Ferryman

by Jonathon Wise

  “Good work! You and Robby did a real fine job.” He started clapping his hands. Cindy grabbed onto his lead and followed suit. Slowly the others began to join in. The enthusiasm was low to start with, but continued to build as people pushed the morning news out of their minds. Chuck looked around the living room. Everyone had a place to sit. The generator was wired up, jugs of water were sitting in the kitchen, everything was unpacked and they had all the medical supplies they could use. “You all did a fantastic job yesterday in getting this place ready.” He watched the nods and smiles. “I take it, Jeff, that there were no signs of Jason following us.”

  Jeff shook his head. “Not a god-damn fucking thing. No one is following us.”

  Chuck rubbed his chin as he glanced at Cindy sitting on the sofa to his left. The color was fading from her face and she didn’t look like she felt very good. He said to the others, “I don’t want to take the chance on losing Teresa. I don’t think we should move her for at least a couple of weeks. As long as we’re not being followed, how does everyone feel about staying here for a while?”

  Jim raised his hand.

  Chuck grinned and said, “You don’t have to raise your hand.”

  Jim flashed a smile along with everyone else, then his mood changed. “It doesn’t look like there’s any food here.”

  “I can make another run into Dayton,” Andy announced. “I did see signs…you know of the rumors we heard. But I can get in and out without being seen. I can find us food.” He smiled and added, “It may not be like what we were used to in Madison,” he paused to recognize a few chuckles in the group before finishing with, “but at least we won’t go hungry.”

  “Okay,” Chuck said, “as long as we can get the food…what’s everybody say?”

  Jim opened the floor. “Food was my only concern. This place seems like a nice little town.” After a few others echoed his assessment, he added, “There are some nice little homes that seem to be in pretty good shape.” He discreetly reached over and took Sara’s hand and said, “I think we’d be fine here.” She smiled and nodded.

  Everyone knew Jim and Sara’s little secret wasn’t really a secret at all.

  Chuck heard Cindy start to gag and saw her throw her hand over her mouth. He stepped over quickly. “Are you okay?”

  Cindy nodded and indicated for him to go on.

  “If anyone is against staying—at least until Teresa is safe to travel, speak now or forever hold your peace.”

  The consensus was evident as no one even looked around to see if anyone else was going to raise an objection. No one wanted to risk Teresa’s health if they didn’t need to. Chuck started to say that it was settled, when Cindy jumped up and pushed by him. He caught his heels on the bottom of the sofa and fell back into the overstuffed cushion as she ran into the bathroom and slammed the door.

  He jumped up and started to follow her, when Sara grabbed his arm. “You don’t want to see her get sick now, do you?”

  “What do you mean? I don’t mind…what?” He looked at the pale expression on Sara’s face and asked, “What’s going on?”

  She bit her lower lip. “Cindy told me.”

  “Told you what?”

  “You…and her…” Chuck stared at her like she was speaking some kind of code that he couldn’t break. A second later she helped him out and said, “I’m guessing that it’s morning sickness.” She shook her head and continued, “Cindy said that you and her…you haven’t forgotten what’s happened with every pregnancy have you?”

  “You mean…Cindy’s pregnant?”

  Sara nodded.

  A warm feeling flushed over Chuck and a smile spread across his face as he felt the truth of his dream. He squeezed Sara’s hands. The boy on the cliff was his son! In that moment of joy, he was also forced to face the reality of the death Sara warned of. No woman had given birth to a live baby since the End. He tried to hold on to the image of his dream, yet his face started twitching anyway.

  Sara squeezed his hands. “First things first. You wait here and let me see if I can figure out what we have.” Chuck couldn’t muster anything more than a nod. “If it is morning sickness then you need to be strong for her. You need to be strong together. Remember she’s already lost one baby.”

