Dangerous Shores: Book Three; The End of the Road

by Christine Conaway

  Frank strained to lower her as far as he could. His eyes met hers and she let go. With the length of the pole and the length of her body she still had about five or six feet to fall. That in itself wasn’t far, but the terrain was dirt, rocks and a severe slope away from the landing. He watched her land, fall and roll down the slope. He held his breath until she finally stopped. To his surprise Ellen showed him what she was made off. She waved that she was alright with a wave in his direction. He could see the trickle of blood at the corner of her mouth.

  Without considering his landing Frank climbed on the ledge, turned over grabbed the metal rims on the window slides and lowered himself out the window. Holding with only his fingertips he stretched as far down as he could and let go. He had seen how Ellen landed and tried for something as close to hers. He hadn’t counted on her being lighter in body weight and far more graceful than he was. He handed hard twisting his ankle under him. He remembered to tuck and roll as he went ass over tea kettle backwards down the incline. He had underestimated the weight of his pack.

  Every sharp rock, pointed branch and sticker bush left a mark as he rolled over it. Under different circumstances he may have cried out in pain, but he clenched his teeth to keep his pain inside. When he stopped rolling he lay still while he did a quick inventory on his limbs.

  “Are you okay?” Ellen whispered as she moved to his side. “That was pretty damn graceful. What happened to the advice you gave me?”

  “Aw shit that hurt!” Frank groaned and stretched his limbs. He was thankful they all worked properly even if they did protest the abuse he’d just put them through. “Obviously I didn’t take it.”

  “Neither did your shotgun. It looks like you split the stock.”

  “Shit! I guess I’m lucky that’s all that split.” He pulled it from his pack along with chunks of dry hard soil and dead leaves. He took a minute to inspect the gun and shoved it back in his pack. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Ellen gave him a hand up and they headed up to the back side of the building. “How do you want to do this? Ellen whispered.

  “Let’s have a look out front and then decide.”

  “Jesus Frank. We could have done that before we dove out the window.”

  “Hush!” He wasn’t ready to admit that she was right. They could have simply stashed the bikes in the building and done some reconnaissance before the men had gotten as close as they were now. They were now able to hear the sounds of destruction as they approached the building they were hiding behind.

  “Wait here! I’ll be right back.”

  Ellen watched Frank as he moved out of her sight around the corner of the building. She crept closer to the corner he’d disappeared around and almost ran into him when he jumped out almost knocking her down. He grabbed her before she fell. “Go!” he told her. “Down the hill to the trees. Hurry.”

  Chapter Twenty-one - Monkey wrenches in my tool box

  Dodging branches, Ellen followed Frank as close as she could. The problem with running through the trees and brush was that the undergrowth wasn’t heavy. Anyone could see them if not hear them as they ran. In the gulley below she could see a cement irrigation canal and if it was like every other canal there would be a chain link fence between the canal and them.

  “Frank, I need to stop.” Her heart was pounding in her chest and it was hard to catch her breath if he didn’t stop soon she was going to collapse and roll the rest of the way down the hill.

  Frank picked a clump of Russian Olive trees to hide behind. He threw himself on to his stomach and pulled Ellen down by his side. It was impossible to lay on her back with the backpack on so she rolled to her stomach as did Frank.

  They stared up the hill watching the back windows of the building. When several men ran around the corner of the building Frank and Ellen buried their faces in the debris surrounding the tree.

  All Ellen could think about was the fact that they had both changed into the camo that Chuck had given them. Their packs weren’t camouflaged, but they were at least a neutral color. If the men didn’t look too hard, they could remain invisible.

  They waited a half an hour until the ants crawling over them and biting in places they had no business being, forced them to have to move.

  Ellen looked up slowly to find that Frank was already peering at the building. The men were gone, but they could still hear them and they sounded as if they were clearing buildings as they went.

  “Those are not civilians. Those are soldiers…and not any of ours. We have to get back to the boat and get out of here. It won’t take long for them to reach the marina and we can’t take the chance they won’t go through it the same way they are the buildings.”

  “Okay. Lead the way.”

  Frank look the direction they wanted to go. His view was blocked by a six-foot board fence. He suspected that going over or through it would show him that every building was separated by a fence of some kind. It would be a long and tedious trip back to the boat if they went that way. Or they could wait until the sun went down and could go back out to the street and follow it back but the delay waiting on the sun to set would take too long. He said as much to Ellen.

  “Why not use the canal bed. There’s no or maybe only a little bit of water left in it and we could make better time, and it parallel’s the road.”

  Frank looked back down the hill. He could just see into the cement ditch. She was right. From where he stood he couldn’t see any water at all. They would have to scale the chain link fence but after seeing how capable Ellen had proved to be he thought it was a good plan.

  “Okay, but let’s wait a little longer before we move. We’ll let them move a little farther down the block so they can’t see us.”

  “Why not put the fence between us and them?” She pointed to the fence that bordered the property. It went almost to the chain link at the foot of the property.

  “I guess that’s why I let you hang with me. Come on then let’s get over the fence. I’ll go first and then pull you up.” He jumped up, grabbed the top and swung over. “Aw shit…hang on a second.”

