by Brad Manuel
The morning was chaotic. The Jones twins woke up early, very early, waking the rest of the RV in the process. It was only 6am, and still dark outside. John would not let the kids play on the White House lawn. He put a movie on the television, and made himself coffee.
Matt, kicked off his couch by the kids watching television, moved to the converted third row bed in the Suburban. He mumbled something about needing more rest, put on a winter cap, and stormed out of the RV.
John sat, sipping his second mug of coffee, reprimanding the constant screaming and fart, butt, and poop comments from the four kids. The bedroom door opened at 6:30. Solange emerged, fully dressed and put together for the day. She sat down with John at the small dining room table.
“Tonight I suggest the kids go to the apartment or we get a turn in the apartment.” She smiled at him. “Is there enough coffee for me to have a cup?”
“I would never deny another person coffee. I am not a savage, yet. Please, help yourself, now and always.”
She poured herself a cup and spoke to John as if there were no kids screaming at the top of their lungs at the cartoon movie.
“So few people left, we do not have much to build a new world.” She took a sip of her black coffee. John pointed to the sugar and a small bottle of milk on the table. She shook her head. “On our trip here, you said we might grow to twenty by the time we arrived in New York. I believe we will be lucky to have twenty after New York.”
“I know. We will be pressed to find better people than the five we just met, but it would be nice to find stronger hands. A doctor is a fantastic edition, but taking on three more children and an older man? The tribe is going backwards.”
“Less alpha males means less threats, but you are right, we also sacrifice strength. Peter is a leader, but he is also wise and silent. He will not cause trouble.”
John looked at her after the alpha male comment. “You are an interesting person, Solange. I know why I am paranoid, but why are you so distrusting of others?”
Solange took a sip of her coffee. “I was not the only survivor in Richmond. There was another person, a man, young, my age. He was a local man, and did not go to college. He drove around trying to find survivors in a big black pickup truck. It was November, late November, and I had not seen anyone for months. The first time I saw his truck, I let it drive by. I am a young woman, and I cannot defend myself, but after months of solitude, I decided to trust the driver.” She paused and looked at John with vacant distant eyes. “It was a decision based on my selfish needs, not safety. I will not make a mistake like that again. The boy, his name was Fred, just Fred, he never told me his full name, let me in his truck, told me his survival story, something about being a kindergarten teacher, living with his parents to help them with money. I think the story was a lie, I do not know for sure. He asked me to tell him my story. I stupidly told him about how I was alone, how I was not from the area. He drove while I tell him things. I did not realize, but he drove in circles and zig zags.” She sipped her coffee. “After 30 minutes I have no idea where I am, where he has taken me. It is not close to the highway, it is not near town. Even though I later found my way back to Richmond, I could not take you to where I was.” She glanced at the children to make sure they are not listening. “It is best they do not hear my story. I did not want Matt to hear it either. He is too young to know such evil.”
John gave a polite nod of acceptance.
“We stop at a house on a small farm. It looks run down, but there are many nice things, things Fred stole or took after the rapture. I was driving a nice car, we all have things now. I was not concerned about the nice things. I was scared that I was alone with him, and we were in a place I did not know, and I had no way to leave the place, but I am young, and I was more trusting five months ago. I told myself I was being silly.”
“There was a pond next to the house. He said there were fish in the pond, great for eating. He told me to take a fishing pole, catch him fish for dinner. I was confused, and I asked him what he was talking about. He raised his voice to me and said, ‘you see all this stuff? It’s mine. The rapture has given it to me and made me a king. I am in charge, and you will do what I say or things will go badly for you. Take a pole, dig for some worms, catch me a damn fish before I beat you.’” She did not raise her own voice while retelling the story. She kept a natural tone, as if the events happened to a different person.
John stared at her. She maintained a distant look in her eyes. “I am so sorry.” He said, putting his hand on her hand resting on the table.
