Ok, bear with me. There is so much space limitation on FB so I thought I would post this. This is the beginning of my "novel" (using that term loosely here, as it is a frightening WIP at the moment) and I welcome any and all criticism.
Divide et Impera
Jennifer
Carpenter
Preface: Genesis (Beginning)
It
started like the flick of a switch, the burning out of a light bulb. Everything
just shut down. Where was I? At work, making copies. Like some satirical joke
the powers that be were playing. If someone had asked me where I was when the
world as we knew ended, I would say “Why, I was making copies, of course.” And
the world would laugh.
There
was a banal harmony to it. My assembly line of paper. Copy one sided. Copy two
sided. Line up pages, staple. This was my life. Copy clerk with a B.A. in
English. The copy machine sucked up the pages with a “whhff” and proceeded to
spit out its progenies. Pull out pages. Put other pages in. Stack, staple.
And suddenly everything went dark and the copy
machine shut down. With an exasperated sigh, I put down the stack of papers I
was about to staple to go investigate. Lawyers were milling around confusedly
looking for the breaker switch, because, of course, they usually had people to
do that for them. The whole building was out. One of the junior partners in the
firm was fiddling with his cell phone.
“My
phone isn’t working...” he said with a furrowed brow, “what the hell...it’s
off! It wasn’t a minute ago!” He pressed the power button and held it down. “It
won’t turn on,” he said with some confusion. Other people started pulling out
their phones with the same result. I walked outside among the business complex
to see if other areas were affected, and people were milling around on the
sidewalks and streets like dumbfounded animals. A red-headed woman was crying.
A man in a suit with wavy hair was shaking his phone as if that would make it
work. All along the block you could hear the click, click of engines not
turning over.
Looking
down this usually traffic-ridden street, all seemed eerily silent. It wasn’t as
if it were completely quiet, no, not at all. People were bitching for miles.
But the stoplights were out and quiet, the sound of cars whooshing by was not
there, and up the road you could see several car accidents, most likely from
cars that had been travelling when the power went out. One car to the right of
where I was standing had crashed into the side of a house. Had nobody heard of
using their brakes? It was like a car graveyard.
As
far as I could tell, the power was out everywhere within a few blocks at least,
and no one that I could see was able to get their cell phone to even turn on. I
went back inside to talk to my boss, the senior partner in our firm. Asked him
what I should do. He told me to go home.
Against
all hope, I decided to try and start my car. I slid into it and of course, it
wouldn’t. “This is just what I needed”, I exclaimed in muted breath. I decided
to hike home. After all, it was only three quarters of a mile.
I was huffing and
puffing by the time my brown duplex door came into view. As soon as I came
close, my cat Felix was meowing through the window, though I couldn’t hear him.
I walked in and the air was stifling. Summer time on the east coast was the
hottest. Especially Philly. I don’t care what any of those west coasters say
about their “dry heat”. Try 95 degrees with 90 percent humidity! Felix weaved
in and out of my legs as I assessed all my electronics. I had left my cell
phone at home this morning so I checked that first. It would not turn on. My fridge was off; my
air was off, my home phone, even my computer. Every piece of machinery and technology
that I owned was off and not working. At
this point, I was starting to panic. What was going on?
I was at home for
a while trying to tune in my ham radio when I finally got one of the
frequencies to work. Bob, the homeless dude I had passed on the way to my
apartment told me that only the “new school” electronics would be affected by
what happened. At that point, everyone had assumed it was some sort of
electromagnetic pulse that went off. I still remember the scares we had about
those things in the late 90’s. Normally EMPs came from Nuclear detonation but
there was worry that it could be created without them. The government had a big
scare about it and there were all kinds of conspiracy theories going around. I
didn’t completely understand all that it entailed but there wasn’t any way to
know for sure what actually happened anyway. We couldn’t use our cell phones,
our TVs, or our radios. I was always a little old fashioned anyway though, and
always thought there may come a day when we would have to revert to the old way
of doing things. In a way, this concept excited me as much as frightened me. I
had always been obsessed with literature about TEOTWAWKI (the end of the world
as we know it). In fact, my favorite book was The Stand.
As
I was tweaking it, I finally heard “This is the emergency broadcast system.
