Beyond the New Horizon (Book 4): Dark Times Read online

“I’d like that. Are we going to set up camp here or what?”

  “Well, Lucas, your Dad said they’d be back in a couple of days, but privately, Mark said it could be as much as a week or two. I’m going to hope for something in between. They have no idea what is in front of them so there’s no telling when they can return. I guess we should pick out a place to build a fire and we can use the tarp that was covering my things.” Charlie snapped his fingers, “No by golly, somewhere in that wagon is a four man tent. It belonged to my boys,” his face fell as if he’d just remembered his boys weren’t there anymore. “Well, we can use it if we can find it.”

  “I guess I’ll begin gathering the stuff. Where should I put it?”

  “Tell you what; I’ll find the tent and begin setting up a camp. Lucas if you can take care of the horses, and Miss Abby, if you can stack everything beside the wagon, we’ll go through it all tomorrow and decide what's usable and what isn’t. So, for now, beside the wagon would be perfect. Right now, I’m going to unload what I can and see what I can find to fix for dinner.”

  “Mom put together a bag with food. I’ll get the bag; it’s on my horse.”

  Once Lucas gave the bag to Charlie, he went to begin pulling the harness off the draft horses. He hung them on the hooks along the side of the bed as he’d seen Gina do, but with the wagon sitting with the back end on the ground, he had to fold them over the first two hooks to keep the leather out of the dirt. Lucas huffed and lifted Abby’s backpack off his horse and wondered again how she lifted it, let alone having carried it as far as she had. He thought it had to weigh at least seventy pounds and she’d had it on her back and hadn’t complained at all. She had looked relieved when he’d suggested hanging it on the horse.

  He set the bag at the back of the wagon, found Charlie's brush box and set about giving each of the horses a good brushing. He knew the importance of keeping their animals, clean and the act of repetitive brushing also soothed tired muscles. His thoughts were the same as his uncles when it came to needing the horses as a way to get around and cover more ground than they could on foot.

  Before they left, he’d heard his father complaining to his mom about Sam not finding diesel for the tractors. Lucas had wondered why his dad didn't go and find some for himself. His mom had asked the same thing, and John had said he didn’t feel comfortable leaving her alone with strangers. She had poo-pooed him, and his dad had told her to mind her own business. Lucas had caught the expression of disbelief on his mother's face. He had never talked to her like that as long as Lucas could remember. He had always taken pride that his parents were still together when it seemed as if all of his friends at school were either being raised by single parents or lived in homes where the two adults fought constantly.

  Lucas didn’t understand what was going on in his father’s head and wondered if his headaches really were back again. That was the only times he could remember his father being short with anyone other than himself and he suspected his dad was disappointed that Lucas didn’t want to follow in his footsteps by taking over the ranch. Lucas had wanted to be a veterinarian as long as he could remember after seeing the way their local vet had saved one of his dad’s prized cows when she couldn’t deliver a calf on her own. Lucas had been three at the time and thought the vet had performed a miracle when he pulled a newborn calf from the belly of the mother after doing a cesarean.

  “Are you going to brush all the hair off those horses or are you going to come and have some food?” Charlie called to him.

  Lucas looked around and realized that while he was brushing and thinking, the sun had set and the last of the daylight was fading fast. He grabbed a cloth from the brush box and rubbed his horse off. “Coming!”

  He had rigged a line between two trees with a sliding metal ring hanging off of it and tied his gelding through the ring so he could move the length of the rope to feed. He wanted to give the horses all a drink but knew they didn’t have the water for them. He was going to ask Charlie what they could do about it and thought about the creek that had caused them so many problems earlier.

  When he went to put the brush box back under the wagon seat, he was surprised to see how hard Abby must have worked. Clothing and boxes and stacks of unidentifiable loose stuff were piled as tall as the wagon bed.

  On the south side of the road, Charlie had built a small fire, and someone had stacked branches and small logs beside it. Charlie had produced a metal grate for over the fire, and a cast iron pot sat with steam rising from around the edges of the lid. In the coals of the fire, he saw another bigger pot with the lid almost covered by coals.

