Against the Grain

by Ian Daniels

  She nodded still listening, so I continued on.

  “They have a good set up going. They’ve got gardens and have some chickens and goats. Some neighbors nearby have sheep and horses so they all kind of trade with each other. It’s really a good group of people and everybody helps out where they can, but most of them don’t have the background of being farmers and ranchers. But they are trying and they’re making a go of it so far.”

  I wasn’t the best sales man in the world, but it was a fairly accurate rundown.

  “And where would I fit in?” She asked intelligently.

  “Well to start, you’ve got a medical background…”

  “Lab work,” she reminded me.

  “…but you also know how to work in a garden and have a good head,” I continued on. “I think you’d probably fit in really well.”

  Actually, I knew she would. Megan and Breanne both had fairly similar styles and interests from what I remembered. They were both cute and strong and feminine all at the same time. They each were fun, yet responsible; carefree, yet caring. They were down to earth with just enough style to be dang attractive… to the right person.

  Besides Megan being able to fit in and get along, we plain needed more people out there because I was getting worn out. I filled in where I could and helped with hunting and security stuff, but they were just now starting to get past asking for my opinion or input on every little thing that went on. I might have had the broadest knowledge base and resources (or access to them) for primitive type living, but if they could just get a little more proactive, their confidence would rise dramatically. Besides that, I still had my own matters to attend to.

  “Of course it’s not like I’ve talked to them about it yet,” I reminded her. “But there are a few extra rooms and there is always work to be done. You feel like that’s something you could do?” I asked Megan outright.

  “And what happens if they don’t want me there or if I want to leave at some point?”

  Smart girl, thinking ahead.

  “Burn that bridge when you come to it. I’ll do what I can on my end to get you there, but you’ll have to do your part. If it doesn’t work out, you’ve still got Option One and Two to fall back on.”

  I wouldn’t say so, but all I had to do was ask and I’m sure the family would take Megan in on my word alone. I didn’t want either her, or the families at their Ranch, to be put in that position though, so they’d have to work it out between themselves.

  “Alright, I can see you’re tired and I can guess your mind is racing now with all this. Do you think you can shut down for a bit and get some sleep?” I asked her.

  “It’d probably do me some good,” Megan answered.

  “Blankets are in that bin over there,” I pointed. “I’m going to hang out by the window we came in for a bit so I won’t be far. I’ll give you a couple good hours and then we’ll need to head out,” I said as I grabbed my old ball cap, stained and still damp jacket, and my AK, then made my way back down the hallway, not really giving her a chance to say any more.

  I was trying hard not to show it, but I was tired as hell myself. It was past midnight now and I didn’t want her to know just how little sleep she’d really be getting.

  Chapter 2

  After nodding my head asleep on “watch” two or three times, I went back in and quietly repacked my gear and got ready to go. Megan woke up tired, although I could tell she felt better with the little bit of sleep that she did get. After eating some food and drinking a few sips of water from my stores, she was packed up and we were ready to go.

  Before leading her out to the entrance I went over the basic directions. “Okay, same as before, no talking, no noise. Move when I do, stop when I do. We won’t have to be so hard core once we get out of town and into the woods. We’re only going a few miles but let’s take it slow, we should probably be there by early afternoon with a couple breaks along the way.”

  “Alright,” came her timid reply. She knew it was coming, and after all she’d been through on the road to this point, I could guess that more traveling was not something she was looking forward to.

  At the entrance before climbing through the window, I handed her my AK. It wasn’t necessary, but it allowed me to use both hands to get up and out of the basement, plus it was also a little test on my part.

  “What do you want me to do with this?” She asked nervously, using as few fingers as possible to hold it, extending the gun away from her as if it would suddenly come alive and bite her.

  “Hold it for now, hand it back to me when I ask for it. First time holding a gun?”

  She nodded her head, indicating that it was.

  I had thought as much. Living on the other side of the state, a veritable Mecca for liberal ideals, she had just not had much of a chance to be around firearms… and this thing was probably the embodiment of every fear tactic ever formed around the evil “Assault Rifles.”

  I had built this gun myself, and it was in fact completely legal, or at least what legal was, back when such things were worried about. I didn’t actually know if Federal Firearms Laws even existed anymore.

  I had spent plenty of time with American made M16’s and AR15 pattern guns, but I found I enjoyed the ruggedness and simplicity of Russian weapon designs, and this particular AK74 was a great example of that. For a design seen as crude by the gun snobs, mine was a very well made piece, which was necessary for utilizing a suppressor as I did. AK’s in general, and the ’74 in particular, did not suppress well, but I had chosen a specific suppressor that I could put onto multiple guns, and while it wasn’t ideal, it was in fact, better than nothing.

  Suppressors or “silencers” didn’t make guns “Hollywood” quiet, but they made shooting without wearing ear protection tolerable, so I liked them. Heck in Europe it was considered rude to your neighbors to shoot without one. In this little section of the world though, I liked keeping a low profile and didn’t want to unintentionally scare off any wild animals in the area either, so they made sense to me.

