The Rabid Mind

by Bruce Buckshot Hemming

  “Jim, my God, we are going to have to face all of the dogs and coyotes. What else gets rabies?”

  Jim didn’t hesitate to answer. “Raccoons, skunks, bats, deer, livestock and housecats.”

  Debbie’s eyes got big. “Bats? Oh no. What about hawks, owls and eagles? Jesus Christ, Jim, now you just scared the shit out of me. Now we have to watch the sky too?’

  “No. Birds are immune from getting rabies. Except for bats.”

  “What do we do now?”

  “Drive back to Delta and go to the county courthouse. We need to get a plat map to find a way around that junction. There has to be another way around it.”

  When they reached the courthouse, she parked in front. It looked like a war zone. There were dead bodies all over the place. Jim got out of the vehicle and walked to the back. He opened it up and handed her a daypack. “We are not leaving the vehicle without these anymore.” He said.

  “That’s a good idea. That was scary, thinking about being trapped in a vehicle with no food, water or our bombs to clear a path for us.”

  They walked up the steps and, once they reached the top, a voice called out. “That’s far enough. We can’t help you, so just move on. And you’d better hurry, because once it starts getting dark they surround this place.”

  Jim looked for where the voice was coming from and spotted him on the second floor. Jim said, “We just need a plat map. Can you help us with that?”

  “Why do you need a map?”

  “We’re trying to get to Meeker and the highway at Grand Junction is blocked off. A 747 crashed there and there’s a huge pile up of cars everywhere, with no way to get through. We were attacked by rabid coyotes.”

  “We killed all the housecats and dogs in town. Bad up that way is it? How about going south?”

  “It’s clear through Durango, that’s as far as we know.”

  The man turned around and it looked like he was talking to someone else. A few minutes later he called out. “We have your map.” He tossed it out the window. Good luck.”

  “Thanks.” Jim called out. Debbie ran over to grab the map off the ground and they walked back to the vehicle.

  Jim put his hand out. “Let me drive, if you don’t mind.” She handed him the keys and they put their packs in and drove off. “I think we should find a place to stay for the night. Figure out a route and then try it when we are fresh in the morning.”

  A couple of miles out of town they spotted a house up on a hill that looked good. They drove up the drive way and it was a beautiful location, with the highway below them and a two car attached garage. It was a three-bedroom ranch house with a huge picture window.

  They knocked on the door. There was no answer. He tried the handle and it was locked. They looked in, but could see no one. There was dust on the floor, which told them the house had been closed off for a long time. “It must have been a vacation house.” Jim said. “Let’s go around back and see if we can find a window we can break out, so I can boost you up and into the house.”

  They found a smaller window for the kitchen and Jim broke it out, clearing the glass as best he could. He handed her a pair of leather gloves, telling her, “Clear a path so you don’t get cut.” He bent down on all fours and she stepped up on his back. He could hear her clearing the glass. “Would you hurry up already? You’re killing my back.”

  “Are you saying I’m fat?”

  “Knock it off and get moving. Your small feet are digging into me.”

  She climbed in and said, “Meet you around at the front door.”

  He got up, brushing the dirt from his pants, and walked around as she unlocked the door. It had a beautiful tiled floor in the entry area. There was a coat rack and champagne colored rug. The room was filled with really expensive furniture.

  “Wow Jim, you can always find the nice ones. How did you know?”

  “Just a lucky guess. I’m going to find a piece of wood to close off that broken window. You find us something to eat.”

  “Okay, will do.”

  He walked out into the garage and found some 1x6 boards, nails and a hammer. It was not a perfect fit, but it worked. On the inside, he nailed up a blanket. It was more to keep light and any cooking smell on the inside than for warmth.

  She was cooking up some ravioli in a can and got out some crackers. They were using candles for light and heat.

  He walked into the kitchen and said, “That smells and looks great.”

