Electro

by David Lisenby

  “Dammit,” Levi said, mostly to himself but audible nonetheless. Arlene wasn’t sure what the cursing was about, but she figured he was disappointed that he had inhaled that entire king-size chocolate bar.

  “Thanks, ummm…” Levi said as he extended his hand in the darkness.

  “Arlene,” she said as she took his hand in hers and shook it.

  “Levi Kirkendall,” he informed her. “Pleased to meet you.”

  “Likewise,” she said.

  Following the crushed candy icebreaker, Levi and Arlene spent the next couple of hours chatting. They got to know a lot about each other in the short time since they had first met. As the moments passed and the conversation gained momentum, both of the strangers became more and more comfortable with each other.

  Levi told Arlene all about his job and his place in the country. He told her about Betty Jo and how he figured he would keep getting’ to know her better. He talked about Johnny Boy and how close they had been before fate took a hand in parting their paths. He didn’t talk about his mom or his dad, though. He really didn’t like talking about that part of his life.

  Arlene also talked about her job as a nurse. She talked endlessly about her four daughters; about each of their unique personalities and perspectives on life. She was proud of each one of them and the exceptional young ladies they were growing up to become.

  She also talked about her late husband and how much he meant to her. Levi could feel the pain in her heart and slid over to put his arm around her to comfort her as she tearfully recounted how she had lost her dear, dear Ron. It broke his heart to hear her weep.

  She didn’t tell him about the diagnosis she had received only hours earlier. She didn’t like to talk about that part of her life. Not yet.

  The conversation between the newfound friends eventually dwindled. Although the rain was still falling and the air outside was cool, the two people in the little alcove were warming up to each other. Levi discovered that, even though it had never happened before, he found himself attracted to an older woman.

  Arlene admitted to herself that she wouldn’t mind if one of her daughters wanted to date this young man, a revelation that both surprised and pleased her. There really were some good young men out there.

  Interesting.

  Silence soon overtook the alcove and sleep overtook Levi and Arlene. They both leaned against the back wall, him holding her in his comforting arms and she appreciative of his body warmth.

  The rain fell.

  Chapter 6

  Momentary sanity

  Jerry opened his eyes slowly. He looked around into the darkness but didn’t see anything. His bones ached. His muscles ached. He hurt all over. He found it hard, if not impossible, to even move.

  “Good grief,” he said aloud. “You awake, Dalton?”

  Nothing.

  “Dalton?”

  Nothing.

  It was with great difficulty that he reached down and waved his arm around in the cramped canoe. He reached as far as he could and did not feel his buddy anywhere. He reached over and found one of the wire twists that held the tarp in place. He twisted it loose and raised the tarp. Providing little light but much information.

  It was still raining. The creek had risen. The canoe was still tied to the tree. Dalton was nowhere to be found.

  “Dammit,” he shouted as he closed the opening and secured it back in place with the wire. It was dark. Jerry was all alone in the canoe. There wasn’t an inch of his body that didn’t hurt. All was normal.

  With much difficulty the lanky man readjusted himself and stretched out, taking up the room that his so-called friend had once occupied. Oh, well. Jerry had grown accustomed to change and learned to adapt to it in a way that benefitted him. Even though he was no longer cramped he still hurt.

  “I’ll deal with this shit tomorrow,” was the final thought that ran through Jerry’s mind before he passed out again on the cold, swaying floor of the old flat bottom canoe.

  Chapter 7

  The morning after

  Harold slid silently from bed and walked softly through the house. He opened the door to his mom’s room as quietly as he could, knowing that she heard everything. Evvvv-ry-thing. He could hear that her breathing was labored and raspy. He walked in and checked the oxygen bottle, only to discover that the pressure was down to zero. It only took a minute before he had changed bottles and had a fresh supply of oxygen seeping through the hose.

  He retrieved the glucometer from the drawer it was kept in and slid in a test strip. The numbers did not appear on the led screen. He changed the battery and tried it again. Nothing.

