Winter Fall

by Byron Tucker

  Without thinking, he said, “Well, we could give you a lift to St Louis, since we're headed that way.”

  Helen stepped in between them, shaking her head. “No, I'd rather we just stay put right here. We'll switch to burning wood in the fireplace if we have to. I tell you what, you giving us all this food is a real blessing. Neither of us have had a single bite to eat in days.”

  Good lord, what would become of them if we hadn't gotten stuck in front of their house? Or us, for that matter? It made him shudder thinking how lucky they really were.

  A little while later, they sat down to eat to a dinner of pasta and beef, along with the various side items that were included in the MREs. David shook his head while he ate greedily. “I still can't believe you're driving that motorhome all the way to Mobile. Where are you getting gas?”

  “We've got fourteen five-gallon jerry cans in addition to the full tank we had in Rhinelander. That's seventy gallons we have left before we have to refuel again.”

  “We're hoping to get more gas along one of the evacuation corridors,” Jimmy said in between bites of food.

  David pointed a thumb at the side door. “I've got a few extra gallons in the barn you can have. Least I can do for ya, for bringing us all this food.”

  “Um, yes, that would be very generous of you. It's a real question mark as to when we'll be able to get more gas.”

  David laughed. “Not like we need it, being snowed in like this.”

  Desperate to know more, Sam asked, “What can you tell me about what's been happening around here since the eruption?”

  “A bunch of nothing,” David said. “Once the food and gas ran out in town, that was it, the stores never reopened. We lost power around Labor Day, and we've been sitting in the dark since. Thank goodness we have lanterns and plenty of oil so we've been able to have light at least. However, food is our biggest problem. For a time, we were able to get rations from the National Guard in town, but once the real cold and snow hit, we haven't see anybody. That's why we haven't been eatin'.”

  Sam was overwhelmed with pity for these people. They were such a nice, homely couple who used to make a living producing food for others, cruelly thrust into a situation where they could very well starve to death. The three cases he had brought into the house consisted of seventy-two meals, minus the half dozen they had just used for dinner. Sixty-six meals would last this couple just eleven days if they ate normally. “Are you sure you don't want us to give you a lift to St Louis or anything?”

  David shook his head, as did his wife. “If we have to die, we'd rather do it in our own home. You've bought us some time. Perhaps the National Guard will make an appearance again soon.”

  For your sake, I certainly hope that'll happen. Suddenly not wishing to eat anymore, he looked up at Jimmy and said, “Wrap it up, son. We need to get that motorhome refueled.”

  Jimmy looked up, his cheeks stuffed with food. “We're staying the night, right?”

  Sam shook his head. “We can't. If we leave the engine off for too long in this cold, we may not be able to get it started again.”

  David waved his hands and said, “We've got a portable heater out there. I can turn it on for you.”

  Sam stood up from the table. “No, we really do need to keep moving. We certainly appreciate your help, though.”

  While Sam lifted the last jerry can to pour the precious fuel into the gas tank, Jimmy came up to him and said, “Mom thinks we should just camp out here in the barn and leave in the morning, when it's light.”

  He shook his head. “The three of you can sleep while I drive. We're leaving tonight, no ifs or buts about it.”

  “But why the rush? We're making such great time already.”

  Sam let out an exasperated sigh. “Because I can't cope with the idea that these people could very well be dead in a month. It's just better that we keep moving. We'll just drive in shifts.”

  “Is it okay I take the first shift, then?”

  The jerry can now emptied of gas, he set it down and screwed the cap into place, flipping the access door shut with a flick of his hand. “Yes, you may. Tell your mom and sister that we're moving out in five.”

  After saying their good-byes to the friendly farmer couple, Jimmy started up the motorhome and eased out of the barn and down the freshly-plowed driveway. Once they reached the highway, Jimmy lowered the plow into place and turned right, driving at a slow, cautious pace.

  “You're doing great, Jimmy. Slow and steady. Let the plow do the work of clearing the road for us.”

