By the end of the next day, they’d brought the last two into the yard. Nineteen full trailers and one empty one.
The girls met them as they lined up the last two and stepped out of the trucks.
Hannah said to Mark, “Tell me again why you brought an empty one back.”
“Well, the empty one is going on the end. Right now we don’t have much idea what’s inside of them, except for what we can see from the end of the truck. So we’re going to go through them, one at a time, and catalog and restack them, so that we’ll not only know what’s in them, but also have a rough idea on where everything is when we need it.”
“Oh? How so?”
“Well, like I said, the empty truck will be on the end. We’ll take everything off the second trailer and log it on an inventory sheet. Then we’ll stack it in the empty trailer. Only we’ll stack the items without the wooden pallets underneath them. That way we can stack the goods higher. All the way up to the ceiling if we need to. And by stacking it higher, we can leave a walkway down the center of the trailer, so we can walk all the way to the back if we need to. We’ll also leave an occasional break to put boxes when we have to dig something out. By getting rid of the pallets and stacking things higher, we should have room for the pathway and the breaks and still have room to get everything from the second trailer into the empty one.
“Then once the second trailer is empty, we’ll put the stuff from the third trailer into it, in the same manner. And we’ll do that all the way down the line.
“When we’re finished, we’ll have an inventory list for each trailer. It’ll tell us roughly where each item is located, on the right or left side of the trailer, and approximately how far back. It’ll make it much easier to find a particular item when we need it.”
“That sounds like quite a project.”
“Oh, it will be. That’s why we’ve each committed to spending every Saturday for the foreseeable future to getting it done. You girls can help us if you want.”
Sami laughed.
“Sorry, Saturdays are the days when we go get our hair done, and manis and pedis.”
Sarah added, “Yes. And don’t forget shopping at the mall.”
Hannah said, “Don’t listen to these two fruitcakes. I for one would be happy to help. How long do you think it’ll take?”
“We’re figuring the better part of a year. Maybe even longer.”
“Well, it’s a good thing we’ve got lots of time, huh?”
Chapter 18
They had worked out a great system on Buena Vista Drive.
They had a rough go of it at first, when they planted their first batch of wheat seeds from the Home Depot. They watered the crop religiously and watched in hopeful anticipation from day to day, but the plants just never came out of the ground.
The corn crop, on the other side of the street, was planted after the wheat. Those plants were more than a foot high when the group finally gave up on the wheat.
They got a second batch of seeds, this time a different brand and a different strain.
And they repeated the back breaking job of planting the seeds, by hand, row by row, yard by yard, crawling around on their hands and knees.
But this time it paid off, and eight days after being planted the plants started breaking free from the ground and growing.
And so now, several weeks later, they had a system. Every fourth day without rain two of them would spend the day watering, using a small gas powered pump to pump water from the rain barrels through a water hose. They’d go row by row, yard by yard, to give each plant a much needed drink. And they’d look to the sky and pray for rain to refill their rain barrels before they all ran dry.
But just in case the rain didn’t come, on the watering days, four others took two pickups to the playa lake a few blocks away. In the back of each truck were dozens of old milk containers they’d gathered at the recycling center. And two by two, they carried the empty containers to the water’s edge and held them beneath the water to fill them.
Then they carried them back to the pickup and swapped them out for two more empties.
After they filled the containers and headed back home, they poured them all into the rain barrels. It was an effort to keep from running out, in case their irrigation needs exceeded their rainfall.
The crops were growing quite well now. It turned out that Widow Spencer and Frank’s wife Eva had very green thumbs. They issued the instructions, on when to water and how much water to apply, and when to apply fertilizer and insecticide. The men, as a rule, didn’t know much about how to care for plants, but were ready volunteers to follow the women’s instructions.
It was while pulling weeds and grass from between the corn stalks that Frank first brought up his plans to go deer hunting to Jesse.
“I used to go every year up near Junction. East of a place called Salt Mountain. I never failed to bring back a good sized white tail.”
Jesse laughed.
“Times have changed, Frank. The world was frozen solid for five straight years. And even when it started to thaw, it thawed a little at a time before freezing again. It killed everything out there.”
“Don’t be so sure about that, my friend. The birds are starting to come back now. Not many, but I’ve seen three or four in the past week. If they can survive, why not deer?
“I don’t know for sure, but I suspect the birds found deep caverns or caves to live in for the freeze. Places where maybe it stayed a little warmer than the outside world. Warm enough to allow bugs to survive. And those same caverns and caves had water for them to drink. You’ve been to Carlsbad Caverns. You know that two hundred feet underground it stays about seventy degrees, even in the dead of winter.”
“I know, Frank. But what you’re missing is that deer ain’t birds. They can’t just fly into caves and caverns. And they don’t eat bugs. They eat grass and leaves.”
