DISCLAIMER: This is a story out the fantasy that is my mind. It is a story that deals with homosexual material. If you live in a jurisdiction that by some law or reason prohibits you from reading this material then please do not read any further. If homosexual material like this offends you then you should stop reading as well...Though frankly if homosexual material offends you I can't understand why you would be here in the first place.
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Mike
Chapter 2
Gord bolted upstairs to the bedroom and got as far back into the closet as he could. The closet door was ajar and the bedroom door was partially open. His clothes were in the dryer so no one would see that. Then cold sweat started to trickle down from his armpits as he thought about his packsack. Where had he left it? The last he remembered it was by the back door in the kitchen! Oh shit! What if the cop noticed it there?
He heard a knock at the door and the door being opened. "Hi John" he assumed it was the muffled voice of the Police Chief speaking.
John looked the man in the eyes. "G'day George, how can I help you?" He said, pointedly polite. There was no love lost between the two men.
"Well now John I'm looking for a young kid that fits the description that Winnie said she saw in the cafe‚ last night. He's some runaway from Canada, he got across the border last night and managed to get away from the customs folk."
John looked at George trying to read his face, to see if he was on to something. If he had been talking to Winnie, then he probably knew that Winnie had asked him to drive the kid. He decided he would tell enough truth about seeing Gord to keep the heat off him, but no more information than he actually had to, and not before he actually had to.
He shrugged his shoulders, as if to say "So?"
"Well did you see him?" George quickly got an edge to his voice because John was not saying anything, just staring at him.
"Yeah I saw the kid last night in the caf‚ but he was still there when I left."
"You didn't see him after that? Winnie tells me that the kid left shortly after you did"
"I don't know about that George, I came home after I left the caf. "
"You didn't pick the kid up on your way home?"
"Didn't see any kid on the highway" (This was technically correct in that he had picked Gord up in town not out on the highway)
"Winnie tells me ..."
John cut him off, he could feel the anger rising "Winnie tells you that she asked me if I wanted to give the kid a ride, I know George, but as I say I left before the kid did and he didn't ask me for a ride. Like I would open myself up for something like that. Do you have something else?"
"Now you calm down John, you understand that I have to ask these questions, especially since yer one of them quairs, I can't be too careful."
"Yeah I'm one of those George, but that doesn't mean that I run after everybody that has a cock hangin' between their legs, and I don't go for little kids."
"OK John if you see this kid, his parents are worried sick about him. So, let me know if you should see him ok?"
John nodded and the George stepped back and down the steps. John moved back to the window and watched the officer get into his car and drive away. He waited until the car disappeared down the highway. Then he called Gord out.
"He's gone but I think we have to talk." He called to Gord
Gord came in to the kitchen with his head bowed. He nodded. "I was going to call my folks when I got to St Johnsbury, just to let them know I was ok."
"So you're not running away from them? Then what are you running from?"
Gord was now in tears again. "I'm not running from anyone John, I... I .., I don't know if you would understand.
"Gord you are in my house, the police are asking questions, I think that you have to tell me something"
"But I'm afraid that you might not like me after I tell you"
"Why don't you try me Gord? If I don't like what you have to say I promise that I will still drive you to St Johnsbury. "
Gord looked at the man sitting across the table at him. Should he take the chance? "I... uh I'm going... I want to go to march with Martin Luther King" he let out a sigh and stared down at the table afraid to look up at John.
"You want to go down to march in the civil rights marches? Gord are you crazy? You'll get killed maybe before you even get down there!"
John stared at him incredulously. He was both amazed at the naivete of the boy and the courage at the same time. He was just going to walk down to join the 'King' marches.
"Why do you want to do that?" He asked
"I don't know, I just have to" Gord seemed to pick up courage "I can't understand why people treat other's like that just because they are different or have a different colour skin, I have to go and show that all white people aren't like that."
