Working With Cedar: A Post Apocalyptic Tale

by Terry McDonald

  “In order to prevent the spread of the deadly virus into outlying areas, all forms of transportation are banned; air, ground and sea; only military vehicles allowed on the roads.”

  “That is what we have from the Pentagon. This is Carol Myers. CNN will…”

  The livestream abruptly ended. Jill reached for her phone to press the reload button, saying as she did, “Well that was just plain scary. I know what exponential growth means. It’s represented on a graph as an extremely sharp curve.” She waited a moment and said, “I lost signal. How about yours?”

  Nash checked his phone. “No signal.”

  Jill said, “Let’s get the radio?”

  “I’ll dig it out later. It’ll be night soon. Let’s do what we need to do to secure this place before then. Judging from what we heard, I don’t think it will be wise to show light. There is no possibility the military can mobilize fast enough to control movement. People will be desperate to get things they need.”

  Jill said, “Listen to me, Nash, they’ll never gain control. I’m not a medical doctor, my master’s is nutrition, but I know enough. To spread so fast, this virus is extremely virulent. Sheer logistics will work against the military’s efforts. How can they operate any sort of response when all it takes is one infected soldier to infect the rest in their unit?”

  Jill took a breath and continued, “You heard the newscast. The host said they’d barricaded themselves inside the studio, afraid to leave even to go join their families. We missed most of the broadcast. Information-wise, we’re behind the curve. Let’s get the radio. We can listen while we work.”

  Nash said what he felt, “I’m scared. I’m truly scared. I’m trying to think logically, trying to get a handle on this, but it feels like I’m sleepwalking inside a nightmare, like this isn’t really happening.”

  “I’m scared too. We’re not going to wake from this nightmare. It’s real. The apocalypse is unfolding outside this house. We need to know what’s going on. The nuclear reactors are going to shut down. I have a feeling the ripple effect from that will lead to a shutdown of the entire electrical system. I know a lot of power here in Georgia comes from Nuclear.”

  Her words only increased the panic he felt. He glanced toward the windows at the front of the room. They hadn’t bothered turning on the lights because sunlight lit the room. Now the sun was lowering. Worry caused him to slide his chair from the table and go to the entrance of the room where a long bank of switches controlling the ceiling fans and recessed-lighting was located. He flipped several and nothing happened.

  Jill, observing him, seeing his expression of dismay, called, “The circuit breaker may be off. Maybe the reality company only turned on the ones for the downstairs.”

  Nash left the room and raced downstairs. The ceiling lights were not shining. The only light came from sunlight filtering through the sheers hung behind the drawn curtains and from the open door. Knowing they hadn’t turned off the lights, but unwilling to trust that knowledge, he raced to the entrance. The switches were in the on position, but he flipped them up and down. Nothing changed. The lights weren’t receiving power.

  Weak-kneed, he stood by the open doorway. “Get a grip,” he said to himself. Then, echoing Jill, “This is real.”

  Jill called from the head of the stairs, “Do we have power.”

  Leaving the doorway, he called back. “We’re going to need flashlights.”

  Climbing the stairs to the great room, he continued silently berating himself on his inability to accept the unfolding cataclysm. Entering the room, he saw Jill moving boxes. Striding to her, he said, “I bought several LED lights from the sporting goods store. I know where they are.”

  She moved aside and he began moving bags and boxes, asking as he did.

  “What do you think the chances are that we’ll have problems here?”

  Jill said, “Trouble could come at any time. There is the possibility someone or some others will go searching for an isolated refuge to avoid contact with people. Short term, I think we’ll be okay. I’m sure there was more information available than we heard. Many people will heed the warning to stay home, but the thing is, eventually everyone will run out of food and have to venture forth.

  “Here in this rural area most people will have freezers filled with stuff from their gardens. They’ll have chickens and cows. In the towns and cities there are probably many who have food enough to last a few days. Some won’t have any at all.

