn't go to the local Baptist church, but instead, some other one about 20 miles away. They didn't understand that at all as Preacher Herman was ever so friendly/
helpful to everyone. That's when Patricia said Herman once acted like an octopus when he/she were alone one time....you know, instead of 2 hands, it felt like she had 8 of them on her and of course, none of the neighbors believed her. Especially since she must of brought it on to herself considering the way she dresses at "that place" (meaning Hooters). Said she just turned around and walked off with the neighbors still talking.

Back in her parents place, she started taking an inventory of what they actually did have before she bought the other stuff and was a bit shocked to realize they basically bought groceries every week with no real extra stock. She was scared and tried talking to her folks, but they thought she was over reacting about what the EMP guy said and that he was simply and unnecessarily trying to frighten everyone for unknown reasons. As to her working at Hooters, they had told her when she first started working there, she could of done a lot better taking a job in her fathers law office. Her dad was a bit pi$$ed about the preacher and said he'd be checking that out when things got back to normal. Patricia checked their bikes that were in the garage and they were in good shape. About had a cow when I'm told they were something like $2,000 each?! Some sort of titanium/carbon made things. She took the bobs/canned food she had bought earlier to their panic room, something that her mom insisted on having after seeing that movie with Jodie Foster in it a few years ago. Her father thought she was really over reacting, but gave the okay just to humor her. Guess they have (had?) money to burn. But that's what saved her life.

They decided they'd cook the steaks and other stuff for supper on their barbeque and shortly after that, found out the main toilet wouldn't flush....no water. Like some how water from the faucet comes from a different pipe than the toilet water? She said this was no problem and was going to use 3 gallons of the water in their environmentally friendly toilet tank when she realized what she was going to do. Her father/mother were a bit pi$$ed when she didn't use the water she had just bought to flush the toilet. Tried explaining/asking them what if the water wasn't turned on any time soon? Denial from both parents. They did have one of those above ground pools and with 2 buckets, she made a couple of trips not only to fill the toilet, but had left 2 filled buckets next to it. Her mother thought it was ever so primitive living like the Clampetts in the Beverly Hillbillies tv series she saw as a girl. That's when Patricia thought of toilet paper and finds they only have 8 rolls for the 3 bathrooms. Her mother said that wasn't some world crisis like global warming, she'd simply have Maria (their maid) add it to the grocery list on Tuesday. Apparently, Maria came in twice a week to clean the place.

So they had their barbeque and afterwards, went to talk with neighbors who were out in the street/yards bs'ing with each other. And complaining what a hardship it was with no power, water, etc. and how the governor was going to hear about this. After all, this is why they paid taxes. Patricia realized this was the first time she'd ever seen ALL her neighbors together at one time. But after it started getting dark, people kind of drifted away not knowing what to do next. That's when reality started hitting them in the face. Monday night they started hearing shooting and then could see fires off in the distance.

Tuesday morning, everything still down. Her mother went to cook breakfast and just kind of stood there waiting for the stove to heat up. Her parents are (were?) James and Janet O'Hara. Patricia had come down for breakfast to see Janet standing there and realized things hadn't changed. James said no problem, we'll use the barbeque which they did. Problem was, he realized after breakfast the propane bottle was getting low....one more thing to get replaced when things returned to normal. But when Maria didn't show up, that upset Janet. Another disruption in her life she didn't want/need. None of them knew what to do next with power. water, etc. gone, their stable/normal life totally disrupted. Patricia decided to ride her bike to the nearest convenience store which was several miles away....apparently the developer/home owners association didn't want a bunch of "tacky" businesses in the neighborhood.

Basically there was a small strip mall several miles out and she was shocked to find they had not only been looted and several burned, but several men looked at her and called out to her, asking her to come closer so she could help them with a map they had and get directions. Something about the way they looked at her and wanting her to get closer made her nervous, so she turned away and headed home. One the way back, and for the firs time, seeing the number of abandoned cars, several which she recognized from her neighborhood. She remembered none of the guys had shown/waved a map. She didn't tell her folks because she didn't want them to worry and of course, afterwards, was wondering if she was simply over reacting herself. Asked her what she was wearing when she did her bike ride and tells me her normal bike riding outfit: tight nylon shorts/tank top/gloves, bicycling shoes and of course, her helmet. With tight clothing she explained, it created less wind resistance. The girl's built and started getting a hard on just imagining what she looked like going down the street....and those guys seeing something like that. She wanted to know what I was thinking and told her maybe a later time.

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 22
July 11th Thursday (contd)

After breakfast, they heard a truck and for what ever reasons, Patricia thought it was me coming back to check up on her. When they went outside to see what was going on, Patricia saw it was that EMP guy from yesterday who lived several houses up from them. Said it was a big green Army truck like the ones they have here, but it was also towing a big trailer painted in greens and browns. Following behind it was an old VW bus and it too, was pulling a trailer, though smaller than the trucks trailer, also painted green and brown. Soon as she said this, I knew this guy/family were preppers and bugging out.

Of course, people started gathering, wanting to know why their vehicles were running, where were they going and could they get a ride to some place? The EMP guy wasn't saying a word as he closed the gate to his backyard where he had a garage. Thing is, some people made the mistake of demanding(?!) he answer them....his 2 boys (12-14?) got out of the truck/VW with what people were saying were machine guns/assault rifles. They didn't say anything or point their weapons at anyone, but EVERYONE started backing up, especially when the EMP guy put his hand on his pistol, something nobody saw in the beginning. He told them they were leaving and if they were smart, they'd get out of town, taking what supplies they could. That's when Patricia told everyone about the guys and their reactions to her on Monday. The EMP guy said she was lucky....if she had been stupid enough to give directions, there's no doubt in his mind that she would of never returned home. The EMP guy said this is only one of many examples that he was sure not only having occurred yesterday, but probably going on right now. That the shootings/fires from last night was only the beginning. No one wanted to believe him of course, coming back with the cops will be here, things will get back to normal, etc. The EMP guy tried one last time, asking when was the last time they had seen a cop or fireman? When they got ready to leave, people started crowding around the 2 vehicles, insisting they stay so everyone could use their vehicles to get groceries, find husbands, etc. One guy made the mistake of getting on the drivers running board of the truck and when he wouldn't get off, the EMP guy fired a round right past his head. That made everyone scatter. But some are truly stupid and they were going to refuse to get out of this guys way....till they realized he wasn't going to stop/veer and simply run them over if they didn't get out of the way.

Patricia's dad was upset at not only what the man had said, but the sight of what had happened just then, to Patricia and the blatant display of what he considered illegal firearms and discharging of such weapons in a residential area. He was going to the police station and filing charges not only there, but when things returned to normal, with the district attorneys office.

As to the guy who tried staying on the running board of the truck, she noticed he had wet his pants. Not that she blamed him, but still....but some people just won't learn and soon he was telling everyone how things would of been different if HE'D of had a gun and then went to the EMP guys house. Some people followed him (including Patricia and parents) to see what he was going to do. The front door was locked and it shocked everyone when the guy went to try ramming his shoulder against the door to force it open. This wasn't something they had expected and they all started backing away while at the same time, watching what he was doing. His mistake was stepping on the door mat which appeared a lot thicker (several inches) and larger than normal. That's when the guy got a bunch of nails in his right foot! His screams scared off most of the people now not wanting to be even in the same area. The EMP guy had several hundred nails about 2 inches long, pounded thru a very thin sheet of plywood with an even thinner welcome mat on top of the nails. Patricia helped the man to his house with his wife helping her. She remembered what the welcome mat actually said: oh sh*t, not you again. Patricia and the guys wife got his wounds cleaned by using Perrier water they had in the house and wrapping it in a t-shirt. Patricia remembered the wife complaining about the blood dripping on the carpet and how was she ever going to get it cleaned?

Her father was waiting outside and this was when he made his first mistake. Told her wasn't going to wait any longer and let this blatant disregard for the law and public safety go unchallenged. He was going to the police station even if he had to ride his bicycle. Patricia and her mom tried persuading him not to go....think at this point both women were beginning to realize that things weren't normal any more, Patricia even more so. But James was the man of the house, he knew what he was doing, blah, blah, blah. He figured it would take him 2 hours or so to get to the police station, file a complaint and then return. He'd been to the local station only once while helping a client who had been charged with a DUI. Her father didn't return for 6 hours and when he did, they were shocked at his appearance. Seems he tried helping some woman about 45 minutes from the house. It looked like she was hurt and asking him for help, which he didn't know what he could do, but he did stop. That's when he got hit from behind and when he woke up, his Rolex watch, wallet, bike and Gucci, hand made leather shoes were gone. I've heard/read stories about this happening in big cities, but something I never thought of....and something to remember/pass on to the guys. Learn and live.

Got him cleaned up and bandaged his head, using some of the bottled water Patricia gotten. Her dad was a lot more subdued now. He wasn't up to or interested in cooking, so her mom started cooking their meal but halfway thru the cooking part, the propane ran out. They were able to use a neighbors barbeque to finish cooking their food, but what pi$$ed her off (and her father when he was told), was the neighbor charging them $100 to use it. Neighbor said while his tank was almost full, he still had to cook for his family and it might be a day or two before he could get it refilled. Funny thing bout this was them trying to come up with $100....they were so used to using credit cards to pay for everything. Her mom had 2 female miniature poodles; Fifi and Mimi and to her, it was another crisis because they were out of some special canned dog food that "they just had to have". Something that Maria was to buy that day along with regular groceries. Of course, she never showed up.

Once again, everyone didn't know what to do. Like some how something would happen and everything would be back to normal. After her dads bike was stolen, Patricia realized how valuable they were with no running vehicles, so she hid hers between the backyard fence and shed. Was going to do the same with her moms, but she raised hell about it, so it was left in the garage. As to the neighbors....
they weren't standing around bs'ing like they did on Monday. There were only a couple of them this time and didn't seem to hang together that long. I got the feeling from her that these people were now realizing they could be in serious trouble....kind of like sheep/cattle smelling wolves or a mountain lion, but not seeing them. There was danger "out there" but no one knew when or where it would come from. Or what to do about it.

Tuesday evening was when her father was killed, her mother raped and killed. It was during this time, I moved to sit next to her and put my arm around her and kept hugging/stroking her while Jennifer did the same. This was the second time she had to tell this story, but this time I needed to know how/why as she only told Jennifer that they were dead. It wasn't a looky loo thing on my part....it was information that may save our lives in the future. All Patricia remembers is that some time after dark, some people came knocking on their door. Her dad remembering what happened with the "hurt" woman, grabbed a 9 iron and asked who was it. She and her mom had just come out from the kitchen and the voice said they needed help and please let them in? Her father replied he was sorry, but he couldn't and they needed to leave. That's when she saw the doorknob shake and her father said go away, I'm armed and don't want to shoot anyone. Two large chunks of the door exploded and she saw her father falling to the floor with chest wounds.

