Nuclear Winter | Book 2 | First Spring

by Jones, Nathan

  Arguably they could just take the backhoe around the long way, and do the same to get the truck to town if necessary, but that would use up way more of their precious fuel and present a greater risk. Besides, clearing the canyon was a job that needed to get done at some point anyway. If it turned out to be too much to do in a week, or less than ideal for some other reason, they'd change their plans.

  The next issue was making up lists of what the town had to trade and what it needed. Food and medicine were at the top of that second list, of course, but there were other things they could really use, and a trade summit with so many people attending was probably the best place to find them. The first list would be a bit more complicated, and require a lot of individual tallying on the part of the town's residents.

  Catherine agreed to draw up both lists, with help from her husband, Chauncey, and Matt's dad. They'd do their best to estimate the value of the town's goods, the price of the food and other items they wanted to trade for, and strike a conservative balance so they didn't send too much or, much worse, too little.

  After the question of what the town had to trade and could afford to send along was the question of who would go.

  It was likely Carrie would be going since Grimes had requested her presence. If it came down to it she could ride with the military, but nobody wanted to kick her out of the town's truck because of lack of room. She was one of them. Besides, she'd trained in shooting and hand to hand combat as well as other useful skills, so she was qualified to defend the truck if it came to it. She shot with her dominant hand and eye, which thankfully was the one that'd been spared, matched on the same side. And although her aim had suffered and she faced other challenges such as lack of depth perception and a limited field of vision, she still did all right. There was the concern that everyone who went ideally should take turns driving the truck if it came down to it, and she might face some challenges there, but overall she was a good choice.

  Gutierrez was another good choice. Like Carrie, he knew the military lifestyle and could help the people they sent work well with the rest of the convoy. He was also one of their best defenders and would do a good job protecting their supplies. And, although Matt didn't mention this part out loud, when it came down to it the long winter and his mostly self-imposed isolation hadn't been good for his friend. A change of scenery and a chance to be useful would hopefully be helpful for him.

  And most importantly, the former soldier would be invaluable to have along since he was fluent in Spanish and knew most of the local customs in Mexico. He'd be a huge help with negotiations.

  As for the last seat, Matt would've liked to go himself, and at this point he had a lot of experience in bartering and negotiating as well as with both small and large scale leadership. But he knew that wasn't realistic: as Mayor the town needed him to stay right where he was.

  Scott Tillman was also a good choice, since he'd managed his store before the Gulf burned, organized and kept inventory of the town's storehouse since then, and had also served as quartermaster for the volunteers. He had an excellent idea of what the town needed, what the comparative value of everything was and what they could afford to pay for necessities, and he was a levelheaded and firm negotiator. He was also an excellent shot and kept his head under pressure. Unfortunately Catherine strongly objected to him going, as did their daughter Tam, and Matt wasn't about to step on their toes unless there was no other option.

  Which there was, and arguably the best option to be found assuming Lewis wanted to go. His friend had the negotiating experience, he knew how to barter, he was an excellent leader who made quick, confident, and generally correct decisions, and his reputation was rock solid. The town would happily trust him with their precious valuables in the confidence he'd return with what they needed. And with his reloading business taking off the man would be strongly motivated to do well for personal reasons as well as duty to the community.

  And while Carrie was still a relative newcomer, Lewis and Gutierrez worked together very well. They'd make an excellent team. Especially in this situation, where Lewis's tendency to be blunt with people he thought were incorrect on an issue would be tempered by Gutierrez's diplomacy. Hopefully Carrie would also help out there by providing a third perspective and her own voice of reason. She'd shown in the past that she was willing to stand up for herself and for others.

  Matt was satisfied with those choices, and he thought the other town leaders were as well. Lewis and Gutierrez, both in attendance at the meeting, seemed willing and even eager to accept the assignment when Matt put their names forward. And of course Carrie had already told Grimes she'd be happy to go, so unless she changed her mind she was also in.

  That seemed to settle things. The leaders split up to their respective tasks, and those who were going out immediately to check on the truck and trailer packed up their things and headed out.

  As for Matt, his first stop was to visit Carrie and confirm her as the third member of the expedition. Once she agreed and he briefly went over what she could expect, and what the town would need from her, Matt headed out to make sure the tractor was still running and gather a team to clear the way through the canyon.

  * * * * *

  Well, good news and bad news.

  The good news was that it only took Hank Charleston, one of the refugees they'd recruited last fall for his skill as a machinist and the closest thing they had to a mechanic, an hour or so of tinkering and the battery Lewis had brought with him to get the truck's engine started. Further good news was that since the truck had been upside down the tires hadn't had any weight on them, and they were in good condition and would only need a bit of inflating before being good to go.

  Which left the bad news. The passenger window in the cab had been open all winter and the interior had suffered the full effects of weather and, from the looks of it, habitation by small critters. Furthermore, the explosion had trashed the back of the truck more than he remembered, especially when they got underneath to where most of the damage was. The sidewalls and tailgate would need to be hammered into some semblance of shape, and they'd probably have to completely rebuild the frame of struts for the tarp.

