Odd Billy Todd (21 page)

“That train bothers me,” he shared his worry with Rhonda. She needed to know, he reasoned. One, she could help him figure it out maybe. Two, she just deserved to know. They couldn’t keep things from each other if they wanted to make it, both as a couple, and as a team.

“Well, I can see why,” Rhonda admitted. “I mean, they had at least one tank, and a couple of AFV’s. I’d say they got more than that, too, that we didn’t see.”

“Did you see the way they came off that train?” Billy noted. “That wasn’t the first time, or even the second or third that they’ve done something like that. They got a plan.”

“And a pretty good one, it looked like,” Rhonda nodded in agreement. “I’d say whoever is in charge is pretty smart, and spent a little bit of time working on that idea.”

“It ain’t a bad notion,” Billy shrugged. “I hate to say it, but it ain’t. Stay mobile, well protected, and just take everything you can find along the tracks. The main question is, to me, are they heading somewhere, and just strippin’ all they can as they go? Or are they making a livin’ at stripping towns along the tracks. If it’s the second, then they’re probably changing tracks along the line. Which means they’ll be moving all over the country.”

“That could lead them to Franklin,” Rhonda said softly. “There’s a lot of people in Franklin.”

“Lot of goods, too,” Billy agreed. “We need to tell Jerry about this. He can maybe warn that guy he talks to over there, and he can warn the others.”

“We could call Ralph,” Rhonda offered. Billy thought about that.

“Probably a good idea,” he nodded after a minute. “We owe him that, anyway. I don’t know if he’s near any tracks, but if he is, he’ll want to look like he ain’t got nothin’.”

They spent the rest of the trip home discussing their options, and formulating a plan for future salvaging runs.

*****

“A train?” Jerry asked, surprise evident in his face.

“Yep,” Billy nodded. The two men were at the hog pen, looking over their project, and eyeing what trees they might cut to enlarge the pen area.

“And they had a tank, of all things?”

“Yeah, at least one, and a couple of those Bradley’s, too,” Billy nodded again. “And they were well prepared. They swept off that train with dirt bikes, and people swarmin’ through town pullin’ game carts and such. They’d done it before.”

“You said they chased you?”

“Two of them did,” Billy confirmed. “But they’re gone. No one else was around. We took another way home, and sat and watched a couple times, just to make sure no one was following. I don’t think they would have, anyway. I think, from lookin’ at them, they’re just takin’ what they can find along the tracks.”

“What were you two doin’ there, anyway?” Jerry demanded. Billy looked at the older man, face set.

“Lookin’ around,” he said evenly. “Lookin’ for things we could use. That sort o’ thing.”

“You hadn’t oughta be doin’ that!” Jerry exclaimed. “At least not without lettin’ me know!”

“How you figure that?” Billy asked calmly, looking Jerry right in the eye.

“Billy, if someone follows you, they’ll find us!”

“If they do,” Billy nodded. “Believe it or not, I figured that out on my own,” he added. Billy didn’t like Jerry’s attitude. No sir, he didn’t.

“I made plans to keep that from happening,” Billy told him. “Not just for you, but for us too. I don’t want nobody knowin’ where we are, Jerry. Period. There’s safety in stayin’ hidden, and unknown.”

“But that don’t mean we can just sit here, neither. We can’t just sit here, hidden, and let the world pass us by. Just like goin’ to Franklin. Everything is a calculated risk. We want stuff to trade, we have to sometimes go out and get it. Did you know that every trader up there has a list they hand out? Of things they need, and are willing to barter for?”

“No. No, I didn’t,” Jerry admitted, his stance softening some.

“Well, they do. And we ain’t just doing all this for the two of us, Jerry,” Billy added, trying to keep his voice more friendly. “We’re thinkin’ o’ ya’ll, too. Like yesterday, in Cottonwood, Rhonda went to the fabric place, and got Emma a whole bolt of fleece material.” Jerry didn’t know what to say.

“I. . .Billy that was. . .that was mighty thoughtful,” he stammered. “But you hadn’t ought to take such risks. Not for that.”

“I thought that way, too, at first,” Billy admitted. “But, there’s things out there, ain’t bein’ made no more, Jerry. Things we need, or things we can trade for other things we need. Way I see it, we got two choices. We can sit here, and let people like them on that train, or at the roadblock, or that Blaine character get everything, and have us at their mercy, or we can get up and go get our share.”

“Ralph told us that several people in Franklin had cornered the market early on, there, scooping up everything of value and basically selling it or trading it for anything they wanted. Some people havin’ it hard to just keep food on the table. Ammunition is scarce, and higher’n a cat’s back, cause that one guy has got almost everything took up. And he charge’s all he can, and a bit more, for every round he sells, or reloads.”

