John laughed, "I do believe if you listed all of our jobs, they'd fill a new roll of toilet paper from one end to the other."
Kira grinned mischievously. "Are you insinuating some of those suggestions are crappy ideas?"
With that, we all laughed then turned in for the night. Our guard dogs slept outside the tents but in close proximity. We hadn't seen any zombies close-by, but I wanted the dogs nearby to sound an alarm well before an attack was launched.
Dawn came and passed, and at eight we drove back toward Deliverance. We routed our trip through four small neighboring towns to check on building supply stores. All had been vandalized, but enough stock remained that we wouldn't need to transport hardware, lumber or roof shingles from stores near Deliverance. Among the many pages of notes and sketches about our new homeplace were material lists for the tasks to be completed. I figured there must be a year's work just on the items we'd seen on our cursory inspections. When the repair work began, I was sure we'd uncover additional work that needed to be done.
We arrived at Deliverance before dark. Morgan reported that the vegetable garden was pretty much cleaned out except for carrots, potatoes, watermelons, etc. The corn harvest had gone well and the field corn was stored in the corn crib where it would continue to dry. We were about ready for the final cutting of hay before late fall cool temperatures slowed all growth.
He said there'd been no outright problems, but the Masters group was still behaving like jackasses. They grudgingly performed work around Deliverance but continued to claim they wouldn't leave on procurement trips as long as Joe and Ronnie were locked up like criminals. Our nurse, Marcie, said there were no discernable changes in the patients’ conditions while we were gone.
There was almost more work in progress, and jobs planned to be implemented, than I could keep up with. We intended to make our move to Missouri the following year in late winter or early spring depending on the weather. The leadership committee discussed the details at length and continued to fine tune a workable plan. Pages of repairs and improvements needed to be made. John made drawings showing engineering details like structural supports, drainage improvements and areas to be cleared and graded. His major drawings were of the new barns and other buildings we'd need. Lists had been made of equipment to take and the order in which it would need to be onsite for specific jobs. The first equipment listed was our biggest farm tractor, its implements and the five hundred gallon fuel tank filled with diesel fuel.
Two weeks into September, ten of us drove back to Missouri. We planned to put new roof shingles on eleven cabins and make structural repairs to the sheeting and roof trusses of two of those. I estimated we'd be gone five or six days.
Five more people would leave two days after we did and drive to Chicago. We had been pillaging a Walmart Midwest regional warehouse for five years. The previous year, the self-contained heating system failed and a majority of the remaining canned foods froze and burst. We were making a final trip to gather the last of the dry goods that we hoped remained usuable.
Twelve more people in two crews would dispatch the following day to look for sheep, draft horses, riding horses, horse drawn farm equipment and feed. They expected to be gone three or four days. If they had good luck, our livestock pens and barns would be full until we made our move.
Finally, a three person crew left in search of twenty wood burning cook stoves for the cabins at the new homesite. The electric heating and cooling systems in them were useless, and we were converting to wood and coal burners.
The plan made for a busy and hectic week. Deliverance was left with fourteen of our original adults plus seven of the Masters group. They would finish gathering and processing the remaining vegetables from the late harvest, as well as feeding, milking and grooming the livestock. Plus there was always a list of minor and major repair issues to be addressed at the ten-year-old building.
There had been an unusual number of trades among people scheduled to go on the multiple procurement trips that week. Most of the people, except for the Masters group, didn't normally object to getting away for a few days. For several days before we left, I'd had an uneasy feeling. All I'd noticed out of place were a few sly smirks from several people, especially from Tim and Nate. That didn't set off alarms because neither was happy with any of my recent decisions.
Before reaching our new homesite, we stopped in Rolla and found two building supply stores. Roofing shingles must not have held any interest to the people who had been there before us. The heavy duty lowboy equipment trailer we pulled with a tandem dump truck would easily carry the two hundred bundles of asphalt shingles we wanted. We were lucky to find all of the rolls of felt and nails and plywood sheeting we'd need for the installation. Surprisingly, there was even a good stock of lumber to choose from. Before we left, I ransacked the small office space. On a book shelf, I discovered a local phone book with yellow pages that was in good condition. That would make locating stores we needed for other items easier than driving blindly from town to town.
A mile from the second store, we saw three naked zombies about seven hundred yards out. I stopped the Expedition, opened the moon roof and squatted on the seat to steady my arms on the roof. Three shots later, an adult male and an adolescent zombie lay prone to the tall grass covering the ground beside the highway. The female escaped in high leaps like a gazelle chased by a pride of lions. Close examination of the downed zombies revealed an adult that compared to a fifty-year-old human, and what I'd taken for an adolescent looked to be about thirty years old.
It was well past dark when we finally reached the new homesite. Everyone was tired from the heavy lifting and carrying it took to gather materials.
At sunrise, we broke into three crews. Each group began stripping shingles from different cabins. As soon as the first roof was bare, that crew started installing the new roof components. The other two crews moved on to strip shingles from all the remaining cabins.
By day five we were running ahead of schedule. I sent two men to the nearest lumber yard with a material list for building our first communal crapper. Two others began digging a six foot deep excavation. After lunch, we began precutting the lumber and spreading dirt and rock from the hole to make a flat area for the outhouse to sit on. The building would consist of two sections, each with two holes cut in the board seats and a simple divider between them. It wasn't fancy or private but it was simple and functional.
It was early afternoon on our sixth day when we finished. Everyone was tired from a fast-paced six days of hard work from dawn to dusk. But we were all proud of the work we'd accomplished and were in a good mood. We decided to head out and drive after dark to get home and share our good news with the rest of our people.
