Bunny. (itisenough) wrote in remains_rpg, @ 2016-08-08 08:06:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | # 2019 [08] august, bode coldiron, hazel dolan |
Who: Bishop and Bunny
Where: Their house in the Greenbelt district
What: Talking about moonshine and government agents
When: August 3rd, late afternoon
The whole house had gone still right as the men from the government arrived. Not silent -- still. Like even the air was waiting for something. The boys were in their playpen at the time, making little happy sounds to each other, and Bunny was in the kitchen, singing an old bluegrass song while she put away what was left of the lunch they'd taken with them to the Park. The words caught in her throat as a sudden chill raised goosebumps on her arms. Lincoln let out a wail and fell silent. Then she'd heard the car, its engine barely louder than an idle as it cruised down the street outside and came to a stop in front of the house. The visit had only taken minutes. The two men didn't didn't even set foot inside the door, asking their questions from the porch while Bunny stayed on the opposite side of the threshold. For all their How are you today, ma’am and We’re just asking around the neighborhood, she knew there was nothing casual about the visit. They were expecting to find Bode at home, and the fact that he wasn't only meant they'd look for him elsewhere. Sending him a text in warning didn't feel like much, but it was all she could do. Jackson and Lincoln grew cranky as the afternoon wore on, thankfully taking up all Bunny’s attention and whisking away any stray worries about the men who'd come to call. She’d just put them down for their nap early when the rumble of an approaching motorcycle drew her attention. Bode -- it had to be. The air shifted again, like the whole house had just heaved a sigh, and Bunny went to meet him at the front door. She hadn't been worried in the typical way, but it was still some kind of relief to see him home in one piece, on today of all days. Bunny hugged Bode hard first, before even saying hello, waiting until her arms were around him to ask, “Everything alright? Did they find you?” The moment Hazel’s text had reached his phone Bishop felt like he had been plunged three years into the past, to a time when ATF agents were both a regular occurrence, annoyance and concern in his life. Something about government agents now sniffing around his place made him uneasy, it had very little to do with the fact that he feared jail time (he didn’t) and everything to do with the fact that they had had the nerve to bother Hazel, to show up at his home and ask her a string of questions she shouldn’t have even been bothered with. Needless to say Bishop wasted very little time in finding another patch to take over his patrol, calling it a day two hours early and aiming his bike towards home. The same agents that had, in his opinion, harassed Hazel, didn’t cross his path -- but that didn't mean they wouldn’t eventually. Maybe he would turn the tables on them, search them down and ask them a litany of questions. Whatever their reasons were, Bishop didn’t want to see them darkening his front steps again. The ride home went by in a whirlwind and it wasn’t until he was inside the house, Hazel’s arms wrapped tightly around him (and his around her) that he felt truly relaxed. Bishop ducked down, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head before he spoke. “Everything’ll be fine,” he answered confidently, trying to reassure her just as much as himself. “They didn’t cross my path today, but that don’t mean they won’t eventually. M’sure they’re just looking to make sure everything I’m doing is on the up and up,” Bishop in truth had no idea what it was they were looking for him for, he just had to hope it wasn't anything serious. “The real question though is did they bother you?” Bishop continued, pulling away from Hazel only far enough to peer down at her, blue eyes studying every bit of her for a sign that she was distressed or that the agents had crossed some kind of line. Bunny looked back at him with concern, her brows drawn down slightly into a worried V, but not with fear. Though she’d been tense and anxious even just a few minutes ago, seeing Bode now and seeing that he was fine has gone a long way to putting her mind at ease. She shook her head, answering his question. “They didn’t seem much bothered about me, aside from what they thought I might let slip about your operation.” That was their word, which made the still out at the Dog Park sound like a lot more than just a man who decided to make alcohol in his backyard in order to fill a gap where there was no supply. “I think they were hoping I might invite them in so they could have a nose around, but I know better.” They’d had an insurance investigator out to the house once, when her daddy was on temporary disability after an accident at the mine, and Bunny had seen then the kind of careful