Patricia screamed for her mother to run and tried grabbing her, but her mom screamed her fathers name and went running to him. A second or two later, another shot and the door starts opening and she could see several men behind it. Patricia screamed again for her mother and ran to her parents room where the panic room was hidden. She heard one of the men say that must be her, get her. She had enough time to lock her parents door, put a chair from her mothers vanity desk under the doorknob and then get inside the panic room which had several steel bolts to lock the entrance door in place. What helped her was because of no electricity, the upstairs room windows had been opened to help cool the place off. She heard one man say she must of jumped outside, go find her. Then she had to listen to the sounds of her mothers cries of pain and humiliation as she was repeatedly raped and questioned on where she (Patricia) would/might go. The leader of these beasts was named Lisps, along with (she thinks) Turtle, Boys and Rocker. Lisps had several other guys outside looking for her while others were busy trashing/searching the place. Lisps said they were to remember Fingers had given orders she was NOT to be harmed. Fondle her all you want, but nothing more. One of them found her flashlights and led lantern....the one they had been using since Monday night and she almost vomited when she looked thru the peep hole one time and saw what was happening by those lights she had provided. I'm not going into any more detail on what happened to her mother, but it was sickening and the dark side and I both agreed that it was time to do some hunting. Then realized there was nothing I could do. My job/concern was making sure Jennifer and Herbert got home safely and if I left....who knows what might happen to them. Maybe the same thing? And that not only made me sick just thinking about it but a rage I've never felt before.

Patricia stayed huddled in the panic room for unknown hours before falling asleep. Think she was just over loaded emotionally and when the adrenaline/terror wore off, she came crashing down. When she woke up, she immediately knew where and what had happened. Looking thru the peep hole, she couldn't see anything but an empty bedroom. Said she stayed there what seemed like several more hours just to make sure no one was waiting for her to come out and when she did, she was terrified that one of the men would spring out of some place, catching her. That's when she saw her mother and she broke down at this part. It was another 5-10 minutes before she could start talking again. For a weapon, all she could get was another of her fathers golf clubs and she went downstairs, still terrified.
The 2 dogs had been stomped to death and the place trashed/vandalized. Their food was gone with her mothers bicycle. She tried banging on neighbors doors for help, but either got no answer or told to go away; they didn't know anything or want to be involved. She had no idea where to go or what to do until she thought of the EMP guy and his truck....and when she thought of the truck, she thought of me. We had talked a bit before I dropped her off at her parents place with me telling her about the yard in Beaverton and probably going to the guard base there to help with disaster relief. She had a good idea where the yard was, but not the guard base. A phone book gave her the addresses of both places. All she could do for her parents was to cover them with sheets.

Of course, no one was at the warehouse, but did make it to the guard base. She was lucky in arriving after the base was attacked, but the base was shut down to everyone. She was able to finally talk with Anderson who told her that I had headed for Woodburn and again, with a phone book, got the address. During her 2 day journey, she learned several things. Like not being able to take all her water with her, no way of cooking food....the cooking set hade been left in the kitchen and stolen along with the sleeping bags that she had left in the garage. In coming down here, she was scared the entire time and avoided any/all groups of people, even single people. One group of men tried catching her, but she was able to leave them behind. What scared her was when of them called to the others that if they shot her in a leg, they could catch her and still be able to f*ck her and started shooting. Before it got dark, she found a place to hide. Several times on her way here, she had to hide from bands of people. She didn't know what she'd do if she got here, only to find I wasn't here. She literally had only arrived maybe 10-15 minutes earlier and talked with one of the guard people at the gate who knew who I was and where we were camped.

When she finished talking, she turned to me, grabbed me around the neck saying thank God you're here, thank God you're here. So I hugged her back and saying she'd be okay. Funny/strange(?) thing about it, I wasn't getting a hard on feeling/holding her. More like comforting a child. Looked at her and she was a mess. Grungy/dirty and she had dark circles under her eyes. That's when I remembered the other stuff from Walmart. Told Jennifer that I was thinking of her when I got them, but maybe Patricia could use some of them? It was a dozen or so pairs of pants, shirts (blouses?), panties and bras in different sizes/colors. Figured at the time, didn't know what would fit Jennifer, but the guard ladies helped me figure what size Jennifer would wear and took some slightly larger sizes as future trade goods for John, etc.

While Jennifer took the clothes and Patricia to the ladies wash area, went to look for Patricia's bike/backpack which wasn't far from Herbert. Bit awkward pushing the bike with the backpack hanging from a handle bar and carrying my rifle. John, Marcy and the dog pound ladies came over wanting to know what was going on (Benny was watching the store) and gave them a quick story and suggested the ladies might want to check up on Patricia, which they said okay. When the 6 of them came back, I was sitting at the picnic table and without hesitation, Patricia sits next to me and puts an arm on/around my shoulder. Knew that she wasn't being friendly or anything like that...it was like I was some sort of anchor/bit of stability/safety for her. Both girls thanked me for the clothing and got my Hooters t-shirt back which smells of her. The bad part was noticing her wearing a bra again. Cr*p.

Jennifer started cooking supper for Patricia with food from the guard (burgers and baked potato instead of steak). She (Patricia) kept watching me the entire time while she/Jennifer was cooking her supper. She'd give me a little wave from time to time and having no idea what was going on with that, would give a little wave back. Probably still feeling really insecure? Was going to take off to talk with Montana about Annette, but as soon as I started walking away, she comes running over, wanting to know where I was going and had a scared look on her face. Told her, but she asked if I could stay until she finished supper and could she go with me? I'm thinking okay, but told Jennifer what was going on and she said okay.

After her finishing supper, went looking for Montana. Seems Annette does know about horses, so had to talk with John, etc. about getting one. Talked with them about why I now needed a horse and while it wasn't as good as a horse, I'd give them Patricia's bike. Had talked with Patricia about this earlier and she didn't like this idea and I was glad to hear some spunk coming back into her voice. Explained that her bike wasn't good enough for what she'd really need. Her bike was too specialized with those really skinny tires/rims and was surprised she hadn't busted a rim/tire. I had a bike that would/could take more abuse than hers could. Says I didn't have to do all that explaining to her. That what ever I said was fine with her and didn't like that part because it made her sound so....submissive? Tell Montana to pick out a horse for Annette in the morning and we head back to camp.

When it started getting dark, had to think about where/how she was going to be sleeping because we only had my 2 sleeping bags and canvas tarp. Told Jennifer that I'd take one of the bags and Patricia could sleep with her/Herbert. Was a bit shocked when Patricia said she wanted to sleep with me and it took me a second or two to realize she didn't mean sleeping with me as in having sex, but being next to me so she would feel safer. Considering what she's seen/gone thru, I understood, but was having no part of it for a bunch of reasons. The first was only imagining Jennifers reaction to us even just sleeping together and nothing happening between me and her (Patricia). As it was, saw Jennifer was REALLY looking pi$$ed at what she had asked. It's been a couple of months since I've been laid and didn't want ANY temptation like her laying next to me. As it was, started getting a boner in just the thought of her next to me....and what would happen when she felt it if she snuggled up to me in order to feel more safe? Would she feel obligated in some way to f*ck me so I'd be obligated to keep her safe? What really scared me was if she started touching me in any way even by accident, could/would I control myself or say the hell with the consequences and f*ck her? As far as I'm concerned, every Hooters girl could be in Playboy or such type magazine....and she's going to be sleeping next to me? Another was thinking it would be a form of rape---like put out or get out. And maybe her thinking it would be better me f*cking her than having maybe several guys catch her and.... Thing is, the bad part of me was thinking while I couldn't f*ck her with Jennifer/Herbert being only 20-30 feet away, maybe there would be a place where I could f*ck her quick and dirty like? Yeah, I have to admit I was (am?) tempted at the thought, but....there's Jennifer. Not able to figure out whether to $hit or go blind about all of this, meaning Jennifer and Patricia. What would/will I do if I told Jennifer how I felt about her and she says thanks, but she doesn't feel the same about me? I don't want the heart ache of being near/around her and....I know I'd eventually have to leave her/Herbert. As to whether Patricia and I....f*ck, too much for me to think about/handle right now.

Told her that I didn't think it was a good idea and when it looked like she was going to start crying, told her why. She/Jennifer were surprised with me being so blunt in some of my reasons and Patricia understood what she had been asking me to do, not realizing what it could of meant to a man. And Jennifer had a really pleased look on her face. Why, I'm not sure. Maybe she was thinking I was a really good guy? And that's a road I didn't want her to be traveling down....you know, he's a really nice guy, but I just don't think of him in "that way", meaning having sex/a relationship with me. If I ever got the chance, I know I'd f*ck her hard, often and put her away wet and exhausted. F*ck, got to get laid or beat off some time soon.

So they got the tarp and sleeping bag. Told Patricia about Prince & Queenie and how they would be guarding the 3 of them and that I'd only be 20-30 feet away. She felt a bit better about it now. Remember to go thru her backpack to see what she has in supplies and probably have to add stuff to it just in case. Feel....I don't know how....maybe emotionally drained after hearing her story and what she went thru? Adding to this, thinking of her and Patricia. Going to bed as it's getting late or just feeling real tired after this kind of day. Jennifer's telling me to get some sleep and the both of them are saying good night....and after a bit, so did Patricia. Cr*p....forgot about Sampson and the ostrich.

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 23
July 12th Friday
North (east?) of Sheridan, Oregon

Well, should be at Jennifers place tomorrow and after that.... Didn't sleep worth s $hit last night....some times it's like that. Even if I had a chance to beat off, don't think it would of helped me sleep. Still got the Melatonin, but too scared to take any because when I do, drop into a really deep sleep. And that's scary/stupid. Laid in my bag for a couple of hours and it was like I couldn't turn my brain off.... Kept thinking of Jennifer/Patricia and what might happen on our way down here. Since I couldn't sleep, made some coffee....and the liquid French Vanilla was almost gone. Wonder how long the powdered stuff will last and how/where I can get some more? Got a headache right now, something I rarely get and wonder if it's some sort of after effect from the concussion Tuesday night. Figure an aspirin will take care of it.

