by Dave Conifer
“Maybe they wouldn’t have to move over here,” Nick suggested.
“It would be a long walk to the latrine from where they are,” Matt said. “That’s their problem, though. But this is a lot to think about.”
“Yes it is,” Nick replied. “But look, we’re already running out of water. Finding more is important. It’s as important as anything else on our plates. It’s worth a meeting, at least.”
“Okay,” Matt said.
“Let’s keep it under our hats until tonight,” Nick suggested. “I’m going over to see Brian later today. I’ll invite him over if it feels right, but I won’t tell him why. Not until I run it by the entire group. I might be rushing things, but I want to get moving on this.”
~~~
It was late afternoon before Nick made it over to Brian’s place to ask him to stop over for the meeting. After speaking earlier with Matt, he’d gone back home and spent hours brooding in the basement about the lies he was convinced that Chuck had told. His mood soured further each time Sarah poked her head down the steps to check on him. Finally, after the fourth time, he’d had enough. I’ll give her something to worry about, he told himself as he stood up. He found the key under the paint can. A couple of minutes later, with a canvas bag hanging from one shoulder, he left through the steel cellar doors instead of passing through the house and disappeared in the sunlight. His destination was the Martinsen’s place, a few blocks away.
~~~
The discussion with Brian went much like he’d expected. At first Brian was haughty, acting as though he was above needing anybody. But it was obvious to Nick, just by looking around the house, that the Martinsens were suffering just like everybody else. There was some cajoling, some calm back and forth, and some arguing. In the end, after telling Brian when and where the meeting was that night, he grabbed his bag and left without saying goodbye. He was fairly certain that Brian would show up, but he also knew there was nothing more that he could do.
It had already been a trying day, and an hour of being belittled by the neighborhood blowhard hadn’t helped his spirits. There were so many things to fret about that he wasn’t ready to go home, because he wasn’t ready to talk about what was on his mind. So he didn’t go there. He must have known all along that he wouldn’t. That’s what the bag was all about.
Instead, he walked his regular route. As usual, there was a lot of traffic coming and going at the compound near the water tower. This time he didn’t expend much effort trying to figure out what was going on. He had enough to keep his mind occupied. He slipped into the woods near the creek and sat down in the cool shade, where he finally opened the bag he’d been lugging around for hours.
Seventeen
“Nick should have told us about this himself,” Chuck said to Matt. It was ten minutes before the night’s meeting was to begin. Everybody but Nick was at the outhouse, either camped out in the chairs they’d brought or wandering restlessly. “It’s everybody’s business. It’s not some secret that you two should be whispering about.”
This meeting felt like a big deal. Even the kids were invited this time, although they were immediately dispatched to Nick’s basement under full authority of Sarah’s daughters. In trying to explain where Nick was, Matt had unintentionally divulged the plan about inviting the Martinsens to join the group. As a result, he’d spent the last fifteen minutes defending the plan, one that he himself had been against.
“If he had,” Tom said, “It would have ended right there. We’d all have walked.”
“Me included,” Matt said. “That’s why he didn’t. Not yet. He’s going to explain it all tonight, as soon as he gets here.”
“And when’s that gonna’ be?” Chuck asked. “When’s the last time anybody saw him?”
“He was down in the basement all afternoon,” Sarah said. “He seemed like he was upset about something. I checked on him a few times, but I felt like he was going to start throwing tools at me if I came down again, so I left him alone. When I went to get him for dinner, he was gone.”
“I hope he’s planning on showing up,” Tom said. “Given that he was the one who called the meeting and all.”
“While we’re waiting, let’s get back to where we were last night,” Chuck said. “Matt, did you talk about guns with your wife?”
“No, I didn’t bother. I already knew my answer.”
“What?” Chuck exclaimed. “You owe it to your family, man! How can—“
“I don’t want anybody in my family carrying a gun around,” Matt said. “That’s all there is to it. So I didn’t even bring it up.”
