Page 15 of Snow Blind (The Technicians #14)

J arius "The Mustang " Neary learned two very important lessons on being a husband, all in one day. The first lesson was that he didn't understand "wife speak." He completely missed the cue when he was asked the previous day if the vehicle needed to be loaded prior to departure the next morning. In the brisk cold of the morning, when he thought he would be sticking in two suitcases, he found himself lowering the rear seats of the SUV in order to load in four large storage tubs. Being the smart man that he was, he refused to lower himself by asking his wife about the contents of the heavy ass containers, which would undoubtedly alter the amount of fuel to be used for a two-hour trip. His brain also felt fuzzy after he loaded in his suitcase that by airline standards was the ideal weight, versus the one his wife had with a matching cosmetic case and flowery carry-on bag. He also couldn't understand why the suitcase had a cup holder and weighed enough to safely carry a small child.

"Do you have everything?" Mustang asked, looking at his wife. To his shocked face, she actually went back inside the home for a walkthrough and came out with more items in her hand.

The second lesson he learned about being a husband was that all the items loaded into the vehicle had to be unloaded when they arrived at their destination, meaning he would need to help remove the contents of the tubs. He’d missed the memo on that portion because as soon as they reached Louisville and the vehicle was parked at Helen's double wide manufactured home, his father and brother were waiting for him. Both seemed shocked to see Helen climb from the vehicle, but her brother-in-law was extra happy to see her.

"Helen," Slow said, actually pulling her into a hug. He squeezed her so tightly, she knew there would be bruising.

"Michael, Mark, good to see you both," she said. "Abi and Ruth inside?"

"Abi yes, Ruth no," Mark replied. "We have to go and cut down some trees."

She asked, "Cut down trees?"

"Yes, the Christmas tree," Mark said. "Our tradition is that when Jay arrives two days before Christmas, we ride out on Michael's land to cut down the Christmas tree."

Michael sighed, "We have to cut two this year, one for my parents and now one for my home for my wife."

Helen looked at Mustang. He wanted to look away. This meant he had to cut down another tree because his wife was going to want one for their house. She gave him that look.

Mustang gave one back. Today was Monday. Tuesday was Christmas Eve. Wednesday was Christmas. Friday, maybe Saturday, they were leaving. She didn't need her own tree. He looked at Helen, whose facial expression indicated he'd better not come back and not have her damned tree. He nodded in submission, rolling his eyes upwards.

Mark tugged at his arm. Michael wanted to talk, but Helen hadn't moved from beside the vehicle. Mustang was about to walk away, but iciness from his wife made him stop dead in his tracks.

"Hey, can you guys help me unload this stuff in the truck while I get Helen settled before we go off chopping down trees," Mustang said, watching her face soften.

"Yeah, no worries," Slow replied, looking at Helen to go open the front door. "How much stuff could she...whoa. Okay. How long are you guys staying?"

"It is Christmas decorations for the house and presents for the family," she told them.

In a matter of minutes, with three men working, the vehicle was unloaded. Slow got the heat going in the home. Mark started the kettle, and in a flash, Helen was ready to get settled in before she went over to check on Cherry.

"She's been waiting for you. They both have," Slow told her. "Hell, me too."

"Give me a moment to get situated, and I will give you the break you need," she told him.

Michael Neary placed both his hands together in the prayer position, bending at the waist as a thank you. This meant Cherry was getting on his nerves, and he wanted another body to break up the whine fest. She could be needy. When Cherry was needy, she could also be bitchy. Before Helen planned to deal with any of that, she wanted to nest a bit in the home she and Mustang would have to escape the family for the next week.

"Honey, are you good?" Mustang asked.

"I'm good," she replied, waving him off.

The cupboard was bare, but in one of the bins, she had the basic food stores. Bread, wine, tuna packs, cheese, and coffee. As a backup, she had enough to make a Charcuterie board if the guys came back from "tree hunting" and wanted a snack. Mustang turned to leave but stopped to provide an affectionate peck.

