The packs smelt a lot better as well for their airing. She shook them out one by one before carefully repacking them. Their food supply was dwindling rapidly. She had put it all together on the blanket checking out exactly what was left.
‘I reckon we have another five days of food, what do you think, Lola?’
Lola crouched down and looked though the pile. ‘Pity we weren’t able to bring the extra cans of meat, that would have helped stretch it out a lot longer, there’s so much rice, apart from anything else.’
That was really the crux of it, Georgia realized. They needed to supplement their stores with protein, and greens. It was all very well having the shotgun and the bows, but that was not enough, they had to use them. They had to actually go out and hunt. The same with the books she had taken from the library.
They needed to be searching for edible plants now, not when they had completely run out of food. The remaining food should be saved as extra, in case they did not manage to forage enough from one day to the next. Their emergency supplies. Georgia sighed, conscious that she had been in a denial of sorts. For going out to hunt was a final acknowledgement that their whole way of life had changed, possibly forever.
Tomorrow she would take the shotgun, no, she corrected herself, she would take the Genesis and she would start being a provider! It was too late this evening but tomorrow morning, first thing, she would go hunting.
Chapter Twenty four
Twilight had faded, disappearing altogether as it steadily grew darker. It would be a while yet before the moon rose. Georgia lay quietly, not wanting to wake the others. She watched the last of the glowing embers from the fire slowly cool and blacken. All around was the raucous noise of the Katy-dids. Deedee-dids, the kids called them. To which Deedee would always say, ‘I did not,’ most indignantly and they would all laugh. The noisy creatures were a good thing, Georgia reflected, for if they went silent suddenly, there was a good chance that something had disturbed them. They were yet another warning system.
She carefully moved her legs, finding a more comfortable position, though, tonight she felt as though she were lying in the most luxurious of beds. It was no wonder the others were already asleep. Lola, Deedee and Rebecca had spent half an hour or so gathering dry grass and leaves, stuffing the joined sleeping bags so full that it looked like a pool lounger. This time, they had turned the sleeping bags inside out, because the outer silky lining had proved over the last few nights to be horribly slippery, making it almost impossible for any of them to stay in place.
Rebecca and Jamie slept on one side of her and Deedee slept on the other side, between Lola and herself. Georgia pulled the blanket up over Deedee’s shoulders, her little grey bear was clutched in her hand, her thumb firmly in her mouth. Ant was snuggled up to her, and close to the soft toy, hoping to share it, no doubt.
Badger and Millie had gone walk about. They would, she knew (hoped), be back later. Georgia half suspected they were off hunting. That would explaining their lack of interest in the dog biscuits and the sudden increase in sulfurous, explosive toots, as the kids giggling called them, holding their hands over their noses as they gagged in pantomime like movements whenever one of them suddenly let one loose.
A little way from the camp she could just make out the long shadow of the caddy hanging up in a tree.
‘To keep the bars out,’ Lola had insisted.
Lola was certain that there were bears. The very fact that there were trees was enough to convince her. Although exactly where they could be hiding in this tiny gully was a mystery to Georgia. She didn’t know much about bears but she had a fair idea that if she could stretch up on tiptoes, to hang the caddy over a springy down swept branch (as per Lola’s directions), that a bear could also reach up, and that it probably did not need to get up on tip toes.
Nevertheless, they were prepared for Lola’s bears, and any other intruders that might try to disturb their sleep. The shotgun lay as it had every night; loaded, ready for action and out of sight, under the edge of the sleeping bag.
‘Aren’t they just magnificent?’ Lola asked suddenly out of the darkness. She did not sound the least bit sleepy.
‘What?’ Georgia asked.
‘The stars, I don’t think I have ever seen them look so…,’ she paused for a moment, then continued, ‘so sparkly, have you ever seen them look like that?’
Georgia stared up at them, breathtaking in their abundance, and twinkling brightly, between the black shadows of the tree branches that stretched above them.