Had the 9 on the picnic table with the AR next to me when I heard a noise from behind me and saw it was Patricia. She saw the 9 in my hand and was a bit shaken seeing me with it. Told her to pull up a rock and that I had just made coffee. That because I liked her soooo
much, she could have the rest of the French Vanilla....and I didn't offer that to just any girl. Thing is, when she sat next to me, thought she was a little too close. You know, not that our legs are touching, but what's that expression? Invading somebody's personal space? Not that I minded, just unusual. Sat there for awhile before she started asking about our trip up here. I really didn't know what to say, so said when the cars/trucks quit running, the next day a bunch of us walked here. Then she asked that was it? I said yeah. Tells me I'm a terrible liar and I just looked at her. Jennifer told her I killed 4 men who were carrying her off to rape her. Didn't say anything. Then it was I helped kill a dozen men by having them think the rocks I had thrown were grenades? Said no, that me and a Navy guy (and still don't know his name) threw the rocks while the guys/guard shot the looters and one of the rounds must of hit a propane tank, which exploded and then the guys/guard cleaned their clocks. When the tanks exploded, I got knocked on my a$$ and thrown against a car which knocked me unconscious. Sampson was the one who save MY life by picking me up and carrying me to safety. She wanted to know more about the police station/city hall shoot out and rescuing/setting free all the animals and her story was a bit different than what happened, so told her a short sanitized version of both. And wondering wtf is going on here? Was someone making up some bull$hit stories about me? That's the last f*cking thing I want. Prefer to be so invisible that my shoes don't leave prints in mud, able to disappear in a crown of one, etc. She just looked at me and said my, my....you certainly are modest. I'm thinking wtf and where is this going? Tells me she/Jennifer have been talking since I went to bed and she deliberately distorted what she had been told just to hear what I had to say. That what I had said was basically the same version of what I had told Jennifer and she had told her. Not that she (Jennifer) really knew that much since the guys wouldn't talk about it either. They had told her if she had any questions to ask me directly, but didn't mind telling her about Walmart and the dog pound. I'm glad they could be discreet. I was surprised when she said I was a good man....told of course I was. I once stayed at a Holiday Inn. She just stared at me for a few seconds and started laughing. And just like Jennifer, said I was horrible. Of course, my standard reply was: yeah, but I'm GOOD at it which got her to laughing even more. So we sat there some more not saying anything.

Mom was always saying that I was like a bull in a china shop and didn't know how to say/express my feelings too well. Told Patricia that I don't lie, bull$hit, drink, rarely gamble or take drugs. What I say behind your back, I'll say to your face. Told her even
though I only met her father and mother once, I was sorry that he was dead, but sorrow wasn't good enough word for her mom. If I had my way, we'd go hunting not only those mother f*cking beasts, but every other mother f*cking beast like them. And didn't realize it at the time I said we, not I. Scared the $hit out of her....think it was more my expression/face than the words that did it. After a bit, she asked if by we, did I mean the guys and me? Told her no and then explained how the dark sides comes out and she asks did it come out when I saw Jennifer being carried away? I said yeah, but it was also an accumulation of people doing nothing except running away and hiding when $hit like this happens....like your "neighbors" did when you banged on their doors for help. She asked would I of done the same thing if it had been someone else, not Jennifer? Told her yes, but didn't know it was her until the beasts were dead because she changed her hair color and style. Of course, if it had been someone like Roseanne Barr or Ophra, I'd of felt pit for the guys. Those 2 women would of probably beaten the $hit out of those 4 and raped them till they were crying for mercy. It kind of/sort of brought a smile to her, but it was the word rape that also brought her down and I said I was sorry for using such a poor example. Said she understood.

About then, heard Jennifer coming towards us. I don't know why it was her, but did. For what ever reasons, she was going to try and sit next to me and there wasn't much room....like maybe 6-8 inches because I was near the edge (end?) of the seat. Got up, offered her my seat and she said no, no, that's okay there's enough room for me. And I told her I wanted to make sure I was at the end of the table because if something happened, I didn't want to lose seconds knocking her to the ground in trying to get my legs over the bench. So got my 9/AR and moved to the other side of the table and looking at 2 hot Hooter girls even if they weren't in their working clothes....my imagination was supplying the rest. Jennifer looked a little....put out/irritated for some reason, but wasn't going to ask why. And Patricia....she was looking at me rather strangely too. Maybe it was talking about knocking Jennifer to the ground if need be? You know, like some sort of macho/he man thing? If so, felt like an a$$hole.

That's when I realized Jennifer didn't have her 9 with her and when I asked her where it was, she said it was on the bag of clothing I had gotten her/Patricia. Pi$$ed me off and told her to get it....NOW. She knew I was pi$$ed, but didn't know why but went and got it. Checked it and it was loaded, with the safety on. Told her to listen to me real good because I don't want this to happen again. Don't care where you're going or what you're doing, but you keep this with you at ALL times. Don't care if you're in nothing but panties and a bra or start naked, keep it with you at ALL times. We both KNOW what would of happened to you if I hadn't been there. And what about Herbert? We both KNOW what happened to Patricia's parents, especially her mom. $hit can happen at any time, any where, for any reason. One day I may not be around and the only person who can really protect you and Herbert is yourself and you can't do that if you're unarmed. Do you understand what and why I'm saying all this? She said in small voice, yes....then asked if I was mad at her. Said yes and no....I really appreciated the way she's been taking care of me, but not happy at all with her leaving the pistol behind like that.

Then wanted to know why I wouldn't always be around. This wasn't a question I wanted to answer, but figured better to get it out in the open and get it done with. Told her eventually things will get back to normal and she/Herbert/I will go our separate ways and probably never see each other again. And remember I'm in the guard now and have no idea what's going to happen with them. And she/Herbert had Prince, Queenie and Albert to protect them. Guess something showed in my face or voice because she knew I wasn't happy about it. Tells me she's gotten used to me being around and never thought of me leaving them. But what was I going to do when she got home to her moms? Said I'd see about hanging around for a few days if she didn't mind just to make sure they were going to be okay and then....shrugged my shoulders. Said she'd like that and she smiled when she said it. Yeah, right....good ol' Andy, faithful geezer of a 2 legged watch dog.

Patricia asked if I went around handing pistols to all the women I met and said no, but if she was interested, I could get her one. But did she know how to use one? Said no, so told her once I checked her out, I'd get her one. Then realized what I had said and told her change that to once I get you checked out on using a pistol, I'll get you one. And she smiled at me...and Jennifer had a frown for what ever reason. That's when it occurred to me, I had no idea what Patricia was going to do when we left, so asked her. She had no idea....no intention of going back to her neighborhood and with the phones down, unable to contact any of her friends that lived in the area and her parents family lived in other states. Didn't like the idea of her being alone, so after thinking it over a bit, asked her if she'd be interested in working with John, etc. Said not really....she'd really like to go with us, but no idea what she'd do once we got to Jennifers place. What really worried me was those guys that came looking for her....the odds of them finding her down here are slim and none. But it was the slim part that worried me. What REALLY bothers me is they were not just looking for her, but knew her address. So asked Jennifer if it would be okay if she stayed with her and her mom until things settled down? Think there was a second or two of hesitation before she said yes and that would be a good idea and they got to hugging each other, telling each other what good times they'd have again.

Patricia surprised me when she asked if I was married and did I have any kids. Said never been married and no kids....that I knew of. Both groaned/grimaced and said I was terrible/horrible....and NOT to give that line about staying at a Holiday Inn or being good at it either. Then both wanted to know why I wasn't married or had I ever been married? WTF? Told them that most of my life was spent reading, hunting or fishing as a kid. The last 3 years of high school we lived out in the middle of no where and since dad/mom couldn't afford a car for me and there were no jobs for me to work at in our area, one more reason I didn't have a social life. Then it was, surely I must of met some girls, some time, some where. Not really, I said....kind of hard to find/meet a girl in a library, river or hobby shop. And since I don't drink, no bar scene. Not that I was going to tell them about the hookers....knew THAT wasn't going to impress them at all. And wondered what was up with the 20 questions bit? While I'm sitting there thinking that one out, realize the girls are looking/talking to each other, but not actually saying anything out loud and wonder what's up with that.

Then both wanted to know if it was true about truck drivers having a girlfriend in every city or state. Said oh yeah....about as true as every Hooter girl, Playmate or women in those kinds of magazines are horny, sex driven....and almost said sluts, but changed it to women. That bit about Hooter girls pi$$ed them off and they both started in on me about that. Told them that I knew they weren't that type of girls (but don't I and all the guys wish other wise) and the Hooter girls I met weren't that way either. Of course, wasn't saying a word about the Playboy issue I had showing 6 of them in all their natural glory. They dressed like they did because it was the company uniform. The reason I went to Hooters is because chicken wings are my favorite food, the food there was good and of course, you ladies. But if the food tasted like $hit, I wouldn't be going there no matter how pretty you two are. That cooled them off. Nothing like being blunt. How in the f*ck do I get into these situations? All I had really wanted to do was drink some coffee, smoke a couple of cigarettes till I got tired and then go to bed. After finishing my coffee, told them I was going to bed and I'd see them in the morning. They both followed me and went to sleep themselves.

Woke up with the sun coming up and see Jennifer/Patricia waking up too.... F*ck, only thing better seeing one hot looking woman stretch and bend over getting the kinks out of her body is watching TWO of them do it! Jennifer asks how many eggs did I want and did I like hash browns? Wondered for a bit where she was coming up with this stuff till I remembered the supplies the guard had given us yesterday. That's when I remembered the rest of the stuff from Walmart. I knew it was a pain in the a$$ with her and Johns people cooking with that set of cooking gear I had, but $hit, had planned everything me being alone. Looters must be really stupid....taking stuff there's no use for like TV's, lap tops, computers, etc. and leaving what I considered the good stuff behind. At least under present circumstances. Which is why I grabbed 4 medium cast iron frying pans (but only 3 lids), 2 medium size pots (with lids) and best find of all was 2 complete dutch ovens. Not that I know how to use them, but they did have a cook book/guide with them. Read where you can do more than just cook in them....use them like an oven to make bread and maybe a cake for example. Also grabbed spatulas, can openers, small strainers, funnels and of course, the silverware and plates we used Thursday night.

Told them to hold on a bit, that I had something for her (Jennifer). Gave her half of what I had gotten, telling her the other stuff was for the ladies with John. Thought she'd be a happy camper with something she could now really cook with. Patricia said wow, most guys bring a girl flowers and/or candy. And that made me feel like a total f*cking a$$hole. Like I'm so f*cking stupid/ignorant around women, I have no idea how to treat them with a proper gift. I was so f*cking....I don't know what the proper word would be. Mad, embarrassed....and truth was, felt like crying. You know, when you give someone a gift you think they'll really like/enjoy...and then you see it in their eyes that it's just okay, if even that. And it really hurts when it's someone you care about even if you can't/
won't tell them that. Just turned around and said call me when breakfast is ready and went to get my stuff ready for the trip. Jennifer called out to me, but ignored her and Patricia was asking what was wrong with me...everything was going so good.

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 24
July 12th Friday (contd)
North (east?) of Sheridan, Oregon

Going thru the stuff in the cart and rearranging things when I hear Jennifer call to me saying breakfast was ready. I'm pi$$ed and eating breakfast in silence and afterwards, washed my plate/fork and put it in the cart. Jennifer/Patricia want to know what's wrong and tell them nothing's wrong. Everything's just dandy and after getting bob, got it so it would be on top of everything in the cart. Was thinking if something bad did happen, I'd at least have the chance to grab it and leave everything else behind because of the way things have been going, who knows....

