Shawn appeared and sat down beside them. “Back up, I see,” he said wearily.
Luke nodded, looking around. The other expedition members were sprawled out around the battered wooden porch. He looked at Amy.
“We were too sick to do much better,” she said with a resigned air. “I don’t know why, but Shawn and I were less affected; we didn’t pass out, at least. We tried to set camp and all, but it took all our strength to look after everyone.”
Another mouthful of water, and he felt much better. He tried to stand despite their warning looks. He got only halfway up before collapsing again.
“Man, you’ve been out for two days,” Shawn said. “Don’t push it.”
“How bad is it?” he asked craning his neck to see the others.
“Larry is dead,” Amy told him, her voice flat. “Everyone else is still alive. You are the first one awake.”
“Hooray for me,” Luke said. “You two?”
“Been sicker than a dog,” Shawn said. “She has too. We made it though.”
“You’ve done well, all things considered.”
“I don’t want it, I don’t want it,” Kurt moaned.
“He’s delirious,” Shawn said. “Keeps trying to give me back the Bible his dad gave him before we left. Keeps saying it isn’t right.”
“He hasn’t talked since that first night,” Amy said getting up. “I think he might be coming around.”
Before Luke could crawl over, Kurt was awake, or at least partially so. Amy got him to drink a little bit, and he settled back quietly.
By nightfall both Kurt and Daniel were awake and helping Luke tend to Patrick and Mark, who were just waking up. Jacob had drunk some water, and the others all looked better.
By morning, the stamina of youth was clearly paying off. All of the younger generation were up and about when Amy got back from her morning water run. One MRE was enough breakfast for all seven queasy stomachs, but they all held that much down.
The older generation looked to be surviving, at least. John was up and moving, though he declined his share of breakfast. Jacob and Horace were awake and watching the younger men. Willie was still out but less feverish.
“What do you think happened?” Jacob asked as Amy approached. She merely shrugged.
“Radiation?” Mark ventured.
“If it was radiation you’d be dead,” Jacob told him. “Radiation don’t go away.”
“Could’ve been the water,” Daniel said. “All the survival manuals warn about that, parasites and bacteria and stuff.”
“You’re still drinking the same water,” Amy pointed out. Everyone looked nervous. “And you’re getting better.”
“A virus maybe?” Luke said.
“From what?”
“I don’t know, maybe the deer.”
That was as far as they got. They had no medical equipment or any training. There was no way to know what had struck. Worse still, there was no way to avoid another outbreak other than dumb luck.
That night Jacob called a meeting. “I have done a lot of thinking today, men,” he told them. “This mission is vital to the ranch. We simply can’t afford any delay. Willie’s doing better tonight, but he’ll be in no shape to move tomorrow. Neither will Horace or me, for that matter.”
He paused and looked around. “I fear it will be days, at least, before we can get moving again.”
There was a groan. Already they had faced many unexpected delays, now this?
“Time is too valuable to waste. Those who are fit to travel must go on.”
“We can’t leave you, sir,” Daniel said.
“You can and you will,” Jacob replied. “John will stay behind. He’s still too sick for a full day’s march. He’ll slow the rest of you down. But he’s better off than the three of us. He’ll be able to take care of camp until we are back on our feet.” He looked at them sternly.
“I can’t stress enough how important this is. I know this means sending you younger boys off without our experience. Still, we may be weeks from any civilization. Once there, who knows how long it will take to scavenge, or . . . obtain what we need?”
Amy’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. She had noted that the term barter had all but dropped from Jacob’s vocabulary. What did he intend?
“The point is, there are too many possible delays ahead to waste time now. If we don’t get back up that pass before winter sets in, we could be stuck down here until next spring.”
There was a stunned silence. Looking around at the boy’s faces, Amy knew they were shocked at the possibility that the mission could take so long.
Kurt was the first to speak. “But sir? If we don’t get back to the ranch before fall—”
“The ranch will suffer,” Jacob finished. “There will be hunger, maybe even some unavoidable deaths due to starvation, but they’ll get through somehow, just like you will complete this mission somehow.”
