Not Dead in the Heart of Dixie (87 page)

I walked around to the garage and watched a dozen soldiers and a forklift unloading supplies. Several boxes are sealed and the contents are written in small letters on the top and sides. Many boxes are covered in company logo's
, advertising the products inside. The barrels have their contents clearly stamped in large capital letters across the sides and top.

We received seven barrels of flour and four barrels of sugar. There's two 25
pound bags of salt and three cases of coffee. I also noted 300 pounds of various dried beans in 50 pound bags along with 300 pounds of white, long-grain rice.

I was happy to be the recipient of all these supplies, but the numbers were
staggering and my old friend, fear, crawled inside. I ran back in for a Xanax of the blue variety before heading out the kitchen door to see what was happening with the reefer trailer.

When I say
”a lot,” I mean it.

A lot of meat was being loaded into our reefer trailer. There was a small section off to the side and I asked one of the soldiers why it was separate. He told me that it belonged to Wilky Place but they have nowhere to store it
, so Major Knellson told them to put it in our reefer truck along with our allotment. He said that the canned and dry goods for Wilky Place were being unloaded in Serena and Brody's garage.

I watched the reefer trailer become filled halfway with frozen meat before the soldiers jumped in the truck and headed back down the hill. I walked past the barn and saw several pallets of
animal feed sitting inside. No one was around, and I guessed they'd unloaded the feed when I wasn't looking.

I walked back around to the garage and saw dry goods and
cans continues to come off the unit supply truck and land in the garage. I saw lots of cans, and lots of boxes. I'll have to go through everything more thoroughly later. Right Now, I need to go to the meeting. See ya later.

3:10 PM...

The meeting was NOT fun, at all.

Dane almost killed the messenger. He jumped into the truck bed where Chris was standing so that everyone could hear him speak.

Dane grabbed him by the collar and talked to him quietly between clenched teeth. I thought he was gonna put Chris' lights out for good and hollered for someone to get him off Chris.

No one needed to climb up there. Dane let go when he heard the sounds from about 50 various weapons being readied for firing.

He let Chris go
, and Chris grabbed him by the arm and said something close to Dane's ear before he jumped down from the truck bed and headed any place but there.

The meeting broke and everyone headed in different directions with stunned looks on their faces.

Mick and I headed up the hill, and all the members of Kapper Hill Compound and Wilky Place followed on our heels, including Dane who told us we had a special meeting scheduled during lunch with Chris in the main house.

In the meantime, I had to try and answer questions from every member here
, including the panicked and terror-stricken teenagers. I answered any questions I could and told everyone I'd know more after the private meeting with Chris.

Finally, the swarm
of people around me headed off to take care of projects and whatever they needed to take care of.

Kevin, Mick, and Dane headed back to the tunnel and Deuce had Buttercup pulling logs to them as fast as she could.

I walked back there and watched for a little while. Kevin was digging like a madman and the remaining men were measuring, cutting, and re-measuring. None of them talked about anything other than what they were working on. They were taking their anger out on that hillside.

The job site was eerily quiet at times and overwhelmingly loud at others. I gave up watching and headed back to the house to try and handle Nana and Emma's emotional madness.

I thought about hiding in the bedroom and writing, but every time I headed this way, someone cut me off at the pass with questions or ideas they wanted to share. I finally gave up and sat down at the table to start a list of questions I wanted Chris to answer. I wrote until he came in the door and sat down with the rest of us. Then, the meeting began.

Everyone was here including Soo.

The kids played in Carisa's bedroom while Merry, Anna, and Valerie watched over them.

Chris began the meeting by announcing that he and Josie were married. Everyone gave their congratulations but I'm not sure how many were heartfelt. I could tell they were ready to get on to other subjects.

He briefly covered what he announced at the meeting before pulling his briefcase from the floor. It landed on the table with a thud. He opened it and pulled out several orange folders. Each folder was labeled and he handed it to the appropriate owner.

Most of the adults received a folder.

Soo opened his folder and took a brief glance before tossing it back on the table and turning toward me and Mick. He told us he was joining the military and going to war. He asked if we'd take care of Merry and keep her safe.

We were shocked
, and it took several seconds before I spoke up and told him we'd be happy to keep her here. He nodded his thanks, pushed the folder toward Chris, and walked out the door.

Isaac stood and
tossed his folder on the table as well. He said he was going with Soo. I sent a thank you up to Jesus that Sabrina and Anna were not in the room. Isaac went out the door in search of Soo.

A few seconds went by before Rick stood, handed his folder to Chris, and walked out the door without saying a word.

Uncomfortable silence filled the room for a good minute or two before women began crying and Chris continued speaking. I went to get a box of tissues to add to the table as he talked. I held onto every word he said like it was gold.

First of all, he told us that both Serena and Brody Wilkerson asked to be left alone with the three starving children. They are both listed as landowners and will be exempt from the draft.

He also said that the remaining members at Wilky Place, including Tom Sulligent, were leaving to join the Military. He's very worried about the Wilkerson’s being the only adults left at Wilky Place and asked us to consider finding a place for them here, behind our fence, until their own fence can be finished. I quickly mentioned that we'd have two empty buildings if Isaac and Rick left. Of course, every head in the room nodded yes to Chris' request.

He asked everyone to open their folders.

