E j deen, p.20
E. J. Deen, page 20
“Tell him,” Grady told the bartender.
With a heavy sigh, Franklin glanced back at Zach, then spilled it. “There was a man here looking for you. Wouldn’t say his name. We didn’t tell him anything, but he hung around for a few days. He was pretty persistent. Then he just disappeared, never said another word to us.”
Zach was annoyed. He wasn’t taking on any more cases. He had already made that clear, and he didn’t intend to change his mind. Not for anyone. No matter how desperate they were. It was over for him.
Finished.
“He didn’t find me, did he?”
Franklin shook his head.
“Good. I’m not in business anymore. I’ve already put away my shingle.”
Grady and Franklin remained silent.
There was a moment of awkwardness, then Zach abruptly stood up. “Thanks for the drink, Franklin. I should go see how Pete and Sara are getting along. They didn’t know I was out of town either, and it’s time I paid them a visit.”
At the door he turned back and called, “If anyone sees Tadpole, tell him I was in town looking for him.
Tell him…. Ah, hell. I’ll probably be seeing him at Pete’s.”
Franklin opened his mouth to say something, but Zach was already out the door. Outside, he mounted the horse and urged him into a gallop. He was eager to see his friends. He needed that reality, needed it in the worst sort of way. These people, this settlement kept him grounded. He realized that now, realized how much his survival had always depended on them. They were something to look forward to, something to come home to. Without them…who knew what he would have become.
When he arrived at Pete’s farm, the yard was quiet. No sounds of activity in the barn. No wash hanging out on Sara’s line. No Tadpole to run out and greet him. A twist of dread slithered up his spine. He didn’t like the feeling. He couldn’t stand the thought of anyone taking his family from him a second time.
Stifling the anxiety, he dismounted and tied the horse outside Sara’s front porch. On the top step, he raised his hand and was just about to knock when the front door flew open and Sara threw herself into his arms, squealing in delight. Relieved to know she was still alive, he submitted to the smothering hug, reveling in the comforting feel of her.
“We were so worried about you,” she said. “It’s so good to see that you’re okay.”
“Worried?” That was puzzling. Why would they be worried? They’d never worried about him being in the mountains before.
“Yes, worried.” She drew back and looked into his face. “You look so tired. And….” Her gaze fell on his scarred shoulder. “What happened?”
Zach shrugged. “Nothing important. It’s okay.”
“Zach,” she chastised. “Of course, it’s important. I want to know what happened.”
“Got another scar on that shoulder to match the other one, ay?” Pete queried from somewhere behind him.
Grinning, Zach whirled around to greet his friend. “Nothing I can’t handle, old man.”
“Who you calling old?” Pete’s eyes sparkled with humor. After only a brief hesitation, he dragged Zach into a bear hug and slapped his back with teeth jarring force, obviously pleased to see him. But when he finally pulled away, his expression was serious. “We’ve been worried about you, Zach.”
“That’s what Sara was saying.”
“When you didn’t answer the signal, I got concerned.”
“Signal? You left a signal for me?”
“Yeah. There at the old creek bed. Just where you told me to.”
It was the message system the two had devised in case of emergencies or when someone was looking for him. Even Pete didn’t know precisely where the cave was located, and a signal was the only real way of getting in touch with Zach when he was in the mountains. Pete always left a red strip of cloth tied in the lowest branch of the old pine at the mouth of the creek bed. If Zach was in the vicinity, he checked for the flag whenever he could and usually met Pete halfway down the mountain. But this time he hadn’t been there to meet him. It must have worried them silly.
“You can imagine what went through our heads. I camped in them mountains for two weeks, kept
checking on the flag, but no Zach. We didn’t know what to think. We didn’t know if you’d been killed, maimed, or if you were laying half-dead somewhere. We just had no way of knowing. We’re glad to see you’re all right.” Pete’s face crinkled into a scowl of disapproval. “But I’d sure as hell like to know what you were up to all that time.”
“Okay, dad. I’ll confess,” Zach teased. “I guess I owe you an explanation, considering.”