  “To begin with, they’ll try finding food at logical places, grocery stores, convenience stores and such, but most likely they will find the shelves have already been ransacked. Best guess, I figure we have two, possible three days before scavengers will investigate this place.”

  Nash pulled a bulky plastic bag from beneath several others. “I’ve found the flashlights and batteries. The small LED ones already have batteries.” He glanced toward the front windows. “It’s almost dark. We might have another hour of daylight. I’ll put batteries in the two LED lanterns. If you’ll look through the stuff from the sporting goods store, you’ll find the portable radio, a small one. Watch for a gas lantern and a small gas camp stove. Find the propane bottles while you’re at it.”

  Moving to search for the items, Jill said, “We can’t show any light after dark. Even if we draw the drapes, some will leak through.”

  “We’ll need lighting in the kitchen, it doesn’t have windows. I don’t know about you, but I’m starving.”

  Jill agreed. “I’m hungry, but we need to do a couple of things before we eat. We need to block the base of the stairs with furniture; do it in such a way that we can balance stuff to fall and make a lot of noise.”

  Nash said from the table where he was putting batteries into the large LED lanterns, “You don’t think we need to take turns staying awake on guard?”

  “Of course, but it’ll be pitch black down there when the sun goes down. The sound of stuff falling will give us warning that someone is trying to come up the stairs.

  “That’s the other thing. We need to set up our beds and make sure our weapons are loaded. It wouldn’t hurt to have a comfortable chair to sit in while we guard.

  She stood and brought the boxed radio and a case of propane canisters to the table. Setting them down, she asked, “Do you have batteries for the radio?”

  Nash nodded. “I grabbed all sizes.” He pressed the power switch of the lantern he’d put batteries into. It lit with a bright glow. Turning it off, he said, “That’s a good idea about building a barricade. As soon as I put the batteries in the radio, I’m going down and start moving furniture.”

  Jill, moving back to their supplies, said. “After I find the stove I’ll dig out some food for supper and put the lanterns and all into the kitchen area so we can have a hot meal.”

  Nash went downstairs and began moving items for the barricade. Jill soon joined him and helped set the heavier pieces of furniture in place. Inside a room off the main area was a room that served as an office for the previous owners. Jill had him carry the padded, roll-around desk-chair upstairs for use by whoever was on guard duty.

  It was near dark when Jill precariously balanced a stainless steel pot from the kitchen on top of their makeshift blockade. Nash had the foresight to design part of it moveable in order for them to be able to pass through, but one would have to study the pile to figure out which part.

  “That should do it,” Jill said. “If we hurry, we have time to move a bed. One will do us since only one of us will be using it while the other guards.”

  Nash wiped sweat from his forehead. “If you want to start cooking, I’ll move the bed.”

  Entering the master bedroom, Nash had a sudden need to use the bathroom. After doing his business, on a whim, he checked and found that hot water came from the lavatory faucet.

  The bed in the master bedroom was king-sized. An adjoining bedroom was set up with twin beds. Figuring it was all they would need, he moved one the smaller mattresses, sans box springs and f
rame into the great-room. The sun was almost gone.

  Jill wasn’t in sight. Entering the kitchen to a blaze of light, and the odor of food, he saw her standing at a stainless steel stove. Two pots were steaming on the gas element.

  “Hallelujah, the stove works.”

  She turned to him. “I had to light the gas manually, but yep. We’re having rice with stir-fried canned chicken and vegetables.”

  “Let me say hallelujah again. It smells great.” Seeing the radio on the counter near her, he said, “I thought you’d be listening to the radio.”

  “I couldn’t get the thing to turn on. You try it. Maybe I’m doing something wrong, but the controls are simple. It could be bad batteries.”

  Nash tried turning it on. As she said, the controls were simple, but it refused to work. Going toward the door, he said, “I’ll get another set of batteries.”

  He paused at the door, “Shut the lamps. It’s dark now and those things are bright. I’ll knock when I come back so you’ll know to close them so no light gets out when I come in. By the way, hot water comes from the faucets. Electric water heaters need electricity to work, but gas doesn’t. If the stove uses gas, the water heater probably does. Either way, there should be enough in the tank for two showers.”

