by J. R. Tate
“That’s another obstacle I don’t have an answer to yet. There were the nursery and feedlot down the street. Maybe we can scrounge up something there. Didn’t you have some starter plants at your house?”
“I did but just like with everything, most of it was wiped out.”
There was so much to do – Ryan didn’t want to panic and even though his dad had said on multiple times that he had time, they really didn’t. They were working against Mother Nature, and though drought conditions weren’t quite as dramatic as a tornado system, it would prove to be challenging in other ways. - like a slow burn just festering at the surface, ready to break open and attempt to kill the few that remained.
“Let’s start at the nursery and feedlot and go from there. We’ll have to gather what we can. I’ve also got to try to find Cecilia’s parents in the meantime, not to mention finding a way to salvage the remaining oil in the area wells. Oil is liquid gold. We’ll eventually need it again.”
“Her parents are missing?”
“Yeah. They’re in the Fox Lake area. Before I go, I gotta make sure Ty is okay. I’m not going to put that burden on Cecilia.”
“When it rains, it pours,” Darryl said, shaking his head.
“If only it was really pouring. It’d ease some of my worries.”
Chapter Seven
After Ty ate his oatmeal he fell back to sleep. He was still fighting the pain medication in his system and it was making him sluggish. Cecilia didn’t fight it – the more rest he got, the better his body would recuperate. Darryl had offered to stay by his bedside and she went up the steps to ground-level to get some fresh air. Ryan was sitting on a sidewalk down the street and she joined him, neither speaking for a few minutes. The silence was relaxing but it was no mystery that Ryan had a lot on his mind.
“Talk, Ryan. What’s up?”
The corners of his mouth turned up in a small smile but there was no light behind his eyes. She couldn’t blame him – this was too much to take in all at once and had she not been witnessing it first hand, she would have never believed it could be possible.
“It’s a beautiful night, isn’t it?” he said, ducking her question.
The sun was setting to the west against the distant mountain range and the sky lent a purple hue with a small silhouette around the moon.
“It’s hard to admire the weather after everything it has put us through.” Cecilia wrapped her arm around his, making sure she was gentle against the area where he got the shot. “Rabies, Ryan. I’d ask what else could…”
“Shh,” Ryan held his index finger up to his lips like a librarian shushing a loud talker. “You don’t say stuff like that right now.” He leaned into her, playfully nudging her. “I’m not superstitious but I also wouldn’t freak out about a possible drought while the river is cresting at its highest point in history if things were different.”
“You didn’t answer me a while ago. What’s up?”
“First thing tomorrow I gotta get the guys together and come up with a plan on how we’re going to get crops planted. We won’t find a tractor so we’ll have to concoct some kind of plow. And how are we going to preserve what we pick? We need a pressure cooker for canning. With every obstacle getting in the way it just makes me feel sort of...” he motioned his hands as he searched for the right word. “I hate this, but it makes me feel really hopeless.”
“If we can find some glass jars we can pressure cook them with the camp stove. We’d have to do one jar at a time and really get the water hot but it can be done without a pressure cooker. It’d take a lot of our propane too.”
“We gotta get the crops to grow first.” Ryan balled up some grass in his hand and threw it. “How are you doing with all of this?”
“It’s one huge nightmare. And you’re right, it feels hopeless. But I have to believe that someone will eventually find us and get us some help.”
“I’m glad one of us is still believing in something,” Ryan replied, throwing another wad of grass into the street. I’m going to have to go look for your parents. I’m just scared to leave you and Ty again.”
“Why can’t we come with you? I’d rather we didn’t split up again.”
Ryan shook his head no, his eyes widening at her suggestion. “It wouldn’t be safe.”
“As opposed to just sitting around here? We’re not doing anything. And Ryan, we haven’t had bad weather and you said yourself that the severe tornadoes look like they’re gone for a while. How long are you planning on being out there?”
“Drought brings on a different kind of danger.”
