A Long Road Back: Final Dawn: Book 8

by Darrell Maloney

  “Wasn’t that the name of the man who almost killed you in the helicopter crash? Colonel Montgomery?”

  “Yes. But it turned out he wasn’t such a bad guy after all. He came across as gruff and demanding, but he said he had to be that way. He said the survivors of the big chill were tougher than they once were, and didn’t take kindly to the government coming in and taking things. He said he had to make threats and be gruff to convince them he meant business.

  “He also said we were the only ones who ever had the balls to stand up to him and tell him no.”

  “So what do the animals live on? What do they eat and drink?”

  “Sami, Rusty and Mason take turns coming over here every day. Each morning they stop by the schoolhouse and one of the children gets to come with them to help. They gather eggs from the chickens and take them to Karen. They milk Lulu and give the milk to Karen as well.

  “Then they give the animals water from the water tanks. We’ve still got over twenty thousand gallons left in the water storage bay. It won’t be enough to survive another seven year freeze, but it’s plenty for the animals. When we put them in here, we brought in two hundred bales of hay and seventy sacks of chicken and swine feed. They’re still picking at it, and there’s plenty more in barn number two.”

  Mark added. “I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking, ‘How can we live with that smell?’ Am I right?”

  “Well, now that you mention it…”

  “It’s not a problem. Up ahead, see that black curtain that goes from floor to ceiling in the main tunnel?”

  “Yes.”

  “It’s a vapor barrier. A smell blocker, if you will. There’s a second one exactly like it thirty yards farther. Between the two of them, they do a great job of stopping the smells from entering the part of the mine where we lived. And that applied not only to the livestock smells, but for the diesel fuel as well. In the main part of the mine you can smell the salty air, not unlike the smell of the ocean air. And you can smell the dankness from the lack of circulation of the air. But that’s about it.”

  They came into view of the livestock, and the cattle immediately got restless. The pigs started running around and squealing, and the chickens came running to gather at the front of their pen.

  “Don’t pay any attention to them. The crew has already been over here to feed and water them. The problem is, they’ve become accustomed to only seeing humans at feeding time. They associate people with getting fed. So anytime someone walks past they get all excited.”

  “Sort of like Pavlov’s dog.”

  “Exactly.”

  -35-

  Hannah reached out and very lightly touched Mark’s forearm.

  “Honey, I’m a little tired. Would you mind finishing the tour without me and picking me up on the way back?”

  “Are you okay? I knew this was too much walking for you to do, so soon out of the hospital.”

  “Oh, I’m fine. I just need to rest up for the long walk back through the tunnel. Unless you want to carry me back.”

  “I would, you know.”

  She smiled.

  “I know you would, baby. But there’s no need to. I’ll be fine if you just let me rest for a few minutes.”

  “Okay. We’ll be back in a bit.”

  Hannah sat on the stool that Sami and the others used to milk Lulu each morning and started talking to the chickens. She knew many of them by name. These were the egg layers, and as such had been saved from slaughter. Their time would come eventually, she knew. But in the meantime she had come to regard them a bit as pets, a bit as old friends.

  Mark and the others continued through the mine’s main tunnel, Mark explaining the purpose of each bay as they passed them.

  After viewing the fuel dump and the massive five thousand gallon diesel tanks lined up in a neat row, they passed through the two vapor barriers.

  “You’re right. It does smell much better over here.”

  Mark had to raise his voice as they passed the next bay.

  “This is the power plant. Sorry if the generator is a bit noisy. That’s why we had them set back fifty yards and put sound barriers between them and the mine. They run periodically throughout the day. They charge the bank of batteries, which are huge. Each of the batteries was made to power an electric forklift, carrying up to three tons, for up to four hours. So they carry a lot of juice. The generator charges the batteries, and everything else in the mine gets its power from the batteries. Each time the batteries are filled to eighty percent of capacity, the generator automatically shuts down and rests.”

  “Does the generator run at night?”

  “No. It never runs at night because of the noise factor. At night we doused most of the lights to conserve electricity, and the batteries had plenty of power for what we needed.”

  Marty saw a big blue and white sign that said “Walmart” and laughed.

  “And what is this?”

  “This is what we nicknamed our supply bay. We gave it that name because it had a bit of everything. This is where we put everything from socks to shampoo, shirts to blankets. Whenever somebody needed something, this is where they came.”

  Next came a bay with washing machines on one wall, positioned beneath large water tanks. Glenna looked for the dryers but didn’t see any.

  Marked seemed to sense the question on her face.

  “We had no dryers. The mine naturally stays around sixty five degrees, even when the temperature was below freezing outside. We made the decision early on that it was warm enough in the mine to dry the clothes on lines, the old fashioned way. So we chose not to use the massive amounts of electricity it would take to run a bank of dryers. Back in the back of the bay, where the lights are off, are a series of clotheslines, each with a different color of clothespin.”

  “Why different colors of clothespins?”

  “Because after a while the clothes that everyone brought into the mine with them wore out. Since we were all shopping at the same source, what we called our “Walmart,” after a while everyone’s laundry started to look more or less the same.