This kid at least knows why he is doing this' thought John, but he hasn't thought out how he is even going to accomplish it, he'll get killed just trying to get down there, it doesn't make sense'
He looked at the boy "How were you going to get down there Gord? You are not always going to get rides, what are you going to eat?"
"I'm going to hitchhike, and I'll get down there. I have a little bit of money, I'll buy a loaf of bread or something to eat. "
"Gord it doesn't make sense, you're not going to make it"
Gord bowed his head and started to sob. He knew that John was probably right but he also knew he had to do this. He had to!
He looked up at a John and with a determined look on his face said. "Maybe I won't make it, I might even get killed but I will die knowing it was for a good cause. If I go home now I'll always wonder if I could have and should have gone on, I need to do this John."
John smiled at him. "I think you should call your folks"
"I can't, they'll try to talk me out of it, I have to go" with that he got up and got his clothes out of the dryer. Moments later he was up and dressed. John watched the boy leave the room to the laundry. What was he going to do? He obviously wasn't going to convince him that this was not possible. Then he thought of something.
"OK" he said as Gord came back into the kitchen "this is what we are going to do, we're going to find out where Mr. King is going to be in the next few days. We're gonna put you on a bus to which ever location we choose and call the organisers to meet you there and take you to the march."
"I don't have money for a bus." said Gord
"I do." replied John "And that's what we are going to do. It is either that or a turn you over to the police." John stared at Gord.
"Also, you have to give me your phone number so that I can call your folks and tell them that you are alright. At least tell them that you were alright the last time I saw you."
John shook his head " 'Can't believe I'm doing this" he said more to himself than anyone.
"The other thing is that you have to stay here one more day, I have a feeling that George is probably watching for me and you. It'll take that long to figure this thing out anyway."
Gord walked over to John and threw his arms around him. "Thank you so much." he said huskily, his voice filled with emotion.
John hugged Gord back and kissed the top of his head. "We'll figure this out." He said softly.
They got up and John finished making the lunch that he had started when the Police Chief came. As they ate, they planned how they were going to pull this off.
After lunch John called a friend of his that might know who he should call in the civil rights movement. After a few more phone calls he was able to find that Montgomery Alabama was where Gord should be heading. He also received instructions for Gord as to what he should do once he got there and a phone number to call when he got in.
Next John called the for prices and bus times for the trip. He planned to take Gord to Albany New York. It was kinda out of the way but it would avoid meeting up with the George or one of his officers in St Johnsbury. Also the bus from St Johnsbury to the south would take him to Albany anyway so he might as well save a few hours to start with.
There was a late bus leaving about 10 that evening that would do just fine. He would get into Montgomery with a couple of transfers along the way in 3 days.
John got of the phone and said "Well I guess that changes plans somewhat. We have to get you out of here tonight. It takes about two hours to get to Albany so we have to leave about 7:30 at the latest in case, we run into problems.
They sat down in the Livingroom together and tried to relax. The tension was thick. Gord nestled into John for comfort. "Thank you John." He whispered in the man's ear, "this is really good of you."
"Well we're not out of the woods yet. I have to go to town this afternoon and get some money and you cannot leave this house or go anywhere near the windows, don't answer the door or the phone. I don't doubt that George will come himself or send one of his officers to come and snoop around. If they see you here, both you and me will be in prison. You think that the blacks have it bad, try being gay in this country. I only have a job because my brother and I are co-owners of a business in town."
"Another thing I will remind you of this again tonight, when you are on the bus do not tell anyone why you are going to Montgomery, especially white guys. If anyone asks, you're going down to visit a cousin or something. Don't even talk about it with coloureds, some white guy might overhear you. At best you'll get kicked off the bus in the middle of nowhere, or you could get beat up or even killed. I'm not kidding here! This is serious. Just keep to yourself and don't talk to anyone if you can at all help it."
