by J. R. Tate
Darryl sat beside him and put on his own mud. Ryan tried not to harp on the wheezing but it worried him. “I’d ask how the wound looks but you probably wouldn’t be honest about it.”
Ryan scoffed and looked down at a trail of ants at his feet. “Just like you’re denying the wheezing. I guess we all tend to do that, don’t we?”
“You think you’ll be okay to get to Fox Lake?”
“Gonna have to be. It’s Cecilia’s parents. Just like with the tornadoes, it feels like some force is trying to keep us away.”
Darryl finished putting on the mud and laid back, looking up at the sky. “Getting back to Harper Springs is what concerns me.”
“Me too. I will say this much. This whole situation has taught me something.”
Darryl opened his eyes and nodded for Ryan to continue.
“To take things one step at a time. Right now we gotta find them. There’s a million other things to think about but this is where we are right now. I wonder how Steve is doing back in town. Is he getting the crops going? Is Chief Rayburn finding more victims? And Cecilia and Ty – how’s he recovering from his surgery? How is Cecilia handling it all by herself? There is so much to get done but finding her folks is the mission at hand.” It felt like they were in an action movie. Mission and apocalypse – words he never imagined he’d have to use in real life.
“Teach me how to do that. Many people never accomplish that talent.”
“I don’t know if I’m accomplishing it or just really good at hiding the fact that my mind is running in a million different directions.” Ryan watched Doug dive under the water. Maybe they’d be able to come together and be a team.
“Probably a little of both, Ryan. You’re a better man than I ever was and I admire that about you.”
“Listen, Dad, I know we’ve had our rocky moments, but...” Ryan stopped himself when Doug swam up to the bank and got out. A ruined chance at trying to rekindle things with his father. Things were getting better due to the situation they were forced into but the tension was still palpable.
Darryl caught onto the interruption and arched his eyebrow. “To be continued, Ryan. I hear you.” Winking, Darryl stood up and coughed a few more times. “We better get moving. Without the horses, it’s going to take even longer and we don’t have much time to waste.”
Even though Ryan wasn’t able to say what he wanted, it was a productive chat and it rejuvenated him. Cleaning up his supplies, he caught up with Darryl and Doug as they continued north toward Fox Lake. They wouldn’t get there by late afternoon as projected but at least they were getting back on track and they were alive.
Taking things as they came was something Ryan felt like he was mastering. The next thing he needed to work on was being positive like Cecilia was. Considering the deep hole they were in, it was going to be one of the biggest challenges he’d ever face.
Chapter Thirteen
Steve was excited to get back to Harper Springs. He rigged up a way to drag the wheelbarrow behind the horse and was able to tote the bags of seed and would have to go back to get the plow. He was greeted by Chief Rayburn and two other men.
“What were you able to find?”
“Corn and a little bit of cotton. The cotton isn’t much but I’m more excited about this.” He motioned behind the horse and slid off, helping Mindy down. “Wheelbarrow, seed, and there’s still a few things back at the gin that we can use. There is a really old plow that we can fix up. It’s ancient but hell, to me, it’s like looking at a fancy tractor.”
“I’ll send a couple of my guys to get it.”
“I don’t mind going,” Steve replied.
“You can stay here and take a break. When they get back with the plow, it’s probably best we get started. We’ve wasted several days now and I know you have noticed that the ground is already starting to dry up. The river level is down, which means the lake is soon after.”
Steve nodded. “Yeah. And we don’t really have a way to move water for irrigation.”
“We are trying to come up with a way to make a hydraulic pump that doesn’t use water but without normal supplies, it’s not really working. For the time being, we’ll have to fill buckets up and do it the old-fashioned way. The wheelbarrow you found will come in handy with hauling water back and forth.”
“And where are we getting buckets?” Steve asked. Day to day items were hard to come by now. When he’d come up with an idea on how to do something, the problem was finding supplies to get it made up.
