A Hard Man

The girl was still crying. Her face was red with her anger. She took another awkward swing at her tormenter and tried to rush past the boys out into the parking lot. Jess heard her say, "Damn you Steve that was the only food I've been able to find since yesterday and you spoiled it. There's nothing else in the dumpster and now I probably won't be able to eat all day and you know it. What did I ever do to make you act like this?"

Steve laughed and said, "You never done nothing Angel. That's the problem doncha know. I told ya in school you'd be sorry you didn't give me some pussy. We been keeping our eyes on you. You need to learn your place here missy. Maybe we can make a little deal if you take a bath now and then."

The girl tried once again to get past Steve and he once again caught her and threw her back into the enclosure while his buddy laughed. Jess walked up behind Steve. He saw his friends eyes enlarge and he almost whispered, "Oh, Shit. It's Jess." He made his statement just as Jess violently pushed Steve into him. Jess looked over at the girl and held his hand out. He said, "Come on Honey. Let's get out of here before someone gets hurt."

The girl looked at the two boys who were just trying to get up from the ground where they had fallen. She looked back at Jess and seemed to make up her mind. She rushed out of the enclosure and took off out of the parking lot. Jess watched her a moment then glared at the two boys. They were trying to convince themselves to attack him he was sure. Finally the one who had been watching pushed Steve toward the opening and said, "Go on asshole. I told ya that's Jess Simpson. Let's get outta here. I don't want nothing to do with him. Steve turned white and seemed to slink back. He licked his lips and said, "We was just havin' some fun with her. We don't want no trouble here Jess."

"Well you're going to have some trouble if I find out you've been bothering that girl again. Now git outta here!"

Jess watched as the two ran to a truck parked beside the trash enclosure. They jumped inside and squalled the tires as they took off.

Jess went into the building and ordered double what he stopped to buy. He got four quarter pounders and two fries to go. He left and jumped into his truck. When he got to the street he turned in the direction the girl had gone when she ran off. He saw her in the distance and sped up to catch her. He was almost a block from her when she turned into an alley and disappeared. Jess turned and followed her into the alley with his truck. He saw her duck behind a building and honked his horn. She looked up in surprise. Jess could see the fear on her face. He slid to a stop beside her and rolled down the window. He held up the bag with the food in it and said, "I bought us some lunch if you want it."

The girl looked at the bag and licked her lips. Her face showed her hunger and her fear both. She hesitated and started to duck through the fence beside the building. Jess said, "Hey. That's all it is. Just lunch. I've been hungry before and no one helped me. Come on. That's all I'm offering."

The girl slowly got into the truck. Jess put the sack of food between them and put the truck back in gear. She watched him as he drove. Out of the corner of his eye Jess saw her attention shift back and forth from him to the food to the road. She seemed to relax when he drove up to the business he had first seen her at and stopped the truck beside the wood pile.

Jess opened the sack and handed her two burgers and one fry then picked up his food. "I'm going to sit over there in the sun to eat mine. You can stay here or join me or even leave if that makes you feel better."

Jess picked up his water bottle and took off. Angel opened one of the burgers and was wolfing it down as she watched him. After several bites she opened the truck door and followed Jess. She sat down near him and continued to eat. Angel finished her two burgers and fries before Jess started on his second burger. Angel sat watching Jess finish his first burger and the fries. She kept looking at the remaining burger.

Finally Jess picked up the wrapped burger and tossed it to Angel. "Here. Looks like you need this worse than I do. Go on. Eat it."

Jess stood and took a deep drink from his water then held the bottle out to Angel. "Here's some water if you're thirsty." He turned and started for his truck to unload the wood.

Angel looked up at Jess with gratitude, almost worship in her eyes. She quickly grabbed the offered food and whispered, "Thank you." She opened the last burger and took a large bite before Jess turned away to return to work.

Jess had only taken a few pieces of the wood out of the truck when he looked up to see Angel working alongside him. He said, "Whoa. I told you there were no strings attached to the meal. You don't have to do that."

"Yes I do. You helped me back there then you fed me. I owe you. I offered to work last time you were here and I meant it. I don't steal and I don't use people."

