Day After Disaster, The Changing Earth Series, Uncut Edition

by Sara F. Hathaway

  “I know you can’t stay, but you must understand the extreme danger the world presents for you now. Anyway, that is enough talking; I am off to bed.” Henry had made his point, and now he would let Erika simmer in the juices of her new knowledge.

  Henry and Erika headed up the stairs into the hayloft. When Erika climbed into her bed on the hay, it felt good. It was a million more times comfortable than the pile of rags on the cold concrete she had gotten accustomed to in the hole, but she longed for her bed—her warm bed—where she could snuggle up with her boys and melt away into relaxation. Sleep did not come easily despite her comfort, and she lay awake for long time thinking about her upcoming journey.

  Chapter 9

  Erika went on living with Carol and Henry for a couple of more weeks. Every day, Erika grew stronger and stronger, but each day she also grew more and more anxious to leave. She knew her family would be waiting, and she knew she would have to go to them soon. How long would she wait if the shoe were on the other foot? If she was safe at home with Dexter, how long would she wait and wonder if Vince was alive or dead? She didn’t know, and that’s why she knew she had to go.

  Erika was never very much of a morning person, and, usually Carol and Henry were up long before she was. One day, she woke up to a great commotion. Harold had finally arrived with Betsy and the kids. They were all healthy and came with four more horses. They also brought some supplies that the household badly needed, like rice and sugar.

  Although their coming was a very joyous occasion, Erika was feeling like a third wheel and could not help but feel that her place was not here. The hugs and tears flowed that day, and Erika was distraught. All she could focus on were the hugs of her own family and how much joy they would share when she returned home. All day, they shared food and stories. The first story told was how the family had fared during the quake, and then how their journey to Henry and Carol’s had been. Harold and Betsy told the story marvelously. One would literally finish the other’s sentence, and you could feel the love was thick between them. They said that when the initial quake hit, the family had been outside, and their house and barn were destroyed instantly. Luckily, they and the horses had been outside, and everyone was all right. They had no idea what to do, and they—like most people in California—waited for help that would never come. While they were waiting for some kind of help, they started pillaging what goods they could from their destroyed home. They built a temporary shelter and stored the goods there. They also started looking for neighbors. Unfortunately, they found only three people that were still alive.

  They waited in makeshift survival shelters with the others they had found until stocks began to run desperately low. Then it was decided that they would disband to look for their families and more supplies. It was quite evident by then that help was not on its way, and everyone had different priorities. Harold and Betsy’s priority had been to get to Harold’s parents since they were the closest relatives. Betsy’s parents still lived in North Carolina. Betsy said she was praying that they were safe, and Erika understood her pain only too well.

  Betsy’s thought of her parents made Erika think of her own mother and father. She sent a silent prayer out to them and hoped they were safe and in good hands. Her immediate focus had been on her husband and son. There was just too much misery to think of everyone she loved at once. It could drive a person mad.

  The conversation then shifted to lighter issues. Harold and Betsy’s oldest child, Jen, who was fifteen, told all about what had been happening in school, and how their basketball team had been doing so great this year that it really was a shame all this had to happen. Her younger sister, Kim, who was eleven, and spoke loudly so her older sister would not interrupt, told all about how she was a champion horse jumper, and was very excited about nationals this year because she was going to be a part of the junior Olympic team. She didn’t know if there would even be nationals now but was very excited because she got to ride her horse here just like in the Old West.

  Then it was Rob’s turn to tell his story. He was only nine and spoke very softly. He was so cute, and it was very annoying how his sisters broke in to finish his sentences for him. In the end, Erika heard all about how he loved to play soccer and was going to Harvard one day and would play soccer there just like his dad had done.

  It was nice to talk of normal things but at the end of all the stories were the same questions of: Would it still be there? Or would the event still happen? Erika even wondered if a school as old as Harvard could have survived this nightmare, but like most other things, Harvard was gone. The earth had swallowed up the university, and any person inside went right with it, to a grave in the newly opened earth.

