Storiesonline.net
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                     Silent Endings - New Beginnings
                               by Lazlong

Copyright© 2004 by Lazlong


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Description: When Ed saw civilization die around him he wondered if he should just give up and die with it. Could he find others alive? Could they survive? Was this the end or a new beginning?

Codes: MF FF Mf Ff rom cons
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Note: I want to give special thanks to a_swabby for proofreading this story. I would also like to publicly thank the two other guys who started to do the proofreading. I lost your names and e-mail addresses when my computer died.

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Cast List



Family
Name
Previous Occupation
Where From
Where Met
Chapter


Ed James
Ed James
Virologist
Orange County, CA
Orange County, CA
1


 
Tina Baronkowski
Student
Santa Ana, CA
Santa Ana, CA
1


 
Syl (Sylvina) Lathrop
School Teacher
Sacramento, CA
Sacramento, CA
2


 
Sandy Callahan
Secretary
Lexington, KY
Lexington, KY
4


 
Tiffany Green 4
Microbiologist
White Sulphur Springs, WV
White Sulphur Springs, WV
6


 
Evie Walters 5
Psychologist
Evansville, IN
Mount Vernon, IL
7


 
Christina DeAngelo
Physician
Salt Lake City, UT
Crestwood, MO
8


 
Della Smith 18
Student
Prestonsburg, KY
Ironton, OH
14


 
Kammie Winslow
Child
Idaho Springs, CO
Idaho Springs, CO
4


 
Cindi Taylor
Child
Lexington, KY
Lexington, KY
5


 
 
 
 
 
 


Fred Davis
Fred Davis
Electrical Engineer
Elk Springs, CO
Elk Springs, CO
4


 
Jenny Wilkerson
Nurse
Blue Mountain, CO
Elk Springs, CO
4


 
Liz Mitchel 1
 
 
Lexington, KY
6


 
Jane Frazier 1,2
 
 
Lexington, KY
4


 
 
 
 
 
 


Jeff Combs
Jeff Combs
 
 
 
 


 
 
 
 
 
 


Jim Fox
Jim Fox 1
Construction
Lexington, KY
Lexington, KY
5


 
Sue Higgins 1
 
 
Lexington, KY
5


 
Ellen Bascolm 1
 
 
Lexington, KY
5


 
Mary Clark 1
 
 
Lexington, KY
5


 
 
 
 
 
 


Bob Roberts
Bob Roberts 3
Contractor
Lexington, KY
Lexington, KY
4


 
 
 
 
 
 


Bill Jenkins
Bill Jenkins
College Student
Louisville, KY
Louisville, KY
6


 
Diana Spencer
 
Louisville, KY
Louisville, KY
6


 
Shelly Cox
 
Louisville, KY
Louisville, KY
6


 
Eve Collum 4
Computer Programmer
White Sulphur Springs, WV
White Sulphur Springs, WV
6


 
 
 
 
 
 


Rob Stamper
Rob Stamper
Helicopter Pilot
Albany, NY
Binghamton, NY
7


 
Jill Bostwick
Paralegal
Utica, NY
Binghamton, NY
7


 
Charise Payne
Teacher
Pittsfield, MA
Binghamton, NY
7


 
Linda Click
Martial Arts
Utica, NY
Binghamton, NY
7


 
Betty French
Navy Pilot
Alexandria, VA
Ironton, OH
13


 
 
 
 
 
 


John Mason
John Mason
Hunter, trapper
Limon, CO
Crestwood, MO
8


 
Becky Freund
Nutritionist
 
Crestwood, MO
8


 
Donna Daniels
PE Teacher
 
Crestwood, MO
8


 
Kristen DeLong
Housewife
 
Crestwood, MO
8


 
 
 
 
 
 


Les Gannon
Les Gannon
Pilot
 
Crestwood, MO
10


 
Marsha Killgalen
Messenger
 
Crestwood, MO
10


 
 
 
 
 
 


Glen Adams
Glen Adams
Navy Seal
 
Crestwood, MO
9


 
Cassie Miller
 
 
Crestwood, MO
9


 
Althea Winslow
 
 
Crestwood, MO
9


 
 
 
 
 
 


John Emerson
John Emerson 9
 
 
Crestwood, MO
9


 
Edna Delmonico 10 
 
 
Crestwood, MO
9


 
Amber Grisham 10 
 
 
Crestwood, MO
9


 
 
 
 
 
 


Sadie Osbourne
Sadie Osbourne 11
 
 
Crestwood, MO
10


 
Henry Lasker 12
 
 
Crestwood, MO
10


 
Sybil Green 12
 
 
Crestwood, MO
10


 
 
 
 
 
 


Rick Cline
Rick Cline 13
Lawyer
 
Crestwood, MO
10


 
Lily Hubbard
 
 
Crestwood, MO
10


 
Heather McNeal
 
 
Crestwood, MO
10


 
 
 
 
 
 


Laverne Faulkner
Laverne Faulkner 14
 
 
Crestwood, MO
10


 
 
 
 
 
 


Russ Shepard
Russ Shepard
Forest Service
Redding, CA
Crestwood, MO
10


 
Debi Shepard
 
Redding, CA
Crestwood, MO
10


 
Sharon Jones
 
Redding, CA
Crestwood, MO
10


 
Paula Schwackart
 
 
 
 


 
 
 
 
 
 


Homer Renfrow
Homer Renfrow
Aircraft Mechanic
 
Ironton, OH
11


 
Belinda Ferguson 15
Student
 
Ironton, OH
11


 
Brenda Coffman
Secretary
Ashland, KY
Ironton, OH
16


 
 
 
 
 
 


 
 
 
 
 
 


 
 
 
 
 
 


Wilson Fouts
Wilson Fouts
 
 
Ironton, Oh
11


 
 
 
 
 
 


Mike Severt
Mike Severt
Pharmacist
 
Ironton, Oh
11


 
Joann McConnel
Society Matron
 
Ironton, Oh
11


 
 
 
 
 
 


Carl Justice
Carl Justice
Handyman
 
Ironton, OH
12


 
Alfrieda Pancake
Political Activist
 
Ironton, OH
12


 
Jessica (Jess) Rose
Reporter
 
Ironton, OH
12


 
 
 
 
 
 


Jack Webb
Jack Webb
Mason
 
Ironton, OH
12


 
Leslie
PA
 
Ironton, OH
12


 
Marie
Advertising
 
Ironton, OH
12


 
Cindy
Photographer
 
Ironton, OH
12


 
 
 
 
 
 


Ted Applegate
Ted Applegate 20
Lobbyist
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
Tilly Dauber
Medical Lab Tech.
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
June Pacheck
Staffing Coord.
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
Stella Masters 21
Greenhouse
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
 
 
 
 
 


James K. Smith
James K. Smith
Construction
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
Connie Lauper
Beautician
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
Jennifer Coleman
Telephone Oper.
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
 
 
 
 
 


Leroy Henderson
Leroy Henderson
Farmer
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
Sharon White
Systems Analyst
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
Beth Ann Julian
Marketing
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
Lily Tomlinson
Chemical Lab Tech
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
Julie Anderson
Nurse
 
Ironton, OH
15


 
 
 
 
 
 


Cliff Adkins
Cliff Adkins 22
 
 
Ironton, OH
16


Sal Neal
Sal Neal 22
 
 
Ironton, OH
16


 
 
 
 
 
 


Albert Finney
Albert Finney
Congressional Aide
 
Ironton, OH
16


 
Esther Goody
Housewife
 
Ironton, OH
16


 
Milly Samson
Attorney
 
Ironton, OH
16


 
Meg Akers
Water Quality
 
Ironton, OH
16


 
Stella Hall
Waitress
 
Ironton, OH
16


 
 
 
 
 
 


Alex Gibbons
Alex Gibbons
Accountant
 
Ironton, OH
16


 
Gina Fitzpatrick
Loan Officer
 
Ironton, OH
16


 
Nancy (Nan) Waters
Housewife
 
Ironton, OH
16


 
Phyllis Carpenter
Sales Clerk
 
Ironton, OH
16


 
 
 
 
 
 


Tom Masterson
Tom Masterson 23
 
 
Ironton, OH
17


 
Emmy Lou Hobbs
Factory Worker
 
Ironton, OH
17


 
Justine Grey
Electrician
 
Ironton, OH
17


 
Theresa Simpson 23
 
 
Ironton, OH
17


 
 
 
 
 
 


Sam Delany
Sam Delany
Construction
 
Ironton, OH
17


 
Anne Riesling
Clerk
 
Ironton, OH
17


 
Tina Tolliver
Delivery Person
 
Ironton, OH
17


 
 
 
 
 
 


 
 
 
 
 
 


George Clifton
George Clifton 23
Politician
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
Gina Davidson
License Clerk
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
Glenda Weston
TV Weatherman
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
Mildred Wright
Housewife
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
 
 
 
 
 


Fred Pancake
Fred Pancake 25
 
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
Frieda Belleville
Teacher
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
Jennifer Dailey
 
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
Sue McGhee
 
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
 
 
 
 
 


Dennis Kippenbrock
Dennis Kippenbrock
Surveyor
Maine
Ironton, OH
18


 
Veronica Cartwright
 
Maine
Ironton, OH
18


 
Letty White
 
Maine
Ironton, OH
18


 
Jenny Toliver
 
Maine
Ironton, OH
18


 
 
 
 
 
 


 
Sally Rider
 
Maine
Ironton, OH
18


 
Georgette Simpson
 
Maine
Ironton, OH
18


 
Cindy Meyer
 
Maine
Ironton, OH
18


 
Sue Gilbert
 
Maine
Ironton, OH
18


 
 
 
 
 
 


Josh Frazier
Josh Frazier
Butcher
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
Millie Winslow
Factory Worker
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
Carolyn Roach
Nurse
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
Paula Smith
Secretary
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
 
 
 
 
 


Kevin Cline
Kevin Cline
Teacher
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
Bill Self
Travel Agent
 
Ironton, OH
18


 
 
 
 
 
 


Ken Gibson
Ken Gibson 7
Auctioneer
 
Crestwood, MO
19


 
Bea Mayhew
Biologist
 
Crestwood, MO
19


 
Carol Hoffman 7
HS Student
 
Crestwood, MO
19


 
Leela Barnett 7
Housewife
 
Crestwood, MO
19


 
 
 
 
 
 


Free Agents:
Al White 24
 
 
Lexington, KY
19


 
Phyllis Carter 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Leeana Cookson 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Maria Calkins 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Kelly Gibson 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Ruth Meyers 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Sandra Burton 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Cookie Burton 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Elizabeth Carver 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Melanie Huff 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Melanie Gilberto 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Martha Occhuizzo 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Hillary Johnson 19
 
 
Ironton, OH
14


 
Dave Lynde 17
 
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Paul Sensemeier 17
 
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Arnold Gutherie 17
 
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Sly Gutherie 17
 
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
James Dalton 17
 
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Susan Williams 18
Housewife
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Roberta Langley 18
Housekeeper
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Cheryl Baisden 18
Law Clerk
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Karen Wells 18
Waitress
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Winnie Silverstone 18
Bank Teller
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Laura Chase 18
College Student
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Jane Belmont 18
Student
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Beverly Dumont 18
Secretary
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Michael Blackstone 17
 
Paintsville, KY
Ironton, OH
13


 
Doris Gifford
Plumber
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Ruth Ann Green
Receptionist
 
Ironton, OH
13


 
Sheila Duffy
Doctor
 
Ironton, OH
12


 
Marj Wheeler
Machinist
 
Ironton, OH
12


 
Pam Garcia 16
Fireman
 
Ironton, OH
12


 
Missy Anderson 8
Child - 6
 
Muncie. IN
8


 
Tommy Jenkins 8
Child - 8
 
Muncie. IN
8


 
Alfreda Pancake 8
Housewife
 
Muncie. IN
8


 
Joan Buenavista 8
Truck Driver
 
Muncie. IN
8


 
Bridget Gould 8
Office Worker
 
Muncie. IN
8


 
Toni Barnes 8
Exotic Dancer
 
Muncie. IN
8


 
Lidia Chalmers 8
Actress
 
Muncie. IN
8


 
Doris Anderson 8
Housewife
 
Muncie. IN
8


 
Denise Arrington 8
Teacher
 
Muncie. IN
8


 
Cynthia McCalister 8
Hair Dresser
 
Muncie. IN
8


 
Al Johansen 6
 
Wayne City, IL
Mount Vernon, IL
7


 
Bonnie Gillespie 5
 
Mount Vernon, IL
Mount Vernon, IL
7


 
Alicia Cunningham 5
 
Wayne City, IL
Mount Vernon, IL
7



Part of Lexington Group
Was originally married to Bob Roberts
Killed by land mine
Abused by Tom ?
Abused by Al Johansen
Tried, convicted, and executed for spousal abuse
Mentioned as a group, not specifically named
Canadian Group - Terrorized by bikers
Killed by Tina when he threatened her with a gun
Abused by John Emerson
Banished for abuse
Abused by Sadie Osbourne 
Refused to let join the community
Killed by Syl and Tiff when he shot Ed
Was originally with Wilson Fouts
Was with the Carl Justice group
Executed for imprisoning and abusing a group of women
Group who were in Blackstone’s RV
Group who were in Blackstone’s compound in Paintsville
Bigot
Left with Applegate
Tried to force Ed’s group to leave Ironton and tried to take over the Hog Run group
Excluded for bigotry
Killed by Bob Roberts
Tried and executed for abuse



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Chapter 1


Ed James: 
Day 14 - June 4

I don't know if anyone will ever read this or not. I hope so. I hope everything isn't lost. Surely I can't be the only person left alive.

I'm Ed James. I'm a virologist, or at least I was before IT happened. Now, I guess you could say I'm a survivalist. I've managed to piece together quite a bit of what happened. Most of us suspected something bad was going to happen, but we had no idea what it would be.

Everyone thought that when the Soviet Union went belly up in the tank that the world was now a safe place to live. Wrong! There were problems with Iraq, then Iran. Most of the other Arab states were in a cold war state with Israel.

China seemed to hate everyone, and was the country that brought about the end of the world, at least the end of civilization.

Relations with China had been slowly deteriorating for quite some time, and I remember the day before IT happened, watching on the news about the latest negotiations, which were at a standstill. China was threatening nuclear war and our military was on alert.

China didn't launch its nukes though. China released a virus. If things had gone the way they planned, every man, woman and child in the world, outside of China, would have died, and probably a great many inside China as well. The ones who had planned this would have been able to walk in to any and all countries and take over without a fight.

Instead, President Bush launched our nukes. All of the nukes that had previously been targeted on the Soviet Union were sent to China instead. The world's most populous country was little more than a molten lake when the last missile impacted. China had done her damage though and the rest of the world was dying a quieter death.

We suffered a far more silent ending.

How did I survive? As I said, I was a virologist. The group I was working with was trying to find, of all things, a vaccination for the common cold. I really wanted to be working on something more important at this point in my career, but I was stuck with the common cold for the foreseeable future, so I volunteered to be the test subject. I knew that would at least give me a little bit of a vacation.

They had locked me in a lab that was set up as an apartment and was totally isolated from the outside world. All of the food that was in the apartment had been bombarded with gamma rays to sterilize it. Air coming into the apartment was filtered to the point that no virus could enter. I had a television and DVD player and a whole stack of movies I had picked out. I was to stay in isolation for a week, and then they would give me a vaccination. After another three days, they'd expose me to the cold virus.

It was the second day I was in there that everything went nuts. The television switched to an all news format. I was hearing reports of missiles entering our air space, and missiles exploding in the atmosphere. Then President Bush came on and announced that he had unleashed our nuclear arsenal on China.

Reports kept coming in about missiles, but all were atmospheric explosions of a non-nuclear variety. Our government held off telling anyone the missiles might be dispersing chemical or biological agents. Even if they had informed the public it would have been too late to do anything about it.

People started getting sick within an hour of the first missile. If they had died quickly, the virus would have run itself out of carriers quickly. The Chinese knew what they were doing though. The first deaths started showing up five days after onset of the symptoms. By then, most of the hospitals in the United States and elsewhere in the world were full of patients. Things happened so fast that researchers weren't even able to identify the vector that was carrying the virus, let alone find a cure for it.

It has been two weeks now since the attack, and I'm out of food. Actually I've been out for two days, and rations were thin for three days before that. I know I have to go out, but I'm scared. There hasn't been a television or radio broadcast for the last week. People stopped showing up here at work ten days ago. I don't think the Chinese would have wanted the virus to survive long after it no longer had any hosts, but I won't know until after I leave the building.

Wish me luck.

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Well, I've been outside for four hours now. I don't have any of the symptoms that were described by the TV announcers when people started getting sick, except the nausea. I think the nausea is from the stench though.

There are bodies everywhere. The majority of the people had gone to hospitals or treatment centers (a euphemism for a concentration camp) before they died, but the hospitals and centers soon filled up, and by then everyone knew that if they had it, they were dead anyway.

I managed to eat a couple of cans of ravioli even with the stench, but I know it isn't healthy for me here, so I plan to get out of here. Where is here? I'm in Orange County California. Home of oranges and grapefruits, and assorted fruits and nuts of the human variety until recently.

After thinking things over for a while, I decided the safest place for me would be right where I'd been. I loaded up a cart with groceries and pushed it back to the lab. The electricity was still working in the area, since most of it came from hydroelectric sources. It might work for months if there wasn't an overload, or a flash flood that knocked out the dam.

I decided I'd like to see if I could find anyone else that was alive, so I went to a Radio Shack and picked up a police scanner, and the best CB and CB antenna I could find.

I hooked everything up and fired up the CB. I went through every channel, but heard nothing but static. I went back through all the channels again broadcasting and asking for someone to answer. Still nothing.

Day 20 - June 10

It was on my sixth day of broadcasting that I finally heard something. It wasn't on the CB though. I was taking a break when I heard a voice coming faintly from the scanner. "Can anyone hear me?" said the voice of a young woman or girl. "Help me please. I'm calling from Santa Ana, California. I'm locked in the police station. Dogs attacked me and I just made it in here. Please! If you can hear me, I need help." I could hear the panic in the girl's voice and a couple of sobs she had tried to hold back.

I was running before I heard anything else. The police station was only about three blocks from the lab and I ran every step of the way. The door was unlocked of course and it didn't take me long to find the communications room. I quickly dialed in the frequency the woman had been calling on and fired up the transmitter.

"This is Ed James calling the lady in Santa Ana. Can you hear me?" I asked, still panting from my run.

"Thank God! Yes I can hear you Mr. James."

"I'm in Orange, California. I'm not too far from you, but if there are dogs attacking I'll have to pick up a few things first." I hated to make her wait, but I couldn't just go running over there without some way of fighting off the dogs.

"Please hurry Mr. James. I don't think they can get in here, but I'm scared. There are some really big dogs trying to get to me." The panic was back in her voice as she begged me to hurry.

"Are you hurt?"

"No, I got away from them."

"I'll be there in half an hour to an hour. If you think they're going to get in, lock yourself in a cell. I'll get you out."

"Thank you Mr. James. Please hurry."

"I'm going to find a gun to scare off the dogs. Stay by the radio if you can, but find where the cells are so you can run there if you need to. I'm going now."

It took me a while to find the arms locker, and longer still to figure out how to open it. Once I had it open, I took a riot gun and a fully automatic M-16. I loaded both weapons and took a couple of extra boxes of ammunition for each, then went looking for car keys.

I found the rack where the keys were kept and took a set that had a vehicle number on the tag. I went out into the parking lot and found that vehicle. It was a cruiser, a Crown Victoria with a big engine and all the power in the world. The engine started right up and I set the radio to the frequency the woman was using.

"This is Ed James calling the lady in Santa Ana," I said as I pulled out of the lot.

"Hello, Mr. James," the girl said, sounding a little bit relieved.

"Please call me Ed, and tell me your name. I hate to keep calling you the lady in Santa Ana."

"I'm sorry, Ed. My name is Tina Baronkowski. Please call me Tina."

"Okay Tina. I'm in a police cruiser and on my way. I should be there in less than half an hour."

"I haven't heard the dogs in a few minutes, Ed. I think they may have gone away." Her voice might be saying she thought the dogs had gone away, but I could tell she didn't really believe it.

"They may have, but I wouldn't bet on it Tina. These are probably people's pets that have been going hungry since everyone died. You don't want to be lunch to a Great Dane."

"I know Ed. I'll stay put."

