“What's in them and are they worth going back for?”
Both men quickly said yes in unison.
“I don't know, Wyatt. That is risky. We have a lot of work to do here and going all that way, risking our lives and leaving the lodge vulnerable...I don't like it,” Jack said.
“We are kind of desperate here, Jack. Any food and supplies we can get our hands on, we need to get. It is a small risk. We will leave enough people here to guard the place. With as many people as we have now, it is not a big deal if a few of us head back over there,” Wyatt reasoned.
Jack didn't look convinced, but nodded in agreement.
“Can we go tomorrow?” Wyatt asked.
“Sounds good to us. First light?” Jackson confirmed.
“Yep. Let's get as much done today as we can,” Wyatt said standing. “We are up against a tight timeline.”
The men all headed out to hand out the assignments for the day. Wyatt was going to have to tell Megan about their planned trip tomorrow. She was not going to be happy.
Wyatt headed inside. His mom and Tara had the venison laid out on the counter. There was a 10 pound bag of salt out as well.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
Tara was using a cup to pour salt over each piece of meat.
“Curing the meat. We didn't get that smoker built, so Tara is showing me how to cure meat with salt and a few of the dried herbs we have,” Rosie explained.
Once Tara poured the salt mixture over the meat, Rosie rubbed it in and then flipped it over. They repeated the process with each piece of meat.
“We cleared out an area in the shed, so don't be surprised if you go in there. We will be hanging the meat in there to dry,” she explained.
“Isn't that going to make it salty?” he asked, trying to understand how that could be healthy.
“Not as much as you would think,” Tara explained. “You could technically make a sandwich with it. We have sliced it pretty thin. The salt dries out the meat faster than if we just hang it out there. With the cool weather, we need it to dry fast enough that bacteria doesn't grow. The salt speeds it all up.”
“You have eaten cured ham,” Rosie told him. “It's basically the same thing. It may not be as fancy a cure recipe, but it will do.”
Wyatt was skeptical, but he was open to give it a try.
“Let me know when it's ready. I would like to taste it.”
Rosie laughed, “Oh you will most definitely be eating this young man. If I serve it, you will eat it.”
Wyatt had to laugh. It had been her rule in the house since he was a little kid. He should have known that his adulthood wouldn't change the rules.
Chapter Eighteen
Jack had no idea if it was going to work, but he figured it wasn't going to be a complete loss. If the log hewing didn't go as planned, they could still used the wood to burn.
He took a deep breath and swung the ax again. He had recruited Jackson and Evan to help him. Jack figured he should give them a hands-on demonstration on how to hew their own logs, but he had no idea if it would really work.
“Are you sure you know what you are doing?” Evan asked just as he was about to swing.
“No, I don't know what I am doing. You keep talking to me while I'm swinging an ax at me legs and I will chop one of them off.”
He was frustrated and on the verge of losing his cool. That's when he saw Megan walking towards them.
“What's up?” he asked, thankful for the interruption.
She smiled, “Not a thing. I just wanted to see you in action. Wyatt told me you were hewing logs. I've never seen it done before. Why are you doing it? Can't you just leave them round to build the longhouse?”
He sighed, “Yes, but imagine stacking blocks and then imagine stacking something like toilet paper rolls. It is easier to work with square pieces of lumber than the round logs. We can make beams for the roof a center support.”
She didn't look convinced.
“You could do that with the round logs as well.”
His frustration was returning.
“Why do you think the pioneers took the time and energy to hew logs? They did it because in the end, it provided them with a sturdy building and a few guys could do it versus trying to put different sized round logs on top of one another.”
“Okay, okay, I get it. You're right. Can I help?” she asked.
Jack knew Megan was very capable, but this work was extremely difficult. He looked at her face. She wanted to help. He groaned inside. She was truly like a pesky little sister always wanting to tag along with the boys.
“Fine. You can use that ax. There is a smaller log already set up. You are going to score the log first, which is basically making a V shape about every foot on the log. Like this,” he said picking up the ax and whacking it against the log he had started on.
The ax cut was about 2 inches deep. He swung again on the other side of his cut several more times.
“See the V shape?” he asked all three of his attentive pupils.
They all nodded.
“Okay, keep making these deep V's along the long.”
He swung the ax a few more times, deepening and widening the groove. Then he moved down the log a foot and started the process again.
“You guys do the V's down the length of your logs. When you're done, we'll move on to the next step,” he instructed.
None of them talked as they got busy swinging and chopping. Sweat dripped down Jack's brow. He could feel his shirt getting wet with sweat as well. The air was chilly, but the work was grueling. There was a cold breeze that whipped through every few minutes. He appreciated the cool down, but it drove him to keep pushing through the burning in his arms.
It wouldn't be long before that breeze turned into a biting northern wind. They had to get this building up. He was hoping the hewn logs were worth the time and effort. He felt like they would be, but one just never knew.
“Done,” Megan said breathlessly.
Jack looked over and checked that the entire length of the log had the cut grooves down the whole length.
