The Changing Earth Series (Book 1): Day After Disaster

by Hathaway, Sara F.

  “Thank you, Carol,” Erika said, reflecting on this woman’s kindness. “I really have to thank you for all you’ve done for me. I owe you my life.”

  “Oh nonsense,” Carol said, patting Erika’s leg gently. “I’m glad we could help. Like I told you before, we’ve been looking for survivors from Sacramento since the quake, but you are the only one we found.”

  “I’m the only one. . .Are you serious? What happened to everyone?” Erika was shocked.

  “I don’t know. No one could dream of an earthquake like this. People clear of the water barely survived, but the people down in the city never had a chance. We think that when the water hit Sacramento it simply washed everything out toward the West Mountains and the ocean. People couldn’t survive in the water once the chemicals all mixed together. It became as toxic as acid. The volcano that erupted over that way probably covered all of the aftermath.” Carol stated with a sad, wondering look in her eyes.

  “I’ve wanted to ask you, Erika, how did you survive?” Carol was looking very inquisitively at Erika.

  All Erika could think of was the image of bloated bodies in the water. She didn’t want to think about the experience and hesitated to answer.

  “In a bomb shelter,” Erika mumbled.

  “I bet that’s some story,” Carol replied, sensing Erika’s apprehension. She changed the subject. “I need to go and find that plant you need before it gets dark.”

  “Thanks, Carol,” Erika told her, holding up the clothes.

  Without the enthusiasm for the outfit, Erika noticed that Carol rose stiffly from the rickety wooden chair. Erika guessed that Carol had watched over her the whole time she had been sleeping. Listening to Carol’s crackling body made Erika remember something from her herbals.

  “Carol, do you have any meadowsweet planted in your flower gardens? Erika questioned inquisitively.

  “Yes, I have a whole bed. . .at least, I used to have a whole bed. I did save some. I just love those flowers.”

  “Great, if you get the leaves from them, we can make a pain-relieving anti-inflammatory from them. They contain a chemical like that in aspirin, but meadowsweet can also be helpful for stomach disorders.”

  “I’ll be darned. Who would have guessed that I have a flower bed full of the medicine I need? Here I’ve barely been able to walk and bend, and the whole time the medicine was right there,” Carol exclaimed as if completely dumbfounded by this information.

  “I wouldn’t say it’s an instant cure, or even that it will work as well as the medicine you used before, but it will help.” Erika countered.

  “You’ve made my day. What a joy having you around is going to be,” Carol said cheerfully.

  “I can’t stay long, Carol. I must get home to my family. I can’t believe I’ve been gone for two months.”

  “I know, Erika, but you’ll have to heal first. Just relax and concentrate on that,” Carol explained.

  Carol left Erika’s room and Erika heard her head down the stairs. She picked up the garments Carol had left for her. Her scabbed and crusty hands were a sharp contrast to the baby-blue soft cotton of the shirt. She ran her fingers over the “V” that was cut into the neckline as she pulled it over her head. Erika struggled to tie the strings sewn into the shirt into a knot. The pants, made of the same light blue material, were simply made with an elastic band around the waist to hold them in place. Erika pulled the covers back again and threw her naked legs over the side. Something poked her. She looked down and saw that her bed was made of hay bales with a thick foam pad laid over the top. Once the sheets were pulled tight over the top, it was soft and looked almost like a real bed, until you felt the side. Carefully, she stood up and slipped her pants on over the sore, scabbed skin. Erika thought the pain from the elastic band would be excruciating but it wasn’t that bad. That’s a good sign, Erika thought. The lack of pain meant the wounds were healing quickly. I’m going to have some nasty scars, but I’m all in one piece.

  Erika’s bare feet touched down onto the cold wooden floor. They were cold but not painful. Erika figured that her shoes must have protected them. She strolled across the floor and looked out the window located in the kitchen over the sink. The window looked out to the north-west. At one time it looked over a wooded area that gradually molded into a valley that contained a city named Sacramento. On a clear day when the smog was not too thick, you could have seen skyscrapers looming in the distance and the endless shops, people, and cars. Human life and their creations as far as the eye could see.

