Chapter 51: New Relationships

Earth Day- Dec. 31, 1986 / Island Day 45

Darren POV:

Our East Coast ‘Clan’ had disconnected from JB, Max and Annie, but, we watched them until they decided to get some sleep. We were all very impressed with JB’s heartfelt speech to the Helgordes after engaging in some interesting sexual shenanigans!

Greg felt that sexual encounter may have a far more lasting effect on those Helgordes than even Maggie’s ‘push’ could! He said he had a ‘special feeling’ that Hassan and Maya, having been ‘intimate’ with JB and Annie, would have a profound aftereffect that he felt would greatly enhance the chances that JB’s message would be heeded.

When Monte asked him if he was serious, it was Ibera who grinned, “Believe it! I do. Do you realize, he’s had very accurate precognition since WAY before Charlie ever met Zeus!? It was one of the first psychic abilities he developed. It started the very day he and Charlie first realized they could talk telepathically!”

When Monte looked at Greg in amazement, Greg chuckled, “I just wish I could have foreseen myself screwing up and entering that wormhole late! For some reason, it doesn’t work when the only one involved is me.” Then he grinned, “I do foresee us all getting our asses chewed out! Our girls are probably getting anxious about us not being home yet.”

Joni, the athletically built blonde, who was Rex’s main girlfriend, giggled, “I think Greg’s right! You can thank me later for popping in on them to let them know you guys were running late! Linda said to let her know when we planned on joining them because they were headed to the bar to make sure we had enough seats!”

Monte and Rex tousled her hair and after kissing her lovingly, Monte said, “Darren, would you do the honors? She probably won’t be as mad at you!”

I chuckled, “Oh sure! Throw me under the bus!”

When I ‘summoned’ her she giggled playfully, “Hi Darren, I see YOU drew the short straw!? Tell all those slackers to teleport into that 15-passenger van we got from Lenny. All the windows are tinted dark, and its way in the back of the lot, so nobody will see you. Just don’t all pile into the front seat at once!”

It was comical when we all started arguing about who was going to sit where. There were only 10 of us! After successfully arriving in the van, we went inside. This bar was huge, but, we saw the rest of our Family had commandeered four big, high-top tables with plenty of empty chairs.

We caused quite a stir when everyone just had to hug and kiss everyone else in the Family! (And, some of those kisses were closer to ‘make-out’ sessions than friendly pecks!)

It took some time before we all had drinks ordered and found seats where we wanted. We knew we’d be switching places many times before the night was over.

I was sitting between Sarah and Charlene with Greg sitting between Charlene and Jamie. Linda, Rex and Joni were sitting next to Jamie. Across the table from us was Monte and Maggie, Ed and Gracie, Jeremy and Sheila and Bill and Emmy, with Bruce and Diane sitting on the ends.

Thankfully, even though the place was filling up, the crowd was still relatively quiet and we could hear each other talk without having to yell. I chuckled to myself when I noticed Linda and Jamie conspiring with each other. I knew things were going to get interesting when Jamie started right off, “So Greg, was Darren able to get you completely up to speed on everything?”

They both giggled when Greg leaned over to give me a wink then said, “Well, I don’t know if it was absolutely everything. But, let’s just say there shouldn’t be a heck of a lot that we can talk about that I wouldn’t know at least something about! It was hard to believe so much had happened in the time I was gone.”

Ed asked next, “So, you got to see everything that happened when we got back that day?”

“Yes I did. When I saw what happened to Sally, we had to stop for a bit. Bill and Emmy, I’m sorry I wasn’t there that day. It really tore me up when I saw how badly both of you felt and I wasn’t there to share my grief with you. You know that I loved her almost as much as you guys did, don’t you?”

Bill nodded, “I do, Greg. Even now, nearly 4 months later it’s still hard to talk about it. I’m just glad that Charlie and Bob, with Monte, Jeremy and Rex’s help, were able to assist Lenny and TJ to round up all those good for nothing bastards. And, make them pay for what they did.”

I could feel that Greg wanted to tell them more, that he obviously knew, but was glad he held back. He glanced at me a few times, wondering just how much more he could say.