talking that had to go on during a questioning. She'd tried to do that same thing today, but it was nerve-wracking business, weighing each word like that. “I just hope I didn't make it worse some other way,” she admitted, then stepped back with a tug at Bode’s hand. “The boys are sleeping. Come sit down with me for a bit. You think they're asking anyone else about you?” Despite the situation Bishop couldn’t help the fond smile that appeared, or the soft chuckle that escaped him. Here Hazel had been the one that had spent time being bothered by the government types and still she was more worried about possibly making it worse than having been inconvenienced by them. “You’re too selfless, you now that?” Bishop remarked, a fondness for her laced through his every word. “But darlin’, I’m sure you couldn’t make it worse, even if you tried.” He drawled, giving her hand a squeeze as he let himself be drug into the living room. “They came sniffing ‘round ‘cause of my past, you can’t make it worse than that, really. Suppose I just should have been on guard about this, because it ain’t like they didn’t know my history...” Bishop didn’t have any illusions as to why the agents had stopped by today. With the government showing it’s face in Austin now, he had had a feeling it might only be a matter of time before they started laying down laws -- especially those pertaining to moonshine making. “You really shouldn’t have had to deal with them,” Bishop gave her an apologetic look as they settled onto the couch. “But I ain’t surprised you didn’t let ‘em get past the threshold.” Hazel might very well be the nicest woman he knew, but she was also Harlan raised and surviving and being smart about things was in their blood. He wasn’t sure who else they might question about his moonshine operation, so he couldn’t rightfully give any names. “If they do go after anyone else I’d reckon it’ll be folks close to the Hellhounds, maybe people like Vic or Marina,” Bishop paused. “Or maybe Demi and her guy, they’re selling ‘shine at their bar.” There was a pause. “Tomorrow I’ll go looking for ‘em and figure out just what they want. I promise you won’t have to see ‘em on our front stoop again, darlin’.” Even if much of his anger at the situation had dissipated, he couldn’t help the way his hackles were raised at the idea of Hazel having to stand face to face with those agents again. He had never liked it when his family had been drug into things back in Harlan, and back then they’d had a small responsibility in the operation. But Hazel, the most she did was keep him company while he worked -- by his terms that made her an innocent party, someone who shouldn’t have to tiptoe through a minefield of questions. “Maybe we’d better warn those others, then. Just in case the agents get there before you have a chance to find them.” The idea of anyone going around and asking people about Bode drew another worried frown from Bunny. Even if she would have bet the greenhouse on the the fact that no one was asking around the hospital about the half-poisonous wine they brewed up there, in her heart she knew this whole thing was just part of the plan to start Austin moving back to the way things were before, and not anything pointed at Bode specifically. It still made her uneasy. Bishop gave a nod of agreement. Warning the others was a wise idea, would give them a chance to know what was coming so it didn’t feel so much like a blindside as this felt like to him. “Wouldn’t hurt to do that, yeah,” he answered, falling silent again as Hazel looked as if she was getting ready to continue talking. “History or not, I think the government has more important things to worry about, surely, than whether you’re running a still. It seems so silly to focus on that right now.” For anyone else, it wouldn’t have been much of a condemnation -- there was no heat to Bunny’s voice, for one thing, just a soft, steady tone. Given how willing she always was to see things from the opposite perspective and give the benefit of the doubt, though, the fact that she was voicing any displeasure was significant. It meant all the protectiveness Bode felt toward her was echoed equally on Bunny’s side toward him. With a soft sigh, she shifted on the sofa until her shoulder rested up against Bode’s and she could reach for his hand again. “You’ll take care of everything. I know you will. With that mind of yours, I sometimes think you could talk the archangel Michael into giving you his sword. But I'll still be sorry if the answer is that you have to give up making moonshine. It's nice to have a little Harlan tradition here, but we can always come up with something else that’ll do the trick. How about poke sallet?” She turned to grin at Bode, knowing that the salad dish -- made from a weed that grew rampant back in Harlan -- wasn’t to much of anyone’s taste, even if the town had held a yearly festival in celebration of it. Bishop smiled faintly, well aware