“We found a couple at the firehouse that managed to survive. We can even haul water in the wheelbarrow. It looks like it’ll hold several gallons. Listen, Steve, it isn’t gonna be pretty, but we gotta do what we gotta do. I’ve looked over our food down in the shelter. It’s not looking good. Once that’s gone, that’s it.” Chief Rayburn spread his hands and bit his bottom lip as he looked at the ground. “Corn is a good start. It grows fast but takes a lot of water. That’s the big issue with it.”
Steve ran his boot over the top layer of the dirt. It was dry but the deeper he got, he found moisture. “The topsoil is in bad shape but just a few inches below looks good. Plowing up the wet stuff will help kick start the growth.”
“What about other vegetables? You find anything else?”
“Nothing, but I haven’t really had a chance to explore. We went straight to the gin this morning and found this stuff. Darryl Gibson mentioned volunteer plants he had around his place. If we’re careful, we can transplant them closer to town so we can make sure animals don’t tear into them.”
“Did he say what all would grow out at his place?”
Steve shook his head. “No, sir. I’m hoping the tornadoes didn’t completely tear up any sign of plants coming in. The grass is growing, so that’s a good sign. Even if I can just get the seeds off of a few things we can be in good shape. Tomatoes, peppers, and onions are easy to plant if we have an original one to work with. Everything was pretty much blown around from the tornadoes so seedlings should be all over the place. If we all cover different areas, we might be able to come across a variety of things.”
“Okay. We also have the issue of hunting. At least with the onset of the drought, animals are going to come around looking for food and water. The only issue is killing several at a time. No place to store the leftovers.”
“Could always salt cure things. The issue is, where the hell are we going to get big amounts of salt from to take care of it?”
Chief Rayburn’s eyes widened and for the first time since Steve had met him, the man smiled. “We’ve got a couple of salt lakes in the area. They used to be on old deer leases so they were private, but who gives a damn about that now?”
“Really? How far away are they?” Steve asked, feeling like it was too good to be true.
“One is about forty miles south. The other is almost to New Mexico. They should be nice and full of water right now and we can harvest salt from the shores and on the bottom. They used to have a salt mine at the one near New Mexico. Of course, without electricity, we won’t be able to use the equipment but we can do it by hand.”
“And possibly use the equipment for something else. It’ll be nice to go take a look and see. And of course, get some guys hunting once we figure the process out. It sure would be nice to get some protein. Fish should be plentiful right now as well. They salt-cure fish all the time.”
“Good.” Chief Rayburn smiled again and patted Steve on the shoulder. “We’ll get this to work out, one way or another. I’ll send some guys to get the plow. You go grab some water and something to eat. Looks like we have a lot to do, Steve.”
Finally, Steve felt like he was being useful instead of standing around, pacing, while everyone else scrambled to save their town. Waving at Mindy, he followed her down into the shelter and grabbed a can of potted meat from the table.
“What’s the grin about?” Cecilia asked as she walked by.
“For the first time since all this crap has happened, we’re going
to move in a positive direction. Lots of work ahead but it’ll be worth it. How’s your little guy?”
Cecilia sat beside him on the floor and pulled her knees up under her chin, resting her head on them. “Getting more active by the minute, it seems. After his nap, I’m going to take him up to ground-level so he can get some sun on his skin and some fresh air. Might help his mood.”
“There is something else bothering you,” Steve observed.
“Just thinking about Ryan and his dad. How long does a trip to Fox Lake on horseback take? I feel like they should be back by now but I also know I’m being impatient. It’s sixty miles there and sixty miles back. I have unrealistic expectations.”
“I’m sure everything is fine. Horses can travel fast but Ryan also knows to keep a good pace. He’ll be back here before you know it.”
“I hope you’re right.” Standing, she forced a smile. “I’m going to check on Ty. I sure do appreciate your positive attitude.”
