Cole nodded. “I can get started on hauling water, but I’m going to wash up first. If Sean can take the cold water, so can I.” He slanted his brother a teasing grin, feeling closer to him that he had in a long time. Since Steve’s death, Sean had driven with Cole a few times and each time, their conversations became easier. They reminisced about growing up, shared anecdotes about their parents and kids, and even told raunchy jokes they couldn’t share in mixed company, and since the virus, they were almost always in mixed company.
“I’ll go too.” Hunter grabbed a bucket and soon, all the guys, even Luke and Travis, had buckets and towels and raced to the stream. Jake won, with Hunter a close second. Cole hung back to watch out for Travis and Luke. They had seen no signs of human life, and plenty of death as they’d driven in, but Cole knew better than to let down his guard. He was glad Sean had stayed back at the camp. With him and Buddy standing guard, he was free to wash up and even make sure Luke actually used soap and didn’t horse around too much.
On the way back, their hair all stood up in wet spikes, except for Travis’s, whose hair sparkled with trapped drops of water.
Hunter spotted a stack of kiddie pools leaning up against the front wall of a hardware store on the far side of the square and trotted over to get one, returning with it upside down on his head. One hand steadied it while the other carried his pail of water to contribute to filling the pool. The boys laughed and darted around him, spilling half of their own water as they asked if they could swim.
“You guys just got done swimming, you goofs This is so the women can take warm baths.” Cole reached out and tousled Luke’s wet hair.
“Why do they get warm baths?”
“Because they work hard doing all kinds of things for us, so I want to do something for them.”
“But you shot the deer and helped gut it.”
“Yes, I did, and while I did that, the women were setting up the tents and spreading out the bedding so everyone would have a nice warm place to sleep tonight.”
“Oh. Yeah. I guess.”
The atmosphere was almost festive an hour later. Cole designated the feast as a celebration of Travis having joined the family. Piper had surprised them all with fresh asparagus she’d found growing in the remains of a garden. This early, that’s all there was, but everyone—even the kids—devoured the fresh vegetable. It was the first they’d had in months.
After dinner, Jake lit another fire, and when the coals had died down in both of them, he set up the planter stands with the grates on top of them, and laid the deer over them to smoke. The planter stands kept the meat from actually cooking, but kept it close enough to be in be swallowed in the white plumes of smoke.
“I’ll stay up tonight and keep an eye on it. I think I can do about four batches. Maybe more. This wood is perfect for it.”
It was well seasoned from sitting for over a year. Good hardwood that would give the meat a rich, smoky flavor. And they would all be able to add it to their emergency Go-bags.
That reminded him that Travis didn’t have a Go-bag yet, so Cole spent the last hour creating one for the boy. He rummaged through supplies, finding one of their extra backpacks, a good water bottle that would keep a day’s worth cold, plus water purification tablets, and then pulled some fishing gear from his tackle box. He made a small kit with hooks, weights, bobbers and string. A good hunting knife, a small hatchet, two ground cloths—one could turn into a tent, added a first aid kit with tape, bandages and disinfectant. He found a zipper lock bags and filled one with matches and added a lighter. He dumped a bottle of aspirin into another baggie, and took the bottle stuffed it with cotton balls soaked in alcohol. He closed up the bottle and added it to the zipper bag, and added the aspirin to the first aid kit. Next he found a lighter and a change of clothes with extra socks. He wasn’t sure of Travis’s size, but Piper said she had an extra pair of hiking boots that she thought would fit him and generously offered them. The last thing he packed was a handgun. It was one Travis himself had scavenged, along with ammunition for it.
By morning, the meat was dry, Jake was dead tired, and Travis was thrilled when Cole presented him with his official go-bag. “Remember, this is only for emergencies. I’ve stocked it with some non-perishable food, including the dried venison Jake was so kind to provide, and other basic supplies. It’s everyone’s job to make sure their water bottles are filled every morning. One for the bag, and one for drinking throughout the day. I’ve done it for you today, but after this, you’ll be doing it on your own.”