"OK, I'm going into town" John said finally. He once again warned Gord not to be seen nor open the door to anyone that might come by and then he left to go and do some banking. He locked all doors as he left. Gord armed with several magazines stayed in the bedroom and closed the door behind him. John had already drawn the curtains there so there should be no possibility of the Deputy or anyone seeing Gord there. The only light there was a small light on the night stand.
About a mile away just on a rise in the landscape above the farm, Deputy Mike McKinnon was sitting in an unmarked car with a pair of binoculars. He had been sitting there ever since his Boss had gotten back from interviewing John. The `Boss' had this thing against John Grifter, and the thing was that John was gay. He hated "quairs" as he called them. So, when this Canadian kid showed up missing in Derby the night before, and Winnie at the café‚ mentioned that John had been there at the same time the kid had been, George immediately assumed that John had picked the kid up, and was doing "unspeakable wickedness" with him. John obviously not letting the him in the house when he came to talk to him was also used as evidence but that was thin since John never let the George into his house.
Mike didn't like doing this but orders were orders.
John, but for his life style was a fine upstanding citizen in the area. His family had run a saw mill, lumber yard and hardware operation in the area for four generations. The Sawmill was gone now but he and his brother still had the hardware Store and lumberyard.
They had just started expanding by buying out a couple other hardware stores and a lumberyard in three other locations in the area. The family had always been solid members in the local Episcopal church, with several of the men over the years sitting on the Board of the church.
Mike noticed some movement at the Grifter house. Through his binoculars he saw John get into his car and drive away... but only John, he was alone.
Mike radioed into the office. "Mike here over"
"Go ahead over"
"Yeah, Sally, John just left on his own, he's heading north along the highway. Over."
There was silence for a few moments then he heard the Chief's voice on the other end.
"Officer Mike, you go over to the farm and see if you can see that kid there."
"Copy that sir, uh... do we have a search warrant to go on the property? Over?"
"Jest go an do it McKinnon, I'll cover for yah, don't break in or anything but should the door be unlocked; you could go in to see if anyone is home. Jest go an do it, he's got to be hidin' that kid somewhere's, I jest know it. Over"
"That's roger over" Mike sighed. This was wrong but he had to answer to the Boss at the end of the day.
He drove down to the old farm and up the driveway. He got out of the car and went up on the porch to the side door, the one that everyone used, and tested the door handle. It was locked. He then walked around the porch to the front door, checking to see if he could see anything inside. The drapes were drawn, there wasn't even a small opening between the drapes to see anything. The front door was also locked.
Mike walked all around the house checking what windows he could and listening for any hint of life inside, but he neither saw nor heard anything. He was almost relieved as he got back into his car and left.
Gord heard someone coming up the drive, he turned off the beside light, softly went into the closet and waited. He heard the car door close and then the sound of footsteps on the porch. He knew that it wouldn't be John yet and could only assume it was one of the police.
His heart was pounding as he heard the man try the doors and walk around the house. It wasn't until he heard the car motor start and what sounded like a car moving away that he came out of the closet where he was hiding. It was another half hour before he dared to turn on the light again.
An hour or so later he heard another vehicle coming up the driveway. He quickly turned off the light and dove into the closet again. Moments later he heard someone entering the house. The door to the bedroom was opened and then to his relief he heard John softly calling him. He came out of hiding and threw his arms around John.
John held the boy close, feeling his heart pounding against his chest. He realised that the boy was clearly terrified. He slowly got out of Gord what had happened.
As Mike drove away from the farm, he thought about this whole "stake out" of the Grifter farm. It was nothing short of harassment. In the last several months he had checked on John innumerable times at the Chief's orders.
Mike was a fresh recruit out of Police College and this was his first placement. He took policing very seriously and wanted to be the best he could be. One of his first assignments when he arrived was to follow John around for the better part of a week, just to monitor the movements of the "quair". The Boss made it quite clear that he had no use for homosexuals and he was out to get the man on some kind of charge, perhaps even if he had to make one up.
