Jon Smith

by Richard Proctor

  “Well it is a good time and it is great to have such lovely looking ladies in the valley. You keep those two fellows in line.” said Mort.

  “Oh we will.” said Catherine.

  “See you later Mort.” said Jon as he eased the truck forward down the road.

  “What a nice fellow, are all the people in this valley this nice?” asked Catherine.

  “They really are mom and just wait and see.” said Chris.

  The truck continued up the valley road, passing homesteads with smoke curling out of the fireplaces and folks working out of doors that looked up and waived to the travelers. The trees still held a bit of color and there were patches of snow on the ground that the warm fall sunshine had not melted. They came to a dirt drive and Jon turned the truck down the small road. Presently they stopped in front of the cabin.

  “So this is our new home?” asked Catherine.

  “Just wait and see it Mother. It is quite a place inside, all the way down to the deer and elk antlers.”

  “Antlers, I guess I have a lot to get used to.” said Catherine.

  Jon and Chris got out of the truck and went around to the bed to get the girls luggage. Up the four went to the porch and Jon set the key into the lock and opened the door. Catherine stepped into the hall first and took an immediate look around. She noticed the large great room with the comfortable furniture and huge stone fireplace. Then she spied the kitchen with the wood burning stove. She noted that the house was quite tidy and everything seemed to have its place. Not what you would believe of two men living alone but then she remembered that Jon was of the sort that liked his things neat and tidy.

  Catherine did take note of the large elk head over the fireplace and the various antlers that adorned the wall.

  “Well Jon, you finally got a place that you could decorate how you liked it, antlers and all. Did you mount a head over the bed like you always threatened?”

  “No, I haven’t gotten around to that but since you are here, I now have the opportunity.” said Jon.

  At once all four laughed and all four relaxed, knowing that they truly were becoming a family again.

  “Chris, take Amanda’s bag back to the extra bedroom, or rather I should say her bedroom. Honey if there are things in it you want to change you go right ahead as it is yours now.”

  Then Jon turned to Catherine.

  “And where shall I place your things?”

  “I would think that they should be in our bedroom, don’t you”?

  Jon smiled and picked the bags up.

  “Just don’t go making our place some fru fru place.”

  “Give us time, give us time.” said Catherine.

  When everyone was settled and unpacked, they gathered back into the main room and Jon took the ladies for a tour of the house. While Amanda somewhat knew her way around, all this was new to Catherine. Catherine marveled at the mix of rustic living and technology. She commented on how the men had learned so much and how to take care of themselves. The tour of the outbuilding and the meat freezers helped her to understand the need and importance of not only the trade Jon had spoken of but also the need to hunt and fish to keep the meat lockers full. During the tour she also noticed the peaceful stillness of the entire life. Other than the birds and the wind there was little noise. She had become accustomed to the bustle of the city and worried that the lack of excitement might bother her. But then she realized that maybe due to her condition and state of mind that this was exactly what she needed.

  After the tour, the family sat down at the dinner table as Jon prepared a lunch of pork sandwiches and apples. Catherine savored each mouthful as she slowly chewed foods that she had not eaten in years.

  “I had forgotten what the taste of real food was.”

  “Well enjoy this because this is how we live life here. We eat what we want, we live like we want and we have a real sense of community.” said Jon.

  “I guess we will have the market on Saturday morning and you all need to get some different clothes, right Dad.” said Chris.

  “Yes we will have the market and starting at three is the festival since it is October the 31st.”

  “Clothes, what kind of clothes can we expect to buy?” asked Amanda.

  “Well I think you two need some blue jeans, some sweaters, some flannel shirts, and a heavy coat.” said Jon.

  “And what about something for your festival?” said Amanda.

  “Well they will have nice blouses and short skirts.” said Chris.

  “Now were talking. Mother is up for that, aren’t you?” said Amanda.

  “You still do have the figure for it.” said Jon.

  “Oh let’s see, maybe I will go with a longer skirt. A skirt, I haven’t had one of those in years.” said Catherine.

  “Well in the mean time you can wear your urban clothes and I believe Chris and I have some sweats that you all can use for more casual wear.” said Jon.

  The four finished lunch and Jon rose to get the dishes and clean them in the sink.

  “I will take care of that.” said Catherine.

  “Amanda and I will have to pick up some chores ourselves here so that we are useful.”

  “Don’t worry about chores right now, just relax for a while.” said Jon.

  Catherine’s condition had not left Jon’s mind since he learned of it. He had planned to make the time the four had together as happy as possible, knowing that there would come that point that she would worsen. He looked at his wife and noted her thinness again and her grayish hue. He wasn’t all that sure that the appearance and her condition just might not be attributed to living the urban life as that life was a life without sun, the outdoors, good food, and just plain old-fashioned living. Maybe being here and being happy might stop the illness, so he wished.

  “Chris, you and I owe the would pile a deposit so how about we head out and cut up that downed tree over there and split it up. It will really work up an appetite for dinner.” said Jon.