  Jill shut the lantern nearest her, then moving to close the lamp farthest away, she said, “I’ve been using hot water, but I’ll limit it.”

  New batteries didn’t help the radio. After fiddling with it, Nash shoved it across the stainless prep table to make room for the plate of food Jill placed for him. Bemoaning the odds of purchasing a defective, he said, “What are the chances of buying a bad radio when shopping for the apocalypse?”

  Jill sat across from him, “Yeah. Add in no radio in my rental and the one in your jeep not working… Zap; the apocalypse unfolds and we have no hint about what’s happening. This is not a good situation.”

  Nash took a bite of his food and spoke around it. “If we search the house we may find a portable radio. Hell, we may find a generator inside the garage or one of the outbuildings. I don’t know why, but it seems like whoever lived here moved away without taking anything, but I think I’ve figured it out.

  “I looked inside the master bedroom closet. It was huge. Men’s clothing hanging on one side, but the other side was empty. I didn’t find any clothing in the closet of the bedroom where the mattress came from. I think the last person to live here was an old man, and he must have died. His surviving relatives probably planned to empty the house before it sold.”

  Jill said, “If that’s what happened, he must have recently died. The refrigerators were empty and clean, but the walk-in freezer is stocked with … Oh Crap, with the electricity off, we’ll need to empty it.”

  Nash nodded. “Relatives or maybe the realtor probably hired a cleaning crew; Anyhow, I could sneak around and search for a radio.”

  Jill, chewing, shook her head. Swallowing, she said, “Not tonight. We can’t risk wandering around shining lights. Nash, I’m scared. This house scares me. It’s big and it’s spooky. We do need to know what’s going on out there, but let’s worry about it tomorrow. I say we eat, shower and get some rest.”

  That’s what they did. Bathing after Jill, he found his guess the house had a gas water heater was wrong. His shower was warm at first, but he rinsed in icy cold water.

  Nash volunteered for the first shift at guard duty. He positioned the office chair near the stair head. Several times, through the front windows, he saw the headlights of vehicles moving on the road beyond the gates, but none of them slowed.

  He chided himself for falling asleep a few times, but luckily wide-awake when Jill, alerted by the alarm function of her cellphone, came to relieve him.

  “Anything happen while I was sleeping.”

  “Three vehicles passed, but none slowed down.”

  “You have any trouble staying awake?”

  He stood to let her take the chair. “I nodded off a couple times.”

  “That’s a good quality; not lying. Most people would.”

  Nash shrugged in the dark. “Why lie?”

  “It happens all the time. I lie. Remember I told you I have a Master’s degree. All I have is a four-year Bachelor of Science.” Then in an abrupt change of subject, she asked, “How old are you? I think you once told me you’re twenty-two.”

  “Twenty-three. I had a birthday last May.”

  “You’re a very nice person. You had a good childhood, didn’t you, loving parents, stable home environment. I can tell you did. It’s written all over your personality. The me you know isn’t real.”

  Nash had an idea where she was heading and helped her along. “You childhood was different? Harder?”

  Jill’s tone changed, took on a gritty edge. “My life was a bitch. I grew up in the wrong part of Saint Louis. I never saw my father; he was already in jail for armed robbery and attempted murder, serving twenty-five years with no parole.

  “My mother was a dope-addict whore. She wasn’t a decent enough mother to charge money so she could feed me regularly or clothe me decent... Heroin, meth, coke, painkillers, anything to keep her high or down, that was her price. I think she’d have let me starve to death, but people in the neighborhood got used to feeding me. When I was little, her favorite thing to say to me was, “I should’ve aborted you”.

  “Child Services took me in a few times and fostered me out. I was a hellion. If the foster parents had other children,

  I would bully and abuse them, Take their treats and toys. I always ended up back with mother.

