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Post by accountant on Apr 27, 2018 11:21:45 GMT -6
Paul gets seduced and tries the product.
Chapter 51
Paul and Shawna both stood up and gave each other a big hug. He reminded her that she needed to behave exactly as she had behaved before they met. Shawna nodded her understanding and left the room.
Paul thought about his daughter. She had survived. She would get better over time. That was as long as he could keep her and himself alive long enough for Mark to come. And hopefully, he would bring enough firepower to take out these evil men. It was a lot to hope for, but at least Shawna had hope now.
Paul walked down the hallway to the entrance of the school. Becky was there, waiting for him.
“Mr. Paul, I hope everything went well for you, sir.”, she said.
“Yes, I just had to take care of some discipline issues. I hope we weren’t too loud.”, said Paul.
“No, sir. I didn’t hear anything.”, lied Becky.
“Did the girls finish their inventory counts?”, he asked.
“Yes, sir. I have them here for you.”, said Becky as she handed back the pads and pens.
Paul did a cursory review of the paperwork.
“Do we not have any medical supplies here?”, he asked.
“No sir. We only have the emergency first aid kit in the nurse’s office, sir.”, responded Becky.
“What do we do when the girls are injured, then?”, asked Paul.
“The sluts heal on their own, sir. If the injuries are too severe, they are taken out of circulation for a few days.”, replied Becky, smiling.
“I see. Thank you, Becky.”, said Paul as he turned to leave.
He paused for a moment in thought then turns back to Becky.
“There’s a boys change room connected to the gym, isn’t there?”, he asked.
“Yes, sir. There is.”
“Does it have shower facilities?”
“Yes sir, there are two showers in the boys change room, but the water isn’t flowing.”
“That’s fine. I will be by a little later to use one of them to get some of the dirt and grime off my body.”, said Paul.
“Of course, Mr. Paul. Whatever you need, sir.”, said Becky with a smile.
Paul left the school and walked back to the main building. He wanted to review all the items on the inventory counts and consolidate them with his notes from the greenhouse and the main building. He went back up to the second floor and sat down at the desk in one of the cubicles. Sitting down, he reviewed the counts and began to transpose the figures into his own pad. Methodically, he wrote down every item and value on the lists.
His mind began to perform its own calculations as he mechanically wrote. There were a lot of items on these lists as well as the lists he had previously made. The men were sitting on a goldmine which could make them rich once the word got out about this place and trading started. It could all be his. All he would have to do was take out Trigger and a few of his henchmen and the rest of the dumbasses would fall in line. He could probably add a few of the university boys to be part of the group. They would definitely be loyal to him. He and Shawna would be safe. He would naturally take over Trigger’s stable of girls for himself. The others he could release from their individual bondage and let them live on the farm provided they did all their chores. They wouldn’t be able to leave the farm. They would still be available for the men’s usage but they would be earning the new currency of weed from the men’s visits. Any abuse of the girls or the system would need to be dealt with harshly, of course. The boys would be freed from servitude as well and would be paid for their services, just like the girls. It would all be so easy and it could all be his.
As he was writing, a couple of girls walked past the cubicle and headed to Trigger’s office. They went inside and closed the door. Instantly, Paul knew he could never be a part of that kind of life. Moans and screams escaped the office for the next hour. Soon, the door opened and the girls quietly exited. Shortly thereafter Trigger came out into the hallway doing up his pants.
“Hey accountant. Everything going okay?”, he asked Paul.
“I’m making progress on the itemization of things. I should have a good view of what we have and what we need right now, by tomorrow.”, said Paul.
“Great. Why don’t you take a break and join me in my office. Since you’ll be running the place, you should at least try the product with me.”, said Trigger as he headed to his office.
Paul knew it was more of a command than a request and followed the large man.
Trigger sat down at his desk and pulled out a bottle of Jack Daniels from a desk drawer and passed it to Paul. Paul took a sip of the whiskey while Trigger pulled a joint out of his pocket. When he did that, Paul reminded himself that he needed to add rolling papers to the list of items needed. Trigger lit the joint, took a big hit, and passed it to Paul. Having no choice, Paul took a hit of the noxious weed. He held it in his lungs as long as he could and then released it slowly, suppressing a cough. Instantly, the buzz started forming in his brain. He passed the joint back to Trigger and took another sip of whiskey to sooth his throat.
“Looks like you’ve done this before.”, said Trigger.
“I wasn’t always as straight-laced as I am now.”, replied Paul.
The large man looked so vulnerable, thought Paul to himself. If he had a gun, it would have been so easy to pull it out and make this vile creature dead in a matter of seconds.
“I noticed that other farms surround this place. They don’t mind us setting up shop here?”, asked Paul.
“We won’t be bothered by the neighbors. We’ve gotten rid of them.”, said Trigger, with his evil smile.
“We’ll have to see if there in anything of value we can scrounge to run the operations. Hell, we should cut the fences between us and them and expand our footprint.”, said Paul.
“It’s definitely worth looking into.”, said Trigger as the two men continued to share the joint.
“You’re a good man to have around, Paul. Your brain will get a lot done and you’re not a lazy slob. My guys are okay for what they’re doing, but they can’t add two plus four without using both hands.”, said Trigger, laughing at his own joke.
“I was going to ask how you picked up this crew.”, said Paul.
“Some of us used to run together in the city, like Tiny and Rico. Others we picked up when we busted out of jail when everything went down. It’s funny, I had no idea this place was here. It was Dillon who told me about it. Apparently, he was put to work here when he was doing community service. Can you believe it? A con working at a weed farm. The court system was so messed up.”, said Trigger.
“Well, we don’t have to worry about the court system any more and we’ll be doing our own services for the community soon enough.”, said Paul, smiling at his own little joke. His brain was getting much hazier by that time.
He cautiously stood up and looked out the window. The sun was low in the sky behind him, but he could make out the men guarding the gate, the road directly in front of them, and the patch of trees 200 yards in the distance.
“You’ve got a nice view here.”, said Paul.
“Yeah, it’s alright.”, said Trigger.
“By the way, there are three offices up here. You’ve got this one. Who have the other two?”, asked Paul.
“Nobody. One’s been set up as my personal bedroom and the other is where we keep the extra guns and ammunition. It’s safer up here. That way those jackasses down there don’t shoot the place up.”, replied Trigger.
“Your own personal bedroom and room service. You’ve got a sweet thing going here.”, said Paul as he lifted the bottle of whiskey to his lips.
“It’s good to be king.”, replied Trigger, raising the joint.
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Post by accountant on Apr 27, 2018 15:26:20 GMT -6
Maybe one more chapter for the weekend. A.
Paul sees how the boys live and gets clean.
Chapter 52 After dinner, Paul decided that he would get himself cleaned up. His mind was still a little fuzzy and he felt the water would do him good.
He went into the warehouse to his cot and retrieved a fresh set of clothes, a towel, and his sliver of soap. He exited the warehouse at the back and walked over to the storage facility that the boys were staying in just as a group of four were just about to go in.
“You and you, I want two buckets of water sent to the school. Tell them that Mr. Paul wants one bucket heated and the other left in the boys change room.”, he said to no one in particular.
“Yes, sir.”, said one of the boys as he and another ran off to do what they were told.
Knowing he had time until his bath water was ready, Paul decide to go into the storage facility and see what it looked like on the inside.
Stepping inside, Paul was shocked. The storage building was little better than a barn. The front of the building was open. It was covered with hay and boys were laying down covering themselves with blankets. The walls held farming instruments including dirty shovels, hoes, rakes, pitchforks, and other items. Behind where the boys were laying down were layers and layers of hay bales and animal feed and beyond that is where the cows were kept. The room smelt of filth and manure. The boys silently looked up at him with hollow eyes.
“You, come here.”, said Paul to the closest boy.
“What’s your name?”, he asked.
