Chapter 20

Jake went up to his room after the meeting broke up. He thought the plan they had made was a good one -- it minimized risks to them and would, they hoped, force at least a truce with the Welches. He didn't want to have to watch his back for the rest of the school year or the rest of his life. He was finishing up homework when Helen popped in.

"Got a minute, Honey?" she asked.

"I'll always have time for you; you are the love of my life."

She smiled at him then closed and locked his door. Then she locked the connecting door to his bathroom and sat down on his bed. He swung around to face her; she looked especially beautiful tonight -- her long lustrous black hair gleamed in the light and the blue and white dress she wore hugged her curves.

"Come sit with me," she said, "I hardly get to spend any time with you."

Jake came over to the bed and pushed her backwards until she was lying on her back. Then he plopped down beside her and propped his head on his elbow; his other arm was across her waist. She looked up at him and sighed.

"That's better. Maria Thornton raved about you last night, she said you are so handsome and mature she wished she were younger. If you play your cards right she would take you to bed in a heartbeat."

"I think she probably would, but I don't know if I want to get involved with her. I didn't hear you come in last night, how was your evening?"

"It was nice and very interesting; we went to that club you went to with Sara. It is really a romantic place. We danced and talked for four hours; they are a charming couple."

"Did you dance with Randal?"

"Yes, almost exclusively; how did you know?"

"If I was him I would have wanted to you in my arms."

"He was very attentive; it must have been the champagne we drank because I let him take a few liberties. He is the first man outside my family I ever let touch me that way."

"What about Dad?"

"Maria made sure he wasn't neglected; I don't think they are as new at this as we are. I only caught a couple of looks at them -- they were in the opposite corner from us -- but she was pressing up against him keeping their faces very close. Then I was distracted by Randal; his hands were all over me, and I was enjoying the feeling."

By now Jake was massaging her full breast; he stopped to unbutton her dress, and then slipped his hand into her bra. Her breathing was rapid and shallow.

"When we sat down during the band's break," she continued, "Randal put his hand on my leg and pushed under my dress."

Jake did the same thing; he reached her panties and they were soaked. Helen grabbed his hand and stopped him from touching her mound.

"I didn't let him get that far, Jacob; that's a big step for me."

Jake kissed her and moved her hand to her side. She eagerly sucked his tongue into her mouth. As Jake came up for air, he stroked her thigh just below her panties.

"What happened then?"

"We danced the last set and I let him feel my breasts; it was exciting. He got me in the corner and kissed me. But that was as far as it went at the club. We left and it seemed natural for me to get in the front seat with him while Charles and Maria got in the back. We were like teenagers on a double date. I sat close to him and he had his hand in my bra feeling me up. I glanced over the seat and Charles was doing the same with Maria. We got home and they walked us to the door. We kissed goodnight. Maria even frenched me; that was a big shock, I've never passion-kissed a woman like that."

She finished talking and pulled him down for a kiss. Jake cupped her mound and her hips lifted.

"Oh Jacob, okay honey -- but only on the outside," she moaned.

She humped his hand until she came. Then got up and straightened her clothes.

"Thank you, Jacob, I promise that if I do give this to someone else it'll be you."

"Fair enough", said Jake, "But I'd like you to continue with the Thornton's, I think what Maria did with you was sexy."

"It's strange, but I liked it; we'll see about the other, it could have just been the drinks that made everyone so uninhibited."

With a final kiss, she unlocked his doors and was gone, leaving him with a massive hard-on.

As luck would have it, no one came in to share his bed that night. He had to resort to strangulating his domesticated fowl.

Tuesday was a normal day at school. Vicki Greer kept him after class to tell him the pregnancy test was positive; she was due the third week of May. She would be able to finish the school year and have all summer to arrange childcare. She was as elated as he had ever seen anyone. Bill was as happy as she was, she told him. Jake said he was thrilled for her also and offered his congratulations.

Beth walked him to his locker after geometry; she and Jake were talking about the test they just completed when Erika strode up. Beth started to leave but Jake held her by her arm. Erika was pleasant to Beth and did not start-up her jealousy antics, she took Jake's hand in hers and after Beth departed, they went to chemistry. Erika acknowledged Jake's quizzical questioning look by telling him she had had a long talk with her mother about her feelings of jealousy. Her mom explained and re-explained that being too possessive was the best way to lose a man. It made sense to Erika. So, she decided that she was just going to love Jake, accept his love, and be happy. What she wasn't happy about, she said, was the pharmacist telling her that she couldn't count on the birth control pills to be fully effective until after a full month and one complete cycle had passed. Helga bought her another six-pack of rubbers (Thank you, Mom.) but Erika was disappointed Jake couldn't ride bare immediately.

