by T A Williams
Alec
Fear filled his mind and paralyzed his body. The back of his shirt was soaked through and he felt the sweat dripping from his forehead. His world was dark and he knew if he didn’t open his eyes soon things would get worse, but he still couldn’t bring himself to open his eyes.
“She can feel how tense you are.” Bethany’s sweet voice came from just beside him. “Alec, please open your eyes.”
He slowly opened his eyes and saw the ground far below him. It was like he was sitting on a cliff, a hairy, mobile cliff. He never should have agreed to let Bethany teach him how to ride a horse.
“Alec,” she said and he met her eyes. She stood to the side with the reins in her hand and with a big smile covering her face. “You’re alright, just relax.”
He was certain that any masculinity points he might have had leftover had been tossed away in the last few moments. “I’m alright. I just don’t like heights.”
“Alec, you’re probably not even six feet off the ground.”
To him it looked like he was at least double that, but he knew the horse wasn’t that tall. “Uh, I’m trying to tell my brain that but it isn’t listening.”
Bethany placed her hand on his leg and Alec’s body somehow stiffened even more, but with that came a feeling much more pleasant than the overwhelming fear he had been feeling.
“Breath.”
He took a breath.
“Again.”
He took another. Some of the fear drained from his body and he felt his tense muscles relax a little.
“Now place your hand on her side.” Bethany said softly.
Doing his best not to look down Alec reached down and laid his hand on the side of the horse’s neck. “Now what?”
“Just feel her.”
He sat there for a few seconds not feeling anything and not certain what Bethany was talking about but he forced himself to clear his mind, and that was when he felt it. His legs felt the horse breathing in and out, his hand felt her smooth coat and warm body. He felt her body tremble for a moment and her hind end sway as her tail chased away a horse fly. Alec was on top of a living breathing animal.
Bethany’s face lit up. “I know, right?”
“Holy shit,” was his only reply.
“Alright, I’m going to lead you around, try to keep your ass un-puckered.”
His mind hadn’t been able to fully register the fact she said something about a puckered ass when the giant beast he was on began to walk forward. The horse barely swayed from side to side as she calmly walked through the empty field. The breath he had not realized he was holding came out all at once. “This isn’t so bad.”
Bethany looked back at him. “Yeah, I know.”
“So, uh, I take must think I’m pretty pitiful now.”
“I didn’t think you were that tough to begin with.” She saw his face and laughed. “Everyone is scared their first time.”
“Really? You were scared your first time?”
“Of course. I acted a little tougher than you did, but I was still scared.”
“So I’m never going to hear the end of this?” Alec said shaking his head.
“Not for a long time.”
They turned around and walked back towards the main house. The joy Alec had finally been able to find was dashed when he saw Trevor and Mark standing there, both of their faces grim. Bethany helped Alec swing down off of the horse.
“What’s wrong?” Alec asked.
“Nothing at the moment,” Trevor said.
Mark went over and started talking with Bethany.
“You scared me,” Alec said. “I thought something had happened.
“No, everyone is just on edge.”
Alec understood. The Chinese military had been in Centralia for over a week and didn’t seem to be any closer to leaving, if anything their presence had grown. Temporary shelters had been set up all around the old fairgrounds and it was filled with Humvees, with more seeming to arrive every day.
“I don’t know what else we can do at this point,” Alec said wiping sweat from his brow. “Am I missing anything?”
Trevor shook his head no, but Alec already knew the answer. His biggest concern was making sure their settlement wasn’t found and they had taken several steps to make sure they remained hidden. There were three roads from the highway to their settlement. The first was a small gravel road that had been all but destroyed after the first winter. It had turned into a muddy mess after the snow melted and by the time the second winter arrived the grass had taken over and it wasn’t even clear it had ever been a road.
The second road was still in decent shape but a few miles from their settlement was a small wooden bridge. It was already in rough shape, they just took a few axes and finished what was going to eventually happen anyway.
The last was much tougher, if for nothing else they still needed a way to make it into town with the vehicles they had. The horses didn’t need roads and could cut through the fields easily, but if an emergency arose and they needed to get into town quickly they needed a working road. The road was also in rough shape as grass and weeds easily outnumbered the gravel but it was still passable and still very obviously a road. In one area there was a sharp curve and from far away it looked like the road ended at the edge of a field, it wasn’t until you got closer that you noticed it continued around a bend and behind a hill. So they cut down a tree and used some more tree limbs to cover everything up. Now even if someone pulled up right next to the fallen tree it would be hard to see the road continued on. It was going to be a bitch to lift the tree and drive around the limbs but Freddie was certain he could work out a pulley system to make lifting the tree easier and faster.
“I think we need to limit going into Centralia and when we do, only go by horse, until they clear out,” Trevor said.
“If they clear out,” Alec said under his breath.
“When you get a chance we could use some help cutting down a few of the smaller trees on the west side. Looks like Malcolm may know what he’s doing and might actually be able to build a log cabin.”
