Book V: Reunion Part Two

Logan spent the time until his father came home getting to know all of his siblings, especially the ones he'd just met. He learned that Leni and Luan still held their interests in fashion and comedy, respectively, but he was surprised to find out that Luna had been inspired by him to pursue all kinds of music (though Rock & Roll evidently held precedence). Lynn was a sports-loving jock, Lucy a devoted Goth, Lana a tomboy with many pets, Lola a pageant princess, Lisa a Nobel-winning prodigy, and Lily undecided. Last but not least, Lincoln was a jack of all trades, claiming to have dabbled in several areas that their sisters excelled in. However, he was first and foremost a comic book nerd, Ace Savvy being his favorite superhero. When Logan casually mentioned that he used to experiment with music himself, his younger siblings all insisted that he play for them if he was still able.

"Gee, I would, but I don't have my guitar with me," he said, causing the twins to pout.

"I gotcha covered, bro. You want acoustic or electric?" Luna asked. Logan requested acoustic, and Luna went upstairs to fetch hers. To his surprise, she brought down his old guitar from before he left, still with innumerable chips and scratches but playable nonetheless. The fact that she'd kept it after all the pain he'd caused them warmed his heart and brought a smile to his face. After plucking the strings experimentally and fiddling with the knobs, he settled into a well-known song by Johnny Cash:

An old cowpoke went riding out
One dark and windy day
Upon a ridge he rested as he
Went along his way
When all at once a mighty herd
Of red-eyed cows he saw
A-plowin' through the ragged sky
And up a cloudy draw

Their brands were still on fire and
Their hooves were made of steel
Their horns were black and shiny and
Their hot breath he could feel
A bolt of fear went through him as
They thundered
through the sky
For he saw the Riders coming hard
And he heard their mournful cry

The children that knew the song decided to sing along in the chorus:

Yippy-aye-yay!
Yippy-aye-oh!
Ghost Riders in the sky

(Logan) Their faces gaunt, their eyes were blurred
Their shirts all soaked with sweat
They're ridin' hard to catch that herd
But they ain't caught 'em yet
Cuz they've got to ride forever on
That range up in the sky
On horses snortin' fire
As they ride on, hear their cry

(All) Yippy-aye-yay!
Yippy-aye-oh!
Ghost R
iders in the sky

(Logan) As the Riders loped on by him
He heard one call his name:
"If you wanna save your soul from Hell
A-ridin' on our range
Then, cowboy, change your ways today
Or with us you will ride
Tryin' to catch the Devil's herd
Across these endless skies!"

(All) Yippy-aye-yay!
Yippy-aye-oh!
Ghost
Riders in the sky

"So. You have a taste for Country, huh?" Luna asked when the song finished.

"A little. Pretty much the only music I don't like is Pop, Hip-Hop, and Rap," Logan replied. The front door opened, and Lynn Sr. walked in and plopped down into the armchair with a tired sigh. "Wow. Rough day at the office, Dad?"

"Oh, you have no idea, Logan," Lynn Sr. said, grinding his palms against his eyes.

Logan grinned and said, "Three...two...one..."

Lynn Sr. jolted and cried, "Logan! You're back! But how? Why?"

"I'll explain later. Right now, I'm going to order pizza. Anyone have a topping preference?" The siblings all agreed on a set of toppings that everyone would enjoy, so Logan called the nearest pizza parlor on his cell phone and placed the order. Taking note of the fact that practically all of the dishes were ruined from their mother dropping them in shock, Logan also requested paper plates so that they would have something to eat off of. The order of five sausage-and-pepperoni pizzas came a few minutes later, and Logan paid for it with his own money. Never having seen so much pizza before with their parents' limited budget, the siblings took as much as they wanted. Leni took a plate upstairs for Lori, who still refused to leave her room.

"So, Logan, how did you survive so long on the streets?" Rita asked between bites of pizza.

"I wasn't on the streets the whole time, Mom. The first few months were rough, and the thought of coming back someday was the only thing keeping me going. But then I met a man and his daughter in Great Lakes City, and they took me in. I learned a lot from the private teachers they hired for me, and I've been doing pretty well for myself. The man died a few years ago, and his daughter split half of her inheritance with me. So yeah, I have about four million dollars to my name, not counting what I earn at my job." The whole family whistled in admiration, and Lynn Sr. and Rita were inwardly jealous that their eldest son was better off than they were.

"Hey, what about lodging?" Lynn Sr. asked.

"What about lodging?" Logan asked in reply.

"Are you here to stay, or just passing through? I hate to say it, sport, but we gave your old room to the twins."

"Oh, don't worry, I'm staying. I actually had my friend buy the house next door. Not Mr. Grouse's, but the other side. My stuff should already be there."

"Well, that explains the moving vans going back and forth all morning," Lincoln speculated. The family engaged in small talk until everyone had eaten their fill of the pizza.

"Okay, kids, your father and I need to talk to Logan alone, and all of you need to go to school in the morning. Bedtime!" Rita said, causing Logan's siblings to grumble in disappointment as they trudged up the stairs.

"Good night, Logan," the twins called in unison.

"Good night, girls! And Lincoln!" Logan called back with a small wave. He then saw the stern looks his parents were giving him. "Okay, you both deserve to know why I did what I did. But first..." Logan reached under the couch and pulled out Lucy by her ankle. "Ha! Busted! You'd have to get up pretty early in the morning to get the drop on me, Lucy!"

"Dang it," Lucy said and joined her siblings upstairs. Logan then spent the next several minutes explaining what happened between him and the gang boss, and his resultant motives for leaving.

"Golly...Logan, why didn't you say anything? We could've helped you by letting the police take care of it," Lynn Sr. asked.

"Because I was young and stupid. I know that now. But my eleven-year-old mind kept coming up with worst-case scenarios of him finding out that I snitched and getting revenge. From the bottom of my heart, I'm so sorry for putting you through this. If there's anything I can do to make it up to you, anything at all, I'll do it; no questions, no strings attached," Logan promised. He was startled when his mother unexpectedly threw her arms around him.

"I'm just happy that you're home safe, sweetie," she said. Logan stood up to both return the hug more effectively and allow Lynn Sr. to join the hug. His parents squeezed him tight, but suddenly felt something poking each of their thighs. Somehow escaping their notice, Logan had a holstered Browning Hi-Power pistol strapped to each thigh. Now, Rita had always taken somewhat of a liberal standpoint on firearms, despite her father being a former Navy officer, and Logan knew this.

"I know what you're gonna say, Mom, but I need these for my job. Don't tell the sibs this just yet, but I work for the CIA."

"Oh, alright," Rita sighed. "But I'm only keeping the secret if you buy us new dishes!"

"Deal. I was gonna insist on that anyway, since it's pretty much my fault that they broke." Logan and his parents shared a laugh before Logan left for his new home next door.