They still had quite a few vehicles to clear at the far end of the bridge. He had thought they could move ahead and then finish the journey when the last obstacle was cleared, but now he decided that only a few of them would venture on to the bridge at a time. That way, if the bridged did go out, at least most of them would survive. It was morbid thinking, but he didn't know how else to do it. If he could, he'd do it all himself and keep the rest safe, but since he wasn’t gifted with superhuman strength, at least he could be out there all the time and give the others rest spells.
Some vehicles had keys in the ignition, but the corpses of the owners made it impossible to even attempt to start the vehicles. The stench was horrendous from one car they had opened, intending to try to start it. They never tried again. Even though Cole and Elly both thought the bodies were no longer able to transmit the virus, they were too horrible to deal with after nearly a year of rotting in the cars. Instead, they had to do the back-breaking labor of pushing them out of the way. And that was the easy part. The hard part was forgetting what it was they pushed.
“Okay, Hunter. My turn now. Go take a break.”
“Dad. I know what you’re doing.” Hunter felt his spine pop as he pulled his hands off the bumper of a car he and Sean had pushed to the far side of the bridge. He winced and bent backward to work out the kink. They had created a path three quarters of the way across the bridge now that was wide enough for the caravan to pass. By the end of the day, it would be clear, but not if his dad kept sending him and the other men off the bridge to take a break every hour or so.
“Doing?” His dad didn’t meet Hunter’s eyes but looked past him, counting the cars still in their way.
“You’re getting me and the others off the bridge as often as you can—yet I don’t remember the last break you took.” He sat heavily on the bumper of the car he’d just moved.
“I’ve been taking plenty of breaks. You just didn’t see me because you were way down here.” He pointed to a white pickup truck angled across the road. “I think if we move that one, we can squeeze through without having to move the blue Ford to the left of it.”
Hunter nodded but his mind was still on his father’s comment about breaks. He looked back to the east side of the bridge. Where they had been resting was halfway between the bank and where they were now but it was still over land. There was a long approach on the bridge as it crossed over wetlands but wasn’t actually out over the river. They had driven one of their pickups laden with water and snacks. It was over a brisk five minute walk away. He supposed his father could be telling the truth, but Hunter was sure he would have remembered his dad passing by either coming or going. “What’s going on, Dad?”
“What do you mean?” His father gazed so intently at the white pickup that he appeared to be trying to move it with his mind.
“You seem nervous. Jumpy. Is something wrong with Elly?” It was weird to be expecting a son, and then a little brother or sister soon afterward, but he was excited for both.
His eyes wide, his dad shook his head. “Elly? No, she’s fine.” Then he sighed. “Look, son. I’m just worried about crossing the river. That’s it. The water’s rising and we don’t know what’s heading our way. With all the snow in the winter and the rain lately…I’m just worried about the flooding getting worse. If we don’t get this bridge passable today, we may be stuck on this side until waters recede.”
Hunter gazed at the river, nodding. “Yeah, it looks pretty bad, but there’s still plenty of clearance below the bridge. I don’t think the water would get this high.”
“It doesn’t need to be higher than the whole bridge—it only needs to cut off either the east or west side. We don’t want to get stuck in the middle of it.”
Hunter jumped to his feet shot a look towards each end. His dad was right. While they had been clearing the bridge, the water had crept higher on each bank. When they’d reached the bridge two days ago, the water had been seemed safely within the confines of the banks, but now he couldn’t even see the river banks in most places, except a few bluffs down the river.
While they were clearing the bridge, Joe, and Elly had gone to search for more supplies. Piper and Sophie were cooking and watching the kids. He hoped Sophie wasn’t over-doing it. “I may not have seen you, Dad, but I’ve been hearing you here the whole time. I’m not deaf.”
His dad stared at him for a minute, then shook his head and threw up his hands in defeat. “Fine. I’ll go get a drink. Be back in a few minutes.” He turned to leave, muttering over his shoulder something about raising a bossy son. Hunter grinned and turned to point out the next car to Jake that they needed to move.
Hunter leaned against the last car they’d moved, his muscles quivering with fatigue. It was late afternoon and, finally, they had a lane cleared all the way across the bridge. He just wanted to curl up in his sleeping bag and sleep for about a week, but groaned as he thought of everything they still needed to do today. It would still be hours before he could say hello to his pillow. Tents and supplies needed to be packed and the animals rounded up. Then on the other side, they’d need to unpack it all and set up a new camp.
He looked around for his dad, and spotted him heading for the tractor trailer. Dressed in full protective gear, he was going to see if he could get the trailer opened to see if it contained anything they could use. The name of a big box store was emblazoned on the side of the trailer, so they were hopeful, although Hunter wondered where they’d stash more supplies.
Even though they had avoided most vehicle interiors due to the virus, they had checked trunks when they could be opened, finding many useful items and edibles. However, with the tractor trailer, his dad said it appeared the driver had been shot. Bullet holes punctured the driver’s door. Whoever had shot him hadn’t stuck around to get the cargo the trucker was transporting. The way his dad figured it, victims of the virus hadn’t worried about supplies, but were just randomly firing out their car window. In all likelihood the killers were victims in another vehicle traveling in the opposite direction.
