The Freezer (Genesis Endeavor Book 1)
Page 46
Something Marcus said stuck in Jack’s mind, and he frowned. “Wait, you said ‘she’. Who are you talking about? The computer?”
Marcus smiled. “I will tell you all about it another day, Jack. I thank you for trusting me through this. It was a big leap of faith for you, and I wasn’t totally sure you would be able to do your part. I trust you had Chin run that last program?”
Jack nodded and said, “Yes, he ran it minutes after the aircraft went down. Did we get the evidence we needed to expose the traitor?”
Marcus shrugged, “I don’t know. I had the data sent directly to Caleb so there would be no question it was authentic. Either Theodore is in there trying to take my job, or Caleb is arresting him for treason.” He turned to the other men. “Anyone want to go find out?”
Chuck nodded and Tiny stood up from the seat next to Chin. The huge man was anxious to get his hands on Theodore. Jack let go of Wendy long enough to pat Marcus on the shoulder. “I think I’m going to let you guys handle this one. I’m just a guy running a simple operation here. I’ll leave the politics to you, for now. I’ll be in my room if anyone needs me.”
Marcus nodded and headed to the rail car, Chuck and Tiny close behind. Jack called after them, “Tiny, I expect you’ll be ready to go with your team by tomorrow morning?”
“Hell yes, Mad Dawg!” The reply was like thunder, echoing in the huge room.
“Good, we’re heading to the Freezer tomorrow afternoon!”
Epilogue
Consciousness seeped into Jack’s mind, and slowly he became aware of a soft light in the room. For a moment he was suspended part way between dreams and reality, but he was at ease in either place, and let himself just wake up. With one eye half open, he focused on the ceiling above him. He had learned to identify what apartment he was in by the color of the ceiling, it kept him from feeling disoriented. He smiled at the beige color, and reached over to Wendy’s side of the bed, hoping to cuddle up and catch a little more sleep. He only found air.
That was a shame; he really enjoyed those extra few minutes when he got them. He closed his eyes anyway, comfortable enough to fall back asleep. He was pretty sure he had been dreaming about Wendy, reliving the night he told her he loved her. It seemed like a year ago, but in reality only a couple weeks had passed, and only a few weeks since he had been reborn. His eyes opened back up, today was the start of a new week, and it should prove to be another great day.
Pushing the covers off to the side, he slid his feet onto the floor. The chill of the cold concrete made him wince, and he probed the floor with his toes, looking for his slippers. When he couldn’t locate them, he resigned himself to the cold and planted his feet with a grimace.
As he stretched, he heard the unmistakable clang of pans being moved around in the kitchen. He stood up and stretched again, then grabbed his robe. Some mornings she would be off to work long before he made it out of bed, and he was happy she was still home. While tying the belt around his waist, a scent made it to his nose that he hadn’t smelled in what seemed like ages. Bacon? He had to investigate.
Wendy was standing in front of the small grill, four strips of bacon and two eggs, sizzling in the pan in front of her. He looked around, briefly wondering if he hadn’t just fallen back asleep and was still dreaming. “Where the hell did you get that?”
She turned and smiled, “The group of farmers we picked up in Idaho last week had six pigs.”
Jack frowned. “You didn’t...”
“No, silly. They were pretty happy when they found out Farnak’s clan was only a couple miles away, heading straight toward them. After we evacuated them, they gave me a whole pig and a bag of potatoes as a thank you for saving them. I took the pig to Bart’s place in return for giving us the heads up on the farmers’ location and the activities of his brother. He butchered it and gave me two pounds of bacon. Then, when we were in Deering the other day, I spent some time at their market and traded a little bacon and some potatoes for some corn and fresh eggs. I figured today was special enough to warrant a healthy breakfast.”
“Well it smells wonderful.” Jack put his arms around her and kissed her neck as she cooked. “Have I told you that I really love you?”
She smiled and leaned into his embrace. “What’s not to love?”
He chuckled and kissed her neck again, then said, “I’m going to shower and get dressed.”
“Okay, this’ll be ready in a few more minutes, so don’t take too long.” He made his way to the bathroom.
As the hot water washed over his body, he reflected on the past two weeks. The Montana operation had gone off without a hitch. They had successfully harvested nearly fifteen hundred potential candidates from the Freezer, and gotten them safely into the new storage rooms. Cali had a few aircraft observing at the fringes of the sensor network, but after losing seven aircraft the day before, they were not willing to risk any more.
