Amanda looked perplexed. “What are we going to do with soft toys, Mom?”
“Give them to babies.” I smiled.
CHAPTER 20
October 1
“I’m sorry, Mom, there wasn’t any message in the guard shack again,” Eric told me. He and Jason had gone together. Much to Eric’s disappointment, Rayn hadn’t come out this afternoon to go with him. I insisted that there were always two of them, and that they were always heavily armed whenever they went near Mathers Lake.
Last week Eric and Rayn had gone out on Monday, only to discover our first note had been picked up, and nothing left in its place.
“Maybe he didn’t have anything to say,” Mark suggested.
“We did have the time to stop at the hospital for the final touches on our project,” Jason grinned. “Want to see what we’ve been up to?”
~~~
The first thing I noticed when we pulled up to the old boutique building was the sign.
Mark was speechless, as he looked up at the four by eight sheet of plywood mounted over the front door that read “Moose Creek General Hospital”.
Jason beamed. “We put the second coat of sealer over the paint yesterday, but it wasn’t dry enough to put up until today.”
“That’s only the first part,” Eric said. He opened the front doors for us. “Doctor, Mom, your wish has been our command,” he joked as we entered.
The inside had been completely transformed by the installation of rails and curtains separating the beds.
I looked up in amazement, realizing what they had done.
“That looks like PVC pipe! And those are shower hooks.” I then fingered the sturdy material that hung there, several inches off the floor. “Is this….”
“Yep, shower curtains!” Jason blurted out. “We were really surprised to find them, but I guess anyone buying shower curtains now were getting the cheapest available, and these cloth ones were expensive. We needed eight for each side of the room, so we had to get three different colors. I hope that’s okay. And we weren’t too sure about how high off the floor they should be so we guessed.”
“What do you think, Doc?” Eric asked pensively.
Mark had been silent since we walked into his new hospital. He swallowed hard and his eyes glistened. He cleared his throat. “I’m not sure what to say. This is… it’s wonderful. No, not just wonderful, it’s fantastic!”
“There’s one more thing Jason insisted on doing, and that’s what took us so long. Follow me.” Eric led us to the back room we had decided on as the examination room and surgery.
There, in the center of the room was my old massage table that I hadn’t used in years. They must have found it out in the barn. Against the inside wall was a new, deep, stainless steel sink set into a cabinet with a white countertop and glistening faucets.
“Eric reminded me how you scrubbed up right in the exam room next door when you took care of Chivas. I thought you would like a sink, with hot water, in here too,” Jason said.
Eric eyed his brother. “Aren’t you forgetting one more detail?”
Jason smiled and flipped a switch next to the door. Three rows of bright lights illuminated the room. “They are on a dimmer in the event you don’t need this much light,” he said, turning the lighting down to a glow.
I left Mark’s side to hug my two sons, and Mark was right behind me and hugged them too.
“I admire how much you can get done in such a short time, Jason,” Mark complimented him. “It’s been only nine days since we began this project. You work really fast. All the plumbing, wiring, rails and the sign… the sign is remarkable and not something I was expecting.”
“I must admit having Eric helping sure sped things up. He must have learned a thing or two watching me,” he chided his brother.
“Hey there, little brother, respect your elders and remember who’s older,” Eric kidded back.
We decided to have an open house for the hospital in a few days and invite our new friends from Marquette, Jim and his merry band of soldiers, and to extend an invite to the Mathers Lake crew as well.
“Do you think Collins will come?” I asked.
“I don’t know, maybe out of curiosity,” Mark answered, “but I think we should try. We won’t get anywhere if we keep ignoring each other.”
“How much of an open house should we do?” I kept thinking of additional food. It was getting more and more scarce.
“I’ve got a batch of beer almost ready, Mom,” Eric said. “I’m sure we can come up with a couple dozen juice glasses to serve it in. I doubt we want to make it look like we have a lot.”
“That’s a good idea, Eric. Joshua dropped off a nice chunk of cheese this morning, and I can make some saltine-like crackers,” I thought out loud. “I think that’s where we stop though.”
“As much as I like the colonel and his crew, why are you including them in this?” Amanda asked.
“That’s easy,” Jason said. “It’s a show of force. The more people Collins thinks we have, the less likely he will think about attacking us.”
CHAPTER 21
October 2
“I was noticing how dark the sky was to the west last night,” I commented to Mark as we had our morning tea. “It looks like we might get some rain today.”
“Perhaps,” he replied. “Something looks different with these clouds though.” Mark opened the door and stepped outside into the cool morning air. He moved to the center of the lawn and turned in a slow circle, like he was sniffing the air, and then he came back in.
“Last night’s clouds were the Mammatus clouds, heavy with impending rain, right?” Mark asked me and I nodded, remembering the popcorn look with the dark underbellies. “These are more of a shelf or wall cloud formation with stratus fractus mixed in. A very odd combination, and I smell ozone, lots and lots of ozone. We’re in for a really big storm.”
