Not Dead in the Heart of Dixie

by R Kralik

  We had four wheelbarrow loads of food we didn't have room for, so we took it to the tornado shelter.

  Jesse cut a door in the back of the tractor shed so Buttercup could get shelter if she needs it. He untied her rope and she stayed right there, in the field, to graze the areas she hasn't gotten to yet.

  The guys put a makeshift tree stand in a big oak tree just inside the tree-line. It's a perfect spot because it overlooks the entire front of the property. That will be Dane's perch for viewing the road and hillside, and storing his small arsenal.

  We put tools from the garage and all our smaller gas cans in the truck beds. We added all of our chemicals, topsoil, pots, potting soil, and fertilizer.

  We loaded the Kubota onto the flatbed trailer and filled space around it with our empty blue water barrels. Jeremy drove the truck down to the pool and siphoned water directly into the barrels. The men strapped the Kubota and the water barrels down to the trailer.

  Dane loaded the propane tank from Clinic Diane on back of the hoist truck. He said Mr. Hobbs could drive it to Pop and Nana's.

  The moat is almost three feet deep and there are small tarps arranged for gasoline pooling on the floor. We left three full gas cans for Dane to pour in the moat when he hears Mick's warning shot.

  The older kids got 129 bamboo stakes in place along the fence line and the opposite side of the road.

  Dane came inside around 5:00 and told us that no one is allowed anywhere on the hillside except for a straight path down the driveway to their assigned vehicle. Mick and the guys had the vehicles lined up and ready to pull out.

  Dane told us that the tornado shelter, Marisa's old house trailer, and the Hobbs house have been rigged with explosives. He then disappeared with several cans of pork 'n beans, a gallon jug of water, his multi-tool, and a plastic Spork. We didn't see him again.

  We loaded all the goats along with their feed dishes and water dishes into the goat trailer. We strapped three square bales of hay and two 50 lb bags of pellet feed on top. The chickens were placed in a big cardboard box on the back-seat of the Silverado.

  Each of us was responsible for our own weapons, and the extra ammo is near the front seat in Pop's motorhome.

  We walked out the door, loaded into our assigned vehicles, and pulled out. It took only forty minutes to get here and get the vehicles around to the back of the house.

  After Mick's crazy stunt, everyone came inside and the kids had a cup of warm milk. They're asleep on pallets on the floor.

  Nana and Pop are asleep in their bedroom and the rest of us are laying on any piece of furniture, or bed, that we find comfortable. If I can get Carisa out of the chair, I'll send her to my old room where Valerie and Merry are trying to sleep..

  Pop said he thought he heard an explosion from the direction of town a few minutes ago. Town is a farther distance from Pop's house than it is from mine.

  So, here we sit.

  I think the Xanax is making me a little loopy because it's been a while since I've taken one. I'll try to find a place to lie down and worry because I know I won't sleep.

  Bye for now.

  Monday, February 24

  8:00 AM...

  Mick and Dane are in the middle of a fight right now, or they're dead and our home is burning down. I don't care if the whole damn hillside has been blown to smithereens as long as I have Mick safe and back in my arms.

  I'm a nervous wreck and everyone else is just as nervous as I am. Jason says, if we don't hear from them by 11:00, he's gonna take the Jeep and see what it looks like over there. Marisa wants him to wait 'til noon, but I don't think we'll be able to hold him back that long.

  Nana made ham and cheese omelets with half fresh eggs, half powdered eggs, for breakfast this morning. Everyone cleaned their plates but our appetites were not as voracious as usual.

  The chickens haven't laid any eggs this morning. I'm sure they're freaked out. Even the goats are rebelling and holding back a little on the milk, but we still got plenty for breakfast.

  Pop has been gathering things from the house and poking them in any tiny space he can find in the motorhome. I guess he needs something familiar around and wants to save the family heirlooms. I'm wondering if he thinks he'll never come back here.

