Escaping Home (21 page)

A
s the cabins came into view I saw Little Bit shooting her bow, a palmetto stem arrow wobbling through the air. Mel and Bobbie were sitting at the tables watching her. As we glided into the bank, they walked down.

Mel looked at the boat approvingly. “I don't see any bullet holes.”

“Naw, this was a milk run. No shootin' this round,” Sarge replied.

I laughed. “Thankfully. I could only imagine how Danny would react to his boat getting shot up.”

Bobbie rolled her eyes. “I don't even want to think about it.”

We started stacking the ammo and the cases of MREs we'd brought back out of the boat. Sarge wanted to store the stuff near his cabin.

“Where are the guys?” I asked Mel as I carried one of the cases.

“They're out there somewhere making a thing for the pigs.”

“Okay, I'll go find them as soon as this done.”

“We've got breakfast if you're hungry.”

“You know it! What's on the menu today?”

“Smoked mullet and grits, and you won't believe this, but it's
really
good.”

“I do believe it! Did the girls eat it?”

Bobby started to laugh and Mel let out a sigh before answering, “It was quite the interesting breakfast. At first they were all like,
No, no, I'm not eating that
,” waving her hands around for added drama, “but Danny convinced Ashley to try it and she really liked it. So naturally her older sisters weren't going to be outdone by her and they tried it.”

“So yes, they all ate it,” Bobbie said, finishing Mel's story.

“Soon as we get this stuff moved, I'll be ready for some,” I said as I went toward Sarge's cabin. Mike was digging a hole to store the supplies.

“You need a hand, Mike?” I asked.

“Nah, we got this. Thanks for helping get it over here.”

“No sweat, we need ammo. Kind of nice to have it sent next-day air.”

He laughed. “How are you fixed for ammo? You need any?”

“No, I'm good, still got several thousand rounds. Danny might need some, though.”

“That's cool, tell him to come by later and get some. We also got some nine-millimeter for those H&Ks; when I find it I'll bring it over.”

“Thanks, man. There's breakfast over on the tables, smoked mullet and grits.”

“Sweet, we'll be over in a minute.”

Mel saw me coming and set a bowl on the table. As soon as I sat down, the girls ran up.

“You're gonna love it, Daddy, it's really good,” Little Bit said.

“It's not that good. I mean, it's
okay
,” Taylor said.

“Says the girl who ate two bowls,” Bobbie said with a laugh.

In normal times something like this would be considered a novelty or gastronomic adventure, but under the current situation, it was the difference between eating and not eating. Trying the grits, I was very surprised.

“Wow, that's good. How'd you get them so creamy?” I said. Little Bit started laughing.

“We used some of the canned butter, and then to add flavor, some salt, pepper, and some other spices. Good thing you like it, because it's also going to be lunch.”

“Fine by me,” I said, shoveling another spoonful into my mouth.

“I told you it was good!” Little Bit shouted as she jumped up and down. Then she let out a loud burp and stopped hopping. She waved her hand in front of her face. “That didn't taste good, and it stinks too.”

This brought everyone nearly to tears. Luckily grits are hard to choke on, or I'd have been in trouble.

After eating, I went upriver to join the rest of the guys working on the pigpen. They already had one strand of wire up and were working on the second. I followed the wire until I found them.

“How goes the pig corral?” I asked.

Thad looked up from hammering a homemade insulator into a tree. “We about got it now.”

“What'd you make these insulators out of?”

Jeff laughed. “We used a little bit of everything. There are glass bottles pushed over limbs down through there with the wire wrapped around them. These are made from PVC.”

“Whatever works! This will give them some forage, so we won't have to feed them as much.”

“Way I figure it, there's enough in here that if we add the scraps that Miss Mel and Miss Bobbie put in that bucket, it should be enough,” Thad said.

“Good. Hey, man, that mullet was awesome.”

Thad's big smile spread across his face. “I told you, one thing I can do is smoke meat. Which reminds me, Danny, you still going to try and get that smoker?”

“Yep.” Danny nodded.

Jeff raised a hand. “I'm going with you.”

“What are you guys going to take over there, the truck?” I asked.

“No, we talked about it and want to come in from the backside. We're going to use the four-wheelers,” Jeff said.

“Good idea, smaller and faster. Just take one of the radios in case you get your ass in a sling.”

