Lady in Red Pt. 02 Ch. 20

"Look at how the kids are flocking around them, hanging on every word they say," pointed out Cindy Rosen. "They're treating all the people very well, regardless of race, gender, or how they're dressed. What an example they're setting for the rest of the country. That's the strength of that group. They make us proud to be Americans, and that hasn't been happening a lot lately. We're watching history being made. Everything they do is bigger than life."

Steve had been tossing passes to some of the kids that played on the local school teams. One tall black kid caught his attention. He appeared to be extremely fast and quite talented. Steve held the ball as he gave the kid instructions.

"I want you to run straight down the street to that second light pole. Then cut left toward the barber shop door. I want you to look for the ball after you make the turn and expect it in your chest as soon as you turn to look. Now, let's clear the street down there and see what you can do."

"I'll catch it, if you can throw it that far," guaranteed the tall teen. "That's gotta be forty yards, at least.

"The ball will be there. Let's see what kind of speed you have, and if your hands are like a couple of bricks," responded Steve with a grin.

Billy and Jared quickly got people to clear the street so Steve could throw the pass to the kid. People stopped what they were doing to watch. It became rather quiet as Billy stepped over the ball to snap it to Steve. The kid lined up on the right side and waited for Billy to hike the ball.

Billy sent the ball backward to Steve as he stood in the shotgun position. Steve watched the kid fly down the street. Just before he made his turn by the light pole, Steve wired the ball. The kid made his cut and the ball hit him in the chest within two strides. Spectators were amazed at the velocity of Steve's pass, but even more stunned when the kid grabbed the ball as it hit his chest, seemingly with no effort.

"What kind of marks do you get in school?" asked Steve as the teen trotted back with the football. "What's your name? I think we need to introduce you to some college recruiters."

"My name's Rick Charles. I'm the guy with two first names," joked the talented teen. "I get mostly B's and some C's in school. I don't know if I'm smart enough to go to college. No one in my family ever has."

"That attitude is the first thing we have to change, Kid," declared Billy. "I only played division three football, but we never had a kid that could've made the catch you just made. You're obviously a smart kid. With some work on both your grades and your game, you could get a scholarship to a lot of different schools."

"Would you be interested in the Naval Academy?" questioned Steve. "The requirements are pretty strict, but they sure need a receiver with your speed and hands. If you tell me that you're willing to work your ass off, I'll promise to do my best to get you into Annapolis. If that doesn't work, we'll get you a scholarship to some lesser school, like Penn State."

"Hey! I heard that!" boomed Jared. "Penn State needs skilled players, so maybe he should forget about being a sissy Navy boy and shoot for the stars. He could go to Penn State and take ROTC and become an officer in the Army."

"You really think I could play for a major school?" asked the kid in amazement.

"I'm formulating a plan even as we speak," replied Steve. "Our company will get a few tutors lined up for the kids in your school that want to go to college and need to improve their grades. We'll hire a trainer to work with any guys that truly want to improve their mechanics, strength, and conditioning for football, or for any reason. What I'll need from you and a few others is your word that you'll do the absolute best you can in everything you try."

"I heard that idea! Let's include any girls that want to improve," insisted Jordan as she walked up to where Steve and the guys were talking. "There are more than a few girls here that want to further their education and need to bring their grades up. I'm sure there are some that could get athletic scholarships as well, if they really work at it. Let's set something up!"

The friends stayed out well past midnight, speaking to people individually and in groups. They answered questions about the opening of the plant, how they'd help the schools, and work with the high school kids to gain entrance into institutions of higher education.

Steve couldn't help but notice the negative attitudes and remarks of more than a few locals, especially young men about his age. He also noticed that race didn't seem to know any boundaries when it came to young men that had lost hope and direction. He knew changing the outlook and attitudes of these characters would be a very difficult task. The school age kids and those just out of school appeared much more interested in the possibility of college and good jobs. Steve feared that the twenty-something group would fall through the cracks. He wondered if there was a way to reach them to any measurable degree.

