by Sage du Toit
Everyone was washed up but they didn’t have clean clothes to change into. It was too late to go out and get clean clothes and Sam wondered why Hollis hadn’t thought to get any when he was out looting for food. Sam took the extra blankets and cut holes in the center and put them over the naked kids like ponchos. The kids were young enough that they weren’t too concerned about just wearing ponchos around. Kaitlyn, one of the teenagers, saw what she was doing and said she tied blankets as Christmas gifts last year and she showed her how they could cut strips down the side and tie them together.
It was already getting dark outside and since all the kids were up and feeling better they removed the IV catheters and tubes and told them all to drink the bottled water or filtered water. Sam showed them all how to use the filters they brought back from Academy and the small kids really took to it and had fun pumping the water into clean jugs. But they were all still weak and couldn’t do much.
They explained to everyone that they didn’t live far and that they were going to go home for the night and would come back in the morning. They would help them find a new place then where they could actually have rooms and beds. They were all very excited about that, especially the teenagers. As they were leaving the teens were making further improvements on the blanket clothes and were even talking about making themselves something since they didn’t have clean clothes either.
They hooked the new bike trailer up to Tom’s bike and he pulled it home. He told Sam it was going to take some practice to pull a trailer on the bike. This was the first time either of them had tried pulling a trailer with a bike and they both saw it took a lot more thought. It also required a lot more clearance and a lot of drag going uphill.
They were both exhausted when they got to the house. They checked on Lucky and the kittens and let them out of the closet to run and play. The kittens were full of excitement and so happy to see them. Sam told Tom she thought they should take Lucky and the kittens tomorrow to play with the kids. It would be good for them all and they wouldn’t have to worry about them being left home alone if it took them a few days to find a place to move everyone. Or find a vehicle big enough to transport all of them to Fort Jackson if they could convince Thomas.
Chapter 3
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3 February 2021
Douglasville, GA
They had spent the night trying to come up with ideas. They knew a motel would be too big for just ten people, especially when over half of them were kids. And a house would be too small. They were also concerned that the kids might not be getting taken proper care of. Martha and Hollis didn’t seem like the best couple to be stuck in parenting roles and Thomas was getting on up in age and there was no way he could handle four little kids and three teenagers.
They decided to pack up everything. As soon as they got the Country store group set up or on their way to Fort Jackson they would take off to Texas themselves. Besides this would give them a feel for how it was going to be to travel with everything and give them opportunities to adjust. The kittens were excited when Sam put them all in the trailer with Lucky. However, when she pulled the trailer outside, they all froze and then piled inside the hideaway sack that was in the bottom of the trailer. The only one not hiding was Lucky, she was sitting in her favorite spot on top and looking out of the zippered rain cover with interest.
Tom followed behind her with the new trailer packed with everything they couldn’t fit before, including some clothes for the kids and teens that Sam had pulled out from the original home owners stored clothing. She had hated leaving the kids with just blankets to cover themselves with last night.
When they got to the Country Store, they knocked on the back door and Martha let them in with a smile. It was just after 08:00 and she said they were eating breakfast if they wanted to join them. Sam had made them the last of the eggs with cheese that morning before packing up so she was about to say no when Tom butted in and said yes, they would love some breakfast! Sam smiled and realized they could do with some more food so she agreed.
They had hot oatmeal with brown sugar and a rehydrated pitcher of powdered milk. Sam asked to be sure they used filtered water for the milk and Martha said yes. Sam asked if they had coffee and Martha told her that none of them drank coffee and they didn’t have a pot to make it with anyway. Sam said, “Well since that’s the case, do you mind if I make some for Tom and me? And would it be ok if I took some the coffee for later as well?”
Martha told her to help herself. Sam went back out to the bike and unhooked her trailer that had Lucky and the kittens as well as their supplies and her cooking equipment in the back. Tom helped her put the front wheel on and they wheeled the trailer through the door. There was barely enough room between the boxes to push the trailer all the way to the front. The Country Store group was all sitting in the front room and Sam hadn’t told them about Lucky and the kittens yet.
As soon as she walked in she said, “Is anyone here allergic to cats?” They all had very puzzled looks on their faces as they all said no. “In that case…meet Lucky and her kittens; Grunt, Trooper, Chatty, Serena and Mew.” She unhooked the rain cover and unzipped the enclosure. The kids and teens all ran over to crowd around the trailer and she told them to be calm so they didn’t scare the kittens.
She then carefully took out one kitten at a time and handed them out, telling them to be very careful because they were still babies. The last one she pulled out was Mew and she put her in Noah’s hands and told him she was a very special kitten and he had to be extra careful with her. Mew was still her favorite and she watched him carefully to make sure he was being gentle.
Lucky had come out of the trailer and was sniffing around the group of people and rubbing up against legs. She was always doing something that shocked Sam, this super friendly behavior with strangers was another shocking thing. She even jumped up on Thomas’ lap and made herself comfortable!
