Vetted Again

by K'Anne Meinel

  “Take only what you need, stupid,” Allyssa heard Sean talking to Traci.

  “Don’t call your sister names,” she admonished him immediately. “Are you all packed?” At the shaking of his head, she said, “Then I suggest you get going on your own packing and leave your sister alone.” She turned to Traci. “How goes your packing?”

  “Is this for real?” Traci asked, her suitcase open on the bed. It was half filled and a box next to it held the few mementoes she had accumulated since she had come to live permanently on the ranch. Everything in Portland had gone up in the explosion. The box contained her ribbons and other 4-H things and a few pictures.

  “Yes, it’s real. This isn’t a drill. Now, finish packing your clothes. Assume we won’t be coming back here,” she said sadly, horrified that they were being told to leave their home. She’d sent Juanita to the mobile home to pack her own things. She hurried into the babies’ room and began stacking boxes of diapers by the door. She used old diaper boxes to carry the babies’ toys. Where are you, Fey? I need help, she thought more than once as she packed their children’s things. She hurried to the master bedroom to pack her own clothes and things and Fey’s as well.

  Allyssa was helping to pack up the back of the Suburban when Fey came over the hill in the RV. There was smoke creeping up their hill from the fires across the highway. Fey parked the RV by the fuel pump and began fueling it as she did almost every work day. There was no way she was evacuating without this fine machine. She left it fueling as she hurried to help Rhonda catch ducks and geese. “Where are we putting these?” she asked, sure they had some plan in action.

  “In the back of the horse trailer,” Rhonda responded through a flurry of wings and honks as the goose she had caught protested the indignity. Fey carried a duck under each arm and released them into the trailer. Seeing the llama and its baby on one side of the trailer, she hurried to catch some more fowl. She stopped to top off the RV’s tank, then parked it next to the house and began to help Allyssa bring boxes down, leaving the three babies in the backseat to play, not strapped in, oblivious to the drama going on around them with the doors shut and the windows down.

  “There. That’s my things,” Sean said, carrying down his suitcase and box. “What can I do next?”

  “Help Rhonda catch the chickens and put them in cages, so they don’t peck at the ducks and geese,” Allyssa told him as she passed with a box that would go in the back of the SUV.

  “I’ll get the frames,” Fey offered, earning a nod from her wife, who had already forgotten those things. The backups for the computers and the laptop were already safely in the SUV. She scooped up an inquiring cat and practically threw it in the SUV.

  The smoke was getting worse as they finished catching the poultry. One or two of the horses had returned but Woody chased them off again, taking the saddle off his own horse as he slapped it on the rear and sent it after the others. He grabbed a farm cat on the way, putting it in his vehicle.

  “We got all the poultry,” Rhonda reported. “Anything else you need help with?”

  “We should go,” Woody said, coming up at a run, Rocky running beside him. The dogs were acting up, and Fey finally put both Lexy and a reluctant Rex in the RV, locking them inside along with any cats she could catch.

  “Want to help me with the last of the framed stuff?” Fey asked as she headed back inside for more, being careful to put a blanket between the glass. She grabbed the colored glass frame and carefully wrapped it in a quilt and grabbed her great-great-grandparents’ patent from the wall. Rhonda knew the story on the other frames and began to stack the few that remained. She nearly ran into Allyssa as she came down the stairs with more boxes and headed out the door. Juanita followed with her own hands full.

  The organized chaos soon worked its way out and they finished packing. Allyssa went back to help Traci, who was obviously agitated and upset. Allyssa shoved the last of Traci’s things in the back of the SUV and looked at Fey helplessly. They both glanced around the farmyard.

  “Let’s leave the water on and spray the house with a sprinkler,” Allyssa called, running towards the hose. Sean joined her.

  They turned on four hoses, running them from the spring house and the farmhouse. Since Allyssa had been watering the yard at night, she’d obtained several more sprinklers. Fey ran a ladder up the side of the house and put a sprinkler on the house, getting soused as she positioned it to oscillate over the roof. Allyssa did the same over the cabin, nearly falling as Woody helped her position it. The third and fourth hoses they ran up to the roof and set up on the large barn, so they would rain down over it. They didn’t know if it would help or if the water would hold out, but they had to try.

