by Pete Thorsen
Bev said if they found some seeds she would like to plant a garden so they could have some fresh vegetables. Don warned her that it would be almost impossible to keep the critters out of the garden up here but she was welcome to try and he would help anyway he could. They talked more and when they both started to nod off they went to bed.
The next morning Don started on the wiring right after breakfast. The hardest part was adding those heavy golf cart batteries to their battery bank. The additional solar panels almost doubled their power generating capacity. And those golf cart batteries would help a lot with their storage capacity. He would still add more batteries if he got the chance but thought he would only add deep cycle batteries to keep them all the same.
Don did not know if that made a difference or not but it just made sense to keep things the same. In one of the food trucks they had found some cases of distilled water which he had stacked next to their battery bank to be used to add water when necessary to the batteries. Both Bev and Don just puttered around until they ate a light lunch then Don suggested going back to the cabin to bring a few things to which Bev immediately agreed. Don put some stuff in a pack and Bev carried a broom and they decided to try to find the most direct and the easiest route to the cabin.
When they got to the cabin Don explored around it while Bev was inside sweeping the ceiling and walls before tackling the floor with the broom. He came back excited by his discovery of a dug well that he had almost fell into. He took Bev to show her but she was not impressed. Looking down they could see water but it was pretty gross. Bev said she was not drinking any water out of there though it could possibly be used to clean the floor or something. Don agreed that it looked gross but he had a backpacker’s model of water filter in his pack and they could boil the water also.
Bev said she would just haul water over here for her to drink. Don did not say so but he felt the same way. They spent some time in the cabin cleaning it better and throwing out some trash (mostly broken or rotten furniture). There was a small fireplace on one end and Don stuck his head in it to look up the chimney. He said it was mostly open and could be used he thought. Before they left Don hung the food and water he had brought in a bag from a ceiling beam. The door was a little rickety and Don looked it over good so he could bring stuff to fix it up next time. On the way back to their house they went a different route and it seemed both easier and faster.
That night after supper Don said maybe they should take a chance and go to the Home Depot truck they had found and see if there was anything in it they could use. It was only a very short distance down the highway from their dirt road so there was little chance of seeing anyone. Bev agreed and they were both looking forward to the trip.
They were up very early the next day and after a quick breakfast they left as the sun was just rising over the hills. Don was more thorough brushing out their tracks at the end of their driveway. Bev had told him to turn the opposite way from the highway to make tracks leading farther down the ‘main’ road. Don said he should have thought of that and drove a couple miles down the road turning into several other little dirt tracks to confuse anyone that followed the tracks before finally turning back and heading to the highway.
Today he had brought the trailer with in case they found a lot of stuff in the semi trailer they were headed towards. Don stopped just before turning on the highway and shut the truck off and sat and listened and watched for a few minutes before again starting the pickup and driving to the Home Depot truck. When he stopped he backed up near the back so he would be ready to load if they found something. He had to break in because the back was locked but he kept a pry bar in the pickup all the time for that purpose.
The truck was almost totally full of ‘stuff’. Much of it was on shrink wrapped pallets and it was going to be difficult to get to some of it. It was loaded for maximum use of space not for Don and Bev’s shopping experience. But Don started climbing around and cutting the shrink wrap and opening boxes while Bev paced outside on watch.
There was an empty space at the very back of the trailer where Don stacked many things he found before getting out and loading those items into his trailer. This went on for quite some time and Don took enough stuff to fill the trailer before he stopped. Bev had looked over the items as he loaded them into their trailer. When he was done Bev told him to watch and she spent some time in the trailer and found some more stuff that Don put into the pickup box. They ended up with a lot of stuff that they brought home.
Again Don was extra careful and brushed out their tracks leaving the highway for quite a distance and again when they got to their driveway. That afternoon Don was very busy with Bev’s help building shelves in most of the rooms in their house. It did nothing to make it look better but it was very practical. Bev filled all the shelves as soon as Don got them up on the walls. When done in the house Don put more shelves up in the garage and the shed.
The next day Don loaded his cart full of stuff and with Bev accompanying him they hauled stuff to the cabin. They just dumped off the first load and went back for another large load. This time Don spent a lot of time working at the cabin. The cabin windows were broken out and Don had brought many of the glass blocks he had found in the Home Depot truck to use for strong windows.
He had a case of dark brown caulking to ‘cement’ them into place and was able to do both the windows in the cabin this way. You couldn’t see very well through these new windows but they were very strong and still let in all the light. They also sealed up the cabin so rain could not blow in. He used shelving boards to reinforce the old door of the cabin. He did nothing to the outside of the door only the inside. When he was done the door was very strong but looked the same as before from the outside.
