by J. R. Tate
They got out by a small margin of a few seconds before the fire joined together, completely engulfing where they were just moments ago. Despite the fact that they had made it out, they kept going, putting as much distance as they could between them and the fire that was raging out of control behind them.
Darryl glanced over his shoulder. The wind had changed directions to the west and the fire went on a new course toward the mountain range. There were no towns that way and if Harper Springs wasn’t already burned down, they would be safe if the wind didn’t change directions again.
They found a grove of trees on the bank of the river and Doug laid Ryan underneath them. He was breathing but still unconscious and Darryl noticed the blood stain on his jeans. The damn leg wound was turning out to be a bigger nuisance than he thought it would’ve been.
“Looks like he took a pretty good hit to the head.” Doug pointed down at his forehead. “A gash and some bruising.”
“I thought that was soot, but you’re right.” Darryl sat beside his son, hoping he’d wake up soon. “You came out of nowhere Doug. I thought you were so far ahead you didn’t know we got stuck behind.”
“I just got lost in the moment and ran as fast as I could. I made it out and realized y’all weren’t beside me.”
“You could’ve easily just kept going. After all the arguing and hell between you and Ryan, what made you come back for him?” Darryl wasn’t sure if he wanted to know the answer. It was best to leave it alone, but the question was already out in the open.
Doug contemplated the question for a second. “You two have taught me some things. Ryan has been a complete asshole to me but it’s put it all into perspective.”
“What perspective is that?”
“It’s better to come together and work together to get through it instead of dividing everyone. Before I knew what y’all were about, I was on a mission to kill Ryan for killing my brother. In my mind, he was malicious. But I get it. He was protecting his family. He was protecting the good ones. I’m still angry about my brother’s death but why should there be more bloodshed? I didn’t see a point in us trying to rebuild but it’s not in my nature to roll over and die. We stand a fighting chance. Why not try? The time is going to pass, anyway.”
Darryl smiled. “I appreciate you coming back for us. We were seconds away from dying when you got there.”
“Don’t worry about it, Darryl. We need to get Ryan healthy.”
Darryl’s focus went back on his son. His breathing was steady, like he was just taking a nap. He needed to check the leg wound. It didn’t look like too much blood had been lost, but his lack of consciousness was concerning. He was definitely oxygen deprived and that was a factor.
He pulled Ryan’s pants down, exposing the injured thigh. The gauze was completely soaked so he ripped it off. They had more bandages in the first aid kit they were carrying and once he assessed the damage and cleaned him up, he’d apply a clean one. He feared all of the stitches had come loose but they hadn’t – only the top two had ripped open. The bleeding had stopped and his body was naturally attempting to heal itself up.
“You’d think he got shot with the way he was bleeding.” Darryl looked up at Doug. “Can you get me the first aid kit? I don’t think I’ll be able to fix the stitches but I can at least clean it up and apply pressure. It’s already been infected once.”
Doug tossed him the plastic box and he sifted through the supplies. Thread, safety pins, gauze, alcohol, cotton swabs, and towelettes were all inside. He’d start with moistening a strip of gauze with the alcohol to clean it up and get the dried blood wiped away. Gently, he brushed it around the wound. Maybe if it was painful enough it’d wake Ryan up. He’d feel better about this if his son was actually awake and talking to them.
The blood washed away from his skin and a few fresh drops of red seeped from where the stitches had busted but it wasn’t near as bad as Darryl was fearing. Ryan’s leg flinched away and he let out a groan. His eyes shot open for a second and he lifted his head off of the ground before it fell back.
“Ryan, it’s your dad and Doug. Are you awake?”
Ryan licked his lips and nodded, though his eyes were closed.
“Can you answer me?” A head nod wasn’t enough for Darryl to relax.
Ryan’s eyes opened again and it took him a second to focus on Darryl. He was confused and he turned to see Doug as well. “Uh huh.” He nodded again and his eyes slammed shut.
“Ryan, are you awake?” Darryl asked once more, making sure he was completely aware of his surroundings.
“Yes, damn it, I’m awake!” He yelled out despite the fact that his eyes remained closed.
Darryl laughed and patted his arm. If he had enough energy to yell he was going to be fine. “There’s the son I know and love. All piss and vinegar!” He pulled off enough gauze to put a clean bandage on. “I’m going to clean your wound. You might want to tell Doug thank you. He saved your ass.”
Ryan let out a deep breath and turned his head away, still not opening his eyes. They were all exhausted and with his loss of blood, Darryl didn’t expect him to hop up and run a marathon. They had to pace themselves, even if they were way off schedule from what they had originally planned. At least they were alive. That was what was important.
“Rest up for a bit and then we gotta keep moving. We aren’t far enough away from the wildfire for comfort. The wind might shift again and then we’ll be right back where we were, in deep shit.” Darryl stood up and followed Doug to the river where they replenished their canteens. “Think we got time to catch a couple of fish? Ryan sure could use the protein.”
Doug glanced at him from the corner of his eye. “We can try. Just gotta keep an eye on things. The moment the wind shifts back north, we’re high-tailing it out of here, fish or no fish.”
“I’ll grab a sapling and the corn.”