Study hall was very pleasant. Rebecca asked him to help in the storage room again and they kissed and talked. Jake was really starting to have serious feeling for Rebecca. He loved all the women in his life but felt tenderness towards Rebecca Doane that was special. He was back at his table with Beth in fifteen minutes. Beth teased him about being the teacher's pet and he laughed at her good-natured ribbing. He was going to have to make sure he and Rebecca kept a low profile to keep any suspicions from forming.

His shoulder felt better at practice. He was confident he would be nearing a hundred percent by the game Friday. Coach had them practice some new plays and the offense looked good. Brad passed with pinpoint accurate and Ray Robinson ran with authority. They were going to give Lake Wales a run for the money.

That evening, Jake was in his room finishing his homework when Angie came in with her purchases from his list. She handed him the bag with the rope and duct tape and told him she had gone to two different stores to get them as he had instructed. While she was talking, Erika's revelation about the pill struck him. He asked Angie about it and she said that she had a diaphragm plus spermicidal jelly for a back up when they made love. She said she was not ready for him to make her a mommy-yet. With that off his mind, Jake got dressed and asked Melissa to drive him to the Martins.

Gail was very pleased to see him and immediately kissed him passionately -- right in front of her parents. Jake thought of Bob Martin's little warning speech and disentangled himself. Gail laughed when Jake looked at Bob sheepishly.

"Daddy, stop trying to scare Jake," she said, "His parents are the ones who should be worried about what I have on my mind."

Bob turned red up to his receding hairline. Gail laughed some more and told them she would leave them alone for a few minute but asked her dad not to monopolize Jake's time there. She wanted to spend some with Jake too. Bob led Jake to the garage and they sat in the burgundy leather, tuck-and-rolled interior of the Mercury. Bob asked what was on his mind; Jake told him about his problem with the Welches and his plan to resolve it. Bob looked at him with a new respect; it was just the head-on way he thought problems like that should be solved.

"What can I do to help?" Bob asked.

Jake explained that he needed Bob to rent him a cargo van for Thursday night. Jake said to leave it in his driveway with the keys in it; that way, if they were caught, Bob could honestly say it was stolen. Bob agreed that it was a good plan and said the van would be there Thursday afternoon. Bob looked wistful when Jake said it would not be a good idea for Bob to go along with them. Jake told him that everyone going was a minor and could claim it was a prank; but if came along with them, it would ruin their cover story. Bob reluctantly agreed and they walked back inside. Bob didn't say a thing when Gail grabbed Jake's hand and said she was taking him to see her room.

She had a spacious bedroom with her own bathroom. It was like a studio apartment. They sat on the couch and she asked him if he knew about her scholarship. Jake said his dad had mentioned it but that's all he knew. She did not believe him, but accepted what he said. She slithered into his arms and they started kissing. She took his hand and moved it up to her breast. Jake squeezed her tit through her pink alpaca sweater and she moaned into his mouth.

"Oh Jake, it's been so long since I've felt a lover's touch."

"Are we going to be lovers?" he asked.

"I want us to be, I've thought about you constantly since our date," she answered.

Jake pushed up her sweater and unhooked her lacy pink bra. "Are you wearing matching panties"?

"Find out for yourself," she invited.

He did and for good measure, he finger-fucked her until she came on his hand; she bit his shoulder to keep from crying out. She tried to get him to make love to her but they didn't have protection and he was uncomfortable with her parents in the house. She told him that next time she would be better prepared. They straightened their clothes and she took him home.

Jake was just about to get into bed when Angie came into his room. Wordlessly she stripped and lay on top of his bedspread. She held out her arms as he undressed and climbed between her legs. They were cuddled up naked when Melissa eased into bed behind him.

"I tried to sleep alone last night Jake; but I tossed and turned all night," she said.

He reached behind him and pulled her up against his back. She put her arm over him and Angie and kissed his shoulder. In less than a minute, her gentle breath against his back told him she was asleep.

Angie had already gone back to her room when Jake shook Melissa awake the next morning. He conned her into taking a shower with him; then she hogged the bathroom to get ready for school.

The school day flew by, as did football practice. Soon enough it was six and Jake and Debbie went to meet their co-conspirators. Everyone assembled at the Boy Scout camp and Jake passed out the equipment they had gathered. Erik, Erika, and Debbie received camouflaged fatigues and ski masks. He handed Erik the bag with rope and duct tape; Erika got two sand bags. He walked everyone through what would happen using Scott and Ray as stand-ins for Wayne and Blaine. He kept at it for an hour until everyone knew his or her part. Satisfied, Jake sent everyone home. He was asleep holding Melissa by ten.

