by Ted Hill
“Hurray!” Catherine started dancing again.
Hunter watched Scout make a breakfast of bread, cheese, and a peach for Catherine. For ten days Hunter traveled the Big Bad, from gas station to gas station, living off the land. He explored further than he ever dared before—even running out of gas once. He loved being on his own. Now he looked forward to eating scrambled eggs at Brittany’s.
Scout poured water on the smoldering coals, which hissed and sent up billows of gray smoke. He dug a hole and buried the ashes using a small shovel from his backpack.
“Are you able to drive?” Scout asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“I’ll let Catherine ride with me until we know for sure.”
“Whatever.”
“Take it easy this time.”
“Yes sir, Scout Master.” Hunter saluted.
“I’m just saying. Next time you might break your neck. I’d like to see her miracle you back from that.”
Scout stretched his leg over his bike and gave it a kick-start. Hunter did the same. Catherine pranced up to Hunter, who pointed at Scout and gave her a shooing motion to hurry her along. She hopped on the back of Scout’s bike and wrapped her arms around his waist. She squeezed and Scout’s eyes popped open with the realization of the long ride ahead. Hunter laughed and pushed his Ray-Bans down. He rolled his throttle hard and rode a wheelie out of the crash site toward home.
Waking up to bright light was unusual for Jimmy. He popped up in his bed with the morning sun hanging in the sky outside his window. He only meant to rest his eyes after washing off the mud from the fiasco with Molly in the field. Now a brand-new day was in full swing and there might be an additional person in his community that needed welcoming.
He grabbed one of his hats, slipped on his shoes and was out the door at a full sprint. Before rounding the corner onto Main Street, Jimmy heard the rumbling whine of the portable generator they arranged for Vanessa’s delivery. Flowers, toys, and a large array of scavenged baby items lined the sidewalk in front of Luis’s clinic like an impromptu baby shower. Half the kids in town milled around and looked at him expectantly.
Some of them played board games in a shady spot on the sidewalk. Another group kicked a soccer ball in the street and Jimmy worried about windows because every time one got broken somebody had to go to another town and find a suitable replacement. There was a nice park one block over for that sort of activity.
He stepped in and stopped play. “Has the baby come yet?”
A sweaty twelve-year-old named Steve spoke for the group. “Not that we’ve heard. Samuel said he’d let us know when it happened. We’re dying for any kind of news.” Several heads bobbed, confirming this sentiment.
Jimmy set his hands on his hips. “I’ll go find out what’s going on, but in the meantime I’d like you to move your game to the park. Windows, guys. We’ve been over this before.”
A small chorus of grumbles rose from the soccer players, but Jimmy’s authority won out and the group walked to the park in a sullen herd. Jimmy overheard someone call him a jerk. The price of leadership is hefty.
The board game players asked for news as well. Jimmy told them he was headed that way and would make sure they were the next to know after him. He swung the door inwards to Luis’s and found Samuel stretched out on the yellow sofa in the clinic’s waiting room.
“What took you so long? You didn’t spend the night with Molly did you?” Samuel’s sleepy grin was filled with teeth.
“Isn’t it too early for that?”
“I don’t know. I’ve been up all night waiting for the baby to arrive and keeping the mob outside from invading the delivery room while you’ve been out looking for Molly.”
“Let’s just say after I found her things got a little messy.”
“Were you able to talk some sense into her or did she beat the crap out of you?”
Jimmy pointed at a table full of baked goods. “What’s this?”
“Chef Brittany brought them over. I thought all that reaping wheat for flour was pointless until I tasted those blueberry muffins. She cracked open a can of coffee, figuring we’d need it. I think it was her last one and it tastes kind of stale. She left when the screaming started.”
Jimmy’s chest tightened. “Screaming?”
“Yeah, Luis explained it after I ran in the first time Vanessa screamed. She’s having something called contractions to deliver the baby. But that’s all I got before Vanessa flung a metal tray at my head and called me a name that you would not have appreciated.”