“I know that, you big dummy. But deer survive in the winter by using their hooves to scrape snow off the grass so they can eat it. They eat the snow to get their water needs. And they eat some of the low hanging tree branches. And I’m guessing that in the deep woods around Salt Mountain, the snow didn’t get several feet thick like it did here. It normally doesn’t in the woods. It collects on the trees until winds blow it elsewhere. And if it never got more than a foot or two deep in those woods, then maybe the deer were able to survive.”
“I wish I could share your enthusiasm, Frank. But let me know when you want to head that way, and I’ll go along.”
“No. No offense, but that’s seventy five miles away. If my truck breaks down and I can’t get another vehicle running, I may have to hike back, and that would take several days. I don’t want to leave the group unattended for that long. I’d rather you stayed her to protect everyone, just in case the marauders came back.”
“That’s a long way to go by yourself.”
Frank laughed.
“I’ve been hunting all alone up there a hundred times over the years. I know the area like the back of my hand. The only thing I don’t know is whether or not the deer have managed to survive. And I have a burning need to answer that question in my own mind.”
“I still think it’s a pipe dream.”
“Maybe. But look it this way. We’ve got a good crop of corn and wheat coming in out here. And the girls have all manner of other vegetables planted in the back yards now. And that’s fine, if you want to be a vegetarian your whole life
“But I’m not a vegetarian. I’m a meat lover, and I’m not ashamed to say so. I could live the rest of my life eating tomatoes and corn and squash. But every time I picked up my fork I’d wish for a big old juicy steak instead.”
Jesse pondered Frank’s logic.
“Well, when you put it that way, I have to admit that I’ve kinda missed meat myself. But do you really think the deer have been able to survive?”
“No. I mean, I’m not sure. And to be honest, it goes against all reason and they’re probably long gon
e. But I feel in my heart that if there is anyplace on earth where deer could survive in winter conditions, it would be in a deep woods environment like the area around Salt Mountain.
“And I’ll never know for sure until I go up there.”
Chapter 19
On a Wednesday morning, as Hannah, Mark and Markie were finishing their breakfast in the dining room, Mark’s brother Bryan came over to him.
“You ready?”
Mark had been teasing Hannah about a lone gray hair she’d plucked out of her eyebrow that morning, calling her a vain old woman.
It wasn’t the “vain” part she objected to. She didn’t like the idea that she was getting older. But it was all in good fun and she took it in stride, making a mental note to tie his shoelaces together as he took his afternoon nap on the recliner, or to find some other way to get even.
Bryan’s words immediately wiped the smile from Mark’s face, though, and Hannah grew concerned. He took on a melancholy look she rarely saw on him. It didn’t suit him. Not at all.
“Yeah,” was all he said as he rose from his chair. He kissed his wife and admonished his young son.
“You do well today, young man. Don’t you skip school and steal cars and rob banks like you did yesterday.”
Markie giggled.
“Oh, Dad, I don’t do that. I like school. Miss Karen says if I keep doing good she’s going to make me a second grader. She says I’m super smart.”
“Of course you are, son. You come from good stock.”
He walked away with Bryan, not saying where they were going or what they were planning to do. Bryan had the same look of concern on his face as Mark. They were on some kind of mission, and they weren’t happy about it. She was convinced about that.
Sarah was at the next table, her breakfast plate empty, doing a puzzle in an old word search book.
“Sarah, did Bryan say what he and Mark were working on this morning?”
Sarah came to their table and joined them.
“No. He was kind of moody and distant. But I think he’s more than just tired. He tossed and turned all night. I asked him if there was something wrong, and he said he wasn’t ready to talk about it.
“I’ve learned that when he’s in this kind of mood, it’s best to just let it run its course. If I push him too hard he tends to snap at me.”
Something was up. Hannah was certain of it. Either the boys were up to no good, or they were on a project that neither found palatable.
Whatever it was, Hannah would find out. She always did.
“Finish your eggs, little man. It’s almost time for school. If you’re going to become a second grader, you can’t be late.”
Sarah raised her eyebrows.
“A second grader? Wow!”
Markie beamed with pride.
“Yes. Well, not yet. But Miss Karen says probably soon, if I keep doing well on my reading and my writing. I can write my whole alphabet now and read all by myself. She says I’m ready to start spelling and minuses.”
“Minuses? Wow, you have to be really smart to do minuses. Are you sure you’re ready?”
“Oh, yes. She said I did great on all of my pluses. Even the ones with two numbers plus two numbers. She says that’s how she knew I was almost ready for second grade.”
“I think that’s great, Markie. I’ll tell you what. You let me know when Miss Karen tells you that you’re officially in second grade, and you and I can celebrate.”
“Really? How?”
“We’ll sneak into Miss Helen’s kitchen when she’s not looking, and we’ll bake you a chocolate chip cookie. We’ll only bake one, and it’ll be all yours. And you won’t have to share it. And you know the best part about it?”
“No, what?”
“We’ll make it as big as your head.”
“Wow! That’s huge!”
“Yes. Or even better yet, we’ll make it as big as your mom’s head!”
“Wow, that’s even huger!”
