The Hoffmann Plague

by Tony Littlejohns

  After the mad two weeks with the cherries they had a slight hiatus, as the apples and pears wouldn’t be ready for some time yet, though they still had plenty to do in the gardens as more vegetables became ready for harvesting. On one day Jamie made some gun racks for the back of the cab in both trucks to store the rifles and shotguns when they went out, but they used the vehicles only when necessary, to conserve fuel. Whenever they went out locally to check the snares they either walked or took Jamie’s bike. It proved to be too big for Jane, though, so they went to Halfords on the retail park and picked a nice bike for her, along with a rack and some paniers. When they got back Jamie made another wooden carrying platform for it from plywood, as he had done with his own bike.

  While they were there, though, they heard a vehicle drive up and stop nearby- in fact Max heard it well before them and barked softly. They went outside cautiously with their shotguns, to see Phil and Sophie in their old Mondeo so they waved and went over to them.

  ‘We thought that was your truck when we pulled up,’ said Phil, smiling. ‘We were only saying yesterday that we hadn’t seen you in a while. Bill and Emma have been worried that you were okay.’

  It had been over a month since their last visit as they had been so busy working and with all the harvesting they had done. They asked Phil and Sophie to apologise to Bill and Emma for them and explain why, and to say that they would come over tomorrow at noon, which the young couple said they would do. Phil said they had come to stock up on some things from Tesco’s and asked if they had seen the warehouse there, but Jamie said they hadn’t got around to it yet.

  ‘Oh, man, you’ve got to see it! There’s loads of food and drink in there.’ As Jamie had done at Sainsbury’s, Phil had recently broken into the warehouse at the back to find it well-stocked with all manner of food, drinks, clothes and other useful things. Phil walked through the store to open a door in the loading area while the others drove the vehicles round the service road behind the retail park and pulled up outside, where Phil was waiting for them.

  ‘I keep telling Bill he should get his old van fixed and come down here and load it up. He could easily fix it himself, but he hasn’t got around to it yet!’

  They walked into the warehouse and found shelves loaded with all manner of produce. There were trolleys there so they all went along the aisles and loaded up with dried goods, tinned foods, cured meats such as whole salamis and chorizos, cases of wines and spirits and packs of bottled water. It was a huge warehouse- far bigger than Sainsbury’s- and it took them a good while to find everything and load it into the vehicles. When they couldn’t fit any more into the truck they said goodbye to Phil and Sophie, saying they’d see them at noon the next day. They drove home feeling pleased with their haul and unloaded everything between both houses.

  Their reunion with Bill and Emma the following day was a happy one. It seemed far longer than the month or so since they had seen them and Jamie even got a big bear-hug from Bill. Sally was delighted to see Max again and played in the yard with him while the adults went inside. Emma took Jane to one side and told her that Sally had had her first period the week before; she had tears in her eyes.

  ‘Thanks so much for the things you brought for her weeks ago. I’d told her long ago what to expect and explained everything to her, but she was still a bit scared when it happened, bless her.’ Jane had tears in her eyes also and hugged Emma. When Sally came in shortly from playing with Max, Jane thought she detected a hint of new maturity about her in the way she acted and held herself. The end of innocence, she thought.

  They sat around the kitchen table and had a good talk while the food cooked. Having been forewarned of their visit by Phil and Sophie, Emma had defrosted some meat and was cooking a big pork roast, which smelled great. Jamie and Jane apologised again for not coming sooner, but Bill and Emma understood perfectly. They were pleased things were going well for them generally and that they’d managed to harvest and store so much fruit, and commiserated with them when they heard how they were struggling sometimes to get enough meat. They had been busy themselves with harvesting in previous weeks and had had their own share of disappointments, too.

  Jamie told them what they’d been up to, including their second visit to Battle, the run-in with the lads there and Jane’s shooting skills.

  ‘You should have seen him flinch and duck when I put a bullet a few inches past his left ear,’ said Jane. ‘I bet he had to go home and change his trousers!’ They all laughed.