  There's no room in Pop's motorhome or Clinic Diane because of all our belongings, so the house is packed with people. We couldn't stay here for a long period of time. We're tripping all over each another and the dogs. There's no water source nearby and no protective fencing. I want my husband, and then I want my house. I'm about to pull my hair out.

  The kids are irritable and fighting more than usual. Marisa's about to pull her hair out.

  Carisa found a calico cat in the backyard. I guess we'll be taking her back with us. She's really sweet and has a cuddly personality. Carisa's already in love with her and has named her "Autumn." Opie and Tig wanna kiss her but she hisses and smacks them in the nose. I think there is a scar on her belly from being spayed. Hopefully, I'm right.

  I'm headed out to the sun room so I can watch the driveway for Mick and Dane. See ya later.

  1:00 PM...

  Dane and Mick are here. Jason met them about two miles from our house.

  Mick is hurt. Hisa wants me to bring the big first aid kit out to the dining room table along with the thread and hook she used when she had to sew up Jeremy's leg.

  I'm in here to grab the kit while the men are bringing him in.

  He’s covered with blood, and he's unconscious. I'm scared.

  7:30 PM...

  Right now, I'm sitting in my own bedroom, watching Mick moan and jerk. I have Dane's version of the story but I don't have Mick's because he's still semi-unconscious.

  Mick has a huge knot on the side of his head and Hisa assumes that's the cause of his unconsciousness. She wants me to try to wake him every thirty minutes or so.

  He's been hit, or punched, many times on his face and neck.

  His nose has a cut across the bridge and it’s swollen to twice its normal size. Hisa says it's broken and she put it "back in place" the best she could and taped it.

  Both eyes are swollen. I don't know if he's able to see.

  He has a deep cut that needed six stitches under his left eye.

  He also has a cut on his left bicep that required stitches. He has a deep puncture wound in his right calf and we think he got it from one of the bamboo stakes. I can't describe everything Hisa cleaned out of it. I'm afraid to think about what it was.

  His ribs are badly bruised but Hisa says they aren't broken.

  Lastly, he has a gunshot wound in his left hip and Hisa had to dig the bullet out. He called my name once, while she was digging around in there, and it broke my heart in a gazillion pieces because I couldn't help him. The pain was probably excruciating, but he wasn't awake to scream.

  He moaned and shifted from side to side the entire time she was working on him, but he didn't wake up.

  We crushed antibiotic tablets, put them in water, and dropped the mixture into his cheek with an eyedropper. He isn't having any trouble with his swallowing reflex, thank goodness. Hisa has him hooked up to a bag of fluids because he can't eat or drink on his own. We don't have any antibiotics that can be given by IV.

  Hisa says her biggest concern is his unconsciousness and the lump on his head. She's also showing quite a bit of concern for the puncture wound, and checks it constantly.

  Dane has a long cut on the side of his head where he swiped it against a tree branch. He said the blood on his shirt is from a busted nose (not his) and he feels fine, but weak. There's black goo all over the sleeves of his coat and half-way down his jeans.

  He has a broken ring finger that he got while trying to wrestle a pistol from one of the gang members. Dane said they finally split it evenly between them. He got the pistol and the gang member got the bullet.

  Hisa splinted the finger with Popsicle sticks and taped it up.

  She insisted on using stitches to close the slash on his head.


  He's limping because he has a swollen knee caused by slamming into one of fence posts while he was head-bashing HDI's. Elaine is fawning over him and they're back at the Hobbs place.

  Buttercup has a shallow bullet wound in her shoulder, scratches on her chest, and a few burned spots on her legs. Hisa cleaned her burns and put human burn ointment on them. She removed the bullet and stitched the bullet hole.

  Buttercup didn't like the attention, and it took four men to hold her while Hisa tended to her wounds. She is wide-eyed and easily startled.

  Dane said that Buttercup saved Mick's life. He also said that most of the horde is continuing west, but won't have the company of several gang members as well as a good number of horde members.

  The S10 has bullet holes and HDI goo all over it. I don't know what to call it other than "goo." It's thick, sticky, and black with tiny red veins mixed in. It oozes from the wounds on an HDI's body and probably contains a bit of HDI flesh as well... and it stinks.

