It Always Ends in a Fight
Chapter 3 – Rhythm
Smooth rhythmic music flowed around them as they danced on the wooden floor. Bucky smiled as he twirled with the pretty brunette in his arms. He held her tightly without fear of hurting her. Both of his arms were real. He felt comfortable without the weight or pull of the metal arm.
The music soared and drowned out the talking and laughing people who filled the dance hall. The lighting was a little muted but the band made up for it with near sensory overload as the brass instruments took the lead in stepping up the speed of the song.
The hall included a large rectangular dance floor surrounded by round tables. The band sat at the far end of the hall and a bar was located on the other end by the main entrance. Even though the room was full of people Bucky felt right at home.
As the dance continued, Bucky whirled his partner past a table where Steve was sitting alone. He looked bored and sullen. The room seemed to spin faster than it should as Bucky's mind tried to put together the picture of the small, sickly Steve he had just seen with the Steve Rogers he had met. They were the same person he thought but the dissimilarities in their appearance made no sense.
"You are a great dancer Buck." The girl in his arms said with a smile.
Bucky's focus returned to the brunette in his arms. Bucky smiled and laughed with the girl. "It's only because I have such a pretty partner." He teased.
He felt a little light headed. His lips tingled a bit from too much drink. She blushed and smiled up at him. He grinned at her and added an extra spring to his step. He was having a wonderful time but his mind couldn't quite put a name to his feelings. He kept dancing and the room spun as the music reached a crescendo.
Barnes was jolted awake by the blare of a semi-truck horn. He sat up quickly in the truck bed feeling very disoriented. The same music from his dream flowed out the back window of the pickup.
Colleen was pulling the truck into a rest area along the highway. She eased into one of the longer spots because of the horse trailer. The structures housing the bathrooms were about 75 yards away. Colleen exited the vehicle and walked off towards the bathrooms. The air was heavy with humidity and although the sun was gone, the heat of the day had not dissipated. Bucky climbed out of the truck bed and surveyed the rest area. Besides several semi-trucks and trailers the parking lot was mostly empty.
He felt a bit unsteady. He didn't know if it was from the heat or the dream. He thought what he had experienced was a dream but he also felt like it might be something else perhaps a memory. He was unsettled by the feelings he had been having in the dream. He stood by the truck and took a few deep breaths to clear his thoughts. Finally, he shook his head and followed Colleen's path.
Colleen splashed water onto her face and then looked at her reflection in the mirror. Colleen felt exhausted and she looked it. She needed to keep going. She was supposed to already by at her brother's house in Indiana. Although her relationship was strained with her only sibling since he had married, she had been looking forward to seeing him, if only for an evening.
Since she had the truck she hoped she could pick up the boxes and furniture from her parents estate that he had been storing in his garage. He'll probably be at work when I get there she thought. She resolved to just get to Indiana and see what happened.
She was expected back at the ranch in three days but she knew the Johnsons would understand if she was delayed. She hoped her brother and sister-in-law might accommodate her today. Besides Phillip, they were her only remaining family and she longed to have a better relationship with them.
She exited the ladies room and bought a Pepsi from one of the vending machines. She hoped a dose of caffeine and sugar would help her. She left the building and began walking towards the truck while taking small drinks of the soda. An older model car sat in the spot directly in front of the structures. Loud thumping music was playing in the car that contained four young men. She kept her eyes averted from the car but felt them staring at her. She was struck by a feeling of isolation when she saw no one else in the parking lot other than the dark semi-trucks.
"Hey, lady! Don't walk off." One of the young men shouted at her. This was followed by a chorus of laughing.
Colleen didn't pause or make eye contact but kept walking towards her truck. She heard the men leave their vehicle and glanced over her shoulder. The driver was looking her way and their eyes connected. Colleen broke eye contact and her steps quickened. An upbring that urged courtesy prevented her from listening to instincts that said she should start running.
She felt eyes boring into her back but she didn't turn around. She heard a different voice say, "Hey, you stuck up bitch! "
Colleen glanced back and saw the four men standing around the car looking at her. She jerked her gaze back towards her truck and kept walking. More laughing and shouting followed her but she didn't look again as a heightened sense of fear began to creep into her body.