  “Yeah, I know. We can't afford to get stuck again. We were pretty lucky back there.”

  “Extremely lucky. So keep that in mind, okay?”

  * * *

  Sam woke with a start, taking a few seconds to gain his bearings. Looking out the windshield, he could see that they were driving on semi-bare pavement, on what looked like an Interstate. He glanced over at Jimmy and asked, “Where are we?”

  Jimmy looked at him with a look of pride. “We're way down in lower Illinois. This is I-64, part of the Evacuation Corridor. Look at how nice and plowed it is.”

  “How long have I been out?”

  Jimmy laughed. “Hours. I didn't wanna wake you, as I know you needed the sleep. But we're making really good progress now. I've got the cruise on sixty.”

  “Well, I think it's time to switch, don't you think?”

  “Oh no, I can keep driving. I'm not sleepy at all.”

  Sam pointed a finger to his right. “I think you've driven for long enough. Pull over now.”

  Jimmy complied, pulling over onto the shoulder.

  Once they switched places, they started off again, the Interstate empty in both directions as he slowly edged it up to fifty-five. Looking at Jimmy, he asked, “Mom and Eliza have been sleeping in the back all this time?

  “Yeah, I think so. Eliza had to do a session on the machine, but I think she's doing okay now.”

  “I can't believe you were able to get around St Louis without any difficulty. Did you not see anybody at all?”

  “Yeah, just a few military vehicles, but they weren't doing anything. I just saw the signs that said Evacuation Corridor, and I just followed them onto this road. There's a fueling station in Paducah, Kentucky, so we should be able to fuel up there.”

  “You saw a sign stating that?”

  Jimmy looked downward for a second. “Yeah, well, it said no gas until Paducah, so I'm guessing we'll be able to get gas there. We should have more than enough to make it that far though.”

  Sam glanced at the gas gauge, which was sitting just below half. Running this thing with a plow isn't exactly conductive to getting good gas mileage. “It does look like we'll have enough to get to Paducah, but we'll need to fill up fairly soon after that.”

  “Yeah, I just hope we're able to find some additional gas stations so we can go the rest of the way to Mobile.”

  “Can you calculate the distance between Paducah and Mobile?”

  “Sure thing, Dad, gimme a couple.” A couple minutes later, he replied, “If we go the most direct route, it's five hundred miles.”

  “That's almost enough to make it on a single tank if the roads are clear.”

  Jimmy raised his fist in the air, grinning. “Southward ho!”

  Sam put a finger to his lips. “Let's not wake the girls. It looks like we're really going to be able to do this, huh?”

  “Not like I had any doubt that we wouldn't.”

  They rolled on through the wee hours of the morning, with scarcely a vehicle to be seen in either direction. With each mile that passed under the wheels of the motorhome, Sam felt increasingly confident they really would make it to Mobile after all. There was no sign of road bandits like they had encountered in Iowa, the weather was much better, and in less than a day, they had covered half the distance to Mobile. It was beginning to look as if their biggest problem was going to be figuring what to do with themselves once they got to Mobile, since it was likely they would
get there well ahead of the freighter. It wasn't a bad problem to have, not in the least.

  Chapter 28

  Dawn had yet to break when they approached the Ohio River, which marked the border of Illinois and Kentucky. For the first time since taking the wheel, Sam saw other vehicles on the road, mostly private vehicles, but some military ones as well. With the last exit in Illinois approaching, Sam saw a number of crudely erected signs, having to cut his speed in half just to be able to read them all. The first one read: All Vehicles Must Have Valid Evacuation Corridor Tickets to Gain Entry into Coalition Territory. The one right after that read: All Firearms are PROHIBITED In Coalition Territory. The next one stated: Dusk to Dawn Curfew In Effect – All Lawbreakers Will be Arrested and Detained.

  Realizing they were in no condition to cross into “Coalition Territory” yet, whatever that meant, Sam swung the motorhome onto the off-ramp of the final exit and pulled onto the shoulder. Jimmy stirred awake.

