by Robert Boren
Chapter 7 - Daisy
An almost steady stream of vehicles flowed into the Amarillo Oasis RV Park. Kelly, Junior, and Brushy watched them from the veranda in front of the office. It was nearly midnight. The last several hours were crazy for them, getting people settled at both parks while waiting on pins and needles for the hourly satellite pictures.
“Look at all these folks,” Brushy said. “Seems like there’s no end to them.”
“Jake said that nerve gas attack swelled their ranks quite a bit,” Junior said.
“I still can’t believe those bastards did that,” Kelly said.
“When’s Jake coming?” Brushy asked.
“Last time I got a text from him, they were taking down the rodeo grand stands,” Junior said. “They ought to be on the road by now.”
“The first batch from Dallas ought to be here any time, too,” Kelly said.
“Yeah,” Junior said. “Space is getting tight fast. Too bad we lost that third RV Park.”
Brenda and Rachel walked over.
“Uh oh,” Kelly said. “Time’s probably up.”
Junior snickered. “That’s okay with me. Had enough. I could use a little time with my woman.”
“You’re still on fire for Rachel, ain’t ya?” Kelly asked.
“Oh yeah, brother,” Junior said.
“Good for you,” Kelly said. “I’m still feeling the same way about Brenda.”
“You talking about us?” Rachel asked. She sat down on Junior’s lap.
“Not in a bad way,” Kelly said.
“Hey, honey, it’s time to go to bed,” Brenda said. “We’re tired.”
“I know,” Kelly said. “I’m ready.”
“What about the gate?” Junior asked. “There’s still people flooding in.”
“Moe and Clancy took a long nap,” Brushy said. “So did Pat. They’ll be up in a short while. I’ll hold down the fort until they get up.”
“You sure?” Junior asked.
“I’m sure,” Brushy said. “Wish I had a pretty lady to sit on my lap, though.”
“Ah, shucks,” Rachel said. “Lots of people coming. Maybe you’ll find somebody.”
“I’m just joking,” Brushy said. “I’m too old for that sort of thing. The memories are still there, though. The desires.”
Junior laughed. “That’s how I was thinking. Glad I was wrong.”
“You aren’t too old, Junior,” Rachel said. “C’mon. Let’s go.”
“Okay, honey.”
Rachel got off Juniors lap, and they walked away hand in hand, Brenda and Kelly following.
“See you folks in the morning,” Brushy called out. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
Kelly turned his head back and shot him a grin, then slapped Brenda on the butt.
“Hey!” she protested.
Brushy chuckled, then leaned back in his chair, fighting sleep. Clancy walked over after about ten minutes with a coffee cup in his hand.
“Hey, Brushy,” he said. “I can take over now.”
“Where’s Moe?”
“He’s in the clubhouse with Pat, getting coffee and chatting her up.”
“He’d better be careful,” Brushy said. “She still fancies men quite a bit.”
“Moe still fancies women quite a bit, and they do have a lot in common.”
“Pat’s pretty ornery,” Brushy said.
Clancy sat down. “Oh, I don’t think they’re about to launch into a romance. Still people streaming in?”
“Slowed down a tad in the last few minutes, but the groups from Dallas haven’t gotten here yet. Junior said Jake ought to be on the way by now. It’ll get busy for you guys. If you have too much trouble, wake me up, okay?”
“Will do,” Clancy said. “Go get some sleep.” He watched as Brushy got up and walked towards the residence, which was behind the clubhouse.
Moe walked up with Pat.
“Look, there’s a pretty good sized group on the way,” Pat said, pointing down the road at headlights in the distance. “Wonder if it’s the Dallas folks?”
“Could be them,” Clancy said. “Could be Jake and the last of the rodeo folks, too.”
“Oh, they finally left, huh?” Moe asked.
“Rumor has it,” Clancy said.
“Heard anything from your park?” Pat asked.
“Didn’t leave anybody there,” Moe said. “My only close neighbor passed, fighting the enemy.”
“With you guys?” Pat asked.
“No, down south,” Moe said. “I found out about it a few weeks after the fact.”
