by A J Newman
They closed off all of the rooms except the living room, which had the fireplace to conserve firewood. The room was warm and this could have been just a normal winter day in the country. Imelda found some chocolate mix and made some hot chocolate to drink. She even put some rock hard marshmallows on top just as her mother did when she was a young girl.
“Joe, I hope the others are warm and well fed as we are, but I keep feeling guilty about the fireplace and food.”
“John has probably killed a grizzly bear and they are eating bear steaks around a campfire. Don’t worry about them.”
Normally the area around Cody only gets a few inches of snow each year; however, this was one of those hundred year events. It snowed for three days leaving three feet of snow on the ground and 10 foot snowdrifts. Joe struggled just to get to the firewood and back to the house. He had strung para cord from the house to the pile of wood to make sure that he wouldn’t get lost. They found some board games and played checkers and scrabble for two days until the storm subsided.
Joe woke up by the fire with Imelda a few feet away and noticed that the side window looked like someone was shining a light on the accumulated snow. He got up and opened the front door to an avalanche of snow and a solid wall of snow blocking the door.
“Damn Imelda, we are snowed in. I’m checking the back door.”
They ran to the back door and found the snow only four feet deep against the door. Joe went into the attached garage, found a small shovel and quickly cleared the door. They walked outside into a winter wonderland. The sky was clear, there was a strong breeze and the sun glared down on them. The thermometer on the back porch said 20 degrees.
“This is beautiful. Snow has covered everything. I’d love to play in it and make a snowman. We never see snow in Mobile. I guess that we had better pack up and hit the road. They are probably thinking we are lost.”
“Yep, let’s get our gear and hike back to the plane. We might just have to stay here for a while; it sure beats that damn plane.”
They each loaded their backpack with canned food and took a couple gallons of water in old milk jugs they found in the pantry. Then they walked out to where the road was supposed to be and just saw a vast white plain in front of them. Joe pulled out his field glasses and noticed a ridge running in the direction of the plane.
“See that ridge. I believe it’s the edge of the road and is the drop off to the gully. They walked out to it and then walked beside it for about a half mile when Joe saw something sticking up out of the snow.
“Joe, it’s a mile marker. We can check our progress with the mile markers.”
They weren’t moving very fast because the snow was two to three feet deep, so each step was a struggle. Each mile was taking a little over an hour due to the deep snow. The walk was very tiring and they each fell down several times per mile walked.
“We only traveled about seven miles from the plane to the house and at this rate we should get there about four o’clock. We don’t want to go much past that or it will be dark and difficult to find the plane. Let’s pick up the pace now while we are fresh.”
They quickly found that the harder they tried the more they fell down. They gravitated to a slow walk and found they were covering more ground by not falling down so much.
At noon they stopped just long to take a drink and get some crackers out to eat while they walked. This perked them up and they continued their journey to the plane.
“Joe, you said that you don’t have a girl friend?”
“No, but Gus’ wife is trying to fix me up with his middle daughter. We haven’t seen each other yet due to this trip. I haven’t had time for a girlfriend. Why are you asking?”
“One of the girls back in Mobile asked me about you and I thought I’d check for her. We never saw you with anyone so…..”
“Damn, you thought I was gay?”
“Well, with two to three girls for every guy, it did make us wonder. Not that being gay is bad, just not boyfriend material.”
“You can tell your friend that I am not gay and will be looking for someone. I guess I just got caught up in surviving.”
“What does she look like?”
“She’s rather attractive. About 5’ 2”, blue eyes honey blond hair and 110 pounds. She’s in training to join the Rangers.”
They passed the time talking about things in general and before they knew it, they saw a line of tall lumps in the middle of what passed for the road ahead. They stretched about 150 feet and there was a snow covered rope stretching from end to end.
“Joe, look to the left. Is that the tail of the plane?”
“I believe it is. We beat sundown by an hour. Hurray, we are home.”
They slid down the embankment to the plane and Joe saw the line going in the plane at the top of the door.
“I’d better ring the doorbell before we get shot.”
He pulled the cord and in a few minutes, the door opened slowly.
“Hey Steve, it’s Imelda and Joe. We’re back!”
John came out to greet them and then ushered them into the plane to warm up. They began swapping stories and after a couple of hours, Imelda and Joe turned in for the night. They were exhausted. John didn’t wake them for a turn at guard duty and Beth, Janet and he covered for them so they could get some rest.
Beth and Janet took the first hours of guard duty and woke John up at two o’clock to see another couple of inches of snow on the ground. He wanted to leave before sun up to give them as much daylight as possible for their trip. He found part of the wing and made a sled to carry Steve. He braided some of the para cord together and made a pull rope.
Joe joined him and said, “John, how long will it take to get to this friend’s house? It took Imelda and me six hours to cover seven miles and we weren’t towing Steve and a lot of gear.”
