by Joel Baker
Nothing, Jake said.
“What do you mean ‘nothing’?” Matthew asked.
He blocks us, Jezebel answered. Sometimes there are humans we cannot read.
“How is that even possible?” Shannon asked.
They don’t do it on purpose, Jake said. It’s like their heads are made of stone. It makes us uncomfortable to be around these people. Occasionally a puppy will be born like this. We cannot understand the puppy, so we have to let it die.
“That’s not a lot of help,” Matthew said.
We don’t like to be around someone like this, Jake said.
“How are the dogs, after yesterday?” Matthew asked, changing the subject.
The young ones are still tired, Jake said. In a month or two they will be old enough to keep up with the rest of us. We look forward to making it to the mountains.
“Jonas wants us to go to a place where he was born,” Matthew said. “We wanted to know what you thought of that.”
Both dogs looked at them for a few moments and then at each other.
We don’t know how to answer that, Jezebel said.
“What do you mean?” Shannon asked.
We go, where you go, Jezebel said. Why you go, does not matter to us. It does seem to us, that sometimes, you move just so you won’t be in the place where you are.
Shannon laughed at what Jezebel had said, for the truth of it.
“That is a wonderful way to express it,” Shannon said. “Sometimes we do move, just so we won’t be in the place that we are. We call that wanderlust.”
They told Dalton what the dogs said on the way back to town. None of them were comfortable about the dog’s inability to read Jonas. When Shannon told Dalton, It gave him a sinking, bad feeling. Neither he nor Shannon thought it was good news.
***
Jonas sat in his small cabin, sharpening his knife on a leather razor strap. He smiled to himself as he thought of the coming trip. He’d wanted to go back to the cave for years. He was sure much of the stores they’d hid when they left, would still be in good shape. He liked the idea of having a family traveling with him for company. That would be nice.
The knife he sharpened had belonged to his brother, Lucas. It had a large steel blade, with a special handle. It was made from the lower front leg of a new born fawn. It brought back good memories of when they were together as young boys. They were adored by their mother. How she had doted on them! Not just because they were twins, and not because they were adorable when they were born. They were Larue, and to their mama, that was the best you could be.
Jonas and Lucas were close, even for twins. They frequently played tricks on their friends and family, by switching identities. They were seldom apart. They looked out for each other with a furious determination. While Jonas was the dominant twin, Lucas was his match, and both knew it.
Jonas remembered their mama was devastated, when they were asked to leave the cave. They were all frightened to be leaving, but especially mama.
He and Lucas had both cried for days, when the Cheyenne killed his family. He and Lucas sat on the ground, their hands tied behind their backs. They watched as their captors did terrible things to their mama and sisters. It was two days, before they finally ended mama’s life.
The brothers were taken back to the Cheyenne village. Because they were young, their captors let them cry for a day. At dusk, Spirit Who Sings came over and told them it was time to stop crying or he would slit their throats. They stopped crying.
Over time, the twins were beaten and mistreated, but no more so than other captives. When the twins turned twelve, they were as tall as most of the Cheyenne braves around them. They were taught the ways of the Cheyenne. When they were sixteen, they joined the tribe. Heavily muscled and a foot taller than the rest of the tribe, both were trained and feared as warriors.
The day Jonas murdered Lucas, started out like any other day. In retrospect, killing his brother had been a silly, stupid thing to do. But on that day, the brothers had an insanely violent argument over a girl. Jonas couldn’t remember her name.
In one smooth motion, Jonas took his knife from the sheath and slit Lucas’s throat from ear to ear. Jonas could still remember his brother dropping to his knees with blood cascading down his chest. Lucas pitched forward, dead before his body raised a cloud of dust when it hit the ground.
Over time, Jonas became a leader in the warrior clan. He led many Cheyenne war parties on bloody rampages. His reputation grew, and he was feared by everyone. Men from other tribes would flee when they saw Black Bear leading the attack. In battle, he was vicious and left a trail of dead and dying in his wake.
