Endure Series (Book 2): Enduring The Journey:

by Kinney, K. D.

  He reluctantly did as he was told. The baby was crying so hard that he wanted to hold her but knew he couldn’t. He managed to use his blanket to keep his head from bobbing and aggravating the injury on his head.

  “Help that baby, please,” he said right before he passed out.

  38

  Amanda

  Once Jess left, Amanda wasn’t sure where to start. They had a trailer full of stuff and their mom was asleep already on the sofa. Jess had taken the trailer into the yard but that meant they had to walk farther to bring everything inside and it was getting dark fast.

  “If you guys want your bedding, we need to get it and we need to find all the pushlights so we can see in the bunker.” Amanda wasn’t sure her body was going to cooperate.

  “Can’t you let us rest? For like ten minutes?” Zoe sprawled out on the floor on her stomach. “I just want to put my feet up. They’re dying.”

  “Mine too.” Holly did the same.

  Amanda held onto the door frame as she pondered what to do. She was miserable, they all were. Tyson was having a hard time again and Charlie was doing her best to deal with it. At least Amanda could step away. She sent the dogs inside, closed the door, and sat down on the step.

  She closed her eyes and listened as she tucked her hands in the sleeves of her sweatshirt pullover and hugged herself. It was definitely getting colder fast. The nice thing about the bunker was that the temperature would not fluctuate as badly as it would in the cabin. Even if they didn’t get a fire going, they could bundle up in their blankets and stay warm.

  She heard a rustling in the trees. There was a creek not far from the cabin and she could barely hear the trickling water and they often heard little rodents rustling in the leaves. She had her handgun on her hip but it was hidden under her pullover. Slowly she moved her sweatshirt out of the way and rested her hand on the grip while she scanned the property. Her eyes were adjusting as it grew darker as dusk fell but there was nothing to see. A breeze picked up and the trees whistled lightly near the tops but she couldn’t feel it where she was sitting.

  She jumped when the door opened. When she realized it was her sister, she hastily pulled her hoodie over her gun.

  “I want my stuff and someone else needs to take care of that little boy. My niceness has a limit and I’m on empty now.” Charlie was down the steps before Amanda could stop her.

  All she could do was follow but she kept looking for any movement in the trees. “I’m coming with you. I need to find the flashlights.” The misery she felt had let up while she was overly alert. At that moment she wished her dad had built the fence to his ‘yard’ around the cabin too. He said he wanted the place to appear normal, like every other cabin that was meant for recreation and not advertise that they were intending to shut the world out when the crap hit the fan. The crap had hit the fan big time and she wanted to be sure that they were left alone now that they finally made it the bunker.

  The fence surrounded them in the yard. Their dad had happily claimed some windscreens from the high school tennis team when they were parting with the old ones. The screens were great to obscure the view of what was inside the huge fenced-in area. But it also meant they couldn’t see out through the fence very well either.

  “So, not to alarm you or anything, I thought I heard something lurking out there but I didn’t have a flashlight to see what it was.” She blindly searched the back of the trailer for anything that resembled a light source.

  Charlie pulled on Amanda’s arm for her to stop. “Why didn’t you stop me sooner?” she whispered as she looked over where the gate was wide open. “Look over there.”

  In the trees on the rise outside the gate near the edge of their property, there was a faint light that bobbed around like someone was walking away.

  Charlie tiptoed over to the gate.

  “Stop. what are you doing?” Amanda reached for her arm but Charlie evaded her and tiptoed faster. “Don’t you dare.” She wasn’t going to let her gun-happy sister chase a phantom light. She grabbed her arm and pulled her back. At the same time, she tried to see where the light went. It was gone. “You’re so stupid. You aren’t the only one carrying a gun out here. Everyone does.” She pulled Charlie back to the trailer.

  She yanked her arm out of Amanda’s grasp. “Don’t pull me around like that. I have had my touch quota filled to overflowing today. I’m not like you, all afraid to use a gun like mom.”