Red had talked when faced with the death penalty, and let Marcus know every detail of Theodore’s plan. Red and his five men were all in jail with Theodore, awaiting an official trial, which is scheduled for after the election.
William surprised everyone by entering the race. He had a small loyal following, and started building steam right away. However, as soon as Marcus announced publicly that Jack was his choice for the new leader, it became obvious William would have little chance. With Theodore out of the running, Jack was relieved someone else was putting himself up as a candidate. He didn’t want to win uncontested, and he suspected that William was actually in the race for that exact reason.
Once New Hope’s wealth was secure, Marcus used the remaining two weeks of his reign to open relations with the other communities – with the exception of Cali, of course. It would be a while before Cali and New Hope were on speaking terms, let alone open to trading. Jack had met personally with two community leaders so far, and after the election, negotiations to cement their relationships would be a primary task. There was much work to do, and many challenges ahead, but right now, mere hours before the election, Jack felt very much at ease.
He was just about to get out of the shower when he heard an awful sound. He pulled the curtain back and there was Wendy, vomiting in the toilet. “My God! Are you okay?” He shut the shower off and wrapped a towel around his waist.
She stood up and wiped her mouth. “I don’t know what that was all about. I ate a piece of bacon and a few seconds later I was rushing in here to puke!”
They both stood there for a moment, and a smile made its way to Jack’s face, as the exact opposite made its way to Wendy’s. “Honey, that’s morning sickness. You know what that means?”
She had gone pale. “Yes, Goddammit! I know what it means.” Jack knew she was happy deep down, but also that she wasn’t looking forward to her life changing so dramatically.
He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a gentle hug, conscious now of the child growing inside her. “Wendy, you’re going to make a great mom, trust me.”
She returned the hug and now tears were flowing. She looked up at him and said, “I know, I’m just disappointed that I can’t have any of the bacon. It was so good!”
* * *
Later that evening, Jack sat in their new apartment. It was on the sixth level with the other former council member’s private quarters. Wendy was in the kitchen, organizing and cleaning. Nobody had ever lived in this apartment before, and it was dusty. He had tried to get her to just sit with him, but she was restless, and he suspected her nesting instincts were kicking in.
The election had gone exactly as expected; in fact the celebration was still going on. They had a lot to celebrate, but Jack was exhausted, so he and Wendy had snuck out of the party and went to check out their new home.
The apartment was about as luxurious as you could get in an underground bunker. This one was designed for a family of six, with four total bedrooms. He looked forward to filling it.
Sipping a glass of wine, a gift from Marcus that had been waiting
for them when they arrived at the new apartment, he picked up his diary and opened it to the last page. In the past two weeks he had taken the time to read whenever he got a chance, mostly when he was traveling.
The diary had detailed out his final year before dying. He was a little disappointed that he didn’t remember meeting some of the people he talked about in the diary, but all in all, he was satisfied to know how he had lived his last year. He read the last page:
A year ago I sat in my garage, reflecting on how my life seemed to always balance itself out. I recalled each difficult time in my life, and how it always led to something wonderful, hence the balance. There was one exception: the passing of my wife and daughter.
Over the past year, I have often wondered if something really wonderful would happen to balance both the loss of my family and the cancer that is going to claim my life. I was never a very religious man, but I do believe in heaven, and I truly hope that soon I will be able to rejoin my family there. I suppose if that is the case, I will no longer have to wonder. Before my diagnosis, I had nothing. This disease has brought me closer to Mabel, closer to my good friend Phil, and has added many wonderful people to my life who I never would have met otherwise. Soon I will get to be with my wife and child again, and I can’t think of a better gift. I finally have my balance.
This is the last page, and my story is at an end. The doctors tell me they have exhausted all their efforts, and the cancer is growing again. I’ve accepted that I only have a few more weeks on earth. However, I can’t help but feel like I left something unfinished, and I wish I had a little more time to discover what it is. I don’t know if I fulfilled my purpose on earth, but I believe I tried my best. Whatever my future holds, I only hope I can continue to make the most of it.
Jack set the book down. He had decided shortly after being reborn that while he shared the memories of his former self, he was not the same person. That person had died, and hopefully his soul was with his family now. He had a new family, a new life, and he felt he was now fulfilling the destiny that had eluded him in his former life. Whatever the case might be, he knew that the tragedies he had suffered had led him here, and that was a pretty wonderful thing. He set down the wine, got up, and walked to the kitchen to be with Wendy.