Jennifer came over, laid her hand on my shoulder and think I actually flinched. She wanted to know what was wrong because usually I was so mellow and out going. Told her that I was sorry I had gotten her and the ladies the cooking gear. That I didn't realize how f*cking stupid the idea was and it wouldn't be happening again. She's saying what?, what? Said oh yeah, good ol' Andy, protector of women and small children....and so f*cking stupid around women that he brings them pots and pans instead of flowers and candy. Good ol' Andy turning down a beautiful womans request to sleep with him because he's a kind and sensitive 21st century kind of man and when I said kind, etc. said it with a high lisp like I was some fagot and therefore, not a REAL man. Grabbed my rifle and walked away, leaving the girls in stunned silence.

Mad as f*cking hell and thinking once I get those 3 home, they're on their own and I'm going back to Reno. F*ck the guard, f*ck them, f*ck everyone, f*ck everything. Better to be by myself and I should of know better to get involved/interested in someone because every time you do, you leave yourself open to be hurt and I should of remembered that, you stupid f*ck. Heard Jennifer/Patricia call my name, but ignored them. No idea where I was going, but knew if ANYONE gave me any kind of $hit, they're going to the hospital. Or a hole in the ground. Next thing I know, Jennifer says stop right now Andrew Thomas, but I kept walking until she almost shouts my name. When she did that, figured better stop before everyone in the camp hears her and wants to know what's going on. Not that it mattered....head south with everyone, drop them off, then east for the woods and south for Reno.

What surprised me was when Jennifer grabbed my right arm and tried to turn me around, something I wasn't expecting, but resisted. Just didn't want to see her face because I was almost at the point of crying because of everything that I had been thinking they had thought of me....you know, not a real man, no balls, fagot, etc. That's when Patricia grabbed my other arm and they both yanked me around. Jennifer wanted to know what set me off and said that everything was fine until Patricia said something about pots, pans, candy and flowers....that's when she paused and realized how it could of sounded like/meant to me. Said that Patricia meant it as a compliment and Patricia said, Jesus, Andy....it WAS meant as a compliment. She/Jennifer had talked about me and started listing the different things I had not only been thru, but what I've been doing not only for them, but for others. They knew I wasn't gay (Jennifers word, not mine), even before all of this happened because they had seen how I looked at them before all of this happened. Neither of them ever thought of looking at me in "that way" until now, but maybe their attitude would be different as all the rules the world had before were out the door. And I'm thinking right....butter me up and once they're home/safe, it's thank you very much and don't let the door hit you in the a$$ on your way out.

What surprised/shocked me was when Jennifer said to prove it, here's a down payment on what you've done and hope it's a good beginning: and that's when she put her arms around my neck and kissed me. And I don't mean lips touching lips....she actually stuck her tongue in my mouth and when I wouldn't respond back, she teased my tongue with hers. And that's when I put my arms around her, pulled her to me and stuck my tongue in her mouth. Stuck it so far into her mouth it was like I was trying to reach her toes. Don't think she was ready for my response, but she didn't pull back for a minute or two. Think she understood the hunger/want/need I felt for her and it wasn't just for sex. But didn't let her go until I whispered in her ear that I was sorry for being such an a$$. Heard Patricia say it was her turn and I turned to Patricia. Well, with Patricia, I started gently kissing her, but then the fire/heat/need/
wanting for her came roaring back. And my tongue again tried reaching her toes. And when we both came up for air, I told her also that I was sorry for being such an a$$. When I kissed them, had a hard on right off the bat. Jennifer didn't pull away from it, but Patricia was different. After I told her I was sorry, she asked if I remembered what she had told me about stopping by to see her since I knew where she lived. I said yes and she said that's changed...that I could see her any time, any where, any place and she'd be glad to see me. Thing is, when she said "see me" she rubbed part of leg against my d*ck! And I had to ask because I didn't want any misunderstand like I had with her comment about the pots & pans. I said do you really mean....and she said yes, that's EXACTLY what I mean and rubbed her leg AND crotch against me. Then we came apart.

Jennifer said, wow....he may not be good at kissing, but he's enthusiastic about it. Patricia said not only was that true, but it was the quiet ones like Andy that girls had to really watch out for. That they keep their passion all bottled up and then when a girl does get kissed by such a man, his kiss tells them a lot more than words can.

Well, I'm feeling pretty froggy and as we head back to our camp, asked the girls do you mind and held out my hands and they took them. So we're walking and I'm feeling really happy with the thought that maybe, just maybe the girls are now looking at me as more than their protector. Thing is, while I was holding Jennifers hand, Patricia took mine and put it around her waist so it was resting on her right hip and near her a$$! I wasn't surprised....I was REALLY surprised and when I looked at her, she just nodded and whispered in my ear to remember what she said. And I'm thinking, oh $hit....am I actually going to not only have sex with her, but on a regular basis? Thing is, didn't want to have just sex with her or Jennifer. Wanted to see her face when we went to sleep and when I woke up. But was I in love with her/Jennifer or just thinking with my balls? One thing about a diary is that you can put anything/everything you want in it. The other is you can lie/bull$hit to people, but why bother doing the same in a diary? And how many times have I beat off in thinking of either of them (or both) in bed with me? Thing is, afterwards, it was always the same: we'd just lay there and we'd sleep. With women I've seen on the streets, in the movies, the ranch, etc., they'd end up leaving until I was ready let my imagination run amuck again. And with these 2, was thinking of living in a really nice place and taking them out for a dinner and/or movie either by themselves or as a threesome. The other thing was I didn't do it too often with Jennifer/Patricia because it'd hurt when I saw them when I got a run to Portland and getting slapped in the face by reality vs my fantasy of them and me together.

Get to the cart and reluctantly released their hands, with Jennifer/Patricia asking if I felt better. I said not really....maybe one more kiss and I puckered up and made smooching sounds. Jennifer said no way....a girl could only take a kiss from me like she got once a day. Patricia said to calm down big fella and briefly looked at my crotch! Thing is, she didn't say no more kisses for the day either! So as they turned to walk away, remembered the other things from Walmart and asked them to hold on. Dug out a plastic bag filled with cosmetics, bobby pins and hair brushes, saying maybe you girls want some of this stuff? I had gotten a lot of extra, figuring what Jennifer (and now, Patricia) didn't want, John could use for trading. Guess I must of really struck a cord in them, because they were both shocked/surprised in seeing how much was really there. Told them that I didn't know anything about makeup, grabbed what I could and hoped that some of it was good stuff. They put the bag on the picnic table and started going thru it and they were some happy campers. Then they stopped and Jennifer looks at me and said she's reconsidered about me giving her only 1 kiss per day, walks over to me and when I reached out for her, she said no, no....you keep your hands to yourself this time and kissed me, but with no tongue. But she didn't pull away when I stuck mine in her mouth and she did respond with hers. But she did use her tongue to stop mine from kissing her like I had the first time and after about 15 seconds, said that's enough for now. That's when Patricia said she'd kiss me too and when I went over to her, again with open arms, she says no too?! Said she I was going to be worse than an octopus....more like one with 16 tentacles instead of 8 and to keep my hands by my sides where she and Jennifer could watch 'em. Thing is, she stuck her tongue in my mouth, but again after 15 seconds or so, pulled back. WOW....not only had I been kissing/kissed by 2 beautiful women, but kissed TWICE?! With tongue to boot??!! Froggy my a$$....I was on top of the world.

That is, until I heard Sampson behind me saying YOU ROTTEN FOUR EYED, MOTHER F*CKING SON OF A B*TCH, I SHOULD OF LEFT YOU OUT IN THE PARKING LOT! And my d*ck went from feeling like it was a 6x6 that was going to rip thru my pants and going to a very little, tiny red worm.

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 25
July 12th (contd)
North (east?) of Sheridan, Oregon

Never thought about what black people looked like when they got mad. Always thought they turned red in the face. Not true. Sampsons face was not only the color of purple, but a deep, royal purple. What surprised me even more was he had the ostrich on a leash as he was running towards me. All this happened in a few micro seconds and I hauled a$$.

Thing was, he was only 50 feet or so away from me when I first saw him and that son of a b*tch could not only move, as big as he was, he was basically taking giant steps compared to my little ones....and flashed back to the guys when they were chasing the halflings in Verbosh. Found myself headed to the ladies wash area and thought if I could get down in the gully where there's a bunch of brush that would slow him/ostrich down and give me more space/running room between us. But as I got almost to it, gave that idea up real quick because I remembered the drain water was going down it to and I'd probably slip, fall to the ground and then it would be game over. Not good. He's within 30 feet of me, so I skidded around the curtained area and the women are all turning towards me/Sampson/ostrich and doing some screeching of their own and telling us to get out of here, it was for ladies only. Thing is, when Sampson tried going around the curtained area, the ostrich wasn't ready for this and ended up not only hitting the curtain, but ripping it down! And there was a lady doing her thing at the time! Now ALL the ladies were pi$$ed and they started throwing things at him/the ostrich. Wow, I'm still not comfortable with women using foul language, but some of them must be ex-military or dependents because they really knew some interesting/unknown words/expressions I never heard before. So Sampson is getting slowed down by the ostrich who has the curtain flapping behind it like some cape (and probably the noise of the curtain flapping scared it even more) and of course, they're getting hit with bottles of shampoo, brushes, etc. And I could hear him saying f*ck, $hit, d*mn....thing is, he didn't stop which was something I had hoped would happen. But I did get about 30 feet or so more leeway/distance from him. Thinking maybe I can hit the street and head for one of the warehouses. You know, maybe dodge around the outside of the buildings and lose him. That d*ck....him and his f*cking giant steps. Realized I wasn't going to make it to the warehouse areas and thought of the base. You know, being closer, I could do some ducking/weaving among the buildings there.

Thing was, I really haven't spent that much time there like he has and thought with my luck (having used it all up in getting to kiss the girls), Godzilla would take a short cut some where/how and once again, game over. As I'm running towards the base, realize that I'm not only running out of options of places to ditch him/ostrich, I was getting tired/winded. The penalty for smoking 32 years, fried chicken and double cheeseburgers. Yeah, I haven't smoked much this week, but still.... Then saw the trucks and briefly saw Pearl Diver and knew I had a chance there; so headed for the trucks/trailers. Thing was, when I turned my head to see how close Sampson/ostrich were, I see a f*cking crowd running after us and I'm thinking of f*ck me, it's an angry mob and they're going to beat the $hit out of both of us. And if they caught Sampson first, knew I'd turn around to help defend him. But then realize it wasn't an angry mob, but people watching the chase AND making bets if/when Sampson will catch me AND side bets on how badly I get beat up by him!? Thing is, the ostrich got rid of its "cape" and for what ever reason, IT decided to chase me instead of being kind of dragged by Sampson! And it had something like a 10-15 foot long rope around its neck, so now there's only 30 feet or less behind me and it. And Sampson is telling it to get me like it was some sort of attack ostrich, to peck my eyes out. Man, that boy was piii$$$$ed!