"Tina, I may have to shoot some of them. I hope that doesn't bother you."

"Before all this happened it would have. Now, I just hope you shoot straight."

"Okay Tina, I just saw a sign that said Santa Ana 10 miles. I'm going to concentrate on driving now. I'll talk to you when I get there."

"Be careful Ed. You're the first person I've heard from since IT happened."

-------

The city of Santa Ana looked far worse than Orange. For one thing there had been a lot more looting. Most of the stores had broken windows, and unwanted items had been strewn on the sidewalks. Many of the bodies lying around had been mutilated, presumably by the dogs that had tried to attack Tina.

I found the police station without too much trouble and looked around carefully. I didn't see any dogs, but I was going to be careful anyway. I slung the M-16 over my left shoulder and got out of the car carefully, holding the riot gun at the ready.

As I approached the door of the building, I saw movement off to my right. I turned toward the movement and saw the biggest Great Dane I had ever seen. I didn't hesitate, but fired a load of buckshot at him at point blank range. I half expected him to keep coming, but he fell like a sack of rocks.

Tina threw the door open in front of me and I quickly stepped inside. I lowered the riot gun as I stepped through the door and I was immediately hit in the chest by a five foot two inch, hundred and ten pound, honey blond tornado. I put my arms around her and held her until she quit sobbing.

Tina looked up at me with the most beautiful blue eyes I had ever seen and said, "Thank you. I was scared to death."

Although she had quit sobbing, her body was still trembling. My heart went out to her. "It's okay Tina. You're safe now," I said as I stroked her back.

"But what am I going to do now Ed? My family all died. I have no place to go," she said as she started sobbing again.

"I'm trying to figure that out myself Tina. The place I'm at now is a lot better than here though. Why don't you come back to Orange with me? I'm not coming on to you. I just think that with as few of us as there are left, we should work together to survive."

Tina laid her head back against my chest and shuddered. "I'd like that Ed. I thought I was all alone and I was scared to death."

I held her for a few minutes then suggested we get back to Orange before dark. "I haven't seen any dogs or other animals there for that matter, but you never know when they're going to show up. I'd rather be inside before dark."

Tina agreed, so we prepared to leave. I went over to the door and looked out. I could see a Doberman about half a block away, watching the building, but that was the only dog I could see. "Have you ever fired a gun Tina?" I asked.

"No. My father didn't believe in guns."

"Well, you're going to have to learn. We don't have civilization to protect us now, so we're going to have to do it ourselves."

Tina looked like she wasn't at all sure about this, but I handed her the riot gun and showed her how to load and fire it. "Just point it at whatever you want to shoot and pull the trigger," I told her. "I'm going to go out and open the door of the car on the passenger side. Then I'm going around to the driver's side and open that door. I want you to stand in the doorway and watch that Doberman down the street. If he starts toward me, point the gun at it and shoot."

"I'll try Ed. Just be careful."

I took the M-16 off my shoulder and made sure it was set on full automatic. I stepped outside the door and looked both ways. I just stood there looking around for over a minute, then started slowly walking toward the car. I was just reaching for the door handle when I heard the shotgun go off, followed by Tina's scream.

The Doberman was flopping in the street, but a pack of six dogs of various breeds was coming toward me at a full run. I swung the M-16 toward them and let loose into the middle of the pack. It was like they had run into a wall. Three of the dogs dropped immediately, and I heard the shotgun again. A fourth dropped from the shotgun blast, and I made short work of the other two with the M-16.

I looked around and didn't see anything else, so I quickly changed the clip in the 16 and opened the car door. I was trying to look in every direction at once as I rounded the car and opened the other door.

I didn't see anything else so I said, "Run for the car Tina."

I continued scanning the area until I heard her door slam, then I quickly got into the car. Tina was shaking, but she had a smile that would have lit up Los Angeles. "I got two of them," she said proudly.

"You sure did Honey. Nice shooting for a girl who never fired a gun before."

"It scared me to death to shoot it, then when I did I thought it was going to tear my shoulder off."

I had to laugh. "That is a 12 gauge shotgun, Tina. It kicks harder than almost any other weapon there is. We'll find you something a little more suited to your size later."

"I'd shoot it again to protect one of us, Ed," she said with a look of determination.

The drive back to Orange was the most pleasant thing I'd experienced in the last three weeks, even though the conversation was anything but pleasant at times. I found out that Tina was sixteen years old. She'd watched her whole family die. The father went first, followed two days later by her mother. Her little sister had held on for almost a week longer, but eventually she went too.

"Do you have any idea why you didn't get sick?" I asked.

"No Ed. I expected every minute I'd come down with it. After my sister got sick, I wished I would. By that time, the radio and TV had quit, and I couldn't see anyone else on the streets. I thought when my sister died I was the last person alive. Do you know why you didn't get it?"

I explained to her about being in the isolation apartment and what I had been working on. "Are you a doctor then?" she asked.

"I have a doctorate, but I'm not a medical doctor. I could probably do most things a medical doctor could do, but I never went through the clinical training to become a doctor."

"You don't look old enough to have a Ph.D., how old are you, Ed?"

"I'm 26. I graduated from high school early, and actually had my Bachelor's Degree when I was nineteen. I was married for a couple of years, but my wife left me three months ago. She said I was boring and she had found someone to put some excitement in her life."

Tina giggled. "She's probably not too excited right now." She looked embarrassed then said, "I'm sorry Ed. I shouldn't have said that."

"It's okay Tina," I laughed. "I wasn't in love with her any more anyway. I knew she had been running around on me for a while, and the love just kind of died. It was almost a relief when she left."

We were quiet for a couple of minutes then Tina asked, "So where do we go from here Ed?" Her tone was serious and when I glanced over at her I could see she was apprehensive.

"I'm not sure. I wanted to give it another week before I got out much. I'm sure you've noticed the stench, and it's not healthy being around decaying bodies. In another week, the danger from that should just about be over. I've been trying to contact anyone by CB radio, but haven't had any luck. I've also had a police scanner going, which is where I heard you first."

"God! I'm glad you were listening. I don't know if I could have ever gotten out of that place alive if it hadn't been for you."

"I'm glad I was listening too, Tina. I was about to go nuts, not having anyone to talk with." I took her hand and gave it a squeeze. She gave me a little smile, then dropped her eyes.

"That's been a bad part for me too. I was so lonely. Do you have any plans for what to do after another week?" Again, she was looking apprehensive as she asked her question.

"I was thinking of taking a trip. Just kind of cruising from town to town to see if I could find anyone else alive."

"That's still a good idea Ed. Two people are not enough to survive, let alone start a new civilization."

"You're thinking ahead Tina. I like that. No, even if you and I decided to hook up, we need other people."

We were silent for a while, thinking about the ramifications of what had just been said. In fact, we didn't say much more until I had pulled up in front of the lab.

I took Tina in and showed her around. "There's only one bedroom in this apartment," I told her. "There is another apartment though. You can either sleep on the couch here, or we can open up the other apartment for you."

"I've been by myself far too long. There's no way I'm going into the other apartment," Tina told me.

"Okay, I'll get you some sheets so we can make up the couch. We'll go out in the morning and get you some clothes and anything else you're going to need."

"Thanks Ed. There are some things I'm going to need from a drug store. A toothbrush for one."

I laughed. "Yeah. They didn't supply me with any extras. At least I had enough food to last me until it was safe to go out."

We fixed a simple dinner and talked for a long while. I found Tina to be very bright and an interesting conversationalist. If I had not known her age, I'd have thought she was a lot older. Finally, both of us started to get sleepy.

We said our goodnights, and I went off to bed. I didn't fall asleep immediately. I was lying there, smiling into the darkness, thinking about how I was no longer alone, when the bedroom door opened.

"Are you awake Ed?" Tina sounded like a little girl talking to her father.

"Yes Tina," I said, my voice almost quavering, knowing what she was going to ask.

"Can I sleep in here with you? I'm tired of being lonely."

"Sure Tina. I didn't want to suggest it, because I didn't want you to think I was trying to take advantage of you." God, I'm sure she didn't know what she was putting me through and I wasn't about to do anything either one of us would regret.

Tina slid in under the covers and snuggled up against me. I put my arm around her and discovered she was only wearing one of my old tee shirts. "Would it be taking advantage of me if I were willing?" she asked, her voice sultry.

I knew the girl wanted the comfort of being close and I suspected she figured she had to pay for that comfort by offering sex. "Right now it would be Tina. Let's see how we feel in a day or two."

"Okay Ed. I can wait." Tina giggled. "Don't wait too long though or I'll go out and find another man."

I laughed and hugged her closer, making sure my erection never touched her. "You really are a sweetheart, Tina. Think of this. Am I someone you would have fallen for before this happened?"

"Ed, because of the age difference we'd have probably never met. It would have been my loss though, because if I had met you, I think I'd have fallen for you."

We drifted off to sleep holding each other. My last thoughts before being rocked in the arms of Morpheous were of how lucky I was to have found Tina.

Day 21 - June 11

I awoke the next morning, cuddled with Tina as if we had slept together all of our lives. I slipped out of bed and into the bathroom. After I had relieved the pressure on my bladder, I stepped into the shower. I just had the water adjusted the way I wanted it when Tina slipped in behind me.

"Don't hog the water," she said. "I need to get my hair wet."

I stepped aside and let her get wet. Damn she's gorgeous. I could tell at a glance that her honey blond hair was natural from the sparse covering on her nether region. Her breasts were probably a 'B' cup with large nipples and very dark areolas. She had what I always called a bubble butt. My favorite kind. I thought I had died along with everyone else and had gone to heaven.

She reached for the shampoo, but I stopped her. I poured some of the shampoo into my hand and started massaging it into her hair. There's something about washing a woman's hair, something extremely sensuous. Tina must have thought so too, because she was moaning before I was half way finished. I rinsed her hair, then massaged in the conditioner.

When I finished she turned to me and said, "Wash me please." Her eyes were downcast and she looked as if she thought I'd reject her.

I try to never turn anyone down who says please, so I fulfilled her request. Tina has a great body. It was a lot of fun to wash it. I did it carefully and thoroughly. Her knees were weak by the time I finished. Mine were too.

Tina insisted on doing a through job of washing me as well. "Tina, if you keep this kind of thing up, we're going to end up doing more than I'm ready to do at the moment," I said, my voice nearly cracking from the tension.

"I'm not a virgin Ed. You're not going to be taking anything from me I'm not ready to give." She looked into my eyes and I could tell she was serious. This wasn't just a come on.

"Just give it a couple of days. I was planning to wait a week before we started looking for other people, but maybe we should start today."

"Ed, it won't matter if we find someone else or not. I'm still going to want you and I'll still wait until you're ready." She ran her hand from my shoulder to my wrist and my heart almost stopped.

"I still think we should get out there and start looking."

"How did you plan to do it?" She ran her hand down my arm again and then looked into my eyes again.

I tried to ignore the physical contact with this gorgeous young lady, but it was almost more than I could do. "Well, the police car I took yesterday has a PA system. I thought we could just drive up through LA and around the suburbs. We can drive slowly and broadcast on the PA asking people to meet us, maybe at a mall or something." I was proud of myself for keeping my voice strong and steady.

"Okay. Southfield Mall would be a good place. In front of the Sears store." Tina was smiling now. She knew she was having an effect on me.

"That sounds like a plan. Let's grab a sandwich for breakfast and hit the road."

We fixed a quick breakfast and were gassing up the Crown Vic at the police garage by nine o'clock. Tina was playing with the PA system while I filled us up.

I got back in the car and Tina said, "This is neat Ed. We can make a tape on the tape recorder here and play it through the PA system. That way we don't have to keep talking all of the time."

"That is nice," I said as I started the car. "This will sound less threatening if you make the tape. Why don't you do that while I get us up the road a ways."

"Okay, I guess... Let me get a new tape in."

I could hear her fumbling with the recorder and then I heard the distinct click of the recorder being started. "We are trying to find people to form a group for survival. A group of people has a far greater chance of surviving than a single person does. If you are interested, meet us in front of the Sears store in the Southfield Mall at five o'clock today or tomorrow."

She turned it off and asked, "Is that okay?"

"It's better than I could have done Tina." I said, trying to reassure her.

Tina continued recording and made approximately twenty repetitions of the message before she started screwing up.

"We should also be on the alert for anyone who might run out into the street when they hear us," I said when she had stopped recording.

"Yeah, but we should be sure the guns are loaded just in case it's someone who is out to do us harm."

"You are a cynical young lady Tina, but you are absolutely right. We have no way of knowing that everyone who responds to us will be upright citizens."

We drove on, slowly while Tina started the tape. She had to rewind it and start it playing again after each pass through the tape. When we got to areas that had been populous, I slowed down to around ten miles per hour. In open areas I sped up to about twenty.

We spent the morning making several passes through LA following different streets in different directions. We ate our lunch out of canned stuff we heated in a microwave. That's one thing I was certainly going to miss when the power went out. "You know Tina, whether we find other people or not, we're going to have to get out of the cities."

"Yeah, I was thinking of that. We're going to have to become farmers aren't we?" She didn't sound disappointed, but there was a little fear in her voice.

"Farmers and hunters. There are going to be your normal wild animals, plus cattle, hogs, and sheep are going to go wild. We should try to capture some of them, but our children's children will be hunting them in the wild even if we don't have to."

"We can probably find a farm somewhere we can just move into."

"Yes, but it probably won't be in California. The farms here are too dependent on irrigation. This is fine as long as dams are in place to hold the water, and the means to deliver the water to the farms is in place. The problem is, these things won't last long. Earthquakes and floods will take them out."

"Where do you think we should go?" Again, there was a touch of anxiety in her voice.

"Well, we'll want somewhere where the winters aren't so cold they'll be a problem, and the summers are mild without being overly hot. We want a place where there are few if any earthquakes or floods or tornadoes. I'd say somewhere in the Midwest. Maybe Kentucky or Tennessee."

"That's a long way from here, Ed. Do you think anyone from here would be willing to go with us?"

"You've got a good point there. I just don't know. Maybe we'll strike out completely."

We spent the early afternoon driving through Hollywood and some of the other outlying areas. At four o'clock, we headed for the Mall, and waited in front of the Sears store until after six. Not a single person showed up. We were both discouraged, but we realized it had been a long shot to begin with.

We went back to the lab and fixed a nice dinner. I've always found that a full belly makes me think better, that is if it doesn't put me to sleep. I sat down in the recliner in the living room of the apartment and Tina came and sat on my lap.

"You know, young lady, you got me thinking. I think we're going about this all wrong."

Tina looked puzzled. "How should we be going about it?"

"Right now, the people who survived here on the west coast don't have any incentive to team up with others. They have electricity, there is plenty of food, and the weather is nice."

"Are people really that short sighted Ed?"

"I'm afraid they are. I'm sure there are some who are thinking ahead just like we are, but I'd bet they are a small minority."

"So, what do we do?"

"For the people here on the coast, there's nothing we can do. Hopefully they'll see the light before the power fails and the food runs out. For us, we leave for the Midwest as soon as we can. That is, if you plan on going with me."

Tina looked stunned, then she said, "Ed, I don't plan on letting you out of my sight."

"Okay, I like that idea. This is what I've been thinking. We'll make up signs directing people to meet us on October first of this year. We'll head east and plant signs in every likely spot we see."

"Where would we have them meet us?"

"My dad was a career Air Force man. The last few years he was in the service, he spent as a recruiter in Crestwood, Missouri. It's a small town, actually a suburb of St. Louis, but I know it has a Wal-Mart store. That would be a good place to meet."

"I thought you said we should settle in Kentucky or Tennessee," Tina said, looking a little puzzled.

"Yes, but Missouri is centrally located. It would be a good meeting place. Besides, it would give us a chance to screen anyone who shows up. Maybe we could weed out the bad ones without them ever knowing where we will actually be settling."

"That makes sense, Ed. We can find a print shop and print up the signs. We could even laminate them in plastic so the weather doesn't get to them."

"For a sixteen year old, this is one sharp cookie," I thought.

"I was thinking of using those holders that realtors use to put signs in the yards of houses they're trying to sell. We can make the signs to fit those holders."

"You know," Tina said with a thoughtful expression, "I've seen little plastic boxes by some of those signs that have a description of the house. If we could find some of those boxes, we could print up something telling people what we're trying to do."

"That's a great idea Tina. Let's start working on it tomorrow. We could probably get things done faster if we split up, but after our experience with the dogs, I don't want to do that."

Tina's body shivered, thinking about the dogs. "We're going to need a damned truck to haul everything. We'll need all the sign stuff and food and clothing. The power probably won't be on east of the mountains."

"I was thinking more like a motor home. Most of them have quite a bit of storage space as well as cooking facilities and their own generator."

"You know, you're right. My next door neighbor got one last fall. He said he got a good deal on it because it was off-season. There were five of them, so I know it would sleep at least that many."

"I wonder if your neighbor's motor home is still there. It might be perfect for us. It would already be broken in so we wouldn't have to worry about getting a new one ready to go, but it's still almost new."

"It was there just a few days ago. I'm sure it still is." Tina was sounding excited now.

"Okay, let's go over tomorrow afternoon and see if we can find the keys for it. I'd like to see what it's like."

"That sounds good. Are we going to find a print shop in the morning?"

"I think that would be a good idea. I also want to stop by the police station here and pick up some more weapons. I'd like four or five of the M-16s with a lot of spare clips. I'd also like a sniper rifle and some handguns. We'll find a sporting goods store before we leave here and pick up a deer rifle or two."

"That sounds like quite an arsenal Ed. " I could see her eyes twinkling and see the suppressed smile pulling at the corners of her mouth.

"It is, Sweetheart. I don't know if we'll need any of it, but I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. My uncle was a gun nut. He used to take me out shooting when I was a kid. He had almost every kind of gun you could imagine, including M-16s and AK-47s."

Tina sat in stunned silence, her eyes searching mine, for a few seconds then she said, "You called me Sweetheart. Does that mean... ?"

I took a deep breath. I wasn't ready for her to ask that question, but the "Sweetheart" had just slipped out. I wasn't ready to let her down either, my eyes locked with hers and I replied, "I don't know what it means Tina. You are a beautiful young lady. You're cuddled up on my lap. You took a shower with me this morning. You slept in my bed last night. You say you want to have sex with me. I could easily fall in love with you. In fact, I may have already fallen in love with you. You have a great mind as well as a great body. I just don't want to be a burden to you if you find someone more your age."

Tina grabbed me and kissed me, hard. Then she pulled back and said, "For all of your being so smart, you are one of the dumbest men I've ever met. I was never attracted to kids my age. Why? Because they are kids. I've had sex exactly twice. Both times with the same guy. He was about your age."

"So what happened? Why only twice?"

"The first time was a disaster. It hurt. Bad. It wasn't very good for him either because of how bad I was hurting. I let him talk me into trying it again. It felt really good. I thought I was in love and I told him so afterwards. He looked scared and said; 'You're not going to make a big deal out of this are you?' I told him it was a big deal and that I wanted to be with him. He told me he was married and had two kids and wasn't about to break that up."

"You didn't know he was married?" I asked incredulously.

"No. He told me he had never been married. I was a fool, but I got over it. That was two years ago. I was only fourteen at the time."

I caressed her cheek, my heart aching for this brave young lady. "Tina I'm so sorry."

"There's nothing for you to be sorry about Ed. It happened, but I haven't let it bother me. I've dated quite a bit since then, but I never found anyone who turned me on. Ed, you turn me on. Is that blunt enough for you?" Her eyes locked with mine and I was captivated.

Although I was stunned by what she said, it also encouraged me to do what I really wanted to do. I pulled Tina to me and planted a series of light kisses on her cheeks, her nose, and finally her lips. I lingered, kissing softly, but Tina had other ideas. The kiss went from gentle and loving to a barnburner in seconds. Man that girl can kiss.

I stood up, carrying Tina with me and went into the bedroom. I gently placed her on the bed and started removing her clothes. When we were both naked, I kissed and licked every part of Tina's body. As I licked her thighs, Tina started trying to get my mouth to make contact with her pussy. I was avoiding it intentionally, but I finally made contact when she said, "Oh God, Ed. No one has ever done this to me before."

As my tongue made a broad stroke up between her labia, Tina went wild. She was thrashing about so strongly; I had to hold on to both of her butt cheeks just to remain in contact. I intended to bring her up slowly, but she went over the edge before I had really started. I eased off and let her body calm down before I started in again.

