Well, I’ll be damned. She actually respects men of the cloth. He scooped another bite. If he had to be a preacher man to get home, then that’s who he’d be. “Yes.”
“Reverend Trent?” She blinked at him.
That sounded good. He nodded. “Yes. Benjamin Trent.” He borrowed from the money in the Bible. The good book was worth something after all.
Clearing her throat, she perched her reading glasses on her nose and set her fingers on the computer keys. “I apologize, sir. Now I understand why you were so determined to return home. I’m sure your flock is in need of comfort.” She typed in a few lines. “So many people think they should be given special privileges. The salesmen are the worst.”
He nodded and sipped the liquid. Garlic and salt infused the tomato juice. He smacked his lips.
The male soldier glanced at his tray. “I’ll be right back, Sally. Don’t let the preacher leave. There’re quite a few folks calling for Last Rites.” He edged the tray and its remaining food out of Trent’s reach. “You’re going to be one busy man.”
Not here, he wasn’t. Trent speared a cube of meat from his nearly empty cup. The morsel dissolved as soon as it hit his tongue. “About returning to my flock…”
“Where is it located?”
“Sixty-Eighth Street and Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard.” He gave the crossroads nearest his condo. There was probably a church around there somewhere. If they dropped him off in the parking lot, they’d never know he’d lied to them.
The woman glanced up at him. “I’m sorry, sir. That area has been completely destroyed.”
Trent blinked. “Destroyed? I…I don’t understand.”
“The fires raged through your neighborhood last night. There isn’t anything left standing except a few brick walls and chimneys.”
Leaving his spoon in his cup, he wiped his palm down his face. All of his stuff. Gone. By fire. But the fires were downtown. “How can that be?”
“Folks panicked and lit the trash on fire.” She patted his hand before grasping it in hers and placing it on the rectangular signature reader. “Unfortunately, there was so much garbage, the flames got away from everyone. There isn’t much of the city left. And all the stick homes are just embers.”
Trent eyed the dregs of his soup. Thank God, he’d put all his policy papers in a safe deposit box. Of course, at this rate, he wouldn’t have to spend a dime of his wife’s insurance money. His homeowner’s policy would cover everything. He kept his face averted so she couldn’t see his grin. He was certainly among the lucky ones. “I see.”
“Don’t worry, Reverend, you’re safe here.” She patted his hand again before releasing it. “And your particulars and fingerprints are in the system, so if anyone needs to find you, they can. In the meantime, we’ll assign you to a house and get you settled.”
“That’s fine.” He finished his soup in one gulp. Of course, the house wouldn’t be up to his standards, but it would do for now. At least he didn’t have to live in a tent like the rest.
“If you’re ready, Reverend.” The soldier handed his tray of cups to another man and then gestured toward the doors at the rear of the tent. “Outside of the CO and the Doc, you’re the most important man on the base.”
Trent inclined his head. About time people recognized his true worth.
Chapter Forty-Six
“Excuse me, Sir.” Manny pulled the child’s wagon to a stop in front of a couple. The dozen cans he’d collected rolled along the plastic bottom.
Rini raised the lantern in her hand, highlighting the mottled green and purple bruises on her face. In the west, shades of the red and orange sunset bled through the black smoke.
While the older woman perched on a boulder, the man spread a coarse blanket on the rocky ground. He looked up at Manny. Ash caked his face like a mime’s make-up but didn’t disguise the dark circles clinging to his eyes. Two battered tapestry bags sat at his feet.
A twinge of guilt ate at Manny as he scanned their scant belongings. Only a few people had anything. And those who had started out with too much had left it behind as they’d taken blind turns only to be beaten back by fire, heat, rats and foul-scented smoke. With two bags, the couple had more than most. But he doubted their luggage contained food. So many didn’t.
Yet he had to ask them to donate something for their evening meal. Henry said it was the first step toward building a community. Manny couldn’t help feeling like a thief. After what they’d salvaged from the mission, they didn’t need to take people’s last food stuffs.
At least not yet.
But that time might come soon.
