Wyatt tried to calm her down. She pushed him away, advancing towards Evan.
“Where is my daughter, you creep!”
Evan held up his hands. Bryan stepped in front of Evan, “Megan, I don't know what you are talking about. We don't know where your daughter is.”
“Liar!” she screamed the word.
Rosie touched Megan on the arm, “Hon, I don't think she's here.”
Megan looked at her, tears in her eyes. “Really? Then why is that here?” She pointed to the rifle on the wall.
Looking up, Wyatt stiffened when he saw the Crickett rifle with Caitlin’s initials. Stepping around Megan, Wyatt grabbed Evan by the shirt and pushed him into a wall.
“You better start talking real fast, man.”
Bryan grabbed Wyatt's shoulder, which resulted in Jack grabbing Bryan.
Sharon stepped into the barn waving a rifle, “Everyone put your hands down and keep them to yourselves.” When Wyatt refused to let go of Evan, she turned to point the gun at him. “Now.”
Her voice was firm and left no room for argument.
Wyatt let go of Evan and went back to Megan's side. The two groups ended up lining up facing each other. It was a standoff similar to what they had done that day on the hill.
Bryan spoke first. “We don't have your daughter. Why would we kidnap a little girl? We can barely feed the kids we have. The last thing we need is another mouth to feed.”
Evan jumped in to explain the gun. “I found it when we were out hunting. It was at the bottom of a steep hill in the meadow between our two camps.” Taking it down off the wall, he handed it to Megan who clutched it to her chest.
Megan and Wyatt looked at each other. The story was very plausible.
“It was covered in mud. I figured it had been out there for a while and would probably need to be taken apart and cleaned,” he explained. “I swear. I know what my brother did and I’m not him. I would never hurt a little girl,” Evan pleaded with Megan.
Megan believed him. Caitlin wasn't here. Looking at the gun she held, how could it be that her daughter felt so close, yet seemed so very far away?
Wyatt looked to her, silently asking her what she wanted to do next.
“She's not here. I'm sorry. I'm just so worried about her. She's been gone close to two weeks,” Megan explained to the people who seemed now very wary of her. “Since no one was paying attention, I decided to take a look around and when I saw her gun, I thought I’d finally found her.”
Sharon stepped forward and hugged her tight. “You poor thing. I can't imagine what you’re going through. Let's get you back to the cabin and we will let you rest that ankle.” She turned to Rosie, “Would you like to go with me and help get her settled?”
Rosie smiled stepping forward. “She makes the worst patient.”
“Uh, she's right here and I am not a patient. I'm fine. Really,” Megan responded looking at the two women in frustration.”
“Okay, dear. Wyatt, help us get her back down there without her falling on her face,” Rosie ordered.
“Hey,” Megan protested. “It wasn't me who fell on my face. It was him,” she poked Wyatt in the side.
Wyatt grunted. “Stop it. You have done enough for one day. Can we please get you somewhere you don't move for at least five minutes? I need a break.”
Megan stared at him seeing the anger roll off him. Anger directed at her. Deciding it was best to say nothing, she nodded her head curtly.
Between Wyatt and Rosie, they managed to get Megan back to the cabin where Evan was staying. It was clearly an old hunter's cabin and not meant for actual permanent residency. It was maybe the size of a shed. Megan estimated that it was maybe two hundred square feet. The single room had nothing more than an old chair, a bed and a small countertop inside.
Her opinion of Evan and the rest of the people at the camp changed. They didn't have Caitlin. They weren't intent on revenge, which explained why they hadn't seen them all summer. She was convinced they were good people doing what they could to get by. On the way down, Wyatt chatted with Evan about the larger cabin that was being built.
“We lucked out on finding lumber, so we’ve been using that to build but we’ve yet to put the roof on. None of us here has any construction experience and we’re stuck on how to build it so it won’t collapse under the weight of the snow.”