“But we’re not in a drought yet,” Cecilia spat back, trying hard to keep her anger in check. “If we start tomorrow and move fast, we’ll beat it. I don’t want to have to sit around here with the constant worry of you on my mind. It was hard enough once. A second time will kill me.”
Ryan ducked his head and licked his lips. “Ty won’t be ready to head out tomorrow. And you and the doctor keep nagging me about resting my leg. I don’t even know where the hell to begin. Go look for your parents. Rest my leg. Get crops going. Salvage the oil. Hope to God a drought doesn’t ravish the land even worse. You’ve been through a drought here before. What is one of the big things you remember it bringing?” His voice rose and Cecilia’s intention wasn’t to get him riled up.
“You’re right, Ryan. I’m sorry.” There was something else bothering him but she definitely wouldn’t bring it up.
“Wildfires.” He held his index finger up. “Dust storms.” He made the number two with his fingers. “We’ve already had a dry thunderstorm. Respiratory problems. Heat exhaustion.”
“I know, Ryan.”
“It’s a slower death than a tornado but still inevitable. And we have no way to protect ourselves. I have no idea how to protect my family.” He paused and closed his eyes. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be yelling. I don’t want to split us up again any more than you do. But I can’t have Ty getting hurt again. It’s already bad enough.”
Cecilia hugged him, his grasp on her tight. “Keeping him here is best for him. I know whatever you decide to do will be best. You’ll make it back to us. And I hope to God you find my parents. I’m worried sick about them.”
“That’s the thing, Cecilia. I don’t know if what I decide will be best. I have no damn clue what I’m doing. We’re just sort of winging it. No one has ever experienced something like this.”
“If we’re doing our best that’s all we can do. How about we talk about something else for now? There’s nothing we can do about it tonight. We’ll face it all in the morning. Until then, we can pretend everything is normal.”
“Normal,” Ryan repeated, smirking. “What the hell does that even mean?” Leaning in, he pecked her on the lips, his kiss growing deeper when she cupped the back of his head. It was an escape from reality, even if it was just for a few minutes.
***
“I can stay back to help with the farming. Or I can go with you. Wherever you need me will be fine.” Steve stood by the table where the instant coffee was available, pouring Ryan a mug full, slipping a spoon in it before handing it to him.
Steve was good company when they traveled to Harper Springs together. But he also had the farming experience needed to kick-start their crops. Chief Rayburn also ran a small farm with cotton and a sizable garden that was good enough to share with the fire department, so there were plenty of guys with expertise on how to be successful. And he also couldn’t forget his father. He’d be good to take on his journey to Fox Lake if he would agree to go. Leaving Cecilia and Ty would be the hard part but he knew Steve and Chief Rayburn would take care of them.
“Any idea where we can find seeds and plants?” Ryan lifted his baseball cap and skimmed his hand through his sweat soaked hair. It was almost eight AM and it felt like they were at the peak of the heat of the day.
“I can take a horse to my place and see what I can come up with. I was getting ready for planting. Cotton planting wasn’t supposed
to happen for at least another month but I was at least stockpiling what I needed.”
“What all were you preparing to plant?”
“General garden stuff – okra, squash, tomatoes, onions… I had it all stored in my barn, which got torn up, but I really didn’t have time to comb the land to see what I could salvage from the mess.”
“If the seeds got scattered, there’s a chance the rain either washed them away or they got planted and we’ll have random things popping up here and there all across the county.” Ryan took a pull from his canteen, already rationing his intake to prepare for the worst. “We found that vineyard not far from here where we can keep the grapes going too. The cotton is iffy. We’ve certainly got the heat we need to get it going but are there enough seeds to even try?”
“Don’t forget the volunteer plants that come up each year. Even the CRP land has the volunteer ones push through the grassland year after year.” Darryl joined the conversation. “I have volunteer plants from my garden too.”
Ryan didn’t think about the CRP land – the Conservation Reserve Program that the USDA and forestry service began to prevent soil erosion and reduce damage from natural disasters. It was a good way a farmer could get paid for their land without actually having to farm it and was usually a twenty-year contract. There were several CRP fields in the area.
