Little Roof Jumpers

Chapter 25 Drop Dead Dealers And Schizophrenic Light Bulbs

After working selling shoes for a few years it was apparent Willy wasn't going to grow up. He was Don Lowes right hand man and I didn't know how to stop it. Don was a tall thin blond homily man, neurotic and paranoid. His wife, Joe, was a strange brown haired chunky, mid sized women who liked quite a few other men. She worked like most all the other wives or girlfriends of these drug dealers, myself included. Joe worked at Pizza Hut and she didn't seem to mind Don dealing but she also liked her drugs. And that was one of many differences between us, I didn't care for the dealing and drugs were not on my menu.

Leaving Willy wasn't an option. I still didn't have anywhere to go and being so young I didn't know what to do. My parents were strange when I went to see them of an evening they acted like they loved me but they were ready for me to leave after dinner. "Well Dollbaby it was good seeing you, we have things to do this evening so you better get going home. Bye I will see you tomorrow at lunch mom. Hey you better ask your mom if she is going to be here before you make plans for lunch I think she is busy tomorrow. Hey honey don't you have plans tomorrow at lunch? Yes, yes I do. Annie just check with us before you make plans, okay?"

And that was the way it went at my parents house.

Whenever I attempted to pack my bags and leave for the women's shelter, Willy went nuts. After being beat up one night, I left the next morning in Willy's car and went to the YWCA and talked to a counselor. The counselor convinced me I could leave Willy and stay in temporary housing. With my job and work ethic she thought it wouldn't be long and I could save money for a little efficiency.

When I got home Willy was sitting in the living room chair waiting for me with a pistol in his hand. I started to back out of the living room but Willy rose quickly to his feet and had me pinned up against the wall before I could get away.

"What do you think you are doing, bitch? Willy I can't live like this, you are always with Don doing I don't know what. I am always at work trying to bring enough money in to pay the bills. Willy I am nineteen, I work more than forty hours a week and you do nothing but sleep until noon and then ride your Harley and hang out with bums. I want out!"

Then I tried to duck under his arms but he grabbed me but not tight enough for me to slip out the front door. Willy was right after me shooting his pistol in the air. That stopped in my tracks. My back was turned away from Willy but I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck bristle when he came up behind me and whispered, "I will kill you if you ever try to leave again." I was scared but I didn't feel anything it was like I was a blank canvas, I didn't have anymore fight in me.

Willy just kept getting crazier and I hated this stupid swamp slash chicken coop we lived in! Ugh! I needed help!

Willy took me by the hand and into our bedroom and showed me an arsenal of guns he had hidden under our bed. I didn't know where they came from or when he bought them. He had a sawed off shot gun, a 38 pistol, and a couple of other shot guns, a small 25 and a bigger pistol that looked like a 38 but longer. "Willy why do you need all of these guns and where did you get the money to buy them? Bitch shut up, don't you tell anyone I have these guns." I just looked up at him dumbfounded.

There wasn't anyone to help me. I was stuck at the age of nineteen intimidated and controlled by a lunatic. I started working more hours so I could minimize my time at the chicken coop. When I made my commission, I could come in and work as many extra hours as I wanted. The pay scale I was on was minimum wage or nine percent commission and once you hit your commission the wage dropped off. When someone returned his or her shoes, the sale was taken off your paycheck. Willy always wanted to know how much I was going to make on my payday. If I wasn't there when someone returned shoes I wouldn't account for the loss and Willy would flip because he already had plans for my check.