The little girl jutted out her lip, crestfallen, but only for a moment because Elly came up and asked her to help her spread the sleeping bags out. The little girl loved how they puffed up, and would pounce on them, squeezing the air out.
A little while later, Luke raced up to Cole, shouting that Travis had caught a fish. Travis trailed behind, a nice sized fish hanging from a stringer. He acted like it was no big deal, but Cole felt his eyes watching him intently as Cole inspected the small mouth bass. “This has to be almost two pounds. Nice catch, Travis.”
Then he saw it. A smile. The first he’d seen from the boy. He shrugged as the corner of his mouth turned up. “I never fished before.”
“No way! You must be a natural like Luke, here.” Cole rested a hand on Luke’s head, tousling his hair. “I think this kid must have been born with a fishing pole in his hand.”
“Maybe I can catch dinner for myself now and then—if I can find a pole.”
Cole didn’t say anything then, not until he’d had a chance to talk to the others. He was hoping Travis would stay with them tonight, at least. “Travis, I know you have a nice set-up in the store room over there, but I was wondering if you’d want to bunk with Luke tonight? It’s been a long time since he had a kid near his age to hang out with.”
Before the words were even out of his mouth, Luke was jumping to his feet. “Yes! Let’s go get your sleeping bag, Travis!”
Travis was less enthusiastic. “I…uh…my sleeping bag is kind of a mess right now.” He bent his head and avoided looking at Cole. Was he embarrassed?
To put him at ease, Cole said, “Travis, we have extra bedding. You can use what we have tonight, if you want.”
His head shot up, his eyes wide. “Really?”
“Of course.” Cole pointed to Luke. “Get the green sleeping bag out of the backseat of my car.”
About an hour later after a hot meal that featured Travis’s fish, another that Luke had caught, a hearty potato soup and sourdough biscuits, the kids were all sleeping. Cole looked around the fire. Everyone had gathered, except Sophie, who had gone to bed already. Cole worried about her. This pregnancy seemed to be taking a toll on the young women. Elly, on the other hand, seemed to be thriving, but she was just beginning her second trimester while Sophie was in her third.
Pushing his worries for Sophie aside for now, Cole cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention, then asked, “So, what do you guys think of Travis?”
Elly leaned against Cole, letting her head rest on his shoulder. “I’m already half in love with him. He’s so quiet but he seems kind. He helped Zoe after she scraped her knee earlier. Got her smiling in no time.”
Hunter joined in with, “He seemed pretty proud of his fish, but like he didn’t want anyone to know he was proud of it. He also showed us where the best firewood was. That’s pretty generous. He could have saved it for himself.”
“Good point, Hunter.”
Cole did a double take at Sean’s comment. He’d be kidding himself if he hadn’t expected an argument against inviting Travis to stay with them. Sean was the cantankerous one; the person who was always the voice of dissent. He noticed the surprise on Cole’s face and shrugged. “I like the kid. He…well, he doesn’t really remind me of Trent…I mean, because he’s a lot quieter, but it was nice having another kid around and there’s something about him.”
“There’s hope for you yet, Sean.” Cole grinned.
Jenna wrapped her arms around her husband and repeated Cole’s words. “There’s hope, Sean. You’re not a completely lost cause.”
“Jeez, guys. You’re making me sound like an ogre.”
Everyone laughed, throwing out comments. Cole rubbed a hand up and down Elly’s arm, bending to whisper, “Looks like we have another member of the family.”
Elly snuggled closer. “If he agrees, that is.”
Cole nodded, but then wondered. What if Travis didn’t want them? They couldn’t force the boy to join them, but he sure hoped he would.
In the morning, after a meal of pancakes, eggs made with a combination of what the chickens had laid and powdered egg powder picked up in a school cafeteria, they loaded up their gear to head out.
Travis sat on a log, watching the activity as he traced lines in the dirt with a long stick. When Cole had his car packed, he sat on the log beside Travis.
“First, I want to thank you again for sharing your home with us.”