After she left, Mindy took her place on the floor, handing Steve a bottle of water. “Good times in front of us, huh?”
“You got that right.”
“Not to be a Debbie Downer, but let’s just hope the looter group I escaped from doesn’t find out. They send out scouts out all over the place. We could be in for a war once they catch wind of how we are progressing.”
***
After applying the mud as sunscreen and coming up with a new plan without the horses, Ryan, Darryl, and Doug continued on their journey to Fox Lake. They covered a lot of ground before they lost the horses in the dust storm but still had a long trek to go on foot. Getting there wasn’t the big concern – coming back was the issue. Maybe when they got there, Fox Lake would be in better condition than Harper Springs but Ryan’s positive attitude was dwindling along with his energy.
He and his father were quiet, allowing the silence to haunt them as each thought about what had transpired and what was possibly to come. Doug would mention something occasionally but Ryan got to where he would block him out. It usually wasn’t useful and Ryan’s disdain for him wouldn’t go away.
“Where I come from, they call those dirt walls haboobs.”
“You mentioned that earlier, Doug.” The tone in Darryl’s voice was sarcastic and Ryan was glad to know that it wasn’t just him growing annoyed.
“I know, but I didn’t mention how it was controversial. Some of the people in the area raised hell about the term because they use it in the Middle East. I guess they’re Islamaphobic or whatever it is they call it now. Pretty ridiculous if you ask me.”
“Where exactly are you from?” Ryan asked, hoping to get more information out of him.
“Here and there. Don’t really have a set place.”
Ryan scoffed. “Okay, let me rephrase the question. Where were you before all of this bullshit started? Did you have a home somewhere?”
Doug looked at him as if he had just asked him the question in a different language and he was trying to figure it out. “I was up near Amarillo. Hell, probably closer to the Oklahoma border where the original dust bowl happened. Boise City, Goodwell, Guymon. You know, they call that area No Man’s Land.”
“I’m familiar,” Ryan said. “Did y’all get tornadoes and crazy storms up there too, or did you just hear about it happening down this way and came down to take advantage of us?” He wasn’t trying to be snide. He wanted to see if it was as widespread as he was thinking, and north to Oklahoma would increase the area where he presumed it had occurred. Right now, he knew it went as far north as Lubbock, but past that, he wasn’t sure.
Darryl glared at Ryan, much like he did when Ryan was a kid and was in trouble. Maybe it came out harsher than he had intended but he couldn’t hold it back. He didn’t like Doug and probably never would.
“Well hell, Ryan, don’t sugar-coat how you feel about me.” Doug laughed and Ryan waited for his answer. “Yeah, we got some crazy ass weather up there too. Me and my brother were the only two I could find who had survived. It’s already pretty desolate up there but it was eerie. So, that’s why we came south.”
“I’m just trying to expand on the extent of it all,” Ryan said, clarifying why he was prying into Doug’s personal life. Past that, he didn’t give a damn about the man. “So, it’s gone from south of Harper Springs up to the Oklahoma Panhandle. That’s a span of at least three hundred and fifty miles. A very rough estimate since we don’t know how far east and west it has gone, but definitely that far north and south. Probably more.”
“That explains why no help has come,” Darryl said, shaking his head.
“Something tells me it goes farther. It’s been a while since we had any clouds or storms, so if people outside this area knew, they could at least fly some help in. Still, nothing. This is definitely on a larger scale than just regionally.” Ryan was tired of trying to speculate. Reminding himself to focus on the here and now, the task at hand was getting to Cecilia’s parents and reuniting them with the family. The fact of the matter was no one was helping. There was nothing they could do about that. But he could do something about getting his family back together. Ruminating on the ‘could haves’ and ‘what ifs’ would just make him crazy.
Darryl asked, “What if we get to Fox Lake and they’re set up better than Harper Springs? Are we going to bring everyone up here to join forces?” He arched his eyebrow and adjusted his backpack. It was a valid question that had crossed Ryan’s mind too.