She caught Jack and Wyatt exchanging a look. She could already see their wheels turning. “Maybe we can help you there,” Wyatt offered. “My brother is a whiz at design and we can probably draw up a plan to show you how.”
Evan stopped to look at them. “You would do that?” he asked, his surprise evident in his tone. “Yes, yes, we accept.” He laughed clapping Wyatt on the back. “I can’t even begin to tell you how helpful that would be.”
Megan couldn't imagine leaving them alone to suffer all winter. She worried about the children. They needed a sturdy roof over their heads and a warm place to sleep.
Rosie and Sharon sat with Megan while she elevated her foot. She didn't want to admit how bad it hurt when she had twisted it in the barn. She had overdone it walking all the way over here and with the added injury, her foot was throbbing in complaint.
Wyatt knocked on the door of the cabin. When Sharon invited him in, he sat on the bed next to Megan.
“You aren't doing so hot, huh?”
Megan shrugged, “I'll be okay. I can make it back.”
Wyatt grabbed her hand “It's raining. Evan and Bryan have invited us to stay overnight. You can rest your ankle and we won't risk catching pneumonia or injuring ourselves trying to get back in this rain.”
Megan raised an eyebrow, “Really?”
He smiled. “Is this okay with you, Sharon?”
Sharon stood up from the single chair in the room, “It isn't as if we get company too often. At least the kind that isn’t trying to steal from us or kill us.” Moving toward the door, “I'll head to the pantry and see what I can find for dinner.”
Rosie perked up when she heard that. “Would it be okay if I joined you? With the extra mouths to feed, I’m sure you could use a bit of help with the work.”
Sharon smiled, holding the cabin door open. “We are always in need of help around here. I appreciate the offer.”
“And thank you so much for hosting us.”
The two women left chatting as if they were old friends. Megan shook her head as they walked out the door. Apparently, group matriarchs were the same all over.
Once the women were gone, Wyatt and Megan sat alone in the cabin, neither speaking. Unable to take the silence, Megan spoke up.
“We're staying the night here?” She couldn’t keep the nervousness out of her voice. It wasn’t as though she’d been nice to them.
“I think it will be okay. I don't think anyone is going to be murdering us in our sleep,” Wyatt assured her. “We will be in a tent, though.”
Megan crinkled her nose, “That'll be fun.”
He shrugged, “Well, better than sleeping under a tree. It's already late and with the overcast sky, it’s going to be dark much sooner than normal.”
“So, what do you think?”
She knew Wyatt would understand what she was referring to. “I think they are basically just like us. Evan is nothing like Kyle and Bryan is actually a decent guy. I'm not sure of the dynamics of this group, but I did meet a couple of other guys. There is a woman with two kids around as well. I guess they picked her up on their travels north.”
Megan thought about what he said. If they were willing to take in survivors, they couldn't be all bad.
“After Kyle was killed, quite a few of the guys left. Evan and Bryan said they were not the kind of people they wanted to live with and they were glad when they decided to move on.”
“Well, if they were anything like Kyle, I can understand that.” Reaching her hand out for him, she grasped it, holding it tight. “Wyatt, where could she be? I was so sure that she was here and now…I’m lost without her.”
Wyatt dipped his head down to kiss her on the forehead, “I don't know, but we won’t stop looking. They mentioned that they trade with others, so I’ll find out who else is on this mountain and if they’ve seen any little girls around in the other groups. I have to say, it's kind of weird no one has come to the lodge to trade.”
Megan laughed, “Well, we did kill one of their people, even if he did deserve it so, it isn’t as though we rolled out the welcome wagon for them. Maybe they warned others away.”
Wyatt agreed. “That’s true and it’s probably for the best. If we want to start bartering, we will go to them. That way, we can avoid having people stop by for a visit. It's too risky.”
“Definitely. Will you help me go to wherever it is everyone else is? I don't want to be in here alone. It feels weird and I want to be with you when you talk with the others.”
Wyatt stood and helped her to a standing position. He waited while she took a few deep breaths. The rush of blood to her ankle took her breath away. .