Darryl shook his head at the shift in dynamics. Doug was once the joker, not taking things seriously, and now he was stepping in to be an important person in their group. Tough times brought out the best and worst in people. It was good to see Doug finally living up to his full potential.
Chapter Sixteen
The first thing Ryan felt was discomfort. Pain radiated through his head and down his neck and the ache was so deep that he let out a groan. The sound escaping from his throat made the discomfort heighten and when he tried to roll on his side, an even worse sensation coursed down his leg, instantly reminding him of the leg injury he had sustained.
Opening his eyes, he rubbed them to try and rid the blurriness. The first attempt was unsuccessful and he blinked, his second attempt at clearing his vision better. His father and Doug were at the river, each holding a sapling that dipped down into the water. Ryan propped himself up on his elbow and watched, confusion escalating as he tried to remember what had happened and why they had stopped.
Glancing down at his leg, he cringed. The blood stain was bigger and small bouts of his memory flashed in his mind. A wildfire had nearly claimed his life. But how did he get out? The last thing he could recall was that he was struggling and the flames were closing in on him. And now here he was, lying under some trees while his father and the damn thief sat and fished like it was some leisurely Sunday afternoon.
Gritting his teeth, he fought through the pain and sat up. His leg grew numb so he wasn’t going to try and stand up just yet. What made them think they had time to stop and fish? They had to get moving. Each second that passed was a second wasted and a chance that they might get caught up in whatever else nature had to throw their way.
His father glanced over his shoulder, noticing Ryan had woken up. Pulling the line out of the water, he sat it beside Doug and walked over, kneeling beside Ryan.
“Good to see you awake, Son.”
“What’s going on?”
“Figured we’d try and catch us a good meal tonight. You’ll need it and we’re getting sick of Spam and Vienna Sausages.”
“Why am I going
to need it? What makes you think that?” Ryan lifted his leg and tried to mask the pain.
“You took quite a tumble back there. Busted a couple of stitches but the bleeding stopped. Your leg is never going to heal at the rate we’re going.”
Ryan scoffed and shook his head. “In the grand scheme of things, does it really matter? It’s just my leg. I don’t even know if Cecilia’s parents are alive. And now we have the wildfires. What if it hit Harper Springs? There’s no way of really knowing...”
Darryl cut him off, holding his hand up. “No, there’s not, so why sit around and be angry about it? What we know is this – we are on a mission to get to Fox Lake to get her parents. Past that, we aren’t sure of anything else. So stay on course and we’ll find out when we get there. It’s really not that complicated, Ryan.”
“I don’t know if we have time to fish. We aren’t that far from Fox Lake. Maybe an hour. Maybe two.”
“Time is relevant. If Cecilia’s parents are alive, they’re probably not going anywhere. And if Harper Springs got hit by the fire, there’s nothing we can do about it from where we are at. Doug already caught two fish. We’ll be eating well tonight. Just enjoy it. We aren’t going anywhere until we all get a good night’s rest and are fresh in the morning. Can’t risk you popping anymore stitches. And that’s how it’s gonna be Ryan. Majority vote rules, and that’s what Doug and I decided.”
“Doug and you?” Ryan scoffed. “Since when does that piece of shit have a vote?” Anger made his pulse pick up and he balled his fists. How could his father allow someone like that to take advantage of the situation?
“That piece of shit saved your ass, Ryan.”
Ryan took in his father’s comment, allowing the words to hover over them. Had he heard him right? He had to still be asleep and dreaming this up.
“What?”
Darryl took his hat off and wiped his hands through his hair before putting it back on. “He saved you, Ryan. You fell down and passed out. I couldn’t get you up. The fire was literally right on us and Doug came back and carried you out. If it wasn’t for that, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now.”
“He must have some ulterior motive. Guys like him don’t just change overnight.”
“Damn it, Ryan. Listen to yourself! I’ve talked to him a lot. He said we’ve inspired him to work together instead of apart. I’m not going to sit here and convince you of it but you should know that you were literally seconds away from being burned to a crackly crisp and he got you out. Whether you thank him or not is on you.” Darryl stood up and wiped the dirt from his pants. “I’ve got some fish to clean.”
Ryan leaned his head back against the tree behind him and closed his eyes. Vertigo was strong and it felt like the earth was swaying. Maybe it was – with the way everything had gone crazy, he wouldn’t question it if it really was happening.
Doug saved him? He still couldn’t fathom that. In his mind, once a thief, always a thief. Once a complete waste to society, always… But people did change. He used to be crazy and out of control. How his father didn’t kill him those years ago was a complete miracle. But some of Doug’s snide comments toward Ryan stuck out. His constant putdowns about the lives Ryan had taken were front and center.
He had killed Doug’s brother. He had a right to be angry but it wasn’t as if Ryan had done the deed in cold blood. And the rabid man and his child – that one stung the worst. He’d never get over taking a life, despite the harsh conditions they were in. That was partly why he resented Doug, though he technically had nothing to do with it.