“I hope this war doesn’t go on too much longer,” Pat said.
“You knew the people in the furthest park pretty well, didn’t you?” Clancy asked.
“Yeah, I did,” Pat said. “That really hurt. Right now I’m just numb.”
“They got family?” Moe asked. “Anybody you can contact?”
“Sheriff already did that,” Pat said. “There were three boys. One of them is in the service. One of them went to New York for a job. Not sure where the other one ended up. He didn’t keep in contact with his folks very well. Black sheep and all.”
“Wonder if the one in New York survived the nuke?” Clancy asked.
“I don’t know,” Pat said. “He wasn’t a wall street guy. He had an art history degree. Went to work in a museum there.”
“There’s quite a few of those,” Clancy said. “One of my girlfriends was into that.”
“Dana,” Moe said. “What ever happened to her?”
“She kicked around in Texas trying to find work. Not much of it around. Last I heard she was on her way to LA, but that was a couple years before the war started.”
“Bad things happened in LA, from what I’ve been reading,” Pat said. “Martial law. The UN came in. Been abusing people. Some of the citizens are starting to resist.”
“I hate the UN,” Moe said. “We ought to pull out and dynamite those buildings in New York City. All they do is abuse us and our allies, and charge us for the trouble. A pox on them.”
Clancy cracked up. “Tell us how you really feel.”
Pat snickered. “Hell, he’s less ornery about the UN than old Brushy is.”
“Yeah, Brushy’s a riot,” Clancy said. “I know Jason’s group is glad to see him again.”
“Yeah, he’s a beloved character,” Moe said. “Why’d he disappear?”
“That was my fault,” Pat said. “Got into a bad car accident. Damn near killed myself. Was laid up for a couple weeks solid. Still not a hundred percent.”
“How’d it happen?” Moe asked. “If you don’t mind me asking.”
She sighed. “My own stupidity. Damn armadillo ran across the frontage road. I tried to avoid it and lost control. Ran into a ditch. Could’ve been a lot worse.”
“Armadillos are a pain,” Clancy said. “I don’t put myself in danger avoiding them anymore.”
Pat chuckled. “Yeah, well I keep telling myself that, but when I’m heading towards one I just can’t do it.”
“You like them, then?” Moe asked.
“Goodness no,” she said. “They’re ugly as sin. Almost as bad as the opossums they have down in the southeast part of the state.”
“At least you can eat those,” Moe said. “In a pinch. My great uncle liked them. Had them a time or two myself. Not half bad if you know how to cook them.”
“Oh, I know,” Pat said. “Grandma used to eat the damn things too. They look like giant rats to me, and I don’t eat rats. Never been that poor.”
“Where’d you get the RV Park?” Moe asked.
“It was originally a motel with a petting zoo behind it,” Pat said. “Belonged to my grandpa. The motel burned to the ground, and he decided to turn it into a trailer park. That didn’t go, and RVs started to get popular, so he changed it into an RV Park. Brought my dad and my uncle in as partners.”
“So you’re family has owned this spot for a long time,” Moe said.
&nbs
p; “Land sakes, yes. We owned this land before I-40 was here.”
“How about Brushy’s place?” Clancy asked. “Heard about the battle that happened there.”
Pat laughed. “When my daddy and my uncle couldn’t stand working with each other anymore, my uncle left and started up his own place. That was the one Brushy ended up with. Uncle didn’t have any kids, so Brushy got it after he passed. Worked out pretty nice, actually. We would’ve fought over this park if it was the only one. We fought all the time when we were younger.”
“You never know how things are gonna work out,” Moe said.
“How’d you get your park? Was it in the family long?”
“Nope, I bought it from KOA,” Moe said. “They couldn’t make a go of it. Cut their losses.”
“Really? They’re a big outfit.”
“Probably smart what they did,” Moe said. “Fort Stockton isn’t much of a destination. Not enough for the prices that KOA had to charge, anyway. Had a pretty good thing going there. Especially the restaurant. I hated to leave it behind.”