I shook my head at him tightly, but added, “Greg got to see for himself, that the ones that were truly behind everything are paying dearly for it now.”

I could see Greg squirm a bit, trying to figure out if there was any more we could really tell them. I was regretting that I didn’t take the time to explain to him that he actually knew way more than anyone else, with the exception of Linda.

I could feel him send a private message at me, “Jeez Darren, how could I ever tell them that the head honcho, E Norm, is now actually being treated like a king?”

“That’s just it Buddy, you can’t! Welcome to my world. I just hope like hell we can change the subject to something that is not so hard for us to keep quiet about.”

“I hear you!” He finished, then noticed that many at our table were now looking at him, wondering if he was going to say something more.

Thankfully, my lovely Sarah came to our rescue, “So Greg, did Darren show you how Linda, Bob, Charlie and Mary first came to meet my cousin, Charlene?”

“Yes he did. I thought it was funny as hell when I saw how that one douche bag builder tried, unsuccessfully, to sell Charlie an overpriced piece of real estate. It was even better when I got to see what Darren and Maggie did to both him and that crooked asshole down at City Hall when they tried to stop you guys from building!”

When everyone at the table started laughing, I felt good that Linda must have filled all of them in on exactly what happened that day. For a second there, though, I was wondering what I was going to have to do to stop Greg from saying things, he probably shouldn’t have.

Greg was still being hugged by both Jamie and Charlene when Linda said, “Now you know why we have all come to love Darren so much, don’t you?”

Greg chortled, “Oh heck yes! Y’all wouldn’t believe just how close the two of us have become. Did he ever tell you girls, just how nervous he was about what Charlie, Bob and Mary might think of him when they return?”

Sarah gave me a big hug and said, “That he has. Hopefully, you were more successful than I have been in assuring him that he’s really one of the family now?”

I grinned appreciatively at Greg before turning and giving Sarah a loving kiss. “It wasn’t that I didn’t believe you and Linda, sweetheart. But, I really needed to hear it from somebody like Greg, since I obviously won’t see Bob and Charlie until ... they get back.”

This was the first time I can honestly say I really felt like one of the family. Just the expressions on everyone’s faces were testament to their true feelings about me. I gave Sarah another hug when she grinned at me with that ‘I told you so’, look on her face.

Just then, our waitress came over and asked if we wanted anything to eat.

We all told her we were starving, so she brought us over some menus. Their appetizer menu was extensive, so other than a few of us ordering burgers and fries, we ordered at least two of nearly everything on the appetizer menu. She also took our orders for refills on our drinks.

That’s when I started to think that this was going to get expensive.

When the waitress asked if we wanted to start a tab, Bill got up and handed her his American Express Platinum card. “Here you go my dear, this should take care of it!”

The girl’s eyes lit up and she grinned at him, “Thank you sir, it certainly will!”

I knew with 18 of us our bill could easily exceed $2000 or more. Especially with the way we all were drinking. That feeling of being a sponge started coming over me again when I realized that nobody else at the table even gave it a second thought.

Again, I could feel Sarah giggling, “That’s right Darren, you’re part of the family now, so just accept that you no longer have to live and act like a pauper!” She flashed me in ‘private mode’, so as not to embarrass me.

“Aaargh, I know, but this is just going to take me some time getting used to, okay?”

While we were waiting for our food, many different ‘everyday’ conversations broke out between the various people sitting closest to each other.

I finally relaxed and sat back in my seat. I was just relishing the chance to look around, watching all the different people doing their own thing.

That’s when I noticed six younger people being seated at a large, round, high-top table, across from us. I noticed there were four guys and two girls when it dawned on me that I’d seen them before.

Sarah and Charlene grinned at me, then pointed at them.

Sarah said, “Hey guys, aren’t they the ones that are going to build our house?”

When Sarah, Charlene and I waved at them, I noticed Linda looking away, trying to hide her face. Charlene got up and went over to them, “I’m sorry to disturb you, but, aren’t the six of you the two crews that are going to be building our house?”

Our crew chief, a burly guy named Jim, chuckled, “Oh hey, hi there! I thought I recognized some of you? Is that your whole family sitting at that table there?” He said while pointing over at our table.

