by E A Lake
Theresa came and sat on the other side of Hunter. “Maybe not quite yet, but soon enough. Everything Hunter has brought us is useful. We are so lucky to have him in our lives. Right girls?” Five heads nodded, and their faces lit up. Hunter felt better. “So let’s just move the box of our clothes aside, and we can dig through the two boxes of baby items. That way we can have them ready for wash tomorrow.” The girls got at the chore as Hunter sat back on the couch and watched. Theresa noticed Hunter’s eyes start to droop. Good, he was staying again tonight.
Sara spun around from one box, smiling at Theresa. “Look Sister, it’s a 3 to 6 month sleeper.” Thank goodness thought Theresa. Finally something that Hunter could be happy about. She turned to the man, but he was already asleep. Even with all the commotion going on in front of him, Hunter began snoring.
They found a number of useful items in the second box of baby clothes. They’d tell Hunter in the morning. That would get his day off to a good start. In two smaller boxes they found assorted toiletries including toothpaste, unopened toothbrushes, bar soap, deodorant, shampoo and other goodies. Another box contained unused toilet paper rolls. There was even two bottles of baby shampoo and body wash.
The group took many of the items and put them in the tiny pantry off the dining room. That was their storage area for the foreseeable future. And as long as the mice or dampness didn’t get at their extras, they would continue to use the pantry. They put a number of items into the cramped bathroom for their immediate use. Theresa felt they could use a shelf in the bathroom. She would ask Hunter tomorrow about finding a shelf, or even building one for them.
The house began to quiet down, and evening turned into night. Hunter decided he would sleep on the couch and not the porch. That was fine with everyone. Well, until crying babies awakened him it would be fine. He’d probably move to the porch after that.
As the girls said their goodnights, Karen came to Sister Theresa in her room. Karen closed the door and looked down at the nun sitting on her bed. “Sister, did you talk to Hunter today?”
Theresa shook her head. “The day went by too fast, Karen. And then he fell asleep earlier than I had hoped.” Karen sighed at Theresa’s disappointing words. “I promise to do it tomorrow.”
“That’s fine. We all know it was a busy day for him.” Karen sat next to Theresa on her bed. “Just try and do it before he leaves in the morning and is gone all day. Can I give you a few pointers, Sister?”
Theresa nodded, though she wasn’t sure what advice this young lady may have for her. “First, you have such beautiful thick hair. Maybe you could ditch the headdress for the next few days.” Theresa nodded slowly. Karen reached up and undid the top button of her blouse, and pulled the collars open a little. “And maybe not button up to your chin. Just a button or two should be enough to get his attention.” Theresa’s expression tightened as she looked at Karen. “Really Sister, you’re pretty and can probably be really pretty. If you try just a little.”
“Karen, I’m not ignorant to the ways of the world, really. But I believe a little modesty goes a long ways.” Karen frowned at Theresa. “You know I was pretty popular back in high school. I’ve been on a few dates, Karen. I know how to get a man’s attention still.”
“I’m sure you were quite the babe at one time, Sister. All I’m saying is you may have to try a little harder with this one. He only knows you as a nun. So you need to show him another side of you.” Karen stood to leave.
“Thank you, Karen.” Theresa stood and gave the oldest teen a hug. “I know you mean well, so I promise to try a little harder. Just remember, we’re fighting an uphill battle I believe.”
Karen smiled broadly at Theresa. “I know Sister. Just remember, you really are nice. Just make sure Hunter knows that too.” Theresa pondered this after Karen left. She wasn’t too confident in her abilities to woo this man. She was sorely out of practice.
Chapter Twenty-six
Before anyone else was up in the morning, Hunter decided to move some stuff around. He took the old TV out of the living room and dumped it in the far back end of the barn. They wouldn’t need that for many years to come, if ever. Then he hauled out a bunch of electronics that once served some purpose. Now they were just taking up much needed space. Finally, he dug through the nearby machine shed sorting out what was useful and what was not. They could use the extra space in there, as well.