  Which was peanuts compared to the real problem. The truck was really, really heavy, and it was solidly wedged into the ground at an angle between two steep banks over the stream. It would be nearly impossible to pull it free from front or back without lifting it at least partially from above, which would take a crane, and from the sides they'd end up dragging the thing through the stream and then upslope for fifty or so yards before they could even try to flip it.

  The one saving grace was that the vehicle had a winch mounted on the front bumper. They had to dig it free, but once they did Lewis was relieved to see it was still functioning. Between that and the backhoe and a few dozen men putting their backs into it, he hoped they'd be able to get it free and up to the road.

  Having done what they could with the truck Lewis, Ben, and Hank headed up to meet Matt's team at the collapsed cliff to help them clear the road.

  * * * * *

  Raul was pleased to find that the livestock trailer he'd seen earlier was in good shape.

  He supposed that wasn't too surprising. Just like the vehicles that towed it, the trailer was made to sit out in the elements for long stretches of time, and unlike them it didn't have engine parts that might rust or seize up, and not much in the way of electronics either.

  If whoever was in charge of the convoy was a stickler for safety they might have to fix the brake lights and turn signals before heading out, but that was easy. Sure, the interior of the enclosed space could do with some thorough cleaning, which obviously hadn't been done after its last use carrying livestock, but that was easy too.

  The tires were another matter. Only one was possibly usable, the others flat and full of cracks from the weight resting on them for so long. He and Trev had to do some scrounging to find similarly sized tires on other vehicles, and they'd have to wait until they could bri
ng the truck down with an electric pump to top them off and check to see if they'd make the trip.

  Just to be safe Trev suggested they gather up a few extra spares, which they rolled underneath the trailer to wait. They also oiled the hitch and checked the wires to the lights to make sure they didn't have any obvious damage that needed repairing.

  It didn't take long, a couple hours tops. Raul was sure that Lewis and Matt were still hard at work at their respective tasks, and would be for a long while.

  But instead of heading back to the canyon to help out Trev suggested they trailblaze up a ravine he was familiar with and go directly back to town. His friend's reasoning was that even though they'd left the defenders in capable hands he was a bit antsy about both of them being gone for too long, but Raul suspected it had more to do with Trev missing his wife.

  Or maybe not wanting to help with the heavy lifting involved in clearing the canyon road and getting the truck unstuck and up onto it. If so Raul was willing to give his friend the benefit of the doubt there, since he didn't mind avoiding that unpleasant chore himself.

  Besides, he had preparations to make if he was going to be going along on this trip.

  They set a fast pace on the way home, in spite of the steep trail and the increasingly snowy conditions as they got up into the mountains. Raul was also familiar with this canyon, having seen it on his winter forays, although since it was too treacherous for his sled he hadn't tried to use it. He'd have to remember it for later use, though, since it made a good shortcut if you were going that way.

  Once they were in range Trev radioed ahead to let the town know the trailer was looking good, and got an update from Chauncey on the progress the other teams had made.

  The answer there was not much. Raul thought Trev looked a bit guilty as he informed the retired teacher they were coming back to town, and his friend set an even harder pace after that, although still taking care with the treacherous footing.

  Sure enough, when they got back to town a bit before sunset Trev made an immediate beeline for his house and the loving arms of his wife. Must be nice.

  Raul headed to the town hall tent to check in on the defenders. There were a few things to sort out, but he didn't mind having work to do to justify not heading to the canyon. It was too late anyway, and everyone there would already be setting up camp for the night. Better to make an early start tomorrow.

  On his way home to turn in he passed the shelter group houses, where he saw Carrie emerging from the cabin where she lived with Jane's group. On catching sight of him the young woman perked up and waved. “Gung-ho!” she called.

  Raul didn't mind changing directions to go meet her, although he grimaced at the nickname. “I really wish you wouldn't call me that.” The scarred veteran grinned, not at all put off by the complaint; it was probably a bad idea to admit how much it irritated him if she was doing it just for that purpose. With a sigh he changed the subject. “Still feeling good about going with us to the trade summit?”

  It was Carrie's turn to frown. “To be honest I may have been a bit hasty accepting the Colonel's offer,” she admitted.

  Interesting. Was she worried about the danger, or having second thoughts about putting her face on display? Honestly Raul didn't think the scars looked that bad, although they were definitely major, and he knew the young woman was self-conscious about them.

  “Well it's your choice,” he told her. “But if it helps I trust you to watch my back.”

  She flushed slightly in embarrassment, but tried to keep her tone light as she punched his arm. “Aw thanks, Gung-ho. But we've never been in combat together so I know you're just being polite. And I wasn't stationed with any of the other veterans so they wouldn't know either.”

  Raul frowned. “So can I or can't I?”

  “Sure you can.” Carrie tapped her eyepatch. “Or at least, you can trust me to keep half an eye on it.”

