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

by Hathaway, Sara F.

  “Good morning, Joan,” Erika said sleepily.

  “We made it, Erika, and I want to thank you. If it weren’t for you, I doubt I would still be here with my family, all together. We would have been totally unprepared for that attack. I don’t really know what else I could say other than thank you. Thank you so much,” Joan exclaimed, starting to tear up.

  “Joan, I’m just trying to get home to my family. It wasn’t anything that someone else on my journey hasn’t done for me. I just thought it was the right thing to do,” Erika responded, tearing up as well.

  The two embraced in a deep hug. It felt so good to be sharing someone else’s pain. The emotional surge gave them strength.

  “Okay, enough blubbering,” Erika laughed. “How’s Star?” she wondered, remembering the child’s bullet wound.

  “She’s doing okay,” Joan replied. They looked to the children. Star was nestled between the two boys, all sleeping peacefully and snuggly.

  “They’re so precious,” Erika remarked, impacted by the peaceful scene. She couldn’t help but see Dexter there in one of the boy’s faces. Her heart ached for him.

  “She’s been a trooper. Even with her injury, she wouldn’t relax. We told her she could help look after the little kids and make sure they stayed safe. Girl, let me tell you, Star sure did step up to that plate. She’s been watching them like a hawk. She must be in pain, but she’s not showing any of it,” Joan explained, obviously relieved for the help with these two rambunctious young men.

  “Where is everyone, where are we, Joan?” Erika asked, noticing the silence around the camp. She hoped everyone was okay, and she was curious what happened after she passed out.

  “After you and Jimmy D made it to the top we decided that it was best to keep moving. We needed to get someplace safer. We crested the top of the mountain yesterday and made it into Cool. The people here were leery of letting thirteen new people into their group, so they let us camp over here. We’re on the hill across from town. They’ve been nice though, not anything like those crazies in Auburn. Right now, we’re preparing a big meal for both groups to eat. With all the meat we have, we thought sharing might be a good way to break the ice and get to know one another. We cut up one of the horse’s hind legs into strips for drying. The other group has about thirty people in their camp and they look really thin. Jimmy D and Jim H are over at the Cool Camp talking about the group in Auburn and the future of our two groups. Taylor and Randy went out to gather firewood. We’ll need fires long into the night for drying meat. Kim and Tom Jensen found some friends in the Cool group. Tom was on the football team in Auburn and used to play and party with some of the kids in Cool. We let them go and hang out, figured they need some sense of how life used to be. Steve is in charge of drying the meat and he’s been cutting meat and putting it on the racks since we finished making camp last night,” Joan explained, catching Erika up.

  “That must be that wonderful smell I keep getting a whiff of,” Erika commented, her olfactory senses urging her to find food. “Joan, I think it’s me who should be thanking you all. You could have left me and taken all the meat and supplies. I would have never known it.”

  Joan looked at her like she was crazy. “We would never do that, Erika. We owe you our lives,” Joan explained, shocked by her suggestion.

  “I finally made it to Cool!” Erika exclaimed. “My family is in Georgetown. I’m right down the road. I can’t wait to see them. All I have to do is get to Georgetown.” Erika’s heart pounded with excitement.

  “You’ll never make it without some food in your belly, and you don’t want to see them again after all this time looking like that, do you?” Joan asked, pointing at her clothes. “How do you know they are alive?”

  Erika looked down at her blood-stained clothes. It dried across her skin and her clothes were a mess. “I don’t,” Erika replied honestly, “but my belief that they are brought me this far.”

  “In that case, come on, I’ll help you get cleaned up. We have a bath ready for you,” Joan told her, gesturing for her to leave with her.

  “You have a bath ready for me?” Erika asked surprised.

  “We knew you would need it when you woke up. We all bathed yesterday so I wouldn’t say it was just for you, but we did put clean water in it for you.”

  “What about the kids?” Erika questioned.

  “They’ll be fine, we’re not going far,” Joan assured her.

  Star roused during the conversation Joan and Erika were having. She whispered from in between the two snoozing boys, “Hi, Erika.”