“Irving, sir.”, said the boy.
“When was the last time you drank water, Irving?”, asked Paul.
“I had a small amount with lunch, sir.”, said the boy.
“Go get a bucket of water.”, said Paul.
The boy quickly went away and returned with a bucket full of water and set it down in front of Paul.
Paul looked around for a glass or cup but couldn’t find anything.
“I’m sorry, Irving. I don’t have anything you can drink from but go ahead and have some water out of the bucket.”, said Paul.
The boy cupped his hands and pulled out a handful of water from the bucket before drinking it, all the while keeping his eyes fixed on Paul.
Paul looked at the other boys watching what was going on.
“Anyone else who wants water, come on over and get it.”, said Paul.
When Irving finished his drink, another boy took his place. Soon all the boys were lined up to drink from the bucket.
“Thank you sir.”, said Irving, looking down.
“Irving, can you please get another bucket of water and bring it over to the hay bale where I will be sitting.”, asked Paul.
The boy ran off to get the other bucket of water. He returned with the bucket and set it by Paul’s feet. Paul motioned for the boy to sit down beside him, which Irving did.
Paul took his towel and dipped one end of it in the water. Then he rubbed some of his soap on the wet end of the towel until bubbles began to appear. Taking the soapy towel, he slowly and gently washed the boy’s arms and face, trying to get all the dirt and grime out of every crack and cut. After Irving, he motioned for the next boy, and the next after him until all the boys had clean faces and arms and his towel was a filthy mess.
Finished with his task, Paul silently stood and, taking both now empty buckets, headed for the door to the building.
“Hey mister.”, came a voice from behind him.
Paul turned around and said, “Yes?”
“Why did you do that?”, came the voice from the crowd.
Paul wanted to say that they didn’t deserve to live this way. He wanted to tell them that he cared about them. He wanted to let them know they would be free soon. He wanted to tell them not to lose hope.
He said, “Because you are my workers now and I expect my workers to be clean and not passing out in the fields. I can’t afford to have any more of you die on me.”
Paul took his clothes and the buckets and left the building.
The boys reminded him of people in documentaries he had seen about the concentration camps during World War II. Their spirit had been broken from being starved, dehydrated, and from taking away the dead bodies of their friends. They were just children trying to go home and now these demons had their clutches in them. He didn’t hold it against them for not using the pitchforks and shovels to subdue the guards. They were kids after all, and scared kids at that, not knowing when someone might decide to slit their throat on a whim.
Paul dropped the buckets off at the well and walked over to the school. As usual, Becky was there waiting for him.
“Good evening, Mr. Paul. The buckets of water have been placed in the boys change room as requested, sir.”, she said.
“Thank you, Becky. Unfortunately, my towel has gotten dirty, I don’t suppose you have a spare one available, handy.”, said Paul.
“Yes sir. I will ensure that one is brought out right away. Is there anything else you might need.”
“Yes, a large plastic mug or something for pouring the water over myself, soap, and shampoo if you have it.”, said Paul.
“Yes, of course. I’ll have that brought up.”, said Becky as she turned and walked down the hallway.
She quickly returned with the items and lead Paul to the change room door.
“If you prefer, I can have one of the girls bathe you, sir.”, said Becky.
“That won’t be necessary. I’m fine. But could you please have Candace waiting for me with a couple of bottles of water for when I’m finished.”, said Paul as he took the items from the girl.
“Of course, sir. And we can have your dirty clothes laundered for you once you are done.”, said Becky as Paul walked through the door.
“Becky provides better service than the concierge desk of some of the better hotels”, thought Paul to himself.
Paul took a long time enjoying the peace and quiet of the change room. The warm water felt good on his grimy skin and his hair and beard were finally not greasy after the shampoo was rinsed out. The pink bar of Dove soap reminded him of days gone by. He felt better and his head was finally clear. As he put his fresh clothes on, he wondered how long it had been since the boys had been fully clean.
He left the change room and noticed that candles had been lit to illuminate the hallway. How long had he been taken getting clean? He down the hallway to where Becky was standing.
“Are you always here? When do you sleep?”, he asked.
Becky smiled, “I take cat naps during the day and get a few hours sleep during the night. Thank you for asking, Mr. Paul. Let me take those from you.”, she said, reaching for everything Paul had in his hands.
“Thank you, Becky.”, he said, “Also, how often do the boys in the storage building get fed?”
“They receive their daily meal at lunchtime, sir.”, replied Becky.
“I see.”, said Paul, frowning, “From now on, could you please make sure they each receive a second meal in the evening, and could you please have some plastic glasses or cups sent over to the storage building when they bring water in the morning?”
A look of shock flashed across Becky’s face before the smiling facade returned.
“Yes sir, Mr. Paul. I will see to it.”, she said, “Is there anything else you need, sir?”
“No, that would be it for now.”, said Paul.
“Then you will find slut Candace in room 106, sir. Please let me know if you need anything and enjoy your night.”, she said
Paul headed down the hall to where the young girl was waiting for him.
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Post by texican on Apr 29, 2018 0:54:04 GMT -6
A,
Paul is working on the morale of the young men and women....
Which is good, but not good for the oppressors....
Thanks for the chapters....
Texican....
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Post by pbbrown0 on Apr 29, 2018 14:23:33 GMT -6
Becky is still a question mark. Is it ALL an act, or have her compromises to survive, position of authority, and the extra measure of trust given to her by Trigger seduced her into some level of misguided loyalty to Trigger?
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Post by accountant on Apr 30, 2018 7:30:36 GMT -6
Just a short one to start the week. A.
Paul gets attacked by an unexpected aggressor.
Chapter 53
Paul opened the door to room 106 and stepped inside. Candace’s face erupted into a smile, as soon as he closed the door behind him. She rushed to him and hugged him hard.
“You came back”, she said, softly.
“I told you I would try.”, he replied.
The young girl took a big breath and said, “You smell so nice.”, still not letting go.
It was then that Paul noticed that she smelled stale.
He released himself from her and asked, “How often do you clean yourself?”
“We take a sponge bath every other day, except for the important parts that we clean with wet face clothes after each time with the men. Once a week, we get to shampoo our hair.”, replied Candace.
“Did you behave the same as before, today?”, asked Paul.
“Yes, I didn’t act any different then usual. Just like you asked.”, she said.
“Good. I’m glad. Now try to get some sleep.”, said Paul.
“Would you lie down beside me again, please?”, asked Candace as she laid herself down on the gym mat.
“Yes, of course.”, said Paul as he laid down beside her.
Candace tucked herself into Paul’s arms and nestled there, quietly.
As Paul was dozing off, he felt Candace’s lips on his neck and her hand reach down into his pants.
Instantly, he was wide awake and he said, “Stop that!”, as he pulled her hand away from him.
“Please, let me do this. I’ll do anything you want. I want to do this. Please.”, she said breathlessly as she continued to kiss him.
“No! Stop! I never asked for this and I wouldn’t.”, said Paul.
“Please. It’ll make me happy to make you happy. I want to make you happy.”, said the girl as straddled him and continued to kiss him.
Paul pushed her off and said firmly, “NO!”
“If you already have someone else, it’s okay with me. I don’t mind sharing you.”, said Candace as she looked at him, hungrily.
“I said NO, dammit!”, Paul, “Why are you doing this?”
The young girl burst into tears and cried, “Because I’m nothing. I’m just a whore now! That’s all I am!”
Paul felt pity for the young girl crying beside him. He pushed her hair away from her face and wiped her tears.
“No, you’re not, sweety. You’re just caught in a bad situation.”, he said gently to her.
“I can’t do anything else. I’m not strong enough to work in the fields. There’s nothing else for me.”, she cried.
