Descent Into Darkness

by A J Newman

  “Not lately. Those Muslims left here and rumor has it they went to Portland.”

  They were about to leave when Cloe said, “Hey, there are two people coming out of the woods.”

  Mal said, “Oh, that’s Gail and John. They live with me and another couple Rob and Lyn.”

  “I need to talk with your friends,” Joe said.

  “They have been with me for over a month. I would know if my friends had heard of the woman,” Mal replied.

  “Thanks,” Joe said.

  Joe watched the man carry a load of wood into the hotel as they walked away back to the main road. They traveled for several minutes before Joe spoke.

  “Cloe we have to get back home quickly and get my Jeep. There are several possible routes they could have taken, and we have to travel faster. We’ll never find her on foot,” Joe said.

  “Joe did you trust that man. I just didn’t like the way he looked at me. He made me feel dirty, and I think he is a pervert,” Cloe said.

  “Cloe, I felt the same way you did. You know we might have to change your looks a bit. I don’t know how to say it so I’ll just blurt it out. Cloe, I know you are twelve years old, but you look much more mature for your age and men like him could be a problem,” Joe said.

  “Joe, I have a jacket on and a baseball cap. Should I grow a beard?” Cloe asked.

  “I don’t know, but I don’t want anything happening to my best friend,” Joe said.

  “Joe, I thought mom was your best friend,” Cloe replied in a shaky voice.

  “Your mom was my best friend, but we moved to a closer relationship. I guess you could say she is my girlfriend,” Joe said with a red face.

  “Joe, I thought you were going to say, lovers,” Cloe said then laughed.

  “Cloe as I said before you are mature beyond your years. I plan to marry your mom if she’ll have me when we get her back home,”

  “I’d like that but could you still be my friend and not go all stepdad with me,” Cloe said very seriously.

  “Cloe you will always be my friend, and I’ve never been a father before so we’ll learn about that when the time comes. I don’t see much changing because I already do my best to keep you safe, give you good advice, and keep the boys away from you,” Joe said.

  “Add keeping perverts away to the list,” Cloe said.

  ***

  Gail and her husband were out checking their squirrel traps when they looked down the road and saw the man and woman walking away from their friend Mal.

  “John, let’s go see who those people are. They could be our guest’s family. Hey, why would Mal be carrying wood into that Bed & Breakfast? Hell, he doesn’t even help us much around our place.”

  “I don’t want to get into his business. Don’t bother him. Let’s go back home,” John said.

  “Okay, but I smell a rat. John, you are a coward when it comes to Mal. Why does he scare you?” Gail asked.

  ***

  Joe took a northern route back to their home and stopped twice to talk to other survivors. The first one was close to the road, and a man and a woman came out to greet them. Both were armed with deer rifles but appeared friendly.

  “I’m Joe, and I’m looking for my wife. We left our home several nights ago searching for our dog. We got split up, and she disappeared. I’m afraid someone took her with them. Have you seen her?”

  “I’m Ben, and this is Sarah. Sorry, but we try to stay hid out in the woods and don’t see many people,” the man said.

  Joe pointed at the steady stream of smoke rising from the woods. “Sir, I knew someone was up there in the woods a half hour ago. You can’t have a fire during the daytime and expect to stay hidden.”

  Both turned to see the smoke, and the man said, “Oh shit. We stay close to the cabin and never came out here until we saw you walking across the clearing. I guess we were lucky.”

  “Yes, you were. I’ve seen smoke coming from your place and several others off this road. We have to move on now, but I’d like to talk to you later about trading. I’m going to grow a garden and plan to trade the excess food for things we need.”

  “We want to grow a garden but don’t have any seeds. I’m afraid to go into town to get some. It’s just too dangerous,” the man replied.

  “We have some extra seeds that I can trade you. I’ll drop them off on our way back through. It’s too late to head out tonight so we’ll drop them off in the morning early,” Joe replied.

  “We are barely getting by now and don’t have anything to trade,” the woman replied with tears in her eyes.

