by Kate Morris
“Where are the actual soldiers in your group?” Cory asks her.
She is a petite brunette who reminds him a little of Sam, only that her eyes are brown not blue, and she seems older than him.
“They usually go out in the morning and don’t return sometimes till late or even the next day,” she explains as she reloads her magazine.
“Oh, I see,” he answers and helps her by loading another mag for her. It’s something with which he has a lot of experience, so he can do it faster than her. “What are they doing?”
“Looking for supplies and more people to join the group. It’s the same as it was at the bunker,” she offers.
“You came from the bunker? I thought you might’ve come from a nearby town or something.”
“Nope. Came all the way from Colorado,” she says.
“Must’ve been pretty bad out there.”
She looks at him and rolls her eyes. “Yes, it sucked. The President isn’t such a bad guy most of the time, but we rarely saw him. He had a lot on his plate. Most of his soldiers were nice, too, but some of them…”
She groans and goes back to her work.
“Were they ex-military? Like legitimate soldiers?”
“I think so. I don’t know, though. They seemed good at yelling at people,” she says.
Cory chuckles. “There’s a little more to it than that.”
She smiles and says, “Some of the men here were ex-military. That’s who they send out on supply runs. They’ve been bringing back a ton of stuff, too.”
“Like Parker, you mean?”
She wrinkles her nose and says, “No, he’s just with the general all the time. He never goes off the base. He does make a lot of the decisions, though.”
“What kind of decisions?”
“Who can live here and who can’t. That sort of thing.”
This piques his interest. “What do you mean? I thought anyone who wanted to come here for sanctuary was admitted.”
She shakes her head and frowns as if she finds this a silly idea. “No way. He turns a lot of people away. If they can’t offer up some sort of service, they aren’t allowed in. He said we can’t all pull the slack for others who would bring down the group.”
This pisses Cory off. This is precisely what they were doing in Colorado that the general was so upset about. Supposedly. He obviously wasn’t that upset over it if they’re doing the same thing here. They don’t do that in Pleasant View. Those who are too old to work are either taken in by younger people or are looked after by the community with support. Some teach at the school, which is invaluable.
“What other decisions does Parker make?”
She sighs and says, “Oh, the usual. Who gets assigned what jobs, how much food gets rationed to each family, where they’ll be housed on the base. I guess you could say he keeps things running smoothly.”
“Isn’t that why you guys left Colorado? To get away from this sort of living arrangement and to gain more freedom?”
She snorts, “Yeah, well, old habits I suppose…”
He nods and frowns but continues to help her and some of the others with their marksmanship skills until the call for dinner is brought by a messenger. When he arrives in the mess hall, he spots Paige and Lucas sitting together. He goes through the line and takes a tray of offered food before joining them. He purposely sits across the table from her because Cory knows she wouldn’t like it if he sat next to her, which he’d actually prefer to do.
“Where’s your buddy?” he asks her.
She rolls her eyes and says, “I think he was mad I wouldn’t join him for a private dinner. I also think he might’ve figured it out that I was lying about having to help Derek.”
“Hey, leave me out of it,” Derek says as he joins them. “You gotta let the guy down gently. You’re obviously his first crush.”
Cory chuckles at his surly response about Parker.
“Ha!” Lucas retorts. “Not the way it was in the bunker.”
“What do you mean?” Cory asks.
Luke looks around to make sure nobody is listening in on their conversation and says, “He was quite the lady’s man out there.”
“For real? Are you just messin’ with us?” Cory jokes.
“No, and he wielded his authority to get whatever he wanted from whomever he wanted, especially women. I can’t believe my dad put him in charge here, his second in command. I was hoping he wasn’t going to invite him here.”
Cory is surprised that Luke is telling them so much. He’s usually the quiet one between him and his sister. Of course, Gretchen doesn’t give him much of an opportunity to speak.
“What do you mean about throwing his authority around?” Derek asks, his interest piqued.
“Well, he didn’t force women to be with him or anything like that, but he sort of bribed them with what he could provide for them, either from the food store or supplies. He was a real dick out there. He wasn’t anywhere near the rank of second in command, though. He was just a lowly officer, way low, and a lot of people did not like him.”
“Great, so now he has more pull,” Derek says.
“I don’t like a lot of what we saw and heard today, either,” Cory tells Derek. “We’ll talk about it later in private.”
“I thought they were leaving the model of socialism behind in Colorado?” Paige asks Luke.
“Yeah, me, too. My dad’s acting like this is all just temporary until everyone’s on their feet, but I think when he wants to change things, Parker’s gonna be a real problem,” Luke answers and removes his ball cap. “I think he likes it like this.”
“I agree with that assessment,” Cory says with a nod.
A moment later, Parker, Doc, and Robert casually stroll up to them.
“I thought you needed to help Major Harrison?” Parker asks Paige directly.
“She is. As soon as I’m finished, she’s going to help me with some physical therapy. She’s great at it,” Derek lies, a lot more smoothly than Paige had.