“Then why did you?” Pat asked.
“I figured it was more important to be alive than to stick around,” Moe said sheepishly. “I’ll get it back, if we survive.”
“It might be damaged,” Clancy said.
“Hell, these places don’t take that much to put back together again,” Pat said. “If you got the gumption.”
“I got the gumption,” Moe said. “Got to keep it alive for Clancy. He’s all the kin I got. I want it to go to him.”
“You aren’t going anywhere for a long time,” Clancy said.
“We’ll see,” Moe said. “If somebody’s gonna get it in our group, I hope it’s old codgers like me instead of young people like you.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” Pat said.
“Stop,” Clancy said. “I don’t want to talk about that.”
“Look, that big clump of headlights is almost here,” Pat said. “Bet it’s the folks from Dallas.”
“Might be Jake,” Moe said.
They watched as the cars raced down the frontage road, pulling into the driveway.
“That’s Jake’s truck,” Moe said, standing up. “The dirty one that looks like it’s falling apart, with the camper shell on it.” They watched the cars and trucks flood into the staging area. Jake got out of his truck and saw Moe and Clancy, a wide grin covering his face. An old woman was with him, a little shorter than Jake, with long wispy gray hair blowing in the breeze, battered farm dress rippling on her rail-thin body.
Pat snickered. “What is this, the Grapes of Wrath?”
“I reckon that’s Jake’s old lady,” Moe said.
“Hey, guys,” Jake said. “This here’s Daisy, my wife.”
“Nice to meet you,” she said, shooting them a confident look. “Jake tells me we’re gonna kill those creeps who gassed the kids in Denver.”
“Oh, you heard about that,” Moe said. “Yeah, we’re gonna make it real hard on those folks. I’m Moe. This is Clancy, and Pat, owner of this park.”
“Great to meet y’all,” Daisy said. “Where we sleeping?”
“Anywhere you want,” Pat said. “Lots of open space. Rest Rooms and showers are spread out around the park, too. Code is 5523 for all of them. Help yourself.”
“You guys gonna sleep in the camper?” Clancy asked.
“Yep,” Jake said.
“Wish you got the smell out of there, but I’ll get used to it,” Daisy said. “Let’s park it and hit the sack. I’m beat.”
“Okay, Daisy,” Jake said. “I’ll spread the word. We got about sixty vehicles, including nine motor homes, five travel trailers, and six fifth-wheels. We need to settle up now?”
“No, we’ll worry about all of that stuff tomorrow,” Pat said. “I’ll put up some pancakes and coffee in the morning. All you can eat.”
“That sounds great,” Jake said. They strolled back to their group and gave instructions.
“Hey, what was that code again?” Daisy shouted to them.
“It’s 5523,” Pat shouted back.
“I think the place just got a little livelier,” Clancy said.
Moe laughed. “Daisy reminds me of Granny Clampett. Wonder if she brought some corn squeezins and possum pie?”
Pat snickered. “I was thinking the same thing.”
Chapter 8 – Warm Bodies
Brendan looked at Hannah. “You okay, honey?”
“Don’t worry about me,” she said. “I’m nervous, but I’ll be fine.”
“Whoa, dude,” Juan Carlos said as the boat rocked over a bad spot in the road. He had to grab the side of the pilot’s console to keep from falling over. Madison looked at him and grinned.
“This is like being on an amusement park ride,” she said. “Glad this seat is sturdy.”
“It’d be better if it weren’t so damn dark,” Hannah said, “and the headlights behind us are just annoying. I can’t look back there anymore.”
“Seriously,” Madison said. “I hope this screwball idea works.”
“I just hope we don’t get killed,” Brendan said.
“Watch those negative vibes, dude,” Juan Carlos said.
“It helps if you look ahead, into the headlights shining from the lead vehicle,” Madison said. “That’s what I’ve been doing. It even gives you a little early warning on the big bumps.”
“I was doing that,” Hanna said, “until we came to that huge hill. It looked like we’d be going up at more than a forty-five-degree angle.”
Brendan chuckled. “I know, it looked scary, but it wasn’t as steep as it looked from back here.”