  He had never considered the possibility of having a child since he and Becky found out that she was medically unable to get pregnant. It didn’t even cross his mind when he and Cindy were together. He started to picture Cindy with her stomach showing full term, and as he did, he remembered Becky crying on his shoulder when they received the news that she couldn’t have children. The blood started to leave his head and he began to teeter. Sara grabbed his arm and helped him back on the sofa. She gave him a pat on the knee to keep his spirits high as she went to check on Cindy.

  Andy walked over and kneeled in front of him. He grabbed Chuck’s shoulder and tried to sound as optimistic as he could. “Big news!”

  Chuck looked at him and for once in his life, he was speechless.

  “You sit here and rest. I’ll have the guys dig a grave for…” the forced smile faded from Andy’s face, “…we’ll take care of Kyle.”

  Chuck was still numb from the news as he nodded. “Okay…but I want to say a few words. When you’re ready, you come back in and let me know. We’ll get everyone out there.” Andy started to get up, but Chuck grabbed his hand and said, “Thanks!”

  “No problem, boss.”

  Chapter 41

  Chuck maintained his bedside vigil with Teresa into the second night. He cupped her hand between his and while he waited for any sign of improvement, he replayed the events that led to her injury at Versailles. Could he have done something different to prevent it? By the third day he was beginning to concede that her injuries were more severe than he originally anticipated and that Spring Valley would be their home for more than just a few weeks. Robby still wanted to be by his sister’s side, and since Chuck saw the boy’s presence as only beneficial to her recovery, they made the necessary changes to the makeshift hospital room and Robby moved in.

  Jim and Sara kept trying to relieve Chuck as the hours rolled into days. They insisted that they could watch over Teresa and Robby. They pressed the matter further by moving into the house. Finally after four sleepless days of watching over the injured girl, Chuck heeded the pleas from Cindy and the others and moved into the house across the street with her and Brandt.

  Jeff and Julie took their own home, while Lori welcomed the role of mother figure to the independent duo of Andy and Jamie in another house. After a few days of rest, Chuck was ready to lead the group again. He established a rotational chain of daily chores and before long they were in a routine not too dissimilar from what they had in Madison.

  The one chore not put on a roster was the weekly supply run to Dayton. Because of the experience they gained in Indianapolis, Chuck kept that responsibility on the capable shoulders of Andy and Jamie. The first run went smoothly and without incident. They were able to gather enough edible food along the outskirts of Dayton. On the second trip, they had to venture farther into the city and even then they came back light. Their third excursion, though, brought an unexpected bounty.

  They were deep within city limits when a Ford Taurus sped through the intersection two blocks away. For a second they weren’t sure if they were spotted. When they heard the screech of tires as the Taurus locked up the brakes, they relied on the evasive maneuvers learned in Indianapolis and their instincts to get them to safety. They accelerated down an alley and weaved their way out toward the suburbs. By the time they stopped to see if they were being followed, they were across the street from a large urban renewal project. An eight foot chain link fence enclosed the entire city block. A metal sign on the fence read ‘Future home of Flowing Meadows—luxury condo’s from the mid $300,000’. Andy looked over the sight which was still home to an old, dilapidated warehouse that the city never got the chance to raze. That was when Jamie spotted the small, secured metal shed with the
sign that read ‘Caution—Explosives’. A few minutes later, the lock on the shed gave way to their crowbar and they uncovered three dusty cases of dynamite along with a dozen walkie-talkies sitting in their recharging holsters.

  Seven of the walkie-talkies were beyond repair, the other five were salvageable. They cleaned the dust out of the holsters, hooked them up to one of the generators and managed to get the walkie-talkies to hold enough charge to provide anywhere from thirty seconds to just over five-minutes’ worth of air time. The immediate beneficiaries of the find were those on sentry duty.

  Guard duty was a daily task just like everything else. Chuck kept a sentry posted from dawn to dusk, two miles down the state road on both the north and south ends of town. Everyone except for Jim took a turn at guard duty. Since he was the only one capable of sailing a ship he was too valuable to risk. They worked four-hour shifts and each person coming in relief carried a freshly charged walkie-talkie. They were instructed only to use it for the gravest of emergencies. Now they had a means of communicating without giving away their position.

