Chapter 4

Los Angles California...

It had been a busy week for George and D'Sandra. George had fallen in love with the GMC 5500 Topkick that Don and the girls had and he'd ordered one as soon as he returned home. Matt got word about a retired Police captain that had a big thirty eight foot Jayco fifth wheel travel trailer. He had bought it with plans to travel the country. He ended up using it one weekend when he'd pulled it to a campground in the mountains and his wife had refused to sleep in it. They had spent the night in a motel so now he was ready to dump the monster.

George and D took one look at it and asked him what his lowest price was. When he said twenty thousand George wrote him a check and drove the man to his bank before he could change his mind. George and Matt took the man's truck to the RV dealer where they took the hitch assembly and wiring harness out of his truck and mounted it on George's. Two hours later, George and Matt pulled up in front of D'Sandra's house.

D'Sandra had three people trying to buy her house which had been somewhat of a surprise. Kasey had gone through her new house and anything that George hadn't wanted and she and Dwain didn't need, had gone in with D's stuff and yesterday they'd had a yard sale to end all yard sales.

Matt found and bought another thirty eight foot fifth wheel similar to George's but nowhere as cheap. Matt donated his furniture to D's yard sale and moved his clothes and kitchen goods into his trailer and he was ready for the road. Matt's trailer, like George's, had four pull outs and, when they were all pulled out, it felt as big as his apartment had been. When it came time to find something to pull his wagon he had looked at a one ton pickup, but after seeing how George's rig handled the big trailers he changed his mind. That left the local GMC dealer scrambling to find what Matt wanted before they planned to leave.

George and D decided to just go to a justice of the peace to get married. That might have been alright if he hadn't said anything to Kiesha. Kiesha let him know right fast that, if he could wait all this time, he could hold off till he got to Texas. Keisha had left no doubt in his mind that he would face four very pissed off girls if he went through with his plan so George and D would live in sin until they got to Texas.

Last night was the last night for George and D to spend in her house. Actually they spent it in the new trailer sitting in front of her soon to be old house. At ten a.m. she would hand over the keys to a home that held many memories, very few of them happy. George had held her last night as the week's events caught up to her and said a silent prayer that all her days would be happy from now on, but he knew that couldn't happen. He wanted D's hurt to go away. Maybe, just maybe, leaving and starting again some place new, some place like Texas, would be just what she needed. West Texas ... George chuckled to himself. He could still hear the way Don would say the name "West Texas", Don would say, with the same reverence he used when speaking of Epona, his Goddess. West Texas would heal his beloved D, of that he was sure. He had only to get her there.

Matt pulled to a stop in front of D's house and found them chatting and drinking coffee with the house's new owners. D went in to the trailer and returned with a cup of coffee in a travel mug for Matt, "Here you go Matt."

Matt took the coffee and pulled D into a hug. After breaking the hug Matt put his arm around D's shoulder and they walked over to where George was sitting. "George, don't you think that you're too old and ugly to have such a beautiful wife?" Matt teased.

"Yes, I do, but she doesn't, thank heavens," George replied.

Matt noticed a group of people coming down the street on foot following a flat bed truck. When he turned and looked behind him there were even more. In the next fifteen minutes the street in front D's home filled. These were the people George had touched in his years in the community.

George could not help but be touched by this display. Unfortunately, to a passing LAPD helicopter on routine patrol it looked like trouble. The pilot radioed in that a large group of people had surrounded two fifth wheel travel trailers in the 'Hood' and for dispatch to send every available unit.

On the ground things were much calmer. D'Shawn Brown, the young man that had run into Matt's patrol car while going after help for George, walked up to where two of the men from the Car Club were setting up a public address system on the back of the flat bed. There was a high pitched squeal of feedback followed by a few taps on the microphone. One of the Car Club men nodded to a heavily tattooed young man wearing a bandana, "We are here because this is the last day in the neighbourhood for George, Matty B., and D. George, on behalf of everyone here, we all want to thank you for everything you've done. Matty B, what can I say but that you were always fair and we all respect that. D'Sandra, you have a very important job from now on, take care of George. Now D'Shawn Brown has a presentation he'd like to make.

The microphone was adjusted to D'Shawn's height as, in the distance, they could hear dozens of sirens. "George could you come up here please." George and D were helped up on the bed of the truck and D'Shawn opened the brown paper bag and removed a walnut plaque, "George we wanted to give you this," he turned the plaque around and in the centre was a gold plated sprocket from a bike with a small brass plate below it. "The writing says, 'To George Kowalski, the best friend a kid with a broken bike could ever want.'"

D'Shawn handed the plaque to George and urged him to the microphone, George was about to speak when the first black and white arrived. Much to the cops surprise the crowd parted and let him drive straight to the besieged travellers. "What's going on here?" the cop asked as he got out of his car very cautiously. Other black and whites were arriving and things were getting very tense.

The tattooed young man came forward shaking his head, "This is what's going, on," and handed the policeman several folded pieces of paper.