Marisa and Jason are listed as owners of the property where they currently reside, including the meadow and the woods all the way down to the road. Chris explained to them what that meant and they threw their arms around one another and rejoiced. He told them that their medical reports were already on file and a truck was waiting for them at their house to unload their allotment. They grabbed the kids and headed out the door.

My heart was bursting with happiness.

Jeremy is listed as landowner to 40 acres that butt up against the Masterson property Rebecca owns. Jeremy fell to his knees and thanked God right then and there. They will be raising sheep for wool and meat. He and Rebecca asked that their allotment be unloaded here, and Chris told them that it was already taken care of.

Dane was awarded three acres beside Elaine's property. His job will be to research and come up with new solutions to use the propane tanks all over the area
, and he is listed as head of security as a job essential to the survival of the compound. Three soldiers and two trucks will head out with him tomorrow, to find every propane tank they can get within two days. The tanks will be lined up inside the tree-line on Dane's property. His allotment has already been unloaded here

Dane will need to build a house there or on Elaine's property. At this time, there'
s an old, used, motorhome there for him, Elaine, and Jesse. He said he preferred to live on Kapper Hill until he could get a house built and fenced, and Chris told him that was fine. I guess they'll drive the motorhome over here and inside the gate. Their allotment has already been unloaded here.

Pop and Nana have been listed as landowners to five acres directly behind our house. Even though they're elderly and exempt from the draft, Chris wants to solidify their exemption in case the powers that be decide to change the rules in the future. Pop and Nana will be growing garlic for the military. Their allotment has already been unloaded here

Emma was listed as landowner to two acres right beside Pop and Nana. Her job will be to repair military uniforms, gear, and backpacks, and make quilts for the troops. Her supplies will arrive within the week. Her allotment has already been unloaded here

Rona and Kevin are listed as landowners to 40 acres on the other side of Marisa's property. They will grow sweet potatoes for the military. A crew will be sent to choose a good location for their large sweet potato field and clear it of rocks and tree stumps. Their supplies will arrive at planting time and their allotment has already been unloaded here.

Ian and Shawna have been listed as landowners on the far side of Wilky Place. They will be testing small weapons for the military. They'll clean and repair weapons as well. Their allotment has been unloaded here.

Pao has been listed as landowner to two acre's behind Wilky Place. His job will be research and testing for growing food with hydroponics, His supplies will arrive later in the week. His allotment has been unloaded here.

Josie has been listed as landowner to two acres beside the Masterson property. Chris marked through her property map and replaced it with the map of the old Stang property Soo would have been given. She will be head of communications for the area and direct any military traffic that comes through. She will monitor several channels and report any suspicious transmissions directly to HQ. Her allotment has been unloaded here

Carisa, Luke, Larson, Merry, and Valerie were in the boonies when the unit first came through. They aren't on any lists and will not be identified or listed as survivors.

That leaves Lisa, Jesse, Sabrina, and Anna, Unfortunately, there is nothing Chris can do about them. They'll be required to go through the military process and be trained for battle.

The visiting teachers and textbooks will arrive for the kids.
Nana will be responsible for teaching classes. There is nothing Chris can do about that.

He said the teachers will visit once a month and look over work the kids have done. That means we'll need to hide our teens one day a month, like werewolves. The tunnels will be their home during that time and whenever the training camp is held here. I'm hoping we aren't required to host a training camp. I'll have to ask Chris about it.

This part put a damper on all our spirits. Elaine threw a raging hissy fit and begged Chris to fix it somehow so that Jesse could be removed from all lists.

He told her his hands were tied and there was nothing he could do. He's risking his life and career by backdating all the paperwork concerning everyone's property. He
feels terrible about it, and will continue to look for a solution, but he can't guarantee a darn thing.

Every supply available for distribution has been unloaded here or at Wilky Place. Chris will head back to home base empty handed. He will spend all of his earned leave time here with Josie.

There were two last requests before everyone was allowed to leave.

Velma “Battle-axe” Dodson has requested retirement and her own spot on our compound to open a clinic and provide medical service to the area.

Private Timothy Stein (washing machine fixer) has requested to be listed as killed in action and make his new residence on Kapper Hill.

We agreed to both requests. It was unanimous. We need a doctor, even if it is an old grumpy one, and we like Tim already. We will be happy to have them here.

Chris requests that all the information we'd just been given be kept private and confidential from anyone passing through. The land deeds have all been backdated and we're asked to admit only to the dates listed on the paperwork.

Everyone who hasn't had their medical work-up and dental check must have them done within the next two days. All medical paperwork and signatures must be backdated to match the deeds listing ownership.

In his final statement, Chris told us about a new threat.

The HDI virus is still mutating.

Four HDI infected people were found about three miles from here. They weren’t your typical HDI’s. They still have human traits and behaviors.

They recognize living people
and
HDI’s as “relatives” of themselves, but their loyalties lie with the regular old HDI’s and they protect them like a master would protect his dog. However, they’ve lost their knowledge of modern weaponry and have fallen back in time to something akin to the mindset of cavemen.

They wear clothes and almost look normal. They lost the
ir knowledge and desire for cleanliness, but they’ve kept the instinct to find shelter and cook their food.

They speak their own language which is
occasionally mixed with common English words. Chris says they remind him of humans who have never had contact with other humans.