Chuck looked like he was ready to explode. “You didn’t even ask?”
“Can I say something?” Dewey asked. Without waiting for an answer, he continued. “Like, Nick and I talked last night after the meeting broke up. I, I mean, we have an idea to run by everybody. If our idea is cool with all of us, then maybe we can make an exception for Matt.”
“I don’t like it, even before I hear it,” Chuck said. “We’re not a big group. If security is job one, we need everybody in on that. No exceptions.”
“I get that,” Dewey said. “But tonight we’re talking about taking in some new members. So, like, our group will be bigger. Nick will talk about it.”
“If he gets here,” Chuck said. “So far, that’s not looking good.”
“Well, anyways, you all heard for yourself last night that Matt’s working on setting up a system for providing water,” Dewey said. “Doesn’t everybody agree that clean water is just as important as security?”
“I see where you’re going with this,” Chuck said. “I don’t like the sound of it. Everybody should serve. Everybody.”
“The man doesn’t want to carry a gun,” Tom said. “I don’t think that’s going to change. Right, Matt?” The thud of knuckles banging on the front door prevented Matt from answering.
“I hope that’s Nick,” Tom said as Matt hurried to the door.
“Knocking at his own house?” Chuck asked. “I don’t think so.”
Matt opened the door far enough to see who was out there. “Brian,” he said, surprised. “You’re early.”
“So what? Come on, let me in. I don’t have all night. Who are you, anyway?”
“I’m Matt Shardlake. I’ve lived here since before you moved in.”
“Whatever,” Brian replied. “Where’s Nick Mercator?”
“We’re not ready,” Matt said. “Ten minutes.”
“Gimme’ a break,” Brian said as he forced the door open, knocking Matt off balance, and barreled into the center of the room.
“Um, does everybody know each other?” Matt asked after trailing back into the room behind Brian. Without waiting for a reply, he went around the room and pointed everybody out by name. “This is Brian,” he said after everybody had been identified. They all knew already, of course. A sullen look on his face, Brian nodded at each them without a word.
“Since Nick isn’t here yet, let me give you a little history,” Matt said to Brian. He went on to explain how and why the Outhouse Coalition had been formed. Brian listened impassively as Matt explained his own project for producing clean water. “And that’s where you come in.”
“What’s all that got to do with me?” Brian demanded.
“Since Nick’s not here, I guess I’ll be the one to tell you,” Matt said. “We need a working vehicle, and you have one. I think the idea is to offer you and your family a spot in the group in return for the use of your car.”
“Who’s in this group? The people in this room? Who else? Who’s in charge?” Brian asked bluntly. “Not you, I’m guessing. Is it the drunken roofer?”
“Nobody, really,” Tom said. “We’re in the early stages of this. None of us really know exactly where it’s going yet.”
“You’re not the leader, either, I’m guessing,” Brian said. “You all live right here, I take it? I’m a few streets away. What would we do about that? Is it a problem?”
“Not un
less it is for you,” Chuck said. “As long as you feel safe where you are. You could still be a part of it, if we all agree to let you in. Which is a big ‘if’ at the moment,” he added.
“You wouldn’t be near the fancy outdoor latrine we built,” Tom said. “Sometimes I think that’s the best part.”
“I heard about that,” Brian said. “That’s something we could use.”
“But we need the car here, on site, whether you’re here or not,” Chuck said firmly. “And we’ll use it whenever we need it.”
“My VW bus stays in my garage,” Brian said. “That’s not negotiable.”
“It’s not negotiable, all right,” Chuck countered. “No car, no deal. The car is the whole point.”
“So, what about all this sharing? Is it like a commune around here? How much food do you all have to share in the first place?” Brian asked. “Or is that non-negotiable, too?” he sneered.
“It’s dwindling,” Matt admitted. “So is the water. We’re working on it. How about you? You can’t be much better off.”
“We do okay,” Brian answered.
