Wolves In Helfire

W A T E R H O L E H I G H

“JUSTIN, GRAB A PRE-ROLLED AND HURRY UP.”

“I’M COMING, CUZ, DON’T RUSH ME.”

“AND GRAB ME A BOTTLED WATER, BABE, PLEASE…”

“I GOT THEM ALREADY.”

“EMMA, CAN YOU GRAB ANOTHER TOWEL? I FORGOT THE EXTRA.”

“HEY, YOU TWO, SLAVERY IS DEAD.”

“WE LOVE Y’ALL TOO.”

“Why are they so bossy?”

“One’s pregnant, the other’s just an asshole. Come on…”

We caught up with the 2 at the waterhole. They’d already taken over my favorite boulder, so Emma and I decided to just swim. We placed all the guns on a towel and jumped in. We splashed around, throwing water on Stacey and Karen spitefully.

“Brother, I’m not a very good swimmer.”

“Just holla if you start to drown, I’ll swoop in and save you.”

“That’s really reassuring, Justin.”

Karen jumped in.

“Come on, Emma, I’ll teach you how to swim.”

We traded places. I sat on the boulder with Stacey cheering Emma on. One hour. Two hours. Three hours. Time didn’t sit still as we all were having fun and smoking. Chilling and laughing. Snacking and more smoking.

Back at the house, we all took showers and gathered in the living room.

“Emma, did you have fun?”

“I had the best time. Thanks for teaching me how to swim.”

“No problem…”

“Justin, babe, you don’t have to stand guard. Everything is ok.”

“It’ll be dark in a few hours. Don’t pay me any attention. Just enjoy yourselves.”

“It’ll be dark soon? Cousin, it sounds like you should star in a zombie movie.”

They started laughing.

“He does sound serious, don’t he? Babe, come sit beside me.”

“I’m good, Stacey, y’all just chillax.”

“No. Your son wants you to come sit down and talk with him.”

I gave in. I sat the AR-15 on the floor and sat next to Stacey. I placed my head on her stomach and started talking with our unborn child. They all were looking at me, anxiously waiting to see what I’d say.

“Uh, what’s up son? Daughter? It’s me, daddy. I really hope you’re a son right now because I’m out numbered. Surrounded by girls. I, uh, I really can’t wait to meet you, and I hope the world will be a slightly better place when you get here. Grandma and grandpa are out right now fighting the bad guys and, we’re here doing the same. For you, and all the kids of your generation. Hope mama didn’t get you too high in there. I love you, kid.”

I ended my talk with a kiss to her belly. They were all getting teary eyed, for what?

“Aww, brother, that was the sweetest thing I’ve seen in a long time.”

“Wasn’t it, though. I’m so proud of you, Justin.”

“Thanks, cuz. Shut up.”

“OOH… Brother, what are the names to choose from?”

“I don’t know. We, haven’t really discussed names yet.”

“Darius is a great name for a boy…”

“Emma, that is good name, but…”

“And if it’s a girl, you could name her Isabelle. That’s a pretty name.”

“Isabelle is a pretty name Karen, but…”

“I was thinking maybe Cedric for a boy. For a girl, Lorena.”

“Bae, they’re great names too, but…”

“Lorena. That’s a pretty name.”

They just kept talking around me, so I grabbed the AR-15 and went out on the back porch for a smoke break. The sun was setting, leaving that orangish, reddish glow in the sky. Beautiful. I could finally hear myself think.

It’s been 2 days since my mom and Jim left out on their mission. We haven’t heard anything from them yet, but I’m sure they’re alright. I just wish I could find out what’s going on with them. They better make it back alive, if only to see their grandchild once.

I thought about something my mom had said before she left. About the trapdoor. I decided to head down to the basement and check it out. I go to where she said it’ll be and sure enough, it’s there. I opened it to find exactly what she said would be there.

There were guns, food, ammunition, and monitors. I turned on the monitors and got a full view of the surrounding area. There was even a camera at the start of the path leading to the waterhole. If I felt our safety was threatened in any way, this would be the command center.

I checked in a box on a shelf to find four sets of walkie talkies. Rechargeable. This could be proven handy. I took two sets back upstairs with me and placed them on charge. The girls were chatting away about a movie they were watching, never noticing my actions.

I waited patiently for them to charge enough to set them on the same channel. Emma entered the kitchen where I was sitting.

“New toys?”

“Yeah, found them in the basement. I figured they’d be useful.”

“What’s the signal range?”

“I don’t know. If I had to guess, 16 miles. Hey, you wanna help me out with something?”

“Anything…”

“Ok. I need you to stand on the back porch. I’ll take one to the waterhole to see if you can hear me.”

“Got it.”

I started out heading towards the waterhole.

“Can you hear me?”

“I can hear you.”

I walked a little farther.

“Now?”

“Yes, brother, I can hear you.”

I made it to the waterhole.

“I’m here. Can you still hear me?”

“Loud and clear.”

Perfect. This was a good sign. I made my way back and we tested the other set. Success. I wrote everyone’s name on a piece of tape and assigned them to a walkie talkie. They were responsible for keeping up with them and making sure their walkie stayed charged at all times.

Karen and I were the A group, and Emma and Stacey were the B group. Nothing has happened, but it’s good to be a little prepared in case s**t hit the fan again. The next morning is when things started to change. We received a call from my mom and Jim.

“Sorry we hadn’t called to check in earlier. How’s everything there?”

“We’re fine. Are y’all ok? Is it over?”

“It’s not over yet, son, but we’re ok. Things are taking a little longer than we thought, but that’s to be expected when dealing with people like this.”

“Hey, Ms. Eva, is my dad around?”

“He’s on call with some of our partners at the moment. I’ll be sure to get him to call when he’s finished.”