  “Mind if after we get a bit more settled, we pull out some chairs and join you” said Catherine.

  “Not at all, you can see what real labor looks like again.” said Jon.

  The cool afternoon sun of late October did little to warm the air but for the time of year it was not too uncomfortable. The feel of fresh fall in the afternoon was more than wonderful and refreshing. Shortly Catherine and Amanda came out to join Chris and Jon as the two men muscled the downed tree and had been cutting it up into log size. It was important to cut the logs so that they would serve all purposes around the house. Smaller sized logs were for the stove in the kitchen while larger logs were for the outdoor pit and the larger inside fireplace.

  Soon the two had mallets and were splitting wood a rate that would make a pneumatic splitter jealous. The work began to draw up a sweat on the men and they presently removed their shirts. Catherine marveled at the size and strength of her son. She also felt a bit excited watching the muscles of her fifty-eight-year-old husband. Thinking to herself, how could this man have maintained such a physique over these years? She surmised though that this kind of life is what kept it. Of all the talk in the cities about all the things that were bad for you and the lifestyles that had to be changed, here was an example of why all of that was wrong. Jon ate meat, drank alcohol, ate bread and was as fit and strong as any human could be. No doubt it was also all the physical activity as well.

  It was well after five in the afternoon when the men finished stacking the last of the wood.

  “Well that is that and I could use a drink and a sit. It is going to be getting cold shortly so how about we go in and clean up and then get the outside fire pit going. Girls, how about some venison filets with potatoes tonight?” said John.

  “Chris, go around back and pull out the meat and I will grab the potatoes.”

  “Sure Dad, sounds good.” said
Chris.

  Chris brought the meat in from the back and Jon cleaned up four potatoes for baking. The two soon had a roaring fire outside in the pit and were ready for the evening. They went back in and cleaned up from the day of labor. It was not long before the four were sitting outside in warm sweats and sweaters and enjoying the fall of evening in front of the roaring fire.

  “Would any one like a glass of wine? It is well after five o’clock.” said Jon.

  Catherine responded with a yes and so did Chris and Amanda.

  “Well Chris is of age but Amanda” said Jon as he a gave a look toward Catherine

  “Why not she is almost sixteen and hell we are all here and enjoying ourselves.” said Catherine.

  “Ok then four glasses and I think I will break out some French Red.” said John.

  Glasses filled the four made a toast and sipped the aromatic red liquid. Amanda took her first drink and sat back.

  “Hey that tastes good.”

  “Well she takes after you Jon.” said Catherine.

  “Your father always liked his wine.”

  Chapter 11

  Governor Tarl sat at the head of a long table, sipping a cup of tea while listening to the morning reports being given by adjutant Schneider. The room held another ten men, all bureau chiefs and commanders. The group seemed quite smug as the statistics, polls and measures were gone over in detail.

  “Productivity remains quite high along with worker satisfaction. Suburban reclamation is moving along schedule and our scientists are saying that the environment is moved to a warning zone of green.” reported Schneider

  “It all sounds most excellent.” commented Chief Gaius.

  “Yes, on the whole we are doing well in the mountain region. The Hague is quite happy with our results, to a point.” said Tarl.

  “What do you mean by to a point?” asked Gaius.

  “Yes, most of the world’s regions have accepted the New World Order and most of the regions seem to be doing well, with of course the exceptions being some of the Asian and African regions. Our problem is local. There are groups of Outliers that while pose no conflict threat to us they do pose the threat of spreading values that we cannot tolerate in our order.” said Tarl.

  “It is my understanding that there are groups of people scratching a life off the land. They are holding on to old ways and thoughts but barely surviving.” said Commander Ross.

  “I am not so sure. If you walk out onto your balcony in the night you can hear the rumble of truck engines out there using the old roads. There is an absolute underground economy and I am not certain to what level it is. I do not know that they are not using resources that could in some ways be inhibiting our social order.” said Tarl.

  Tarl then walked behind his desk and began pressing some buttons on his electronic console. A large screen on the wall illuminated and a video began showing.

  “Take a look at this security video taken yesterday morning. Two of our guards detained these four as no doubt the men were not of this city.”

  The camera zoomed in on the two men who just happened to be Jon and Chris.

  “Look at their clothing and their physique. Look at their hair. They are outliers and are here for some unknown purpose. We later picked up all four of them on cameras inside one of our transports that we used to move workers out for suburban reclamation. After this we lost them.” said Tarl.

  “What do you think they were doing here?” asked Ross.

  “I am not certain but we cannot have outliers coming into the city. Lord only knows what they could be planning.” said Tarl.

  “What of the two women? They were dressed and look to be urban dwellers” asked Ross.

  “Well we were unable to get a facial recognition on the two men but we were able to get a hit on the women. They are Catherine and Amanda Smith. They have no records of any trouble. The only thing that showed up is Catherine’s medical profile shows as terminal.”