Sam made a pot of coffee and even Thomas had a cup, he said he didn’t drink coffee often but it was a nice change to have a cup again. The kittens were adjusting and the little kids were leading them around with shoe laces and throwing the toy balls that Sam had given them. The teens were going through the extra clothes she had brought, not caring that they were all boy clothes, and Martha and Hollis were also looking through the clothes. Sam and Tom sat down with Thomas on the bar stools to sip their coffee. Sam asked again if Thomas could tell them their story of N-Day. She felt like she needed to know more of how they all ended up here and where the kid’s parents were. Thomas asked her what N-Day was and she explained how they started calling it that because if the Nerve gas and the fact that it sounded like “End day”.
Thomas started by telling them what great ice cream sundae’s this little place had. “I came in here at least twice a week for a root beer float or a sundae. To be honest with you I was sweet on Michelle, the owner. Her husband had died at the end of the previous year and I had been trying to ask her out on a date.” He sadly looked down, “Never gonna get that chance now.
“It was really too early for a sundae, I didn’t think anyone else would be here, I thought that by stopping by early I could chat her up. But all of these kids were at the bar getting candy and ordering ice cream for breakfast.” He pointedly looked at Martha and Hollis with disapproval. Sam wondered how bad the tension was right after N-Day, they must have worked through everything for the kid’s sakes.
“I later found out it was Hannah’s birthday, she said her mom had promised her a big party for her 16th birthday but ended up having to work, so when Martha showed up to wish her happy birthday she convinced her to take them here to get candy and sundae’s. I’m still not quite sure how they were planning on paying Michelle because both Martha and Hollis were high as kites and broke as dirt.” He gave them both disapproving looks again. Somehow Sam wasn’t surprised to learn both Martha and Hollis had been drug users. Hollis still acted like he was doped up half the time and sh
e wondered what else he found while he was out looting houses.
Thomas continued, “Hollis had his nose buried in his cell phone, like most people were like back then, and suddenly he started yelling that no one should go back outside. He said people were dying everywhere and his friend Ike told him they were being bombed. When we all looked at him like he was crazy he said Ike watched the government closely because he didn’t trust them and he knew what was going on.
“Of course, none of us believed him. I thought he was doing it as maybe a plan for them to run out of here without paying. But now that I know him, I know his doped up self could never come up with an elaborate plan like that. Michelle really didn’t believe him and he was scaring the kids…”, Thomas’ voice started getting shaky and there were tears in his eyes. “She walked out the front doors and turned back around…we were all watching her…she put her hands up in the air as if to say, “See nothing wrong here.” But then her eyes rolled back in her head and bloody foam started coming out of her mouth and she fell to the ground shaking. I started to run outside to help her but Hollis stopped me.” He looked at them pointedly, “Can you believe that dopehead actually saved my life?
“We were lucky none of the nerve gas came inside when she opened the door. Right after that all of their phones when off with that emergency alert message. I never bothered getting a cell phone, I always thought they were more of a hindrance. Government always knowing where you where, tracking your location. Anyway, Martha kept the kids behind the bar and Hollis was fast to look up on the internet what to do. We taped up the doors and vents and by the time we were done with that the electric went out and the phones died. I knew that meant EMP attack and that we were going to be stuck here for an extended period.
“It was hard at first. Especially since Martha and Hollis were going through withdrawal symptoms.” He smiled slightly, “But I honestly thought it was a great lesson to the kids on why you don’t do drugs! We settled in and a few weeks went by. We ate all of the perishable stuff first…the kids gorged on ice cream until they were sick of it! And I had them help me move the shelves and rearrange the inside so we had more room.
“We found an old trunk in the back that was full of military gear, probably from Michelle’s late husband, and there was a gas mask in it. Hollis volunteered to go out and look for other survivors and start looting the houses for more food so we wouldn’t run out. His van wouldn’t start but my old truck did. We also found the keys for Michelle’s little car out front but that one wouldn’t start either. Anyway, he looted and brought back stuff and said he never found any other survivors. You guys are the first ones we’ve run into. We’ve been afraid to go outside, not sure if it’s safe, and when Hollis found those other masks and the kids started getting so sick…that was the first time all three of us went out. We were desperate!” Tom had already told them the masks were no good. Luckily there weren’t as many pockets of nerve gas around these days.
Sam refilled all their coffee cups and they started discussing plans for what they were going to do. Tom asked if they had checked the kid’s parents work places to see if they were alive there. Thomas said they had only checked the homes, not the work places. Sam said, “But the parents didn’t know where the kids were…so even if they did survive, they wouldn’t know where to come looking for them, unless Hollis left notes at their houses in case they returned, did he do that?” Thomas said they never thought of that.
They decided they would get Hollis to take them to the parents houses and see if anyone had returned there and if not, they would go to the parents work place. They called the kids over and asked where their parents worked. Hannah said their Mom was a nurse at the Hospital and her Dad worked in the railyard that was north of Douglasville. Kaitlyn said her Mom would have been at home with her baby brother and her Dad was working at Best Buy. Abigail said her Mom was a waitress at Cracker Barrell and her Dad lived in Tennessee. Ella said her Mom worked at the Mall but she didn’t know the name of the store, she said they sold clothes and that was all she knew. She said her dad sold cars but she didn’t know the name of the place, then she said, “But he works right up there, Mommy would take me there to see him all of the time.” She pointed toward the end of the street and Sam remembered passing a car dealership and thought maybe she was talking about that one.
