by Ryan King
He looked around, obviously thinking through his situation. Finally, Simon sighed. “I got batteries.”
“Not dead ones, I’m presuming?”
“No, even got a battery meter to verify.”
“What sizes?”
“D’s, C’s, and lots of double A’s. Better yet, they’re rechargeable, and I got chargers, too.”
“Seriously?”
Simon nodded. “How many will it cost me to go to the JP?”
“First, I can’t guarantee they’ll let you in the JP, I can only get you there. Second, it’ll cost all your batteries.”
“All of them? I thought batteries were super valuable.”
Trailer nodded and sat back. “I’m guessing you’ve got plenty more where those came from. Consider it me doing you a favor. Batteries are heavy; you don’t want to be carrying them around.”
Simon considered for a moment. “Okay, I guess.”
“No, damnit,” said Trailer. “You’re supposed to negotiate. I name a price, you offer half, and we meet somewhere in the middle. Where have you been the last two years, living in a hole?”
“Okay, half the batteries.”
“Too late. I now know you’ll give me all of them. You’ll need to provide them before we start.”
“Give them to you now or outside?”
Trailer sighed heavily and shook his head. “You are one lucky bastard to find me. Don’t ever give anyone the full payment upfront. What would keep me from running off after you paid me? Half upfront and half when the job is done. And keep an eye on them in case I try to pick your pocket.”
“I think if you were trying to rob me you wouldn’t have told me those things.”
“Maybe I’m just not a very good thief, you ever think of that? Looking to turn my luck around with you.”
Simon looked like he wasn’t sure if he wanted to stay or go. “So...I should trust you or not?”
“You shouldn’t trust anybody; haven’t you been listening? Also, hide that damn assault rifle; you’re drawing stares.”
After breaking down the rifle into two parts and stuffing them in his pack, Simon sat back up and looked at Trailer’s massive form. “What now?”
Trailer took a small sip of his beer and grimaced. “I wait here until tomorrow and see if anyone else needs to go north. We’ll get started at first light.”
Simon looked outside and saw with dismay it was getting dark. “Is there a working hotel around here anywhere?”
Slapping an enormous hand against his forehead, Trailer groaned. “Just follow me. I’ll show you a place where we can bed down for the night without getting sodomized or eaten by mutant bedbugs.”
A thin shaven-headed man with tattoos on his neck and arm walked in and looked around. A small dark-haired girl followed in slowly behind him. He locked eyes with Trailer and stepped forward. “You the guide?”
“I am. You need to go north?”
The man turned to point at the girl. “My daughter here does.”
“What for?”
“That’s my business, ain’t it?”
Trailer shrugged. “You’re right. See you later.”
The man frowned for several long moments. “She’ll be taking a load of our rice north. I’ve heard they trade there for tobacco or salt.”
“Aren’t you supposed to only sell your rice here at the co-op? Does your landlord know about this?”
The man’s face turned red, and he fists clinched.
“Relax,” said Trailer. “It’s nothing to me; just like to know what’s going on. I’ll take her north and back for a tenth of what you trade for.”
“A tenth? Half of that at most.”
Trailer looked at Simon and pointed approvingly at the man. “See, that’s how you negotiate.” He turned back to him. “Normally, I would counter-offer, but I’m in a generous mood. One twentieth is satisfactory. We’ll leave tomorrow morning.”
The man nodded. “Where should she meet you?”
“In front of the town courthouse at dawn.” Trailer looked at the woman behind the tattooed man he had initially mistaken for a girl. “It’s a dangerous trip at times. You sure you want to send your daughter?”
He yanked her roughly forward. “She’s tougher than she looks.”
Trailer gazed at the man’s arm that had come uncovered when he pulled the girl forward. In addition to the other tattoos, there was a large Nazi swastika. He pointed at it. “Is that going to be a problem?”
Looking down at the tattoo as if he had forgotten it was there, the man shrugged. “Not anymore. I still don’t care for the darkies, but you treat me fair, I’ll do the same with you.”
“I like it.” Trailer smiled. “Interracial harmony, right here in Tunica.”
“Let’s not push it,” the man said.
Trailer laughed. “Right, anyway, have her at the courthouse at dawn.” He turned to the woman. “Wear good boots. We’re going to walk a lot. Pack for hot days and cold nights and maybe a little rain. We’ll find water and trade for food along the way, so don’t worry about that. You got any questions, darling?”
“No, she don’t,” said the man, pulling her close to him. When he did, Trailer could see old and new bruises along her arms.
“All right then,” said Trailer, turning away from them and picking up his beer again.
The man walked out, dragging the woman behind him. Just before she left the room, Simon locked gazes with her and realized just how deep and dark her eyes were. They were the sort of eyes that made him forget the squalor around him.
“I agree,” said Trailer. “She’s hot.”
“Excuse me?”
“Oh, nothing.”
They sat silently for about an hour before Coon and Tiny walked out the front of the bar without looking at their table. Trailer killed his beer in one long gulp and then stood.
“Order me another beer,” he told Simon while picking up the large wooden cudgel leaning against the wall.