“I figure it will take about 12 hours if we stay after it the whole time. I plan to take plenty of blankets to make some tents if we have to spend the night on the trail. Hell, I can make an igloo with all this snow and we will be toasty warm. Go wake the others. I want to leave before dawn.”
He made a smaller sled to transport their food, blankets and supplies. They loaded up and got ready to leave.
“I’m not going to kid you; this will be a rough trip. My compass says that we head out in that direction and we are cutting across country. We’ll have to cross gullies and dry creek beds. Eric told me there were no cliffs or ponds to watch for, but we need to keep watching in all directions for danger. We will stand out like a sore thumb against all of that white snow. Those thugs might come looking for the ones who killed their friends and took their hostages. We will be leaving a trail that a blind man can follow. Let’s move out.”
They only got about a hundred yards before they had almost dumped Steve. They found they couldn’t pull the sled behind one person. The sled was falling into the void left as their bodies plowed through the snow. John quickly rigged up a harness that allowed two people to pull the sleds and keep them in the middle in fresh snow.
“That is a big improvement. I thought we’d kill poor Steve before we got halfway there. Now if we just had a couple of snowmobiles, we could zip over there in an hour or so.”
“Keep dreaming. Everyone stay sharp and watch for danger. We’ll rotate up the one walker with the draft horses every hour. I have the .22 handy so if you spot any rabbits, I’ll try to kill a couple for supper.”
They stopped and rested at lunch for about twenty minutes while they ate some cold potted meat and crackers. They could see clearly for about a mile and nothing moved except the occasional rabbit and quite a few birds. John shot at three rabbits and got two of them just after lunch.
“John, there is some movement in those bushes over there. I don’t think it’s people, but it could be dogs or wolves.”
“Everyone keep your eyes peeled. We don’t need to be attacked by a pack of dogs or wolves. The rabbit blood may be attracting them.”
J
ohn pitched one of the rabbits behind them and when they got 50 yards away, a bunch of large dogs came out of the brush and tore into the rabbit. A fight broke out and they could hear the growls and barking.
“That’s a nasty bunch and they could attack us just as easy.
John stopped and shot three of the largest dogs and they started a feeding frenzy on their own pack members.
“Let’s make tracks while they feed. They won’t bother us for several hours, but there could be a bunch of wild dogs out here. Their masters are either dead or couldn’t feed them so they got loose and banded together. I don’t want to become dog food. Move out!”
They lost sight of the dogs and made good time until John stopped and said. It is 2:00 and we are only halfway there. I think we need to stop and prepare to spend the night in this area. We can head out early in the morning and have a safe trip. I don’t want to be stumbling in the dark when these dogs attack.”
Beth gasped and replied, “You said when, not if the dogs attack.”
“Sorry, but they are just out of sight beyond that small rise behind us. They caught up and have been following us for hours looking for a weak person to lag behind. We have to quickly build an igloo and fortify it against their attack before dark. Imelda, Beth and I’ll start building an igloo; Joe, go get whatever passes for firewood out here. Janet, pull guard duty. I stopped here because we can use the side of that ravine to shelter us from the wind. Joe, when you bring the wood back look for some about spear size to make some pongee sticks for our guests tonight. I want to be able to show them a good time when they drop in uninvited.”
John started by removing the snow from the ground and then made the base out of big balls of snow just as you build a snowman. Beth and Imelda kept busy rolling the large snowballs into shape. John started stacking them up in a circle about eight feet across. He made an arched opening on the least windy side and kept adding smaller basketball size snow blocks to the inwardly slanting walls. He had the girls hand pack snow into all crevices. He kept adding to the igloo until it was about five feet tall and totally enclosed on top. He then had the others start taking all food and supplies into the igloo while he made a hole in the roof to vent the smoke from their fire. He left a two foot wide snowball by the opening to act as a door.
“John, where the hell did you learn how to make an igloo?”
“I watched a guy on TV build one on one of those prepper shows. Kinda felt stupid living in Mobile at the time.”
“I’m glad you saw that show.”
“Imelda, build a small fire in the middle of the floor and watch for drips and water flowing. Try to channel any water to that side of the igloo. I left a small opening for a drain. Then start melting some snow so I can spray some armor on top of our fort. The water will freeze and armor plate the outside walls. Then I’ll throw some more snow on top of it.”
John added a wall about three feet from the opening to serve as a windbreak. Joe poked sharpened sticks in the snow all around the igloo and a few sticking out of the top. John and Joe took turns splashing water on top of the igloo and watched the water freeze before it could flow to the ground. There was a solid inch of ice covering the entire structure when they were done. They drug some brush in to sleep on. While not comfortable, it at least would keep them dry. They finished just as the sun sank below the horizon. The ladies warmed up some of the soup and sliced up some canned meat for supper.
Janet asked, “What about our toilet? I don’t see one.”
“Pee in that low spot over there and you had better go do number two outside before we close up for the night. Take a guard with you and pack your gun."
