by AJ Newman
“Luke was born on April 25th, 1965.”
Jackie’s head snapped around to face her grandma. “Whoa, why would you know the jerk’s birthday?”
Granny B cupped her hands over her face for a minute. “Because he wasn’t just Jonas’s brother. They were identical twins.”
Tom blurted out his thought without thinking. “Holy crap! The plot thickens!”
Granny B snorted. “Crap always thickens in the sun – and draws flies.”
Granny B told them that their grandfather was almost ten years older than she was and stressed that Jonas had never been bad. Luke had started taking drugs while in high school and running with the drug crowd. Jonas joined the Army and made a good life for himself and his family.
Tom made an observation. “Jerry brought his family up here in the hills to find his long lost family. Is it possible that he knows we’re his family? Could he be a devious turd like his great-grandfather Luke?”
Granny B patted Tom on the shoulder. “That’s why I brought my brain trust together. How do we get those answers?”
Kate grinned and then said, “Out of the mouths of babes. We pump the boy and Doris for as much info as possible without tipping our hand. We work on that while we figure out how to do a better job of getting the information. Tom and I can take the boy up to the barn and let him play with the baby goats, bunnies, and Jackie’s dog, what’s his name. We’ll tactfully ask him about his home, animals, pets, and such before asking about family.”
Jackie said, “Granny B and I can work on Doris if someone can keep Jerry busy.”
Rick offered to keep Jerry busy up in the high up pastures. “Jack already told him about spending a couple of days up there. Do we want to work on him a bit?”
Tom frowned, and his new fiancée noticed. “That’s a worried look on your face. Have we done something wrong, dear?”
“Oh! No! I was just thinking about the gang in Ashland and Carlos. Everything keeps getting between me and killing the SOB.”
“Jacob, do you think you can take on feeding the goats and rabbits every day?” Tom asked as he watched the boy scoop the feed for the rabbits from the bin.
“Can I?”
Tom smiled at the boy who couldn’t take his eyes off the rabbits. “Yes, but you will have to feed them every day before breakfast and school.”
“School? There ain’t no school anymore. I promise to take good care of the rabbits and goats.”
“Jacob, we’ll get school started for you and Lucy as soon as possible. Granny B, Jackie, and Kate will help your mom with your education. We even have all of Jackie’s and my books in the library for you to use.”
Kate said, “Follow me over to the other side of the barn. James found a poor mother dog who was about to whelp and brought her home to the barn. She had six puppies a few weeks ago. If your parents are okay with it, would you like one of the pups? We think they’re some kind of labrador and collie mixed breed.”
Jacob quickly abandoned the rabbits and jumped at the chance to go see the puppies. “I had some dogs at home, but we had to leave them when we moved here.”
Tom timidly said, “Tell me about your dogs and your home.”
Jacob’s eyes were fixed on a male brown pup. “I had Duke, Sammy, and Benny. They’re all Shih Tzus, and my papaw didn’t like them. He called them rats and ankle biters. Mom always hides them when Papaw Luke comes around. My Papaw Jake likes my dogs, and he’s real nice. Papaw Luke is mean and sometimes scares Mom.”
Kate said, “My Papaw Walker was also nice to us kids, and everyone loved him.” She crossed her fingers. “My Papaw Smith was mean and creepy. My mom wouldn’t let me be alone with him.”
“Papaw Jake takes me fishing and stuff, but Mom won’t let Papaw Luke take me anywhere. I don’t care because I don’t like him or Nana Sue. They’re creepy and real religious, Mom says.”
Tom started to ask a question, but Jacob interrupted him. “Granny B must know my Papaw, Luke. She has his picture in her room.”
Tom forced a smile. “Did you mention the picture of Papaw Luke to your mom?”
“Yes, she saw it and told Dad. They wouldn’t let me hear what they said.”
Kate asked, “Well, have you picked out your favorite puppy?”
“Yes, this one. Can I take him with me?”
“Not yet. The pup still needs his mom, but you can see him every time you come out to feed the rabbits and goats.”
