Georgia nodded in agreement, ‘that is kind of unusual.’
Jamie went on, ‘remember how Prestos looked, trash all over the place, broken glass everywhere. It’s as if…,’ He tailed off, shrugging his shoulders, then said, ‘well something isn’t right, it’s kind of like a movie set.’
‘Bejezus,’ Lola exclaimed, ‘you mean…,’ Her words tailed off as they looked around them.
Georgia walked back towards the convenience store staring at the facing of the building; the others followed her. Slinging her shotgun over her shoulder, she reached up and touched the boards, ‘You know what, Jamie, I think you are right. It’s all window dressing. I have to admit I did think it rather odd, that these buildings, had been blackened by fire, and yet none of the windows had been shattered by the heat. Look, the paintwork isn’t even damaged.’ She examined the blackened tips of her fingers and then laughed. ‘Oh my God, I think someone sprayed them with soot or something.’
‘There was that barn, a ways back, that was completely gutted,’ Lola said, frowning slightly, ‘but I guess that could have happened years ago.’
‘Maybe that’s where they got the soot from,’ Jamie said.
‘But what about the smell back there?’ Deedee asked. They all fell silent. Yes, there was that.
‘I don’t know,’ Jamie said, ‘but no one is going to loot a town that has already been cleaned out.’
Lola looked somewhat bemused. ‘Wow, they would have to be as cunning as a warren full of foxes leasing out space to rabbits.’
Georgia smiled. ‘I guess so.’ Then wiping her fingers on her jeans she added, ‘It would take some doing, a lot of co-operation, but in a tight knit community anything is possible.’
‘So they are kind of playing possum?’ Deedee asked sounding somewhat doubtful.
Georgia nodded. ‘Yes, I think that is exactly what they are doing.’ She could just picture it, a meeting in the town hall, packed to overflowing. (All 63 inhabitants.) The scheme being put to the vote and then anything of use being ferreted away; leaving the village uninteresting enough to deter potential looters. She imagined them, somewhere in the back blocks, waiting for life to return to normal, so they could return to their homes and….
She gave a start. ‘We really should get going, if this is all a front, then we are probably not alone.’
‘Where’s Ruby?’ Deedee asked.
Georgia looked wildly around, she had just been right here with them.
‘It’s okay,’ Jamie said, clapping Georgia on the back, ‘she’s sitting over near that building, she’s with Rebecca and I was watching them both.’
Georgia drew in her breath and headed over to them. The others followed. Suddenly Lola chuckled.
‘What’s so funny,’ Georgia asked a little sharply.
Lola did not reply, instead she pointed over to a large red brick building with a white colonnaded porch sheltering the entrance. At first Georgia could not see what was so amusing, and then she began laughing as well, laughing so hard that tears began rolling down her cheeks. It was a bank, and after all, they were in Tightwad. The large white letters, proclaimed that, this was not just any bank, it was the Tightwad Bank.
Jamie read out the sign for Deedee and the two of them began giggling and Ruby asked, ‘do you think they realize?’
Only Rebecca did not laugh, she was watching something high in the branches of a tree. They set off once more and from time to time, one of them would give a sudden chortle, the tension of the last half hour melting away.
It was just after three when they finally left Tightwad. Oddly enough, the terrible odor of something rotting, reappeared as they were passing the village limits, along with the flies. Jamie insisted on searching through the undergrowth, despite Georgia’s protestations.
‘I just want to know if we are right,’ he insisted, ‘because it is really strange, that the bad smell is only at each end of the town.’ Georgia gave up. He was not a little boy any more. A few moments later, he had found what he was looking for, and excitedly called them all over to have a look.
Lola decided that it would probably be much better if she stayed on the road with Rebecca and Ruby, and Georgia couldn’t blame her for that. She wasn’t sure that she particularly wanted to see whatever it was that Jamie had found. Deedee it seemed, had no such qualms, leaping ahead of Georgia as they made their way over to Jamie.
