Evergreen (Book 5): The Nuclear Frontier

by Cox, Matthew S.

  The cow fired a sharp exhale from its nostrils, spraying her face with wetness.

  Eww.

  She scooted forward and sat up, torn between wiping her face on her sleeve and not wanting to have cow snot on her shirt, forcing her to wash it sooner. Trying not to let any get in her mouth, she scrambled to her feet and hurried over to the creek, crouching at the edge. Despite the iciness of the water, she scooped several handfuls into her face. Cow snot glided off on the creek’s surface like strands of tiny jellyfish.

  Ick. Why did I look?

  She dried her face on her sleeves, then stood to check around for privacy.

  Cliff and Ken sat near the bikes, munching on carrots and green beans. Luisa walked back to the campsite from the north. Harper headed off away from the creek and the camp in search of as much solitude as she could to water the grass. Once she found a good spot, she realized a shocking number of cows littered the fields around her, along with a much smaller number of bulls and about twenty calves. It felt as if they all stared at her.

  Grr. Can’t go to the bathroom with all the cows watching me.

  It took her a few minutes—as well as closing her eyes—but she finally took care of business.

  Upon her return to camp, Logan offered her a choice between a carrot and a potato. For a change of pace, she took the carrot.

  “Morning.” Harper yawned, then bit the front third off the carrot.

  “That it is.” Cliff put his backpack on. “You three about ready to head on out?”

  “Yep.” She held up the remaining portion of her ‘breakfast’. “Just a sec to finish this.”

  “No rush. We’ve got plenty of daylight.” Cliff took in a deep breath, eyes closed as if savoring the purity of it all.

  Harper pulled a small bread loaf from her pack and took a bite of it, wanting a little more than a single carrot. “It is really pretty here. Can almost pretend nothing happened.”

  “Yeah.” Cliff hooked his thumbs in his pockets. “They didn’t have quite enough nukes to cover every square inch of land. Saved ’em for the juicy spots like military bases and big cities.”

  “That’s good though, right?” Harper scarfed down the rest of the carrot. “Means we have a chance to rebuild since there’s plenty of usable land.”

  “I suppose.” Cliff gave a noncommittal nod. “Not sure what people will rebuild, but I suppose they’ll get to rebuilding something. Hope it’s not an exact replica of the dumbassery we created last time around.”

  Harper held the bread in her teeth while pulling her backpack on and dragging her bike up to the road. In the bright early morning sun, she had no trouble avoiding the rocks all over the hill. Once on the highway, she plucked the bread out of her teeth. “Maybe the cows are going to take over.”

  Ken laughed. “Looks like they’re trying.”

  “Sure does.” Cliff walked his bike up to the highway. “Hmm. Might as well do it right and say something properly dad-corny. Hmm… Let’s blow this popsicle stand.”

  Harper rolled her eyes, but couldn’t resist laughing.

  29

  Every Moment

  Somewhere around eleven or twelve hours later, Harper pedaled up Route 74 into the heart of Evergreen, not wanting to even look at a mountain bike ever again.

  Exhaustion and soreness definitely beat stretching the trip out to three or four days each way. The ride home hadn’t been without a few nerve-wracking moments, but the black bear didn’t bother to chase them and the two guys they spotted wandering in Bailey more or less ignored them. The men had been a good distance away from Route 285, in the parking lot of a small church, tending a wood-burning grill made from scrap. They made no effort to attract attention, communicate, or attack.

  Harper figured people content to live in small groups or alone would likely be lonely. However, they couldn’t run all over the place rounding people up. If someone preferred the solitude, so be it. Except for unattended children or those in clear need of help, she’d leave people be.

  She’d spent the last few hours of the ride wondering how many survivors remained in the ol’ USA. What happened to the densely populated cities, especially on the coasts? How did massive concrete towers react to nuclear bombs? Did they shield people better than suburban houses or turn into collapsing deathtraps? How much of the country remained reasonably intact like Evergreen, Colorado and the surrounding areas? Did this place avoid the worst of it due to the shielding effect of the mountains or would any reasonably remote town have the same chances? A hostile nation would certainly have targeted farmland in the middle of the country, so perhaps remoteness or a sparse population alone didn’t guarantee similar results.