“Actually there is.”, said Paul, “You told me that you were a psychology major at school before all this. People, like the girls and boys here, are going through a lot of traumatic experiences right now. They are going to need someone to talk to about it. They are going to need to sort through all their emotions and feelings. They are all going to need people like you to help them.”
“I was just in first year. I don’t know how to help them.”, said Candace.
“But you will. Psychology textbooks are still out there. You can read up and learn what you need to on your own. You don’t need a prof to tell you what you need to know. But before that, you can start by talking with the girls here and helping them.”, explained Paul.
He held her as she continued to cry.
“I’m sorry. I just don’t want to be alone.”, she said through her tears.
“I know. And you won’t be, as long as I am here.”, said Paul.
“You really don’t want me?”, asked Candace, looking up at Paul.
“Sweety, you are a gorgeous, sensitive, smart girl that any man would be thankful to call his own. You’ll find him and he’ll find you. It just won’t be me.”, said Paul as he laid her back down on the mat.
Paul laid back down beside her and held her in his arms.
“Do you really think I can help the girls?”, she asked.
“I know that everyone needs someone to talk to and express how they are feeling. I don’t see why you can’t be that person.”, said Paul.
“Thank you, Paul.”, she said, closing her eyes.
Paul held her and said, “Good night, Candace.”
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Post by texican on Apr 30, 2018 13:31:11 GMT -6
A,
Thanks for the chapter....
Texican....
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Post by accountant on Apr 30, 2018 14:50:01 GMT -6
Becky is still a question mark. Is it ALL an act, or have her compromises to survive, position of authority, and the extra measure of trust given to her by Trigger seduced her into some level of misguided loyalty to Trigger? I'm glad you noticed that, pb. Yes, Becky certainly is an enigma. It's hard to say which side of the coin she will fall on when all is said and done. Trigger and his men certainly have used aggression and fear against all the boys and girls on the farm. Has she joined the dark side, wittingly or unwittingly? Becky does play a pivotal role in the next chapter. Stay tuned. A.
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Post by accountant on May 1, 2018 9:21:51 GMT -6
Paul's possibly deadly mistake is discovered and paranoia sets in. Plans for the future are discussed.
Chapter 54
They slept like that throughout the night. When morning came, the pair followed the same routine as the previous night. Paul tussled Candace’s hair, pulled her shirt out and undid her buttons before she left the room.
Paul walked out into the hallway and headed for the door of the school. Becky was there waiting. “Good morning, Mr. Paul. I hope your night was enjoyable.”, she said.
“Good morning, Becky. Yes, thanks for asking.”, replied Paul as he turned to walk out of the school.
“Mr. Paul, sir?”, Becky called to him.
“Yes?”, said Paul, turning back to her.
“I…I found this in the pocket of the clothes you gave me last evening, sir.”, she said, handing Paul the folded picture of him and his family.
Paul froze with fear. How could he have been so stupid? How could he have let this happen? Did he put Shawna’s life at risk because of his stupid mistake? Did Becky tell anyone? Did she tell Trigger?
He quickly stuffed the picture in his pocket and asked, “Have anyone else seen this?”
“No, sir, Mr. Paul.”, came the reply from the young girl.
Paul tried to look past the impregnable façade but couldn’t tell if Becky was lying or not. Would he need to kill Becky to hide his secret? He couldn’t tell if Shawna’s life was now in jeopardy or not. He had to hope that she wasn’t.
“Becky, I would appreciate it if you forgot all about this.”, he said, sincerely.
“Forgot all about what, Mr. Paul.”, she said, appearing to comply, “The sluts will be bringing out breakfast shortly, sir.”
“Thank you, Becky.”, said Paul as he turned to leave.
Walking to the main building, Paul thought about the impact of Becky knowing his secret. He would need to deal with her soon. If she hadn’t told anyone about it, he could continue with what he was doing and hope Mark came to save them soon. At the same time, she could use that knowledge to blackmail him. If she had already told anyone, Trigger would already know and there was nothing he could do about that. He would feel the knife blade on his neck soon enough. All he could do was continue with his work as if nothing had happened.
“Hey accountant, been busy doing your counting?”, called Tiny from the main gate.
“Yep. That’s what I’ve been up to, Tiny. How are things?”, called back Paul.
“It’s all good, man. It’s all good. We’re having another poker game tonight. Stakes are one week with one of every players sluts, you in?”, asked Tiny.
“I haven’t even had one week with my own sluts yet. Maybe next time.”, replied Paul, as he walked into the building.
Paul went to the warehouse and retrieved his toiletries from pack and headed to the bathroom. It was, surprisingly, moderately still clean after the boys did their work the day before. He relieved himself and brushed his teeth, the anger simmering in his head. These filthy men were treating these girls as if they were commodities to be wagered and traded. Was this what the new world would become, a trading desk where everyone and everything was made available for a price? Paul shuddered at the thought.
He put away his toiletries and walked back to the reception desk. Breakfast had arrived. Being too stressed from the interaction with Becky earlier to eat, Paul grabbed a cup of black coffee with a couple of chocolate chip cookies and took the stairs to the second floor to continue his work. Every step filled him with more and more dread. Did Trigger know? Was he waiting for him? Was this the end? Paul felt like he was walking to the gallows.
When he got to the top of the stairs, he saw that Rico and Dillon were in Trigger’s office having a discussion with him. Were they talking about him? Were they getting ready to take him out? Should he run? No. If he ran, then they would take their rage out on Shawna. He would have to stay and take his punishment, if it came. Hopefully, Shawna would be able to survive until Mark showed up.
Paul sat down at the desk and got to work on his inventory listings.
Fifteen minutes later, Rico and Dillon walked down the hall towards Paul.
“Morning hustler, how’s tricks?”, said Dillon.
“Morning guys. What’s going on?”, asked Paul.
“Not much. A few of us are going out to visit with a group a little further east to talk about setting up some trade. Things are starting to happen.”, said Dillon, smiling.
“We’re moving on up!”, said Rico.
“When are you guys headed out?”, asked Paul.
“In a couple of hours.”, said Dillon.
“Great, I’ll talk to Trigger about some things that we need since you’re heading out.”, said Paul.
“Jeez accountant, we’re not Amazon, for f***’s sake.”, said Dillon, jokingly.
The two men laughed and walked down the stairs.
Paul continued with his work making up the listings.
A little later Trigger came out of his office and made his way to Paul’s desk.
“Morning Paul. How’s the inventory coming along?”, he asked.
“Not bad”, said Paul, “I’ve made a pretty good listing”. Paul handed Trigger his pad to review.
The larger man skimmed through the pages quickly.
“Do you see anything that we need urgently?”, he asked.
“We definitely need basic medicine. WE don’t have anything in case the flu hits, not to mention stomach remedies. We don’t even have Polysporin if anyone gets a cut. The cut could lead to a bad infection that could end up killing a guy now. And toilet paper. We always need toilet paper.”, he said.
“Yeah, a couple of the guys got a bad case of the shits last week. We definitely need that.”, said Trigger.
“Also, based on the headcount, I figure we only have about three more months of food so we’ll need to find more.”, said Paul.
“If things go like we plan, we should be able to trade for food soon.”, responded Trigger.
“And that’s great, but this is the way I look at it. If we find enough food now for ourselves, we won’t need to trade for it or we can charge a higher price for our product.”, said Paul.
Trigger smiled. “I knew I liked the way you think.”, he said, “Okay, I’ll get the boys to stop off at any drug store or grocery store they find along the way back. Okay, what else?”
“Propane for cooking and either chainsaws that still work or axes. I want to be able to have cut wood available and let it dry over the summer so that we can heat these places over the winter.”
“What about supplies for production?”, he asked.
“I figure we can see what the neighboring farms have that we can use.”, said Paul.
“Good thinking. Everything’s coming together. We should have our first sales in a few days if things work out today.”, said Trigger.