  “Why did I even expect it to work,” he thought to himself in frustration. The fan was still moving air, but a bead of sweat was across Alice’s forehead. He leaned over and kissed her on the head. She had a low-grade temp. He looked at the log of her blood sugar the past few days and assumed her sugar was running as it usually did in the morning, which was a little low. He gave her a usual dosage of insulin and walked out of the room.

  Alice never woke up the entire time he was in the room, which wasn’t really that unusual.

  As he clicked the door shut Harold turned toward the living room. There, standing a foot away from his face, was Roxie. He was slightly startled but didn’t allow it to show on his face.

  “I’ll make some coffee and cook some breakfast,” she said. “She ok?”

  “Yea,” he answered. “Her oxygen bottle ran out since the last time I checked on her a couple of hours ago. She’s still sleeping.”

  They both went to the kitchen. Harold busied himself raising the window blinds to allow every bit of natural light to enter the room as possible. Roxie grabbed the coffee pot from the dish drainer and began to fill it for the morning coffee. She lifted the faucet handle and a dry gurgle was all that came from it.

  “We lost water pressure,” she said. “Guess you’re going to have to get some from the well.”

  “Glad I put the hand pump on that old well,” Harold replied. “I’ll fill up a bucket and bring it in after I fill the generators with gas.”

  “Good,” Roxie said. “I’ll go ahead and start breakfast. You want grits to go with your eggs?”

  “Sounds good,” he said as he walked through the kitchen door and into his mancave. He grabbed his hat and opened the back door. The rain had stopped, but the skies were still dark and the ground was saturated. He opted to slip on his rubber boots instead of his still wet tennis shoes. Out the door he went to begin his morning chores. The list of things-to-do growing by the minute.

  Roxie went about her usual duties, getting Kay dressed and out of bed. She then began gathering the things she needed to cook breakfast. Eggs? Check. Sausage? Check. Onions? Check. Tomatoes? Check. Cheese? Check. Grits? Check. Milk? Check. O J? O J? Nope. Dangit.

  “Glad ya’ll have a propane stove,” Roxie said. “You know how bad I hate makin’ coffee in that old timey perk-u-later but I sure am glad now that ya’ll have it.”

  “Yea,” Kay growled. She hadn’t had her first cup of coffee yet.

  Outside, Harold had finished topping off the fuel tanks of the generators that were providing power to the house. He knew that it was probably going to be warm today, but they were going to have to cut back to one generator to conserve fuel. One would run the fridge, a couple of fans and a small appliance or two that they could use for their needs. Since the O2 concentrator wasn’t working it would probably be fine with just one. He would talk about it with Kay and Roxie over breakfast.

  It took a couple of minutes to prime the hand pump, but soon enough he had the gallon-size bucket filled with cool, clear water. He carried the bucket inside and laid it on the counter next to the sink. He then turned and walked back outside to feed the animals.

  “Thank you,” Roxie said behind him. “I’ll get breakfast started after the coffee’s done.”

  While going about the business of feeding the animals, Harold made the impromptu decision to cut ba
ck a little on their food, also. He hoped things would get back to normal soon enough but there was a nagging feeling inside of him that kept telling him that now was the time to be conservative. Not in a political sense, more in a survival sense. Everything was pointing in a direction that filled him with anxiety and dread.

  Harold had a little talk with God as he worked. He did this often. He asked God to watch over his family, the country and the world. If his fears were true, we will all need it. He asked God for the strength and the wisdom to do what was necessary to provide for his family and those who depended on him. He asked for comfort for his mother. As a postscript, he asked God to bring an end to the rain that seemed never-ending.

  His heart lighter and the morning chores complete, Harold returned to the house. He opened the back door and stepped inside. The most pleasant scent on earth greeted his nostrils; the day’s first pot of steaming, fresh brewed coffee. Yum.