  It was all gone. The forest area now ended abruptly at the edge of a toxic lake occupying what had been Sacramento. The new toxic beach was about five miles west of the barn. A tear fell from Erika’s eye when she began to think of the hundreds of thousands of people that had died there. Why was I spared? she wondered. I was there, in the middle of the toxic sludge, and I made it out. Why me and no one else?

  “What am I doing just standing around? I need to get ready to go,” she declared to the air. Her thoughts always returned to her family and getting home to them. Despite the never-ending destruction, she had to believe they were there, waiting. She couldn’t even imagine the alternative. It was the only thing saving her from breaking down completely.

  Chapter 2

  Even though Carol told her to stay put, Erika started descending the steep staircase anyway. Her jaw dropped in amazement when she reached the bottom. The animals’ area was meticulously clean, and its layout was ingenious. The space was split into quadrants by beautiful wooden planks and a large aisle ran down the middle. As Erika walked down the rows she gazed through the iron bars. Different types of animals occupied each living space. There were pigs, lolling in their straw, and rabbits bouncing in their hutches. Feed bins for each type of animal were located along the inside of stalls, with spaces for filling them that could be accessed from the aisle. Erika saw the sense in this: whoever was feeding the animals could walk down the aisle and easily fill the bins. The animals all had doors leading to outdoor pastures. Erika chuckled at the antics of the sheep, goats, chickens, ducks, and horses that she saw as she walked to the end of the barn. Two large rollup doors dominated this space, one of which was opened and revealed the golden landscape outside. Inside, the sunlight illuminated a workshop for butchering meat and tanning hides. Henry was there, working on a project. She quietly surveyed the other side of the barn. It was a general work area containing tack for the animals, woodworking tools, and mechanical tools. In the middle of these two areas was a table and chairs.

  Erika jumped when Henry asked, “Howdy, missy, how are we feelin?”

  “Good, well. . .better,” Erika answered in a startled voice.

  “Nice to see you up and about. You really had us worried there for a bit.” His voice was deep and boomed when he spoke.

  “Thank you,” Erika told him sincerely.

  “You are welcome,” he beamed, satisfied he had brought her back safely.

  “Henry, I’m sorry to bother you while you’re busy, but Carol told me you brought my supplies back after you brought me here.”

  “I sure did. They’re right over there by the work bench. That was quite an ingenious raft you rigged up there, and that outfit you had on. I didn’t even know if you were human when I found you,” Henry rumbled out with a great chuckle. “It worked though, by God it worked, and here you are. I can’t wait to hear about your adventure.”

  “And I can’t wait to hear about yours,” Erika countered slyly.

  “What’s that?” Henry asked, confused.

  “Carol told me you went to Auburn. I must know what’s going on there. I’ll have to go that way to get home.” Erika was focused on her family and eager to know what she would be up against.

  “I had a feeling you would be headed out first chance you got,” he reflected. “Anyone who could make it out of that mess down there must be very determined to get somewhere. That’s why I’m out here, trying to finish this bull hide. Your shoes were destroyed, and
your feet are much smaller than my wife’s. This hide will make a fine pair of moccasins. They won’t be very fancy, and I hope you’re okay with wearing moccasins, but there’s nothing else we can do for you. You’re going to need some shoes to get home.”

  “Henry, I would love a pair of moccasins. Believe it or not, I still own a pair that I love to wear. Thank you,” Erika said. Her eyes began to tear up. “I have no idea how I could possibly thank you and Carol enough.

  Touched by Erika’s reaction, Henry told her honestly, “It’s no trouble, little miss. I heard you in your dreams crying for your loved ones. I knew that if I was in your position, the first thing I would want to do is find Carol.”