The fires had pushed them further west, away from the soldiers. And with so many sick, the delay might be fatal.
The man held out his hand to the woman and helped lower her, creaking and groaning onto the blanket. Her eyes closed when she lay down and her breathing deepened. Sighing, he sank like a deflated balloon on the ground next to her. “How can I help you, young man?”
Manny’s grip slipped on the wagon handle. “We’re hoping to make soup for dinner today.” Something easy to make and share among the hundreds of people camped along the river bed. “If you have any canned vegetables to donate, we’d appreciate it.”
He didn’t ask for meat. No one had meat. Most didn’t even know about the chickens clucking in the wire boxes at the front of the line.
“Soup?” The man raked his fingers through his hair. They got stuck in the thick ash halfway across his skull.
“Everyone’s tired and most of us haven’t cooked over an open fire.” If Cowboy and his group hadn’t brought grill grates, Manny didn’t know how they would have managed. The cook stove he had found would have ran out of gas before everyone ate. “Soup seemed the easiest to make.”
The man rested his hand on his carryon. “So only those who donate will get soup?”
“No, sir.” Manny sighed. He’d had this conversation too many times in the last hour. So many who had nothing feared they’d be left out. Others with food believed they would be cheated. “Everyone will get something to eat.”
Rini stepped closer to the couple. “Our family is donating water, bouillon cubes and flour to make dumplings. We’re just looking for vegetables to make it go further.”
“Dumplings, huh?” The man scratched his chin, revealing the brown skin underneath. “Been a while since I’ve had dumplings.” Wheezing slightly, he leaned over to the right and unzipped his carryon part way down. He removed a plastic baggie full of orange medicine bottles, revealing the clean labels of cans underneath. He selected one of peas and one of corn. “Here you go. When can we expect to eat?”
Manny stepped forward and took the cans. Most with a food stash hadn’t been so generous. He added them to the dozen in his wagon. “We’ll be back in about half an hour. If you have something to eat with, you might want to get it out.”
The man shook his head. “Forgot to bring the good china. Heck, I forgot the damn opener. This way I’ll get to eat what’s inside without having to chew through the can.”
Rini stepped around Manny and raised her arm, showing the small blanket dangling from her forearm. “We still have a few more blankets left if you need one.”
The man patted his other suitcase. “We’re good. Save it for someone who doesn’t have anything.”
Manny tugged the wagon across the uneven ground toward the next group. “We’ll see you in a bit.”
Rini fell into step next to him. “He was nice.”
“Yeah.” Manny guided the wagon around a large boulder and scanned the darkness in front of him. Without the moon and the stars, he couldn’t see much and the lantern barely penetrated five feet into the smoke. The hair on his neck stood up and he shifted. “I don’t see anyone.”
She raised the propane lamp. “Me either.” Dumping the last two blankets into the wagon, she rubbed her arm. “Maybe we should we go back.”
“Anyone out there?” A rock clattered in the darkness. Manny stepped
in front of Rini. His heart kicked up tempo. Something was out there.
“I didn’t notice anyone behind me,” the man said. “Sydney and I were the last. And there were times when we thought we’d lost you.”
A bubble of light washed over Manny’s feet. He spun about.
Rini stepped back. “What is it?”
Mildred appeared. Two propane lanterns sputtered from her hands. “There you are. My, we’ve certainly acquired a few people today.”
Behind her, two men stumbled to a stop—Falcon and Papa Rose, the two men who’d gone with him and Henry to check out the mission. They carried a plank of wood with a large metal pot sitting on it.
Beth, the battered girl they’d found, stepped out from behind the men and adjusted the folded blanket hanging around her neck. Her hands disappeared inside the sling. A heartbeat later, she brought up two tin cans, stripped of their labels. Metal scraped metal as she lifted the lid off the pot. Setting it on the plank, she lifted the ladle hooked to the side and spooned soup into the cans. Another fishing expedition in the sling produced some plastic spoons. Smiling despite her fat lip and bruised face, she offered one then another to the man. “There you go. Please keep the can and spoon for future meals.”