The volunteer plants wouldn’t be enough to feed everyone, but they could harvest the seeds off of them to make more plants grow. “That’s perfect. Keep an eye on them. What was once a nuisance will now be our saving grace.” Ryan turned to his dad, pulling him aside. “I really don’t want to travel up to Fox Lake by myself. You wanna come with me?”
Darryl hesitated for a moment, glancing at the ground and back to Ryan as his foot twisted in the dirt beneath them. “You want me to go with you?” He patted his hand on his own chest, his facial expression shocked as if Ryan had asked him to do something illegal.
“Yeah, Dad. It’s safer to travel in pairs. Cecilia will stay here with Ty and Steve can oversee the farming. I trust him to get it done. I know you’re a good farmer too, but I’d...” He searched for the right thing to say. It didn’t always come easy with his father. “I’d like you to come. I trust Steve to farm but I trust you with my life.”
Darryl was taken aback by what Ryan had said. He opened his mouth to speak but closed it, stammering on his words. “I uh… Ryan, that means a lot to me.”
“I mean it. I’ve mulled over what to do for a few days now and I can’t keep dragging my feet. I feel guilty for leaving Ty and Cecilia but they’re safe here. There’s still enough food supply to get them through and with the doctor here, if Ty for some reason takes a turn, medical attention is only steps away. We don’t have the threat of tornadoes, at least, not right now. We have the threat of heat and dehydration, so we’ll need to stick by the river as much as we can.”
“We can take Doug,” Darryl replied, pointing at the group of men.
“Doug?” The name was familiar but Ryan couldn’t remember.
“The brother of the looter...”
“Right. The brother of the looter I killed.” Ryan still couldn’t stomach the fact that he had killed two people. It would be a memory that would haunt him forever, despite the dangerous circumstances of why he had to do it. “Why do you want to bring him along? Doesn’t he want to get revenge on me?”
“All the more reason to keep him around. I don’t want him trying to get at Cecilia or Ty with you not around. Besides, he can do our dirty work. He’s made no bones about the fact that he can resort to violence at any second. If we get him on our side, it could be helpful.” Darryl shrugged.
“Good point about Cecilia and Ty. I’d hate to have to worry about him doing something stupid. I take it he has no other skill to offer in staying back and helping them plant?”
“Highly unlikely. He’s not even from the area. They were passing through when the shit hit the fan.”
“Okay. I gotta make sure Ty is squared away with everything before we do go. I guess we can prepare to go here in a bit. The longer we wait, the more I fear the worst for Cecilia’s parents. And every day we get further into summer, the hotter it’s going to get.”
Ryan went to Ty’s bedside, glad that he was sitting up. The color was back in his face, he was eating better, and his many curious questions were back. He never thought he’d miss his son asking why about everything, or being so random that there was no way in knowing where he thought things up. When he was hurt in the cellar, the curiosity ceased to exist and Ty wasn’t the boy Ryan knew. Now, he seemed to be back.
“Hey, Ty. How’s that soup?” Ryan pointed at the steaming mug on the table beside the bed.
“It’s good. Alphabet soup. I was spelling things with the letters.” He scooped up a spoonful and the broth drained around the edges. Only having one arm was proving to be a challenge but at least it happened when he was young. Kids seemed to be a lot more resourceful in adjusting to drastic changes in lifestyle.
“Did you thank the nurse for bringing that to you?” Ryan wondered whose food supply it was taken from. He didn’t remember buying any kind of canned soup.
“I did.”
“Hey, buddy, we gotta talk about something serious for a minute.” Ryan blinked back the warmth in the corners of his eyes. He sat in the chair that Cecilia had been using and leaned forward, moving the rolling table away.
“What’s wrong, Daddy?”
“I’m going to have to...” He coughed to clear his throat, watching Cecilia from a distance chatting with his dad. Darryl was probably filling her in on the game plan. “Ty, I’m going to have to leave for a little while. Up there.” He pointed upward to ground-level. “I’m going to be back, though. I’m not leaving for good.”