After the first peaceful night Blakely had experienced that week, Steve, Gwen and friends were up early. They enjoyed breakfast in the restaurant Steve and Naomi had first visited. By the time they had finished eating, they were surrounded by youth of various ages, races, and both genders.

Gwen and Naomi listened intently when a black teenage girl spoke quietly to Steve. "Do you think Naomi is as pretty as the white girls in your group, or do you think white girls are prettier?"

Steve looked at the girl as he formulated his response. "I honestly think that Naomi is beautiful. I've never seen a more beautiful woman. I've told her that quite a few times. You can ask her if you don't believe me. All of these women are beautiful, but none more so than Naomi. Look at her mother, sitting across the table from us. She's gorgeous, too.

"Are you really trying to ask me if black girls are as pretty as white girls? If so, let me say this. Skin color has no bearing on beauty. I've seen what appeared to be an attractive woman look really bad simply because of her attitude. If a woman is smart, active, capable, and sensitive to her friends and family's needs, men will find her attractive, regardless of the color of her skin.

"Beauty is also quite subjective. Some men prefer tall girls and some like shorter girls. Some like thin girls and some like more voluptuous types. But all men are attracted to women that are intelligent, honest, happy, and confident. You're a lovely young woman, but that isn't enough. You need to learn, to grow, to always be responsible for your actions, and to make good decisions. Naomi has done all of those things, and a great deal more. Her loyalty, discipline, and intelligence all make her beauty even more impressive. She's been blessed with a fantastic body and great looks, but she's worked hard to be way more than just a beautiful woman. She's a great person."

All of a sudden Naomi surprised Steve by dropping into his lap and planting a big kiss on his lips. "You say the nicest things! I have no idea what I did to get such wonderful friends, but I'm so happy that I have all of you. I heard what you told this young woman. You sure have a silver tongue."

As she finished speaking, Naomi noticed the girl was looking in shock at Naomi sitting on Steve's lap. Then she'd look at Gwen and Jared to see their reactions and then back at Naomi.

"Don't worry about Gwen and Jared being upset. They know I love this guy, but it's as very good friends and not as lovers. As Steve just told you, we value loyalty and honesty. Gwen loves Jared and I'm cool with it. You can see why we ladies would fall for these handsome guys, but you know what? These guys will only be with their own lady and never with anyone else, if you know what I mean. All of us women feel safe and loved when we're with them. They're like brothers to us, except I probably wouldn't be sitting on my brother's lap and kissing him. Do you understand what I'm telling you?"

"I think so. You and Steve like each other a lot, but you don't have sex with him, right?" asked the girl.

"That's the very short version. My friends and I respect each other far too much to ever betray that friendship," responded Naomi. "A true friend will never do something to hurt you and will do almost anything to help you."

"Were you a good friend to Steve and Gwen ever since you met them?" questioned the girl.

"I'm not very proud to admit that I wasn't," recalled Naomi. "I was a combination of an elitist, a racist, and a regular jerk. Gwen, Jordan, and Ashley pretty much set me straight, along with my parents. I couldn't wrap my head around Steve finding a black woman attractive and how well his friends, and not just his girlfriend, stuck up for him. I realized I was mostly insecure and jealous, which are not good traits in a friend. I came to realize that if I trusted them as friends, they would treat me the same way. I had to learn to have faith in people, and that race had nothing to do with character, respect, discipline, and friendship."

"That's right," agreed Gwen as she came over to join the conversation. "You have to become a friend before you can have a friend. Good friends are great to have. Jared saved my life by taking two bullets intended for me. Billy did the same for Charlotte. Pete was almost shot saving Becky and Ashley. Billy, Jason, and Chip each saved Steve's life at least once. Steve has returned the favor with Jason and Chip. Charlie was wounded helping us rescue Steve and Chip from terrorists in Iraq. Even my dad was wounded on that trip.

"The point I'm trying to make is that these people put friends before themselves. They're loyal, honorable men that care for and protect us women. We'd do much the same for them, if the need arose. These men are now 'brothers' without any blood in common. That seems to be one of the really good things that military training teaches them. They absolutely have to be able to trust their team to have their back. Without that trust, they wouldn't be able to do what they do. That sense of trust and honor has carried over into their everyday lives."

