by T A Williams
“Not another step.” Came a voice from behind him.
Grant froze and raised his hands in the air.
“Keep your hands in the air and turn around slowly, make a wrong move and I will end you.”
Grant's mind raced. This was a stupid idea he never should have left, once again he was going to leave them but this time they would be all alone. He slowly turned around and the only thing he noticed was the gun barrel pointed at his face.
“Who are you and what do you want?”
He managed to pull his attention away from the gun and look at who was holding it. The man had to of been in his mid-60's with a head full of grey hair and a face that was worn with age. Besides the enormous gun in his hands the rest of the man's dress suggested he was planning on spending an afternoon gardening.
“I'm not going to ask you again.”
Grant found his voice, “Sorry, my name's Grant.” The man was rigid and Grant fully believed he was willing to pull the trigger but the man didn't look like a criminal or someone who would shoot him for no reason, and he wasn't about to give him a reason. “I have four kids, I live in the old Irving place. I was just trying to see if there were other people around here.”
The man lowered his gun slightly and slowly looked him up and down. “What do you know about the Irving’ss?”
“That they were good people. Good people who deserved a better son then the one they got.”
The man lowered his gun completely. “You're Pat Irving's son?”
“Yes sir.”
The man let out a breath. “Pretty damn stupid to be walking up to people's property, even without all the shit that's going on. The name's Jack by the way.”
Grant slowly let his arms down and let his ass un-pucker. “Nice to meet you Jack, and yes in retrospect this probably wasn't my brightest idea.”
For a moment the only sound was the cool breeze blowing through the trees. Finally Jack took his eyes off him and stared back towards his house. “I take it you were looking for more then just company.”
“Yes sir. We have a well, so we have plenty of water that we are willing to share, but don't have a lot else. I was hoping to find other neighbors here that might help us make it through until the government gets everything back under control.”
Jack let out a laugh and shook his head. “Son, things aren't ever going back to the way they were. Best thing you can start doing to stop thinking you need to survive until, and just plan on trying to survive.”
Grant wasn't exactly sure what that meant. “Ok. We are willing to share our well water.”
Jack nodded. “A reliable source of water that doesn’t need to be boiled would be nice, what would you need in return?”
“Anything that you are willing and able, to part with.”
Jack gave him a long look. “Just on the other side of my house is my fishing pond. It's 9 acres, fully stocked with bass and the biggest catfish you've ever seen. If you're willing to share your water, I'll allow you and yours to fish there. But you only catch what you need, not a fish more, and don't expect me to clean and cook them, you gotta do that on your own.”
It felt like a couple of pounds had been lifted off his back and Grant let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you Jack, that helps more than you know.” The man nodded back. “Do you know if there are other's still around here?”
“There are a couple of houses a few miles west of your place, fairly new. One of them the bank foreclosed on a couple of months back. The young couple who owned the place moved about a year before that. It was still for sale last time I drove past there. The other has been empty for as long as I can remember.”
So they were basically all alone in the middle of nowhere. From what Grant had seen in the last couple of weeks he was relieved.
“So you have your family with you?” Jack asked.
“Yeah, three sons and a daughter.”
“Surprised you don’t have grey up there,” Jack pointed at Grant’s hair. “No wife?”
“No.”
Jack read his face. “I’m sorry. If you don’t mind me asking was it pre or post?”
“I don’t understa-“
“Before or after the world went dark?”
“Oh, pre. She…she died of cancer.”
Jack shook his head in dismay. “Sorry to hear that. I lost the love of my life a few years ago to the same thing. Seems like it’s only a matter of time before it takes us all out.” The old man thought for a second and let out a soft laugh. “Course that was before everything went dark. I doubt many of us will live long enough to be taken out by cancer now.”
Grant didn’t say anything. The conversation was bringing up feelings he wasn’t ready to deal with yet.
Jack noticed. “Care for a drink?”
Thirsty.
“No, no I’m okay.” He had paused a second longer then he cared to admit. “I, uh, I’m an alcoholic.”
“Ah, I see.”
Once again it was only the breeze going through the trees. Grant ran a hand through his hair. “Thanks again Jack. Can you wait until tomorrow for some water?” The man nodded. “I'll bring a couple of gallons tomorrow sometime along with my son. If there is anything else I can help you with let me know.”
“Do you have yourself a gun Grant?” It wasn't an accusation just a question.
“Yes.”
“You got plenty of ammo?”
Grant shrugged his shoulders. “I think I have enough.”
Jack shook his head sadly and looked out at the horizon. “I'm afraid that's not possible son. I truly hope I'm wrong but I think there is a storm coming. How big and how bad I don't really know, but probably worse than anything either of us has ever seen before.”
Alec
Alec watched as his father clumsily attempted to gut and clean the fish he had caught while Joseph sat beside him with his head buried in Grant’s side. Joseph was tied at the hip to his father, had been ever since he had returned. Everything Grant did was perfect, there was a time when Alec even believed that, but that time had passed long ago.