“Yes, sir.” Travis took the bag, his eyes glowing with pride, and climbed into his vehicle as soon as everything was packed and breakfast of leftover roast and potatoes were eaten. A good portion of the deer meat that hadn’t been dried was packed into coolers powered by the cars. It would stay good in there for a few days.
Chapter Twenty-One
Cole checked his fuel gauge. A quarter tank. According to the last road sign, they should make it in before he needed to get gas. As he wove around yet another pile-up, he added a few miles to the distance. It wouldn’t be a straight shot, not if he had to wind around the more and more frequent pile-ups and he fully expected that to be the case.
They had managed to avoid traveling close to any large cities, knowing they would have a greater likelihood of encountering blocked freeways, but even a dozen miles out, they were reduced to a speed of not more than thirty miles per hour and in some places, they had to go even more slowly.
He rubbed his eyes, wincing at the gritty feel behind his lids. The sun, low on the horizon, would soon be hidden by the hills and mountains. His plan to arrive no later than mid-afternoon so they could scope the area out for other survivors before camping, was out of the question now since he hadn’t factored in having to take detours when confronted with obstacles where there wasn’t even room to navigate around them. Still, he couldn’t resist the final push to reach the city. He had to know if the power was still on. What if they had come all this way and were no better off than they had been on the island? Possibly even worse since at least they knew the area around the island. Here, other than a few vacations, nobody was familiar with the city. They all had favorite casinos, shows, or hotels, but none of that knowledge would help them now.
In fact, Cole had no interest in exploring the tourist areas. None of that would be any use except to check out the kitchens for canned goods. If the virus had spread with the same speed here as it had in Wisconsin, he had an inkling that it would have had even a greater impact here. The tourists were already primed to be out and about and the virus would have spread faster than a juicy rumor in high school. Even the areas not around the touristy spots would probably have an increased rate of spread of the disease because so many people were employed in hotels, shows, casinos, or restaurants. The virus probably thought it hit the host motherlode.
He glanced in his review mirror automatically noting everyone in the caravan. At least he never had to worry about losing anyone in traffic.
Over the ten day trip, they’d witnessed firsthand the miles and miles of highways devoid of human life and the ghost towns that were frozen in time. Sales signs in store windows still touted Memorial Day sales from last year and upcoming Father’s Day promotions. In the middle of Nebraska, they had come across a town that had been nearly leveled by a tornado. A clear path of destruction and denuded trees told the story. The lack of any sort of cleanup efforts or rebuilding indicated that the tornado had occurred sometime after the virus had wiped out the population.
More numerous than the huge pile-ups when they had to clear a path, were the cars parked on the road, some neatly along the edge, but others appeared as if the driver had simply lost interest in driving and decided to halt. It was eerie—like vehicular ghost towns.
When they stopped for breaks, Cole sent or joined a detail to check the vehicles in search of supplies. Of special importance were tools since theirs had gone down with Steve back at the Mississippi River.
&nbs
p; More often than not, they found human remains in the cars—sometimes what must have been whole families, but occasionally, vehicles were empty. Where the occupants had gone was anyone’s guess. Perhaps they were the origin of the remains that dotted the shoulders of the roads.
Cole figured those people had abandoned their cars due to the obstructions, or out of confusion wrought by the victims of the virus. Either they succumbed to the Sympatico Syndrome, injuries from accidents, or died of thirst. Out here, it wouldn’t be unheard of.
The sun hit him square in the eyes and Cole squinted as he flipped the visor down. Travis dozed in the passenger seat and Cole smiled at how he still clutched a book in one hand. The kid had devoured books almost as fast at the food set before him. The book currently in his lap dealt with raising chickens. It was part of the mini library they had brought with them.
The eggs hatched and the chicks needed frequent attention and Travis had taken to caring for them like a mother hen.