  After dinner, Henry played a song on his fiddle and out came the Cognac again. After the song, Carol and Betsy put the kids to bed. Harold and Betsy were sleeping in the room between Henry and Carol’s and the bathroom. The rest of the kids would be sharing the bedroom next to Erika’s room. Once the kids were in bed, Carol and Betsy came back to the table, and the subject changed to more pressing issues like supplies.

  Harold and Betsy had to leave the other livestock they had behind because it would have been way too arduous to make the trip with them. They gave them to the folks that were staying behind at the survival camp, waiting for their own families. It was decided that it was a good decision because they only had one stall of hay left, and now there would be four more horses to feed. The garden was still going to produce well besides having a few new grooves in it. There were babies on the way. The cows, sheep, and goats all had pregnant females. They would only kill the adults as needed so they would always have meat. The only question was, how they would sustain a feed supply for the animals with all of the feed stores closed.

  Erika couldn’t help but feel guilty during the conversation. She was feeling better again. She knew she was just a drain on the family resources, and she was taking up precious space that the family needed. She decided that it was time for her next journey to begin. She knew Carol would protest her leaving and decided to go quietly tonight when everyone was sleeping. As her decision became finalized in her mind, she looked up, and Henry was staring right into her soul. They both knew what she had been thinking, and Henry simply looked over to a saddle and a horse pack. Erika knew he was giving her permission to take that saddle, and she began to go over supplies in her head. She knew she had most of what she would need and figured she would find the rest along the way. After the discussion at the table was finished, Erika made sure she had said a special good-night to everyone and thanked Henry and Carol again for their kindness. Henry banked the fire, and everyone went to bed.

  Erika lay awake waiting for everyone to fall asleep. From the other room, with only the hay-bale walls and blankets for doors, she heard Harold and Betsy making love. Probably a celebration romp for having arrived safely, but Erika could only picture Vince, his big arms and loving eyes. That was it; she was leaving now. She got up, grabbed her moccasins, and got dressed in some fresh clothes that she had carried with her from the bunker. She put her personal effects in the saddle bags and went downstairs to pack everything up.

  She ran to the end of the barn, where the rest of her supplies were, and stopped short when she saw Henry was there, cinching up the horse pack onto one of his horses.

  “You can go ahead and put that saddle on that little, black mare over there. Her name is Artaz, and she will be your new friend for your journey. Since we seem to have a couple of horses too many right now, you can also take this little brown one. His name is Kit, and he will ride well, carry a pack, and even pull a cart. He is steady and will not lose your things,” Henry said quietly.

  “Henry, I can’t take them; not two of them. That is way too kind,” Erika replied.

  “Oh yes, you can. How will we feed them all? Take them and put them to good use. They will get you home quickly and be good friends as well. You can return them later once things have settled down again.” Henry said this but Erika
could tell that he never thought for a second that she would be back. Henry silently wondered how far she would make it, but he knew she was strong and had to make this journey.

  “Now, I have loaded the goods you had along with some others you will need. You should have enough food, and remember to stay away from people. Carol will be angry as a crocodile getting her eggs stole when she wakes up and finds you are gone, but I know you have to go.” Henry said this in a sarcastic manner, but Erika could tell that he was choking back tears.

  Erika snickered as she dug into the pack for something and found it. “Here, Henry. I know it isn’t much, but I want you to have this pack of Marlboros. The only ones gone are the few you’ve had. I know it isn’t much, but they should last a while at least.” Erika was digging deep to try to repay him somehow.

  “Well, thank you. That is a gift I will accept. Now get your butt going.” Henry was uncomfortable with good-byes, especially when he did not want to see that person go.

  “Henry, there is no way I can ever thank you or your family enough. I… I don’t know how… I could even…” Erika was now in tears.