I used my lips to nibble at her outer lips, then when I thought she was ready, I started with the broad strokes of my tongue from the bottom of her lovely channel to the top. I intentionally avoided her clit, just letting her get used to the feel of my tongue on her nether lips. Finally, I started curling my tongue, probing deeper into her slit with each stroke. I could feel her start to build again so I slid first one, then two fingers inside her.

Tina gasped as my fingers probed her. She was hot and wet inside and very tight. I started running my tongue around her clit, just barely making contact. She exploded again within seconds so I just held on as she rode out her climax.

Before she could recover completely, I curled my fingers back and found the magic spot inside her vagina. Her body stiffened, so I pulled her clit into my mouth and started gently flicking it with the tip of my tongue. Tina screamed, then her whole body went slack. I had never had anyone pass out from an orgasm before, but I knew instantly that's what had happened.

I moved up beside her and held her until she started to recover, then I started gently kissing her face and her eyes. When her eyes fluttered open I was watching her closely. The look she gave me was of pure love. "I want you inside me," she whispered.

I didn't fight it. Hell, I couldn't have fought it if there had been fifty thousand people watching us. I moved between her legs and my extremely hard cock made contact with the lips of her pussy. There was no feeling around to find the right spot. I slid inside as if our parts were made for each other.

Tina moaned as the head of my cock slipped inside her and I echoed her moan as I felt her grip me. I was so turned on by this beautiful, young woman that I nearly went off before I was fully inside her. I knew I wasn't going to last long, but I could tell by the way her pelvis was thrusting against me that Tina wouldn't either.

I began a slow thrusting in and out, but Tina was thrusting twice as fast as I was. I just let her carry me to the rhythm she wanted and tried to hold off as long as I could. That wasn't very long. As I felt my juices start to burst from me, Tina started to scream. I collapsed on top of her and I could feel her body start to relax as well. I rolled over, keeping her body pinned to mine. We both fell asleep with her lying on top of me still joined together.



-------

Chapter 2

Day 22 - June 12

We did some kissing and snuggling before we got up the next morning, but we still got an early start. We had a quick breakfast and decided we needed to find out what size we needed to make the signs.

I knew where there was a realtor, so we headed there. We found the place without any problem, but whoever had been in the office last had locked it. I told Tina to stand aside, and used the butt of the M-16 to break the glass in the door.

We rummaged around inside for a few minutes before we found the storage room that had the sign holders. We took about twenty holders and loaded them into the trunk of the car. We looked for the plastic boxes to hold descriptions, but didn't find any. Then, we saw what this realtor used instead. They were heavy plastic envelopes that snapped around one of the regular sign holders. The flap on the envelope snapped closed, providing a weatherproof home for any papers inside.

There were six boxes of the plastic envelopes in the storage room and each box contained 200 envelopes. I liked the system so well; we ended up taking all six of the boxes. I didn't think there was any way we'd put up more than a thousand signs. We also loaded in another eighty holders and a couple of their signs.

We went back inside for one more look around. We didn't see anything we wanted, but before we left, I pulled Tina to me and kissed her softly and lovingly. When we broke apart, I could see the love in Tina's eyes and I hoped she could see it in mine.

-------

The print shop was a very modern establishment. It was also locked. My conscience was bothering me about breaking glass. This was an irreplaceable commodity in the near future, so I wanted to break as little as possible.

There was a hardware store just down the street, so we went there to see if we could find anything to help us with our breaking and entering. Yes, I had to break the glass in the door of the hardware to get in, but hopefully it would be the last time I'd have to do that.

We found a number of things that would be useful to us on our trip, and dutifully loaded them in the police car. There was a very nice reciprocating saw that would make short work of the lock on the print shop door, if electricity was available at the door. I took the saw and an assortment of blades to the car. I came back and found every metal cutting blade that would fit the saw they had in the store and loaded them up as well. I also took twenty, fifty, and hundred foot heavy-duty extension cords.

"How are you going to use the saw without electricity available outside the print shop?" Tina asked, a mischievous look in her eye.

"Well, my love, we've just had a change in plans. The car is loaded to the gills, so I think it's time to go check out your neighbor's motor home. If it's something we can use, we'll load everything from the car into it, then bring it back and park it right in front of the print shop. An RV should have an inverter in it that will provide enough electrical power to drive the saw, and we can then bring the stuff we print straight to our new movable home."

"All right! Do we bring the car back too?"

"Can you drive?" I asked teasingly.

"I'll have you know I'm a very good driver. I've had my license for six months now."

"Good for you. Yeah, I think the car will be handy until we're ready to leave. It'll be easier getting around in it than in the RV."

As we were driving out of town, we saw the first indications that dogs were soon to be a problem in Orange. A large bulldog of some kind, maybe a pit bull, was eating something just off the road. He raised his head up and watched us as we drove by. I reached over and took Tina's hand. It was shaking. We both felt better holding on to each other.

-------

The Beaver motor home was a beauty. It was primarily gunmetal blue with accents of white. It was forty-five feet long and looked like it had just pulled off the showroom floor. It had a 525 horsepower Cummings diesel engine and two one hundred-gallon fuel tanks. Even with the five or six miles to a gallon it probably got, that was around a thousand miles before we had to worry about refueling. The thing even had keyless entry. It had to have cost at least half a million.

I broke in the glass in the door of the house and Tina led me directly to a key rack in the kitchen. It was easy to pick out the keys to the RV, as there were only two sets on the rack.

We went back out and opened up what was going to be our new home for quite some time. We took a quick look around. The furnishings were posh, with a king sized bed in the master bedroom that had a very comfortable mattress.

Tina went over and bounced on the bed. "Hum," she said. I wonder if we could find a use for this?"

I laughed and gave her a little kiss before we continued exploring what was going to be our new home.

I was more interested in whether or not the thing would start, since it had been sitting for at least three weeks than I was in how it was outfitted. I knew we could add whatever we wanted, within reason. I had driven a diesel pickup for a while, so I knew all the tricks. I soon had the big engine purring.

I don't know if this thing had custom controls, or if things had just come a long way since I'd been around anything like this. The motor home my parents had was archaic compared to this. The instrument panel looked like the cockpit on an airplane. There were two fuel gauges, one for each tank. A light over each gauge showed which one was in use. The light would start flashing if the tank was in use and the fuel was low.

While the engine warmed up, I looked around. There was a fairly large propane tank on the back of the vehicle. I found it was used for the refrigerator, the range, and for heating. The tank showed a pressure just below the red line, so I knew it was full. I opened the valve on the tank and then went in and turned on the refrigerator. Thank God they had cleaned it out after they returned from their last trip.

Tina was busy unloading clothing from all of the closets, so I went out and checked out the luggage compartment. It was huge. I was really surprised at how much room there was in there. I unloaded all of the things we'd picked up at the realtor's from the car and packed them into the luggage compartment.

When I went back inside, Tina had a large pile of clothing in the living room floor. I didn't want to just throw it on the ground, so we carried it back into the house.

"There are four sets of sheets for the king bed," Tina said. "We should probably pick up a few more sets, because I have no idea when we'll be able to do laundry." She grinned really big and said, "We may use up a lot of sheets."

I grinned too, knowing what she was referring to. "Didn't you notice? The RV has a combination washer/dryer and even a dishwasher. We can dirty all of the sheets we want and just wash them."

"Oh, I wonder what you might be thinking about doing that would get the sheets dirty," Tina giggled.

"We need to be thinking about clothing too. I'm good with jeans and pullover shirts and maybe a few pairs of shorts. What are you going to need?"

"I'm pretty much a jeans person too." We shared a look, realizing we wouldn't have to worry about what other people thought about what we wore. "I'll need some blouses and some shorts. We'll both need underwear."

"We don't need to over do anything, because we can always pick up clothes. We'll need to think about food. You know," I said as a thought struck me, "we could pull out this small bed and put a large chest type freezer in its place. We'd have to make sure we got it fastened down well, but it would sure extend our meat supply."

"I was wondering what we were going to do for meat. I'll bet there's not much electricity once we cross the mountains. Can the RV supply power for the freezer?"

"Yeah, there's a 12.5 kW auxiliary generator that runs off of propane. We won't even have to leave the RV running all the time. The inverter in the RV will supply AC power while the RV is running, then the generator will kick in when the RV is turned off."

We went back up front and I checked all the gauges to make sure there were no warning lights. Everything was where it should be. One of the fuel tanks was showing empty and the other read a quarter of a tank.

"Are you ready to head back to Orange?" I asked. I was really starting to feel good about our prospects for survival.

"Yeah. Are you going to follow me or am I going to follow you?"

"If you know the way, I'll follow you. Just keep an eye on your rear view in case something would happen to the RV."

"Not a problem. Do you want me to take the shotgun?"

"Absolutely. I don't want you going anywhere without it. We'll pick you up something better tomorrow. I'm thinking of something semi-auto."

"Okay, let's move it. I'll wait until I see the RV move before I take off." Tina kissed me and slipped both hands down to squeeze my butt then headed for the car.

I watched Tina get in the car and start it up, then belted myself behind the wheel of the RV. I looked over the gauges once more and then dropped it into gear. I'll have to admit to a little thrill when it started moving.

We headed out for Orange with Tina in the lead. Damn, this RV handled like a Volkswagen. I knew I'd have to take corners wide, but other than that, it was a dream to drive.

When we got into Orange, I pulled up in front of the print shop and left the RV running. Using my new saw, I had the door open in just a few minutes. We had to look around for a while before we found the light switches, but there was really no problem.

We decided to print up a thousand signs. I started looking around at the different machines and found one that would take the size paper we wanted to use. Then we started a quest for the paper.

We found just what we wanted in a heavy card stock. I loaded five hundred sheets into the machine and brought another five hundred out to use as well.

The machine we were going to use was hooked up to a computer, so I turned both the computer and the printer on. The computer booted up to the program for controlling the printer. First I set the paper size, then selected card stock from the thickness menu. I set a half-inch margin on all sides, then found the area where you could design what you were going to print. Tina came up behind me and put her hands on my shoulders as I worked.

I selected a font with two inch high letters and typed in, "Help us re-start civilization!" I then selected a smaller type and typed, "Meet us at the Wal-Mart in Crestwood, Missouri on October 1st of this year."

"What do you think of this Tina?" I asked.

"It sounds good," she said as she rested her chin on the top of my head. "But, we're wanting to catch their attention. Could you make the top part in bright red letters?"

It took me a minute to figure it out, but I made the change and Tina said it looked much better. Just before I started printing I remembered we wanted double sided printing. I made that selection and then selected the number of copies as one. I hit the start button, and the machine grabbed the first sheet and sucked it in.

To me it looked perfect, so I asked Tina what she thought.

"It looks good, but we need to laminate it to see how it'll look then. There's a huge laminator over here," she said, pointing at the machine.

I went over and turned it on. The damned thing was huge, and thankfully, fully automatic. I keyed in the paper size and the size we wanted the laminate to be. There was a feed tray, so I put our single copy on top of the tray and hit the go button.

It took about twenty seconds for the laminated sign to pop out the other side, but it looked nice when it did. "Let's see if this will fit the sign holder," I said.

We went outside to get one of the holders, and I saw a dog off in the distance. "Keep your gun ready, Sweetheart," I said as I pulled out a sign holder.

The sign was just slightly too large for the holder. We took the holder back inside with us and I went back to the laminating machine. I cut down the size of the laminate and fed a blank sheet of the card stock into the machine and started it.

When it came out the other side, I looked it over and there was still plenty of laminate around the edges. It also fit the sign holder perfectly.

I went back to the printer and started a run of 498 copies. When the first few had come out, I took them to the laminator and started it doing its thing.

We found another printer set up like the first one, using eight and a half by eleven paper and fired it up to lay out the information sheet. We typed up a list of what we wanted to accomplish, and added that we were probably going to end up in Kentucky or Tennessee. We also reiterated where and when we were going to meet. The last thing on the sheet read: All races and religions are invited. If you are prejudiced, don't bother coming to meet us.

Tina started it up while I brought out four boxes of paper. I figured to leave around twenty of these with each sign. We put in about four hours working on the printing, then decided to call it quits for the day. I figured we were about half way through. We shut things down, and I carried a box of paper outside to prop against the door to make sure it stayed closed.

We went to the Sears store in the mall, but after waiting an hour we gave it up as a lost cause. We fixed a nice dinner back in the lab. After dinner I sat in the recliner again and Tina snuggled on my lap. We kissed and cuddled and got comfortable.

I told Tina that tomorrow night we should stay in the RV just to see how well we could sleep on the mattress. It had seemed good when I had lain on it for a few minutes, but if there were going to be any problems with it I wanted to find out now. "We should really make love and try it out that way too," Tina said seriously. "We wouldn't want a mattress we could sleep on but not make love on."

God I love this woman/child. "The first thing we're going to do in the morning is complete our arsenal," I told Tina. "We've seen dogs twice today, and that has me a little worried."

"You know, something else I was thinking about is, what happened to all of the zoo animals. Did they all die in their cages, or did some compassionate zoo keeper let them out to fend for themselves?" We both shivered thinking about it.

"Oh shit. That's all we need. I'd sure hate to run into a hungry lion or tiger."

"Yeah, so would I. Are you going to teach me how to use an M-16? Would an M-16 stop a lion?"

"Oh yeah. An M-16 will stop just about anything. I remember reading once about what a punch they pack. I don't remember the distance, but it said they'd punch a four-inch hole in a man. I plan on teaching you how to shoot every type of weapon we can find."

We went to bed early. Our lovemaking that night was even better than the night before. After her fourth or fifth orgasm, Tina sobbed, "Why the hell didn't I meet you sooner? I had no idea it could be this good."

I smiled at her as I rested before working on my own climax. "Maybe it's just that old 'Last Man on Earth' syndrome. Maybe that's why it's so good."

"I don't think so lover. I think it's because you care enough to want to make it feel good for me. Roy was just out to get his rocks off when I did it with him. He couldn't care less if I enjoyed it or not."

"I do care for you Tina," I said seriously.

"And I care for you, Ed"

Sleep came easy that night. We were both tired and both well loved.

Day 23 - June 13

Our first stop the next morning was the police station. I found three more fully automatic M-16s, which we promptly loaded into the RV. I also found twenty clips for the M-16s, and ten boxes of ammunition. I gathered that up and loaded it into the RV as well, along with half a dozen clip pouches.

I came back in for another look around but didn't see much of interest. I had decided I wanted to get shotguns that could be used for game as well as for riot control. As I was getting ready to close the arms locker, I noticed the handcuffs. There was about a dozen pairs, each with a key attached. I loaded them into a box and took them as well. I looked around a few more minutes and found a couple of bullhorns and extra batteries for each. I grabbed on to these as well.

Our next stop was a sporting goods store. After breaking into their firearms locker, I selected two 12 ga. Browning Gold Hunter shotguns. These would take any shell from birdshot to 000 buckshot. I loaded up on all kinds of shells for them as well.

I selected two Remington Model 7400 Synthetic rifles in the 30-06 caliber for deer and cattle hunting, and all the 30-06 ammunition they had in the store for them. These semi-auto rifles were almost as light in weight as the M-16s, weighing only seven and a half pounds. Both rifles were fitted with ATN 8-24X75 scopes. I knew we'd have to sight them in later, but we weren't in immediate need of them, so we had plenty of time.

I picked out two 9mm Glock 17L handguns with 19 shot clips. I also found two extra clips for each handgun, and cleaned out the store of 9mm ammunition. After loading everything else in the RV we cleaned out the store of knives. I have no idea how many years it's going to be before we'll be able to manufacture knives of the quality we have today, so I want to preserve every one we can.

We spent most of the morning going through the sporting goods store. We also took several flashlights and lanterns and a load of batteries for them. We loaded up a couple of sleeping bags and some space blankets as well.

When we finished there, we went back to the print shop and spent the rest of the day finishing our printing.

We were so tired when we finished, we hardly had the strength to fix dinner, let alone make love. We heated some soup in the microwave and made a sandwich and called it good.

Day 24 - June 14

"Today's the day for finding us a freezer," I told Tina while we were eating breakfast. "There's an appliance store about ten blocks from here that should have what we need. Are you feeling muscular this morning?"

"I can help get it in Ed. I'm actually stronger than I look."

"That remains to be seen," I thought, but I didn't say anything. Our first task was removing the daybed where we were going to put the freezer. It really wasn't bad. Four bolts held down clamps, which held the legs of the bed. We moved it out and stored it in the lab. We cleared out a large path so we could get the freezer into place with the least amount of effort, then headed off to the appliance store.

We looked around the store for a few minutes, thinking about how many years it would be before anyone cared about the items on display. Then we found the freezers.

"I want a chest type freezer Tina. It will hold more, plus it will be easier to anchor it in place."

"What about this one?"

I measured it and could see there was plenty of room for it. It was a 21.6 cubic foot model and had two baskets inside. There was another similar one close by, so we took the baskets out of that one as well.

I went into the back and found a furniture dolly. It was a bit of a struggle getting the thing up on the dolly, but once we had it there we wheeled it out to the RV with no problem.

One of the things I'd liked about the RV when I saw it was the wide doors. If the doors hadn't been as wide as they were, we'd never have gotten it in. As it was, it took us over an hour to get the freezer inside and sitting where we wanted it.

The freezer was sitting directly above the luggage compartment. I figured if I drilled down through the floor that's where we'd come out.

We found a phone directory in the appliance store and I looked for a machine shop. We found one about thirty blocks away, and went to it. The door of the place was standing open, so we approached the place carefully.

No one seemed to be around, and I couldn't see that anything inside had been disturbed. I don't know if the owner had just left it open before he died, or if someone else had been there after IT had happened.

I found what I was looking for fairly quickly, and it was in lengths that I could use. I took two thirty-inch pieces of four-inch angle iron and one sixty-inch piece over to the large drill press they had. I drilled three 9/16-inch holes in each of the two smaller pieces and five holes in the longer piece.

We loaded the RV and went back to the hardware store. Tina looked so cute sitting in the shotgun seat I just had to kiss her before we got out. This led to a little mutual groping before I decided we needed to get back to work.

I picked up an industrial quality half-inch drill and a 9/16 bit. To make a long story short, I placed the angle iron around the base of the freezer and drilled holes through the floor in the appropriate places. I then used half-inch bolts with large washers in the luggage compartment to secure the angle iron to the floor.

It was just about lunchtime, so we took a break and chowed down. Tina is not only fun to look at, she's fun to talk to as well. She's also a real tease. We had a nice lunch, then started looking for food to stock the freezer.

"Where do you think we'd find the best meat?" I asked.

"I don't know. Are you thinking about taking me out to dinner?" Tina asked with a coy smile.

"No my dear, but you just gave me a great idea of where to find the best meat."

Tina ran her hand up my leg and said, "I know where there's some first quality meat."

Tina's tease was so incongruous I had to break out laughing. This got Tina laughing too. Finally I said, "I'm serious, Love."

"Okay, where's is it?"

"At the best steakhouse in town," I said as I started the RV. I had checked the freezer when we had finished lunch and it was cooling nicely.

The Cattlemen's Steak House, was definitely the best in the area. After breaking in we found a large, walk-in freezer, fully loaded. They had porterhouses, T-bones, rib eyes, and New York Strips. You name it, they had it. They also had some of the best pork I'd ever seen, and plenty of chicken, whole and parts. We loaded the freezer about three quarters full, then left to find a grocery store.

Several cases of frozen orange and grapefruit juice followed the meat into the freezer along with some frozen vegetables. We filled up what space there was left with frozen French Fries. There was still quite a bit of space in the luggage compartment, so we finished filling that up with canned vegetables and soups.

We also stocked up on pastas and condiments of every description. When we finished every cupboard was full, and there were boxes of stuff in all of the closets.

I smiled at Tina and said, "I don't think we're going to starve. Can you think of anything else we need?"

"Besides more time in bed?" she asked.

"Yes, besides that," I grinned.

"Bed linens clothes and shoes."

"Okay, we'll get those things in the morning, then head out. How does that sound?"

"Mahvelous dahling. Tonight I want you to screw my brains out in our new bed though."

"That sounds fantastic dahling," I said.

It was.

For some reason, even though we were going to be staying in the RV tonight, we felt we needed to drive back over to the lab. We saw two packs of dogs on the way. There wasn't a small dog in either pack. From the look on Tina's face I could see she was still frightened by them.

We fixed dinner in the RV and were surprised at how well the kitchen layout worked for two people. We worked together with ease, although there was a lot of intentional collisions. Dinner was better than either of us had eaten since civilization ended.