Jacob asked, “Do I have to wear that silly blindfold every time.”
Tom answered. “Yes, for now. We’ll see about removing it in a week or so.”
Granny B took a deep breath and sat down on the bench. “Crap, he saw your grandpa’s picture. They’re twins. This means they know that we have something to do with the Clark family or are the Clark family. I guess it’s time to rip the Band-Aid off.”
*
Chapter 7
The Clark Ranch – The Bunker
Tom, Jackie, and Granny B had a short meeting in the library before Jackie fetched Jerry. Granny B saw him enter the room and welcomed him. “Come on in and sit a spell. We’re checking in with you to see how things are going from your side and plan to let you know what we’re thinking.”
Tom sat next to Jerry. “Tell us what you think so far. The good about being here and of course, the bad.”
Jerry fidgeted and then tapped his fingers on the table. “Of course, we like the safety and food even though the kids aren’t too fond of all the wild salads. You people are nice and friendly and have made us feel at home. I’d be lying to you if I didn’t want things to go back to normal so we could go back to our home.”
Jackie said, “We all feel that way about getting back to normal.”
Tom’s nostrils flared. “Tell us how you came to be up here in the hills away from the main road that would have taken you to your uncle.”
Jerry gulped and looked down at the table. “I … we …uh … were trying to hide from someone following us.”
“It seems strange that a family named Clark was trying to hide from bad guys and ended up on the Clark ranch that has been hidden for over forty years.”
Tom glared at Jerry before he said, “We know who you are. Now, tell the truth.”
Jerry was now sweating profusely. “Jacob saw the picture of Jonas on the wall, and it scared him. He ran to his mom and told her that his great-grandpa Luke was here. I knew Grandpa Luke had a twin brother, so I put two and two together and knew we’d found our long lost relatives. When the shit hit the fan, we had no place to run to. My dad had told me where he believed the Clark ranch was, and we drove up here trying to find you.”
Tom wasn’t satisfied. “Then why did you let us think you didn’t know who we are?”
Jerry laughed. “Because we only know you’re the Clarks. We didn’t know if you were good people. Grandpa Luke always told us that Jonas’s side of the family was rotten to the core, and Jonas was an evil man. We needed to find out if you were good people, so we let you find us after we found the ranch.”
“Well? What are your findings?” Granny B said as she held herself back from ripping the man’s throat out.
Jerry squirmed in his chair. “My dad always told me to keep my kids away from Grandpa Luke. That should tell you what we believed about his thoughts on other people, but we didn’t know you or how you’d react to us when we showed up. Good people would take us in and help us. We made it look like we needed help. We hid a truck full of supplies and could have made it to my uncle’s home if we had to do it.”
Tom reached out and offered his hand. “Cousin, glad to meet you. Granny B was Jonas’s wife and raised Jackie and me. You’re family and need to move into one of our two-room apartments. You’ll have much more space.”
They took Jerry out to the living room and called everyone together to introduce their family to everyone. Kate and Rick already knew in advance, but the others were surprised. They swapped stories about family and events leading up to and after
the lights went out, and then went on about their duties.
Jack caught Tom and made a suggestion. “Tom, if these people can find us, others will. It’s getting crowded down here. June and I’d like to move out to my cabin, and James and Alice want to move into the old cabin. We can string phone wire and keep in touch without using the walkie-talkies.”
Tom’s first reaction was to say no. “It’s safer down here. Can you stay another month until the herd of people moving out of the cities and the die-off have passed?”
“Yes, we can use the time to string the wire and improve our defenses,” Jack said.
Tom thought for a minute and performed a headcount. “Jack, we have two more apartments that are made from two side-by-side twenty-foot long overseas containers that aren’t being used. You don’t have to move outside.”
“It’s just not the same underground. June is a bit claustrophobic, and I’d like a bit more privacy.”
Tom laughed. “Kate and I’ll be getting married, and I think I know what you mean.”
Tom thought, Whew! That makes more room for the rest of us. I’ll move into one of the apartments and have Jackie and Rick move into another. Tom said, “We’ll miss the company, and of course, if necessary, you can always move back into the bunker.”