“Thank you.” Accepting both cans, the man nudged the woman next to him. She grumbled and coughed but blinked. “Soups on.”
Mildred peered into the wagon. “Fourteen cans. Everyone has been most generous. We’ll mix it with the rice for lunch tomorrow.”
Lunch tomorrow? Manny’s stomach growled. He hadn’t even had dinner. With a soft smile, Beth offered him and Rini the next two servings. He wrapped his fingers around the warm can, stirred the contents before scooping up a dumpling. “Thanks.”
Falcon and Papa Rose balanced the plank of wood on the rocky ground. “Is this the last of our group then?”
The dough dissolved in a burst of salt and chicken on Manny’s tongue. He quickly swallowed and chased down a carrot. “I think so.”
Papa Rose arranged small boulders in a circle on the ground. His skull tattoo glowed in its nest of inked roses.
Falcon crossed to stand next to Manny and tugged the yellow bandanna down. “What did you see, kid?”
Kid. Funny, how when there were plenty of adults around, he’d be relegated to the rank of child. Chewing on the carrot, Manny turned to face the darkness. The hair on his neck rose. “I didn’t see anything, but I feel like something is watching us.”
Falcon nodded. “Trust your gut. It’s your instincts telling you that your brain is ignoring something important.”
Manny nodded. He’d never heard it put that way before. Behind him, wood splintered. He turned to see Papa Rose stomp on the plank used to carry the soup. The board fragmented into jagged edge pieces that the man piled it into the stone pit.
Falcon pulled a plastic lighter from his pants pocket. He offered it to the man on the blanket. “We don’t have much dry wood, so if an animal approaches light the fire. If the lantern keeps them away for the night then we can use the wood to cook breakfast.”
The man’s hand shook as he accepted the lighter. “Okay.”
Mildred set one lantern on a rock near the fire pit before placing the other near the trio of old men opposite the couple. “That should keep most things away.”
“We’ll keep watch.” One of them spoke, huddling in a blanket Rini had given him earlier, while sipping from his can.
A crackling noise sounded overhead.
A few people rose from their blankets. Most didn’t stir.
Manny glanced up. Bulbs of red lights glowed in the sky. As he watched, the crimson circles arced toward the ground. His lungs labored to draw air through his mask. Please, God, don’t let it be fire. More lights crackled and glowed to life in a falling circle around them.
“I’ll be damned,” Falcon spoke. “It’s flares. Military flares.”
High overhead, an engine growled to the soft thump of rotary blades.
Papa Rose wiped his hands on his dusty jeans and cocked his head. “That’s an Apache.”
“The helicopter?” Manny ignored the dark sky to focus on the wash. Green eyes glowed in the distance. Coyotes! Would they attack?
“Look!” Falcon bumped Manny’s shoulder when he stepped forward. “They’re dropping something.”
White light blinked on and off, highlighting the small parachute and the package dangling from it.
“Let’s go see what it is!” Papa Rose scooped up a lantern as he raced passed.
Falcon chased over the rocks after him.
“Wait!”
Neither man slowed.
Manny handed his empty can to Rini. “I have to go after them. There’s something out there.”
She opened her mouth, but he turned away and jogged after the two men. The bluish glow of the lantern guided him, but still he stumbled over the ground. He fell and skinned his knees and palms more times than he could count. Branches scratched at him, tore his clothing as he plunged through the brush. He emerged on a dirt ramp leading out of the wash.
Falcon stood at the top in the glow of lantern light. “Come on, kid. We have to find that package.”
He puffed to the top, set his hands on his knees and tried to catch his breath.
Papa Rose adjusted the light of the lamp. “I arrived too late to see where it landed. We’re going to have to fan out to find it.”
“Turn it down to a glow.” Falcon stood on a fallen branch. “Maybe we can see the beacon.”
The light of the propane lantern faded to a crimson ring at the burner. Darkness pressed against him and erased Falcon. Manny sucked in a lungful of air. He would not call out. He would not.
A twig snapped to the right.