  Besides the suppressor, I had a holographic sight mounted on the receiver. The stupid thing was near indestructible and had a battery life of over three years, making it very useful for my needs. There was no way I would have been able to make the shots on those two guys last night without it. Unfortunately, my pistol was not as well equipped anymore as the glowing tritium sights on my Glock were just about dead. I would have replaced them a year ago, if the stores had have still been open to buy new ones at. The electronic sight on my AK kept me capable at night, and it was fast as hell on multiple targets during the day too. With the flat bullet trajectory of the 5.45 round that the AK74 shot, it was a very good combination for me.

  With all that in mind, this silenced black gun of death with the long evil magazine sticking out of the bottom was just an unknown to Megan, except for what she had seen the bad guys do with them in movies. The sooner she got to know the basics of weapon handling the better.

  The houses of the families that we were going to sat on both sides of, and were visible from a road that was well used in its day. Groups of people still used it occasionally for trips to town, so an armed watch and armed response was kept up as much as possible.

  Early on, with people abandoning their homes both in and out of town, the security was necessary. Nowadays, anyone left father down the road was generally known to us. We had blocked off the end of the road closest to town from vehicle travel and put a few signs up, but it was really just a deterrent.

  “Hold it here,” I said, placing Megan’s hand on the pistol grip of the AK. “Keep it pointed out there and don’t mess with the controls. This is the safety, when the lever is up it won’t fire, but really it will not fire unless you willingly pull the trigger. Okay?” I instructed.

  “Alright,” she replied hesitantly.

  If she ended up staying with the Harris family who I was taking her to, she would have the opportunity to learn full safety and handling of firearms, as well
as actually learning to shoot them. Once up to speed, one of the things I got to do was make sure everyone there was, and stayed, proficient with the long guns at least. Pistols were another concern altogether that I hadn’t delved into with any of them as of yet. I told myself it was unnecessary, or it simplified supplying the people, but in reality it was more about the learning curve for the group of novices.

  Doing a quick last check to make sure everything was where I wanted it in the “cave,” I slid my pack out the open window and made my way up. Once I was satisfied that we were still alone in the backyard, I had Megan hand up my gun and her pack, then I helped her up and out into the early morning air. It had stopped raining and the temperature was brisk, but not too cold, so the fresh air felt good on our tired faces. After replacing the stuff to hide the basement window opening, we were off.

  We made good time getting out of town. I was taking a specific path that would bring us to the top of a ridge where we would be able to watch the sunrise and take a bit of a break for breakfast. The light was growing as we crested the top of the little cliff, and although neither of us needed it, we were happy for the break.

  After pulling off our packs, I retrieved the little canteen cup and stove I kept tucked away and I got some water heated. It was the perfect time to use a packet of my treasured instant coffee. I had squirreled away plenty of the little packets, but that was a long time ago and I was now very careful with how much I used. Some day in the distant future when it finally ran out, I would not be a pleasant person to be around.

  “So after high school you joined the Army?” Megan asked as she found a dry place to sit down.

  “Why do you say that?” I asked her without looking up from the stove of now nearly boiling water.

  “Well the guns, the gear, the… everything,” she responded, trying to be polite.

  I thought about that for a second then stood up and walked over next to her. I passed over the steaming cup and replied simply, “Something like that.”

  Not really eager to talk more on that subject, I asked her my own question.

  “How did you end up getting into the medical field? I mean you were always smart with science and stuff, but it never really seemed like a passion.”

  “Like you said, I was good at it,” she shrugged. “I enjoyed the work and I liked that I was helping people, but I guess I was always kind of waiting for something else to come along.”

  Yeah, story of my life.

  “Who would have guessed that the next thing to come along would be the end of the world,” I deadpanned.

  That caught her for a second, then she surprised me again when she remarked, “You seem to being doing okay in all of this.”

  “Some people thought this type of thing was inevitable, history repeating itself and all that. I guess I just paid attention just enough to make it through with what’s left of my sanity.”

  “…and humanity,” she finished for me.

  “Yeah I guess you know I got a little impulsive and undisciplined for a few years back then,” I said, referring to the time after we had stopped dating but were still exposed to each other on a daily basis at the small high school we attended together.

  I actually was really impulsive and really undisciplined for quite a while in my youth. Even after a few brushes with the law, I still didn’t settle down until I started getting into a couple of decent hobbies like backpacking and shooting. It allowed me to focus my energy and mind to something useful, and the people I found myself around were good examples of being able to let loose and have fun, while still being controlled and responsible.

  “Well I’m glad to see you’re now a grown up version of the boy I once fell for,” she handed me the now empty cup. “You ready to head out?”

  “Yep,” was all I could say while trying to decide how to take that. In the end all I could determine was that I hadn’t been around people in too long of a time if it was taking me this long to figure out if I was being flirted with or not.