‘Yes, in Australia, when I was in the Outback, they seemed so close, you had the feeling you could just reach out and touch them. I think they looked that way because there weren’t any towns or cities nearby; less light interference.’
‘I guess that’s why then, no lights on anywhere now.’ Lola sighed.
‘No, that’s for sure.’
‘Do you think they will ever get the power back on?’ Lola asked in a low voice.
Georgia turned and leaned on her elbow, looking over at Lola’s shadowy form. ‘Honestly?’
‘Yeah honestly, what do you think?’
‘I haven’t a clue, we still haven’t seen or heard any planes. I have no idea what happened, but if it were only affecting a couple of states, then surely the unaffected areas would have sent help and rescue teams in by now.’
Lola was silent for a moment, then said, ‘maybe Douglas is right, and if it is the whole country, then it could take a very long time before we have power again.’
Georgia slapped at a mosquito that had begun to take an unhealthy interest in her. ‘Why do you say that?’
‘It was something Douglas said. He was really odd you know.’
‘Well, yes that is no secret,’ Georgia thought as she waited for Lola to continue.
Lola seemed to be carefully choosing her words. ‘He seemed really happy, about this whole collapse, saying things like, he had known this was going to happen, that it was the end of the world as we know it; that he would be able to go back to life as it should be, when men were men.’
‘Yes sure, until he ran out of beer, then maybe he would see the situation a little differently,’ Georgia said.
Lola laughed softly. ‘I guess so, anyway, he was convinced it was this natural EMP thing.’
Georgia nodded, but she was no longer so certain that it was an EMP. Everything she had read about their effects, had also been very quick to point out that damage would probably be temporary, and that while it would affect some technology, it would not affect everything. She was beginning to think that it was something entirely different, maybe even some new-fangled warfare technology that had gone terribly wrong in its experimental stages.
‘Anyway,’ Lola continued, ‘he said that in the event of a nationwide strike, it would take at least three years if not more for the grid to get back up. He said that there was something like 300 main transformers that would have to be replaced, that they would not be repairable, and that even in the best circumstances they could only make one hundred in a year.’
‘Oh my God, are you serious!’ Georgia exclaimed. The full impact of Lola’s words hitting her hard. ‘If the transformers themselves needed to be replaced then there isn’t a chance in hell they will ever get the grid back up and running, not in our life time anyway.’
She had been thinking aloud and could have bitten her tongue as Lola gasped out, ‘do you think it is as bad as that?’
Georgia hesitated, then realized there was no point trying to pretend otherwise. ‘Yes I do,’ she said slowly, ‘can you imagine, replacing the transformers at the rate of one hundred a year, is under the best of circumstances. Now that everything has collapsed, I doubt there is even a work force capable of getting them into place.’
Georgia paused, having another go at the annoying mosquito. ‘Got it.’ she exclaimed triumphantly, as she felt the tiny body pop beneath her fingers. Hateful thing was already full of blood, then she continued. ‘Aside from that, there isn�
�t any way of transporting them, no power, so no factories, nothing. The technicians would have just about as much of a show of manufacturing a transformer as we would, and if those figures on survival rates are correct, well in twelve months’ time, there probably won’t even be anyone with the know-how left alive. Even if they somehow manage to get themselves organized, it will take years and years.’ Georgia hesitated, then added almost to herself, ‘It just doesn’t seem possible.’
‘That’s terrible!’ Lola exclaimed.
Georgia sat up, careful not to wake the children, tucking her knees under her chin as she spoke ‘Actually, I am beginning to think it might be worse than that. I think this could be worldwide, because if it was just the States, then surely we would have had some sort of communication from overseas. Those aircraft, for example, dropping leaflets, the ones that Douglas mentioned, for surely the rest of the world, would have wanted to know why the most powerful nation in the world had suddenly fallen silent.’
‘Oh, my God, I hadn’t thought of that.’ Her voice had a frightened edge to it.