“Why are you leaving?” Ty’s eyes widened, revealing his green irises. They were vibrant and full of life again.
“I gotta go find Grandma and Grandpa. Mommy is worried about them. I want to make sure they’re okay.”
“The tornadoes didn’t get them?” Ty asked.
Ryan pulled Ty in for a tight hug and said, “I am going to do my best to get your grandma and grandpa here.”
“It got my arm.”
Ty’s comment made Ryan’s breath catch in his throat. His kid was very perceptive to things and he wondered when he’d finally get around to broaching the subject of his amputation. He hoped Cecilia would be around to help when it came up but she wasn’t standing where she had been just minutes ago. Ryan looked around the room, attempting to locate her, but she was nowhere to be found.
“I uh, yeah, Ty, it got your arm. But you’re okay. You’re gonna be just fine.”
“What if it gets your arm?” There was an innocence in his tone and his gaze as he asked his questions that Ryan didn’t have answers to.
“It won’t.”
“But how do you know that, Daddy?”
“Because I am going to be extra careful and I’ll come back to you and Mommy. I’m going to take care of both of you. I promised you I’d come back last time and I did. I will do the same thing this time, okay?” Ryan wiped a tear from his cheek. “I need you to do a favor for me.”
Ty sat up, perking up at the request. “What?”
“You take care of mommy? You’re going to be the man around here while we are out there looking for Grandma and Grandpa. I know you can do it.”
“I can! I’ll take care of her!”
“Good, Ty. I trust you. You’ve gotta trust me too. We’ll all be together again soon.” It killed him to leave. It was hard the first time at the cellar and now he was having to do it for a second time. Hopefully, a third time wouldn’t happen. It’d be nice if everything would just resolve itself.
Cecilia joined them, intertwining her fingers in his. “Thank you for doing this, Ryan. I don’t want you to go but it’s my parents. I know you’ll be careful. And I’m glad you’re not going alone. I don’t know who Doug is but your dad is pretty certain it’s for th
e best.”
“Yeah, let’s just take him at his word.” It was best to omit the details of who Doug was. “Ty has promised to take care of you for me.”
“He did, did he?” Cecilia smiled but there was a sadness in her gaze. Her smile was forced, which meant finding her parents was definitely a priority. Reuniting them all would help the drab morale.
“I love you, Cecilia.” Ryan leaned in and kissed her, pulling her in for a warm hug that he struggled to let go of.
“Love you, too. See you soon.” She ran her palm down the front of his shirt. “We’ll get the crops planted. You’ll come back to plentiful vegetation.”
“Good attitude. I hope you’re right.”
Ryan kissed her again and forced himself to step away. The slight tightness in his leg was a reminder that his health wasn’t perfect and he’d have to take breaks and watch it. Going against medical advice was risky but there wasn’t enough time to sit around and wait. With each day’s uncertainty looming around them, no one knew when it’d be their last day on the planet.
Joining Darryl and Doug, Ryan rested his backpack on his shoulder, taking one last glance at his family. If he waited any longer, he’d talk himself out of it.
“Ready to go?” Darryl asked.
“Let’s do this. No turning back now.”
Chapter Eight
Darryl’s gut instinct was that they were heading off too soon. He tried not to stare at Ryan but couldn’t help it. His son was walking with a limp and though he’d never admit it to anyone, Ryan was in pain. He feared he was causing more damage to his injury and wouldn’t make it through. In normal times, the wound was something easily fixed at the doctor’s office or ER but now, infection and bleeding could be the difference between life and death. At least riding horses would take some of the pressure off of the leg but now still wasn’t a good time to be overexerting himself when his body was trying to heal.
The sun beat down on them and Darryl was willing to bet that it was over one hundred degrees. The humidity had dipped and the hot wind was like a furnace blaring down on them. He had mixed opinions on the difference in dry and humid heat. At least with humidity it meant there would be a better chance of some precipitation. Right now, if he had no idea where they were, he’d think they were in Death Valley just by how the weather was presenting itself.