  Her mind tried to scare her with images of vast cities like Los Angeles reduced to wide open fields of grey dust populated by ‘rad zombies.’ Of course, she knew monsters like that only existed in video games and stories. If any big city had been nuked so hard it became a literal parking lot, it would likely still be too radioactive for anyone to survive in.

  They probably hit Washington DC the hardest. Bet there’s a dead zone a hundred miles around it. That and Hollywood. The Russians would hate it as a ‘symbol of America’ or something like that. They probably felt the same way about all of California. Did they nuke Mount Rushmore, too? Of course, they hit our farms… to poison us with radiation, make the land useless for growing stuff.

  By the time they rolled up to the militia HQ, she’d stopped thinking about how soon—if at all—any sort of national identity would emerge again. Mostly, she wanted to spend a few uninterrupted hours with Madison, Lorelei, and Jonathan. She also had an attack of First World Problem, wanting to recover from so much sitting and pedaling by lounging in a hot bath for a while. If the electric worked, no big deal, but she wouldn’t waste firewood on a comfort soak.

  “Here we are,” said Cliff, after stashing his bike back in the collection. “No one got their ass shot off.”

  “Surprisingly.” Harper smiled.

  “You sound disappointed.” Cliff glanced at her.

  “No, not at all. Happily surprised. I mean we did get shot at the other day looking for you and I thought for certain those weirdos in Fairplay were going to turn me into Swiss cheese.”

  He laughed. “C’mon, now. We’re not in a Mad Max movie. Real world’s a little saner… and kinda more depressing most of the time.”

  “Did you see them?” Logan whistled. “I can’t tell if they’re playing the Wild West thing for laughs or taking it seriously.”

  Luisa exhaled. “They’re pretty serious about it. One guy said something about simpler times worked much better.”

  “Not by much.” Ken got off his bike and stretched. “Ugh. I need an ass transplant. Gonna be walking funny for days.”

  “The bad guys in real life don’t paint their faces, wear leather, and hang off the side of speeding giant pickup trucks while waving giant clubs around.” Harper stared off into space. “They wear suits, tell lies, and kill millions with the stroke of a pen.”

  “Ain’t that the truth.” Cliff shook his head at the ground.

  “C’mon.” Logan took his sister’s hand. “Gotta go see a doctor.”

  “I’m not sick,” said Luisa.

  Logan smiled reassuringly. “It’s one of the rules here. Everyone needs to get looked at when they first arrive.”

  “Oh, okay.” She shrugged and walked after him.

  Grr. Harper wanted to simultaneously be home with Madison and go with Hunter. She stood there looking back and forth from the clinic to the point where Hilltop Drive met Route 74.

  Upon noticing her indecision, Logan waved. “It’s cool if you need to let Maddie know you’re alive.”

  She jogged after him. “I want to be there for you, too.”

  “It’s okay. She’s a kid. We’ve all been through rough shit.” Logan looked down. “I can’t be the reason your sister has a breakdown.”

  “Don’t pull the macho stuff.” She playfully punched him on
the shoulder. “It’s fine for boys to show emotion. Hey, let me go let her know I’m still alive, and I’ll—probably both of us actually—go to the clinic to wait with you.”

  “Cool.” Logan grinned.

  “Wait with him?” Luisa blinked. “Doctors still have waiting rooms? How long is this going to take?”

  “Got somewhere to be?” Logan tilted his head at her.

  “No.” Luisa shrugged. “Just saying. Sounds weird.”

  Harper hugged him. “Be there as soon as I can.”

  The instant Harper walked into the house, Madison jumped off the sofa—but caught herself.

  Trying to act calm, she casually crossed the living room. Carrie remained on the couch, reading to Lorelei, who cuddled up beside her. Jonathan and Mila lay on the rug, enjoying a moment of synchronicity with the universe—the PlayStation worked.