“If the children start to listen, I will stop. I will not let them hear my story.” She nodded her head in their direction. “So Mr. Fred sits down on his porch, and stares at me. He has a small refrigerator on the porch plugged into a generator, and he pulls out a beer and starts to drink. I say to myself, ‘Sol, this is bad, you cannot run or walk away right now. You need to smile and do what he says.’ So I take one of the fishing poles leaning against the shack, I pull up a few of the flagstones on the dirt walkway, find a worm, hook the worm, and throw it into the pond. I fished with my father in Ecuador. I know where to find worms, how to catch fish. I catch a fish. I reel it in. I hold it up to show it to him”
“This Fred, he walks over to me. He looks at the fish, and he punches me in the stomach, very hard. I drop on the ground in pain, coughing. I have tears in my eyes, but I do not cry. He yells at me, ‘you think a fish that tiny is going to feed me? Try again. I will not punch you in the face. You are too pretty to look at, but I will punch you in the gut until you get it right.’”
“I am dirty and thirsty, and tell him I will try again. I ask for a glass of water. ‘You want something from me when you cannot even catch me a big enough fish to eat? You can drink the water from the pond.’ I tell him that I have water in my pack, my water, not his. He walks over to his truck, takes my pack out and throws it into the pond. ‘I own everything. I own you. You will drink and eat when I say. You will earn your food and water. You catch me a fish, and I will tell you how you can earn food.’”
“I drank the water from the pond, and I did not eat for three days. You can guess how he wanted me to earn my food. He said he did not want to rape me, that he was not interested in that. He wanted me to ‘want’ to be with him. He thought making me be with him for food was different than raping me.”
“Fred was a strong man. He worked with his hands before the rapture. He was a little heavy, and his arm muscles were very big. When he punched me in the stomach, it hurt me. I decided to die on my feet. I went to him the third night, I caught him three fish and held them up for his approval. He stood in front of me. I could smell the beer on his breath. He nodded at me. I lifted my knee to his groin with as much strength as I had. He was not expecting the move, and he went down coughing. I jumped on him, putting my hands around his throat, squeezing as hard as I could.”
“This Fred, he was strong, but he lacked determination. I do not. He swung his arms wildly, hitting me all over. I clung to his throat, staring into his eyes. When he tried to get up, I kneed him in the groin as hard as I could, over and over, holding his throat, keeping my grip as tightly as I could. His eyes were filled with terror. His head and face turned red, then purple. His punches became weak. I clung to his throat long after he stopped moving. I kneed him in the groin even when his eyes were shut and he no longer flinched. I held onto his throat until my hands ached.” She took a sip of coffee, looking at John calmly. “As I said, I possess determination and strength of will.”
“Fred was a weak minded, stupid beta dog. The rapture set him free for a little while and made him think he could act like an alpha dog. When I was killing him, he became the beta again. He submitted to me, like weak people do. He pretended to be something he was not.” Solange looked at the children again, making sure they were not listening. “An alpha would have taken me, not played some game to make me earn my food. This new world does not accept weakness or stupidity. I was stupid to get in
to that truck, but my strength set me free.” She took a final sip, calmly setting the mug on the table.
“I fished my pack out of the pond. I dragged his body off the porch and put it into the pond. I cooked the fish I caught for him. I ate his food. I drank his beer, wincing as it burned on my bloody lips. I woke up early the next day and used Fred’s truck, following the sunrise east to the highway. When I got back to campus, I moved into a nicer house, lived there for five more months, and now you have found me.”
John’s coffee was gone. He did not refill his cup. Solange got up, walked to the pot and brought it back to the table. She filled his mug and set the pot back on the coffee maker. She sat down, put a spoonful of sugar and milk in his coffee, and stirred it with a spoon to mix. “El encantado did not rid the world of evil. I learned that lesson the hard way.”
John did not respond. He sat at the table with her. After a sip of the coffee she poured for him he spoke. “If you put the sugar in before the coffee, it melts and tastes better.”