Well, zoomed right by Pearl Diver who said what the f*ck and told me later she jumped out of the way just in time to avoid being trampled by Sampson and the ostrich. Thing is, trying to run straight and then turn a corner around a truck/trailer wasn't making it because I'd lose some distance going around a corner. Godd*mn Sampson and that f*cking ostrich. Only thing that helped me from time to time was that cord/leash would rub against one of the truck mirrors and slow it down. Now I'm REALLY getting tired and knew I'd be good for 5 minutes or less and wondering what the f*ck to do next....and realized I had been passing good hidey holes the entire time. Get around a truck or trailer, then make a dive for under a trailer. Sampson wasn't going to be able to follow me under it with that ostrich and even if he let go of the bird and grabbing me, I'd skitter to under the truck frame and hang on for dear life to the truck frame. And as big as he was, he wasn't going to be able to crawl under the truck and reach me with those 10 pound ham size hands of his.

Turned around one set and going around another and figured this was the set I was going to hide/dive under only to see Blevins right in front of me! I was barely able to miss knocking him on his a$$ and had planned on going to another set to hide under when he says: PRIVATE THOMAS, HOLD IT RIGHT THERE! I still had my momentum going and gave it serious thought of just hauling a$$ but knew if I did, I'd be in even more serious trouble with him and that was something I didn't want/need. So I skidded to a stop and he turned to face me about 10 feet away. He started to ask me what was going on and about this time, here comes Sampson and ostrich! Said oh sh*t, jumped out of the way and Blevins turned to see what I was seeing. Thing is, ostriches can't turn on a dime or come to a screeching halt and ran into Blevins and Sampson was right behind the ostrich! The two of them knocked Blevins on his a$$ and when he fell, with ostrich and Sampson on top of him, they raised a big cloud of dust and dirt. Reminded me of those cartoon dog/cat fights you know where there's nothing but a blur of an occasional face/paw in the dust. And I started laughing....couldn't help myself. Almost laughed so hard that I almost p**d my pants. And of course, some of the people from the mob had kept up right behind Sampson/ostrich and when they saw what happened, they started laughing too. And maybe not the best thing for me to doing (laughing) at the time....like I should of kept running, but by the time I thought of it, Blevins....well, I will say that man could not only cuss, but did so with out repeating himself. So that's when I started edging away and he sees me, saying he told me to hold it right there and I just kind of froze. The 3 of them got untangled and realized why Sampson never let go of the ostrich....he had wrapped the cord/leash around his wrist a couple of time because as he told me later, the ostrich was worse than a 50 pound pit bull straining at a leash.

And then Blevins started in on Sampson for knocking him to the ground. Problem was, the ostrich was on its feet too and it was pi$$ed/
frightened and made the mistake of trying to peck at Blevins. He just reached out and grabbed it by the throat and pulled it right up next to him so the bird couldn't use a leg to attack him with it. The bird quickly lost consciousness and Blevins let it fall to the ground, then turned to Sampson to really chew some b*tt. Couldn't help myself....stuck my thumbs in my ears, made waving motions with my hands, crossed my eyes and stuck my tongue out at Sampson. Oh man, did he ever turn purple. Thought he was going to have a heart attack. But I only did my thing for a second or two and quickly was looking normal because quick as a cat, Blevins was turning around to look at me because he knew I was doing something behind his back. After all, when a Sergeant Major is chewing your a$$, you're suppose to have blood draining from your face in total fear and NOT looking really, really pi$$ed.

Blevins turned so he could face me and Sampson and said he (Sampson) had been told to return the ostrich to me as soon as possible and since he had so much energy that he was able to chase me with said ostrich even after 4 hours of KP AND 4 hours of guard duty(?!), he had a lot of extra duty in store for Corporal Sampson Cooper. Sampson was mad as h*ll and I didn't blame him. And I believed in taking care of our own even if I wasn't in the military per se. I mean, I was in the guard, but figured this wouldn't last that long anyway. I also didn't think at the time he'd ever get into so much $hit, especially with Blevins, because that was never my intention.

So I spoke up and told Blevins Sampson had kept the bird when we returned to the base yesterday because I asked him to. Blevins says "oh, really.....pllleeeasse continue with your "story". Said actually, Sampson and I had a disagreement about our services, you know, with me formerly being in the Air Force and him being Army as to which service was better. Well, we got to arguing and he said he could run my a$$ into the ground and I said no $hit....after all, you're in your early 20's and I'm 60. And while we may weigh the same, a lot of mine is fat. So if you want to race, you gotta have a handicap and that's when I thought it would be fair if he raced against me with the ostrich because I thought it would slow him down. Asked Blevins if Sampson ever told you about our bet? Blevins said no....only thing Sampson said was no excuse. Told Blevins that if I'd known Sampson was doing all that scut work, I'd of been right there next to him doing it too. And looked at Sampson when I said it because I meant it. It's one thing to pull a prank on a friend/bud, it's another for them to take the fall by themselves.

Blevins said he never heard such a line from anyone, but it was possible and against his better judgment, that he was going to let us go. But he was going to keep his eye especially on me. That I didn't want to hear. Said we had to go fix the ladies area and get our gear together as the party was leaving in another hour or so. Sampson said he couldn't believe Blevins believed that line I gave him and told him Blevins didn't believe it for one bit. But he realized how I stood up for you and meant what I said about doing half of your KP work for you. And the story was plausible, even if a bit far fetched. We're walking back to the ladies wash room and he has the ostriches leash in his hand and he passes it to me....and says, you know, this isn't over, I still owe you and you know what I mean. I said yeah....but I'm going to help you out and figure when I'm done, we're gong to be equal or maybe you owing me, even if for a little bit more. Says there's no f*cking way after what he went thru. And I said Cici. He says what?...how did....what are you talking about?

Said I heard her and some ladies talking about how you've been hanging around her as much as possible and what they missed since things went to $hit. Cici saying she really missed crossword puzzles, especially those from the New York Times. He had a kind of dumb look on his face and says she never mentioned anything like that to him. And just what the $hit could I do anyway to help him out with her? Said lets rebuild the ladies area and then head to our camp. Took us 20 minutes or so to rebuild it and while the ladies were still a bit pi$$ed, word had spread around the base/camp on what happened/said between the 4 of us (Blevins, Sampson, me and the ostrich) but the ladies had a good laugh and waved at us as we rebuilt the curtain area. Gave the ostrich to Benny and said make sure it doesn't get away as I had plans for it.

Sampson said this had better be good, because if you're lying about Cici.... The girls are near my cart/bike and asked them to please take a walk for 5 minutes or so. Of course, they knew something was up, especially since Sampson and I were walking together and I wasn't a bloody pulp and they wanted to know what was up with me because I had that sneaky man look on my face. I said it was male bonding time and girls not allowed during those times. They said okay and walked over to the picnic table and started talking about what ever. I dug out the 3 packages and told him lets go some place where we can be out of sight of the girls cause I know they're burning with curiosity. Well, I had Sampson curious too and went over to the barbeque area where there was another picnic table. Opened the first bag and showed him the dozen or so crossword puzzle books, including 3 of what said they were the best of the New York Times crossword puzzles over the last 10 years. He said, oh man, that's nice, really nice, but it still doesn't make up for what happened. Opened the 2nd bag and showed him the make up, etc. and told him I had given the girls a bunch of this stuff and they went crazy over it. That's when he asked why they kissed me like they did? Said yeah. He says this is pretty good, then he stopped when I pulled out the 3rd bag which had panties, bras and a couple of nighties. Said I wasn't sure about her size, but I had asked the guard ladies abut sizes and had kind of eye balled Cici when I first saw her and had you in mind when I got this stuff. If I was him, I'd kind of dole it out a little bit at a time, you know to keep her interest in you, but not to be giving her the nighties until....you know. He said he wasn't stupid and doling it out was a good idea....especially the nighties. Said that was real thoughtful of me doing this for him even after what I had done to him and maybe, just maybe he did owe me. That's when I looked him square in the eye and told him bull$hit. That I still owed him for saving my life at Home Depot and I was really, really sorry he got into deep $hit with Blevins. He said okay, we're even. That's when I spat into my hand and held it out to him and without hesitation, he did the same and we shook.

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 26
North (east?) of Sheridan, Oregon
July 12th Friday

John, Benny and Marcy came over to say goodbye. Kind of sad in leaving them because in this short time, I've really come to liking them....probably miss Marcy's whacking the back of Johns head when he curses. Find out they've been married 50 some years. She does know how to use a dutch oven, but no time to tell me how it should/can be used other than how to pre-treat it, something I didn't know. Marcy pulled me aside and wondered what she had to say that it needed to be private. Told me she knows how I've been looking at Jennifer from the first day everyone joined together to get here. Said I was a good man, but was it wise to be interested in someone so much younger? She also saw the 3 of us kissing....did I really want to possible start such a mess and have it explode down the road? Some things I would ask Mom about....others, there was no way. Better to keep it to yourself. but figured she really wanted to know about us 3 and started telling her that they drove me bug stir crazy and almost said $hit instead of stir, but she gave me "the eye" on that one and didn't want to be whacked by her. She bluntly asked if I was in love with either of them or was it lust? Said I was familiar with lust, but they were different and she wanted to know how/why. Said I've met/talked with a lot of women at Hooters and yes, I lusted after every one of them. Maybe Jennifer/Patricia are different because they took the time to talk to me, so while there's lust on my part, I'd like it to be more and know more about them. Besides, man can't be too careful these days as who knows what bad habits women now have....like chewing tobacco or leaving their gum on the bed post at night? She laughed at that one, but tells me I have to be careful of "the devils stick" as it can lead me astray. Took me a few seconds to realize she was talking abut my d*ck. Said I know....and that's my biggest fear that I may do something bad which is why I always reminded myself of two things: treat everyone like I want to be treated and when it came to women, how would I respond if someone could force themselves on my sisters or nieces simply because they can with things being the way they are now? She had never thought about the second part, but now she was sure as long as I remembered those two things, I would have no trouble.

Saw Montana with Annette walking over to the horses, so went to see them as I was thinking of something about those two earlier. Still no saddles, but she had a couple of gunny sacks tied together and laid over the horses neck. Montana asked if I had given the guns away yet and I said no. He wondered if she could have an AR, but had to ask if she was familiar with it. He said yes, he checked her out on his. Said okay, then asked him what he thought of riding one of the horses with us. He never thought about it and wanted to know why. Was thinking if he was mounted, he could be scouting/point man for the group. Said I'd have to talk with Janet about that. Was kind of surprised to hear she was going out with us. Find out she volunteered as she's got family (husband and 3 kids) south of Sheridan. That got me to wondering about the guard people....what's been happening/done with their people? I mean, wives, husbands, etc.? It was good that Montana asked me about arming Annette because I was thinking of it anyway....that is, if she knew how to handle a pistol or rifle. She's 17, pretty as all get out....but going into the unknown unarmed? All sorts of bad things could/would happen if some guy(s) caught her without her being on her horse. Thing is, didn't know what I'd of done if she couldn't handle guns. It's not like I could hog tie her and force her to stay with the group once we got to Sheridan. And then what? Keep her hog tied/with the girls? I know my intentions would be good, but not right either. Some people have to pay the price of being ignorant/stupid. I just didn't want it to be her.