I don't know about screwing Tina's brains out, but we sure had a good time trying. When we were cuddled up afterwards, Tina said, "I love you Ed."

My heart just about stopped beating. I had been having those feelings for her for the last couple of days, but I was afraid to tell her. "I love you too Tina."

"I know," she said, then snuggled in and went to sleep.

Day 25 - June 15

We fixed a light breakfast then headed off to find a clothing store. When Tina had mentioned shoes the night before, she got me thinking, so I stopped at the sporting goods store again. We went in and picked up two pairs each of the best hiking boots in the store. At least I hoped they were the best. We didn't know anything about hiking boots, so we found the ones with the highest price tag. After I got them broken in, they were as comfortable as the tennis shoes I normally wear.

I asked Tina what kind of clothing store she wanted to go to and she said Eddie Bauer would be fine with her. It only took a few minutes to break in, and a few more to locate the light switches. I took a cart and went looking for stuff for me, and Tina went to the women's section.

I picked up ten pairs of loose fitting jeans, and six pairs of shorts. They had pocket tee shirts, so I picked up a dozen of them. I picked a dozen packages of briefs and another dozen golf shirts. I was ready to go.

I took my things out to the RV and put them away. When I came back in, Tina was naked from the waist down, getting ready to try on some panties. I gave her a wolf whistle, then cracked up when she turned around and stuck her tongue out at me.

"Sweetheart, you have no idea how cute you look," I told her.

"For a second there I panicked when you whistled," she said. "My first thought was that it was someone else. Then I realized it had to be you."

"Well, you'd best watch out little girl, or this big bad wolf is going to come over there and eat that sweet little pussy that keeps peeking at me."

Tina jumped up on the edge of the table, smiled, then spread her legs wide apart. I don't know about you, but I couldn't pass up something so tempting. I went over to her, knelt down in front of her and placed a kiss on her lips.

Tina let out a big sigh and ran her fingers through my hair. I started kissing her inner thigh, moving toward her center. I skipped over her pussy and kissed her other thigh. Then I moved up and used my lips to gently tug on her pubic hair. By now her hips were arching, searching for contact with the place she wanted it most.

I pulled her left outer lip into my mouth and gently nibbled it with my lips and licked it with my tongue. I then repeated the process on her right lip. When I thought she was ready, I licked slowly from the bottom of her cleft to the top. She gasped when I lightly flicked her clit just once.

I kept up the long slow licks for a couple of minutes, penetrating just a little deeper with each pass. I slipped the middle finger of my right hand into her passage and curled it back, looking for her G spot. I must have found it, because she started moaning. I latched onto her clit, which was now fully extended, with my lips and began to suck on it as I flicked it rapidly with my tongue.

Tina's moan became a shriek, and then her shriek became a scream. Finally she collapsed back on to the counter full of panties. I gently cleaned her pussy with my tongue and got up and took her in my arms.

She lay there a few minutes, then smiled and said, "I didn't think you'd really do it."

"Don't ever tempt me with that beautiful body unless you mean to carry through." I told her. "I'm just a weak man and I don't withstand temptation very well."

"Weak man my ass," she mumbled as she got up and pulled on the panties she'd been holding.

"Perfect fit," I said.

"Not bad. Help me find all the ones this size that they have."

We found about twenty pairs. Tina said she was finished, so we loaded everything she'd picked up into the RV. "Let's go back and pick up a couple of pairs of tennies for each of us," I said. "I know we can find them most anywhere we go, but I'd rather have them with us."

It only took us a few minutes to get the shoes. I looked at my watch and saw that it was only 9:30 AM. "It's still plenty early. Are you up for taking off today?"

"Yeah. I already said goodbye to our first home. I'm ready if you are."

We got in the RV and headed for I-5. There was a truck stop at the on ramp, so I pulled in and filled up both tanks with diesel. That took almost as long as it did to get clothes.

-------

We put up our first sign at the on ramp to I-5. We took I-5 north until we hit 99 where it broke off to Bakersfield. At Bakersfield we took two exits and put up signs at each and did it three more times in Fresno. Even with all the stops, we made it to Sacramento by six o'clock. I was feeling a little tired, so I suggested we pull over for the night.

Tina was all for it. I took an exit and found a strip mall with a large, almost empty, parking lot. I pulled into a nice open area, shut down the engine and turned on the generator. The parking lot was nearly level, so I didn't even bother with the levelers.

Tina was starting dinner when I went back into the living area. "Why don't you get a shower while I finish dinner?" she suggested. That sounded like a great idea, so I did. I had decided early on that I wasn't going to let myself fall apart, so I still showered and shaved every day. It was my first contribution to keeping civilization alive.

When I went back into the dining area, Tina was just putting dinner on the table. She was wearing her birthday suit. God does she have a beautiful birthday suit! I raised my eyebrows at her but didn't say a thing. She just smiled and continued serving dinner.

When she was seated, she looked at me and said, "This morning was a real eye opener to me. I was shocked when I thought it might be someone else whistling at me, then later, when I thought about it, I realized it wouldn't have really bothered me if someone else had seen me naked. I think society was too hung up on keeping our body parts covered. I don't think we should let our new society become that way."

"I agree with you completely lover," I said as I got up and removed my clothes. "The only problem is going to be convincing everyone else of that."

"But Ed, we cover up the most beautiful parts of our bodies," she said, then stood up. "Just look at me. Tell me my tits and ass aren't beautiful."

I cracked up. When I managed to calm down I said, "There's just no false modesty in you, is there?"

"No there isn't," she said, sounding halfway pissed off. "I think your cock and your ass are beautiful too. Why should I say my butt isn't beautiful when I think it is?"

"You shouldn't love. It is beautiful. What about the person who weighs six hundred pounds and has twenty rolls of fat between their tits and their pussy? What do you say to them?"

"I had an aunt who was grossly over weight. She had the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen. Besides that Ed, people who are grossly over weight aren't going to make it in the new world. People can only get that fat if they have other people to take care of them. Everyone in the new society will have to work."

"You are one smart lady, Tina. Okay, edict number one for the new society. Clothing is optional for any occasion. Nudity is appropriate at any function."

Tina giggled. "When you say it like that, I can see what you mean about having problems getting it across. We should make edict number two be: Nudity is not an invitation to intimacy. If he or she says no, it means NO!"

"Absolutely. Now, finish eating because I'm feeling like being intimate."

"Yes sir, oh mighty lord and master."

We finished eating and I went to sit in the easy chair. A few seconds later and Tina was in my lap. We were kissing and cuddling and petting when my heart stopped. Someone had knocked on the door. Tina let out a little gasp, and I jumped like I'd been shot.

My brain went into overdrive. "Get one of the shotguns and stay out of sight of the door," I whispered. I have to give Tina credit. She reacted like she'd been trained for years.

I grabbed the shorts I'd taken off during dinner and slipped them on. I went over to the door and opened it, having no idea what I'd find.

What I found was one of the prettiest black women I'd ever seen. I was so shocked I couldn't get my mouth to work. "I'm Sylvina Lathrop," She said with a little smile. "May I come in?"

I held the door open and stepped aside. "I'm Ed James. It's nice to meet you Sylvina." When she passed me, I closed the door and locked it.

"Please call me Syl, Ed. Is there anyone else with you?"

"I am," Tina said as she stepped into the open. She was still nude, and carried the shotgun pointed at the floor. "I'm Tina Baronkowski or at least I was. I'm Tina James now." I smiled at her and nodded my head. Her return smile could have lighted the entire west coast.

"You are so beautiful," Syl said. "I'm sorry if I interrupted anything."

"No, we hadn't gotten into anything yet," Tina said. "Ten more minutes and we might not have answered the door though."

Syl has a wonderful laugh, and she used it fully. "Would you like for me to leave for a while Tina?"

"No, that's okay. We get so little company lately."

Now I cracked up. "Syl, it is so nice to see someone else. Tina and I were beginning to wonder if we were the last ones alive."

"I've been pretty scared too guys. I've been alone since my husband died during the first week of the sickness. For the last few days I've had to hide out. There have been packs of dogs wandering around."

"Yeah, we've run into them too," Tina said. "That's how Ed and I met. He saved me from a pack of dogs."

"That must have been very frightening," Syl said. "What are you guys doing now?"

"We're just passing through here," I said. "We're hoping to set up a farming community back in the Midwest somewhere. Somewhere that we don't have to use irrigation to raise crops."

While I was saying this Tina got one of the information sheets and handed it to Syl. We watched her read it, and saw her smile when she read the last lines.

"Do you really mean that part about prejudiced people staying away?"

"Bet your ass," Tina smiled. "That goes both ways though."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

Tina looked at me and then back at Syl, then back at me and again back at Syl. I thought I knew what she wanted, but I decided to make her say it. When she looked at me again, I nodded.

"Syl." Tina said. "Why don't you just come with us. There's plenty of room in the RV."

I could see the smile forming on her face and the relief flowing through her body. "God, I was hoping you'd ask," she said. "Are you sure it would be okay?"

"Absolutely," I said.

"You should hear the edicts of our new society before you make up your mind though," Tina grinned.

"Okay, what are they?" Syl asked with a little trepidation.

Tina explained to Syl our feelings about nudity.

Syl laughed her throaty laugh again. "I think I can live with that. I've always been a closet nudist anyway. I never wear clothes when I'm home alone."

"What we're trying for is a society with no prejudices," I said. "People have been prejudiced about nudity for centuries. I knew a man a few years ago that told me he'd been married for 26 years and he'd never seen his wife naked. He was proud of the fact and said it was an example of how virtuous his wife was."

"I guess I should make a confession to you guys. I'm bi-sexual. I like women as well as men. There is a lot of prejudice about that too."

"It doesn't bother me," I said. "I think our new society should be understanding of all sexual practices. Things like choking yourself or inflicting or wanting pain seem pretty stupid to me, but if that's what you want and your partner is willing, it's your business."

"You really surprise me Ed. You really don't fit any mold, do you?"

"I try not to."

"Tina, how do you feel about two women having sex?"

Tina glanced at me, then back at Syl. I could tell she liked Syl, but I think she was a little bit afraid Syl was coming on to her. "I've never tried it, Syl. I'm pretty inexperienced sexually. Until I met Ed, I'd only had sex twice before. I guess I'd try it if the circumstances were right. I've found that sex with a man is very satisfying though."

"How would you feel if I wanted to have sex with Ed?"

Tina and Syl locked eyes and I was afraid for a minute there was going to be a confrontation. "I've been thinking about that ever since you walked in the door. It would only be natural for it to come up. I love Ed and he loves me. I think we all have the capacity to love more than one person at a time. So, I guess I'm saying it would be okay with me. I'd want to be there though."

"Do I have a say in this?" I asked.

Both of them looked at me then said in unison, "No."

"Is there anything you need to get for tonight?" I asked.

"I should go and get my tooth brush. Before we take off tomorrow I'll need to pick up some clothes and run by the pharmacy to get refills for my birth control pills."

"Oh shit! I need to get birth control pills too. Mine will run out in a couple of days," Tina said.

"Okay ladies, we'll get pills and clothes in the morning. We have a spare tooth brush you can use tonight Syl."

"That sounds like a plan," Syl said as she got up and started removing her clothes.

My mouth fell open when she removed her bra. Man that woman has some hefty hooters. Tina giggled and pointed at me.

Syl just smiled and asked, "Are you opting to wear clothes then Ed?"

"No, Syl. Just enjoying the view," I said as I slipped off my shorts. I wasn't even embarrassed by my obvious boner.

We sat around and talked for a while. Syl had been an elementary school teacher before IT happened. Her husband had been an engineer. They had no children because her husband hadn't wanted any.

"We probably wouldn't have been together much longer anyway," she said. "I wanted kids, he didn't. I'm thirty years old and my biological clock is ticking loudly. He'd always said we'd have kids when the time was right, but a couple of months ago he admitted to how he really felt."

"That's too bad Syl. I hope things turn out better for you in the future," I said.

"I'm sure they will," she smiled. "I'm sure babies are going to be a premium now."

"I'm sure they are. I just hope we can get enough like minded people together to form a big enough gene pool for the race to survive."

"You haven't seen any other people?" Tina asked.

"I'm afraid not Tina. I thought I might have heard a car going by one night, but by the time I got outside, I didn't see anything."

"The RV has a CB radio in it, and I think we should have it on at all times," I said. "We'll institute that policy first thing tomorrow."

"That sounds like a good idea," Tina said. "Should we have a police scanner too?"

"I don't think so Sweetheart. My hearing you on the scanner was purely an accident. If you hadn't taken refuge in a police station, you'd have never been on the police bands."

"Three of us aren't many to start with," Syl said, "But, at least it's a start. Most people will show up in response to your signs."

"I hope so," I said. "Now, I think it's bedtime. Would you help Syl find a place to sleep Tina?"

"Sure Ed. Keep the bed warm for me."

I had almost dozed off when I felt Tina's warm body slide in beside me. Ten seconds later I felt another warm body slip in on the other side of me.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"I just didn't see the use of dirtying more linen," Tina said.

I rolled onto my back and put my arms around both women. "That's fine. I'm going to sleep ladies. Good night Tina," I said as I gave her a loving kiss. "Good night Syl," I said and kissed her too. Damn she tasted good.



-------

Chapter 3

Day 26 - June 16

I awoke the next morning, still snuggled between two beautiful naked women. Junior was wide-awake and standing tall. I was wondering how I was going to slide out from between these two ladies without waking them when I saw Syl's eyes open. She looked at me and smiled.

"I was afraid it was just a dream," she said. "You are a perfect gentleman, Ed." Syl looked down at the tent in the sheet, smiled and said, "Well, maybe not perfect."

"I have to go pee, Syl. That's the reason Junior is standing at attention." I smiled at her and said, "That and the fact I'm snuggled between two gorgeous women."

"I guess I'd better let you go and relieve the pressure," she sighed. "I suppose you're up for the day?"

"Yes, I'll start a pot of coffee as soon as I take a leak."

"It'll be started before you get out of the bathroom," she said as she slipped out of bed.

I followed her and made my stop in the bathroom. By the time I got to the kitchen, I could already smell the coffee. Syl was sitting at the table, but got up when I came in. "I have to make a potty stop myself," she said. She then put her arms around me and kissed me soundly.

Okay, I'll admit it. I kissed her back. I mean, what would you do. We broke the kiss and she took off to the bathroom.

When she came back out, I was working on my first cup of coffee. Syl fixed one for herself then came over and sat on my lap. "You really don't see me as different because I'm black do you?" she asked.

"Oh, you're different from Tina alright. Your skin is a lot darker for one thing. Has anyone ever told you it is a beautiful coffee with cream color?"

Syl smiled, "No one has ever told me it is a beautiful color."

"You also have bigger breasts than Tina," I said as I gently tweaked her nipple. "Your hair is a different color, and your eyes, oh God your eyes, are the most lovely shade of brown I have ever seen."

Syl was smiling from ear to ear by now. She was just starting to say something when Tina came in.

"What are you two up to?" Tina asked.

"I was just telling Syl how lovely she is," I said.

"She is lovely isn't she? She has her lovely ass parked in my spot right now though. If she doesn't make room for me I might bite that lovely ass."

Syl laughed and moved over on to one of my legs. Tina took the other one. We sat and sipped coffee for a while, and then Syl got up and started breakfast. I went up front and started the RV. When I came back, both women were working on breakfast, so I poured myself a cup of coffee and sat back down.

We finished breakfast fairly quickly so I asked Syl if she knew of a pharmacy nearby. She said there was one here in the mall, so I drove over to it. I handed Tina one of the shotguns, and took one of the M-16s for myself. Syl said she had never fired a gun, so I told her we'd teach her before the day was over.

With Tina standing guard, I broke into the pharmacy. We found the prescription drugs were in a locked room, so I had to break into that as well. We loaded up a year's supply of birth control pills for each of the women, and then I suggested we pick out some other medications as well. There was a PDR handy, so we took that too.

I wanted a good supply of antibiotics, so we loaded up on several different kinds. We also took a supply of painkillers, and various other drugs we thought might come in handy.

As we were leaving I asked the women if they had an adequate supply of feminine products. They didn't, so we loaded up on them as well. I also laid in a supply of razor blades and shaving cream.

I asked Syl if she'd rather pick up her own clothes or lay in a supply like Tina and I had. She thought about it for a minute then said there was nothing that she had before that she really wanted. We made a stop at a clothing store, and another one at a sporting goods store to get her some hiking boots. We hit the road for Reno at 10:00 AM.

-------

I don't know how many stops we made that day to put up signs. I lost track after six or seven. Suffice it to say that a trip that would normally take around three hours took us almost six. None of us bothered to put on clothes that day. I was really enjoying the freedom I felt not having to wear them. Thank God for cloth seats though.

We pulled into the Reno area just before 4:00 PM. I found a truck stop where we could fill up our diesel. Unfortunately, Reno had no power. We had anticipated this, and I had picked up a small, electrically powered pump from the hardware in Orange. It didn't take us long to find the diesel tank, or to remove the cap. It took forever for the small pump to fill the tank though. I vowed to be on the lookout for something faster.

We did manage to leave the place with full tanks. Next, I wanted to give the women some shooting lessons. We got back on the highway, and exited when we reached the last Reno exit. We soon found a place where there was a small hill around fifty feet from the edge of the road. I looked around and found some trash to use for targets.

I started with the shotguns and went over how to load them. "Just point it at what you want to shoot then squeeze the trigger," I told Syl.

She jerked the trigger on the first shot and missed completely. I had her do it again, and told her to pretend there was an egg between her finger and the trigger. She did better this time, and by her fifth or sixth shot she was shooting like a pro. I let Tina practice a few rounds with the shotgun, but she was a natural and didn't need a lot of practice.

I repeated the process with the M-16 for both women, having them fire single shots, then three round bursts. Tina was by far the better shoot, but both were doing well enough by the time they'd run through four clips each.

The Glocks were where the fun came in. Both were fitted with laser sights. I explained how to point at what they wanted to shoot then squeeze the trigger until the laser came on. Tina was ecstatic when the little red light appeared on the soda can she was shooting at. She lined up the little red dot directly in the center of the can and squeezed. The can must have jumped ten feet, and turned itself inside out.

I repeated the process with Syl and I knew she had found her weapon. She never missed a shot.

I taught them how to disassemble and assemble all of the different weapons we had and showed them how to clean them. When they could perform all of the operations by themselves, I pronounced the training a success. We found a nice level parking lot and settled in for the night.

We had a light dinner. No one felt like eating a lot. Then we went into the living area to relax. "You know ladies, we really need to talk," I said.

"I don't know why," Tina replied. "Syl and I talked everything out last night. We've made our decisions of how things should be."

"Would you mind telling me what those decisions are?"

Syl laughed her throaty laugh. "I guess we'll have to tell him some time Tina."

They looked at each other like they were sharing some deep dark secret, then both of them started laughing.

"Yeah, I guess now is as good a time as any. He's going to squirm and fight it, but if we work together we can take him."

"Do you think it will be that bad?" Syl giggled.

"Worse. He fought me for several days. Ed, we've decided to share you."

"You've what? How the hell are you going to manage that? What if I won't cooperate?" I was thoroughly shocked.

"Oh, you'll cooperate. We are two horny women, and I can vouch for the fact that you are a horny man. We work together, play together, eat together, and sleep together. Now we're going to fuck together," Tina said. She was very confident.

"Ed, I've heard that every man dreams of a threesome. You're just going to be having a threesome 24-7," Syl said with a little smile. "That is, unless you think I'm ugly or something. From the reaction I got from you this morning, when I sat on your lap, I don't think that's the case."

"No. I don't think you're ugly Syl. You and Tina are two of the most beautiful women I've ever seen. Even if you weren't beautiful, you have a great mind and a great personality. I'm attracted to those as much as I am to your looks."

"Then what's the problem, Ed? Is it the love thing? It took us, what, three or four days to fall in love? I'll bet it doesn't even take that long for you and Syl."

"It hasn't taken me that long to fall in love with Ed," Syl said. "When we were talking last night about how we wanted society to be, I started falling. This morning when I asked him if it bothered him that I was different, he started listing my differences, but he made me feel good about them. Did you know he told me I have a beautiful skin color?"

"You do have a beautiful skin color," Tina said. "I also agree with Ed that you also have a beautiful mind and a beautiful personality."

