Desperate Times (40 page)

Jimmy dumped some of the alcohol on his
hands. It seeped into the small cuts he’d gotten from the thorns
and his hands burned. He handed the bottle to Julie and she did the
same. She turned and handed the bottle to Paula, but she shook her
head.

“I think I’m going to be sick,” she said. “I
can’t do this. I’m so sorry.” She then ran around the side of the
truck and began to wretch.

“Are you two okay?” asked Dr. Benson. “I’m
going to need you both. This is going to be messy.”

“I’m fine,” said Julie. Her voice seemed
strong and her eyes glowed in the headlamps.

“I’m good,” said Jimmy. “Let’s do this.”

Dr. Benson tore open Jon’s shirt and frowned.
“Julie, in the bag over there, grab me some cotton gauze,” he
ordered. “I’m going to need quite a bit of it. We’ve got to get him
cleaned up and see how serious these wounds are. Jimmy, grab that
flashlight. I’m going to need you to hold it for me. Keep it
trained directly on the wounds. Do you understand me?”

Jimmy nodded and picked up the long black
flashlight and pressed the rubber button. The flashlight beam
glowed brightly. Jimmy stood over Dr. Benson and shone the beam
over his shoulder and onto Jon’s bloody back. Jimmy cringed. The
blood looked nearly black.

Julie quickly found the package she was
looking for and tore it open. She unrolled nearly two feet of gauze
and tore it free. Dr. Benson took it from her, balled it up and
soaked it in the alcohol. He then began to rub it softly over Jon’s
back. Jon suddenly flinched, kicked his legs and dug his hands into
the ground.

“That’s a good sign,” said Dr. Benson.
“There, there now,” he said. “Let’s see what we have here… Good
news. That one looks to have just grazed your side. Nothing to
worry about, I’ve treated dozens of wounds like that. Now let’s
find the other…”

Jimmy held his breath and he and Julie
exchanged anxious looks. Dr. Benson swabbed at a spot closer to
Jon’s lower back and paused. His expression was suddenly grim.
Jimmy trained the flashlight on that spot and groaned. He could see
an ugly hole on the other side of his back. Dark blood poured from
the wound and Jon began to scream.

“Oh my,” said Doc, reaching underneath and
feeling under Jon’s belly. “This is more serious than I feared. No
exit wound. Let’s hope this didn’t hit his kidney. Can you hear me,
Jon? This is going to hurt. I’m going to have to remove that
bullet. Can you hear me?”

Jon groaned again. “I can,” he managed.
“Hurts…”

“I’m sure it does, my friend. You’re going to
have to be strong, all right? This is going to be very painful.
There’s nothing we can do for that, now. After I’ve got this bullet
out, I’ll see what I can find to help you rest. Do you understand
me?”

Jon nodded once, his fingers clutching at the
ground.

Dr. Benson reached over and picked up the
bag. He then began to hand things to Jimmy and Julie. He explained
what each instrument was and told them to hand them to him as soon
as he asked. Again, he asked them if they understood. They both
nodded.

Dr. Benson leaned over Jon and began to
operate.

Jon howled in pain.

“Hang in there, man!” Julie coaxed. “You’re
going to be all right.”

“Right,” replied Jimmy. “You’ll be up and
around in no time.”

“Oh
shit!”
Jon screamed in agony.

“There, there,” said Dr. Benson in his
soothing voice. “Almost got it, now… I can feel it.”

“
Uff!”
moaned Jon. “Oh God, that
hurts!
Stop! Please stop!
”

“There it is… Jimmy, keep that damn light
still! Almost got it; there now. Steady…”

“You can do it, honey,” called Julie. “Hang
in there; we’re nearly finished… Come on, just a little farther to
go.”

“Got it!” exclaimed Doc, as he removed the
slug from Jon’s back.

“Oh God… Oh shit… Oh,
shit!”
muttered
Jon.

Jimmy couldn’t believe the change in Jon. His
skin color was nearly as white as fresh-fallen snow. His
once-bright eyes looked as if they’d lost their twinkle. Jon
continued to breathe, taking shallow panting breaths.