“Yeah, thank God,” Hannah said. “Do we have any idea how much further this is?”
“You really in that much of a hurry to get there?” Madison asked.
“The waiting is the worst part,” she replied.
“Speaking of big hills, here comes another one,” Juan Carlos said. “Hope Roberto knows this area as well as he says he does.”
“I think he’s pretty reliable,” Brendan said.
“You just met the guy,” Hannah said.
“True, but he’s been good so far.”
“We’ve already been in two battles with him,” Juan Carlos said. “Good enough for me, and those dogs of his are bitchen.”
“They’re scary,” Madison said.
“There, see, this hill isn’t as bad as it looked,” Brendan said. They went over the crest of the hill, and saw the highway in the distance.
“Wonder if that’s the road they were talking about?” Hannah asked.
“Has to be,” Juan Carlos said. “Won’t be long now. That’s not as far away as it looks.”
They cruised along, going down the hill into a long flat area with more of a road under them. It only took about ten minutes to get to the highway. The lights went off on the lead vehicle, then the others.
“I don’t like this,” Hannah whispered.
“Want to sit on my lap here?” Brendan asked.
“You’d like that,” she said.
“Want to be closer to me or not?”
“Oh, all right,” she said, climbing up and settling on him. He put his arms around her, and she leaned back tighter against him.
“See, this is better, isn’t it?” Brendan asked.
“Yes,” she whispered. “I love you.”
“I love you too, sweetie. Don’t worry. This will go okay. We’re probably in the safest place we can be. Just keep yourself behind the shields, okay?”
“I will.”
“Want to sit on me?” Juan Carlos asked Madison.
“No, stay on the pilot chair, and be ready on that gun,” she said. “I’d rather be alive than comfortable.”
He smiled and nodded to her.
“Roberto is going under the bridge,” Brendan said.
“Yep, won’t be long now,” Hannah said.
“Hope there’s not too many bad guys around here,” Madison said. She watched the dar
k terrain around the convoy. “Lots of hiding places. Maybe they have people watching.”
“Maybe,” Juan Carlos said. “Just keep your head down, behind the shield on that gun.”
“We’re slowing down,” Hannah whispered.
“No, we’re actually stopping,” Juan Carlos said. “You knew we were gonna do that. Jay and Gerald are going in with their crossbows first, remember?”
“Yes, I remember, but it still makes me nervous,” Hannah said. They watched as Jay and Gerald trotted quietly to Roberto’s Jeep. He got out with Kris, careful not to slam the car doors.
“I can’t see the compound,” Madison said.
“There’s a small mound between us and that place,” Juan Carlos said. “Saw it when we were coming down that big hill. The recycling center is only about four hundred yards ahead of us, so we should be quiet.”
“Look,” Brendan whispered. “Hector is joining them too.”
“He got a crossbow?” Juan Carlos asked.
“No, he’s got a compound hunting bow,” Brendan said. “Those take a lot more skill.”
“My cousin has one of those,” Juan Carlos said. “He’s taken down charging pigs with that thing, but it took him years to get that good.”
“Richardson and Lita are following the bow team,” Brendan said.
“They’ll probably stop and peek over the ridge to see what happens,” Juan Carlos said.
“I wish we could see,” Madison said.
“See, I was right,” Juan Carlos said. “Richardson and Lita are laying on the dirt just behind the crest of the hill. They’ve got their guns pointing in that direction too. They’re covering the bow team.”
“Where’s Roberto and Kris?” Hannah asked.
“Still in the Jeep,” Brendan said. “Probably trying to keep the dogs quiet.”
“Hear that?” Madison asked. “Laughter. Sounds like there’s a party going on in the distance.”
“You’ve got good ears,” Hannah said. “I can’t hear that.”
“Maybe it’s in my head,” Madison said.
“Doubt it,” Juan Carlos said. “Wonder how close they’re going to pull the boat?”
They sat silently for what seemed like forever. Then there was a falling sound and rustling on the dirt.
“Hear that?” Madison asked.