by P. A. Glaspy
“Roger that.” Hutch’s hands were gripping the steering wheel tightly.
They were approaching Grant Circle. Bird wasn’t slowing down.
Hutch’s eyes got wide. “He does remember we’re hauling a camper, right? I can’t make that turn at this speed.”
“Slow down to whatever speed you need to make the turn safely. If he doesn’t reduce his speed and gets too far ahead, I’ll call him.” Damon had the phone in his hand ready to dial.
There were townhouses extremely close to the street in the circle. Some of the residents were out on their stoops talking to each other. The first Humvee barreling around the circle caught their attention.
“Shit.” Hutch watched as two women started toward the street then ran out into the street, frantically waving their arms for attention. They were standing directly in the path the first Humvee had left as it passed them.
“I’m gonna need someone in that hatch, pronto!” Hutch yelled. “Manning!”
“On it, Cap!” she called out. She had been sitting directly under it and only had to stand up to open it. Damon was dialing the phone when it rang.
“This is Lundy. We’re coming around. Get Bird to make the circle and take our spot.”
The second Humvee passed them on the left and pulled in front of them. Hutch slowed down but stayed close to their new escort. With the hatch open, they could clearly hear the loudspeaker in Lundy’s vehicle.
“Move aside! We will not stop! You will be run down if you don’t comply! This is your only warning!”
Hutch and Damon could no longer see the two women as they were hidden by the Humvee. They heard a scream then saw the women dive to either side of the advancing vehicle. Lundy went on and Hutch followed. Bird had made the loop and was behind them.
Shutting off the phone, Damon commented, “Bird said he was sorry for flying the coop.”
“Funny.” Hutch shook his head. “Did I hear you say we’re keeping this convoy a little tighter from here on in?”
“Yes, and a bit slower. We’ve got wide streets right now on down Sherman, but Euclid is narrow. It’s an upper middle-class area but desperate people …” Damon let the sentence dangle.
Hutch heaved a big sigh. “Great. Can’t wait.”
As they drove on, they saw people out everywhere. The temperature outside was right at freezing but the sun was shining, and it seemed the people preferred the cold sunshine to the not quite as cold and dark interiors of their homes.
“Man, there’s people everywhere. What’s the population anyway?” Hutch was staring ahead but using his peripheral vision to keep an eye on potential threats.
Damon was trying to keep eyes on everyone he could. “Over six hundred thousand last I heard. The District of Columbia has the highest population density of all U.S. states, with over eleven thousand people per square mile.”
“I’m thinking it’s not going to be the place to be real soon,” Hutch said. “I think I’m starting to pucker again.”
“Your sphincter, Mr. Hutch?” Brock chimed in from the back seat. Damon and Stephens stifled a laugh. Tanner chuckled and Melanie covered her face with her hand.
Hutch looked up into the rear-view mirror and gave him a nervous grin. “Exactly, buddy. But don’t you worry. You’re going to be safe in the White House.”
The boy smiled. Hutch shot Damon a look. Damon gave him a curt nod and replied under his breath, “I hope so, too.”
Chapter 29
They stood listening until the vehicle had passed the house. The sound coming from the muffler faded into the distance.
“Was that a car?” Cameron asked of no one in particular.
“Yes. Let’s get this stuff packed up and get back to the house pronto.” Elliott was handing guns and ammo to Amanda, who was filling the duffel bag as fast as she could.
“Why? What’s going on?” Carly asked as she hurried over with the pistol which she tried to hand to Amanda as well. Amanda raised her hand to take it, but Elliott laid his own hand on hers.
“You keep that, Carly girl. Put it in your pocket. That goes for the rest of you, too. Keep a side arm on you.” Elliott went back to what he was doing. “We’ll talk about it when we get inside where it’s warm.”
When the bag was loaded, Aaron picked it up and they all headed toward the house. Lauri met them on the back porch.
“Did you hear that? Another car that runs! Maybe it’s not as bad as we thought it was going to be,” she said excitedly. Upon seeing the grim looks on the faces of her family, she wrapped her arms around herself and added, “… or not. What’s wrong?”