“I will know for next time.” Solange put her hand on top of his hand, similar to his earlier gesture. “Thank you for listening to me, John Dixon, and thank you for being a good man.”
John smiled at her, but it was his turn to look down quickly, uncomfortable with the exchange. He even blushed. A young woman, almost half his age, whom he had just met the afternoon before, was touching his hand. He could sense a connection, but he did not believe she could have feelings for a man his age, particularly after only one day. John chalked up the touch and exchange of smiles as innocent.
At 7:30 the door to the RV flew open and Jay jumped inside. “Their apartment is awesome! They have a fireplace, and tons of blankets, and books, and games and stuff. It’s so much fun!” He looked around the RV. “Is there any breakfast?”
“I can make some.” John replied with a smile. “No one else has asked, they are glued to the movie.” The kids were watching cartoons. John and Solange finished their coffee, and were planning their day. “I’ll go see if we have any eggs. There is always cereal or instant oatmeal.”
“Okay.” Jay replied distantly. He watched the television, and barely paid attention.
Emily and Todd came in the RV. Melanie followed, carrying Casey. They were chatting about the day, laughing about Casey doing something funny.
“Good morning.” Todd said enthusiastically. “How did we sleep over here?”
“The RV was up at 6am. Solange and I decided it will be your turn with the kids tonight, or more importantly tomorrow morning.”
“Someone is grumpy.” Emily replied. “Are you sure you’ve had enough coffee, John?” She rubbed him on the back, the way a sister in-law can.
“Don’t get me started. My other helper huffed off and is sleeping in the SUV.” John made a gesture towards the kids. “I’ve resorted to the electric sitter.”
“Well, let’s have some breakfast and figure out what we are doing.” Emily looked at the TV. “Okay guys and gals. Five minutes and it goes off. Go play outside. It’s cold. Put on sweatshirts.”
The kids screamed and ran around for a second. They put on shoes, pants, coats, grabbed soccer, kick, and footballs and ran outside.
“Hey, make sure Matt is awake in the car. Pound on the sides and get his lazy bones up.” John grinned. He turned to Melanie, “We have cereal and fresh milk. It’s goat’s milk, but pretty tasty. I haven’t checked for eggs yet. We might be able to offer you some fresh eggs. I think you, Peter, and Solange get first dibs. It’s probably been a while since you’ve had fresh food.”
“You have no idea. That would be wonderful.” Melanie replied, excitement in her voice.
“Let me make sure there are eggs. Hate to make false promises.” Todd replied.
“May I see the chickens? I love farming and gardening. If I wasn’t a surgeon, I would be a farmer. I want to see what kinds you have.” Melanie was genuinely excited to look at chickens and goats.
“Absolutely. You can take over the coop if you’d like. We have no any idea what we are doing. We just make sure they have water and food, and eggs magically appear the next morning.” Todd smiled. He opened the door for her and they went outside.
Todd and Melanie bumped into a disheveled Matt, standing in pajama pants, slippers, a fleece winter cap, and a blanket over his shoulders. He looked as though he woke abruptly.
“Morning, Matt!” Todd said as they walked by.
“Morning.” He grumbled.
Solange handed Emily a cup of coffee. “John said you like to walk through houses, and that you are excited to see the White House.”
“I do, and I am.” Emily said back.
“Would you mind if I joined you? I also like to see houses and rooms. I would enjoy touring the White House with you.”
“Sol? May I call you Sol?” Emily ask.
“Please.”
“May I give you a hug?” Emily did not wait for a response. She put her arms around Solange. The young woman returned the hug uncomfortably. “You just gave me one of the best surprises I have had in a long time. Of course you can join me, and I’m excited to find another person who likes to walk through houses. These other people think I’m weird.” Emily pointed around the room. “I toured homes in Raleigh for the last three months. It’s how I found Hubba.” She gestured with a tip of her coffee cup to the still sleeping dog. “Seriously, how is he still asleep?”
She looked back at Solange. “Thank you for the coffee. Did you sleep well last night? I hope the kids weren’t too much of a bother.”