This is not a test. Please remain in your homes and stay calm. Further
instructions will be broadcasted.” I listened to the loop three times then
turned the knob to the left where the “off” position was. It still wasn’t
telling me anything I didn’t already know. Felix was rubbing on my leg with his
back. I shooed him. It was way too hot to be cuddling up with my cat.
“What
now?” I asked him. He looked up at me quizzically but did not answer. To put it
quite simply, I was restless. I had so long relied on technology for
entertainment that I did not know what to do with myself. I was also starting
to get very anxious about what this might mean for society in general, but more
specifically my own health and well-being. I decided to make a plan. If this
was permanent, as some of the neighbors I had talked to had alluded to, I
certainly couldn’t depend on the government or somebody else to take care of
me. I had to do that for myself. The best course of action would probably be to
leave and go somewhere there were less people. Big groups meant panic and panic
meant trouble for me.
I
decided that if I was going to make any decisions, I had to do some research
first. I was always a self-starter. I never expected anyone to come and swoop
me up and fix everything. So I wanted to know all I could about what was going
on and what I could do next. I walked down the steps of my duplex and headed
east to the library down the block. As I walked among the high rises, I could
already see broken store windows and litter everywhere. That day had been
garbage day, so not only could I see the overflowing metal cans, but I could
smell them. The heat was not helpful either, fermenting any waste it came into
contact with. I could also see that graffiti that had not been present before
yesterday covered many buildings. “Suck my cock” and “The end is nigh” were
written in bold neon yellow. Before I started to worry about being a single
female out there in those conditions, I turned a corner and approached the
library doors, on the side of which a miniaturish statue of Honest Abe sat, in
the midst of all the chaos. Someone had drawn horns on his head. I chuckled as
I walked in.
Two of the front
windows had been broken already, but I peered in and I didn’t hear or see
anything, so I figured it was safe. The library was completely deserted and a
bit dim, but there was enough light streaming in from the windows to see.
Apparently the library was the last place you wanted to be in this situation. I
smiled. More for me. I made a beeline for the non-fiction section of the
library and found the section on hiking and camping. I found a Boy Scouts of
America handbook. That would definitely come in handy. I also found a couple of
books on edible vegetation in the area. I found much more too, and my entire
visit remained undisturbed. Before leaving, I picked up a couple of Ayn Rand
novels, and the collected works of Poe. Then I headed out with a *ahem* “borrowed”
library cart and wheeled them to my house.
The
next day, all I did was read. I skimmed books about disaster survival, history
books about tools used before technology, books on early technology, books on
farming and agriculture, and many more. From what I could tell, my best bet
would be to find a quiet place outside the city where I could settle and begin
building a livable situation. Even though this was not at all an ideal
situation, I had thought about it enough to be slightly prepared for it.
Later
that day I turned my radio back on, and a different message was playing. “This
is Governor Wallis, Commander in Chief of the state militia. Due to the
national emergency, we are imposing a curfew of eight PM. Please do not go
outside your residence after this time. Troops will arrive in Lake, Cook, Dupage
and Will Counties no later than Friday. Please be assured that all governments
are working together to assist in this crisis and that we will provide more
information when it becomes available. A state of emergency has been declared
and the National Guard will be establishing a presence for the protection of
our citizens. Please remain calm and be advised that soldiers have been
instructed to use any force necessary for your protection.”
“Pffft. Yeah, I feel better,” I
said loudly. Felix looked up, startled. I laughed.
That
day I began to pack. I took three outfits of the heartiest clothes I had,
including a pair of long underwear, and those went into the bottom of my pack.
Last year I took a road trip to Arizona and hiked the Grand Canyon, so I had a
lot of camping gear left over, including my hiking pack. Unfortunate for me,
the only weapon I had was a hunting knife (I called it my Rambo knife), still a
gun would have been better. It had to be something I picked up on the road.
Next I packed essential toiletries. Screw
the makeup, Essentials only. Soap
and toothbrush and toothpaste were all I needed. On top of the toiletries I put
a first aid kit, flashlight, and waterproof matches. I also packed a foldup
camp stove, and all the non-perishables I was able to find in my pantry. I
filled a gallon container with cold water (it was all I could carry). I packed everything else I could think of and
strung my grandfather’s old P38 can opener on a chain around my neck; such a
small piece of metal, but so useful. I laced up my boots, and just as I was
heading out the door, Felix meowed. Shit.