  “I’m the one that probably shot someone already. It’s possible I killed him so don’t act like you’re all that. It’s not a cool feeling. You scared off some wolves and brought some looters to us at the same time. It’s better to be cautious and wait until we know for sure it’s someone trying to do something wrong. I don’t want to stir up more trouble tonight. I’m too tired.” Amanda lightly touched her sister’s arm to let her know she wasn’t mad. She just wanted to be done.

  “Okay. Fine. I get it. However, I’m concerned about leaving this trailer loaded out here if there’s someone prowling the property.”

  “Yeah, I am too. But, man, I don’t want to do another thing today. I want to crawl into a real bed and I want a shower. I’m too exhausted, though.” Amanda rubbed her head. She was also getting a headache.

  “I know what you mean. Let’s get Zoe and Holly to open the second bunker door that’s in the shed and we’ll hand them stuff so we don’t have to walk all the way to the cabin and then down all those stairs.”

  “You think dad will get mad? That exit is supposed to be for emergencies only.” Amanda looked over at the rough-looking shed. There wasn’t a stairway down. It was a ladder so it wouldn’t be that easy to get the heavy tubs inside. But at least they could toss all the blankets down.

  “We are in a state of emergency every minute of every day here lately. He’s not here and mom’s so out of it, she’s not going to say no. Don’t you think it’s safer in here once we lock the gate?”

  “All right. Well, then who goes and tells them to open it up and who stays here alone?”

  “Hmm, I think we both run together and run back. You have your gun?” Charlie pulled hers out of a holster that was wrapped around her waist.

  “Wasn’t that mom’s holster? When did you get that? And yes, I have mine on my hip. Too much excitement today. I don’t want to be without it.” Amanda wasn’t all that comfortable wearing it while they were moving stuff around though.

  “Mom couldn’t wear it. She said so when we were showing Dale what we knew. I took it then and I thought you saw me with it already. Mom didn’t care.”

  “Mom was a freaking mess trying to learn something she didn’t want to learn. You took advantage of that.”

  “Whatever. I need it. You’re wearing your gun too. Let’s get this over with.” She waved at Amanda to follow. At least they had flashlights to light their way back.

  It didn’t take long for the younger girls to open up the hatch to the escape tunnel. They whined about spider webs once the door was open. That made both Charlie and Amanda hesitate tossing their loose bedding down to them.

  “There’s trash bags here in this tub. We tell the girls to be careful not to rip them so we can use them again.” Amanda handed several bags to her sister.

  They made quick work unloading the trailer. The tubs were lined up all along the side of the huge metal tube-shaped tunnel that led back to the main bunker. Once they hauled the small freezer into the shed and got the generator running, checked on the chickens, made sure the trailer and the gate were both locked, they locked up the shed from the inside and went down the ladder. Finally, they were safely locked inside. Amanda exhaled as she leaned against the wall. She had never been so thankful to be someplace in her whole life.

  If only she could collapse into bed the way her mom did. Charlie and Amanda coaxed their mom to get up after she’d slept about an hour or two. They’d lost track of time unloading the trailer and it was completely dark out. They assisted her to the stairs. Her leg hurt her so badly that she
couldn’t put any weight on it. She was so exhausted that she chose to sit and ease her way down while Charlie held her leg up so she didn’t bump it accidentally.

  Holly had made her bed but it didn’t look all that great. Amanda pulled the fitted sheet over the mattress on the corners where it slid off before her mom attempted to crawl into bed. Zoe took off her shoes. Their mom mumbled a little and waved them all away once her socks were off.

  “I’m good enough now. You girls go ahead and go to bed.”

  “What about Tyson?” Mae stood at the door with the little guy holding her hand.

  “Once he’s ready for bed, bring him in here. He can sleep with me tonight.” Their mom didn’t open her eyes.

  “Thank goodness,” Charlie whispered to Amanda.