“Mama Eva, Karen taught me how to swim at the waterhole.”

“Did she? Isn’t that nice of your cousin.”

“It was nothing. She’s a quick learner.”

“I assume you’ve been on your best behavior, Karen?”

“Of course. Keeping Justin in line like always.”

“That’s my girl. Well, I have to run, kids. I love you all so much, ok?”

We all shouted it back into the phone as if it were rehearsed. Then the call ended. Things felt better. No trouble there, none here. Another day spent at the waterhole ended with good vibes. Night rolled around.

I just so happened to be downstairs looking at the monitors when spotting someone with a flashlight coming towards the front door. I chirped Karen on the walkie talkie.

“Someone’s coming to the front door. I’ll be right up.”

“On it.”

I made my way upstairs and we waited. There was a knock.

“Who is it?”

“Hello, my name is Jacob. My girlfriend and I ran out of gas half a mile back. You think we could use your phone to call a friend?”

“I’m sorry, sir, but I can’t open the door right now. I’ll give the station a call to see if they’ll send a car out to help you.”

“The cops? That’s not a good idea, friend. I have a s**t load of the finest weed in the trunk, and I don’t think they’ll like that too much.”

Those words and voice matched the face of that guy my mom bought weed from at the diner the morning she left.

“It’s cool, y’all put down your guns.”

I opened the door to greet this guy only to see his facial expression of fear. I turned around and the girls had their weapons up again.

“It’s cool, y’all. He’s the guy who sold us the weed at the diner the other day.”

“Yeah, I’m cool, ladies.”

I let him in, looking around the yard for his girlfriend.

“I thought you said your girlfriend was with you?”

“I don’t have a girlfriend. I just wanted to sound less threatening as possible to make a phone call. Who trusts a stranger in the dark of the night, am I right?”

The girls said nothing.

“Justin, is it? Look, if you don’t mine me asking, what’s with the army?”

“We’re paranoid. Past events got us on the edge. Can’t go into details.”

“Look, I understand… Well, I don’t, but listen; I’m no threat. I just need to make a call and I’ll be on my merry way.”

“With Mary.”

“What? Oh, I see what you did there. Nice. Yes, with Mary.”

I gave him a phone. Karen insisted he put the phone on speaker so we could hear what was being said. He called his buddy that went by the name Cezar and told him to meet him at his car to collect the goods and bring a can of gas.

Cezar agreed but said it would be an hour before he’d arrive. Jacob asked if it were ok if Cezar could call this number back when he was there. We said it was cool and they hung up. Nothing out of the ordinary. We all sat around the living room as the girls pretty much interrogated him.

“So, Jacob, who do you work for?”

“I’m self-employed.”

“Is that right? Where do you get your weed?”

“Hey, Justin, are they serious?”

“I’m afraid so. It’ll be over soon.”

“Uh, some guy two states over.”

“Name?”

“They call him Zeus. I don’t know his real name or anything.”

“Where can we find this Zeus fella?”

“Wait, are you guys working for the cops?”

“Hell no. We work for us. We’re just trying to find out where to get the good stuff from if we’re around that area.”

“Enough with the rookie questions, Stacey. I wanna know how this guy ran out of gas when there’s a station in town.”

“Oh, now that is an interesting question, Karen. How did you, faker?”

“I’m not lying. I’m actually heading towards the town. I didn’t make it. s**t, you guys, I’ve been on the road all day selling product. You gotta believe me.”

The girls burst out laughing. Jacob, on the other hand, turned red as an apple.

“Alright y’all, you’ve had your fun. You’re going to give Jacob here a panic attack.”

They lit a joint an passed it to him.

“Calm down, Jacob. We were only kidding.”

Jacob puffed on that joint like it would be his last. He immediately recognized his own product.

“Do you guys need anymore? Like I said, I had tons in my car.”

“We could always use more weed. The way these girls smoke, s**t, we’ll be out tomorrow. We just don’t have the funds at the moment.”

“No problem. You all helped me in my time of need, I’ll return the favor. Soon as Cezar calls, I’ll swing some by here before heading into town.”

“Thanks, homie.”

“Anytime. You still have my number?”

“Still in the bookbag.”

“Great. Just call anytime, I’ll have it for sure.”

The girls mentally tortured the poor guy until Cezar called. I know that was the best news he’d heard all day. He rushed out the house after his quick goodbyes and never looked back. We watched him until he left out of sight.

“That was fun. Who can we torture now?”

“Karen, you’re so mean. I love it.”

They laughed.

We locked up and sat on the couch. 30 minutes later, there was a knock on the door. We jumped up, guns in hand.

“Who the hell could that be?”

We tiptoed to the door.

“Who is it?”

“It’s me again. Jacob.”

I’d forgot he was coming back just that fast. I opened the door to retrieve the package he had for us. The package were 2 trash bags full of this loud smelling m*******a. I couldn’t believe it. Not only did he come back, but he also brought us more weed than we could smoke.

“We’re very grateful, honestly, but isn’t this hurting your profit?”

“Not at all, friend. I told you, s**t load.”

“Dang. You definitely weren’t messing around. Thanks, big time.”

“Hey, y’all just enjoy yourselves. I have to go make a drop. Keep in touch.”

“Will do.”

Can you believe it? I can’t. Karen and Stacey’s eyes were as if they were looking at the love of their life. Emma and I were just amazed at the quantity. It did smell really good. Nothing but healthy buds looked back at us.

We divided a bag as equal as possible, then stored the second bag in the basement with the other much needed supplies. We shouldn’t run out anytime soon. Morning came, and the chirping birds greeted the sun with songs of joy. Time for smoking, breakfast, smoking, and then the waterhole. The waterhole, best part about this place.