“It’s not fair that you’re still mad at him.” Alec didn’t notice Ben standing next to him. Ben now stood up over Alec’s shoulders; his little brother wasn’t so little anymore. “He’s trying and he’s taking care of us.”
“It may not be fair but life’s not fair.”
Ben’s face crinkled up. “That doesn’t make any sense. You’re just saying that so you can stay mad at him. If you just gave him a chance you’d see how much he’s changed.”
I’ve given him more chances then I can count.
“I am giving him a chance Ben, I’m giving him a chance to prove himself.”
“No you’re just standing around all day giving him the evil eye. That’s not fair.” With that said Ben stomped off towards the woods.
Alec’s mind turned to Christmas Eve when he was ten years old. The Christmas tree lights were blinking, he sat on the couch with a cup of hot chocolate with the knowledge that when he woke up the next morning underneath that tree would be dozens of presents. Yet he remembers not having a smile on his face. He remembers his mother quietly crying in the bathroom. He remembers Ben asking when daddy was coming home and Alec knowing that he wasn’t. Knowing that since he disappeared he would be gone for days, weeks probably because that was what he did. When he returned his mother and father would fight, which usually meant that his father would disappear for a couple more days leading to his mother hiding somewhere so they wouldn’t notice her crying. Inevitably his father would return, apologize to everyone, and promise that things would be better. At ten years old Alec was used to the cycle but he remembered knowing that since it started on Christmas Eve that they weren’t going to have their father around on Christmas. Ben cried that Christmas Day because his father wasn’t there, which led again to his mother crying, and sure enough his father returned three days later and the cycle started over just like always. When it was over he had once again given his father another chance
. Then things got much worse.
“You look deep in thought young one.”
Alec glanced to the side and saw Jack giving him a knowing smile. The man didn't come by often. He said he was too old to walk over and they needed to save as much gas as possible. But Alec figured his father had admitted to the man he didn't know how to clean fish so Jack was watching over him to make sure he was doing it right. “I'm just relaxing.”
“Fair enough. You planning on giving him another chance?”
Alec started to feign ignorance but decided against it. Instead he gave the man a little shrug.
“You know me and my old man didn't always get along. Sometimes it was because of something I did, sometimes it was something he did. But at the end of the day we were family and that was all that mattered.”
Anger flared in Alec but he managed to keep his voice calm. “And what do you think you know about our situation? Did my father tell you he used to have a bit of a drinking problem?” Jack nodded. “Of course he told you that. Did he also mention that he used to clear out our bank account and disappear for days or weeks at a time? Did he include the stories of when he had too much to drink and would hit my mother, or the time he pushed me down the stairs because I tried to stick up for her?” Jack’s face remained a blank slate. “My father has returned several times over the years claiming to be a better man to have beaten back his addiction, only to have his addiction take right back over and things go back to the way they were. My mother died of cancer alone because he didn't have the strength to keep a bottle out of his mouth. So maybe you should get the whole story before you try to lecture me about the importance of family.”
Alec turned and walked away. He didn't care what Jack thought. He had given his father a second chance, he had given him a million chances and in the end he was the one who had sat by his mother's side as she wasted away. He was the one that had to explain to Alya, Joseph, and Ben that their mother was gone. The world had changed but that didn't mean his father had.
Chapter 2
Grant
Remaining completely still was easier said than done. Grant was lying on his stomach in the middle of the forest surrounded by thorny bushes and more crawly bugs then he would care to admit. The cloudy sky did all it could to block out the sun which could only peek out from time to time. The rays that made it past the clouds ran smack into the trees covering overhead leaving Grant in a small cove of darkness with the light just barely out of reach.
Since his visit to Jack their life had fallen into a routine. Either Alec or Grant would bring Jack a couple gallons of water every morning and, nearly, every afternoon they would go fishing. But there is only so much fish a person can eat before everything starts to taste like fish. Their meager food stuffs had already been used up, which is why he now found himself, for the first time ever, hunting.
On TV it was always so easy. You just walked out into the woods, an animal would take off running, and then you shoot them, instant meal. In reality this was his 3rd day going out into the woods and as the sun started to creep back down he was once again about to go back home empty handed. Jack had let him borrow his .22 rifle under the condition he share whatever he killed. His father’s rifle had a slight curve in the barrel, so the combination of Grant’s horrible aim, along with the defective barrel, meant he couldn’t hit anything further than five feet from him, and even then it was a toss-up.
Grant couldn't imagine how the major cities were right now. People had gotten so used to being able to walk into a store and buy whatever they wanted. There wasn't any need to learn to provide for yourself. Even those people who were capable of providing for themselves didn’t have a place to hunt or farm in the big cities. Which meant those who didn't have what they needed would be looking to take from those who did. There wasn’t anything he could do about that so he pushed those thoughts from his mind.
