Chapter 6

The pawn shop, thankfully, sold plenty of firearms as well as pawning other items, which came in handy in this case, as David fully intended to have his group reasonably well-armed. First, though, he had to unload whatever he could part with at that time, which was mostly stuff like his grandfather’s golf clubs and his mother’s tennis racquet. Now an orphan, he didn’t wish to keep any ties to the past or to New Jersey if he could avoid it, even if he was sentimental about heirlooms under normal circumstances. He would be able to pass things down to his children, but only if he survived, and for that, he needed practical supplies, not trinkets, even those associated with departed loved ones.

“State law requires payment of a waiver fee in order to waive the usual background checks, sir. That will be sixty dollars, in addition to the four hundred for the two rifles, three hundred for the handguns, and two hundred forty for the ammunition. That’s a thousand dollars, plus sales tax, which brings us to one thousand fifty-two and thirty-four cents. Deal?” the proprietor, a rather petite woman with a nasal voice, offered David, who nodded.

“Done. Here you go,” David paid up, grateful that it wasn’t more than that, especially with meals not being free and tattoos being on everyone’s mind that day.

That wasn’t even counting the price of gasoline, of course. That didn’t come cheap when it had to be moved overland through dangerous road conditions and highway robbery, or else shipped in from Europe. The days of bustling interstate commerce along federal highways were long gone. Business only boomed in certain areas, where law and order were present, and even then, there were serious shortages of whatever wasn’t local. People adapted, but life had changed for sure. So far, the GSA had allowed the market to discourage too much driving by letting prices creep upward, which was just another reason to leave the Garden State from David’s perspective. At least in the open, untamed areas, he could snatch whatever fuel wasn’t in use and not pay steadily rising gasoline prices for it.

“Alright, boys and girls, let’s hit the road again. We need to make it to some sort of restaurant or whatever soon, as I imagine that we’re all quite hungry. After that, well, it’s the tattoo parlor, and then I think that we can leave town at last and hit the highway,” David declared as he filled up the pump, paying an exorbitant five dollars per gallon, but glad to be fueled up at least.

“Well, there’s Hammerhead Bar and Grill, if you want to go there. I don’t think that they card people anymore, so even Denise can have a few drinks. We would just need a designated driver. Then again, given that we’re about to get inked, maybe the idea of getting drunk isn’t the best one,” Melanie laughed as she suggested a favorite watering hole.

“I like that idea. Hammerhead’s it is, and only three drinks maximum for each of us. Only one for me, though. I’m going to be designated driver this first time, because I’m the leader and I must lead by example and look after my group. Let’s go!” David smiled as he took the bus over to the aforementioned tavern.

Stepping off the bus, David held Denise particularly close, as she remained his sentimental favorite and he wanted to protect his youngest and most petite lover of all. Denise basked in her uncle’s obvious affection, naturally, feeling very mushy emotions since giving her body to him. The way that he doted on her didn’t hurt in the least. It wasn’t that he failed to spoil his other ladies, but it was that he showed her special attention and favor at every turn.

Denise honestly liked Uncle David already and had for a long time, but lately, he was just ... amazing! It was clear that there was at least a crush, if not a stronger attachment and bond between uncle and niece at work there. This was just what she had observed from that single day and the night before, but it was a lasting impression that would strengthen the young lady’s infatuation with her uncle in the days that followed.

“Hey, stud, what do we have here? Are you the leader? They seem to defer to you,” the waitress, whose nametag read “Salome,” turned to David, truly curious about him.

“You could say that. I’m David. This here is my niece, Denise. That’s my friend Jenny, who used to be my banker ... with benefits. This here is Amanda Shapiro, who just left her husband to join us, and this is Melanie and Kyle Brewster. Melanie is an ordained Unitarian minister, a notary public, and apparently, a ‘hot wife’ in a dominant role with her husband, who doesn’t seem to mind. Kyle’s a lawyer, actually. We’re basically sharing these women, Kyle and I, but it’s not an equal partnership. I’m the boss of the group, but Melanie as noted is the boss of their marriage and he does stud duty whenever the ladies ask it of him,” David told Salome, even as he decided on what to drink.

“Well, I’m Salome Peroni. Long story. Indian mother, Italian father. She was his ... goomar, if you know what I mean. I was pretty well treated overall, though. Grew up Hindu, since there was nothing to stop Mom from pulling that off, but she wasn’t exactly a traditional type, not entirely. So, you like what you see, Mr. Stud? Got room for one more? Pity it’s not two more, but Mom and Dad were killed in Manhattan by the fireball there,” Salome made her intentions plain as day.