When they were almost finished Angel looked over at Jess and said, "From what I overheard this morning you have two more loads for here today don't you?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Angel just looked at Jess and turned toward his truck. She opened the door and got into the passenger compartment then closed the door once again. Jess shook his head and got in behind the wheel. Before he started the truck he said, "You don't have to do this you know. I can handle it."

Angel just looked over at Jess and frowned before turning her head to look out the front window. Jess sighed, shook his head and started the truck. He drove his usual route out of town heading back toward his little acreage. Angel sat silently beside him watching the scenery.

When they got to his gate Jess stopped the truck and started to get out to unlock it. Angel looked at him and held her hand out. She said, "Give me the key."

Jess handed the key to her. When she started to close her truck door he said, leave the gate open. We'll be leaving pretty quick."

Angel looked at Jess nodded her head once and only said, "OK."

Jess pulled forward and stopped beside Angel after the gate was open. Angel jumped back into the truck and was silent as Jess drove down to the clearing his trailer was in. When he got there he parked beside a large pile of wood and got out without a word. Jess was already loading the wood when he heard Angel's truck door close.

After he put the arm load of wood he was carrying into the truck he looked over at Angel. She was looking around the clearing as she moved toward the wood pile. Jess said, "Not much is it? Well it's all I have. I make enough to get by if I can sell wood in the winter. I hope I can get some yards to mow this summer or I'll be getting old burgers out of the dumpster like you do."

Angel gave Jess a sharp look then turned to the task at hand. With two people working they had the next load on the truck rapidly. They didn't' talk much either. It was all about the work. Angel looked and acted weak to Jess but she stayed with him. She only moved a little over half the wood he moved but she worked steadily.

After the last load was delivered Jess went to find the owner to get his money. When he came back to the truck Angel was gone. Jess looked around for her and saw her walking down the street toward an old deserted house in the next block.

Jess jumped into his truck and drove toward Angel. He watched her look around then duck into a small building, probably an old smokehouse, behind the house. Jess turned off his truck and walked quickly to the building. He opened the door and looked inside. Angel was huddled in a corner shivering already. She was sitting on some cardboard and wrapped in a piece of old plastic tarp. There were a couple of pieces of what appeared to be clothes strewn across the cardboard.

Angle looked up in fright when she heard the door open and saw Jess's shadow. She relaxed slightly when she saw him but her face still showed distrust. Jess asked, "What are you doing here Angel?"

Angel just looked at him and pulled the tarp tighter around her shoulders. She was almost shaking in the 34 degree cold. Jess felt sorrow and disgust when he realized what Angel was doing huddled in the corner. He sat on an old rusty bucket beside the door and looked at Angel. He said, "You're living here aren't you Angel? Shit. I thought I had it bad. You're lucky you aren't sick or dead. What do you do when it's really cold?" Without thinking Jess exploded out, "FUCK!"

Jess jumped to his feet and Angel jerked with fear at his rapid movement. He looked down at her and said, "I can't just leave you here. I was following you to give you your pay for today but damn..."

Angel looked up at Jess and said, "You already paid me. You gave me the burgers."

"Crap. Come on. I don't have much. You've seen it. At least I have gas and a heater. You can stay in my trailer for a while."

Jess reached out for Angel and she shrank away from him. He looked at her in surprise for a moment then said, "OH come on. I'm not going to do anything to you. Hell, if I'd been going to hurt you don't you think I'd have done it while we were hauling the wood?"

Slowly Angel seemed to relax. She held her hand out and allowed Jess to help her stand. After she got up she bent and picked up the clothing on the cardboard. She moved to a small box and took out some small items, a tooth brush and tooth paste and feminine products then wrapped everything in the tarp.

Jess turned and moved to the truck with Angel following. This time on the way out of town Jess stopped at a Wal-Mart Super Center. He looked at Angel and said, "I need to buy some groceries. Is there anything you need while I'm inside?"

Angel bit her upper lip and looked at him then quickly shook her head no.