  Her eyes are bleary. She didn’t sleep well. “Hey, Termite. “I’m sorry for running off yet again.”

  “Thanks for feeling guilty.” Madison hugged her. “It’s okay. You know I’d rather you didn’t, but I’m not gonna get all emo on you if you have a good reason.”

  Harper squeezed her. “It would take something pretty important to convince me to go on another trip. I have to be here for you. No, I want to be here for you. Don’t think it’s a begrudging obligation.”

  “I don’t.” Madison fussed at her hair. “You sound totally different when you’re doing something under protest. If you’re going to leave town again, will you at least wait for me to be old enough to go with you?”

  “You want to join the militia?” Harper started to cringe at the idea, but, honestly, being on or off the militia didn’t really change a person’s odds of experiencing violence anymore.

  Madison rolled her eyes. “Hell no, dork. I’m still scared because you did… but I understand why.”

  “Oh?” Harper scratched her head.

  “You’re a slacker with no real skills other than shooting.” Madison folded her arms. “What else would you do?”

  Harper laughed at the straight-faced delivery, then playfully scoffed. “I have skills.”

  “What job did you want before the world died?” Madison raised an eyebrow.

  “I dunno. Didn’t quite figure it out yet.”

  “See?” Madison gestured at her. “You coasted through school having no clue what you were going to do for a career.”

  “Guess so.”

  “At least we were happy before it all went to shit.” Madison gave her an expectant look.

  “Watch your language,” deadpanned Harper.

  Her sister grinned.

  “I only said it because you wanted me to. Doesn’t really seem like ‘bad words’ are an issue anymore… compared to everything else.”

  “Does that mean we can curse all we want?” asked Jonathan from the floor.

  “No,” said Carrie and Harper at the same time.

  Madison and Mila snickered.

  Lorelei looked up, seemingly confused.

  “You’re right.” Madison bit her lip. “It’s what Mom would’ve wanted. Gotta be eighteen to swear.”

  “Mom would still give me a sour look if I dropped an F-bomb, even though I am eighteen.”

  “Yeah.” Madison laughed. “Totes.”

  “So, what happened out there?” asked Carrie. “Did you find Logan’s sister?”

  “Yeah, she’s over at the clinic. Routine exam. She’ll probably be fine, but I think the doctor is going to quarantine her dress. Holy cow, I’ve never seen clothing so filthy. Wait, no… I have. Randall’s group.”

  The kids chuckled.

  Harper gestured at the door. “I’m going to go sit with Logan so he’s not alone with his thoughts.” Harper nudged Madison. “Wanna come with?”

  “Sure.”

  Carrie pointed at her. “Don’t forget to tell that boy to come here tonight. He’s not bringing a fifteen-year-old girl to live in a house with four other men.”

  “Five other men. Logan’s the sixth guy in the house over there.” Harper exhaled. “Yeah. He’s gotta talk to Anne-Marie about taking the little place up the dirt driveway from yours.”

  “All right.” Carrie turned the page and resumed reading to Lorelei.

  Harper headed for the door, but stopped when Madison followed without bothering to put her shoes on.

  “Hey, it’s getting kinda cold. Shoes?”

  “Cold doesn’t really bother me, but okay.” Madison rushed off, humming that song from Frozen.

  … and Harper started humming it. Damn it. She went outside to Hilltop Drive, waiting on the road. A minute later, Madison ran out from the house, having put her sneakers on. She hurried across the front yard to the road. As soon as her sister caught up, Harper started walking toward Route 74.

  Wow, waiting for her to come outside so we can go somewhere feels so damn normal except for not having a car.

  “Umm, Harp?” asked Madison.

  “Yeah?”

  “Sorry for being a brat.”

  “You’re not a brat.”

  Madison shrugged. “I mean before… like before before. I used to yell at you for being in my room or even sitting too close to me, but now it doesn’t feel weird to take baths together. It feels weird not to. I hate that we used to fight, like at all. Now, I’m always thinking we could die at any minute.”