“Oh and one more thing. I think should find as much tobacco and rolling paper as we can. Instead of just selling loose weed, we should put together bags of pre-rolled joints too. They would have higher profit margin with minimal additional costs.”, said Paul.
“Look at you! Mr. businessman! Talking about profit margins and shit! I am impressed!”, said Trigger beaming. “Come on, let’s get some fresh air.”
Paul stood and walked with Trigger down the stairs and out to the fields.
Paul’s mind race. Was this it? Did the evil demon find out? Was his blood going to end up on the field and his body tossed into the pit? He walked along beside the man with the big knife.
“Smell that. That’s the aroma of a kingdom, my friend. It’s starting. I can feel the change in the air. I want my army. Tell me what we need and what we can do.”, said Trigger, as he fingered the blade of his knife.
“He doesn’t know!”, thought Paul, “Becky didn’t tell him! Shawna is still safe.”
“Well, if we are going to have an army, we are going to need a place to house them, we are going to need a better kitchen, more food, clothing, medical supplies, weapons, and ammunition. There’s a lot to do to fix this place up for an army. I think we need to expand our manpower to get all that stuff build and ready.”, explained Paul.
“Hmmm. You’re right. I guess we’ll need to go hunting again soon.”, said Trigger.
“More slaves”, thought Paul, “Why did I put that idea into his head?”
“In the meantime, maybe we can put up big tents in the fields to house the new people until we get secure buildings put up. It’ll be a start.”, said Paul.
“Okay, we can get the guys to scout for that stuff too while they’re out.”, said Trigger as he walked back toward the main building.
“Hey, do those boys look cleaner to you today? I can actually see faces.”, he asked.
“They should. I told them last night to keep as clean as possible.”, said Paul.
“Why the hell'd you do that?”, asked Trigger, frowning.
“Being clean leads to being healthy. Being healthy leads to being more productive. They’ll be able to get more done if they’re clean.”, explained Paul.
Trigger continued to frown. “I see your point. I guess it’s okay. Anyways, I’m thinking of trading some of the girls out for fresh meat. Do you want to make any changes? I might be able to swap out your girls for some blondes. I heard that’s what you like.”
“I haven’t been here long enough to enjoy my girls properly yet. Come on, give me some more time with them.”, said Paul.
“Okay buddy, but don’t wait too long. The more used up they get, the less they’ll be worth. By the way, you might want to rest up after lunch, you’re on night patrol tonight.”, said Trigger.
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Post by 2medicinewoman on May 1, 2018 21:28:45 GMT -6
Rather nerve racking having Paul acting as a bad guy but, is a good guy. Now, he has involved 2 young women who are bound to be emotionally wrecked. Like walking on a tight rope. Great story with the elements to keep me enthralled. Thanks for sharing your gift with us.
2med
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Post by accountant on May 3, 2018 7:09:38 GMT -6
A walk during the night and an attack on the compound.
Chapter 55
The rest of the morning, Paul wandered around the farm, watching the boys work in the fields and in the greenhouse. They did look cleaner, but still had the look of fear on their faces. He didn’t go into the school. He didn’t want to risk seeing Shawna or Candace again so soon. And he didn’t know what to expect from Becky.
At lunch, he was able to eat what was brought out. It looked like hamburger helper without the meat.
When he finished, he saw Rico driving an old pickup truck to the front of the building, Paul went out and saw Trigger speaking with Dillon. Trigger told Dillon about his conversation with Paul and three boys were hurriedly brought from the fields. They were put into the bed of the truck with their hands tied together and tied to the truck. Dillon got into the passenger side of the old vehicle. Tiny opened the gate and Rico drove off towards the east.
Once the gate was closed, Trigger chatted with the men at the gate. Paul left them and went into the warehouse. He decided that if he was going to be up all night, he might as well try to get some sleep.
Paul lay there on his cot, thinking. What if Mark didn’t come? What if he didn’t bring enough men? What if they were all slaughtered? Would he be able to live with have more blood on his hands? Would he be stuck in this life forever or until Trigger decided that he wasn’t needed any longer? Would he have to deal with new slaves? Would he be the reason those new people would be in bondage? Could he stand to see some of the girls being shipped off to somewhere else to be ravished? Would he be able to deal with knowing that new girls would be tormented and degraded by these fiends? No, he decided. He wouldn’t and couldn’t let that happen. He would kill as many of these wicked men as possible before they put him down. He was and always would remain on the right side of the balance sheet.
“Hey, get up”, Paul heard someone say as his cot was being kicked.
“Come on, accountant. Are you going to sleep all day and night. Let’s go.”
Paul opened his eyes. It was Jas.
‘Oh hey Jas. What’s up?”, he asked.
“I figured you’d want supper before we start our shift tonight.”, said Jas, “Come on, let’s go.” Paul got up and followed Jas to the reception area. The meal consisted of canned pulled pork and tortilla chips. Paul grabbed a plate and sat down next to Jas to eat.
“Did Dillon and Rico get back with the stuff we need?”, asked Paul.
“No, not yet. They’re probably having a good time somewhere. I’m sure they’ll be back tomorrow.”, replied Jas.
“I hope so. We really need those thing.”, said Paul.
“After we finish, we can go up and get your guns for tonight”, said Jas, ignoring Paul’s comment, as he took a bite.
“I don’t like gun. I don’t need one.”, said Paul.
“Everybody on patrol has to carry. Trigger’s orders.”, replied the man sitting next to him.
When they finished eating, Jas took Paul up to one of the offices. Jas opened the door and Paul saw that room lined with Colt C8s. On a desk at the far end of the room, there were holsters with Glocks, and packs of ammunition.
“Wow, that’s a lot of guns.”, said Paul.
“Yeah, when we broke out of the jail, we decided to help ourselves.”, said Jas, smiling, “Grab a Glock and a holster and I’ll show you how to use it.”
Jas explained the mechanics of the weapon and how to load the magazine. Paul pretended that it was the first time he heard it. He held the weapon as far from him as he could while practicing loading it. Jas let out a hearty laugh.
“Man, you don’t need to be so scared. It won’t do anything to you as long as you don’t pull the trigger.”, said Jas with a chuckle.
“Okay, now put that into your holster and grab a rifle.”, he continued.
Paul put the gun in the holster on his belt and grabbed the nearest gun.
Jas also went through the mechanics of the rifle, which Paul appeared to be more comfortable with.
“Okay, we’re done here. Time to roll.”, said Jas as he walked towards the door.
The two men walked downstairs to the reception area where the poker game was just getting started. There were six men playing. Tiny was one of them.
“Jeez Tiny, why’re you looking to lose again?”, asked Paul, jokingly. The rest of the men laughed.
“Screw you, accountant.”, said Tiny with a chuckle.
Paul walked outside with Jas. There were five men at the gate who waved at the pair as they passed.
Paul could see another pair of men walking together out towards the field.
“So what, we just walk around all night?”, asked Paul.
“Pretty much. We walk the property line and along the fence and make sure nobody’s around. We also check that the school and storage building are secure. We want to make sure everybody is safe. Weasel and Skip will be doing the same thing.”, Jas said, motioning towards the other pair of men.
“Ever have any trouble?”, asked Paul as they walked.
“We found a guy trying to sneak around, once. He said he was related to the people that lived on one of the other farms. We took care of him. He’s in the pit now.”, replied Jas as he lit a cigarette.
They walked slowly by the fence line as Jas smoked. It was a peaceful night and the two men walked in silence for a while. When they reached the pit, Jas flicked his butt in. Paul thought he heard something scurrying around just over the edge.
As they walked, they began to talk. Jas was originally from up north near Kapuskasing. He had had a pretty rough childhood. There was hardly any work in the area and his parents had lived on welfare. Jas had decide he didn’t want to live like that so he joined one of the local gangs when he was younger. The gangs would make trips down to London and the area to steal cars and break into houses. One time he was caught, by a member of the gang Trigger was in, breaking into a house that they controlled. Jas was given a choice, leave the area and never come back, or join the new gang. Jas had been with Trigger’s group ever since.