“Felix, oh crap”, I said. I
froze indecisively for a few moments, then said “I’m going to miss you. I just
can’t take you with me,” I said, as I walked over to the jumbo bag of cat food
I bought last week. I opened the bag, dumped the entire bag on the kitchen
floor, and then filled the sink with water. I then opened two windows so he
could go out and forage for food when he ran out. I didn’t want to leave him.
But it just wouldn’t be practical to try and take a cat out on the road. Not to
mention I had no idea how I would transport him. He hadn’t let me pick him up
since the day I brought him home. I walked out and silently mouthed Goodbye to Felix. I hoped he would be
okay. Luckily he was a scrapper, an alley cat that was more my owner, than I
was his. I took one last look around and was not sorry to leave the rest
behind. It was just stuff, after all. There wasn’t much in this entire city in
fact, that I was sorry to leave. I had been a loner by choice, so didn’t have
any people I was sorry to leave, and my job…well enough said.
The
panic was tangible, thick in the air. I heard screams and crashes; saw broken
windows. I started to think that the best idea I’d had so far was to get away
from town, away from people. People taken individually, I could handle. People
in groups, panic ensued. I wasn’t much for individuals either, which was part
of the reason why I felt the need to leave. Besides, I didn’t want some stuffy
shirted politician telling me what time I had to go to bed. Screw that. I was
walking down a side street (avoiding riots) when I heard a crash to the left of
me. Dude was walking out of an electronics shop with a TV. Really? I shook my head and continued on.
I
had been walking for approximately an hour when I saw a man on the other side
of the street. He seemed to have the same idea I had; he had a green duffle bag
on his back, stuffed to the brim military style. He nodded to me. I couldn’t
help thinking he was pretty good-looking. Not in an obvious, pretty-boy kind of
way, but in a rugged manly sort of way. He was muscular and tall, but not overly
so, with dark brown hair. I smiled a thin lipped smile and kept walking,
passing by the public library I had looted the day before.
We
must have walked like that, on opposite sides of the street, randomly throwing
each other furtive glances, for a few minutes
before he decided to cross the street and come talk to me. He smiled at me
disarmingly and offered me his hand openly. His eyes were dark green. Oh Shit.
“Hi.
Figured I ought to introduce myself seeing as how we’re walking in the same
direction. I’m James,” he said as he flashed another brilliant smile. Uh oh. This one will be trouble. I
reached out my hand tentatively, then, deciding the better of it, looked right
into his eyes defiantly. He just smiled
back.
“Kate.
Pleasure. Where you headed?” I asked, trying to determine which direction he
was going in so I could go in the opposite.
I certainly could not afford any distractions right now.
“I’m
not quite sure. It didn’t seem safe in the city, though I was sorry to leave
people behind. Safety in numbers, you know?” he said. I raised one eyebrow
quizzically. Hmm. Sure Mister, whatever
you say. “It’s true, you know. People need people to survive. Humans are
pack animals,” he said.
“Not
me. Anyway, it was nice meeting you. I’ll be on my way,” I said, and started
walking in the other direction.
“Wait!”
he said, running to catch up, “I’m sorry. I just don’t think it would hurt to
travel together. If we were attacked, there would be two of us.”
I considered this
for a moment. He was right. Damn I hate
complications. Not that I couldn’t
take care of myself, but two people were better than one in a situation of
having to defend yourself. I rolled my eyes.
“Alright,
James. But we split once either of us gets to our destination. And don’t even
think about getting fresh with me,” I said, with a warning look, “I mean it.” I
could see a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. I scowled. He put his hands
in the air as if to say “Hey, I’m harmless” and with a nod to each other and no
more words, we continued heading down the street, this time on the same side.
After
a couple of hours, we decided to rest. James pulled out a couple of granola
bars and handed me one. We sat on the curb in silence. We still hadn’t said
much to each other. I still didn’t trust him.
“Hey,
look at that!” he said and pointed to a parking lot across the street,
virtually empty except for two beat up cars and an old shopping cart.
“Um,
yeah wow. Parking lot. Very interesting,” I said back.
“Kate,
the shopping cart. We can put our packs in there and push. We could cover a lot
more ground that way and take less breaks.”
“Oh.