Forcing himself to a standing position, he walked slowly, getting the blood flowing back in his legs. The numbness made it difficult at first, comparing the sensation to when his feet were asleep, only ten times worse. It felt like he was learning to walk again and the short walk to the river took too long. Doug looked up from the water and nodded but focused his attention back at the task. Darryl was busy cleaning the two fish he had mentioned to pay attention.
“Hey, Doug.” It was awkward. Ryan hated admitting when he was wrong but this was the right thing to do.
“Hey. How’s the leg.”
“It’s holding me up. Barely.” Ryan forced a smile and the sound of the laugh was obvious he was trying too hard.
“Good. We’ve got two pretty good sized fish over there for supper. I’m going to try a bit longer and see if I can pull anymore out.”
It was like they had been friends for years. Two guys chatting as they fished. Ryan took a deep breath and decided to go for it. It was like ripping a bandage off. Fast so it wouldn’t hurt.
“Listen, my dad told me what you did back there and I wanted to say thank you.”
Doug lifted the wooden pole up and down and ducked his head. “No need to thank me. You’d have done the same thing for me.”
“I haven’t exactly been the nicest to you. I’m sorry for that.”
Doug’s grip on the fishing pole tightened and he looked up at Ryan, making eye contact. “I didn’t make this easy on you, either. I was so pissed about my brother. But I’ve given it a lot of thought. You were doing what you had to. Let’s face it, he wasn’t a saint. And hell, neither am I, but there’s always time to try and change.”
Ryan adjusted his weight on his leg and looked downriver at his father. He was oblivious to the apologies being tossed around and Ryan was glad. It would be uncomfortable to do this with an audience.
“I’m no saint, either. I’m glad you came along.” It wasn’t forced – Ryan was surprised when he realized he truly felt this way. Letting go of all of the harbored resentment and anger was liberating.
Before Doug could respond, the slack in the line tightened and he pulled it up. Another fish flopped around on the homemade hook and he quickly got it to shore, securing it before it escaped back into the river.
“Hell, yeah! A fish for each of us! We won’t know what to do with ourselves!” Doug cupped his hand around his mouth and yelled, “Hey, Darryl! I got one more for you to clean!”
“I’ll go make myself useful and get a fire started.” Ryan took a long glance over his shoulder. For a second, he could pretend they were just three guys on a camping and fishing trip. For a second, everything was fine.
***
Cecilia had a hard time focusing on things with Ryan gone. It was a good thing that Ty was around because he kept her going. It was amazing how a little boy could have so much power in her life but at that very second, he was her main reason for getting up in the morning and for having a purpose to keep trying to survive.
Sitting on the edge of her cot, she watched Ty sleep. He had adjusted better than she had thought to the loss of his arm. He had asked a few questions and she feared her answers were in no way helpful to ease his curiosity. He’d arch his dark eyebrow as she tried to think up something to say, looking just like Ryan when he was either perplexed or hesitant about something.
Ty sometimes complained about pain. The doctor had described them as phantom pains in that Ty’s brain was still not able to comprehend the loss of the limb. There was no doubt about it – the kid was tough. He rarely cried and from what Ryan had told her, he didn’t cry much when the initial injury had happened. The doctor chalked it up to his body being in shock – a defense mechanism that made things numb for a person to survive.
Along with the health of her son, Cecilia worried about Ryan and her parents. On horseback it shouldn’t be taking as long as it had. They should have been back by now. The smoke sighting to the north of town had her stomach in knots. It was in the direction of where they were traveling. Had they been caught in the middle of it? With everything torn to ruins it was hard to get a good vantage point. Smoke was always misleading in appearing closer than it actually was.
People began to come down into the shelter, many of them guys who Steve had recruited to help with the farming. They must have been calling it a night, all of them looking exhausted and ready to crash. It had only been a few days since he h
ad gotten things planted but the anticipation was making everyone crazy. Were things going to grow? Was it already too dry out for things to survive, or were they too late in getting it all in the ground?
Cecilia wished she could get her mind to shut down. So many what-ifs that were driving her crazy. In the midst of all of the doubt and negativity, she’d watch Ty to bring her back to the reasons why they were trying to make it through this. He hadn’t even had a chance to live his life yet. They couldn’t just roll over and end it.
Before everyone took over the restroom areas, Cecilia showered and brushed her teeth. The make-shift shower was nothing out of the ordinary now. When she first used it, she felt exposed, but now, it was normal. Due to lack of resources, they were unable to wash up daily, so each second under the luke-warm water was sensational.
Even though this was life how they knew it, she still couldn’t believe how much they took for granted before the tornadoes came through. A simple shower, minty toothpaste used at least twice a day, and even makeup. She used to complain about having to wear it but now she’d love to at least put mascara on. It would give her some semblance of feeling normal and beautiful but it was an item that they’d likely never see again.
She dressed for bed in a pair of cloth shorts and an ill-fitting tank top. That was another thing they had to get used to. The clothes were all donations and things people had scrounged up. Due to her petite frame, most items fit big, and the shirt was baggy, almost falling past her shorts, appearing like she was wearing a nightgown. At least she did have something to wear and it would be comfortable to sleep in.
Ty was still asleep when she got back to their cots. He had gotten to where he could sleep through anything. She had gathered up a couple of granola bars and a cup of water, sipping on it.