The Journal of Madie Beartri

Journal 59

I went to check on the progress that Sheriff Pete, Jonas, and Joshua were making at the jail. I wanted to see if hunger had given the raider a reason to talk. I was shocked at what I saw at the jail. The jail was a disaster, with broken furniture, and broken windows. A couple of Pete’s deputies were recovering on the floor. The raider was gone. The jail reminded me of a western movie I had seen once when I was young. Sheriff Pete was angry his deputies were injured, and he was pissed that the raider had escaped. Joshua was spitting fire. He was past angry. I walked in the jail as he threw a broken chair against a wall breaking it into even smaller pieces. Jonas was outside trying to see if anyone that was passing by might have seen what happened.

Father and a couple of his members picked a bad time to walk by the jail.  Joshua flew out of the jail the moment Father came into view. This was the second time I had seen Joshua put a gun into Father’s face. Joshua demanded the raiders return. Father denied his people had anything to do with the raiders. Things were a little crazy for a few minutes. I think I was holding my breath the entire time. Sheriff Pete made Joshua put his gun away. Joshua made a threat to Father. He said that if any Heroes of the Earth members came anywhere near the Spurs campsite or the cattle grazing there, Father was a dead man. No questions asked.

Pete sent Father and his followers on their way. Joshua went in the other direction toward his own gang. I tried to follow him, but he wasn’t interested in hearing anything I had to say.  Technically, there isn’t any proof that the raiders and the Heroes of the Earth have been working together.  I have my doubts.

Journal 58

It was a long night or a short night depending on how you look at things. Tony stopped by my room to see if Aleece and I would like to join him, Runt, Marty, Gretchen, and Cecelia at the park for lunch. At first, I thought of saying no. I was in one of those lazy moods where you just want to stay in your room and vegetate. Then I looked at Aleece. The fresh air would be good for her.

The seven of us went to the park. Aleece and I sat under the old oak tree at the south end of the park near the lake. Aleece was in my lap, and I was playing patty cake with her. Runt and Tony were feeding the ducks; Marty, Gretchen and Cecelia were out on one of those rowboat things.

Anyway, I am not sure how long she was standing there watching Aleece and I. I was a little startled when she said, “Your baby is adorable.” I said thank you. I didn’t even correct her by saying Aleece wasn’t mine.  It’s a little strange. Up until that moment I had never heard the mother of the Heroes of the Earth Gang speak. She sounded normal not preachy. She said her name was Emily. I was trying not to be rude, but I sarcastically asked Emily if she was recruiting in the park today. She said no that it was her husband Kevin’s job to do that. She said she was just out getting some fresh air. His name was Kevin. For some reason, I was thinking his name would be something more… I don’t know but I wouldn’t have guessed that his name was Kevin.

Emily and I had a nice conversation. I asked her if she had children. She said no in a sad kind of way, but she sounded as if she wanted children some day. The whole time we talked, I answered the questions about Aleece as if she were mine. What could it hurt?

Tony interrupted our conversation by asking if I was ready for lunch. I asked Emily if she would like to join us. She was about to answer when two members of her community walked up and said that she was needed at her campsite. Emily said she was staying for lunch. One of the boys said sternly that Father wanted to see her now. She looked annoyed and a bit irritated. Emily said goodbye to Aleece and walked out of the park.

The lunch at the park was very enjoyable. Aleece slept through most of it.

Journal 57

Little Aleece is sleeping. She had a long day with Hemy at the Central campus. I’ve had a long day too. I can’t seem to shut off my brain to get some sleep.  The Heroes of the Earth community have put flyers up all over Bear Country. They continue to hold meetings in the big tent. Their newness is wearing off. I’ve noticed that they aren’t attracting as many people as they did on the first day.

The captured raider remains in jail. Sheriff Pete has posted guards to make sure he doesn’t go anywhere. Joshua and his men continue to look for answers. He is still certain that the Heroes of the Earth are behind his troubles. Joshua is considering taking his people and leaving Bear Country to get away from the troubles here. I’m not sure that leaving is going to help his troubles. If there are more raiders out there and I personally believe there could be, then leaving Bear Country isn’t going to help.

Sheriff Pete, Jonas, Joshua, and I went to speak to The Heroes of the Earth leader again. Father’s calm voice seriously gets on my nerves. He can’t simply answer the question. He has to give a sermon. I wanted to reach out and ring his neck. He continues to insist that his community has no affiliation with the raiders. Actually, what he said was that the raiders are not members of his community.  I am thinking that he is having someone else do his dirty work. Something funny, Lost followed me to the Heroes of the Earth. She doesn’t like Father.  She barked and barked. I had to tie her to a tree so that we could have our meeting with Father. I think Lost knows he is not a good person.