“My condolences, Salome. Sincerely. I’ll have a Guinness, plus beer-battered fish and chips, with a coleslaw on the side,” David smiled at her, “plus I would like a certain waitress to tag along. Don’t you agree, guys?”

“Hell, yeah!” Denise visibly ogled the waitress.

“In that case, I’ll leave with you as soon as you pay up and tip me, as I have no reason to finish my last shift, do I? What do I have to worry about, bad references? You’re leaving Jersey for good, aren’t you? Count me in!” Salome turned to the rest, “And you guys?”

“My niece will have the hoagie with prosciutto, salami, provolone, spinach, lettuce, tomato, green peppers, onions, mushrooms, olives, and oil and vinegar,” David ordered for Denise, “and for a side, she’ll have a plate of fried zucchini. To drink, give her some cranberry wine. We don’t want to start her off on cocktails and hard drinks just yet.”

“Chaplin’s Cranberry, perhaps?” Salome suggested.

“That will do, yes. For Amanda, since she’s breaking free of kashrut law and all that jazz, let’s give her a Western-style bacon cheeseburger with red onions and BBQ sauce, served medium, of course, and a side of home fries with plenty of ranch dressing to dip. A good thing that we live in the ‘Garden State, ‘ huh? One thing that I’ll miss for sure, the ready supply of a lot of different fruits and vegetables, of course. To drink, a shandy, in fact. I think that would be up her alley,” David ordered for Amanda as well, making her feel proud to be so chosen.

“And me?” Jenny challenged David with a wink.

“That’s easy. Philly cheesesteak with a pepper mayo and extra banana peppers. Nachos on the side with a spinach queso dip, too. You know, I really dread once the shortages start to hit even harder. Foods like this will be much harder to come by. We’re lucky that so much food is stored and frozen. When that runs out, some things will be even tougher. Then again, we’ll be on the road and dealing with even crazier things, I imagine,” David noted, “For her to drink, I’ll go with a draft beer with lime, in fact.”

“Another reason not to stick around. I want to remember Jersey as I’ve known her all my life,” Melanie quipped, “For me, I want a black bean soup with onions and bell peppers, along with some rye bread, washed down by a Tom Collins. For my hubby here, he’ll have a patty melt using Muenster cheese, grilled onions, and a spicy mustard. For the side, onion rings. For his drink, give him a wheat ale, of course. Yes, I’m ordering his meals from now on, just as a reminder that I wear the pants in my marriage, though David outranks both of us. By the way, I’ll make sure that he gives you plenty of dick soon, trust me.”

“Yummy. Between him, David, and any of you ladies who might be into girls, well, you get the idea. By the way, don’t worry about anything that I might need to take with me. I don’t need a thing. Just the clothes on my back, the tips that I’ll get tonight, the open road, the generosity of those in my company, and the warm bodies of said companions, too. I get the distinct impression that you’ve planned plenty for all of us, David. You seem like a real winner, and I don’t mean that sarcastically. I want to tag along, take a million pictures, take whatever food is up for grabs and safe to eat, see what’s happened to America since Doomsday, maybe help some people who need it, and fuck like jackrabbits!

“I want to live my life! Fuck what happens back here! That’s the past for me. My future is with you! My boyfriend, well, he’s also my boss, but I’m done with him and this place! He would never leave Jersey, and that’s a dealbreaker for me! My roommate is a goomar. She’ll be fine,” Salome assured him of her firm intentions to join them and not even go back for her stuff, “She can keep, sell, or pawn anything that I leave behind, anyway.”

“He’s your boss? Won’t he get jealous and kick us out?” David wondered aloud.

“He’ll get jealous, sure, but he won’t kick you out before you’ve eaten. It’s still good money and that he loves. Yes, I’ve been faithful to him, but it hasn’t been easy at times. More than a few Mafiosi have come in and made moves on me, but I’ve held firm and they didn’t retaliate, because they respected my loyalty to my man. Other guys have hit on me, too, but in the past, I always turned them. It’s only because my boyfriend is very into monogamy. I’m not, but I’ve loved him too much to leave or cheat. That’s over now. I’m done with living my life on his terms and trying to be someone who I’m not. I will go with you and I’ll be available to any of you who want me. Do whatever you want with my body.

“I was born to be a slut. Now I’m free to be that at last. No more monogamy for me! It’s best for me and for my beau, because he needs a wife that can be faithful to him, and I know that a marriage proposal would be coming soon. Best to take a leap of faith and leave now before he can pop the question,” Salome explained, “He doesn’t know the real me. My birth name is Priya. I chose the name ‘Salome’ because of the character in the Bible, because I related to her fondness for older men.”