Jess went inside the store and spent more money on groceries than he had ever spent at one time. He bought some cheap chuck roast and several cans of vegetables as well as some fresh vegetables. He replenished his bread and sandwich supplies also. He even splurged and bought a gallon of milk and the cheapest container of coffee he could find.

As soon as they got back to his trailer Jess began preparing a meal. He cut the meat into small chunks then put it into a large stew pot and filled it with canned and fresh vegetables and water. Angel sat quietly watching. She was still holding her possessions on her lap. She was staring at the one small bed in the back of the trailer.

After the meal was cooking Jess said, "I cook outside a lot of the time to save gas. We worked too late to do that today. Besides this will be a little easier and faster. I'll go outside now and start a fire to heat some water for you to take a bath."

Angel's eyes got large and she licked her lips when Jess told her about the bath. She looked as if she was about to run again. He smiled and said, "Don't worry. After the water's hot I'll bring it inside and you can lock the door if you want while you clean up."

Almost a half hour later Jess opened the door into the trailer. He wrestled a small blue plastic child's wading pool into the trailer then went back outside. He came back in with a piece of wood that had rings burned into it and a steaming five gallon metal bucket. He placed the wood on the floor beside plastic pool then set the bucket on the wood. He went back outside again and came in with another bucket full of cool water.

After he delivered the water Jess went toward his bed. He opened a drawer and pulled a wash cloth and towel from it. He closed one drawer and opened a second. He pulled a pair of sweat pants and a hoodie from it and closed it also.

Jess walked back beside the small pool, smiled at Angel and said, "Your bath awaits my lady. I usually sit on that small plastic stool over there and dip my rag in the hot water to wash but sometimes I pour the water into the pool. I use that small pan beside you to dip the water to rinse off with. It's a bitch to drain the pool if I get a lot of water in it though. You can use these sweats until we can clean your clothes. Here's a towel and wash cloth also. Let me know when you're done so I can get my bath before the water gets too cold if you don't mind."

Angel looked at Jess then quietly said, "OK." She watched him as he backed out of the door and closed it. Jess pulled his coat tighter against his frame and walked back to his fire. He sat in his chair and looked at the fire while he waited on Angel to finish her bath.

In less than ten minutes he heard the door open and Angel say, "Jess. I'm done."

Jess stood and turned toward the trailer. When he saw Angel he smiled. She was almost lost in his sweats. They were puckered around her waist like an accordion. Angel smiled up at Jess when she moved past him heading toward the chair beside the fire. She was shivering slightly in the cold air as she walked.

By the time Jess finished his bath and removed the evidence from the trailer the soup was done. Once again Angel ate as if she were starved. Jess thought to himself she probably was and sat watching her after he finished.

After her third bowl of soup and second glass of milk Angel looked up at Jess guiltily. She cast her eyes down and said, "Thank You."

Jess moved to clean up after the meal. Angel followed him and watched while he put the left over soup in a plastic pail with a lid on it. Jess took the soup outside and hung it in a tree beside the trailer. There were several other pails and some bags hanging in the tree already. Jess looked at Angel and smiled then said, "Natures refrigerator. In the winter I can keep my cold things cold without having to buy ice. I spend a lot of money on ice during the summer. If I decide to stay here I will have to get the electric cooperative to repair the power lines and set me a meter so I can use the refrigerator and lights in the trailer. I don't normally use lights inside because of keeping the large battery charged and the cost of flashlight batteries."

After he had explained the tree to Angel Jess picked up a bucket that was sitting on a flat rock inside his fire pit. The water in the bucket was boiling wildly. He carried the bucket into the house and poured some of the water into the sink where he was going to wash the dishes. When she saw what he was doing Angel pushed him out of the way and said, "Move. I'll do that. I told you already today I was willing to work for my keep."

After the dishes were washed they dipped them in the remaining water to rinse them then Jess dried them off and put them away. When the job was done Jess took the bucket outside and walked to the stream. He filled it and carried it back to the fire pit where he placed it on the stone once again. Angel watched him with a puzzled expression on her face. Jess smiled and said, "I'll bank the fire and the residual heat will begin heating the water for morning. Most mornings the water is still warmer than the stream when I need it so I can get it hot faster."