By then, Sarah, Jamie and Greg had also gotten up and come over. Sarah smiled at him, along with everyone else at the table, then said, “Just about! There’s only three of us missing, and they’re all ... out of town right now.” She hesitated, before continuing, “Are you still planning on coming out and getting started this coming Monday?”

The cute, tall, athletic brunette, named Marty, giggled, then said, “We certainly are! Since today was the last day we had to work at Sun City, we decided to come out and celebrate. We’re really looking forward to being on our own and working on just your project.”

The slightly shorter, but equally cute, athletic blond, who we later discovered was named Wendy added, “You wouldn’t believe some of the grief that different guys have been giving us for the last week or so. Some of those clowns even complained to Craig, our boss, thinking that they should be on our two crews, instead of me and Marty.”

The guy sitting next to Wendy put his arm around her, then said to us, emphatically, “And we wouldn’t want any of them, since our Wendy and Marty work circles around any four of them! Ain’t no way anyone is breaking up the six of us!” He chuckled, “I guess you could say, we’re a package deal!”

“I’m glad to hear that.” I said pointing back at our table, then suggested, “Maybe we should introduce ourselves to each other so we don’t have to say ‘hey you’ all the time? I’m sorry to admit, that I don’t remember all of your names?”

Jim, their lead guy, went around their table and told us what each of their names were by putting his hands on each of their shoulders. We discovered that the slightly shorter, wiry guy sitting next to Marty was Jay, while the bigger guy who still had his arm around Wendy was Roger and finally, the quiet guy, sitting between Roger and Jay was Glenn. I found it interesting the way each one of them smiled at Jim the second he put his hands on their shoulders.

Where some would think he had invaded their space, it was apparent to me these six people were very close friends.

I took the lead and went around our table, introducing everyone the same way that Jim had introduced his people. When I came to Linda, I felt her tense up. I flashed her, “What’s up Linda, don’t you like these people?”

Thankfully, because Sarah had been in my head all along, she alerted everyone that we needed to be on broadcast mode. She felt that everyone should hear what we were thinking to each other.

And now, I was glad that she’d done that.

Greg told her, “Linda, sweetie, when you’re in your Angel disguise, your face looks a little different than it does in person. Relax, and if she does say anything, just giggle and tell her that once she gets to know you better, she’ll realize that you’re certainly no angel!”

That made her laugh, along with most of the people at our table. It was the perfect thing to say and I could tell that she relaxed immediately. She even made a point to turn and smile at all of our new friends.

I probably shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t help but get inside Marty’s head because I was just dying to know what she really was thinking.

Dayum, if she wasn’t really thinking that we were just like they were! Meaning, all like one, big, loving family. I got out of her head quickly, as I didn’t want to make her feel weird. She definitely wasn’t thinking that Linda could have been her Angel.

After some lighthearted bantering, and the fact that our food arrived, everyone went back to what they were doing.

Just as Sarah was putting a jalapeno popper into my mouth for me, she giggled, “I know what you just did to Marty, you naughty boy. Did you learn anything interesting?”

“Oh yeah, she was thinking we are just like they are! I think they’re a polyamorous Family just like us!”

I could feel many at our table snickering, when Maggie giggled, “I think I may have taught him too well! I must confess, I did the same thing to that hunky guy named Roger, only for a slightly different reason. I think we’re going to have to come around a little bit more often, since I have a feeling the six of them are exactly like the 18 of us!”

We decided to stay in ‘broadcast mode’, to keep our conversations a secret. We all agreed we didn’t want to do or say anything that would make our new friends self-conscious.

Besides that, it’s a hell of a lot easier to talk this way and stuff our mouths at the same time!

I must say, our waitress was doing a great job of taking care of us. She had cleared away all of our empty plates and platters and politely checked to see if we wanted anything else. We were all getting full, so we just ordered another round of drinks.

It was coming up on 10:30 at night.

Most of the people who’d just come in to eat had gone home and the ones who just wanted to drink and party until midnight, were taking their places.

