“Bet this road leads to some houses!” said Pepper. “It has to! Can we turn here instead of going straight?”
“My thoughts exactly,” said Brenda. They all cheered at once when a tipped wrought iron fence indicated that a house was nearby.
“More good luck!” cried Brenda. “The sun is about to go down and in another few minutes, this fence would be invisible. We would have missed it in the dark!” She hurried forward and tried to mask her disappointment when she saw that the house behind the fence was in ruins. She was quick to speak, lest sweeping disappointment sour the tenuous mood. “Hey, even if we can’t sleep in the house, the yard has lots of soft grass and the ground is level in some places. What do you say we dump our stuff in the yard and see what we can find near the house? We still have time to look for food, and there is time to make a fire, too. Even if we have to sleep on the ground tonight, it will be softer than the place we slept last night.”
“Whew,” grunted Pepper as she dumped her backpack. “No more uphill today, and that’s good enough for me!”
“It doesn’t look like anyone was home when the quake hit,” Brenda said as they passed the crumbling three car garage. “There are no cars in the driveway or in the garage.”
“Lucky for them,” said Libby, her eyes huge. The two-story A-frame house looked like it had been flattened from above; broken glass was everywhere. “The whole front of the house was glass, probably so they had a view of the ocean from inside.”
“Exactly,” said Brenda. “That’s why people pay the big bucks to live high in these hills. The view from the second floor must have been spectacular, but all of those windows didn’t do much to support the house when the earthquake happened. Let’s see what we can find around back. I don’t want to get too close to the house tonight. We won’t be able to see much in the fading light and someone could get hurt.”
“Looky there!” cried Shelly as they rounded the house. “A whole bunch of firewood already chopped and ready for us over by the woods.”
“Our luck continues,” sighed Brenda. “Why don’t you guys start moving wood to the place where we dropped our stuff? Collect as much kindling as you can, too. I’ll be back in a few minutes to help you find rocks for the fire pit.” She looked around her and said, “On second thought, start collecting some of those fallen bricks for the fire pit – they are everywhere – and then go after the wood and kindling. I am going to see if I can find a kitchen.”
The back wall to the house was still standing but the second floor had collapsed onto the first, and the rubble made it difficult to identify rooms. Just when Brenda decided that the approaching darkness made foraging for food too dangerous, she saw what looked like a plastic bag of potatoes on the ground under some tipped shelving. She didn’t dare try to move the shelving; it was piled with rubble, and she was afraid to yank on the bag for fear of bringing a landslide of plaster and bricks onto her head. She used her broken fingernails to shred the plastic and gingerly removed potatoes from the bag one by one. She felt like a pirate with a chest full of treasure when she returned to their camping spot and unrolled six potatoes from the bottom of her sweatshirt. “I’m not quite sure how we will cook them,” she laughed, “but even raw potatoes sound good to me right now!”
“We found water, Mom!” shouted Shelly. “There are a bunch of those giant blue water bottles by the broken wall in the garage. We don’t have a dispenser but we can tip them and dump them into these!” She held up two large plastic cups. “I found these by the garage, too. They had nails in them but we can wash them out.”
“Build a really hot fire with smaller pieces of firewood and wait until it dies down to coals,” said Libby. She had run into the yard when Brenda showed up with the potatoes and returned with a good-sized piece of flagstone from the broken walkway leading from the front door. “We can lay the flat rock on the hot coals and put the potatoes on top. Then we can build up the fire again and let the potatoes cook in the middle.”
“I never thought I would be starving for a plain baked potato, but I sure am now,” said Pepper, rubbing her hands together. “I’ve never been so hungry for anything in my life.”
The potatoes were raw in the middle and burnt black on the outsides after over an hour in the fire, but no one complained. The exhausted party laughed at each other as they made plates for themselves from wiped-down bits of flagstone and tried to eat chunks of baked potato, skin and all, with sticks that Libby had sharpened on slabs of concrete.
“It’s been a good day,” sighed Brenda as she and the girls settled on their tarp after dinner. “We will get a good night’s sleep and do some more foraging tomorrow.”