Well that is...that is actually a good idea. Maybe you’re useful after all,” I
gave him a wry smile and we both headed toward the parking lot. After stowing
all our gear in the shopping cart, we rested a bit more before heading out. We
walked about another hour before buildings were beginning to thin out. The sky
was getting dim and evening was approaching.
“We
better find a safe place to camp, James,” I said, “It needs to be somewhere we
can lock ourselves in to keep any intruders out.”
“I
agree. There’s a shopping complex about a half mile up this road. Maybe we can
find a store or something to hole up in.”
We
walked for another 15 minutes before we came upon it. It appeared to be mostly
deserted, but there were lights on in the department store. We approached the
door cautiously and peered inside. A looming figure in black came into view from
inside the store with a semi-automatic rifle strung across his shoulder,
looking out at us. I jumped back, startled.
“What
is your business here, folks?” he asked. I couldn’t blame him for being overly
cautious. It was hard to know who to trust.
“We’re
headed out of town, but we need a safe place to sleep tonight. I’m Kate, this
is James. We mean you no harm. We don’t even have weapons,” I said, and showed
my hands. I looked to James and he did the same thing. The very tall man eyed
us suspiciously, looking us up and down, as if searching for an invisible cache
of weapons. Then his gaze softened.
“My
name is Liam. I’m the security guard here. Or at least, I used to be. The
owners already headed out of town. Come on in, quickly, before someone sees
you. We’ve already had looters try to break in, though unsuccessfully,” he
winked and unlatched the door, motioning us inside, “It’s dark, so it’s time to
cover up the windows anyway, you folks came just in time.” I struggled to pull
the shopping cart in and through the doors, but I managed to do it quickly
enough. He double latched the door, then rolled down black paper to cover the
doors. He ushered us through the store, past the Junior’s department into
housewares. A young girl was lounging on a bed reading “teen scene” magazine. Awesome. A kid. She blew a bubble,
popped it with her index finger and smiled at us. I gave James my best “you’re
kidding me right?” look and brought my attention back to Liam.
“This
is Audrey,” Liam said. Audrey flashed a smile and went back to her reading.
James smiled nonchalantly and looked at me. I shook my head. She looked nothing
like him, so I assumed she was not related to him, though I could be wrong. As
this could be a sensitive topic to broach, I decided to wait until later to
ask.
“So
there are five or six beds here, plenty of room. They are already made up with
clean linens, so nice and comfortable. I assume you two will be sharing one?”
Liam asked. James looked at me,
grinning, and cocked his eyebrows.
“Absolutely
not. We’re not together. Well, we’re traveling together, but we’re not together,” I said. I could feel heat on
my cheeks and silently cursed James for embarrassing me. He obviously found
this very amusing, as he still had that cocky grin on his face.
“Liam,
how do you feel about us maybe picking up some supplies here? I can pay you...”
I said, changing the subject.
“Not
necessary, Kate. I don’t think they are coming back. I’d feel better if you had
what you needed out on the road. There weren’t many good people still out
there, even before this happened,” he said, then cast his gaze downward. I felt
incredibly socially awkward and felt the need to say something but did not know
what that should be, so I decided to explore the store.
I
headed down to the sporting goods section first, thinking I might find some
camping gear. Just in case, I brought a notepad and pen, intending to write
down what I was taking, in case these people decided to come back. I tried to
think back and remember Girl Scouts. The five survival basics were food, fire,
shelter, water, and security.
I
started with food and related items. I found a set with plastic dishes and
utensils, something I hadn’t thought of. I also found a larger propane stove,
and pan that would fold up and easily fit into my pack. My foldup stove was tiny and wouldn’t cut it,
especially when we’d be cooking for two people. Also in the hunting/camping
section, I found a crossbow, an ax, and pepper spray. They would work for
hunting and security.
Before
leaving that section of the store, I found a wool blanket, water purification
tablets, a couple of lanterns and a down hunting jacket with a lot of pockets.
I headed over to the shoe section and picked out a pair of men’s steel toed
boots. If the crossbow didn’t work to scare people away, I could always go for
where it hurt with my boots. As I was lacing them up, Liam walked up to me. He
had stowed the gun, and looked far less formidable.
“My
dear, dinner is ready in cookware. You hungry?” he asked.