“It depends on the people in Fox Lake. We can’t just barge in and take over. They have adjusted to accommodate who they know is alive. We can’t go in and ruin that. How would you feel if they bombarded our town?” Ryan replied, wiping the back of his neck with a towel, shocked at how much sweat had accumulated on his skin.
Darryl broke in before Ryan could continue. “If we all got together we could make everything stronger. But we’ll have to see how it is when we get there.”
It was entertaining to see his dad be the mediator between him and Doug. Him being the level-headed one was a new one on Ryan and he couldn’t help but laugh. If he couldn’t find humor in all of this, what the hell was the point?
They all went silent again and it was nice. Despite how quiet it was, it still felt deafening with all of the things running through Ryan’s mind. He still wasn’t used to the fact that he couldn’t just pull his phone out and call Cecilia to see how things were going. He worried about Ty. Was his recovery going like the doctor wanted? Was the wound getting infected? Ty had still been sleeping a lot when Ryan had left. Was he up and moving around? He remembered times before cell phones and they had made it through just fine – but that was before they knew how things could be. Now the convenience was gone and it was like an addict trying not to use.
Dust storms periodically came through. It wasn’t a massive wall of dirt like the one before but breathing it in wasn’t doing their lungs any good. He offered the towel he was using to wipe the sweat off his neck to his father. Handing it to him, his dad refused.
“Take it. Use it as a mask to keep the dirt out.”
“You use it, Ryan. What makes you think I need it worse than you?”
“You’re wheezing. And don’t tell me you’re not, because I can hear your lungs rattling. It’s not very thick. Use it as a filter.”
Darryl hesitated but took it from him, holding it over his mouth and nose. His wheezing was getting worse and Ryan didn’t have any homemade remedy to help it. Staying hydrated would help but that was the extent of trying to battle it.
“I can’t have you getting sick on me, Dad. I don’t think I could handle that on top of everything else right now.”
“Well, you know what comes with drought along with the dust, don’t you?” Darryl asked.
“What’s that?” Ryan had a good idea but he wanted to make sure he and his father were on the same page.
“Wildfires. If the dust doesn’t tear our lungs up, the smoke will.”
“All the more reason to walk faster.” Ryan kicked
the ground beneath his boots and dirt flew up. The top layer of the soil’s moisture was completely gone. The grassy areas were losing their deep green colors, replaced with a yellow and brown landscape around them. One spark of a flame and the place would go up like someone had doused the area with gasoline.
That thought brought up another concern – Was Steve getting the planting done, or would they go home to a failed attempt at keeping the food supply up? What would it take to make them all decide to pick up and leave with no real idea of a good place to go?
One step at a time, Ryan reminded himself. It was easier said than done.
Chapter Fourteen
Cecilia was trying hard not to lose track of time. How long had Ryan and his father been gone? It had been a few days and in that time, Ty had made a remarkable recovery. He had occasional questions about why they had to take his arm but he was content with her quick answers. Soon they wouldn’t be enough and keeping him content with his situation would become a bigger challenge for her.
The doctor had checked on him each day and when asked if Ty could go outside, he was in favor of it. The poor kid was pale from lack of sunlight and the vitamin D from the rays might cheer him up, though he didn’t seem as depressed as she would’ve been if it was her who had lost a limb.
It was the first time he had been outside since Ryan had got them to the shelter. The boy’s eyes widened and he ran a few feet away, staying close enough to Cecilia that she could reach out and touch him if needed.
“Mommy, where’s all the storms? Where is the tornado that took my arm?” He turned in a circle, spreading his arm out like he was flying. The amputation spot was still bandaged up but she could see what was left of his arm moving up and down as if it was still there.
“I guess they went away, hon.” She forced a smile and looked up at the sky. Ryan’s fears were playing out right before them, and though she was proud of how smart he was with weather, it wasn’t something she was hoping he’d be right about.