  “When I turned older, her favorite thing to say was, “I’ve got someone coming over tonight and you need to be out of the house”.

  “I roamed the streets, took to hooking to feed myself, started to hang out close to strip joints to collect Johns. Got busted a few times. Then one night behind a bar a John got rough with me, started slapping me around because I wouldn’t have anal sex. Kept telling me my pussy was probably diseased. I tried to get away, but he began punching me. I mean hitting me to hurt me.

  “I pulled a butcher knife out of my shoulder bag and cut him good. Sliced his face and stabbed his belly. Of course, it was me who went to jail. I was sixteen and they put me with the adults.

  “One day, sitting in my cell waiting for trial, the turnkey asked if I wanted to speak with the visiting preacher. I was bored and thought, why not, it’ll get me out of the cage for a while. That’s how I met Reverend White and his wife. They talked to me about church stuff, repentance and finding Jesus. I guess they thought I gave a damn because I responded to them and asked questions. All I was doing was stretching the visit and eating the cookies they brought with them.”

  Nash interrupted, “I want to hear this, but I need to pee. You want anything?”

  “Jeez, you are so polite. Yeah, since you’re offering. A bottle of water and some trail mix.”

  In the dark, Nash used the center clear space of the great room to navigate to the restrooms at the far end. He hoped Jill would get to the point of her story, if she had a point, because he desperately needed sleep. By the light of a small flashlight, he did his business and then stopped by the kitchen to fetch the water and snack she’d requested. She accepted the items and resumed her story.

  “I’m not telling you this for sympathy, there is a point to it. The White’s took an interest in me and somehow pulled strings to have me released to their custody. The Pastor and his wife, Judith were decent people, kind and gentle-hearted. Their religion never took, but over the remainder of the summer, regular meals, and a safe place to sleep and then nice clothing to wear to school changed things for me.

  “No one at my new school knew about my past. I had some catching up to do, but I found I was smart enough to make good grades. I made a friend, the first I ever had. I detested the popular cliques, the jocks, cheerleaders and the Alpha Society type jerks; The same with the dark groups, Goth’s, punks.

  “As a new student I had to meet wit
h the school counselor. When I walked into her office, she had my folder in her hands. All she said was, “Let’s keep this short. Your life has been a mess. I’d suggest you keep your mouth shut about your past and become a different person. You can be anything you want to be”.

  “After I left her office her words echoed in my mind. I kept to myself, went to classes and then went home where I mostly stayed in my room studying. A couple weeks after school started, out of nowhere, Alice Banks, a geek with huge bi-focals and braces introduced herself to me. Her come-on was; “You’re new here, aren’t you. If you’re a snooty bitch, you’re at the right school. I don’t think you’re one of them, but you sure seem lost.”

  “She introduced me to her friends and I hung with the nerdy crowd because they were easy to get along with and most of them were success oriented.

  “Nash, what I want you to know is, I never connected emotionally with the White’s or with Alice and her friends, but I used them to change myself just as the counselor suggested. That’s what I do; use people.”

  “Are you saying you’re somehow using me?” Nash asked.

  “Of course I am. Everyone uses people. I haven’t figured your angle yet. I offered sex, but you turned it down.”

  Nash thought about what she said and about her synopsis of her life. “Jill, I don’t share your view. I don’t have an angle, I simply consider you a friend. You’re right about one thing. I’m a loner. I do like being around other people, but I don’t try to connect on a deep level.”

  Jill said, “That’s cool, but know this; I’m a product of my past; survival first. If something bad comes down the chute, I have your back for as long as it doesn’t threaten me. If it gets to that point, you’re on your own.”

  Nash was beginning to believe he had a nut case on his hands. “Jill, I appreciate you telling me.”

  There was a long pause while he waited for a response that didn’t come. Thinking she was finished, he said, “Wake me when the sun comes up.”

  As he turned to leave, she said, “I do lie about some things but I’m honest where it counts. If it’s as bad out there, as I think it is, only the strong, smart and vicious are going to survive. Keep that in mind.”