  “We need to be cautious, but there’s no reason for us to be scared all the time.”

  “Yeah, I know.” Madison stuffed her hands in her pockets, shivering slightly at an uptick in the breeze. “I’m not scared, just aware. Like, I never used to think about death at all, just figured I’d grow up and eventually get old like everyone else. Now… every moment is important. Maybe it’s lame, but I like it when you wash my hair.”

  “You feel protected.”

  “Yeah. And loved, and all that sappy Hallmark stuff.” Madison smirked at her. “I’ll probably outgrow it once I stop being so scared all the time. Probably won’t outgrow wanting to have you around. Even if you and Logan live next door, I’ll be okay. That’s still around. I’ll eventually be okay not having to literally Velcro to you.”

  “Hah.”

  “Does it bother you not expecting to grow old?” Madison stuffed her hands in her pockets.

  “Honestly? I never even thought about it before at all. Don’t suppose there’s really any point to losing your mind over stuff that’s totally out of your control.”

  Madison nodded, then smiled. “Hey, at least I’m not in a hurry to grow up so I can drive anymore.”

  “And I’m not in any hurry to turn twenty-one.”

  “How long are we going to be at the clinic?”

  Got somewhere to be? She smiled. “Not long. Just until they finish checking Luisa. I’m sure Logan is going to want some time to catch up with her tonight, all the stuff they didn’t want to talk about in front of everyone else. We should have a few hours before bedtime to do something fun.”

  “Cool. I’m going to sleep hard tonight.” Madison dramatically held a hand to her forehead.

  “Up worrying last night?”

  “No,” said Madison with a straight face. “Bear tried to get in the house.”

  “Are you being sarcastic or serious?”

  “Serious this time. It clawed a bit at the window. Might be the same one that tried to sniff the chickens. Lore and I screamed loud enough to wake Carrie up. She chased the bear off.”

  “She did not leave you in the house alone…” Harper blinked.

  “No, she was in Dad’s room.” Madison lowered her voice to a fake whisper. “I think she was sad and worried he’d get hurt.”

  Harper half-smiled, simultaneously a bit guilty for contributing to Carrie’s worry as well as happy she sincerely cared for him.

  “Anyway…” Madison punted a small rock off the road. “After the bear left, it took me a long time to go back to sleep because I kept thinking there might be another bear out there somewhere biting you.”r />
  “Didn’t get bit by a bear, but I had a cow snoz on my face.”

  “Eww!” Madison squirmed.

  “Saw a cougar, too.”

  Madison’s eyes went wide. “Really?”

  “Yeah. He snuck up on me. Sniffed my butt.”

  “Eep!” Madison covered her mouth with both hands. “You didn’t shoot him, did you?”

  “No. He got bored with us and walked away.” Harper ruffled her hair. “So, what do you want to do when we get home?”

  “Don’t care. Board game. Uno. Just hang and talk. Draw. Maybe you could read that book to Lorelei and I’ll listen in.”

  “All right.” Harper opened the door to the medical center. “We’ll figure something out.”

  It’s our way of life these days… we figure it out.

  fin

  Acknowledgments

  Thank you for reading The Nuclear Frontier!

  Harper’s story will continue.

  Thanks also to Lee Sheridan for editing and Alexandria Thompson for the cover design.

  About the Author

  Originally from South Amboy NJ, Matthew has been creating science fiction and fantasy worlds for most of his reasoning life. Since 1996, he has developed the “Divergent Fates” world, in which Division Zero, Virtual Immortality, The Awakened Series, The Harmony Paradox, and the Daughter of Mars series take place. Along with being an editor at Curiosity Quills press, he has worked in IT and technical support.

  Matthew is an avid gamer, a recovered WoW addict, Gamemaster for two custom RPG systems, and a fan of anime, British humour, and intellectual science fiction that questions the nature of reality, life, and what happens after it.

  He is also fond of cats.

  Visit me online at:

  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MatthewSCoxAuthor

  Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/matthewcox10420/

  Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7712730.Matthew_S_Cox

  Email: mcox2112@gmail.com