Why hadn’t she just kept her mouth shut? Panicking Lola was not going to help the situation at all. She reached over and patted Lola’s shoulder, ‘you know what, I am probably just overthinking this. There is no doubt a logical explanation for all of this, we just haven’t thought of it yet, and for all we know, there are hundreds of planes filled with rescue squads landing at L.A.X. even as we speak.’
Lola did not reply and the silence between them began to stretch.
Georgia tried to think of something to say, to change the subject, and get Lola’s thoughts in another direction.
‘I’ve been very selfish,’ she began, ‘talking about my husband and the children all time, and…,’ she hesitated, wondering if she was going to be opening another can of worms.
‘And you were wondering if I am married?’ Lola asked.
‘Well, yes.’
‘No, I’m not, nearly was, I was sort of engaged for…,’ Lola stopped abruptly, and there was something in her voice that made Georgia wish that she hadn’t changed the subject.
Was she fighting back tears? How stupid am I, of course she is, she is no doubt missing him as much as….
Lola sat up, carefully untangling herself from Deedee’s sleeping form and took a deep breath, and then began again, the words tumbling out. ‘I worked as personal secretary, for a construction company, you know the sort of thing, the onsite trailer office. Loved my job. I had only been working there for a couple of weeks when the boss asked me out. I was barely twenty, and I guess I was flattered, he was older than me, but what can I say, except that I fell hard. It was just like in the movies. Six months to the day of our first date, Lance proposed to me. The ring was beautiful, diamonds and emeralds. The ring had belonged to his mother, and I accepted.’ She laughed suddenly, but it was a bitter sound. ‘Who wouldn’t have? He was perfect, the setting was magical, and so romantic, full moon, lake side picnic, laid out, complete with candles, soft music playing from the car stereo. It was a beautiful moment when he went down on one knee. It was all my dreams come true. I was going to be Mrs Lance Jeffries.’ She fell silent.
Georgia didn’t say anything, waiting for her to continue. Clearly this story had a ‘but’, and a huge ‘but’ at that. Georgia reached out and found Lola’s hand, taking it into her own.
‘I take it that it ended badly,’ Georgia said finally.
Lola sniffed loudly. ‘You could say that. But it is in the past now, in a weird way, this thing, catastrophe, disaster, whatever, has set me free. I realized that this afternoon. You know, I haven’t been able to look at a man, haven’t even considered dating since then, and before you say anything,’ she suddenly added, her tone defensive, ‘Douglas was a means of survival, nothing more than that and he knew that very well.’
‘I’m not judging you,’ Georgia said, ‘all of us are doing whatever it takes to survive.’
Lola went on as though Georgia had not spoken, ‘now I keep thinking I will never find a partner, not if 90 percent of the population is going to die. I made such a mess of finding a partner when there were 140 million or so men around, what chance do I have now? I will never find suitable father for my kids now.’
Georgia was shocked. ‘Oh my God, I didn’t realize you have children.’ I never thought to even ask, she berated herself. Just assumed….
Lola laughed. ‘No, not yet, still have to find someone to father them. I know that at a time like this, thinking like that must sound really selfish but…’
‘No not at all,’ Georgia interrupted, ‘I think it is perfectly normal.’ Well it makes sense to me, Georgia added to herself. Thinking suddenly of the fruit fly trapped for all eternity in a piece of amber she had purchased several years ago. The last thing the hapless creature had done, as it had struggled vainly to escape the sticky sap, was to lay eggs. And what could be more natural than, when faced with the very real possibility of extinction, that one would want to procreate?
‘And that’s why I didn’t want to go back to my car,’ Lola said.
Georgia jolted back from her thoughts, suddenly aware that all the while Lola must have speaking and she had the horrible feeling that just possibly she had missed something important.
‘I um…,’ Georgia began then hesitated, not sure what to say, then began again. ‘I’m sorry, I missed that, why didn’t you want to go back to your car?’
Lola laughed. ‘Did you fall asleep?’
‘Guess so,’ Georgia said, not wanting to insult Lola further by saying she had simply zoned out, that smacked of an indifference that hadn’t really been there.