"It's hard to imagine having a friend like that," admitted the girl that first asked Steve the question.

"It really is. Now imagine having as many friends as you see here today with Naomi and me. But, as I said earlier, to have a friend like that, you need to become a friend like that first. Relationships are not easy and they always need attention and effort," concluded Gwen.

The friends spent the rest of the day meeting residents and discussing the plans for the factory, schools, police departments, and civic organizations. The sense of despair and futility had been replaced with hope. Later in the afternoon, Gwen, Jordan, Charlie, and Steve put on a little street concert using just a couple of acoustic guitars and a keyboard. The atmosphere was much more relaxed as locals mingled and danced with little regard to race or religion.

Early evening saw Steve and friends say their goodbyes to Jeff and Julie Wilson, who were staying in town to work on getting the factory up and running. It did not go unnoticed that Julie gave each of the men a hug and a kiss, while the other women did the same to Jeff. It was quite clear that owners of Lady in Red Productions really didn't appear to have any prejudices.

The group had just returned the motorcycles to the Harley dealer and was preparing to climb into two vans to transport them to the airport when Lisa answered a phone call from her mother. It was immediately obvious that something was wrong. Lisa motioned for Jason to follow her as she led him off to the side for an emotional few minutes on the phone.

Everyone waited with concern until Lisa returned her phone to her pocket and hugged Jason. It took her a couple of minutes to explain the situation to him between her sobs. Finally she managed to calm down. He hugged her shoulders as he led her back to the group to explain to them what Lisa had just been told.

"That was Paula. She and Diane took Theresa and Billy with them to the mall a little while ago to do some shopping. As they parked their car, two vans pulled up, one in front of their car and one behind it, effectively blocking them in. Several men with guns got out of each van and headed toward Paula, Diane, and the kids who were all still in the car.

"All Hell broke loose. Paula told Lisa that the guys with guns suddenly started dropping as they were immediately engaged by another group with guns. It was over pretty fast. The men still standing dragged two injured men back to the vans and drove off, leaving three others lying dead on the pavement!"

"Was it a gang war or something?" asked a stunned Kate. "Is everyone okay? Do they know what happened?"

"Paula told Lisa that once the vans left, three women ran to their car to see if they were alright. Each of them carried a handgun. That's when Paula realized that they were the ones that had engaged the men in the gun battle! Yes, they're fine, but they're all pretty shaken up. One of the women was bleeding from her leg, but it didn't appear too serious.

"I have a lot of questions," stated Jason." One of the first is; who were the women that defended our family so well?"

As Steve listened to the story of the attack, he felt anger and relief battling for control of his emotions. Everyone was looking to him for an explanation, but he slowly turned to Charlie and arched an eyebrow.

"I made an executive decision a couple weeks ago," admitted Charlie when everyone's gaze turned to him. "While we were in Russia, Steve asked me to find security for our loved ones, and I promised I would. I've interviewed a few agencies, although we were so busy, I had trouble finding the time.

"One agency really stood out, so I hired them on an interim basis until I could present the entire agreement to everyone for approval. They've been watching the folks back home and setting up living accommodations in Sparta for the last week. I was going to ask for a meeting with them when we returned from the Nimitz, but we wound up flying here so fast, we didn't have the time."

Lisa sobbed again as she flung her arms around Charlie and hugged him tightly. "You saved my family! Thanks so much for being so dependable and so smart! You're going to be the best father possible. Those women were godsends!"

"I didn't do anything special. I simply followed through on Steve's request to find security for everyone. He deserves the credit," replied Charlie modestly.

Gwen stepped in and embraced Charlie once Lisa released him. She kissed him soundly on the lips and then announced, "I have the best sisters and brothers in the world. Jordan, you found a winner in this guy. Thanks, Charlie, for coming through for us!"

Jordan beamed as everyone demonstrated how much they appreciated Charlie's diligence. Once everyone had hugged him or shook his hand, Jordan hugged Charlie's arm to her breast and smiled at everyone.

"He's pretty good, isn't he? Thank God these guys identified the problem and took steps to correct it. I agree that he's going to be the best father ever. He'll make sure our kids are safe!"