Elliott was directing traffic from the steps. “Come on, everybody. Inside, quickly.” He turned to Lauri. “We’ll talk about it inside, okay?”
She nodded, worry etched on her face, and went through the door Joel was holding open for her. When they were all in the house, coats hung up, and snowy shoes and boots left by the door, Lauri went on. “Well? Why is another car that works bad, Elliott?”
Elliott motioned with his hand for her to follow him into the living room where the family had gathered to warm themselves by the wood stove. He said nothing while he stretched his hands out toward the heat source. Everyone looked at him expectantly until Carly blurted out, “For God’s sake, Elliott, spill it! What’s so bad about hearing another car on the road?”
Elliott looked up at her then took in each of the rest of them in turn. Finally, he said, “Have you heard any other vehicles since this mess started? Besides the one that brought you here, that is.”
Everyone slowly shook their heads and waited for him to go on. “Me, neither. I’m pretty sure that if any of the neighbors around here had one, we would have seen or heard it by now. That means that car or whatever it was we heard is carrying people who don’t live in this area. They’re out here looking for something, like those guys that were here earlier. We need to start thinking about security.”
“Like guard duty, Pap? I can stand guard. Just tell me when and where. Oh, and how. Will we have a password? I’m sure I’ll need to carry a gun. Which one is best for guard duty?” Cameron peppered his grandfather with questions, bouncing in excitement. Amanda laughed along with Will, Ethan grinned, and Aaron rolled his eyes.
“This isn’t a game, Cameron,” Carly replied sternly. “Teenagers do not stand guard. Tell him, Elliott.” She crossed her arms in a huff.
“Well …” Elliott drew the word out before he went on. “We’ll probably need everybody to take a shift. There’s ten of us here and twenty-four hours in a day. If we went with two per shift, that’s going to be almost five hours per team to cover the place the whole time.”
“No, Elliott, I’m putting my foot down on this,” Carly shot back at him. “Aaron and Cameron are not soldiers, or policemen. What if those guys come back? No, it’s too dangerous.”
“Car, everything is dangerous now. What if those guys came back and we didn’t know until they’d busted down the door because we weren’t watching?” Will spoke softly to his sister as he looked at his nephews. “Aaron is almost eighteen. That’s old enough to enlist if he wanted to — without your permission. During the Revolutionary War, there were kids as young as fifteen fighting for our freedom. They aren’t babies anymore, sis. They aren’t little boys. You can’t protect them forever, and you sure can’t protect them from what we’re facing now.”
Carly’s face was beet red as she turned on her brother. “Are you actually agreeing to this, Will? You only have two nephews. Are you willing to risk their lives? Because I’m not! I’m their mother and what I say goes!”
“All of our lives are at risk now,” Ethan interjected. “Were you at the window this morning? Did you see that one of those guys was about to pull a gun out on Dad and me?”
“You don’t know that for sure!” Carly screeched. “He could have been just trying to keep his hand warm. And this is none of your business anyway, Ethan. You have no say in what these kids can or can’t do. You gave up tha
t right when you left us!” She turned on her heel and stomped back to the kitchen. Lauri went after her.
There was an awkward silence hanging heavily in the room. It was broken by Cameron.
“I think she’s warming up to you a little bit, Dad,” he said with a sly grin. Aaron snickered behind his hand.
Ethan’s grim face changed to just the hint of a smile. “What makes you say that, Cam?”
“Well, she didn’t shoot you. She is armed, you know. And she’s figured out how to use it.”
The room erupted in much needed laughter.
Ethan laid a hand on Cameron’s shoulder. “You may be right about that, son.”
“I wouldn’t test that theory,” Joel said with a hint of mirth. “She may have forgotten she had it on her.”
Ethan’s eyes grew wide. “Good point.”
“The nerve of him thinking he has any right to tell me anything about how to raise my boys!” Carly was pacing like a caged animal around the large country kitchen, hissing the words through her teeth in a loud whisper. “He shows up after ten years and wants to play daddy now? It’s too late for that.”