  Rhonda and Woody headed out in their vehicle, waving as they headed over the hill to escape.

  Fey was tucking the babies in with Sean’s help when Rhonda and Woody returned, flying over the hill once again. “Fire! There’s fire right over that hill! It’s moving along your drive and heading here fast!” Woody shouted.

  “Let’s head for the lake,” she shouted back, pointing to the closed gate.

  Allyssa got in the SUV and checked that their three babies were tucked in safely. Traci got in the passenger seat and strapped herself in. Sean ran to join Fey in the SUV, but she shook her head. Handing him the keys, she pointed at the Jeep and told the thirteen-year-old boy to follow Woody, who was already opening the gate wide and heading out on the range towards the lake. Excited, Sean ran to start up the Jeep, which had the ATV trailer hooked to it. Allyssa had taught him and Traci how to drive the Jeep, but only in the ranch area. Sean carefully followed Woody and Rhonda’s vehicle. Allyssa followed him, pulling the horse trailer full of their poultry and an angry llama. She wondered where Fey was and what could be taking her so long, then a long while later saw her drive up behind her in the RV.

  The drive to the lake took far longer than they anticipated. Some of them could see in their rearview mirrors as a fire came over the hills behind them. Some had to use their side mirrors as they couldn’t see out their rear windows for all the items stacked in their vehicles. There seemed to be two fires, or so it seemed to Allyssa as she continually glanced behind them. She had to concentrate when the road petered out and they were four-wheeling it. She had to be extra careful not to get stuck in ruts or throw around the animals in the trailer behind her. She headed to the far side of the lake, not where they normally camped but beyond it, putting the water between her and the ranch.

  Woody and Rhonda had stopped at their normal spot and got back in their vehicle to follow Allyssa, who had waved for Sean to follow her. They understood when she carefully forded a dry creek bed and went around the lake. Fey was following far behind them all before they stopped.

  “Do you think it will come this far?” Rhonda asked as they got out of the vehicles.

  “It looked like there were two fires?” Allyssa commented, confused at what she had seen.

  “I saw two fires too,” Traci commented, wanting to back up her hero.

  Allyssa heard one of the babies fussing. They had fallen asleep in the back seat but now needed to be changed and fed, she knew they could sense everyone’s tension. She prioritized. “Let’s get those ducks and geese in the lake,” she called to Sean as she went to take care of Erin, who was crying. It wasn’t sincere crying because he knew one of his mommies would come and take care of him, but he wanted them to know he needed attention. He didn’t need changing, so Allyssa stuck a bottle in his mouth. He wanted out of the seat too, and his fussing had woken Tom, who started fussing too. Fey drove up, parked the SUV, and got out. The dogs and a couple of inquisitive cats followed her.

  “What was that second fire?” Allyssa asked, trying to feed Erin while unstrapping Tom before he woke Molly. Too late. Now, she was awake too.

  “We started a backfire,” Fey said, indicating herself and Juanita. “I don’t know if it will work, but I sure hope it doesn’t make it worse. I had to run up the hill to whe
re you stopped watering,” she said as she and Juanita came up to help with the children.

  “That was smart. I was wondering where the heck you were when you were so far behind us.”

  “I didn’t think of it until I got in the RV, and then I had to run back. The smoke coming up over that hill was pretty bad,” she admitted as she got Tom out and handed him to Traci while reaching for a bottle. Next, she got Molly out, smiling at her and going, “Whoopsie-daisy,” to the little girl to make her smile.

  “Think the fire will come this far?” Woody asked as he joined them after opening the trailer for the ducks and geese. They had left the chickens in their cages in case they needed to move again. He was debating if he dared bring out that ornery llama and her cria.

  “I don’t know,” Fey admitted, hoping no one with the sheriff’s office got mad at them for not evacuating sooner. She read the flyer Allyssa had given her. “Damn, that fire got to us quick. I thought they gave more notice.”