“You damn straight you owe me an explanation. We haven’t spent these last seven years worrying about you, looking after you, only to have—”
“Whoa, slow down.” Zach held up his hands in mock surrender. “When you’re right, you’re right.”
Pete stopped his tirade and just stared at him, his arms folded across his barrel chest.
“Truth is, I took on another job. I didn’t want to worry you, so I snuck out without saying anything.”
“Worry us? Hell, that’s all we’ve done for the past few months is worry,” Pete roared.
A grin started to spread across Zach’s face. He couldn’t help it. The situation just struck him as ironic.
It was strange, him acting like a scolded boy and Pete standing in front of him like an angry father.
Zach was so tall that Pete had to look up to meet his eyes, by several inches, not to mention he wasn’t really old enough to be Zach’s father. It was ridiculous really. But it felt right. It felt good. These people were his family. They cared. That was enough.
“What are you laughing at?” Pete demanded.
Zach grabbed the man’s shoulders and gave them an affectionate squeeze. “I’m just glad you two are still here, that’s all.”
Pete looked even more perplexed.
“Oh, Zach. It doesn’t matter where you were. All that matters now is that you’re okay,” Sara said, stepping forward to give him another hug. “Will you stay for dinner this time?”
He looked down at her for a long moment, taking in every detail of her face. He never wanted to forget what she looked like at that very moment, the love in her eyes. Love for him.
“Sure, I’ll stay,” he agreed.
She smiled. He rarely ever stayed for dinner, never wanted to impose, and his agreeing to stay obviously made her happy. When she finally released him, he could see the glimmer of tears in her eyes. “You’re family, Zach. Don’t you forget that.”
Her words touched him. Zach felt some long forgotten emotion resonate from somewhere deep inside and had to look away to prevent it from spilling over and becoming known to them.
“Well, I have a lot of work to do,” she said, turning away and dabbing at her eyes with her fingertips.
“I’d better get inside and get to it.”
Lost in an odd jumble of emotions he couldn’t seem to sort out at the moment, Zach watched her go, then turned his steely gaze on Pete, who was still standing with his arms folded across his chest.
“Where’s Tadpole? Didn’t he come to live with you?”
Pete shook his head.
“Damn,” Zach whispered under his breath. “I was sure I’d convinced him.”
“He’s been spending a lot of time up in the mountains. Some mornings I find him sleeping in the barn. I just go away quietly and let him think I don’t know. He’s always gone by the time I come back to check on him.” Pete paused. “I think he’s up there looking for you, hoping.”
Zach frowned as he contemplated the news.
“Near as I can figure, there ain’t no better father for that boy than you. He’s chosen you, Zach. And he ain’t gonna back down. He won’t accept anyone else. Oh, he likes me and Sara well enough, but we’re more like an aunt and uncle to him. But you…. You’re his father.”
Zach didn’t know what to say, didn’t even know how to feel about Pete’s comment. He had known
about Tadpole’s desire for a long time now, and he’d tried to ignore it. The idea of being anything more to the boy than just a friend was impossible, so foreign. That was precisely why he’d tried to keep his distance all these years. He couldn’t be a father to the kid. His lifestyle wouldn’t let him. Besides, he didn’t want children. They only got in his way. He didn’t need the responsibility. Not now. Perhaps not ever.
“And Sara?” Zach asked. “How is she taking all this?”
Pete glanced away into the distance, and Zach could see the sadness etched in every line of his face.
“She’ll manage all right. It’s a disappointment to her, but she has….” Pete looked back at Zach, and they both knew what he’d been about to say. “But when she thought you were dead…. Now that was another matter.” He heaved a shaky sigh. “Tadpole near went crazy from it. He missed you bad. We all did.”
“I’ll try to keep you better informed in the future,” Zach promised. “I don’t plan on taking any more cases, anyway. I’m tired of being a one-man army. I can’t fight this battle alone. I never should have started. One man alone—you just can’t win, Pete. This country needs unity. Something it hasn’t had in a hundred years.”