that words like that coming from Hazel was about as fired up as she would get on the matter. It wasn’t hard to pick up on the notes of protectiveness behind her words, a protectiveness that he knew was a two-way street. “They’ve got their reasons, I ain’t saying those reasons likely make any sense, but they’re there.” He sighed then and slide an arm around Hazel’s shoulders as she shifted closer. “Think you got more faith in my negotiating skills with these types than I do,” Bishop remarked, giving her hand a squeeze. “I will take care of it though, and I'm hoping it ain’t going to mean giving up my still. Especially if our only other option for Harlan traditions is poke sallet.” He gave a visible grimace at the mention of the salad dish. Sure, it had it’s history in Harlan and the older generations seemed fond of the stuff, but Bishop had never manage to get a taste for it. “Wonder if you’d even be able to find poke weed ‘round here,” Bishop mused, pausing for a moment before adding. “If you can maybe I should make that part of the prospecting process, they got to eat a whole plate of that stuff.” It was a cruel idea, least he thought so -- but in truth they had done far worse to the prospects in the past. “Maybe not here in Austin, since not much of anything is growing wild locally, thanks to the s’mores gas.” Bunny went thoughtful for a moment, her head lifting off the pillow of Bode’s arm to try and grasp at some memory floating through her mind. After a second, remembering, she settled back again. “I'm pretty sure I saw it on my way in, though, and on this side of the border with Louisiana. So who knows? It may pop up back in town, as hardy as that plant is.” She chuckled softly then. “If I find it, those poor prospects aren't going to know what hit them.” The hazing rituals the Hellhounds went through seemed largely unpleasant, but somehow they did make for a strong bond at the end. It had given Bode a fellowship of men he could count on, and that was all that mattered to Bunny. “I tell you what.” She patted Bode’s knee, smiling over at him at the same time. “Since you're home early, how about I bake up something nice for you? We can snatch the rest of this day back from those nosy agents and at the same time make sure you have something fortifying before you go face them tomorrow. How's that sound?” It was in moments like this, when he and Hazel could joke about things only they were real familiar with that Bishop was once again grateful for both her presence and for fate bringing her safely to Austin. They both had their grief, things they were working at healing, but it was easier to wake up and push through each day when he knew he would have her steadfast company by his side. Maybe one day they would find poke weed and Hazel might be his accomplice in introducing prospects to Harlan tradition, but what Bishop found the most comfort in was that on that day -- if it ever came -- there wasn't an ounce of doubt in him that she wouldn't be right by his side when it happened. Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Bishop returned Hazel’s smile and shook his head. “That sounds real damn nice,” he answered, knowing full well he couldn't talk her out of cooking something up for him even if he tried. “I've got one condition though, you let me help,” said while he got up from the couch and pulled Hazel up with him. “Or at least let me keep you company.” Bishop concluded as he reeled her in, arms wrapped around her for another hug. She went willingly, fitting herself into his embrace and returning it at the same time. “That way least I don't feel like I'm being lazy as hell while you bustle around the kitchen,” he grinned as he pulled back from her, paused for only a moment before he pressed a quick kiss to her cheek and then released her. “Deal?” His blue eyes held a challenge. Just as Bishop knew Hazel couldn't be talked out of cooking something up for him, she would know from the look in his eye he couldn't be talked out of the requests he had made either. “Deal,” Bunny agreed without hesitation, grinning up at him. It didn't bother her a bit to have Bode in the kitchen with her while she worked. She'd set him to some task or other, as a matter of fact, what with many hands making light work and all. The kitchen was the heart of a home, and it was meant to be a place of togetherness. Besides, even if she'd had a notion to send him on his way, Bunny knew she couldn't have persuaded Bode to do anything else than what he'd set his mind to. So it was a good thing that, in this case, what they both wanted happened to match. There was the question of exactly what they'd make, of course, but Bunny was confident that they could come up with something to suit. Gesturing for Bode for follow her, she headed in the direction of the kitchen. “I'll get the aprons, if you get the oven preheating. With the two of us working together, we’ll have something whipped up in no time.” |