"Why this is a parade permit and a permit to block off the street for a send off for Matty B, George K, and a Mrs. K" The cop sensing they had really dropped the ball got on his radio and called in a 'Code Four' and asked why they hadn't been informed of the permit. No doubt some bureaucrat had been sitting on his ass when he should have been moving. That's when he saw Matt Bronson and remembered this had been the area where he had grown up. "Well folks I am very sorry we interrupted you. Please go on."

D'Shawn gave George a nudge, "Thank you, thank you all, this means a lot to me."

D'Shawn stepped down off the truck and a young woman took his place, "On behalf of all the single mothers that you have helped out by seeing to it we had good cars to get to work and back, we would like to give you this plaque that says you are the Best Friend a woman could have." Matt arched his eye brows drawing laughter from the crowd, "Not that kind of friend. Matty B. you're terrible," she was fanning herself as the embarrassment had made her blush.

George's eyes were misting up now and finding the right words was hard enough. Getting them out of his mouth was almost impossible, "Thank you. Thank you all. I'll miss all of you."

The young Tattooed man got up to the microphone, "That's all of the presentations. Now if everyone will take their place, we'll get George, D'Sandra, and Matty B on the road." Turning to George, "Be sure and tell the girls that we miss them, but we're glad they found what they were looking for."

People were lining the street on both sides, large paper signs had been brought out and were being rolled out and held up. The cop, seeing a good way to save face, walked up to Matt, "Where are you headed?"

"To I-10, we're spending the night in Banning." Matt replied.

The cop called that in and, quickly, the cars dispatched to quell the riot were reassigned as escort duty. George, D'Sandra and Matt had to shake some hands and hug a few necks, but slowly they were escorted to their trucks. D went in the trailer and secured the coffee pot after filling up a thermos for each truck. Finally they were ready to leave. The streets before them were lined with people. The first black and white on the scene turned his lights on and started down the street. Behind him were twenty five boys and girls on bicycles followed by George's Topkick and then Matt's.

The people were waving as George and Matt drove past. It really was a special send off. The police cars escorted them to the freeway and they were on the way to Texas. West Texas that is.

Santa Fe, New Mexico...

Jill Smithson walked out to the mailbox expecting the usual bills and junk mail. That's just what she found as she sorted through the half dozen envelopes until she came to two that were postmarked Ft. Stockton, Texas. She opened the smaller of the two first, and stared open mouthed. It was a wedding invitation but it didn't make sense. There were the names of the four girls she had met earlier in the summer and the names of two other girls but there was only one man's name. She quickly opened the other envelope, and found a letter.

Dear Jill,

If you opened the wedding invitation first you may be a little confused. We're real sorry about not keeping in touch but things have been very hectic here. We were driving through West Texas when the motor on the van gave out. There was a young man working on a fence nearby and he came to our rescue. Well, to make a long and very strange sounding story short, it turned out that he had been waiting for us for years.

He had a recurring dream in which, none other than our Rose, had told him to build a house and wait for us. I know what you're thinking but get this, he had drawn pictures of all of us plus two other girls. One of the girls, Missy, he knew but never let on to her what was happening. We asked her to join us as we saw how much she loved Don. We waited for the last girl to show up but it was very scary. Don had horrible nightmares about her. When she finally did show up, he was burned on his hands while getting her and her sisters and aunt out of a burning RV. You probably heard about it. She was one of the girls kidnapped from Las Vegas to be sold to a white slavery ring. So now there are six of us and on August the first, we are going to get married. It will not be a legal ceremony since the state of Texas frowns on having more than one wife, but we are having a ceremony and exchanging vows. Oh Jill, you will just love Don, Ann and Missy.

Please let us know if you can come. There is a good place to park your RV and that would be the best way to come. The ranch where we are getting married is a long way off the beaten path. I am enclosing a map and contact numbers but be warned, cell phones have poor coverage away from the towns and main highways. I have also enclosed a picture of the seven of us. Ann is on the far left and Missy the far right.

Love always Amber

Jill sat down in the grass staring at the picture. The first of August was just two weeks away. Jill pulled out her cell phone and called her husband and explained what was happening. She heard him laugh and then he told her to get packing. She hung up and did just that.

Ft. Worth, Texas...

Steve Johnson looked at the invitation that had arrived earlier that day. He remembered the poise and courage of the five young ladies. Especially Kiesha. Every time he thought back to the dressing down she had given him, all he could do was shake his head. He was convinced that his daughter could have that kind of strength, "Britney," Steve yelled up the stairs, "Brit come here a sec."

Britney came bounding the stairs, "What is it Dad?"

"Do you remember those girls I told you about?"

"Yes, Dad," Britney sighed, "I remember them, what about them?"

"They're getting married on the first of August and we've been invited. I want you to go with me because your mother will be in Chicago that weekend."

"Ohhhh Dad, I don't want to go. I don't even know them."

"Too bad, you're not staying here by yourself." Steve watched as his daughter slumped, "You're going, that's final."

"That's not fair." Britney stomped up the stairs to call her friend Denise and tell her what was going on. An hour later she went to the den where her Dad was watching TV, "Dad can Denise go with us?"