Midnight fast approached when our three trucks stopped in front of the gate at Deliverance. A call on the radio got the watchtower guard to open the gate. I was apprehensive when Barlow Jones added, "I sure glad you're back. There's been big trouble."
Ed Jarnigan pranced excitedly outside the entrance as we parked. He wore a serious frown and spit a chaw on the gravel as we approached the group surrounding him. Several began to speak when we were still ten feet away.
Ed waved his arms. "One at a time, and I'm first..."That damned Majors group stole from us and left. I assume they're headed back to Master's place."
I shook my head. "Now I know what all the sneaky looks were about before we left. They planned this when they learned so many of us would be gone at once. Were any of our people hurt?"
"A couple got roughed up, but nothing serious. Tim punched Doc's jaw when Doc tried to stop them from releasing Joe and Ronnie from confinement. Morgan, Andrea and Kira were shoved around when they stood steadfast and resisted. They took our people’s weapons first, then they were all locked in the holding cells while the cowards stole what they wanted. A few firearms and a lot of ammunition are missing and half or more of the food was taken."
"Was anything else taken?"
Kira skirted the group and moved to stand beside me. I assumed our kids were asleep in their room. I encircled her waist with my arm and pulled her close, glad she was unharmed.
"At least three trucks and trailers and the five hundred gallon fuel tank are missing. About half of the seeds for planting next year's crops are gone too. My group arrived late this morning today, released our people, and started the inventory at noon. There may be other things missing to add to the list."
"Let's move inside and gather everyone in the dining room. I know it's late and everyone's tired, but we need to assess the extent of the damage they've caused."
Over the internal speakers, Morgan asked everyone to gather with us. Before taking a seat, I saw the large coffee urn was still a third full. I didn't know how old or thick the coffee was and didn't care. As I drew a full cup from the spigot, several others from my crew lined up behind me. I surveyed the crowd and didn't see Shane.
"Has Shane and his crew returned from Chicago?"
Several people said no or shook their heads. Morgan added, "The crews looking for horses and equipment aren't back either."
"Okay. Let's start at the beginning. Morgan and Andrea, please add details to what I heard outside."
Andrea spoke, "There were seven of us adults and nine kids below sixteen. They separated us and locked us in the six cells. It was tight and uncomfortable, but we were only in there for two days until Ed and his crew returned. They fed us and left plenty of food and water before they cleared out. Several people I was surprised to find joining the rebellion apologized sheepishly. Morgan and I talked about who left with Masters and we made a list." She passed copies around. "It looks like eighteen left plus Joe and Ronnie."
Morgan cut in. "But from what we heard while we were locked up, Suzie Robard, Glen Whycoff and his boys, Allen and Adam, were roughed up and forced to go along. Apparently, they didn't know about Tim and Nate's plan until then. Kim Whycoff was adamant about going with her brother, but Glen and the boys didn't want to leave. They shouted and resisted to the end."
Ed spoke loudly, "Now the question is, when do we go after what they stole and rescue the four that were kidnapped?"
I was tired. "My gut feeling is soon. But we need to get rested and discuss the situation at length before we go off half-cocked. The leadership committee will meet tomorrow afternoon at two. Think about our options and try to reach a decision by then. You folks working on inventory, please try to complete it before then, if possible."
My buddy wasn't in the crowd. "I'm surprised Shane and his crew aren't back from Chicago."
Ed completed a yawn then replied, "Haven't seen them. They should have been back today at the latest unless they had problems." He put his arm around Marilyn's waist and they headed upstairs to their room.
After a late night shower together, Kira and I lay in bed. I turned to her. "If those knotheads, Nate and Tim, had been forthcoming and said they wanted to leave. I would have split the food supplies with them seventy/thirty. Instead they stole about half; that's a lot more than their rightful share. Ed's hot to chase after them to get it back. He's willing to kill some of them if we have to. All that just to bring some food and ammunition back. I don't like it."
Kira pushed me over onto my back and straddled me. She kissed and licked down the side of my face and neck. "You need to relax and get rested. And I know just how to make that happen."
The orange globe of the morning sun poked above the treetops as I turned and walked back inside Deliverance. The cool silence helped clear my head before I strode to the dining room for breakfast. Although Kira had relaxed my body in a most enjoyable way, my mind continued to wrestle with our plight for several hours until it finally shut down from exhaustion.
After gauging the two fuel tanks that weren't empty, I learned less than nine hundred gallons of gasoline and ninety-one hundred gallons of diesel fuel remained. Tim's group had taken five hundred gallons of diesel. I would have gladly allowed the people who left twenty-five hundred gallons as their rightful share. That's what they got for sneaking instead of asking.
A few minutes after noon, Shane's group called for the gate to be opened. I met him outside at his truck and learned they'd had two flat tires on a set of duels on the over-the-road box trailer. "We lost most of a full day finding new tires and changing them by hand. Once we got to the warehouse, everything proceeded as planned." He leaned back against the warm hood of the pick-up. "It's a good thing we took the diesel-powered fork lift from here; those battery warehouse lifts were all dead. They're ruined from sitting idle for so many years."
I asked, "Are there enough food items left to make another trip worthwhile?"
He shook his head but then added, "We about cleaned out the dry foods. But in the sporting goods section, Verlie found pallets of survival food. You know, the stuff those doomsday preppers used to buy. It's the Patriot Pantry brand that advertized the food was guaranteed to be good for twenty-five years. We brought one pallet just in case it's needed, but there's eleven more still there." Then he asked, "How did your trip go; did the repairs you planned get done?"