The keys weren’t in the ignition, but he found them on the floor of the cab.
Sean and backed the rental truck up to the tractor trailer and he, Sean, and his dad transferred anything they had room for that would be useful. They found the usual, canned foods, but were thrilled to find a case of quinoa in foil pouches. It seemed rodents didn’t like either the quinoa or the foil, or maybe they just hadn’t discovered it. Another great find was a case of powered lemonade drink mix that would be good for the sugar already mixed in. It was still edible because the containers were hard plastic and sealed.
Holding up one of the canisters, Sean said, “I can’t wait to have a glass of this. All this work makes me feel like having some now, even though it’s cold as hell out here.”
His dad smiled, swiping an arm across his brow. “Just a little more to do, and we can cross.”
Sean scowled. “Why don’t we wait until morning instead of packing up only to unpack on the other side?”
They avoided driving at night because they didn’t want to get stuck on a blocked road with no access to water or suitable place to camp.
His dad replied, “Because I don’t trust this bridge. It might not be here in the morning.”
Hunter looked down the length of the bridge. A few cracks showed in the pavement that he didn’t recall seeing earlier. Uneasy as one of the cracks ran between his feet, he moved to one side.
Sean held out a hand. “Look. The rain has stopped.”
And it had. Hunter dropped the hood of his jacket. The air felt slightly warmer too.
His dad sighed. “Okay. First thing in the morning.”
Chapter Sixteen
Early the next morning, Cole awoke with a sense of urgency gnawing in his gut, and unsettled, he rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling of the tent. It was barely discernable in the nearly pitch dark. Only the faint glow from the face of his watch lit the tent.
Then he noti
ced the steady tattoo of rain on the tent. Shit. The rain was the probable source of his anxiety. The last thing they needed was more rain. The river had already been at flood stage yesterday. He sighed as misgivings over his decision to wait a day caused him to second guess himself. Last night they’d have had to find a place to camp in the dark, but what if they’d missed their chance to cross?
While it was still dark, his watch showed it was almost five a.m. Everything had already been packed except for the tents and bedding. Cole stirred, restless. It would probably be pointless to get up now. What could he do in the dark? But, he wanted to go—now, and had to suppress the urge to bolt up from the bedroll.
One of the horses nickered, and he decided he could take care of the animals, at least, and the sooner they were taken care of, the sooner they could cross. It would be one less thing slowing them down. He took a flashlight to set on the hood of a car. He didn’t need much light, just enough to get the horses back into the trailer, and he had a feeling they’d go willingly in this rain, even though they had a canopy to shelter under within the circle of vehicles that formed a corral, of sorts.
As eager as he was to get going, he was also loathe to leave the warmth of the sleeping bags. He and Elly had zippered theirs together into one large bag and now she curled against his side. He eased away and unzipped his side enough to get out. Elly stirred and tried to snuggle against him, murmuring, “Where are you going?”
“You keep sleeping. No need to get up just yet. I’m going to see to the horses.”
He was glad for the sweatshirt beneath his jacket when he left the tent. The temperature seemed to be only in the low forties, and his breathe billowed into great clouds of vapor.
“Dad? What can I do to help?”
Cole turned as he led Princess to the trailer. “I could use a hand making sure the goats don’t get out when I load the horses.”
“No problem.”
Hunter moved a couple of the goats that they’d put in the Princesses slot overnight. In short order, they had both horses loaded and had fed all the animals a little grain. Cole dumped a little extra in the goats’ pen since they had been cooped up all night and wouldn’t get a chance to graze until later in the day. So far, they had searched and found stores of various types of feed in barns along the way. While much of what they found had been ruined from rodents or bugs, they had found enough to keep the animals happy. The goats gave milk and every day, they had a few chickens that still lay eggs even while traveling.
While Hunter took down the canopy the horses had used as a shelter from the rain, Cole moved to the second canopy they had used while camped as a place to cook and eat. The small pile of wood they’d created over the last few days had dwindled to a few logs and so Cole lit the small camp stove. It would serve them just fine this morning. They had been saving it and the propane it used for a rainy day and today was literally, a rainy day.
He poured water from a bucket that had been three-quarters full last night, but now overflowed, into a large pot to boil. Today’s breakfast would be oatmeal with some of the maple syrup that Jake had found the other day.
While he waited for the water to boil, he tightened the load strapped to the top of his SUV and moved onto the rest of the vehicles, doing the same for them. When he got back to the stove, the water was boiling and he dumped in the oatmeal and a few pinches of salt.
He found the maple syrup tucked into a box in the back of the SUV they used to keep most of the kitchen supplies. They had backed it up to the edge of the canopy and with the tailgate down it not only made finding ingredients handy, but was a useful work surface as well.
As he stirred the oatmeal, Hunter returned with Sophie. “Hey, just the people I want to see. Can you guys let everyone know that breakfast is ready? I’d like to get across the bridge in the next hour if not sooner.”
“Sure thing, Dad.” The two split up and within moments, Cole heard the kids waking up as Sophie directed them to the area they’d designated as a latrine. Hunter called out to each tent or knocked on doors of vehicles of those who had chosen to sleep in them.
