by Jeremy Lock
Chapter 69
Sunrise meant time for work. Jason was up before the sun and had started a pot of coffee and he laid out a plan of work for the group. Most important would be gathering firewood. He had a couple axes and saws that they could use to gather the firewood and hopefully they could use the jeep and trailer to get to the trees. Additionally they had to come up with shelter for the animals, unload the food, tools and weapons and find a place to store them. They would also need to get hunting soon. There was too much to do and too little time. The snow had come in overnight and there was 6 inches of new snow on the ground. Jason was out gathering tools when Sean came outside to join him.
“Hey.” Sean said blowing the steam on his coffee.
“Hey.” Jason replied as he pulled out the large bow saw from the trailer and sat it next to the other tools they would need.
“How’s the head?” Sean asked with near levity.
“Just fine, you hit like a girl.” Jason said with a chuckle.
Sean patted him on the shoulder and helped him gather up the tools.
“By the way, next time I’m an asshole could you just talk to me, I'm not a big fan of having a gun stuck in my face.” Jason added.
“Deal.” Was Sean’s response.
Jason and Sean walked out into the woods looking for standing dead trees. They were harder to find this time of the year but they were able to find a group of 4 of them within a short distance of each other. The problem would be getting the Jeep down with the trailer. They decided they would drop the trees and then try to use the winch on the jeep to pull them up to where they could load them up in the trailer. They were about 300 yds into the woods and were walking back when Sean tapped on Jason’s arm and pointed. Three doe were visible down into a small valley near the river.
“Good to see them, hope there’s a lot more up here.” Jason said.
“There’s a lot of deer and bear up here, we should definitely try to get a few deer soon before the snow is too deep to move out here.” Sean said.
“When we come back I’ll make sure we have a bow with us. I’m tempted to use the gun, knowing were this far out in the middle of nowhere but I’m not comfortable with it yet.” Jason said.
“We’re probably safe but better safe than sorry. We’re not desperate for food yet.” Sean added as they started walking back up to the trailers.
As they made it back to the trailers everyone else was waking up. Jason had a plan for the day but he had to deal with something else first. Once everyone was up he gathered them in an area about 100 yds behind the trailers. It was a small clearing on a bluff that overlooked the small valley. Everyone headed up and found a grave site already dug with Marks wrapped body placed inside. Clearly Jason hadn't really slept at all. Few words were said, but many tears were shed as then remembered their friend. After 15 minutes Jason had everyone say there final goodbyes and began covering the body. When Jason arrived back in camp he got everyone to work. The boys would be cutting down the trees and hauling the wood. The girls would be unloading the trailer first and then packing away all the food and tools into the trucks and trailers, keeping them out of the weather as much as possible.
Chapter 70
James woke up with renewed vigor. He was cold but he hadn't felt this good in a long time. He had his plan. He had sat up cold for half the night trying to warm himself by the fire and had made a decision. He needed to get a chimney up and get the cabin repaired as soon as possible. The chimney was first though. He couldn’t have a fire if he enclosed the roof with a chimney, so that was number one. He looked at his map and had 3 options. He could head back up to Watertown and raid the hardware store at night, he could head over to Lowville, which he had no information about, or he could head back to the burned out town of Carthage and see what supplies he could get. They were all a solid one day walk away. He decided he would try Lowville, he needed to check it out eventually and if it was no good he could loop north to Carthage and relative safety, although there was no guarantee he would find the hardware store standing he did figure he could find a chimney from one of the many abandoned homes. He stored a significant amount of his supplies he carried in one of his tarps and buried it outside the cabin and moved out. He moved with a spring in his step, the prospect of his new home and the lightened pack made him move with renewed vigor. He had a few cans of food and the last of his dehydrated rations with him, he would need to try and find a place to resupply. He was only an hour into his trip and decided he would change his direction. He had some food and other supplies stashed behind the house on the way to Watertown and decided he would just head there. He knew there was a biker gang presence in the town but they weren’t well organized and he should be able to get in and back out under the cover of darkness without too much trouble.