  Ellen grew tired of waiting and snuck out to the front of the building. Careful to look both ways she ducked around the end of the fence opened the gate and went through. She shut it behind her making sure it latched this time. She heard Frank grumbling from behind the building. She walked the narrow passage between the fence and building to find Frank bent over a dog that was chained to the front of a crude house. There were dog houses situated around the property. Dogs on chains lay in from of each of them, dead. She looked around and felt sick.

  “Oh God. Who does this to an animal? Why not turn them loose?”

  Frank stared from her to the passage way. “Let me guess, there was a gate.” In his hand was a small bundle of fur.

  “What are you doing with that?” she hurried to his side. The handful of dirty red fur wiggled and made a small sound. “Oh God, it’s alive?”

  “Barely. It looks to me like the mother ate the rest to keep this one alive. But she died anyway now I’m going to have to finish this one.”

  Ellen grabbed the puppy from Frank and cradled it against her chest. “You’ll do no such thing.” She looked at its tummy and hissed at him, “That dog did everything she could for this puppy and we are not going to kill it. We just have to find some milk for her.”

  “Woman, are you crazy? In case you don’t remember we’re in the middle of the bloody apocalypse right now. We don’t have the time, food or room enough for a dog.”

  Ellen had unbuttoned her shirt and stuffed the puppy inside against her warm skin. The puppy hardly weighed anything. It was mostly fur and bones. “You have to stay in there where it’s warm for just a little while.” She buttoned her shirt and glared at Frank daring him to say she couldn’t take it.

  “Why are you doing that? You’re setting yourself up for a fall. That puppy doesn’t have a snowballs chance in hell of surviving until we get to the boat. How are you going to feed it?
In case you didn’t notice it is too small to eat food.”

  “Don’t! Don’t you say that!” She held her hand around the puppy who had snuggled close and was searching her bare skin for somewhere to nurse. Tears began in her eyes and she angrily wiped them off. “Just don’t say it.”

  Frank shook his head. This was another side of a complex woman. He thought he knew everything there was to know about her, but this was something he hadn’t seen yet. He could see her argument for him if he repeated what he said about the food and room. She would give up some of her food for the dog and he would bet she let it sleep in her part of the V-berth.

  He shook his head and stomped off, headed for the lower fence. Quietly he growled, “Are you coming or not?”

  With one hand holding the baby close she hurried after him. If there was any way possible, she would see that this puppy survived. She wasn’t a big fan of dogs in the past, but somehow she found something symbolic about finding a new life in the middle of chaos. She could no more have let Frank wring its tiny neck than she could have prevented him from jumping in the water to rescue Olivia. While one was a human and the other was canine, they were both new babies in the scheme of life. They would both go on to create new lives in an uncertain world. Without the new beginnings, the species would die off and she wasn’t fine with that. She would do everything possible to protect the young ones. If she had to do without to see them survive, she was willing to do that. In her heart she knew that once Frank had a chance to see the puppy fat and happy he would feel differently. And if he didn’t well…it would be his loss.

  In minutes they were hurrying down the dry canal bed. Frank figured he could tell where to climb out by the over-crossing.

  Frank reminded Ellen of a sulky little boy. He wasn’t dragging his feet but stomping them a little harder than he needed to. Finally, he stopped and turned to face her. She stopped in front of him and waited.

  “Is there any way we can at least not tell the girls until we know if she’s going to live or not? I don’t want them to get attached to it today and have to watch her die tomorrow. It would break their hearts. Can’t you see that?”

  Ellen’s eyes filled and her hand unconsciously rubbed the bump in her shirt. “But I can’t just kill her. It would break my heart.”

  Frank put his arms out and Ellen walked into them. After a few sniffles she drew away. “I’ll take her to the Newport and you send Hannah over with some powder milk and a syringe. If she makes it until tomorrow and has no problems with the milk, then we can tell the girls. But, I’ll explain how fragile her life is. I’ll explain why I brought her and why she could still die.”

  “I don’t know Ellen, I honestly don’t. I’ll tell you what, how about I get with Margaret and Rob and see how they feel. If they agree, we’ll bring her over and surprise the girls. If they don’t feel it’s a good idea, then we’ll have to see about hiding the pup until we see if she’s going to make it.”

  “Lord knows they’ve both experienced how tenuous life can be. This will help them see the importance of nurturing something and watching it grow.”

  “I don’t know why I bother arguing with you I never win. Okay, against my better judgement we’ll take the damn thing with us.”

  Ellen laughed at his words. “You’ll learn that I only argue about what I believe in and only when I think I’m right. I just couldn’t not bring her. In my eyes it would have been like letting Olivia drown out there. Everything deserves a chance to survive. Besides that, when she gets older she could play a big part in our security defense. Nothing says intruder quicker than a barking dog.”

  “So we just take her home and forget about hiding her or anything else. I’m good with that.” Frank stopped and looked up at the sky. He stood for a few seconds with his eyes shut. Then he opened them, nodded and said, “Let’s go.”

  Ellen frowned after him puzzled by his actions. She hurried to catch up. “Can I ask what that was all about? You looked like you were praying.”