Lauri was wringing her hands. “Honey, please calm down. I don’t think that’s what he was doing or is trying to do.”
Carly stopped just short of the open doorway to the living room and put her hand on her hips. “Then what it is, Mom? What am I missing?”
Lauri looked at her daughter with a tear running down her cheek. “I think he’s trying to make amends. I think he just wants to spend some time with them, get to know them before he … you know … dies.”
Carly opened her mouth then closed it. She leaned around the door jamb and peeked into the living room. Ethan’s hand was on Cameron’s shoulder and they were all laughing at something she hadn’t heard. As if sensing she was watching, Ethan turned and looked at her. With the laughter still in his eyes, he gave her an almost imperceptible nod of his head. He then turned back to the conversation.
“Yeah, I guess,” Carly replied with less venom in her tone. “I keep forgetting he’s not going to be here much longer. In some ways, he’s still the Ethan I knew when we were younger. Charming when he wants to be, defensive and stubborn at other times. But he’s also calmer, not so easy to lose his temper. He seems more … I don’t know … peaceful maybe. The old Ethan would have been raging against the world right now, saying it wasn’t fair that this was happening to him, what had he done to deserve this, blah, blah, blah. We all know what he did to deserve it. But still —”
“No one deserves what he’s got coming, Carly girl,” Elliott said as he joined them in the kitchen. “Yes, he was a bad husband and father and son. But without meds for the pain, he’s going to die —” Elliott’s voice caught in his throat as a tear formed in the corner of his eye. He reached up and wiped it away. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt. Just looking for a cup of joe.”
Lauri hurried to the stove and turned the burner on under the cold percolator. “I’ll have this heated up in just a few minutes, Elliott. Can I get you anything else?” Lauri seemed embarrassed, busying herself with wiping off the counter next to the sink.
“No, the coffee will be fine. Were you able to get a good inventory on our food stores?” Elliott’s attempt to change the subject did not go unnoticed by either woman.
Lauri heaved a relieved sigh. “Yes, I did. I think we’ll be okay for two to three months. We can make soups and stews with meat from the freezer and the pasta you seem to have a lot of. I don’t know anything about these freeze-dried foods you have. Do we just add them to the broth?”
“For the most part, yes,” Elliott replied. “We may need to add a bit more liquid but then I’m pretty sure the soup will get more and more watery as the food stores dwindle. If we can make it three months and the weather isn’t too harsh, we’ll be able to plant some early spring crops before it’s all gone. I’ll do some hunting to supplement the meat, but the weather seems to be warming up already and we’re probably going to have to start pulling stuff out of the freezer and get busy canning it soon, so we don’t lose it. I think the extended forecast had us back up around fifty next week. Even with the makeshift generator, I don’t want to take any chances on losing any food.”
“I’m good with water bath canning but I don’t know anything about pressure canning,” Lauri said. “I hope you do.”
“I do. I haven’t done it in a while because it was just easier to put meat in the freezer, but I can still do it. We’ll sit down together tomorrow and go over it, maybe pull some meat out and give it a go.”
Lauri smiled. “That sounds great. Let me check that coffee.” She touched the side of the pot and picked up a potholder, grabbing a cup off the draining rack at the same time. “I think this is hot enough now. Here you go, Elliott.”
She filled the cup and handed it to him. He took a tentative sip. “Perfect. How much coffee did we have?”
Lauri checked her list. “Five three-pound canisters and a dozen jars of instant. I didn’t know you liked instant coffee.”
“I don’t, but it’s better than no coffee and it keeps forever. I mean, technically it’s coffee, but it tastes different.” Elliott seemed lost in thought for a moment. “That should last us a few months, at least. Then we’ll be drinking dandelion root coffee.”
“Gah! Weeds?” Carly’s grimace was comical and caused Elliott to chuckle and Lauri to giggle.
“We’ll see how you feel about that weed a week or so after the coffee runs out,” Elliott said with a smirk. “I know how you are about your coffee.”