Their need for more shelters was still high as they had used every viable trailer in the area. Malcolm had been telling everyone he knew how to build a log cabin so they decided to see if he was telling the truth. It sounded like he was.
“Alright, give me a few minutes and I’ll head over.”
Alec turned to say good bye to Bethany when he noticed that she had walked to the other side of the fenced lot with Mark. Alec couldn’t hear what they were saying but could tell it was heated. Bethany stood to the side with her arms crossed while her father’s mouth moved non-stop and his arms flailed from side to side. Alec watched them from the corner of his eye for another minute until Mark finally stormed off in the other direction. Bethany just stood there looking down at the ground. Alec gave her another minute then approached.
“Looks like they need some help working on Malcolm’s log cabin so I’m going to head over there.”
Bethany’s back was to him and she just nodded. “Yeah,” her voice was full of emotion. “Catch up with you later.”
Alec hesitated. Part of him just wanted to turn away and not get involved, the other part of him just wanted to put his arm around her and ask what was wrong. He ended up going more in the middle. “Are you alright?”
Bethany turned to him. Her face was red and her eyes had welled up with tears but still she gave him a warm smile. “Everything is fine. My father is just worried.”
“That’s natural.”
“Yeah but when my father worries he tends to run.”
“Run? You mean leave?” Alec asked. “He wants to leave here?”
Bethany shook her head. “We’re not going anywhere. I’m tired of constantly running. This is a good place.”
“I’ll talk to him. Even if the Chinese don’t leave for a while we’re safe here.”
“No, don’t” Bethany said grabbing his wrist. “He’s worked up right now. It woul
d only make things worse. Just give him some time. The army guys will leave and he’ll see that things are ok.”
Alec had only partially heard what she said. All his focus was her hand on his wrist. He realized he was just standing there staring at it and when he looked up she was looking at her hand as well, as if she didn’t know how it had gotten there, but she didn’t let go. Slowly she raised her eyes and they locked with his. Time didn’t exist, nothing else existed. The horse had snuck up next to them and snorted loudly, snapping them back into reality. Bethany laughed and ran her hand through her hair.
“I….I’ll catch up with you later,” she said and was walking away before he could say anything.
Alec’s tongue felt too large for his mouth so he just stood there with his mouth open. After a few moments he regained control over his body and looked to the horse which just shook its massive neck and leisurely walked away.
“What have I gotten myself into?” Alec asked as he turned and walked towards the others.
Ally
The house had probably been in shambles way before the world fell into darkness and the years since had not been kind. The white siding on the house had been all but worn away revealing the dark rotting wood underneath. A large chunk of the wall was missing from the side of the house revealing the rundown remains of the kitchen. Dena stopped when she noticed the large hole in the wall and she let out an exasperated sigh.
“I guess it’s better than another night outside.”
Spence had said there was a town a few miles down the road but the day was nearly at an end and the last thing they wanted to do was to enter an unknown town in the middle of the night. So the rundown house in the middle of nowhere it was.
They tied up the horses and walked through the hole in the wall into the abandoned house. The smell of wet wood hit Ally and she wrinkled up her nose. She had smelled worse exploring abandoned houses but she still didn’t like it. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light pouring in from the window and the missing wall she could make out pink and white wallpaper, which even though she was young she recognized as an odd choice. The dark brown cabinets all sat open, someone had obviously ransacked this place long before they had arrived. Ally walked past the old fridge, which had once been white but was now turning a yellowish color, and was hit by rotten smell that seeped out. Her already wrinkled nose fought desperately to remain closed.
“Eww, it smells in here.” Coby complained as he walked through the hole in the wall.
As Ally walked through the kitchen into a dark hallway, she felt Tiger at her side.
“Ally, honey, don’t go off. Let Spence check everything out first,” Dena yelled to her.
Ally picked up her pace. She had taken care of herself for a long time and didn’t need anyone to make sure a house was safe, let alone an always grumpy man who wouldn’t look at her.
A ray of light coming from a side room illuminated the end of the hallway and she peeked inside the room. Her eyes took in what used to be a bathroom. Ivy from outside was making its way inside thanks to the bathroom window being slightly askew. An empty bathtub sat below it, filled with dirt and decaying leaves. Ally took a few steps in the room and her eyes caught something moving to the side and she managed to bite back a scream. Looking back at her, was her. Or at least a version of herself that she didn’t recognize. Her hair was long, much longer then she could ever remember her mother allowing it to get. Parts of it were ratted up and it struck her that she probably hadn’t run a brush through it since she was at the military base. She took a step closer in order to get a better look. Past the splotches of dirt that littered her face she could make out her features and had to take a step back.
She was growing up.
“What are you doing?” came Spence’s voice from behind her, making her jump.
“Nothing,” she said sheepishly.
Spence eyed her up and down, not even trying to hide his displeasure, then glanced around the room. “Don’t go wandering around.”
Ally bit her lip and waited for him to walk out of the room. She made her way back down the hallway into the living room area where there was a couch and a couple of chairs. Dena was unpacking a few supplies while Coby and Adam were relaxing in the chairs.
