“Not if we can help it,” Fatty said with half a laugh.
It took a moment before Isabelle reacted. When she did, she snorted, threw her head back and let her laughter explode out, mouth huge, the sound enormous. Her eyes were wide and her nostrils flared, staring them each in the eye, one after the other. It was, frankly, scary.
“Man,” she said. “You’re a funny dude. I haven’t laughed like that since. . . well, I don’t think I’ve ever laughed like that.”
Please don’t do it again, Jamie thought. Donny didn’t seem to share his opinion and looked at Isabelle with his head cocked to one side. Isabelle took up her usual burly expression, looking like she’d never laughed once in her whole life. She spat in her hand and offered it to Donny.
“Deal,” she said.
“What am I supposed to do with that?” Donny said.
“Shake it, of course,” she said.
Donny took her fingers and shook her hand, careful not to touch her saliva.
“Who are you guys?” Isabelle said with a frown. “First you’re helpless prisoners locked away in a cell, now you’re masters of the universe?”
“We’re survivors like you,” Jamie said.
“You might be survivors but you’re not like me,” Isabelle said.
“We’ve had enough of being bullied and pushed around by. . . outside forces,” Jamie said.
“Amen to that, brother,” Isabelle said. “I’m sincerely glad I ran into you fellows. This could turn out to be a wonderful business partnership. You can call me Belle, by the way. As we’re now business partners, we can operate on a first-name basis. One proviso on my part: I’ll be doing all the cooking on our journey.”
“Are you sure?” Jamie said. “Fatty cooks pretty well.”
“I don’t eat nothin’ that ain’t been prepared by these two hands,” Isabelle said.
We’ll see how long that lasts, Jamie thought. There was no resisting Fatty’s food once you got a whiff.
Belle clucked and Humperdinck continued on down the path. The great cannon sank beneath the preceding hilltop, wiping it from view, but very much not from mind.
85.
THE WHITE River forest was massive. Just when Jamie thought they had left it behind they turned a corner to find the forest marched on. According to Isabelle, this forest did not house dangerous or deadly creatures. There were snakes and spiders, and people got stung or bitten, but no one died of their wounds. It was an alien concept to those from the Mountain’s Peak commune. Virtually everything was deadly in the desert and surrounding area. Even many of the plants!
The forest air was moist as it rained almost every day. Isabelle laughed at them each time they moved into the rain to dance and wash in it. That lasted only the first few days. Then the gang began to huddle under the large leafed plants alongside Isabelle and Humperdinck.
That was another crucial difference. The rain didn’t last long in the forest but when it fell it really fell. Small streams swelled to the size of miniature rivers in a matter of minutes. The ground became thick and marshy and sucked at the soles of their feet, making walking extremely difficult. The cart was even harder to shift. They had to get out and push, using levers for when it got badly stuck. Fatty fell face first into the mud several times. So, it wasn’t that this side of the world didn’t have its problems, they were simply different problems.
Jamie divided these problems into two extremes: scarcity and abundance. The desert suffered from scarcity; a lack of rain, a lack of food, a lack of opportunities. The rainforest suffered from an overabundance of these things.
Jamie felt relieved that growing up in the harsher environment had given him the skills to excel in the easier one. If it was the other way round he was certain he would perish before learning the skills necessary to survive in the desert.
The benefits of living in such a harsh environment as the desert became apparent when they went hunting. A Mountain’s Peak hunter did not fire his catapult or bow until the creature was within easy striking distance. Patience was key because you never knew when your path would be crossed by the next rabbit. Isabelle existed on a completely different philosophy: shoot now, aim later. Jamie couldn’t understand why she would hunt like that until they noticed how many rabbits there were. No sooner had they run off than they came back to converge on the very same area again! Within half an hour they had caught three rabbits each.
“You guys ought to stop otherwise you’re going to cull the whole damn lot of them!” Isabelle said, half in jest.
The way to cook and preserve their catches here was different too. In the sweltering heat of the desert, meat tended to go off very quickly. They would cook what they could in soups and stews, then cut the remaining meat into strips and leave it out in the sun to dry. After that, they could eat it whenever they wanted. In the cool forest, their soups and stews kept for long enough that they could eat it fresh.
Jamie considered the forest to be one of the best places to hide. If the trees were strong—they did not necessarily need to be very tall—it was possible to build a small treehouse that would give you the protection you needed. You would also be away from the most dangerous area—the land. The Rages could not reach you. And you could dispose of them with ease from your elevated vantage point.
When Jamie was a boy he’d read with fascination the stories of Robin Hood and his Merry Men and wished he could live in the trees alongside them.
You were surrounded by nature. Not only did it make you feel good with the fresh, clean air, but there was easy food to be picked from the trees and bushes. Breakfast was but a short trip away. Jamie was surprised to find Isabelle’s first port of call was a commune instigating his very own concept.
Not only a single tree, but dozens of them, linked by vine ropes and bridges. Winches and pulleys brought items up and down. A hand-powered device pumped water up through clear tubes. They also collected rainwater in large containers. They wore clothes they’d hewn from the very nature around them. With a world of plenty on their doorstep, it was no wonder they had such big smiles on their faces.