Gave Annette one of the AR's and offered 4 of my magazines, plus 120 rounds, something I really didn't want to do, but figured having only the 2 I had gotten from one of the bodies wasn't going to make it. Never heard anyone complain they had too much ammo when the shooting began. Montana said he'd take care of her in regarding both items. Asked if he could get me 10 magazines, he said ok, but wanted to know why so many since I have 10....did I have a boink? Said no, but it seems AR's are a common rifle by the bad guys, but many don't seem to have a lot of extra magazines. With me having extras and the ammo I got earlier, I can arm others just a little bit better. Maybe everyone else in this patrol should carry extra. Told him I didn't want to hang around the base too long as I might be within Blevins eye ball range, thank you very much. He understood and didn't blame me. Wanted to know why Sampson was so happy after "our jog" and told him that was between me and him. He/Socrates met me off base and gave me 2K (thousand) rounds and 30(?!) empty magazines with loaders, which I split between Jennifer/my cart with the idea/dread of having all the ammo, magazines, etc. in 1 cart and something happening to the cart. Also got 4 cases of MRE's (for us 4) which he said was from Sampson. Socrates said it could be puzzling how things turn out in life, doesn't it? I didn't comment back. Still haven't gotten those magazines loaded, but with one thing and another, haven't found the time.

Finally, everyone's ready to leave and meet at the guard base, with Patricia pushing my bike/cart. Both carts are getting kind of full, but still had some room for any extra stuff we might find on our way home. We were also carrying MRE's for everyone in our party, along with canned food from the Winco distribution center. And this time, everyone had a jug of water and I had several more tied to our bikes.

Hmmmm....just realized when I write/talk to her about us going to her place, keep calling it home. Something I have to be careful in thinking that way....you know, her + me = home.

Everyone (those in the guard) got briefed by Anderson who said to be on the lookout for not only guard troops who may be trying to get back to base, but the 2 that had been sent out on Tuesday. Seems Blevins "suggested" to Millar they send some people to Salem since it's guard headquarters. They should have been back by the next day at the most, but never returned. Janet was all for taking I-5 till I spoke up. Said with these people, it's going to take us at least a day to get to Sheridan and with 3 women who have babies and another pregnant, it's going to probably take 2. By taking 219, we'd be away from most of the towns and maps I had showed a couple of golf courses and what looked like streams, so we'd have a water supply available, something that wouldn't be on I-5. She talked with Mendoza who ok'd it.

Have several missions: check in with the Sheridan guard to see what they're doing/what's happening. Three people transferred to Janets platoon and they have family within 15 miles of that base. These people are infantry, while Sheridans mechanized. And wondering if they got any of their vehicles running. If not, maybe Pearl Diver and a helper could come down and get them running? But who knows what kind of electronics they have in their equipment?

Mendoza was sending Millar and a driver to Salem as he needed to know what was going on/what to do. On the way back, they'd swing by the guard base in Sheridan. Kind of surprised, but the guys are going with me as we're suppose to check out addresses of where some of the guard people family live. See how they're doing, help them in what ever way we could (and knew that as a not if kind of thing either) and then head over to the guard base. Then we were to check out the train museum in Sheridan. Janet wasn't too enthused about Montana and horse, but realized it could really help. And said once again, I wasn't thinking normally...and she was glad about it. Before I forget.....another 20 or so troops (plus refugees) came back from up north and it's insane up there. Basically EVERYTHING just north of Beaverton is uncontrolled. The guard tried several times to help people up north, but now they're being deliberately attacked by gangs which are getting better armed. Because of being attacked earlier, the other guard people (around 40) were staying with the Beaverton people. Hopefully, Pearl Diver and the other mechs can get more trucks/trailers going in the next few days. Or even pickups.

As for the ostrich, tied a couple of rags over its eyes and Montana got it hobbled so even if it got away, it couldn't run like they can. That got tied to Patricia's cart. She wasn't too happy about it, but told her about the size/amount of eggs they can carry and she said okay. Thing is, don't know if it's male or female and with everything going on earlier, forgot to ask the pound ladies about it. Thought of putting Herbert on it....you know, like it was done in the Disney Robinson Crusoe Family movie, but with no saddle or figuring a way to guide it.... Besides, don't know if Herbert was in aw or scared $hitless because of its size. THAT would have been one h*ll of a photo.

Things were going pretty well and we're about ready to leave when Patricia sees someone and calls out to him. It was that f*cking Aaron. Not only that, where/how did he come up with a bicycle AND cart? Noticed he had his stuff covered with a tarp and wondered what he had and how/where did he get it? Seems Aaron worked in her fathers law office and there was talk of making him a junior partner before everything went to $hit. The less I saw of this f*ck, the better off I'd be. What bothered me was Patricia telling him we were headed for Sheridan and she'd be staying with Jennifer. When asked what route we'd be taking, I said I-5 since that would be the quickest/easiest. Since the briefing was guard only, hoped it would throw him off/away from me and especially Patricia. Was I being jealous? Yeah, in part....with him being so good looking and all that, but was also thinking/hoping some bad guys will take care of him for me. Noticed he had also changed from wearing a suit, etc. to jeans and some kind of polo shirt.

When he asked how her parents were doing and did they know she was okay, she started crying and what surprised me, was her turning to me and holding me. I held and tried to comfort her much as possible. Saw Aaron wasn't too happy about this display. F*ck him. She eventually quieted down and told him what happened and her journey here. Didn't mind her talking about me doing the rescue, etc. at Hooters, but when she started talking about what I had been doing here, I said we need to get going. Aaron tells her they must meet again but when I asked Patricia to go back to Jennifer, that's when she realized I was tense looking at Aaron, but she did. Thing is, she missed Aarons expression which was purely pi$$ed off because of her leaving at my request. Don't think he expected that. Asked him where he got his bike, cart and supplies? Said it was none of my business, but that Patricia eventually would realize she would be better off with him and I knew what he was thinking. You know, age difference, knew him before all this happened and I was thinking he might be right....but really pi$$ed him off when I said maybe so, but think irregardless she's going to want to be with an ant instead of a grasshopper. And for a second or two, his face got ugly....it was like he wasn't there any more, but something else. Figured he'd beat the $hit out of me, so put my hand on my pistol and stepped back a few steps just to make sure he wasn't within grabbing range. He just turned and left with his bike/cart. As I watched him go, wondered just where/what the f*ck he's been up to, so started asking around as we had a little bit more time before leaving.

Seems he's hooked up with some other people, but they're staying a mile or so away. And people thought it strange because so many of us have formed (more or less) a community. Some of the ladies said it looked like he was running with a rough looking crowd, but wouldn't say any more than that. Guys said maybe so, but I needed to consider what's happened since Monday. Maybe they haven't had the luck/chance like our original group had. Thing is, Aaron had about a dozen, maybe a little more of regular people going south with him. Apparently, he's been out looking for other survivors, if that's the right word. Was thinking maybe he's changed, you know from grasshopper to an ant....but remembered what he looked like when I said that. Or figures there's safety in numbers going south. Anyway, as long as he stays away from me and the girls until things go back to normal. Or some semblance of normalcy.

We're also taking several hundred pamphlets with us and suppose to post them (hopefully) every mile or so. It tells the people what has happened and what the guard is doing in Woodburn. That if they need assistance, to go to the nearest guard base and if possible, they will get help. Kept one in my briefcase as a souvenir as it reminds me of the leaflets dropped during WW 2. Hoping it does some good. It's roughly 40 miles or so to Sheridan and didn't do as bad as I thought we might....like 25-30 miles in 8 hours? Had to stop a couple of times because of the women with kids and especially the pregnant lady. I was just hoping she didn't give birth on our journey south. Come to find out, Sampson's been there/done that before with his cousin back in Georgia.

Been seeing bodies....some times one/two kind of scattered here/there, other times it was several. Some had been shot, others had their throats cut. And some of the women had been raped/throats cut. Thing is, a lot of the guys and some of the women had been tortured. Made us all jittery. But one body threw me for a loop....it was that guy who had the gold coins. This was about 3 miles or so south east of the base. Thru out this walk/seeing dead bodies, would see bicycle tire tracks in the road or dirt alongside the road.

Just beyond an unopened strip mall, hit a good stream of water, so it was decided to camp here. While walking, Janet tells me she had been told by Blevins to keep an eye on me. Cr*p....thought I'd be out of sight, out of mind as far as he went. Montana/Annette worked as a team, letting us know what was ahead of us. Not that they went really far ahead of us....maybe half a mile or so? Didn't bother checking any of the stores we passed....figured they were stripped and be a waste of time. What I didn't like was seeing graffiti, but not knowing what it meant. Must be getting used to walking....my feet don't hurt like they did when all of this started and losing weight. Had to cut another hole in my belt. But still looking out for any kind of optometrist place.

Odds and ends: didn't want to leave any of the 9 ladies in the party unarmed, so asked if they were familiar with guns. Seems 3 were, so 2 got pistols, while another got the other AR after having Reginald/Montana make sure they knew how to use them. The pregnant lady (Haley) with the AR is a prepper, no doubt in my mind. Said TWAWKI, saw recognition in her face and told her if she needed anything else, let me know. Her problem was trying to carry some of her stuff in a gunny sack, so told her to put it on my cart so she'd have her hands free and walk next to my cart where the magazines were at. She wasted no time in loading 10 magazines as we started down the road and after asking/getting some duct tape from me, started taping 2 magazines together so they were staggered. Thing is, got what I think are 2 skin heads/Aryan Nation kind of people in the party. Having a bald head doesn't make you a skin head....but why were these guys wearing long sleeve shirts in this kind of weather? Gave the other pistols to 2 Mexicans, a father/son. The father (Jose) doesn't speak much English, so Hernando (the son) did the translating. They're both gardeners and when things went to $hit, they were just south of Portland and had been walking back to Stayton since then. They had only arrived Friday morning. Both seemed like good people. Two black guys wanted to be armed, but they seemed "off" and pi$$ed them off. Not that I cared. But another black guy was a vet from the invasion of Iraq; he and a friend of his, got the pistols instead. Got 28 people going south with us, not counting the guard people. Thin about half of us are armed. The skin heads left us right after supper, saying they had to take a $hit and never returned. Good riddance to bad rubbish.