  As much as Chuck was against any aggressive behavior, Andy was somewhat surprised by his suggestion that they keep the dynamite. But that wasn’t the only thing Chuck did out of character. Every once in a while he would disappear. No one knew where he went. One day Andy found out. There was a dispute over chores and no one could find Chuck to settle it. Everyone spread out and started searching. Five minutes into it Andy wandered to the back of the gas station and saw Chuck standing by himself, out toward the middle of the overgrown corn field. He was standing in the small clearing where they buried Kyle.

  Andy walked over to the edge of the field, stopping just short of pushing through the weed-like crops. He peered down the overgrown path that was once a plowed row in the field, and saw Chuck standing perfectly still with his hands clasped together in front of his waist and his head lowered. Andy watched in silence until he started to feel a weight pressing against his chest. Whether it was sympathy, remorse or guilt, he quietly walked back to the others and settled the dispute himself.

  Chuck couldn’t have been more excited when Teresa finally regained consciousness during the second week. It was a cause for celebration. That night they danced under the stars to the rhythm in their heads. The next day, Teresa’s painful recovery began and continued past the long daylight hours of summer and into the brisk northern winds of autumn. The warmth of summer left without much notice. The group was becoming complacent in their new home and winter only amplified their content. Spring Valley was made up of quaint, older little farmhouses—each with its own propane tank in the yard. The shared excitement that swept through the group when they first felt the unmistakable warm blast of the furnace. They took turns standing in front of the vent and feeling the heat against their backs. Even Chuck didn’t want to leave. A working furnace brought back so many wonderful memories of what life used to be like. It was the edge they needed to keep their spirits high and represented far too much to simply walk away from. With plenty of propane available, all they needed to do was hook up the thermostats and electronic pilot lights to a 12volt car battery. Each household had its own generator so keeping the battery charged and the furnace working wasn’t an issue.

  Teresa’s rehabilitation was painful. The bullet that pierced her thigh, not only shredded muscle tissue, it also produced multiple fractures along her femur. To help strengthen the bond of the group, Chuck setup a rotation for everyone to work with her each day in stretching and strengthening her leg. Everyone would share in the joy of her recovery. That’s not to say that it was a pleasant task in the beginning. The screams and cries that echoed from her room each morning during the first few months were unbearable. As the frequency and intensity of her cries diminished, her mobility increased. The leaves were full of autumn color and still on the limb when Teresa first ventured outside with only a crutch for assistance. She knew she would always walk with a limp, but at least she could walk.

  The furnaces were in full use by the time Teresa requested Chuck’s attendance late one day. Chuck figured a surprise was coming as he and Cindy walked through the cold to Jim and Sara’s house. When Sara opened the door, her smile left no doubt about it. He followed Cindy inside, helped her off with her coat, put his arm around her and then rubbed her belly. “You staying warm in there?”

  Cindy laughed and pushed his hand away. “Quit doing that. You’re making me feel fat.”

  “Oh…you can barely tell,” he consoled her, as Jim walked over. He looked around the room and asked, “Where’s that little pistol, Robby?”

  Jim slid his arm around Sara and said, “He’s waiting in the other room.”

  “Has he got a surprise for us?” Cindy asked.

  Both Sara and Jim fought to keep their joy hidden behind their smile. Jim cleared his throat and said, “Come on back…they’re waiting.”

  The four of them headed to the bedroom that was originally the makeshift hospital room. As Jim opened the door the sound of a hush escaped. They walked in and Chuck saw Robby and Teresa sitting fully dressed on the sides of their beds facing each other. Everyone else was seated on folding metal chairs around the parameter of the room. He looked at Teresa’s crutches resting upright at the foot of the bed, and then glanced around at the excitement in everyone’s eyes. At the center of it all, was a single chair setting in the middle of the room, ten feet from the foot of the beds.