“I did sleep well. I have a large family, or I should say I had a large family, and I miss a full house. It was nice to be around people, and wake up with screaming children. I had many nieces and nephews, and during family get togethers, they woke me up early to play. It was a nice memory. I do not know if it will be nice tomorrow, but it was nice today.” She smiled.
The morning proceeded with breakfast. None of the children under 10 wanted to tour the city. Emily and Todd decided to give the kids a pass. The previous day was a long drive, filled with excitement and meeting new people. If the kids wanted one day of playing on the White House lawn or watching television, that was okay.
Emily and Solange spent the morning touring the White House, while the men put together the pizza oven. Melanie and Matt set up a short term coop and pen for the animals.
Melanie and Matt also checked the White House garden for salvageable vegetables. Mel minored in botany at Yale, and Matt, mildly obsessed with farming, tried to learn as much as he could from her.
Peter had yet to make an appearance. He hinted at spending a morning alone, a well earned day of rest after months of looking after children.
The sun was shining, and it was warm by 10am. Late March weather was unpredictable, and the day was on the ‘great’ end of the spectrum. By 10:30 Jake, Jackie, and Casey walked back to their apartment to retrieve shorts and t-shirts.
Lunch was served outside the RV. Emily and Solange located tables and chairs during their tour of the White House press room, and pulled them outside for a picnic. The pizza oven was assembled, and had a fire burning. Todd made pizzas with dough and fresh goat’s milk mozzarella. Peter arrived in time to eat pizza with real cheese.
“Who wants to drive around and haul up fresh Maryland crab for an old fashioned crab boil tonight?” Peter asked. Craig’s hand flew up at the hint of fishing. Matt and John joined him. Todd assumed kid watching duty for the afternoon. Melanie came with Solange and Emily on the second half of their tour.
The women walked to the second floor of the White House to tour the bedrooms.
“Casey has really taken to you, Melanie. You have done an incredible job as her mother. I see you still have a ring on your finger. Did your husband die during the rapture?” Emily felt comfortable being candid under their current situation. In the old world, she never would have asked such a personal question.
“No, he was killed by a drunk driver last May. I don’t know i
f that saved him from the rapture, or if he might have been immune. I was still in shock when the pandemic hit. I wasn’t back to work at the hospital yet. I saw the insanity unfold from the television in my apartment.”
“I’m sorry. We’ve all lost so much from the rapture, we don’t think about all the tragedy before. How long had you been married?” Emily felt bad for prying, but now that the door was open, it would have been impolite to stop talking. “Unless you don’t want to talk about it.”
“No, no, it’s okay. I’ve had a long time to think about him. Peter is wonderful, and has been incredible with the Jones twins and with Casey, but he’s not someone I talk to about personal thoughts. We are a team, and I trust him without reservations, but he’s not a girlfriend kind of talk person.” She smiled at the women as they examined the Lincoln bedroom.
“My husband, David, and I were together for over 10 years. He was in finance, and I was driven by my surgical career. We decided to start a family at this late age, and were glowing with my pregnancy. When he was taken away, well, it was hard.”
“Pregnancy? You were pregnant? You lost your baby and your husband so close together?” Emily asked with confusion.
“Well, I lost David, and my family helped me through the rough time, and then I gave birth to our son, David junior, prematurely, in September. He was six months along, and had a hard road ahead, but he was doing well. The rapture took him before he had a chance.” Melanie sat on the bed. “I still hurt from the loss, and it’s why I have bonded so well with Casey, Jackie, and Jake. I needed children, and they needed a mother. I’m glad for the help now. I’m so tired. I will always love them for helping me through my own loss.” She looked down at her feet before picking her head up. “I almost felt selfish, caring for the children. They were in need of a mom, a parent, an adult, and they thought they were taking from me, but the whole time I was using them to fill up the holes in my heart. I needed them so much more than they needed me.” Melanie’s eyes grew glassy.