“Did someone say coffee?” Amanda asked as she strolled into the kitchen. “I could use some if we have it.”
“Enjoy it while you can,” Carly remarked offhandedly. “Apparently, we’re going to drink a weed-based, coffee-like substance when it’s gone.”
Amanda looked confused, Carly shrugged, and Lauri and Elliott laughed again. Lauri handed Amanda her cup. Amanda took a sip and looked at Elliott. “I can work up a patrol schedule if you want, Elliott. You’ve got a ton on your plate, and I know who the strong shooters are. We can pair strong and not so strong together until everybody gets their shooting skills up to snuff.”
At the mention of the need for security, the mood in the room grew more solemn.
“That would be a big help, Amanda. I’d appreciate it,” Elliott replied.
“It’s the least I can do. You offered me a port in this crazy storm. I’m not sure where I’d be right now if I hadn’t run into Will, which led us here — a safe place — well as safe as any place can be right now.” She paused and chewed the edge of her bottom lip. “This place is sustainable if we can hang on to it.”
“We’ll do whatever we have to, because I’m not going down without a fight.” Elliott set his jaw in determination.
The words were no sooner out of his mouth than Cameron burst into the kitchen. “Pap! There’s a van coming up the driveway!”
Elliott hurried over to don his boots and grabbed his coat, along with the shotgun he had left by the back door, as the kitchen and living room became a flurry of activity. Lexi was running back and forth between both rooms barking and growling at the windows and doors. As he reached for the doorknob, Elliott said over his shoulder, “I guess the fight is here.”
~~~~~
Cody, Wayne, Bo, and Doug hadn’t had to go too far down the road before they found Taylor Livingston and his friends, Devon Brown and Jason Caton. The three were trying to chop wood with a hatchet. The sound of the van had all three men looking up in excitement. Cody pulled into the driveway and the three hurried over to the driver side door.
“Oh, man, are we glad to see you!” Taylor exclaimed. “Your van still works. That’s awesome! Hey, any chance you can give us a ride into Millington? We’re almost out of food and we have no running water. I need to pick up a bunch of stuff for my wife and kids. I’m Taylor, by the way. Taylor Livingston. These are my buddies, Devon Brown and Jason Caton. They live a
few houses down.”
“Dude, there’s no food or water left in Millington,” Cody said casually. “I don’t think there’s anything left in any stores. So, you guys are out, too, huh?”
Dejectedly, Taylor replied, “Yes. I don’t know what we’re going to do. I can’t just sit and watch my kids starve to death. But if the stores are empty …” His voice trailed off with a silent sob.
Cody saw an opportunity. “Well, what about your neighbors? Maybe they can lend a hand.”
“I’ve tried,” Taylor lamented. “Either they don’t have any to spare, or they do, but won’t help anybody else.”
Cody pressed on. “Well, that doesn’t sound very neighborly. Who was it that wouldn’t help?”
Taylor pointed back in the direction of Elliott’s place. “There’s an old guy that lives on the other side of the Harrisons. His name is Elliott Marshall. I know he has food and water. He let us get some water from his well pump, and there was a plate of biscuits on the table the first time I was there. He’s got a wood stove, too. It was so warm inside. I asked him to let us stay there but he said no, that he had a house full. I all but begged him, told him we’d help with chores, whatever we had to do, but he wouldn’t budge.”
“A houseful, huh? Did he say how many was there?” Cody asked innocently.
“Nine or ten, I think,” Taylor replied. “Why?”
Cody ignored his question. “What would you do to get a place like that for your family?”
“Are you kidding me? I’d do anything!” Taylor’s eyes lit up. “Do you know of a place?”
Cody looked at the other two men. “How about you fellas? You looking for a place like that, too?”
Jason spoke up first. “Hell yeah. I got a pregnant wife at home. She’s freezing and our food is getting low, too.”
Devon added, “No wife or kids for me but I definitely need a place better than mine. All I had was frozen pizzas, and I’ve been cooking them on the grill. It feels like it’s warming back up, so they won’t be frozen much longer.”