  “Oh, Star, I love you. I’m so glad you’re okay,” Erika announced, kind of surprised to hear that come out of her mouth, but she really did love that little girl. Their union happened so fast. She looked over at her beautiful new daughter. Erika went over to kiss Star on the forehead.

  “How’s your leg feeling, baby?” Erika whispered.

  “It hurts but a doctor came yesterday. He looked at it and said I should keep it very clean and rest a lot. As long as I do that, I should be fine. I’ll wait right here, I have to heal fast, so I’ll be ready to go with you,” Star said, concerned. She was reassured by Erika’s affectionate words toward her, but frightened that she would be left behind because of this injury.

  “I’m not going anywhere without you, Star, so you just rest easy,” Erika declared, looking Star directly in the eyes. “You can trust me, Star.”

  Star relaxed, and snuggled back in between the boys.

  Leaving the tent with Joan, Erika blinked as the sunlight assaulted her eyes. Her focus was on a hot bath, but her jaw dropped as she scanned the landscape. She expected to walk out into familiar territory and into a town that she once knew so well. All she saw was blackness in every direction, except the one that went down into the dreadful canyon they had just come from.

  “Oh my God,” Erika gasped.

  The fire had destroyed everything, all the trees and all the buildings. The charred remains were used to build temporary shelters. The broken wood and scavenged metal were constructed into makeshift buildings where the town once stood. The concrete from the old parking lots was still clearly visible, but even it looked crusted-over from the fire.

  “This area was massively damaged when the quake hit, Erika. That’s why we never came up here before. From Auburn we could see the smoke thick in the air. We didn’t know what we would find. The river was a ready source of water and the fire stopped at the quarry. A lot of wildlife found refuge in the remains of the forest between here and the river, so we just stayed at the river. We had water and food. It seemed like the logical decision, until those idiots started to rally up in Auburn,” Joan explained, reflecting on decisions of the past. “Come on, Erika, let’s get you cleaned up,” she said cheerfully, “and then we’ll worry about all this.” Joan was trying desperately to keep Erika’s attitude positive the middle of all this misery.

  Joan led the way to the bath while Erika’s mind raced. If the whole place burned, how far did the fire go? she wondered. The fire stopped at the old quarry that was located on this side of the canyon, but what about the other direction toward Georgetown? She thought of Vince and Dexter and sent her prayers out again, as she had done so many times before on this journey. She wondered about the other nearby towns: Coloma and Lotus. Is my mom safe? The fire threw a huge monkey wrench into her grand plans of returning home. What home?

  Walking through the camp the refugees from the river built, Erika was really impressed. It seemed like they were here for a week, but Erika knew they arrived last night. Erika felt the heat of the main campfire as they stood looking at the town. She smelt the food being prepared in the kitchen area set up next to it. Kim and Tom entered the area near the fire with some other teens from the Cool Camp. They were laughing and chatting loudly as they helped to prepare food for the big feast tonight. In the distance, to the left of the fire, Erika saw another fire burning. This one was elongated and burned with a steady, low flame. There was a rack
set over the top of it. Erika could see the meat strung out to dry. Steve stood attentively by that fire with a gentleman that Erika didn’t recognize.

  Joan and Erika’s footsteps crackled on the burnt and crispy landscape as they made their way toward a small makeshift tent. A large basin of water sparkled next to the tent, and clothes hung on a line between two sticks. The tent itself was made of old burned wood and the roof consisted of a blanket sagging over the top. Joan pulled back a panel and inside was a very small fire with a metal basin suspended above it.

  “I know it’s not the Holiday Inn, but at least the water will be warm,” Joan said encouragingly.

  “It’s a whole lot better than nothing,” Erika agreed. She just wanted to get clean in a hot bath. She felt disgusting.

  “You get in there and hand me your clothes. I’ll wash them for you while you get clean,” Joan suggested in a motherly tone.

  “Are you for real?” Erika asked.

  Joan nodded in agreement.