  “You have labor. I’ll trade you the seeds if you help plow. We need to start clearing ground and plowing. I know where there are a couple of old tractors and plows. I’ll let you borrow the tractors if I can find enough fuel,” Joe said.

  “Hey I have two trucks, one is full of gas and the other full of diesel,” the man said.

  “See you do have things to trade. We must go now,” Joe said.

  “Joe, we saw you limping as you walked up. Are you okay?” Sarah asked.

  “Just a little pain from a small accident. Not a big deal,” Joe replied.

  “Joe got shot in the hip, legs, and a bullet hit his binoculars and bruised his chest,” Cloe exclaimed.

  “Joe, shouldn’t you be in bed resting?” Sarah asked.

  “No, I have to find my girl.”

  “Joe, not to be nosey, but do you have any other people in your group besides your family?” Sarah asked.

  “Yes, Dan, Ginny and their two kids and Jane and her two kids,” Joe answered.

  “Did Jane recently lose her husband?”

  “No, her boyfriend left to find medicine for Dan but never came back. Jane wasn’t very concerned about the loss,” Joe answered and then thought he was giving out TMI.

  They shook hands and Joe and Cloe left.

  ***

  “Ben, that was a nice guy, and I love his daughter. She was so polite for a girl warrior. We need to go down the hill and meet these people. There is safety in numbers, and even though you don’t want to talk about it, you need to plan for your future,” Sarah said with tears in her eyes.

  “Doll, you know I don’t want to talk about that. The doctors said it could be five to six years. Let’s live a good a life as long as we can,” Joe replied.

  “Hon, how many times do I have to tell you? That was with surgery and chemo. The damned lights went out the day before my surgery. It’s been several months, and he said at best I only had a year without the chemo and surgery. The damned cancer robbed me of having kids, and now it will take …” Sarah answered before being interrupted.

  “Please let’s talk about something more positive,” Ben said.

  “Well, I’m positive that you will go with me to meet Dan, Ginny, and Jane. I wonder what kind of person Jane is?” Sarah said.

  “Don’t start that shit again,” Ben said as he stormed out the door.

  ***

  Joe and Cloe walked with Bennie tagging along. The went back to the cabin with determination to get back to their search. Joe checked the area around the cabin as usual and found no dangers. They ate a quick cold meal and began loading the Jeep with supplies for their trip.

  “They seemed like nice people,” Joe said.

  “Yes, but did you see how pale Sarah looked. I think she is sick,” Cloe said.

  “Yep, I noticed that myself. She wasn’t sweating or had any signs of a contagious disease,” Joe replied.

  “Joe, can we leave tonight? I’m so scared something bad is going to happen to mom,” Cloe said.

  Joe loaded the bag of seeds into the Jeep and turned to Cloe. “Yes, but only after we get a few hours’ sleep. The drive will be very slow. I wasn’t going to leave tonight, but I know we have to find her as soon as possible. Force yourself to sleep while I finish a few tasks, then I’ll sleep.”

  Cloe went to her bedroom and was so tired she quickly fell asleep. Joe finished double-checking the Jeep and supplies before l
ying down. He was almost asleep when he remembered that while the Jeep was full of gas, his four Jerry cans were now empty. He mounted the two on the back bumper and secured the remaining two to the front bumper. He placed one of the extra AR-15s in the Jeep along with an extra loaded 20 round magazines. Joe was finally able to lie down for the night.

  The alarm rang out at 4 am and it took Joe a few minutes to stretch and force his pain-racked body from the bed. Joe reached for a letter from his Grandma.

  Dear Joe:

  I’ll bet you are five letters behind and won’t get my wisdom in time to save your ass from making a big mistake. I hate to harp on these topics but do you have a woman yet and have you started prepping? Don’t lie because I can see and hear you from up here.

  Love Grandma.

  He finished the letter, lied to Grandma, and went to wake Cloe. He woke Cloe, quickly dressed, and then gave Cloe a man’s shirt and jeans to wear.

  “Cloe, I hate to ask you to do this, but could I cut your hair to help make you look more like a boy?” Joe asked.