"I wasn't going to leave without unloading and getting you settled first," he said.

"No worries," she replied, knowing he was anxious to run off to play with the guys. She also knew they had questions for him, which would be relayed to both Ruth and Cherry and answer a great deal of their questions without her having to explain herself to either woman. "I have to set up this nest."

She began to unpack holiday bedding and items she'd created for the home. In one container, there were presents for the family. Another container held decorations for their very first tree as husband and wife in their second home. Helen smiled at the irony of it all.

****

M USTANG SAT NEAR THE window on the bench seat of Mark Neary's old pickup truck. Mark had loaned it to Helen to drive for basic transportation until Mustang had purchased the lady two vehicles of her own, the Subaru and the Chevy Colorado pickup. He was beginning to take pride at his foresight in getting her the truck, considering all the shit she’d brought with her.

Slow, who sat in the center seat of the truck since he was smaller than Mustang by at least twenty pounds, brought back many memories of early morning fishing trips with their dad. He thought fondly of the hunting trips, and although Mustang didn't care much for killing animals, he went along for the male bonding. Today would be no different once the questions about he and Helen were out of the way.

Mark asked, "What all did she have in those tubs?"

"I have no idea, outside of Christmas gifts," he said.

Michael commented, "It's a good thing her car is here so she can get groceries or whatever you need for the week."

Mark circled back, "Did you fly in to where she was training, and you guys drove in together?"

Mustang inhaled deeply and said, "No, we drove from home this morning. It's only a two-hour drive from here."

He could feel the heads turning in the vehicle as they drove across the land, headed towards the woods to locate the appropriate sized trees. Mark and Ruth had high ceilings, so a six-footer was needed. Helen's house wasn't very large, so an average tree would work. He had no idea what his brother would want for his cabin.

"I'm quiet because I'm waiting for you to finish explaining what the heck any of that means," Mark said.

Mustang shrugged. "I got tired of being on those back roads. The work I did in locating The Collector got me noticed. A job offer was presented to teach at the Academy in Plainfield, Indiana, and I took it. I've only been there about three months, so getting settled, the holidays and all, has been a bit much. But, since I was coming home for Christmas and we were doing this, it was just easier to tell you two once, and you can explain it to Ma and Abigail."

Slow turned his head. "Indiana; her territory. She was okay with you moving into her territory, or was it her idea?"

"Naw, the offer came through when she was hanging with me in Oregon," he said. "We discussed it. I kind of asked her to marry me, we picked some land, then I bought the property. I sent some money to Gabriel, he purchased and sent a triple wide to the land, and some people to put up a privacy fence, new septic, satellites, yaddah, yaddah, and now we have a home."

Mark was trying to keep up with all the information in his statement. "You asked her to marry you?"

Mustang in his laid-back manner replied, "We're going to do a formal ceremony later when she's completed her training, as I told her father over breakfast this past weekend. Do you know that man makes an omelet that simply melts on your tongue? Anyway, last month, I think it was, we went to the courthouse because she fell and hurt her hand and didn't have decent insurance. We got married and I put Helen on my insurance after we got back from Thanksgiving weekend with Bad Apple and the kids. She now has dental and vision coverage too."

Slow tried to turn in the seat. "Who are you and where is my brother? Jay, if you're in there, blink twice!!"

Mustang looked at his brother, then blinked twice. He offered a soft smile, then continued, "She was given three weeks off before returning to training and... I bet she’s... Oh, this is going to be good."

"What?" Both Mark and Michael asked in unison.

"She's probably nesting and making that little house more like our home in Indiana, so we can be comfortable this week," he said. "She really has a great decorating eye."

"She does?" Slow asked, thinking of the one yellow throw pillow Cherry had added to the couch.