  She told them about meeting Sarah and Georgie at The Colonnade and then the sisters coming round to see them for a meal. When Jane said where they lived and what they used to do, Bill realised that he knew them.

  ‘Well,’ he said, ‘I don’t really know them as such, but I met them once, briefly. I sent Phil and Sophie over to their place early last year for a weekend poultry-keeping course. They both said the sisters were lovely and it was a good course. I’m pleased they’ve survived and are doing okay. Phil and Sophie will be, too, I’m sure.’

  ‘We were thinking,’ said Jane, ‘that it would be nice for us all to get together one day for a meal.’ Bill and Emma said they’d like that.

  ‘Well, we’re going over to theirs for lunch next week, so why don’t we arrange it now, so we can tell them when we go over there? You could all come over to ours, as you haven’t seen our place yet.’ They all agreed it was a great idea and arranged a date for two weeks’ time.

  Bill smiled. ‘That gives me an excuse for getting the old van fixed and back on the road! I’ve been meaning to do it for ages, but kept putting it off.’

  When Phil and Sophie came in from working out on the farm Bill told them the news about Sarah and Georgie and they were both happy to hear it. Jamie and Jane stayed for a couple of hours and had a lovely meal with them, then said that they’d better be heading back as there was work to do. Jamie returned Bill’s jerrycan and thanked him, but Bill went over to the diesel tank, refilled it then gave it back to him. ‘Keep it in the truck for emergencies, mate.’

  Jamie thanked him and then they all said goodbye and hugged each other before driving away. They stopped off on the way back to check the snares, but there were no rabbits caught in them.

  ‘Oh, bloody hell, Jane!’ exclaimed Jamie angrily. ‘What is it? Are we doing something wrong?’

  ‘I don’t know, hon. I mean, I don’t think so. I’m no expert, but as far as I’m concerned we’re doing everything right. It’s how I remember my dad doing it and we’re laying them like it says in the books. I suspect it’s just not a foolproof method of hunting and has a low success rate. The snares can be knocked over; the hoop has to be at just the right height to catch whatever size of rabbit is running through it; and if the rabbit doesn’t go through cleanly the snare can miss it, etc., etc. I don’t think we’re doing too badly really, Jamie. It’s just a bit hit-and-miss: sometimes we get a few and sometimes we don’t. We just have to persevere and to look at it like anything we get is a bonus.’

  Jamie sighed. ‘I suppose so. I’m sure you’re right, darlin’, and sorry I snapped.’ He kissed her and she smiled and waved her hand to brush it away.

  They left for home and went back to work in the garden. After finishing their work for the day they cooked a meal and then went for a walk along the beach with Max to watch the sun set behind Beachy Head.

  Over the next week they had two days with some heavy rainfall, which was good news as the water-butts got topped-up, but it made working in the garden a muddy affair. Jane seemed down and rather withdrawn all week, and spent the nights at her place on her own. When Jamie asked her if everything was okay she gave him a weak smile and said it had been both her mum’s and her sister Kate’s birthdays that week. He held her tight, stroking her hair and comforting her as she cried into his chest for a long time.

  On the night before their visit to Sarah and Georgie’s he was lying alone in bed when he heard the back door open and close; Max didn’t bark so he knew it was Jane. She c
ame in and got undressed, slipped into bed beside him and held him close.

  ‘Mum and Kate’s birthdays aren’t the only reason I’ve been withdrawn recently,’ she said softly to him. ‘Jamie… I’m pregnant.’

  Nineteen

  ‘Oh my God!’ said Jamie, spinning in her arms to face her in the dark. ‘How… I mean… Are you sure?’

  ‘I’m pretty sure,’ she replied. ‘I’m over two weeks late. The only time in my life I’ve ever been that late before was when I fell pregnant with my ex, about seven years ago, but I miscarried after a few weeks. Also, I was sick this morning.’

  ‘Bloody hell!’ said Jamie, and then fumbled in the dark to light a candle by the bedside. They sat up and he held her hand. ‘I thought we’d been careful,’ he said.

  ‘So did I;’ she replied, ‘but obviously not careful enough! I’ve calculated in my mind and it must have been near the end of June; around when we met Sarah and Georgie.’

