"Sounds like it's worth doing."
"I thought it was the Dark Deceiver?"
"Whatever," John said, waving his hands in the air. "How many lookouts would we need?"
"Everyone we can spare. Take no chances, I say. At least four, maybe five."
John's mind was working overtime. "We could arrive just before dawn, set up our perimeter, work all day, head home at dusk."
"Why not?"
* * *
After the group had retrieved all the solar panels and related equipment and anything else they could scavenge from Joe's farm, John decided he would pick Joe's brain for what he knew of others in the area. It was after dinner and he called Joe into the office off the great room.
Joe sat on the sofa and John perched himself on the edge of the desk, trying to look non-threatening and trying to have a congenial tone in his voice.
"That all went well, Joe. We're sorry your group was hit, but you're a good addition to our group. You have electrical skills as well as farming."
"Thanks, John. We sure do appreciate you takin' us in. We wouldn't have made it tonight alone. I been thinkin' about it all day. I had the worst thoughts."
"Like what?"
"I was thinkin' that maybe I would have to shoot Mary to keep her from bein' taken by those guys and, you know, used." Joe wiped his eyes with his red plaid handkerchief. "That woulda been the worst thing to happen to a father. Even worse than losin' ma. You know?"
"Yeah. I hadn't thought about it, but you're right." John decided he had to change the subject. This well was poisoned. "You know of any other survivalist groups around? Someone said a group was north about fifteen miles. Know anything about them?"
Joe sat silent for a second. He was tense. "You don't want to get mixed up with them. Mostly ex-military. Heavily armed. They came to us a couple months ago. Threatened to come and take everything. Bad guys."
John's eyes tilted toward the ceiling and then back at Joe. "I think we ran into them. They had a lot of sugar. They had taken over a warehouse." John sat on the sofa next to Joe.
"You say 'had?'"
"They threatened us, too. We took the fight to them. They were making alcohol and using it in their vehicles. We took the sugar, but we don't have a still. Making one hasn't been a big priority."
"What happened to their still? You could use it if you stopped them."
"We didn't think we could fight them if they had the still. So, we blew it up. Then, we had the fight. Turns out, we didn't have to blow the still. "
"If you can get some copper, we could make one. My daddy was a 'shiner all his life. I helped." Joe was anxious and excited.
"We don't have any. I thought about using stainless steel, but I don't know where we would get that either. We finally decided that the sugar is not a bad survival food, if we need it. Marceau put some in glass jars to keep out the bugs. We thought about making whisky to use for barter, but we didn't have anybody to barter with. So, we stopped thinking about it."
"You can barter it to me for all the canned food you took."
"Now, everybody has a sense of humor."
Chapter 54 - Gas Station Scavenging II
"George, I think we have quite a few empty gasoline drums. More empties that full ones. You interested in tapping the keg again?"
"Sure, Fred. I'll talk to John."
"I don't think we need to bother him. Not many people around any more. Almost nobody. When was the last time you saw another person outside of town? Those people who attacked Joe and his group were the last. That was a month ago. Should be safe."
"So, we just take the SUV and the trailer."
"One cycle. I'll go in first and set it all up. I'll wave and you drive in. Otherwise same as last time. Tonight, what do you think?"
Joe walked into the living room with his daughter, Mary, and looked at Fred and George. "John said I should watch out for you two. He said you guys are always up to something. What are you up to now?"
"Come on Joe. We're just going out to scavenge some more gasoline."
"You both and John?"
"No need to bother him. We can handle it," said Fred.
Joe looked at them for a minute and then said, "Sounds like something I'd like to know about. Can I go along?"
"Sure," said Fred, looking at George.
George shrugged.
"We don't see any problem Things have been calm for a while. We've done this before. Pretty easy."
"Things around here are never calm," said George. "We had pirates, the guy in the red truck, thieves, Sarah, then Abby, then the K people, then those traders, Elspeth and Tom, then Carla came back and we had a little war at the old folks home, then the battle at your place. This place is never quiet."