Travis nodded, drawing wobbly Xs in the dirt as the stick stuttered over the ground
“And I have a question for you.”
The end of the stick hovered a few inches in the air.
“We talked it over last night, and wondered if you would like to join us?” Before Travis replied, Cole added, “We really like you, and I’m not sure I would feel good leaving you here, always wondering how you did.”
The stick dropped and instead of Xs, started tracing crescents. “Where y’all headed?” He sounded casual, but Cole wasn’t fooled. The boy was definitely interested.
“West…Las Vegas area, most likely. It’s too cold in Wisconsin in the winter. Plus, we think there might be electricity still in Vegas.”
Travis’s eyes shot to Cole’s. “Really?”
“It’s a theory. We have no proof. But even if not, it’ll be warmer. Maybe we’ll find other survivors.”
Pushing up from the log, Travis jabbed the stick into the dead ashes from last night’s fire and shook his head. “I don’t want to meet other survivors.” He stared at the stick as it quivered.
Cole watched Travis and how his hands curled into fists, his shoulders stiff. After a few moments, he stood beside the boy. “I’m a little nervous about meeting others too. Who wouldn’t be?”
Arms crossed, eyebrow raised, Travis asked, “You’re nervous?”
“Absolutely. Like you, we’ve run into some not so nice people. People who feel that they can take what they want.”
Travis nodded and swiped a hand across his eyes. Cole pretended not to notice as he went on, “I don’t agree with that, but on the other hand, someone has to stand up to them. We can’t let people like that take over the world.”
“But they have guns and control the food.” He paused. “They chase me sometimes and holler that they’ll throw me in the stew pot.” He took a deep breath then turned to face Cole. “Do you think they’d do that?”
Anger, red and hot, surged through Cole. Anger at what this kid had gone through and anger that he’d had to face it alone. It was more than anyone should ever have to deal with, let alone a kid. If he ever met those monsters…
He let his head drop back and drew in a long slow breath before blowing it to the sky. He didn’t want to scare the kid and Travis’s shoulders were already shaking. It was all he could do not to throw his arm around the boy, but he sensed that would be the worst move.
“Travis, just remember, we’re survivors too. You, me, Luke—all of us. While we expect everyone to pitch in and do their part, we don’t chase anyone and we certainly don’t eat people.”
Travis sniffed but slanted a look at Cole. “Better not. I’m too tough for any stewpot.” A trace of a smile flashed across his face.
“I’m sure you are. We’d have to fatten you up a bit first. Probably wouldn’t even be worth it.” Cole, fingertips angled in his front pockets, toed a stone, working it free from the dirt as he shot a quick smile at the boy.
There was no mistaking the glint of amusement in Todd’s eyes. “Nope. Not worth it at all.” Then he grew serious. “I’m a hard worker. I promise.”
Cole stuck out a hand. “We’d be honored to have you come with us. I already know you’re a hard worker. You must be to have survived this long all alone.”
Todd nodded as he shook Cole’s hand. “Yes, sir.”
Chapter Twenty
Elly helped Travis gather up his possessions from the concessions stand he’d turned into his home. She was surprised at how much he’d managed to accumulate. They packed up
several rifles, a couple of handguns with boxes of ammunition for all of it, as well as pans, knives, and surprisingly, a lot of medication.
“Where’d you get all this stuff?” she asked, not intending to come off as accusatory, but Travis’s spine stiffened.
“I only took it from houses where people were all dead. I never stole from nobody.”
She nodded. “I’m sure you didn’t. We’ve also had to find things in people’s homes. I just meant that I’m amazed at what you’ve got in here.” There were a few rabbit and squirrel skins, but Travis hadn’t dried them properly and they were rotting—there was no way to turn them into useable skins. She lifted one with a stick. “I’ll show you how to treat these so they’ll last. We didn’t know either. Joe had to teach us.” She pointed to Joe, who was helping herd the goats back into their trailer. “He’s the man to ask if you have any questions about hunting and fishing.”