  “Can I do anything to help?”

  “Get me a jar of canned fish out of that wooden box right there.”

  Lucas opened the box and saw gold jar lids but had no way to tell what was what without lifting them out. He reached in and pulled out the first jar. As soon as he saw what the jar held, Lucas started salivating, but unfortunately, it wasn’t what Charlie had asked for, and set it back. He grabbed another. The handwritten label said smoked trout.

  “Smoked trout?” He asked, and thought of the peaches he’d set aside.

  “That’s the one. Grab that pepper while you’re there please.”

  Lucas carried the two containers and set them beside Charlie, who looked and told him, “No good to me with the lid on.”

  Lucas took his pocket knife from his pocket and using the backside of his blade put it under the metal lip and pried up. The seal let go with a satisfying hiss. He held the jar out to Charlie, who dumped the contents into the pot of rice and stirred it in. He added some pepper and set it on the back of the grate away from the center of the fire.

  He saw Abby coming through the trees and wondered where she had gone. She was carrying what looked like a small plastic tote. He heard the tinkle of silverware.

  “There’s water down there?”

  She nodded, “Not a lot but at least it’s running.”

  “I’m going to take the horses down for a quick drink then.”

  “Just grab a bucket and give them a swallow. We can take them down after we eat. I don’t know about you kids, but my backbone is wearing holes in my stomach.”

  Abby laughed, “My Dad says that and he has some others too, but they aren’t as nice.”

  “Military?”

  “Marines. Or he was until he got shot. Now he’s retired.”

  Charlie nodded, “Seems like I remember someone talking about him losing his smell and taste. I can see where that would be detrimental to military life. Hurry up Lucas, or there won’t be any left.”

  Lucas ran past them, water sloshing out the top of the bucket. He offered each of them a quick swallow and was surprised when they didn’t take more. Then he realized when his gelding thrust his head all the way into the bucket, that Walker and Jack’s muzzles barely fit far enough in it to get more than a taste.

  Charlie must have sensed his dilemma, “They’ll be okay for right now. As soon as we eat, we’ll take them down, and Miss Abby can have her first riding lesson.”

  “Really?” Her words were punctuated by the ground beginning to vibrate. They could hear groans as the earth on the hill behind them shifted. They heard trees crashing and the sound of large rocks crashing into trees and bouncing off one another. Charlie grabbed the pot from off the grate and set it on the ground. Sparks flew from the fire as the ground shifted, breaking the neat pile of wood apart.

  Lucas ran to where the two Percheron’s were tied and pulled on the bitter ends of the rope releasing them from the trees. He led them into the clearing taking care to avoid the smoke or the fire. His gelding began to dance and pull back stretching the now loose line between the two trees, “Abby, grab Jinx before he breaks free.”

  Jinx had pulled the knot in the rope tight, and she was fighting with it to get it untied when Charlie ran up and cut the rope. Jinx almost fell over on his haunches trying to get away, but Abby held on. As soon as the shaking stopped, the noise began to die d
own with only the occasional creak and whump as a tree hit the ground.

  The three, each holding the rope tied to a horse, stood there until the quake was over. “Is it done?”

  “I sure to God hope so! I’ll never get used to those. My Granddaddy, left San Fransisco the day after the big one April 18th, 1906. He told me by the night of the 19th they were on their way north and didn’t stop until they crossed east into Montana. It took them almost two years to find our little valley and another twenty to pay it off.” He shook his head and dropped his chin to his chest, “Sure did hate to leave there. Right up until the day I left there, I expected at least one of my boys to ride in.”

  “Do you think we’re safe where we are?” Lucas looked around, and except for the two trees that Jinx had almost uprooted, nothing else seemed out of place. They had no boulders rolling through their camp, and no trees had fallen.

  “That is why I wanted to move the wagon. As close as that was, the wagon would have been flattened. We’ll wait just a minute before we tie them back up and son; you might want to fashion some hobbles for that horse of yours. We can’t afford to be cutting ropes every time he gets scared.”