“Wait, I’m staying here?”
“You’ll be okay now with those two gone,” Trailer said. “I’ll be right back, and then we can see about getting some shuteye...after I finish my beer of course.”
“But where are you going?” Simon asked.
Trailer smiled and nodded his head out the door. “Those two promised me this wasn’t over and I believe them. They’ve been working on a plan for the last hour and are now just drunk enough to think it will work.”
“What plan?”
“To spring an ambush for me when I walk out of here tonight.”
Simon looked towards the back door leading to the alley. “We could go out a different way, avoid them.”
“Now why would I do that when I have the opportunity to do the rest of humanity a solid by getting those two off my planet? Besides, I don’t want us looking over our shoulders the whole way north.”
“Okay, I guess.”
“Stay here,” said Trailer, walking towards the front door, swinging the massive cudgel lightly. “And don’t drink my beer.”
He ducked his head, and he went out into the night.
Chapter 7 – Razor’s Edge
“I have to say I’m impressed,” said Nathan.
“At what?” asked Reggie without looking at him.
“Your ability to handle a horse and buggy. When you invited me to ride with you to the Executive Council Meeting in Paducah, I didn’t imagine it would be like this.”
Reggie smiled and flicked the small whip near the flank of a sleek horse. “How do you normally get around?”
“Bike mostly. Sometimes horse.”
“So, not by car, I take it?”
Nathan shook his head. “It’s getting too hard to find gasoline. What little we have we want to save for emergency situations. Besides, that’s the security for our currency. Many people still don’t trust it, but JP dollars are getting more popular.”
“Too bad we didn’t have any electric cars before N-Day. We could have charg
ed them from the dam’s electricity.”
“Lots of people are still using their golf carts, but they’re rather slow and best on level ground.”
They were silent again and watched the wide fields around them. Farmers were just getting out to plow fields. There were a few tractors, but most of the plowing was now done by hand with horses and tackle obtained from the Mennonites.
“I was worried there for a while,” Reggie said. “Wasn’t sure we would make it through the winter without things breaking down.”
“I don’t think it was comfortable for anyone.”
“It never has been, except for the last hundred years or so,” Reggie said. “Between harvest and spring most people in the western world practiced a near-starvation diet. Stayed indoors and slept in a sort of semi-hibernation in order to burn as few calories as possible and survive until the snow and ice broke.”
“That may be our future,” Nathan said, looking around. He turned to Reggie. “I heard your broadcast.”
Reggie’s smile slipped away. “I’m sorry about the David talk. Tim didn’t mean—”
“I know. Tim has been through a great deal. If we had psychiatrists anymore, he would likely need to be admitted for trauma recovery.”
“Maybe not just him.”
Nathan leaned back on the wooden seat. “He was only repeating what others are thinking. In a way, it was good to get it out there. What you said meant a lot to Bethany and me. Thank you.”
“You don’t have to thank me. I only said what I thought.”
Nathan leaned forward again. “Yes, I do. Not just for that, but for everything. There are still a lot of people who look at us as outsiders.”
“Damn fools, don’t listen to them.”
“I don’t, and that’s not my point. You’ve been like family to us, and we appreciate it. Just wanted to tell you.”
Reggie snapped the reins on the mare’s flanks, as they were climbing a small hill. “Sounds like you’ve been a bit introspective lately.”
“Between David and little baby River, I’ve had cause to be. Not counting all the other normal craziness that evidently isn’t unique to living in the end times. I’m also worried about Bethany.”
“She okay?”
Nathan shrugged. “Hard to tell. She says she’s okay, but I’m not so sure. She seems so tired and lethargic all the time.”
“She has cause to be on many fronts. Maybe give her some time and have one of the doctors take a look at her. She could be suffering from some complication from the birth. None of us are spring chickens anymore.”
“True. Speaking of none of us being young anymore, you know this meeting is going to be a rough one, right?”
Reggie nodded. “I hate to say it, but David setting off that nuke really shook everyone. I’m saying that knowing it was the right thing and was a selfless act that saved countless lives, but not everyone feels that way. Plenty of people have relatives down there, and Hickman and Fulton Counties have suffered some radiation effects. I’m not even going to go into the problems with the West Tennessee Republic.”
“That’s something we need to figure out as well,” said Nathan. “We need to either rule them directly or get them to hold elections. Maybe they’ll end up with someone running things who’s sane. Just having them pay us tribute, but still be disorganized, is dangerous. Either someone with fill the vacuum, or it will continue to get more and more chaotic.”
“What do you recommend?”
“We annex it outright. Don’t even ask. I doubt anyone in the WTR will resist or care. As long as we bring stability, a little food, and occasional electricity, they’ll be happy.”
“That’s going to be a tough sell to a lot of people, especially before an election. They’ll see it as spreading scarce resources even further.”
“Fine, put it off until after the election, but once you’re re-elected, it needs to go to the top of the agenda.”
“Don’t you mean if I get re-elected?”
“No, I can’t imagine anyone even wanting the job. You’d have to be insane to run.”