"Sounds like you guys have had lots of fun."
"I'll interpret that as you saying you want in. Right Joe?"
"Sure Fred, I spent some time in the Army, too. That was interesting. If I believe half of what John told me, somebody has to babysit you characters."
"None of those things you mentioned were our fault," said Fred.
"None of it is anybody's fault. But stuff happens."
"Yes. Joe, you think we should run this by John,?"
"No. I'll babysit you. You're right about one thing. He's had enough problems."
"Great," said Fred. "I'll go take a nap and I'll see you guys at the barn around midnight."
The day had been sunny and by midnight, it had cooled off but was humid and sticky. They left the compound without anyone noticing and proceeded north. They drove five miles to the gasoline station with George arriving first, as planned. He began to disassemble the pump as before with Fred and Joe parked on the side of the road, about a quarter mile away. After the front of the pump had been removed, George blinked his flashlight up the road. Fred drove in, pulling the trailer beside the pump, got out and grabbed the hose nozzle and inserted it into the first drum. He pulled the rope on the generator and it started quickly. Joe walked around with his pistol in hand. Five minutes later, the first drum was filled. Another five minutes and the second drum was full and Fred transferred the nozzle to the third drum.
"Looking good, George. Going like clockwork. What do you say?"
"Sure. I need to check the gasoline in the generator tank, it may be low. I forgot to check it before we left the barn. He took the nozzle from Fred and inserted it into the fuel tank of the generator.
Just then a bullet hit the first drum, then a second and a third. Gasoline sprayed everywhere and then poured out the holes on both sides of the drum. The fumes filled the air and were ignited by the muffler of the generator. Joe ran up to the SUV, firing at the muzzle flashes as he ran.
Fred jumped out of the way and into the driver's seat of the SUV. George jumped in beside him and Fred floored the accelerator, peeling the wheels, with a burning trailer behind them and a stream of fire following as more gasoline spilled out. Fred drove like a maniac on the curvy country road, not slowing down for the curves, trying to keep the flames behind him and hoping that eventually the fire would burn itself out when no more gasoline spilled. Before that could happen, something exploded. Orange flames filled the rear view mirror and Fred pressed harder on the accelerator, but it was already on the floor.
When Fred came to the intersection, he barely slowed down and slid sideways around the hard right turn. The trailer didn't make it and flipped over as it disconnected itself from the SUV, the safety chain snapping, not being able to withstand the stress. Fred drove a half mile up the road before stopping, far enough to be out of harm's way, He and George looked back to see the second and third drums explode. The fire was horrendous. Fred and George could only stand and watch. After ten minutes, the gasoline had all burned away and the fire was concentrated in what little was left of the tires. They drove back to the trailer and put out the fires with the fire extinguisher kept in the SUV. They left the headlights on as they checked out the damage. The tires were useless and three of the gasoline drum
s had exploded. The others were scorched. After walking around with a flashlight for two minutes, Fred stumbled over something. It was a body. Joe. He had seen Joe run up when the first bullet hit, but apparently he had jumped on and tried to stop the leak. Fred put Joes' body into the back of the SUV and he and George returned to the lodge without saying a word.
"John, something going on. Car just drive in. Look like SUV."
"Must be Fred and George. Nobody else would be running around at this hour of the night. I'll go see what they are up to." John pulled on his pants, grabbed his pistol and crawled through the tunnel to the barn. "What's up guys?"
George looked down at the ground and couldn't speak. John looked at Fred. He also looked away from John and down at the ground.
"We wanted to go for some gas."
"You should have told me. Cho and I would have gone with you."
"We thought we could do it alone. Not bother you."
"No bother. Your SUV looks bad. What happened?"