“Bull,” Chuck spat. “You wouldn’t be here.”
“You have to be running low,” Sarah said. “Everybody is. Unless you’ve got some secret source.”
“If he did, he wouldn’t be here,” Chuck repeated.
Brian looked at Sarah. “Who are you again?”
“Sarah. I’m new in town.”
“Yeah, right,” Brian said. “I remember now. You’re the one Nick picked up that day on the bridge. You’re shacked up with him now, isn’t that right?”
“We—“ Sarah began.
“Don’t talk about things you don’t know nothin’ about,” Chuck said sharply to Brian. “Keep your opinions to yourself. I’ll leave it at that, unless you want to push me.”
“And, like, just for the record,” Dewey said from across the room, “I’m shacked up with Nick, too.”
“Whatever,” Brian said. He rubbed his chin as he paced a few steps toward the door and back. “We’ll need a leader,” Brian said. “If I signed up, I’d want to throw my hat in the ring. I have experience running project teams. I’m good at taking charge.”
“Take it easy there, buddy,” Chuck said. “You’re not even in yet.”
“Come on,” Brian scoffed. “Be honest. You know it’s my call on that.”
“Don’t count your chickens, bro,” Chuck said. “But if you do want in, be prepared to hand over the keys.”
Brian took a step towards Chuck, with his finger extended. “I don’t know who you are, Mr. Duck Dynasty. But I don’t take orders from the likes of you. If I join up, it isn’t going to be as a member of the peanut gallery.”
“Is that right?” Chuck jumped to his feet. “Let’s finish this outside. What do you say? I’ve had enough of your mouth.”
Tom rose from his seat and stepped forward into the spot where Chuck and Brian would have met. “Guys, stand down. We don’t need this.”
“Maybe we don’t, but he does,” Chuck said without taking his eyes off Brian. “Why don’t we ask Nick what to do about this? Oh wait, our dear leader didn’t show up, did he?”
“So he really is the leader? I was only joking when I said that,” Brian said.
“Let’s end this,” Sarah said. “This isn’t doing us any good.”
“Good idea,” Matt agreed. “You okay with that, Brian? We’ll have to find Nick and do it all over again.”
“I already know what you’ll do,” Brian said smugly. “The only question is what I’ll do. Just get on with it.”
~~~
“Well, that could have gone better,” Matt said after they’d finally ushered Brian out the door. “We didn’t get much done tonight.”
“Thanks to one man,” Chuck said bitterly. “Who couldn’t be bothered to come to his own meeting. That dope who just left is right about one thing. If Nick’s our leader, we need a new one.”
“Now you sound just like the guy who just left,” Sarah said. “Besides, nobody ever said Nick is our leader. He sure didn’t say it. Never has.”
“Good,” Chuck answered. “Because as far as I’m concerned, he isn’t.”
~~~
It was dark when Nick woke up. Lying in the mud on the banks of the creek, he forced himself to remember where he was and what he was doing. By the time he’d pulled himself to his feet he remembered the meeting, but knew he’d missed it. He was going to talk to the others about adding the Martinsens to the group, and had arranged for Brian Martinsen himself to drop by. He wondered how many hours had passed since the meeting ended.
His mouth was dry and his head ached. He didn’t need to find the bottle to know it was empty. At that moment he’d have given anything for a few gulps of clean, cold water, but he knew the creek that ran just a few feet away contained nothing of the sort. He didn’t even consider it.
Seeing no reason to hurry, he took his time walking through the streets after emerging from the woods. There were several vehicles out on the road. That was more than he usually saw, probably because he was out so much later than usual. Each time one approached, he ducked out of headlight range and waited for it to pass. By the time he reached his own house, a full moon lit the landscape from directly overhead. He guessed it was about two o’clock.
As he walked onto his knee-high front lawn toward the front door, he wondered how he could alert Dewey and the others that it was him, and not one of the roaming bandits that they saw more of every day. It turned out not to matter.