Money was largely a thing of the past but it was still used when one trader didn’t have anything the other side wanted. They would barter on price and keep the coins in storage to use again later when the situation arose. Mostly, they exchanged items.
Isabelle had a load of food she wanted to get shot of. The gang had made a small dent in it during the trip but it would spoil if she didn’t get rid of it soon. The tree dwellers had their own orchards and vineyards and were the wrong people to sell these kinds of products to. Still, Isabelle bargained hard and did well selling ice to the Eskimos.
What were of more use to the locals were the rabbit pelts the gang had gathered during their recent hunting trips. The tree dwellers were not good hunters, preferring to live off the land. Jamie thought this was long-term suicide and short-term laziness as there were plenty of easy opportunities if the tree dwellers only expanded their scope a little.
Isabelle could see Jamie’s fascination with the tree dwellers and their tree-borne houses and managed to haggle one night in an empty treehouse.
“You might only get to come here once,” she said. “You might as well try everything out while you can.”
It was better than Jamie had expected. He loved the ropes and the climbing and the animals and birds in the trees. The locals were very happy to show him how everything worked. They were very proud of their innovative techniques. Jamie studied them and decided he would bring some of the ideas home.
The others enjoyed the nature too. Lucy seemed to find great peace amongst the silence and calm. She sat for hours on the ledges that overlooked a great lake on one side—where the locals washed, showered and bathed—and the rolling hills on the other.
Fatty studied the locals too. He was—as always—only interested in their cooking techniques, or rather, their lack of them. They seemed to enjoy cooking as little as possible and only ever started fires when necess
ary. Jamie could understand this, as it could be very dangerous while living in trees. A single strong breeze and they might lose everything.
Fatty was keen to show them some food combinations he’d discovered over the years. The locals tried with great relish the different tastes he could create with the simplest of herbs and spices. Some they cared for, some they didn’t, but they made notes of the ones they liked.
It was then that Isabelle learned of Fatty’s genius when it came to cooking. She let him help her prepare food for their meals, checking over his shoulder to study his methodology. She was learning new things too.
Donny was fascinated by the traps the tree dwellers used. They didn’t use many as they loathed killing animals, but when they did, they made such innovative systems that Donny was certain it would work on Rages and Reavers alike. He even discovered new knots he’d never seen before; ones that slipped easily and others so strong that struggling only made them tighter.
It was toward the end of the evening when the locals were preparing for bed that Jamie approached his elder brother who sat with his legs dangling over the side of the raised back porch. Jamie took a seat beside him. They sat in silence, breathing in the fresh wet air.
“It’s nice here, isn’t it?” Jamie said.
“Very nice,” Donny said. “An easy lifestyle.”
“We could relocate the commune one day,” Jamie said. “We already know people here. They would be happy to help us. And I think we could thrive.”
“Maybe,” Donny said. “We’re desert folk. I’m not sure they’d want to leave.”
They sat in a silence a moment longer. Relocating the commune wasn’t really what Jamie had come to talk about.
“I thought we were going to head back and save Dad?” he said.
“It’s like you said,” Donny said. “If we can destroy this Bug ship then we can save everyone. Not only Dad.”
And because Dad is already dead. He didn’t say it. He didn’t need to. With the time it would take them to cross the open land back it would have already been too late. Dr. Beck had given them a new purpose. A mission. The last chance for the human race, no less. But they couldn’t tell Isabelle that. She would run a mile. He couldn’t blame her.
“You think Lucy can get us into the City?” Donny said.
“She calls it ‘hacking,’” Jamie said, stumbling over the word. “Like cutting through a forest, I suppose. She thinks she can do it. It’s what she was made for.”
“How do we know she can even connect to computers?” Donny said. “Dr. Beck said she can do it but she’s never done it before.”
“Actually, she has,” Jamie said.
He proceeded to tell his brother about how she ‘patched’ (another new word) into the computer at the City so she could give him and Fatty the warning about the Rage creeping up behind them.
“I’m sure glad she’s on our side,” Donny said.
“She was built to be on our side,” Jamie said. “But I think it’s more than that. She’s one of us. She’s human. Just with a few alterations.”
Donny smiled.
“You like her, don’t you?” he said.
Jamie, shy and embarrassed, looked away.
“She’s nice,” he said.
Donny, in a rare example of self-restraint, left it at that.
Jamie looked up at the sky. The stars twinkled like long lost friends. That was something better in the desert. No foliage to block the night sky.
“You think it’s really up there?” Jamie said.
“It has to be,” Donny said.
“How will we even know how to fire it?” Jamie said.
“That’ll be Lucy’s job,” Donny said. “So long as she can plug into the system I assume she’ll have access to everything.”
“What happens after we fire the cannon?” Jamie said.
“Then we get the hell out of there,” Donny said. “We know what these Bug characters are capable of. Wiping out entire communes once they get too big and successful. They’ll do the same to us at the City if we fail to take them down. Who knows what they’ll do. I don’t want to be there to find out.”