“The baby hasn’t come, yet?” Jimmy asked, pouring himself a cup of coffee. The smell transported him back to a time his parents were alive; when he sat at a breakfast table before school while his mom packed his lunch and his dad watched the morning news.
“Not yet,” Samuel said, shattering the spell. “Just don’t freak out when—”
A gruesome wail sounded from the next room like someone’s guts were slashed out. Startled, Jimmy tossed his coffee in the air. The cup barely missed Samuel’s head.
“What was that?”
“Contractions.” Samuel picked the cup off the sofa and handed it back. “That’s what I was trying to tell you. It’s been going on all night. Now it’s down to every two minutes.”
Jimmy put the cup away, not trusting himself with hot liquids at the moment, and grabbed a linen napkin to wipe the trail of coffee off the hardwood floor. He realized how happy he was to be on this side of the wall. Childbirth sounded terrifying.
Then he remembered the cattle. “I guess we need to get used to this kind of stuff if we’re going to start breeding cows,” he said.
“Did you just compare Vanessa to a cow?”
“No, I did not. And if you say anything I will have you butchered.”
Samuel smiled like he was stockpiling information for future use. “Let’s assign some twelve-year-olds to be ranchers. You and I can stick to the farming.”
Jimmy nodded. “Good idea.”
He could hear Luis’s muffled voice speaking to Vanessa and Mark’s deep bass rumbling with encouragements. Vanessa yelled unpleasant things about the both of them. Everything fell silent after that.
“Why don’t you go say hello?” Samuel said.
“I’d rather not. They probably have enough going on without me getting in the way. I’ll just hang out here until I’m needed.”
Vanessa screamed and Jimmy swore the windowpanes wobbled dangerously in their frames. He cringed in absolute horror, for once grateful there was little chance he’d impregnate anyone before he turned eighteen.
Samuel’s gaze drifted toward the door. “Now we’re down to every minute and a half. I think that means were getting close.”
The door from the street opened and a stack of folded laundry balanced its way inside.
“Here, let me help,” Jimmy told the walking pile of towels and clothes. He gathered the top half and Ginger smiled at him over what was left. He lost himself in her soft, brown eyes and his shortened-stack almost tumbled to the floor.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
Jimmy broke out of his trance and returned her smile. “Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry, just a little shook up by all the noise around here.”
Ginger nodded. “Contractions.”
“So I’m told. Are these the infamous baby clothes that caused all the fuss last night?”
Ginger lowered her gaze and her cheeks turned a rosy red. “Yes, and I feel so bad about that. It all got blown way out of proportion. I never thought it would have been such a big deal.”
Jimmy looked Ginger over from the neckline of her yellow blouse, down to her sandaled feet. Her pink painted toenails stirred a desire that made him feel a smidgen of guilt.
Samuel glided up beside them. “Here, let me help you with those towels.” He relieved Ginger of her pile and nudged Jimmy in the ribs. “Where does this stuff go?” he asked.
“Luis needs the towels right away,” Ginger said.
Samuel handed the towels back like they were infected with disease. “Let me get the door for you.”
Ginger disappeared into the delivery room just as another agonizing scream erupted through the open doorway. Samuel quickly closed the door shut and leaned against it.
From the top of the baby clothes, a Teddy bear stared at Jimmy through button eyes. He smiled back.
“Are you all right?” Samuel asked, moving away from the door. “You look dazed.”
Jimmy straightened up. “What do you mean? I’m fine. Still tired, I guess.”
“Uh, huh. It all makes sense now. I finally get it.”
Jimmy raised an eyebrow, curious of what Samuel thought he knew. “Get what?”
“You’re in love with Ginger, aren’t you?” Samuel tilted his head to the side and his mouth slid into a lopsided grin.
“No, I’m not,” Jimmy said in a hushed tone, shooting a nervous glance toward the door. “Keep your voice down.”
“You love her,” Samuel said with obvious pleasure over his newfound discovery. He bounced from foot to foot. “You want to do it with her.”