"Thank you Tina. After what he said this morning, I was head over heels in love with him. I don't know if he realizes how lucky he is. Two women adore him and want to share him. Even if there were a thousand men to every woman I'd feel the same way."

"I agree Syl. I feel the same way. The only thing I don't like about him is his pig headedness."

"Would you girls shut up for a minute? I have some things I'd like to say."

They looked at each other and nodded.

"Tina, I thought I was too old for you, so I resisted you. I fell in love with you anyway. I couldn't help myself."

I took a sip of my soda and looked at Syl. "Syl, we've known each other for 24 hours. That's way too soon for anyone to be in love. At least it was before IT happened. Now, things have changed. Maybe it's desperation for all of us, I don't know. I do know that for whatever reason, I love you too."

Both women moved over and sat on my lap. I kissed each of them in turn, then watched as they kissed each other. Damn that was hot. When they came up for air, I said, "Tonight we are not going to have sex. We can cuddle and pet, but I want all of us to think about this for one more night. I also want you to think of this. I don't want a one night stand, or a 'we'll keep this going until something better comes along'. I am willing to make a commitment to the two of you, and I would like for you to make a commitment to me."

Tina started to say something, but I cut her off. "Please don't answer tonight. I'd really like for all of us to sleep on it."

We had a very nice cuddle before we drifted off to sleep. It is wonderful going to sleep between two lovely naked women.

Day 27 - June 17

It's also pretty nice waking up between two lovely naked women.

When I opened my eyes, Syl was laying there looking at me. I pulled her to me and kissed her, morning breath and all. "Sorry about my breath," I said. "You are just so lovely I had to kiss you."

We snuggled for a minute or two then got up so I could make a bathroom run. Syl had coffee brewing when I got out of the bathroom. I gave her another hug and kiss, and then she excused herself for a bathroom trip of her own.

When she came back in, I had coffee ready for both of us. Syl smiled and snuggled onto my lap. She turned her head up and we shared a kiss, which started out to be gentle and loving, but soon turned into a five-alarm blaze.

When we broke the kiss I asked, "Have you given any thought about what we talked about last night?"

"Yes, and my answer is the same as it would have been then, only more emphatically so. I am ready to commit to you and to Tina. The three of us will be equal partners in the relationship. I'd like to call it a marriage, and since we are the only authority, I'd like for us to marry each other."

"I was thinking of a ceremony also. We can make it whatever we like, as long as it's meaningful to us. Let's talk to Tina when she gets up and see what her ideas are."

"In the mean time, can I have another one of those kisses?"

I didn't answer verbally, but I did answer orally. As we kissed, I caressed her breasts, then her buttocks. I let my fingers go between the cheeks and trail across her asshole. I gently stroked the lips of her sex, not penetrating, just caressing.

"I may just throw those damned birth control pills away," she said.

I smiled at her and kissed her nose. "I'd like that very much love, but I think we should wait until we at least find the place we're going to settle in."

Syl sighed. "I know that. I'm thinking it'll be a couple of years at least."

"No way! Six months, tops."

"You mean that, don't you?" Syl asked.

"Damned straight. I want to keep you barefoot and pregnant for the next ten years."

Syl giggled. "You sound like a redneck now."

"Not a redneck sweetheart, just a realist. Whatever kind of group we get together is going to need as many children as we can provide just to have a big enough gene pool to keep going. You were worried about race. In a hundred years, every one in the group is going to be of one race. Their color will be lighter than yours but darker than mine."

"That sounds perfect Ed. There are bound to be other groups that form though. What about them? What if our grand kids run into a group that was founded by racial bigots, be they black or white?"

"We'll have to prepare them for it Syl. We'll have to let them know that there are going to be people out there that will hate us for some reason or other, whether it's because of the color of our skin, or because of our marital practices, or because of our religious beliefs, or whatever."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I had hoped we could do it right this time, but just because we're doing it right doesn't mean everyone else will be."

"Remember the last thing on our information handout? The people who see that and can't agree to leave their prejudices behind are probably going to form groups of their own. Groups that teach the kind of hatred and distrust that we are trying to avoid. Eventually our groups will meet. Then all hell will break loose."

"Shit!"

"Shit what?" Tina asked as she walked unsteadily into the room.

"We were just discussing the fate of the world lover. Would you like some coffee?"

She nodded, so I fixed her a cup. I let her get about half a cup down before I asked her if she were ready to commit to Syl and I in matrimony.

Tina smiled at Syl and then at me. "Absolutely!"

"We were thinking some kind of ceremony would be nice. Something meaningful that would mark this as the beginning of our lives together."

"That would be nice," Tina said with misty eyes.

"Why don't you and Syl talk about it today and see what you can think of?"

Both women agreed they would work on it. We fixed breakfast and got started on our day's travel.

We weren't setting the world afire with our rate of travel, but we were in no hurry. We couldn't go at top speed because you never knew when you might find a car in the middle of the road. There weren't many of them, as most people knew their end was near, and went somewhere familiar to die. We did find a few cars on the highway though.

We put out signs at every opportunity, and had to make one stop at a realtor's to pick up additional holders. I know we must have passed quite a few people over the last few days, but other than Syl, we hadn't seen even one.

It was late in the afternoon when we pulled into Elko, Nevada, and I couldn't see trying to go on any further that day. We pulled into a parking lot and set up for the night. I decided to get a shower while the women were fixing dinner, but no sooner had I turned the water on than it quit.

I went back into the kitchen and asked if they needed any water to prepare dinner. "No, why?" Tina asked.

"Because, my love, I forgot all about filling the water tank. It's not going to be easy since this part of the country doesn't have electricity."

"I didn't think of that. What are we going to do?"

"I'll look at the connection and see if I can figure a way for us to pour water into it," I told them. "If we can, we'll find bottled water in a grocery store and fill it that way. I also need to check on dumping the sewage. I hate to just dump it on the ground, but we may have to do just that."

"Yuck," Tina said.

"I concur," Syl added.

It took us a while, but we did manage to fill the tank with the help of a piece of garden hose and a funnel. We ended up dumping the sewage down a storm drain. I hated to do it but didn't see any alternative.

By the time we finished with all that, it was getting dark. I was informed by the women that we had to be up before sunrise, so we should get to bed. I started a little kissing and petting when we were all settled in, but I was informed I had to wait for our wedding before I could do anything else.

Day 28 - June 18

The damned alarm went off long before sunrise. I grumbled and mumbled, then went in the bathroom to shower and shave. When I finished I asked Tina if I needed to wear anything special and she informed me that my birthday suit was exactly what I needed.

Both women spent some time in the bathroom then said it was time to go outside. The sun was just ready to pop over the horizon when Tina and Syl lined us up, facing the rising sun.

As the first rays of the sun hit us, Tina held Syl's hands and mine and said, "As the sunrise symbolizes the start of a new day, we now symbolize the start of our new marriage."

She looked me in the eye and said, "I Tina, take you Ed, as my husband. I will love you, honor you, respect you, and protect you as long as we both live."

She then turned to Syl and said, "I Tina, take you Syl, as my spouse. I will love you, honor you, respect you, and protect you as long as we both live."

Syl then repeated the vows to me and to Tina. I had a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes when I repeated the vows to the two women. When I finished, Tina said, "I now declare we are a family."

Tina and I kissed, then Syl and I. I then watched as Tina and Syl exchanged a passionate kiss.

I felt married. In fact, I felt more like I was married than when my first wife and I had stood in front of the minister with a hundred witnesses present. It felt good.

-------

It felt so good we decided not to travel for the day. We had a light breakfast, then went into the bedroom. After a lot of kissing among the three of us, I started nibbling on Syl's ear. I found she liked that a lot, and when Tina saw the same thing, she started nibbling on her other ear.

I kissed my way down her neck, and worked my way down to her wonderful breasts. I started kissing my way around the base of her left breast, working in a spiral, until I reached her already erect nipple. I gently flicked it with my tongue, and Syl moaned. I thought she might like that, so I did it again. Her response was even louder. When I pulled the nipple between my lips and sucked on it, her pelvis raised off of the bed and she groaned deep in her throat.

I sucked and licked on her lovely nipple for some time. By now Tina was doing the same on her other one. I gently bit down, and Syl exploded.

I've never had a woman orgasm before I ever touched her pussy, but Syl did. She screamed and shook while Tina and I held her. When she had calmed down until there was only an occasional aftershock, I began kissing her nipple again. I soon abandoned it and started kissing and licking my way down her body.

When I reached her pubic hair I was amazed at the contrast between her and Tina. Tina's hair is sparse, very soft and almost straight. Syl's thatch is thick, course, and very kinky. I played in it for quite some time before moving on to her pussy.

Syl has large outer lips that glistened with the dew of her arousal. Her inner lips are long, and had now thickened and were fully extended. Her inner lips are dark along the edges, but when I used my thumbs to pull them apart, they were a bright, hot pink toward their base.

I leaned in and gently kissed her beautiful treasure. I extended my tongue to collect some of her juices. The flavor was wonderful. This had to be what they were talking about when they were telling about ambrosia in the bible.

I started lapping up her emissions. I didn't want to lose a drop. I cupped her beautiful ass cheeks in my hands, and buried my face in her pussy. By now, Syl was bucking her ass to the point I thought I was going to lose contact. I moved up slightly and sucked her clit into my mouth. Syl screamed again as I started flicking it with my tongue, and I thought she was going to crush my head between her thighs. She gave one final shudder then collapsed onto the bed.

I crawled up beside her and held her. I thought for a minute she had passed out, but she opened her eyes and smiled at me. By now, Tina was cuddled to the other side of her.

"Ed, that was the most amazing thing I've ever felt," Syl said. "My husband would never go down on me. He said I smelled and tasted bad. I've had a few experiences with other women, but nothing was ever like that."

"Just so you'll know, you smell wonderful, and your juices taste like the nectar of the Gods. I loved every minute of it."

Tina reached down and ran her finger through Syl's slit, then brought it to her nose and sniffed. "You do smell good Syl," she said. She then sucked her finger into her mouth and said, "Wow, I never knew a woman would taste that good."

Syl smiled, "Thank you Tina. Now, I think I'm ready for the main event if Ed is ready."

Tina giggled and reached over and squeezed my cock. "Oh, I think he's ready."

Syl's hand joined Tina's. "I'd say so," she said.

"Syl, is it true that black men's cocks are a lot bigger than white men's cocks?" Tina asked.

Syl laughed. "I don't have a lot of experience with black or white cocks Tina. I was a virgin when I met my husband, and I was never with another man. I'm not sure, but I think Ed's cock is bigger than my husband's was."

I kissed her and she tugged on my cock. "I know just the place I want this," Syl said. "Do you think you can figure out a place for it?"

I moved between her legs as she held on to my cock. She moved the head up and down between her lips a few times then placed me at her entrance and nodded. I pressed forward slightly and stopped when the head of my cock popped through her opening.

Syl moaned then sighed. I started easing forward. God was she tight. It took several minutes before I finally bottomed out, then started a slow in and out motion. From the time I hit bottom, Tina and Syl were kissing. The double stimulation must have been too much for Syl, because she climaxed almost immediately.

I wish I could say I lasted for hours, but in truth, I was feeling my buildup within a couple of minutes. "Play with her nipples," I told Tina. Tina latched onto one nipple with her lips and the other on with her right hand. I'd hoped the additional stimulation would bring Syl to another quick climax, but the sight of it drove me over the edge.

"I'm cuming," I screamed just before my first spurt. Before my second one, Syl exploded beneath me. My God it was fantastic. All three of us held each other while Syl and I calmed down. We lay there for almost an hour before we moved.

-------

We spent most of the day in the RV, and most of that in bed. I did go out for a while and sighted in the two hunting rifles at 50, 100, 200, and 500 yards. I had my wives fire a dozen rounds each at a hundred yards. Syl was adequate. She hit the silhouette with every shot. Tina was fantastic. She placed six in the center of mass.

I made love to Tina later in the day, with Syl's help, then later got to watch Syl bring Tina to a thundering orgasm by herself. Wow!

Day 29 - June 19

We took off early the next morning. I figured that since it was pretty desolate country we were going through, with very few towns, we'd make it to Salt Lake City before dark.

We were moving along and had just passed into Utah when I saw something moving ahead. I told Syl, who was riding shotgun and slowed the RV. Shortly, I could see it was a vehicle of some kind coming from the east. "Syl, why don't you and Tina put some clothes on, and one of you bring me a pair of shorts, a shirt, and one of the Glocks. We have no idea who this is, but we need to make contact."

Syl headed into the back, and I slowed even further. I could see the other vehicle was slowing as well. Syl came back up front just as I stopped and handed me the things I wanted. She was dressed, and I noticed she had one of the shotguns with her.

I quickly got dressed and tucked the Glock into the waistband at the back of my shorts. Syl got out with me and we started walking toward the other car. A man, dressed in camouflage fatigues was standing by the SUV holding a weapon that I was relieved to see was pointing at the ground.

When we were about twenty feet from him, we stopped. "Good morning," I said.

"Yeah, mornin. I'm Jeff Combs." He was staring at Syl like he had never seen a woman before.

"I'm Ed and this is Syl," I said. "Where are you heading?"

"I'm going to California. From your license plates I can see you're coming from there."

"Yeah, we've been on the road a few days."

"I see you got yourself a nigger woman," he said. "I ain't been fucked in a month. Are you willing to share?"

"Syl is my wife Jeff, and no, I'm not willing to share."

Before the words were out of my mouth, he had raised his gun and was pointing it at us. "I guess I'll just have to take her all for myself then," he said. "Drop your gun woman."

Syl glanced over at me and then gently laid the shotgun on the ground.

"Takes orders good don't she," Combs smirked. That was the last thing he ever said. A black hole suddenly appeared in his chest followed immediately by the sound of a high powered rifle. He dropped the gun he was holding and made one step backward. Then he collapsed like an empty sack.

My hands were shaking as I pulled the Glock and walked over to him. He wasn't going to be threatening anyone any more. I put the Glock back into my waistband and looked down at him. Tina came running over then. I was afraid she'd be upset, but she wasn't. She walked over to Combs, looked down at him and nodded her head. She spit on his body then said, "I hit the bastard right where I was aiming."

"Does it bother you to have shot a man Tina?" I asked.

"This wasn't a man. It was an animal," She said, then she put her arm around Syl. "I heard what he said. No one talks about my spouse that way."

Syl had been pretty shook up, so I hugged both of my wives until they calmed down. "I've never seen so much hatred," Syl said.

"Sweetheart, only part of it was because you're black. The rest of it was because you're a woman. If Tina had come over with me, the results would have been the same. He would have demanded I share Tina with him."

"Yeah, but he called me a nigger. I've never been called that, at least not to my face."

"I know love. When something bad happens, it can either bring out the best in a person, or it can bring out the worst. With this guy, it was the worst. I should have pulled my gun the moment I heard the 'N' word, but I thought I could reason with him. I'll know better next time."

"Syl, our marriage vows said we'd protect each other," Tina said. "I couldn't protect you from what he said, but I could protect you from bodily harm. I think you should go over and spit on his body, then forget the words."

Syl got a look of resolve on her pretty face. She walked over to Combs' body, but instead of spitting on him, she dropped her shorts and peed all over him. She was smiling as she pulled her shorts back up. Tina and I cracked up, then Syl did. We held each other until we calmed down. "That felt good," Syl said, and that got us started again.

When we had finally calmed down, I said, "Let's see what he had with him. There may be something we can use. That looks like an M-16 he's carrying."

It was. It was in surprisingly good shape. He also had a cleaning kit for it, half a dozen clips, and ten boxes of ammunition. Not much else was worth anything to us. He had a camp stove and some canned goods, but nothing we were interested in. The last thing we found caused all three of us to break out laughing. He had a suitcase full of paper money.

-------

As we started to leave, Syl asked if we should bury him or something. Tina just laughed and said he was certainly less deserving of being buried than the millions who had died when IT happened.

We got back on the road shortly and the girls stowed the new weapon and ammo. We didn't make it as far as we thought we would that day and ended up spending the night in the middle of the Great Salt Lake Desert. It was kind of creepy just stopping the RV on the road, but I decided it was safe enough.



-------

Chapter 4

Day 30 - June 20

We arrived in Salt Lake City before noon the next day and refilled our water and dumped our sewage. We found a truck stop and refilled our diesel fuel, and traded our half-empty propane tank for a full one. We pulled around into the truck stop parking lot and had lunch and talked about how to go from here.

"Why don't we just go on across I-80?" Tina asked.

"We're going to want to go south at some point anyway Sweetheart. Route 80 goes through Wyoming and then Nebraska. Neither one of those states was very populous and Nebraska is over five hundred miles across. If we take route 40, just to the east of here, it will take us through the mountains and on in to Denver. Then we'd go through Kansas and on into Missouri."

"Okay, so what's wrong with taking route 40 then?" Syl asked.

"What's wrong with it is also what's right with it," I said. "Route 40 is mostly two lanes. We have a lot better chance of meeting people on a two lane road, but there is also a far greater chance the road will be blocked by a landslide or a fallen tree."

"Is there anything we can do to minimize our risks?" Syl asked.

"There are a couple of things we could do. The first one would be to get a chain saw and gasoline for it at a hardware store. There is a rack on the back of this thing for a dirt bike. We could pick up one of those, too. That would give us a chance of going for another vehicle if this one got stuck or broke down."

"Okay, that's what I suggest we do," Tina said. "We should also get some shovels to use in case of a land slide."

"What do you think Syl?" I asked.

"I think route 40 would be the best. I can use a shovel if I have to."

We went into Salt Lake and found a hardware store. We stocked up on the things we thought we'd need, including a couple of gas cans, two cycle engine oil, and chain and bar oil. We found a Honda dealership and picked up a 90cc model. I tried it out in the parking lot and it ran well. It also fit the rack perfectly.

We planted another ten signs in the Salt Lake area, then drove out to the junction with route 40. We found a level parking lot and called it a day.

-------

Day 31 - June 21

Going through the mountains on route 40 has always been one of my favorite drives. I can remember driving through that way the first time with my father. He and I had gotten closer on that trip than we had ever been in our lives. I was eighteen at the time.

This time was no exception. We started climbing not long out of Salt Lake City. I took it slow, not being sure of the road ahead. We stopped in every town we passed through, and had to replenish our supply of sign holders that day.

We didn't see any people, but we were seeing more dogs. Some were loners, others were in packs. Almost all were big dogs, rottweilers, dobermans, great danes, pit bulls and the like. We also started seeing more animal carcasses. Sometimes we saw dead sheep but on at least two occasions we saw the bodies of full grown cows.

We ended up spending our third night in the state of Utah, in a little town called Jensen, just before we got to the Colorado border.

-------

Day 32 - June 22

The next morning we got an early start. We left signs in Dinosaur and Blue Mountain, Colorado and went on to Elk Springs. Tina was putting up a sign in Elk Springs when we heard someone yell, "Hey!"

So, here's Tina, naked as a peeled grape, pushing a sign into the ground. A man and a woman were standing between two buildings, not twenty feet away from her. I reached down between the seats and picked up the M-16 that was lying there. I clicked off the safety, and put down the power window on the passenger's side, then raised the 16 until the end of the barrel was lying on the window.

The man had a rifle of some kind, but it was pointed downward. The man and woman were holding hands as they stepped forward. Tina turned toward them and said, "Good morning."

They were staring at her so hard, I don't think they even knew I was there. The woman smiled and said, "Good morning to you. It's nice to see someone other than Fred here for a change."

"I'm Tina James. My husband, Ed is inside the RV and probably has an M-16 pointed at you right now. We're not hostile, just cautious."

"I can understand your being cautious. We had a run in with a couple of guys the other day over in Blue Mountain. They were riding Harleys and were dressed in leathers. They made it clear that they were going to kill Fred and take me as their toy. We wounded one of them and managed to get away. I'm Jenny Wilkerson, and the quiet guy is Fred Davis. I guess you could say that Fred is my husband, although we haven't had a ceremony."

"Jenny, I had to kill a guy a few days ago who had the same ideas. We're trying to meet people, but we want it to be the right kind of people."

"I know the feeling. We'd have stayed hidden if we hadn't seen that you are a young woman."

"Fred, if you'd just lay your gun down for a few minutes, we can get to know each other better. I'm sure that Ed and Syl, Syl is our other spouse, have everything covered. If you'll come inside, we can make a pot of coffee and talk a bit."

Fred started to say something, but Jenny cut him off. "Fred, I have a feeling we can trust these people. Put the gun down and we can go have a nice hot cup of coffee."