Dr. Benson began to pack the wound with gauze
and was soon taping the gauze with surgical tape. He finished up
with a look up to Jimmy. The look he gave him was anything but
confident. Dr. Benson stood up. He then took the flashlight from
Jimmy and flicked it off.

Julie sat down next to Jon in the headlamp
beams of the truck and ran her fingers through his short blonde
hair. “We did it, baby. You’re going to be all right now. Doc
Benson got the bullet. Isn’t that great news?”

Jimmy looked hard at Dr. Benson. To his
horror, he could see tears running down his cheeks and onto his
beard. Dr. Benson shook his head and held his hands over his face.
He stood there for a long second before slowly walking away into
the shadows.

Jimmy gathered his courage and sat down next
to Julie. “You’re going to be fine, man,” he lied. You’ve got to
hang in there, okay?”

Jon managed to smile. “Jimmy? Is that
you?”

“I’m right here, man.” Jimmy took his hand in
his own, it felt cool to the touch. “I’m here.”

“You guys are the best friends… I’ve ever …
had” stammered Jon. “I… love you guys.”

“We love you, too,” cried Julie. “You’ve got
to keep quiet, baby. You’re going to need to save your
strength.”

“Jimmy… Jimmy?”

“I’m here, buddy,” said Jimmy, squeezing
Jon’s limp hand. “Hang in there.”

“We had some good… times… Didn’t we?” Jon
asked in a faltering voice.

“We did,” Jimmy moaned. “You’re going to pull
through this, Jon. Hang in there.”

“Be… good to her, Jimmy. Be good to her…”

“I will, Jon. I promise I will…”

Jon looked into Julie’s eyes and somehow
managed a wink. He then looked to Jimmy, smiled, and his head
lolled to the right.

“Dr. Benson!” screamed Julie.

“Oh no!” cried Jimmy. “Jon, come on, man!
Jon!”

Jon was already gone. His journey on this
earth had just ended.

Thirty
-
One

Executive Order 13010: Directs FEMA to take
total control over all government agencies during what has been
deemed to be a National Emergency.

Anguish rushed over Jimmy in a tidal wave. He
felt as if his soul had returned to the day he had learned about
his own family tragedy. Jon’s death brought everything back to the
surface. He and Julie sat next to Jon’s lifeless body for a long
while, holding each other while they cried for their fallen hero.
Paula stayed in the cab of the truck, Jimmy didn’t know if it was
because she was sleeping or if she was just giving him the space he
needed. Nearly half an hour passed before Jimmy found the strength
to stand. They covered Jon with a blanket.

Dr. Benson sat on the back of the truck
looking up at the stars. He hugged them both; he too, was crying.
Jon’s passing had deeply touched all three of them.

“Doc, I’m going to need that flashlight,”
said Jimmy, after he’d regained his composure.

“What are you going to do, Jimmy?” asked
Julie, drying her eyes. “You can’t go back there. I won’t let
you.”

“Don’t worry. I’m just going to take a short
walk. There’s something I’ve got to get.”

“Julie’s right, Jimmy; you should stay here.
We’ve got to wait for the others.”

“I can’t do that, Doc. I’ve got to get a
shovel. I know a place not too far from here. I’ll be back before
you know it. You guys need to do me a favor. You’ve got to take
Paula and get away from the truck. Get far enough away so they
won’t find you in case they decided to follow us,” Jimmy said,
pointing to a small stand of birch fifty yards from the truck.
“Wait there; that way you can watch for the others. I’ll be back in
twenty minutes.”

“I understand. Just be careful, baby. Okay?”
Julie asked, giving Jimmy one last hug.

“I will, you too. I’ll be right back.”

Jimmy opened the driver’s door to the Mack
and shook Paula’s leg. She was lying across the seat. “Wake up,
Paula; you’ve got to get away from here for a little bit.”

“I wasn’t sleeping,” said Paula as she sat
up. “I heard you out there. I’m sorry about Jon. He was a brave
man.”

“He was,” said Jimmy, fighting his emotions.
“I’ll be back in a bit.”

