“Oh my God!” she cried. She saw the crack that was threatening them. It resembled a caterpillar or long centipede with small legs sticking out on all sides. The way the crack was spreading was alarming, giving her a glimpse of what would eventually happen. Each of those tiny cracks that were sprouting off the larger one would get bigger creating a massive hole in the wall of the dam.
“I think it may have gotten a little bigger since we were here,” Wyatt said close to her ear.
She wanted to run down the mountain, screaming for everyone to run. If that dam gave way, it was going to be a disaster.
Turning, she climbed back up the steep incline to solid ground. Megan stood, watching the water flow over the top while she waited for Wyatt. He seemed to be taking measurements with his eyes.
When he rejoined her, they started walking back towards the lodge.
“Wyatt, I don't know if this will work. I didn't realize how much water we were dealing with. I had imagined it was a much smaller amount that could easily be controlled. This is a completely different story.”
“It'll work. We need to get it done, now. If that crack is already spreading, it’s going to get worse.”
Megan stopped walking. “We need to figure out how long the dike will need to be. I also need to get an idea of how far down to place it. Too low and it will be too risky. Too high on the hill and the water may go right over the top. Will those pace count bead things work?”
“Yep. But, since we don't have them with us, we will use rocks to count,” he said, stooping over and picking up small pebbles.
“Rocks?” Megan asked. She got the beads, but rocks threw her for a loop.
“I’m going to put all the rocks in my right pocket. For every one hundred steps we take, I’ll put a rock in my left pocket. Every hundred steps is about three hundred feet. When we get to the lodge, you’ll know how far the water will travel,” he said before starting down the hill.
“Wow. You’re kind of a genius.”
He laughed. “Don't disturb me. Walking and counting isn't easy for me.”
She rolled her eyes. “Carry on. Don't let me make you lose count. I don't want to walk back up that hill.”
When they arrived back at the lodge, it was quiet. Everyone was out doing their part to build up the flood defenses.
Megan could hear the kids laughing and giggling. They walked around to the front part of the house and saw each of the kids lugging buckets—presumably, the clay and mud they needed.
“Mom!” Caitlin hollered. “Mom, we got lots of mud! Can we help build the bricks?”
Megan grinned. “Of course, you can. We are going to need your help.”
Rosie made her way up the gentle slope, carrying a bucket.
“There is plenty of mud down there, but boy, do I wish we had a wheelbarrow right about now!”
Wyatt met Rosie and took the bucket from her. “I got it, mom.”
“Thank you. Willow stayed behind to clean up the kitchen. I’m going to go see if she needs any help.”
Megan looked in the bucket. Thick mud with a reddish tint was clumped inside. This was exactly what they needed. She hoped they had enough clay to build the dike. They would have to leave the property and follow the length of the stream to dig for more.
If Garrett and his team made it back soon, they could get started right away. Now that she saw how serious the situation was, she was anxious to begin. She had a feeling everyone would want to wait until tomorrow, but she was hoping to persuade them otherwise.
“We need to get the next assignments out to the group,” Wyatt said. “Everyone needs to know what their job will be once we have all the materials collected.”
Megan nodded, already thinking the same thing. They had to stay organized to be efficient. They couldn't afford to deal with chaos and people not working to their full potential. Not with their lives at stake.
“It will work best if we start at the top and work our way down. That means we need to mix the cob and make the bricks about two hundred fifty feet above the lodge. I want to give ourselves some wiggle room, in case there is any overflow.”
Wyatt grimaced. “We need to haul all of the heavy mud up the hillside?”
“It would be too hard to try and make the bricks here and carry them up there. They need to be formed, set on top of each and allowed to dry so they glue themselves together. The cob bricks would fall apart before we could lug them up the hill,” Megan explained. “Not to mention, it’s easier to carry one bucket versus ten bricks.”
Megan got an idea, “Caitlin!” she yelled at her daughter who was running after Duke. “Caitlin, I need you and the other kids to gather lots of dry pine needles.”
Ryland brought up his bucket of mud. “Can I use the rake?”
“Of course. That’s a great idea. Rake them all into a big pile. Try to keep Caitlin and Amy from jumping in it,” Megan told him.
She turned back and saw Wyatt looking at her, “The pine needles are like the grass Garrett's team is collecting. It will give us more material to work with and we won't have to go as far. Now, I need a tarp.”
“I'll grab one from the tool shed,” Wyatt offered. “Figure out who is doing what and be ready to tell everyone when they get back.”
Megan jogged into the house to grab her notebook. She could feel the adrenaline pumping through her veins. She was excited for the project and more than a little nervous. That dam could give soon. They didn't have any time to think about what they should or shouldn't do, but they needed to do something.
She grabbed the pencil and quickly drew two columns.
While she was thinking about whom to put on the actual brick making, she got an idea.
She found Wyatt as he was carrying out a blue tarp.
“We can use the cob mixture to try and patch the dam!” she blurted out.
“What?”
“The cob. Once we mix the clay and grass with a little water, it’s going to be a lot like cement. Nature's cement. That's what Jack called it. We could spread it over the crack in the dam. Remember, we used a similar mixture to make mortar for the long cabin.”