They settled down and talked for a while. The igloo got so warm they had to take off their coats. They were all dog tired so they fell asleep in a short while.
John looked around and said, “We only have to spend one night in this place so I don’t want a bunch of whining. I’ll stand guard duty first.”
The only answer was snoring.
***
“Papaw, do you think we’ll ever see those people again? There must be two feet of snow out there.”
“Closer to three feet. No, they mean well, but they have already frozen to death. We’ll find their bodies this spring and bury them. I liked what they said, but winter has claimed them and I pray to God for their souls. Let’s eat some of that rabbit.”
***
“Jerry, we found Tubby’s and Jakes bodies over at the old Miller place. They were shot and someone tried to hide them. Red and Rover found their bodies. The tracks headed east on 14. The damn snow is too deep to follow them now, but they can’t get too far.”
“Shit. We’ll borrow some horses from that rancher and go after their sorry asses. I want that girl for myself. I wonder who helped them escape. No matter, I’ll burn their sorry asses alive.
***
John’s tour of guard duty went without any issues. He heard the dogs scratching at the walls and barking, but nothing else. He woke Joe up to take over, snuggled up against Beth and went to sleep.
“Wake up; the dogs are trying to get in.”
John was half asleep, but grabbed his gun and moved towards Imelda who was watching a paw scratching its way around the big snowball that blocked the entrance. John pulled his knife and stabbed the paw pinning it to the ground. The dog pulled it free yelping in pain. Another dog started digging at the door and got the same treatment. This time John grabbed the paw and cut the foot off.
“I hate anyone who mistreats a dog, but those aren’t house pets anymore.”
They heard barking and fighting and then it got quiet. John checked his watch and saw that it was 5:00 a.m.
“Rise and shine everyone. We have to get on the trail in an hour.”
Joe said, “Daddy, can we sleep just another hour? My feet hurt.”
“Sorry kids, but we’re burning daylight! Get your asses out of bed and get moving!”
Joe had to chip the ball of snow away from the opening because it had partially melted due to the fire. He was very careful and stuck his rifle out in front of him as he exited the igloo.
“The coast is clear. Come on out to see a beautiful morning.”
Janet came out next and said, “You are a perverse bastard if this is a beautiful morning. Hey, I see the pack over behind that low ridge.”
The wind was howling and snow was pouring down.
John took aim and shot six of the two dozen before they knew what hit them.
“Those dogs won’t bother us for a while.”
They all came out bringing gear with them. They loaded up and started the trek to the Shelton’s house. The group walked for a little over two hours when they entered a forest of short pine trees.
“We are getting close. Eric told me that we would be about half an hour away when we saw the forest. He said there would be a creek with running water about a hundred yards in and to head north when we get to the creek.”
They walked along the creek bed for a short while when they saw a shallow spot and John told them they had to cross here. They picked up the sled with Steve on it, carried it across and then brought the equipment sled across.
“Their house should be about 250 yards ahead. We should see a clearing and then their house will be on the far side.”
They continued their journey and shortly saw the clearing.
John said, “Hold up. I don’t want to walk into a trap. Let Janet and me approach the house while y’all stay here. If all is well, we will signal the rest of you to join us.”
John used his field glasses to survey the area around the house and didn’t see any danger. Janet and he walked slowly towards the house, watching for any movement.
They arrived at the front of the house and John yelled, “Eric! Billy! Eric! Billy!”
The door opened and Eric came out with a shotgun in his hand. He recognized them, placed the shotgun against the wall and came over to greet them.
“I’m so sorry. Billy said you w
ould make it here and I told her that no one could make it through this storm.”
“Well we made it and wanted to make sure all is okay before the main group came into the house. We’ll go back and get them.”
John and Janet went back and brought the group to the house. They helped Steve into the house and placed their gear in Eric’s garage.
Billy hugged everyone and the dog, Callie, was happy to have new friends to play with.
John filled them in on the trip over and both were surprised that John’s group had fought off wild dogs and built an igloo while walking eight miles in a blizzard.
Beth responded with, “And the legend of John Harris continues.”
Eric and Billy stared at her and Billy said, “Sorry, but I don’t think it’s nice to make fun of the man who saved all of us. I would vote for him for president.”
The whole team started laughing at the same time.
Steve replied, “We’re sorry, but we are all a big family and John is our friend, father figure, brother and husband to Beth. We love him, but have to give him a hard time or his head won’t fit through a doorway. John for president is stretching it a bit.’
“Well I think he would make a better one that the SOB in the White House.”
***
“Have you confirmed this information?”
“Mr. President, it’s from our best source in the ISA. There is no way to confirm that Harris died in the plane crash. There is an ongoing investigation, but the search for survivors has ended. Harris has not been seen in Mobile since leaving for the west coast.”
“Keep me up to date on any new info. I’m not calling for a national holiday, but I like what I'm hearing.”
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Chapter 22