And I feel like an a$$. Some things you just don't think of until after the fact. Like what about all the storage places that must exist in the Woodburn area? I was thinking of all the RV's, regular and 5th wheel trailers I've seen from time to time on I-5. Weather's eventually going to turn bad....where are the people going to live/survive at Woodburn alone? If Pearl Diver could get some of the Sanihut trucks going, they could also empty the trailers and I think there's a Pilot some where south of us that's set up to take care of that sort of thing from RV'ers. Told Janet and was told she'd pass it along.

[millwright]

WARNING ABOUT STORY CONTENTS!

The only problem I have with the contents is, there needs to be moar.

Deees story, hees a good yob main.

[willc453]

Don't know if anyone's been reading the updates I have as author notes. In any case, earlier this evening, took about 2 hours to enter/proof read/submit chapter 27.....and it went to cyber la la land. Had this happen from time to time while submitting it at SB and usually able to back page it, submit it again and it would post. The word was....usually. And there went 4 pages of the story. Will try again (if possible) tomorrow, just depends on what kind of day I have on the road. Sorry. Oh yeah...any way we can post photos here? Earlier in the story, wrote about Andy getting photos printed up before the emp hit. One is of "Andy" partially dressed up/prepped for the zombie apocalypse as he would tell his family, others are of "Portland" and surrounding area showing the devastation of the earthquake and tsunami. Those photos got from the net.
Chris

[kaijafon]

Photos would be great! I don't think I have it figured out how to add them here yet. Sorry about you losing the next part though.

[papaof2]

Hate that you lost your work.

Having lost entirely too many posts to the the Internet Gator (it randonly pops up and grabs what you've been typing), I now type anything thing more than a couple of sentences into Notepad or Word and save it before doing a copy and paste to put it online. Takes just a little longer, but if the Gator strikes there's still a copy to try posting again.

I'm perhaps a bit paranoid about losing the small amount of creative work I do come up with, so most of the time I use a computer that isn't affected by hits on AC power (tablet, old laptop with new battery, desktop with UPS).

Sent from my IdeaTabA2109A using proboards

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 27
Jennifers apartment
July 13th Saturday
Sheridan, Oregon

Some people don't even think when camping normally and with the way things are now, being dumb can kill you....or worse. After seeing those tortured bodies, death would be a relief. Said my usual prayer when ever I saw them. And I thought it was so much bull$hit about crows eating bodies....you know, as seen in more than one movie. Not so and there seem to be a lot of them. A couple of people thought of burying them, but realized there was no time and of course, no real equipment except for the guards/my shovels. Anyway, everyone's not only for camping next to the stream, BUT also making a nice, LARGE fire. Man, all this stuff going on, seems impossible to write it all down at times. Funny thought: baby steps, Carver, baby steps....that line from DA2.

At least the people were thinking ahead of time by at least bringing something to cook in, even if it was a small pot. Used the dutch oven to make a big batch of rice and with canned veggies and other pots, everyone got something to eat. Janet made sure the fires were small and under control. Had all the ladies over to use my propane stove to cook some of this stuff. That soda pop alcohol can thing from EBay....it worked, but not as good as I thought it would. Or as quick as an open fire. Never thought of grabbing a barbque grill from Home Depot. Maybe one in Sheridan? And one bottle is empty. Need to find propane in Sheridan/

somewhere. All the small fires got put out except for a medium size one which was allowed to stay for a couple of hours, then put out. More than one person just sat looking at the fire and feeding it from time to time....like maybe the fire would keep the boogeyman away? But noticed the guard stayed away from it except to get the coffee I had made for them. Much as I like 'em, didn't offer/hint that I had powdered French Vanilla creamer. Let them use the sugar/creamer packets I got Monday.

The girls are sitting by the fire and both said to sit besides them. Well, I did....you know, a foot or so behind them, but they both moved a bit and Jennifer said they meant next to them and patted the ground. Kind of surprised at that. Man, had to fight the urge to put my arms around both of them. Herbert's playing with some of the toys I got him and got to thinking: water = fish? Asked if he'd ever been fishing and would he like to? He hasn't, so with Jennifers ok, got my gear from bob. A branch gave Herbert a rod and with a small bobber and hook, he was ready to go. Did some digging before finding some worms and it was either find them or spend a lot of time chasing grasshoppers. What made me happy was he finally did catch a small perch which we let go. The bad part was no camera, but that smile on his face was wide/big enough for two kids. Think I've created a monster....wants to know when can we go again. Thing is, don't know, but told him as soon as possible IF possible which made him happier. Of course, he's not got HIS OWN fishing rod which I put on Jennifers cart.

We're gone maybe 30 minutes or so when we came back to the girls. Kind of surprised to see ALL the ladies gathered together and figured they were talking woman talk or maybe something that was private....you know, not meant for mens ears. Made me real uneasy because they all turned to look at me as we walked up....like I was a piece of beef being eyed by a chef. Thought maybe my fly was open, but turned and made sure it wasn't. Then the girls are giving me the eye and wonder I did/didn't do....with women, you never know. When Jennifer said let's go for a walk and Patricia ALSO gets up, figure I'm in really big trouble and thinking bad thoughts again. Again, thank you very much but giving us tongue when you kiss us is a bit much....and from there, it would be going down hill. We like you, but.... Feeling like $hit and even worse because I'm walking between the two of them. You know, like walking down the Green Mile. We're taking a path along the stream and there's brush, but not a whole bunch enough to make me nervous.

 

We're a bit further from the group than I like and told the girls let's stop here. Jennifer tells me they know how much I like them and it wasn't the kissing/

tongue part....it was the WAY/INTENSITY I kissed them. They both liked me before all of this happened and they were well aware that I always made a point of sitting in their section when either of them was working and when they weren't working, I'd sit anywhere. Patricia adds as to the way I looked at them, a lot of men looked at them like that and they were used to that. Jesus, could feel my face turning red....you know, kind of like being in elementary school and trying to look down (or up) a teachers dress when she goes to pick up a piece of chalk on the floor....and the teacher sees your attempt. Tell them that I was sorry for all that. Didn't realize it was so obvious and that when we got to Jennifer's place, I'd leave. They looked at each other and start telling me that they DON'T want me to leave and it's not because of my kissing/tongue work. They're not only really liking me, but have come to respect me in a lot of things. But they did have trouble with me being interested in both of them.... Just what were my intentions and Patricia asking, did I have sexual fantasizes about either of them or the 3 of us in one bed? Well f*ck yes I have....but not about to admit THAT. Told them the truth....basically the same thing  I told Marcy. That I had no idea why they both drove me crazy, that it wasn't just their beauty that did it. Just something about them. As for intentions, even if I wanted them to be dishonorable, I couldn't. As for anything else, I wanted to know more about them because I really hade no idea who they were other than working at Hooters, Jennifer has Herbert and Patricias dad being a lawyer. They needed to be, to me, more than some sexual fantasy.

Then Patricia really pushed my buttons, reminding me of her offer before her parents were killed. Said I did remember. She said because of what I've done for her/Jennifer, what if she gave me the best sex I ever had until I got tired of her or found someone else? Better yet, how about Jennifer and her both take of my sexual needs.....in any way, shape or form I wanted them?  I couldn't back up fast enough from both of them and tell her, Jesus Christ, that's f*cking sick. Said that if either of you EVER came crawling into my bag to take care of my needs under those circumstances, I'd lose ALL respect for you no matter how attracted I am to you. And not only that, I WOULDN'T be attracted to you any more. Kept thinking of that John D. McDonald book where one guy hears a noise on a boat and goes to investigate. It's another guy f*cking some woman who's had one too many, but doesn't care she's being f*cked or by who. And the guy who briefly saw what was going on, remembering the ugly sound of flesh slapping flesh as these two f*cked. That's how I imagined it would look/sound like if I did it with either/both of them under Patricias proposal. Like my soul wanted to puke at these thoughts.

That's when Jennifer tells me they had talked with Marcy. That not only what I had just said, it confirmed what she had told her. Both girls said they were a bit shocked when I talked to them like I did, especially since I backed up so quickly from them after Patricias proposal. That's when they knew I was serious about them as women, wanting to know them as people and not hoping to f*ck them on a regular basis. The last part was from Patricia but she used the word sex instead of f*ck. When they started walking towards me, I started backing up and looking for a way to run....don't know why, but they were scaring me. First it's talk about them/me f*cking and now they say they respect me? What the f*ck were they going to do/say next? Jennifer asks why was I backing up and was I scared of them and tell her h*ll yes and why.

That's when Patricia said I needed to remember the guys who were offering her stuff not just for sex, but to keep her protected and telling her how much better off she would be with them being so much younger, in better shape, better looking, all their hair, etc. She/Jennifer had a talk because she couldn't understand why I was so tense looking at Aaron. She still had a hard time believing what she was being told till Jennifer got Marcy, John and Benny and they told her the same thing. Seems the Aaron she knew vs what they saw, were two different people. Aaron would do a lot of bono work for the under privileged, even taking cases her father really didn't approve of or think of winning which would reflect directly on the law firm. But Aaron was a firm believer that everyone should have the best legal defense possible no matter what crime they may be accused of. Apparently he was good with a success rate of 90% with these cases. It wasn't his fault if some didn't take the 2nd chance at life and returned to crime and other misdeeds. Got the feeling Aaron was one of those slick lawyers....you know, using every trick in the law books to case doubt on a witness, confuse them or legal technicality to get his client free. That's always bothered me. You either did the crime or not. If so, be held accountable for it. No excuses of a drug using mother, etc. The same line of bs I heard from that guy before I shot him. Thing is, I was wondering if he/she....and that got all the self doubt going again. You know....these girls being way out of my league no matter what they said. The girls are close to me and that's when I heard from behind me uungghh from some bushes.   

[hamrad]

keep it coming will, all good stuff as before

regards
Kev

[willc453]

The Layover
Chapter 28
Jennifers apartment
Sheridan, Oregon
July 13th Saturday

Without hesitation, spread my arms out, jumped forward and knocked the girls to the ground, with me falling between them. Grabbed the 9, pointed it towards the bushes and told the girls to roll/crawl to my left for at least 30 feet, which they did. I was thinking for anyone to see them, they'd have to come closer and I could get a shot at them, not realizing I wasn't with them.