Sam pulled out her Yellow pages and the map and they plotted out all their houses and looked up the places they worked at. The kids were fascinated by the map and she showed them all how to use it. Maps were completely new in their lives and it was something they were going to need to learn for their new futures if they wanted to go anywhere.
The kids all lived relatively close and they decided they would go visit the houses now and then come back. Sam gave them all instructions on the kittens and Lucky and made sure there was food, water and the litter box was out and they all knew where it was. The kittens were already exhausted from playing with the kids and were piled up on Noah’s sleeping bag. She moved them all to the trailer and told the kids to let them sleep.
Sam and Tom moved both their bikes inside as well as the other trailer. No point leaving it outside and attracting unwanted attention. Of course, according to Hollis there were no other people around. But Sam and Tom both knew there were people in Atlanta, and if they decided to come out this way, it would be bad news! They got in Thomas’ truck with Tom driving. Sam had the map to help navigate but Hollis said he knew where to go. Sam followed along on the map to make sure Hollis was taking them in the right direction.
They went to Hannah’s house first and found it empty. Hollis had broken into the back door, just like he did most of the other houses and he said everything looked the same, it was the same for Abigail and Ella’s house. At Kaitlyn’s house Hollis warned them what he had found previously, the mom and baby brother were both dead in the baby’s room. Tom went in with Hollis to confirm that no one had been there since he was there last. There was no change anywhere. They didn’t really expect to find anybody but they had hoped.
They went back and drove by the auto dealership that was right up the street from the Country store and found two men dead inside. While they were there Sam noticed a large older model motorhome that was parked out back and suggested to Tom that they check to see if it would crank. I would make a good transport for the group. They searched around the dealership and finally found the keys. When they unlocked the side door and opened it up, the stairs automatically came out. Sam took that as a very good sign. Tom went to the front and the motor started a slow turn over then cranked up loud. He let it run for a minute to make sure the motor was running well. He said it had a half tank of gas and told Hollis to drive the truck back to the store, they were going to drive the RV over.
Sam looked through the RV as Tom slowly pulled it out and on to the road. It was at least a 30’ and had the typical bench seats with a table that could be taken down and turned into a bed. There was a couch across from the table, in addition to the two chairs at the front of the Motor home. There was a big bed over the cab of the truck and she could see storage compartments off to the side of the bed. The kitchen was typical of motor homes and she pushed the button to check the propane level for the stove and it showed full. The water tank showed full and the waste tanks were empty. There was a small bathroom with a corner shower and across from the bathroom in the very narrow hallway was a set of bunkbeds. And in the very back was a full queen size bed. It would be a little cramped but they should be able to find a place to sleep for all the group, if they didn’t mind bunking together.
Tom pulled up and parked the RV in the back of the store right next to the truck. It was a little tight but he made it. He then took his chemical tester and went over the whole RV to make sure there weren’t any pockets of nerve gas anywhere. They also went over the outside and in all the outside compartments. Hollis came over and asked them what they were doing and Tom explained to him that he was checking for the nerve agent. Hollis looked surprised, he
said, “You can do that?” Tom explained that he was a chemical specialist and only he knew how to read the detector.
They all went inside and Martha was heating up some canned chili. Sam remembered seeing some boxes of cornbread mix and suggested they make corncakes to go with the chili. Martha asked her what corncakes were. Sam found the boxes and saw it called for eggs and butter. She found oil and mayonnaise to substitute for the missing ingredients and mixed it all together. She found a nice flat pan and oiled it and waited until it was hot. She then poured the mixture out on the pan. Martha asked if it was a pancake and Sam explained that it was like a pancake except it was made with corn batter, that made it a corncake. Sam wondered just how long Martha took drugs…corncakes weren’t that complicated.
Everyone ate the chili and especially enjoyed the corncakes. Tom asked her to see if she could get some of the mix to take with them, he especially loved them. After they were done eating, they told Kaitlyn they had confirmed what Hollis had already told her. She already knew but hearing the news again wasn’t easy. They also told Ella that they found two men at the car dealership and when asked to describe her dad she said has bald and had a long mustache. One of the men fit that description so they had to assume he was dead. Ella was just old enough to understand, when she started crying Kaitlyn was her best comforter because she was also crying.
The kittens were back out playing and Noah was having a blast playing with them. It didn’t take long and even Ella was back to playing with the kittens. It had been a long time since the kids had any active entertainment besides each other. Sam thought it was also good for the kittens. They needed to be socialized and she thought the younger the better.
They were ready to head back out and go to the Best Buy and Cracker Barrell. They were going to visit the Hospital and Mall tomorrow. The Best Buy was near the Academy and Cracker Barrell wasn’t far from it either. As they were passing a row of businesses, Sam saw the coffee shop again and asked Hollis if he had looted that shop. He said he didn’t because they already had enough coffee and none of them drank it. Sam met Tom’s eyes and decided they would visit it before leaving Douglasville. There would be food, creamer, sugar, coffee and other things in there they could use and then they wouldn’t feel guilty about taking any of the Store groups food.