About an hour into his chores, Sara came out with Matty in her arms. She was the first one up as usual, and saw Hunter working outside. She thought he could use some company, and Matty could use the fresh air. Hunter stopped when he saw Sara’s smiling face. She was the easiest to talk with of the group.
“That one doesn’t like to sleep in much, does he?” Hunter pointed at the happy baby in Sara’s arms. She was fortunate to get a child with her same disposition. Or maybe her happy disposition was rubbing off on Matty.
“No, but he takes an early nap, so that’s not so bad. I was used to getting up early at school. That way I could get some extra studying in before breakfast every morning.” Sara seemed so mature for 14 to Hunter. With her diminutive size, she could be mistaken for 12 or less. But once she began to speak, you wondered if she wasn’t 16 or older.
“I suppose I should try and find some books for all of you while I’m out there again. Something useful that you can learn from, use for studying. Any favorite subjects for you, Sara?” Hunter sat in the grass next to where Sara and Matty sat.
“Anything is fine with me – math, science, geography; I love everything. I see there are some old encyclopedias in the far back room. I wonder how old they are?” Hunter could only imagine. He hadn’t seen the books, but who could have used one of those dinosaurs in years he wondered. “I think maybe I’ll start on some of them for now. Anything to help keep me busy. And keep my mind off home.” Sara’s smile disappeared.
Hunter tried to put the happiness back on her face. “Fiction or non-fiction fan? You know, for novels.”
“Either is fine. Just before we were taken away from school, I was reading all about the life of Albert Einstein.” Sara thought back on the subject, and for a moment of school. “He was such a fascinating man. So smart.” She glanced at Hunter with wonder filled eyes. “He wrote something about World War IV once, about being fought with sticks and stones. Do you think that’s what’s going on down south, Hunter? A type of World War IV?” Hunter took off his hat and gave Sara his full attention.
“I think the last war he was referring to is the one we fight every day. I don’t think Einstein meant one giant world war. I think he was speaking about the many little battles that are going on right now, for so many people. I mean look around; most of the people we see have sticks or bats or tools as weapons. No guns, no knives, no grenades; just primitive stuff. I believe we are part of that war he spoke about, after the last great one – World War III.” Hunter studied Sara closely.
She tried to digest his theories. “Was World War III six years ago? Was that a war?” She reached down and tickled her child. Matty cooed at Sara’s silliness.
“I guess so. In one way or another it seems to have knocked the world back a hundred or more years, Sara. That’s for sure. Just what it was, I don’t think we’ll ever know. I’ve bored so many people with that theory in the past, I bet everyone’s sick of hearing it.” Hunter grinned.
“What did you do before all of this, Hunter? You know, your job.”
Sara was full of questions this morning. Hunter laughed at himself. Years had passed since anyone had asked that question of him. “I was an engineer. A civil engineer. I was hoping to help build our cities bigger, better and safer. That was a long time ago.” He rarely thought of his past work anymore. He’d just graduated a year before the event occurred. “Now my job is survival, mine and yours. All of you.”
Sara looked down for a moment and then back at him. “Is Hunter your name or does everyone just call you that?” Sara asked a legitimate question that no one had asked ye
t.
Hunter poked at Matty before he spoke. “They call me that because that’s what I do mostly. I’ve been in the woods hunting with my dad since I was six.” His gaze came back to the waifish teen. “It’s what I’m best at these days, Sara – hunting.”
Sara gazed at the older man with another question on her mind. She didn’t want to bother Hunter, but she had wondered about something ever since the Captain had come to the school. She decided to go slow with the man.
“Hunter?” Sara began quietly. “What do you know about Genoa?” She scrunched her small eyes shut slightly in the bright morning sun. “Someone said something about Genoa falling. Do you know if that’s where all the babies came from?” A concerned look crossed Hunter’s face.