It looked like our six new friends were planning to hang out until midnight, just like us.

Maybe it was just me, but I swear some of our new friends were actually flirting with us!

I was glad that Linda had lightened up and was now grinning and winking at the wiry guy, named Jay. I grinned at Wendy a few times and I noticed she blushed just a bit, but made a point to grin back at me. Maggie was definitely flirting with both Jim and Roger and at one point she had both of them blushing.

There was nothing serious, and I could tell that everybody was just having fun.

Suddenly, I felt Maggie tense up.

She flashed, “Something is going on guys! Jim just tensed up like he was afraid something bad was about to happen.”

We all looked around when I noticed eight scruffy, surly looking dudes heading straight for our friends’ table. There weren’t any open tables anywhere in that direction, so it wasn’t like they were just going to an empty table.

Monte, Rex, Bruce, Greg and I were watching them like a hawk. Jeremy, Ed and Bill looked nervous and asked what we were thinking about doing.

Monte let out a long sigh, “I don’t know yet, let’s just see what these eight idiots do. I really don’t want to do any ‘Invisible Man’ kind of stuff if we don’t have to. But, I’m also not going to just sit here and let any of them lay a hand on our friends! Jim’s not the only one sending out anxious vibes. I’m getting it from all six of them now.”

We watched Jim stand up and he and Roger took a few steps away from their table to intercept them before they could get too close.

The lead guy, a big, muscle bound dude grinned menacingly, “Hey Dim Jim, you ass-kissin’ cocksucker, why don’t you take your band of pussies and let us have your table!? We just talked Craig into letting US have that big project and he said he was going to let you pansies go!” He laughed condescendingly.

Jim looked him in the eye and scoffed, “You’re so full of shit Jake, your breath smells like an outhouse! Why don’t you guys just leave before you cause a scene?”

Suddenly, everything seemed to go into slow motion.

Jake tried to sucker-punch Jim with a haymaker.

Unfortunately for the big idiot, Monte had turned around and intercepted his punch mid-swing with his big hand! We all heard bones breaking like he’d hit a brick wall. We heard more bones crunching as Monte had now stood up and was crushing the guy’s hand like it was caught in a vice.

Jim had ducked, but then his eyes went wide, seeing his tormentor’s eyes pop out of his head in bewildered terror ... and PAIN.

Jake’s seven buddies were stunned and one of them yelled, “Hey asshole, what did you do to our crew chief!???

Monte winked at Jim then said, “NOTHING? I just didn’t want ‘big mouth’ hitting my friend, Jim!”

Jake was now screaming in pain, holding his obviously broken arm and fingers, with tears streaming down his face. “You broke my fucking arm, you big asshole! Who the fuck do you think you are!? We’re going to kill you!”

Monte then smashed his face in with the heal of his hand, sending the fool flying backwards into his buddies like a bowling ball hitting the pins! We heard some snickers coming from our new friends, just as a cop came over, looking down at the eight dumbasses scattered on the floor.

He shook his head, trying to hold back a chuckle, then looked at Monte and Jim, “What’s going on here?”

Before anyone could answer, he looked down at the dazed, profusely bleeding jerk, disgustedly, “Finally came up against somebody tougher than you, eh Jake? I just received a call from Robertson construction that eight guys had just mugged and beaten the owner, Craig Robertson and he had to be rushed to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. You and your cohorts here match the description, and witnesses said you were headed this way. GET UP, ALL OF YOU! YOU’RE ALL UNDER ARREST.”

By then, several more cops had joined him, putting handcuffs on all eight of them before leading them away.

The cop then chuckled, “Is everyone here okay?”

Jim chuckled, now joined by all of his friends, “Oh yeah!”

He then grinned at Monte, “Did he get any blood on your hand? Remind me to never to piss you off, okay!? I thought he was going to kill me. I still can’t believe you caught his punch like it was a ping pong ball!”

Marty came over and smiled at the cop, “You should have seen it! Mr Monte didn’t even flinch and moved like lightning! Those guys have been threatening all of us for weeks. They’re all pissed off because we got this big project building these nice people’s huge house out in southern Chandler.” She said, pointing at our table.

