Georgi kept Rosemarie busy with repairs and moving supplies. Despite her workload, all Rosemarie could think about was Randy’s drunken joyride to kill zombies.
As the day wore on, there was still no sign of him.
“I hope he gets eaten,” Rosemarie grumbled to Murphy. “That’ll teach him.”
Murphy wagged his tail in what she believed was agreement.
She heard Georgi snickering behind her. “Let’s get cleaned up and eat dinner,” Georgie said, grabbing some towels out of one of the bags. “We’ll try out the new clothesline after we finish.”
“Yeah, we need to make sure it’s sturdy enough for when we hang Mr. ‘Bad Decisions’ out to dry.”
During their cold, but invigorating dip in the creek, they heard a car pull up in the drive.
“Ooh, he’s gonna get it!” Rosemarie said, snatching her towel off the tree and dried herself.
“Calm down,” Georgi interrupted. “We’re goin’ to be livin’ with each other for awhile. We need to handle these situations with care.”
“Listen, MOM, you may want to take the high road, but I want to play a game of ‘hit the piñata’,” Rosemarie said as she dressed.
"There's a piñata?" Alex echoed.
Rosemarie sprinted away before Georgi could answer.
“Rosemarie!” Georgi called after her.
It was too late. Hopefully she’d have enough time to say what she was burning to say before Georgi and Alex could catch up with her.
When Rosemarie got back to the clearing, she found her car with a few extra dents and a lot more dirt on it. “That shit head.”
She didn’t see him at the treehouse. That just left one place he could be.
“Listen asshole,” She said, barging into the cabin.
Her eyes began to adjust to the dark of the room. Randy was unconscious on the floor with a man leaning over him.
The guy spun around. “Whoa!”
Rosemarie shrieked, jumping back to the door. “What...who?” She glanced at Randy and backed out of the cabin.
She managed to grab a piece of 2x4 and get about five paces away before the guy came outside.
“Calm down,” he said as he held up his hands. “He's just drunk.”
Rosemarie blinked back at him. It was the same guy from Gordo. Mister Tall Dark and sharp featured was standing in front of her.
“I was trying to help him get back, I swear,” He said, holding his ground.
“Well...um...thanks for that,” Rosemarie said, keeping her board at the ready.
“What happened?” Georgi came jogging out of the woods. “I heard you-” She skidded to a halt and grabbed the still running Alex. She put herself between the stranger and her daughter.
They all stood in silence for a few moments, staring at each other.
Then the standstill was broken by the sound of Randy losing his lunch in the cabin.
“I don’t think there’s any candy, Momma,” said Alex.
“Oh, come on!” Rosemarie yelled. “We just got that place cleaned up!”
“I’m surprised there’s anything left in his stomach. He threw up at least three times before we got here,” the man said as he looked back to the door.
"Is daddy sick?" Alex asked.
"Yes, honey, he drank some rotten fruit juice," Georgi answered.
“Threw up in my car?” Rosemarie asked the guy.
“Yeah.”
“Georgi, my car!” Rosemarie whined.
“Randy’ll clean it,” Georgi said in her mom voice. “Alex, go to the treehouse and read your book.”
“But-” she looked up at her mom.
“Go on,” Georgi said. “I’ll come get you when we figure out what’s going on here."
Alex reluctantly did as she was told.
Georgi turned to the stranger. “Will you move over there?” She gestured to the side of the porch.
He moved away from the front door.
“Watch ‘em,” she whispered as she passed Rosemarie.
The door shut behind her. They heard an exasperated, “For cryin’ out loud!” coming from the cabin.
Murphy, who had been chasing squirrels, decided to make an appearance. He trotted up to the stranger, jumped up, put his paws on the man's chest, and sniffed him.
“Murphy, down!” Rosemarie scolded.
He dropped down and hung his head.
“It’s okay,” the guy said as he knelt to pet him. “I love dogs.”
Murphy knew a kindred spirit when he sniffed one and was all wags.
This guy didn’t seem dangerous, but neither did Randy when I first met him,Rosemarie thought.
“I’m Neil,” he smiled up at her. “We've met before.”
“Yeah, I remember,” she said. “I’m Rosemarie and that’s Murphy.”
“Oh, you’re Rosemarie!” he said.
Rosemarie clutched the board tighter and put her other hand on her hip. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing,” He smiled. “You’re friend in there complained about you. Well, he complained a lot about a lot of things, but you were mentioned quite a few times. ”
“That turd-waffle isn’t my friend. His wife is,” she said.
The cabin door opened and Georgi walked out with a filthy pair of jeans and a tee shirt. “Well, he’s out and he’s left a mess,” she sighed. “He always leaves messes.”
Rosemarie cleared her throat. “Georgi, this is Neil. He brought that mess home. Neil, this is Georgi, she’s in charge here. Discuss.”
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