“I don’t aim for us, and that includes you and yours, to be in that shape. Not if I can help it.” Jerry studied him for a while, then looked away, lost in his own thoughts about what Billy had just shared. Billy gave him time, knowing he’d have to work through it the same as he had.

Finally, Jerry nodded at some unspoken idea. He turned back to Billy.

“You’re right,” he said simply. “I. . .I reckon I been livin’ in a dream world. Things are bad, Billy, and like to get a lot worse before they get better. If they ever get better. You’re right. We gotta look after ourselves, prepare ourselves. What can we do to help?” It was Billy’s turn to be surprised.

“Help?”

“Yeah, me and Toby. We can go with you on these trips, at least some of them. With us helping, things might go faster.”

That was true, Billy thought. But then Jerry and Toby know what we get. And they’d get a share, as well. How do we divide things? We can split everything even, that’s how, he answered his own question.

“That’s probably a good idea,” Billy mused out loud. “We can split what we find down the middle, like. We each get trade goods, and useful things of our own, and the work goes faster. And,” he added, “with more of us, someone can stand guard.” Jerry nodded.

“I like it,” he agreed. “Any idea when you’ll go again?”

“No, have to find a place, first,” Billy admitted. “We ain’t really done this, but once,” he lied slightly. “Have to learn as we go. But we avoid places with train tracks,” he laughed lightly.

“Yeah, I can see where that’d be good,” Jerry chuckled.

“You know,” the older man mused aloud, “we really oughta think about some security here. Maybe we can find some cameras, and the like. Even some microphones. Have them where we can turn them on and off at random.”

“We should have enough solar power to do that,” Billy nodded. “Might even find some o’ those smaller sets that are self-contained. Could power the stuff independent like, from nearby.”

“Yeah!” Jerry nodded. “You know what, let me work on that for a day or so. We may can find what we need somewhere. Like a Radio Shack or something.”

“Okay,” Billy readily agreed. “I best be gettin’ back, I reckon. But I thought you might want to warn your friend in Franklin about the train. There’s several tracks in and out of there.”

“You really think they’d hit somewhere that big?” Jerry asked.

“They got a tank,” Billy shrugged. “I expect they figure they can hit anywhere they take a notion.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

“What'cha doin’?”

Billy looked up from his work bench to see Rhonda watching him from the doorway. He was in his father’s small work shop. In front of him was a ‘pile o’ stuff’ that he was working on, trying to figure out what should go into the cache’s they’d planned. He wanted to put some of them out on their way back to Franklin.

“Workin’ on the cache tubes,” he told her. “Wanna make sure that each one has everything we might need, was we to get in trouble.”

“Cool,” Rhonda nodded, walking over and taking the stool next to him. “What you got so far?”

“Well, I got a map, compass, fire-starter, and tender. A machete, two knives, belts, and small day packs. Got four Mountain House pouches, with two GI mess kits. Two water bottles with filters, and purification tablets. Belt pouches. Tarp, line, and a few stakes. Hatchet. Two ponchos. Two of those emergency blankets, and two real ones.”

“I need a suit o’ clothes for each of us, a handgun and a long gun, and the ammunition. Maybe a pair o’ boots. I wish I had told Ralph to make us a half dozen pair o’ them moccasins. They’d be ideal for this.”

“We can call him on the radio,” Rhonda shrugged. “He already knows our sizes. See if he can make a few more pairs. We got another two weeks, almost.” They hadn’t been away from the farm since Cottonwood, almost two weeks ago. The two had needed rest, and there was a lot of work to do around the farm. The only time they’d come close to leaving was to walk over to the Silvers’, twice, for supper. They had entertained the Silvers once as well. Their turn was up again in a few days.

“That’s a good idea,” Billy looked thoughtful. “That would make this a lot easier.”

“Want me to call him?” Rhonda asked, eager to help.

“Yeah, go ahead,” Billy nodded absently. Rhonda studied him a minute.

“Billy are we okay? You and me, I mean?” she asked tentatively.

“Huh?” Billy shook of his thoughts and looked at her. “What do you mean?”

“Well, I know you were mad about Cottonwood,” Rhonda said softly, looking at the floor. “And you really ain’t had a lot to say to me, last few days. And we ain’t. . .well, ain’t. . .you know. I was just wondering’ if you was still mad at me?” She looked at him with lidded eyes.

“No!” Billy exclaimed. “I ain’t mad at you. I told you right then that it wasn’t a bad idea, we just needed to plan better. And I didn’t know I hadn’t said much to you, neither,” he admitted. Now it was his turn to look at the floor.

“I just sometimes don’t think to say nothin’, even was there somethin’ to say,” he told her honestly. “That don’t mean nothin’, though. Just how I am, I guess. And,” he reminded her, “I been hustlin’ pretty good around here, ya know. Be winter soon. Work ain’t done ‘fore snow flies, have to wait for spring, or at least a thaw.”