Fred hesitated for a few seconds, then did as she asked. Tina led the way inside, then turned and said, "Would you mind if I patted you both down for concealed weapons? You can see I don't have any."

Jenny laughed, a tinkling sound that was really quite pleasant. "Not at all Tina. We'd want to do the same if it wasn't obvious you weren't carrying a gun."

Tina went ahead and patted both of them down. When she was finished, Syl came out from the bedroom. She was as naked as Tina. Syl said, "I'm Syl. Why don't you guys have a seat? I'll start a pot of coffee."

So far, Fred hadn't said a word. Now he managed to get out a question. "Do you people always go naked?"

Jenny laughed again, "That's Fred. He doesn't say much, but when he does, it's to the point."

"As a matter of fact, we go naked most of the time Fred. If we had known we were going to have company, we'd have probably dressed, but you guys were kind of a surprise to us."

"That's okay Tina. I'm sure Fred doesn't mind looking at your and Syl's beautiful bodies. He has a thing for tits and Syl certainly has a pair to look at."

"So, what are you two doing here in Elk Springs, Colorado? What are your plans?" Tina asked.

"Well, up until now, we'd just been trying to survive. We've been talking for several days about what to do. Two people by themselves are going to have a hard time of it, so we were hoping to find others and maybe start a community."

"That's our plan," Tina said and handed each of them an information sheet. She waited until they had read through the sheet, then asked, "What do you think of it?"

Fred was smiling as he said, "This is just what I've been thinking of. We need a community that has electrical power if we are going to maintain any of our civilization."

"That's what Ed says," Tina said.

"Speaking of the mythical Ed," Tina said. "Where is he?"

Syl laughed as she gave each of them a cup of coffee. "He's up front. He's probably trying to figure out how to make a graceful entrance. He's not wearing any clothes either."

She was at least partially right. The main reason I had hesitated though was to get a feel for these people before I left my weapon out of reach. I had put up the window and locked the RV right after they had come in. With Fred's last remarks, I was feeling pretty good about them.

"That's a man for you," Jenny said. "Men are such wimps when it comes to nudity. I'd go naked all the time if it were up to me. Fred says it isn't proper."

"Well, it's proper in the community we're going to form," I told them as I stepped through the curtain separating the front from the living area. "I'm Ed. It's nice to meet you guys."

Fred stood up and shook hands with me, and then Jenny did the same.

"What do you mean?" Jenny asked.

"We've been thinking a little of how we want to run things. Most of our old laws are outdated and irrelevant. We've come up with a couple new ones to start things off." I went on to explain to him our feelings on nudity and on prejudice.

Fred nodded. "Our old laws were too restrictive. What we need are laws that tell you what we can do, not what we can't do."

"I never put it into words like that Fred, but that is exactly what we're shooting for. So tell me, what do you think about what we put in there about prejudice?"

"Hunh. I think prejudice is a crock of shit. It doesn't matter what color a person is or what religion they believe in or what their hat size is. If they are human, then they are human. I guess the only things I've ever been prejudiced against are politicians and lawyers."

"What do you think Jenny?"

"Oh I agree with Fred. Even about the politicians and lawyers."

I looked at Syl, then at Tina. Both of them nodded, so I asked, "How would you guys like to join us? You could have a big say in how things are going to be set up in our new community."

"I was hoping you'd ask," Jenny said. "What do you think Fred?"

Fred just nodded, so Jenny asked, "So, how do we do this?"

"First off I have to say that we are all here to help each other. If one member of the clan is in trouble, everyone else drops what they are doing to help. That would include mutual protection from anyone who is trying to hurt a clan member and the use of whatever force is necessary including killing the offending person."

Fred nodded. "That's the way it has to be if we are going to survive."

"I was a nurse, and it is repugnant to take a life, but I would to save the life of one of us." Jenny said.

"Good, I'm glad you were a nurse. I hope we can find a real doctor. I was a virologist. I've had all of the academic training, but none of the clinical. I could probably treat a cold, but I'd hate to think of trying to take out a gall bladder."

"Fred was an electrical engineer, so I think he'll be very useful too."

"Absolutely. What have you guys been using to travel in?"

"Just a car we borrowed. If we're going on a long trip, we should have something like this though."

"Why don't you guys ride with us until we get to Craig? There should be an RV dealer there."

"There is." Fred said.

"Do you have a lot of things to bring along?"

"Just some guns and a few personal items," Jenny said. "We haven't seen any reason to accumulate things, since we could pick them up when we needed them."

"Okay then why don't you get the things you want to take and we'll hit the road?"

They took off and were back within fifteen minutes. I was glad to be back on the road. For some reason I felt uncomfortable to be just sitting there, out in the open.

It's only about 55 miles from Elk Springs to Craig, but it took us a couple of hours to get there. We made stops in Maybell and Lay to put out signs on the way.

We found the RV dealer in Craig without a problem, but were a little disappointed with their selection. We finally found one that was just a little smaller than the one we were driving that was appointed the way we wanted. We were especially interested in it having an auxiliary generator since we'd probably be living in these things for quite some time.

The new machine had a 500-hp diesel and two 80-gallon fuel tanks. When Fred fired it up, we let it run a while to make sure everything was okay. When we had checked it out as well as we could, we went to find a truck stop. We filled the tanks on both vehicles and found a new propane tank for Fred's. Then we went to a grocery and filled the water tanks on both RVs. We dumped our sewage in a storm drain, then all gathered in one RV to talk about whether to go on or stop for the day.

We ended up deciding to stay, so Jenny and Fred could stock up on food supplies and get some clothing and whatever. We found a supermarket and while they were stocking non-perishable items, Tina, Syl and I made a run on the local police station. We found two M-16s with plenty of clips and ammo and took them back to Fred.

We invited Jenny and Fred to have dinner with us. We had porterhouse steaks with baked potatoes and green beans. It was nearly as good as we could have gotten in any restaurant before IT happened. A salad would have been nice, but fresh produce was one of the first things that had spoiled.

-------

Day 33 - June 23

We took off east again the next morning after planting several signs in Craig. We placed a few more in Steamboat Springs, then went into Rabbit Ears Pass. There is something like 27 miles of steep up grade going into the pass, which tops out at over 9400 feet. The big diesel engines were really working on that up grade.

There are very few towns between Steamboat Springs and the point where route 40 joins up with I-70 at Empire. The last big pass you go through is Berthoud Pass, which has an elevation of 11,315 feet. From there you start your drop into Denver which was the mile high city.

We made it into Empire that evening, which is just west of Denver. I felt like we'd made good time and was satisfied with the day's travel. We saw a lot more dogs that day in the little towns we went through. I was beginning to wonder what the future would be like with the dogs. Were they going to be a constant threat?

-------

Day 34 - June 24

We took off the next morning knowing we were going to be spending a lot of time in and around Denver. We also knew we'd have to find some more sign holders before the day was over.

In Idaho Springs, we found Kammie. We were putting up a sign when we heard dogs barking and growling a couple of blocks away. We didn't want to get involved, so we were just going to ignore them until we heard the scream. It was a high-pitched little girl scream. Syl was back inside the RV in seconds, and we were headed in the direction of the commotion.

We turned onto the street where the trouble was going on and saw between twenty and thirty dogs trying to get into a hardware store on the left side of the street. One dog, a pit bull, was hurling himself at the door, and every time he hit the door it would give, then snap back.

As we got closer, two of the dogs attempted to attack our RV, which was in the lead. I asked for a shotgun, and Syl pushed one into my hands. I put down the window on the driver's side and as I moved forward, I fired one 00 buckshot round into the center of the mass of dogs. I was still far enough away that the round scattered nicely, and at least four of the dogs were wounded. Two of them were on the ground.

I heard Fred open up with an M-16 behind me, so I stuck my head out the window and yelled that there was someone in the building. He stopped firing immediately. Sticking my head out almost cost me my life.

As I was pulling back in, I felt something hit the side of my head. The next thing I knew, Syl was leaning over me and Tina was firing one of the Glocks out the open window, one measured shot after the other. I tried to struggle up, but Syl said for me to lie still for a minute or two. "You took a bad hit Ed. I don't know what kind of dog it was, but it was huge. I thought it had killed you." Tears were running down her face as she said this.

"Can you drive this thing Syl?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Then start running over dogs. The RV may be the best weapon we have."

Syl jumped behind the wheel and slapped Tina on the butt. "Move around behind me sis. I'm going to start making road kill."

Tina never stopped firing as she moved out of the way, but she glanced over her shoulder at me and asked, "Are you okay Ed?"

"Yeah, I'm okay," I said as the RV started to move. When I knew Syl's attention was elsewhere, I got to my feet. No dizziness. I was fine.

"When you get to the end of the block, turn this thing around, then stop," I said.

Syl gave me a dirty look and I said, "I'm fine Syl. The damned dogs are getting out of your way, so I have another idea." I picked up the shotgun and loaded another round. "This thing fires as fast as I can pull the trigger. Tina, would you get the other one for me and make sure it's loaded?"

Syl turned the RV around and I opened the passenger side window. "Just drive slowly. I'm going to see how well they stand up against buck shot."

Syl started forward and as soon as I thought we were within range I started firing. When that gun was empty, Tina passed me the other one, and I opened up with it. There were dogs on the ground everywhere.

I pulled inside and Tina handed me the first gun, fully loaded again. "They are hurt and confused. I'm going out."

"I'm right behind you Ed," Tina said. "I'll watch your back."

Syl loaded both Glocks while we were talking, and lowered her window again.

"Move fast Honey," I said.

I was out in a flash, and I could immediately feel Tina's back pressed to mine. "I'm moving forward," I said. "Stay with me love."

Tina didn't answer, but I could tell she heard me as she stayed right with me. I could see three dogs still standing half a block up the street, but all the rest seemed to either be down, or had run away.

I took aim at the closest one, and squeezed the trigger. The dog yelped and hit the ground. The other two must have figured they'd seen enough. They were gone before I could draw a bead on them.

I went over to the window of the RV and asked Syl for one of the Glocks. I then went to every dog that was still alive and put a round in its head. I really didn't want them to suffer.

-------

The little girl was sitting just inside the door. She had her back against the door, and her feet against a counter. We could see her through the glass of the door, but couldn't get to her because of the bars across it.

Fred had come over and was sweeping the street with his eyes as he cradled an M-16 at the ready. Tina said, "Open the door, Honey. All of the dogs are gone."

The little girl was sobbing, and didn't appear to hear Tina. "We killed all of the dogs or ran them away," Tina almost shouted. "Please let us in. We want to take you with us."

"Who are you?" the little girl sobbed.

"I'm Tina. Who are you?"

"I'm Ka-Kammie. Where did everybody go?"

"Kammie, they all got sick."

"My mama got sick. She said my Aunt Sue would take care of me, but she never came."

"Honey, we'll take care of you now. Are you hungry? We can fix you something to eat."

"I AM hungry."

"What's your favorite thing to eat?"

"I like macaroni and cheese."

"We just happen to have some in our RV. If you'll come on out, I'll make you some right away."

"Okay," Kammie said and started slowly getting to her feet. "Do you have any hotdogs?"

"Yep. Would you like some hotdogs too?"

"Could you cut them up in the macaroni and cheese?"

"We sure can. Here, take my hand and we'll go get it started."

Kammie took Tina's hand and Tina led her to the RV.

Everyone went into our RV and Tina introduced all of us to Kammie. She was a mess, but I guess you could expect that after living for a month on her own. We found out she was seven years old, and sharp as a tack.

Syl said she'd get the mac-n-cheese started if Tina wanted to get Kammie cleaned up a little. Tina took the little girl back to the bathroom, and we soon heard the water running.

"We're going to need to get her some clothes," Syl said. "After she's eaten, we'll need to look her over carefully. I saw several cuts and bruises on just what we could see of her."

"I wouldn't be a bit surprised if she is malnourished too," I said. "Did anyone see a clothing store on the way into town?"

None of us remembered one, so Fred said he'd go see if he could find something.

I hadn't even thought about the fact that Syl, Tina, and I were nude, until Tina came out of the bathroom with Kammie. Tina was still nude, but Kammie was wrapped in a towel. "Are we okay, dressed the way we are?" I asked Tina.

"Clothing is optional at all times and nudity is an appropriate dress for any occasion. We can't start out being hypocrites. She doesn't seem to mind."

"Kammie's dinner will be ready in about five minutes," Syl called out from the kitchen.

"Do you feel better after your shower, Kammie," I asked.

"Much better," she said as she walked over to stand in front of me. "Tina says you are going to be my new daddy and that her and Syl are going to be my new mommies. Is that true?"

"Kammie, I know we can't replace your real mommy and daddy, but if you'll let us we'll be the best mommies and daddy for you that we can."

She climbed up on my lap. "Will you take care of me and protect me from the dogs?"

"Sweetheart, I promise you, we won't let anything bad happen to you, ever again," I said as I put my arms around her and hugged her close.

She sat there, a little smile on her face, until Syl called her to lunch.

Syl seated her at the table and put her plate in front of her. I don't think she even breathed until the plate was empty.

"Thank you Mama Syl," Kammie said. "Could I have some more?"

"Kammie, we don't want you to get sick. Let's wait an hour, then you can have more. Is that okay?"

"It's okay Mama Syl. It's just that I've been so hungry."

"How have you managed to eat Kammie?" I asked.

"I just stayed in the house and ate what we had there. Mama wouldn't let me use the stove, but I could use the microwave. Then the microwave wouldn't work anymore and the can opener wouldn't work and the lights wouldn't work."

"What did you do when those things wouldn't work any more?"

"Mama told me not to cross the road, but I had to. I went to the grocery store. The window was broke, so I went in. They had lunchmeat and bread and cakes and pies. The lunchmeat started tasting bad so I had to quit eating that. Then the bread and cakes started getting green stuff on it. I pulled the green stuff off and ate it anyway."

"You've had a hard time Honey. We have plenty of food and we'll make sure you don't go hungry."

"Can I sit on your lap again Daddy?"

"Of course you can Honey."

"Do I have to wear this towel, or can I be naked like you and my mommies?"

"You don't have to wear the towel baby girl. In fact, I'm kind of like a doctor. I'd like to look you over and see if there are any cuts or anything that we need to fix. Would that be okay?"

Kammie pulled off her towel and climbed on my lap. "You can look Daddy, but I think all of my cuts are on my arms and legs."

I looked her over carefully, and she was right. She had one rather large cut on her left calf that I thought we should get some antibiotic ointment on. There was another on her left arm. She had several small cuts but most of them were well on their way to being healed.

She was thin. Way too thin, but I figured it was caused by lack of food. I'd keep an eye on her over the next couple of weeks, but I suspected she'd put her weight back on with little problem.

I asked Tina to bring me some gauze, tape, and ointment. Kammie started to look like she was going to get upset, but I promised her it wouldn't hurt and she calmed down.

It was sort of amazing to me how quickly she'd started calling me, Daddy, and Tina and Syl, Mommy. Kammie was a very bright little girl. She had known for weeks that her mother was dead. We came into her life and saved her from the dogs. We hadn't demanded anything of her, but had protected her and fed her and cleaned her up. A parent usually did all of the things we had done for her. She just naturally accepted us in that role.

Fred came back in and said he'd found a clothing store, but that it didn't look like it had much in the way of children's clothing. We talked it over and decided to wait until we were in Denver to go shopping for Kammie. Fred and Jenny went back to their RV and we took off.

There are dozens of small towns around Denver and I think we stopped in most of them. Fred and Jenny decided to keep putting up signs while we took Kammie in to get some clothes. We agreed to meet on I-70 where the bypass joined with it.

Going into a department store, even in the middle of the day, when there is no electricity is an adventure. We had an electric lantern and we took a couple of flashlights as well. Syl stood guard as I broke in, then when everyone was inside; I jammed the door so it couldn't be opened from the outside.

The lantern, when held high enough, threw out quite a bit of light, so it wasn't as bad as I feared it would be. We found the girl's clothing area and Tina, Syl, and Kammie loaded up a shopping cart with shorts, tops, panties, and socks. We picked up a couple of pairs of tennis shoes in the shoe department and one pair of sandals that Kammie just had to have. We were back at the front door in half an hour.

I removed the jam and stepped outside. A large very ugly dog was sniffing the RV, but he ran away when I yelled at him. I got the door of the RV open and had Tina take Kammie into it quickly. Syl pushed the shopping cart over next to the RV and she and Tina unloaded it while I stood guard. We left the cart on the sidewalk and piled into the RV.

After we met up with Fred and Jenny, we headed east. We only made it as far as Strasburg before we decided to stop for the night.

Fred and Jenny joined us for dinner. We sat around and talked for quite a while afterwards. When Kammie started nodding off, we decided to call it a night.

We pulled the sofa out into a bed and used the sheets from our bed to make it up. They were too large so we figured we'd need to stop tomorrow and get some of the proper size. Tina volunteered to sleep with Kammie, so Syl and I retired to the master bedroom.

Our lovemaking that night was good, but a bit constrained. Syl was a little inhibited, knowing Kammie could hear if she got as loud as she normally did.

-------

Day 38 - June 28

The next four days were spent going through the rest of Colorado, then through Kansas and Missouri. We pulled into Crestwood, Missouri in the late afternoon and decided we wanted to leave a sign at the Wal-Mart.

The Wal-Mart store had been broken into at some point. There was no way to tell if it had been done after almost everyone had died, or sometime prior to that. Whoever had done it had just taken what they needed and hadn't done any vandalism.

We taped one of our standard signs to one of the glass doors, with an information sheet under it. We then hand lettered a sign on poster paper saying we were out scouting for a place to settle and that we'd be here on October 1st.

Tina and Syl had been trading off nights sleeping with Kammie. She had nightmares, and would wake up screaming. Sleeping with someone helped, but I sure missed cuddling between my two wives.

We spent the night in Crestwood and took off the next morning, looking for a place to settle.

-------

Day 41 - July 1

We got on I-64 just east of Kansas City, Missouri and headed for Kentucky. It took us three days to go through Illinois, and Indiana, since we were still putting up signs as we went. I-64 crosses into Kentucky at Louisville. We had been thinking of somewhere north or south of the border between Kentucky and Tennessee, but we had stopped at a rest area to talk over our options and we found a flyer about something called the Weisberger Mill and it changed our minds.

It seems the Weisberger Mill has been around since the early 1800s. In the mid 1980s the state of Kentucky put in a small-scale hydropower project at the mill. We knew we had to check this out, so we got back on I-64 and took it to Midway then went south to route 419. We took a left on route 419 until we came to Weisberger Road. We took a right and came to the mill, which is on the left side of the road.

The buildings were old for the most part, but were in good repair. I told Fred I'd look at the mill operation if he'd check out the hydroelectric part.

Jenny went with Fred to stand watch while he got involved with the electrical equipment. Tina was guard for our group with an M-16, but Syl and I both had our Glocks.

I was amazed at what we found. The mill had been fully operational, and had been shut down as if it were going to be used again tomorrow. It could be used to grind anything from the coarsest grits or corn meal to the finest flour. We found instructions for how to set things up for any type of grinding the mill could handle.

We also found large storage containers of un-packaged flour and meal, along with a thousand or so bags of packaged material that were sealed in plastic. "Ladies," I said, "with a little bit of water and yeast, we can have fresh baked bread again." They were as excited as I was.

Fred was as excited as I had ever seen him when we met them outside. "So, can it be run again?" I asked.

"It's amazing," he said. "This was shut down in an orderly fashion. There are two big turbines that look like they are ready to go. I haven't found the specs yet, but this setup looks like it could support a small town."

"How long do you think it will take to get it running?" Syl asked.

"I'm not sure. Mainly I want to be cautious so that we don't burn something out. This kind of outfit is normally set up to supply power to the main power grid that covers this part of the country. If it was running, it would be supplying power to the grid. If it was down, the grid would be supplying power to the mill. We need to make sure we're disconnected from the grid before we fire it up. I'll have to find schematics for the hookup and find out where to disconnect it."

"Okay, we're going to check out the house. Why don't you and Jenny come with us and pick out a bedroom for when you have this running. Afterwards, I'm going to go into town and pick up some 4-wheelers so we can explore the area. From what I can see, it's just about perfect. The hills around this valley are going to protect it from the most severe storms. I'd like to see what else lays within the confines of the valley and the RVs are just too big to get around in."

"That makes sense," Fred said. "After we look over the house, I think Jenny and I will come back down here and look for schematics and operating instructions and the like."

