Chapter Eight

I loved the Arcadian lifestyle of the farm, and so did Rynn. Living on the farm brought us closer to the earth and it made us closer as a family. I knew deep down she didn't want me to find out who hurt Irisa by the way she acted towards me. I had a hard time forgiving the people who hurt my family, and even though Irisa was my paramour, I considered her my family. She had a calmly look on her face since I returned from Defiance, and I knew that meant she doubted my plans. I had already made it know that I would kill the men who hurt Irisa, and I wasn't about to back off that. Her hair was long, all the way down her back, and curly. I could tell she had been crying earlier in the day, but that was because I told her I planned on making a move against the men who hurt my paramour.

We walked up to Irocuz's grave in the middle of the night, around ten thirty, and I had a shovel with me. Rynn folded her arms tightly as if she didn't want to touch me. The wind blew her hair into every direction. When I started digging, she just looked at me for a moment, and then asked, "What're you doing, Tommy?"

"First rule of revenge," I said as I continued to dig. "When seeking revenge, you dig two graves." She sighed in disapproval, but it didn't matter. I had to do what I had to do. The Badlands-at least in my area-had some good, soft soil, and it didn't take long to dig a good sized hole.

"You know who hurt Irisa, don't you?" She asked. Looking down at me as I stood in the hole, she frowned. I knew she wasn't happy with me, but at the same time, I wasn't happy with me. Something inside of me forced my hand when it came to the women in my life.

"Yes," I said as I stopped digging for a second. Rynn looked out into the Badlands away from the house, and she had tears in her eyes. "The Busy Baker Boys attacked her. I should've known it was them."

She squatted for a moment, placed her left hand on her sweaty forehead, and then looked at the sweat on her palm. The night air was hot, and she had beads of sweat on her face that began to drip between her breast. I knew the baby was acting up because of the heat. "Did they even know she was your family?" She asked.

"I'm not sure," I said. "If they did, they would have killed her as payback. All I can think about is they took my child from me. I want payback."

"So, you're obviously planning on killing them," she said, "But when?"

"Soon," I said. "You can't be involved, though. I won't let you be a part of this."

"Why not?" She asked. "I'm capable."

"I'm not going to argue with you, Rynn, but you're responsible for two lives right now," I said.

"And you're responsible for six," she said, "Me, your baby, your sister, your momma, your niece, and Irisa, but you're willing to throw it all away."

"I just don't want to think about something bad happening to you or our baby, Rynn. I can't handle that," I said. "You go to Sukar's house like you planned."

"I thought you put Tro Blassie Veenager to rest," she said with a grimace on her face. "Didn't you tell me that after we saved Ireena? You said no more killing."

"I'd love to put him to sleep for good," I said with a scowl on my face. "But they killed my baby. They beat my paramour. What would you have me do?"

"I understand. The Spirit Riders raised me, but I never grew a liking to killing, Tommy," she said. "Not like you. It's like death lurks in the back of your mind. I feel it," she said as she patted her right hand on her chest.

"I'd like to think there was another way to handle this," I said. "But they killed my child, Rynn. Now, I choose to roam the Badlands, take my revenge on the men who did that, and when I'm done with them, we can go back to being family.."

"As the sensible one in our marriage, I'm going to ask you NOT to do this," she said. "You go back to Defiance, get your paramour, and bring her here. In a few months, try again to make a baby." She began to sob loudly. "But you won't do that, will you? That route is just to easy for Tro Blassie Veenager. You're going to get yourself killed, Tommy. I will support you in whatever you decide to do, but I don't have to like it." She began to walk away, and then I climbed out of the hole. She turned back to me, and said, "Just make sure you come back to me and your baby after you're done."

"If I don't make it through this, just know there wasn't anything I wouldn't do for family," I said. "I thought about you every day since I was a kid, Rynn. I'll think of you every day until I breathe my last breath."