Pete put a hand on his uninjured shoulder and gave it a little squeeze. He didn’t say anything. There was nothing to say. They both knew Zach was right. The country did need unity. It was the only thing that could stop the chaos, the confusion, the hate, the fear. Hell, it might even stop the plague. But unity was something they didn’t have, and it was unlikely they would ever have it. The place was going to hell and all of them with it. They both felt the frustration. They both understood it, and they both realized any effort to change things was futile.
To ease the awkwardness, Pete drew him out to the barn, and the two of them tinkered around out there until Sara called them to dinner. After a comfortable meal, they remained seated at the table, talking and sharing Sara’s blackberry pie.
“You didn’t tell me why you were signaling for me,” Zach reminded Pete.
“There was a man looking for you. Said his name was Coon-ass or something. Hell of a name for a man.”
Zach couldn’t keep a reign on his exuberance. “Coon-ass? Are you sure?”
Surprised by the sudden interest, Pete eyed him with curiosity, then nodded.
“Big guy? Arms like tree trunks? Army fatigues?” Zach crowed, too excited to contain it.
“That’s him,” Pete said.
“Take me to him,” Zach said, standing up.
Pete shook his head. “Can’t. Don’t know where he is. When I told him you weren’t available, after I’d tried to get hold of you for days, he just disappeared. We never heard from him again.”
“Damn!”
“What is it, Zach? Do you know this man?” Sara wanted to know. She looked agitated, worried about Zach’s odd reaction.
When Zach lifted his eyes to meet hers, Sara’s lips parted and trembled, and for a moment, it looked like she might reach out to him. Zach felt awkward. He knew why she looked so shocked. She’d seen the helplessness in his eyes, and it was clearly a shock to her. He’d always been so strong, so sure of himself. Nothing ever affected him. Ever. Until now. The loss of Doc reminded him too much of things he wanted to forget. It upset the balance of his life. But she didn’t know that, and he wouldn’t tell her.
“Yes, I know him,” he said, his voice gruff.
It must have been Coon-ass who’d been looking for him down at Franklin’s. Now it was too late. Zach had no way of knowing where his friend had gone. There was no way for Zach to track him. The cajun was a consummate woodsman, and if he didn’t want to be found, all of hell wouldn’t be able to find a trace of him. All Zach could do was sit in impotent frustration.
“Damn,” he muttered again.
Pete and Sara sat in silence, at a loss.
“I’ll stay with you for a few days,” he finally said. It wasn’t a question. It was more like a command.
Pete and Sara didn’t argue with his choice. They were both glad to have him.
“Maybe he’ll try again,” he muttered, although it didn’t seem likely.
He hoped Coon-ass hadn’t come looking for him to tell him Doc was dead. He would rather believe for the best, but he was too afraid to allow himself the luxury just yet. Anything could have happened in that swamp. He would never know the truth unless he could find Coon-ass. Not an easy proposition. He was weary and didn’t relish another long search. He would stay put for a few days, just in case the big cajun came calling again.
His expression grim, Zach excused himself from the table and went outside. He wanted to take care of the horse before putting it in the stable for the night. Besides, he needed some time alone, to think. Not that it would do him any good.
In the barn, he found an old brush and gave the horse a thorough rubdown before putting him in the only stall available and then filling a bucket full of water. He would have to find some feed for the animal. Maybe Sara could help him out with that task. He’d already decided to give the animal to Pete.
His friend could use it. A horse would be a great asset to a farm.
As he secured the stall door, a slight whisper of perception got his attention. All his senses were instantly on alert as a prickle of warning raced down his spine. He was not alone in the barn.
It wasn’t anything he saw. No shadow had fallen across the sunlight streaming into the open end of the barn to catch his eye. It was more like something sensed. A presence. Zach turned his head and saw the silhouette outlined in the doorway. A familiar figure. As the stranger stepped out of the shadow and into the light, Zach’s heart lifted. Coon-ass? Good Christ, it was Coon-ass!