We drove up to the house in the RVs. There was an almost new Chevy Blazer sitting in the driveway. The front door of the house was unlocked, so we took some flashlights with us and went inside. We poked around for a few minutes, and I heard Syl yell from the kitchen, "Ed, come here. You have to see this."

We all went into the kitchen. Syl had a sheet of paper in her hand. There were tears running down her cheeks as she handed it to me. It was a letter from the owners of the mill.

"Dear Sir or Madam,

If you have found this, then I have passed on as I suspect I will.

This property has been in our family for six generations. It has just about anything you will need to be self-sufficient. We shut down the mill and the generators so that all you have to do is turn them back on. The operating manuals for both are in the drawer under this letter. I performed the required maintenance on both of them just before I came down with this damned disease.

The house is heated by natural gas, which comes from a well on the property. We are told It should last for hundreds of years at the rate it is currently being used. The house and the mill each have water wells that I believe are among the best in the country. There is also a spring that has never gone dry on the hill to the west of the house. We mainly used it for our cattle and sheep.

The cattle and sheep are in pastures, and should have sufficient grazing for quite some time. We had to let the chickens out, but you might be able to recapture them if you put feed out.

There are two diesel tractors in the barn; both are in good condition. There is a thousand-gallon tank with diesel fuel located behind the barn, and another tank of the same size with gasoline. Both are full.

The keys to the house, the mill, the Blazer and the tractors are on the rack beside the back door.

My ancestors did a lot with this place, and I had great plans for the future. There are so many things I wanted to do, but now they will not be done unless someone is left alive after this is over. Please take care of my family home.

The rest of my family has all died. I am the last of my line. I am 22 years old.

God Bless,

Frank Weisberger

P.S. - I disconnected our power from the power grid. The schematics for the system are with the manuals."

I don't think there was a dry eye in the house when I finished reading the letter to everyone.

We stood there, stunned, for several minutes, and then Syl summed it up for all of us, "What a wonderful, courageous young man."

I knew we all agreed. No one said anything for a few minutes, then I knew I should get things moving.

"I'm going to check out the barn. Would you ladies look around and see if there's anything we need to pick up for the house while we're in town?"

They agreed, except for Syl, who said she'd rather check out the barn with me. "Fred, do you want to go with me?"

"No, I'm going to look over these schematics and the manuals. With luck I might be able to fire this thing up today."

I had my Glock and a shotgun, and Syl had her Glock when we went out to the barn. So far, we hadn't seen any dogs around the area, but we wanted to be safe.

The barn was huge. It was like a big barn, with an enormous equipment shed attached. The two tractors were in great repair, and there was every type of equipment to go with them. I knew with what we had here, we could plant corn, soybeans, wheat, or oats. I'm not a modern farmer, but we did have a farm from the time I was twelve until I was sixteen.

There was a loft full of hay, and several barrels of chicken feed, corn, and cattle feed. There was a tack room with half a dozen saddles, and the rest of the equipment needed for some serious riding.

By the time we got back in the house, Tina and Jenny had divvied up the bedrooms. Tina, Syl and I would be in the master bedroom, located on the first floor. There was one other bedroom on the first floor, so Kammie got that one. Jenny and Fred took the largest of the four upstairs bedrooms.

"That's all well and good, but if the power isn't on and there isn't any water, I'm sleeping in the RV tonight," I told everyone.

"Fred has already gone down to try to get it started," Jenny informed me. "He said to ask you to come down if you could."

"Sure thing," I said as I left the house.

-------

"How's it going Fred?" I asked when I found him.

"Well, I think this is all ready to go," he told me. "From what I can see from the schematics, the house, the barn, and the mill are all that's hooked up to the system right now. We need to make sure everything is turned off, then I'll let water down the flume to turn the turbines."

"Okay, I'll go up and pull the main breakers for the house and barn. When I get back, we'll check the mill then let her fly."

When I got back to the house, everyone was curious as to why I was back so quickly. I explained it to them and went to the basement with a flashlight to find the main breaker box. I got lucky. The one for the barn was located right next to the one for the house. The main breakers had been tripped on both of them.

When I got back, Fred told me he'd checked and the main breaker for the mill had been thrown as well.

"Well, here we go," Fred said as he started to crank a handle to manually open the gate that allowed water to flow to the turbines. Both of us had our hearts in our mouths as we waited for something to happen.

We watched as one of the big turbines started to turn and Fred showed me the gauges that would indicate when power was fully ready. "This gauge tells me the output voltage," Fred said. "The transformers at the house, barn, and mill are set up to require a 2400 volt feed."

I looked at the gauge and it was climbing rapidly. "This gauge shows you how many cycles per second the electricity we produce is running at."

By now both gauges had stabilized. One read 2400 volts and the other read 60 Hz.

Fred was smiling. "Let's watch it run for a few minutes," he said. "I want to be sure everything is stable before we start turning things on."

We talked for about five minutes, then Fred walked over to a desk that was in the corner and turned on a desk lamp. It lighted, and we could see no change in the meters. Next he turned on the overhead lights and the room was flooded with more light than I'd seen since leaving California.

Fred was smiling from ear to ear as he said, "Why don't you go up to the house and turn everything on. Do it one thing at a time, and if you see anything flickering or anything like that, turn it off immediately."

Everything worked. It was party time. We didn't get anything done the rest of the day. In fact, we didn't even sleep in our new house that night. We did enjoy ourselves though.

-------

Day 42 - July 2

Damn do we have a lot to do. We basically have three months to get everything ready for anyone who shows up at our rendezvous in Missouri. We could put three more couples up in the main house, but what do we do with the rest?

Feeding everyone shouldn't be a problem. Food was still available for scrounging. The main problem is housing them, and the thousand other problems that come up along with basic shelter.

How many people would our well support? What else could we do for drinking water? How do we get rid of sewage? Should we bring in some manufactured single family homes, or should we be looking at multi-family apartments?

If the Internet were still up and running, we could have researched each of the problems as we identified them, but that was not to be. The only other thing I could think of was the library.

We discussed what we wanted to do today over breakfast. I said I wanted to visit the library in Lexington and asked if someone would go along to guard my back. Syl immediately volunteered.

Fred said he wanted to look into a few things with the electrical distribution, but would help the women bring everything into the house as well. Jenny and Tina wanted to get some clothes washed and get things unpacked so we could all feel like we were in a home again. Although our RV had a washer and dryer, the washer used so much water that we didn't use it much.

We all worked together and quickly unloaded all of the clothing and canned goods from the RV, but left the frozen food in it for now. I wanted to take the RV in case we needed to power something at the library. Most libraries use computers now for their catalog, and I didn't want to start a random search through hundreds of thousands of books.

The trip to Lexington didn't take long, and we found the library by simply looking it up in a phone book. We got a city map from a truck stop, and filled up on diesel while we were there.

The library was unlocked and someone had obviously been in it since IT happened. In fact, it looked like someone had been here quite a bit. "Syl, we should leave a sign asking them to meet us here when we go," I said.

Syl agreed, and we got a piece of the poster paper out of the RV and made a sign asking anyone to meet us at 2:00 PM the next day. We put it on the front door, and went about doing some research.

We ran a long extension cord in from the RV and hooked the computer at the main desk up to it. It booted up, but whenever we tried to access anything, it told us the network was down.

"There has to be a network or administrator's computer somewhere," Syl said. "That's the one we need to find. When we get it operational, we'll be able to access everything."

The administrative offices were off to our left, so we took our largest flashlights and began our search. One office was labeled INFORMATION SERVICES. This looked like a good bet, but the door was locked. I went back out to the RV and got a pry bar. We got the door open, and I knew we'd hit the jackpot.

The main computer was sitting on the administrator's desk. There was a cable that ran over to another small room that had a huge network hub. We fired up the computer, after dragging the extension cord in, and it asked us for a password.

Now, I was becoming frustrated. I knew a little about computers, but not enough to crack a password. "Now what the fuck do we do?" I asked.

"First off, we remain calm," Syl told me. "Look under the keyboard. People are always afraid they'll forget their password, so they usually write it down somewhere."

The keyboard didn't have anything on it, so we tried the drawers of the desk. Still nothing. We pried open the filing cabinet in the corner of the room and went through the folders there. Still nothing.

"Okay," Syl said. "Type in S-P-E-N-C-E-R."

"Why?" I asked, giving her a look that told her I thought she was crazy.

"Just try it," she told me. "I may be wrong, but at least it's something to try."

I typed it in and hit enter. The machine accepted it and completed its boot up. "How the Hell did you know what the password is?" I asked.

Syl just pointed at the nameplate sitting on the front of the desk. It said, "Jerome Spencer, Systems Administrator."

We started searching for things like "Sewage Disposal" and "Water Treatment" and found dozens of books listed. We also found several references to articles in periodicals, and one reference to a local newspaper article that proved to be one of the most valuable things we could have found.

We made a list of all of the books and magazines we wanted, then found them and loaded them on a cart. It was a little more difficult finding the newspaper article, but I'm glad we kept looking. It was about a Lexington company that was building miniature sewage disposal plants. These were like septic tanks, but instead of having leach fields, they aerated the sewage and added chemicals. They claimed the water that came out of the other end of the system was pure enough to drink.

The article said the systems came in several sizes. The smallest was for single family dwellings, and the largest they manufactured as a single unit would handle up to a hundred people. They also sold the chemicals that were used by the systems.

"Damn, this sounds like just what we need," I told Syl, feeling the excitement of a new discovery.

"Yeah, but we might need more than one of them."

"That wouldn't be a problem since they don't need a leach field. I was worried about how many acres of ground would be taken up by leach beds if we had to go to a standard septic system. We'll still have to pump them out every so often, but that's not too much of a problem either."

We shut down the computer, and on impulse, I said, "Let's leave the extension cord hooked to it. We can leave a sign hooked to the cord telling anyone to connect it to an external power source, and giving them the password."

Syl thought that was a good idea, so we made up the note and taped it to the cord.

We didn't see any dogs until we were leaving town, but when we did see them, we knew they were going to be trouble. There was a pack of nearly thirty dogs. They watched us as we went by. It was like they were just waiting for us to make a mistake.

-------

Fred and I walked around the farm for a while, looking for the best place to set up a village. There was probably close to fifty acres of open land around the house and barns. Most of it was currently in pasture, but part of it had probably been garden space.

The pasture area looked like a good place to start, but we'd need more people to help out before we could do much. We also needed someone who knew what they were doing. It just never hit me until after IT happened just how specialized each of us had become.

"Before we even start we need a water treatment plant and a water tower," Fred said. "I'm sure we can find something for water treatment and I'm sure we can find a water tower, but installing them is going to be a big problem without more people to help."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. We need these things put in before we get people in and we need people before we can install the things. It's kind of a conundrum."

-------

Day 43 - July 3

Fred said this morning that he and Jenny were going to go into Midway to see if they could find the equipment they'd need to install electric poles from the power plant to the area we were talking about where we'd put up houses. They'd take the Blazer, which Jenny would drive back if they found the equipment they needed.

Since Syl and I had to be back at the library at 2:00 PM, and since I didn't want to leave Tina and Kammie alone, we decided all of us would take the RV and do a little exploring in Lexington.

We looked in the phone book we'd taken yesterday and found a dealer that carried 4-wheelers. We made that our first stop. It took almost an hour to get two of the machines running and get them loaded on a trailer we'd hooked to the back of the RV. One of us was on guard at all times, and Kammie was as good a lookout as any adult.

It wasn't even noon yet, but we decided to go on over to the library and eat our lunch there. When we pulled up outside, we saw a light moving around inside.

I cautioned the women to stay in the RV, and I took my Glock and went inside. The light was somewhere in the back of the building, so I yelled, "Hello."

I heard an answering, "Hello," and the light started moving toward me. It stopped about twenty feet away.

A very feminine voice said, "I see you've discovered the advantages of nudity too." She put the light down and walked forward. "I'm Sandy Callahan."

As she got closer to the light from the door, I could see she was as naked as I was. "Hi Sandy. I'm Ed James. My wives and my daughter are in the RV out front."

"Are you the ones who left the extension cord and put up the signs?" she asked.

"Yes, we're trying to get people together to form a community. Why don't you come out to the RV and I'll introduce you to everyone?"

Sandy had an enigmatic smile on her face when she said, "Okay, Ed. I would like to meet your wives."

We went back out to the RV and Syl opened the door for us. We got inside quickly and I introduced Sandy to my family. "What are you doing here by yourself?" Tina asked her.

"I came with two other people," Sandy said. "We found your extension cord, and they went back to get our RV so we'd have power for the computer. I wanted to spend the time in the library, and I figured I'd be safe if I kept the door closed."

"You're probably right," I said, "but we make it a rule to never go anywhere alone."

"It's a good policy Ed, and I guess it was kind of dangerous to stay by myself. So, tell me, what have you got for your community that would make us want to join you?"

"Electricity."

"You mean from RVs?"

"No, we have a fully operational power plant that will supply enough power for a small town."

"Wow!" Sandy said. I could see the excitement in her eyes.

"We also have an operational flour mill and cattle and sheep and chickens when we can catch them."

"That does sound fantastic. Would it be possible for me to join your group even if the rest of the people in my group don't want to join?" I could tell she was eager to join us. What I couldn't tell was whether she was anxious to have the new things I'd mentioned or if she was trying to get away from something or someone.

"Certainly," Tina said. "I won't lie to you Sandy. We really need people. There's a lot of work to be done."

"Do you have any special skills Sandy?" I asked.

"No, I was just a secretary. I was raised on a farm though, so I do know something about raising food. I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty either." She smiled and looked down at her very nicely put together body. "I wash up easily too."

We all had to smile at that. "None of us are setting the world on fire with special skills Sandy. I was a virologist, Syl was a schoolteacher, and Tina is only sixteen. We have two more people in our group so far. Fred was an electrician and Jenny was a nurse. They have the two most useful skills of the group."

"There are nine people in the group I'm in now, seven women and two men. One of the women is just a little girl. She's eight, I think. One of the men was a building contractor and the other did something with concrete or cement or something. They are all good workers, but there aren't any planners in the group."

"Well, we certainly need workers," I told her.

We heard another RV pull up, so we all went outside. Syl and Tina both had shotguns and I guess the people in the RV were a little intimidated until Sandy waved for them to get out.

"The shotguns are for dogs." I said as the man got out of the driver's seat. We've been having a lot of problems with them.

"We haven't seen many," the guy said. "We have seen some cattle that had been killed and eaten. We figure it was probably dogs that did that."

"They're really bad out west, and we saw a pack of around thirty yesterday. I'm Ed James, by the way. These are my wives, Tina and Syl, and this is our daughter Kammie."

"I'm Bob Roberts, and this is my wife, Jane. I see you've already met Sandy."

"Yeah, we've been talking some. Why don't you guys come on inside our RV? We were just going to have some lunch. Syl and Tina baked some fresh biscuits this morning."

When we were all seated, Sandy filled the two newcomers in on what I had told her. Bob looked amazed. "How far away from here are you?" he asked.

"Less than an hours drive. We were hoping we could talk you guys into coming in with us," I told him.

Bob looked thoughtful, like he was weighing the pros and cons of coming in with us. "Full time electrical power makes it awfully tempting," he told me. "We've been trying to figure out how to get electricity, but so far all we have are the RVs."

"I'm not going to lie to you Bob. There's going to be a lot of work to get a community up and running. We are desperately in need of someone who knows something about building. We're thinking of bringing in manufactured homes for now, but we have no idea of what we need to do to set them up."

"I've never installed a manufactured home, but I've seen it done. All of my building has been of a conventional type, but I'm sure I could do it."

"Do you think you might be interested in joining with us then?"

"What do you think, Jane?" he asked.

Jane was smiling from ear to ear. "Bob, the thought of having a real home almost makes me have an orgasm right now. We are definitely interested."

"We'll have to give it some more thought," Bob said, "but we are definitely interested."

We sat around and talked while we ate lunch. Tina, Syl, and the two new women went off to the dining area while Bob and I talked in the living room. Kammie alternated between the two groups. We decided to wait until after 2:00 PM, then Bob's group would go back to where they had been staying and pitch joining us to their group.

"There are a couple of things you need to know about us before anyone decides," I told Bob and Jane. "Number one, we will not tolerate prejudice in any form. The first racial, religious, or gender slur we hear from someone, that person is out. Number two; we go nude most of the time. Nudity is an acceptable mode of dress at any time. That does not mean a woman, or a man for that matter, is inviting sexual advances. If a person is asked and they agree, fine and dandy. If they say no, it means no."

"We won't have a problem with any of that," Jane said. "With so few of us left alive, who the hell cares what race or religion they are. We go nude a lot in our group too. Sandy is the only one though who almost refuses to wear clothes."

By now it was nearly 3:00 PM, so we figured no one else was coming. We started making preparations to leave when Sandy asked, "Would it be okay if I went home with you guys tonight?"

"That's fine Sandy," Tina said. "We'd love to have you. Is there anything you need from your RV?"

"Not if you have a spare toothbrush," Sandy said. "I assume I could borrow a robe or something if I get cold?"

"We'll fix you up," Syl told her. "It'll be nice to have someone new to talk with tonight."

Bob grumbled a little about how Sandy should be going back with them, but finally acquiesced when he saw it wasn't getting him anywhere.

The three women and Kammie were in a huddle the whole way back. I figured they were just swapping gossip. When we were getting close to home, Tina asked me to pull over for a few minutes.

I parked the RV and went back to see what was going on.

"Ed, you saw how Bob was acting when Sandy said she wanted to go with us tonight, didn't you?" Syl asked.

"You mean the grumbling?"

"Yes, but it goes a lot deeper than that," Sandy said. "I know you need Bob's skills, but he might not be the best person to invite into the group."

"Why didn't you say something before?" I asked.

"I was just so excited thinking about being in a larger group, I just sort of let it slide. I've told Tina and Syl and Kammie about it, but I think I should tell you too."

"I've got plenty of time Sandy. Fire away."

"Okay. Bob and Jane have been hooked up since before the group was formed. They met up with Jim and Sue and decided to work together to survive. I came into the group next, then Ellen joined us. Ellen hadn't been with us long when she became part of the Jim and Sue marriage."

"Okay. What happened then?"

"Well, Bob thought I should be a part of his and Jane's marriage. I disagreed. I like Jane really well, but there's just something about Bob I didn't want to be associated with. Then Mary joined the group and she felt about like I did. Bob asked her to join him and Jane and she politely refused. When Liz joined us, Bob again asked her to join him and Jane. He didn't even give her a day with the group before he was pressuring her. Cindi, who is about Kammie's age is the only female he hasn't hit on."

"Oh shit!" I said.

"It gets a little worse. Last week Bob went to Jim and told him he thought they should divide the women up equally between them. Jim said he didn't think the women would take too kindly to that, and Bob told him it didn't really matter what the women wanted."

"Knowing what you do about our setup, what do you think we should do Sandy?" I asked.

"Ed, I don't know. I know that everyone in the old group is going to want to come over here. If you exclude Bob, Jane will be excluded as well. I don't think that one couple has much of a chance of survival on their own. Jim would definitely be a good addition to the group as well as the other women."

Sandy took a sip of water and when I didn't say anything she went on. "It seems like there are a lot more females who survived than there were men. Your group is four to two and Bob's group is seven to two. Maybe it's me. Maybe I should just resign myself to the fact that if I want to get my itch scratched, Bob is the only one who'll scratch it."

"Sandy, I don't think you have to resign yourself to anything. I have a question for you though. Is it the thought of sharing your man with another woman that bothers you, or is it just Bob?"

"It's not the thought of sharing. If Jim had asked me, I would have probably hooked up with him and Sue. I was just telling Tina and Syl that if you asked me, I'd be on my back with my legs spread, saying let's consummate this. So, I think it's just Bob."

I had to laugh. "You don't hold a lot back, do you Sandy?"

"Why hold back? It just causes confusion for everyone."

"That's very flattering Sandy, but I already have two wives..."

"Who would gladly accept a third," Sly broke in.

"You know that would really get Bob's goat don't you?"

"Yeah, but who cares," Tina said. "Maybe Bob needs to have his nose rubbed in it."

"Sandy, you barely know me. I think you should think this over before you make any commitments," I told her.

"Don't worry Sandy. That's what he told both of us too. Just hang in there a day or two," Tina said.

I just shook my head and got back behind the wheel of the RV.

