There were no dissenters and I went on, “OK. We’re making progress.”
Rogers said, “Can we go now?”
I said, “You can do whatever you want. But, if you stick around a little longer, you get to hear what the others are thinking. There might be something that would be helpful to know. Just like how we now know to leave you alone.”
Rogers looked at the others in his group and they all sat down together.
I said, “Rogers has a plan. It sounds fine. Does that influence any of the rest of you? Do any of you want to take the same deal? Your tribe takes a small plot of dirt and you become your own little enclave where no one even sets foot on your sand unless they get invited? You trade when you want to, and you send a message via the Nomads if you want anything else?”
There was a rustle among the largest group of men and their leader hushed them and stepped forward. There were ten in that group.
The spokesman said, “You know, this isn’t half-stupid. My name is Paul. Does anyone remember my last name? No? Me too. Anyway, my guys think that deal sounds pretty good. But the only thing is, we’d kind of like a house. There’s a place at the north, two bits over from the breeders, on the west. If nobody objects, we’d go there. And do like Kong says.”
I asked, “Will the Breeders have a problem with that? You living there?”
Paul said, “No, we don’t think so. Most of us get along with them OK. Some of us are used to them and I think it would be OK. Maybe we offer to trade with them or do stuff for them or something. Just the ten of us.”
CHAPTER Twenty - Tribal Council
I said, “Sounds fair, unless anyone has a problem with it. Speaking of houses and where we are going to live, I am going to need a bigger place. The house you gave me is fine, but it might be smaller than I need. Some of you like the outdoors but I’d do best with a bigger house. Any ideas?”
There was some talk and Jennifer, who I still thought of as Bebe, said, “There’s the Villa at the east side, ten miles south. Halfway between here and the house that we have already. It’s pretty good size but nobody goes there. It’s haunted and all that.”
I laughed and said, “Haunted?”
She said, “There was some trouble. Years ago. A mass suicide or mass murder. We never knew which. One day we went there, and they were all dead. About a year after we arrived. The bodies are still there.”
One of the remaining leaders who hadn’t had their turn to speak yet said, “Whoa! Sure. You want the Haunted Mansion; you can have it!”
There was a round of laughter and everyone nodded.
Jennifer said, “Then that’s settled. The Haunted Mansion belongs to Kong’s family and we get the same rules as everyone else. If we hang out a welcome mat, you can visit. Otherwise, you just keep going. Send a message via canoe-express if you need to send us a letter.”
I was surprised but if Jennifer thought it was a good idea, I was OK with it. I looked to Allie and Christie and both nodded their heads in agreement.
This was going infinitely better than I had hoped for. My best-case scenario involved carving up the atoll into several separate villages but having them come up with that as their preferred solution was wonderful.
There were four tribes left to speak. It looked like there might be some questions between them and I suggested another five-minute recess while they talked.
I went and sat with the girls.
Jennifer said brightly, “Call me Jeannie.”
I said, “Jeannie? OK.”
She said, “I’m going to help you make all of our wishes come true. Seriously, some of them called me Jeannie at school. I like it. I am so happy. And wow, this is going great, isn’t it?”
Allie said, “It seems like it will be good. But Jeannie, the Haunted Mansion?”
Jeannie said, “It’s perfect! It’s so perfect. It needs work but we can do that, right? You guys had electricity at the house. We saw the lights on.”
Allie said, “But those people went crazy.”
Jeannie said, “We all went crazy. That was their way out. They are as dead as all the rest. They chose that way to get away. Allie, the only ghosts are inside us. Let’s go take the best house on the best island and make a new life. There’s a lagoon. Our own freaking lagoon! And maybe five bedrooms and pool and a garage building, and I bet there’s stuff. I think there’s a boat with a motor. The place wasn’t looted. I’ve been there. It was gruesome at first because of the bodies and the way they died but no one has bothered the place at all. It’s the best thing here. I say we move in and be happy.”
Christie said, “I’m willing. It’s kind of scary though. Didn’t they go insane from something in the water or something like that?”
Jeannie said, “No, I don’t think so. I think that they just couldn’t hack it. They just decided that they wanted out.”
Christie said, “OK. But you might have to help us. It’s going to be freaky. Ghosts.”
Jeannie said, “It’s going to be fine. You’ll see. And I’ll even clean up the bodies.”
I said, “I’ll clean up the bodies. Jeannie, it sounds like just what I would have wished for.”
She grinned and said, “You told everyone in the circle, it’s your wishes that come true, not theirs.”
I gave Jeanie, and then the other two, a quick kiss and got to my feet again.