  A passing shower dropped more moisture on the neighborhood as Harold checked in on his mom. Still sleeping. He joined the two ladies in the dining room and walked over to kiss his lovely wife good morning. Her features had softened. A half-empty cup of coffee sat in front of her. Roxie’s cup was still full. A third cup sat at his place at the table with a bowl of sugar and a plastic spoon beside it.

  “Ladies,” he said as he sat and began scooping a spoonful of sugar into his coffee. He stirred it slowly, contemplating what the first topic of conversation should be. He noticed that there was an allergy tablet, a B-12 and a multi-vitamin on the table to his left. He grabbed them, tossed them into his mouth and washed them down with a sip of coffee.

  “Thanks,” he said as he looked over to Roxie, knowing it was her who laid out the tablets. She nodded and took a sip of her coffee.

  “Well,” said Kay, “what’s on the agenda for today?”

  “Good question,” Harold replied. “I think I’ll start by trying to find out what’s going on in the outside world. Things simply aren’t adding up. This isn’t a typical power outage, for sure. I’m pretty confident that some sort of emp has occurred. Just not sure if we’re under attack by terrorists or by mother nature.”

  “Either way’s not good,” Kay said. “I’m just glad I had enough sense to marry a crazy old man who prepared for just such an occasion.” She winked at Harold when he looked her way. He winked back.

  “I’m not sure if I’ve ever heard anybody say that you made a smart move by doing that,” he replied.

  “The crazy old man part is spot on, though,” Roxie interjected into the conversation.

  “Amen, sister,” Kay chuckled.

  The conversation that followed was filled with what-ifs and should-haves as Roxie scuttled about preparing the morning meal. Harold sat and finished his first cup of coffee as Kay finished her second. Once breakfast was cooked the three sat and ate in silence. Only the utensils tapping on the plates could be heard. It was an uneasy silence.

  Once all the sausage was devoured and the last bit of yolk-soaked grits had been sopped up with toast, the conversation renewed.

  Harold was going to check on the neighbors and then see what he could learn about the situation while Roxie was going to take Alice a plate and then help Kay figure out a way to consolidate the extension cords where everything could be run off one generator.

  As he walked out onto the front porch, Harold could see his neighbor across the road piddling around in his yard. “Hidy-ho good neighbor,” he said in his best Tim Taylor impersonation.

  Calvin looked over his way, waved and said,” Mornin’, neighbor. How are things over at your place?”

  “Fine and dandy,” Harold replied. “About as well as you can expect given the situation.”

  “I hear you,” Calvin said. “You reckon’ them North Koreans finally decided to attack us?”

  “I sure hope not,” came the response. “Whatever it is it looks like we’re in for a bad spell. I just hope we all can stick together in the neighborhood and keep an eye out for one another.”

  “You don’t have to worry about my side of the road,” Calvin said. “You watch my back over on your side and I’ll watch yours from here.”

  “Sounds like a plan to me,” Harold said with a smile. “You need anything?”

  “Well,” Calvin said, “Barbara was supposed to bring home a few groceries on her way in from work yesterday but she ain’t made it in yet. You got any extra eggs?”

  “Sure thing,” Harold said. “Help yourself from the chicken coop.”

  “Thanks,” Calvin said as he started walking toward his neighbor’s back yard. He knew that Harold was always good for a couple of eggs.

  Harold then walked over to his next-door neighbor’s house. Deet and Mindy Schott were a somewhat younger couple who had moved in next door about four years ago. Deet worked at one of the local refineries and Mindy had recently taken a leave from her job at the sanitation department. They had been trying to have a baby since they moved in and Mindy was now very happily pregnant. It was a difficult pregnancy, so her doctor had ordered complete bed rest.

  There was no answer at the door. That was odd. Harold walked around to the carport and saw that their truck was gone. Just to be sure all was well, he walked around the house and peeked through the bedroom window. Empty. He figured they had gone somewhere before everything went dark and hadn’t been able to make it back home. He said a quick prayer for their well-being as he stood near their house. He’d have to keep a keen eye out for their place in their absence.