  “Now just stop right there, missy. You don’t need to thank me. What goes around comes around in life, and if not in this life then in the next. We were just hoping to find one body alive out of that mess down there. We knew what we were getting into, and I wouldn’t have traded it for anything. You are a good girl, Erika. A strong woman who is totally devoted to the ones you love. This will carry you home and be your light in dark places. You will get there. Now you jump on that horse and ride.” Henry was putting finality to the conversation.

  The good-byes were over. Erika did as she was told, jumped up on the saddle, and gave Artaz a firm kick to start her journey back to her family. Henry’s red hair shined in the candlelight as she rode away. Erika looked back and waved. As Henry waved back to her, he turned to rejoin his wife and try to make some sense out of this backwards new world. He was safe with his family for now, but in this period of uncertainty he knew it was only a matter of time till danger came knocking at their door.

  Chapter 10

  As Erika left that night, it was with a heavy heart and very mixed emotions. She was glad to be on her way back to her loving family, but she didn’t even know if they would still be alive if she did make it home. So much had changed in just a few months that Erika had no idea what to expect from anything. Henry and Carol had been so kind to her. They helped her when she could not help herself, and they fed her and nursed her back to a healthy condition that would allow her to make this journey. Then, when Henry and Carol’s family arrived, the barn had been so full of life, and the sounds of children were very soothing. But in the end, Erika knew she could not stay. What would that accomplish? Would she ever know if her family and loved ones lived or died? She could not bear the pain of not knowing. So she had left the comfort of the secure barn and started her journey home.

  Henry had provided her with all she would need for the trip home, plus he had given her two horses as well to make the trip faster. Erika could not get the conversation about the people in Auburn out of her head, though. Henry and Harold had warned her that the people’s desperation was the worst kind of evil, and even the normally docile people were stealing and killing to survive—and who could blame them?

  In the beginning, it was quiet and easy riding for the most part. The moon was full and the night was bright. The horses had to pick their way carefully along this alien landscape, but the stillness of the air was strangely comforting. Henry had warned her to stay close to the road so that she would know her way, but to beware of it as well. The roads continued to be major transportation routes even though they were scarcely recognizable as the roads they once were. Refugees from the disaster, thieves scrambling to take the goods of others, and displaced wildlife were all using these routes as a way to get around, but they were not the smooth concrete structures of the past. They were now pitted with cracks and piled with debris. It made travel with automobiles very difficult and ambush very easy.

  Even still, Erika could not fully wrap her head around the severity of this situation. She figured that somewhere, someone was mobilizing to rescue the people. Maybe San Francisco and LA had been hit much harder, and her area was just too remote to be receiving help yet. She just didn’t know. In reality, San Francisco and LA had been hit much harder. They were little more than rubble piles with fires burning everywhere out of control. Volcanic eruptions had covered them with ash and dust so thick that it was becoming impossible for survivors to move. Thousands and thousands of people lay dead in the streets. People on cell phones that would never ring again, mothers still clinging to their babies, and fathers laid out in the streets, fancy foods forever uneaten scattered across floors that had once been the staging for grand balls, all of it was destroyed. Mother Nature had taken all she could, and her wrath was not over. It was just beginning.

  Erika plodded along a course that led her through the trees, and she had to be careful not to get rubbed off by a branch, and even more careful that none of her goods were lost along the way. She could not take time now to get more goods. Even if she had the time, where would she go? Who would she ask? There was far too much uncertainty involved, and as long as she was careful, she would not have to worry about it. The dirt itself seemed different. It was fluffier than the compact soil that usually existed in California. In the upheaval of the main quake, the dirt itself was displaced and even further displaced by the falling trees and cracking roots. The horses’ hooves sunk deep, and it made her very aware of the tracks she was leaving.

  She pushed that thought out of her head, though, because she knew she was not far from home in reality. When the roads were the smooth concrete routes of the past and the cars sped along the unbroken roadways, it would have only taken her about a half-hour to get home from where she was. But now, it was a very different world. With dangerous roads that would be too treacherous for most vehicles, she was left with good old traditional horsepower. But at least she had that. Henry and Carol had been so kind, she was sure a place would be reserved in heaven for their souls.