The cop looked amused, “Are ALL of you going to live there!?”

Greg just smiled, “Eventually! We have three big fifth-wheel trailers on our site right now, so, some of them still live in Washington, D.C. They’re just out here to celebrate the holidays with us!”

The cop extended his hand to shake with Monte, “My name is Sherriff Joe Harpo. I saw you in action just as I came in. Like Jim, I couldn’t believe what you did, either. Have you had any training?”

Monte smiled, “Not professionally, but I DID as a Marine!”

Sherriff Joe hollered, “Semper Fi.” As he pulled up his sleeve. Revealing a Marine tattoo.

Monte grinned, “Ooh Ra”, as he rolled up his sleeve revealing his Special Forces tattoo.

Another cop, who’d been with Joe, smirked, “Oh Jesus, we’re gonna be here all night now, swapping ‘war’ stories!

Sherriff Joe chuckled, shaking his head, “Pipe down, Deputy Al, we still need to go to the hospital to ascertain whether or not the charges against those guys go to murder or stay aggravated assault.”

Then he looked at Monte, “Is your site the one on Gilbert road, just north of Riggs?”

Monte nodded, “You’ve seen it?”

“Oh yeah, I was wondering what all those trailers were doing there, so I’ve been checking the place out. I guess now I know! Maybe we can resume our conversation some other time?”

“I’d love to, but, I’m one of those people who will be returning to DC Sunday night. I’m sure the rest of the Family would be glad to get to know you better?”

His expression changed to one of confusion, “Family?”

I chuckled, “It’s a long story ... perhaps if you come out to visit we can talk about it over a pot of coffee?” I chuckled, “I’ll even pop out and get us some donuts!?”

Joe laughed, “I’ll do that! Oh, and I like the ones with sprinkles!”

That broke everyone up as Joe and his Deputy started to mosey out of the bar.

Linda hollered, “Oh, hey Sherriff? What hospital is Mr Robertson in?”

He looked back, thoughtfully, “Chandler Regional, on Dobson Road.”

“Thanks, some of us might go and visit him.”

Sherriff Joe sighed, “Well, right now I think he’s in the Intensive Care Unit, so, I don’t know if they’ll let all of you in or not?”

Linda sighed back, “I understand. Thanks anyway?”

Joe nodded, then he and his Deputy left the bar.

Linda flashed, “I HAVE to go and see if I can help him! Maybe you guys can invite our new friends over here to join us and keep them distracted until I get back? That’s the same hospital Marty and Wendy were in, so I know exactly where it is and can pop straight there.”

Greg looked concerned, “I don’t think you should go alone. Would you like ... Darren and/or me to go with you? You know, just in case you need backup?”

She gave him a cute, knowing look, “I think I can handle it. There’s not a lot of room and I don’t want to accidentally bump into each other. Besides, I want you guys to help distract those two girls so they don’t suspect anything?”

Jamie raised one eyebrow, “How about me? They did say he might have a head injury. Perhaps I could help?”

Linda grinned, “Cool! Come on sister, let’s do this!” She said very enthusiastically, “I thought you’d never ask!”

Greg chuckled, “You’re not afraid the two of you will bump into each other?”

Jamie giggled, “Hey bucko, this isn’t our first rodeo. We got this!” She paused, then said out loud, “Excuse us, we’re going to the ‘powder’ room!”

She was looking at our new friends when she said it.

Greg and I knew that was ‘code’ for going to the lady’s room so they could ‘disappear’ without anyone seeing them.

We invited the six of them to join us. They were hesitant, saying they felt they needed to go and see how Craig was doing.

Emmy told them, “Look, if he’s in the ICU, you’’ll only be allowed in the waiting room. You could be stuck in there for hours. Why don’t you join us, then, after midnight, maybe some of us will go with you?”

I added, “Many of us have met Craig and we understand how you feel. It’s only an hour till midnight!”

We made room as they grabbed their chairs and joined us. I was glad they took our hint and intermingled with us instead of all sitting as their own group.

Most of the conversation was about Craig...