Jimmy dropped the clothes and Teddy bear on the sofa and narrowed his eyes. “I’m going to kick your butt if you don’t shut the—”
Another scream ripped through the wall, longer than the rest, and Jimmy found himself hoping Vanessa would breathe again soon. Shouts of encouragements to push could be heard underneath her powerful strain. Finally, she stopped screaming.
Luis yelled, “That’s it!”
The high-pitched cry of a newborn rose in crescendo like a bugle above the commotion of Vanessa’s sobs and Mark’s triumphant cheers. Samuel and Jimmy smiled at each other and bumped knuckles as though they’d just accomplished something important.
Luis cried over the newborn’s wail, “It’s a boy!”
Jimmy swung the outside door open and the board game players snapped their combined heads around to look at him. “It’s a boy!”
Game forgotten, the group jumped to their feet and split off in different directions shouting the news throughout the entire town.
Jimmy walked back inside with the tingle of excitement contagiously out of control and running rampant. Samuel stood by the delivery room door looking unsure if it would be safe for him on the other side yet.
The door opened and knocked Samuel in the head, bouncing him out of the way.
Ginger reappeared and grabbed the stack of clothes.
Rubbing his forehead, Samuel winked at Jimmy, who offered a sneer in return. “How’s the baby?” Samuel asked.
Her smile was big enough to fill the room. “He’s wonderfully beautiful and looks like a perfectly healthy little angel. I get to bathe him now.” She swirled back to the other room to perform her task.
Samuel lightly punched Jimmy’s shoulder. “See, she’s got those built-in maternal instincts already.”
Jimmy clenched his fists. “I swear if you don’t stop, I’m going to—”
The sudden blaring echo of motorbike engines resonated outside. Jimmy stepped to the door as Hunter and Scout pulled up out front. He went numb with relief now that his brother was safely home.
Scout propped his bike on its kickstand and helped a little girl off its seat. He rushed to the door and almost ran over Jimmy. “Where is she? Where’s Vanessa?”
Backing out of the way, Jimmy barely pointed toward the delivery room before Scout dashed through the other door.
Hunter walked in, holding the little girl’s hand. Jimmy pushed his anger over Hunter’s overlong stay in the Big Bad in order to offer a welcoming smile to the newcomer.
“Who do we have here?” he asked, kneeling in front of her. She smelled like summer wildflowers and looked like sunshine, he thought, puzzled by such a strong first impression.
Hunter made introductions. “Catherine, this is my brother, Jimmy, and his friend, Samuel.”
The girl stretched her arms wide. Her hug was gentle, leaving Jimmy refreshed and feeling good inside by the warmth of her little embrace. He patted her back and wondered why Hunter was grinning. “Very nice to meet you, Catherine.”
Samuel crouched low next to Jimmy to face the little girl. “I’m also Hunter’s friend.”
Hunter frowned. “You knew what I meant.”
“Yeah, well it’s the way you….” Samuel’s response was cut short when the little girl wrapped her arms around him. “That’s quite the hug you got there, Catherine,” he gasped.
“Thank you. I like giving them.”
“Where did you find her?” Jimmy asked Hunter.
“Under my tree, silly,” Catherine answered for herself. “I was all alone except for my tree, the family of robins, and that chatty squirrel, until your brother found me. He’s taking me home. Are we close?”
Jimmy processed the girl’s rambled speech and the question she directed at Hunter, who lifted his chin for Jimmy to respond.
“You sure are, Catherine,” Jimmy said. “Welcome to Independents, your new home.”
“Hooray! Home, home, home!” The blonde girl sang and danced.
Jimmy stood and brushed his knees off. He arched a questioning eyebrow at his brother.
“This could take a while,” Hunter said, stepping over and grabbing a couple muffins.
The door to the delivery room crashed open against the wall. Scout ran into the waiting room with wide eyes and an open mouth as if he’d lost something and needed to find it in a hurry. Then he locked onto the little girl. “Catherine, I need you in here. My sister—”
Catherine stopped her dance; seriousness falling over her like rain washing away the playful little girl. She took Scout’s hand and the door closed again.