“Genoa is a little town about an hour south of the Wisconsin border, center part of the state. I think it’s about two hours west of downtown Chicago.” Sara seemed to be following well enough, so he continued. “I’ve only heard rumors of what happened there. Just what the Amish have told me, mostly. It didn’t sound very nice, though.” He shook his head slightly, showing that maybe they shouldn’t discuss the subject any further.
She frowned at his look. “You can tell me. I’ve heard enough over the past few years to age me a hundred times. You can’t say much that will shock me, Hunter.” Sara showed Hunter her brave side, her worldly side. She wasn’t just a little 14-year-old girl from Madison, Wisconsin. Hunter pondered her request. Maybe he could tell her just a little of the story. “Remember now, this is all just hearsay.” Hunter started with a slightly lightened expression. “From what Henry Mueller told me, Genoa had been a safe haven ever since the event, whatever happened. Up until a year ago they had pretty much insulated themselves from any of the bad things that started running rampant in Chicago. Most of the trash never came their way. Mostly because of their slightly off the beaten path location. But another big part was the fact that they were fortified and well-armed.” Hunter nodded at Sara. “Rumor has it they had a lot of ammunition. A whole lot.”
Sara followed the story, nodding to signify her understanding. She wasn’t sure what atrocities had occurred down there, but she could take what Hunter had to say. At least she hoped she could. “Okay, so far I understand.”
Hunter thought of where to go next. Finally, a good path came to him. “So they fought off bad people for three, maybe four years. Did a real good job of it. They had no help from the militia, though, because Genoa is in Illinois. And almost all of Illinois’ militia was tied up in Chicago. The few divisions that weren’t there were down in the State Capital, Bloomington.” Sara kept nodding at Hunter. Here’s where it got dicey. “Well, after so long, they started to run out of ammo. All ammo. They were left to defend themselves with their hands. So, they were on the same level as everyone else. Just not as mean and vicious as those who wanted Genoa.”
“What was so unique about Genoa? Just another town, right?” Sara didn’t get that part.
“Genoa was real nice, Sara; a very special piece of Americana. They say there was a group of about 500 people, not real nice people, who wanted Genoa as their own new starting place. Once the ammo ran out, Genoa was quickly overrun by that real bad element. They forcibly removed every last resident of Genoa. And they weren’t real nice about it.” Hunter scowled at the small teen. He didn’t want to explain any further.
“They killed everyone, didn’t they?” Sara peered sadly into Hunter’s eyes. He slowly nodded. “But not the babies?” Hunter face turned sad.
“Everyone Sara. They just missed 24 tots that had been hidden away in the local Catholic Church. Those good people just got out of there before it all went bad. Two priests, four nuns, and 24 babies less than six months old.” Sara inspected Matty closely. He was almost asleep lying on the ground next to her. She picked him up carefully and held him tight. Tears streamed down Sara’s pale cheeks.
“I never dreamed that people would do such things, Hunter.” Sara’s head shook. “Never. It’s just so bad.”
Hunter sadly nodded at the teen.
Chapter Twenty-seven
Sara and Hunter sat silently for quite a while. Sara stared at Matty. Hunter stared at the summer’s morning sky, each lost in their own dream. Sara pondered how fortunate it was that Matty had made it out of Genoa alive. Virtually unscathed by any of the action that must have been happening all around, Matty and the others spirited away by the brave, heroic few. She began to feel a stronger bond developing with this child.
Hunter’s thoughts went to Genoa itself. Too many dead souls in such a short period of time. Rumor was they’d been shot as a group. Then the bodies, some lifeless, some with still small bits of life remaining, hauled into an old wooden historical building and set ablaze. The stench that followed had to be horrendous. Hunter now wondered if the marauders remained in Genoa or had to leave because of the putrid odor that must have lingered for days, maybe weeks. What a waste the entire episode had been.
What worried Hunter most was the fact that he knew these types of people would be on the road this summer. He hoped they’d find some other road to travel. Not the state highway that ran in front of the farm, this farm.
The sound of the back door broke Hunter’s thoughts. He glanced over to see Sister Theresa approaching. Hunter rose to meet the happy nun.