“They have a gazebo-type thing where they all gather behind that new cabin so we didn't see it when we came in. I'll help you over there.”
He half carried her to the gazebo, which had been haphazardly covered with wood to serve as a windbreak. The cabin that was being built blocked the wind on the other side. It wasn't exactly a cozy spot and she couldn't imagine trying to eat a meal out there when it was snowing.
Megan was impressed by the large outdoor wood-fired oven that had been built under the gazebo. It was a really good idea and she was going to talk to Wyatt about building one back at the lodge. An oven to cook in would be amazing.
She studied the construction to see how it was made. They had used cinder blocks to create a box on the bottom. From her perch on the bench, she could see red bricks lined along the inside of the box. She knew from friends who’d had an outdoor pizza oven that the red bricks were called firebricks. The cinder blocks would crack in the heat but the firebricks would keep them from overheating and the oven from collapsing.
A small fire was burning in the cinder box below. On top of the box, more bricks were used to create the oven. There was a crude door on the front that looked to be some sort of metal. It wasn't the prettiest outdoor oven but she imagined it made cooking casseroles, breads, and even cakes a lot easier.
The warmth from the fire and the heated bricks helped take the chill off. It was a lot like having a patio heater. Now she understood how they managed to eat meals in the gazebo.
The woman she had seen earlier came over and introduced herself as Tara. Her two children were Amy and Donavan. They chatted for a few minutes before the young woman left to go take care of chores.
Megan sat at the picnic table by herself with her bad leg stretched out across the bench. She watched as Wyatt and Jack spoke with Bryan. She could tell they were talking about the roof on the new cabin by the hand gestures. Jack had become an excellent builder over the past few months and Willow had told her that he enjoyed the challenge.
She was content to watch everyone for the next hour. Every once in a while, someone would come over and introduce themselves. They were actually very nice people who’d been hit just as hard or possibly harder, than her group had. At least with Wyatt’s group, they’d been prepping in anticipation of something bad happening. These guys had been forced to make do without any sort of advantage.
The smell of baking bread made her stomach growl. She was thrilled to know there was real, yeast bread in that oven. She hoped they planned on sharing.
Megan was a little sad they lived so far away from the lodge. She could imagine becoming good friends with Tara and Amy was a year younger than Caitlin. They could have sleepovers and have some sort of a normal life.
Rosie and Sharon were chatting near the other large fire pit in the center of camp. There was a large pot sitting on a grate over the fire and every so often, a whiff of herbs and spices floated over. Megan was really hungry now.
Rosie carried the large pot of bean soup to the table while Sharon opened the oven and pulled out two loaves of bread that had been baking. They were big and fluffy. Megan was going to make a point to ask if they could trade some of what they had for a little bit of yeast.
Before the meal started, Evan stood up.
“I want to thank you for helping us out with the roof situation,” he started looking at Jack and Wyatt. “And thank you, Rosie, for helping prepare this meal. We haven't had a lot of variety and any new dish is always welcome. I know you didn't come here with the intention of breaking bread and you have every right to hate us but I'm glad you’re here.”
Everyone in Evan's group looked a little embarrassed. Even guilty.
Evan started to speak again, “On behalf of everyone here, I want to say I'm sorry. Kyle was my brother, but he was always, well, for lack of a better word, a bad egg. He distanced himself from my family years ago. My parents hated that he became the man he was.”
Megan believed him. She could tell Wyatt did as well.
“I was a little out of my head that day,” Evan started again. “I have no desire to exact revenge. Quite frankly, you did us all a favor. We probably would be dead by now if my brother had lived. He didn't have our best interests in mind. He manipulated us and we were so desperate, we blindly followed.”
Evan sat down. Tara reached out and rubbed his back. It was then Megan realized they were a couple. Subtle, but she could see the emotion in Tara's eyes.
Wyatt stood, “Thank you and I am truly sorry the way that all went down. Thank you for your hospitality and the food we are about to eat. I hope we can continue to trade and lean on each other in the future.”