Everyone’s faces reflected the same thought: some unavoidable deaths? Whose? Her father’s? No, he was most likely dead already, she realized with a pang of guilt. What about Elisabeth, alone? She was young and strong, but their garden had never been large. She had always relied on Amy and their father. Their skills were always in demand and that meant barter. How would Elisabeth fare without that?
At last Patrick spoke. “Of course, sir, you’re right. We have to complete the mission and return before fall. We will leave at dawn. Is there anything else?”
“Yes,” Jacob held Patrick’s gaze. “Luke’s in charge.”
Patrick turned crimson but did not speak.
“But sir,” Shawn spoke up, “Patrick’s been class leader for two years.”
“This isn’t class anymore. It’s real life!” Jacob barked at Shawn. To Patrick he added, “You’re the best soldier in your class. I know that. If it comes to fighting, you’ll be needed. Our hope lies in avoiding fighting until absolutely necessary, especially now, with just the seven of you going on. That will take a different kind of leader, someone with a level head and quick mind. Luke’s in charge. Understood?”
Patrick continued to glare for a moment and then nodded curtly, turning away.
“Sir?” Luke and Jacob were alone in the remains of one of the houses, poring over Jacob’s map and making last minute plans.
“Yes, son?” Jacob answered.
“What you said earlier about . . . about me having a level head and a quick mind?” Luke asked. “Is that really why I am in charge?”
Jacob gave him a discerning look. “If you are asking if that’s really how I feel about you, the answer is yes,” he replied after some time.
Luke was as long in answering. “Thank you, sir, but no, that’s not it. It’s that . . . well, is there another reason? Daniel’s level headed and probably a better diplomat, and—”
“No, that’s not true,” Jacob interrupted. “But you’re right, there are other considerations. You’re smart. I never cared much for book learning, but you’ve shown me its value so far. You’re dedicated. You’re one of the few who has treated this mission with the seriousness it deserves.”
“It’s just that Patrick has been the class leader and people respect him.”
“People respect you more than you realize,” Jacob replied. “Some more than Patrick.”
“You mean Amy.”
“She’s vital to this mission.”
“I know,” Luke said. “But if you think that she’d refuse to go because of Patrick, I don’t think that’s true.”
Jacob sighed. “You know her better than I do. That thought hadn’t crossed my mind. It’s not like that. She does respect you; what’s more, she’ll help you.”
“And not Patrick.”
“No. Face it; he wouldn’t give her the chance. Hell, a month ago, I wouldn’t have given her the chance. She’s proven valuable more than once already. Who knows? Maybe Marlin had it right. All I know is that you, with Amy helping, have a lot better chance at completing this mission than Patrick ever will.” He paused and then added, “There’s just one thing you have to watch for, Luke.”
“Yes sir?”
“She’s smart and competent, but she’s still a woman. She turns squeamish about things.”
“Things?”
Jacob griped Luke’s arm and gave him an intense look. “The needs of the ranch outweigh everything Luke, everything. Don’t forget that.”
Luke swallowed. He wished this burden hadn’t fallen on him. He knew what Jacob was thinking. He wished it had been left unsaid. “Yes sir,” he replied quietly.
The next day they set out. They left most of the rations behind with the older men; they would need them more. They promised to send help, if there was any to send, and to be back as quickly as possible. Luke had inherited Jacob’s map, but for the moment he led them due east.
Amy felt a strange mixture of feelings as they left the older men sitting on the broken porch. There was sadness at leaving them behind, though not much, if Amy was to be honest. There was still a sinking feeling at the thought of Larry’s death, but she had little regard for the others. There was a deep dread at the thought of what Patrick and Shawn would be like without Jacob’s controlling presence.
Underneath it all though, there was an odd pleasure. They were walking away from any adult supervision for the first time in their life. With that fact came a sense of freedom and adventure that nothing could quite quell. Looking around, she could tell that the others felt it as well.
Even Mark, who had technically been an adult for two years, had an added swagger to his walk. Once out of sight of Liberty Farm, three separate conversations broke out.
Only Luke seemed unaffected. He barked at them to be quiet, as they may well be in hostile territory. No one paid him much mind, and he grew sourer as the day passed.
Their second day out, they surprised a deer coming out of a creek bed. Luke dropped it in one shot. They were all hesitant to eat it. Luke decided that one person should try some, and then if that person did not get sick, they would all eat it. Being the one to come up with the plan, Luke felt that he should be the one to try the deer.