The glass block windows were shiny because of the glass but the brown caulking looked old and unobtrusive. He used more of the shelf boards to reinforce the two bunks inside. Before they left they spent an hour or more gathering dead wood in the area and stacked it near the cabin to use for firewood. All the tools they brought to the cabin Don left there because they were all extras along with many sizes of nails and screws. They both went home tired that evening and welcomed the nights sleep.
The next morning it was hauling more stuff to the cabin and was again two heavy loads plus more work inside. They both again worked most of the day at the cabin and it was looking pretty good inside and now had a few supplies stored there also. Don wanted to do more work and haul in more supplies but they had certainly done a lot in a very short time. That night Bev said she wanted to go to town to check on their new friends there. Of course Don agreed and plans were made to leave early in the morning taking just the truck and not the trailer.
Day Seventeen
So early the next morning they left and when they got within about a mile from the town Don pulled up to an obviously vacant house. After a bit Don had to climb through a window to get inside and opened the garage door and backed the pickup inside before closing the door again. They left the house unlocked and erased their tracks as best as they could before heading to town on foot.
When they got closer to town they left the highway for a dirt track and followed that as it snaked around some and came towards the tiny town from the back side. Before descending down into town Don used his binoculars to scan the whole town for several minutes. After he had watched for several minutes he handed the binoculars over to Bev who also watched for several minutes. Don spoke first.
“It looks like I could see two bodies lying in the street.”
“I saw that also but it’s too far to say positively that they are bodies. I agree it might very well be though.”
“We better go down off the road and use whatever cover we can to keep from being spotted.”
They walked off the road and into the brush that was about five feet high in most places. They had no camouflage clothes but at Don’s insistence they each had drab shirts on that blended in fairly well. They walked into the town slowly and circled around to come up beh
ind the church.
They figured if anyone was around they would likely be there. There was a large open space around the church and Don whispered for Bev to stay and keep an eye out while he went to the church. Surprising Don she agreed to wait and watch. With no cover whatever Don stood up straight and walked to the church like he had not a care in the world. When he got to the church he stopped next to it and listened for a few moments before peaking into a window. Then he walked to the front and went inside which made Bev very apprehensive. But he came out after just a few minutes and walked slightly to one side of where Bev was hiding and circled around to her.
“No one is in the church. But it was a mess in there and what looked like dried blood a few spots. I think we might be alone in this town.”
“You think they are all dead!”
“I don’t know but I fear the worst. We both know no one living here would leave the church in a mess without a very good reason. Let’s go over to the well. If anyone is still living here they will need water.”
Bev’s face was white but she said nothing else and followed Don as he made a round-about way to the well area. They came to the garden first and they could see it was wilting badly. At that point they both knew there was very little hope of finding anyone alive. Everyone in town knew their lives depended on that garden and they would never let it die willingly.
They went into the large building that the townsfolk had mounted all the solar panels on to run the well pump. No one was inside and Don asked Bev if she wanted to hike back to the truck while he checked out the rest of the town.
“No. I have to see for myself. I do know what we will see but I think I’ll have to harden some with the way things are now and might as well start now.”
They left the big building and walked farther into the center of the little town. Don had guessed that the bulk of the people would likely have been herded into a fair sized building and headed to the community center building.
Again he asked Bev to wait outside which she did while he went inside. Don went into the building and came back out in a few moments. After seeing his face Bev knew and ran into his arms and started crying. Don just held her quietly and let her cry it all out.
Finally Bev stepped away from Don then took a couple steps toward the doorway but Don stopped her.
“Please don’t go in there. It can only cause pain. Please.”
For a second it looked like Bev was going to go in but she saw that it would also hurt Don if she went in and she stopped.
“Can we do anything for them?”
“They are in a better place already. There are only empty shells left from their last life now that they have moved on. I don’t know what we can do for them at this point.”
Bev took his hand and they turned and started walking hand in hand to the highway and back to their truck. When they got back home Don got Bev to eat a little lunch and they just walked all afternoon where they could see nothing man-made or man-destroyed. Don relied on nature to help both of them heal.
Day Eighteen
The next morning Don made a nice breakfast that Bev felt obligated to eat. Then he suggested they take the truck and go exploring down the dirt road farther. Don threw his big pack in the truck so they would have some supplies if something happened and they left. They drove several miles down the winding and rough dirt road that steadily rose higher into the hills before they came to a little house off the road that could just be seen through the trees.
Don stopped on the road and asked Bev if they should check it out. When she nodded Don turned into the driveway and stopped near the house. They had the windows open on the truck and Don yelled out ‘Hello’ but received no answer. They got out and checked the house out.
Behind the house was a large metal water tank that the owner must haul water in to fill as needed. Don thought they should check out the house as long as they were stopped there and he had an easy time slipping the door lock with his strip of metal banding. Inside was very rustic but looked functional in a minimalist sort of way. There was some food that they left alone and clothes and such. There were three oil lamps but they just left them also.
