Nuclear War Club: Seven high school students are in detention when Nuclear War explodes.Game on, they are on their own. (27 page)

He couldn’t really believe Karen was here, and they were married.

But there were her hiking boots, with her pink ankle running socks draped over the side.

Her boots seemed so petite next to his boots.

Diary of Liu Nguyen

David and Karen got married today. It was so sudden
.

I thought I had a chance with David over time, but they got married just like that. In one day, from proposal to wedding
.

I sing in my mind that old, depressing song by a woman named Adele from before, the song was something like, “ I will find someone like you”
.

Looking back, I knew it was lost when Karen was dying, and she caressed his face
.

Karen asked, and I gave, my best advice. She is my best friend, which makes this all so crazy. At least I acted honorably with that, even though it hurt. Bad. Like a knife
.

Why didn’t David choose me?

Maybe I should have been more aggressive. But Ashley was, and he ignored her, he wanted Karen only. David is so loyal. When I cried at the wedding, it was sorrow, not joy
.

Truth is, I love David
.

Not past tense, present tense. And that has to be erased. And he never knew
.

I don’t know how this can work out, I feel like a part of me died at the wedding
.

K-Bar perked his ears up, then walked over and laid at her feet. Liu felt his warmth, wiped her eyes, and stroked his
head.

Liu tore the diary entry out of her book, and the next page in case her writing was imprinted. She cried as both pages burned in the dying campfire.

67.

“David,” Sarge called outside the tent. Karen nudged him. It seemed he had just gone to sleep. The camp was bustling, Sarge and the men were heading out.

“A little wedding present,” Sarge said. “It was the Lieutenant’s scope. He would want Karen to have it.”

“Thank you,” David replied

“Good luck, and God Bless,” Sarge said, shaking David’s hand.

David felt utterly alone as they disappeared into the night.

68.

David shook off the feeling of desolation and confirmed Zeke and Liu were on watch. They loaded Doron and Ashley into the truck bed, and checked Samuel’s car seat. When he returned, Karen had taken down the tents and packed them. He went around checking to be sure no one forgot their weapon or clips.

“Zeke, I want to see if we can crank up one of those railroad maintenance pickup trucks that can run on the tracks,” David said.

“Why?” Zeke asked.

“We may have to use the railroad tracks sometime. We could use it to cut thought he desert. You never know when being able to drive on railroad tracks may come in handy. Let’s see if we can find one that runs with the retractable railroad wheels,” David said.

“I’ll go,” Karen said.

“Actually, if you will just provide sniper over watch, we will be right back,” David said.

Zeke and David drove motorcycles down to the Railroad tracks.

They found an old, battered white Ford 350 crew cab pickup truck that had been used by track maintenance, and a trailer with hydraulic railroad wheels also. David was thrilled the trailer tires were the same size as the truck tires, and could be used as truck spares. The keys were in the ignition, and they were surprised when the truck cranked up. They lifted the hood, the engine had been modified but they didn’t understand how. The retractable wheels worked. They backed up to a hill and drove the motorcycles into the bed of the pickup.

When they returned to camp, Zeke, Liu, and David cranked up their motorcycles, and scouted up the trail to the top of the ridge.

They quickly transferred everything from the old pickup truck to the railroad truck. Karen drove while Samuel slept in his car seat with K-Bar next to him. Ashley and Doron were laid on top of sleeping bags in the truck bed. David liked this new truck better as it had four doors and was huge. It reeked of urine, beer, stale tacos, and sweat, but they could clean that later.

David saw Jorge’s sleeping bag under a boulder as he drove away. It was still wrapped tight with Velcro straps. He wiped his eyes with his bandana, pretending it was the dust.

They were out of the canyon before the sun topped the canyon rim, and rejoined the power line easement heading southeast.

69.

The next morning, low hanging clouds reflected the yellowish red sunrise. David spread the large map out on the truck hood, secured it with magnets, then lifted the hood so everyone could see. Karen, Zeke, and Liu looked at the map as they sipped hot soup from cans, and drank steaming hot coffee. David summarized three features they were looking for:

“One, we are looking for a secure water source in a place we can hide for a couple of days for Ashley and Doron.”

