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me later, I assure you.”
    â€œYeah, those cabins were rather sparse; getting them up to speed to live in is going to take some effort,” Danny said.
    â€œYou guys think I wanted a bunch of stuff? Well, I bet your ladies are going to come up with all kinds of stuff they need,” Sarge said. “Just wait, you’ll see.”

Chapter 5
    T he next morning Jess and Mary were going through the breakfast line when Jess whispered in Mary’s ear, “I’ve got something to tell you.”
    Mary turned her head and mouthed a silent
Shhh,
but she had a look in her eye like she knew that Jess was up to something. They had to be careful with everything they said. The security staff were extremely paranoid. Anyone heard talking about anything that could be construed as a violation of the security of the camp would be immediately placed in the detention side of the camp. Once they had their plates, the two moved off to one of the tables that sat end to end running the length of the mess tent. As soon as they sat down Jess jumped right into it.
    Looking from side to side, Jess leaned forward and whispered, “Mary, you won’t believe this. Remember those guys I told you about, Morgan and Thad?”
    Shoving a spoonful of grits into her mouth, Mary nodded her head eagerly.
    â€œI heard someone here talking about them yesterday. They’re around here somewhere.” Jess was getting more excited.
    Mary looked from side to side, then leaned in. “Really? I thought Thad lived in Tampa.”
    â€œThat’s where he was going, but I heard them talking about Morgan and some big black guy; it has to be him.”
    Mary smiled. “Is he cute?”
    The question caught Jess off guard. “Who, Morgan? He’s married.”
    â€œNo, silly, Thad. You said he’s a big guy; is he cute?”
    The question had nothing to do with the current conversation as far as Jess was concerned. “What? No, I don’t know. That’s not the point.”
    Mary started to giggle. “Come on, girl, don’t act like you wouldn’t like a man.”
    Jess was still trying to bring Mary back to the point at hand when a voice asked, “Are these seats taken?”
    Mary and Jess looked up to see two women standing there with a small child. They were the women from last night—the ones from Morgan’s neighborhood. Before Jess could say anything, Mary replied, “No, please have a seat.”
    Jess looked at Mary wide-eyed, shaking her head slightly. Mary was clueless to her objection and simply wrinkled her eyebrows in response.
    The two ladies smiled and took a seat. The little girl was cute; she had long blonde hair tied back in a ponytail, just like her mother. The child grabbed a corn muffin before her hind end landed on the bench.
    â€œShe looks hungry,” Mary said with a smile.
    The woman smiled back. “Chloe is always hungry.”
    Mary nodded sympathetically. “Aren’t we all.”
    The group ate in silence. Jess looked at the little girl, who was eating grits with a spoon that was too big for her small mouth. She marveled at the little girl eating the pasty, tasteless grits without complaint, then she considered that hunger was a powerful motivator. With that thought in mind, she ate her own grits and muffin.
    She almost couldn’t stand it, though, sitting beside these women. She wanted so badly to talk to them about Morgan, but she didn’t want to act too interested. Fidgeting with her muffin, she asked, “Where are you from?”
    The two ladies immediately began to talk at once. They laughed, then one of them continued, “We live just down the road out here, a few miles to the south. Where are you from?” She had black oily-looking hair and a sunken face.
    â€œI’m from just south of Gainesville. Mary here lived in Gainesville. I’m Jess, by the way.”
    The blonde-haired woman replied, “I’m Donna.