“One more pleasant surprise,” Parker says with a smile.
“Yep, that’s me, full of surprises,” she answers with a fake grin.
“I was telling Robert that we should return to the farm in the morning, but first, I’d like to speak with you, Derek. There are some matters here that we need to cover before we leave,” Doc says.
“Yes, sir,” Derek says with a nod. “Get something to eat, Herb. You need to. I know you were in the lab all day. Gotta get some nourishment in you before we make the trip home tomorrow.”
Parker takes it upon himself to sit next to Paige with his tray of food. Cory would like to stab his butter knife into the side of his neck. Doc and his son walk away to get their own food, which looks like it is being brought to them by workers instead of them standing in line.
“Too bad you have to leave tomorrow,” Parker starts. “You could always stay, you know. There is plenty of open housing. I could see to it that you get a private room.”
“How? By throwing around your weight?” Cory asks bluntly.
This apparently is not something Parker is used to because he shoots Cory an expression of surprise.
He recovers and says, “No, of course not. I just mean that she’d be treated as an honored guest. She’d have whatever amenities that she’d require.”
“And how would you go about securing those amenities?” Cory questions.
“By whatever means necessary, of course,” he answers.
Cory isn’t going to be put off so easily, so he says, “By taking from others because you can, because you’re the second in command?”
He clears his voice. His face is turning red, especially since he is slightly pale already. He reminds Cory of an albino sometimes with his light, cold eyes and super pale blonde hair.
“No, I wouldn’t do that. What is it exactly that you’re insinuating?”
Cory stares him down for a long moment before saying, “Nothing. Just making observations based on what I’ve seen h
ere.”
“Don’t make judgments based on living on this base for a mere two days.”
“Almost three,” Cory mocks, then grins with sarcasm.
“You certainly don’t know enough about this place to pass judgment on us.”
“I’m not passing judgment on everyone. Just you,” he challenges and watches the man’s nostrils flare.
“Um, I’m done!” Paige announces and stands. “Cory, could you walk me back to our rooms so that I can get a shower?”
He sits there and stares down Parker for another full minute before nodding to Paige and rising. All the way to the rooms that the McClane family is sharing while on the base, Paige lectures him to keep his cool and stop trying to incite Parker into a fight. In Cory’s opinion, it would be a short one. He drops her at her room and makes Paige promise to stay in it for the remainder of the night. Then he goes on an intel mission, but he doesn’t leave Robert’s base.
Chapter Twenty
Sam
Tomorrow she is returning to Dave’s camp and does not know if she’ll ever come back to the McClane farm for a visit. It’s just too hard being around them, and it makes her miss the family so much more when she’s living on Henry’s farm away from them.
Dinner is wrapping up, and chores are being completed. The old house feels stuffy and hot, even in shorts and a tank top, so she slips on her flipflops and walks to the goat barn to check on a nanny and her new twins. The little kids have been in here most of the day playing with them and holding the newborn, pygmy goats, which are so adorable.
Sam opens the small, wooden gate and lets herself in with the goats, of which they have fourteen now with the birth of the new twins. The dairy goats are a bit bigger than the pygmies and are kept in a different pen closer to the pigs. Some of the nannies come over to greet her, looking for treats. She feeds them the leftover vegetables from tonight’s dinner of pork chops and potatoes. The salad was one of raw vegetables from the garden, of which they had some left since so many of their family members are up at Fort Knox. They never waste anything, though, and all scraps are fed back to the pigs, goats, and chickens. The twins’ mother also comes over for her fair share, which Sam places in a separate bin to ensure that she gets enough. Then she is able to sit in the straw and hold the babies. They are so stinking adorable and weigh practically nothing in her arms. In typical fashion of naming all of the goats in their herd after Greek gods, the kids are calling them Hera and Artemis. If the herd keeps expanding, they will inevitably run out of names. The soft little whines and cries of communication that they make cause Sam to smile down at them.
“First Charlotte and now baby goats,” Simon says from the gate as he also enters.
“These were easier to deliver, though,” Sam comments with a smile as he squats next to her.
“I doubt if that nanny would agree,” Simon jokes, causing her to smile again.
He extends a hand and strokes the smaller one, the female. Just because she is smaller than her brother certainly does not mean that she will be pushed around by him. Like most creatures in the animal kingdom, the female goats tend to rule the roost. She’ll likely be as bossy as her mother, who doesn’t take much from the billies in the herd.
“You forgot to leave something in the shed,” she says, pointing to the stethoscope still hanging around his neck.
“Oh, yes, I suppose I did,” he answers, touching the cool, metal head. “I was just checking Charlotte again.”
“Good grief. Leave that baby alone,” Sam scolds with a grin of teasing. “She’s only been in this world for three days, and she’s already been examined twenty times between you and Reagan.”
He chuffs and nods. “I suppose you’re right.”
Sam goes back to petting Hera on her tiny nose, which she does not seem to appreciate.
