Not Dead in the Heart of Dixie

by R Kralik

  The HDI's were only ten feet away from Jason and moving fast. The sound of their howling, snarling, and gurgling rose greatly in volume when they began rushing toward him. He had no choice. He had to shoot.

  Jason used his pistol to take both of them out. They hit the ground for good and Jason turned to find three prisoners aiming pistols straight toward him. "Who the hell are you and what are you doin' here?" one of them asked. Jason was about to answer with a lame excuse that he was traveling alone, looking for food, when Jesse called out from the edge of the meadow. That was all it took.

  One of the prisoners fired as Jason ducked and sprinted through the trees, zigging and zagging with armed prisoners following. He could see Jesse's shadow a few feet inside the tree-line. Several of the men saw it too, and began shooting towards Jesse.

  Jason figures their bullets missed because of the dark night, the distance, and the inability to determine what was a tree and what was Jesse.

  Jason saw Jesse take cover behind a large pine tree and he headed towards it. He came up beside Jesse and told him to run into the tall grass on the edge of the meadow and drop down to crawl toward the tractor shed until the rest of our men could get there. Jason knew that the men would come running.

  He could hear the prisoners coming through the woods, cursing and shooting while they walked.

  Jason and Jesse were almost to the meadow when they saw a large group of HDI's approaching from the left. His heart felt like it dropped into his stomach and he told Jesse to keep going toward the tractor shed. He said there was somewhere between twelve and fifteen HDI's, but he couldn't get an accurate count because it was dark and the HDI's were on the move.

  When the prisoners came out of the trees and into the meadow, the HDI's spotted them and began heading towards them. The prisoners didn't even notice the HDI's until they were twenty or so feet away and began howling and snarling. The prisoners changed direction and were shooting toward the HDI's.

  Jason and Jesse crawled into the woods at the right side of the property and climbed a large oak tree. They hid behind the branches while they watched two prisoners get ripped apart and eaten by HDI's. The remaining prisoners split up and headed in different directions with HDI's close on their heels. Jesse says those were the fastest HDI's he'd ever seen.

  Screaming, shooting, snarling, and howling was echoing all over the meadow. Jesse saw and heard the large shadow of Buttercup running toward the tractor shed. She stopped once and reared up on her back legs before she continued running.

  They heard gunshots coming from the area of the tractor shed. They knew that our men had arrived, and almost climbed down from the tree. Jason suddenly threw his hand up to motion for Jesse to stop. There was another large group of HDI's walking underneath the tree, headed toward the meadow and the sounds of slaughter.

  Jason had trouble deciding what to do. He thought that, if he and Jesse started shooting HDI's, our men might think the prisoners were up in the tree. He stood up on the branch and yelled as loud as he could "There's HDI's in the woods to your left. Me and Jesse are gonna try to shoot 'em." He prayed that our men heard him. The HDI's certainly heard him and began trying to climb the tree.

  It was the easiest battle he's had since shooting HDI's at his ex-wife's house. As each HDI tilted their head to look up, Jason or Jesse shot them square in the face.

  When no more HDI's came to the base of the tree, Jesse and Jason climbed down. They counted 16 dead HDI's around the tree, then turned their attention back to the tractor shed and headed toward Mick to tell him what had happened. He sent them to the tree-line so the meadow would be surrounded by our group.

  That's about the time I showed up.

  It wasn't long before the sun showed itself, but it felt like forever. We could see across the entire meadow. Suddenly, Jesse screamed and fell to the ground. Jason rushed over to him and saw blood spreading across the left side of his shirt. Jason panicked and screamed "Jesse's shot!"

  Mr. Hobbs took off across the meadow, running toward the direction of Jason's voice. As he ran, someone from the other side of the meadow sent several shots his way. Mick used the sites on his rifle to find the shooter. It took a few seconds before he saw the tall grass swaying in a small area. He aimed the AR-15 and sprayed the area with .223. The grass stopped moving and the gunfire ended.