Tom felt guilty, not telling Jack that three of the apartments had metal-covered windows with the same view that the living area had, which looked over the cliff and canyon below. Granny B had the first one, and he and Jackie could now move into the other two.
Greta called from the barn on the telephone that Tom and Jack had installed. “Granny B, please come to the barn. Our bunny mama just had babies. There are thirteen in this litter!”
This was the second doe to give birth out of the three breeding pairs of wild rabbits. The third was due to deliver any day. The total number of kits was now up to twenty-three, with ten bucks and thirteen does. Granny B and Doris arrived and saw the proud Greta and Lucy watching the bunny nursing her brood.
Doris said, “We’ll have fresh rabbit meat in eight to twelve weeks. We prefer the ones at about eight weeks because they’re more tender. We need to get some of our Californian and New Zealands down here. They’re healthier than wild rabbits. Maybe Tom and Jerry can go get some. I hope you like rabbit meat because three breeding pairs can yield five thousand rabbits in three years with only an average of six kits per litter.”
Greta said, “I don’t believe that. We’ll need a bigger cage!”
Granny B snickered and then remembered. “Ask any Australian about what happened down under when the colonists brought rabbits from England, and they escaped. There were no natural enemies, and rabbits did what rabbits do, and soon they were knee-deep in rabbits eating all their crops. They had to start a rabbit elimination program.”
They all laughed, and then Granny B said, “We’ll need to find some more darn recipes for rabbit. Tom grew tired of roasted rabbit on the trip from San Francisco. I’ll see if Tom can plan a trip over to your old home. Do you think they will be able to trap some of your rabbits?”
Doris chuckled, “We released several hundred of each breed plus two dozen pigmy goats. I would think some survived.”
“I think that fits into our next scavenging trip. I’ll get with Rick and Jerry and plan to leave in a day or so. I want to search for an old tractor and a couple of vehicles. I might even find us some ATVs,” Tom said as he studied his grandmother’s face.
“Good. That’ll solve our meat problem and let our cattle herd grow,” Granny B chuckled.
Tom snapped around. “Whoa, Miss Twigs, weeds, and salads! I’m going to have steaks and burgers at least once a week!”
Granny B became serious. “I’m not impressed with our cattle drive so far. We had a tad over two hundred cattle before the ‘fit hit the Shan’, and they’ve only tagged a buck fifty. Our herd should have increased with over fifty percent of the females being of breeding age. We had fifteen bulls and about one hundred seventy heifers and females that should have calved by now. Jack says the cattle he’d tagged so far are heavy in calves, but way short on cows. He did find fourteen bulls so far.”
Tom took in the data, and suddenly the light above his head switched on. “Someone’s rustling our breeding stock. They're leaving the bulls and calves since they want to slowly steal, hoping no one notices.”
“That’s what I’m thinking,” said Granny B.
Tom wondered how anyone could know the cattle were up in the hills, since they were so far from the main roads. Then he said, “There were the ATVs and that redhead on the ATV. Maybe they weren’t looking for people.”
The redhead comment startled Granny B. “You don’t think … “
“No! She’s dead, but the woman had her hair and build. She also had an Uzi.”
Tom went up the steps to the barn and lucked out. James, Rick, and Jack were admiring Greta and Lucy’s rabbits. They were talking about the flavor of rabbit meat in a stew, roasted, and barbequed. Rick raised his hands and stopped the conversation. “My grandfather had a world-famous recipe. You marinate the young rabbit in red wine. Dig a hole about two feet deep by two feet long and about a foot and a half wide. Start a nice fire with hickory wood and let it burn down until it’s only embers. While the rabbit has marinated for half an hour, soak some brown paper bags. You know, about four of them in the wine from the marinade. Wrap the rabbit with the brown paper bags and place them on the embers. Shove the dirt down on top of the rabbit. Let it cook for an hour. Then remove the rabbit from the fire and peel off the remaining brown paper bag. Now …. you … throw the rabbit away and eat the charred brown paper bag!”