He stepped away from the cab. He didn’t want
to hug Paula and make her a part of this. She’d chosen to isolate
herself, to insulate herself from reality inside the cab of the
truck. Jimmy had a bad taste in his mouth because of it. Jimmy
shouldered his rifle and picked up the flashlight. Julie, Paula,
and Dr. Benson made their way to the little stand of trees and soon
disappeared into the shadows.

Jimmy headed east across the field, keeping
to the edge of the woods. A breeze cooled his face which was still
raw from his tears. The only sound in the night was the chirping of
crickets. He continued on, found the blacktop and continued
walking. He didn’t turn on the flashlight until he reached the
little summer cabin at the Y in the road. One look told him that it
was completely deserted. Like the homes in Ely, the door hung open
and the windows were dark. Jimmy switched on the flashlight and
poked his head inside. The cabin was three rooms and looked to have
been looted of anything worth stealing. Even with the door open,
the little cabin smelled musty and as old as a dead man’s socks.
Jimmy rummaged the drawers and soon found what he’d been searching
for. Satisfied, he returned outside and walked behind the cabin to
a small shed. Here, too, the doors were open wide. Using the
flashlight, he found a long-handled spade shovel. Jimmy went inside
to fetch it and his eyes caught something colorful lying discarded
on the dirt floor.

The sight of the rumpled American Flag lying
on the floor caused the tears to return to his eyes. Jimmy tried to
fight the sadness that quelled up inside of him. He couldn’t fight
the hitch in his breathing any more than one could stanch a hiccup.
He gave in for a short while and stood in the dark, grieving. He
found that each round of grief grew a little shorter and made him
that much stronger. He picked up the flag and shook it out. He then
folded it up, wishing to himself that he knew the proper method. He
did the best he could and tucked it under his arm. He then picked
up the shovel and began to walk away. He walked at a steady clip,
looking up at the stars above and wondered when his own time would
come.

He thought of Jon and how he had died. Jimmy
couldn’t help wondering if his stumble at the top of the wall had
caused Jon’s death. He assumed it had, and the shame and guilt
burned inside of him. He apologized over and over in his mind. Then
with considerable effort, he pushed those thoughts out of his head.
Jon would’ve wanted him to do that, he was sure of it.

True to his word, he was back with the others
in the time he had allotted. He stowed the flag next to the truck
as they emerged from the trees. He’d hoped that Ken and the others
would have returned, but there had been no sign of anyone. This
bothered Jimmy, for they should’ve been back. They should’ve
returned an hour ago. He shoved that thought aside and planted the
spade into the earth next to Jon. Jimmy dug until the hole was
three feet deep; then took the shovel from his hands and motioned
for Jimmy to step out of the grave. Dr. Benson began to attack the
rocky soil. The air was filled with the sound of the shovel
skimming rocks as it bit into the earth. Jimmy stood next to Julie
and Paula and they watched him dig. He hacked at the ground,
stopping to lift out large rocks that the shovel couldn’t carry.
Soon, Doc was standing waist deep and he looked up to Jimmy.

Jimmy nodded. That was as deep as they could
safely dig.

“Here,” said Jimmy, offering Julie the Bible
he’d found inside the cabin. “Would you mind finding something in
here that we could say over him?”

“Not at all, Jimmy,” Julie said.

Jimmy reached down and helped Doc out of the
grave. Slowly, they rolled Jon onto the blanket and carefully
lowered him into his resting place. Jimmy then returned to the
truck and came back with the flag. He handed one end to Doc and
they draped the American flag over Jon’s body. All the while, Jimmy
continued to wipe tears from his eyes. When they were finished,
Jimmy nodded to Julie. He stood next to the others and they bowed
their heads.

Julie held the flashlight in one hand and the
Bible in the other. Slowly, she began to read.

Thirty
-
Two

Unemployment in the United States reached its
highest point in history in 1933, climbing to 25.2%.

Dawn was just beginning to break in the
eastern sky and still, there was no sign of the others. He couldn’t
believe that they’d all been captured—or worse. He tried to think
of any scenario where they might’ve gotten away. They should have
returned long ago. Soon, they would have to leave, with or without
the others. Jimmy walked the path down to the road and back and
continued to do so every five minutes.