There were many books on some homemade bookshelves that drew their attention. When Don started reading the titles he decided to take all the books and took a pillow case from the bed and used that to hold all the books. The books were on things like homesteading, foraging, and blacksmithing. Don thought it was a windfall of useful knowledge.
They left the little house and continued their exploration of the dirt road. They passed a couple more houses but did not bother to stop. Then they saw a house that had a windmill and Don turned in. When he stopped the truck Don again yelled out ‘Hello the house’.
Both Bev and Don were very surprised when an older man stepped out the door and asked what they wanted.
“Just thought we might stop in for a visit since we were driving by.”
“Come on up to the porch and take a load off.”
Bev and Don got out of the truck and walked up to the house and took the seats on the porch that the man pointed out.
“I see you’re both packing. I expect that there is a lot trouble down below in the valley.”
“Yes sir there is plenty of trouble. I think many people have died.”
“I’m Sam Spade. No relation to the famous one.”
“Don Wilson and this lovely woman is Beverly Johnson. Pleased to meet you.”
“So how is it you got a truck that runs? No cars run up here.”
“We only recently acquired this truck from a couple no goods that did not need it anymore. I think it works because it is so old but I don’t know much about engines and such. Out on the highway one day we saw several old cars and old trucks go by that were obviously in running condition.”
“Have you been to any of the towns around here?”
The old man was still pretty sharp and saw the look that came to Bev’s face before she looked away.
“I figured it was bad. I’m sorry if my mouth brought up some bad memories. I just miss the listening to the news.”
“We stopped in the little town down at the bottom of the hill yesterday. We had recently made some new friends there and stopped to visit. Everyone in the town was dead. It was pretty upsetting.”
“Again I’m sorry. We all lose people we care about, even in the best of times. At least you have each other”
“We’re just friends. Bev recently lost her husband. Since the power quit things have been pretty bad. We just happened to find each other and have since become friends.”
“I have no electric here but I was outside on the day it happened. I saw two jets that were flying and then they just nosed down out of sight. One was close enough for me to hear it hit. I’m thankful that they didn’t start a forest fire that came up here.
I tried the radio to hear what caused it and the radio wouldn’t work. I have two and neither worked. Then I thought I would drive into town to see what was going on but my truck wouldn’t start. I know what an EMP is and figured that was what happened. You must be the folks that live in the house down the way a few miles that have the solar panels.”
“How could you possibly know that?”
“My truck would not start but after a few days I thought to try to get my old quad started. It’s old and mostly wore out but I did get it started. I waited anther day and drove down to the highway and saw all the cars and trucks stopped there.
On the way back I noticed the tracks going back towards that solar house. I didn’t go up the driveway because I thought with what happened it would bring out the worst in folks and I didn’t want any trouble.”
“Are you doing OK up here? Do you have enough food and water?”
“I got plenty of water thanks to my windmill. I always did keep plenty of food on hand. I also eat a rabbit or squirrel now and then. I’m doing fine. You folks got enough to eat?”
“We went out to the highway and salvaged some food from a
grocery truck.”
“Mighty smart thinking. That food was doing nobody any good sittin’ in that truck out on the highway. It’s about lunch time for me. You all want to come in and have a bite of lunch?’
“We have a little food in the truck for lunch. We don’t want to eat your food.”
“It’s OK son. I got enough to share a lunch. Come on in.”
When the old man turned around both Bev and Don saw he had a pistol shoved in his waistband in the small of his back. Then they stepped inside and there was a rifle next to the door in a homemade holder. It appeared old Sam was perfectly capable of taking care of him self.
“Murgatroyd. Where are you. Come out and see our company.”
Soon Bev saw a black cat come out from hiding and she coaxed it over so she could play with it. The cat certainly liked the attention and eventually appeared very content to let Bev pick him up and hold him.
“Your cat has an interesting name. How did you come to name him?”
“I don’t know he just looked like a Murgatroyd, so that’s what I named him. Give me a minute and I’ll see if I can find something that is suitable to eat. Have a seat at the table and we can gab while I get some food ready.”
Bev and Don sat down and noticed that the whole kitchen was spotless. Sam must spend some of his time cleaning everyday. The living room was open to the kitchen in the small house and they could see everything was very neat in that room also. There were three oil lamps that they could see from where they were sitting. When Bev saw Sam get something out of the compact refrigerator she asked.
“I thought you had no electricity but your refrigerator must be still working.”
“It is working little lady because it is a propane frig. I have a very large propane tank because they charge so darn much to come out here to fill it. Very lucky for me I had just had them come out and fill it before this happened. I’ll be fine for a year or more now. You must use those solar panels to make your frig work I would guess.”