He sat down. There was silence for a few seconds before Bryan let out a loud whoop.
“Let's toast to new beginnings and a new roof!”
Sharon poured small bits of the moonshine they’d brought into everyone's cups. Once the toast was over, they all dug into the bean soup Rosie and Sharon had put together. Conversation began to pick up and once again, everyone was laughing as if they were old friends. Megan smiled as she was drawn into the conversations. She definitely could get used to this.
18
The conversation was easy and they all shared stories about how they were getting by. An older man, John, who appeared to be of Native American descent, held up an arrow tip. He explained they were prepared to use bows and arrows to hunt this winter in order to conserve their ammunition.
The man knew the art of flint knapping.
“You should see the stuff he’s made,” Evan said excitedly. “He has taken rocks and made them into ax heads, spearheads and arrowheads. We have been trying to depend on the old ways for hunting. So far, we’ve managed to catch some fish and other small game like grouse and rabbits by spearing them”
Wyatt was intrigued. He knew they had to think about archery as their main hunting method. They had a lot of ammunition but what if this was how they had to live for decades? They weren’t set up to reload their own ammunition. He wanted to make sure Ryland and Caitlin had what they needed when they grew up.
As they sat, eating, talking and having small sips of Albert's moonshine, a gust of wind tore through the gazebo. The tablecloth that had been spread out was caught in the wind and the bread went flying. Duke barked and ran for the bread.
“Oh my!” Sharon grabbed a rock and put it on the tablecloth. “I guess we're in for another storm.”
Duke found a quiet spot to enjoy the bread he had scavenged off the ground. He positioned himself in a way he could still watch the group, but wouldn't be disturbed.
Everyone sat back down and finished eating their meal. The wind gusted but the conversation was rolling along. Evan mentioned a group of guys that Wyatt and his family wanted to avoid at all costs.
“They call themselves The Raiders and they’re a destructive bunch; preferring to terrorize people and steal supplies than scavenge like the rest of us,” Evan told them.
“They have workin
g ATVs and they come out of nowhere,” Bryan added.
“Has anyone gotten hurt?” Jack asked. He flexed his hand as he sat there and Wyatt knew he was thinking about his wife and son.
“Not us, no,” Bryan answered. “But as you can see, we don’t have much to offer and that’s intentional. If we get too big, we’ll attract their attention and we have so little as it is.”
Megan looked around the area again. He was right. If she were raiding, this place didn't look like much at all and she wouldn't expect to gain anything.
“Are they armed?” Wyatt asked.
“To the teeth,” Evan answered.
A shiver ran down Megan's spine. Knowing there was a group of men roaming around the mountain, armed and dangerous made her very nervous. What if they had Caitlin?
“How have you managed to avoid them?” Jack asked next.
Evan shook his head, “Oh, we haven't avoided them, but we’ve done a very good job at looking destitute. When we see them coming, we hide the weapons. We have some secret caches. You'll forgive me if I don't tell you where they’re hidden.”
“Not a problem. I don't blame you at all,” Wyatt answered. “So, has anyone tried to track them down? Do they have a camp on the mountain?”
Bryan shrugged, “We honestly don't know. There is a group in town who are excellent trackers, but they’ve never been able to find The Raiders. Once they raid, they vanish. There are a lot of people who would really like them to disappear if you know what I mean. The Raiders don't have any friends around here.”
Megan was uneasy. How did you fight off an enemy you couldn't see and didn't know anything about?
Wyatt asked the question that Megan had been too afraid to ask. “Would they take a little girl?”
No one answered for several long moments.
“I honestly don't know,” Bryan finally said. “I can't imagine them taking care of a kid. They look like a bunch of militants. They wear camo and carry enough guns and ammunition to take on a small army. I can't see them wanting to deal with a kid. It would slow them down.”
EMP Lodge Series (Book 2): Dark Hunt Page 12