"Nick!" a voice hissed from the bushes on the other side of the driveway. Nick froze. He knew he’d heard somebody, and was pretty certain where the voice had come from, but he wanted to hear it again. "Over here!” the voice came again. “It's Joe. Joe Garrison.”
“Joe?” Nick whispered back. “What’s going on?”
“Come on over here and I’ll tell you.” Not doubting that it really was Joe, Nick walked over and joined him behind the azaleas.
“What are you doing here?” Nick asked.
“Waiting for you.”
“Why? I haven’t even seen you for a week,” Nick said. “Where have you been?”
“Just listen,” Joe said. “You’ll get your answers, but not right here and not from me.”
“Well, I don’t see anybody else here,” Nick answered. “I’m too tired and hung over for games, Joe.”
“This is important,” Joe said. “Just trust me, okay? Are you up for a meeting? It’ll be the most important meeting of your life."
"Wait, what?" Nick asked, rubbing his grainy, tired eyes. "What are you talking about?"
"I'm not allowed to say any more. Will you come with me? I promise you won’t get hurt.”
“What do you mean, you’re not allowed to say anymore?” Nick asked. “Allowed by who? Who would hurt me?”
“Just what I said,” Garrison answered. “Come on.”
"Let's do this in the morning, whatever it is," Nick said. "I have to sleep, okay?"
"We all have to sleep, Nick," Joe said firmly. "Do your sleeping when you get back. It’s too hot to sleep, anyway. Let's go."
"I’ve got a houseful of people," Nick argued. "I don't feel right leaving them on their own."
“That didn’t stop you from leaving them on their own all day today,” Joe pointed out. “And half the night.”
“How do you know all this?” Nick asked.
"Later, Nick. Look, we'll send somebody back to keep an eye on the place," Joe said. "We already did, actually. You won’t see them, but they’re here. Now come on."
"You did what?" Nick asked. "You're weirding me out, Joe."
"I can imagine. You'll understand later. The important thing is that your place is safe, and so is everybody inside.”
Nick realized that Joe wasn't going to take no for an answer. On top of that, he was curious. What kind of meeting was held in the middle of the night?
"Where are we going?" Nick asked.
"D
own the street, to the Monroe's house," Joe said.
“Who?” Nick asked. “There aren’t any Monroes on this street, Joe,” Nick answered as they walked. “And I’m pretty sure you know it.”
“Figure of speech, Nick. It’s not too far. Over near the water tower.”
“Wait a second. I think I know where you mean,” Nick said. “What’s there?”
“Well, you know how you and the families that live by you joined up in an alliance? It’s—“
“This is getting scary,” Nick said, stopping cold and grabbing Joe’s arm. “I know that. But how do you know about that?”
“We keep tabs on things,” Joe said. “Just leave it at that for now.” He pulled his arm away. “Come on. We have to keep moving. They’re expecting us.”
“You’re taking me to the armed compound. What are you doing, getting involved with those thugs?” he asked.
"Keep your voice down," Joe advised. "We don't want anybody noticing us walking around. Everybody's too curious these days."
"Yeah, but we don't want to get shot at, either," Nick said. "If we get caught lurking outside this water tower place, the lead's gonna’ fly."
"They know we're coming," Joe said. "It's all arranged.” He paused. “And they’re not thugs.”
“Ryne Cronin?” Nick asked, his voice dripping with disbelief. “His picture’s in the dictionary under ‘thug.’ I caught him stealing my grill just a couple days ago. He’s been looting houses right and left. I saw it with my own eyes.”
Joe snorted. “We know all about him. He’s not part of this. You’ll see. Just wait, Nick. I know how it must look, but try to keep an open mind. That's all I ask."
“God, it stinks out here,” Nick said. “It’s worse every day. There’s pee running in the streets. It’s only a matter of time before people start getting sick from all this filth we’re living in. Pretty soon we’ll have open sewers around here.”