Six weeks after the attack, was thanksgiving break and I was finally able to take off my sling. During the break I made arrangements to go back to Montana to visit our old home and with an entourage we left the city behind. The flight was only about two hours and the pilot couldn't land immediately due to the lack of visibility on the runway. Snow had come already for the little state and I couldn't help but smile at the thought of feeling the cold air on my face again. I looked to the side at Mom and seen the look of bliss return to her face finally. We are only visiting though if we hadn't bonded with the people in the Park family again I'm sure we wouldn't go back. The flight attendants walked up and down the aisles and asked us all to buckle in as we were preparing to land. One of the attendants kept looking in my direction and blushing.
"Looks like you have an admirer dear. " Mom teased.
"How disappointed do you think that she will be when she finds out i'm a girl?" I chuckled softly.
Mom shakes her head with a sad smile and looks outside as the plane descends from the sky. I've always hated heights so I was determined not to look so as to not panic. Marcos, who was sitting behind us sat there in complete silence the entire flight and next to him was Grandpa who surprisingly was very adamant about going with us. He wanted to see where we've lived for so many years. I hope that he doesn't have a heart attack on the place that we lived in all those years with how strict he was in training the old house was certainly not what we would expect him to like. To each one's own however, I was thinking about all of the things that happened in the past and how most of the town treated us like outcasts because we lived simply. Now how would they act knowing that we have money coming out of our ears? I laughed mockingly at the thought which drew the other three of my party to turn and look at me.
"Just thinking about how those people who mocked us are going to react when we show up dressed to the nines in a nice car. Don't mind me. " I said calmly.
Mom nodded her head as she knew from first hand experience how some of the locals treated them when they came here. Like we were foul and dirtying up the place. Hmph, the arrogance. Marcos and Grandpa both gave each other a look but didn't say anything. We collected our bags and Marcos went to go pick up the rental car. He pulled up in a luxurious Cadillac Escalade and immediately hopped out of the car to put the bags in the back of the vehicle. We got a lot of stares from the people in Billings airport as most people wouldn't rent a luxurious vehicle as it was super expensive. You could hear the whispering gossipers all around as we climbed into the vehicle.
"Marcos, head to Roberts directly I am very excited to be back in familiar territory where I know who my enemies are. " I stated flatly.
"Yes, Young Master. " He affirmed.
I raised my eyebrow for a moment at the distant and using master versus Parker. I shrugged it off however as I knew that with Grandpa here he was probably trying to be on his best behaviour. I looked out the window as we drove through downtown Billings the homeless were trying to seek shelter where they could and the police were patrolling slowly due to the slick roads. The dark blue cars contrasted with the white winter wonderland around them. The natives who made up most of the homeless population here avoided the police and ducked into alleys. The locals all know that the natives in the homeless community got treated like vile vermin when their people were the ones who lived here before all of the white people. It's sad how we forget the past so quickly, I looked away and stared ahead. There were somethings that can't always be fixed because one wants them to. There have been hundreds of people who have tried to change the views of the natives who were homeless here but no one wanted to accept that change except for the homeless themselves and their advocates.
I shook my head and tried to distract myself from the negative thoughts as this trip is supposed to be a happy one. Marcos, merged onto the interstate and went straight to Laurel to get onto highway 212. The deadliest highway in Montana, where the most deaths have occured in the past twenty years. The curves in the road that make it hard for people to see around the bend usually end up in a fatality. Too many lives ruined on this highway for stupid mistakes. I looked at the passing farmers fields and noticed that there was some new road construction. It looked like they were going to givert the highway around most of the farmers field to help deter all the deaths by going around the area. Seems like a good idea, I thought to myself casually. Suddenly I notice that Marcos is slowing down and I see the red and blue behind us. Oh lovely Carbon County Sheriffs who have nothing else better to do.
" If you don't have a conceal to carry permit be sure to place it in plain sight for the officer. Make sure that it's not loaded either just what we need is for them to ransack all of our things. They are always very eager to prove themselves as big deal police officers. " I stated coldly.
" I have my conceal carry permit and if they run my name they will see that. Everyone should probably pull out their id's so that way we can get this done quicker. " Marcos stated calmly.
He stopped and got all of the proper documents including the rental agreement from the rental car company and we all handed over our id's. The officer slowly walked to the back of the vehicle and stood there staring at the plate for a moment. He pulled his notebook out and jotted down the information. He sauntered over to the drivers window and stood there waiting for Marcos to roll the window down. He did so quickly and calmly.
"Hello Officer, How are you doing today? " Marcos asked respectfully.
" Do you know why I stopped you today? " Officer asked flatly.
" I don't sir, was I going too fast?" Marcos asked calmly.
"You were going five miles over the speed limit, License, registration and proof of insurance." The Officer ordered.
" Here you go officer. " Marcos replied.
The officer collected all of the documents and looked around the car at us. He spotted my mother and me in the back seat. His eyes narrowed and then chuckled mockingly. I looked at my mother and then sat there calmly. We didn't do anything wrong and we know it so there is nothing to worry about. Plus Marcos also had a dash cam on both side of the vehicle and I had my cell phone recording everything that this guy was doing. He went back to the car and was back there for quite awhile. We sat there patiently and waited for him to come back to the vehicle. Next thing you know there comes a Montana highway Patrol unit and another Sheriffs car.
"Parker, is this how they usually treat out of towners or is it just me?" He asked cautiously.
"Marcos you aren't packing are you? They are all in your bag in the lock box that you only have the key for correct? " I asked curtly.