  “I found SpaghettiOs with meatballs for me. It was a favorite of mine as a kid.”

  They picked one of the master bedroom with a king size bed. They sealed off the windows with blankets so they could have candlelight.

  Before the sun came up, Debbie walked out to the front window and was looking down at the highway. She immediately ducked down behind a chair. A Hive was walking through on the highway. There were hundreds of them on the street. She crawled over to the hallway and then raced into the bedroom. “Jim, get up. There’s a Hive.” She whispered. He didn’t move, so she shook him awake, whispering in his ear, “A Hive. Hundreds of them.” She quickly dropped her robe, tossing on her clothes and hiking boots while Jim did the same.

  They crept up to the picture window, setting their packs and rifles beside them. Damn, Jim thought. We should have parked the vehicle in the garage. Too late now. One of them looked like it said something. The others around it stopped. The thing pointed up at the house.

  “Shit. What if they decide to spend the day here?” Jim swore. “Quick, there’s an attic crawl space with a pull down ladder in the hall.” Grabbing their packs, they crawled off to the hallway. Jim pulled the ladder down and Debbie climbed up. Jim turned around to make sure no one could see them and just then he heard the glass breaking.

  He raced up the ladder as more glass was breaking. He pulled the ladder up and began folding the sections so it would close all of the way. His mind was screaming at him to hurry up, that they were already in the house. He finished folding the ladder and closed the hatch. He heard them racing into the house. It sounded like some of them ran down the hallway underneath them. He quietly pulled his .44 magnum revolver out and pointed it at the hatch. Were they smart enough to check up here? Jesus, they were trapped like rats if they come up, he thought. He could hear them yelling, like a scream echoing back and forth. It had to be a type of primitive man speech that they must somehow understand.

  They could hear more of them piling into the house. Debbie panicked, thinking the Hive were spending the day there. They’d have to spend the entire day hiding up in the attic. Thank God the place was newer and the insulation was the non-itch white fiberglass. At least they could get comfortable. Jim, moving like a cat stalking a mouse, slowly crawled over to her, putting his hand up to her ear and whispered, “I have to pee really bad.”

  Debbie whispered back, “Well do it in the corner so we don’t have to smell it all day.”

  Daylight was just starting to break and the sky was beginning to get lighter. He could just make out a vent. He quietly made it to the vent and was able to pee outside, well most of it anyway. He crawled back to her side in the center and whispered; “There are some flat boards over there, so we can lay down. We might as well get comfortable. We’re spending the whole day up here.” They could hear them squabbling below like a pack of rats. Within an hour the sun was up and the hive settled down and slept.

  Around noon, Deb had to pee but luckily had brought a water bottle. She drank all the water and was able to get most of it in the bottle. They ate elk jerky for lunch and, as darkness fell, they woke up to the squabbling below them. It sounded like they were getting ready to head out on the road again. It would be safe to leave then, Jim thought. They were going to have to chance it and drive south. It would be too risky to spend the night here again because the Hive just might come back.

  They heard them leaving and soon it was as quiet as a graveyard below them. Jim crawled up to her. “Time to leave,” he whispered.

 
Chapter 34

  The first day they left, Sandra said, “We never got to finish our naked day off.”

  Matt looked at her and said, “I know, but your dad told us to get this stuff done and they almost caught us last time. We need to get this done first and then I promise, we’ll have a day off.”

  “Stop being such a stick in the mud and live a little. We can take this first day; they left and won’t be back so soon. It will just be us and then we can work until we get everything done. Then, if we’re lucky, we can take another naked day just for us.”

  “Hey, I’m not complaining, but what has gotten into you?”

  She laughed and said, “When I was in college, all the girls with big boobies always made fun of me. They would tell me all these wild sex stories about running around naked all day and having fun, so I’ve always wanted to do it but never found the right guy.”

  Matt smiled. “Your breasts are awesome and I love them, especially when your nipples get hard.”