I almost laughed, but he was so serious. “You sound like a weatherman.”
He looked up from his tea and smiled at me. “One summer in college I signed on to a storm chaser crew out west. It was an exciting vacation, and I learned a great deal about the weather and storms, especially tornadoes. The thing I learned the most that year was that I did not want to be a meteorologist – too dangerous! That’s when I decided to become a doctor, and I’ve kept in touch as a hobby.”
“You amaze me,” I said. “So you think this will be a bad storm? We should let the kids know in case they had made plans to do outdoor things.”
“That’s a good idea.”
~~~
We have our drill for preparing for storms; it just changes somewhat depending on whether it’s rain or snow. Anything loose in the yard was pulled into the barn or put into the fenced garden. The chickens were confined to their interior yard and we gave them extra feed and fresh water and then collected the few eggs they had left us.
“Will the greenhouse be okay?” Mark asked while we circled the house, looking for anything that could be destructive if caught by a strong wind and turned into a projectile.
“I don’t know. The glass panes are triple thick door panels and are really strong, though nothing will stand up to a tree falling on it,” I said. “I think I should take down the solar panel, just to be safe. I sure don’t want to lose it in a high wind. It’s one of those totally irreplaceable items.”
“Can I do that for you?” Mark asked. “Sometimes I don’t feel very useful.”
I stopped and looked at him. “You’re kidding, right? Not useful? Besides being the only doctor within thirty miles, and the only veterinarian, you are also now our weatherman. We wouldn’t know how severe this storm might be without you. Sure, I knew rain was on the way, but you have spurred us on to prepare for something worse.” I kissed his cheek. “Jason showed me how to do this already. I need a ladder, a wrench, and a screwdriver.”
I slid open the window adjacent to the solar panel. Jason had purposely put in an access for this reason. I reached up and loos
ened a few bolts, bringing the delicate panel inside, handing it to Mark. Using the screwdriver, I undid the wires so the panel didn’t dangle. Mark set the panel safely on the floor and out of the way.
“I remember my first visit to this greenhouse,” Mark said, smiling.
“So do I,” I blushed, “and that first kiss shook me to my core, Mark. Everything I felt in that moment made me doubt… everything. And that’s not a bad thing, look where we are now.”
~~~
It was early afternoon and we were walking across the road. The wind picked up to a stiff breeze, sending more of the tangy ozone smell our way. I always loved that scent when I was a young girl in the city. I think the years of smog dimmed that greatly, except for here, where we have very little pollution.
Amanda opened the door for us. “Come on in! It’s sure getting chilly out there.”
“We’ve already battened down the hatches, and thought you should be aware of the storm that might be coming this way,” I said after giving her a hug. “Where is everyone?”
“Jason and Eric took the kids and Chivas into Moose Creek to play on the playground equipment at Diggers Park. What storm?” Just then a loud rumble of thunder shook the house. “Oh!” she said.
“I’m sure that will send them back in a hurry,” Mark commented. “Let’s check around outside and put things away, okay? We’ll help you.”
When we were tucking the last of the lawn chairs under the porch, Jason pulled into the driveway. Chivas was the first one out and she scrambled up the porch steps whining to get inside, Jacob and Emilee right behind her.
“Wow that thunder made my hair stick out!” Emi said, wide eyed once inside.
“Static electricity,” Mark mumbled.
“Why don’t you two see if Joshua needs any help with the animals, and then make sure Ken and Karen know about the storm, although I think there’s little doubt now,” I told my sons, after another rumble of thunder was heard.
“Keep the kids and Chivas inside, though I doubt you could get that dog to go out right now,” I laughed. “Amanda, do you need any help with the lamps in case we lose power?” She shook her head. “We’re going back home to wait this out. I’m sure Jason and Eric will be back before the rain starts.”
~~~
“The static electricity Emi felt has me concerned,” Mark said while I lined the kerosene lamps up on the table, along with matches and a flashlight. I try not to use the flashlights since the batteries are limited and there’s no replacing them.
“Why?”
“An electrical discharge doesn’t happen alone, it’s usually associated with lightning, which we didn’t have. It’s probably nothing, but something to watch,” he paced over to look out the door again. This time there was a huge jagged streak of brilliant white light across the sky, followed a few seconds later by a loud crack of thunder. “That was really close, maybe five miles. This storm has developed fast.” He continued to watch out the door.
I sighed with relief when I saw the silver SUV return and the boys make a dash into their house.
The thunder and lightning continued. Sometimes the flashes were wide, jagged streaks; sometimes they filled the sky like page-lightning does. The rumbling was almost constant now and started getting on my nerves.
“Why doesn’t the thunder let up when the lightning stops? It’s been over two hours of non-stop noise!”
“I’m not sure, Allex. Remember, this is only a hobby of mine.” Mark put his arms around me for a comforting hug, as a bolt struck across the next rise over and the simultaneous thunder sent two hanging wine glasses shattering to the floor.
“Where is the rain?” I asked no one in particular as I got the broom and dustpan to clean up the glass. When I was dumping the shards in the trash, the first pellets hit the sliding glass door.