He made sure they had clean water at every break, and kept the pen clean. One of the little chicks had died, but the others seemed healthy. Cole had rigged up a heater by using a couple of jump starters and inverters to power a small heat lamp and red light for the chicks. They rotated the jump starters to keep one charging at all times so they could swap it with the depleted battery at regular intervals.
Then he’d hung a thick blanket between the backseat and the storage area in the back of the SUV, more to keep the heat out of the rest of the vehicle so they didn’t roast to death. He still tried to keep the air conditioning low though, but he was pretty damn proud of rigging a mobile chick nursery if he did say so himself. Now, if only he could do something about the smell but the blanket helped keep it confined somewhat.
Travis made sure the chicks stayed warm, but not too warm. If they survived, they would more than double their flock. Cole had worried Lucas would be upset that Travis had taken over the care of first the eggs, and then the chicks, but Lucas was happy to concentrate on the goats, making sure they got time to graze during every stop, and with Buddy’s help, kept them from running off while they grazed. As a result of the careful attention, the two who gave milk still had an abundant supply. Cole had been certain the stress of the trip would be too much for them.
All in all, the animals had come through the trip with flying colors. If only all of the people had too.
He swallowed hard as he thought of Steve but did his best to put it out of his mind for now. He couldn’t dwell on the loss—not when they still had so much to deal with in the coming days. If they were successful in establishing a new home here, there would be plenty of time for guilt and anguish later.
Yawning, he reached over and gave Travis’s shoulder a shake. “Hey, we’re almost there.” The words sounded good to his ears.
Travis blinked, then straightened and leaned forward to see the hills they were traveling through. “It sure looks different from where I grew up.”
Cole had been to Vegas before, but he had never lived there and he agreed with the kid. “I might miss the green of Wisconsin, but I won’t miss the snow, that’s for sure.”
Travis grinned at him. “We probably didn’t get as much snow as you all, but we got some. And lots of storms. You ever seen a tornado?”
“I did, but just a small one that didn’t do much damage. And a few water spouts over Lake Michigan too.”
“Wow! That sounds so cool!”
Cole chuckled. “Yes, it was.” For all Travis had been through, he still held a note of wonder in his voice and a determination to learn as much as he could—hence, all the reading.
“So, did you learn anything new about raising chicks?” Travis had been proud of knowing a little bit about the chickens from helping his grandma, but like the rest of them, didn’t know a lot about taking care of chicks.
Travis turned over the book in his hand, noted where he was and folded the corner over before wedging it between the seat and center console. “You really think there’s gonna be electricity in Las Vegas?”
Cole used his thumb and fingers to reach under his sunglasses and rub his eyes. Resettling the glasses, he sighed. “I guess we’ll find out soon enough.”
Hunter switched songs on the MP3 player, singing under his breath as he followed Elly. It was in moments like this when he could almost pretend the virus had never happened. A hundred miles back, the highway had been nearly devoid of stalled cars. The few he’d seen, at a distance, looked like normal traffic and he’d found himself lulled into daydreaming about the past. He daydreamed of going through his favorite burger drive-thru, jamming to his stereo, and hearing the ping of his notifications on his cellphone.
He propped his arm on the edge of the door, resting it against the cool window. There really wasn’t much he missed now that he thought about it. He’d lost the craving for fast food months ago, and the notifications had only been a lure to draw him to his phone; a dangerous lure and one that he had fallen for more than he should have. It was pure luck that he’d never had an accident while texting and driving, but he’d come close a few times. Ironically, he could probably text without compromising safety now—if only phones still worked and there was anyone to text outside of his family.
He yawned, scrubbing his hand down his face. Driving in the caravan seemed like it should be easy. With no other traffic, he only had to watch out for Elly driving the car ahead of him. She followed his dad, and he’d learned to leave enough room to stop suddenly if his dad had to swerve around an obstacle—which caused a chain-reaction.
