Cellphone reception was spotty, but when Gabe took a step out the back of his tent, he wandered across the dirt track on the other side of the trees, along the sloped hillside. There, he was able to call Leland so they could quickly discuss how it was going.
“They seemed surprised by the shower situation,” he said, after he’d given Leland the rundown about how basic orientation had gone that day.
“Are they complaining?” asked Leland, sounding quite surprised, as well he should, in Gabe’s mind.
“No, not at all.” With a half-shrug, his free hand in his pocket, Gabe smiled into the cellphone at the memory of it. “They reminded me of shelter dogs when they realize they’ve found their forever home. Like they’re surprised to find any kindness at all in this world.”
“Well, it’s a step up for them.” A pause fell, as if Leland was thinking. “They’ve committed crimes, but they’ve done the time, and if a little kindness and human decency is all it takes to keep them on the straight and narrow, I’m willing to be the first in line to do what it takes to point them in the right direction.”
“Same,” said Gabe, thinking that sometimes Leland sounded too good to be true, but in person, in real life, that was just the way he was, good and kind and decent, right down to the bone. “Well, that’s the dinner bell. I’m taking it slow like you said. Next on my agenda is sitting down with them to dinner, rather than at a separate table.”
“I’d like to know the dumb cluck who suggested that idea,” said Leland. “Teamwork is what it takes, Gabe. Teamwork.”
“Yes, sir,” said Gabe. “I’ll check in with you tomorrow, right?”
“Yes, please.”
Gabe disconnected the call, and thought about stuffing his cellphone in his back pocket, but then knew he’d just be running down the battery for no reason because, for the most part, there was no cellphone access in the valley. Some discussion had been had about setting up a mini-relay tower for cell service, but that had fallen to the wayside, amongst all the other details that had needed ironing out.
He went back to his tent and plugged in his cellphone, and made his way along the faint trail to the mess tent. There, as he stepped through the breezy opening made by the tent flaps folded and secured back, he found Wayne and Kurt wearing their new clothes.
They looked a bit like they were floating in the material, as it was thicker than the clothes they’d shown up in, and their expressions told Gabe they didn’t quite know what to make of everything they’d received without doing a lick of work.
The keyword wasyet. They’d be working hard, but they’d be compensated, not just by money, but by decent clothing to work in, the good food, the counseling, everything. Smiling at them, wishing them well, he came over to them.
“Hey, guys,” said Gabe, being casual, but on alert.
Wayne and Kurt had been standing near where the buffet tables were, eying the two cooks, Del and Neal, who were wheeling a metal tray out from behind the buffet line. Then they looked at him with the suspicion that he’d done something with their dinner.
Gabe waited for either Wayne or Kent to ask him about that, wanting to encourage questions at any time, but they remained silent, so he nodded to Del, and asked for all of them. “Hey, Del,” he said. “Is the buffet not set up yet?”
“There are so few of you,” said Del. “Neal and I thought we’d bring each of you a plated dinner.”
Gabe stepped aside to let Del go by him, and looked up to find that Blaze and Tom were coming into the tent, both with wet heads, their shirt collars damp.
Tom’s hair was short, so would dry quickly, but Blaze’s hair lay slack against his jaw, making him look like a cat caught in a storm. He was shivering, his boots swimming around his ankles, but then he saw Gabe looking at him and straightened up with a happy smile as if all was right in his world and he didn’t want Gabe to worry about a thing.
“What’s going on with your hair?” he asked. “And your boots?”
“No towels,” said Tom, plainly.
“Uh,” said Blaze. “Wrong size?”
“Weren’t there towels on the bed next to the boxes?” asked Gabe, a shard of worry rising up inside of him. He didn’t think the parolees would revolt over such a small thing, but he rather did want the sense of comfort and plenty to continue. “Must have gotten missed,” he said now. “Del, can you set up for Kent and Wayne? Tom and Blaze and I will be right with you. Okay?”
“Sure thing,” said Del, as Gabe led Tom and Blaze out of the mess tent and along the ragged path to the supply hut.
There was a latch on the double doors, but only to keep the doors closed in the wind and to keep bears and other wildlife from getting inside and rampaging through the shelves of cotton socks and shirts and whatnot. He could see both Tom and Blaze eying him, as if they were storing away the idea that the hut wasn’t locked and that they could take anything they wanted at any time. Or maybe not.
“If you ever need something,” he said, stepping inside while flicking on the overhead light and grabbing the clipboard from the wall. “Just write down what you took. That way—”
“You can keep track,” said Blaze, saying this as if it had been something he’d memorized by rote. And also like he wanted Gabe to think of him as a straight-A student, but in reality he was looking at Gabe like he was crazy to suggest that the parolees could just have whatever they wanted, when they wanted it.
“Exactly,” said Gabe. “I’ll get you some towels to dry your hair with, and you can take them with you to your tents and hang them up to dry. And Blaze, your boots don’t look like they fit.”
He handed them each a towel and waited till they’d ruffed their heads to dry their hair. When Tom headed out, still drying his hair, Gabe’s attention was, once again drawn to Blaze for reasons other than the boots, reasons he couldn’t explain to himself. Blaze, who met Gabe’s gaze with what seemed like wariness, smiled as if he wanted Gabe and his attention to go away.
“There’s nothing worse than ill-fitting boots,” said Gabe. He made notes on the clipboard and hung it up on the nail sticking out of the frame of the double doors. “What size are you?”