  Jimmy looked around and said, “Why are we stopped? Where are we?”

  Sam put the vehicle into park and turned to face his son. “Looks like we've got a problem.”

  “What do you mean? Something's wrong with the motorhome?”

  “No, it's fine. They've posted signs that states guns are prohibited and that we need a valid “evacuation ticket,” whatever that is. We're going to have to find out what the deal is before crossing into Kentucky.”

  Jimmy shook his head vigorously. “Kentucky is just another state, it can't be any different than Illinois. We can just the guns so they don't know we have them. That ticket thing, I'm sure it's something we can get on the other side. Besides, states aren't allowed to control interstate access. It's against the Constitution, you know.”

  Sam looked at Jimmy with a dubious expression. “I don't think there is a United States Constitution anymore. Whatever this “Coalition” is, it's not the U.S. Like I said, we need to gather some intel before we cross that border, which we can't do until daylight, anyhow.”

  “Why is that?”

  “Dusk to dawn curfew. No wonder there's been so few vehicles on the road with us, since they're apparently only allowing daytime travel.”

  Jimmy became visibly agitated. “That's bullshit. They can't keep us from traveling at night.”

  Sam looked up to see couple of beige National Guard trucks pulling up alongside the motorhome. One of them came to a stop next to the driver's side window. “Hold on a sec, I think these guys wanna talk. Grab a few MRE's for me, will ya.”

  Sam slid aside the side window to greet the young soldiers in the high-wheeled truck next to him. The one sitting in the passenger seat said, “Everything okay with you fellows?”

  Glad to see them in a friendly mood, he leaned out of the window and said, “Yeah, we're fine, but I have some questions about going into Kentucky. What's the deal about having one of those tickets, and how strict are they about having firearms?”

  The man laughed. “No ticket, no passage. It just went into effect yesterday.”

  “Well, how do I get one of these things?”

  The driver of the truck said, “You don't. Them guys are pulling a Texas. They're busy cutting off access from the rest of the country.”

  “Too many people fleeing south, or so they claim,” the other soldier added.

  “Well, I'm trying to get my family down to Mobile. Do you have any suggestions on how to get there?”

  Both men laughed. The passenger then said, “Since that's right smack in the middle of Coalition Territory, my advice is to go ahead and cross that bridge and bribe your way in. Do you have food, or better yet, gold?”

  The gold. “Yes, we have some of both, actually.” He turned to look at Jimmy holding a grocery bag stuffed with MREs. He took it from him and handed it to the soldier. “We have a lot of these. Will that help gain us entry, you think?”

  The men seemed grateful to get the food. “Whatever you have, it'll probably not be enough. But if you have a couple of gold coins, they'll probably let you in. If you have any guns on board, you'd better toss them into the river, or you'll be arrested and thrown into the pen if you're caught with any. Don't think they won't search your vehicle either. Lose your guns, have a few gold coins ready, and just play nice. They'll probably let you in.”

  Getting chilled from the cold, Sam thanked the men and closed the window. Looking at Jimmy, he said, “You heard what the man said. Go and get all the guns, and we'll throw them into the river as we're crossing the bridge.”

  An alarmed expression appeared on his face. “No way, we can't do that. We have to have protection.”

  “They'll search the motorhome, if they find any, we'll be detained.”

  “We just have to find a way to hide them well enough so they don't find them.”

  Sam got up from his seat, reaching for the AR-15 lying next to Jimmy and sliding it toward the door. “That Glock you have, let me have it.”

  Jimmy pulled out the black pistol from the back of his pants and handed it to him, his lips pressed together in a tight line.

  “You sit tight while I get the other guns.” He knew Jimmy wasn't happy, but at least he wasn't putting up a fight, which was the last thing he needed at the moment. They just had to do what was needed to get into Coalition Territory so they could make it the rest of the way down to Mobile.

  A few minutes later, with Irene and Eliza awakened and them peppering him with all sorts of questions, Sam located some of the numerous guns that Ryan had given them, which he'd felt was overkill to begin with. Not that it mattered, since he had all the ones he got from the raiders that had been killed.

