Homeless: Every Body is a Home

By Otis Hanby

Seventeen-year-old Bryan had been on his own for a long time now. Life was tough in his rural Texas town, but he was giving it his best shot. Things were looking up when he entered into an intense relationship with a street-smart Mexican girl named Rosa.

Then a dark turn takes place. Harassed by local bullies, Bryan's anger and suppressed hostility rises to the surface. It soon becomes clear that his violent lashing out is more than just self-defense, or even a troubled teenager's need for revenge.

Bryan's friends have been dabbling in the forbidden world of the occult, unwittingly releasing a form of evil they never imagined. Bryan is the target. His soul is the prize. Rosa is perceptive enough to realize something sinister is going on, and that Bryan is – quite literally – not really himself anymore.

A malevolent battle is being waged just outside the visible world. Bryan's life intersects with bikers, cops, truck drivers and many others, but none of them can see what is truly happening. A dark entity is hell-bent on using the homeless youth for its own malevolent purposes…with only the love a determined young woman standing in its way.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Mar 13, 2020
• ISBN: 9781098305963

Book preview

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©2020 Otis Hanby. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

ISBN: 978-1-09830-595-6 (print)

ISBN: 978-1-09830-596-3 (ebook)

Special thanks to Chapters Writing Group– for continually scrutinizing my work. Roi – for working behind the scenes with your never-ending encouragement. Sue (aka Mom) – for your proofreading and attention to detail. I’m glad you held nothing back. Dawn (aka wife) – for putting up with my countless absent hours while I write and encouraging me to dream. Mike – for your line edits. Adam – for your excellent cover illustration. And, Dennis – for keeping the darkness swirling. You all have played a vital role in the completion of this novel. Muchas gracias.

P.S. This is a work of fiction. It is meant for entertainment purposes only. And I know the real town is spelled Sulphur Springs, not Sulfur Springs. But this is fiction, remember? Lastly, I mean no offense to the forces of good or evil. I know both sides can be a bit touchy.

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 1

I’m glad that shit’s done, Bryan said as he climbed into the cab of the semi on the passenger side. He’d just completed unloading a trailer full of frozen hamburgers, breakfast sandwiches, and other vending machine foods. Uncle Gary, not really his uncle, gave Bryan a job as a lumper to help him get along. Most loads he delivered were on dedicated routes, and the longest Bryan stayed on the road was a day or two during the week. Uncle Gary told Bryan that he could use him three or four days a week and would pay him an honest wage, which he needed it for sure. School had let out for the summer the week before, and he was going to be a senior now.

Bryan, now seventeen years old, with dirty blonde hair, bangs a little too long and hanging in his eyes, left home at fifteen and never went back. His mom had abruptly run off with another man, abandoning him and his father. Bryan’s dad was already an alcoholic, and now he began hitting the bottle even harder. The functioning alcoholic soon became a deadbeat drunk. Unpaid bills piled up, his dad didn’t even buy groceries, and Bryan’s resentment toward his father festered.

His aunt stopped by to check on the broken family after her calls went unanswered, and she took Bryan away from his home in Garland to stay with her in Sulfur Springs, Texas. Neither Bryan nor his dad protested the matter.

Bryan’s Aunt Caryn had enrolled him at school as a sophomore. Although he passed all his classes, he was getting into fights continuously. Being a city slicker kid with a chip on his shoulder alienated him and made him a target for the locals. Bryan, however, quickly made friends with the misfits of the school. And although they were loyal, it didn’t help his case as he continued to get into trouble.

Bryan’s troubles put a strain on his aunt and uncle’s marriage. In short order, it became apparent that he was in the way, with his uncle calling Bryan a loser and a fuck-up behind closed doors while arguing with his aunt. He continually heard them fighting and had enough. He soon left to stay with his friend Russ.

Russ’s dad, Kemp, was a burnout who owned a local comic book shop and was never home, so it was easy for Bryan to crash there. He ended up staying with Russ, and his senile grandmother, for half of his junior year. Bryan decided it would be best to leave after Kemp came home high, from God-knows-what, and accused Bryan of stealing from him. He might have borrowed the occasional pack of smokes from the store, but Bryan didn’t take from friends.

Bryan got pissed off and told Kemp to go fuck himself. In response, Kemp pulled a .25 caliber pistol out of a leg holster and pointed it at Bryan’s head. The defiant teen pushed his chin into the air and said, Go ahead, you piece of shit, pull the trigger!

That’s precisely what Russ’s dad did, but the gun malfunctioned. Bryan’s blood went cold with fear, then it boiled with anger, and he pushed Kemp, the skinny-no-good hippy, as hard as he could to the floor.