“Look at the stars, you guys. I never knew there were so many. This is amazing!” whispered Shelly.
Brenda gazed at the stars for a long time after the girls dropped off to sleep. The sheer vastness of the universe filled her with awe, and a good bit of fear. Its splendor was beyond description, but so was its power. Never again would wondrous evidence of the natural world fill her with peace. Nature was not always beautiful and benign.
Rick, Abby, and Leanna
Rick’s team made it to the summit of Hammer Mountain a full two hours before Lucy’s team. Rick was relentless, almost as though he was afraid of danger from behind. As they walked, Rick talked, and it occurred to Abby that he was in mental survival mode, trying to occupy his mind with anything other than thoughts of his family. He had told Abby earlier that he refused to let his mind run away in senseless worry.
“I feel bad about rushing ahead when Lucy started screaming for us to wait up,” said Rick as he started down the eastern slope. “But not bad enough.”
“I don’t feel bad at all,” countered Leanna. “Did you hear her shouting my name? She was going to force me to go with her team and carry some of her stuff, and I couldn’t say ‘no’ since she’s my foster mom. No way was I going with that crew! Sarah is a bigger princess than Lucy is, and I would have killed them both.” She was still disturbed that Lucy had fully expected Rick, and then her, to carry her heavy items. There were twelve others on the trip besides Lucy and Dakota, all of whom had painfully heavy packs to carry. Why Lucy thought she and Dakota were entitled to lessen their own discomfort by further burdening other people who were already struggling with their own loads was an unsettling mystery.
Rick laughed. “Tell me about the others from your school. I was hoping to get to know them on the trip to Raptor Bluff but it doesn’t look like that is going to happen.”
“Libby, Sarah, and Kate are all in different grades than us so we don’t know them that well,” Leanna said.
“Pepper is in our grade and she kinda keeps to herself,” added Abby. “She’s a good student but she doesn’t have much involvement in the high school stuff. Her parents own the Polish bakery downtown and she works there after school and on the weekends. No one really hangs out with her, but she gets along with everyone except Reba.”
“Pepper is a lesbian,” said Leanna with disdain. “She is deviant and gross.”
Abby shot her an incredulous look before she said, “She is not! Where did you hear that?”
“Reba told me. Pepper tries to hide it but it is all over school.”
“Pepper is a lesbian and she hides it by having the same boyfriend for three years? By making plans to go to the same college as her boyfriend so they don’t have to be apart? You are full of crap, Leanna. You shouldn’t pass on rumors like that.”
“Pepper is a lesbian,” stated Leanna with a sniff. “That is a fact.”
“The fact is that you are full of crap!” spiked Abby, remembering why she found Leanna to be so insufferable. Leanna had a habit of making baseless statements as though they were absolute truths, and doing it in a haughty and condescending tone. It drove Abby crazy. “I’ve been in school with Pepper since first grade and you didn’t even meet her until the beginning of last year. You weren’t even around when she and Reba had their falling out.”
Leanna’s smug smile sent irritation screaming down Abby’s nerves. “Leanna, did Reba tell you about the cupcakes: the real reason why she and Pepper don’t get along? The real reason why Reba started rumors that Pepper is a lesbian?”
“Um, no,” said Leanna, beginning to look uncomfortable.
“Pepper’s family had a fire in their bakery during our sophomore year. St. Mary’s sent our class to help them clean up the damage, and Pepper’s mom delivered a box of cupcakes to thank us. Reba was on detention and filing papers in the office when the cupcakes were dropped off. She was the only person in the office, so no one saw her steal the cupcakes and put them in Tara’s car. Long story short, Pepper told her parents that the cupcakes never made it to our classroom. She put two and two together and confronted Reba, and then she went to Principal Gibbons. That is why Pepper and Reba hate each other, and that is why Reba started rumors that Pepper is a lesbian. Reba got caught stealing cupcakes that were meant for everyone and Pepper busted her.”