  She smiled seductively and started unbutton her shirt. “Really? Look, I forgot to put my bra on.” He gave in because he knew that once she was naked he would lose control.

  Jim opened the hatch and unfolded the ladder. It was all clear, so they came down the stairs and Jim put the ladder back up, closing the hatch without making too much noise. They crept along the hallway, peeking around corners into other rooms.

  The place was a wreck. There were pieces of clothing everywhere and mud covered the floor. It was slick in spots and they had to be careful not to slip and fall. They walked up to the front door, which had been left open, and they could see that the car was unmolested. It was only 20 feet to freedom. They heard the broken glass crunching under their boots as they crept out to the front porch and down the stairs. Jim made it to the driver’s side, used the key to unlock and open the door and then hit the unlock button for the other side.

  As Debbie walked to the car, he got in and sat down, closing the door a little louder than he had hoped for. He heard one of the things scream and then he could hear the footsteps racing toward them. He reached across and opened her door, jammed the keys into the ignition and started the vehicle. While he was doing that, he heard Debbie shooting at them. She jumped in and slammed her door. “Go,” she yelled, “more are coming.”

  Flipping on the headlights, he spun the vehicle around just as they started hitting the sides and banging on it with their hands. He tossed it into drive and floored it, running over two of them as they got the hell out of there. They sped down the driveway and hit the highway, heading south and away from the area. Jim knew there was just too much danger in the area and it was time to head home, but what would Debbie want to do? Would she agree?

  “Wow. Thank you Jesus.” Debbie said. “That was close, too close. Finally we can talk out loud, YES,” she screamed. “I pray we never have to spend a long, boring day trapped like that ever again. Where are we going anyway?”

  Jim kept focused on the road ahead. “South. Back to safety.”

  Debbie’s eyes got wide. “But what about my children?”

  That was the question Jim had been dreading and he said, “Debbie, I’m sorry but we have to come up with a better battle plan. We got lucky with the coyotes and we got lucky with the Hive. How long do you think we can keep getting lucky before one little mistake costs us our lives?”

  She sat silently for few minutes, fuming, but she knew he was right. What good would she be to her children if she were dead? Tears began streaming down her face. She reached over, found his hand and held it in hers. “Jim, I have no right to keep asking you to risk your life to save my children. It’s not fair to you, or to Sandra and Matt. I’m just going to have to go it alone.”

  Jim’s heart skipped a beat. “No. No, that is not what I am saying. We go back to Montrose, take Highway 50 across the mountains and then jump on Highway 285 North, bypassing that whole hell zone back there.”

  With joy in her voice, she said, “Really? Oh Jim, you’re right, I forgot about that highway. But I think we should go back to the cabin and rig this car up better. We need to make it a ‘Mad Max’.”

  “Maybe we could weld up some steel plates around all the windows and, I don’t know, maybe rig a flip down plate for the top of the windshield. We also need to carry more water, food and supplies. We could drill a hole in the floor so we can pour pee out if we have too, just in case we are ever trapped inside again. We have to make it withstand a Hive beating on it. That way they can’t bust out a windshield and grab us.”

  “That’s a great idea. In fact, we can use hinges on the front two doors and rig them so you can lower the window and pull the steel plate up, latching it on the inside. We would need to cut shooting slots on the four side windows and slots to see out of the front and back. I also want to build a box on top to hold another 10-gallon gas tank. We can surround it with plated steel and make a storage compartment for extra supplies.”

  Matt finished melting the last of the lead and poured it into the molds. They needed 20 bombs total: six on the front side, four on each side and six in back. Once the lead cooled, they would glue and wire them onto the propane bottles.

  Sandra walked out to the porch and called Matt for lunch. As they were eating, Matt said, “I think the first one should go right on the other side, where a truck might park. That way if the raider/traders come back and try using the truck for cover, one well-placed shot would take them out.”

  “You sure are worried about those guys. Why?”