On Thursday, time did not want to pass. Jake was anxious to get tonight over with and get the Welches behind him. He was not very attentive in his classes and drew a few odd looks from his teachers. At study hall, he asked Rebecca if Katherine would be home at five because he needed to talk to her for a few minutes. She said she would be and reminded him about having dinner this week. He asked if Sunday would be good for them, if so, he could get there at around two and stay until eight. Her eyes lit up and she said that timing would be perfect.

Jake's shoulder felt fine at practice and he did some light hitting on the blocking sled to test it out. Hitting the sled harder and harder, he felt no pain. He told Coach Nelson how it went and the coach was relieved.

Erik took Jake home from practice and dropped him at Rebecca's. Katherine met him at the door and pulled him in for a kiss. Then Rebecca wanted her turn. He asked them if they could drive him home so they could talk in the car. They piled into Katherine's Lincoln and he explained his plan for the evening. Rebecca was hearing it for the first time and she was stunned. She was scared and worried that something might happen to him. Katherine asked him a series of 'what ifs' and Jake answered them all. She said she could not find any flaws in his plan, provided the Welches took the bait as intended. Jake agreed; the biggest hurdle would be getting the brothers to follow the bait, Cindy and Laurie, to the remote rendezvous. Jake stepped out of the car in his driveway; Rebecca got out also and was hanging onto him like a Cuban refugee on a life raft. He promised he would call her when he got home that night and, somewhat mollified, she released him, kissed him, and got back in the car.

Cindy and Laurie were already upstairs; Angie and Melissa were fixing them up with their schoolgirl fantasy outfits. At six, Debbie and Jake took their bags of uniforms and equipment and drove to the Martins' house. A plain white panel van was waiting, as promised, in the drive; the keys were in the ignition. Debbie got in and drove the van back to the house while Jake followed her. Debbie parked the van on the street in front of their house and she and Jake transferred their gear from the car to the van. Angie came out of the house with Melissa; they drove to the movie theater and bought four tickets. The two went in and watched the movie; the four stubs were to establish a cover story for Debbie and Jake. Cindy and Laurie took the Fiat and Debbie and Jake took the van to the Boy Scout camp where they met up with Scott, Eric, Ray, and Erica. While the others took up their assigned positions, Erik and Jake got into Erik's truck and followed Cindy and Laurie as they took the little Fiat to the Dairy Queen. The Welches were sure to be hanging around the DQ and notice them...

There was only one part of the plan that Jake wouldn't compromise on in the planning. Everyone told him that he shouldn't go to the Oak Ridge DQ; but he insisted that he be there in case anything went wrong.

As soon as Cindy and Laurie pulled up, the Okies were all over them. Wayne and Blaine ran off all the competition and soon were trying to get the young girls to leave with them. Things looked like they were getting out of control and Jake was about to go get them when Cindy and Laurie walked back to the Fiat. Wayne and Blaine jumped into their Camero and followed them when they drove off. Erik wheeled his truck around and headed up the same road a good distance behind the Welches. About five miles from their destination Erik picked up speed, passed both cars, and sped ahead to the camp.

They cached Erik's truck and everyone got in position. Jake checked the silenced.22 that Debbie had somehow 'borrowed' without paperwork from Tiny. (Jake was going to have to find out sometime just what the hell was going on between those two.) He chambered a round and waited. He hadn't even test fired the.22; he hoped it worked if --god forbid-- he needed it. He had to admit it at least looked impressive as all get out. It seemed forever before two sets of headlights swept down the rutted road. As soon as both cars were well down the entrance, Scott pulled the van across the drive and raised the engine compartment cover. He was pretending to work on the engine while keeping watch. Jake checked his Timex, 7:25 and it was full dark. The moon would not be up for another half hour.

Cindy wheeled her car into the spot Jake had picked and she and Laurie jumped out. When Wayne and Blaine pulled up, the closest spot to Cindy's car channeled them through Jake's ambush to get to the girls. Wayne and his brother, stimulated into sexual single-mindedness, walked in a beeline towards the picnic table the girls were sitting on.

As they were passing, Jake stepped from behind a tree to their left.

"Stop right there," Jake said.

Startled, the Welches spun towards his voice. In front of them was a big guy dressed in black, wearing something over his face, and holding a huge pistol, which seemed to grow in size as they stared at it. There were two even bigger guys in army fatigues and masks behind him. They both had shotguns pointing at the brothers' balls.

"You got to be fucking kidding," Wayne said as the shock wore off.

