Heckel Casey (30 page)

"Hello, what's your name?" Sela asked, taking her shorts from her and putting them on.

"Rose, but my friends call me Rosie."

"Well, Rose, it's a pleasure to meet you. Aren't you a little far from camp?"

"I'm not from your camp," she said.

"Oh…where are you from?" Sela asked while she finished putting her top on and ruffling her hair to dry.

"Around. That's not important. There is however something that is much more important that I want to tell you," Rosie said.

Sela bent down to face her better and asked, "What is it?"

Rosie turned away from Sela, picked up a handful of stones, and started skipping them across the river.

"Wow, you're pretty good. I always have a hard time getting them to skip," Sela said standing up.

The little girl continued to skip stone after stone with perfect form. As Sela watched her, she noticed that she had on a crisp, pretty green dress that looked as though it had just been ironed. Small daisy appliqués formed a pattern down one side of the dress. Her hair was a soft amber color with long, pretty curls that were tied up with a bright matching green ribbon. Her shoes were white leather and shined with new polish. There wasn't a scuffmark on either shoe. It became evident that the little girl had not just walked several miles away from Sela's camp. Rosie looked as if she had just emerged from a mother's pampering and was ready for a
Ladies' Home Journal
photo shoot. There was no sweat or dirt on her at all.

"Rose, are your parents nearby?" Sela asked, still trying to get her stone to skip instead of plunking dead in the water.

"No, I'm all by myself."

Now Sela was feeling a bit freaked out. There she was in the desert with a little girl who looked like she had just been dropped there to do a commercial for a children's shampoo.

"Sela, you don't need to be afraid."

Now she was really freaked out. How'd she know her name? She never said it.

"Heckel is very strong now. He will defeat Madeline. We believe in him wholeheartedly."

Sela froze. Was this Madeline herself here trying to trick her?

The little girl took Sela's hand and smiled at her. Sela's insides at first felt like they had turned to ice and she couldn't move. Gradually, she felt relaxed with a pleasant warm sensation.

"Here, try this stone," Rose said. "It's really flat. You can do it. It's easy. Remember to snap your wrist."

Sela took the stone, still staring at the little girl in both awe and fear.

"Go ahead. Try it. It's fun."

Sela looked out across the water and sighed heavily. The little girl nodded encouragement. Sela reared her arm back, remembered to snap the wrist and let the stone whiz out to the water. It began skipping immediately.

"One, two, three, four, five, six…wow, seven times. That's great!" Rose said, clapping excitedly, jumping up and down. "Now you know how to do it. See, it's simple."

Sela laughed the whole time the stone was skipping. Rose handed her another stone and Sela skipped that one even better.

"See, I told you. You just have to believe in yourself."

As Sela skipped another stone, she asked Rose how she knew about Heckel and Madeline. Rose didn't respond, but instead asked, "How come you feel Heckel needs more help?"

"I just feel we are probably outnumbered in this upcoming battle or whatever it is. Madeline's army is—"

"Formidable? Yes, I am sure it is," Rose uttered as she skipped two stones at once, one from each hand.

"Yes, that's a good way to put it I suppose. It makes me tremble just thinking about it."

"Then don't," Rose offered innocently. "Here, try this one. It looks perfect."

They both continued skipping stones in silence for a while.

"Do you believe in guardian angels?" Rose asked bluntly, turning to watch Sela pick up more stones.

"Well, as a matter of fact, yes, I do. I have always felt I had an angel looking over me. There were times when I felt something bad was about to happen and at the last minute…um, I don't know…ah, I moved out of the way or caught myself. Other times I might have been—"

Before she could finish trying to explain her insight into guardian angels, Rose blurted out, "I'm your guardian angel. I've been there to protect you and help you ever since you were born." She smiled at Sela with an air of pride like a little girl showing her mother that she can tie her own shoes.

Sela wrinkled her brow deep in thought, at first questioning her own sanity. Then the what-ifs began to parade across her mind. She was totally speechless and definitely a bit skeptical. After several minutes of examining what Rosie offered, Sela thought,
Hmm, it's not often that people get to talk directly to their own guardian angel.
Questions flooded her mind. Before she could even ask a single query, she froze again.
Wait a minute. Something is not quite right. This must be a trick or some evil deception from Madeline. The bitch is playing on my…

"Nope, Madeline is not messing with you," Rosie said. "I assure you. I am your guardian angel. I know we aren't suppose to…um…reveal ourselves to you, but these are troubled times, and as you say…help is needed. You asked and you got it."

Suddenly, Sela dropped down to kneel before the little girl.
No one knew of my prayer for help,
she thought.
This must be the real deal.
She was in awe of the little girl standing at the edge of the river. Sela felt that she was in the presence of a powerful goodness.

"Really, that's not necessary," Rose said putting her hand on Sela's shoulder.

"I have so much I want to…um…thank you for and talk to you about," Sela said softly, looking into her eyes.

"Perhaps another time. For now, you should be getting back. Heckel's beginning to worry about you."

Sela kept staring at Rose. All the questions she thought of would have to be put aside for now. However, one question surfaced that Sela felt compelled to ask, "What help will we…um…get?"

Rose skipped a big stone, which hit the water twelve times. She turned to Sela and said, "All Heckel's warriors will have their guardian angel at their side fighting to stop Madeline. In California, you will have many more good people join you. Trust in Heckel. Believe and have faith. No more doubts. Doubt is a nasty virus that infects and destroys the soul."

"Will you come with me?" Sela asked, extending her hand.

"I am always with you," Rose said as she gradually morphed into a large hawk. The elegant, graceful bird soared straight up into the air and circled high above Sela.