One of men stood up and said, “Look. We talked it over. Here’s what we want. We all agree. There are four groups, but I’ll speak for all of us. We’re kind of like four parts but sort of one tribe. We want the same kind of deal, but we will have more freedom to come and go between our four groups. We think four separate places is best but if we get along, we stay friendly and maybe even move from one group to another if we want to. Um, just so there’s no worries, we aren’t planning to gang up on anyone. Kong is right, there’s plenty of room, plenty of fish, plenty of grapes, and no need to go to war anymore. But there was that other thing. We think that now that Coach Brown is gone, and I didn’t kill him by the way, but I know who did but anyway, now that he’s gone, we think that people should come and go as they please. If somebody wants to come with us, that’s OK. Ask and we’ll see if that works. If one of us wants to leave, that’s fine too. Maybe he can find a better place with some of you. Everybody is a free agent. They go where they want. And we agree to the no mushing rule.”
He went silent and waited.
I said, “Where would you go?”
He said, “I don’t know. I’ve always been here. I don’t know what else there is.”
I thought it over for a minute and decided that I didn’t see any reason not to let them stay on this island, except that they might be better off if they went somewhere unfamiliar. I had grave concerns about them reverting to old ways within a few weeks unless a permanent shift in thinking and behavior took place.
I asked, “Do you want to stay here?”
He sighed and said, “Florin, that’s your name, right? I’m Parker. I was a coach. It was water polo. At a big-name university. I have a master’s in business. I understand a few things that got lost over the years. Florin Jensen, that’s what you said. I know who you are. What are you? Thirty? The man listed on several plaques around town, thanking him for all that he did for the people who were here before the world went to hell, and the man listed as the owner of the resorts and stuff was a man named Robert K Jensen. There are pictures. Well, there used to be. They are probably destroyed now but I remember. When things here were headed to hell, I used to sit and wonder what that man would think about what we were doing but mostly about what kind of trouble we’d be in if he ever found out. That’s why you’re here isn’t it? All of you listen to me. This dude may be an angel of death, but the fact seems to be that we are trespassing on his land. We don’t have a way to leave but the way I see it, he has every right to kick us out, and I’m not sure that all of us together would have the ability to stop him from doing it. We saw what happens when eight guys try to j
ump him. I do not want to find out what happens if I fall asleep with him as my enemy. Whether we can be friends or not is questionable. We’ve done too much evil to expect friendship from anyone.”
He paused and I said, “Robert K Jensen was my grandfather. He’s still alive. He sent me.”
Parker said, “See! You guys, we’re on his land and we need him to let us live here. No, we need him to teach us how to live here. We know how to get mushed or die. We need a new way. So Florin, I’m smart enough to know that we can’t stay here.”
One of his men said, “Why not? This is where we live.”
Parker turned to face his group and said, “No. We know how to die here. We have to go elsewhere to learn how to live. You heard Bebe. She’s happy. I don’t know if we can ever be happy, but I do know that if we stay here, we’ll be back to our old ways within a month at the outside. If we are going to have a chance, we have to start over. I meant what I said. If anyone wants to try it a different way, you can. If you want to follow me, you can. Or, I’ll go by myself.”
Suddenly, Parker went silent, held up his hand, and closed his eyes. Everyone waited. A minute later, when he opened his eyes, I could see that he had something to say and I stepped away from the middle of the room and motioned him to take my place there. He stepped to the center and turned to address his followers.
He spoke slowly and said, “I can’t live here. For me, this is the haunted place. Not this village, these islands. And more than that, these people. These are the ghosts that haunt me. The ones that we mistreated. Oh, Florin, I said that I knew who killed Coach Brown. They’re all dead, by the way. Here’s my decision. I’ve thought it over. I changed my mind. I’m leaving. I’ve seen the maps from when we first got here. There are small islands with villages on them to the southeast, the southwest, and another atoll due west from the northwest end of this atoll. All of those are within 50 to 70 miles. A canoe with several guys can make it in a day. I’m going to take a canoe, if I can have one, and head there and see if I can start over. It’s a one-day journey from either the northwest or southeast corners of the atoll. One day to get to the point, then another day or so to reach another island. If I can have a compass, I can make it. Here’s my deal. If you want to come with me, you can. Like the man says, you vote with your feet. If you want to come with me, stand up and come here. If not, I don’t care.”
Parker stopped talking and soon, about 12 of his groups stood up and joined him in the middle of the room. He shook hands with each of them. A few more started to move in his direction but then another man spoke up.
He said, “Wait. I want the same deal but in a different direction. You go west and I’ll go east, or something like that. If you’re with me, stand up.”
The men involved all looked around and several that had been with Parker switched to the second group. A few more who hadn’t decided yet, moved to take their places. When things settled, Parker had 13 and the other man, whose name was Allen, had 23.
Parker said, “Florin, this is good for you. I wish you well. I need two or three canoes.”
I said, “Take what you want.”
Parker said, “Three then.”
Allen declared, “I need six.”
There was something about the way that he said it that made me think, “Greedy bastard.”
I said, “Fine. As long as we have enough.”
Jeannie said, “There’s plenty.”
Parker said, “I’ll be out of your hair before morning.”
I said, “If you are headed south, you’ll have to travel at night. The wind will be blowing north during the day.”