"We were ambushed. The drums caught fire. Horrible big fire. I thought we were done for this time. Joe heard us planning the trip and came along. He is in the back of the SUV, toasted. The trailer is a couple miles down the road at the turnoff. The trailer and probably the generator are totaled. I know you're pissed and I don't blame you. We went off half-cocked."
John looked at the two of them. Heads down, staring at the floor. What can I do, he thought. It's over. It's bad. I can't make it better. Things happen. "You are also grown men. You took a shortcut and it didn't pay off. You paid the price. We can find another trailer and another generator. We can't replace Joe. He had a lot of experience. He was one of a kind, like both of you. We will miss him. For now, what about the one's who ambushed you?"
"I never saw anyone. Three shots hit one drum. Must have been high velocity ammo. The gasoline was everywhere. We're lucky to be alive," said Fred.
"Should we go back and do what we can? You and George and Pierre take the cycles. Stop a mile away and walk across country. Once you are near, just watch. Don't do anything until we are there. Cho and I'll go in the Dark Defender. We'll stop the car a quarter mile up the road from the station."
"Sure."
"I'll talk to Cho. You talk to Pierre."
Ten minutes later, Fred, George and Pierre neared the gasoline station. They coasted down the hill, parked the cycles on the side of the road and approached slowly and cautiously. Coming around the corner in the road, they could see fire still burning around the gasoline pump. They watched and listened for five minutes before hearing voices. Two men were walking around, both carrying rifles. A few minutes later, John and Cho arrived.
"Pierre. You take the right one. Everybody else the left one."
"You want him dead or alive?"
"I don't care. You choose. Once you've got him in your sights, tell me and then give us three seconds. We all shoot together."
"Ready, mon amie."
Five rifles fired and the two men fell.
"Is this vengeance or justice?" said Fred.
"Whatever. It's self defense in my mind, the way it has to be in the new world order. A world without the rule of law. They attacked without provocation. They were close. Only a few miles away. They would have found us and they would have picked us off one by one. They had no reason to try to kill you all. Maybe they were with some other group, expanding their territory. I don't know. I only know this isn't enough to replace Joe. Check out the rifles, Pierre. They might be something interesting. I'll look around for some transport."
Fred walked over to make sure the men were dead and called out. "John, Pierre, check this out. These guys look like those guys in the housing development in town. All lumpy. Not a pretty sight."
"Let's leave them and their rifles alone. I'll look for their transport. You guys move away."
"Quite interesting," said Pierre. "Much discoloration that didn't show up in your other pictures."
"Get away from there, Pierre."
Pierre slowly back away, shaking his head. Five minutes later, John yelled, "Over here."
"What did you find?"
"Two motorcycles. You want them, Fred?"
"Sure. But, let's leave them for now. I'll come back tomorrow or after the next rain and spray them. I suppose we're finished here."
* * *
John was in his office in the lodge the next morning when Mary walked in.
"Mary. Nice to see you. Sorry about your father. You doing alright."
"I'm fine, John. But, I don't think I belong here any more."
"Where do you belong?"
"Somewhere else."
"Where?"
"I don't know!" she shouted. "I don't know anything," she said, crying into her hands. After a few seconds, she wiped her eyes and said, "I have no connection here now. Before, my father was here. Now I don't know anybody. I don't feel right being here."
"That's ridiculous. Why not? This isn't your place because Joe said it was. It's your place because you want to be here and because you said you'd defend it against intruders. You said you'd work to make it better. Whether you believe it or not, your father wasn't a part of that."
"But he was. I think he was."
"Then, you're wrong. This is where you should be. At least until you find a place you want to be more. You can't leave because you lost your father. You have other friends here. We won't try to hold you here, but we all want you to stay."
"You're being nice. I appreciate that John."
"Appreciate nothing. We aren't being nice. We're being practical. We're better off with you than without. It's that simple. Our life is simple. Logical. Like I keep saying, we're better off with you. You can handle yourself. You can shoot. You're smart. We want you to stay. I want you to stay."