  Chapter 3

  It was around noon when I caught the faint smell of wood smoke. By now I could have hiked back here blindfolded, but it was nice to have the little reminder that we were near. I stopped us in a shallow depression of the woods and rocks, a typical terrain feature that dotted this whole area. I wasn’t actually trying to sneak up on anyone and I didn’t want anyone watching to be surprised by two people coming in from the generally safe back side of the property, especially when they were expecting only to see one. I could usually sneak through undetected anyway, but figured this time I should give them a heads up. Pulling the small two way radio from a side pocket of my pack, I called in to the Ranch, telling them our location and number. The surprise at the “Plus one” was evident even over the small speaker in the hand held radio. Nice.

  Megan and I continued on another few hundred yards until we could look down and see the back porch of the main family’s house. Breanne and her mother were in the back yard with Nick and Breanne’s two young kids, and a few of the others were ambling around, doing various farm life chores. There were three people bent over in the garden plots, taking advantage of the little bit of rain fall we had last night that loosened the soil just enough for pulling weeds. A couple of guys were out with axes, mauls and wheelbarrows, tending to the endless core of moving firewood from the spot it was chopped, to where it got stacked, then finally to a smaller spot closer to the house for daily use. It was a monotonous, laboring chore that was absolutely necessary.

  I found it interesting and very telling of human nature that very few of the people here complained to a large degree about the hard and continual work. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought that while probably only on a subconscious level, everyone actually enjoyed getting out of their city life and getting thrown into a situation where they had control and responsibility for their own continued comfort and survival. Seeing their own hands create something authentic and relative to daily life seemed to be good for the human spirit.

  There were of course some grumbles and complaints, and some people enjoyed the work more than others. Some obviously missed the conveniences and ease of their old lives, but everyone did value what it was that needed to be done. This was anything but a simple way of life, but the simplicity of hard work showed what people were truly made of. That was maybe why I really liked this family.

  “You okay?” I asked Megan while slinging my AK and seeing the trepidation in her body language.

  “I guess so,” she answered.

  It was a simple question, but the look on her face betrayed her answer.

  “You’ll be alright,” I tried to sound reassuring as we started down the little slope toward the house.

  Catching our motion, everyone around the house stopped what they were doing to look up at us as we made our way down. Finally and thankfully, Sue went back to attending to her grandchildren. That was at least one less set of eyes that was staring up at us.

  Opening the small gate that was a part of the fence around the back yard, we stepped through and I began the introductions.

  “Bre, Sue, this is Megan. We met in town and I thought y’all might be able to help her out a bit.”

  I caught just the hint of a cocked eyebrow from Breanne, probably at my feigned accent, but her mother stepped up right away.

  “Of course… Megan, I’m Sue and this is my daughter Breanne, and her kids Maddie and Wesley.” This brought the two kids out from their trucks and sand box to come over and say hello. They were excited to see a rare new face around here.

  “Are you going to stay with us?” Madelyn asked.

  Leave it to a five year old to cut right to the heart of the matter.

  “Umm…” Neither Megan nor I had an answer ready, so Sue graciously steered us toward the picnic table.

  “Megan, you look like you could use a hot meal… will you be joining us?” Sue looked over at me.

  “Thanks Sue, not just yet. I wanted to talk to Bre for a minute, and
then find Nick.”

  “Alright,” she said, ushering Megan and the kids inside.

  While very motherly to everyone, including me, Sue knew from the last year together that I usually was preoccupied with one thing or another, and that I came and went on my own schedule.

  “Yeah we might want to talk for a minute,” Breanne mimicked me sarcastically once the others were out of earshot.

  Breanne Harris was an intelligent and head strong woman. She was beautiful and passionate, and when she got angry I usually found somewhere else I needed to be. Her tall, thin but athletic frame would rise up and I would swear that her auburn red hair would get straighter and her ashen eyes would shine brighter when she finally decided to unload on someone. We were actually very good friends, but occasionally when she joked with me, I wondered just where the jest really stemmed from. She was a hard person to read.

  Back in our younger lives when her husband Nick and I would do something dumb, she would laugh along with us, and she tolerated our bad jokes pretty well too. Even in her home, she accepted my propensity to always be armed, but I never got the feeling that she completely accepted the need for it. I later came to think that it wasn’t me or the world she questioned, but possibly her own role in it.

  Over the last year we had spent much more day to day time around each other, and I had seen her un-reluctantly accept the ways of this new life. And where I seemed to flourish when others resisted, she herself had blossomed into a refreshed person of the cold and hard real world we now all lived in.

  But now I was facing her one on one and had nowhere to go. I didn’t think it was purely displeasure that I had brought someone back to the Ranch with me, it just had never happened before. Early on we had talked to everyone here very seriously about inviting others to stay. Obviously we’d help where we could, but even if they were an asset to the group, it was asked that all the families got to talk about it first. While loath to admit it, everyone realized that too many friends, relatives, and acquaintances could become a problem in a small group like this. I was sure Breanne’s concern was based on the talks we had all had about this when first setting everything up and getting the individual families settled in. The part where Megan was another attractive young woman I’m sure did not have any significance on the matter whatsoever.