Second Chances (106 page)

“Him definitely,” Mitch said. “He took two right?”

She made an affirmative sound. “One for Evan and another for Prairie. That was all he said he'd take this trip,” she said.

“Right,” Mitch said thoughtfully. They had six other crop dusters, three of which had been sold or were waiting for a down payment. Two were reserved for Dunn and Crash Town, but Jack at Copper had already paid for his plane as well as a healthy shipment of parts and tools to go with it. Laurence had delivered it on his first trip there and they were using it to not only treat their farmlands, but also to track the herds in their area and keep a few of them at bay.

------*------

Radio traffic picked up with the temperature. Everyone wanted to talk, to exchange ideas, gossip, get news, and to put in trade orders. Jolie tried to talk to Rozerita but the radio operator in Dunn's fortress told her she was busy working. The girl was evasive so Jolie's suspicions were aroused. She tried to talk to the kids but they were all in school.

The third time she tried to talk to someone Colonel Dunn came on the radio and told her that Rozerita and family were none of her damn business. “Well!” she said, eyes wide as she flipped the radio off. “What an asshole!” Pete nodded.

“Should we tell Anne and the others? They've been asking,” Pete said.

“I know they have. That's why I asked. One of the reasons anyway,” Jolie said.

“You don't suppose...”

“Suppose what?”

“Like something happened to them? I dunno?”

“I don't know either. We can't speculate,” Jolie sighed. She'd run into trouble a few times doing that. She'd learned the hard way of “just the facts.” “Noo...” she drawled. “I'm just going to let Anne know what was said. There is no sense telling Mitch, no sense throwing more fuel on his fire. He's like me; he hates that SOB.”

“I don't blame either of you. He scares me,” Pete said. Jolie nodded.

As the radio chatter picked up, so did discussions about a planned second meeting after the initial planting was completed. Evan and others stated they would prefer there be more insistence on planning this time. Jolie monitored the conversations but when she was asked to get Mitch she stated what he had told her to say, that he was out and about on or around the base and couldn't be reached.

Mitch was amused by her twice daily reports. He snorted when he read that no one wanted to host it. “Apparently the idea of that many people to feed and house got to everyone,” Jolie said.

“Of course it did. Dunn probably put it out to go somewhere else, but realized after he'd said it that he didn't have the room and didn't want the freeloaders.”

“Yeah well, it looks like they are finally settling on Capital Base again,” Jolie said.

“Did they ask or did you volunteer?” Mitch asked warily.

“Neither. It's just the direction the discussions are going to. Jack and Chief Roberts automatically assumed it would be here and have repeatedly asked when. Tsakhia did the same. Mike doesn't care, he's not thrilled about attending more ‘boring do nothing meetings,’” she quoted. “Olaf said he's not going beyond base.”

“Right well, I'm not volunteering us this time,” Mitch said. “Let them figure that out for themselves. Until then I'm going to go help the Lings work on the hummers they are building for Mike,” he said.

“Well, the good news is everyone wants in on this. All of the communities,” Jolie said. “So, they have to start making travel plans now. And for the record, it does need to be some place central with an airfield.”

“Let them figure it out,” Mitch said again. She nodded.

Eventually Evan broke down and asked Mitch when he caught Mitch on the radio talking with Mike. “Look Mitch, I know everyone's been assuming, but I'll do it. Are we going to do this or not? I want to. I know you wanted to do so, but you've been busy. I understand. We all have been, so no one has the right to complain. But, well, we should at least be polite and ask you since it is a burden. Can you host this meeting?”

Mitch sighed, now pinned and on the spot. He reluctantly agreed. He refused to countersign a planned agenda. “I'm not playing Dunn's game. I'm not the king, president or whatever label he wants to slap on me this week. Unlike him I don't play those games.”

“You...so no agenda?” Evan asked.

“Make a list of what you want to talk about. If anyone asks me, I'll tell them to do the same. Then let everyone take a turn addressing their problems,” he said.

“That...sounds okay. I think,” Evan said. “I've got to go. Thanks, Mitch,” he said and then sighed off.

Mitch shook his head as he clicked the radio off. “Right,” he drawled. He turned to see Anne there and Jolie gone. “What?”

“You are just one ray of sunshine,” she said, eying him. “Can you be even more of an ass? You do know you are playing his game. First by being petulant, now no agenda?”

“The last time we tried to, they flung it in my face. Dunn and others sabotaged everything. Politics reared its ugly head. No. I'm letting them do the planning if any. We're just going to host. That's what they want, us to pay for it all,” he said thoroughly disgusted.

“It may be different. You never know,” Anne said.

“Right,” he drawled. “I'm betting another monumental waste of time. Politics. They'll play politics, why can't we do more for them. I'm sick of it. But sure, fine, whatever.”

“Mitch, you need to keep an open mind,” Anne said, sounding distressed.

“Fine,” he ground out as he left.

He was tempted to put Anne or someone up as negotiator on the theory that they resented him since he owned everything. But he wasn't going to turn over control of his home to someone else. No, he'd have to muddle through it. And like Dunn, he realized he'd have to be there to veto anything they tried to volunteer him or his people to do or give up. He sighed as he walked to his office. “This is going to suuuck...” he said under his breath.

------*------

The second meeting was arranged in the last month of spring to give those in far flung communities a longer time to get to places they could then be flown or driven in. Since they had to travel, many traveled with an entourage for safety.

Jackie, Angie and Giles flew some representatives in; others like Mike, Jack, Olaf, and others hitched a ride with Laurence or Paul. Each was greeted by Anne and Janet with their traditional gift basket.

