The Day America Died Trilogy Read online

  On the way back, Ally had been very quiet. She broke her silence with, “Do we always have to fight and kill people?”

  “No, but we can’t let the bad guys win either. My guess is that we have a year or two of constant threats, then the lack of food, disease, and internal fights will take care of these gangs. Until then, they have unrestricted ability to make meth, grow pot and kill themselves.”

  “So we stay out of the way as much as possible and let them kill each other?”

  “Except for the ones that try to take our food or kidnap our people.”

  “You mean they will try to kidnap us, women.”

  “Unfortunately you are right. With no law and order, all types of perversion and crimes will rise until the criminals die off or get killed.”

  “Can’t we find an island and hide until things get better?”

  “Darling, it takes people like us to make things get better.”

  Chapter 10 - Independence Day

  Daviess County, Kentucky

  Time was passing all too quickly since the lights went out early in the spring. It’s now July 1st, and we have made much progress towards actually having all of the advantages of the 1850s plus a bit of technology from the early 1900s. I guess we average out about the 1890s to be fair. Jacob and his crew found how to hook generators to the hit and miss engines with belts and pulleys. They are now tinkering with large generators hooked to the steam engines. The important thing is we have electricity in most of the farms in our little community. That means we have lights and in some cases, we can power a refrigerator or freezer. This may not sound like much, but a candle or kerosene lamp puts out a lot of smoke and fills your lungs with all kinds of chemicals. I love electricity. Of course, Callie reminded me that the power plants gave off pollutants. Right now, I wish we could go back to worrying about pollutants instead of who’s going to try to kill us or where our next meal is coming from.

  I saw my daughter and Paul heading to her shop and said, “Callie, what do you and Paul have in surprise for us on Independence Day? I know you have been in your workshop with the doors closed, or are you and Paul making out back there? When we get full-time electricity, I might just install a camera to keep an eye on you two.”

  Paul stuttered and stammered.

  “Ha! Ha! Dad, you are too funny. Besides, Paul and I go walking in the woods when we want to make out. Paul is a gentleman and is too scared of you and mom to do much. I have to talk him into everything.”

  Paul was busy shaking his head to signal no as Callie talked.

  “You’d better be kidding. Changing the subject didn’t work. I know whatever you are doing involved electricity since there is a drop cord running from the generator to your shop.”

  They went on into the pole barn, and suddenly I thought, did Paul’s head shaking mean no they weren’t making out in the woods, or she didn’t have to talk him into everything. Damn.

  We had a whole cow roasting on a hickory wood fire, along with a goat, pig and a sheep. We were expecting over a hundred and fifty people plus Bert’s deputies and their families. The deputies had kept order in the county since the gang over in Ohio County was dealt with. The problems were minor compared with a few months ago. There were some drunks, a chicken thief and several houses of prostitution had popped up. Of course, there was an ongoing drug problem, but as we found and eliminated the suppliers, the drug addicts either straightened up or left to find drugs. Selling drugs resulted in banishment from the community and resisting arrest usually meant an instant death penalty. We had experienced the longest stretch of peace and quiet since before the lights went out.

  Most of the vegetables were ripe, and we were preparing for a large harvest of corn, wheat, and oats in the fall. The potato crop was enormous, and we had fried, mashed, boiled and every other kind of cooked potato that you can imagine. I personally was tired of potatoes but kept my mouth shut since we were close to starving several times in the past. Of course, real butter would help the potatoes. I made a mental note to find some butter churns.

  Jacob’s prototype large generator was taken from a retail store’s parking lot. It was a huge backup generator for a large grocery store that had freezers and refrigerators. It was in an overseas shipping container and hadn't been installed. Naturally, he has it in our barn, and we have to test it to see how much load it will handle, so I am sitting in front of an air conditioner in an air conditioned room. It feels so good on a hot day along with ice cold ale. Jacob wanted to air condition one large room of the pole barn to give people a break from the heat and to give them hope that things would return to normal. We also made ice cubes and then ice cream yesterday. We planned to make a lot of ice cream for the celebration.

  ***

  We already knew the old L&N Railroad tracks ran between St. Louis and Pittsburgh with stops in Owensville and Sailsberg The tracks went through the middle of our new community and were only a quarter mile from my farm. The tracks had been in use up until the lights went out. The only reason we didn’t have rail service a few weeks after the Sailsberg people and Jacobs team connected the rail at the museum to the main rail was a train had stopped about 20 miles from the farm and had to be moved onto a siding about 1o miles from Sailsberg to clear the rails. There were over a hundred cars hooked to several engines. The steam engine was not up to moving more than a few cars at a time and moving them was very time consuming. I had a team sorting through the railcars and dividing them up so we could share with the Sailsberg people. There was everything from coal to new Ford trucks in the cars. We concentrated on the ones with food, medicine, and any weapons. I had numerous loads of food, weapons and medical supplies moved to our hideout during the cleanup operation. We had plenty of weapons but didn’t want them to fall into the wrong hands.