Hannah smiled and said, “Hey, watch it now.”
Sarah asked, “Wait a minute, young man. Is ‘huger’ even a word?”
“I don’t know. I guess…”
“You’d better ask Miss Karen. She’ll know. She knows everything about words. If you’re going to be a second grader, you can’t be using words that aren’t really words, now can you?”
“No. I guess not.”
Hannah looked at the clock on the dining room wall.
“Speaking of school, young man, you’d better hurry or you won’t make it. Second graders are never ever tardy.”
“Okay.”
He jumped up and hugged his mom, then his aunt Sarah.
“I love you guys. Bye.”
“We love you too, little sailor. Be good.”
And he was off in a flash, running down the hall toward the grade school room.
Sarah watched him until he was out of sight.
“He’s growing into quite a little man. But he’s a handful sometimes, I know.”
Hannah laughed.
“Oh, and how do you know that?”
“Because I see a lot of his father in him.”
She grew melancholy.
“Someday I’ll be a mom too, but I’m going to have a girl.”
“Uh, yeah… you understand that wishing doesn’t necessarily make it so, right?”
“Didn’t you and what’s-his-name wish for a boy?”
“Yes. Mark and I wished for a boy.”
“And you got one. I rest my case. Thank you for playing. Come back anytime you want me to prove you wrong.”
Hannah laughed.
“You’re a hopeless mess. You know that?”
“Yep. It took years of preparation, but I finally achieved my lifelong goal.”
“To be a hopeless mess?”
“Yep.”
“Well, congratulations. We all aspire to different things, I suppose. Hey, do you have plans?”
“Nothing that can’t wait. Do you need help with something?”
“Yes. I want to take a walk, and see what our men are up to.”
Chapter 20
Hannah and Sarah walked over to the security console. They knew that was the best way to find out where Mark and Bryan had gone.
Sami was working her shift.
“Hi, Goofus. No wonder we didn’t see you at breakfast.”
“No, I had to skip breakfast. I was running late and had to get here to relieve Joe.”
“You couldn’t get Brad to fix you a plate and bring it over?”
“Brad’s still in bed. I wore him out again last night.”
Sarah giggled a little girl laugh.
“Girl, you are shameful!”
“Guilty as charged, your honor.”
“Well, go over to the kitchen and fix yourself a plate, girlfriend. We’ll watch the monitors until you get back.”
“You know, the men in our group are going to be the most faithful bunch of men on the planet.”
“How so?”
“Think about it. Everything we do is on camera. There’s no way Bryan could sneak over to my apartment to be with me because whoever was on the desk would see him and tattle on him.”
“Well, first of all, Bryan would never sneak over to spend time with you, because why would he settle for you when he has me? Now, if Mark snuck over to see me, that would be a more realistic scenario…”
“Touché. Now, why in the world would they be poking around in the back of that trailer? And why are they so secretive about it?”
“I don’t know. But as soon as Sami gets back with her food, I want to go find out.”
A few minutes later Hannah and Sarah walked up to the back of an unmarked 53 foot trailer. It was one of the trailers the guys had collected from the shoulder of Highway 83 and towed back to the compound.
On the way over, they’d been speculating on what their men were looking at. They had it narrowed down between a shipment of pornographic videos and a truck full of sports
equipment.
Both of them fell silent when they saw stacks of long crates, stacked two high, with a narrow walkway down the center of the trailer.
Each crate was made of a wooden frame, but was lined on the inside of the frame with thick cardboard to protect its contents.
And each of the crates was marked with the words
American Casket Company
Sandusky, Ohio
Their playful mood suddenly grew somber, and they knew why the boys had seemed distant.
They were planning the reburials of their mother, who had died in the mine three years before, and of Rachel and Roxanne’s father, who was murdered on Highway 83 not long after.
They’d watched on one of their monitors that dreadful day as the girls’ father had stopped along the side of the road to help two stranded motorists. They thought it was a nice thing to do, to stop and help total strangers whose car had broken down.
And then they watched in horror, helpless to stop it, as the stranded motorists suddenly produced an assault rifle and shot the good Samaritan to death.
As the killers forced the two teenaged girls out of their pickup, Mark was already outside the mine and running to help. By the time he made it to the scene, the assailants were long gone in the stolen truck, the girls’ father was dead, and the girls were inconsolable.
Mark knew it was hopeless, but he performed CPR on the dead man for a full twenty minutes, just to give the girls a bit of hope. But he was long gone.
The group adopted the girls into their family, and buried their father on the floor of the mine, next to Mark and Bryan’s own mother.
Wrapped in white linen, then covered with pure white burial mounds of powdered salt, the two were given proper eulogies and memorial services. The manner of the burials wasn’t meant to be permanent, and was done only out of necessity, until the world thawed enough to enable proper burials. From the day the compound was first created in Mark’s mind, he’d planned a small burial plot in the western corner for their loved ones.
“I want it there so the morning sun will come over the east wall and warm their graves,” he’d said.
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