Journal 56

I spent most of the morning looking for someone to watch Aleece for me. Lisa said she was busy. I asked everyone in Bear Country for help. No one seemed to have any free time on his or her hands. I bundled up Aleece and took her to Central to see if Hemy wouldn’t mind helping out. Luckily, when I arrived Hemy and Matt weren’t in the middle of a romantic interlude. Hemy gladly agreed to watch Aleece for me. Although Matt gave me that I had plans to be with my love look. How much time can two people actually spend in bed with each other anyway without getting bored or sore from lying in bed?

I went to the jail to see how things were going there. Sheriff Pete, Jonas, and Joshua were still trying to get information out of our raider. He still wasn’t talking. By the time I arrived, Joshua was getting irritated and impatient. It was obvious that they had already smacked their jailbird around a little, maybe a lot.  Joshua had the raider pinned to the wall, yelling at him. The raider was putting up a good fight. Sheriff Pete and Jonas were standing nearby. I guess they had already had their turn. Pete is the Sheriff of Bear Country, and I don’t have a lot of say on how he runs his jail but it didn’t look as if they were going to get any information out of the raider.

I stepped up to the bars and asked if I could talk to the three of them. They were annoyed that I was disturbing the process, and they asked me to leave. I wasn’t going to leave. I stood there until they stopped what they were doing. It’s a male ego thing. Men can’t seem to beat up another person when they think a woman is condemning them for their actions.

Pete, Jonas, Joshua, and I had a heated discussion about their prisoner and the best way to get information. I think I made my point that killing him was a bad idea.  A couple of days spent alone without food or water usually helps someone remember details they previously have forgotten.

Journal 55

It has happened. Sheriff Pete and Jonas were at the Spurs Campsite last night. Joshua’s men captured one of the raiders. Two raiders actually but one of the raiders was killed. It wasn’t anyone’s fault. The raider was trying to run away to escape capture when he fell into a hole and broke his neck.

Sheriff Pete has the remaining raider in jail trying to get information out of him. The raider isn’t talking. Joshua wants to string him up to the nearest tree. This currently is not an option. I think it is important that we find out who the raiders are working for and why they were tormenting the Spurs. I don’t think the raiders are working for The Heroes of the Earth.  The raiders wear different clothes and don’t have stripped red hair. Of course, people around here change their clothes and hair all the time.

Journal 54

The Heroes of the Earth community continue to recruit. They seem to be praying on lonely souls who don’t have a cause or a place to call their own. I find it odd and strange that people would find what The Heroes of the Earth have to say as credible. Oh well, we each have to choose our own paths in life.

Sheriff Pete and his deputies continue to assist Joshua in searching for the raiders. I’m certain if Joshua catches the raider, he will show no mercy. He will probably hang them on the nearest tree.

The Library Trio (Marty, Gretchen, and Cecelia) stopped by to see me again today. They suggested some activities that I might try with Aleece that will help to increase her intelligence. They are so sweet, in a brainy sort of way. The library trio has been spending more time out of the library than usual. Up until recently, I only saw them once every couple of weeks. I guess they are enjoying the sunshine and the square dancing at the Spurs campsite. I think Gretchen and Cecelia are actually putting on a little weight. The sunshine has added a little color to their cheeks. Marty has a certain look to him that I have not seen before. He looks proud and happy. He walks taller.

I haven’t seen Jonas in a while I think he is staying out at the Spurs campsite. Matt and Hemy are playing house at Central. I actually haven’t seen them in days either. Central has returned to normal. It is a productive gang again. It was a wise decision to elect Hemy as their leader. She is responsible, fair and an overall good person.

I have Aleece all day today again. Lisa is out playing a gig with her band. I keep looking for Casey to return. I have found myself occasionally staring out my window looking to see if she is walking up the lawn. Aleece needs her mom. I am not complaining. Aleece is an easy baby and there are people here who can help me out. Tony has been a tremendous help but still Aleece needs her mom. Although now that I think about it. It was fun pretending to be her mom while we were out shopping.

Journal 53

Aleece and I spent the whole day together. Lisa had things to do. Motherhood was beginning to weigh heavily on her. She made plans to spend the whole day practicing with her band. Its ok I don’t mind. Little Aleece and I were headed toward town to buy her some new clothes. If I was going to play mom, I thought it would be a fun idea to buy her some outfits that I like. We still haven’t heard anything from Casey. I guess she had many things on her mind that she needed to clear up. For Aleece’s sake, I hope she comes home soon.

On our way out of Bear Country Aleece, Lost and I ran into Tony and Runt. We exchanged hellos and then Tony asked if he and the Runt could join us. Apparently, they didn’t have any plans for the day. Tony said there was a new arcade in town. He thought it would be fun if we stopped by there after shopping for Aleece.

Have you ever noticed that when you are shopping for something in particular you can’t find the item? This seems to happen to me a lot. Anyway, we went from kiosk to kiosk looking for cute outfits that would fit Aleece. No one had any until we ran into Shanna’s Scraps to Clothes Boutique. This stuff was so cute. It was colorful. It was unique. Shanna makes all the clothes herself. She has talent. What is even more special is that no one has worn this stuff. You can sometimes find stuff like that on the market but not often. Aleece now has several new outfits. She is now the best-dressed baby in Bear Country.

