“Now, that bunch back there?” Lexa asked speculatively. “What about them?”
“Bunch of immature idiots,” Amy muttered, thinking of their behavior at lunch.
“Yeah, I caught that,” Lexa giggled. “What was with all those puppy-dog stares? That big one, especially. He’s got some nice muscles there, but he’s not the sharpest tool in the shed now is he? And that Patrick looks like he could handle himself, and he’s got plenty of muscle as well, but I don’t know . . . there’s something dark in those eyes.”
Amy marveled as Lexa continued to describe the expedition members. She was not sure what surprised her more, how quickly and accurately Lexa had sized the men up or how she described them.
“That Luke fellow, he seems to be the only level head in the bunch. The whole lot of you are pretty skanky, mind, but that’s to be expected with what you’ve been through,” Lexa said, summing up. “But I suspect he’d clean up pretty nicely.”
Here is where I’m supposed to say something like, “Hands off; he’s mine,”
Amy thought. She didn’t voice the sentiment.
After several more minutes of speculation about the boys without getting any response from Amy, who couldn’t imagine what to say, Lexa started asking about their trip. “Tell me about this mission of yours.”
Amy started slowly. She felt like she was reciting a book report. Finding a receptive audience, she warmed up. In fact, she had never experienced a more receptive and lively listener. Amy found herself talking about the ranch and her life there.
“He said what? Because you’re a girl? That right bastard!” Lexa said of Amos Deaton. “Oh, that place seems frightfully primitive.”
“Oh no,” Amy replied. “We have electricity, or we did. We have a couple of tractors and had some cars, but we don’t have any fuel—”
“I meant socially,” Lexa interrupted. “All that boy/girl stuff. It’s just like you read about in the old days. Do they really think less of you because you’re a girl? Mr. Quimby said you did a great job.”
Amy glowed at the compliment.
After a moment’s reflection, Lexa went on, “So, you and Luke? You two a thing?”
Amy shrugged. “Kind of.”
“But you’ve never done anything?”
“Anything? Like what?”
Lexa just looked at her.
With Luke?
Amy was startled. She had never really thought of him that way. Then again, she had agreed to marry him. That would certainly entail
something
. Blushing, she shook her head no.
“Oh my Goddess,” Lexa squealed. “You’ve never done it?!” Amy blushed even harder. “Women?” Lexa asked.
“I’m not a lesbian.” Amy declared indignantly.
“Just asking,” Lexa sounded miffed. “It’s not like it’s a big deal.”
Not a big deal?
What kind of reaction did she expect?
After an uncomfortable silence, Lexa changed the subject. “So tell me about the generator.”
Amy described the wind generator and what was wrong. “It was a pretty old unit anyway,” Lexa told her. “We would have had to replace it in a year or two.” Within moments, Lexa had seemingly forgotten the earlier incident and was back to rambling like she was Amy’s oldest friend.
Amy was not sure what “girl talk” usually consisted of, but she was pretty sure it was not EVs, solar panels, and wind generators. For the first time in her life, she had found someone who shared her interests.
As the afternoon progressed, the conversation turned more personal again. Amy described the men of the ranch. Lexa gave an indignant shriek. “No wonder you’re a virgin,” she said.
“I’ve never had to deal with that,” Lexa continued, “but I know what you mean about people thinking you can’t do stuff. I get that all the time. They say I’m too young, it’s too dangerous, you name it.”
“Oh God, yes,” Amy said. “I hate that.”
“Daisy is the worst. She is always after me about these long trips. But I’ve been out in this old truck since I was a little girl, helping mom.”
“You’re mom used to do this?” Amy asked surprised.
“Sure, she taught me everything I know. Taught me fractions with her socket set when I was four.”
Amy laughed. “Yeah, well, I got you topped. My dad used to get me to sleep by reading old technical manuals when I was three. I’d even trace the circuit diagrams with my finger,” She paused. “Of course, he probably wouldn’t have taught me if he had a son. Women back home just learn cooking and cleaning and crap.”
“Sounds like bizarre pre-blast ideas to me,” Lexa said. “They had queer ideas about women, about a lot of things really. Why else would they let the earth get in such a state?”
After some thought, Amy asked. “So who’s Daisy?”
“My wife,” Lexa answered. “One of them anyway.”