"Listen to my voice and decide whether I'm joking or not, punks. Do exactly as I say or I'm going to shoot one of you in the kneecap: since you're twins I'll probably have to shoot the other one, too. Now, shut up, get down on your knees, and press your arms against your sides." Jake said, gesturing with the pistol. "Do it! Do it now!" he said with increased volume and menace.

The twins looked at each other then knelt down, their eyes darting left and right in panic.

"What should I do with your jailbait girlfriends?" Jake asked.

"Please don't hurt us mister," Cindy begged in a scared, little girl voice, "We just met them tonight; we're not their girlfriends."

Cindy was already showing the acting talent that would make her the toast of Hollywood six years in the future.

"Is that true? Jake asked.

Both kneeling boys nodded yes.

"Get in your car and get out of here. If you tell anyone about this, we'll find you and make you regret opening your mouth," Jake said to the girls, menacingly.

The girls ran to the Fiat, jumped in, and sped away.

"Don't move a muscle," Jake said to the Welches in a steely voice, "Two more of my men are going to blindfold you. You will not be hurt if you follow instructions."

Debbie and Erika had snuck up behind the twins while Jake kept them riveted on the armed trio. They quickly pulled sand bags over the stupefied brothers' heads and started wrapping the duct tape around their torsos. After a few immobilizing turns of tape, Erik and Ray ran over and helped. In less than a minute the Welches were secured in silver duct tape straight jackets, their arms pinned helplessly to their sides. At a nod from Jake, Erik and Ray easily pulled the twins to their feet and led them to the van. Debbie opened the back door and Erik and Ray pushed them in. Erik, Erika and Ray quickly shed their jungle fatigues and masks. Erika collected the masks, including Debbie' and Jake's, and Erik took Sven's shotgun from Ray. All three dashed to Erik's truck, drove to the entrance of the camp, and stopped behind Cindy's car. Ray got out and got in Scott's van. Scott pulled out, unblocking the driveway. Cindy pulled out behind them and went home; Erik went the opposite direction towards his house.

Back at the campground Jake stuffed the fatigues and gun into a duffle bag and threw it in the van. Debbie got in the driver's seat and started the van; Jake ran to the twins Camaro and removed the license plate. He taped the Camaro's plate over the van's plate and hopped in the passenger seat. Debbie drove sedately out of the camp and turned towards Oak Ridge. Jake looked at his watch. It was 7:40. The terrified Welches hadn't made a peep.

Debbie pulled into the lot of the service station that Beth's father worked at with the lights off. They pulled between two other vehicles and Debbie killed the engine. Jake pulled the sand bags off the twin's heads.

"Turner!" they said in unison.

Jake looked at the two for almost a minute with out saying anything. He made a slight adjustment to his plan and addressed his captives.

"I was going to let Debbie do the questioning because she did so well with Ralph last time."

He suppressed a smile as they both looked at Debbie and flinched. Debbie wore black jeans and a black turtleneck sweater. Her hair was in a ponytail, she had on a whitish make up and her mouth was a blood red slash of lip stick; she looked cruel and scary.

"But maybe that won't be necessary; maybe we can resolve this to everyone satisfaction without anyone being hurt. How does that sound?"

The Welches nodded yes using short, almost-frantic nods and looked at Debbie again. Debbie looked unhappy but finally, apparently reluctantly, nodded consent also.

"Good, I'm going to forget you guys hired those idiots to hurt me, but only if you tell me exactly why you did it. Who wants to go first?"

The Welches exchanged another look and Blaine said, "Chip Thornton paid us $500 to fuck you up. Afterwards, he wanted his money back because you weren't messed up enough."

Jake nodded and Debbie scowled, her displeasure was not lost on the twins.

"Did you give him a refund?" Jake asked.

"Fuck no," said Wayne, "We did what he wanted; we kept the money."

"Good for you," Jake said companionably, "How much do you charge to knock somebody off?"

The twins looked at him in astonishment. "Chip asked us the same question. We told him no way; we have a nice little drug business going and getting bigger every week. We'll be as rich as him in three years, man. Whacking somebody could end us up in prison for life; what we are doing can't get us more than five years. We wouldn't take you out for him and we're not gonna' take him out for you. We only agreed to get you beat up because he's a good customer."

Jake nodded. It made sense; if they were growing and selling pot wholesale, they stood to make a shit-load of money. The harsh mandatory sentences for marijuana weren't in effect in 1971, and law enforcement was not as coordinated as they were in his later life. It was easily conceivable for the Welches to be multi-millionaires in three years. If they had the discipline, they could get out of the business and do whatever legitimate thing they wanted. Jake knew they were smart, but he doubted they'd retire early.