“Good morning, Hunter. It appears we are in for another beautiful day.”
Hunter nodded his agreement. She seemed chipper this morning. And something was different in her appearance. Missing was her usual black and white headgear. This morning, her thick shoulder length auburn hair was open to the fresh air. Hunter enjoyed the change. “Morning, Sister.” Hunter met her halfway across the large open yard surrounded by the buildings they had jointly explored the other day. “I see you’re taking your hair out for a walk. Nice change. It looks…nice.” Hunter got uncomfortable for a second. Somehow it didn’t feel right to compliment a nun on her physical appearance. Especially this nun. He shrugged it off quickly.
“Sara?” Theresa looked past Hunter as the tiny teen stood and picked up Matty. “Would you like to get the coffee going, please? I bet Hunter could use a cup.” Sara and Theresa exchanged happy expressions as the teen took her leave. Theresa watched her until she disappeared inside. Finally, she looked back at Hunter with a funny grin.
Hunter knew she had something to say. “Something up, Sister?” She mentioned it yesterday, and this morning she looked a little anxious. That was unlike Sister Theresa. Hunter worried what he might have done to upset the young nun. Theresa looked deep into Hunter’s eyes.
“I’d like to talk to you about something. Something important. And please, let me say what I have to say before interrupting. I know you may have certain reactions to what I am about to say, but I’d like you to hear me out first.”
Hunter nodded and tried to act nonchalant. He knew he was in trouble. But on his life, he couldn’t remember doing anything wrong in the past few days. “Okay, just go easy on me, Sister. I haven’t had my coffee yet.”
Both chuckled at this comment. The mood was lightened.
Theresa took a deep breath and began. “I would like to know – no actually we, the girls and I, would like to know if there is any way we can entice you into staying here on a more permanent basis. Um, we’ve come up with an idea, and I’d like to run it past you.”
Hunter nodded cautiously. He had no idea where this could go, but he didn’t see anything good on the horizon.
Theresa took a deep breath and continued. “Perhaps if I wasn’t so hard on you, sometimes it would be a little more appealing for you to stay.” Hunter turned his head slightly and was lost already. “Maybe, if I was nicer to you in general you’d feel more inclined to stay. Yes?”
Hunter nodded. “I’m not sure I know where you’re headed, Sister. I think maybe I’m missing a crucial piece of information here.”
Theresa frowned and cast her eyes down. She hoped he would already be on the same page as her. She decided to
go right at the subject. “Hunter, we’re about the same age. I’m a woman, and you’re a man.” Hunter’s eyes narrowed. Theresa increased her smile. “I wouldn’t be opposed to the idea of starting a relationship with you, if that’s something that might interest you.”
Hunter stood expressionless, trying to absorb her words. He knew he was dreaming because this made as much sense as a bad nightmare. There was just no conceivable way Theresa had just suggested what he thought she did. He bit his lower lip. Damn, he wasn’t dreaming.
From the porch, five sets of eyes carefully studied the scene playing out in the yard. Sister was getting at it, finally. They couldn’t tell how it was going thus far, though. Sister Theresa was doing most of the talking; Hunter was mostly nodding his head and looking stupid.
Mary spoke first. Rather unusual for her. “At least she took her headdress off; I guess that’s a good start.”
Karen shook her head. “We should have put some makeup on her. She looks too pale and plain.” Karen peeked at the others. “I wish we would have thought about that earlier.”
Sheila frowned at the pair. “She should show more cleavage. She only has one button open. Two would be better.”
Karen laughed at the thought. “She doesn’t have much to show either way. The more I thought about it and looked at her, I knew that part was hopeless. She’s too skinny to have big breasts.” Four heads nodded in agreement with Karen.
Sara twisted her small lips in circles. “I hope Hunter’s not a boob man then. Hopefully he goes for women with natural beauty and not much else.” She looked at the others still staring at the yard. “Otherwise we’re doomed.” Her face screwed up a little more. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all.