  “I was. I was praying we didn’t come across any horses or other animals you’d feel obligated to rescue.”

  Ellen didn’t say a word, but walked along beside him. She had her hand lending support to the puppy in her shirt and a satisfied grin was plastered on her face. If not for the holocaust, her world would be right for just that second. Frank understood the way her mind worked. Or at least he had taken a giant step forward as far as understanding her. She didn’t get behind every humanitarian issue that came up, just the ones she believed in.

  A half hour later Frank was unlocking the chain from the gate. He replaced it as soon as they were both through. The sun was sitting an inch over the horizon ready to drop out of sight until the next day.

  “Are we going to be safe until tomorrow? Those guys were getting pretty getting close.”

  Frank answered as they walked down the dock. “We made better time on the bikes than you think. We were about two and a half and maybe even three miles away from here when we ran into them.”

  “I guess maybe we should have tried to keep the bikes. They may have been invaluable to us in the future for transportation.” Ellen’s sore backside and calf muscles reminded her why she would pick a horse over a bike any day of the week to get from point A to point B. “Never mind, forget I just said that.” From the corner of her eye she saw the grin on Frank’s face.

  “I think with nightfall we won’t have to worry, but we’ll keep watch. I suspect they’ll go back to their main camp, wherever that is and begin again in the morning. I plan on us being outside the marina by then or as soon as the fog lifts. We should have been well on our way up the coast by now.”

  The last part of his sentence sounded as if he was disturbed by the idea that they were still sitting in the marina.

  “That’s why you never make plans set in stone. Oh you can make them, but sometimes you have to adjust as you go. There is no way to predict what’s going to come up and throw a monkey wrench right into the middle of them.”

  “I’ve lived with plans most of my life being in the military so you’re not telling me anything I don’t know and I have more than my share of monkey wrenches in my tool box.”

  Ellen laughed softly, “Don’t we all.”

  Margaret, Hannah and Rob were sitting in the cockpit watching their approach. They waved but didn’t call out.

  “Where are the girls?” Ellen asked at not seeing them.

  “Asleep,” Margaret told them. We let them swim off the boat for a while when the sun was warm and it wore them out.”

  “Hannah can you mix me up some powder milk and get a syringe?” Ellen saw the look of confusion on her face and pulled the fur bundle from inside of her shirt. The puppy began to wiggle halfheartedly as if it was fast running out of energy.

  “Oh my God. I’ll be right back.” She scurried down below.

  “Margaret, would you hold her for a minute please? I want to fix her up a box of some kind.” She saw that Rob had both eyes open but they were still puffy and black all around. “How are you feeling?”

  “I’ll live if that’s what you’re asking. As long as I keep the hand up, it’s not too bad.”

  Margaret had the puppy cradled in her hands and was making soft noises to it. She looked up, “Just wait until the girls see her. She’s so precious… and so skinny.”

  Frank answered, “It’s a long story and she fared better than the rest of the dogs. If it wasn’t for Ellen being so hard-headed she wouldn’t be here either.”

  Chapter Twenty-two - Are the animal’s immune?

  Rob laughed, but grimaced when his mouth smiled as it broke the healing sore on the corner of his mouth. “Hannah told us all about Ellen. It seems she has a habit of picking up strays.”

  His words were muffled as if it hurt to say each one, but it was easy to see that he was on the mend. As long as they could prevent infection from setting in and the muscles and tendons healed in his hand, he would be fine.

  “How’s Alan?” F
rank asked.

  Margaret looked up from the pup, “He sat up and ate a small bit of soup Hannah fixed for him. I think he’s going to be fine. Hannah did a fine job putting him back together. For someone who is not a doctor, she would make the nursing community proud with her accomplishments. If things are as bad as she said, anyone with medical experience will be a valued asset.”

  Before she could say more, Hannah was back with a cup of warm milk, a towel and syringe. With Margaret holding the puppy she sucked up some of the milk and put the end of the syringe to the puppy’s mouth. It only took a drop of the warm milk touching its lip before it had clamped its mouth on to the end of the syringe. When it had to stop and sneeze milk out its nose, Hannah had to adjust how fast she pushed the plunger.

  “Slow down little one.” she crooned. At four cc’s she stopped. “That’s enough to start.” She told it and used the edge of the towel to wipe the pup’s face. She looked around to find that every adult eye was locked on to the puppy. “About every two hours we’ll give her more. I don’t want to kill her with kindness and over feeding her to start will do just that.”

  They watched as the puppy realized there was no more coming curled into a furry ball and slept. Margaret set the towel and pup in her lap and covered it.

  “As soon as this little girl gets strong enough she gets a bath.” Margaret declared. “She smells like rotten meat.”

  Ellen felt tears coming and didn’t want to embarrass herself again. She got up, walked to the bow and sat on the front of the cabin roof. The sun had set completely but was still in that pre-dark stage in the transition to full night. She watched the water without seeing it. Her mind still saw the carcasses of all the other dogs. It made her feel sick to think that they had been left to starve to death tied to their houses. A bullet would have been so much more humane.