No one knew why he paid special attention to the captured women and children. They didn’t know about momma Larue, and the rage he felt at her loss. Jonas remembered it well. The rage in him never left. It slumbered on occasion. But then he would meet a nice family. The beast would awake, stretch, and show its yellow teeth in a snarl. It was why the Cheyenne eventually drove him from the tribe.
Yes, Jonas thought. The Colters really are a nice family. Travelling with them will be nice. There is nothing I like better than a nice family…
***
The Colter family needed three more days in Muskogee. James was in charge of obtaining provisions, with Willie’s help. With nothing else to do, Dalton and Shannon went for rides along the river, south of town. It was hot and muggy, so they would walk the horses along the bank of the river.
It was on one of these walks that Dalton and Shannon went for a swim alone. They found a secluded bend in the river with a shallow pool of water. After a swim, they came out and laid on the edge of the pool in the warm sun to dry off.
“How long do you think we’ll be at that cave?” Shannon asked.
Everyone called it “the cave” even though it was no longer technically a cave. Even before the government transformed it into some sort of bunker, the small cave had been the entrance to a copper mine. The mine ran deep into the side of a mountain. It had only been partially reworked by Homeland Security into the bunker. The rest of the mine had been sealed off by the government engineers constructing the bunker.
“I doubt if we’ll stay long,” Dalton said. “It will be August, before we reach there. We’ll need to head for the mountains, as soon as possible. We have a cabin to build and food to store, before the snow starts.”
Dalton looked over at Shannon and admired her stunning good looks. He noticed the slight bulge in her tummy as she lay on her back, her arms thrown back over her head.
“Shannon, sweetheart, are we going to have a baby?” Dalton asked.
Shannon looked over at him and smiled mischievously.
“Yes,” Shannon said. “It’s going to be a girl. Jezebel told me. She’s not due until January, so we have plenty of time.”
Dalton scooted over and lay hugging Shannon closely. The smile on his face, told Shannon everything she needed to know. Suddenly Dalton leaned up on one elbow looking concerned.
“Shouldn’t you be in bed or something?” Dalton asked. “This horseback riding can’t be good for you. Are you getting enough food to eat? I can make you a travois so you can lay down when we travel.”
“No, silly,” Shannon said laughing. “I’m fine, and you can’t start fussing over me. In fact, I have a wonderful idea.”
Shannon rolled on top of Dalton and kissed him on his neck.
“Are you sure about this?” Dalton asked. “Will you be okay?”
Shannon looked down at Dalton with languorous eyes, for moment.
“I’ll be more than okay,” Shannon said softly. “Now, shut up and kiss me.”
Chapter 11
The Colters and Jonas headed west at day break, on the thirteenth of July. They followed the river basin, which in places, was little more than a muddy path. As they approached the ruins of what had once been Oklahoma City, the mud became a stream and then a small river again. The water was tepid and muddy brown. No one drank the water, unless it
was boiled first.
Jonas volunteered to lead the pack horses, so he trailed the rest of the Colters by some distance. When they made camp, he looked after the horses, and slept over by where they were hobbled. The Colters saw very little of Jonas, it was almost like he wasn’t there. Molly thought it was curious he stayed separate from the group.
Matthew and James rode with Molly, ahead of the rest. They wanted to take a look at the ruins of Oklahoma City. When they approached the ruins, they spotted columns of smoke in the distance. The city looked like most of the ruins they encountered. Some windowless buildings still stood, but mostly they were piles of rubble under a canopy of trees. Vegetation had taken back much of the city.
Parts of the capital still stood, and gleamed whitely in the sunlight. Vines had enveloped much of the structure, and appeared to be trying to pull the building down. A section of the river the Colters followed flowed through the city. Smoke from campfires rose from along its shores. The three stopped on a small hill overlooking the ruins below.
“Looks pretty much like what I expected,” James said.