Mary looked at John for a long time. "John, I can't read you."
"You don't have to read anything. I'm not speaking some foreign language. Stay."
Mary smiled and turned around. She walked out the door, then turned and looked back. "OK, for now."
John thought to himself, I suppose I handled that well enough. Better than Elspeth. Maybe I'm finally learning this job. But, I do care for her. She's a nice girl, and she wouldn't make it a week outside. Every day of my life now is different. Always something going on. I can't even think what might be next?
Chapter 55 - Fire and Wine
Something had awakened John early. As his eyes shook off the cloudy mist of sleep and he looked around the bedroom, he faintly made out the image of Cho at the window. Her black hair shone in the moonlight. He rose, walked over, encircled her body with his arms and let his hands roam. She didn't respond.
"What's so interesting you had to leave the bed early?" His voice was soft and loving with a hint of mischievousness. "Maybe we should go back to bed where it's warm and cozy."
"Warm here. No AC. Smell smoke. Over mountain. Maybe forest fire. What we do?"
"Who's not foraging today?"
"Us, Masako, Marceau, Pierre."
"OK. We'll go check it out, but I'd rather be going back to bed. I'll dress and pick up some things from the barn. I'll meet you out back. Find somebody and tell them we're leaving and bring the radio."
"I get rifle."
It was a warm September day. The sky was tinted blue and free of clouds. The smoke plume forming over the mountain left a clear gray trail in the sky. The smell of burning wood was much stronger than in the bedroom.
They walked out the back of the property through the small gate placed between the cars which formed a crude circular barrier around the buildings. The barrier had worked several times, but George and Fred had been correct. It was butt ugly, with the dented and rusted autos marring the landscape.
They gradually maneuvered through the narrow zigzag channel used to slow down aggressors and followed a trail up the mountain for two miles. At the peak of the mountain, they entered a clearing and John took out his binoculars.
"I can see the fire. Looks like about fi
ve miles away. Coming this way."
"How you know which way going?"
"The wind is blowing this way. The smoke is coming this way. The fire will follow and spread. If it hits the lodge, we'll be in serious trouble." John looked at the line of the fire for the moment. "What I don't know is how fast it's moving, how long before it's here or how big it will be if it does come this way? If the wind changes direction, the fire will go somewhere else. If the wind reverses, then the fire will go out. If it does hit us, we'll need every minute to load what we can into the vehicles and bug out. That would be a bad situation. We'd lose almost everything. I know the guys put together a storage bunker, but no way it would feed us through the winter." He lowered the binoculars. "I doubt it would take more than a few hours for the fire to get to the lodge. Call the lodge on the radio and tell them to make sure the vehicles are all gassed up and ready to go. We'll call back in a few minutes with an update. Let's take a closer look."
After Cho finished her radio transmission, they walked down the back side of the mountain toward the fire, picking their way through the underbrush and stopping after another twenty minutes, close to the edge of the fire.
"It might be good for us to go around the fire, upwind, to the right, to see what started it. Maybe it was a house or a farm. Might be something recoverable. We have time. The fire isn't moving fast. The undergrowth is wet. It rained here a few days ago," John said, scratching the ground with the toe of his shoe.
"No need. This close enough. Is something recoverable," Cho said, walking off to the left.
"Hey. Cho, stop! You're heading right into the thickest part of the smoke. You won't be able to see or breathe. Come back here, you crazy Chink."
"Cho going to get dinner. Have great dinner. Cho not Chink. Cho Chinese."
Oh no, John thought, she's finally gone crazy. Too much stress. Not enough food. Too many crying sessions. We're all slowly going crazy. Maybe some of those greens Sarah found are hallucinogenic. I thought I had gone over the edge several times in the last five months. I should have stopped before we came this close. The smoke is too thick. It's hard to breathe. I can't see anything. "Cho, come back here. I can't see you. Where are you?"
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