  He gave the bad pun a polite smile. If she was going to joke about her injury it would be a jerk move to not at least acknowledge the attempt.

  She sighed and continued. “I went through training and did my share of fighting, just like you. Actually probably more than you, since I was in just about the worst of it on the front lines, while you were babysitting a mountain in the middle of nowhere and occasionally taking potshots at blockhead patrols.” She abruptly smirked. “So maybe I should be asking you the same question.”

  Raul wasn't in the mood to justify himself to her. He'd been through riots, fought off besieging raiders, snuck into a blockhead camp on a sabotage mission, and come close to blowing up a combat chopper with an antitank missile. He'd helped bring a mountainside down on a small army.

  Although to be fair, he had challenged her to justify her own skills. Turnabout was fair play.

  Then again he was second-in-command of the defenders and nominally in charge of this expedition to the trade summit. Its success or failure was on his head, so it wasn't like he was out of place wanting to be certain of the people he'd be taking with him. Lewis he could and had trusted with his life, while Carrie, much as he admired what she'd done for the town so far, was otherwise an unknown.

  He supposed this trip would be a chance to remedy that. And anyway things shouldn't be too dangerous while traveling as part of a military convoy going to a friendly nation who'd guaranteed their safety.

  “Well I look forward to working with you,” he said, fighting a yawn. “Good night.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Moab

  It ended up taking five days to clear the canyon and get the truck up to the road.

  Five long, exhausting, sweaty days in chilly temperatures sleeping in a rough camp so they didn't have to make the long trek home and back, which would've taken up most of the day all on its own. Everyone who'd volunteered for the job was thoroughly miserable, and Lewis's only consolation was that Jane had decided to come down and help out where she could by hunting fresh meat for the volunteers working on the huge task. Having his wife with him made camping in temperatures that often dropped below freezing at night much more comfortable.

  Even after clearing as much of the collapsed cliff as they could, the road was so bad they barely got the tractor over it. The plan had always been to get the truck running and then take it down the canyon to Highway 6 and go from there, but they'd been planning to take it back to town to load up the trade goods first.

  Considering the state of the road, they decided it would be better to haul everything down to the truck by hand while they were busy getting it up onto the road, so they didn't have to even try driving the big vehicle over the rough patch.

  Matt went to go gather up the goods and bring them down once they'd finished clearing the road and gotten the tractor to the truck, leaving Lewis most of his team to work on dislodging the huge vehicle and towing it up to the road.

  Lewis would've preferred to trade jobs, since they didn't really have much to load into the captured blockhead truck. His friend had definitely gotten the easier task there, considering most of their trade items were reasonably light and didn't take up much space. Things like precious metals, jewelry, watches, recent model smart phones, laptops, tablets, other electronics the town couldn't use but others at the trade summit supposedly could, and other valuables that could fit in a small trunk and a few boxes.

  Altogether that stuff should be worth enough to fill the both vehicle and trailer to bursting with desperately needed supplies. Assuming Mexico really was willing to offer near full value for those things, as promised.

  Aside from the electronics, Lewis thought his own trade goods that he had Matt fetch for him were the only ones that were really useful. Specifically the reloaded bullets and spare car parts. But as more of an experiment, and going on what he'd learned from Ned last fall, he'd also found as many high capacity external hard drives as he could and copied his archives over to them.

  His neighbors selling those drives gave them away for practically nothing, since they weren't going to be
using electronics any time soon and those wouldn't be worth much in trade. But Lewis's archives represented countless hours of entertainment and educational material that might be hard to find elsewhere, and anyone in the mood to buy the other electronics would probably want stuff to put on them. He might not even have to sell the drives themselves, he could just charge a fee to copy the buyer's selection of stuff from his archives over to their devices.

  He had a feeling that was a service not many at the summit would be offering, or would've even thought to offer. And having a corner on a market was always a good thing.

  Sure enough Matt returned with the goods while Lewis and his team were still struggling to tow the truck up the steep slope to the road. As far as Lewis was concerned it was a miracle they'd managed to get it dislodged at all, even with the winch and tractor, and pulling it to where they could flip it was equally arduous.

  To add insult to injury it started to rain the afternoon of the fifth day, so they had to scramble to cover up their precious trade goods and protect them from the damp. They were all afraid the rain was going to turn to snow that night and make it harder to drive the truck when they left, but luckily aside from a few flakes it stayed fairly dry.

  Finally they got the truck up on its wheels on the road. They spent most of the sixth day doing maintenance on it, rigging up the struts and tarp to cover it, and loading it up. The evening of that day Lewis, Gutierrez, and Carrie made their final preparations to leave. They were going to be driving straight down to the trailer and getting it hitched up and the tires repaired, and from there they'd drive on to Moab to join the convoy.

  Lewis said his goodbyes to Jane that night. He could tell she wished she could go with him, and to be frank he wished the same thing. No offense to Carrie, and he was sure the veteran would pull her weight, but his wife would've been his top pick to go in her place for more than just personal reasons.