  “So the way we solved it was the different colored clothespins. We told everyone that when they hung their clothes on the line, to take one of the extra pins and clip it to the bottom of their shirt. That would not only remind them to go back and pick up their laundry later. It would also remind them which laundry to pick up in a sea of clothes that looked very much alike.”

  Glenna seemed satisfied, so they moved on.

  They passed a bay with a tiny greenhouse and another tiny building on which someone had mounted a sign which read, “SKOOL.”

  “Oh, that was something Sarah made when she was in a funny mood. The kids all knew it was misspelled, but they liked it anyway. That was the one room school where Karen taught the little ones basic math, spelling and science.”

  “Wow, look at that. That looks a lot like the dining room in the big house.”

  “Yes, it’s furnished exactly the same. When we ordered the game tables we ordered way too many of them. So when the complex was completed, we put half of them over there. It’s kind of hard to see, because all the lights are off back there. But directly behind the dining room is the kitchen. Full array of commercial ovens, a walk-in fridge and a walk-in freezer. When we were here before, even after adding two babies and Rachel and Roxanne, we never had to cook for more than forty three people. But we could have easily cooked for twice that many.”

  “What’s this? Looks like a big lounge.”

  “That’s exactly what it is. Our sleeping quarters over here were small recreational vehicles. Comfortable and cozy, but not a lot of room to relax. Also, we didn’t want to burn the electricity of thirty televisions each evening when four would do. Here we have a large panel TV and several couches for people to watch movies and old TV shows we recorded before the blackout. We have an impressive movie and TV show library, and even operated our own mini-cable station.

  “Back behind here
are three smaller viewing rooms, each one sound insulated and seating six persons comfortably. If someone didn’t want to watch what was out here, they could go to one of the viewing rooms and watch something else.”

  “Are those books, back there on the shelves?”

  “Yes. Over five thousand books, ranging from Dr. Seuss to the classics. And several recliners, each with a small reading lamp.”

  “How much farther does this go on?”

  “Quite a bit farther, but we’re not going all the way to the end. I’m going to show you what a typical living bay looks like, then we’ll head back.”

  -36-

  They walked a bit farther and into Bay 8. Arranged around the bay were six Class C recreation vehicles, mostly Winnebagos. Two sat bumper to bumper on each wall. Two more sat bumper to bumper on the north side of the bay, effectively separating the living area from the rest of the shaft, which stretched another quarter mile into the mountain.

  In the common area was a picnic table and children’s swing set and slide. Carefully laid around the playset was artificial grass, thick and lush in a rich green color.

  “The fake grass was Hannah’s idea. I thought it was lunacy at first, but after a while I began to appreciate it as adding a homey feel to the place. For years it was the only grass we saw, so we learned to appreciate it.

  “You’ve seen pretty much all of it. We’ve got several more bays of living quarters, but they all look pretty much like this one. Any questions so far?”

  Glenna looked around, a worried look on her face.

  “No, but the whole place still makes me feel… closed in and cramped. Can we go back now?”

  “Sure. Let’s head back.”

  They walked at a leisurely pace back to the livestock bay to pick up Hannah, making small talk along the way.

  Marty asked how long Mark thought it would take to restock the mine and bring it back into full operation.

  “I don’t know. It depends on how many people we have to plan for. Obviously, if we’re expecting a hundred people we’ll need much more supplies than if we’re expecting fifty. I’d like to bring in another generator, since our primary is getting pretty old. And we’ll need to scavenge some additional RVs off one of the abandoned lots in San Antonio and haul them up here.

  “We’re talking lots and lots of food and water and diesel fuel. Hannah is going to crunch the numbers and tell us in the next couple of days how long she expects a freeze would last, if Cupid 23 does hit. She said she doesn’t think it would be as long as it was before, but still likely to be four to five years. She says she has to come up with a formula that calculates the meteorite’s velocity and size and physical makeup and such. All that scientific stuff gives me a headache, but she was in on the estimations for Saris 7 and they guessed the length of the chill pretty closely.

  “Once she crunches her numbers and decides how long we’d be in here, we can get a ballpark figure for how many people you guys and Lenny can bring in. Then it’s just a matter of determining how much we’ll need for each person for each month we’ll be here, and including a big fudge factor for error. Piece of cake. I’m glad Hannah’s doing it and not me.”

  They walked through the first of the two vapor barriers and the air suddenly grew stale. There was a very faint scent of livestock and their droppings, another vague scent of diesel fuel.

  But nothing like the smells that greeted them on the other side of the second barrier.

  “I’m glad you have these in place,” Glenna remarked. I’d hate to have to live with this smell every hour of every day.”

  But Mark only heard half of her comment. He took off like a shot toward the interior of the livestock bay. Glenna and Marty, caught off guard, were but a split second behind him, after they saw what he was running for.

  Hannah, lying face down and apparently unconscious, on the mine’s floor.

  “Oh, my God! Honey! Honey! Wake up!”

  He rolled her over. Her eyelids were half open, the eyeballs rolled back into their sockets. It was a macabre sight, as though she were staring at him with the whites of her eyes.

  And she was completely unresponsive.

  Mark was trained in first aid and was even certified by the American Red Cross in CPR. Back before the world went dark and cold.