  I caught Sam Hager and asked if he could get some of our friends to help build a small train depot and unloading dock beside the track by my place. They raided the local lumber yards and had built a credible depot for our community within a few weeks. They named it “Bug Tussle Depot” and had a large sign constructed with the name proudly displayed. Their biggest problem was to build a watering tower for the steam engine. They drug a large steel oil field tank to the site, raised it up on four telephone poles and added a spout that filled the engine’s water tank. The dock was constructed by placing telephone poles into the ground as legs and then railroad ties were used for joists and the decking. You could drive a tank across the dock, and it wouldn’t strain a bit. There was a ramp on one end where you could drive a truck right onto a railcar or unload a car with freight stacked on it. Mike even found an old fork truck that Jacob got running, which the team used it to lift the ties. It would be invaluable when we loaded or unloaded freight.

  Mike’s crew used the old bulldozer to doze a road to the depot from Highway 54. The road was about a thousand yards long and would remain a dirt road until we could cover it in gravel.

  Another crew built the depot building by using plans for a fancy pole barn. Again, they placed telephone poles into the ground, wrapped them in 2x4s and skinned the building with steel siding. The floor had to be made of wood since we weren’t up to pouring that large an area with concrete. Sam’s daughter-in-law dug up some old RR signs and antiques to decorate the depot. They even built in a large stained glass window from an old church that had partially burned after a small plane hit it when the lights went out.

  We kept this work secret since we wanted to surprise everyone at our Independence Day celebration. Rail service would be one step more towards civilization. With the help of Billy, the Railroad Museum curator from Sailsberg, Jacob and I planned the big surprise for the community on Independence Day.

  ***

  I woke up early on Independence Day and was drinking my first cup of coffee before anyone else was up for the day. It was still dark, and a few mosquitoes were biting. The moon was full, and I could see the guard in the tower. I poured some coffee in my thermos and headed to the tower. Al
ly had been up for several hours and was due to be relieved by Joan who was several minutes late. I climbed the ladder and made my way up to the crow’s nest. Ally smiled that big smile of hers, and I walked over to her and hugged her. She felt great in my arms, but I broke off and poured her a cup of coffee.

  As she took the cup, she said, “Aren’t you my boyfriend?”

  “Is this a trick question? Yes, I am. Am I missing something?”

  “No, but I didn’t even get a kiss from my boyfriend when he saw me for the first time today. Bummer.”

  I reached over, drew her close, kissed her and held her for a few minutes.

  “I’m confused. You said slowly, and I respect that. Besides, you’re on guard duty. We can’t get caught with our pants down.”

  “Whoa. A kiss doesn’t mean my pants have to come off. I guess you learned your lesson on having your pants down while on guard duty.”

  “Well, that’s embarrassing. Who told you? It has to be Sally. I’m going to kick her butt when I see her.”

  “I’m not telling on my source. Come here and give me a much better kiss.”

  Before I moved to her, she placed her finger over her lips and whispered, “Shush, watch the back of the house.”

  I saw someone sneaking out the back door still getting dressed. The person stepped out into the moonlight, and I saw it was Chuck who was closely followed by Joan.

  “Damn, they’re sleeping together under my roof. That’s bullshit.”

  Ally laughed and said, “Are you jealous?”

  “Not of those two but they should have their booty calls somewhere else. Callie is sleeping in the room next to Joan’s room. Damn, what if she gets pregnant? Callie would have a half brother or sister.”

  “You know we haven’t discussed kids. What if I got pregnant?”

  “Well, first that would be an immaculate conception since we’ve only kissed a few times. Second, I love kids and would be happy. Joan didn’t want anymore. I wanted to have a boy. I guess I kind of have Paul now.”

  “We won’t go slowly forever. I think we need to move in together now that Joan has a man. I guess I didn’t want to fall for you if she was going to take you away.”

  I kissed her again as I heard Joan scrambling up the ladder and said, “I love you, and we’ll move yours, Paul’s and Susie’s things in after the celebration is over tonight.”

  “Hon, is there room for me and my kids?”

  “Yes, with Joan gone and Mike moving in with Sally there are plenty of bedrooms. Besides we have my office and the upstairs living room that can be used if needed.”

  Ally grabbed me, pulled me into her arms and kissed me for a long time while Joan entered the crow’s nest.

  Joan stumbled into the crow’s nest as we were kissing, saw us and said, “Well the two lovebirds are up here in the nest together. I hope Callie doesn’t see you.”

  Ally slowly broke off the kiss and spoke before I could open my mouth, “Hi Joan. Please tell Chuck to put his pants on after his all night booty call with you. All of the guards are tired of seeing him run across the lawn each morning with his pants down. I hope you two aren’t making too much noise and keeping Callie up all night. Joan, I want to be your friend, but don’t pull that holier than thou crap on me and we’ll get along just fine.”

  I opened my mouth, “I’m glad you are seeing Chuck. Callie knows it, I know it, and the entire community knows it. Move in with him tomorrow. You need your privacy and Ally is moving in with me tomorrow.”

  Joan was at a loss for words and then recovered with, “I’m sorry, we should have been discrete. I’m happy for you and Ally. Chuck and I already planned to move in together.”

  “Great, we’ll have to help you find a house close by, but not too close. Oh, zip up your pants, and your shirt buttons don’t match up. Have a great day.”