  “Who is going to get him ready for bed?” Amanda asked, looking at each of her younger sisters. “I think one of you needs to change him and make sure he’s tired enough to go to sleep before he’s brought into her room.” She folded her arms waiting for a volunteer.

  The girls just looked at one another. Tyson started to whimper and held his arms out to Charlie.

  “Oh my gosh,” Charlie threw her head back in exasperation. “I’ll do it.” She scooped him up in her arms making sure the rest of the girls got out of her way. “It’s not like Amanda and I didn’t just totally unload the trailer by ourselves.”

  Amanda pressed her fingers to her mouth to shush them up when they were about to argue. “She’s right. We’re super exhausted. Mae, you could have offered. He likes you and he’s old enough to help you when changing his clothes. You didn’t do any of the heavy lifting or push the trailer. Mom gave you the easy jobs.”

  Tears filled Mae’s eyes and she held out her hands for Amanda to see. They were covered in blisters. Several of them had popped exposing the red raw skin underneath

  “Mae! Why didn’t you say something?” Guilt washed over Amanda.

  “Because I knew you guys were doing all the hard work and I didn’t think it was right for me to complain. You’re right. All I did was pull a wagon with Tyson and the chickens, and walked the dogs sometimes. That wasn’t hard but the wagon handle wasn’t easy to pull for so long. It hurts, Sissy.” Tears spilled down her cheeks.

  “I don’t know what to do for you that won’t make them hurt worse. Have you washed them yet?”

  “That will hurt worse.” She pulled her hands away.

  “You need to wash them. Especially because some have popped and we haven’t been able to wash up properly for days.” Amanda took care of Mae’s hands and wrapped them for her so she could get some sleep. Once her little sister had gone to bed, Amanda slumped down to the floor and pressed her fingers against her eyelids. “You’re just tired. Don’t do it.” She controlled her breathing so she wouldn’t cry. She had blisters on her hands and her feet too. But she didn’t want to deal with anything else.

  “You gonna sit there all night or what?” Charlie tapped Amanda’s leg with her foot.

  “No, help me up.”

  “Why? So I can fall on top of you?” She reached out to help Amanda anyway. “I’m going to bed.”

  Their bedrooms were all at the far end of the bunker. Her three youngest sisters had a triple bunkbed built on one wall in their room. Amanda and Charlie had two bunks in theirs. The rooms had a basic small closet and they each had a shelf at the end of their beds that extended out where they could keep their special things, journals, and lights. The three bedrooms were all side by side and that section was the only finished area in the bunker. The bathroom at the other end was all enclosed and usable. But it was bare drywall. The kitchen area was roughed in. It had shelves above the counters. Over the sink was a stand with a huge water container with a spigot for when the power was out. The living area wasn’t finished. The framing for drywall was the only thing on the concrete walls. The floor was bare cold concrete. The sofa and two old recliners were situated in the room so they had places to sit even though the room wasn’t nice looking by any means. It did have one of their worn area rugs in the center of the room. The room smelled like a damp cellar more than it smelled like a place they called home.

  It was mom’s request that the place resemble a home and not a fallout shelter. Even though they had all the materials, finishing it wasn’t on their dad’s priority list. Now that they would be living there, the reality of their new life situation was setting in and it suddenly felt very bleak. Especially without their father there.

  Amanda wiped the tears away from her eyes one more time and found a sleeve of crackers to take to her room.

  39

  Ben

  Ben only thought the pain he had been in was bad before he fell asleep. He woke up with his arm beating as if his heart had relocated there and it was cold. It was cold because he didn’t have a shirt on. The shiver that shook his body for a moment was agonizing. He moaned and opened his eyes, he realized he wasn’t in the Ranger but the motor was still humming in his head. He was flat on his back and above him was the blue roof from a tent. There was some heat nearby coming from a small propane heater and another one was glowing on the other side of the tent.

  Natalie was sitting on her knees as she warmed up a pan on a burner. She tested what was inside with her finger before she turned it off. Shifting her weight from her knees to her bum, she settled in beside him. She dipped a gauze pad in the pan before she rested it on his arm. “Hey there,” she said softly and smiled.