He smiled, “That is pretty amazing, Megan. You surprise me a little more everyday.”
Megan beamed. She was obviously feeling pretty proud of herself as well.
Jackson and Evan finished their logs.
“Okay, now, you are going to chop the area between your Vs to make it all the same depth across the log,” Jack explained.
He quickly went to work showing them how to shave off the center piece between each of the grooves.
Megan, Evan and Jackson quickly got busy doing the same. The sound of chopping wood echoed across the area. It was a cathartic sound. It made Jack feel like he was really doing something useful and necessary. He was making a difference.
He finished his log and looked over to inspect Megan's. She was just finishing the last bit. Her face was red and he could see how much energy she was putting into her work. Not many woman would be excited to hew logs. She was certainly an enigma. Wyatt was one lucky man.
She was a little out of breath when she asked, “Now what?”
He smiled, “How about we take a minute to catch our breath and drink some water.”
“Fine, but I want to get this done.”
Jack shrugged, “You are just going to be repeating everything you just did on the other three sides.”
Megan groaned, “Ugh, for some reason I thought we only needed one side.”
He laughed, “That would be an awkward beam. Probably not real effective either,” he winked at her.
“Shut up.”
They were all just finishing the last side of their logs when Wyatt walked up to their little log hewing party.
“Wow, you guys have been busy,” he said with admiration in his voice.
Megan used her forearm to wipe her brow, “Yeah. This is not an easy job.”
“Is this all we need to do, Jack?” Evan asked.
Jack smiled. It probably looked like a
n evil smile to the three that he had been pushing so hard.
“Actually, not quite. It isn't as important as the actual hewing, but we need to just run the ax head down the length on all 4 sides to kind of smooth it out. It doesn't need to be perfect, but we want them fairly flat so they will lay flush on one another.”
A collective groan.
Wyatt shook his head, “I think you are enjoying this a little too much.”
Jack laughed, but didn't deny it.
“So, I talked with Chase and got everything squared away for tomorrow,” Wyatt said, directing the statement at Jack as well as Evan and Jackson.
“What?” Megan asked, stopping her work.
Jack grimaced. Wyatt hadn't told her. He knew she was not going to be happy. She would want to go along. Jack was with Wyatt on this one. It was too dangerous. He didn't want to see her get hurt or worse.
“Uh, we, well, they,” Wyatt stammered, gesturing to Jackson and Evan, “they, uh, have some stuff hidden at their cabin. We are going to get it.”
She held her ax at her side, put her free hand on her hip and tapped her foot while glaring. Jack was always amazed at how women had perfected the “I'm going to skin you alive” stance.
Jack grinned. He loved watching Wyatt getting in trouble. Always had, even when they were little. Wyatt was a bit of a golden boy. It was good to see him be human every now and again.
“Megan, it is best if you stay here. It's too danger--,” Wyatt stopped when Megan lifted her ax.
She used the ax to gesture at him, “I know you weren't going to say too dangerous, Wyatt Morris. You know darn well I have been doing nothing but dangerous for months. I'm still alive.”
Jack thought about helping Wyatt out, but figured he had his own battle ahead with Willow. Big brother was on his own.
“Megan, that's not what I meant. Chase wants you here. He is counting on you to keep an eye on things here while he is out on the property with Albert.”
Jack watched Evan and Jackson's reaction. They all knew Wyatt was saying they didn't trust the newcomers and wanted to keep an eye on them.
Jackson looked at Jack, then Wyatt, “It's cool. We understand. We would do the same thing.”
Megan ignored Wyatt and went back to using the ax to smooth out the beam she had created.
Jack and Wyatt exchanged a look. They both knew she was not happy. Jack decided he would talk to her before they went in for the night. Hopefully she would listen to reason and understand why it was best for her to stay behind.
He was very fond of her and certainly didn't want her angry or hurt by his decisions.
Chapter Nineteen
They broke through the trees. Wyatt kept expecting to see the gazebo and the new cabin they had built. There was nothing but piles of smoldering rubble. He stared at the scene before him.
Jack stood beside him, “Oh my God.”
Wyatt turned to Jackson and Evan. Both of the men looked stricken.
Their camp was absolutely destroyed. There was literally nothing left standing. Now, Wyatt understood why they had made the journey to the lodge. They didn't have any other options.
“Let's go. I don't want to be here a minute longer than we have to,” Evan stated moving to the tree line that shielded the main cabin.
Wyatt braced himself. They had said the cabin had been destroyed as well.
Again, the sight as he broke through the trees was far worse than he could have ever imagined. He felt as if he had been punched in the stomach.
There were clothes strewn about among the charred pieces of lumber. They had clearly looted the cabin before they burned it to the ground. The trees around the cabin were scorched. It was a miracle they hadn't started a forest fire.
Wyatt's sight focused on four small crosses in the middle of the scrap pile. It suddenly felt hard to breathe. He couldn't catch his breath as he imagined this same scene unfolding at the lodge. He imagined the screams of terror.