“I heard you were going back tomorrow,” he says.
Sam looks up at him and nods. “Yes, after the clinic day. As long as Dave’s men come and pick me up, that is.”
“I’m sure they will,” Simon agrees with a frown. “I’m sure everyone over there is missing you, what with this dual residency thing you’ve got going on.”
“Actually,” Sam says, stands, and places the babies back on their small nested place in the straw. “I think this is going to be my last visit. I need to stay over there now.”
She walks around Simon, who looks shocked by her announcement.
“What? Why?” he asks as he follows her from the pen and secures the gate after them.
Sam just keeps going, hoping he’ll drop it. Unfortunately, halfway down the dark aisle, Simon steps in front of her. The only light is from the lantern he carries.
“Because, Simon, I can’t keep doing this. I need a clean break. This is just prolonging the inevitable.”
“What’s that supposed to mean? What part of living over there and visiting here is inevitable?”
“I just feel like my life here is done, has come full circle, and I need to move on. I need to make things work over there and stop visiting so much. It’s like I keep putting a bandage on just to rip it off again, and the pain is becoming unbearable.”
“I don’t understand how that makes sense. Your friends and family are here. This place is your home. That other place is… it’s just a temporary housing situation. This is where you should be happiest, with your family. If you do this, the family is going to be devastated.”
Sam wishes that he would’ve phrased that so differently, which is aiming at the heart of the problem, the main reason she needs to stop visiting Grandpa’s farm so often.
“Right. The family,” she repeats but detests how much she reveals in those few, clipped words.
“Exactly. Everyone will be so disappointed. Your visits mean so much to…them.”
“The family,” she says again for clarity.
“And me,” he finally admits, igniting a glimmer of hope in her heart like he always does right before he rejects her and tramples out the flame again. His teeth clamp together, and his jaw flexes before saying, “I am also thankful for your visits.”
“Why?” she asks point blank, yearning for him to reveal something new, something she’s never heard before.
“Um…because you’re great at the clinic, and the kids love you, and the sisters miss you…”
“Simon,” she says, interrupting and surprising him. “Stop. Just stop. I can’t do this with you every time I visit the farm. It’s exhausting.”
“You just need more rest. I always say this. You work too hard and push yourself too much.”
Sam chuckles at him, earning a frown of confusion from the perpetually confused Simon. She sighs and pushes his hair back from his forehead. “Oh, Simon.”
“What?” he asks, looking more like a naïve, little boy than a man who has seen so much, too much in his young life.
The flame extinguishes, but literally this time as his lantern goes out.
“Oh, shoot,” he curses, or as close to cursing as Simon usually gets. “I knew I should’ve added more oil to this.”
“It’s fine. I’ve got a flashlight,” she says and reaches into her pocket. “Crap. I must’ve left it at the goat pen.”
“Wait, I might have one,” he says, fishing around in his jeans pockets after he places the burned-out lantern on the barn floor.
“It’s not that far. I can see light from the moon at the other end of the aisle,” Sam says after her eyes begin to adjust to the darkness.
“Just wait. I don’t want you to stumble over something and get hurt,” he warns with his usual vigor for safety and caution.
This makes Sam smile. Simon will never change. He’s resolute in who he is and comfortable in his ideals and character. It’s one of the things she likes about him.
“Simon, I’m hardly going to die if I take a tumble,” she points out.
“Hold on,” he says, digging in his back pockets now. “I’m sure I had one.”
Sam groans and tries to brush pa
st him with a show of impatience and independence. Simon’s snatches her arm to stop her and steps closer.
“Sam, I’m serious. Just wait.”
“I have been, Simon. I’ve been waiting for a lot of things where you’re concerned,” she says, looking up at him to gauge his response to this. His hair is rumpled and longer than normal. She can just make out the blue of his eyes set against the dark, summer tan he’s carrying with him.
“Uh…” he stammers nervously as Sam readjusts her weight and ends up much closer to him. He still has his hand clamped down on her upper arm, not in a painful manner but firmly.
“I’m leaving in the morning. I’m going to take a break. I may not come to the clinic for a while after tomorrow, either.”
“Don’t do this,” he pleads softly.
“It’s what’s best, Simon,” she admits and pushes his hair back from his forehead again, which is damp from the humidity and heat. His face is covered in a five o’clock shadow, giving him a rugged appearance.
“It’s not. It’s not what’s best at all. It’s actually the worst possible case of horrible.”
“For who? The family? They seem to have adjusted quite well to my departure.”
“No, of course, they haven’t. Nobody has,” he says, squaring up his body to hers.
“Who then?” she prompts.
“Uh…Huntley. He’s been moping around here a lot.”
Sam rolls her eyes and says, “Huntley’s fine, Simon. He’s adjusting fine and has been busy doing more military training so he tells me. Who else?”
“Hannah,” he says, this time his voice sounding faint and unconvincing.
“No,” she retorts, her frustration with him growing.