“And so far as the. . .the. . .well, the ain’t, uh. . .thing, well, I just. . .I mean, that is. . .see, I figured if you wanted to, uh. . . .” He finally trailed off, as Rhonda smiled, trying vainly to suppress a giggle.

“Billy Todd, you have got to get over that shyness!” she told him, throwing her arms around his neck, and kissing him soundly.

“See, the way this works,” she told him sagely, “is that I tell you when I don’t want to.”

“And how would you be doin’ that?” Billy asked, grinning. “I mean, just so I know. You know, for reference and all.”

“Well, I might say I have a headache,” Rhonda batted her eyes coyly. “Or I could just ignore you. Or give you The Look.”

“Which look is that, exactly?” Billy frowned. “You got a few looks, you know. Sometimes I have a hard time tellin’em apart.”

“See, we were havin’ a moment, and you had to go and ruin it,” Rhonda sighed theatrically.

“I did?” Billy’s eyebrows rose. “All I was doin’ was gatherin’ information.”

“See, you don’t gather information by asking’ me,” Rhonda poked him in the chest. “You learn it the hard way.”

“I don’t see the attraction in that,” Billy frowned.

“But I do,” Rhonda informed him, tossing her hair. “So figure this out, Billy Todd.” With that she turned and walked away, making sure that her hips caught his eye.

“Okay, that one was easy,” Billy murmured. He hurriedly shut off the light, closing the door on his way out, following Rhonda to the house.

I might get the hang o’ this yet.

*****

“So you’re aimin’ to go back to Franklin?” Emma asked. The Silvers had come over for dinner the following night. Rhonda had cooked a beef roast, with potatoes, carrots, and cornbread. She had also made a gravy with the leavings from the roast. Desert was apple pie, and there was tea and lemonade.

“Yeah,” Rhonda nodded. “We got us some stuff to pick up, and a little bit to deliver. Made a trade with that leather worker for some moccasins.” Ralph had assured her that making the extra moccasins wouldn’t be a problem, and he’d have them ready on trade day.

“Ya’ll wanna go with us?” Billy asked, dodging an elbow from Rhonda for ‘talking with his mouth full’.

“I don’t know,” Jerry hedged. “That last trip was kinda an eye-opener, if ya know what I mean. Lot o' trouble just to go to a trade day.”

“Jerry, if we want to keep being part of the world, we have to get out in it,” Emma reminded him.

“I’d sure like to go,” Toby put forth, and his sister agreed.

“Me too,” Shelly nodded. “I know it ain’t much, compared to what used to be, but it’s nice to be around other people some. Even if you don’t know them,” she shrugged.

Jerry looked torn, but finally nodded.

“All right,” he said. “We’ll give it another try. Emmaline is right. We can’t just sit here. We’ll go stir crazy eventually.”

“I figure now that we know the route, we can leave a little earlier,” Billy told them. “There may be new problems since we went last, but we’ll have to deal with them anyhow. We leave early, we can maybe get back early. Day’s are gettin’ shorter all the time.”

“Good idea,” Jerry looked relieved at the notion. “That’s the biggest worry I have, anyway, is bein’ out after dark. Can’t see nothin’, and we know, for sure, there’s people out there ain’t nice to be around.”

“Then I reckon it’s a date,” Rhonda smiled, getting to her feet. “Who wants pie?”

*****

Billy spent the next three days preparing the cache tubes. They were ready, all but the moccasins. They had selected inexpensive but reliable arms for the tubes, and placed ammunition, magazines, and cleaning kits in each tube.

There was a first aid kit, featuring a small selection of OTC meds for several different problems, and one gallon of distilled water.

“Why distilled?” Rhonda asked, when Billy had waved away the bottled ‘filtered’ water.

“Distilled water is boiled,” he told her. “Heat kills any germs, helps prevent any bacteria growth. It’ll keep longer.”

They had selected clothed for each one. Not knowing what the weather would be if or when they had need, they had chosen carefully. Jeans, long handles, long sleeved shirts and t-shirts, two pairs of socks, and clean underwear.

There were also hygiene supplies for each, along with body powder, and ointments.

“I can’t believe we got all that in there,” Rhonda shook her head.

“Well, it’s packed careful,” Billy nodded. “Still, it’s a tight fit, with the other stuff. There’s room for the moccasins, but that’s about it.”

“We gonna take’em along this time?” Rhonda asked.

“Don’t think so,” Billy shook his head after a minute. “We’ll make a trip later on. We’ll need to use the hand auger to bury these things. It makes noise, and it’s time consuming. Plus, we want to study real careful where we leave these things. Want to make sure there’s one handy, no matter where we happen to be.”

“Makes sense,” Rhonda nodded. “Might want to put a few coins in there,” she added. “Junk silver, anyway. If we’re hard up, a little money might make things go easier if we needed help.” Billy thought that over, and agreed.