Amy stared at her. She was trying vainly to make any sense of the answer. She wasn’t even sure which part confused her more.
Lexa saw her look and laughed. “Sorry, did I mention that I am married?” Then she asked, “Is that so surprising?”
“Well, yes, actually,” Amy finally managed to answer. “I mean, just a while ago you were talking about the boys like . . . like . . .
a horny tomcat?
. . . like maybe you were interested.”
“Well, maybe,” Lexa answered. “Not the whole lot, mind, but one. Just depends. Does that have anything to do with being married?”
“Usually,” Amy answered. “And did you really say you were married to a woman?”
“Two,” Lexa corrected, “and three men.”
“All at once?”
“How else?” Lexa laughed again. “I am guessing from your big eyes that is not the usual arrangement up in the mountains?”
“That would be a big understatement. How can you have more than one husband?”
“It’s a group arrangement,” Lexa explained. “Robin’s Nest, that’s our family name. There are three men Rowan, Merlin, and Luther. Then there are three women, Daisy, Winnona, and me.” Lexa ticked them off as she went. “We have three children. Our Daisy is quite a breeder. She’s had two already, Owen and Morrigan. Winnona’s had one, Ewan. He’s my little doll.”
“Where I come from marriage is just one man and one woman,” Amy said, trying to assimilate it all.
“Sounds awful. Boredom aside, that would mean doing the dishes every other night. Who could stand that? Ugh!” Lexa wrinkled her nose. “I had a boyfriend once who wanted something like that, just the two of us. I can’t imagine why.”
Amy was unsure how to proceed with this conversation but was luckily spared. “We’re here,” Lexa called, pointing at a small red brick building. Behind it, a tall tower and wind generator spun lazily above them.
As the truck rolled to a stop, Lexa turned and studied Amy carefully. “I hope I haven’t offended you. I tend to talk first and think second. I know you guys were raised differently.”
“It’s okay,” Amy told her. “It’s just so different that I need time to get over the shock.”
Lexa opened the back of the truck and said, “It’s not much guys. Just a utility shed really. We’ll have to camp. But at least there’s a well and a pump out back, and an outhouse.”
They set camp and made a fire in the permanent fire pit in front of the building. Lexa produced a box of cooking gear and food. She cooked pasta with tomatoes and artichokes. Pasta and tomatoes they had at the ranch, but artichokes were a novelty.
The boys complimented the dish repeatedly, though Amy noticed that several of them pushed the bitter artichokes to one side. Now that she had befriended Lexa, she found their behavior humorous rather than irritating. She had to bite back a laugh more than once at the sarcastic comments that Lexa kept dropping. The boys didn’t seem to ever get them.
“I notice you haven’t set camp yet,” Luke said as dinner ended. Several of the boys eagerly moved forward, ready to be of service.
“I usually just sleep in the truck actually. It’s both easier and safer when I am alone.”
“I can take Amy’s pup tent, and you two can share my dome. It’s big enough,” Luke offered magnanimously. “If that’s okay with you?” he added as an afterthought to Amy.
“Yeah, what do you say?” Lexa asked. “A sleepover?”
“Sure,” Amy replied, not wanting to refuse but not sure what she was getting herself into.
They sat around the fire for a long time, the boys shifting about periodically and constantly looking for yet another subject of conversation.
Lexa finally stood and said, “Well, I have to drive tomorrow, and I’m beat, so I’m going to bed.”
“Me too,” Amy agreed. The boys grumbled a bit, and there was at least one grandiose statement about the night still being young. Amy knew it was all bluster. They all looked dead tired. Once their new subject of interest was gone, they would go to bed as well.
As soon as they were alone in the tent, Lexa said, “They don’t get out much do they?”
Amy laughed. “No, I told you it’s a small, boring place where we come from. I’ll bet they are all dreaming that you’ll come scratch on their tent flaps after everyone goes to bed.”
“I thought that was wrong—sinful or something?” Lexa asked, perplexed.
“Yeah, but they’re boys.”
“So it’s different?”
“Sort of. It’s still wrong,” Amy explained. “But it’s expected. Everyone turns their backs and says things like ‘They’re sowing their wild oats.’”
“But girls are not allowed?” Lexa asked, catching on.
“Nope, definitely not.”