  Harold considered walking down to the end of the road and checking on Freddy Costner and his family but quickly changed his mind. Freddy was pretty much a home-body and didn’t socialize well when he was drinking. Freddy was always drinking, though. He’d keep an ear out for trouble up on their end of the road.

  To the south, at the end of the dead-end road, were two more houses. One was occupied by a new family to the neighborhood who kept mostly to themselves. In the other house is where Jimmy Farrell and his wife lived. They had a teenage son and daughter. The girl had graduated a couple of years ago and moved out of the house. The boy was in and out. The wife wasn’t home much and Jimmy was usually pretty quiet; except when he was building something in his garage.

  There had been an incident a few months back with one of Jimmy’s dogs that ran around the neighborhood trying to bite people - mostly little kids. Since then fences had been built and the neighborly relationship had somewhat cooled off quite a bit.

  Harold figured they were adults and could take care of themselves. If they needed anything they would ask, he decided. No sense going over there and riling them up unless he had to. Besides, he hadn’t seen any movement over there in a couple of days … unless you count the dogs.

  Harold passed Calvin on his way to the back yard. Calvin had four eggs in his hands and a smile on his face. He pointed over toward the Schott place and said,” I heard Deet say somethin’ about carryin’ his wife to the doctor in Beaumont yesterday. Don’t recollect seein’ ‘em come back before we lost electric.”

  “Ah,” Harold said. “Hope they’re alright.” He waved at Calvin and continued toward the back yard. He walked over to the little patch of woods that ran across the south end of his property line. He walked through the brushy edge and found his perch on the familiar stump. He reached into the breast pocket of his overalls and pulled out his little pipe and lighter. He placed the pipe to his lips, flicked his Bic and took a long, deep draw to fill his lungs with smoke. He returned the pipe to his pocket. Held his breath for as long as he could and then exhaled the smoke into the damp air.

  He then walked to a small clearing in the woods where the tops of three 55-gallon metal barrels barely peeked through the fallen pine needles and holly leaves. He kneeled next to the first barrel and popped open the lid. “What do we have here?”

  Chapter 8

  The awakening

  Arlene woke to the sound of a motor running somewhere in the distance. She couldn’t tell if it
was a chainsaw, a carpenter’s saw, or maybe a motorbike. That’s it! It was a motorcycle. It sounded just like the dirt bike Ron used to ride. She couldn’t tell how far away it was or from which direction, but she was sure that it was a dirt bike. Maybe things were getting back to normal.

  She reached in the side pocket of her scrubs where she kept her phone. She thought she would check it to see if it was working again but quickly remembered that she had left it back in her car. Dangit! Be prepared for anything that may come. Yea, right.

  As she sat upright she noticed the chiseled face of a sleeping young man next to her. She had been laying on his toned shoulder and his arm, which had been loosely draped around her shoulder, fell slowly upon his lap. He stirred a little and gently opened his deep brown eyes. What gentle eyes they were.

  He smiled a crooked smile at her.

  “Mornin’, ma’am,” he said a bit too cheerfully.

  “Good morning,” she answered. “Levi, was it?”

  “Awww. I’m crushed,” he said in response. “Spend the night in the arms of a good-looking hunk of a man and you can’t even remember his name.”

  “I still have my pistol, you know,” she said coldly. Levi wasn’t sure if she was serious or not until a smile caressed her face.

  “You got any more of that candy?” he asked as he suddenly stood up and stretched his arms above his head, almost hitting the tin roof above him. He sure was fit.

  “I’m not really sure what all I grabbed at that truck stop,” she said as she reached in her lap for the plastic bag. “What do we have here?” She rummaged around the bag for a few seconds then stopped. She looked up at the young man and pulled her hand out of the bag. In her hand was a king-size Milky Way bar. She held it up toward him.

  “You know,” he said as he reached for the offered treasure, “for such a little lady you sure have a big appetite for sweets.” He smiled as he tore open the package and took a rather large bite from the candy bar.