“Well, there’s your rain, except its frozen. Hail. That comes from the upper atmosphere. If the wind currents are moving so fast that they’re picking up moisture from Lake Superior and thrusting it high enough to freeze, and we’re still not getting any rain, that could mean the lower cloud bands are too dry, yet the winds are really strong – tornado strong. I never saw anything like this when I was storm chasing.”
The hail pounded the ground in a sheet of white ice. Quarter sized balls of ice bounced on the steps and pinged off the glass. Another bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, then another and another. I had never seen so many hits of lightning all at once and the thunder was deafening. I shivered.
“Here, I think this is a good occasion,” Mark said, as he put a glass in my hand. He clinked his glass against mine and I sipped the dark liquid. Private Stock rum slid down my throat and heated my chest, easing my breathing.
“I don’t know what’s going on, Allex, though I will admit to being scared. My guess would be there is some kind of very high disturbance happening that is causing this extreme weather.”
I laughed nervously. “Some kind of very high disturbance? You mean like an ash cloud from a super volcano circling the Earth? An ash cloud that’s already killed possibly millions of people? Is that all?” I downed the drink and held the glass out for more. A tear slid down my cheek. “I’m sorry, Mark, I’m not scared; I’m terrified!”
JOURNAL ENTRY: October 3
With all the thunder pounding my ears and the brilliant flashes of lightning illuminating the house, I hardly slept last night. Even with little to no rain, this storm has been brutal and relentless.
*
“How do you feel this morning?” Mark asked me. He was sitting at the table, cradling his shaggy head in his large hands.
“Exhausted!” I poured us each a cup of coffee instead of tea. “I figured we could use the caffeine,” I responded to his questioning look.
“I’m not complaining,” he said, inhaling the scent of the dark brew. “I know we’re rationing ourselves to make it last longer, but I still miss it.”
“So do I, but it isn’t just us, there are six other adults leaning on our storage, and we all have to make certain sacrifices.”
“Allex,” Mark said, looking serious, “do you think we will ever get back to a normal life? I mean a life like two years ago, where we had jobs and paychecks and could go to the store for whatever we wanted, like coffee.”
“I don’t know,” I answered him honestly. “I would like to think that eventually, the Earth will stop its rumblings and movement, and commerce can start back up again. Maybe with limited trading, that will get things going again.”
“What do you miss the most?”
“Oranges,” I said wistfully. “With the two rifts that have divided the country into thirds, maybe being in the third with Florida that will happen someday, even though there’s only half of Florida left.”
~~~
I took a bucket of fresh water out to the chickens and refilled their food dispenser. They were all huddled in one corner of the coop, obviously frightened. I doubt we will get many eggs until this storm passes.
“I got hit by a few drops of rain just now,” I told Mark as I hung up my jacket. The sky was still dark with rolling clouds. It was only noon, though it looked like nine at night. We were both watching the rain increase when a bolt of lightning hit the cellular tower a half-mile away. The simultaneous crack of thunder shook the entire house.
“Wow! That was close.” Mark shivered.
“I think that was the end of our phone service.” I picked up my cell phone from the computer desk and turned it on. “It says ‘searching for service’. Yep, the tower was hit, and I really doubt there will be anyone out to fix it this time.” I shut the phone off out of habit and left it on the desk.
“I guess the bright side is that metal structure is a good lightning rod; as long as it’s standing we are probably safe from a direct hit,” Mark concluded.
October 4
“Do you notice anything, Allex?” Mark asked.
“The thunder isn’t as loud,” I replied, amazed at the quiet that r
eally wasn’t quiet.
“I’m going to venture that the storm is moving on,” he said, looking out the glass door. “It looks to be moving right over Marquette. I hope they’re ready. A three day lightning storm is hard on the nerves.”
I was washing the morning dishes when there was a pounding on the back door.
“Pete! Come in,” I said, opening the door and putting away the gun I automatically grabbed when I heard the knocking.
“Is the doctor here?” he asked.
Mark came out from taking a shower. “What is it, Pete? Is one of the women in labor?” he asked anxiously.
“No, but Collins has been hurt,” Pete said. “During that lightning storm, he was out checking on the dogs when a tree was hit and split down the middle. Half of it landed on him. We think his leg is broken, maybe an arm too.”
“When did this happen?” Mark asked, finger combing his wet hair.
“This morning. He didn’t want us to bring him in, said you probably wouldn’t treat him considering the way he acted before,” Pete said. “I told him you weren’t like that. He still protested, and now that he’s unconscious he can’t say no.”
“Where is he?” I asked.
“We made a stretcher and put him in the back of a pickup, the only one with a cap. I didn’t think it would help any if he got soaked by the rain.”
“Yes, but where is he, Pete?”
“They’re at the clinic. We came in two vehicles because you said you didn’t want anyone but me or Lenny coming here, right?”
The Journal: Crimson Skies: (The Journal Book 3) Page 13