In the bottom of the ditch, near where he stood, lay a hessian sack, partially hidden by the weeds and swarming with flies. It had been torn open, by wild animals no doubt, and from the very quick glance that Georgia gave it, it appeared to have been stuffed with offal. So, they had been right, the good citizens of Tightwad were playing possum. As she backed away from the stench, she briefly wondered what she had done with the rose that Lola had given her.
‘Was it bad?’ Lola asked a few moments later as they headed down the road once more.
‘Bad enough,’ Georgia replied, ‘it was offal I think.’
‘That’s good,’ Lola nodded. ‘Means the kitten more than likely has a home.’
‘Yes,’ Georgia agreed.
Then Lola asked, ‘do we have any shampoo left?’
‘Nope.’
‘Any cans of Beluga caviar?’
‘Nope, none of that either. But in the unlikely event we ever find any, we have a can opener.’
‘Oh well, we can’t have everything,’ Lola said.
‘Just as long as we don’t run out of tea,’ Ruby said.
‘Yep,’ Georgia agreed, and as she caught Lola’s eye, the two of them, for no reason at all, except perhaps for the fact that they were still alive, burst into peals of laughter.
Chapter Thirty Four
They were still laughing as they left Missouri Route 7 and headed directly south towards the lakes. Jamie and Deedee walked a little way ahead of Georgia and Lola, and Ruby was bringing up the rear, chatting away to Rebecca. She did not seem to notice, or even mind, that Rebecca was not participating. So she was not talking to Ruby either.
The landscape was changing, becoming lusher, almost as though they were in another country, with a different climate. A belt of trees stretched before them, green and welcoming, and as they entered the dappled shade, Georgia drew her breath in. They found themselves beneath a high canopy of ancient Eastern red cedar, blackjack oak and dwarf hackberry, interspersed with the occasional sugar maple.
The air was filled with bird song, and somewhere high overhead a woodpecker tapped. Wild flowers grew amongst the widely spaced tree trunks; Splashes of mauves, pinks, creams and yellows in every direction. Georgia recognized some of the plants, the aromatic asters, wild indigo, mountain mint, mustard and the sensitive briar, but many she had never seen before.
It was, she decided, quite breathtaking. Just out of sight was the delightful sound of a stream or brook. Butterflies of every hue, flitted before them, as they tramped through the trees and found themselves on the shores of a huge lake.
‘Goodness me!’ Ruby exclaimed as she and Rebecca caught up with them, ‘I had no idea we were walking all the way to Coventry. No wonder my feet are so sore!’
‘Coventry?’ repeated Georgia, a little confused, at the same time making a mental note to check Ruby’s feet a little later on for blisters.
‘Yes, you girls are so thoughtful. How did you know this was where my Bertie used to take me? We always did love visiting Brandon Marsh.’
She stared quizzically at Ruby for a second, then suddenly she realized. Of course Ruby must be thinking they were in the U.K.
‘Ah, of course the Midlands,’ she said aloud, as they all began to walk down to the water’s edge, ‘actually, I was just thinking how like Lake Taupo this is.’
‘Lake Tapo?’ Lola asked. ‘Don’t know it.’
Georgia set Ant onto the ground. ‘Not Tapo, Taupo, It’s a lake in New Zealand, I went there on holiday once, it’s full of trout and really beautiful. This rather reminds me of it, with these strange rock forma
tions and amazing trees.’
Rebecca wandered back into the shade and sat down under a tree, but Jamie and Deedee pulled their shoes and socks off and in no time at all they were ankle deep in the water.
Lola grinned. ‘Yeah, well it kind of reminds me of home,’ then added, ‘but I don’t think there are any trout here, catfish for sure, and there could be crappie and bass. I could try and make some hooks out of the diaper pins from the medical kit and get us a couple of fish.’
They watched as Jamie showed Deedee how to skate a flat pebble across the water. Ant, Millie and Badger thought it was a great game, with Millie paddling out trying to retrieve the stones, and Ant standing paw deep at the edge, issuing her own detailed set of instructions, as she barked and pranced back and forth.
Georgia had no idea what a crappie was, but with a name like that it couldn’t be good, but a nice fat catfish, that was something else. Her mouth was watering at the thought.
A slow smile spread across her face, ‘Well, you won’t need to use the diaper pins, because it just so happens that I have some real genuine fish hooks and that’s not all, I also happen to have two spools of nylon line.