“Starving,”
I said as my stomach growled. I realized the only thing I had eaten all day was
a granola bar. I followed Liam through the store, pulling my cart of found
items with me. I left it by the beds as we continued on through the store to
the cookware. James and Audrey both had aprons on and were smiling and
giggling. They were cooking over what looked to be a camping stove and the
smell was absolutely intoxicating. When James spotted me, he walked over and
ushered me to a table on display, set with fine china. He pulled my chair out
and sat me down.
“Madam.
Hope you like Spam,” he said, winking. I rolled my eyes. I knew I had to be
extremely hungry to find Spam appetizing. James walked back over to the stove
and Audrey and he carefully walked two large stir fry pans over to the table.
No longer caring about anything besides feeding myself, I quickly spooned as
much food as I could fit on my plate and began shoveling food into my mouth. I
noticed everyone looking at me.
“Whhhssht?”
I asked, as a piece of meat fell out of the side of my mouth. James was trying
not to laugh.
“Kate,
do you mind terribly if we say grace before eating? By no means do you have to
participate,” Liam said politely. Whoops.
Well it’s not as if anybody could have ever mistaken me for having tact. I
could learn a thing or two from this one. I chewed and swallowed the monstrous
bite I had in my mouth and nodded. Not being religious myself, I did not
partake, but I sat in silence until they were finished, unconsciously tuning
them out. My eyes tended to glass over when “God” was mentioned. Then we all
began to eat. This time I slowed down a bit and tried to be friendlier. After
dinner, I could barely keep my eyes open. I muttered something unintelligible
and headed to the beds. I heard their laughter fade away as I headed to the bed
I had chosen for the night.
I felt someone
watching me. Upon opening my eyes, I saw a man’s face and immediately reached
for my hunting knife under my pillow. It was James.
“You
can’t sneak up on people like that, dude!” I said, with an air of morning
grouchiness. James just laughed in that confident, carefree way that I so
loathed. Glaring, I swung my feet out of bed and hoisted myself up (fully
clothed, of course). I put my hunting knife in the sheath I had attached to my
utility belt. First thing I noticed was
the aroma of coffee. My love affair with coffee had been going on for some time
now and was better than anything I’d ever had with a man. I spied Liam over in
cookware again and ambled my way over there. My right foot had been asleep and
still tingled so I arrived and sat on a plastic lawn chair, rubbing my foot.
Liam was fiddling with a French press on top of a camp stove.
“Coffee,
dear?” he asked, kindly. I nodded eagerly. Audrey was nowhere to be seen but
James came up behind me.
“Eager,
aren’t we?” he said, grinning. I glared at him again, still angry with him for
startling me awake. I still did not trust him. Liam, however, I did.
“Listen
guys, I wanted to make a proposal,” Liam started, “I’ve already spoken with
Audrey, and we both agree that it is probably best to get out of town away from
the crowds. I won’t be able to hold off the looters forever, especially not
with just two of us. We’d be safer with more people,” he finished, raising one
eyebrow. I got the hint.
“Are
you suggesting we travel together?” I asked.
“Well,
in short, yes. I’m not sure where you two are going, or what your plan is, but
right now we need a plan, and we need to get out of this store. It isn’t safe.
I of course, would not hold it against you if you felt the need to say no.”
James looked at me. I smiled.
“Of course, Liam.”
Though I was reticent about the kid, Liam was not only a very obviously kind
person, but he was large and intimidating and knew how to use a firearm. I was
all in.
“When do we start?
I’m guessing you guys will need to prepare…” I trailed off. There was a loud
bang at the front door. Kind Liam suddenly went on hyper alert and reached for
his firearm that had been leaning against a post next to the stove.
“Stick with me
guys. We need to go make sure Audrey is ok. I think now is a good time to
leave. We made some bug-out packs when we got here, so we can just grab them
and go,” he said as he started to run quickly toward the area where Audrey was.
We ran to catch up. We heard two loud bangs, this time in quick succession,
then a gunshot outside, very close to the doors from the sound of it. We found
Audrey curled up in a sleeping bag, her drooling head sticking out of the end
of a tent. Liam shook her awake.
“Audrey, time to
bug out,” he said, loudly and firmly. Much to my surprise, she darted up from a
seeming coma and started pulling on her blue Chuck Taylors. Meanwhile, James
and I ran over to the housewares section right next door to strap on our packs.
As we all convened into the center of the store, we heard glass breaking at the
front of the store. Audrey was strapping on her pack and looked terrified. I
was too, but I never let these things show on my face.