She heard them walking towards her so she kept moving forward. The men quickly caught up with Colleen and kept pace with here for about ten steps before she was stopped by a man grabbing her left upper arm. The man was about Colleen's height with a muscular build. Two men had moved to stand in front of her. The one closest to her was at least six feet tall and slender. A fourth man stood several feet off her right side. He was portly and seemed to be the least dangerous of the group.
"Please let me go. I don't want any trouble." Colleen pleaded while cringing away from the man holding her arm.
He began asking her vulgar questions that made the other men laugh.
"Please let me go." Colleen repeated but pleading only resulted in another round of rough comments and laughing. The man standing in front of her took a step forward and roughly grabbed her breast.
"No!" Colleen shouted and tried to knee the man in the groin. She missed her mark because she was thrown off balance by the man on her left jerking her towards him.
The man in front of her and the one holding her tightly by her arm exchanged some heated words as Colleen tried to pull away and shouted, "Let me go!"
Suddenly, the man standing in front of Colleen looked behind her and froze. The others followed his gaze and the laughing stopped. The man holding Colleen let go of her arm and turned.
Colleen pivoted slightly to see Barnes nearly upon them. His strides were even and sure. He didn't pause in his menacing advance. Barnes kicked the man who had been holding her before the assailants could do little more than stare. The man hit the pavement with a thud. Colleen heard a loud crack as Barnes' left fist struck the tall man in front of her. She didn't see him fall because Barnes grabbed her and spun her behind him so he could deliver a powerful left front kick to the next man.
Colleen stumbled but didn't lose her footing when Barnes released her. Barnes struck the heavy man with his right hand. The fellow crumpled to the ground.
"Go to the truck." Barnes said in a firm voice. Colleen didn't move. Her feet felt frozen to the ground as she observed her beaten assailants.
"Go!" Barnes repeated. Colleen's jumped at his voice and began to clumsily move forward.
Barnes walked up to the closest man and searched him before moving to the next man. When he was done, he had acquired a fat fold of money, several gold chains, and a small 9mm pistol.
Colleen's dropped the keys from her shaking hands as she tried to unlock the pickup. She quickly bent and picked them up.
"Give them to me." Barnes said as he came up on her left side.
Colleen looked up at his expressionless face and wordlessly handed him the keys. He unlocked the truck easily and held the door open for her. As she got into the truck, Barnes said, "I'll drive."
Colleen scooted over to the passenger seat without complaint as he climbed in. She put her seat belt on and looked out the window across Barnes to the four men still on the ground. Barnes had the truck turned on, in gear, and moving quickly.
The shock of the encounter had Colleen shaking. As they pulled out onto the interstate, Barnes glanced at her and asked, "Are you hurt?"
Colleen shook her head and wrapped her arms around herself.
Although Barnes wanted to put as much distance between him and the rest area as quickly as possible, he kept the truck at the speed limit. The encounter hadn't been much of fight and Barnes knew all four men were alive but unconscious. He hoped that the fight had not been seen by anyone or recorded.
They drove in silence for several miles before Colleen said, "Thank you. I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't been there."
Barnes glanced at her but didn't respond right away. He suspected a response was required and eventually said, "You're welcome."
Colleen looked at him and asked hesitantly, "You were not just in the Army right? You were so fast. Were you a member of some sort of special forces?"
Barnes glanced at her and said, "I guess you could call it a special force."
She kept looking at him expecting more. Barnes said, "I don't want to talk about it."
"Oh, okay. Well thank you." She reached over and touched his left hand that was resting on the seat. She gave it a squeeze.
When she touched him, Barnes barely checked his immediate response to pull his hand away and strike out at her. He wasn't able to hide that his whole body had gone rigid. Colleen quickly let go of his hand. He looked over at her and saw her give him a little smile. He couldn't remember the last time he had been touched in a kind way.
"Why don't you rest and I'll keep driving." Barnes said. "Where are we going in Indiana?"
"Westport." Colleen said. "Do you need to look at a map?"
"No, I'll be fine.
Colleen gave him a small smile before turning forward. The monotony of the lines and reflectors soon had her nodding off.