When possible Mitch met the arriving groups as well. The Antonovs made it much easier to get groups in, but Anne worried about a possible plane crash and what that would do to community relations. Mitch did his best to put such thoughts out of his head.

Mitch was surprised that a tall thin woman got off plane with Colonel Dunn. She's from the Tropical Village from the sight of her red dress. He scowled blackly. Just like Dunn to throw a monkey wrench into the works he thought. The woman looked about; one hand on her braided hair and scarf to keep it from being blown about. She spotted Mitch in the greeting party and instantly their eyes locked. Her eyes went cold as her face became grim. She marched over, ahead of the colonel who seemed to hang back with an air of expectation and amusement. When the woman got within a few meters of them Anne stepped forward with a smile, but the woman got around her and slapped Mitch hard in the face. Anne gasped in surprise and dismay. “That is for my son you bastard,” the angry woman hissed.

“I don't know your son,” Mitch said, recovering from the blow. He took a defensive step back, unwilling to engage the woman.

“Don't you?” she said in a Jamaican accent as she glared at him. “He died from the parasites. The ones you
refused
to help us with,” she snarled, jutting her chin out as she moved in to slap him again.

“I'm sorry for your loss,” Mitch said with dignity, stepping back once more as she moved in to his personal space again. “But I didn't kill your son. What he ate did. And for the record we
did
help you.”

Her eyes flashed. “You could have done
something
!”

“I did,” Mitch said, eying her as he recognized through the corner of his eyes that they had an audience. Many of the people watching were the new representatives that hadn't been to base before. What a first impression he thought, then shot a glance at Colonel Dunn. He wouldn't put it past the other man to have arranged it to sabotage this meeting from the start he thought blackly. “Again, as I said before, we did do something. Doc offered help over the radio. She consulted with Doctor Pierre for hours. We even flew in medication, equipment and directions. Using our own fuel since others
refused
to help you,” he said, turning to shoot a look at the colonel. “
You
met the aircraft with armed people ready to shoot or take it hostage.”

She looked into his eyes, glaring. “You could have done more. You had the resources,” she said.

“Right. I did a lot. Again, for the record,
he
ate the thing, I didn't make him.
You
fed it to your son. Not me lady.”

She bit her lip. “I didn't know!”

“Okay, but as this went on, no one noticed?” He crossed his arms.

“No,” she said, shaking her head.

“That's not what Doctor Pierre told us,” Mitch said, eying her.

“He didn't know at the time. He guessed,” she said doggedly. “We couldn't...we weren't going to stop on a guess.”

“He said the fruit was addictive. You obviously had a surplus, so you could have switched out to other foods while a more thorough test was performed. But you couldn't even do that could you? Too addicted to the things. And unfortunately it hurt you. For that I am sorry.”

“You...”

“And you are obviously fine,” he said, overriding her. She looked at him then touched her belly. “We can have Doc scan you.”

“You could have sent her. With equipment,” she said angrily.

“Well, the last time I sent something to you, you took it. I'm not going to allow that with my wife or with equipment I can't replace. You screwed me. That's on you,” Mitch said, eyes flashing in anger.

“You have so much! You can take the loss! You are rich!” she said, swinging her arms about.

“That's not the point,” Mitch said, pitching his voice loud enough for the others to hear. “I trade
fairly
. You screw me, yeah it hurts. It is a loss. A loss in
trust
, a loss in
faith
. You dealt in bad faith with me. Then you expect me to
help
you?” He shook his head. “After you
spat
in my face and laughed? Go home lady. We don't want your kind here,” he said coldly.

“She's their representative,” Colonel Dunn said, coming up beside the woman. “Trinika died of the parasite. You don't have a choice.”

Mitch eyed him. “This is
my
home. If she wants to participate,
you
host her.
She
isn't welcome here.”

“We can arrange that,” Dunn said nodding. Mitch snorted. He knew Dunn was bluffing.

“Good. Have a ball,” Mitch said waving a hand. He turned and left.

------*------

No planes left that evening. Jackie made it clear she was tired and wasn't going to fly in the dark while in that state. The woman was put out, ready to camp out on the airstrip. Anne was oblivious. Jackie refused to let the woman camp in her aircraft or hangar, afraid she'd sabotage something. Janet wouldn't have it. She put the woman up in a guest room.

Colonel Dunn tried to talk to others to shift the meeting site now that bad blood had been exposed. “Why? We're here now. I'm not going there. Do you have it set up for us? You got the spare food and room?” John asked. He looked over to his wife. She shook her head.

“Um...” Dunn squirmed, suddenly off balance.

“Right. We'll figure it out. Maybe next time you can host. I remember you didn't volunteer when we started planning this. Maybe next time you'll be a man and step up,” he said. The colonel's eyes flashed angrily. “We can rotate the hosting town so it's not a burden on one town,” John suggested. Dunn nodded with the other delegates.

------*------

Mitch and Sandra talked with the leaders of Copper Town and others as they prepared for the formal dinner. The dinner was later than Mitch preferred due to some of the late arrivals and Anne's insistence on giving everyone a chance to try her soaps and shampoos...and get any last minute laundry issues settled.

The moment Mitch had escorted Sandra into the great room they had been practically pounced upon by Jack, Evan, Janet, Anne, and John as well as some of their partners. Jack convinced him to leave the woman alone and just ignore her. “She's already shown her hand. And we know she's in the colonel's pocket.” Helen nodded in agreement. She smiled. She looked good in her blue jeans and pearls though she looked longingly at Sandra's dress.