  “Thanks, Joan,” Erika expressed sincerely. She was shocked that Joan was showering her in so much kindness.

  “If it weren’t for that blood all over you and your clothes, we wouldn’t be having a feast tonight and food for many more night to come. Plus, I wouldn’t even be alive if it weren’t for you,” Joan explained. “Just give me your clothes, it’s the least I can do.”

  “Thanks again, Joan,” Erika replied awkwardly. She was never very good at taking compliments and didn’t really know how to respond, so she quickly got into the little tent with the washtub. Erika felt the smoothness of the stones placed on the ground in front of the tub. When she removed her leather moccasins her feet stayed clean. She took a minute to revel in the ingeniousness of this setup. The little stones to keep your feet clean, the tiny fire keeping the water warm under the metal basin: it all made perfect sense. Removing her clothes, she wadded them into a ball.

  “Here you go, Joan,” Erika called out while she turned her back to the door.

  Joan cracked the door to grab Erika’s clothes, and she gasped when she saw the scars that covered Erika’s body. Erika turned her head, surprised by Joan’s reaction, and their eyes met.

  “It’s a long story, Joan,” Erika told her, feeling uncomfortable about this turn of events. Erika didn’t want to face the fact that her body was altered. At least I’m alive and close to home. Hopefully, Vince will feel the same way, she worried.

  “I’m sorry, Erika. I didn’t mean to. . .I. . .” Joan stammered, feeling the tension heavy in the air.

  “It’s okay. I’m alive, but I have some scars to prove it,” Erika retorted, regaining her confidence. She knew the Lord made everything happen for a reason, and God made every person just as they were meant to be. Each imperfection made each individual perfect.

  “That’s one story I would love to hear,” Joan said cheerfully, trying to lighten the mood. She grabbed Erika’s clothes and left Erika alone.

  Taking hold of a little wooden bowl that was floating in the water, Erika washed the warm water over her skin. She hated seeing the dried blood of the animal she loved. Vigorously scrubbing, she washed the water over her body before getting into the tub. She wanted to try and keep the basin water as clean as possible, so she could soak away her worries in the nice, clean, warm water.

  After rinsing, she got into the tub and immersed herself in the bath water. Her body wedged into the tub and she was apprehensive to be directly over an open fire. She pictured herself as a lobster for a minute, chuckling at the thought. Even with all her worries, the bath felt great. Soaking in this delightfully warm water, she almost forgot how much she loved long, hot showers. Erika saw a little square of something that looked like soap and when she scrubbed it on her body it started to get sudsy. The water was reviving her body, and her mind started wandering. She reflected upon her long journey. She thought about Henry and Carol and all they had given her. They just gave. They didn’t ask for anything in return. Without them I wouldn’t be here, she pondered. Thinking of Carol and Henry made her remember the outfit made from old sheets that Carol made for her.

  “Hey, Joan,” she yelled.

  “Yes, Erika,” Joan replied. She was busy washing Erika’s outfit in the basin outside.

  “If you go into Kit’s packs I have an extra outfit there. It’s the only other clothing in there, so it should be easy to find. I wrapped it up in one of the blankets I have. Would you mind grabbing it for me?”

  “Sure, no problem, then you won’t have to wear wet clothes,” Joan responded cheerfully.

  Erika listened to Joan’s footsteps crackling as she left. Then her ears picked up on more voices over at the camp. She thought it sounded like maybe the boys came back with some more folks from the Cool Camp. Excited by the prospect of seeing someone she knew, she decided to get out of the tub so she could drip dry for a while before Joan got back. She hated putting on her clothes when she was wet. They stuck to her body and were always a pain to get on correctly. She didn’t have a towel, but luckily it was warm both inside and out, so it felt pretty good to just let the water drip off of her. Before long, she heard Joan’s footsteps outside the tent, and Joan slid the door open.

  “Here you go, Erika. Those sure do look comfortable,” Joan commented on her sheet outfit. “When everything went down all I escaped with are these jeans. I’m not complaining but sometimes I wish I could just throw on a pair of my old sweats.”

