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A.J. stopped in his tracks and turned towards Allison. “What do you mean? They have to, we aren’t from here.”

“Not many of us are from here originally A.J.” She shoved the picture in front of him. “This picture was taken after we got two flat tires on the road, this man you see walking towards us, that’s John’s father. He approached us shortly after we took this picture and told us that he saw what happened and he was there to help us. He brought us to town, our car came shortly after.” She sighed and looked fondly at her parents. “They took us in, the tires were going to take time to come in they told us, but we were treated well while we waited. My parents soon fell in love with this place and we ended up staying. I’ve never seen our car since. I told my parents I wanted to leave when I reached eighteen but I never was able to. I met my husband, another outsider, and we plotted to leave this town.” She stopped and looked towards the town obviously afraid someone would hear the story.

“But you are being kicked out of the town now, they are making you leave, at least you finally get to leave.” A.J. was trying to help her think of the positive.

“You don’t get it, A.J. nobody leaves this town.”

“But you said….”

Allison held up her hand. “Nobody leaves the town A.J., it’s just not done. Especially not males.” She looked at him as the thought from last night came back into A.J.’s head.

“I noticed last night that there are quite a few more women in this town then men. Older men with younger wives, girls fighting over sitting with boys.”

“Something here, perhaps the water, they would never tell me, makes it difficult to conceive a boy. Boys are born here and raised here, but there are more girls by far. This town lives for its male residents. John’s family has lived for more then a century and they have had a boy child with every generation, so naturally the town has him as the guide, the protector. His word is law. His grandfather started the Widow’s Walk and the town has gone along with it since. Sons and daughters have watched their widowed mothers marched out of town for years now.”

“What about those men who have their wives precede them in death?” He looked at Allison and answered his own question. “They remarry a younger woman with the hope of producing a son.” He shook his head. “You are young though, why force you out?”

“You heard John, I’ve had my chance.”

They stood in silence for a bit longer. “Get the women to finish fixing the bus; we will leave this town Friday night before the ‘parade’ the next morning.”

Allison smiled, “I knew that you would choose this if you knew, the other women didn’t believe that you would care that I was wasting my time, but I knew.”

A.J. blinked at Allison before turning to leave. “I’ll let the other guys know,” he called back to her as he trotted off suddenly feeling very used.

He found the rest of the guys sitting on the porch drinking lemonade outside Shelby’s. “There you are,” Howie called after him. “We were waiting for you. They are letting us take the afternoon however, we want and we thought we could practice. You know keep our vocals no spot for when we return to the tour.”

“I have to tell you something.” A.J. spat out before he lost his nerve. The other four listened as A.J. recounted what Allison told him about the town and his own conclusions. He ended with his plan to get out and take the widows with them.

The others sat staring at A.J. confused, until Nick spoke. “I believe what he says. I’ve been with a couple of girls this week and each one seemed to be very persistent about getting a proposal from me. I thought they were just eager to get married and possibly leave this place. That was until one of the girls started deciding which house here we should live in if we get married.” Nick shook his head, “The sooner we leave the better.”

The guys sat in the shade of the porch planning how they would leave town the next night. Their time ended as they were called to get ready for that evening’s dinner celebrating the next widow.

*****

Walter listened to the talk he heard outside. When John first suggested that he keep his ear on any conversation the strangers might hold he was upset. When the guys talked about singing, touring and even missing loved ones, Walter thought he might have to have words with John about setting him on this pointless task. When he heard the fifth one come back and start talking, his ears perked as he told the story of the town to the others.

John was right in having Walter listen in. He hit the jackpot when the guys started plotting to leave the town. Walter learned about the Widow’s hidden talent of car repair and that these men planned to leave and take the Widow’s with them. A traditionalist, Walter did not want to see their celebration ruined. He knew the women never returned, John always told them that they found their way to the next town, that he’d seen some of these women today and knew they were fine. Walter did not want to ruin the town’s biggest celebration; he knew he needed to tell John what he overheard.

It wasn’t hard to find John; he knew that the council was meeting that night, his own wife Shelby served on the council. Hands sweating he knocked on the door, nobody interrupted council meetings. The door opened and four pair of eyes fell on him.

“Excuse my interruption, but I wanted to tell you that those boys we’ve taken in, they are planning on leaving tomorrow night.” There were scoffs from a couple of the council members, as though they thought the idea of these five leaving was ridiculous. “It turns out; the Widow’s have been aiding the repair of the bus in hopes that they would take them with them when they left. I thought ridiculous; everyone knows that the Widow’s are welcomed in the next town over. Many are still living there.” Walter watched Shelby and John exchange a look before one of them spoke.

“Walter you did right by coming here tonight,” John spoke. “You may leave while the council deliberates the information you brought us.”

They watched as Walter exited before they started speaking.

“What do you propose we do John? These boys are turning out to be a disaster. We should have let them drive by on the road.”

John shook his head. “I would have thought with their driver dead they would be stranded. We could have used the other man, but my decision at the time was he would serve a better purpose dead rather then alive.”

“It’s not all of them, John; it’s the one with the tattoos all over.” Shelby spoke. “I knew he was going to be trouble.”

“We can’t just let that one leave without his friends; he would find his way back to get them. We will have to let them all leave.” John’s decision led to gasps from the other three. “We can replace them.”

“But to lose four healthy men John, it’s madness. We need them.” One of the others spoke.

John held his hand, “it’s my decision. They leave tomorrow.”

“What about the Widow’s, what if they try to take them tomorrow still? You know Allison has been seducing the one and now we know why.” Shelby spoke.

John shrugged. “We move the walk to tomorrow afternoon instead. Announce tonight that we will have Allison’s celebration at breakfast Friday as is her wish, she would hardly put up a fight and if she did who would believe a grieving Widow? After they finish their last meal, we will gather for the walk.”

The others nodded their approval of John’s decision. John’s eyes glinted as he looked towards the doors Walter walked through earlier, “Tomorrow afternoon we will have five fewer problems, and five fewer in population.”