  Mr. Hobbs and Jason were carrying Jesse toward the tractor shed while Mick crept toward the grassy area where he'd last seen movement. A couple of his shots had found their mark and the shooter was lying on the ground, crying in pain and praying for forgiveness of all his sins.

  He quickly faded away and was dead when Mick knelt to check his pulse. Mick stood and put a bullet in the man's head, just in case he'd been bitten and might rise back up.

  The sun was up. Mick and I were able to see bodies all over the meadow as we cautiously walked the perimeter.

  There were both HDI's, and uninfected strangers.

  Jason and Soo went back to the campfire and loaded all the supplies in the wheelbarrow and onto the horses. Most of the backpacks and saddle bags contained bottles of liquor and pouches of tobacco. There was a small amount of junk food mixed in. There were two squirrels burned to a crisp over the hot coals.

  The most valuable thing we got from them was several boxes of ammo and their rifles and pistols. We added them to our hidden arsenal and ammo shelves in the back corner of the basement.

  We know nothing else about the prisoners. None of them had identification on their bodies or in their packs.

  Soo and Jason brought the horses back to the meadow and introduced them to Buttercup. There are two mares and a gelding. There was a little bit of territorial arguing, but all four horses seemed to be getting along when I came inside to sleep.

  I hear people stirring in the house, so I’m headed out to make muffins. I'll take several to Clinic Diane where Jesse and Pop are being cared for.

  Hisa says she believes they will both make it but it’s going to be a long time before either of them is back on their feet. Nana and Elaine are there to help.

  My back is hurting and I have scratches and bruises all over my stomach and chest from being dragged along the ground and through the fire pit. I really did a number on my hands by using the boat paddle to vigorously beat the crap out of the guy who dragged me across the backyard. My palms are covered in blisters and splinters.

  The remaining members of our group are uninjured.

  Every woman that's able will have kitchen and cleaning duty all day today. Nana, Elaine, and Hisa will be in Clinic Diane, caring for Pop and Jesse.

  We'll also have to do a special load of laundry because the clothing the men are wearing is covered in HDI goo and blood from the body cleanup. We don't wanna leave the clothes until tomorrow because we might not be able to get the filth off them.

  Mr. Hobbs is staying near Clinic Diane, pacing outside the door and waiting for news about his grandson and Pop.

  I had to take a pain pill because my back is hurting and there's no way I can stand at the kitchen counter and stove for hours today without it.

  I don't know how much more of this I can take.

  See ya later.

  11:00 PM...

  Pop is sleeping. He was in a lot of pain and Hisa gave him strong pain medication before she cleaned and stitched his wounds.

  Hisa says the bullets hit no major arteries but healing will take a lot of time. Both bullets went completely through and out the other side.

  Jesse's condition is questionable. Hisa has him on pain medication and the bullet is still inside. She has no idea if any organs were damaged. She can't decide whether to go in after the bullet, or leave it alone. She's afraid she might do more damage than good by attempting to operate. We have no x-ray machine to be able to tell exactly where the bullet lodged or what it hit before stopping. The bleeding has almost stopped, and she's worried he’s bleeding internally. Only time will tell.

  Dane left the compound.

  Two
hours ago, Mick went to stand watch and found a letter from him tacked to the outside of the front door.

  Dane wrote that he was leaving in Marisa's Saturn because it is the quietest vehicle we have. He's headed to the University to get any medical books for Hisa that he can find.

  He also plans to stop at the professional office building where Doctors offices are. He'll bring any books and medical tools he finds form the Doctor's private offices. If there's time, he'll go to the hospital and loot the operating rooms. He wrote that he'd be back before morning.

  Mick said they loaded thirty-two bodies which included twenty-four HDI's and five prisoners from the meadow, and the three prisoners that Pop and I had taken out.

  He said that Pop did major damage to the prisoner in the woods behind the goat pasture. The man was not only shot in several places but he had five or six knife wounds as well. I guess the bayonet in Pop's walking cane got some business.

  They burned the bodies at the power-line clearing a couple of miles away. It took three trips to get them all.