When Leanna’s response was to shrug like it was no big deal, Abby’s anger boiled over. “Pepper is not a lesbian and even if she were, why would you bring that up in front of Rick? Why is it your business at all? And who even cares?”
““Homosexuals are sinners,” scoffed Leanna. “They choose a lifestyle that they know is wrong and they perform all these disgusting acts…”
“There’s nothing spiritual about finger pointing,” Abby said vehemently. “It’s just obnoxious. It’s… it’s lazy religion. Yeah, you use one lousy finger to point out your own stupid idea of what is wrong with other people, instead of using both hands to do some real good in the world.”
Rick had listened to the exchange with some amusement until Leanna made her blanket statement about homosexuality. “I wouldn’t go around pointing a finger at homosexuals, Leanna. I happen to know several who are far better human beings than I am.”
When Leanna opened her mouth to defend her statement, Rick stopped her with a sharp look and a decisive, “Let’s talk about something else. This conversation is getting tedious. I am not going to argue religion or homosexuality with you.” He gave Abby a wide grin. “That’s an Abbyism I want to remember. Lazy religion means using one finger to point in judgement instead of using both hands to do good.”
Abby looked at Leanna with scorn and said, “I suppose you believe that global warming is a myth, and that the earth is only six thousand years old, too.”
“Enough!” said Rick. “It’s time for a water and lunch break. And speaking of water, we have enough for a couple of days but I would feel better if we could find a spring. There won’t be clean tap water for miles inland after the size of that quake.” He told the girls to retrieve power bars from their bags and took one for himself out of his pack. “I’m going to walk around and see how things look up ahead.”
“Your pants are on fire, Liar,” Abby said. “You are going to hide your power bar in your jacket pocket as soon as you get out of sight, and then try to sneak it into your bag when you don’t think we are looking. You have to eat, Rick.”
Rick looked embarrassed but didn’t say anything.
“You are hiding your bars in case we run out of food, and then you are going to say you found extras in your bag and give them to Leanna and me. Rick, you won’t be good for anything if you don’t eat. Leanna and I can handle being hungry for a few days if we run out of food. We won’t be able to handle anything if you collapse.”
Rick looked at her for the longest time before he said, “I can’t stand the thought of you guys being hungry.”
“No kidding. You can’t stand the thought of Caleb being hungry, either. You are carrying enough dog food for two weeks, on top of everything else in your bags.” Abby lowered her voice and said softly, “We appreciate your thoughtfulness but we can’t let you starve yourself. Please sit down and eat with us. I wasn’t watching you last night but I know for sure that you hid your bar at breakfast this morning. That means that you get two bars for lunch. I mean it. I’m not leaving this place until I see you eat two bars with my own eyes.”
**********
The sun was dropping behind them and they had made good time hiking down Hammer Mountain. If they had headed directly for the collapsed bridge, they would be there.
“Why are we walking so far south of Port Fortand?” asked Leanna. “The bridge that leads to the road running east is way to our left. I thought we were catching the road from there.”
“It will take us longer to find the highway by walking in this direction,” replied Rick, “but we don’t want to get any closer to Port Fortand than we need to. There won’t be any food or water there, and I’m not prepared to see the devastation up close.” He grew silent for a minute and both girls noticed the look of deep worry in his eyes. “I want to be sure we are way past the tsunami destruction before we turn north in search of a road. Besides, we are more likely to find a spring in these woods than we are closer to town.”
As if on cue, Caleb trotted into the forest on their right. When he returned a few minutes later, Rick felt his muzzle and laughed. “He found water. Let’s find his source and we can camp there for the night. Everyone but Caleb is exhausted.” He patted Caleb’s head and said, “He thinks he’s in dog heaven. He has never been allowed to run free before because I was worried that he would run off. I should have trusted him sooner. He has stayed by our sides all day.”
Dusk was settling when they finished setting up camp by a clear running creek. Abby watched to make sure Rick ate a power bar and a bag of chips before she put her duffel bag under her head and lay down by the fire. Leanna had fallen asleep immediately after eating and Caleb was settled at Rick’s feet. Abby was dozing off when she heard the sound of soft weeping. Without opening her eyes, she asked, “Rick, what’s wrong?”