“We're just going to dip in, get the smoker, look at our houses real quick and we'll be out,” Danny said.

I helped finish up the wire, which didn't take long, and then headed back to the cabins. Mel and Bobbie had small seed-starter trays laid out on the picnic tables. They were filling the small sections with soil they dug up near the river.

Danny stepped up on the bench and sat on the table. “About time we got a garden going.”

Bobbie looked up from bucket of dirt. “If we waited on you guys we'd never have one.”

“Just like a woman, it's never enough.”

“And when it is they complain it's too much,” I said with a grin.

Mel looked at me. “Oh, shut up, you!”

“What? What'd I say?”

Thad was laughing. “Somehow I don't think you've ever been told it's too much.”

I looked at him with mock surprise. “Dammit, man! I have, too! I eat too much, talk too much, I do all kinds of stuff too much!”

“He's right, Thad, he does talk too much,” Danny said.

“Holy crap, with friends like this—” I shook my head, but couldn't help but smile.

“We're gonna go get ready to leave,” Jeff said as he walked off.

Danny climbed off the table. “I'll be right there.”

Bobbie looked at Danny. “Where are you going?”

“We're going back to get Reggie's smoker. Plus I can check on the house.”

“Really, Danny? You think it's safe?”

“Should be, we're taking the ATVs so we can come in through the woods. If it looks like someone's there, we won't go in.”

“I don't know.” She looked at me, which made Mel look at me. “Are you going?”

“No, I'm staying here. But if he needs us, all he has to do is call on the radio and we'll go get him.”

It was plain for all to see Bobbie was pissed. “Why do you idiots always go looking for trouble? Why can't you just stay here? For a smoker? Really? Do we really need it?”

“Calm down, Bobbie. We're going to get it. I'll be back later.” Danny turned and walked off.

Bobbie looked at me. “What's
with
you guys?”

“Hey, don't look at me, I ain't going anywhere.”

Bobbie shook her head and followed after Danny. I looked at Mel. “Well, she's pissed.”

“She should be! Why didn't you stop him?”

“What, how's this my fault? He's a grown-ass man; he can do what he wants.”

“It's like you guys need to go looking for trouble.” She looked past me and pursed her lips. “Speaking of trouble.”

Sarge was walking up as Mel as she stormed away. “What's wrong with her?”

“Jeff and Danny are going back to get a smoker from Reggie's place. Bobbie's pissed off and somehow it's my fault.”

“A real smoker would be nice but probably not the best idea. They better be careful.” Sarge looked off at the river for a minute. “When are they going?”

“They're getting ready now.”

“I'll send Mikey with them; he likes going for a ride. They can take my buggy and some hardware just to be safe. They should leave soon, though, cuz tomorrow morning, we're leaving out early to go meet some boys.”

“Who?”

“You remember those guys blocking the road?” I nodded. “They called and said they got something we need to see.”

“Hmm, that should be interesting.”

“That's what I thought. I'll get Mikey and tell him to get up with them.”

“Thanks, Sarge.”

The old man smiled. “Don't worry about it, we got your back.”

D
anny took the off road route to the backside of the neighborhood, with Jeff in the back and Mike manning the SAW in the passenger seat. When they got close, Mike had him stop and they got out. Simply riding in blind was a really bad idea, so they would walk to the neighborhood. Mike led the way, moving in a slow crouch toward the nearest house. At the edge of the property they knelt down.

Mike whispered, “Look everywhere. Look for anything out of the ordinary. Remember, these houses have been empty for a long time. Pay attention for anything that looks like someone's been around.”

After fifteen or twenty minutes of observation, Mike waved for Danny and Jeff to follow. Mike dropped to his stomach and crawled to the corner of the next house and peeked around. Danny and Jeff both knelt down, watching the surrounding area.

Mike brought a pair of binoculars up and scanned the road, checking windows in houses, looking anywhere that someone could hide. He settled the glass on the road, looking intently. After a moment he crawled back to Danny and Jeff.

“See anything?” Jeff asked.

“Yes and no.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“I didn't see anyone, but I did see three pairs of footprints on the road. Someone's been through here.”

“You think it's the feds?” Danny asked.

Mike looked back at the road, then back to them. “I doubt it. They probably wouldn't be stupid and walk right down the middle of the road.”