" Yes, of course. You told me that the police here were a bit more temperamental with firearms than other places. I was trying to be logical and put it in a place where it was not in arms reach and so that way the officers couldn't use that against us. " Marcos replied calmly.
I looked at mom and noticed that the officers were at the back of the vehicle talking quickly and then I seen them draw their weapons before slowly approaching the vehicle. I looked around and seen that they were having one person stand behind the car and the other two were approaching from the side. Apparently, they seen that he has a conceal to carry permit. Instead of asking if there was a weapon in the vehicle they decide to go big for us. I knew I didn't like the way that the sheriff looked at us. The officers came up to the front passenger door and knocked on it. Grandpa obediently rolled the window down halfway to be able to hear the officers directions.
"Everyone place your hands where we can see them!" The officer next to Grandpa ordered.
" Sir, why didn't you tell me that you have a concealed weapons permit? " The original officer demanded.
" Sir, I didn't have the weapon on me it's in the gun safe in the back of the car with its safety lock on it. I thought that was the proper procedure for the state of Montana." Marcos calmly replied.
" You in the back seat let me see your hands!" Yelled the officer next to Grandpa.
"Sir, I have a shoulder injury and cannot show the one hand as it is in the sling." I replied calmly.
" Are you resisting?" Snickered the original officer.
"No sir, I am injured and cannot move my one arm per doctor's ordered I do have the doctors recommendations in the center console if you doubt me. Though the doctor is not from Montana, I am still going to comply with what my doctor told me to do. I am staying still so that way I don't make you officers nervous about my actions if you wish I can get out of the car and sit off to the side with the officer that is behind the vehicle. " I offered.
" Alright step out slowly, I was going to let you off with a warning but it seems that since you want to hide things from us we would like to search your vehicle. WHich one of you is Jane Park? She is the one whom the vehicle is rented to. "The original officer ordered.
" I am and you don't have permission to search this car. We would like to speak with Sheriff 'Keesner or I can call him personally to come down. " Jane stated firmly.
" He won't come even if you called, who would come help you a bunch of outsiders in this county. " He sneered.
" Have it your way. Siri Call Sheriff Keesner's cell phone please. " She spoke clearly.
Calling Sheriff Keesner.
Ring! Ring! Ring!
" Hello, Jane! Long time no see. Have you arrived for your visit with us for thanksgiving? " Sheriff Keesner asked.
"Oh, you know me Charles I have arrived but it seems that your deputies are wanting to cause trouble for us. My friend has a conceal to carry permit and the gun is in a lock box in the back of the vehicle far from him and has a safety lock on it. The officers here have been rude and demanded that Parker who is injured show both her hands when she clearly can't comply due to the injury. Could you please come over and help rectify the situation. I know Pam has you doing extra things around the house but I would truly appreciate it and will definitely make it up to Pam. " Mom chatted.
" I am on my way and those officers better stay put if they plan on still having a job. I'll be there in a few moments Jane." Sheriff Keesner stated.
You could hear the underlying threat in the tone of his voice, and the look on the two deputy sheriffs that were standing by the front went from white to green to white again. They holstered their weapons and stood their ground I sat outside of the car still recording the scene in front of me. There was a reason I thought it was a good idea that my mom made friends with the Sheriff and not the deputies. She had been pursued by the deputies romantically and she rejected them everytime. It seems that they were still upset with her for her rejections.
We waited for about ten minutes before you seen Sheriff Keesner's truck pull up with lights on and all. I looked at him as he stepped out in his uniform. He spotted me and seen that I was sitting down on the ground in the snow. The look on his face was that of a demon king who had seen his child being bullied by others. He came up to me and took me back to the suv.
" You three come over here NOW!" roared Sheriff Keesner.
"Yes, sir!" The three officers echoed.
"Which one of you decided it was a good idea to have an injured teen to sit down in the snow ? I don't care who suggested it but who in the world of the three of you agreed to it? Do you realize that if the teenager dies due to our negligence all of us will be out of a job and be in prison. We have put away enough people to know that if we go in it'll be bad for all of us. Plus we have never given tickets out for going five miles over the speed limit it's alway been a warning. Why would you give them a ticket for something so trivial?" He raged at them.
"Sir, they need to made an example of they didn't tell us they had a conceal to carry permit and they were speeding as well." The original officer stated slowly.
" You could have asked you imbecile! All because Jane rejected your advances for a relationship you want to make things hard for her and her daughter. This is the last straw! You are hereby put on leave pending a thorough investigation of your actions by the department. Dependent on the outcome will depend on if you have a job here in the SHeriff's office of Carbon County. Do I make myself clear? " Sheriff Keesner shouted.
"Yes, Sir. " He stated coldly.
The original officer turned on his heel and returned to his vehicle before speeding off to the office. The other two officers looked at each other and left as well. Sheriff Keesner walked up and handed us the paperwork back to us and nodded at us all.
" I am truly sorry Jane, I am going to put it to the disciplinary committee and probably transfer him to a different county. Parker, are you okay? " Sheriff Keesner asked concernedly.
" I am okay Mr. Keesner, thank you for the help. I'm sorry to trouble you as soon as we get back. " I apologized.
"Not at all Parker, Pam and I have always had a soft spot for you and your mom since we met you. Don't need to apologize but I have to head back to file the disciplinary paperwork before heading back to Pam. We will see you all at the thanksgiving community dinner at the church right?" He asked calmly.
" Of course, we couldn't miss it now could we? " Mom said teasingly.
We all laughed and said our good byes before getting back onto our journey to the house. The tense atmosphere slowly lightened up as we got to the edge of town. I couldn't help but breaking into a smile as I seen the sign of the Y-stop gas station.