“How will we know we’re successful?” Jamie said.
“We’ll probably get to see the biggest fireworks show in the world,” Donny said. “If not, then we’ll head home and grow the commune and if they’re really dead, they won’t stop us from growing.”
“And if the Rages do attack us?” Jamie said.
“Then at least we tried,” Donny said.
The next day, they continued on their journey. Jamie was a little sad to wave goodbye to the tree dwellers. He felt there was still so much to learn from them. But their destination beckoned. They couldn’t explore and learn forever. Man, what a life that would be. He imagined a future where he roamed from town to town, learning their secrets and skills and passing them on, connecting all the people together in a kind of web. . .
Maybe one day, he told himself.
They didn’t stop at any more communes, only other traders on equally tired steeds, where they bartered and haggled, Isabelle always managing to get the better deal.
“How much further to the City?” Fatty said, whining for at least the third time that day.
“Go pull that branch aside and find out,” Isabelle said.
“What branch?” Fatty said, checking over his shoulder.
Isabelle was referring to the corner of a sheet metal sign protruding from a thick plumage of foliage that had long since grown and obstructed it.
“Can’t you just tell me?” Fatty said.
“If you want to know the answer, go check,” Isabelle said.
Fatty sighed and sat up. He glared at Isabelle as he hopped off the cart and approached the thick branch. He struggled with pushing it aside, the leaves slapping him across the face. He finally hefted the branch with both arms, raising it high enough to peer at the sign. It said:
DENVER - 2 MILES
JURY - 0.5 MILES
Fatty let the branch drop, its pent up energy knocking him to one side. He fell on his big ass and rubbed it as he got back up.
“Two miles,” Fatty said, climbing back onto the cart. “Priceless piece of information, that. Thanks a lot.”
“You were the one who wanted to know,” Isabelle said. “Now you know.”
“And got a sore ass for it,” Fatty said. “Well worth the effort.”
“You’re in a particularly foul mood today,” Isabelle said.
“I wonder why,” Fatty said.
Jamie had long since stopped listening to the unravelling argument. His eyes were fixed on the sign. Through a gap, he could still make out the letters UR from the town name JURY. Just half a mile to ahead.
86.
THE SIGNS weren’t visible from the cart, but the numbers that stuck out of the side were. A countdown to the town of Jury.
Four hundred yards.
Three hundred.
Two hundred.
Jamie’s head was buzzing with questions begging for answers. Could it be the Jury Dr. Beck had told him about? How had he known Jamie would pass this way?
“Should you find yourself travelling east, you will come to a town called Jury,” Dr. Beck had said.
Should? Could it be a coincidence that Jamie found himself exactly in the place Dr. Beck had told him he might go all those days ago? It couldn’t be. It had to be part of some kind of plan. He’d always intended for Jamie to come this way. He knew he was going to pass the town of Jury. How long had he known? Jamie wondered. Did it even matter?
Jamie shook his head. It wasn’t worth getting himself worked up over. He wouldn’t go in the house. He wouldn’t check to see what was under the floorboard at the foot of the bed. Dr. Beck’s past was in there. He would forget about this place and focus on getting to Denver City. He could resist the temptation. He knew he would.
The last sign lay at a two-pronged fork in the road. They would be taking the road on the right. The road that veered
left, heading deeper into the woodland, would lead to Jury.
Jamie felt nervous, a thick sensation in the pit of his stomach, pinching at him from inside. Like someone had hold of a lever and took great joy in churning his stomach over and over. He was going to be sick.
“Stop,” he said, bending over the side.
“What’s up?” Donny said. “Sick?”
“A bit,” Jamie said. “Just need some air.”
“I think we could all do with a short break,” Donny said. “Can we pull over for a second?”
“Sure,” Isabelle said, pulling Humperdinck to the verge.
“Fatty, give Jamie some water,” Donny said.
Jamie sipped on the bottle, his stomach delicate. He handed the bottle back.
“I knew we shouldn’t have eaten those mushrooms,” Isabelle said. “Never touch wild mushrooms, that’s what my ma always said.”
“I told you,” Fatty said tiredly. “They’re boletes. They’re edible.”
Jamie hopped over the side of the cart and started for the woodland.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Donny said.
“Get some fresh air and take a leak,” Jamie said.
“We go in pairs, remember?” Donny said.
He turned to the others.
“Anyone else need to take a restroom break?” he said.
“I do,” Fatty said, raising his hand. “If it’s a real restroom and not a bush.”
“You’re in luck,” Donny said. “This area is famous for its naturally-occurring modern bathrooms. The urinal grows right out of the ground.”
“Really?” Fatty said.
“No,” Donny said flatly.
He put a finger to his temple.
“Think,” he said.
“You’re a dick,” Fatty said.
“Maybe,” Donny said. “But at least I’m not afraid of using it.”
Jamie felt relieved. The last person he wanted to go on a secret mission with was Fatty. He would simply refuse to go or else tell the others what Jamie was up to. And Jamie didn’t want them to know just yet. It might lead nowhere.
After The Fall (Book 2): The City Page 18