Wyatt looked thoughtful for a moment, “We could try. It’s going to be dangerous crawling down there, though.”
Megan was about to say scrap the idea when he stopped her.
“I'll do it. I know Bryan will want to volunteer as well. We'll tie off to the rails above, in case we slip,” he added when she was about to tell him no way.
“Okay, but you better be careful. I can't lose you, Wyatt,” she said, fighting back the emotions that came with the possibility.
“We'll be fine. I'll grab some ropes.”
Megan designated the teams as she was referring to them. Wyatt, Bryan and Chase would all be on dam repair. Albert would stay on watch. Willow would want to help. She could help mix the cob.
The cob bricks would be cumbersome. Megan thought for a few moments before assigning the job to Evan and Garrett. Rosie and Tara could rotate out with Willow and Brenda to keep up with the chores around the house as well as relieve Albert.
The kids would be excellent cob mixers and would love to stomp on the cob to mix it all up. It would be a good learning experience for them.
With her plan in place, Megan felt a calm come over her. They could do this. They had an excellent team and a plan to follow.
She walked to the area behind the lodge and mentally mapped the dike placement. Her plan was to place it almost parallel to the lodge property. The dike would stop the flow of water from hitting the lodge, angle it away from the property, and back into the stream.
There were some trees that concerned her. Would the force of the water bring them down or could they slow the water? If the trees fell, they would destroy the wall she planned to build.
They couldn't possibly cut down every tree in the path of the water but they could cut some down and use them to help build the wall. Megan stared off remembering when Jack taught them how to hew logs. He’d sai
d that square pieces would fit together better than round but she wasn’t aiming for perfection.
Megan estimated the dike itself would be about one hundred feet long. Each of the bricks would be about a foot long and roughly eight inches high. A four-foot high wall would be great, but if they only managed to get three feet, it would hopefully be enough. Given the distance the water would travel from the dam and the rocky terrain, she hoped that the flow would have slowed down enough that it would work.
She would know more once they got started. There was still the chance the cob wouldn't hold together. If it rained, it would make it impossible for the cob to dry and if it got too wet, it would fall apart. There were so many factors working against them.
She looked to the sky. “Please, give us a week or two of clear skies.”
They needed a break and a whole lot of good luck. They were due something good to come their way.
The sound of Caitlin squealing drew her attention to the lodge below. Megan sighed; she could only imagine what the goats were doing now that made her so happy.
Whatever it was, she wanted to do everything she could to make sure there were plenty more squeals of joy in Caitlin's near future. They all deserved to be happy.
11
Megan walked back to the lodge and into chaos. There were people talking and what sounded like screaming, or maybe squawking? Through the din, she could hear Caitlin laughing and shrieking. Little Amy was jumping up and down, clapping her hands together.
“What!” she yelled in total shock when she saw what Brenda was carrying. “Where in the world did you find a chicken?”
Caitlin came running, carrying another chicken.
“Not one, mom, three! We have three chickens!”
Megan couldn't believe what she was seeing. Rosie was carefully holding another brown hen, softly talking to it to calm it down. The poor chickens were being bombarded by the kids all wanting to hold and pet them.
Brenda beamed, holding out the chicken. “These ladies were holed up in an old barn that happened to be full of some old bricks. This one was sitting on a couple of eggs.” Brenda looked away. “The eggs didn't make the journey.”
Megan looked down and could see the crusty yellow evidence of what happened on Brenda's boot. Poor Brenda. She looked embarrassed.
“This is amazing!” Megan told her, hoping to appease her embarrassment. Brenda held herself to a high standard and if she had even a tiny failure, the woman took it very hard.
Megan looked at the chickens and could suddenly taste fresh, scrambled eggs. It made her mouth water. They hadn't had eggs since the EMP. Powdered eggs were not the same. Fresh, fluffy eggs were a real treat.
She imagined how much better the cakes Rosie baked on occasion would be with real eggs. They could even have pancakes and maybe a real potato salad. The possibilities were endless.
Chase beamed as well. He was clearly thrilled with the prospect of eggs.
“We need to build a place for the hens to nest. It shouldn't take long, but the sooner we give them somewhere to lay their eggs, the sooner we will have fresh eggs for breakfast,” he reasoned.
Megan instantly thought of the dike. Now they needed to build a coop of some sort, which would mean fewer people working on the wall.
“It's okay,” he said, looking at her. “It will only take a few hours. We don't need anything fancy. I want to make sure we have somewhere to lock them in at night so nothing can get to them. They are far too valuable to risk. They'll be okay in the pen with the goats but I don't trust them to stay put in that little shelter.”
She nodded. “I know. You're right. They are worth a few hours.”
She walked around to inspect the sleds they had each pulled in loaded with bricks.
“Wow. That could not have been easy,” she said, imagining how tired they all had to be.
Brenda shrugged. “It will be worth it.”
Megan's hopes of getting started on the wall were slowly fading. It was already late afternoon and Garrett and his team weren't back yet.