Get the fuck out of here! Russ had yelled.

Which Bryan did, thinking that Russ was now against him, too. It wasn’t until later Bryan learned that Russ told him to leave for fear of what his father might do next and not because he blamed Bryan for pushing his dad down.

He bolted out of the room and through the back door as he heard Kemp shouting expletives. And as soon as Bryan reached the end of the dirt driveway, he heard gunshots fired in random succession. Bryan ran down the dirt road that connected to Highway 11, which in turn continued into Sulfur Springs. He walked the shoulder of the highway for another three miles until he arrived at a convenience store, where he used the payphone to call his friend Scotty.

Scotty picked Bryan up, and he stayed the night with him. Scotty’s mom pitied Bryan and let him stay there until the end of his junior year. During that time, he met Uncle Gary, Scotty’s blood uncle. Uncle Gary quickly took a liking to Bryan. And now that the school year had come to an end, Scotty would be leaving to visit his dad in Georgia, meaning that Bryan was going to have to find another place to live. Bryan’s living arrangements were what Uncle Gary asked him about now.

Where are you going to go when Scotty takes off for the summer?

I don’t know. I might try to stay with my brother in Terrell. His ol’ lady is kind of a bitch and hard to be around, but he said I could crash there for the summer, Bryan said as he buckled his seatbelt.

Uncle Gary fired up the rig and let out a kind of sigh and said, Give that a try. If that doesn’t work out, I’ll come up with something.

Thanks, Bryan said as Uncle Gary drove the refrigerated unit out of the warehouse dock. They were currently in Waco, and it would be a couple of hours before they were back in Dallas.

You got anyplace to be tonight? Uncle Gary asked.

Not really. Rosa is off at some church camp thing and won’t be back until Sunday evening. I was just going to my brother’s house to work on my truck, but he’s not expecting me or anything.

Well, you’re staying with me tonight. We’re meeting up with Robert when we get into Dallas.

That sounds cool. And I appreciate you giving me work. It sucks having to hustle for little jobs here and there. I’ve been getting by, though.

Uncle Gary scratched his greying beard and looked over at Bryan and said, How’s that little Mazda truck running that you bought off Cephus’ car lot?

It starts right up and runs, but she sounds a little rough. My brother was going to help me tune it up this weekend.

It’s not a bad little truck for six-hundred dollars. I’m just glad you got some wheels. And I could put your ass to work with that little pick-up. I’ll make sure you can keep some money in those pockets of yours. You got to have some scratch to take that good-looking girlfriend of yours out, Uncle Gary added.

Yeah, Rosa likes to keep on the move. Which usually costs money.

Uncle Gary nodded his head while keeping his eyes on the road and said, You don’t worry about a damn thing, boy. We’re going to get you through this summer and your senior year. Class of ‘93. I’ll be go-to-hell. You and Scotty will be full-grown men soon.

Yeah. It’s kind of scary. I’m sure I’ll have to join the Army or something after I graduate, Bryan speculated.

Well, you don’t worry about that shit right now. And as long as you’re with me, ain’t nothing going to happen to you. You just pay attention to what I tell you, and you’ll be fine.

Thanks, Uncle Gary.

No sweat, kid. Now get some shut-eye. I’ve got a big night planned for you. We’re gonna celebrate you becoming a Senior.

Bryan smiled and shut his eyes. The hum on the diesel soon lulled him to sleep.

Bryan woke up as Uncle Gary pulled up to Bickford Foods in Dallas. Uncle Gary got out of the cab to enter the security code into the number pad that accessed the yard. Bryan looked out the window at the surrounding city. He saw bums lying around and pushing grocery carts and wondered why money-making companies were always in such slummy areas.

Go pull the car around while I finish my log, Uncle Gary said after parking his rig, tossing the keys to Bryan.

Alright, he said, still heavy with sleep.

Bryan got out of the tractor-trailer and went to where Uncle Gary had parked his car. After finding the Cadillac, he rolled the windows down to let the summer’s heat escape and started the motor. Bryan turned the air conditioner on only after he felt the engine had warmed up properly. Uncle Gary wanted his a/c ‘chunkin’ snowballs.’

After feeling the car had sufficiently cooled off, he pulled next to Uncle Gary’s truck and waited. Finishing up, Uncle Gary secured the diesel and approached the Cadillac. Bryan started to get out of the driver’s seat when Uncle Gary said, You stay in the cockpit. I’m going to have you stop by the beer joint.

