Apocalypsis 03 - Exodus

us, all smiles. “Goodbye, girls! I just wanted to give you some big, fat kisses to thank you for bringing Joshua into our family.”
    “Joshua?” asked Winky.
    “That’s what I’ve named him. He looks like a Joshua, don’t you think?”
    We both nodded our heads. I wasn’t sure that I really agreed, but it didn’t matter. The baby was in loving hands, and that’s what he needed. Hopefully, his nutty mother would never see him and recognize him as her own, and this girl who lost her baby would find a way to heal from it with Joshua’s presence in her life.
    “Thanks for the food. And for making the trade,” said Winky.
    “Yeah, thanks,” I agreed. “Bodo appreciates it, too.” I looked over at him, hoping he wouldn’t disagree, but he was too busy staring at a mosquito that was flying two inches from his face to pay any attention to us. He was still having trouble getting sober and keeping his focus on the conversation, and if it weren’t so sad, it’d be hilarious.
    Winky started laughing, only stopping when I whacked her on the shoulder.
    “Come on, Bodo. Time to go,” I said, taking his arm and shaking it a little.
    He came out of his dreamland and pushed his bike forward and through the side door in the wall. As soon as we were through and the door closed behind us, he said, “Dat was a close one, Bryn. I wass almost da man meat of dose war-girls. Dey said dat if I didn’t have the sex with them, dey would cut off my man parts. Andt I like my man-parts too much. I hope dat doesn’t make you mad at me, dat I was going to choose to keep my parts.”
    I worked really hard not to laugh. “No, Bodo. I’m cool with it. I would have done the same thing.”
    “Okay good.” He stopped his bike and looked up into the sky, gazing from left to right, back and forth.
    I was afraid we’d lost him to his drugged-out confusion again, but as soon as he spoke, I knew that wasn’t the case.
    “Before we go back, I need to find Nina.”
    I was glad the door had already closed behind us, hoping they’d moved away from it enough not to hear us anymore. I didn’t know if Bodo had talked about his bird with them, but all we needed was for them to stop us on the way out, thinking we were hiding something they should know about.
    “Do you know where she is?” I asked.
    “I hope she iss nearby. But I don’t haff my straps for my arm, so I cannot call her yet.”
    “Here,” said Winky. “Is this what you need?” She handed over a small bag that one of the girls had given her before we left. Bodo looked inside and pulled out his leather straps with a smile on his face.
    “Excellent. Now, all I need to do is to call her.” He frowned. “I don’t normally do it without my harmonica.”
    “Problem solved,” I said, pulling it out of my front pocket. “Call away. You have five minutes. After that, we leave, Nina or no Nina.”
    “You are very bossy today, Bryn,” he said frowning at me. Then he smiled at the instrument in his hands. “How did you find dis? I lost it on da day we rescued da kids.”
    “Winky found it in the grass, where you’d been fighting someone.”
    He looked at her and held it up in a salute. “Thank you, Winky. I owe you something in return. One day you tell me and I will give it to you. Dat’s not a problem.”
    “Hmmm, sounds interesting,” said Winky, smiling at me.
    I pointed a playful warning finger at her before replying to Bodo’s assessment of my bossiness. “Yeah, well today’s the day I learned I have canners on my butt. So we don’t have time to hang around and get caught here.”
    “Let’s ride down da street a little bit,” he said. “I don’t want dem to see my bird and change dare minds about da man meat.”
    “Could you please stop saying man meat ?” asked Winky. “I keep picturing your private parts when you say that, and it just feels wrong with Bryn standing right there.”
    I laughed. “It better feel wrong whether I’m standing here or not, Winky.”
    She stuck her tongue out at me and then smiled.
    “Well, do you haff anudder word I can use? Becausse when someone wants to have da sexy time with you ten times a day with all da different girlss, den you feel like a piece of meat. And I’m a man, so dat’s da man meat.”
    “Fine,” said Winky, rolling her eyes, “man meat it is.”
    We rode together and waited while Bodo called for Nina. After five minutes of trying, she came, but only as close as the nearest palm tree. She