Ally bent down next to Dena and tried to talk as quietly as she could. “Dena, do you have a brush?”
Dena stopped what she was doing and looked at Ally. The woman’s eyes went to her hair and she smiled. “Good lord, honey. Yes I do, I’m sorry I didn’t say anything sooner.”
Spence went out looking for supplies and Ally used that time to brush most of the rats out of her hair. Once she was done they sat around in the living room enjoying a roof over their heads and walls to block out the wind. Adam and Dena talked about what they were going to do next while Ally listened to Coby talk about the toys he used to have that he missed. Time passed and the sun dipped below the horizon leaving them with just their candles to light the big room. Ally caught the worried look on Dena’s face and realized that Spence still hadn’t made it back. It wasn’t unusual for him to be gone for large swaths of time when he went looking for food and supplies but he was almost always back before it got dark.
“Maybe I should go looking for him,” she caught Dena saying to Adam.
“You don’t even know which way he went. He can take care of himself. I was hoping we could use this time to try and…..work on things.”
Dena shot him a look and got up to look outside.
“What’s wrong, Momma? Where is Spence?” Coby asked.
“Everything is fine, Coby. Go back to talking to Ally.”
Ally looked to Adam and saw the worried crease running down the man’s forehead. He was worried she was going to insist on running out into the dark to look for the man. “I’m sure he’s fine,” Ally offered.
Dena gave her a smile but it was clear the woman wasn’t buying it. “I’ll just ride out a ways and see if I can spot him coming.”
“Dena,” Adam started and stopped. He looked at her and his eyes were soft but determined. “We can’t start breaking up. He knows where to find us. If we go running off then we risk him coming back and then we’ll have to go out looking for you.”
“I won’t go far,” Dena said stubbornly.
Before Adam could press the issue they heard the snort of a horse in the distance. Dena looked out the opening in the wall and relaxed. “It’s him, he’s back.”
Ally was not nearly as relieved.
Dena sat at the opening in the wall waiting for the man and Ally turned her attention to rubbing Tiger’s belly until she heard Dena gasp.
“Adam, come help. He’s hurt.”
Dena and Adam ran outside and Ally held Coby back. After a few moments they emerged from the darkness outside into the candle-lit room and they were helping to prop Spence up. The man’s shirt was torn in several places revealing minor cuts underneath and his nose was bloody. The man pulled away from Dena and Adam and limped a few steps into the room.
“I told you I’m fine,” he said angrily. More to Adam than to Dena despite the fact that both of them had been helping him.
“Jesus, Spence, what in the hell happened?” Dena asked.
Spence limped over to the nearby wall and placed his back on it and slid down. “Got jumped. I was checking out a suburb a few miles north of here and some guys came out of nowhere.”
“Shit,” Adam said and went to the opening in the wall.
“Don’t worry they won’t be coming around here.”
“What do you mean?” Dena asked.
“They took what I had and left me for dead. When I got my bearings I watched them and they headed north. We don’t have anything to worry about.”
Dena ran over to her backpack and got out some first aid supplies and then ran over to Spence. She began to clean off his face and dress the wounds on his chest.
Spence ran a hand through his hair and motioned to Adam. “Go out to my horse. In the side pack are some a
pples and what I think is left over deer meat.”
Adam paused for a second then nodded his head and ran out.
“I thought you said they stole what you had?” Ally asked.
“They stole what was on me. My horse was tied up a few houses back,” Spence answered not looking at her.
Adam came back in a few minutes later with several apples and several book sized objects covered in some kind of paper. The man laid the objects down in the light and unwrapped them, it was already cut up pieces of deer meat.
“Where did you find that?” Ally asked.
This time Spence looked at her, clearly annoyed. “In one of the houses.”
“Someone just left behind deer meat?” Dena asked what Ally was wondering.
“They left a lot of stuff, most of it the guys who beat me up took. Look I just got my fucking ass kicked and I’m starving. Instead of asking a million fucking questions can we just cook up that meat instead?”
Adam stepped just outside the walls and began to build a fire while Dena eyed Spence.
“Did you steal that from someone?” Ally heard Dena ask quietly.
“Steal? They left meat unattended in a house. I didn’t steal shit. You want Coby to eat meat tonight or just more berries and stale crackers? We have shit for supplies and still have a long ways to go.”
Dena didn’t flinch and her gaze didn’t waiver. “We don’t steal from other people.”
This time Spence gave her an annoyed look. “I’ll remember that in the future. You remember that when Coby goes to bed with a growling stomach.”
Adam started a fire and they began to cook the meat. After a few moments Adam spoke up. “I’ll go with you in the future. To watch your back.”
“I don’t need you to watch my back,” Spence spat.
“I think that would be a good idea,” Dena said.
“I don’t care, I don’t need his help. The last thing I need is a helpless banker stumbling along beside me.”
Adam focused on the ground but Ally could still see his face getting red. “That’s enough, Spence,” he said through clenched teeth. “I’m not helpless.”