His duty now was to watch out for his family. Alya and Joseph still didn't really seem to know what was going on. For them this was just an extended camping trip or vacation. Ben seemed to know something was up but didn't know the extent of it. Alec on the other hand, he didn't deserve his forgiveness. He kept repeating that to himself. He had been the man of the house at the one time one was needed. He had endured what no child should have to endure. He didn't deserve his forgiveness but he did deserve his hate.
Just as he was about to give up he noticed movement in the nearby field. A turkey was slowing strutting by completely unaware of the inexperienced hunter laying 50 yards away. Grant quietly let out his breath and remembered what Jack had told him, squeeze don't pull. As the bullet left the gun and found the target Grant smiled for the first time in a long while.
Ben
The forest was alive, birds singing, rabbits darting across the forest floor, squirrels jumping from tree to tree, and all this was lost on Ben. He was going to get in trouble; he had already accepted that fact. So he figured if he was going to get in trouble regardless, he might as well enjoy himself first. He wasn't supposed to go off far on his own but he was tired of being cooped up in the old creaky house.
He bounded through the woods without a care in the world. Fearlessly leaping over the fallen tree branches and effortlessly avoiding the leaves that were littered throughout the forest floor.
His father was back and they were spending a lot of time together. Alec was still mad at his father but Ben didn't understand why he wouldn't give him another chance. Ben could remember the bad times with his father, despite what Alec wanted to believe. The only difference between them is the fact that Ben was willing to give his father another chance. After what happened to their mother he wanted to believe things were going to be alright.
Suddenly the trees cleared and he found himself facing a dirt road. He froze instantly. Now he really was in a lot of trouble. He wasn't supposed to leave their property and if he was near the road that meant he had crossed not only their property but the rest of the land that separated them from the dirt road. Right past the dirt road was a small house surrounded by a worn out white picket fence sitting quietly by itself.
He might as well check out the house. If his father found out he was going to be in a lot of trouble, but what were the chances his father was going to find out? If he checked out the house and it had food he could bring that back and his father would probably be proud of him. Then he could start going off on his own more often. Before Ben could take another step forward he heard something behind him.
“Something I can help you out with squirt?”
Ben turned quickly and saw a man standing between him and the way home. He could barely make out the man's face due to his beard which seemed to go in all directions on his face. He seemed younger than his father but there were creases around his eyes making him look like he hadn’t slept in days. He was wearing color-faded army camouflage that seemed to hang off his slim frame.
“I said is there something I can help you out with?” Ben shook his head no. The man took a step forward and Ben took a step back. The man noticed this and paused for a second. He glanced about in all directions and his face seemed to soften. “I'm not going to hurt you. My name is Trent, I live in that house that you were staring at.”
Ben took another step back. He could take off running but where was he going to go? The man was blocking his view and if he took off in the other direction he was probably going to get lost in the woods.
Trent took a step back and held his hands up. “I'm not going to hurt you squirt. I was out hunting and didn't expect to see anyone else, let alone a kid. What's your name?”
“Ben.”
Trent smiled. “Nice to meet you Ben. I promise I'm not as scary as I look. Don't see a lot of people so I don't really have much of a need to shave.”
“Are you in the army?”
Trent glanced down at his camouflage outfit. “No, but I always wanted to be. I'm sure they could use my help now with everything going to shit bu-.” He caught himself. “Sorry I didn't mea
n to swear.”
Ben couldn't help but smile, Alec cursed around him all the time. “That's ok. If you're not in the army why do you have all those clothes?”
“Because it helps me blend in, you didn't notice me did you?” Ben shook his head no. Trent smiled again. “Exactly, things are dangerous now so you have to learn to take care of yourself. If no one can see me then I'm safe.”
Ben thought about that for a second and it made sense. “What are you hunting?”
“Food. Doesn't really matter what it is. Rabbit, squirrel, deer, turkey, meat is meat. Where did you come from Ben?”
He pointed towards where he thought their house was. “Right over there. My family moved there to get away from the city.”
“That's smart. Sounds like your mother and father are very smart.”
“Just my father and brothers and sister. My mom died.”
Trent frowned. “I'm sorry to hear that. I lost my mother when I was young too.” They stood there in silence for a moment. Trent rubbed the back of his neck. “Are you the oldest?”
“No. Alec is the oldest. I'm 11, Joseph is 8, and Alya is 5 or 6 I can't remember.”
“Big family. Tell you what Ben since both you and I have lost my mother I'm willing to help you out.”
“Help me out with what?”
“I'm going to help teach you how to live in the wilderness all by yourself. I'll teach you to hunt, to blend into the forest, and how to defend yourself.”
Ben smiled. Alec was the oldest and acted like he knew it all but not even he knew how to take care of himself in the wilderness. If he learned how to hunt he could go out with his dad and take care of the family. “Ok.”
“Now I can only do this under one condition.”
“What's that?”
“You can't tell anyone about me.”
Ben scrunched up his face. “Why?”
“The same reason I'm wearing camouflage. The more people who know about me the harder it is to hide. If I'm going to teach you these things I have to be able to trust you, can I?”