  “He did, and we started packing immediately,” Allyssa said, trying to keep a wiggly Erin from falling from her arms. “Okay, down you go,” she told him. He was holding onto the bottle but wanted to stand. Juanita held the wobbling boy steady as he stood there.

  “Yeah, he said the fire was just beyond the highway. How the heck did it get on the other side of your hills so fast?” Woody asked, squinting back towards where the ranch lay in the late afternoon sunlight. The smoke was heading their way.

  “Do you think someone started it?” Rhonda asked, and they all exchanged looks.

  “Surely, no one would be that stupid?” Allyssa said and then, exchanged another look with her wife. They knew someone that stupid, but would he have done such a horrific thing? A fire like that was nothing to fool with. It wouldn’t have killed just them but many, many, more, and who knew where it would have stopped.

  “We can speculate until the cows come home...and speaking of cows, we should be prepared for visitors here at the lake. We aren’t the only ones that are going to come here for water,” Fey pointed out. “Let’s get set up for camping.”

  They set up the camp. Fortunately, the RV was constantly ready for such an event. They had food, supplies, and medicine, if necessary. The ducks and geese waddled off to acquaint themselves with the lake, finding their own food. The cats they had managed to bring with them sniffed cautiously around the site as the humans settled in, putting out chairs to sit on and watch the far-off fire.

  “Anyone want a campfire?” Woody offered, and at their collective stares he added, “Too soon?”

  They all chuckled after his joke was defeated. Getting the babies to bed was a challenge. They were wound up at the change and sensing everyone’s anxiety. Finally, they all went to sleep, and Traci wasn’t far behind them. The adults sat up in lawn chairs as they watched to see if the breeze would carry sparks and start a fire closer to their position.

  “That looks horrible,” Fey commented when they could see the flames in the darkness. There were many fires to choose from on the various hills, but fortunately, they were far away from their location.

  “I don’t think I’m going to be able to sleep,” Allyssa admitted.

  “Well, we need to watch anyway,” Woody put in, although he was ready to crawl into the bunk he had been assigned in the luxurious RV. He’d never slept in it. He’d seen the RV many times and been inside it, but he’d never had the opportunity to really use it. He was grateful for the usable bathroom in it. “Maybe we can watch in shifts?” he offered, hoping they would agree, and then, he’d magnanimously offer to take the morning shift, so he could go to bed.

  One by one, they agreed to shifts. Fey refused to allow Sean to take a shift but let him stay up later as Woody, then Rhonda and Juanita headed to bed.

  “What happens if it comes here, Fey?” Allyssa fretted.

  “Then we move again,” she said, shrugging but hoping it wouldn’t come to that. She reached out to find Allyssa’s hand and held it.

  “Where would we go?” Sean asked, looking out into the darkness. The dogs were staring off into the dark, and he worried that something was out there...maybe that bull’s offspring they had discovered. Something like that could be very dangerous.

  “The lake is pretty safe,” Fey reassured him. “What are you staring at?” she asked. They had light from the RV, but he was staring off into the darkness. It was then she noticed the dogs were also looking that way, and she let go of Allyssa’s hand to pull out her gun.

  Allyssa, watching Fey’s reaction, pulled out her own Glock to be ready. They waited, for what they weren’t sure. Then, Rex began to wag his tail and Allyssa relaxed. Whatever it was, it was friendly.

  Slowly, they all began to hear noises, then the distinct sound of hooves. It didn’t sound like there were many hooves, but something was coming. Suddenly, into the light plodded Big Ben.

  Fey got up to greet the old shire. “Hey there, Big Ben,” she said, holding out her hand, so he could smell her. “You found us,” she praised him as she put her gun away in its holster. He probably knew more places out here than they did. She looked beyond him, peering into the darkness looking for his shadow. “Did you bring friends, old fella?” Sure enough, Big Red appeared, her shy baby following. They had begun calling the youngster Lil’ Red.

  “Amazing, he’s like a hound dog, finding us like this.”