Then I heard a voice from the bush weakly calling for help. Yeah, good way to be ambushed, so I crawled on my belly off to one side of the bush. Could eventually see someone in the bush and nobody else. Long story, short, it was a girl about 10-11 years old named Lisa and with her, a lady named Stella. She was captured Thursday. Some guys burst into their home in the evening and killed her boyfriend, who killed 2 of the 6 guys. She remembers one of them saying there weren't suppose to be any guns here. Stella was surprised when her boyfriend pulled it out and started shooting....she had no idea there was a gun in their home. While 2 held her down over her dead boyfriends body, the other 2 raped her, then they swapped places. They gagged her so her screams were muffled....and of course, by then, no one in the area was going to check out what was happening. It was dark and who knew what was out there....better to wait until daylight and then maybe? She had a pillow case put over her head and marched to the farm. When the beasts took a break from walking, they raped her again. Remember looking at her afterwards and even with the bruises on her face, she was d*mn good looking and built....much better (bigger?) than Jennifer/Patricia to tell the truth. And looonnnggg legs. Only thing wrong was her hair being in that corn cob(?) style like Bo Derek wore in that movie 10. Always thought it looked like a heavy duty janitors mop stuck on their head. But it doesn't really matter....I mean, even if 10 Stellas offered themselves to me like those 2 were pretending to earlier, I wouldn't take her/them up on it just because Jennifer/Patricia are Jennifer/Patricia. F*ck, seeing what some guys would call prime p*ssy (Stella) and all I can think of is those two.

Lisa and her mother had been trying to get to Beaverton since Monday and were captured by 5 men on Wednesday. She not only watched her mother being raped, one of them forced her hand over his bare c*ck like she was stroking it, then he raped her mother. Again, they were blindfolded, but while her mother was raped again, Lisa knew there were other women with them on their walk to the farm because they were screaming as they were raped. Neither of them knew where they were till their blind folds were taken off. Stella said they had at least a dozen women in her group and for unknown reasons, some (like her and Lisa) were taken inside the house, while others were taken to a large barn.

There were at least a dozen other women in the house and Lisa heard them screaming (along with her mother later on) from time to time. About 4 hours ago, she had been raped at both holes and made to do things with her mouth, then the men left her for other women. They (beasts) never put a guard outside because it had been someone's farm....the word was had. Lisa remembered seeing a dead body of a man and woman behind the house. And two girls screaming/crying for their mother and father. One of the beasts was going to rape Lisa again until Stella offered herself....like she was some horny, c*ck hungry sl*t in heat and his ego fell for it. Then afterwards, how big he was, etc. and that's when he got stupid and turned his back only to be laid out by a cast iron frying pan. Stella grabbed Lisa and hauled a$$ for outside. But she'd been used pretty badly herself and passed out just after reaching the bushes....5 minutes later or so, we were near them but didn't know they were there. Lisa was terrified at first, thinking I was one of the beasts, but knew I was a good guy because the girls weren't screaming or being hit and it was Stella who groaned.

Lisa (who was naked) got my vest and told the girls to get back to camp and tell Janet what happened. But they had to cross the stream first before heading back to camp. Told them if anyone got near them, to pull their pistols and even if they couldn't aim, start shooting and/or scream. Got a branch from a bush and made an attempt of trying to cover the girls tracks. Once the girls left, started away/up from the stream. It's getting dark, but not dark dark. Also helped that the moon was about 1/4th full. I had only jogged maybe 5 minutes or so and about 20 feet from the stream and stopped. No idea if anyone was coming down this way or not and didn't want to suddenly bump into anyone. At least the land was flat/bare. There were some dips and bushes growing all around. That's when I decided to stop. Hunkered next to some brush about 10-15 feet from the stream and a couple of minutes later(?), heard movement coming down the path.... No noise discipline at all.

Three beasts. One was talking about he was going to cut that n*gger b*tches t*ts off and shove a broken branch up her pu$$y and a$$hole. Another said they had to find/kill both of them as they had been told by Fingers not to touch the girl because of her age/virginity. They needed to remember what happened to the last dude that crossed Fingers. Third guy said that's not the scary part....remember when someone crossed Hand it took the guy 4 days to die after he was given to the lezzies? And Fingers said Hand needed more young stuff for the movies? First guy said, but with no power, how are movies going to be made? Third guy said Hands has generators(!?) for this, but afterwards, there's a big market for young pu$$y, even if used. First guy (t*t cutter) said, well, there's more young pu$$y out there and you two weren't b*tching when f*cking her. Just started getting up when the second guy said yeah, that was some tight pu$$y. Third guy says, it was good....and remember, when it goes down, I'm b*tt f*cking pregnant woman. First guy says, just remember when you come, shoot her in the head....her pu$$y will really clamp down on your d*ck. One mentioned the Army being with them and another said they've got that covered and they needed to find/kill those c*nts, other wise, no fresh pu$$y to f*ck after the attack is over with. 

They were 30 feet or so away from me, with their backs turned when I stood up and saw them for the first time. The rear guy was carrying a rifle, so shot him first and then did the other two. Scared the sh*t out of me when the rear guy fired his shotgun and not a rifle like it looked like. Thing is, it worked out well. With my first shot, he started turning around, then the other 2 rounds hit him. He had brought up his shotgun and his finger involuntarily pulled the trigger with the shot hitting the second guy. The other two never had their pistols out....like they were out for a walk in the park. After shooting them, dropped to the ground and rolled to my left in case they weren't dead. Heard movement for a bit, then nothing. Had to get moving, so against better judgment, went to see if they were dead....they were. The shotgun guy had 2 shotgun things strapped across his body like he was some Mexican bandito. Took them and his shotgun and that's when I heard a bunch of shooting down stream.  

Running flat out only took me a couple of minutes to find the place where we found Stella/Lisa and just as I was crossing the stream, heard a guy saying you mother f*ckers, you weren't to shoot anyone this close to those people....and ran right into him! Stumbled back and b*tt stroked him with the shotgun and as he was falling, moved over a bit and started firing towards him and two others behind him. That's when I slipped on the rocks and fell backwards into the water. Bullets whizzed over my head and I started tromboneing the shotgun. Guys (at least 2) started screaming and I scrambled down stream. You can't run fast in water when it's knee deep and had to get out of there fast.

Realized I was making too much noise, so stopped and hunkered down in the water, listening for noise. Crawled thru the brush and once clear of it, started running, expecting a shot in the back any moment but had to get to the girls. Truth was, wasn't thinking of anyone but them....Stella, Lisa, Haley, the other women, didn't matter. Afterwards, got pretty down on myself because while all of this was happening, NEVER THOUGHT OF HERBERT! How was it me being so focused on the girls, to forget him? Part of me is telling me that I've become too focused on them. But had to reason that one out. If that was the case, how come I turned down what I thought was a valid offer from both girls? And with them doing their best to please me sexually? Finally realized why I had forgotten Herbert....when we left, he had been left with Haley and I had left both dogs protecting him AND she was armed. I know that if Jennifer/I ever did....you know, he's part of the bargain. Wrong word, bargain. Package is a better one. Like Jennifers mom would also be part of the package.

Trying to reload the shotgun as I had no idea how many rounds I fired and it wasn't easy, so had to slow down. Figured the shotgun would be a better weapon in the dark/brush area than the AR. So I'm jogging and here comes a guy towards me and he's shouting get back! Get back! The Army was ready for us....and right about then a red flare went off in the night sky. Three rounds of 12 gauge from 20 feet or less kills anyone. Didn't know whether to sh*t or go blind....

keep running down this path and maybe someone will get the first shot the next time or stay where I was at and see what happens in a bit? That WASN'T acceptable as far as staying where I was at. Went back into the water and stayed near the brush, slowly working my way down stream. Had gone maybe 30 feet or so when I saw movement in the brush and got ready to start firing, figuring beasts are hiding/waiting in ambush. I have never been one to fire blindly at something just on a hunch....and it took me a few seconds to realize there was a lighter color in the brush that didn't belong there. Who was it...or them? Duck walking was a b*tch in basic, add 42 years and 100+ pounds and it becomes a mother f*cker. Also had to keep the shotgun clear of the water which made it harder. Duck walk 6-8 steps, stop for a few seconds, then forward again.

It was Lisa wearing my vest and since it was a light tan color, it showed up in the moonlight/flare. Have to find some dye and change it to black, green or dark grey. Never thought about the color before when I bought it, but who the f*ck thought this sh*t happening in the U.S.? Quietly called out to the girls who called back, so I joined them. Stella/Lisa weren't doing too well, not surprising after what they've been thru. Told them we were going to hold up at a uncompleted strip mall a mile or so north of us that we had passed earlier today until daylight and knew what was going on. It would give us shelter/cover and away from the shooting.   

Stella/Lisa were having problems walking, so I carried her, while Jennifer carried Lisa. Patricia got the shotgun, telling her there was a round ready to fire and safety was off but NOT to fire unless I said so. If she heard any noise, to let me QUIETLY know and we'd go from there. Had my AR while carrying/using the shotgun earlier (bandoleers....that's the word I was trying to think of) and it's not easy carrying a woman, but it was the only way to get us moving just a bit faster. The flare only lasted a couple of minutes and scared the entire time, thinking we might be spotted/shot at by good/bad guys. Then changed my mind about the mall. You move, you make noise. Don't move, don't make noise. Found some bushes and had the girls hide there and told them not to move/make any noise. I was going back towards camp so there would be some distance between us. If I got into a shooting match with anyone, the girls could catch one.

Hunkered in some brush and prepared to wait for daylight when I see movement on the path, further down stream. Four people and they were going to pass me by. Beasts or.... Was going to let them pass and if I couldn't identify them, shoot them in the back. Worked before, would work again. Then one of them coughed and heard Sampsons rumble, telling who ever to choke on it. Being dark and all that, was paranoid about maybe being shot by accident, so kept flat on my belly. Thing is, what if I was wrong about it being Sampson? They're next to the bushes/stream and the guy looked like Sampsons size and sounded like him, but what if? So quietly called out Godzilla? And those 4 dropped like a rock and couldn't see anyone. THAT made me nervous, so started backing up on my elbows/knees towards another clump of bushes. That's when I heard Sampson say lead? Then realized what he meant and I replied follow or get out of the way.

When he stood up, so did I. He was leading 3 other guardsmen, making sure there were no other bad guys within a mile of camp and there was another set doing the same thing on the other side of the stream. Thinking back, realized it wasn't just what I thought/hoped would be Sampson voice, their heads were wrong....they were wearing helmets and I ain't seen a bad guy wearing one of those so far.

The other team caught up with us from the other side of the stream and Sampson called out to them using the word lead. Sh*t, never thought of using any kind of password to identify us as being us. Instead of taking us back to camp, he told us Janet got to thinking about what I said being in Injun country 24/7. She had the fire die out (with b*tching from some of the civilians) and had everyone take their gear and head to that strip mall to make cold camp. The guards left their sleeping bags stuffed with some brush near the fire and once the party was gone, would throw a chunk or two of wood on it to keep it burning. Not a bonfire or anything like that, but just a small fire. She also had LP's out. She didn't figure us being gone that long and the LP on our side of the stream knew us and expected us back at any time. If I had seen them (the group) moving earlier, I'd of had us head back because I didn't know why they were moving, but because the stream curved....and honestly didn't think we'd gone that far, but we had.  From now on, I'm staying within sight of the group if either of the girls are with me no mater where I/we are at.

Jennifer AND Patricia are on my a$$, saying it's time for supper. Gotta go.