Chapter 71
The winch worked well pulling the trees out of the woods and soon they were hauling the 4 trees back up to the house. They were limbed out and cut into 8 to 10 foot lengths and then loaded into the trailer. The Jeep thankfully handled the snow well and by lunch time they were logging the trees into 18” lengths and then they were split into usable chunks. The boys rotated positions as they grew tired. One used the bow saw, another would split and the final would stack the wood up between the two trailers. The girls worked just as hard as the boys and also had a warm meal ready for the boys when they all needed a break. They met in the wall tent to eat but soon conversation turned to the animals. The girls had an idea but Jason wasn’t so sure. They wanted to keep the horses and the chickens in the large wall tent that they were currently sitting in. They would move it to the leeward side of the clearing somewhat away from the trailers and it would keep them out of the wind during the cold nights. During the day they would let them graze in the open field that still had grasses higher than the snow and they would supplement their diet with the feed that they brought up. Eventually they would have to build something better but for now it was the best they could do. Jason wasn’t in love with the idea. The two trailers would be tight confines for the 7 of them to live but the girls thought they would be fine. The boys didn’t think it was the best idea but they also knew it wasn’t worth the fight so they agreed. The girls said they would handle the move and true to their word, after lunch they relocated the tent, cleared the ground, and even brought in several loads of the long grass to use as insulation. They also moved the artic stove into the tent in order to melt the remaining snow and dry out the grass. Allie and Cassidy both worked very hard, in Allie’s case, harder than anyone had ever seen her work. She really wanted to learn to ride a horse and was ecstatic when Teddy told her she would teach her in the spring. The girls finished up and got the horses settled in the tent and then went and helped the boys move firewood. By the time the sun was setting they were all exhausted but happy with the accomplishments that they had completed. They ate a quick meal of dehydrated stew and were all in bed as the sun fell behind the horizon.
Chapter 72
As the sun set James was looking over the Town of Watertown from the same hillside he had looked at from the first time. He had checked on his small supple cache on the way in and found everything in order. Now he was making his plan to move into the town. For the most part the town was silent with the exception of the restaurant where he had seen the large congregation of bikers. There he saw a huge bonfire in the parking lot with a large number of men and women drinking. There were also women there who appeared to be there against their will but James wasn’t in a position to do anything and it just wasn’t his problem. James worked his way into town slowly as the sun sank behind the horizon and in the twilight hours he moved himself into the town. He had plotted his path into the town in order to stay as far away from the bikers as possible. It appeared the men were happy enough just drinking themselves into oblivion and he hoped they would remain where they were. The large home improvement store was located about ½ a mile away from the restaurant and the random gunfire coming from that direction
was unnerving. As he passed through the town he didn’t see any of the citizens in the streets and even the glow of candles in the windows was very rare. He made it to the store quickly and was somewhat hopeful when he saw the front windows of the store broken out. It meant he would be able to get in and out of the store quickly, but it also meant the store had been looted and he hoped he would be able to get the supplies he needed. He walked slowly through the broken glass in the front of the store and made sure he was well away from the front doors before he turned on his flashlight. Thankfully these chain stores were all set up similarly and he headed towards the area where he thought the chimney supplies would be. After a few failed attempts he found the proper aisle and was happy to find several lengths of the pipe he needed. Using a shopping cart he loaded up 4 3’ lengths of the double wall piping as well as a heat shield and cap for the chimney. He was going straight through the roof so it wouldn’t be too difficult. He also wanted to grab some tools and nails to finish up his cabin. Again the primitive living idea was great but some creature comforts would be great. He walked down the aisle with the nails and grabbed a box of 8d nails and a large box of 10d nails. Then he went to the tool aisle and searched around. He grabbed a quality hammer, a crowbar, several hand wood chisels and a hand plane and draw knife. A measuring tape a good crosscut saw, a large bow saw and a good axe filled his cart and his list. Now he had to figure out a way to get the stuff home. He looked in the seasonal area and found himself a stack of plastic sleds, they would work perfectly. He pulled one off the top and then had another idea. He found a large plastic garbage can and a few short pieces of gutter and downspout sections and loaded all of his supplies into the garbage can and then loaded that onto the sled. In addition he grabbed several cans of spray lubricant and 2 quarts of light motor oil. After loading everything up he decided he had a little more room and grabbed 2 large rolls of roofing material and a large box of roofing nails. After securing everything he decided to get out while the going was good and get back to the still empty farm house for a few hours of sleep. As he approached the front of the store voices caught his attention and he hid himself behind a large pallet of snow melt pellets. The voices were of two men and a woman, and the woman was clearly not a willing companion who had put up quite a fight considering the bloody nose and busted lip of one of the men. He peered over the top of the pallet to see what was transpiring in front of him. There were two bikers dragging a bound and gagged woman through the street towards the restaurant.