Lola stared at her in disbelief. ‘Really?’
Georgia nodded, feeling ridiculously pleased with herself as she made her way over to Rebecca and helped her off with her back pack and then shrugged off her own. Undoing the top flaps of her pack, she looked up at Lola. ‘So, if it is alright with you I think we should stop here and set up camp.’
‘Oh yeah,’ Lola exclaimed, ‘that dog will hunt.’
Georgia looked over at her confused, then glanced down at Ant who, already bored with the lake, was desperately trying to get back into her bag. Ant, hunt? She looked back at Lola. ‘What do you mean?’
Lola laughed and suddenly hugged Georgia, ‘It’s an expression. It means that I think it is a really good idea.’
‘Yes, well I think this will do very nicely,’ Ruby said, peering around the clearing. ‘A simply lovely spot to pitch our tents.’
Lola and Georgia exchanged a quick look, and then Lola said, ‘we don’t have any tents.’
‘No tents? But you must have tents, where will we sleep?’
‘Out in the open, under a tent canopy,’ Georgia said, and seeing Ruby’s expression, hastily added, ‘don’t worry, we will do our best to make sure you are comfortable.’
Ruby looked doubtful. ‘It would never have done in my day, but I expect it will be lovely all the same.’
A sudden breeze rippled the water, sending tiny waves scudding across the steely grey surface of the lake, rustling the reeds that grew along the edge, and for some reason it made Georgia think of snakes. She shivered, then before she could stop herself she found herself asking Lola if she thought there were snakes here.
Lola went pale. ‘Heavens to Betsy, I hope not. Have a real phobia about snakes, even more scared of them than I am of spotters.’
Georgia gave a short laugh.‘You can’t be more scared of them than Millie though,’ she said, pausing in her search for the fishhooks, trying to recall where she had put them. Know they are in here somewhere. ‘Last time she saw a snake, she fainted. Nathan and I thought she had died when she keeled over stiff legged, but she was fine. She hadn’t even been bitten!’
Lola gave a half smile, ‘I didn’t know dogs could faint.’
‘Nor did I, but…, ah found them.’ She handed the hooks and spools up to Lola, then stood up. ‘Anyway it’s no big deal if there are snakes here. Snakes can be anywhere but in my experience, snakes are generally shy and retiring. Back in Australia, I had a red-bellied black that used to sun on my porch. They are deadly, but as soon as I would turn up, it would slip away into the shadows.
Lola shuddered, ‘why didn’t you just kill it?’
‘No, would never have done that, black snakes eat brown snakes and you don’t want a brown snake thinking your yard is home. They are one of the world’s most venomous snakes, and mean to boot. If you upset them, they will chase after you and it doesn’t take too much to upset one.’ She glanced over at Lola as she spoke, suddenly realizing that instead of reassuring Lola, her words were having the opposite effect.
Oh, why didn’t I just keep my mouth shut about snakes? Georgia reached over, putting her hand on Lola’s shoulder. ‘It’s okay, what I am trying to say, is that snakes are more scared of us than we are of them. Besides, there aren’t any brown snakes in the U.S.A,’ though there is bound to be something equally venomous. She managed to keep this thought to herself. Instead she decided to totally change the subject.
‘So do you think you will manage to get us a fish?’
Lola looked down at her hands, as though only now registering the fact that she was holding the little bag of fish hooks and the nylon line. ‘Reckon I can.’
She left Lola shortly afterwards, leaving the others to start setting up camp while she and Deedee did a perimeter check. They walked silently, ten feet apart; Georgia, with her shotgun at the ready, Deedee with her bow. They did not speak, keeping all their senses alert to strangers.
Georgia’s mind was clear. She did not think of Rebecca’s worrying withdrawal, or snakes or any of the other issues that threatened to engulf her. She concentrated solely on their surroundings and it was deliberate. It was something she had been consciously training herself to do, developing the ability to block out everything with the potential to distract.
While they did not come upon anyone, they did find a sizeable mound of firewood, split and ready to use. Georgia indicated to Deedee that she wanted to stop and Deedee stood guard while she knelt down beside the woodpile.