"Fair enough", Jake said, "What are we going to do now? Are we going to act like we're in grade school and keep at each other or are we going to forget this and get on with our lives?" The Welches said nothing; but you could see twin gears turning in their twin heads. Jake continued, "I have nothing truly personal with you - yet. If we can live-and-let-live, there would be no reason for any bad feelings between us. And you really should stay away from Chip; with his money, he could easily mess up your lives while he escapes any punishment."

Wayne reacted first, "Damn Turner, you are the first asshole I've ever seen who got smarter sniffing glue." "Why don't you partner up with us?" continued Blaine, "You'll be rich."

"Thanks guys -- but I'm going into politics and try to make weed legal; so you better make your money while you can."

All the males laughed and Jake told Debbie to drive back to the camp. To make things clear, Jake said, "Let's not have anything that would lead to a repeat of tonight. Keep your distance and not a peep to Chip; things will be cool." The Welches were quick to agree and voice their sincerity. Jake cut them loose at the entrance. Debbie watched the twins with ill-disguised malevolence, 9mm still in her hand, as Jake took their license plate off the van and gave it to them. The twins were clearly impressed with the thoroughness of his plan.

"Gentlemen, let's shake on our new relationship," Jake said holding out his hand.

After shaking hands, the twins trudged down the long driveway to the camp. Debbie put the van in gear as soon as Jake got in. They drove a mile up the road before Jake had her pull into a gas station and park on the side. They stayed there fifteen minutes to see if the Welches were following them. Satisfied the twins weren't behind them, Debbie drove to the Martins' house to return the van.

Bob Martin met them at the door and asked Jake how it went. Jake told him pretty good and that he thought the problem was solved. Bob invited them in to wait for their ride. Gail was surprised to see Jake and Debbie; she would have been even more surprised to see Debbie's weapon, but Debbie had it well-concealed. Gail gave them both a hug and sat on the couch next to Jake. Angie and Melissa collected their brother and sister at 8:45. All three girls razzed Jake about the intensity of the kiss Gail sent him off with. They were in their house at nine, the adrenaline had worn off, and the teens were all tired. Angie and Melissa told the parental units all about the movie and Jake called Rebecca to tell her he was ok. Jake also called Erika and Cindy to make sure everyone had made it home. After Jake hung up the phone, he excused himself and headed to his room. In about five minutes his sisters all joined him and they talked about the evening some more. Debbie said that she would return Tiny's.22 during lunch tomorrow and give him the jungle fatigues they had bought.

That, Jake hoped, was that.

Angie and Debbie kissed him as he sat at his desk and went to bed. Melissa wasn't even pretending to be sleeping in the guest room anymore. She undressed, dug out one of Jake's tee-shirts to sleep in, and climbed under the covers of Jake's bed. She wriggled her panties from under the tee-shirt and threw them at Jake. With the sheet pulled up to her chin she told Jake that she had asked Helen if she could sleep in his bed for a while.

"Your mom is amazing", Melissa said, "I told her we weren't having sex even though I wanted to. Your mother didn't seem surprised and said you were special. I sure agree with that."

Then Melissa turned on her side and was immediately asleep. Jake sat at his desk in the dark thinking about today's events. He thought that the Welch brothers would leave him alone and go about the business of getting rich from selling weed. He had no ethical problem with their profession. In his first life, he had smoked pot by the garbage bag full during and after his first tour in Vietnam. He considered marijuana less harmful than alcohol and cigarettes. Chip and Vivian Thornton were the big issue now. Jake was pretty much convinced that those two had helped Russell Sr. to the pearly gates but did not have a shred of evidence to back up his suspicions. Then there was the problem of Chip's hatred of him and Debbie. He hoped that Vivian was smart enough to get Chip to lie low for a while. Jake decided he wasn't accomplishing anything by sitting there worrying so he got on the bed behind Mel and spooned up to her warm butt.

Jake rode to school with Debbie in the Falcon Friday morning and Melissa took Angie in her Vette. Jake finally got to ask Debbie about her and Tiny. She said she couldn't explain the attraction but she was as hot for him as she was for Jake or Dad. She said the three of them were pretty much the only real men she knew. He asked her about what Cindy had said regarding Laurie. Debbie gave him a grin and told him that she had developed a taste for small girls and women who were a little submissive. She said she saw that in Laurie and Cindy but wasn't after Cindy because of him. Jake told her that Cindy might be interested and to go for it, but he wanted the dirty details. She laughed and said thanks. Jake told her about Ms. Chan; Debbie said she had been too keyed-up the day he was injured to notice but would check her out. His gang of desperados was waiting in the parking lot and they all walked in to school together, this time for companionship, not protection.

Joe J

Chapter 21