“How did Trigger get to be the boss”, asked Paul.
“Simple. He worked his way up through the ranks until he was second in command. Then he killed the old leader and took the knife. Anyone who holds the knife is the leader.”, explained Jas. The two men continued their walk through the night. When the sun came up, they were near the back of the property and Jas told Paul that the night walk was over. Paul could see another man unlocking the door to the storage building so that the boys could start their day. Out of nowhere, Paul heard the sounds of a barrage of gunfire at the front of the property.
“Shit! We’re being attacked!”, yelled Jas, “Get to the gate!”
Someone was firing at the gate.
“Was it Mark? How could he get here so quickly?”, thought Paul.
As Jas ran towards the gate, Paul could see several of the men had been hit and were down. Others were coming out of the warehouse with their weapons drawn and they were firing towards the strand of trees 200 years in front of the gate.
Paul ran towards the storage building and quickly went inside. The boys were standing there in a state of shock. Taking his rifle off his shoulder, Paul thrust it at the nearest boy.
“Everybody, get back behind the hay bales! Shoot any man who comes through that door that you recognize but don’t shoot anyone you don’t. The good guys are here.”, he said as he quickly left the room.
Paul sprinted across the property towards the school with the Glock in his hand. There were bullets flying everywhere. The defenders were falling and not being able to fire against the relentless assault of the attackers.
Paul made it to the school and ducked inside. Becky was not at her usual position. Paul ran towards the gym and opened that door. Inside, the girls were all huddled together in the middle of the room. Paul looked at the faces of the girls but couldn’t find Shawna.
“Shawna! Where’s Shawna?”, he yelled.
None of the girls responded. He saw Becky in the crowd and yelled, “Becky, where’s Shawna?”
“She..she’s in room 108.”, replied Becky, hesitantly.
Paul left the gym, ran down the hall to room 108, and yanked the door open.
Trigger was standing there, holding his knife to Shawna’s throat.
“She has your eyes, accountant.”, said Trigger, calmly.
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Post by solo on May 3, 2018 7:28:21 GMT -6
Oh Crap! Up until the last couple of sentences I was of a mind that all Paul had to do was kill Trigger and take the knife because who ever held the knife, the others would follow... There is a code of honor in gangs... I guess. But now that knife is in a bad spot.
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Post by arkansascob on May 3, 2018 10:01:46 GMT -6
Well we know where BECKY stands. Paul has the Glock but that damn knife is in a bad spot. Guess it's time to prop the ole feet up and relax while waiting on some moar.
COB
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Post by 2t2crash on May 3, 2018 22:16:20 GMT -6
and now Paul wishes he knew how to truly handle that glock.
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Post by accountant on May 4, 2018 11:36:25 GMT -6
I just couldn't hold this in any longer. I hope you enjoy it. A.
The End of Trigger and the Aftermath Part 1.
Chapter 56
Paul lifted the gun and pointed it at the big man.
“Let her go.”, he said.
“You’re smart, accountant. I’ll give you that. Something was bugging me in the back of my brain about you when you first got here but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Then I saw the picture and it all fell into place. You came looking for her. You could have just told me. Maybe we could have worked something out. Maybe I would have given her to you. Now it’s come to this. This is all on you.”, said Trigger, coldly.
“Let her go and we can talk about this.”, said Paul, almost pleading.
“Talk about this? Talk? You took everything from me, asshole! My people are dead! my stash is gone! My kingdom? You remember that kingdom you promised me, don’t you?”, shouted Trigger.
“Just let her go and I can get you out.”, pleaded Paul.
“You’re going to get me out? I don’t believe a word that comes out of your lying mouth! No, this young lady is going to be my ticket out of here, so if you don’t want anything to happen to her, you better put down that piece. ”, said Trigger, smiling.
“Let her go!”, yelled Paul.
“Put down the gun!”, yelled back Trigger.
“Let her go, NOW!”, screamed Paul.
“Put down the gun!”, yelled Trigger, “Besides, we both know you’re not going to use it. You hate guns, remember.”
Paul took aim and fired. The bullet went into Trigger’s upper right arm that was holding the knife. As the projectile tore through muscle and bone, Trigger’s arm pulled away from Shawna and the knife went flying.
Being released from the man’s grip, Shawna ran and stood behind her father.
“I said I didn’t like guns. I never said that I don’t know how to use one.”, said Paul, coldly.
He fired the weapon again, this time shattering the large man’s left knee. Another shot took out the man’s right knee. As Paul watched him fall, he fired one more shot to the man’s left forearm, destroying the big man’s radial bone.
Trigger fell to the floor, crippled. He lay there, helpless and defeated, looking up at Paul. Paul pointed the gun at Trigger’s head.
“Do it”, said Trigger, softly, “You know you want to. Deep down, you wanted to take over anyway. You know you do. People like you and me, we’re wolves in the land of sheep. Take my place. What’s the saying? The king is dead, all hail the new king? Kill me. Be the new king. What are you waiting for? Just kill me.”
Paul stood over the fallen man and almost fired. Every fiber of his being screamed out to him to end the existence of this worthless, rabid animal. A chorus of vengeful spirits assaulted his brain to do it and give them justice. Visions of the bodies in the pit and the unnamed boy killed in the fields flashed before Paul’s eyes. They screamed that the man at his feet was an evil demon who’s life was forfeit to them and that they would not rest until his soul was delivered.
Kill him! Kill him! Kill him! Justice! Justice! Justice! Kill him! Justice! Kill him! Justice! KILL HIM!!! JUSTICE!!!
The litany echoed and reverberated in his skull. He tried again to fire the deadly round but found that he couldn’t. In that moment, he felt the soft touch of his daughter holding onto him. He couldn’t deliver the death blow to this fiend in front of her.
He left the man lying on the ground, holstered the weapon, and picked up the knife that was nearby.
“You’re gonna cut me? No, that’s not your style, accountant. You’re too much of a pussy for that. Shoot me! Shoot me! You owe me that much!”, said Trigger.
“I don’t owe you crap, but other people do.”, said Paul, as wrapped his arm around his daughter and silently left the room.
As he walked towards the gym, he heard Trigger screaming, almost begging to be put out of his misery.
Paul and Shawna entered the gym. Paul dropped the knife to the floor and looked at the faces of the young girls. Every one of them was terrified and in a state of shock.
“It’s over.”, said Paul softly, “He’s in room 108. Do what you want to him.”
The girls all started to cry almost in unison. Finally, one slowly stood on wobbly legs, walked to the knife, and picked it up. She silently walked into the hallway followed closely by a large group of other girls.
In that moment of silence, Paul noticed that the gunfire had stopped. It was truly over. The only thing he could hear was the sound of someone in the distance screaming his name over and over again and a dog barking.
He led Shawna out of the gym and into the hallway. As they were leaving the building, he heard a man’s screams of pain and torture mixed in with the screams of revenge and retribution from many young girls.
Once outside, Paul saw a small bundle of fur barking and racing towards him. When the dog reached him, it jumped up at him again and again, whimpering. Paul petted Rex behind the ears and smiled.
“Who’s this?”, asked Shawna with a big smile on her face as she pet Rex.
“I finally got you that dog you always wanted. This is Rex.”, said Paul.
“Paul! Paul!”, screamed Carol from the main gate, running towards him. She ran into Paul’s arms and started crying and kissing him.
“Mrs. MacNeil?”, said Shawna, stunned.
Carol left Paul and instantly hugged and kissed Shawna all over her face and head.
“Oh Shawna, I’m so happy you’re safe.”, she said, her face still wet with tears, “We came so far to find you.”
“You came with my dad?”, asked the young girl, still not understanding what had happened.