  “Hey.” He tried to smile back but his lips and mouth were so dry it felt like he had cotton in his mouth. “Is that water I can drink?”

  “Sadly, no. It has medicine in it. I’ve been working on cleaning your wound out. Good thing we stopped when we did. It looks like infection is setting in. Hopefully, we are catching it early enough to stop it. I found a few antibiotics in the stuff you swiped but I don’t think they will be enough.”

  “Where’s Nate?” He tried to lift his head. “How did you get me in here?”

  “After we got this set up and got you moved inside, he had to go to sleep. He said his chest was bothering him and he was exhausted. He is curled up over there.” She pointed at the sleeping bag on the other side of the tent. “The medicine I gave you did a great job putting you out. We helped you walk in here but you were still really out of it so you probably don’t remember. Nate even helped you get your shirts off.” Her cheeks flushed as she glanced away. “Lilly is in her car seat close to us right here.” She motioned above his head. “You probably don’t think it’s that warm in here because you’re half undressed but it is quite a bit warmer than it was on the road. The higher we’ve climbed in the mountains, the colder it’s gotten.”

  “We’re losing our head start, though.” Ben closed his eyes when they watered from her pressing against the wound. He didn’t dare protest the pressure the way he wanted to or he’d wake Nate and the baby.

  “We’re far enough away from the road. If they get their truck fixed, they’ll probably be ahead of us by the time we are travel-ready. It seemed to be the wisest thing to do, get proper rest, cook up a warm meal and something warm to drink, and make sure you were taken care of. I’m not sure how well it’s going to heal, I mean how much you’ll be able to move it when it’s better. It’s pretty deep.” She rested her chin on her knee as she squeezed the blood out of the gauze pad. She was quiet for several minutes while she continued to gently work on his arm. “You have been really good with Lilly. You said you have kids. But they’re old now, aren’t they?”

  It took him a second to answer until the worst of the pain had eased. “I have five daughters. The oldest is almost nineteen and in college. I have a sixteen, fourteen, thirteen, and a ten-year-old. So yes, they’re older but I can’t believe they are that old. I miss the days when they were small enough to sleep on my chest. I loved it when they were babies.” Talking about them made him instantly homesick. He drew in a long slow breath and swallowed the lump in his throat.

  Natalie rubbed her chee
k on her knee. Her eyes were glassy when she glanced at him. “I wish I found someone who was like that with my baby.” She shook her head. “My mistakes shouldn’t make her suffer. She’s innocent of the dumb things I’ve done and doesn’t deserve to have me as a mother.”

  Ben reached for her hand.

  She was defensive at first. “Sorry, that’s instinct.” She resigned herself to allow him to touch her. All he did was pat it to reassure her.

  “You are taking the best first step to give yourself and your baby a chance. It’s too bad the timing wasn’t better, though.” He lightly squeezed her hand.

  “Yeah, like before the rest of North America went to hell.” She covered her face.

  “I made a poor choice too. We’ve been preparing for this sort of thing for years and yet I decided to leave my family to go to Alaska to work to make some decent money over the summer. My wife was furious when I chose to go. It was for such a short time that I convinced her that nothing would happen while I was gone. Of course, I convinced myself of the same thing long before I reassured her. I was a few days away from going home. Days. Seriously, if it happened today, I would have been home. Of course, that’s not what happened.” He rubbed the emotion away. “Things are the way they are now. I know we can make do with what we have and all we can do is try our hardest to get where we need to be. It’s just going to be a whole lot more challenging.” He didn’t dare say that he was starting to question if he’d survive the journey.

  She nodded and rocked back and forth while she was lost in thought. “How bad do you think it will be when we get to the blackout area?”

  “Honestly, I imagine it’s going to be pretty scary if the people are desperate. But I’m pretty confident that we are prepared and we have the means to steer clear of populated areas. The bonus that happened to me today is that we have an actual nurse right when we needed one.”