Without further explanation, Bryan got back into the driver’s seat and headed to the nearest liquor store.

Uncle Gary finished his beer and told Bryan to pull into the parking lot of a strip club directly off I-35. He belched and said, Let’s go get something to eat.

In there? Bryan asked, meaning the strip club.

Yeah, man, they got good steaks.

I’m not old enough to go in there, Bryan logically pointed out.

What I tell you? You’re with me. Now let’s go eat.

Bryan nodded and followed Uncle Gary to the front door. As they walked in, club-style music was pulsing, and the lights were turned down low.

Who’s the kid? the doorman asked.

He’s with me, Uncle Gary said, casually.

Come on, kid. The doorman gestured Bryan forward and asked, You got any weapons on you?

No, just this pocketknife, Bryan said, pulling it out for him to see.

That stays up here. I’ll give it back to you when you leave, the doorman said and took the knife, and then ran a handheld metal detector over Bryan’s body.

After getting cleared, he followed Uncle Gary into the club. Women were dancing on platforms scattered across the vast room. Disco balls, strobing lights, and low-lit lamps were the only illumination in the place. Uncle Gary weaved around tables, and cocktail waitresses as Bryan struggled to keep up. His head was spinning from trying to see all the exposed flesh in the room. Bryan lost sight of Uncle Gary for a moment and bumped into a topless woman holding a tray of drinks.

I’m sorry! Bryan said to the woman, but she smiled and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

No worries, sugar. I didn’t spill a drop.

Bryan’s face went flush as he intentionally avoided looking at the woman’s breasts. He turned his attention away and saw Uncle Gary waving him over to a table where Robert was sitting.

As Bryan approached the table, he saw Robert laughing while his big hand rubbed the leg of a cocktail waitress. Uncle Gary slid a beer across the table to Bryan as he sat down.

How’s it going? Robert shouted above the loud music.

Good as can be, I guess, Bryan responded, still unsure of being in such a place.

Robert laughed and told him to relax and enjoy himself. Bryan did relax a bit and watched Uncle Gary and Robert flirt with a cocktail waitress. He looked at the two men side-by-side and marveled at how much they resembled each other. Both men had broad shoulders, thick greying beards, mischievous blue eyes, and infectious smiles. Anyone would have guessed they were brothers had they not known better. And although both guys seemed jolly and larger than life, Bryan knew that either man could turn cold as ice in an instant.

Just as Bryan got comfortable, a beautiful, young-looking woman kneeled in front of him, placed both of her hands on his legs, and asked if he would like a dance. Bryan looked at Uncle Gary uncertainly, and he smiled back and said to go with it. He stiffly leaned back and allowed the short-haired brunette to straddle him. She rubbed herself against Bryan and gave him gentle kisses on his neck as the music bumped. All he could think about was Rosa and how pissed off she would be if she knew Bryan was letting a strange woman practically have sex with him through his clothes. As the music switched to another song, the woman finished her dance and collected a stack of money from Robert. With his heart hammering, Bryan drained his beer and told Robert ‘thanks’ and that he needed to take a leak. After receiving a playful wink from Robert, Bryan navigated himself towards the bathroom.

Bryan entered the bathroom and was overwhelmed by the bright lights. As he reached the stalls, he relieved himself and turned to the sinks to wash his hands. A couple of Asian looking men were snorting a white powder at the opposite end of the counter. They were bigger and more muscular than typical Asians Bryan was familiar with. The men gave Bryan an annoyed look as he watched them. He quickly finished washing his hands and returned to his table, finding steak, fries, and fresh beer.

Eat up! Uncle Gary said.

Bryan devoured his meal and drank a couple more beers. While feeling buzzed, he became obsessed with a woman on center stage. Uncle Gary saw him intently watching her and gave him a stack of one-dollar bills. He instructed Bryan to tip the dancer so she can buy her kids some new shoes and laughed. Not understanding the joke, Bryan got up and approached the stage. As if summoned, the woman approached him and danced for several seconds, squatted down, rubbed her breasts against his face, then leaned over and pulled the strap of her G-string away from her hip. Bryan saw a collection of dollar bills and caught on. He slid the money onto her thigh. She smiled and patted his hand, then let the elastic band of her underwear snap back. Bryan let his hand linger for a moment longer, and the dancer stood back up and moved to the next tipper.

Back at the table, Bryan sat down, heavy from all the beer and sexual energy in the air. It was almost more than he could take. Being somewhat experienced with drinking, he decided to nurse his beer before he got stupidly drunk.