The problem was driving now was beyond boring. When there had been other cars on the road, simple cruising on a highway required him to be semi-alert. Even Now, he found himself scanning the highway and checking his mirrors, but for what? There were only a few vehicles behind him and he knew them. They weren’t going to drive erratically or speed past him. He chuckled at the thought of Jake or Piper getting road rage and passing him while flipping him the bird.
While keeping one eye on the cars ahead, he had more time to look around while he drove. What he saw was both depressing and beautiful. The mountains and desert were just as stunning as he remembered them from a trip he’d taken a few years ago with a friend’s family, but, as always now, signs of death were everywhere. It niggled at his conscience that he was pretty much numb to it now. Heaps of bleached bones and clothing on the side of the road garnered no more notice than a dead skunk would have a few years ago.
He glanced at Sophia, and she lifted her head from the word search booklet they’d found at a gas station, her eyes questioning. “Something wrong, Hun?”
He loved when she abbreviated his name like it was an endearment. “Nope. Just bored. How’s the game going?”
She shrugged and shifted in her seat. “Okay but I’ll be glad when we stop. Do you think there’s really going to be electricity in Las Vegas? I’d kill for a hot shower.”
“It’s kind of freaking me out that we made this whole trip because I happened to have seen that show about the Earth without people. I mean, I think everyone was speculating. How could they know for certain?”
Sophie reached out and rubbed his shoulder. “No matter what, we needed to leave Wisconsin. Remember how hungry we were some nights in the winter? Before your dad went hunting and got that deer?”
It was true. They had gone hungry a few times. Getting the deer had probably stopped them from having to kill and eat one of their animals. Once there was a break in the weather, they had been able to find more deer and the day after the helicopter, Jake had found a cow. The poor cow had been skinny and probably would have died soon anyway, but she had been pregnant, and between her and her unborn calf, had provided enough meat to keep them from having to take the more drastic measures.
“But what if we’re trading cold weather for drought?”
“I guess we can head someplace that’s warmer in the winter and gets plenty of rain, like Seattle. This is just the first place we’re going. It may no
t be the last.”
“Seattle could be nice. They don’t get very cold, do they?” He’d never been there before.
“Nope. Not compared to Wisconsin, anyway. And plenty of rain. Jenna’s garden would thrive.” She circled a word, then crossed it off the list. Apparently it was the last one for that puzzle because she turned the page in the book.
“Hey, it seems like you and Jenna are getting along better now.”
“Yeah. We are. I don’t know what I’d have done without her these last few months—just giving me advice and stuff.” Sophie flipped through her word search book then tossed it aside. Her profile as she looked out her window was softer, less angular than it had been when he met her last summer, but she was still too thin. It made her belly seem bigger than it was. He followed the movement of her hand as she absently rubbed it.
“Is he kicking?”
“He? What if it’s a she?”
“He, she…I don’t care.”
She smiled and nodded. “Yeah, she’s kicking.”
He laughed, and making sure he had enough space between him and Elly’s car ahead, reached over to see if he could feel the baby’s movement. It amazed him how firm Sophie’s stomach felt. It wasn’t squishy like fat. It was taut and suddenly, he felt a tiny thump against his palm. He grinned. “I felt a kick.”
“Isn’t it awesome?”
He didn’t answer as another series of thumps came in quick succession, then stopped. He waited a few more seconds before reluctantly withdrawing his hand. “I guess she decided to take a nap.”
Sophie smiled and rubbed the spot where his hand had been. “I’m going to have to stop to go pee sometime soon.”
Hunter nodded. “Okay. I’ll call and let everyone know. It’s been a few hours since our last stop”
As he turned to get the radio from her, a movement in her side mirror caught his eye. He squinted, certain his eyes were playing tricks on him. A cloud of dust billowed a mile or so behind them. Was it a large dust devil? For an instant, the dust curtain parted, and Hunter started. Were those vehicles moving?
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