  “I could just turn set him free. He comes when I whistle.”

  “As spooked as he was, he’d be out of earshot in a heartbeat. Are you sure you want to do that?”

  Lucas looked at Jinx and realized that Charlie was right. The horse was still shaking, and he didn’t want to be chasing him all over the countryside to catch him. “Yes, sir! I’ll make something for his legs as soon as I figure out what.”

  “Can I offer a suggestion?”

  Lucas looked at Abby; she had rebraided her hair and short tendrils curled around her face. He thought she looked just like an angel must until she crossed her eyes and laughed. “It’s not rocket science you know. I saw Journey’s and they would be a piece of cake to make.”

  Lucas shrugged, “Go ahead.”

  He turned to tie Walker back up and stopped. Something in the sky had caught his attention. He looked up at the almost dark sky, “Oh, holy crap!” slowly he lifted his arm to point, “What is that from?”

  Charlie stood and backed toward Lucas to see over the tree line. He didn’t have to move far to see what had Lucas mesmerized. To the north of them and if clouds could burn, they would be on fire. Shades of red rippled across the sky almost like flames dancing on the fire. These had no defining edges, but soft fingers of light that shimmered like fire, as if someone was blowing on the hot coals.

  “I have no idea. It reminds me of some video I saw of Kilauea when it erupted. It lit up the whole sky with shades of pulsing red just like that.”

  “Do you think it’s from the one at the ranch? This was a pretty big earthquake,” Abby asked.

  “I don’t know. It sure doesn’t seem like it’s very far away from here. How far do you think we made it from the ranch?”

  “We weren’t making very good time. Dad and Sam moved the cows in less than a week, but we haven’t found them yet, but they could be off in the woods, and we’d never see them. Uncle Sam said it was only thirty-five or forty miles south of us as the crow flies, to the Saint Joes Valley, but it’s no telling how far by the roads. It seemed like we did an awful lot of backtracking the first three days.”

  “I did notice that, but your father was trying to find the easiest way through for all of us. I’ve no doubt it would have been faster without me and my wagon.”

  “Well, I’m glad you’re here, Mister McGrubber, and so is Lucas.”

  Lucas nodded, his eyes glued to the horizon. “I wonder how safe we are? If the top came off that hill and that glow is from lava, I wonder how far it will go?”

  “This is one time I wish we had winter weather right now. The lava would cool quicker with the colder temperatures. This has to be the hottest February on record. But, to be on the safe side, both you kids pack yourself a go-bag. Just put the essentials in it in case we have to leave in a hurry.”

  “I don’t have a bag or anything to put in it. All of my stuff is on the other wagon. Do you have anything I could use?”

  “Son, anything that you think can be of use to the three of us you gather up and find something to put it in. It doesn’t matter who you think it belongs to if we can use it, pack it. I’ve got to make a couple of changes to the harnesses for Walker and Jack.”

  Lucas got Abby’s backpack and grunting with the effort he set it a short distance from the fire. He pursed his lips and nodded; Charlie had said it didn’t matter who the stuff belonged to so he set about digging through the things that Abby had piled up which included a dark green duffel bag and emptied the contents on the ground.

  He stared in fascination at the contents, “You said it didn’t matter whose it was right?”

  Charlie was close enough that he heard Lucas and looked to see what he was referencing. He winked at Abby who was helping him cut the reins to the big horses bridles off, “All except that green duffel. It’s a no-go zone.”

  Charlie chuckled at the expression on Lucas’s face. He saw Lucas drop to his knees and begin shoving the plunder back inside the opening of the bag.

  When Lucas heard Abby giggle, which wasn’t something she normally did, he looked up and found both Charlie and Abby watching him. They were both suppressing laughter, and Lucas let his hands fall limp in his lap. He drew in one long breath, “Well, you should have said so before I had the chance to dump it out.”