Another hour passed when Uncle Gary told Bryan it was time to go. He followed both men to the exit in an alcoholic fog. They said their farewells to the doorman, and Bryan got his pocketknife back, as promised.

The men continued to the parked Cadillac and got in. Bryan sat in the back seat and watched as Robert gave a bag of weed to Uncle Gary seated on the driver’s side. Uncle Gary shook the bag looking for stems, and Robert feigned disappointment. It’s good shit! Robert said. They were laughing when someone knocked on the passenger window. Caught off guard, the men looked to where the knocking came.

Robert rolled his window down about two inches and said, What!

You got a light? said a voice.

Bryan looked out of the rear passenger window and noticed that it was one of the men from the bathroom that was snorting drugs.

I don’t smoke, Robert said and rolled the window back up.

The man knocked again.

This mother-fucker…What!? Robert said again, rolling the window down a couple of inches.

You got a light?

I told you, mother-fucker, I don’t smoke! Robert said with severe agitation in his voice. As this was all going on, Bryan saw four more men approach the Cadillac.

The man continued to knock aggressively when Uncle Gary turned to Bryan in the back seat and said, You stay put!

Both men got out of the car. And without hesitation, Robert began beating on the man that had pounded on the window. An instant later, a second man was punching Robert from the side. Bryan watched Uncle Gary round the front of the car carrying a short metal rod, the same one he used for checking the tires of his rig. He swung it hard, striking the third man. The whole scene unfolded in a rapid mess. Bryan looked back to Robert, who was punching the same man in the stomach as the second man continued to hit him from behind. Robert spun around to attack. The first man was holding his stomach with red all over his arms and shirt. Robert wasn’t punching these men, he was stabbing them.

Bryan’s heart pounded as he watched the violence unfold. He looked back at Uncle Gary and saw him swinging his club at a man as two others lay on the ground. Bryan was surprised at how everything happened so quickly. After knocking the last man unconscious, Uncle Gary hurriedly walked back to the car and opened the driver’s side door.

Take that weed and get the hell out of here. Call Scotty. Tell him to pick you up from the grocery store across the street! Stay the hell out of sight until he comes and gets you. The cops are gonna be here any minute, and you can’t be here. Now go! Uncle Gary said wild-eyed.

As Bryan slowly opened the rear passenger door, he saw Robert holding one hand to his neck and the other to his side. Blood covered his arms. Bryan wondered if it belonged to him or the men he was stabbing. Robert set Bryan into motion, saying, Go on! Get!

Confused, Bryan turned away from the mayhem and headed for the store as instructed. Nervous and moving fast, he stuffed the bag of weed down the front of his pants.

Bryan made a phone call to Scotty. It would be at least an hour and a half before he got there from Sulfur Springs. Scotty had a million questions, but Bryan told him it would be best to talk about it on the ride back to his house. Once inside the store, Bryan walked up and down the aisles to pass the time. As he strolled aimlessly, he found the cigarettes. With no one giving him any notice, Bryan snatched a couple of packs of Marlboro Reds. When he knew the coast was clear, he stuffed a pack into each pocket of his baggy jeans and made his way to the only cashier and grabbed a Dr. Pepper to purchase. After buying the soda, Bryan walked outside and smoked a cigarette by the vending machines. His head whirred from the craziness that he’d just experienced. Across the street and in the direction of the strip club, red and blue lights flashed, and he wondered what was going to happen to Uncle Gary and Robert.

Say, man, you got another smoke? a voice asked, startling Bryan.

He looked beside the vending machine and saw an elderly black man attempting to stand.

Yeah, man. Here you go, Bryan said, handing him one.

You got a light too? I’m ‘fraid all I’ve got is the habit,

Yeah, no problem, Bryan replied, lighting the cigarette.

The flame illuminated the cover of darkness, and Bryan clearly saw the man, but he had a hard time gauging his age.

Say, youngsta. What y’ all doin’ out here all by y’alls self in this here part of Dallas?

Bad luck is all. I’m alright, though. I have someone coming for me.

Yes, sir…yes sir. Y’ all sho’ does have some bad luck on y’ all. I can see it like a cloud ova’ yo’ head. Yes, sir.

Bryan’s heart skipped a beat and asked, Why would you say that?

I’s seen lots of things from the swamps of Louisiana to the hills of Texas and knows when troubles is on folks. You all got that cloud, but yo’ insides shines strong. I appreciate y’ all fo’ the cigarette. I think someone is here fo’ ya, the older man said as headlights lit them up.

Bryan held his arm up to shield the intrusion of light and heard a vehicle’s door open.