“I never understood why scavengers hung around these ruins for all these years,” Molly said. “You’d think they would move away.”
“It’s a lifestyle by now,” James said. “How long has it been since the Go Back? Over a hundred years? This is all these people know. It’s no different than when people would stay in towns, long after all the jobs and businesses have gone. I think they’re frightened of the unknown, so they just stay put and do the best they can.”
“I suppose,” Molly said. “Still it’s kind of sad, really. They must live hand to mouth most of the time. It must be hard on the children.”
James sat with the other riders in silence for a while, watching the smoke from campfires rise over the river. He thought back to the stories about how the Colters originally came to Haven.
What if Jesse and Sarah Colter had decided to stay in Liberty, and not moved to Haven? James thought. What if Sarah hadn’t made the family return to that lab and find out about the dogs? You come to a fork in the road, if you go left; your life is one way. If you go right; it’s another.
“Matthew?” Molly asked. “I was wondering, did Shannon ever ask the dogs what they thought of Jonas?”
“The dogs said Jonas is a rock,” Matthew said. “They said that there are people that they get nothing from. Jonas is one of those. They are a mystery to the dogs and it confuses them. They naturally avoid someone with this condition. They said the person may be just fine, but they will be on their guard. We should be on our guard, as well.”
“That’s not much help,” Molly said. “There’s something about Jonas that makes me edgy. I don’t know what it is. Something just doesn’t seem right to me. I think Dalton agrees with me too.”
“Will the dogs be watching him?” James asked.
“No,” Matthew said. “They’ll just avoid him. The dogs don’t really watch people, anyway. They either trust you or not. There doesn’t really seem to be much middle ground with them. Let’s face it, even when they like you, it’s hard to tell.”
“What about people they can’t read like Jonas?” Molly asked.
“The dogs will probably wait until something happens,” Matthew said. “If it’s good, they’ll go on ignoring him. If it’s bad, they’ll probably kill him.”
“That’s not much help for now,” Molly said. “What do you think, James?”
“I know Dalton doesn’t really trust Jonas,” James said. “But, just like me, Dalton is curious about what’s in that bunker at Los Alamos.”
“Why doesn’t Dalton trust him?” Molly asked. “Does he still think Jonas murdered his parents?”
“No,” Matthew said. “If he thought that, Jonas would already be dead. No, it’s because of what Shannon told him.”
“What did she tell him?” Molly asked.
“She told Dalton that she was nervous, being around Jonas,” Matthew said. “She said every once in a while, she would look up and catch Jonas staring at her. She said the way he was staring was creepy. It just made her uneasy.”
“I’m surprised Dalton didn’t kill him, just for that,” James said.
“I think Dalton has something else in mind,” Matthew said.
“Well, I’ve had it,” Molly said, her face red with anger. “I’m going to talk with Shannon when we get back. We’re going to find out what’s going on, and end it now!”
“Now Molly,” James said.
“Don’t ‘Now Molly’ me!” Molly said. “You men get all caught up in some ridiculous story about a magic space heater, and miss what’s going on under your nose. You’re going to get rid of that goon, and you’re going to do it as soon as we get back. If you don’t, I will!”
***
James and Molly waited for the sun to set, before they made their way over to the small cook fire Jonas had built. Jonas sat on a log he’d pulled next to the fire. He had a small stick he would poke into the coals and stir them to life. Molly thought she heard him humming a quiet tune to himself when they walked up.
“Good evening, Jonas,” Molly said. “Do you mind if James and I come for a visit?”
“Not at all, Mrs. Colter,” Jonas said. “Here, you and James have a seat on this log. I’ll sit over here close to the horses. I like to think they’re quieter, if I’m close by. It’s probably not true, but I like to think so.”
“I was curious, Jonas,” Molly said. Why do you stay off by yourself like this? You’re welcome to camp over by us, and take meals with us.”