  “Well, he’s looking for treats, but we didn’t pack any for you, did we, old boy?” She petted him, loving how sturdy he was. Not too many people kept draft horses, and he was certainly a rarity. She often wondered how Big Ben had ended up on her range. but she didn’t mind because he kept Big Red calm. Fey ignored the mare, who was snuffling near her, but as she continued to pet the big horse, Red bumped into her shoulder and demanded her own fair share of the attention. “Well, hello there,” she said softly, and Allyssa laughed, seeing her wife between the two horses. Red was a big horse, but Ben was much bigger. Just then, Allyssa was nearly knocked out of her camp chair as Lil’ Red pushed by her to reach his mother and stepfather.

  “Whoa,” she said, pulling her feet back just in time to keep them from being crushed. She put the Glock back in her holster, making sure the safety was on. Getting up, she helped her wife pat and praise the horses for finding them. Sean was trying to give most of his attention to the younger horse, who he hoped to ride someday. Fey had told him not to even try riding him until the baby was at least two or three years old. It seemed a long time to wait, but Sean was certain he would be worth the ride. He didn’t even think about the fact that the ranch might not be there.

  Finally, they retired to their beds. Allyssa took the first watch because she was certain she would be up with the babies at some point and wanted Fey to sleep. She watched the distant lights of the fire on the hills, wondering if it had swept through their home. The trunk filled with the original journals was in the back of the Suburban along with their pictures, but not everything they held dear was in their vehicles. She wanted to cry thinking of how hard they had worked to build up the ranch and how many times they and Fey’s ancestors had rebuilt that house. As the horses snuffled on the far side of the RV, she heard another noise. She cocked her head and began to get up. She wasn’t sure what it was, so she walked around the trailer and closed the back to keep the chickens safe. The llama was tied on a long rope not too far away. Rex and Lexy walked with Allyssa, but they didn’t seem overly concerned, just curious about where their human was going.

  “What is it?” Sean whispered, proving he was still up and listening through a window.

  “I don’t know,” she admitted as she peered into the darkness wondering about the noise she had heard. She saw what she thought was heat lightning up beyond the burning hills, but it didn’t register for a while that she was also hearing the thunder. When she became aware of the cause and effect, she began to count the seconds between when she saw the sky light up and when the sound of the thunder reached them.

  “One one-thousand, tw
o one-thousand...” she murmured to herself as waited to hear the thunder. She figured the lightning and thunder were miles away, and even then, there was no guarantee of rain. They’d had many, many, weeks and months of little or no rain. Getting her hopes up that it would come now would be foolish. Still, she watched and listened and even prayed a little.

  Fey relieved her at midnight, woken by Erin, who was restless in the strange place. She got up, checked his diaper, fed him, and brought him outside to his other mother.

  “Hey, there,” Fey said gently. “How are you?”

  “Getting tired,” Allyssa admitted, looking at their son with a smile. “Restless?” she asked him and Fey responded.

  “Yes. He was going to wake the other two, but I caught him before he could. Whatcha lookin’ at?” she asked when she saw Allyssa was distracted.

  “There’s a storm over there,” she nodded in the direction of the lightning, far to the southwest. “It’s steadily coming closer, but I can’t tell if it’s bringing any rain with it or if it’s just Mother Nature screwing with us.” Just as she said that, a slight breeze came to them. Instantly, they felt the air around them become cooler.

  “That feels like rain,” Fey said hopefully, looking down at her son with a smile of delight. “It might rain!” she said gleefully.

  “Oh, you think so?” Allyssa asked, dying to feel rain again after so long. The sprinkler had felt glorious, but the hot air had dried her clothes too quickly.

  “Well, you said you’d been watching it,” she pointed out.

  “I was also watching the fires. There are several we can see from here,” she pointed as they walked a short way from the RV to get out of the light and see into the night. The dogs got up to follow them.

  “God. Why would someone start that?” Fey asked, looking out and realizing with the distance how much land was actually burning out there. She’d be sad to lose the home they had made together...again. And it wasn’t just the house they had built. It was also the ancient, huge barn and the old cabin. It all meant so much to her. Then, she looked up at her wife standing tall beside her and down at their son, and she realized those things didn’t mean anything when everything she loved was here with her. Her children were safe, her wife was beside her, her brother and sister were sleeping in the RV. Even her friends were snoring inside. They were lucky. They’d had a warning.