We finished our shopping and headed toward this new arcade. I was excited and hungry. Runt was jumping all over the place he was so excited. Tony said he knew the proprietor. They were friends from long ago. The arcades owner was a young man named Hyatt. I recognized him from our school days. Hyatt and Tony knew each other well. They shook hands, hugged, and gave each other pats on the back. Hyatt sat us at a nice table, fed us and then gave us free tokens to play in the arcade. Runt had a wonderful time. I had a wonderful time. I think Aleece liked seeing all the pretty colors flashing around. She only got cranky once so Tony took her from me and made her happy again. It was so nice of Tony to invite Aleece and me to the arcade. I haven’t had this much fun in a long time. Even the festival wasn’t this much fun.  It was late by the time we got back to Bear Country. Even little Lost had a good day. She is a funny little dog.

Journal 52

Joshua and I stood there in front of the leader’s tent. I was thinking to myself “Take me to your leader.” Joshua looked; well, he looked a little upset. I don’t think he enjoyed our little indoctrination.

We only stood there a moment when Father himself stepped out of the tent. He was quiet and calm. I hate it when people pretend as if they are at peace with the world. (I need to remind myself not to role my eyes at people when I find them annoying.)  Father asked if he could help us with anything. Before I had the chance to answer Joshua poked his gun into Father’s nose. This time I was annoyed with Joshua because you can’t just poke guns into people’s noses and expect them to cooperate.  I told Joshua to put his gun away. He ignored me. I demanded he put his gun away. Father said in a calm voice, “We are a peaceful community. We are not here to cause trouble.” He asked Joshua to put his gun away and invited us into his tent. Joshua complied with the request, but you could see that he was not happy with having to put his gun back into its holster.

It was a nice tent. I won’t go into detail about the whole conversation.  Joshua accused and Father denied. I tried to stay neutral and keep Joshua from displaying violent tendencies and I tried not to roll my eyes too many times. Father assured us that his community had nothing to do with the cattle disturbances. I am not sure I believe him, and I am certain that Joshua doesn’t believe him.

We said our goodbyes and left. Joshua said almost nothing the whole way back to Bear Country. He plans to watch this community closely. I plan to have my people watch them also. I don’t trust this new community leader in town. Something disturbs me. Besides the annoying calm demeanor, I don’t like something. He looks so innocent, like the boy next door, but I am thinking I shouldn’t turn my back on him.

Journal 51

The first thing I noticed about the Heroes of the Earth members is that they all dressed pretty much the same.  Same drab brown clothes, not much in the jewelry selection, except for Mother and Father and they both wore the same medallion around their necks. I think it’s their symbol of authority.  Why do people who are trying to save the Earth always wear boring clothes? You never see any brightly colored outfits, with outlandish jewelry. Everything is earth tone. With one exception, everyone in this community has stripped red hair. I am sure that is a symbol of something.

Joshua and I were sitting in the back of the tent. Father and Mother entered and walked slowly to the podium. Father raised a hand in a motion to silence everyone. Suddenly, the tent breaks out into “New Pace…New Pace…New Pace.”  I almost fell out of my chair. I didn’t realize a one of the members was standing directly behind me. I think I now have hearing loss in my right ear.

It was a very sweet welcoming statement to everyone in attendance. Then the sermon began. At least it felt like a sermon to me. I was expecting everyone to break out in song and then fall to his or her knees and beg forgiveness for offending Mother Earth. Joshua kept looking at me and rolling his eyes. I could tell father touched him with the sermon. It lasted a good 45 minutes, maybe less but it felt like at least that long.  Mother and Father exited the tent as slowly as they entered then another community member took the podium. He gave an invitation to those moved by the sermon to join THE HEROS of the EARTH community. Apparently, Mother and Father were making an honest effort to spread the word throughout the world and gain new members on the way.

Joshua and I weren’t interested in joining this quaint little community, but we were interested in talking to Mother and Father. Joshua and I left the tent searching for answers. You can always tell where the leaders are hanging out. They are usually in the tent with all the guards on the outside. We walked towards the tent but didn’t get very close before being stopped by guards.

Journal 50

Joshua and I dressed in our best going to meetin clothes and walked out towards the large, raised tent. This tent was huge. It looked like an old circus tent. It took a little bit of muscle to get that thing raised. People from all over Bear Country were entering the tent by the time Joshua and I arrived. Members from the Heroes of the Earth were mingling with the crowd, being friendly and introducing the people of Bear Country to their philosophy of life. I was trying hard not to make faces every time I heard one of them say something stupid.

Joshua and I grabbed a bulletin and took a seat near the back of the tent close to one of the exits. It wasn’t long before Father and Mother arrived. The room became immediately quiet and then our indoctrination began.