  ‘Wow! How do you feel about it?’

  ‘I don’t know… torn in two, I guess... And confused and terrified! That’s why I’ve been so down and withdrawn recently; as well as Mum and Kate, of course. I mean… I’ve always wanted kids. It didn’t happen with my ex, which was probably a good thing because he turned out to be not very nice. After we split up I threw myself into work for many years and never really met anyone else, so I thought I’d probably missed the boat as far as children were concerned. I don’t know… If I’d met you a few years ago and this had happened, I would have been over the moon; but now? I mean, what sort of a world is this to be bringing a child into?’

  ‘Well, on that argument, I’ve met couples over the years who were saying the same thing before we had the plague! And if you went back to the fourteenth century and the original Black Death you’d probably have found people having the same conversation back then.’

  ‘Maybe; but still... And the way things are now, there’s almost no one left alive; there are no hospitals or doctors, or anything. How do you feel about it?’

  ‘I’m not sure, but I think I need a drink!’ He got up and put on his dressing-gown to go to the kitchen. ‘Pour me a small one, too, please,’ said Jane and he nodded.

  The kitchen was still warm from the stove’s heat and he poured two glasses of cognac then sat on the sofa in the conservatory. Max could sense that something wasn’t right and he came up and rested his head on Jamie’s thigh, whining softly. Jamie stroked his head and then Jane came in wearing her bath robe, sat next to him and cuddled up. Max nuzzled her leg and she stroked him, too. Jamie passed her a cognac and they clinked glasses.

  ‘I’m scared, Jamie… really scared.’

  ‘So am I, hon. I mean…’ He struggled to find what to say. ‘I feel pretty much the same as you do, I suppose: if this had happened a few years ago… etc. When I was married there came a time when my wife wanted kids and I didn’t. Years after we’d split up I realised I did want kids, but just hadn’t wanted them with her… Hindsight’s a wonderful thing! For years I’ve thought that I’d love to have a little girl, but I’ve never met anyone since that I would have had kids with until meeting you. So now, here we are; faced with the reality of what we’ve both wanted for a long time…’

  ‘But the timing couldn’t be much worse, could it? There are no doctors or hospitals… what if there are complications?’

  ‘I don’t know, Jane, I really don’t. Part of me would love to have a child with you, but I know what you mean. I’d much rather lose the baby than lose you; I couldn’t bear that.’ He had tears in his eyes and held her tight against him, and they kissed tenderly.

  ‘I suppose we’ve also got Emma and Sarah for advice and help, as they’ve both had kids,’ he said, and Jane nodded. ‘I mean, we only have two options, really, don’t we? We can either let nature take its course, or we can try to abort it… and if we tried that God knows what might happen! That could be even more dangerous than actually having the baby, couldn’t it?’

  ‘Yes, I think it could be,’ she replied.

  Jamie sighed. ‘Well, then… I guess we’re having a baby!’ Jane wiped tears from her eyes, smiled at him and they kissed again. They raised their glasses and Jamie said ‘Here’s to us, and to new life in a world turned to hell!’

  ‘To us, and to new life!’ Jane repeated and they clinked glasses again. Max didn’t know what was happening, but he barked and wagged his tail anyway. They finished their drinks and went back to bed, with Jane feeling so much better now that she’d got things off her chest and it was out in the open. She was also relieved and overjoyed at Jamie’s reaction to the news.

  In the morning they went down to the sea together to bathe and then made coffee and breakfast. Sarah and Georgie were expecting them at midday, so they spent a few hours harvesting and preserving some vegetables. They still had some time to kill and it wasn’t worth getting dirty in the garden, so they took Max down to the beach for some exercise with a ball and gave him a good run around.

  They left at about 11.40 and took the BMW, with Max in the load area and their shotguns on the back seat. They decided to drive through the Old Town to Sidley as neither had been up that way since the plague had hit the area. They drove along West Parade and Marina, turning left up Sea Road towards the Old Town and then down Holliers Hill to Bexhill Hospital.