"Yeah, Helen's very crafty and very creative," he said. "The Christmas gifts she brought to my office and made for my team, man, those people will not leave me alone. They loved the gifts and are trying to weasel their way to our home since somebody, I'm not calling any names, but it starts with Helen, mentioned a cookout soon. I told that woman, I have to work with those ass wipes, they don't need to be in my house coveting my belongings and gossiping. It was bad enough when she began packing me the special lunches stored in a Bento box type of container. I told her, she was going to get me beat up on the playground by the bullies. You know that James offered to pay me for my wife to make him lunch too? I tell you, the nerve of some folks, trying to get my goodies. I don’t share shit like that!"

Mark slowed the truck. "Who are you and where is my son? If you're in there, blink twice."

Mustang leaned forward, looking around his brother and at their father. He blinked twice. Mark wouldn't let it go.

"Son, to make sure I'm understanding everything you've said, and to be clear, you and Helen are married. Her dad came for a visit this past weekend, and you've moved to Indiana, sold your home on the vineyard in Oregon, and now you're teaching at the Trooper Academy in Indiana?" he asked. "Are there any other bombshells you want to drop while you're at it?"

Again, in his laid-back fashion, Mustang said, "Yeah, we both found out Friday that Helen and Cherry are actually sisters and not cousins. They have the same Daddy. Cherry has always known, not sure why she never told Helen, or why no one, not even her mother, mentioned it to her."

The silence in the truck was deafening. Mustang had moved on to other things. He had some ideas in his own head, and one was the perfect little Christmas tree for their first holiday together.

"Ooh, that tree right there! Daddy, pull over. I found the tree for me and Helen's first Christmas together," he said, smiling. His back was going to hurt like hell later, but this year, they had chain saws. None of that whacking at the base of a tree until it fell over and one of the three of them was exhausted.

Slow looked at their father. "Well, damn."

He also wondered why his wife had never mentioned it to Helen or to him for that matter if the two ladies being sisters. It would be an interesting conversation between the two women. One thing he would admit, he was glad as hell he wasn't there in the house.

****

"H ELLO," HELEN CALLED , coming through the back door. "Hello?"

Naomi, her six-year-old niece, came bolting to the back door, hurling her small body at Helen, who caught her mid leap. She provided a ton of kisses to the small cheeks and hugged her. Down the hall, a round-bellied Cherry appeared.

"Aunt Helen! Aunt Helen! Guess what?"

"What?" Helen said, overcome with the child's enthusiasm at seeing her.

"Me and Daddy went to the doctor with Mommy. They took her in the room where they had this funny-looking table," Naomi explained. Her small hands attempted to demonstrate the size and width of the table. "The doctor said he needed to check on Luke, but I bet he put Mommy on that table and looked in her vagina to see how Luke was doing. He used a light. Aunt Helen, do you think Luke was trying to cover his baby eyes like this?"

"Oh Lord child, I have missed you," Helen said, taking a deep breath.

"I'm glad somebody is missing her. I don't think I'm going to survive these two weeks of her being home every day and me being so, well, large," Cherry said. "Plus, my feet are crusty and need to be shaved. My cooter is covered in an afro, and I smell funny all the time. I don't want to do this again ever.

"Good to see you, Abi," Helen said.

"You say that now until you're down there, trimming my cooter fro," Cherry told her.

Cherry took a seat, placing a cup of water on what may have been an end table, but it looked like a log with a round piece of glass placed on top. She assumed it was Michael's way of making an end table. Helen smiled, thinking how much Cherry would appreciate the gift Mustang had made for her nursery.

"You're smiling; life must be good. Catch me up on the world of Helen," Cherry said, sending Naomi off to her room to play.

"Nothing much to tell," she said. "Daddy came for a visit this past weekend."

Cherry arched an eyebrow. "There is a lot to unpack in that single sentence. One, you have another home where he came for a visit because I know like hell that weirdo Passion Fruit didn't let some strange black man in her home. And two, I warned you about allowing demonic spirits to enter your safe spaces."

"Demonic spirits, Abi?"

"You can feel it on him," Cherry said. "Even as I child I felt the wrongness of that silver tongued, suit-wearing demon."

"He told me we are sisters," Helen said.

"Yeah and? You and I have always been together and had each other's backs. My child has called you Aunt from the beginning; that was one of her first words, so what's the issue?"