Parker said, “Thanks. We’ll leave tonight. We’ll try to make it to the point at the southeast, day after tomorrow at the latest. We’ll leave for the east the day after that. We don’t really need much in the way of provisions. We’ll take some fish and grapes and something to collect rain water in and a few knives.”
Allen said, “I’m leaving right now. Screw you guys! I’m headed north with the wind. You work too hard. Guys come on!” and he stormed out of the hotel and his 22 men followed.
I walked out behind them and watched as they took whatever canoes were on the beach, loaded up, and paddled hard to get away from the sand. I didn’t care that they took my canoe with them.
When they were far enough away, being blown northward at maybe ten miles an hour, I turned to go back inside, and everyone settled in again.
Parker sidled up to me and said, “There’s nothing to the north. Just ocean.”
I said, “I know. They won’t make it. They’ll do 10 to 20 miles an hour until midnight. They’ll be at least 100 miles away by then. And even if they turn around when the wind quits, they’ll only make it back 50 miles. In the morning the wind will pick up again and by the next day, they’ll be maybe 300 miles out in open water. Every day it will get worse. There’s no way back. And there’s nothing in that direction for over 2500 miles. And even then, they won’t find whatever islands there are.”
Parker said, “Some of them will be killed within two or three days. Florin, I don’t know if I can make it either. I’ll make it to another island and there will be a village there that we should be able to live in, and if there are people already there, I’ll keep going because I won’t repeat the mistakes we made here but I don’t know if these guys can really start over. We have habits that have been with us for a long time. I’m going to do my best though.”
I shook Parker’s hand and said, “I wish you well.”
He said, “Thanks. I appreciate that. At least I’m not going to certain death. I need to wait until the wind dies down, but I can wait at the south end of the island. We can drag the canoes down the beach.”
I said, “Thanks for your help.”
He said, “Such as it was. Tell your grandfather I’m sorry. I won’t see you again. Can I go ahead and go?”
I said, “Go in peace.”
Parker raised his voice and said, “All of you, I’m sorry for how I mistreated you. I hope we all learn from this. Guys, if you’re coming with me, I’m leaving now. Four men to a canoe. Five if you want. We’re dragging them to the south end of the island. We’ll leave when the wind dies. Probably at midnight. Until then, maybe we’ll talk things over. I don’t know. If you are with me, come on.”
Parker shook my hand again and he and his 12 followers went to the beach, grabbed three canoes and started carrying them to the south.
Back inside again, I said, “I think that’s a pretty good plan for now. I need a saw and a pair of scissors.”
One of the women said, “Scissors? Oh, hell, Christie, let us give you a haircut! You look like crap!”
Christie said, “Well, thanks for noticing.”
Toni said, “Ah, there’s something we can do. When we make our rounds, if anyone wants one, we can cut your hair for you. Let’s stop hacking it off with a knife.”
I said, “If that’s OK with the girls, then I don’t need my own scissors yet. We can talk about a lot more at some point but unless anybody has questions, how about we call it a day? Oh, would anyone like to volunteer to help me clean up the bodies out front?”
Toni said, “We’ll do that. We’re used to it. There’s kind of an ocean graveyard outside the Atoll. Don’t worry about it. Shit! You know what? I feel happy! Let us know if you want anything. I think we all owe you a lot. This is so cool.”
There were about 35 of us left in the lobby at the end. The four hermits left for parts unknown. The ten settlers took two canoes, and since the wind was favorable, they left for the northwest. Two of the Nomads took Allie and Christie and started giving them haircuts. Allie didn’t need it as much, but they felt that she could use a trim. Toni dispatched the others in her tribe to collect bodies and pile them in canoes for disposal. That left me, Jeannie, and Toni alone together.
We walked outside and looked at the sky. The wind was still blowing fiercely but the sky was clearer than we had seen it since the beginning of the cat
aclysm. We sat on a bench at the entrance to the hotel and watched.
Toni said, “That went well.”
Jeannie said, “Exceptionally well. The ten who went to live near the breeders were lying.”
Toni said, “Yeah. They didn’t go to live near the breeders, they went to live with the breeders.”
I said, “Really?”
Jeannie said, “Yeah. Those guys couldn’t tell the other men, but I recognized all of them. Let’s say that their sexuality was somewhat fluid. The Breeders will accept them. Some of the Breeders have increasingly fluid sexuality as well. They are at the point where they’ll have sex with anyone. They just don’t care anymore.”
Toni said, “Yeah. Those guys are breeders now. And that crap-weasel Allen is dead within a week. I understand weather. It’s going to be like this for a long time and there’s no land north of us. That crew is a Flying Dutchman now.”
I said, “I think Parker and his group will make it.”
Toni said, “He was smart. If he’d stayed, they would go back to their old ways quick. Maybe this way they’ll figure it out.”
Jeannie said, “Or kill each other. Probably not. Even if they do go back, they’ll work it out so that they can live, at least.”
Toni said, “What about you guys?”
I said, “We’ll move into the Haunted Mansion.”
The Dark Atoll Page 20