To his surprise, Kurt volunteered. “I’m sick of MREs anyway,” he said with a grin. He grilled and ate a small portion while the rest of them set camp.
He did not get sick, and after they had set camp, everyone ate their fill. Over a breakfast of the remains, the mood became self-satisfied.
“Not so bad, roughing it,” Mark laughed. “Fresh venison every other day.”
“One could learn to live like this,” Shawn agreed.
“As long as he keeps us fed,” Mark continued, “we’ll let Luke play leader if he wants.”
“It was Jacob,” Kurt shot back, “Jacob said.”
“Sure thing, Kurt,” Mark drawled.
The end of the second day’s march brought their first sign of civilization. Cresting yet another low hill among the many, they found a dirt road stretching across their path. It snaked from one horizon to the other with no indication of what lay on either side. Tufts of low weeds indicated it had not been used much or recently, but it was still a road.
Luke pulled the map out and laid it out on the ground. “I doubt the road will be on this map. I suspect it has been built since the blast.”
“’Built’ might be a stretch,” Daniel snorted.
“So, where do you think it leads, oh mighty leader?” Patrick asked.
Luke didn’t respond.
“Could be between these two towns,” Amy said pointing at the map.
“This X is Liberty Farm,” Luke said pointing. “From my estimate of how far we’ve traveled, that would be about right. The real question is which way to go. Vicksburg, here, is larger, and Shelan is smaller.”
“Easy then,” Mark replied. “Vicksburg is more likely to have survivors, so we go that way.” He pointed.
“Right idea but wrong direction,” Luke replied. “Our goal is to avoid contact if possible. My guess would be the survivors built this road to get to Shelan for salvage. That’s what we want: salvage.”
Mark snorted loudly and muttered, “Wimp.”
Luke went red but ignored him.
“I think we should go see the survivors,” Shawn declared loudly. “Let them do the salvage work, not us.”
“For one thing,” Luke said, “we have no idea how many there are or who is in control. There could be some sort of military state. Even if not, even if they are friendly, we would have to barter. That would take time. Time we don’t have.”
It was Patrick’s turn to snort. “I overheard Amos and Jacob back at the ranch. Barter is not our only option.”
“Only if there’s no other way,” Luke replied.
“What are you guys talking about?” Amy demanded. She already had a good guess, but she wanted to force someone to say it.
Patrick did. “The right of seizure. If we outclass our opponent, we should take what we need.”
“You mean steal?”
“I mean, little girl, seizure. A necessary right in any war.”
“You can’t be serious?” Amy demanded, turning toward Luke. He’d surely not go along with that.
“Only if there is no other way to obtain what we need and we know that the survivors are hostile toward us,” Luke replied, keeping his voice as even as possible.
“How are we going to know they are hostile?” Mark said. “You going to go up and ask them?”
“Doesn’t matter,” Luke replied, “because we aren’t going that way. We are going to go into Shelan and scavenge what we need and get out.”
“I agree,” Amy said.
“I don’t.” Shawn glared at her.
“Too bad. Luke’s in charge. In case you forgot.”
Shawn just laughed. “You really believe that?”
To Amy’s surprise, Kurt leaped to her defense. “Jacob said, Shawn. Jacob said.”
“Everyone knows that Patrick is our leader,” Shawn insisted. “He’s been class leader for two years, regardless of what Jacob said.”
Mark nodded from behind Shawn’s back. Patrick gave the whole scene a quiet calculated look but hung back.
“You can’t go against the chain of command,” Daniel jumped in. “Jacob put Luke in charge and that’s that.”
“I’ll show you chain of command,” Shawn growled with one fist raised.
“Easy there, big guy,” Mark laughed. “Daniel’s just standing up for his boyfriend.”
Daniel glared at him, but before he could reply, Kurt yelled, “Shut up, that’s devil talk. You’ll burn in hell, sinner.”
“Shut up, Kurt,” Mark sneered, low and dangerous.
“Back down, everyone!” Luke shouted with enough force to make everyone jump back a step. Shawn went to step forward. “I mean it,” Luke said in a steely voice.