Everyone broke out laughing except Lucy, who said, “You’re wasting the rabbit!” and then walked off in a huff.
Rick said, “I’ll eat rabbit about a day before I starve to death.”
Tom motioned for them to gather around. “Funny how Rick brought up the topic of raising rabbits. The ladies have us heading over to Jerry’s place to fetch some of his rabbits and pygmy goats. Jack also needs some telephone wire, and I want to scout for some more old vehicles and a tractor that we can get running.”
Rick frowned. “Ugh, I hate rabbit meat. Goats are okay. I want some beef. Oh, by the way, James found a calf that had broken its leg. We already dressed it out, and I, for one, want a nice steak tonight.”
Tom looked pissed as he walked to the phone. “It’s me, Tom. Tell everyone that Rick is grilling steaks tonight. How about some baked potatoes? Darn, yeah, instant mashed spuds are okay.”
Rick asked, “Hey, soon-to-be brother-in-law, you’re not mad, are you?”
“No! Not at you! The meat reminded me that I think we have some rustlers, and we’re going to have to deal with them when we get back. I’m thinking we’ll find an electronics store and see if we can find any cameras that work. Maybe some have been packaged in those foil anti-static bags. Some solar cells might also be needed.”
Jack listened and then said, “I have a few ideas that might help us catch the rustlers, but I don’t want to shoot up some poor family just trying to survive.”
Tom said, “I agree on not shooting people just trying to survive, but how do we run them off if they think the cattle are their salvation? Hell, we can’t prove the cows are ours in the first place. Jack, how many horses have you rounded up?”
“An even dozen, and I’m worried about the rustlers finding them. I have four at the cabin in a small corral James and I threw together. The others are in the fenced-in pasture a couple hundred yards east of the barn,” Jack said.
Tom said, “I hate to leave so many hoof prints, but we need silent transportation.”
Jack replied, “Hoof prints aren’t a problem when there are thousands of them everywhere.”
Tom went back down into the bunker and saw the women gathered around the large table. Granny B was in her training mode and lectured the others a mile a minute about what wild plants were edible or poisonous. “Now, we have pokeweed. It�
�s poisonous and also edible – if prepared properly. When in doubt, blanch it in boiling water three times, carefully throwing out the water every time. If you eat the stuff raw, it can kill you or give you the worst green apple trots you ever had in your life.”
Tom listened carefully and stood back far enough that only his grandma could see him. He wondered if pokeweed or other plants could fit into their defensive plans for the ranch. The conversation turned to Jackie’s wedding in two days. Granny B said, “I like Rick. He’s a lot like Tom.”
Jackie choked a bit. “That’s kinda creepy. Are you suggesting I’ve got a brother thing going on?”
Granny said, “Land sakes, no! That is creepy,” and then turned to Kate. “Rick and Jackie are finally tying the knot. You know, it could be a double wedding.”
Granny B looked Tom in the eyes. Tom gave her a thumbs up and began quietly walking up behind Kate. Granny B didn’t give her a chance to answer. Granny B said, “Kate, you’re more like me than anyone else I know. You’re outgoing, a fighter, and have a sharp tongue, but at the same time, you’re kind and gentle to the ones you love. You’ll make a great addition to the family.”
Kate grinned. “I’ll tell Tom that you said we’d better stop fornicating around and get married with Rick and Jackie in two days.”
Everyone burst out laughing, including Granny B. She said, “Did I mention you can be blunt and to the point? Yep, you two will be getting married with Jackie and Rick. Ladies, let’s find a nice dress for her.”
Jackie and Greta could now see Tom as he stood behind Kate. They began snickering, and Kate turned her head to see what was going on behind her. Tom bent over and kissed her. “Sorry, but I walked up during the tail end of the conversation. I’ll marry you now, tomorrow, or next year, whatever makes you happy. You’ve already made me happy.”
Jackie quipped. “We know how she made you happy, and that’s why Granny wants a wedding before your first child is born.”