  “Do we have

  a residence we can check?” asked Gaius.

  “Yes 704 3rd street and we have already reconnoitered. All we found was a residence with no personal items as it seems this trip was their permanent departure from the place.” said Tarl.

  “Nothing else?” asked Ross.

  “Well one thing interesting, in the garbage unit we found an empty bottle that had been filled with red wine. Its markings showed that it was from the old country known as France.” said Tarl.

  “Wine from France, only top officers and politicians could get their hands on that.” said Ross.

  “Precisely and now you know why I have the concern that I do,” said Tarl.

  Tarl’s lips drew thin and he took another sip of morning tea. He looked about at his Cabinet and walked over to the large window looking out over the city toward the mountains. He placed an arm behind his back and turned to address the members of the Cabinet.

  “When those of us started down the path of this New Order, we knew it would require a change in thought. We knew that we would not only have to bring in laws that at the time would be unpopular, but that we would need to do it for the greater good. When we got things to a point that most of the people gave up caring we knew we had succeeded. The ones that did not we termed radical and out of mainstream. We had to destroy the messengers as in many cases we could not fight the message. By painting these dissenters as terrorists and revolutionaries we were able to keep the masses in line. The result of course was that the most hard core of the dissenters left. They had left the city and gone off the grid.”

  “For us here it had not been an issue for several years. We have always felt that such a small group could cause no harm. However now we find that the combinations of these groups are creating an entire economy and sub culture that could one day compete with us.”

  “Do you think it will ever grow to the scale of what we have to do in Asia and Africa?” asked Gaius.

  “That scenario is totally different.” said Tarl.

  “How so?” asked Gaius.

  “The resistance in Africa and Asia is all about religious dissent. When the Islamic wars ended in 2016 many of the Islam religion went underground. Others continued to stand in open rebellion against the World Order. In our New World Order there is no place for religion. It is only a contrivance to sooth the souls of the dying and makes excuses for those that were oppressed by the economics of the past. Now that we have most people in the same state in life there is no need for something that wastes such resource. In particular, Islam drives such a backward culture that it is poison to our Order. The only way we can finally stamp it out is to eradicate all those that continue to hold on to those beliefs. Also, from what I understand about their religion it would seem to be just fine with them if we send them to their God.”

  “So, you feel we have no need to mobilize to that extent to deal with the outliers in our area?” asked Commander Ross.

  “No, I do not feel it will take such a measure. I believe if we send a strong squad, armed with stun batons into the area, we can accomplish our goal. I want you all to draw up plans to do so and soon. Snow will soon make those roads impassable and I want this done before the winter season.” said Tarl.

  “We will send a squad in, about twelve men. We will use four transport vehicles that should do it. Why don’t we go next Tuesday?” said Ross.

  “Yes, Tuesday, the first Tuesday in November, how appropriate. Select some top-notch men and have them report back to me after their success.” said Tarl.

  “Yes sir. We will and we will succeed.” said Ross.

  “Alright then, meeting adjourned.” said Tarl.

  The council soon departed the meeting room leaving Tarl alone, to think through the events of the day. He stared out the window in a reflexive moment thinking about the past. While the evolution of the new political order had been brought about peacefully
, he always knew that at some point it might require more. Could this be the beginning of something more? Could these actions be bringing about the final end of any last resistance to the Socio-economic change that he and his political cronies had brought about? The whole idea brought about a smile to his face.

  “Yes, we will deal with this small group and their insurrection. Then my region will be clean.”

  Chapter 12

  Saturday, October the 31stand Jon had awakened before the rest of the house and was outside on the back porch enjoying his early morning coffee. In all respects he was now happy. He had his son and daughter with him and his wife, whom he had always loved, was back in his world and seemed to be ok with the new lifestyle. While certainly her health was a concern it did not drive a fear in him. If she was to die then he would make sure her last days on this earth where filled with happiness. She should enjoy the company of family and a warm hearth.

  Jon caught up in his thoughts was soon taken unaware by a presence behind him until he felt the warm hand upon his shoulder. Turning he saw Catherine looking at him with a smile.

  “You do have a good life here Jon and I can tell it does you and Chris well.”

  “Give it time honey and you and Amanda will feel the same way.”

  “I have to admit that being up here in the fresh air and living a clean free life is quite refreshing.” said Catherine.

  “This is the only way to live. Would you like a cup of coffee? I brought the pot out with extra cups, sweetener and milk, just like you like It.” said Jon.

  “Absolutely.”

  Catherine had herself a steaming cup of coffee and pulled up a chair next to Jon. She was looking out over the back toward the woods. Shortly the two saw a small group of deer coming out of the woods.

  “Look Jon.” Catherine whispered.

  The two looked at the small group of deer made up of two bucks and five does. The deer ambled about the grass, always wary of the humans but seeming to not be afraid.

  “Jon, I have always wondered how you could kill such beautiful creatures?” said Catherine.