  “Because they’re trading women for supplies. Do you think those women have a choice? I’m sure they’re just glorified pimps, using brute force to keep them in line.”

  Sandra nodded. “After those meth-heads grabbed me, I have trouble trusting any strangers. I think if they do come back, we should just kill them and get it over with.”

  Matt put his sandwich down and took a drink of water, thinking for few seconds. He knew she was emotionally scarred from that kidnapping. He said, “I agree. Even your dad doesn’t trust them.”

  They finished lunch and started attaching the lead to the propane bottles. Once all 20 were done, they walked out to set the first one. They placed it on top of a small pine tree that they had cut the top off. Using pipe strapping, they nailed it in place and covered it using pine branches, leaving just the end exposed so they could see it from the cabin.

  The east side was finished before dark. They had to make a lot of small adjustments to the placement by going back to the cabin and testing it through a riflescope, ensuring the angle was correct to shoot it. It was a lot of playing around, going back and forth, but it was better to spend the time and get it right. They didn’t want to find out later that they’d done it wrong when their lives were on the line.

  The next morning, just before daylight, Debbie and Jim returned to the cabin. Jim honked the horn. As they were waiting for Matt to come out and open the gate, Jim walked along inspecting the fencing. He was thinking that they could use another row of barbwire just to make sure no coyotes or dogs could sneak in.

  Matt came stumbling out and opened the gate. Looking in the car, he said, “No luck?”

  Jim replied, “We ran into one hell of a mess. We’ll tell you all about it over breakfast.”

  Debbie walked by and Matt said, “Sorry Debbie.”

  She smiled and said, “It’s okay Matt. We haven’t given up yet. We came up with a great plan.”

  Debbie started cooking breakfast and Jim sat down at the table with his coffee to explain the plan about “A-Teaming” out the CRV. When he finished, Sandra asked, “Just one question. What is A-Teaming?”

  Jim and Debbie laughed, then Jim told her it was a TV show from the 1980s. “Mr. T was a big old African American that would rig up their vehicles to make them bullet proof.” Jim said, “But first, I want to finish this place. We need to do the same thing here for the windows and the door. I also want another row of barbwire strung out in loose loops, but tight enough that a coyote or r
abid dog can’t slip in.”

  Matt nodded and said. “We have to finish getting the bombs set up and I figure that is going to take another three days, so why don’t you and Debbie outfit the CRV while we finish the bomb placement and then we can string more barb wire to keep the slave driver happy.”

  Jim laughed. “Yes, you know the drill. You are going to thank me someday for all this work, because it might just save our lives.”

  Sandra said, “Yes dad, we know, and then, once that’s done, we have to get to work on the winter firewood and then elk hunting for our winter meat.”

  Debbie yawned a big slow yawn and said, “We’ve been up all night and need some sleep, so could you two go do something for a few hours so we can have peace and quiet?”

  Matt smiled saying, “Sure. We can go fishing and catch dinner.” Remembering the last time they were swimming together, his smile turned into a grin.

  Sandra, catching on, said. “Yes, fish for dinner does sound good.” Matt and Sandra washed the dishes, sharing a secret smile that just the two of them understood. Debbie and Jim headed off to bed. Sandra grabbed her vest and rifle saying, “Let’s go.”

  Matt said, “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

  She checked her vest and rifle, “Like what?”

  Matt smiled. “Fishing poles?”

  “Oh, you really did want to fish? I thought we had other plans.”

  “We do,” he said smiling, “but we have to put on the act for the other two and, who knows, if we have the lines in the water, we might just catch something.”

  They walked down to the river, laughing and talking without a care in the world. It was still early morning and a little cool outside. Once they reached the river, it felt colder yet. Sandra said, “I think we should fish for a couple of hours and wait for the sun to warm things up.”

  Matt shivered. “I agree. Plus fresh trout for dinner tonight does sound great. We can wait until it warms up.”