As silent as always, the cajun crossed the barn and came to stand just inches from him, an old machine gun slung over one shoulder, his fatigues grimy from travel. Zach’s eyes took in every detail of his person, searching every inch of his face for signs of calamity. But Coon-ass seemed unharmed. Healthy.
Not even a scratch. No sign of war.
“Doc sent me,” he said simply.
Zach tried to hide his elation. It might be a bit premature. After all, it wasn’t clear what Doc’s health status was just yet.
“He’s all right?”
Coon-ass nodded.
“And the others?”
Another nod.
“Take me to him.”
*
It took an hour to prepare for the trip. Pete helped, plying him with questions while Sara packed food for the men to take with them. Zach didn’t yet know where they were going. Coon-ass would tell him on the way there.
Zach learned that the big cajun had traveled for weeks to find him. When they discovered Zach had gone missing, Coon-ass didn’t take it as gospel. He needed to see for himself, so he’d surreptitiously followed Pete into the mountains and watched him leave the red flag at the creek bed. While Pete watched and waited, Coon-ass settled in to watch and wait, as well. But Zach never emerged. Despite Zach’s absence, the cajun stuck around, waiting for any signs of his return. Zach was grateful for the big man’s tenacity. At least now he knew his friends were safe.
“I finished that new fuel tank for you, and I buried the other one you brought back from that last trip,”
Pete told him. “It’s out there about twenty paces behind the barn. There’s still some fuel in it. This one here’s already topped off. These two tanks together should get you where you need to go.”
Pete rattled on nonstop, explaining all the changes and improvements he’d made in the Hummer.
Occasionally, he glanced at Coon-ass. He was still nervous around the man. Zach understood Pete’s trepidation. The cajun took some getting used to. He was silent, dirty, scraggly, big. Almost as unusual as Zach. Pete seemed to have forgotten that he hadn’t been too sure of Zach either when they’d first met so many years ago. Still, any friend of Zach was a friend of Pete.
Zach put the last pack into the back of the Hummer and prepared to leave. Everything was in order, ready to go. He hugged Pete, gave him a slap on the back, and climbed into the Hummer. Sara came forward and pressed a gentle kiss against his cheek.
“There’s a new light in your eyes, Zach,” she whispered. “I don’t care what put it there. I’m just glad to see it.”
He gave her a smile and squeezed her outstretched hand. It felt so strange leaving them when he’d only just arrived. But he must.
He turned to Pete. “The horse in the barn is yours. If you see Tadpole, tell him….”
He couldn’t finish. He didn’t know what to say to the boy. When Tadpole discovered Zach had been there and hadn’t made any move to see him, the kid would be hurt.
“Maybe I should see if he’s at Franklin’s before I leave,” he mused, half to himself.
Pete nodded his understanding and motioned him on, putting an arm around his wife and drawing her up against his side as Zach revved the engine and pulled away.
Zach headed straight for Franklin’s bar. He couldn’t leave without making an attempt to find Tadpole.
He had to say goodbye, or at least try. He owed Tadpole that much. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, he had ties to the boy. Strong ties.
At Franklin’s, Coon-ass accompanied Zach into the bar and stood silently while he made his inquiries.
Franklin and Grady couldn’t mask their astonishment at seeing Zach with the very same man who’d been looking for him just a few weeks ago.
“Thought you weren’t going to take any more cases,” Grady observed.
“It’s not a case. This is a friend of mine. Coon-ass, I’d like you to meet Grady and Franklin.”
Coon-ass took each man’s hand in turn and gave it a brisk shake.
“You look like you’re ready for another war. You leaving?” Grady had to ask.
Zach nodded.
“Anything goin’ on that I should know about?”
Zach shrugged. “I’ll know when we get there.”
“Mind if I tag along? It’s been awhile since I’ve seen anything outside this bar. Maybe you could drop me somewhere.”
Zach glanced at his cajun friend and gave a little nod to let him know Grady was okay. Coon-ass returned the nod.