“I know that,” Jonas said. “It’s just that this trip back to where I lost my family has me a little melancholy is all. Here I am all alone, and they’re all gone now. It’s funny how things work out like that.”
“I heard you humming a tune when we walked up,” James said. “It seemed familiar, somehow.”
“That tune was a little song my mama used to sing in the evening, sometimes,” Jonas said. “She’d heard it as a young girl, and remembered it word for word. I can only remember a few of the words, but they comfort me, when I’m blue.”
“What words do you remember, Jonas?” Molly asked.
“Let me think,” Jonas said looking up at the stars. “I think they went something like this…”
“The silence of a falling star
Lights up a purple sky.
And as I wonder where you are
I'm so lonesome I could cry.”
Jonas had a very nice bass voice, and he smiled at the Colters when he finished.
“It’s so sad,” Molly said. “But if the words comfort you, Jonas, that’s all that matters.”
“Listen, Jonas,” James said. “We’re thinking about splitting up, and heading directly towards the mountains from here. We know you got your heart set on going back to the bunker. We figured it would be best if we go our own way from here.”
Molly thought she saw a steely glint of anger flash through Jonas’s eyes. There as momentary hardening of his lips, a furrowing of his brow, before he recovered from the surprise, and smiled a toothy grin at James.
“We don’t have to split up right away,” Jonas said still grinning. “We’re all headed west. I know this river runs through what used to be Texas and then turns north towards the mountains when it crosses over into New Mexico.”
“That might be the good way to go, Jonas,” James said. “But we think we’ll go our own way.”
There was silence for a period of time that approached, and then went past, awkward. Jonas was looking for a way out, and couldn’t find it.
“Well,” Jonas finally said with a smile. “If you think we should split up, we’ll split up. It’s just that you’re such a nice family. I do like being with nice families.”
***
Jonas was packed and headed out early the next morning. Luther and Jake trailed him until he cleared the ruins, and headed west. They returned as the Colters were loading the last of their supplies onto the pack ho
rses. Everyone was quiet, as they considered the loss of Jonas.
“I, for one, am glad he’s gone,” Shannon said. “We still have five hundred miles to go, and six weeks to reach the mountains.”
“Any idea Dalton, what kind of reception we’ll get from the Crow?” Molly asked.
“I’ve been thinking about that,” Dalton said. “I think the Crow tribes will help us find my mother’s people. Once we’re there, we’ll be safe.”
“You don’t seem all that sure,” James said.
“I’m not sure living with the Crow is a good idea,” Dalton said. “It seems to me, we’d be better off if we allied ourselves to the Crow, but lived separate. If we live with them, whenever the Crow engage in a skirmish or a battle, we’ll be expected to join in. If we’re just allied with them, we get to pick and choose our battles.”
“I don’t know,” Molly said. “What if we’re attacked? Isn’t there strength in numbers?”
“Sometimes, it’s the large group that ends up being the target,” Dalton said.
“I kind of like the idea of living apart,” James said. “It does let us pick our fights. Besides, we’re used to going our own way. I think we can secure a homestead and make it defensible. We can fortify our position as much as we want. It appeals to me.”
“I think Dalton and Dad are right,” Matthew said. “Besides, I’m tired of trying to explain the dogs to people.”
“Here we go again,” Molly said laughing. “James, life with you is certainly interesting.”
The group mounted and headed south around the ruins of Oklahoma City. The dogs stayed out on the flanks of riders, with Jake and Luther scouting ahead of them. The way was clear, and they made good time on the overgrown roads around the city.
When they reached the far side of the ruins, the Colters headed west by north. At one point Shannon thought she saw mountains in the distance, but they were only a low line of clouds on the horizon.
***
Several hours behind the Colters, Jonas rode at a leisurely pace. The Colters was easy to track and he was in no particular hurry. There was nowhere else he’d rather be. It had been a long time since he had found a family this nice. He’d wait for the women to be alone, before he made his move, just like always.