  “Yes, please do that. That man scared me yesterday, and I was thinking the same thing.”

  “Cloe, this may sound odd, but you and your mom might be a bit too beautiful for these lawless times. You could pass for a twenty-year-old woman, and I’m afraid that’s what men will see if we don’t change your looks and actions,” Joe said as he trimmed her hair.

  “What else can I do?” Cloe asked.

  “Make sure you avoid looking people in the eye and make sure you wear this jacket that goes down to your mid-thigh. We can’t make you look like a young man, but we can hide some of your curves,” Joe added as he finished cutting her hair.

  “Joe, do you think there are many perverts like that man out in the world?” Cloe asked.

  “I don’t know, but an ounce of prevention is worth…” Joe said then Cloe interrupted.

  “I know a pound of cure. I have my AR, 9mm, .22 MKIV, and my mom’s .380 in my pocket. I also have my hunting knife on my belt and a boot dagger. I will kill any SOB that tries to touch me,” Cloe said.

  “Does that include Butch?” Joe asked with a devious smile.

  “Mom says that stuff has to wait until I’m sixteen. I’d only break his arm if he tried to touch me. I might let him sneak a kiss if mom ain’t around,” Cloe said with a grin.

  Just mentioning the word mom, made both of them stop and think about their mission and what danger Cobie must be enduring.

  Joe left a note on the door explaining the change in their mission to Dan and told him that Ben and his wife Sarah would be visiting them. The note asked Jane to take Ben and Dan to retrieve the tractors he saw at a ranch on the way to Indian Head Road. He also mentioned the trading labor for seeds plan, plus establishing a trading process.

  Joe looked back at his home as they drove away on the mission to find Cobie. Joe already fought back fears that he would never see Cobie again. He knew that the chance of finding her alive was slim, but worth the risk he was taking. He hated that Cloe had gone with him, only for her to be exposed to the ever-present dangers of this new lawless world.

  Joe worried that he would spend more time protecting Cloe than searching for Cobie. He planned from the start to find a way to get her back home quickly and then go alone to find Cobie. One good scare would do the trick, he thought.

  They traded the seeds for extra gas for the Jeep, and Joe told Ben how to find Dan so they could go down and visit. Ben was happy to get the AR and was very thankful. Joe filled Ben and Sarah in on his plans to form a small community of people who could help each other survive. They were ecstatic about the plan and keen to join the group.

  Joe and Cloe waved goodbye and drove on east along the Forest Service road. They soon passed the fork in the road by the Bed and Breakfasts and headed right at the fork to go where the man had said the two trucks had gone earlier. Joe followed Howard Prairie Road around the lake stopping at every cabin and boat ramp to check for the trucks and perhaps Cobie. This took most of the day, and they spent the night at one of the empty cabins.

  The next morning they stopped at one cabin and saw an older pickup truck behind a barn. Joe parked out on the road behind a copse of trees and told Cloe to follow him to the cabin. Several footprints were leading to and away from the cabin that led back toward the last Bed and Breakfast. Joe slipped up behind the cabin and looked through the window. What he saw sickened him, and he dropped to his knees and vomited.

  “Joe, what did you see that made you sick?” Cloe asked.

  “Baby Girl, don’t ask and don’t look. It was too horrible for anyone to see. Someone butchered a man and a boy a while back. That’s all I’m going to say. The butcher’s name was Mal. It was written on the wall in blood. Let’s move on down the road,” Joe said.

  There was another cabin a few hundred yards on down the road from the last, and Joe hesitated but decided to check it out. The cabin was right on the road, and there appeared to be people living there. As had become their method for approaching unknown people, Joe took the lead and approached carefully. They were about fifty feet from the cabin when they heard, “What do you want?”

  “We’re looking for two pickups that may have gone by here a few days ago. My son and I are looking for my wife,” Joe replied.

  A man stuck his head around the cabin doorway and said, “Man there hasn’t been anyone down this way for several weeks in a truck. I’ve seen a few people walking past, but I ran them off because they looked too rough for me,” the man said.

  “Have you seen or heard anything suspicious?” Joe asked.