  The fence crew got a makeshift chain-link fence across the entire back of the property. Mick said that Dane worked like a mad man. They worked from noon until well after dark. Twice, they had to stop and shoot HDI's.

  Carisa and I made bunny stew for supper. It wasn't as good as Elaine's but everyone ate their share and Mick said it was really good. I love that man.

  I've made sure that the goats, chickens, horses, and cows have been fed and settled in for the night.

  Let me be honest. I pray that Dane comes home safely with the Saturn full of medical books and supplies, but I wish he hadn't gone off on his own.

  My seventy-year-old Father is laying in Clinic Diane with two bullet holes in his body that he got while saving my life. My seventy-year-old Mother is laying on the floor beside his bed.

  Marisa has worried herself sick and is in bed, refusing to let Jason and the kids leave her side for watch duty, so I will take his shift in a few minutes. I insisted, and he didn't argue. Mick will be with me.

  There's a sixteen-year-old, hard-working young man, who's fighting for his life. His Mother is laying on the floor beside his bed and his Grandfather is pacing outside the clinic in the dark.

  My fifteen-year-old daughter is crying herself to sleep, worried about both of them.

  I have no more words in my head tonight.

  Bye for now.

  Sunday, March 9

  4:00 AM...

  I woke up an hour ago and can't go back to sleep. I'm going to the clinic to insist that Nana goes to her motorhome bed while I watch over Pop until it's time to make breakfast.

  Dane came home a few minutes ago. He has the Saturn packed to the roof with medical books and supplies. He also has a large cardboard box full of medication samples tied to the Saturn roof with strips of cloth from hospital bed sheets. He stopped to grab a bottle of water before he heads over to the clinic to leave the Saturn for someone else to unload.

  He's covered in blood, sweat, dirt, and goo. I didn't ask how or why.

  He's heading straight back out to get trailers. I asked if he wanted a change of clothes and he told me there wasn't time because he plans to get every trailer we need today.

  Mick and Jeremy are going with him, and they'll be working through breakfast and lunch. I told them that I'll have bagged food ready for them to pick up at breakfast and lunch time.

  9:30 AM...

  Breakfast is over. I went out to feed and water the animals while Carisa, Valerie, and Merry cleaned the kitchen.

  Dane, Mick, and Jeremy have two trailers in the ditch, and they're back out for more. I gave them each a plastic spoon, a bottle of water, and a short thermos full of oatmeal to take with them.

  Nana took a large serving bowl full of oatmeal back to Clinic Diane. Hisa and Elaine will be eating with her. Pop was still sleeping when I left this morning. He moaned a couple of times in his sleep but that was all I heard out of him. Hisa plans to clean his wounds and change his bandages while Nana’s there to help.

  Jesse cried and whimpered while I was there. He woke up once, and I could tell that he's in a lot of pain. Hisa gave him two pain pills and he was sleeping soundly about 45 minutes later. He has a low-grade fever and Hisa is worried.

  She asked if she could have a few of my blue Xanax pills for Elaine and, of course, I said yes. I told her I'd send Carisa over with them later.

  Elaine has dark circles under her eyes and she’s moving slow. She won't let go of Jesse's hand. She answered every question I asked with only "yes," or "no."

  Mr. Hobbs was asleep in a lawn chair, leaning up against the clinic, when Dane and I drove up. I sent him to my house to get some sleep on the couch.

  Marisa, Jason, and the kids were all here for breakfast. Marisa broke down and cried, telling me she can't stand it anymore. I told her she had no choice and she better straighten herself up because Jason and the kids depend on her.

  I told her it'll get better after the fence is up and we have some sort of protection around us. She listened, and seemed to settle down after we finished eating. She's outside doing laundry. I think she needs to stay busy. Soo and Jason are helping her.

  I'm depressed and grumpy. I need to find something to do.

  I think I'll ask Rebecca to take Soo's place at laundry duty so he can take me, Deuce, and Valerie over to the Masterson place to load up the insta-food and supplies that are still there.