“Two, preferably backed against a hill. It must have two ways to escape.”

“Three, we avoid anyplace with recent humans until we check it out.”

“Old, isolated houses were usually built near their own water supply. Clumps of green grass in a dry area can mean a spring. Snow melt streams high up in the mountains are good sources. Animal trails usually intersect at a water source. Watering troughs for cattle may have a well,” David said.

Zeke nodded, and they all cranked up their motorcycles.

70.

The rolling hills were darkened by the scattered fog, rain, and overcast skies, and Liu almost missed the house. It was a weathered, wood frame ranch house with a patched, rusting, tin roof coated and camouflaged with caked, rotting, leaves. A wide, covered porch overlooked the valley. The house was concealed under the tree line at the edge of the ridge, and obscured by the trees.

Liu signaled Karen and David. She couldn’t see Zeke. David came right over. At the crest of each hill they would always stop until everyone one caught up.

“Let’s check this out, they may have a spring. But this place is almost too perfect, there may be someone there. If you see any recent tracks or signs of humans, blow your whistle and run to Karen, she will be on sniper watch,” David said, parking his motorcycle.

“Liu and I will go in the front, Zeke you cover the back, and stay out,” David ordered. David and Liu waited until Zeke reached the rear. Liu watched the house with binoculars, looking for tracks or any signs of humans. Then she moved to the left, and David moved to the right.

Liu saw ash about half an inch deep, but no recent tracks, as she walked up the steps. The door was locked, and she quickly pried it open. K-Bar crouched, then stalked warily inside, sniffing. David signaled, and they climbed through the windows, not the door.

“Left,” signaled David, moving left. Liu jumped to the right, and David moved into the main living room. K-Bar did not bark. There were no signs of recent residents.

The front room was completely filled with a large stone fireplace and black cast iron cooking pots and kettles. The
mantle was covered with photographs of grandchildren, and one photo of a thin, short, elderly couple dressed up for a wedding or funeral. The man wore a black suit, the woman an ankle length blue dress. They must own this house, Liu thought, because those clothes were still in the closet, pressed, and clean, the only formal clothes.

Liu studied the face in the photo. It was worn, rough, and open. He had the fitness and health in advanced years peculiar to ranchers and farmers. The kind of man who would help you with the shirt off his back, but who would also kill on sight anyone in his home. They would need alert guards.

There was a large plain oak table surrounded by worn, stained, but sturdy, oak chairs. This was a working ranch, not a second home, everything was simple, functional, and clean. There were two bedrooms, with very small closets, and a storage room with numerous built in shelves. Firewood was stacked behind the kitchen, and then Liu saw it.

A hand pump in the kitchen! A worn, red, metal hand pump with an old Clorox bleach gallon jug filled with water next to the sink. There was no attic, but Zeke had found a storm shelter in the back yard filled with cases of canned food in glass Mason jars.

Liu walked out the back door and raised her M-16 sideways with both hands to signal everything was fine. Then she walked to the barn, sending K Bar in first. There was an ancient, but operable, Ford tractor, a chain hoist, several metal boxes of wrenches, a welding generator, and a junk pile of pipe and metal bars. In the barn attic there were about ten bales of hay, and several yellowing maps thumb tacked to the wall. There was room to park their truck and all the motorcycles in the barn.

“Let’s try the pump,” said Zeke. They went back inside, primed the pump, and it worked the first time. The water was cool, and seemed spring fed.

David went outside and waved Karen to come.

“Let’s leave one of the motorcycles in the storm cellar
or outside the garage in case we need it,” Zeke said.

“Wonder where the owners went?” Zeke asked. “This place was ideal.”

“They could have been in town when the nukes went off,” said Liu.

“Maybe they left to rescue their family,” said Zeke.

Karen drove up, and they carried Ashley and Doron to the fireplace. Liu and Karen stacked the old beds in the backyard. David and Karen took the larger bedroom, Samuel would sleep next to their door in the hall. The smaller room would be rotated for privacy among everyone else. Liu put her sleeping bag in the small bedroom, and Zeke, Ashley, and Doron’s sleeping bags were dumped in the living room near the fireplace.