  Henry had a fierce determination in his eyes. Their brown gleamed into almost a golden color as he thought of her. It made Erika realize how distraught her husband must be. He must think I’m dead, she worried, wishing she had some way to tell him she was alright.

  “And you have a son I believe,” Henry continued, interrupting her thoughts.

  “Yes, he’s five now. His name is Dexter. He’s so funny and full of life. He has pure blond hair with steely gray-blue eyes.” As Erika described her son to Henry, sadness overwhelmed her. “I miss him so much. I just hope he and his daddy are okay. I must get home to them. Vince will know I’m alive,” Erika told Henry confidently, but she was really trying to convince herself more than anyone. “I always told him that if some great catastrophe ever happened, I would be a survivor. I taught myself how to survive in nature and studied herbal medicine. I couldn’t shake the feeling that one day it would come in handy. All that is going to pay off now. I just have to get myself together and get home.” Erika steadied her voice and wiped the tears from her face.

  Henry knew he shouldn’t have touched on such a fragile subject. He’d wanted to test Erika’s strength and determination. She would need a lot of it to face the challenging place the outside world had become. Henry felt that the woman that stood before him, although short in stature, possessed a very strong heart and an unrelenting mind that, once set to a goal, would not stray. Her body structure was solid, and he was sure she had been an athlete before the world had changed. The fact that she could navigate the wilderness made her journey home not merely possible. Henry knew what the world beyond this snug barn had become. Erika’s chance of making it to her family depended on her being self-sufficient. For that she would have to be physically and spiritually strong.

  “Sorry, I’ve been babbling. You probably want to get back to work and I should check on my supplies,” Erika said, distracting Henry as he gazed out the open door.

  “Erika, I believe you will make it home and I’ll do anything I can to help you get there,” he boomed, stepping forward and placing his hand gently on her shoulder. He already had a feeling, when he found her on the beach, that she was a special person. He only had to confirm it.

  “Thank you, Henry, I’m humbled. I hope that I can do something to help you out while I’m here, to repay you for all your generosity,” Erika said, unsure of what she could possibly do.

  Erika was enjoying the fresh air. Her muscles felt good as they warmed with use. Talking with Henry gave her a way to vent her sorrow and rekindle her determination to get home. She walked over to a sorry-looking raft. It was how she had arrived on the beach where Henry found her, but it was little more than a pile of plastic melted to a wooden slab now. The plastic jugs that Erika used to create pontoons for the raft to float on were melted into a mass of plastic and duct tape. The wood tabletop that composed the sitting area was in good shape, and the crates that held her supplies looked to be intact, for the most part. She’d started looking through the purses she had used to store her goods when Carol came around the corner. Carol’s eyes opened wide in surprise and she almost dropped the basket she was carrying when she saw Erika.

  “Oh, my goodness, honey, what are you doing down here? You don’t need to be going through those things right now. You need to be upstairs resting,” Carol insisted.

  Erika swung around as if she was being scolded by her grandmother. She dropped her head down.

  “Give the gal a break, Carol. She just needed a good stretch,” Henry shushed his wife.

  Erika looked up with a small smile and he winked at her.

  “I’m sorry, Carol. I’m feeling restless and figured I’d check on my things and have a smoke,” Erika told her.

  “You know those things will kill you. I don’t think in your current condition that is the best idea, but I guess a little fresh air won’t hurt. Hurry upstairs, and we’ll try to fix one another up. I’m going to get dinner started,” Carol said in a motherly tone.

  “We’ll be up later, hun,” Henry bellowed deeply.

  Carol walked through the aisle of the animals to the stairs and disappeared from sight.

  “Did you say you had a cigarette?” Henry questioned once he was sure Carol was gone.

  “Yes, do you mind if I have one?” Erika asked. She was used to the antismoking bias that so many people displayed nowadays and wondered if she should have brought it up at all.

  “Only if you can spare one for the old man who saved your life. Carol made me quit a few years back, but I guess a lot has changed lately. It would make me feel. . .normal again,” he requested.