Cole took a bowl of oatmeal and ate it as he walked towards the bridge. Water lapped at the edges of the road and he knew soon it would be covered. The further he went, the more worried he became. Taking the last bite of oatmeal, he looked down at the raging water mere feet below him. He wore a waterproof poncho over his coat, but water crashed against the bridge supports hard enough to cause him to be drenched down to his skin. He dropped his bowl and spoon and sprinted back to the camp.
“Everyone, let’s pack it up. Now. I have a feeling we only have minutes to cross the bridge. Get loaded up and get your radios on. We’re leaving in five minutes.”
Sean, spoon poised in front of his mouth, stared at Cole. “What do you mean?”
“The river has almost swamped the bridge. We have to hurry.”
His brother scowled and looked as if he was going to say something, but Jenna said something in a low voice to him, and whatever it was, it succeeded in getting Sean to down the last bite of his meal.
In five minutes flat, everyone was in their vehicle, including Cole. He keyed the mic on his radio and called out for everyone to check in. When he’d heard from all of the drivers that they were ready, he pressed the button to speak. “I’m going over first. You all wait here until I give the word it’s safe.”
Immediately, his radio started squawking as Elly, Sean, and even Hunter protested that he shouldn’t go first. Cole shook his head.
“Whoa, guys. Listen, somebody has to and it might as well be me. I’m already first in line. If I have to, I can jump out of the car and walk back. Since it’s just me, I’ll only have myself to worry about. It would be stupid and dangerous for all of us to get stuck out there. There’s no way we’d all be able to turn around.”
“Keep us updated, Cole.” Elly’s voice cracked, and the mic clicked before she spoke again. “And be careful.”
“Always. It’ll just be a few minutes. Hang tight.”
He set the radio down and checked his rearview mirror to make sure nobody followed him before he drove ahead.
The path they’d cleared was awash in a few inches of water, but still drivable. His windshield wipers thumped furiously back and forth as he strained to see through the torrential rain and the water crashing over the railings.
He navigated around a wrecked semi-truck they had been unable to move, but instead had cleared the opposite lane. With no other traffic, he could take whatever lane was clear and so he weaved his way over the bridge. In the middle, the river splashing over the railings had lessened and he breathed a sigh of relief. Just a little farther.
“Shit!” The western bank had flooded more and that end of the bride was under a good eight inches of water. He was able to cross it, but water lapped at the undercarriage of his SUV. A few more inches, and the bridge would be swamped. He drove all the way off the bridge, down the exit ramp they’d cleared as well. The rendezvous point was a gas station just to the left of the ramp.
Luckily, where the ramp crossed the riverbank, or what was the edge of the flooding river now, it was still a few feet above the water. The banks must be higher on this side of the river. That explained why the flooding worse on the lower eastern bank. Unfortunately, that was also the reason for the higher water at this side of the bridge. It had nowhere to go but up.
He keyed the radio. “Okay, we can cross, but the western end of the bridge is flooding fast. Drive quickly, but carefully. Oh, and watch out for the semi-truck about halfway over. It was hard to see in fog and rain. You’ll have to go left of it.”
Everyone checked in when they began moving forward.
Cole drove back up the bridge from the ramp and did a three point turn, parking his vehicle perpendicular to the bridge with his headlights cutting across the lane the others would be in. From this vantage point, he would easily be able to make sure they all made it across from here and take up the rear of the car
avan for the final quarter mile until they were safely on solid ground.
His headlights highlighted a crack in the pavement. Had it always been there? It was impossible to know unless someone had been on the bridge prior to the virus. He didn’t see any weeds growing out of it, which would indicate that it was new.
Whenever it occurred, he just hoped it would hold for a bit longer. Cole dragged his eyes from the defect and found a spot on the opposite wall that was a few inches above the water line. That was approximately how deep the water would have to be before the road was unpassable. He gnawed on the edge of his thumb, worrying a callous as he waited, his eyes fixed on the water creeping up the opposite wall. Soon, it would surpass the mark but headlights came into view and he breathed a little easier.
Elly, Joe, and the kids drove by, Elly’s knuckles white against the dark steering wheel as they passed in front of him. He lifted the radio and said, “Elly, don’t forget to head to the gas station. The road is clear of standing water from what I could see.
“Got it.” The reply came from Joe, which Cole had expected with Elly driving.
Next came Hunter, Sophie, Buddy, and the trailer with the animals. They hit the crack a little hard, the trailer jolting, but they moved past without any difficulties. Was the crack wider than it had been just a few minutes ago? With water swirling on the pavement, it was difficult to tell.
Piper, with Jake in the passenger seat, were next in the caravan She looked relaxed and even waved as she passed Cole. He grinned and waved back but then held his breath as he watched them get to end where the water was deepest. The small trailer with the chicken coop looked dangerously close to floating…or sinking. Dammit. They should have left the chickens. A few eggs weren’t worth the risk What if the trailer pulled their car against the side of the bridge? The thoughts flew through his brain in an instant, but he blew out the breath as they made it to the other side.
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