  “A pervert came up this way several weeks ago and tried to lure my little girl from the backyard. I filled his ass with birdshot, and he left. An hour later, I heard shots coming from the next cabin up the road. I should have gone and checked on my neighbor, but I didn’t,” the man said.

  “How many people lived there?” Cloe asked.

  “Jack, his wife Paula, their daughter Joan, and her boyfriend. Why?” the man asked.

  “Because the two men are in the cabin and have been killed. I didn’t see any women,” Joe replied.

  “Oh, shit,” the man groaned.

  Joe drove on while trying to get the gruesome picture out of his mind. He also wondered why the man hadn’t gone to help his neighbor. He turned south on Jenny Creek Road and followed the route that would take him south to Highway 66 the quickest. The further south they drove the worst the road conditions were. They stopped at a dozen cabins and two small resorts but found nothing to indicate Cobie or the two trucks had been there. As the sun went down, Joe noticed that there were no fresh tracks on the last two roads.

  “Cloe it’s almost dark. I’m pulling into the next cabin we see to stay for the night. I’m starting to wonder about this part of our trip,” Joe said.

  He drove until the sun went down and gave up on finding a cabin, so he drove the Jeep deep into the woods and parked for the night. They ate cold beans and deer jerky for supper and then turned in for the night.

  “Joe, the man back at the Bed and Breakfast told us he saw the trucks go this way. Either he was lying, or we missed where the trucks turned off the road,” Cloe said.

  “Son of a Bitch. We’ve spent two days looking down this way because we trusted that man,” Joe said under his breath.

  “Joe, what’s wrong?” Cloe asked.

  “I think you hit on the problem. That man lied to us. He might know where your mom is. I had a bad feeling about him and to top it off, this route down to Highway 66 makes no sense. There are at least two more routes that have much better roads. Let’s get some sleep and go have a talk with that asshole,” Joe said.

  Cloe woke up with her back stiff and sore from sleeping in the passenger seat of the Jeep. She looked over at Joe and listened to him talk in his sleep. She could tell he was dreaming about her mom and heard him say,” Cobie, I love you,” several times. Suddenly his eyes snapped open, and he saw Cloe looking at him.

&nb
sp; “Was I talking in my sleep again?” Joe asked.

  “Yes. Did you get any sleep last night?”

  “A little,” he replied. He then looked at Cloe and said, “Baby Girl, I’ll always be here for you. I promise.”

  “Joe, do you think we will ever find my mom?”

  “Cloe, I won’t lie to you. I’ve had my doubts after the first two days. I won’t stop looking, but I don’t want you to have false hopes. Whoever took her only took her for two reasons. She was either injured, and they took her to help her, or someone took her for …I can’t get my tongue to say it,” Joe said as tears ran down his cheek.

  “Joe I’ve had the same thoughts. I won’t stop looking, but now I’ve been thinking more about killing whoever took her than finding her alive. Joe can I stay with you even if we never find mom,” Cloe said as she began to cry.

  Joe leaned over, wrapped his arms around Cloe, and said, “Darling I love you just like I would love my own daughter if I had one. I know I’m not your father, but you are my friend, and you can stay with me until some young man sweeps you off your feet.”

  “Joe, be careful. You are barely able to move with all of the pain. I don’t want to lose you too,” Cloe said.

  “Baby Girl, after I find your mom, I’ll stay in bed for a long time.”

  Cloe’s face turned bright red. “Joe if you don’t take better care of yourself you won’t be much good in bed for my mom.”

  It was Joe’s turn to blush. “Let me worry about that missy.”

  “Joe, you are the only father that I’ve ever had. Don’t get yourself killed.”

  ☆

  Chapter 2

  After the two vehicles stopped to pick up Cobie, they sped on east and found the Bed and Breakfast on the west side of Howard Prairie Reservoir. John, Gail, and their daughter Emily were one of the families in the group. Lyn, Rob, and their two boys, Bobby and Jimmy, made up the other family. Mal was by himself and claimed that his wife and two children were killed the first day of the apocalypse.