“Fuck…” he muttered to himself.
He didn’t need this. His heart was telling him to do something but his brain said no, it wasn’t his problem. But his heart was winning. He could do this without raising the alarm and he knew it. He wished he had his bow but he had left it at the farm house. He had his rifle but he didn’t want to make any noise unless it was the absolute last resort. That left his knife.
He let the men pass him by about 20 yds. and then silently moved through the snow. The gagged woman was making enough noise to cover any sound he made as she put up quite a fight; he just hoped the men didn’t look back for a few seconds. As he approached the first man, rifle in his left hand and his knife in his right, everything was going smoothly. The challenge was to take down both men without letting one get off a shot. As he prepared for his drive to kill the first man the woman stumbled at exactly the worst time. James had just enough time to re-plan his attack hastily and used his rifle to knock the first man out. He struck the man on his left temple and the man went down. James then lunged over the woman and tackled the other man while he dropped his rifle, keeping his knife in his right hand. The biker made a poor decision and it cost him his life. The biker immediately went for his gun in his waistband when he saw the attacker and didn’t give up on it once he was tackled. James drove the knife through the man’s neck and upwards into his brain stem. His death was instantaneous. James rolled off the man in time to see the first man get up and start running away. Obviously the strike had only stunned the man and not knocked him out. James didn’t have much of a choice now. He pulled his rifle out of the snow as the man ran down the empty road holding the side of his head. James brought the gun up, relaxed himself and let out a short breath. He centered the open sights on the center of the man’s back and gently squeezed the trigger. The rifle roared with the report of the heavy round and James watched the man go down. He watched the man for just a moment with his rifle up, ready to fire another shot. The man didn’t move, so now James had to move. James went back to the bound woman and uncut her gag. The woman was still in fear and after James cut her bound arms free she immediately covered her half exposed body. She was beaten, bloody but also quite beautiful. James didn’t have time to coddle her.
“We have to move, now! There are a lot more of them and they will come investigate.” James said as he moved back towards the Home Improvement store.
He ran into the broken window and grabbed his sled, pulling it out into the snow. He was glad to see the woman moving towards him ready to leave. James didn’t waste time and began moving quickly away from the scene of the fight. After a few blocks he was near the edge of the town and getting into the more rural areas. He slowed down and waited for the woman to catch up and then kept a more reasonable pace once they hit the tree line. He noticed how underdressed the woman was and that she had no shoes on. He pulled off his heavy coat and handed it to her.
“Thank you” she said through chattering teeth.
“We gotta keep moving, 10 more minutes and I’ll get you out of the snow and warmed up.” James said as he lugged the sled through the continuing snow. At least it would cover their tracks pretty quickly. He just hoped it would be quick enough.
10 minutes later James pulled up to the now empty farm house and held up his hand. He hadn't been here since the night before and while chances were slim that someone would be there he didn’t want to take chances.
“Wait here.” James said quietly as he pulled out the revolver and headed inside. The woman waited in the freezing cold for a few minutes until James returned and waived her inside. She sat on the couch trying to warm up her badly beaten bleeding feet. James got a fire started in the fireplace and encouraged the woman to sit next to the fire. James retrieved a blanket from the master bedroom and brought it down to the woman who was quietly sitting in front of the fire. In the firelight James determined that she was actually a bit younger than he had originally judge and she was likely in her mid-20’s. James gave her space and moved himself into the kitchen watching the front door to the house with his rifle in hand. He wished he had taken the time to check the dead men for weapons but he knew that was stupid. He couldn’t risk taking that time. He had made the right decision, no matter what his brain was currently telling him. After about an hour he went and checked on the woman and found her asleep curled up in front of the fire. He covered her with the blanket and set a pillow under her head and went back to the kitchen. He would try to catch a couple hours sleep, but having this woman to deal with was going to delay his plans. He found it interesting that he was always in such a rush and ordered himself to relax. He had no schedule and no appointments, he could move at his own pace.