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ANTHONY AND JOSHUA who were in the golf cart, had decided during the middle of the firefight directly after Humberto’s impassioned but slightly corny speech, that enough was enough. They’d literally run into each other racing for the same passageway in the second master bedroom. After picking themselves up off the floor, they attempted to save face by saying they were reloading, but then they both realized neither of them had weapons. They’d both had dropped their guns after firing them. Anthony let go of his because it made a much louder noise than expected, and Joshua dropped his because when he shot it, the damn thing’s bullet ricocheted off a doorway and nearly killed him.
Anthony had looked at Joshua, raised his arms, and said, “Fuck it, I want out. I’m an analyzer, not some gunslinger. I believe I can do a much better job outside, analyzing the situation, gathering data from the perimeter, and relaying that information back to our team inside. I can’t believe we didn’t have someone on the outside.”
While Anthony was giving this logical speech, Joshua had sprung open the passageway and was halfway down the stairs. Joshua was mentally going over the map of tunnels and where they popped up. He knew there were tunnels under some rooms of this house, in another house not to far from here, and others in the desert. He was trying to think of the tunnel exits that ended at a house, with air conditioning, and a fully stocked bar and refrigerator. Joshua came to a fork in the tunnel and was trying to get his bearings when Anthony knocked him down for the second time.
“Damn it, Gnau, watch where you are going. I don’t need a broken leg or arm after surviving that chaos upstairs.”
“Sorry, just trying to catch up,” Anthony puffed. “Do you know where you are going? I’m not too sure of my way around down here.”
“If we keep heading north, away from the house, I think we should be okay.”
* * *
“SO AFTER FINDING, HARPO, why didn’t you go inside?” asked Danny
Joshua whose face and neck were a healthy shade of pink turning to a nasty red, snapped, “We saw a golf cart and nothing but desert and more desert, that’s why. This house is invisible or haven’t you noticed it’s not noticeable? We jumped into the golf cart figuring a house was somewhere nearby. We didn’t know it was parked just outside of a house. We’ve been circling around for what seems like forever. Then you jump out from behind a cactus, and nearly give us a heart attack.”
Melissa opened the front door and hissed to the men,” We’ve got company,” and jerked her head to the side.
Danny pointed to Joshua and Anthony and told Melissa, “Yes, we were just so relieved they are alive. When Humberto said we had lost Joshua and Anthony, we assumed the worst. Kevin and I were just getting their story. Oh My God, what horrible people we are. Please come and get something to drink. You’ve been driving out in the hot sun for who knows how long,” Danny said started to guide Anthony and Joshua into the house.
Kevin was slightly quicker than Danny at recognizing and interpreting Melissa’s signals, not to mention picking up on the obvious in general. He looked beyond Joshua and Anthony to where Melissa had indicated with her head. A dust cloud was coming toward them at a slow rate of speed. It appeared to be another golf cart. It looked like one of their specially designed desert golf carts. Kevin spun around and pushed Joshua, Anthony and Danny into the house. Melissa had already grabbed a rifle and had it at the ready.
When the dust settled, a man stepped from the golf cart and shouted at the house. “I saw you guys go in. Is this the way you treat an old friend?”
“Bond, is that you?” Kevin asked with his nose pressed up against the picture window.
“Hey, that is Bond?” Danny shouted through the glass, while waving madly until he realized no one from the outside could see in.
Melissa grabbed Kevin’s collar as he went to let Bond in. “Honey, just hang on for a minute. There are a few questions we have to ask ourselves before we let him in.”
“But it’s Bond. He’s one of us.”
“Okay, if he is one of us,” Melissa answered while ticking off points on her fingers, “why didn’t we tell him where we moved to? How did he find us? And more importantly, why did he choose now to suddenly visit?”
Kevin paused. “Well, those are excellent questions. It’s a good thing one of us has a brain that still functions. Thanks, hon,” he said and drew Melissa close to give her a hug and a kiss. “That is one of the reasons that I love you, babe. You ground me and bring me back to reality.
Danny turned and looked at Maggie who told him, “Don’t look at me for a reality check, sweetie. I’m usually several boxcars ahead of you on the irrational express.”
“Looks like we about to receive a call,” Kevin announced.
Bond had waved in the direction of the house, took out a cell phone, pointed at it, looked in their general direction, and waved. Kevin’s cell phone rang.
“Bond? What? Everybody, who? Are you positive? Don’t fuck with me. I’ve, I mean, we’ve had a fucking long day.” Kevin furiously rubbed his forehead where he used to have a scar. “When did he?”
Danny dug into his pocket and waved a bill over his head. “I’ve got $20 that says where comes up in the next 10 seconds.”
“They are all where? How did he? Fuck, we are so mother fuckingly screwed.”
Danny stopped in mid-gloat when Kevin turned white and uttered that they had been screwed.
Melissa took the phone from Kevin’s hand and listened. “He hung up.” Grabbing Kevin’s shoulder’s, Mellissa turned him slowly to face her, and softly asked,” Kev, what is it? Babe?”
“Millwood.”
“What about Millwood, Kevin?” asked Danny, suddenly feeling weak in the knees.
“He, he’s at our house.”
“Our house?”
Kevin started to giggle as the lyrics to Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young’s song suddenly popped into his head. “Yes, it’s a very, very, very fine house.”
Danny hung his head, and put his arm around Melissa’s waist and squeezed. “I’m sorry, I knew it would happen to one of us, I just assumed it would be me. Kevin’s gone completely around the bend.”
Before Melissa could respond, Danny shouted and pointed toward the picture window. Kevin had slipped outside. The rest of them en masse shot over to the picture window. It looked like Kevin was confronting Bond. There was a lot of hand and arm waving from both parties. Then only Bond was talking as, Kevin paced back and forth in front of the golf cart. At one point, Kevin kicked one of the front tires of the cart. Apparently, the tires on Harpo the golf cart were incredibly resistant to kicking as Kevin immediately hopped around on one foot and then sat down on Harpo, making some very expressive facial expressions. Bond placed a hand on Kevin’s shoulder and said something. Kevin looked up and burst out laughing. Bond helped Kevin up, and they walked and limped into the house as those inside watched curiously.