“You guys better get some water,” Rosie said, looking at each of them with concern. “We'll put the chickens in the goat pen for now. It isn't like they use it,” she added with a hint of sarcasm.
The goats were not keen on spending their days in the pen, preferring the open space around the lodge. No matter what they did, the goats always found a way out.
“We can make a better fence. It will need to be high enough to keep the goats from jumping over. I remember seeing something called wattle fencing. It was what the pioneers used for their own farms,” Chase explained.
“Wattle?” Megan asked.
“Yeah, it is easy enough to make using young trees and green limbs. There are plenty of those growing all through the forest. It will actually do the forest good if we can thin some of it out,” he explained. “Hopefully, they don't push too hard against it. We will need to make sure we push the sticks into the ground to keep them as sturdy as possible.”
“Will it take long?” She knew it was important, but with every task they needed to complete at the lodge, the building of the dike was getting lower on the list of things to do when it needed to be at the top of the list.
Chase shrugged. “Not weeks, but a few days. We can work on it off and on. We'll figure it out,” he assured her.
Wyatt walked out of the trees and into the clearing. Megan assumed he must have been checking on Albert.
“Chickens?”
Everyone laughed.
“Wow, you guys are good. We send you out for bricks and you come home with chickens,” he said with awe.
“Wyatt,” Megan started. “You think we could put together a small coop real quick? Chase, go in and get some water and something to eat. I'll help Wyatt.”
“Thanks, I will, but I'll be right back to help,” Chase said before strolling into the house.
“I'll see what I can find for materials,” Wyatt said, walking towards her. He grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the group. “We'll get started at first light,” he whispered.
Her disappointment must have been evident on her face.
“I know. Those guys have to be exhausted. Did you see how many bricks they brought back?”
“I did and now I am more confident than ever that this will work. I'll meet you back there in a bit,” he said walking away.
Megan helped the kids get the chickens into the goat pen. Rosie said she was going to get some scissors and would be right back.
The kids were horrified, but Rosie assured them the scissors were to cut their wings and not to kill the valuable birds.
When she came back, she asked Megan to hold one of the chickens.
“Okay, now what?” Megan said having no idea what she was supposed to do.
“Just hold her while I cut,” Rosie said, lifting the wing from the chicken and extending it. “We’re going to cut the lower layer of feathers,” Rosie said pointing to the area. She quickly made a quick cut and feathers flew to the ground.
“What about the rest of the feathers?” Megan asked.
“We don't cut those. Those will bleed. It’s the under layer that helps the chicken take flight. Technically, we only need to clip one side, but we are going to do both to make sure these young ladies don't get away from us,” Rosie explained.
Once all three chickens were clipped, they were allowed to explore their new home.
Wyatt returned with another wire shelf from the refrigerator and a couple of broken 5-gallon buckets. Megan stared at him.
“What are you going to do with that?” she asked him.
“The buckets are going to be the nesting boxes and the wire shelf will be the door. It isn't like they’re going to fight to get out. We'll put the shelf over the opening and put a rock in front of it.”
“And the goats?” she asked knowing a flimsy door wasn't going to hold them in.
“I'll hang a tarp from the side of the shed. They can sleep under there. They’re ge
tting too big for this little shelter anyway. Add that to the list of things that we need to build,” he said, sounding a little overwhelmed.
She was feeling the same way. The more animals they brought in, the more work they were making for themselves. It would be worth it, though. It better be at least.
“Okay, so back to the buckets. Won't the chickens get stuck in there?” she asked.
“No, if you can grab that hacksaw from the shed, we’re going to cut them down and cut off the front to create an opening. The chickens will crawl in, drop their egg and leave. They won't get stuck,” he promised. “The key is to make them feel safe. They need to feel comfortable to sit and lay an egg.”
Megan understood his plan and quickly retrieved the saw and got to work on the buckets. They tucked the buckets into the shelter, hoping the chickens would figure out what to do with them.
“Here,” Wyatt said handing her a round rock. “Put that into one of the buckets.”
“Why?”
He laughed. “Believe it or not, it gives the chickens an idea of what to do in those boxes. If we had a plastic egg or even a real one, we could leave that in there, but we don't have anything egg-shaped so a rock should do. It's temporary. Once they figure it out, we won't have to worry about looking for eggs around the property.”
She laughed, “Whatever you say, chicken man. I’m going to go with it.”
By the time dinner rolled around, the whole group was exhausted. They quickly ate dinner before Megan went over the plan for tomorrow. The kids were excited to get to help.
With more people using HAM radios, Albert had built up a small network of people across the country that he often used as a sounding board. On more than one occasion, he brought interesting bits of news that they never would have known if it weren’t for his radio contacts.
When Megan had first brought up building a dike, Albert had gotten on the radio hoping to find someone with dam or dike building experience. Unable to answer specific questions about pressure, flow velocity or momentum regarding the water flow at the dam; he was pleased when he could give them info on terrain surface roughness and distance and their resulting answers left Megan feeling more positive about her push to build the wall.
EMP Lodge Series Box Set | Books 1-6 Page 67