“It’s a long story, sweetheart, but we have lots of time to tell you.”, said Carol as she hugged the girl.
Paul finally had a chance to look up and see the activity around the farm. There were so many people, men, women, and boys, milling around, going into and coming out of the buildings. Most of them carried long guns, but a few had compound bows and one had a crossbow. He saw the boys from the storage building sitting outside by the fence. Some were crying and being consoled by the new people. There was Sam and Pam giving water to the boys. Gerald and his grandson Phillip were there too. He saw Mark and Bobby walking through the fields with a group of men checking the fence line. Mike Winters and Grant Olster were at the gate, helping to move the dead bodies out of the way. There had to be close to sixty new people there, most whom Paul didn’t know.
“How? Where did all these people come from?”, asked Paul.
“Come on, you can ask them yourself.”, said Carol, wrapping her arm around Paul’s waist.
“Okay, but first there are a lot of girls who have been held like slaves and raped repeatedly in that school. We need to find people to talk them. They’ve been through a lot.”, said Paul as they walked to the main building.
“And we will. There are a lot of good people here, Paul. They can help.”, replied Carol.
Mike and Grant saw Paul coming over and started walking towards them.
“Paul, it’s good to see you, boy.”, said Grant, chuckling.
“It’s very nice to see you too.”, said Paul, “Who are all these people?”
Grant let out a hearty laugh, “Shoot boy, you don’t recognize the brethren when you see them? When Carol came and told us what was happening, I sent out the call that a brother needed help and they all came.”
“And like you were told before”, said Mike, “You’re family now and we look out for our own, son.”
Paul suddenly felt all the energy drain out of him and he held onto the gate for support. The tears started to fall from his eyes and he was careful lowered to a sitting position. He couldn’t believe it. All these people? All of them came for him? Paul felt humbled and grateful as he sat there. All these people risked their lives to try to save him?
Paul felt a hand on his back and another was holding a bottle of water for him.
Paul looked up at the face of his friend and neighbor, Sam. He saw that Pam was hugging and holding Shawna and Carol.
“You did it, buddy.”, said Sam, “You found our girl.”
Paul just sat there trying to take it all in. Carol and Shawna sat with him as they watched the activity happening on the farm.
All the girls had come out of the school. Some wore clothes with fresh bloodstains. Paul hoped that doing what they did gave them some relief. They were all huddled together and people were talking with them. They were all together, except for one, who was sitting by herself.
Paul wanted to talk to her. He could tell that she was hurting and alone now. He wanted to go to her and tell her that it would be okay, that she would be okay, but he couldn’t. At that instance, all he could do was sit there, with his back against the fencepost, and his family by his side.
Gerald and Phillip came and kneeled down beside the family.
“Are you okay, Paul?”, asked Gerald, looking into the younger man’s eyes.
“I honestly don’t know.”, said Paul, “Is everyone else okay?”
“Yes, somehow that strand of trees protected all of us. Everyone is fine, thank the Lord. You don’t need to worry.”, said Gerald.
“Gerald, I need your help. There is a girl sitting over there by herself. She had a much different experience than the other girls. I’m sure she is feeling a tremendous amount of guilt right now. I was hoping you could talk to her, like you did with me. Could you please speak with her? Her name is Becky.”, asked Paul.
“Sure, I’ll go over there and do just that.”, said Gerald, with a comforting smile, stepping away from Paul.
“Why, Daddy? After what she was letting those men do to us, why?”, asked Shawna.
“Sweety, did she hit anyone or be mean to anyone?”, asked Paul.
“No, but she didn’t stop those men. She actually made it easy for them.”, said Shawna.
“Do you think she could have stopped the men from doing what they did? No, I don’t think so. I think she was just trying to survive and trying to keep those men from being too upset and hurting you girls even more. She was doing her best to survive and protect you girls, in her own way, and most people wouldn’t understand that.”, said Paul, “And now we need everyone to heal, including Becky.”
“I love you, Daddy.”, said Shawna as she hugged him.
The next few hours were a blur for Paul. He just sat there in a state of shock, sometimes holding Shawna, and other times holding Carol. His mind refused to work and he just sat blankly looking with his eyes, but not comprehending. His face was lined with the tears that continued to flow unabated. Paul couldn’t understand why he was crying or why the tears wouldn’t stop. Someone brought him a plate of something at lunch and he ate it, not even sure what it was. People were coming over and talking to him but he couldn’t understand the conversation. Was it finally over, really? Were all the kids really safe?
Rex crawled into his lap, whimpered, and licked his face. Paul tried to push the dog away, but Rex refused to move. He wanted to be petted and now. That dog and his insistent licking brought Paul back to reality.
“You damn dog.”, said Paul to the little beagle mix as he rubbed the dog behind the ears.
Rex let out a bark and wagged his tail, happy to see his friend come back to life.
“Hey. Welcome back.”, said Carol.
“Sorry, I guess everything just hit me all at once. Where’s Shawna?”, asked Paul.
“She’s gone to help with the girls.”, said Carol, intertwining her hands with Paul’s.
“She’ll want to know about us.”, said Paul.
“Yes, she will. But I think she’ll be okay with it. After all you’ve been through, she’ll want you to be happy.”, said Carol.
“I think so too.”, said Paul.
“How did you get back so fast and get all these people together?”, asked Paul after pushing Rex away.
“We took Phillip’s buckboards to get to Grant’s place. We told him about what was happening. As soon as it got light out, he left to get some of the other masons together. Phillip stayed there and waited. Stanley and I took the bikes and went to Sam and Pam’s place. We told them what was going on and rested there for a few hours while Mark got everyone together. A bunch of the people came on horseback and a couple of old trucks with us back to Grant’s place. There we found at least a dozen other men, women, and boys waiting for us. We rested there overnight and in the morning there were another dozen or so ready to go. We came to Gerald’s place and saw that there were ten more ready to help. We were all coming this way when the scouts we had sent ahead saw the old pickup truck pulling into a drug store with three boys in the back. Stanley told Mark that the truck was from here and that the boys in the back were from Western. Mark and a bunch of guys went and took out the two men and freed the boys. By the time we got close to here, the sun was starting to go down and Mark remembered what you said about attacking in the morning so we made camp about a mile away and waited. And here we are.”, said Carol.
“You must be exhausted.”, said Paul after the explanation.
“I’m okay. I wouldn’t say no to a bed though.”, said Carol with a smile.
“All they have are cots and gym mats here so you’re going to have to wait. Unless we find some garbage bags, paper clips, and leaves.”, said Paul smiling.
“I’ve waited this long. I can wait a little longer.”, said Carol, nuzzling Paul’s neck and kissing him.
Taking a breath, she asked, grinning, “Why do you smell like soap and shampoo?”
Paul just laughed.
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Post by arkansascob on May 4, 2018 12:01:00 GMT -6
Awesome chapter. It's the one i've been waiting for but i hope the story isn't over. Sure hope the girls heal. Revenge can be sweet but taking a life can make things worse. I dont care what Paul thinks about Beckys actions I think she was all about saving and helping her ass and didnt give a damn about the other girls. Go ahead A--prove me wrong. Oh and if you write another chapter that make my monitor go blurry i might have to stop reading your story. COB
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Post by accountant on May 4, 2018 13:11:29 GMT -6
COB,
No, the story isn't over quite yet. There's still a couple of chapters left to go.
As for the girls killing Trigger, I felt that it was needed. With the damage that had been done, they needed that sense of taking back their dignity from one the men who had robbed them of that. In the days of the electric chair, there were always three people who pulled the switch so that one person wouldn't be burdened with the knowledge that they had killed someone. That's the sense I wanted to get across when a group of girls went to take care of Trigger. Each of them could satisfy their need for revenge without the guilt of knowing which one had delivered the killing blow. Will they all heal? You'll have to keep reading to find out.