With eyes the size of dinner plates, Sela watched Rose for the longest time fly in and out of the clouds, gliding on the air currents. Tempest finally broke her trance and nudged her shoulder.

"Okay," Sela said calmly as she threw her leg over the back of the horse. "Did you see that? Holy buckets. That was amazing."

For the entire ride back to camp with a huge grin on her face, Sela recited prayer after prayer and made up new ones as well. She tried to remember all the times she had said that her guardian angel must have been looking out for her. Some of the memories were so vivid. Sela smiled, knowing that she really did have a guardian angel and her name was Rose. As Sela got closer to camp, she wondered if anyone would ever believe her and stopped Tempest. She couldn't just waltz into camp and at the top of her lungs announce that everyone's guardian angel would be joining them for the big battle. They'd think she'd gone bonkers or had been out in the sun way too long. She didn't need more people staring at her as if she'd just sprouted turnips out of her ears again, not to mention corn out of her nose.

"For now, we don't say anything. On the other hand, maybe I could test the waters and tell Heckel what just transpired," she mumbled, petting Tempest. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a hawk, or more accurately, Rose, sitting on a large boulder. The bird flapped her wings. Sela couldn't help but giggle.
My guardian angel is with me. How cool is that!

After Sela returned to camp and wiped Tempest down, the horse joined Hope down by the river's edge. When she got to camp, Heckel was gutting and cleaning a large rabbit.

"Look what Jerky found for us," Heckel said proudly.

Wham, like a large two by four upside her head, Sela thought of Jerky. That's got to be Heckel's guardian angel! It has to be. No doubt about it. Sela picked up the large cat and hugged her. Jerky's large, sandpapery tongue licked her cheek and she purred loudly.

"Now there's a picture of love and affection," Heckel said as he put the rabbit on a homemade spit. After he was satisfied with the proper height of the spit and stoked the embers, he came over and hugged both of them.

Jerky squirmed out of Sela's arms and took off running. Heckel kissed Sela softly and stroked her hair.

"How was your ride? Come across anything interesting?" he asked.

Like a kid with a big secret, Sela grinned and said, "Hmm, yeah, I'll tell you later."

Rose drifted down silently and landed on an old gnarled tree nearby. Sela winked at the magnificent bird.

Chapter 28

The saying "If you want something done right, do it yourself" kept running through Madeline's head as the motor home turned onto I-80. All she needed to do was sneak into Heckel's camp, end his pathetic existence and get on with building her empire.

Overall, the RV made good time until it hit the outskirts of a large city. Then Madeline's cleanup crew had to remove debris and burned-out wrecks. Occasionally, the small entourage would encounter bands of desperate people who had no idea who they were attacking. Madeline would usually let her men deal with them; however, at times she would do a bit of target practice.

The caravan had just entered the edge of Cheyenne when Madeline's driver had to stop the Prevost motor home because of a large man-made roadblock. About twenty people came out from behind a large pile of debris. They were armed with clubs, pitchforks and other primitive weapons. They looked like rejects from a remake of
Frankenstein
or an old Mel Gibson
Road Warrior
movie. If one combined the two films, the result would be angry townspeople, dressed in ragged leather vests and black-studded collars and waving torches and farm implements into the air. Madeline stepped out of the rig, stretched and said, "You folks should probably move all this shit off the road and let us pass."

They all started laughing.

"I'll take that as a no." Both of her palms immediately produced two energy balls that crackled loudly. She pitched one at a group of men. The ball exploded with a ten-foot energy blast that instantly incinerated the attackers. "That's the last time you will ever laugh at Madeline Blackwell," she yelled. As the remaining people dispersed, she hurled the other ball of fury at the roadblock. Debris flew in all directions, clearing the road.

As Madeline walked up the steps of the RV, rubbing her hands together as if they had been soiled, she muttered, "That was fun. Let's get going. How long until we stop for the night? I'm getting hungry."

"An hour or so. If my memory serves me correctly, there is an old Good Sam campground in Laramie."

"Great. After that workout, I'm ready for dinner," she said, sitting down on the sofa.

"There's some cheese and sausage in the fridge," Quincy said, driving past the smoldering debris left on the road. "And a nice cold beer. That should hold you over."

Smiling seductively, Madeline came up behind her driver, nipped his ear and whispered, "I'd rather have you for a snack right about now." Suddenly, the motor home pitched to one side of the road.

The next few days were uneventful and Madeline was rapidly getting bored. It took almost two days to get to Salt Lake City because of the wreckage and debris on I-80. There were numerous turned-over semi-trailer trucks and car piles.

That night, Madeline felt frisky. She invited her driver, Quincy, to join her for dinner. She could tell he was a bit nervous and reticent. So with a bit of batting of her eyes, smiling seductively, and telling him that she was lonely, he was putty in her hands.

"Come back in an hour or so," she said. "I need to freshen up a bit. Go tell my chef to have dinner for two." Quincy nodded politely and left.

An hour later, almost to the minute, he knocked on the door, and Madeline yelled for him to enter. She was in the back bedroom putting on the finishing, glamorous touches. He stood at the front of the motor home with his jaw practically hanging to his knees. Of course, Madeline had that effect on men when she wanted to. She just adored their reactions.

Madeline, knowing that she was dressed to seduce, walked into the room with a strut that would rival any supermodel on a runway. For a top, she chose a sheer black blouse with an enticing black lace bra underneath. Madeline wore black satin Harem-style lounge pants and short black stiletto boots. Those alone were guaranteed to reduce Quincy into a blubbering mass of malleable flesh.