“Just some people out looking around, probably,” Danny said.

“I hope that's all it is,” Jeff replied.

“Let's go find out. Just stay behind me. Keep about ten feet between us. Whoever is last in line, watch our six. . . . You know, watch behind us.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know what it means,” Jeff said.

Mike moved out along a fence line toward the road, with Danny following and Jeff bringing up the rear. Pausing at the edge of the road, Danny tapped Mike on the shoulder.

“We've got to pass my place to get to Reggie's. Let's take a look at my place first.”

Mike nodded. “I'll cross first, then I'll signal you over.”

Danny nodded and Mike took off across the road. He stopped at the fence on the other side and looked around, then waved Danny over. Jeff followed shortly after. Once they were all on the other side of the road, they moved along the fence. Danny's house was three down on the left, and they moved slowly checking the windows and fronts of them as they crossed them. At the driveway to the house next to Danny's, Mike stopped and pointed at the road.

Jeff and Danny looked at the three sets of footprints clearly visible in the soft sand. Running alongside them was a set of narrow tire tracks.

“Looks like a cart or something,” Mike whispered.

“Looks like they went in and didn't come out,” Danny said.

“I think it's probably just some refugees looking for a place. Just keep an eye on it. When we get up to your house, check the outside first, then clear the inside. I know you guys have never done this before, so remember not to point your weapon at anyone's back. I'll go through the door and to the right, Danny you go left, sweep left to right, if you see anyone with a weapon, drop them. Jeff, you cover the center. Your primary focus is the back of the room. This has to happen fast. We clear each room using the same process. Questions?”

Jeff and Danny shook their heads. “Okay, then let's go.”

They went to the far side of the house, sweeping the porches as they went. As they passed the front door it was obvious it had been kicked in. Danny tapped Mike's shoulder and pointed. He wanted to go in. Mike shook his head and whispered, “We need to check the outside first.”

Danny nodded and they continued the check of the exterior. Going down the far side, Mike came to the back corner and peered around. He slowly backed up and looked back to the guys, pointing to his eyes, then held up three fingers. Danny nodded and tapped Jeff on the shoulder and repeated the process. Once all three were aware of the people around the corner, Mike stepped out, with Danny and Jeff hot on his heels.

“Show me your hands!” Mike shouted, advancing on the three people.

A young woman sitting in a plastic lawn chair at the edge of the pond screamed. When the girl screamed, a young guy spun around and attempted to get an old pump shotgun leaning against a pine tree, but slipped and fell face-first in the mud. The third person was another female, who also started screaming as the guys rapidly advanced on them.

“Put your hands up! Do it now!” Mike shouted.

The young man stuck his hands out, shaking his head. Both girls put their hands up.

“Jeff, watch them. Danny, we need to clear the house,” he said as he headed for the back porch.

Jeff took up a position ten feet away from the three, pointing the shouldered AK at them. Mike and Danny quickly went up the steps to the porch. Glass from the French doors was shattered all over the floor, their wood frames splintered. They quickly crunched across the debris and into the great room.

Mike moved to the open door of the bedroom and paused before moving through it and sweeping the room. They checked the closets and the bathroom, which were both empty. They did a quick check of the small bathroom by the stairs before heading up. Mike gagged when he opened door and jerked his head out. “Dude, you don't want to see that.” Danny leaned past him and looked in. The toilet was
full
, not only with shit but with the rags and socks used to wipe by the numerous depositors.

They methodically cleared each room upstairs. The house was empty, but it was obvious that many people had been through here. Every drawer, closet and cabinet had been opened and rummaged through. Danny walked through the house, looking at all the things people had simply tossed around. It was the little things that bothered him most, like seeing the rocking chair that was built by his grandfather who'd long passed. He was sickened by the way people had treated his property.

They went outside where Jeff was still guarding the three people, now spread out on the ground. Danny walked past Mike, straight to the guy on the ground, and kicked his feet. “Why'd you do that to my house? That's my house!” The girls flinched when he started to yell.

Mike grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back a step, but Danny jerked away.

“We didn't do it,” the man on the ground protested.

“Bullshit! I saw the fucking mess, you nasty bastards shittin' in the toilet, trashing my house!”

“It wasn't us! We went in, but we didn't do anything, we swear,” one of the girls pleaded.