  “Now you’re learning. I did say it didn’t matter and I meant it. If I remember correctly, the clothes in there should fit you. They won’t be stylish, but they’ll cover you. They sure won’t fit me anymore. Too many years of healthy living.” He sent back to shaving the rough edges of the leather rein he’d just cut off.

  Lucas put two complete sets of clothing back into the bag, including green boxers and tee shirts and decided all of the tee shirts and underwear would come in handy for someone down the road. He put an extra pair of the trousers in and the jacket. The whole while he was packing the duffel bag full, he kept one eye on the pulsating horizon. To Lucas it felt like a living, breathing thing was keeping an eye on them, urging them to hurry. “It can’t come this far!” he kept telling himself. He kept remembering the flow down the trench of the interstate when they’d rescued the goats and sank back on his heels, “Uncle Sam…where was he and the others? Were they caught in the middle of it or had they left the ranch yet? What if they hadn’t come back yet and got cut off by the volcano?”

  “They’ll be okay. They’re all smart, thinking adults, and I’m sure they can look after themselves.”

  Lucas blinked and frowned at Charlie. He cocked his head to the side, “Did you just read my mind?”

  “No son, I did not. You looked worried, and we know where your folks are, and Abby just finished telling me your thoughts on Sam. His group could be the only people you were worried about.”

  The ground trembled, and Lucas looked at the skyline. The glow flared brightly for a few seconds and settled back to its original pulsing. Lucas couldn’t tell if it was brighter or not. He picked up the duffel and set it beside Abby’s backpack. Lucas spied another duffel bag and thought about food. He knew the box that Charlie had cooked out of held many jars of home canned food and wondered how they could transport them with just the horses. He wished they had the panniers and pack saddles that went on Carlos’s jenny and Gus.

  Charlie was done fixing the reins and came over to where Lucas stood to look into the back of the wagon, “What are you thinking?”

  “I’m not sure, but I’m trying to think of the best way to take as much as we can without having to carry it ourselves. We can use the saddle to hang bags with straps off of, but I wonder if we can’t rig up some way to use Jack and Walker to pack also.”

  Charlie stood for just a few second’s and grinned, “Maybe there is. Up at the front of the wagon is another wooden box with hand tools in it. See if you can dig it out. Abby? Go through this stuff and find ev
ery bag that has handles or straps on it. I’m going to see what we can do about the harness.”

  They set to work, and it didn’t take long for Charlie to come up with a plan. “Abby, bring Walker here please.” She did, and Lucas and Charlie put his harness on as a team. Charlie began to tie on the full bags that Abby and Lucas had set in the pile.

  They stood back to look when it didn’t seem like there was anywhere to tie anything else. Charlie had taken care to balance the load, and while it didn’t look pretty, the bags they had put on were secure and balanced enough not to put a strain on the horse.

  “What about the food box? I wonder if we can’t drill holes in the back of it and use it as a pannier? If we threaded the cut pieces of rein through it, maybe we could tie it off?”

  “Abby, can you empty it while we tack up Jack?”

  Abby had the box empty before they had the harness on the horse. She saw what they had done and thought about the things she hadn’t gathered. There was a large black heavy duty plastic box, like a large suitcase that she thought belonged to Mark. It had been on the back of Charlie's wagon, and Abby had left it alone because whatever was in it was heavy; too heavy for her to move it on her own.

  The way that the black box was lying made it hard for Abby to undo the hasps on the front. She managed to pull it until it sat flat and using both hands, she got the first clasp open and the one on the other end followed. She had been trying to imagine what was in it that could weigh so much and expected everything from bullets to books, what she hadn’t expected was to find it full of Bibles. She picked one up and frowned, “Bibles?”

  She understood why Mark would want to have one or maybe even two, but a whole trunk full of them. How could they be considered survival gear? Now, she had the dilemma of what to do with them. With a clear conscience she couldn’t just set them out on the ground, nor could she justify passing up the container because it was full of Bibles. To be sure, she looked through the stacked stuff to see if there was maybe another container of equal size. There were none. She decided to give the decision to someone with a higher power than she had.