Honestly, I don't know if Becky did what she did just to save herself. Maybe she did. Paul wants to believe that wasn't the case. The survival instinct can take many different shapes and causes people to do things they may not ordinarily do. You have to remember that a couple of months earlier, Becky was just one of the kids trying to get home when she got caught up in this mess. It doesn't take a lot to slip over to the dark side (Happy Star Wars Day, everyone!!!!). Even our hero was tempted by the lure of taking over the gang.
BTW, for those who have lived it or know someone who has, when Paul was sitting, crying, and couldn't get his brain to work, I hope I have conveyed the feeling of the thousand mile stare adequately.
The funny thing is, when I first wrote Rex into the story, I had no idea that he would end up helping Paul in that way.
Like I said, we still have a few chapters left in the story of Paul's journey.
Thanks for reading. A.
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Post by 9idrr on May 4, 2018 16:36:08 GMT -6
Thank you.
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Post by sniper69 on May 5, 2018 23:17:51 GMT -6
Most excellent!!! Looking forward to the next chapter.
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Post by accountant on May 7, 2018 8:46:27 GMT -6
Aftermath Part II
Chapter 57
Later that afternoon, Paul was sitting alone with Rex when he saw Mark and Bobby approaching. He stood up and shook both their hands before being brought into a big bear hug by Bobby.
“You’re one crazy SOB, you know that?”, said Bobby.
“What he means to say is that you must have balls harder than diamonds for doing what you did.”, said Mark.
“I didn’t do anything. It was you guys that took these bastards out.”, said Paul, “What was your plan, anyways.”
“With this many people on our side, we didn’t need much of a plan. We just told the folks to shoot any man with a gun.”, said Mark.
“Why didn’t they try to shoot me? I had a gun.”, asked Paul.
“We told them to shoot everyone except the brown guy.”, said Bobby, laughing.
“I’m just glad you guys came when you did. The leader was a psycho.”, said Paul.
“Yeah, we saw the pit.”, said Mark, grimly, “We are going to have to take some time to give those folks a proper burial before we head back home.”
“And we can throw the bodies of the assholes in the pit, once we get everybody out.”, said Bobby.
“I just want to thank you guys again for coming.”, said Paul, “It really means a lot to me.”
“It’s what family does, brother.”, said Mark.
“If you boys are done yapping, there are some people I want Paul to meet.”, said Grant, coming up behind Mark.
Grant took Paul to a secluded spot behind the greenhouse where fifteen other men were waiting. When they saw Grant and Paul approaching, they all lined up. As Grant introduced each man, the man cut the sign of a master mason and shook hands with Paul. Paul thanked each of them for coming out and supporting him and helping the kids.
After meeting with them, Paul remembered something and excused himself from the crowd of men. He went into the main building and up the stairs to the second floor. There he found what he was looking for, the picture of the young girl and the horse. Taking the picture, he headed back to the brethren and asked each of them if they recognized her. None of them did.
Paul went to the front of the building, asking people if they knew the girl in the picture. Finally, he asked Mike.
Mike saw the look of worry in Paul’s eyes, took the picture from him, and said “That’s Jim Jessup’s granddaughter. She and her mother are safe. You don’t need to worry, son.”
Paul breathed a sigh of relief.
“You’ve been through a lot, Paul. You can rest now. Let others carry the load for a while. We’re all here for you and these kids.”, said Mike as he put his hand on Paul’s shoulder.
“Yeah. It’ll just take a while to get used to.”, replied Paul, “They’ve all been through so much.”
“Yes they have, but we’ll try to help them as much as we can.”, said Mike.
Paul thanked him and walked through the farm. He saw that some people had start to dig graves for the people in the pit. He saw some of the boys talking with some of the girls and people generally helping each other. Shawna was sitting and talking with one of the girls and Rex was getting hugged by a crying boy. Candace was talking to a group of girls. He saw Gerald and Becky sitting together and it looked like they were praying. She had been crying.
“So many kids?”, thought Paul, ‘What will happen to them? Where would they go?”
Candace saw him, waved, and smiled. Paul waved back.
“Someone I should be worried about?”, asked Carol, as she hugged him from behind.
“Just a girl I was trying to help.”, said Paul, putting his arm around her.
Candace came up to them at that point and introduced herself to Carol.
“I just wanted to thank you, Paul, for everything.”, she said.
“I’m glad I could help. How’s it going talking with the other girls?”, he asked.
“I think it’s going okay. We’ve all been through a lot, but at least we can all talk about it together and share our feelings. It helps to have someone to talk to.”, said Candace.
“Hmm, I wonder where I heard that before.”, said Paul, smiling.
Candace laughed and gave Paul a hug.
“Thanks again, Paul. And Carol, you’re one very lucky lady.”, she said before heading back to be with the group of girls.
Carol gave Paul a curious look.
“What? I didn’t do anything.”, said Paul, trying to look innocent.
“You’re an idiot.”, said Carol, squeezing him tighter.
Later, Phillip came by and told Paul that a bunch of the people who lived close would be leaving for the night, but would be back in the morning to help out. They would take some of the girls and boys with them so that they could have beds and couches to sleep on and clean themselves up fully. The folks at the gate waved as Phillip’s buckboards and the old truck left loaded with people, with the truck leading the way.
As night came, everyone moved into the gym of the school. All the gym mats and cots had been moved there so everyone could sleep under the same roof.
Dinner was prepared and everyone held hands while one of the older men said grace.
After eating, Carol, Paul, and Shawna took a walk around the farm while Rex did his business. Paul and Carol told Shawna about Paul trying to find Ana and finding Angie. They told her about what had happened in Brampton and how they had made their way across to Sam’s parent’s farm, including finding Rex. They didn’t mention the suicide attempts or the Crewson’s Corners incident. They told her why Carol felt it necessary to find her and they told her about getting closer along the way.
Shawna took it all in and thought deeply, let it all sink in.
After a while, she took Carol’s hand and said, “Thank you for looking out for my Dad. I know that this is what Mom and Angie would have wanted. I’m sure they wouldn’t have wanted Dad to be alone. He needs someone and I’m glad that someone is you.”
As they were walking, Mark and Bobby came up to them and Mark asked, “Hey Paul, can I talk to you for a minute?”
Carol and Shawna started walking back towards the school to let Paul and Mark talk.
When they girls were out of earshot, Mark said, “This may not be the right time to talk about it, but there is a crapload of weed here. What do you want to do with it?”
Paul thought for a moment. It was all so tempting. He could just take it all. It would make him and his family rich when the economy started up again. It should be his anyways. After all, he helped save all these kids and he had been through so much. He had to think about Carol. How would he give her everything he wanted to give her and everything that she deserved? And he had to think of Shawna’s future. He had to leave her something after he was gone. It would be so easy. No one would care if he took it. Hell, Mark was practically begging him to take it home. And since he had Mark’s support, who was really going to stop him?
Paul visibly shook his head. No, it wasn’t right. There was blood on that weed, innocent blood. What kind of example would he be to Shawna and the rest of the kids?
“We should bury it in the pit. Those men were willing to die for it, let them have it.”, he finally said, “but keep some and some seeds to be distributed to the families. It is a natural painkiller and we’ll need that going forward.”
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Post by solo on May 7, 2018 9:54:26 GMT -6
Natural painkiller..... nice!
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Post by 9idrr on May 7, 2018 20:46:33 GMT -6
Thanks. So, this bein' Chapter 57, that means that you've only got about another 50 to go, right?
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Post by accountant on May 8, 2018 8:39:02 GMT -6
Aftermath III and Epilogue
Chapter 58
After his discussion with Mark and Bobby, Paul headed back towards the school. He saw Becky and Gerald standing by the fence. Gerald waved Paul over.