  I'm gonna wake Mr. Hobbs and tell him to keep watch over the hill while Jason keeps watch over the rear. I'll take Mr. Hobbs place standing watch when I get back from the Masterson house. I plan to have Deuce stand watch with me. We need him. Marisa can join Jason for watch duty when she finishes the laundry. Soo can take someone's place as well.

  Rebecca, Valerie, Carisa, and Merry plan to make lunch with some of the insta-food we get at from the Masterson house. Rebecca says there are clear directions for preparation on every package. She wants to make spaghetti and I told her that was fine. I told Carisa to make sure there are three thermoses full and ready for Mick, Dane, and Jeremy. She'll throw forks, salt, pepper, and water into a small cooler for them as well.

  See ya later.

  10:00 PM...

  We had beef stew and cornbread for supper. The beef stew was from the restaurant haul and wasn't as good as homemade, but it filled our tummies.

  There was a lot of insta-food at the Masterson place. Rebecca said her father had purchased a kit that was supposed to feed four people for one year. It was obvious that there wasn't enough to last that long. But hey, it’s more insta-food than we had before, right? Our group might get three weeks out of it if we stretch it with other things.

  There's almost 75 cases of bottled water there. That's a huge blessing. We took several cases to Clinic Diane.

  I asked everyone to save the empty bottles and lids so we can fill them with filtered water for future use.

  Pop was awake this afternoon, and he is grumpy. He's in a lot of pain but won't take any pain medication until he absolutely has to. Nana fed him beef stew and cornbread for supper.

  Every time Jesse wakes up, Hisa and Elaine try to get water and food into him. He takes a few bites, but his pain is so bad that it's hard for him to eat unless he has pain medication on board, and then he's groggy and wants to sleep.

  He's still running a low-grade fever and complains that there's something on the bed underneath his back. He says it’s sharp and feels like it’s stabbing him. Every time Elaine tries to run her hand underneath him, he screams out in pain.

  Hisa still has her nose in medical books.

  Elaine took one of my blue Xanax pills and she seemed to be a little better. She actually ate a small bowl of stew and a slice of cornbread. She won't leave Jesse's bedside.

  Dane, Mick, and Jeremy brought home four more trailers before dark.

  Dane headed back out after supper. He took Soo and Jason along this time. I told them to watch him carefully because he hasn't slept sin
ce the night of the prisoner/HDI battle. Mick told him he has to get some sleep after he gets two more trailers home. Finally, he agreed to do so.

  Nana is sleeping on the floor beside Pop's bed again.

  I guess tomorrow we'll have a repeat of today. We have to get through this. The group is on edge and Dane is losing his mind.

  It just occurred to me that Dane probably intends to marry Elaine and become Jesse's stepfather. No wonder he's working so hard to get this fence done. He needs his future family to be protected.

  Bye for now.

  Monday, March 10

  I've just returned from Clinic Diane.

  Jesse kept everyone there awake most of the night. He was crying and complaining about a stabbing pain in his back. Hisa finally concluded that the bullet was causing the pain. She heavily sedated him and rolled him over on his good side.

  While Elaine was sliding her hand over the bed and under the sheet, looking for a sharp object, Hisa was examining Jesse's back. She found the bullet.

  You can actually see the outline of it underneath his skin. Hisa is preparing to remove it right now. She says the bullet is above his kidney, but his spleen may be damaged. I have no idea what the spleen does. I'm sure Hisa will explain it to me.

  I don't want to be there when she removes the bullet. Pop said he doesn't want to be there either. Hisa told him he had no choice because he can't be moved. He told her that he was in pain, and asked for a couple of pain pills to knock him out while she was digging around in Jesse's back. Hisa actually gave them to him. I was surprised.

  Elaine’s a nervous wreck.

  I don't think it's a good idea for Elaine to be in the room while Hisa cuts into her son, but nobody asked for my opinion and since I'm too much of a chicken to stay and help, I'll keep my mouth shut.

  I told them to send someone to let me know how it went when they're done. Carisa's on pins and needles and she’s pacing in front of Clinic Diane with Mr. Hobbs.

  Mick, Dane, and Jeremy are out looking for more trailers. Mick filled the generator before he left, thank goodness.