  He turned to the other members of his family. “While we're stopped, let's have some breakfast. We have to wait until dawn, so we don't get into trouble with the curfew.”

  Eliza said, “I thought curfews were for kids.”

  Sam laughed. “Well, in Kentucky, it's for adults too. I don't agree with it, but we'll do what we have to do in order to get to Mobile.”

  They spent the next few minutes eating breakfast MREs, which were barely palatable, but it was better than nothing. By the time Irene had cleaned up the remains of their meal, a faint gray light was showing up outside the windows of the motorhome, with a light snow falling.

  Sam stood up and looked at his family, letting out a small sigh. Clearing his throat, he said, “I know we're not the most religious of families, but perhaps now is a good time to pray for our continued safety. I have a feeling we're going to need all the help we can get in order to get to Mobile.”

  Irene looked up at him. “Well, if they don't allow guns, it should be a lot safer to travel, right?”

  Jimmy looked at his mother with raised eyebrows. “Are you kidding? Only the criminals will have guns. Without guns of our own, we'll be less safe than before.”

  Sam looked around the motorhome, trying to recall exactly how many guns his brother had given them. There was the Mossberg in the back, as well as the two .357s. Plus the Glocks. Looking at Jimmy, he said, “Go in the bedroom and get the guns we have back there and bring them out to put with the others.”

  He stood up and looked at his father with a disgusted look on his face. “You really want to throw away our protection? Why don't we set out a couple more gold coins and ask for permission to keep them?”

  Sam shook his head. “We can't take the chance. We need to get permission to cross into Coalition territory, find gas somewhere and finish our drive to Mobile. If they're maintaining any kind of order down there, we'll be okay. We just need to have freedom to travel.”

  Jimmy let out an annoyed grunt while he headed to the rear of the motorhome. While his son searched for the guns back there, he reached into one of the cabinets behind him and opened a box containing the gold coins. Just to be safe, he withdrew four coins, figuring that a bribe of one coin per person would be enough, as well as a case or two of MREs. Once he had the coins stacked on the console next to the driver's seat, Jimmy returned from the back carr
ying the Mossberg and the two pistols, looking more unhappy than ever.

  Sam looked at him and the two guns lying on the floor next to the stairwell. “Is that all the guns we've brought with us?”

  Jimmy nodded. “As far as I know, this is all we have.”

  Hmm, I thought we had more. “You sure about that, Jimmy? I know we just have the two big guns, but didn't Ryan give us a few Glocks?”

  Jimmy shook his head slowly. ”Just the one he gave me and the one you had.”

  Sam pointed to the stairwell. “Put them all next to the door, and we'll just toss them into the river when we cross the bridge.” He turned to look at his wife and daughter. “You two just sit tight. We'll get through this, I promise.”

  Irene responded with a slight smile. “I have full faith and confidence that we'll get to Mobile without incident.”

  It was clear that Irene was thrilled to be getting rid of the guns, considering how much she abhorred the thought of additional violence. At least somebody's happy about the no-gun policy.

  He pointed at Jimmy. “Come, let's get belted in. We're moving out.”

  “Gimme me a sec. I gotta use the bathroom.”

  Once Jimmy was done and was back in the passenger seat, Sam put the motorhome into reverse, backing it out onto the highway. He was relieved to see there was zero traffic coming or going, which had to work in their favor once they crossed the river. He shifted into drive and eased forward, feeling the chained rear tires biting into the compact layer of snow on the highway, the snow coming down a bit harder now. Since it'd gotten brighter outside, he had a view of the twin steel arches of the bridge spanning the Ohio River, one near each end. Seeing no obstructions or roadblocks on the bridge itself, he drove a bit faster, glad to have the stability of the chained tires as they emerged onto the icy bridge span. Once he passed under the first of the two steel arches, he pulled over to a stop, looking out the front and the rear-view mirrors with increasing nervousness.