  “Sure, I found quite a few packs in the restaurant I used to work in. What kind do you want?” Erika was thrilled that she had something Henry valued that she could share with him.

  “You got a Marlboro Red?”

  “Yup, I got one of those. Here you go,” Erika replied, handing Henry a cigarette that was only slightly bent from the trauma of the trip to the coast.

  He took it and ran it under his nose, smelling it. Erika lit hers and then handed him her lighter. They stood at the edge of the porch, looking out. The greens and blues filled Erika’s eyes and she realized just how long it had been since she was outdoors, on solid ground, breathing fresh air and letting the wind blow through her hair.

  She was in shock from her experience in Sacramento and her mind flashed with scrambled memories. Taking a deep puff of the cigarette, her body tingled with the familiar feeling. She looked out at the landscape, trying to soak in every bit of life she could. However, the activity was beginning to tax her and her legs were aching. Henry noticed Erika stagger a little. He offered her a chair, but she refused. She was afraid it would be painful to sit on her scabbed legs. When their smokes were gone she thanked him again and left to go and talk with Carol.

  As she climbed up the steep hayloft stairs, her legs wobbling with pain, she realized Carol might have been right. Erika gripped the hand rails tightly, assisting her legs with their effort. She needed to take the time to rest and recover, even though all her thoughts centered on leaving and getting home to Vince and Dexter.

  Pain and fatigue caused Erika to pause when she reached the top of the stairs. She marveled at Henry’s ingenuity in building the living space. The remaining hay that Carol and Henry stored in the barn after the quake was stacked into walls to make rooms. The area directly at the top of the stairs was used as a kitchen. Carol was busy fixing a meal of roast beef, carrots, corn, and potatoes at a huge antique stove.

  “Wow, that’s a beautiful stove,” Erika commented.

  Carol jumped. “Oh, Erika, you can’t sneak up on an old woman like that.”

  “Sorry,” Erika apologized.

  “It’s okay. I guess it’s been a while since we had company,” she said, patting her chest. “You like my stove? I insisted that Henry drag it up here a long time ago. It allows me to do all my cooking with a real fire, no gas or electricity needed. Henry wanted to sell it in a yard sale, but I love this stove, so he hauled it up here for me. Nearly broke his back too.” Carol laughed at the memory. “Anyway, it’s nice to have another source of heat other than the wood burner in our room.”

  Erika assumed that was the room at the other end of the loft and looked in that direction. Carol, finishing up with the prep work,
wiped her hands with a damp towel and put it down on the counter. “Henry made the counter for me too. He salvaged a piece out of our old kitchen,” Carol began walking down the hallway. “Come back here, I want to show you something.” They walked past the table and the room Erika occupied. The room across from it was the restroom. Then there were two more rooms, both were reserved as sleeping rooms. Then there was an area that was still stacked with hay on both sides. Their room was the last one. Carol pulled back the curtain and revealed a room with a sleeping area on the right and a wood burner with a sitting area on the left. The main focal point was a gigantic window.

  “Wow,” Erika gasped, taking in the view.

  “This used to be a big old wooden door, but Henry turned it into this.” Carol stood like Vanna White on the Wheel of Fortune in front of the picture window. “You don’t have to waste your energy on those stairs to get a good view. You can come back here, but you can’t smoke here,” she teased Erika.

  “Thanks, Carol,” Erika replied, staring out. “How will I ever repay you for what you’ve done?”

  “You don’t have to. The Lord teaches us to be charitable,” Carol explained. “He always has a purpose. Rescuing you was part of his plan. The Lord must have a use for you. If he didn’t, you wouldn’t have made it out of there at all. No one else that I know of did. Don’t thank me, thank him.”

  Erika had never thought about her experience or her life in that way before. The thought that the Lord individually crafted each one of us for some unknown purpose was rattling around inside her mind. Carol and Erika stared out the window, lost in thought. They could see to the very edge of the forest to where the toxic lagoon began.