Linda POV: Chandler Regional Hospital, Chandler, AZ

Since we figured it’d be safer for me to go in alone fist, I teleported in prone and about 4 feet above Craig. Then Jamie popped in right next to me.

We wanted to see what shape he was in, hoping maybe we wouldn’t need to do anything until they took him to the recovery area. There wouldn’t be so many people around there, making it much easier for us.

There wasn’t a lot of blood, but his face looked like he’d been hit by a truck. There were many x-ray pictures on a big light-board and they were talking about a possible skull fracture and severe damage to his neck and spine.

He also had a dislocated knee, both arms were broken and several fractured ribs. They were trying to decide whether to treat his head injuries first or the broken ribs, one of which might have punctured a lung.

Suddenly, an alarm went off and we heard a nurse yell, “Code Blue! Get the paddles!”

Jamie and I got ready and when the paddles didn’t immediately restart his heart, we activated our Angel disguises and asked everyone to please get out of our way.

They were looking at us in shock until the doctor yelled, “Oh Boy, I’ve seen this a few months ago! Get out of their way, they may be the only ones who can save him now!”

Amidst murmurs of ‘Wow, they’re here again!” And, “I don’t believe it!” We descended to the ground.

Jamie put both of her hands on his head while I put one hand on his chest and another on his upper thigh.

A tense silence fell on the room as they all watched Craig start breathing again and his wounds slowly started disappearing.

Jamie said his head was getting very warm, meaning he’d sustained massive brain damage. I told her I was glad she came, since I could tell he was also in bad shape everywhere else on his whole body.

He was actually in much worse shape than Wendy and Marty had been in. Those eight assholes HAD to have been trying to kill him!

I had gotten used to victims being completely healed in less than two or three minutes. With Mister Robertson, however, it had taken over five minutes before his eyes even opened. Then another two before I saw him smile and begin moaning, signaling his happy ending was on the way.

That also showed me, just how injured he really had been. I really had to stifle a giggle when he had the most intense, longest lasting happy ending I ever had the pleasure in delivering. It lasted more than 30 seconds and anyone who didn’t know better, might have thought he was actually in severe pain.

Unless that is, you were watching the expression on his face.

Both Jamie and I were smiling down on him when he said, “Oh my God, I’ve never felt anything that good since I was a teenager! I must confess, when Marty and Wendy told me how they were healed by Angels, after they were shot, I didn’t really believe them. I’m going to be eating those words for the rest of my life! You two Angels are the most beautiful creatures I have ever seen. Thank you from the bottom of my heart! I think I’m going to have to go to church Sunday and thank God for sending you!”

I had to wonder if anyone noticed my face blushing. I just smiled at him and said, “You are a good, honest man Craig Robertson. Don’t feel bad about not believing what you were told about angels, because ... we get that a lot!”

I giggled, “Now, before we go, I need to ask you a question. Prior to today, were you a diabetic?”

I could tell the question caught him off guard, as he thought for a second then said, “Actually, yes I am a diabetic. I’ve been taking insulin every day since I was just a young boy. Why do you ask?”

“Because, when we heal someone, we heal everything that was wrong with their bodies.” Then I looked at the doctors and said, “My friend and I are not doctors, so even though Mister Robertson may tell you he feels fine, you should still check him out, especially about his diabetes. It wouldn’t do for him to go into shock by giving himself an insulin shot when he no longer needed it. One of the people I healed, I forgot to ask about that and he nearly died when he accidentally gave himself an unneeded injection.”

The doctor smiled and nodded, then said, “I see that Mister Robertson is already able to move both of his hands and his feet. Based on his x-rays, I was afraid he was going to be a quadriplegic. What you’ve done is absolutely miraculous.” He chuckled, adding, “Are you the same Angels that healed those two ladies who had been shot?”

I smiled, shaking my head, “No, while there aren’t many of us, because of Mister Robertson’s head injuries, I had to bring a specialist with me. Her specialty is all matters of the head and brain. I must tell you, this man was closer to death than anyone we’ve healed so far, except one. And, we weren’t able to heal him, as he had been dead just a little bit too long. You see, we cannot bring someone back from the dead, nor can we extend the life of anyone who is dying of old age.”