This time Jimmy raised both eyebrows at his brother.
Hunter waved off the occurrence. “She’s complicated,” he replied around a mouthful. “These muffins are tasty. Do you think Brittany would bring over some scrambled eggs?”
Scout held Catherine’s hand—her firm grip somehow reassured him—and guided her through the door. The window blinds had been lowered a quarter-fraction of their length, allowing sunshine to fall across Vanessa. Scout fought the mental image of his sister’s soul rising in the light. She looked so close to death. Strands of damp hair were plastered to her head and her eyelids fluttered like a moth that had flown too close to the flame.
Luis paced, checked Vanessa’s pulse and listened to her heartbeat, but mostly shook his head and mumbled to himself.
Mark wiped Vanessa’s brow with a damp washcloth and spoke soft words to her; or maybe he was praying. When Vanessa first started seeing Mark, Scout doubted whether the guy would be good to her. Now he was ashamed the thought ever entered his head.
Catherine pulled him toward the baby.
“Wait, I need you to help my sister,” Scout said, tugging her toward the bed.
“Don’t worry. We have time, I promise.” She almost yanked him off his feet.
The baby was absolutely beautiful, with a dark, curly patch of hair. He stopped crying and stared at Scout with eyes big enough to capture his heart. In that moment, Scout knew he would do anything for the little guy.
Ginger handled the baby like a registered nurse in a pediatric ward, folding a blanket around him as he squawked underneath the lamp that kept him warm. The generator outside powering the lamp provided a soothing background hum.
“He’s so tiny,” Catherine said. “Look at his little nose.” She touched his head and the baby smiled at her. Catherine closed her eyes.
Ginger looked up at Scout. “We have a visitor?”
“This is Catherine. Hunter found her.”
Catherine pulled her hand away and smiled at Ginger. “The baby is perfectly healthy. He says he’s happy and you’ve been very helpful. Oh, and he’s getting hungry.”
“How do you know that?” Ginger asked.
Catherine regarded her like she was simple. “He told me, silly.”
Ginger appeared mystified as she held up a b
ottle. “I was just about to give him some of this baby formula.”
Catherine looked at the baby and nodded. “He says that will be fine for now.”
“What’s wrong with her, Luis?” Mark asked, jerking Scout’s attention back to his sister.
Vanessa’s eyes were closed and her chest barely moved with each shallow breath she took. Scout hadn’t heard a peep from her since he’d arrived.
“She’s still hemorrhaging,” Luis said. “I can’t stop it. I’m not a surgeon.”
“What does that mean?” Mark asked, his voice rising.
“She’s bleeding internally because her uterus hasn’t contracted yet.” Luis nodded at the confusion on Mark’s face. “The area inside her where the baby has been growing is supposed to shrink back to its normal size after delivery. If it doesn’t, she could bleed to death. Back before the plague, a doctor would perform surgery in this situation, but I’m just not equipped or experienced to do that. I’m sorry.”
Luis went to a desk and leafed through one of the big black books from his piece-meal medical library that Hunter and Scout found and put together for him. His finger traced rapidly over the lines he read, but still he shook his head and mumbled, swatting over page after page in frustration.
Scout squeezed Catherine’s hand. She slipped free and walked over next to Vanessa. Mark stared at her in shock before turning angry eyes on Scout.
“Scout, get this little girl out of here! Your sister may be dying!”
Scout flinched from the strike of the harsh comment. He wanted to yell back, but quickly put that reaction in check. “This is Catherine. Trust me. She can help Vanessa.”
Catherine laid her hands on the white sheet that covered Vanessa’s stomach. After a moment, Catherine almost collapsed; she lifted her hands and looked at Scout. “I’m going to need your help,” she told him.
“What can I do?” he asked, stepping up beside her but afraid to gaze down at his sister.