Travis looked at Joe, then back to Elly. “He knows more than Cole?”
Elly threw back her head and laughed. “Oh, god, yes! And Cole will be the first to tell you that.”
Not looking convinced, Travis shoved sweatshirts and jeans into a backpack. “If you say so.”
Clearly, Cole had impressed the kid. “It’s okay that he doesn’t know everything—he’s smart enough to recognize everyone’s skills. You know what he told me about you after you agreed to come with us?”
Travis stilled, one hand on the zipper of the backpack. “What?”
“He said, ‘We’re lucky to have Travis coming along. He knows what it takes to survive. He’s got skills we can use.”
The boy bit his lip as though trying to hide a grin, then shrugged as if Cole’s words hadn’t meant much, but he carried himself straighter when he shouldered the pack and gathered his weapons. “I’m ready to go.”
Elly thought for a moment. “Do you want to ride with Luke? He’s in my car.”
Travis shook his head. “I’d like to ride with Cole, if that’s okay.”
“His car is kind of stinky from the chicken. She’s brooding some eggs. We’re hoping they’ll hatch.”
“I don’t mind. I can help. My grandma had chickens and she used to let me help with them sometimes.”
“Oh? Well, see, Cole was right about you.” Elly shrugged. “I’m sure Cole will be fine with you riding with him. I think he’s been getting a little lonely driving all by himself.”
“Who’s getting lonely?” Cole popped his head into the room.
“Not you, that’s for sure.” Elly handed Cole a garbage bag full of over the counter pain relievers, bottles of allergy pills, allergy nasal sprays, and eye drops.
Cole did a double take as he glanced in the bag, looking at Travis. “Do you have an allergy problem we should know about?”
Travis laughed. “No, sir. I found boxes of those in the backroom of a drug store. Everything else was gone, but those were under a box of old people diapers. I guess nobody noticed them. I thought I could trade them for food sometime.”
“Good thinking.” Cole caught Elly’s eye. “Hey, could I talk to you for a minute?”
“Sure.” She took a couple of the least ratty looking blankets, shook them out, then folded them. “Here, Travis, put these in Cole’s car. He’ll be there in a minute.”
Once Travis was gone, Cole moved up, wrapping his arms around Elly’s waist. “How are you feeling?”
Elly cocked her head. “I’m fine. Why?”
“I’m just asking. I’m worried about you and the baby.” He put a hand on her abdomen before leaning in to nuzzle her neck. “I wish we were settled. For you and for Sophie. This traveling isn’t good for either of you. All the time in the car, setting up camps—just everything.”
“But we’ll be there soon, right?”
“We’ll skirt around Denver. I’m hoping to avoid what I think will be blocked highways, and also hoping we’ll find a gas station where we can pump some gasoline with the generator. That worked well the last time.”
“So, another couple of days?”
“Probably. Depends.”
Elly draped her arms over Cole’s shoulders, tilting her head and laughing as his mouth tickled along the spot between her neck and shoulder. “Depends on what?”
Cole drew back, his playful mood gone in an instant. “It depends on so many things. I’m worried about the nice folks Travis told us about. The people who threatened him. I want you to be ready with weapons loaded.”
“In the car? I don’t know, Cole. We have the handguns and the rifles are packed, but not loaded. What if one of the kids messes around with one?”
“Look, we’ve made sure they understand how to use these and when to use them. Even Zoe knows the basics.”
“I know…okay. But other than Travis, we haven’t seen a soul, so I don’t know who you’re afraid of.”
“Travis told me about a group of survivors living where we were going to camp. It seems they aren’t very friendly. I just want to be ready in case we run into them.”
Travis’s story about the group of survivors who had threatened him worried her also but how would the group even know they were around? Helicopters? The thought made her shudder as she thought of Holland. If he’d had his way, Cole would be little more than a test rat in some secret lab. That’s who she was afraid of, but the country was huge and finding them would be like searching for a diamond in the Sahara. Granted, the people Travis had spoken of lived nearby, but they could take another route now that Travis had warned them.