“Shhhh. Don’t wake Leanna.”
Abby rose silently and seated herself at Rick’s side. “What’s the matter?” When he didn’t reply, she asked, “You are worried about your family, aren’t you?”
“We built our dream house two years ago. It is right on the edge of the tsunami zone but it is at the base of a steep hill, so I knew we would be safe if a tsunami ever hit Cleardon City. We can hear the warning from the house and all we have to do is run out the back door and climb a little ways up the hill to be safe. I even packed food and emergency supplies and put them in cabinets by the back door so we could grab them on the way out.”
“So why are you so worried?”
“Because my wife and I disagreed on the evacuation plan. I said we needed to snatch our supplies, run out the back door, and climb the hill; we would be safe in five minutes. Lauren laughed at me and said she could pack the car, drive two blocks down the street, drive up the same hill I wanted to climb, and be safe in four minutes.” He was silent for a while as tears slipped down his cheeks. “She refused to consider that the roads might be too obstructed or torn up to drive on. She refused to believe that we could get an earthquake big enough to crumble the roads or knock down those giant trees.”
“You think she tried to drive out?”
“I know she tried to drive out. She’s stubborn like that when she makes up her mind. Nothing sways her.” He wiped his eyes on his sleeve and whispered, “Joshua told me that the earthquake registered a 9.0, and you saw for yourself how far the Port Fortand tsunami came in.”
Abby leaned into Rick’s body, hoping the simple gesture provided at least a little comfort. There was absolutely nothing she could say that wouldn’t come across as inane.
Lucy, Dakota, Kate, and Sarah
Lucy’s team took the summit trail to the top of Hammer Mountain at Rick’s suggestion so they could view Port Fortand from above and locate the landmark bridge that marked their entry point into the city. Dakota, who had been in competitive gymnastics since preschool, was the only person in the group who made the trip without an immense struggle. It was agonizing for the others; Sarah and Kate were both crying before they were
halfway up the trail, and Lucy complained nonstop about the weight of her pack and the steepness of the climb. By the time they reached the summit, Dakota had no confidence at all that the team would make it to their destination before their water ran out. She was deeply frightened.
Lucy looked at the destroyed city in the distance and said with a trembling voice, “How on earth are we supposed to make it that far lugging all of this gear?”
“It’s downhill from here, Mom,” said Dakota. “And it’s not like we have a choice.”
“I need to rest and we need to pray for guidance before we start out,” Lucy said. She beckoned to Dakota, Sarah, and Kate. “Sit! We need to pray.”
Dakota ignored her and pointed to the east. “There is the broken bridge Rick told us to look for. He said we have to hike there, then into Port Fortand. We won’t be able to get down the cliffs if we stay on the ocean side of the mountain.”
“I said we need to pray about it,” snapped Lucy.
“I’m thinking about it!” shot Dakota. She studied the landscape around them for a few minutes. “We have to take the long walk to the bridge. If we hurry up, we can get there before dark.”
“That is an idiotic plan,” Lucy said when she followed the line from Dakota’s pointing finger to the demolished bridge. “It will take us three times longer if we take that roundabout way into Port Fortand. We are going straight north. There has to be a way down from the cliffs.”
“I agree,” whimpered Sarah. “The bridge takes us too far out of our way. I can’t walk that far.”
“Mom, we will get all the way to the edge of the cliffs and then have to turn around and come back the way we came!”
“You are twelve years old, Dakota,” Lucy said dismissively. “We are going with my plan. End of discussion.”
“My feet and shoulders hurt,” Sarah whined. “Can’t we just stay here?”
Lucy’s silence, a clear indication that she was considering that option, shot panic through Dakota. “Mom, no! We already told the others we were going to Port Fortand! If they find a phone, they will tell Grandpa to look for us there. How will Grandpa know we changed our minds? How will he know to look for us here? And what about water?”
The Trip to Raptor Bluff Page 8