"Yeah," agreed Kate. "Those women were godsends, just like Lisa said. I guess that would make them Charlie's Angels!"

On the flight back to Sparta, the women gathered to discuss the recent trip and the horrible attack on Paula and Diane. Gwen noticed that Steve, Jason, and the other men were having a very quiet discussion of their own. While they were not speaking loudly, Gwen could see the emotion wash across their faces. She decided that she would ask Steve about it later.

"I'll take point on this," insisted Jason. "These pricks tried to kill my family! I'm just asking for cooperation and unlimited finances to track these bastards down."

"You've got it!" replied Steve immediately. "We need to be proactive on this. I'll be damned if we just sit around waiting for them to take another shot at our women and children."

"We're all tough guys, or like to think that we are, but I'm going to start carrying from now on, where possible," continued Jason. "The girls need to be trained on weapons right away."

"That's one of the things I contracted the agency for," revealed Charlie. "They have several qualified instructors and they'll be teaching all of the women how to handle guns safely, and how to use them when needed. I asked the builder at Asgard to draw up plans for a gun range. It shouldn't take long to construct."

"You're way ahead of us, Charlie, thank God," responded Steve. "I'm going to make the perimeter wall and surveillance equipment a top priority. Pete, we're going to shift your duties to become head of security for Asgard. You can still travel a lot with Becky, but only after you make damn sure everything is set up and running smoothly with our home security. Any problems with that?"

"Of course not! I was wondering if I'd be out of a job once these new security people came on scene. I understand computers and security pretty well and what I don't know, I'll learn real fast. You can count on me!" promised Pete.

"There's one more thing we need to make clear right now," insisted Jason. "When I find out who's responsible for attacking my family, I'm going to make damn sure they're never able to try again. I'm talking about permanently."

"I understand and agree," nodded Steve as he looked at his friends. "The safety of our families exceeds any other consideration. This'll get ugly when we find the people responsible, and I don't care what shithole they're hiding in. We'll find them, and then we'll deal with them. Does this cause any concerns for any of you?"

"I was thinking the same way," agreed Charlie. "Jordan and our baby are more important to me than my own life. Count me in when the time comes to settle this. It's one of the reasons I'm so damn proud to have you guys as friends. You take care of family, come hell or high water."

"I don't think we need to explain this to the ladies," reasoned Chip. "They'll have plausible deniability if anything goes south on us. The less they know about it, the better. Count me in on the reckoning."

Helicopters were waiting to transport everyone to Sparta when the Red Lady touched down. Lisa and Jason were especially anxious to get home to be with Theresa. The helicopters landed on the recently constructed pads at Asgard. Everyone quickly made their way to Paula's house.

Lisa and Jason held their precious baby in their arms as Lisa's emotions overcame her and tears began falling. Once the girls finished hugging Paula and Diane, Steve held Paula's shoulders and simply looked at her face long enough to make Paula fidget. Then he swept her into a tight embrace as he almost crushed her to his chest.

"Thank God you're okay," whispered Steve so only Paula could hear him. "I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you."

Paula had a few tears trickle down her cheek as she felt Steve's emotion. As she began to understand how much she meant to her daughter's beau, she wrapped her arms even more tightly around his broad back and began sobbing.

"Steve's pretty emotional," observed Kate. "The thought of losing Mom, Diane, Billy, and Theresa doesn't sit very well with him, does it? Mom didn't cry until he hugged her."

Diane, Will, and Billy were also present and Stephanie was quick to greet them all with warm hugs and kisses, especially for her little brother. The other girls waited their turn to express their relief and gratitude that everyone had survived the ordeal unscathed. It didn't go unnoticed that when Steve finally released Paula, Diane was in his arms and crying into his chest as she clung to him.

"I think that they finally feel safe," observed Charlotte. "No disrespect to Ted, Will, and the other men, but being in Steve's arms feels like the safest place in the world to the women in this family, and that includes all of us females. In a room full of alpha males, Steve is the top dog, so to speak. He's so cool about it that the other men don't feel competitive, or jealous. It's just how it is."