That little girl, Amy, had already seen so much. She tended to be very quiet and shy. After seeing something like this, he couldn't imagine how she would every smile again. The blank stares and the reserved emotions from the newcomers all made sense.
They all had to have PTSD. One didn't come through something this horrible and not suffer any kind of mental trauma. Wyatt decided he was going to be a lot more patient with the people back at the lodge. They needed compassion and understanding right now. Not his distrust and scrutiny.
Jack put a hand on his shoulder, “We won't let this happen at the lodge.”
Wyatt nodded, inhaling through his nose. The dead were buried, but in his mind he could smell the death. It was a scene he had heard, smelled and been through more than once during his time in the service. He never thought he would see it right here at home.
“Let's get the stuff,” Jackson said. He walked further up the hill, behind the area the large cabin once stood. He was looking at the trees and then the ground. Wyatt assumed he was looking for a marker.
“Here. You two start digging here. I'll find the next area.”
They worked fast and uncovered all four of the buried caches of food, medicine and a few guns. Every gun they could get their hands on would make it a little easier to defend themselves against McDaniels. After seeing the devastation, he understood what Evan and Jackson meant when they said the man was unhinged.
There was no rhyme or reason to what he had done here. The man was an idiot as far as Wyatt was concerned. The cabins could have been used by his men. There was just no reasoning behind burning perfectly good homes to the ground.
“I think we're done here. Let's head back,” Jackson said.
Wyatt imagined he wanted to get away from the place that held such bad memories.
“I'm real sorry about what happened here,” he started. “I want you to know you and your people are welcome at the lodge. I know things were a little rough yesterday, but we'll make it work.”
Evan looked over the area, shaking his head, “Such a waste. It was all so pointless. They got very little. They are bad, bad men. We can't live in fear. We have to do something.”
Jackson ran a hand over his face, “We can't live like they aren't going to find your home, Wyatt. I can guarantee they won't stop looking until they do find it. We won't be safe until every last one of them is killed.”
“We can't wage war against an enemy we can't find,” Jack said.
Wyatt looked around again, “I guess we better find them before they find us.”
The men left the camp and walked at a fast pace. After seeing the ruins of the camp, there was a sense of urgency to get home.
****
The lone figure watched as the men dug up the sealed cases. He knew there had to have been more. McDaniels should have listened. He waited and watched as they divided up the bags of jerky, medicines and the guns. They needed those weapons.
He followed the men as they walked at breakneck speed through the forest. They had clearly traveled this route more than once. Keeping his distance as to not be detected, he left small markers to help him find his way back.
The sun was setting. If they didn't get to where they were going quick, it would be hard to follow them through the dark forest without them noticing. Just when he thought he was going to have to give up and go back, they crossed a small stream. Voices from above greeted them.
They had watchers in the trees. Good to know. He wasn't going to get across the stream without them noticing. He decided to go upstream and then try to cross. By the time the large lodge came into view, the sun was almost down. He could see men milling about talking and inspecting what appeared to be the start of another cabin.
A beautiful woman came out of the house. She walked slowly to one of the men that had been at the burned out cabin. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him. That was yet another piece of information that would come in handy.
It was easy to bring a man to his knees when the woman he loved was threatened.
Chapter Twenty
Megan leaned against the pillows propped against the headboard. It felt good to sit and relax. Wyatt laid next to her, reading an old Western novel he had found on the bookshelf. It had been a busy day for them both. They had decided to retire to the privacy of their room earlier than normal. With so many people milling about, it was hard to really relax.
“You think we should go out again tomorrow?” she asked, carefully pulling the needle through the old baseball skin.
He shrugged, “Probably. One deer isn't going to last long.”
Their hunting trip had been a success. Megan was excited to give the bow another shot tomorrow. She had missed today, but Garrett had managed to take one. He had given her plenty of pointers on how to properly aim the arrow slightly upwards before releasing the string.
Tomorrow was going to be the day she got her own deer with the bow.
“You think that's going to work?” he said referring to the ball she was attempting to make.
“I don't know yet. It won't be as hard as a softball, but it will be okay, I think. Probably better for the kids anyways.”
She pushed another old rag into the opening of her old softball skin. She was hoping the ball would be durable enough to hold up to a wooden bat.
“Caitlin really wants her own ball. This is my lucky skin. I had always planned on giving it to her one day. Now she can have it on her very own ball.”
She continued to stitch around the opening. The silence was truly golden. She loved that they could just sit in silence.
With all the extra help the past few days, the workload was much easier to handle. The stash of dried beans, jerky and other food the men had brought back had provided a nice cushion. Megan didn't feel nearly as worried as she had just a few days ago.
This was really going to work. She had been hesitant, but it wasn't as bad as she had thought. Rosie had been taking the kids into the forest and foraging for any remaining berries. Willow was making jam with the berries, which she declared would be absolutely delicious on all the biscuits they would be feasting on throughout the winter.
EMP Lodge Series (Book 3): Dark Defiance Page 9