“She's telling the truth! We're staying at the house next door, on the back porch, we're not even staying inside!” the guy said.

“Jeff, cover 'em while I search 'em real quick,” Mike said.

Mike performed a quick but thorough search. When he finished he told them to get on their feet.

“If you didn't trash the place, who did?” Danny asked.

The guy was obviously nervous. His eyes darted back and forth from face to face. “I don't know; it was like that when we got here.”

“Why are you staying over there? Why that place?” Mike asked.

“It's got a big porch and a couple of those big lounge chair things we can sleep on.”

“Why not just go inside?”

“It just feels wrong to move into someone else's house. But we need a place to stay, and it's dry.”

Mike looked at Danny. “I believe them. I mean, look at them.”

“Whatever,” Danny said.

“You seen anyone around here?”

A little more relaxed, the man replied, “Yeah, almost every day the feds come through.”

“Through where?”

“Here,” he replied, pointing at Danny's house. “They go through a couple of houses every day. Always the same ones.”

“Have they been here today?” Mike asked, looking back toward the road.

“We wouldn't be out here if they hadn't. We hide out in the woods when they show up.”

“What other houses do they go through?”

“I don't know . . . one of them is down the road, like near the main road and somewhere on that street to the left down there.”

Mike looked at Danny and shook his head. They knew which houses they were checking every day.

Mike asked Jeff to go get the buggy and pick him up on the way back. “Danny, you stay here with them. This shouldn't take long.”

“What? Why me?” Danny looked at the three. “I don't want to stay here with them.”

“Suck it up. I'll be back soon,” Mike said, walking away.

Danny stared at them intently. The silence clearly unnerved the girls. In an attempt to mitigate the awkwardness of the situation, he cleared his throat.

“You've got a nice place,” the young man said. Danny narrowed his eyes at him as he continued, “I mean, I know it's been messed up, but it's a nice house. And we really didn't do any of that.” He pointed toward the tree line, “We dug a pit out there, and that's where we, ya know . . . go.”

One of the girls spoke, “We really do have to pee in a hole. We wouldn't wreck someone else's house.”

As much as he wanted to hate these people, Danny just couldn't bring himself to do it. He understood their situation. Hell, he was nearly in their situation.

“Where're you guys from?”

“Kinda all over. I'm from Pine Hills.” He pointed to a blonde girl. “She's from Orlando.” He nodded to the redheaded girl who had been screaming her head off. “And she's from Ohio.” Danny looked at her with raised eyebrows. “Don't ask,” she said.

The blonde brushed dirt from the knees her filthy jeans. “We just sort of came together.”

“I can relate.”

“How'd you guys end up together?” the guy asked.

Danny waved a hand at him. “We're not going to get into that.”

The blonde cocked her hips to the side, her hands resting on them. “They're looking for you guys, aren't they?” she said with a knowing smile. When Danny didn't answer, she continued, “What'd you guys do?”

“We didn't do anything, and they aren't looking for us.”

“Don't worry, man, we ain't going to say anything. Hell, I don't even want to see them,” the young guy said.

Mike wheeled around the side of the house in the buggy, with the smoker in tow. He waved Danny over. “Take the shells out of his shotgun and toss them over the fence and let's get out of here.”

“I want to fix the doors. I don't want to leave the place like this.”

Mike grabbed his shoulder. “Look, man, I know it's hard to see your home like this, but it'd be a waste of time. They'll just tear it down again.”

“He's right. Plus, anything you do to try and fix it might raise their attention. Probably better to let them think we've never been here,” Jeff said, then pointed to the small group. “Unless they tell them.”

Danny replied, “I don't think they will. They're scared shitless as it is.” He went over and emptied the gun, throwing the shells into the neighbor's yard where they were staying. “You can get them when we leave.”

“Hey, man, where are you guys staying?” He hesitated a moment. “Can we come?”

“Sorry, you can't come right now, but we're up on Hopkins Prairie if you find your way there.”

Danny climbed into the backseat and Mike took off around the house. Jeff turned and gave Danny a confused look. “Where's Hopkins Prairie?”

“It's up north of here. Figured if they did get caught, they might try and give us up. Hopkins Prairie is thirty miles north of here.”

Jeff nodded approvingly. “Send 'em on a wild-goose chase.”

“Damn right!” Mike whooped and they sped off.