“So who are the boys doing this with? Each other?”
“Of course not!” Amy was shocked. She would have been offended if not for the confusion in Lexa’s voice. “No, that’s wrong too. They do it with girls. If the girls get caught, they would be shamed, but that doesn’t always stop them.”
“I don’t understand you people at all,” Lexa declared, stifling a yawn. “But I know this: those boys will have to go on dreaming. I am beat.” She lay down.
Amy stretched out next to her, stiff as a board. Lexa noticed and commented, “Don’t worry, honey. I know you don’t swing that way.”
Not sure she wanted to know the answer, Amy tentatively asked, “Do you?”
Lexa shrugged. “Time to time, when the mood hits. I wasn’t lying though. I am beat. Just remind me to seduce you tomorrow okay?” With that, she rolled over and went to sleep.
Amy lay awake a long time trying to figure out if that last comment was a joke or not.
When Amy woke, Lexa was already gone. That was okay, Amy needed some alone time to sort out all she had learned about her new friend. Lexa’s customs seemed strange and disturbing. But seen from Lexa’s point of view, so did the ranch’s culture. Amy’s justifications of the beliefs at the ranch seemed hollow, even to herself.
She didn’t get long to mull it over. There was a scratch at her tent flap. It was Luke inviting her to breakfast. Kurt had cooked oatmeal from Lexa’s supplies.
They all ate quickly and broke camp. The boys were again loaded into the truck, and Amy was again invited up front. She accepted gratefully. Lexa was strange, and at times her views were disturbing, but it was still better than the boys. If she had to hear Daniel and Patrick argue the merits of various assault rifles one more time . . .
The talk in the front of the truck was lighter this time. Lexa did most of the talking. After yesterday’s discussion, she barely mentioned her family. Instead she gave a glowing description of Tir-Na-Nog. It was a place of sprawling earthen houses with deep wooden porches and dense forest all around. Most of the tribe lived in group marriages and some of the houses were enormous.
A large glen at the center of the community was filled with a vast and productive garden, tended by some of the best gardeners left in this world. They grew a huge array of food and herb crops. They had a seed bank that traded varieties of plants with hundreds of individuals and other tribes.
Most impressive to Amy was Lexa’s description of the workshop. It was a large, metal building from the pre-blast era. At many workstations, the community produced and maintained solar panels, wind generators, and even some basic computer technology. In this region, people had two options: learn to get along without technology or learn to get along with the Greenbowes.
Not that it would be too hard, if Lexa is anything to judge by,
Amy thought. It was hard to stay offended at anything she said. She had a vivacious and quick wit. She entertained Amy all morning with stories about growing up at Tir-Na-Nog. Lexa had grown up there, the daughter of the now-aging Meadow family who had helped found the tribe long ago.
“Roger Akira told us that your people had some sort of vision thing before the blast happened,” Amy said.
“Yeah, mom could tell you more about that,” Lexa answered. “She was one of the visionaries, believe it or not. They were doing a full moon rite, this standard little piece. Anyway, all of sudden, she starts going on about the end of society and everything. She thought it was some fluke; some weird little subconscious thing. Then they talked to one of their sister covens and found out that they had the same thing happen. It happened all over really. That’s when they knew they had to do something.”
Amy only understood half of what Lexa said. From group marriages to odd religious beliefs, Amy found her an enigma.
At least she’s a friendly enigma,
Amy decided. And despite the wide gulf in their communities and upbringing, they had so much in common.
By noon, they were passing into a countryside of rolling hills and growing patches of forest. They stopped for lunch at another fueling station. “Give the boys a chance to air out,” Lexa said. “Besides, I can top the battery off in fast fuel mode.”
The boys looked sullen. Amy wasn’t sure if they were carsick or if they had another fight about something. They didn’t volunteer, and she didn’t ask. No doubt Luke would tell her soon enough anyway.
They all brightened whenever Lexa was looking their way. None of them had lost their puppy-dog expression toward her, and only Luke and Kurt even bothered to try to hide it. Lexa continued to flirt with them all, but after two long rides with her, Amy knew it was just part of Lexa’s personality.
After a leisurely hour-long lunch, Lexa opened the back of the truck again. As the others loaded up, Patrick approached Lexa. “One of us could ride up front this afternoon,” he said. “Keep you company.”