“Good idea. We can add that before we start settin’em out. I’m gonna go ahead and close’em up, but not seal’em. We can leave’em out here until we’re ready. I oiled the guns good with collector oil, so they’ll be fine. I wrapped’em in plastic, too. Should protect them from anything that happens to get inside. In fact, everything is in plastic or zipper bags. Just in case.”

“Well, I think you covered it all,” Rhonda smiled.

“We covered it all,” Billy corrected. “You had as much input as I did. And some o’ your ideas were better, too.”

“Ah,” Rhonda waved the compliment away. “Point is, I think they’re good. It’s still early on. Want to go ridin’?”

“Sure,” Billy nodded. “Need to check on the herd at the Franklin place anyway. And ride the fences. I’d say we got time for that,” he decided, studying the sky.

“Billy, do you even own a watch?” Rhonda asked in amusement.

“Sure,” he nodded. “Why?”

“I never seen you use it,” she pointed out.

“Oh. Well, I never need it,” he shrugged.

“Then how do you know what time it is?” she demanded.

“Well, I look at the sky,” Billy replied. “See how much day there is left.”

“And you just know,” Rhonda almost challenged.

“Well, yeah,” Billy looked confused. “Don’t everbody?”

“No, my wonderfully capable man, they do not,” Rhonda hugged him. “They do not. C’mon, let’s saddle up.”

*****

They rode their own fence lines before heading up the ridge to the Franklin farm. The fences were fine, and Billy was pleased with his own small herd. The cattle looked healthy, and were fattened good against the coming winter.

“Be ready for calves come spring, I guess,” he noted absently.

“Well, least we’ll have beef,” Rhonda grinned.

“We got plenty o’ beef on the hoof,” Billy corrected. “Problem we’ll have is slaughtering. I need to talk to Jerry. We’ll have to kill any we want to put up while it’s cold. That’s gonna suck, too.”

“How come?” Rhonda asked.

“We ain’t got no cold room to slaughter in,” Billy replied. “Butcher’s use a cold room to hold beef and hogs they’ve slaughtered in while they work the meat up. We ain’t set up here to slaughter, and I’m fair certain Jerry ain’t neither. So, we’ll have to do it while it’s cool.”

“Huh,” Rhonda grunted. She was learning something new everyday it seemed.

They headed up the ridge, taking it slow. Rommel and Dottie were in the lead, though Dottie was staying closer to them. Rommel strayed out far ahead, sniffing cautiously. Billy was more grateful than ever that he’d found the big dog. He was more than a pet. He’d become a friend.

Billy drew his horse up short. Rommel had reached the top of the ridge, and stopped, stiff legged. Billy was certain he could hear the large Rottie growling.

“Hold up,” he ordered Rhonda. She reined in her horse beside him.

“What’s wrong?” she asked quietly.

“Rommel see’s something he don’t like,” Billy replied. Handing her the reins of his own horse, he stepped down, taking his rifle from the scabbard.

“Wait here, and keep a look out,” he told her. “Somethin’ happens, you high tail it for Jerry’s and get him and Toby.”

“You don’t know what’s up there!” Rhonda hissed.

“And there ain’t but one way to find out,” he nodded. “I’ll be back.” With that he started making his way stealthily up to the crest of the hill where Rommel still stood. He reached a spot by Rommel’s side, and softly patted the dogs side.

“What'cha got, boy?”

Rommel looked at him for a second, then turned his eyes back to whatever he had seen. Billy took a small but powerful pair of binoculars from a pouch on his belt, and held them to his eyes.

“Damn,” Billy swore softly. He could see all too well, now, what had Rommel stirred up.

Below them, in a corner of the pasture they were using, a pack of feral dogs, at least seven of them, had manage to cut a cow and calf away from the herd. Had this been Billy’s own herd, the jacks would have long since stomped the dogs to death in all likelihood. But they didn’t have any here, yet.

Turning, he waved Rhonda up to him. Aware that Rommel was quivering with the desire to run down and rip into the dogs, he ordered the dog to stay, thankful now for all the time he’d spent training his wonderful companion. That made him think of Dottie. He turned back to Rhonda, and signaled for her to stop. He hurried down to her.

“Send Dottie home,” he ordered.

“What? Why?” she demanded.

“Wild dogs, down below,” Billy said hurriedly. “Rommel won’t attack unless I let him. She ain’t so well trained yet. There’s too many. She won’t stand a chance. Send her home, and bring your rifle.”

Realizing the wisdom in his orders, Rhonda pointed Dottie toward the farm. The female slunk away, head down, thinking she was being punished. Rhonda hated for her to think that, but promised herself she’d make it up later. Grabbing her own rifle, she headed up the ridge, where Billy had already taken up a prone position. He was using his Remington 700. She had one as well, but in the .243 caliber, easier for her to use with her small stature.