Table of Contents
Part One
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Part Two
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Part Three
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Part Four
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Epilogue
Dramatis Personae
Jack Taggart – Main character of the story.
Bill Callun – Jack’s doctor (1966)
Jennifer Taggart – Jack’s Wife (died, Jan 1964)
Allissa Mae Taggart – Jack’s Daughter (Died, Jan 1964)
Mabel Williams – Jack’s mother-in-law
Phil Norland – Jack’s boss
Wendy Roberts – New Hope pilot/mechanic, reborn
Chuck – New Hope soldier, reborn, Friend of Jack
Emmet Johnson – New Hope soldier, reborn
Teague – New Hope doctor, member of council
Marcus – New Hope leader, head of council
Theodore Bishop– New Hope council member
Caleb – New Hope council member
William – New Hope council member
Heather – New Hope soldier, reborn
Thomas Parker – New Hope officer, reborn
Red – New Hope officer, native
Jessica Fironia – New Hope child, native
Ezekial “Tiny” – New Hope soldier, reborn
Frances “Chin” – New Hope soldier, native
Gabriel “Slick” – New Hope soldier, reborn
Cathy “Cat” – New Hope citizen, Chin’s grandmother
Wayne – New Hope soldier, reborn
Gregory – New Hope soldier, reborn
Anton – New Hope soldier, reborn
Kenny – New Hope soldier, reborn
Jason – New Hope soldier, reborn
George – New Hope salvager, native
Nicholas “Nick”– New Hope maintenance, native
Bruce L. Kensington – New Hope soldier, reborn
Scott – New Hope engineer, reborn
Joshua – Cali leader
Farnak – Mute clan leader (Northeast Idaho)
Bartholomew “Bart” – Mute outcast, Farnak’s brother
Tanner – Mute general
Ungo – Mute soldier
Gratch – Mute soldier
About the Author
David Kersten was born in Minnesota but spent most of his life in Montana. An IT Manager for his family's business, David enjoys just about anything having to do with technology. He also enjoys creating things, whether it involves writing fiction, writing software, woodworking, carpentry, or electronics. As an avid reader since the age of 11, one of his long term goals was to try his hand at writing, and as with everything, when he dove into it, he submerged himself for many months. Although he enjoys many different fiction genres, his first novel, "The Freezer", is set in his favorite genre, Post-Apocalyptic Fiction, and is a proud accomplishment for him.
When David isn't writing or working in his shop, he can be found spending time with his 3 children, sitting at a computer playing games, enjoying a good television show or movie, or out with friends at the bowling alley or favorite bar.
He intends to continue writing novels and is currently working on a sequel to his first book. If you have any questions or comments for David, you can email him at thefreezer@davidakersten.com.
Acknowledgments
Throughout my life, many of the books I read influenced my own writing in some way. Although I know none of them personally, here are a few authors I wish to acknowledge as influences specific to this book.
First and foremost would be Larry Niven, whose books such as “Lucifer’s Hammer” and “Footfall” (both of which he co-wrote with Jerry Pournelle) hooked me into both Science Fiction and the Post-Apocalyptic Fiction genre. But it was Mr. Niven’s ability to use fictional technologies to build a realistic futuristic universe that truly captured my imagination. I borrowed on some of those technologies to create my own world, including his frictionless surfaces. In fact, I liked his frictionless toilets so much (from his book, The Mote in God's Eye) I had to use the idea. Mr. Niven may not be the sole inventor of believable futuristic technologies, but his books served as my earliest examples.
Another big influence came from author Stuart Woods, whose characters are fun to read, always get a lot of sex, and always come out on top, even if they don’t come out completely unscathed. Because of his books, I wanted a hero who everyone wanted to be, or be with.
John Sandford’s books taught me how much I like a character to be developed, even if that character gets killed right away. Little details about their personality are what make them real to me, and I tried to emulate that in my own characters.
Epic Fantasy authors like David Eddings, George R. R. Martin, Terry Good
kind, and Terry Brooks all got me hooked on stories that could just go on and on. Half the fun of writing a book is creating the world in which the stories take place. Without these authors as inspiration, my own world would have been a lot more boring.
No book would be complete without a shout out to the author’s supporters, and for me that would be my family. My brother who got me started reading when I was 11 years old, my mother who I inherited my love of reading from, and all my family and friends who told me they loved my book, even if they maybe didn’t. I couldn’t have finished it without them.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Dramatis Personae
Start Reading
About the Author
Acknowledgments
Part One
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Part Two
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Part Three
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32