“Thanks.”
“Seriously. That was always my problem with our old U.S. politics. I always said the exact sort of people we needed running our government were the sort who would never want those jobs.”
Reggie glanced over at Nathan. “You do know I’m a lifelong politician.”
“Okay, I’m sure there are exceptions, but I hope you get my point.”
“What about you?”
“What about me?” asked Nathan.
“Like you said, I’m not a spring chicken. Someone is going to have to take over for me eventually. I’d like you to run as my vice presidential candidate for this election.”
Nathan looked at Reggie, trying to determine if he were joking. “That would be really dumb.”
“Why?”
Nathan sat still for a moment. “Because of David and what he did. I love him still, but as his father, I’ll be political baggage you don’t need. As a matter of fact, I was planning on stepping down as the Chief of Defense soon.”
“I don’t think now is the time to step away from anything. Besides, who would replace you?”
“Luke Carter is ready.”
“Okay, maybe, but we have too many needs right now. New Harvest County has been leaderless since Harold Buchannan died, and I’ll still need a vice, even if I am re-elected. Also, I thought you had talked about wanting to re-establish some sort of intelligence and security apparatus.”
“I do, but I also want to focus on family.”
“We all do,” answered Reggie, “but if we don’t find a way to make this whole thing work, our families are going to be in a world of hurt.”
“I hear you.”
Reggie turned and put his hand on Nathan’s leg. “I can’t do this alone. I need help. Please just think about it.”
Nathan saw how tired his friend was. He also spotted a hint of fear that caused his stomach to drop.
“I will,” Nathan promised.
*******
The meeting went pretty much as they had expected. There were plenty of temporary positions being filled. Most of the mayors or chief executives who had died in the Second KenTen War would be replaced in the upcoming elections, along with the JP President. Until then, there was a hodgepodge of people with various degrees of competence with their own axes to grind.
Nathan did his best to ignore all the looks he received and pointedly did not participate in the discussion regarding the Fulton relief effort. No one actually brought up David’s name, which Nathan supposed was because he was here. It was the elephant in the room that everyone clumsily stepped around.
There was discussion about plenty of problems that they could do nothing about. Refugees were still leaking in. Sewage, gas, and water lines were breaking down. Power lines were failing. They didn’t have enough of anything, and far too many people were fighting for what was left. Regarding those topics, they all decided to do the only thing they could: table them until the next meeting in hopes the situation would be better…or at least different.
Nathan provided them an overview of the military and threat situation. Although things were mostly quiet, there was growing lawlessness, especially in the WTR areas. There were also growing rumors and indications of a community in Huntsville, Alabama centered around the military base and NASA rocket research facility. Everyone had assumed the important facility had been nuked, but it was possible this was not the case. Plenty in the room got excited about the idea of the U.S. Government in any form still existing.
They’re still waiting for someone else to come save us, thought Nathan.
In the end, he agreed to send a reconnaissance element to try and find out more. In fact, he had already dispatched them, but letting those folks think he was doing it at their behest at least gave them a sense of control.
The meeting was nearly over when John Downing, the man in charge of the Kentucky Dam, stood to speak. Most ever
yone in the meeting was shocked that he was there and hadn’t noticed him until he had spoken.
“I’m afraid I have some bad news,” he said.
“What’s wrong with the damn dam now?” asked James Harping, the county executive from Ballard County.
“Plenty,” answered John, “but that’s not the bad news. Yesterday, I was in Benton, so I decided to visit the fuel depot. They were having issues getting the vehicles to start using the strategic reserve fuel.”
“They’re not supposed to be using it anyway,” said someone from the back. “That’s our money.”
“They had a valid requisition,” said John. “The issue is the fuel didn’t work.”
“How does the fuel not work?” asked James.
John sighed. “We should have seen this coming. Fuel in itself is not a stable form. It breaks down, making it no longer able to burn. No one thought to check with everything else going on.”
“So the fuel is going bad?” someone asked.
“Yes,” answered Downing. “A significant amount is likely already bad.”
“Are you saying all that fuel is worthless?” asked Reggie.
John nodded. “For running engines, yes. We have twenty-two large fuel tankers down there. All but three of them full. Might be able to use the stuff as a cleaning solution.”
“And it’s all gone bad?” asked Nathan.
“Most of it, around a half million gallons, best I can tell.”
Everyone looked at each other in shock.
“How are we supposed to get around or farm?” asked James.
“That’s what our money is based on,” cried Leslie Mitchell, the Paducah mayor. “People trusted that their money would be good.”
Everyone started talking at the same time. Voices became raised and heated. Lots of fingers were jabbed angrily at others.
“Please,” yelled out Reggie. “Calm down. Let’s just calm down.”
Most in the room ignored him.
Nathan walked over and picked up a folding metal chair that was against the wall and then began to pound it loudly against the surface of a table.
The cringingly loud noise shocked everyone into shutting up. After a few seconds, Nathan dropped the chair. “Thank you,” he said and turned to Reggie. “Mister President.”