Firewood meant people, who might return. However, there were no fresh signs of occupation, no recent fires, discarded packages or cans. The wood had been standing there quite a while, by the looks of it, the top layer weathered, some pieces were even beginning to rot.
All okay, she motioned with the thumb up signal and the two of them continued on their way, then once they were certain the area was clear they circled back to the camp. There she found Jamie and Lola, filling one of the packs with pebbles and sand as a temporary seat for Ruby. Lola smiled ruefully as she caught sight of Georgia’s expression.
‘Yes, my knees aren’t what they used to be,’ Ruby explained, ‘I am not as young as I once was and the ground is such a long way down. If I had been thinking clearly I would have suggested we bring one of the folding chairs from the shed.’
‘That probably would have been a good idea,’ Georgia thought, surveying the original contents of the pack, now haphazardly heaped up against a tree. Only thing is, I am pretty certain there wasn’t a shed back at her house.
Digging for worms, Georgia decided some time later, was not as easy as it sounded. Lola had been determined. ‘Can’t catch a catfish without them.’ and the four of them had been digging with sharpened sticks for over half an hour before Lola was finally satisfied they had enough. The dogs had not made it any easier, constantly getting in the way, sniffing enthusiastically at the ground, trying to work out what was so interesting. Even, doing a little digging themselves; more often than not, kicking dirt into someone’s face. However, Jamie and Deedee found their antics amusing, and anything that kept the children laughing was a good thing, Georgia decided as she brushed dirt from her hair.
Lola settled on a bolder, fishing on the leeward side of it. ‘I did a lot of fishing as a kid back home. Trick is to get your bait as close to the bottom as you can, without hooking it up on something that isn’t a fish and…’ she paused, gently tugging the line. ‘Got a nibble, oh, more than a nibble, got me one hooked.’ ‘Now to get it ashore,’ she murmured. Then, instead of trying to reel it in, she deftly climbed down from the rock, keeping the line taut and waded the two or three steps back to the pebbly verge, and with an expert flip, she had the line up and over and the fish flapping across the ground.
With one quick movement, Lola took her knife from its sheath, and pressing the long sharp blade dow
n firmly, slid it through the head of the catfish and the fish flapped no more.
After a time, Georgia went over to sit with Rebecca. She had been keeping a watch on her while they were down by the edge of the lake, concerned that Rebecca had not moved from her position beneath the tree. She was beginning to worry, this was not like Rebecca at all. Of course there had been occasions when she had become upset and sulked, or refused to talk, but she had never kept it up for this long. Georgia understood her stepdaughter was grief stricken, but even so, this continued silence was out of character. Georgia tried to talk with her, but Rebecca just stared ahead, unseeing, almost as if she was unaware of Georgia’s presence.
‘Shall I read to you?’ she asked finally, reaching for Rebecca’s bible. That might be the way in, a way to open communication between them. Perhaps we can find a passage in remembrance of Lexie and her mum?’ Rebecca’s grip tightened on her bible. Then again, maybe not, Georgia decided as she withdrew her hand. She felt so helpless. In the end, she did the one thing that Rebecca had always loved when she was a little girl. She pulled her onto her lap and rocked her back and forth.
‘We all love you Baby-girl,’ she whispered. At first, Rebecca was stiff in her arms, but after a few moments, she rested her head upon Georgia’s shoulder and slowly began to relax. She felt dampness on her neck and knew that it came from tears. Tears were good. Rebecca needed to cry.
In the distance she could see Lola leaping off the bolder, she had caught another fish. Jamie and Deedee were begging for a turn, and Badger, Millie and Ant were digging furiously in amongst the pebbles and racing up and down the shoreline. Georgia smiled to herself, it seemed so chaotic over there, so peaceful here, with Rebecca in her arms. From time to time, she chased away small annoying insects and after a while, she realized that Rebecca had drifted asleep. She sat listening to the gentle rhythmic sound of her breathing. Her own eyelids felt heavy, the warmth of the day and the lack of sleep wrapped themselves around her and she fell asleep as well.
Survivors of the Sun Page 33