Elly finally nodded. “Okay. We’ll be ready. And Cole, you made quite the impression on Travis. He wants to ride with you.”
“I did?” His face lit up. “Well, the admiration is mutual. Thanks to him, I’ve mapped out an alternate route that I hope will take us south of where he said those survivors were camped.” He dug in his pocket and pulled out a stack of folded sheets of notebook paper. “I tried to draw a map, but I wrote it out as well.”
She took the map and studied it. “Will we be able to connect back onto the main highway down the road?” From what she recalled from the map, this route would take them north before turning south again.
“I know it’s a bit of a detour, but I’d rather avoid coming into contact with anyone. Especially if we already know they’re hostile.”
The alternate route took them through several small towns instead of bypassing them on the highway. When they came across a herd of deer grazing in the center square of the town, they stopped, and Cole shot a large buck. They would have liked to have killed more, but they didn’t want to stick around long enough to process the meat. As it was, they stopped for the day a few hours early to butcher the deer.
Unhappy about the lost opportunity, Jake looked at the meat they wouldn’t have room to pack, and scowled. “I bet I could smoke it by morning.”
“The roast is going to take an hour or so to cook, so if you think you could get something rigged up in that time, have at it.” Cole built the coals up around the cast iron pot they had sitting on a grate right in the fire. He turned the roast a smidgen and sprinkled a pinch of salt over it.
“I bet one of these houses has a smoker in the backyard.” Jake surveyed the homes bordering the south side of the town square. “I think I’m going to go check them out. Hunter, want to come with me?”
His son shrugged and set down the box of that contained plates and eating utensils.
The graceful Victorian style homes had probably belonged to the town’s elite. Even with a years’ worth of weeds and debris, Cole could picture what they must have looked like exactly a year ago. The homes would have had thick, lush grass, an emerald hue rivaled only by the neighbors’ lawn on each side.
Piper brought over a bowl of quartered potatoes.
“Make sure there’s nobody around before you go into any backyards—and take your radios!”
Piper handed Cole the bowl. “Go where?”
“We’re going to look for something to smoke the meat so we d
on’t waste so much of it.”
“Oh! I’ll go! I need to stretch my legs after the long drive today.”
While Cole tended the roast, he kept an eye on Luke, Travis and Zoe, who played a game of tag. Travis purposefully fell down a few times, flailing around as though he was trying his best to escape Zoe’s tag. Cole smiled. Luke laughed and teased Travis for getting caught, but then he followed the other boy’s lead and did the same thing. Zoe squealed in delight.
“I’m glad we saw the deer when we did. I think we all needed this.” Elly unfolded a lawn chair and sat beside him. “The kids haven’t had much opportunity for play, and fresh meat will definitely be welcome.”
Cole nodded and took her hand. “So, how did the check-up go?” Jenna had taken the opportunity offered by the early stop and had done a quick maternal check-up on both Elly and Sophie.
“Looking good. My blood pressure is fine but I gained a few pounds—which Jenna tells me is absolutely a good thing.” She chuckled and rubbed her rounded stomach. “I’m not so sure though. This little one even kicked a bit for Aunt Jenna’s exam. Thumped right up against the stethoscope, I guess.”
Grinning, Cole leaned over and gave her stomach a light rub, speaking directly to the bump. “Behave in there!”
A few minutes later, the young people returned sans smoker, but with grates from grills and a few wrought iron planter stands. It seemed they’d decided that they could put the stands over the fire and set the racks on them to smoke the meat. Cole had heard of that technique before but was impressed that they had thought of it on their own.
Piper had a basket in her hands and a secretive smile on her face.
Sean joined them, having gone to clean up in a stream that created the northern edge of the square. It’s where they had replenished their water bottles and large water jugs. The water had come down from the mountains to their west and was the best tasting they’d come across since leaving the island.
“Brr…that was cold, but man, do I feel better!”
Invasion: A Post-Apocalyptic Survival Novel (Sympatico Syndrome Book 3) Page 17