  He glanced back at Cindy and she cracked a smile. She nudged him out toward the center of the room as Robby slid off the bed. The boy ran over, grabbed Chuck’s hand and led him to the chair. Chuck’s heart was racing as he glanced around at the smiling faces and slowly sat down. As he settled on the sparkle in Teresa’s eyes, he grabbed her little brother and hoisted him up on his lap. He needed Robby. He needed the strength of someone else to keep his nervous excitement under control. For the first time in his life he finally understood how a new father feels when he sees the doctor walking toward him with news of whether it was a boy or a girl.

  He was already trembling so much that he could barely hold a straight smile, and that was before he watched Teresa slowly ease off the bed and put her weight over her right foot. His stomach knotted up as he felt the slight grimace on her face. He hugged Robby as Teresa took her first step without crutches. The butterflies swarmed in his stomach and the tears of joy flowed as she looked at him and smiled. He let Robby go and threw his arms out for her as she crossed the ten-foot span on her own. Like a baby taking her first steps, she reached out and fell into the arms of the man who had twice saved her life.

  Chuck clutched her to his chest in a way that only a parent could understand as cheers erupted around the room. He kissed her cheek and whispered as the tears continued to flow, “I’m so proud of you.”

  Teresa hugged him and said, “I wanted to surprise you. Did you know I could walk?”

  Chuck freed one hand to wipe his face as Cindy walked over and kneeled beside them. “No I didn’t. It was just about the best surprise I ever had.” He slid his free arm around Cindy. “You knew about this didn’t you?”

  She smiled and started to cry herself. “We all did. We knew how much it would mean to you and—”

  “You wanted to see my cry, didn’t you.”

  “No,” Cindy said with a laugh, as she wiped her eyes. “We just wanted to repay you for all you’ve done for us.”

  Chuck smiled, but his thoughts were suddenly far from the joyous celebration at hand. He knew Cindy’s intentions were good, yet deep down he also knew the compliment wasn’t true. How could it be? They weren’t all there.

  Cindy leaned forward until her forehead touched his. “You gave us a home, a place safe from all that was going wrong in the world…a place that gave us meaning and love.”

  Chuck heard her kind words, but couldn’t stop thinking about Cathy and Mike. They wouldn’t have been so thankful. He remembered his dream—watching them twist and scream in the fire. They sacrificed their lives
following his leadership and how did he repay their loyalty? What did he do to show them how much they meant to him? He pictured the makeshift grave in the overgrown corn field. Would Kyle be the last to die?

  Robby joined Cindy and Teresa in throwing their arms around him in one loving hug. While they conveyed their appreciation, Chuck felt the defiant stare from the one man who wasn’t celebrating. Jeff stood against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest.

  Chuck’s heart wasn’t in it either. But the others were. They needed it and he owed it to them. So he closed his eyes and remembered the three souls that weren’t there, while Cindy and the children had their way with him.

  Chapter 42

  As winter set in, Cindy continued to fight Chuck’s assertion that a woman in her condition should be excused from guard duty. Five months into her pregnancy, she was still insisting that she hike through the bitter cold to take her turn at the post. It wasn’t until the ice started to melt in the spring, that she finally gave in to her limitations and accepted the less physically demanding chores around the camp.

  Except for a slight limp, Teresa recovered fully from her leg wound. Jeff appeared to let go of the contempt he held for Chuck. But the biggest news was that they had gone the entire winter without any sign of Jason. It was a period of relaxation unlike any before. For the first time in several years, they had the soothing heat of a forced air furnace to help fight off the cold of winter. Water wasn’t an issue, nor was food, and since they kept to themselves, there was no anxiety about the possibility of getting caught while looking for survivors. For most of them, it was the first time since the End that they truly felt relaxed. But as so often happens with relaxation, they began to misjudge the danger around them.