The hair rose on his neck. Could that be Falcon? The man usually moved so silently…
Another cracked on the left.
Papa Rose hadn’t moved.
Curses filled Manny’s head. He had chased after the men but had forgotten to warn them. “Coyotes,” he whispered.
Papa Rose turned up the lantern. Green eyes stared at them from the shrubs both along the bank and on the other side of the dirt road. A pack surrounded them. A very big pack.
“Hold still.” Falcon whispered back. “The light may drive them away.”
Leaves rustled. Then came the blink of a white light.
Manny raised his hand and pointed beyond Papa Rose. “The beacon. It’s moving.”
Branches parted and the brown and gray muzzle of an animal appeared. The beacon and package dangled from the strings in its mouth. Floppy brown ears twitched back and forth. The light caught the silver round tags on the animal’s red collar.
“It’s a dog.” Papa Rose slowly dropped to his knees. Setting the lantern on the ground, he held his hand palm up to the mutt. “Come here, boy.”
The dog paused to sniff the air and then sneezed. The package thumped to the ground. He retreated a step.
“Dogs.” Manny scanned the sets of green eyes in the bushes. “They’re all dogs.” Pets whose owners had died. “They’re not all dead.”
“Guess people didn’t eat them all.” Falcon crouched low before fishing something out of his pocket. It looked like a twisted piece of brown leather. “Here you go, boy.”
The dog sniffed again. He eyed the food but crept closer to Papa Rose’s outstretched hand. “That’s it a little closer.”
Manny watched a gray muzzle emerge from the weeds on his left. Then another. “You’re not going to eat him, are you?”
“Hell no.” The dog buried his nose in Papa Rose’s palm and stilled. His hind quarters trembled. Slowly, Papa Rose scratched over his jaw to the sweet spot behind the dog’s ear. The dog crouched and thumped one leg against the ground.
Manny waited for the Chihuahua to reach him before petting it. The shivering dog lay down against his leg.
A matted retriever lipped the treat from Falcon’s hand while allowing herself to be petted. “You’re a good girl, ar
en’t you?” The dog woofed softly. “We’ll keep them safe, kid. Because they’re going to protect us and the animals we brought.”
More dogs stepped out of the bushes. Some hung on the fringes. Others inched closer waiting for their turn to be scratched and petted. A momma cat emerged with a close-eyed kitten in her mouth. A German shepherd came next with another one. A gangly puppy stepped out next with yet another.
“Well, I’ll be damned.” Papa Rose picked up a yellow kitten and tucked it inside his vest. “Cats, too.”
Falcon accepted the gray kitten from the German shepherd before patting the dog on the head. “They must have been raised together for them to still be together. This will brighten the faces of many of the kids. The colonel was a big proponent of animal therapy.”
Manny cradled a dachshund, felt the small dog lick his ear, just like Peewee used to do. “The niños will certainly be very happy.”
Shucking off his jacket, Falcon created a sling for the two kittens and the puppy. The momma cat sniffed it before climbing in and settling next to her offspring. “What’s in the package?”
Papa Rose added the last kitten to the sling before turning his attention to the package. Pulling a knife from his boot, he opened the box, removed black foam packing, and pulled a tablet computer with a yellow sticky note from inside. “We’re waiting for you. Sergeant Major Dawson.” Gray light washed over Papa Rose’s face as he powered it on. “Hot damn. It’s a GPS with real time mapping.”
Still holding the dachshund, Manny scooped up the sleeping Chihuahua and stood.
“The colonel will be happy when he sees it.” Falcon adjusted the sling as he pushed himself to his feet. “Now we can map a path through the fires instead of being chased by them.”
Manny shook his head as a fissure of unease wrapped around his backbone. Henry needed to see the GPS, not this colonel vato. Henry knew where the soldiers were. He cleared his throat, drawing the attention of the men and most of the animals. “I think you should give it to Henry. He’s our leader.”
Papa Rose scooped up the box and packaging before wrapping them in the parachute. “Henry Dobbins is the Colonel, kid.”
Redaction: Extinction Level Event (Part I) Page 44