"I didn't know, that's all."

Cherry pursed her lips, "And now that you do, how many fucks does it take to get to the center of how this has changed your life?"

"Wow, you're still angry with him," Helen said. "You're right, it doesn't, but he was surprised to learn he was a grandfather. I'm certain at some point today that he'll be calling, wanting to be a part of Naomi and Luke's lives."

"I don't give a llama's right coochie lip about what that man wants; he is not, nor will ever be, a part of my children's lives." Cherry said. "He forfeited that right by leaving us with your nihilistic mother."

Helen reached over to touch Cherry's hand. At one point in their teen years, Helen had learned her touch often soothed Cherry's bristling fur. She wasn't high strung, or even low strung for that matter, but she hovered between pessimism and fuck it on a regular basis. In other words, the woman was exhausting.

"I thought about, well, the other day, with my mom being a nurse and having access to medicines and Aunt Stephanie being so spacey...never mind, I shouldn’t have brought it up."

"It's up. It's in the air, so let's speak on it," Cherry said. "I think for years your mother doing the Munchausen by Proxy on Stephanie to control her and make her dependent on Anita was enough for any soul. I figured that out years ago, and when my mom got away from her and left for Europe with Darnell, she started getting better. However, he's just as controlling, but in a different way. My mother has never known freedom."

"He said she has a new yoga studio," Helen said.

"Well, namaste for her and whoop-de do-da doo," Cherry replied, looking at Helen's face. "I'm sorry. You brought him up, knowing how I feel about him."

"You asked for an update; I gave an update."

It grew quiet between them. The energy would shift from this point, and Cherry would change the subject to a neutral topic. She had never wanted therapy but rather allowed the anger to fuel her. Helen didn't want to be that person. She wasn't going to be angry. She planned to be happy.

Cherry smiled and said, "So, have you broken out any teeth on a dead body yet?"

"No, not that mishap, but I did burn off his fingerprints and watch his corpse get set on fire," Helen admitted.

"My first one, I cried for days. Do you remember that time I came home and couldn't stop crying? Yeah, I had a big one that I broke out his teeth, burned off his fingerprints, and then burned his body," Cherry said. "I almost quit the Technicians that day. The contract said it needed to look personal. A long-range shot wasn't going to do it, so I had to get in there and make it happen. How are you handling it?"

"I was given three weeks off to process the fucked-upness of it all," Helen said. "On my way home, I stopped by a sewing center and dropped ten grand between that and a fabric shop using up the coins I didn't know I was still making from the craft site deposited on one of those debit cards. You have lots of homemade cute shit for Christmas for you, Michael, Naomi, and Luke."

"Crafting is your go-to stress reliever. Personally, a good...hah, let me stop," Cherry said, cutting her eyes at Helen. "How are you and the Mustang fairing?"

"Well," Helen said, "I messed around in Lemon's lab and made a love potion. I used it on him. The man married me."

Cherry sat still, looking at her cousin. Helen held up her hand to show off the rings. The two burst into laughter.

"Can I get some of that love potion after I have this child?"

"Nope, my Sista, you'll have to make your own," Helen said, chuckling. "Yeah, the special ingredients requires that a chick will need to make her own."

The space between them was quiet as the sound of a truck pulled them away from the much-needed girl time. Cherry looked out the window to see Mustang unloading a live tree. He was looking for the water hose while Michael unloaded his own tree. Soon they would bring them into the home, and the holiday festivities could begin.

This would be the first Christmas Helen was ever looking forward to celebrating. She had presents for her family. She had love in her heart, and as far as she was concerned, it would be enough to charge her cells to get back to Illinois for her training.

"I am a Technician," she said softly. "I am the protector of the defenseless and the women and children of the state of Indiana. My name is Helen McDaniel Neary and my handle is The Cranberry."

She’d reached the point in the process where she needed to start saying it aloud for it to sink in. Her life was changing. The Cranberry needed to prepare mentally for the work ahead.