David parked the truck and two of the motorcycles in the barn. Zeke covered their tracks in the ash, using branches that had fallen from the trees.

“Tomorrow maybe we can follow the dirt road and destroy any bridges, or block any roads getting here. Unless someone comes along the power easement, this may be off the grid. There are no power poles or phone poles leading here,” said Liu.

“Zeke we will need to wire up the road if we can cut down a tree across it,” David said. Liu noticed that David now routinely stretched cable across open roads at about chest level for motorcycles, secured to trees on both sides of the road.

Liu walked in with a handful of firewood from the pile stacked by the kitchen, and laid it in the fireplace. David and Zeke whittled some kindling with their pocket knives from the bone dry wood.

The fire was blazing quickly, flooding the home with light. Everyone gathered closer to warm up. The temperature had dropped quickly when the sun sank behind the hills. The fireplace was expertly positioned so that it brightly lit up both the kitchen and the bedrooms.

“How long until you think Ashley and Doron will fully
recover?” Liu asked.

“Could be a week, maybe less,” said David. “Doc said it could vary.”

“Wash your face,” Liu heard Karen tell Samuel in the bathroom.
“All
your face,” Karen continued. Liu still resented that there had been no discussion as to who was responsible for Samuel. Karen just was, always was. No discussion, no question, no doubt. Liu understood it did not take a village, it took a Mom, but they should have at least discussed it.

Samuel bounded into the room, still wet. He was enthralled by the fire, and stared in wonder at the large flames. He looked at the pictures in his red Bible carefully, turning the pages. He found the story of Samuel and handed it to Karen. Samuel stared at the picture, as Karen read, moving her finger to point at each word. Samuel turned to another story.

“Does anyone else want to read,” Karen asked, warming in the glow of the fire. Liu nodded and Samuel handed her the Bible. Liu showed everyone the picture of baby Moses, then read it to Samuel who crawled into her lap.

“That’s like you found me,” Samuel said, looking at Liu, Zeke, David and Karen. It was quiet for a few moments. The rain splattered softly on the tin roof, the wind was increasing. Liu wiped away a couple of tears rolling down her face.

“I think the water is ready for the hot chocolate,” Zeke said. He picked up the kettle sitting next to the fire with a kitchen towel and moved it to the stove. There were four large styrofoam coffee cups ready and he filled them about two thirds full. Each adult got a cup, two packets of Swiss Miss hot chocolate mix with marsh mellows, and a plastic spoon.

The rain began to pound loudly, more insistently against the tin roof and the shutters. They could see and hear the tree limbs creak and sway, whipped by the wind howling over the ridge. Liu was glad they were not out there in a tent.

“Time for bed,” Karen said after she gave Samuel
several spoons of hot chocolate, cooled down.

Liu watched Samuel wrap his arms around Karen’s neck as she carried him to his sleeping bag. The flames were dying, and the red coals lit the room in a warm glow.

The storm grew louder, it seemed the wind whipped the rain horizontally against the storm shutters. The hot chocolate cup warmed her hands. Liu felt an indescribable peace, a sense of belonging, as she looked at Karen putting Samuel in his sleeping bag and everyone spread out in the room.

Liu realized she could be out there alone, cold, wet, and dying. She was grateful she was in the Nuclear War Club.

71.

Just before midnight, Zeke climbed down the ridge to wait for Liu. The moon had climbed the horizon, and in isolated cloud breaks he could even see silhouettes past the road. The rain had eased up to a drizzle, the scattered clouds were still low, dark, and threatening.

Exactly on time, Zeke looked though the binoculars and saw Liu climb down the stairs with her rifle ready. He enjoyed the revealing way the rain plastered her clothes to her body. She moved stealthily down the stairs.

“It’s Liu,” she said, holding her rifle out horizontally.

“Zeke here,” he said, stepping out of the cover. “We set up two guard points, top of the ridge and below the house. Let’s go to the top ridge first,” he continued.

Liu followed about three yards behind. He took off the sentry binoculars and handed them to her. She immediately scanned slowly past the house and along the adjacent ridges. No movement, no lights.