“Shit,” Liam said.
He looked scared. Now I was seriously nervous. He put his finger to his lips
and motioned us to the warehouse in the back of the store. Silent as mice, we
followed him. We heard several voices hooting and hollering as we shuffled into
the back. Liam put his fingers to his lips again and pointed to the back door.
With a muffled click, the door unlatched under Liam’s careful grip and we slid
out the back door. The door clicked shut quietly.
“Stay quiet. We
don’t know if they are organized; they could have a man watching the back,” he said
quietly. His watchful eyes scanned the alleyway behind the back door before
resting on an olive green dumpster. Some movement was coming from inside it. He
eyed us warily and went to inspect it. As he was inches away from it, a raccoon
darted out of the bin, bringing with him several floating packing peanuts. As
it rounded the corner, it knocked over and broke a glass bottle leaning against
a wooden crate. Liam motioned us hurriedly to crouch behind the dumpster. He
put up his finger, motioning for us to stay and wait. We heard two voices.
“Did you hear
something, man?” one said. Then he squealed.
“It’s just a
raccoon, dude. Don’t get your panties in a wad,” the other man answered. Their
voices began to decrease in volume as they moved back up towards the front of
the store. We waited about three more minutes just to make sure they weren’t
coming back, then Liam led us through a back gate to a side road which would
hopefully lead us out of town and away from all of this.
To Be Continued…
Chapter 2: Grandescunt Aucta Labore (By hard work, all things grow)
It is ten
months after the big happening and I am reading up on windmills, solar power, steam,
and other forms of renewable energy sources. Our group had finally found a spot
in one of the rural areas outside of Philedelphia.
Audrey, our resident ray of sunshine, skips up
to me, popping her gum.
“Whatcha doin?”
she asks.
I want to respond
sarcastically to this eleven year old flippant girl, but instead I sigh
resignedly and say, “Reading. “I don’t look up. I’m hoping she gets the hint.
She does not.
“About what?” she
asks, looking at me, all doe eyed. I sigh, put down my book and give her my
attention.
“Renewable energy.
And before you ask me what that is, it will take some time to explain so why
don’t we move on to other topics?” I smile, half genuinely. I have no patience
for kids, which is why I am 35 years old and don’t have children, nor do I plan
to have any. And in my opinion, you’re a kid until you’re 25. Sometimes 30.
Sometimes for life. Not me though. I grew up fast. Being an orphan in
Philadelphia will do that to you.
“I’m booored,”she
says. Aside from her, there is only one child living here (He is eight). Their
differences in maturity (namely hers) have impeded any relationship they might
have had with each other. His resilience caused him to become stoic and
thoughtful. Her immaturity caused her to revert. Besides, they were both at the
age where they are not at all interesting in spending time with children of the
opposite sex. There aren’t too many children or, for that matter, elderly, left
in the world. The weak did not survive either the disease, rampant from water
and food contamination, nor the rogue groups of militia that formed before the
government stepped in and created some semblance of order.
“Audrey, why don’t
you go help the adults with the chores? Pull some of your weight around here? I
can let James know that you would like something to do if you like.” That did
it. She bounced away with a half scowl and moved on to her next victim. James
has become one of our resident leaders. There are many of us, though, and none
of us have titles, although it is just understood that people look to us for
guidance.
I look out the
window to estimate the time. The sun is just barely setting. I know it is
getting close to curfew so I head outside to warn the elders. The national
police start their rounds just after curfew at seven. I walk up to James. James
is 32, tall, and handsome, with boyish charm sure to sweep any woman off her
feet. Good thing I am not just any woman. If I had been, I would have fallen to
his charms the moment I had met him on the road out of town from my place.
“Hey. Make sure
you guys are paying attention to the time, ok? We don’t need another incident”,
I say. He looks at me as one would look at a nagging wife.
“Yes,
Kate. I am always mindful of the time. Thank you though, “he says with an eye
roll for added measure. I roll my eyes right back, with a hidden smile as I
turn my back to him. James is sowing the spring seedlings; potatoes, corn,
wheat, and tomatoes. We need these crops to last. We finally tweaked our water
filtration system so that our crops wouldn’t die out this July. Luckily, events
did not affect the weather or the fertile soil of suburban Philadelphia. We wouldn’t
be able to live off government rations and be healthy.