Jess headed toward the trailer and followed Angel inside. He moved toward the bed and began taking off his outer clothes. Angel once again looked apprehensive. Jess saw her and said, "I don't usually sit up long in the evening. I'm usually tired enough to go to sleep and it saves money not burning lights." Angel looked around and Jess got the hint. He continued, "Oh. Angel the couch behind the table makes into a bed. You take the table off its pedestal and put it on the ledge between the seats then use the back cushions for the rest of the mattress. Here, let me show you."

Jess moved to the front of the trailer and prepared the second bed for Angel. He reached into a cabinet and pulled a couple of blankets from it for her. He looked embarrassed and said, "I don't have any more sheets. You'll have to just use these blankets. I don't keep the furnace turned on very high so you will probably want to sleep in those sweats also."

Angel gave Jess a small smile and took the proffered blankets. She spread them over the bed then sat and removed her shoes. She swung her feet up and pulled the covers over herself. She looked up at Jess and said, "Thank you Jess. I don't need sheets. This is so much better than the shack I'd be an ungrateful fool to be upset over not having sheets." Jess felt helpless and sad when he saw the tears trickle down Angel's cheeks.

Jess turned to his end of the trailer and quickly dropped his jeans. He turned off the remaining light and climbed into his bed. Both of the young people tossed and turned a time or two then dropped quickly off to sleep.

Just as dawn was breaking Jess woke the next morning. He quickly rose, dressed and made his bed then rushed outside to take his morning leak. He built up the fire to begin heating his bucket of water. On the way back into the trailer he grabbed the pail from the tree that had his breakfast meat inside it. Jess kept his bread and eggs inside so was now ready to prepare breakfast.

When Jess opened the door Angel was returning the table to its daytime position. She squeaked and jumped when she heard Jess open the door. After she folded the blankets Angel placed them back in the cabinet from which Jess took them the night before. Angel watched Jess work on breakfast for a moment then shoved him aside. "Go. I can cook the breakfast."

After their breakfast Angel gathered the dirty dishes and looked over at Jess. She said, "Is the water hot yet so I can wash the dishes?"

Jess looked at her then smiled and said, "It should be. I'll check." Soon he returned with the hot water and watched while Angel did the dishes.

They sat and looked at each other for a moment after the dishes were done then Jess stood. He said, "I need to get to work now. I don't have any wood to deliver today so I'll be out in the woods cutting more if you need me."

Jess stepped out the door and began loading his tools into the truck. He was sharpening his saw using the tailgate as a work bench when Angel came around the side of the trailer dressed once again in her filthy clothes from the day before. She stood watching him until he finished the saw. When Jess moved toward the driver's door Angel got into the passenger side of the truck without saying anything.

While Jess cut wood Angel stacked the brush out of the way and stacked the cut wood where Jess told her to place it. Jess knew having a helper was faster but he was amazed at how much faster the work went with Angel helping. They got over twice as much wood cut in the morning as he usually did by himself. About noon Jess told Angel they would break for lunch. He normally brought a sandwich to the woods with him but hadn't this day. They got into the truck and Jess drove back to the little trailer to make sandwiches and eat. They did have chips with them but drank water to wash them down.

While they ate and relaxed Jess and Angel talked. This was really the first conversation of any length they had. About halfway through the meal Jess looked at Angel and said, "If you're thinking about hanging around you need to know about me Angel. I'm not the nice guy you seem to think I am. Or maybe you know what a bastard I am. I've seen you look at me and cringe when I startle you. I won't hurt you Angel. Have you heard anything about me? Do you have any questions about what I did?" Angel looked scared and shook her head no.

"No what? You haven't heard about me or you don't have any questions?"

"I've not heard. I just know those boys were scared of you when they figured out who you were."

"Yeah I guess they were. They were on the football team with Troy Parker when we had our fight. I hurt him pretty bad Angel and spent six months in the county jail for Assault and Battery. He'll never walk right again and I messed up his right arm so he can't throw a football again. I pretty much screwed his chances of getting a football scholarship to college."