  We left before she could reply.

  “Honey, that’s the first time I ever saw your ex at a loss for words.”

  I laughed and said, “Not only that, but she pulled that 'got you crap, ' and you put her in her place. I wish I had that on film for Mike to see.”

  “Darling, if Joan and I are ever to be friends, we need to keep what happened to ourselves. I want to treat her, as I want her to treat me. She’s been put on notice that you're mine and I won’t take any shit off her. I think she’ll process that and hopefully, she can be my friend for Callie’s sake.”

  “Even though I want to run to Mike and make his whole year, I promise I will never say a word about it again.”

  “Oh no, we will talk about it among ourselves and laugh our asses off, just never let anyone else know about it. Does Mike hate his sister?”

  “Oh no, he loves her, but he doesn’t like her behavior at times. Mike and I have been the jokers in the group, and she never appreciated our pranks and sense of humor. She’s been mad at him since he took a dump in Todd’s Corvette.”

  “Oh my, remind me not to piss Mike off.”

  “You’re too sweet to piss anyone off, except maybe Joan.”

  “If she plays nice, I’ll play nice.”

  “I don’t want to be around if you play not nice.”

  “Smart man.”

  We went on down and walked to the house holding hands. Mike, Sally, and Callie were sitting on one of the picnic tables eating pancakes as we walked up.

  Mike looked up and said, “My, my, y’all two have big smiles on today.”

  “Ally is moving in with me tomorrow. We care for each other and are taking the next step.”

  “Dad, that’s great, but can you get mom and Chuck to move out of her room and get their own place. Their bed is squeaking half the night. I need my sleep.”

  Ally and I began laughing and couldn’t stop, especially after Mike spat a mouthful of pancakes across the lawn and broke into laughter.”

  “Uncle Mike, Dad, it’s not funny.”

  “Callie, it’s funny that you mention this. Your mom just told Ally that she is moving in with Chuck.”

  Mike started laughing again and said, “Now the rest of the story? Go figure that the ex and new girlfriend can’t live under the same roof.”

  Ally picked up a biscuit off the table, stuffed it in Mike’s mouth and said, “Sally, could you get Mike under control? We need peace, not war.”

  Sally replied, “No promises, but I’m working with him every day. I kind of like him as he is. Rough edges and all. Congratulations Ally. I’m changing the subject. Could you help me with the decorations for our party? I need another set of hands.”

  “I need to go with Zack for about an hour, freshen up and will back with you in two hours.”

  She had her bag with her, so we left towards the house.

  “Thanks.”

  Mike choked the biscuit down and said, “Looks like Joan and Chuck have found peace.”

  Sally hit him on the head with a spoon and said, “Watch it, I may have to change my mind about liking your rough edges.”

  We went into the house and Ally took me to my bedroom and closed the door behind us. My mind turned to things men think when they are alone with a beautiful woman in a bedroom with a closed door.

  “Zack, the dead animals, half naked girl poster and the fishing rods have to go if you want me to sleep in here. Do you mind if we paint the room pale blue and the kitchen yellow? We need to find a furniture store soon. We’re sleeping on the floor until you get rid of the bed that you and she slept in together.”

  My mind took a while to process the information, and I replied, yes to the paint and moving the other stuff out of the room.

  “Joan has never slept in that bed, and I like it.”

  “What about any other women?”

  “Damn, the bed will be gone as soon as we find another. I have one of those blow-up beds we can sleep on until then.”

  She hugged and kissed me while saying, “Thanks, those might seem petty to you, but we need a fresh start. I love you. You’ll find I’m not demanding and quite low
maintenance now that we have those things out of the way. I’m a country girl who likes to take care of my man as long as he takes good care of me.”

  She was undressing the whole time she talked and when she got down to her bra and panties disappeared into the bathroom and closed the door.

  She poked her head out and said, “Now go help Mike, so I can get cleaned up and go help, Sally. Now close your mouth and get out of here. There’s plenty of time for what’s on your mind later.”

  “I thought your back needed scrubbing.”

  “That will be your job starting tomorrow. I need to talk with Callie before then. Bye.”

  I walked out of the room thinking there is never enough time for what was on my mind. I caught up with Mike, and we helped Jacob with his first surprise for our visitors. We had two electric and two hand-cranked ice cream makers and had them manned for several hours making several kinds of ice cream. Jacob had the generator running, and we had placed several chest type freezers in the barn to hold the ice for our drinks and ice cream. By the time we finished cranking, our guests were arriving.

  I left the barn and waved at Ally as I passed through the yard to the house to be cleaned up. I went to my room and saw several bags and a suitcase. I took off my clothes and entered the bathroom to see a bra and panties drying on the towel holder. She had marked her territory, and the room and I belonged to her. I took my shower, got dressed and went back out to help set up the extra tables and chairs.

  The meal was fantastic, and almost everything on the table was raised on the farms in our community. You don’t think much about fresh vegetables until you have to eat canned ones for months. The barbecue was mouthwatering, and everyone ate way too much. As good as the food was the ice for the tea was the hit of the meal.