I
walk around some more to inspect all the planting and am pleased with what I
see. Everyone is working cooperatively. Everyone is friendly, no one is
bickering, and people are generally in good spirits. This is not always the
case, but this is a very hopeful time for us. In six months, we may have more
than enough food to eat, as well as food to trade for horses, fuel for
lanterns, and wood for fires and carriages for travel. Six months ago, when we
first settled here, things were bad. Although we were grateful to have found
each other and a place to be, we had little to eat and were not organized. We didn’t have leadership, and we hadn’t yet
weeded out the bad seeds, either figuratively or literally. I can see it is
starting to get dark, so I go inside and bring out the cowbell. I hand it to
James and nod to him.
“Alright
folks, time to bunker up for the night!” he shouts as he is ringing the
cowbell. It is an awful sound but it gets people’s attention. Whoever came up
with the phrase “we need more cowbell” should be shot. On sight. In an orderly
way, most of us line up to go into the main house. There are a few additional
outlying shelters, but they are for the married folks. Privacy and all that.
Damn, I envy them. Honestly can’t remember the last time I was touched by
another human being. I shake out of my self-pity and head inside.
Julia
is making stew. It permeates the entire household and more than a few tummies
are rumbling. We don’t have much here, but we certainly make it work. We’re fed
and generally healthy, except for a few of us. Most of us are pretty smart and
had trades in our “former lives”. Julia
was a cook. Though I was a copy clerk, I was also a great researcher, which was
why they hired me at the law firm. I am a leader and an idea person, while
others with technical skills bring those ideas to life.
“Lock
up before dinner,” James says. He doesn’t have to shout in here. His voice
carries. Remember when it used to be “wash up before dinner”? I miss those
days. A number of us start at the windows, making sure they are latched,
secured, and the blinds are drawn. James checks the front door. Liam, our
muscle man, checks the side and back doors. He was a security guard in his
former life, but not the big, beefy, stupid kind. The ever vigilant kind. He
was as sharp as a hawk, but kind too. He would give you the shirt off his back
if it came down to it. I love these people like they were my own family. Even gum-popping
Audrey who never ceases to get on my nerves.
“Everything
secure?” Liam asks as he is walking back from the side door. He looks to James,
who nods, then to Cliff, Joe, and I. We all nod. Cliff and Joe are twins, but
could not be any more different if they tried. Cliff is dark haired, brooding
and serious. Joe always has a twinkle in his eye and has sandy brown hair like
someone dumped the beach on his scalp. Cliff would have been my type before all
this happened. Not sure what it was about brooding men that I loved, but I
loved them (and hated them), hence my perpetual “lone wolf” syndrome. But here, I am ok with it. In fact, I hate the
idea of starting something in the midst of all this chaos.
“You
folks ready for dinner?” Julia asks. Instead of answering, most of us just rush
the table. Julia and Audrey bring out the large stew pan to set on the buffet
table in the dining room. We dine. We laugh. When we are sure it’s after seven,
(based on the position of the sun, which you learn rather quickly in this
situation) we naturally bring our voices down to a lull. We put John to bed.
Possibly too early for an eight year old but this is the world we live in now.
Frank, our local engineer, brings out four bottles of wine out of the twenty we
have left. Henry, our local doctor and vet owned a vineyard in California and
he is showing us how to ferment potatoes to make a potato wine. Sure, doesn’t
sound too appetizing now, but there is a shortage of spirits and we are happy
to take what we can get. Also, today we finished spring planting, so it is a
special occasion. This is how we unwind. We stay up for only a couple of hours
because we know lanterns, which display flickering shadows on the walls which
allow light through tend to attract police, or worse other types. You do not
want to attract police. You definitely do not want to attract the attention of
anyone else who roams around at night. You can be sure they are up to no good.
Eventually
most of us pass out where we had been lounging in the living room after our
meal, but not me. I am reading Lord Byron. Before I go to sleep, these lines jump
out at me.
I had a
dream, which was not all a dream.
The bright sun was extinguished, and the stars
Did wander darkling in the eternal space,
Rayless, and pathless, and the icy earth
Swung blind and blackening in the moonless air.
And as I read the last line, my lids
droop down. Just before I fall asleep, I think I hear a rattling noise outside,
but I am too tired to move.