“Paul, Becky and I had a very good conversation and I think it might be a good idea for you and her to have a chat as well.”, said Gerald when Paul came over.
Becky couldn’t meet Paul’s eyes.
“It’s okay Becky.”, said Paul, “I understand.”
Gerald left the two of them and walked back into the school.
“I…I didn’t know what to do.”, said Becky, still looking down.
“I know. And like I said, it’s okay.”, said Paul.
“Is it? I showed Trigger your picture. I shouldn’t have. I was scared. I didn’t know what he would do to the girls if he found out some other way. I’m sorry. I’m just so sorry.”, she said, quietly.
“I know. We all get scared sometimes. We all do things that we think might be wrong, sometimes. I did some things that I wasn’t proud of because I was scared too. Gerald helped me get over my guilt and I can see that he has been trying to help you as well. You did what you did and it’s over now.”, said Paul, putting his arm around the young girl.
“Everybody hates me. I can see it.”, said Becky.
“Not everybody hates you. I don’t hate you. Gerald doesn’t hate you. We understand what you went through. We understand how hard it must have been for you. Hopefully, some of the other kids will see that too, over time. Not all will forgive you right away, but you need to forgive yourself first, then let God take care of the rest. What happened here is too much of a burden for you to carry on your own. Give it to Him.”, said Paul, hugging Becky as she began to cry. Becky stood there and cried as Paul held her.
“What do you want to do, after this?”, asked Paul, after a while.
“I don’t know. My parents were in Toronto when it happened. I don’t know if they are still alive or not.”, said Becky.
“Would you like to come live with Shawna and me?”, asked Paul.
“Gerald offered to let me stay with him on his farm. He’s a nice man. I think I will stay there until I figure something out.”, said Becky.
“I think that is a great idea.”, said Paul, kissing Becky on her head, “I think being around Gerald would do wonders for you. Now, it’s getting late and I think we should try to get some rest. It’s been quite a day.”
“I can’t go in there. I can’t. After what happened to the girls, I just can’t.”, said Becky, the fear flashing in her eyes.
“Don’t worry about the girls. I’ll be right there with you.”, said Paul as he guided her towards the school.
Together, they entered the building. When they walked into the gym, a hush fell over the crowd and indeed some of the girls had daggers in their eyes, looking at Becky.
Sensing the uncomfortableness in the room, Paul took that moment to say, “Everyone, I know you have all been through a lot. I know all the pain that those men caused you. None of you wanted that and none of you deserved that. You are all young and you were all scared, including this young girl here. But all that is over now. It’s time for the healing to begin. It’s time to let go of what happened here. It’s time to forgive each other and ourselves.”
The room was silent and for the longest time, no one moved. Then Shawna stood up from where she was sitting, came to Becky and hugged her. Becky began to cry honest tears. Seeing this, Candace stood, went to Becky, and hugged her as well. Soon, others were joining in the circle around Becky, both boys and girls.
Paul took that opportunity to slip away and sit down beside Carol. She put her arm in his, put her head on his shoulder and whispered, “You did a good thing, Paul, and you’re a good man. You never cease to amaze me with your compassion. I love you.”
Paul smiled.
Perhaps he really was a good man after all.
The End
Epilogue
Over the next few days, the bodies in the pit were given proper burials. A memorial service was held, led by Gerald, with everyone in attendance. The bodies of the men were thrown into the pit, as was the majority of the marijuana. It was all quickly covered over with dirt.
Some of the boys and girls decided that they would stay on at one of the adjoining farms and work the land with support from some of the nearby farmers.
Less than a week later, a large caravan left the property loaded with as much food, propane, and other useful items as the buckboards, old trucks, and other wagons could hold. Some of the occupants of the property, including Becky stopped in the area of Gerald and Phillip’s farm. There were tearful farewells as the slightly smaller group made its way east towards the Olster homestead. Milly was flustered to see so many people coming and she ran Jesse ragged getting everything set up for the visitors. Most of the kids stayed in this area as well, including Tammy, Candace, Irving, and Daniel.
A few days later, the remainder made their way through the gates of the Dixon farm, where Albert and Wendy were anxiously waiting.
Bobby and Cheryl had their baby a few months later. It was a healthy baby girl whom they named Hope.
Within the next five years, there were so many changes to the group of kids who had been held captive. Phillip and Becky had become close and Gerald presided at their wedding. Jesse had taken Irving as her husband also. Milly had bawled her eyes out at the wedding and loved Irving as much as she loved Jesse. Other kids had also either fallen for each other or other people within the farming communities. In all, there had been twenty three wedding and eighteen babies born within that period. Twelve of the babies were either named Paul or Paula, either as a first name or a middle name.
Candace had become the region’s mental health expert and travelled around trying to keep everyone emotionally healthy. Chad did the same and became the local physician for both animals and humans.
A couple who had been in Teachers College at Western took it upon themselves to help the children of the area with continuing their education. Any and all textbooks at the school were conscripted into service and the pair travelled through the region making regular stops helping the kids learn English, math, history, and French. Paul was pulled into service as a guest speaker and mentor to teach the kids the business side of farming and trading. The pair had also become trade experts with each stop, making trades weekly after schooling the young ones. It was the first time in generations that children were actually excited to be seeing teachers.
Shawna, Carol, and Paul had not been idle during that time. Shawna found that she had a love of horses and spent a considerable amount of time at the Winters farm as well as with a certain stable hand named Will. Carol and Paul gave Shawna a new sister and named her Anabeth. After getting married, Shawna and Will gave Carol and Paul a grandson named Justin Paul. Rex had also been busy and soon there were puppies at several of the local farms with some beagle mix blood in them.
With the help of some of the boys, Paul was able to design and put into place a cornmill driven by bovine power on the farm which service all the locals. A forge was also designed and built to produce new parts as things began to wear down.
Unfortunately, there were bad times as well. During the first winter, three families had died from carbon monoxide poisoning when they tried to keep their homes warm with propane stoves. Mike had been kicked off a horse that had gotten spooked and was paralyzed from the waist down in the spring. Grant had been attacked by a pack of wild dogs and although he had survived the initial attack, had succumb to a nasty infection that had spread from the wounds. Three of the girls couldn’t deal with what they had been through and took their own lives. Four of the kids had decided to travel on towards their homes and were never heard from again. Three of the babies who had been born had also died within the first year of life.
In time, Carol and Paul were finally doing what they had dreamed about all those years ago. They sat on the front porch of the farm house watching their grandchildren play with the great great grand-puppies of that damn dog.
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Post by supermag on May 8, 2018 8:54:13 GMT -6
Great story, thank you.
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Post by accountant on May 8, 2018 8:54:48 GMT -6
After 158 pages and 81596 words (according to Word), the story of Paul the accountant is completed. He finally discovered that he was in fact a good man.
I want to take this time to thank everyone for your kind words and the likes I received. This really help motivate me to continue to write even during the tough times when the words just wouldn't come.
I am not sure if this story is of high enough calibre to be put together and sold online as I have never done anything like this in the past, but I would appreciate any feedback on this subject.
Naturally, as there are so many imaginative individuals on this board, if anyone chooses to use any of these characters in another story, I would be honored to read it.
Will I be able write another story like this? Honestly, at this point, I don't know. I didn't think this one would keep going as long as it did. Maybe the muses are done with me now, or maybe not. I will just have to wait and see what the future holds.
Thanks again for allowing me to blurt out what was in my brain.
Sincerely, A. aka Shan
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Post by arkansascob on May 8, 2018 9:41:20 GMT -6
Well A ( Shan ) I really enjoyed this story. The lows were heartbreaking and the highs were moving. As far as selling on-line I cant answer that. Dont know enough about stories and story lines to give an honest answer. Will you write another story you ask ? Honestly i do believe you will. I'll bet them wheels are already turning. Good Luck and looking forward to another blurt from your brain. COB
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