Mike himself was from New York City and there was no shortage of homosexuals in that community. His parents had raised him in an atmosphere of tolerance. He remembered his father telling him once "You don't have to like what they do but you don't have to hate them for it either." Mike himself had experimented with his friend when they first started to develop and he never thought one way or the other, good or bad about gay sex, or hetero sex. Both, he found pleasant though he knew that he did prefer guys.
So, when he was confronted by the George's homophobia and outright hatred against gays he found himself in a very uncomfortable position. However, orders were orders. He had met John a couple times in the hardware store and had chatted (weather and hardware and such) and found the man to be quite amiable, and easy to talk to. He was a fairly attractive man in his later thirties or early forties he guessed. He obviously took care of himself.
Mike was heading back to the Station at the end of his shift and noticed that John had returned home. On a whim he decided to go in and talk to him.
John and Gord only knew he was there when they heard the car door close. Gord ran for the bedroom again and John went to the door and out on the porch to greet the young officer. "Officer how are you?"
Mike took a deep breath. "John, I wonder if we could talk?"
John looked at Mike questioningly but didn't say anything.
Mike continued "Well actually I would prefer to talk to you when I'm off duty, I can't really say what I want to say while I'm on duty. Are you free tonight?"
John was very interested now and knew he had to be careful. Since George had been appointed Deputy Sheriff in the area, he had been constantly harassed and he knew that he as being watched all the time. This must be a new approach.
"Well officer actually tonight will not be good but perhaps tomorrow. When are you off?"
"I'll be off 4 PM tomorrow." Mike paused he wanted to say more but what could he say? He could get into serious trouble just being here now. If the Boss knew that he was setting up a meeting with this man on his own time he could possibly lose his job. "John" he began again softly "you are being careful, aren't you? George is gunning for you." Mike looked into John's eyes. "I'll be here tomorrow afternoon about 4:30." He turned and walked back to his car and without looking back at the man standing on the porch turned the car around a drove away.
John watched the officer drive away. He was filled with confusion. Had this man just warned him about something coming down? What was going on? He would have to be more careful tonight, as he took Gord to Albany then. This was the shift change there wouldn't be anyone driving the highways for another half hour! He ran back into the house. "Gord we have to go now!"
Gord came out of the bedroom. They put his meagre belongings into his packsack and got into the car. As they drove Gord was ready to duck if they saw a police car. But they saw none. It was only a half hour before they were out of the local jurisdiction, and they relaxed. They drove straight to Albany and the bus station. John bought them supper at the snack bar in the station. John purchased the bus ticket to Montgomery and re-instructed on what he was to do to protect himself. He gave him a piece of paper that had the phone number for the NAACP organisation there. He felt certain that they would help Gord find his way to the march and his hero Martin Luther King Jr.
About an hour before the bus left, He gave Gord fifty dollars in assorted bills so he could buy food and whatever he needed. Gord was speechless and tried to refuse but the man would have none of it. John took his leave and returned home.
In the mean time the George got Mike's report on the surveillance. Mike didn't tell him that he had actually spoken with John. He decided also not to tell him that he had seen John's car in the driveway on his way back. That would only cause other possible questions.
Mike did wonder what John was up to tonight though. He was torn between the harassment and the possibility that John was taking young men to his farm which was against the law. It was illegal for two adult men to get together never mind a man and boy. What was he to do? Where did you draw the line between a legitimate surveillance and what was blatant persecution? He was supposed to uphold the law, but he was not to abuse his position either. He was supposed to uphold the law but it was also time the law was changed and men like John be allowed to live their lives in peace. Recent changes he had heard of in Canada where homosexuality had been taken out of the criminal code there, was encouraging news for gays even in the US. Changes were happening there as well. Certainly, in some of the major centres like New York, San Francisco and Miami homosexuals were much freer to live without a lot of harassment. Mike often pondered this and when he received his assignment here it was even more often on his mind.
John arrived back home close to midnight. He noticed the car parked up on the hill where Mike had been parked earlier that day. His return was duly noted and called in by the officer in the car.