  Marisa's house trailer is almost burned to the ground and parts of it are laying in the field across the road and up our hillside. She's having a hissy fit because we forgot to get the gas oven out before we left.

  Mr. Hobbs and Soo plan to completely empty the pool and bleach it because there is a lot ash floating on top. Thank goodness there are no HDI parts.

  There are bodies and a number of wrecked motorcycles all along the fence line.

  There's a few small fires still burning in the moat and a couple of large burn spots on the ground. It looks like the dead grass burned for a little while and was stomped out by HDI's.

  From the middle of the hill to the house at the top looks as if nothing happened. It's like stepping into a different world.

  I can't recall eating anything since this morning, so I'm going to grab a sugary Little Debbie Cake and some strong coffee to keep myself awake.

  11:45 PM...

  I'm still sitting with Mick. He opened his eyes once, looked at me for few seconds, and then closed them again. They’re so swollen that I could barely tell they were open.

  Hisa says he has a concussion. The only thing I can do is follow her instructions. I love him so much and I'm very afraid of losing him.

  Bye for now.

  Tuesday, February 25

  7:30 AM...

  Carisa just brought a coffee and a couple of buttered biscuits.

  Mick opened his eyes two more times and looked at me last night. He didn't keep them open.

  He tried to roll onto his side once, but quickly abandoned the idea. I'm guessing the pain in his hip told his reflexes to retreat.

  I had Carisa bring in a bucket for potty time. So far, Mick hasn't gone yellow potty and that worries me because he's on his second bag of fluids.

  He's moving around quite a bit and seems to avoid putting any pressure on his wounds. Hisa says it's a good sign.

  My face feels like it has been pinned to my head.

  My eyes want to close but I won't let them. I have to keep watching him. I have to be awake when he opens his eyes to look at me. I've been talking to him, and hoping for a response every time I say a word.

  I told Carisa to keep my coffee cup full. She looks worried, probably as much about me as she is about him.

  I'm feeling shaky, so I'm gonna sit here, eat these biscuits, and try to get control of my emotions. I just want to shake the bed really hard and scream at him to wake up.

  Maybe I'll get up and pace. Yep, that's what I'll do.

  12:30 PM...

  Hisa came in to tell me that she was taking over for a couple of hours and that I needed to lie down and get some sleep. I can't sleep. I can't lie down.

  I told her to give me a few more hours and then I'll lie down beside him while she watches over us. She agreed to wait two hours.

  Why won't he wake up?

  He finally went yellow potty this morning and I had to clean the bed and change the sheets because I didn't catch the signals. Thank goodness for Hisa's plastic liner suggestion. Mick will be royally ticked off. Oh Lord, please let him wake up and get royally ticked off!

  Carisa brought a plate of rice covered with beef stew about an hour ago. I was able to eat half of it. Hisa won't let me have coffee. I feel like I'm melting into the pattern of the warm quilt on top of Mick.

  O M G. He just kicked that quilt off his leg! Oh Lord, I hope he’s waking up.

  3:00 PM...

  No, he didn't wake up.

  Hisa's here, and I'm crawling into bed beside him. I can't keep my eyes open any longer but I can't be away from him. I'm gonna sleep for a couple of hours. I'll forgive him if he decides to wake up while I'm asleep. Hisa promised that if he woke up and I didn't, she'd wake me immediately. I just want him to wake up!

  8:30 PM...

  I woke a few minutes ago and Mick's arm was across my stomach. For a moment, I thought it was any other morning but I came back to reality pretty fast.

  Hisa says I can have coffee again. I plan to stay awake through the night, so I'll need a gallon or so.

  My days and nights are running together. The only reason I know the correct time is by looking at the clock on this computer.

  The windows are still boarded up and it's dark in here all the time. I feel a little better since I got some rest. I don't think I'm slurring my words anymore.