  “They are really comfortable. A sweet lady who helped me recuperate made them for me,” Erika said, thinking of Carol.

  “I didn’t find any socks, but I guess you don’t need them under your. . .moccasins?” Joan questioned.

  “Thanks. Yeah, I have moccasins. Not something you would expect, but they were made by the husband of that same lady. My shoes didn’t escape the mess that I made it through,” Erika said with a dreamy look in her eyes. “The moccasins were better than nothing.”

  Joan was getting very curious about this story but remembered the tension that Erika’s scars aroused. She remembered Erika saying something about escaping from Sacramento when she first reached the River camp, but there was so much going on at that point. Joan had only focused on what Erika’s story meant for them and not really about the pain Erika bore along the way. The effects of her ordeal were rather obvious from Erika’s skin, but Joan didn’t want to push. She knew Erika would have to tell the story eventually and she would hear it then.

  Joan walked over to the wash basin for the clothing and Erika followed. Most of Erika’s clothes were already hanging on the line. All that was left to wash was Erika’s jungle pants. The blood permanently stained her clothes. They were now a brownish-green color. There was no Tide out here, but they looked a lot cleaner and smelled a whole lot better.

  “Cute pants, good color,” Joan teased.

  “Yeah, tell me about it. You got jeans and I got jungle pants. The cooks at the restaurant I used to work at wore them. That’s all I could find after mine got wrecked,” Erika explained.

  “Okay, we’re done here,” Joan declared. “All we have to do is let them dry. I think it’s going to get rather warm later today, so it shouldn’t take long. Let’s go get some food while we wait.”

  The smell of meat was wafting every direction through the air and Erika’s stomach growled in anticipation. There were lots of people at the campfire. Everyone seemed to be busy doing something. Erika couldn’t wait to get a bowl of the soup that everyone seemed to have in their hands. Their footsteps crackled through the burnt grass as she and Joan approached the fire. Erika’s heart leapt when she saw a very familiar face in the crowd. It was of her best friends from before the earthquake. For a minute she couldn’t believe it was him. As they approached, Greg saw her as well and there was no question it was him, not that it was easy to mistake him for anyone else. He was always one of the most handsome and charismatic people that Erika had known.

  There were no words that could explain their feelings of elation in recogni
zing one another. They ran at one another and hugged. He picked her up and swung her around. There were times in the past when Erika’s husband was tired, and Erika was out on the town with the girls. Greg always kept his eye on her and protected her from the drunken advances of silly men. This was his big chance to get her back under his wing. The tears were rolling as they began to separate.

  “You’re alive, Erika, oh my God, you’re alive!” Greg was ecstatic. He couldn’t believe his eyes. Many days, while on guard duty at the Cool Camp, he watched and hoped to see her coming up the canyon.

  “I am, G-man,” she teased him, using a nickname that they often used affectionately. “I am. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for some great people I met along the way, including these folks that I’m with, but I made it. I’m home.”

  “He survived, Erika, and Dex too. They made it,” Greg said looking straight into her eyes. She didn’t even need to ask the question. He knew Erika and what she would be worried about. He could always read her like a book.

  The tears started to flow down Erika’s face. Her family had made it. They were alive. She knew it all along. Someone brought her a bucket to sit on as her legs went weak.

  “You saw them, G-man?” she gasped.

  “Yup, Vince has been coming down about once a month to see if you have turned up anywhere. Everyone told him that there was no way anyone made it out of that pit that Sacramento became, but he knew you would. He said he could feel you. We all thought he was crazy, but he knew you would survive. He said you always said you would. Last I heard, the Georgetown group was thinking of heading further up into the mountains because of the conflicts down by the river and the lack of housing for them,” he explained

  “What happened around here, Greg?” Erika wondered.

  “The fires burned most everything from here to Icehouse to Coloma. Georgetown fell into the old mines that were under the city, so those people got doubly screwed. With all the aftershocks, who knows what’s going to happen?” Greg said with a faraway look in his eyes.