  As the sun began to come up, Erika was weaving through the trees, watching and listening for any other sound but hers when she heard a vehicle. She quickly chose a place in the trees where she and the horses would be hidden from anyone coming down the road. Then suddenly a jeep came into view. Erika thought it was a very sorry-looking vehicle, basically just a frame with an engine and two seats. There were two men inside and they looked ragged. They could not travel very quickly along this broken road and had to slowly crawl along, as the jeep bobbed violently and they rocked from side to side gripping the roll cage for dear life. The driver was a dirty blond man, with a strong build. He was wearing a baseball cap. The other man was darker skinned with a slight build. As they slowly crawled past, Erika could just make out their conversation as they yelled above the roar of the engine. The dirty blond man was saying, “We really need to bring back some meat to the camp; with all those people there, I don’t know how we will keep feeding everyone.”

  The dark man replied, “I know. If those scavengers hadn’t robbed us blind, we would not be in this position. I am telling you, dude, we aren’t going to trust anyone any more. They can all die and go to hell for all I care. We are going to take care of our group and anyone else is just in the way. We will survive this.”

  “Hell yeah, we will, and once we get that surveillance balloon in the air this evening, we will be able to monitor this whole area. Then we will weed out the little pockets of survivors and take what they are surviving on. They can join us or die, and personally, I would rather they die because that will be less mouths to feed.”

  Erika was getting uneasy hearing this cruel conversation. She was thinking of Henry and Carol and hoping they were far enough away that they would not get bothered. She had traveled a long way, but if these people had vehicles, they could make it. She was also worried that she would not make it
through wherever they were camped without getting spotted by this surveillance mechanism that would go into effect tonight. Her uneasy thoughts relayed to the horses, and they began to fidget around a little. Erika tried to soothe them, but she was getting panicky herself.

  All of a sudden the dark man hit the dirty blond man and said, “Hey, stop the truck, Dave.”

  The sandy-blond man named Dave abruptly halted the jeep. “What, Doug?”

  “I thought I saw something in those bushes over there.”

  “What was it?”

  Erika was holding her breath and it seemed that the horses knew what to do as well. They all held perfectly still, and Erika prayed to God that they would not see her. She didn’t know what would happen if they did. Would they kill her? Would they kill the horses? Would she ever get back to her family?

  Finally after what seemed like a lifetime, Doug said, “Oh, forget it. If it was a deer, we must have scared it off. We will send out a couple of hunters this way tomorrow to see if they can find it and bring us home some meat.”

  “You are right,” grumbled Dave. “Let’s finish the perimeter check and get back. I’m sure someone back at camp is pitching a fit about something.”

  Dave got the jeep bumping along again, and their conversation and engine noise faded away into the distance.

  “Oh, Artaz, was that close,” Erika exclaimed to her horse as she let out a huge breath and slumped down to pet the horse. “We almost got ourselves into some big trouble. Let’s make sure we stay away from their ‘perimeter’ and get the heck out of here as fast as possible. What about Henry and Carol? Should we go back and warn them?” Erika knew in her heart this was not really possible. It would take her too long to get back and then what good could she really do them. Henry and his son were setting up defenses anyway. They knew what was out there.

  In the end, Erika decided to continue on as fast as the horses could go in this broken landscape. It was very tough because every bit of ground everywhere had been rippled by this earthquake; there was no escape. Trees that once stood tall and straight—delicately outlining the road—were now pointed sideways because the earth they were rooted in was so skewed. Erika’s attempt at traveling in a straight line turned into more of a zigzag around this tree and then that one. One would be shooting off at a left angle and then the next one to the right, and all the while she had to keep the road fairly close but not too close. Plus, she constantly had to be aware of who might be on it.