‘This is a new beginning for me,’ Lola explained, something I hadn’t been able to fully achieve before. I tried to put things behind me, it was somewhat traumatic, but now it is as though the past is far less real. Going back to the car, would have brought it all back. He bought it for me you know.’
‘I didn’t know,’ Georgia murmured.
‘Yeah, he did, but he’s dead, and now the car is gone, and practically everything I own now is from the present, no attached memories. The clothes you got me at Wal-Mart, my backpack, and, oh yeah, that blue dress.’ She suddenly gave a dry laugh, ‘I wouldn’t have been caught dead in that, two weeks ago.’
Georgia laughed in spite of herself. ‘I am sorry, didn’t mean to laugh. I guess if we don’t laugh we will cry, at least something positive has come out of this then.’
‘It’s not all bad,’ Lola continued. ‘At least out here, we don’t have to hide from the landlord at rent time or suffer the humiliation of having the gas cut off.’
Georgia laughed. ‘That is so true,’ she said. She and Nathan had owned their own home, and there was the house at Bethel, but there had been times when money had been really tight, especially when Nathan had started binge drinking. But that was another issue.
Then Lola added, ‘but what I don’t understand is why they estimated that so many people would die. It just doesn’t seem possible. Why would they all die just because they don’t have power?’
‘I have been thinking about that too, so many have already have died on the freeways and I guess a lot could simply starve to death.’
‘I know another reason why,’ Jamie’s voice suddenly interrupted them, making them both jump.
‘Oh, thought you were asleep, Jamie,’ Georgia said.
‘Nope, been listening to you.’
The two women fell silent, Georgia wondering just how much Jamie had heard, then decided it really didn’t matter. They were all in this together.
‘So why do you think so many will die?’ she asked.
‘Well for one thing, remember last winter, when it went way below freezing, and the winter before we had that ice storm and the whole yard was a solid block of ice? Icicles hanging down everywhere, and that day we couldn’t even open the door.’
‘I remember,’ Georgia said, and then explained to Lola, ‘my car had frozen to the ground and I m
ean frozen. I was meant to be picking Nathan up from work as his car was in for an oil change. I tried driving it free, but it wouldn’t budge.’
‘Yeah,’ Jamie laughed. ‘Tell her what happened next.’
Georgia slid her legs back under the blanket. ‘I thought I could fix it with good old Aussie ingenuity, so I went back inside, boiled up the jug, and poured boiling water all around the tires, thinking to melt the ice and…,’
‘Yep,’ Jamie interrupted, he was giggling now, ‘the water froze immediately. It took another week before we could shift the car; Dad said it was cause of all that extra water.’ Jamie’s tone became more serious, ‘well anyways, if it gets cold like that again this winter, and there is no heating, everyone will freeze to death, just like ice-pops.’
‘Their group included,’ Georgia thought, if they did not reach Bethel before the real cold set in.
‘I’ve just had a thought,’ Lola said suddenly, ‘all the prisoners would starve to death in their cells, with no power, cell doors would stay shut in a power cut.’
Bile rose in Georgia’s throat, ‘is that true?’
‘Sure, stands to reason, for security reasons they wouldn’t want the doors opening if the power failed,’ Lola said, ‘or they would all escape.’
‘Well perhaps the guards would keep on feeding them, as long as there was available food anyway,’ Georgia thought to herself, but even as the thought crossed her mind, she knew that most of those guards would have their own families to worry about. It was no biggie, given the choice between caring for your own family or a bunch of prisoners, obviously inmates would not be at the top of the list.
Would the prisoners all be dead now? Or, were there some that were still hanging on, hoping, thinking of loved ones as they sat in the absolute blackness of their cells. Statistically, some of them would be innocent, some would be in for petty crimes, or the sheer misfortune of being unable to pay fines. Not even the hardened criminals deserved to die that way, well maybe some of them, but what a terrible way to go. It simply didn’t bear thinking about.
Survivors of the Sun Page 23