  What they saw there made them gasp and stop the car. The grassy slope by the middle hospital building was maybe thirty yards by fifty and it was full of body bags. There were hundreds lined up on the grass. Some had been ripped open, maybe by foxes or seagulls, and human remains were scattered around. Huge clouds of flies hovered in the air above them.

  They looked on aghast. Obviously, they knew what the death-toll had been because Bexhill had become a ghost-town, but if they’d needed any reminder then this was it. Their experience of the devastation had been limited to individual bodies or family groups in the houses they’d been into, and occasionally in the streets, but this was far different. It brought it home to them in a different way, somehow. The hospital and local authorities just hadn’t had the time, the means or the manpower to dispose of all the bodies because of how quickly people were dying, before it was too late. Screens had been erected around the area to hide the sight from the road, but most had collapsed or been blown over by storms.

  ‘And just imagine,’ Jamie said, ‘what it must look like in Hastings and Eastbourne, which are well over twice the size of Bexhill… or in London.’

  ‘I don’t even want to think of that! Come on, Jamie, let’s get away from here.’

  Jamie put the car in gear and drove off slowly. They crested the hill and down the other side to the bottom of Sidley, turned right and on into the high street. As they drove up it they saw that many shop windows were smashed, or doors standing open. Half-empty rubbish bags littered the pavements and road, having fallen out of wheelie-bins that lay on their sides and been torn open by seagulls. They carried on to the top of the high street then turned right just after the mini-roundabout into Watermill Lane and down the hill. Jamie pulled over at the bottom and started crying.

  ‘My brother’s house is down there,’ he said between tears, pointing off to the right. He hadn’t been there since it all began. Jane leaned over and hugged him with tears in her eyes also.

  ‘Oh, honey, I’m sorry. Do you want to go in, while we’re here?’

  Jamie shook his head emphatically. ‘No, I couldn’t bear to see him like that. I’d rather remember him the way he was.’

  ‘D’you want me to drive the rest of the way?’ Jamie shook his head and wiped his eyes. ‘No, it’s okay; it’s not much further.’

  They carried on and the road soon became a narrow and twisty country lane. The sisters had given them accurate directions and after a mile or two they found the entrance to the place. The gate had been left open for them and they stopped inside, closing it behind them, then drove up the lane to the house. There was a parking area to one side and they stopped the car and got out
. Georgie and Sarah came out to meet them and when Jane opened the door for Max he jumped out and ran over to the women, who made a fuss of him. The sisters greeted them warmly and they hugged each other then went into the house to sit around the kitchen table. It was hot in there as the Aga was running, but the windows were open. Jane gave the sisters two bottles of wine and they both thanked them. It was obvious that some cloud was hanging over Jamie and Jane, and that he had been crying.

  ‘Is everything okay?’ asked Georgie. ‘You both look troubled.’

  ‘Well, we’ve just driven past Jamie’s brother’s house; it’s the first time he’s been up here since it happened,’ replied Jane.

  ‘Oh, you poor thing,’ said Sarah, reaching over to put her hand on his. Georgie said how sorry she was, too.

  ‘Thanks,’ said Jamie. ‘I’ll be okay; it just brought it all back to me. Plus, we’d also just driven past the hospital and seen all the bodies for the first time.’

  ‘I know;’ said Georgie, ‘we’ve been past there ourselves. It’s a hell of a sight, isn’t it?’

  ‘It’s odd, you know;’ said Jane, ‘we knew the extent of the deaths because there’s no one around any more… but we’d only seen single people or families in the houses we went in. Suddenly seeing hundreds lined up like that was a real shock to us.’

  ‘I’m sure it was,’ said Sarah. ‘Our father knew people in authority and he was told early on that they were digging mass graves in a secret location somewhere, but most of them either didn’t get finished or didn’t get filled before it was too late. The hospitals at Eastbourne, Hastings and Bexhill were swamped and they were turning people away as there weren’t enough beds, facilities or staff to cope with them all. Most people just went home to die as there was nothing that could be done.’ She shook her head then got up and came back with a bottle of whisky and four glasses, but Jane declined.