  But now, when the victim was Hannah, the love of his life, he panicked and seemed to forget all his training.

  Luckily Glenna, who’d been a licensed vocational nurse many years before, sprang into action.

  “Marty honey, call over the radio. Tell them to send Debbie over. Mark, lay her flat. Then find something to put under her feet.”

  While giving instructions, she already had her fingers on Hannah’s carotid artery, counting the beats of her heart.

  She watched as Hannah’s chest rose and fell, trying at the same time to gauge her rate of breathing.

  Satisfied with both, she raised her eyelids to check her pupils.

  “She’s a bit pale, but not in shock. Let’s keep her feet elevated and find something cool for her forehead. Mark, can you get a wet washcloth or rag to dab her face with?”

  “I’m on it.” He was up and running, then paused just one second.

  Marty had been trying unsuccessfully to raise someone on his hand-held radio.

  “The portables won’t reach outside the mine, Marty. The walls are too dense. You’ll have to run back to the security center and use the base station.”

  Marty didn’t have to ask where the security console was. He’d seen it during the tour, adjacent to the lounge. He was off like a bolt of lightning, right behind Mark. They were on two separate but equally important missions.

  Glenna was temporarily left alone with Hannah, running her fingers through her hair and trying to coax her back into consciousness.

  Debbie was pushing forty, and had the few extra pounds of weight that many women her age just can’t seem to get rid of. But she fairly ran through the tunnel and was there within five minutes.

  By that time Mark was back at Hannah’s side, wringing cool water upon her face.

  Hannah was starting to come around, but had yet to open her eyes.

  As Debbie took a knee beside her, Glenna gave her a preliminary assessment.

  “Pulse is a bit fast, about ninety. Respirations about twenty. Pupils normal, abdominal pliable. She’s starting to stir. I think it’s just exhaustion. She’s been through a lot lately, and I think she’s just pushing herself too hard.”

  Debbie poked and prodded, confirming everything Glenna had already checked.

  “What did she say before she passed out?”

  “We don’t know. We left her here to rest while we walked through the mine. She said she was tired and for us to go on without her.”

  Hannah opened one eye, then the other. She groggily asked, “What’s going on? Debbie? Did I faint or something?”

  “Let me ask the questions, honey. How do you feel?”

  “Weak. Dizzy.”

  “Are you in any pain?”

  “My legs hurt. But they’ve been hurting since the crash.”

  “Any chest pains? Abdominal pains? Headache?”

  “Not really.”

  “What’s the last thing you remember?”

  “I was walking toward the main tunnel to see if Mark and the others were coming back yet.”

  She looked at Mark and asked, “How long have I been lying here?”

  “I don’t know, honey. Just a few minutes, I think.”

  She looked back at Debbie.

  “Can I sit up?”

  “Yes, if you’re up to it.”

  “I think I am.”

  While the team was tending to Hannah in the mine, Frank Woodard was on the ham radio, talking to her doctor at Wilford Hall Medical Center in San Antonio.

  “I was afraid she was going too fast, too soon. I’m dispatching a van to pick her up. Tell her husband to get her ready. We’re bringing her back her for a few more days of bed rest, and we�
�ll run some more tests on her while she’s here.”

  Frank said, “I’ll tell them. But she’s not gonna like it.”

  “I don’t care. Tell her to get packed.”

  -37-

  Things weren’t going well for the group at the compound. Sarah was still in a coma at Wilford Hall. Hannah was on her way there as well for additional tests. Bryan and Mark, the two brothers who’d done all the work to prepare the mine the first time, were where they belonged, at their wives’ sides.

  Then the two men who could make things happen in their absence took a pass.

  “I’m sorry,” Marty said. “I consider you good friends. You were always good to me. But the fact as I see it is you’ve got enough people to restock your mine and to make it operational again.

  “I owe my allegiance to the people of Eden now. I took an oath to protect and serve them, and I take that oath very seriously. I think I can serve them better by opting out. I mean, if I help you get the mine back together and restock it again, you’ll let me bring a handful of Eden’s residents in at best. The rest will be left to fend for themselves, as they had to do the first time.

  “I think I’d be serving them more by working with them to protect them all.”

  “But how?”

  “The old prison in Eden. The one Castillo and his men were locked up in before that idiot warden let them out. It was made to keep people in. But it’s equally effective in keeping people out.”

  Mark and Marty had shaken hands and wished each other well. Mark didn’t try to argue because he had other things on his mind. Mainly, Hannah’s well-being.

  Marty did offer one concession.

  “As I see it, the key to restocking your mine is the gathering of materials. There’s plenty of what you need on area highways, but you need trucks and drivers to go and get it. Those two Kenworth tractors I saw in your mine are top of the line. That means you just need drivers. If you identify a couple of your men who have a little bit of sense, I’ll take them out with me. I’ll teach them how to secure their loads and what to check to make sure they don’t kill themselves or somebody else. I’ll teach them how to latch onto a trailer and how to make minor repairs. I’ll teach them how to tow a trailer without wiping out everything in their wake, and how to back it safely. Then you can turn them loose to start gathering your stuff.”