  Soo and Jason had to shoot six, straggler HDI's this afternoon. They've been loading HDI's and gang members bodies all day, taking them to the power line clearing to burn them. Seven of them were gang members. Good riddance to bad rubbish.

  Soo said there was a total of nine motorcycles along the road, in the tree-line, and in the moat. That'll take the gangs numbers down quite a bit and make it a little safer for my sister's group.

  Marisa's coming in to sit with me for an hour or two and I need the company. Thank the Lord for daughters and medics!

  Wednesday, February 26

  3:35 AM...

  Mick just looked at me and said "Hi Honey, I'm home." I'm in shock. Should I get up and go over there? He's reaching out his hand... Yes… I'm going over there.

  11:00 AM...

  Yahoo! Mick ate breakfast on his own.

  He wanted oatmeal but Hisa wouldn't allow it because she thought it would be too heavy on his stomach.

  I plugged the toaster into the power strip for the generator and toasted the last plain bagel I had in the freezer. I added a little strawberry jam and he gobbled it down faster than he should have. It made him a little queasy. He wanted coffee. Hisa said that was fine, but he can have only one cup if it's caffeinated.

  He's having trouble getting out of bed and is absolutely furious that he has to pee in a gallon jug. He says his hip and calf are killing him, but he's gonna sit down for brown potty no matter what anyone says.

  His broken nose isn't bothering him at all, but the tape on it is driving him bonkers.

  We've been talking since he woke up this morning and now I have the whole story. I'll write it out later today if I can sit up straight in this chair.

  I feel like a huge weight has been lifted since Mick woke up. I'm more tired than I've ever been in my life. Mick is awake! Thank you, Lord!

  His wounds are healing nicely, but the area around the puncture wound is a little red and inflamed. It's oozing a tiny bit of pus and clear liquid. Hisa started him on a stronger antibiotic. She thinks the wound might be getting infected and wants to nip it in the bud as quickly as possible. We have to clean the wound three times a day instead of twice a day.

  I'm completely exhausted and have no energy, so I think I'll lie down and nap with him. Hisa finally gave him something for the pain and it's making him loopy and tired. I am so happy to have him back. See ya later.

  6:15 PM...

  That was a mighty good nap but I feel like I have a hangover.

  Carisa came in to ask if she could sit with Mick while I go out and have supper with the rest of the group. I think it's a good idea and I'm gonna take her up on it. See ya la
ter.

  10:00 PM...

  I promised to write it out, so here's a compilation of Mick and Dane's stories about what happened after we left to avoid the horde.

  Dane sat in a lawn chair near the pool, waiting for Mick's signal that the horde was approaching. He'd been sitting there all night, studying the landscape around him.

  As soon as he heard the warning shot he poured gasoline into the moat and climbed up into the tree stand with his little arsenal of weapons. He had everything ready and felt a bit of excitement about the challenge ahead.

  He knew the horde and gang wouldn't pass by peacefully because the sun had come up.

  The house at the top of the hill along with the newly installed fence surrounding it was as telling as a newspaper boy screaming out "Survivors here, read all about it!"

  He heard a vehicle approaching from the opposite direction and was surprised to see the S10 with Mick driving.

  Mick parked beside Marisa's trailer and went over to talk to Dane. He told Dane that he was there to back him up in case of problems. Dane tried to tell him to get the hell outa there but Mick wouldn't budge. They argued a little but neither man would give in.

  Neither of them intended to fight unless the driveway or fence was breached and the house was in danger. They both knew it was going to happen, but neither of them would admit it.

  Finally, Dane saw the front lines of the horde approaching.

  They came closer as the sun rose slightly higher in the sky and he could hear their snarls, moans, and footsteps on the roadway as they came marching toward him like an army of the undead.

  The HDI's at the center front looked almost like they were hypnotized. The line stretched across the entire road and out about twenty feet on each side. He prepared himself for battle and decided to go "all in" because he didn't believe that he would "come out of it alive and kickin' but was sure gonna try."

  Mick was hiding in the tree-line on our left.