Small Town Hero

Chapter 16

She got dressed for the day after she cleaned her kitchen from breakfast. She needed to get some supplies for school as well as pricing cameras and laptops. Although she still had a good chunk of the money she'd saved for the last three years, she didn't want to stretch herself too thin. One thing Josh and Trisha taught her was the fact that it wasn't good having to live paycheck-to-paycheck. They had no money problems but they always reiterated the fact to her and Janie. It stuck with Noelle as she struck out on her own.

There was an electronics store in Charming so she stopped there first to check out what they had. She wasn't too pleased with their limited selection. The next place she stopped for the day was to get some school supplies. Pens, notebooks, and a backpack to carry everything in. With no other stores in Charming, she decided to head over to Stockton to see if they had any electronic stores that had some good quality cameras and laptops she might be interested in. She had the radio cranked up and was bopping along to the music as she drove along the stretch of highway between the two cities.

Stockton was a bit more fruitful although she didn't buy any electronics that day. She wanted to see what they had and how much before making a decision. Although she wasn't looking for anything really fancy in a camera, she knew she'd have to have something pretty decent in the way of a laptop. Having a basic idea of what she was willing to spend on a camera, she began her trek home. On her way, Happy called her. It confused her as to why he'd be calling but she answered anyway.

"Hello?" She answered.

"Where are you?" His rough voice asked.

"Um, on my way home." She answered.

"From where?" Happy asked.

"Stockton." She replied earning a grunt in response.

"What were you doing in Stockton? We'll talk about that later. We're going on lockdown so everyone close to the club needs to be here. I'll meet you at your house so you can pack a bag with some clothes." Happy told her.

"Lock down? What does that mean?" She inquired.

"Just get to your house as quickly but safely as you can. I'll be waiting for you there." Happy stated before hanging up.

'What the hell is "going on lockdown" and why does it concern me?' she thought as she drove along. Clay wasn't too thrilled with Happy when the killer demanded Noelle be included in the lockdown. He wanted to keep her safe and she was associated with the club through him. She was in as much danger as any other 'ol lady. After quite the argument, Clay finally relented and told him to go fetch the girl. When Happy arrived at her house, he discovered she wasn't there. It wasn't time for her to be at work but he checked there anyhow on the off chance she'd been called in early.

When he got there and saw she wasn't there, he called her. He didn't know why she'd be in Stockton but was going to give her an earful about being there in Mayan turf when he saw her again. He drove through town and straight to her house to wait for her like he said he would. Just under thirty minutes later, she pulled into her driveway. Happy was sitting on her stoop waiting for her to arrive. She gave him a small smile before unlocking the door. As he followed her inside, he told her to pack for at least a few days and to bring her showering stuff. He followed her into the bedroom and sat on the edge of her bed while she walked into her closet to grab a duffle bag.

He watched as she dug through her dresser to find some neatly folded clothes and gently placed them in her bag. Her face tinted when she grabbed some undergarments and placed them in the bag as well. He thought her shyness was rather cute but he wasn't about to tell her that. She went into her closet to get a few outfits and put them in the bag as well. The last thing she had to do was grab her bathroom essential. She made two trips before she felt she had everything she needed. Smacking her forehead, she grabbed her work dress and shoes and gently placed them in the bag then zipped it up. "Follow me to the clubhouse." he instructed her as they left her home.