When we got back, Fred had to show me the truck he got for putting up poles. It had a digger to drill the hole, a big clamp arm that picked the pole up and put it in the hole, and a tamper to tamp the dirt back in around the post. He had no idea what to call the thing and neither did I, but it sure looked like it'd do the job.

I told him all about the group that might be joining us, except for Sandy's misgivings about Bob. He was excited about the new skills we'd be adding to the group, and I didn't have the heart to burst his bubble.

We slept in the house that night. It felt really nice to know we were in a home. Our home. Tina slept with Kammie, so Syl and I snuggled in together. We had been laying there, kissing and talking, for a few minutes when Sandy came in and slipped in on the other side of me.

I sighed and put my arm around her and she cuddled close. I guess it was becoming easier for me to bow to the inevitable. I kissed her and Syl goodnight.



-------

Chapter 5

Day 44 - July 4

Independence Day. Today, for the first time in over 200 years, there would be no celebration. Yet, in some ways, those of us who were left were more independent than we had ever been. No more taxes. No laws except those we made for ourselves. No Parent Teacher Conferences. No Social Security. No military service.

We were totally free. Free to live or die by our own efforts. We'll never know how many people survived IT, but were later killed by dogs; or died from food poisoning; or fell and broke a leg; or drank contaminated water; or took their own life; or had someone take their life.

Fred and I got out early and did a little exploring on the 4-wheelers. We went back through the fields, carefully closing all of the gates behind us. We finally found the cattle, grazing in a pasture that looked like it would support them for another month or two. There were probably four or five hundred Black Angus beef cattle, and maybe a dozen Holsteins. Three of the Holsteins had calves with them, which meant they were producing milk. We agreed that one of our first priorities was to get the Holsteins into a different pasture, and to get the ones with calves close to the house so we could start getting some fresh milk.

We found maybe a thousand sheep in another pasture, and probably a dozen horses in another. When we got back to the house, we told all of the women about our exploring. They were excited about what we had found, but Jenny was the most excited of the lot.

"You say there were about a dozen horses?" she asked.

"Yep," I said. "We were on the 4-wheelers, so we couldn't get too close to them."

"Could someone take me out to where they are? There's a lot of tack in the barn and a couple of roping saddles. If there's even a couple of well trained horses in the bunch, we can use them to separate the milk cows from the beef."

"How do you know so much about horses Jenny?" I asked.

"I grew up on a working ranch. I was riding a horse by the time I was four. I worked with my father and my brothers until I went away to nursing school."

"Well, you have a new job Jenny. You are now ranch boss."

"I'll accept that job with pleasure Ed." Her smile would have lighted the house.

"Get Fred to take you out and show you the horses. I'm going to have to take off before long to meet with the other group."

"Will do. We may even have some horses in the corral when you come back. If there's time, do you want me to bring in the cows that are milking?"

"Absolutely. If not today, then tomorrow for sure. Kammie and Cindi, if they join us, need milk. All of you women do for that matter."

"Will do boss," Jenny laughed.

"Tina, Syl, and Kammie, I'd like for you guys to stay here today and look for chicken poop."

"What?" Tina sputtered. "What do you mean, look for chicken poop?"

"When chickens roost at night, they get up off the ground. They like to go to the same place every night, so the ground under where they roost is always covered with chicken poop. If we find where they roost, we can go out at night and just pick them off their perches."

"Oh, I guess that makes sense," Tina said, still looking skeptical.

"Sandy, can you shoot a gun?"

"I did a bit of shooting when I was growing up. Not for the last few years though."

"Didn't Bob teach you how to shoot?"

"Bob doesn't believe that women should carry guns."

"Well I'm different. I believe that women are one hundred percent equal to men in both rights and responsibilities. Tina, would you take Sandy out back and teach her how to load and fire one of the shotguns? I'd like for her to go with me to meet the other group."

By the time we were ready to leave, Tina had taught Sandy at least the basics she'd need to help me keep watch for dogs and other predators.

-------

We took the Blazer this time. I didn't see a need for taking the RV, as I didn't have anything I wanted to look up in the library. We were waiting at the library when 2:00 PM came and went. We sat around for another hour, but no one showed up.

"I wonder what the hell's going on," I said. "Bob said he'd be back today whichever way they decided to go."

"I don't know Ed. Jane seemed excited about joining us."

"Do you think we should drive over there?"

"I don't know. This bothers me. Why don't we wait and drive over in the morning. Maybe take a couple of more people with us."

"Okay. Do you think Bob may be up to something?"

"It's possible. Let's try out a couple of what ifs. What if Bob figured he would have more women if they didn't join us? What if he forced Jane to not tell anyone about us? No one else knew we met you guys. He could tell everyone I had just taken off by myself."

"What would he gain by that?"

"I'm sure he figures that eventually one or both of the other women will break down and marry him. Let's throw in another what if. What if he did away with Jim? Then he'd have five women and a little girl at his disposal."

"Sandy, you're painting an awfully bad picture of Bob."

"I know Ed, and every thing I've said is just conjecture. I have no idea if any of it is true or not."

"Okay, I will agree that caution is required. Let's go back home and we'll have at least four of us go visit them in the morning."

When we got home we talked it over with the others. Syl and Tina were stunned. They'd seen how enthusiastic Bob and Jane had seemed, especially Jane. "It did seem a little strange right at the end there though," Syl said. "I was watching Jane while Bob argued with Sandy about her coming back with them. She had a very funny look on her face. Maybe disgusted. Maybe a little angry. Maybe a little afraid." Syl said.

"Well, we'll find out in the morning," I said. "I'd like to be on the road by 7:00 AM. Who's going with me?"

They all answered at once, so I waited until they had calmed a little before I stepped in. "Fred and Jenny, I know both of you would like to go, but I'd really feel safer if you two were guarding the place. If Bob is up to something, he may decide to raid us or try to take us over or whatever. If you guys could watch Kammie and the house and power plant, I'd really appreciate it."

"I guess that makes sense Ed," Fred said. "Is there anything else you need?"

"If you had another handgun, I'd appreciate borrowing it. We only have two. Sandy isn't qualified with one yet, but I could use one."

Fred got us a 9mm from his bedroom with a couple of extra clips, and then Jenny said she had something to show us.

There were fourteen horses in the corral next to the barn. Some of them were real beauties. Jenny pointed one out and said, "That is a well trained horse. He worked for me like I'd been riding him all my life. If you'll come around to the other side of the barn, I'll show you what else I did today."

I counted sixteen Holsteins in one pen and the three with calves in another. All were contentedly munching on hay that had been put into feed boxes for them.

"This is fantastic Jenny," I said. "Does this mean we'll get some fresh milk?"

"Sure does. Fred and I just finished milking before you guys pulled in. We'll do it again in the morning, then I'd like to start teaching the rest of you how to do it."

"How long before the milk you got tonight is ready to drink?"

"It should be nice and cold in another hour. There's going to be more than we can drink from now on."

"You did a wonderful job today Jenny. I don't know how I can thank you enough."

"We did a wonderful job too Daddy," Kammie said. "I can show you where the chickens roost."

I grabbed her up and hugged her. "Show me then, Sweety. If any of them are laying, we'll have eggs for dinner tomorrow."

I sat her down and she grabbed my hand and pulled me over to some trees. "See all the chicken poop?" she giggled.

"I sure do honey. When it gets dark tonight, we'll go over and catch all of them that are there. We'll put them in the chicken pen and if they're laying, we'll gather the eggs tomorrow night."

We caught fourteen hens and a rooster that night. They didn't even seem to mind being penned up again, but went right to the roosts in the chicken coop like they'd never been away.

-------

Day 45 - July 5

We were up before dawn the next morning. No one even seemed drowsy. Tina suggested we take a couple of gallons of milk with us for the other group and I thought it was a great idea. I know when I had my first glass last night it had tasted better than the finest wine I had ever had.

"I want everyone wearing clothes," I told them. "When we get out of the Blazer, try not to be obvious about having a gun, but keep it where you can reach it."

Tina and Sandy grumbled a little, but did put on some clothing. Syl and I had already dressed. We were pulling out of the driveway at a quarter to seven. I was proud of them and told them so.

Sandy gave me directions as we went. It seemed like she was very familiar with the area, so I asked, "Are you from around here Sandy?"

"Born and raised in the Lexington area," she said. "I always wanted to do some traveling, but never could seem to afford it."

"Were you married when IT happened?"

"Divorced actually. Callahan was my maiden name and I took it back when the divorce was final. I got married when I was eighteen. We stayed together for two years and I've been on my own again for three years. If you're not very good at math, that means I'm 23 years old."

I laughed. "I'm at least that good Sandy. I was in the process of getting a divorce. I think it made it a little easier to take, not having to watch a loved one die."

"You're probably right Ed, but it was bad enough. I watched as each of my friends came down with it and then they were gone. It was very traumatic for all of us."

We drove in silence for a few minutes then Sandy said, "It's less than five miles now. Jim and most of the women will be up, but Bob won't be."

"Maybe that's good," I said. "We'll see what Jim has to say before Bob can influence him."

We pulled up in the yard and within seconds a huge man came out of the house, cradling a shotgun. Two women were right behind him, but neither was armed.

Sandy got out of the Blazer and said, "Hi Jim. Hi Sue and Ellen. Where were you yesterday?"

"Morning Sandy. What do you mean about where were we?" Jim asked.

"Bob said someone would come back to the library yesterday at two o'clock whether you guys decided to join Ed's group or not. We waited for an hour and a half, but no one showed up."

"That's the first I've heard of it," Jim said.

"Is it okay if my friends here get out of their car Jim. They have some fresh milk for you."

"Hell, I'd kill for fresh milk," Jim said. "Sure, get out folks."

We all slowly got out of the car, and Tina handed the milk jugs to Sandy. Sandy took them over to the woman she'd called Ellen, who smiled her thanks and took it inside. She came back out in a couple of minutes with a large glass for each of them.

"I'm Ed James," I said. "Didn't Bob tell you about our meeting up with him day before yesterday?"

"Nope. I'm afraid not Ed."

I explained to him what we were trying to do and what we had to offer. I could see his two wives getting excited as I talked. Then Sandy broke in. "Jim, their electricity is on all the time. They have their refrigerators and freezers fully stocked. Plus they have cattle and sheep and chickens."

I told him about leaving signs all over the country and he said, "That's a good idea. I talked to Bob about doing that, but he was against it. I guess we should wake his ass up and find out why he didn't tell us about this. I want to say right now, Ed, my wives and I will be joining you. I would imagine the other women here will want to join you as well." With that, he handed his shotgun to Sue and held out his hand. We clasped hands, and I really felt good about having this big man with us.

Sandy went inside the house and was soon back with the three single women and the little girl. We went through telling them about our group and what we had to offer. All of them indicated they wanted to join our group. Sandy started to go back in and wake Bob and Jane, but Jim stopped her.

"Sandy, I don't know what Bob is trying to pull here, but I think I should be the one to go in and wake him. I'll be right back out."

Jim was true to his word. He was back inside three minutes. He was smiling as he said, "I just woke him up and told him there were some people out here to see him. He looked like he'd swallowed a frog."

Bob hesitated just inside the door before coming out. When he stepped outside, Jane was right behind him. "Well, Sandy, I see you've come back to us," He said in a gruff voice.

"No Bob, we just came to see what happened to you guys yesterday. Why didn't you tell Jim and the others about the new group?"

"Jane and I talked it over on the way back here, and we decided the new group wasn't for us. You shouldn't be with them either."

Jane looked me in the eye and shook her head while Bob was talking. When he finished, I said, "Is that right Jane? Did you decide you didn't want to be with the new group?"

Before she could answer, Bob butted in. "Are you calling me a liar, James? I said we decided."

"No, I di..." Jane was saying when Bob yelled, "Shut up Jane. You ain't got nothing to say here."

"No, you shut up Bob," Jim said in a deadly quiet tone as he leveled his shotgun at Bob's chest. "You go on Jane. Tell us what you were going to say."

"I was just going to say I didn't have any say in it. Bob told me he decided he didn't want to join Ed's group and that if I knew what was good for me I'd not tell anyone else about it." Jane stepped out from behind Bob and walked over to where the single women were standing. "I'd really like to join your group folks."

"You can't do that Jane! You're my wife!"

"If cleaning up after you and doing your laundry and fixing your meals and fucking you any time you want means I'm your wife, then I guess I am. So, I'll divorce you just the same way I married you. Robert Roberts, I hereby divorce you."

One of the single women giggled and Bob looked like he was going to explode. "You're going to pay for this, James," he threatened.

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Bob. I offered you all a chance to come in with us, and you decided to not even give the others a chance to decide for themselves. I think you're the one who blew it."

All this time, Jim was still holding his shotgun pointed at Bob. "What are we going to do with him while we get ready to go?" he asked.

"I have some handcuffs in the Blazer. We can handcuff him to that rail over there the let him loose when we leave," I said. "I really don't want him grabbing a gun and shooting me."

"Makes sense," Jim said, then forced Bob to go over to the railing we were talking about.

I got the cuffs and snapped them on his left arm and the rail. Jim could finally relax.

"Bob, we've got three RVs here. We're going to take two of them. We won't touch your guns or anything personal you have," Jim told him.

"Jim, you don't need to worry about taking any food either. We have enough for everyone for a few days, until we can make a scrounging trip," I told them.

It took them less than an hour to get everything they wanted loaded into the RVs. I pulled Jim aside and told him to go back to I-64 and head west. "Stop right after you get on the Interstate. We'll let Bob loose and catch up with you."

The RVs pulled out, and we waited until they were well on their way, then Syl pulled around so the passenger side window was facing Bob. Tina got in the passenger seat, opened her window, and lined her Glock up on Bob.

"Bob, I really hate to treat you like this, but I have to warn you that Tina is an excellent shot. She killed a man a week ago from 150 yards. If you so much as move a muscle when I let you go, she'll drop you like a rock."

Bob didn't answer, but I could see the fear in his eyes as he looked at the muzzle of the Glock. I unlocked the cuffs and got into the back seat of the Blazer. Syl had us out of the driveway before I could even get the door closed.

-------

When we got home we introduced ourselves to the new people. Tina showed them around the house, and we worked out bedroom assignments. Cindi was to share a room with Kammie. Jim and his two wives were to have one of the upstairs bedrooms.

"That leaves two bedrooms and five women to share them," I said. "I don't know how you're going to work it out, but one person could probably sleep on the couch in the living room."

"That won't be a problem, Ed," Syl said. "Sandy will be sharing our bedroom."

I looked at all three women and they were all smiling. Shit, how can I stand up against three women?

Jim, Fred and I talked as we showed Jim around the property. We told Fred all that had happened this morning. "From the sound of it he's not someone we'd want in the group. We are going to miss his skills though."

"He really didn't have that many skills we'd be able to use," Jim said.

"I thought he was a building contractor," Fred said.

"I guess you could say that. From what I gathered from him, his contracting company put in the glass on these large glass and steel buildings."

"He told me he wouldn't have any problem installing manufactured housing," I told Jim.

Jim laughed and hit me on the shoulder. "He wouldn't have," he told me. "He'd have asked me. I worked for the biggest manufactured home dealer in the Midwest. I did everything from pour the footers to setting the houses in place, to bolting them together and adding the cover trim."

"That's fantastic," I told him. "He said you were just a concrete finisher."

"Oh, I did some of that too. In fact I did a lot of it between housing installations. I can also operate any type of heavy equipment you could think of."

"Well, Jim. You have a new job. You are now our construction manager. I'm afraid that all of your crew, except for Fred and me, are women. With the crew you have, how many manufactured homes could we put up by mid September?"

"I'll have to think about that a spell, Ed. You mentioned a water tower and sewage disposal facility. We'll also have to run water and sewer lines and electrical lines to every house. Let me think about it a bit."

We went back to the house and found the women had all of the sleeping arrangements figured out and had moved everything from the RVs into the house. Kammie seemed excited to have a new roommate her own age.

I asked Tina, Syl and Sandy to come outside with me for a minute. We walked out under a huge maple tree then I asked, "So, when do we marry Sandy?"

Tina started giggling, and Syl was smiling. Sandy had tears running from her eyes when she asked, "Do you really mean that Ed?"

"Yep. I can't fight the three of you and have any chance of winning, so I might as well get with the program and start enjoying your body right away. If you want to marry us that is."

"Oh I want to marry all three of you. I just didn't think you'd ask, even though Tina and Syl were pushing you."

"Sandy, I make it a rule to never marry anyone I don't love. You made me so proud of you this morning that any hesitation I might have had disappeared."

"So, by asking me to marry you, you're saying you love me?"

"Yep."

She launched herself at me and threw her arms around my neck. She pulled me into a five alarm kiss, then pulled back and said, "I love you too, Ed James. The answer is YES! I'll marry you this instant."

"How about tomorrow morning?" Syl asked.

"Fine with me," I said.

"Okay, if I have to wait I can," Sandy said.

Tina explained the ceremony to her, and Sandy was touched. "I love you all," she said.

-------

As we were eating dinner, Jim said, "I hate to say it, but we need to get some heavy equipment out here right away. I know where we can get a water treatment plant, but it's over in Louisville. There's a company there that makes them for hospitals in third world countries. I know where we can get all of the dozers and backhoes we need in Lexington. We'll also need a trencher or two, and maybe an end loader or two."

"All that sounds good," I told him. "How are we going to mix concrete?"

"Not a problem. I know where we can get a portable concrete plant. It's used, but in good shape. I think the guy told me it will put out about 30 to 40 yards of concrete an hour. We could set it up over at the next farm and bring the concrete over in trucks just like the big boys use. We'd also need a diesel generator because some parts of it are powered by electricity. Can any of you people drive a semi?"

None of us admitted to being able to do so, so Jim said he'd start teaching some of us tomorrow. "If I remember right from what I've read, the water treatment plants consist of two large tanks. One is a sedimentation tank and the other is a filtration tank. There are various and sundry smaller tanks and pumps and the like that hook up to the main two. There are also lots of chemicals used in the system. We're going to need two or three trucks to haul it all."

"Okay, if we need three trucks, we'll need six people. No truck moves without a shotgun rider," I said.

"That sounds right," Jim agreed. "What with the dogs, and who knows what, we definitely need guards."

"Do any of you women from the old group know how to shoot a gun?" I asked as I looked around at them.

"I do," Liz said. "Daddy wanted a boy, but was stuck with me. He took me hunting from the time I was ten. I don't know anything about the M-16 though."

"I've shot a rifle a few times," Mary said, "and I shot a pistol once."

No one else admitted to any knowledge of firearms.

"Okay ladies. Tomorrow morning, Tina and Syl are going to give all of you instructions on firing all of the guns we currently have. You will keep practicing until they say you can do well enough to help out in an emergency. Is everyone okay with that?"

Every one agreed to the training, but Jim's wife, Sue, said, "I'm not sure I could kill a person, Ed. I can handle killing animals if I have to, but the thought of killing someone revolts me."

"I can understand that, Sue. Frankly, it revolts me too. I'm sure Tina didn't enjoy killing the man she had to kill, but she did it anyway because she knew if she didn't he'd have hurt or killed one of us. I just hope, if it comes down to it, you will have the courage to do what has to be done."

"So do I, Sue," Jim said quietly.

-------

Day 46 - July 6

Tina, Syl, and I married Sandy in a sunrise ceremony. We kissed and cuddled for a few minutes in bed afterwards, but I knew we wanted to get an early start, so I promised we'd make up for our lack of time later.

Jim, Fred, and I took off for town early. I reminded Tina about training the women to use the firearms and she was enthusiastic about it. We decided we needed to pick up a few things, in addition to Jim training Fred and I on driving a big rig.

For one thing, now that we had all of the additional people we'd need additional weapons. We also needed additional transportation. Jim said he'd prefer a pickup truck to help with hauling, so we went looking for something with a crew cab. We ended up getting one of the big Dodge Rams. It was a workhorse and lasted us for years.

The police station only yielded one M-16 and very little additional ammunition. We then went to a sporting goods store and cleaned them out of 12ga shotguns, 30-06 rifles, 9mm handguns, and all of the ammunition they had for all three types of weapons. We also took all of their knives.

Jim said he knew of a trucking company that specialized in hauling heavy equipment, so we went there looking for a truck. There were several in the lot, and dozens of trailers, but the gate was chained shut. We made a quick run to a hardware store and picked up a pair of bolt cutters.

Jim picked out a rig to be our first victim. We broke into the office and found the keys. Fred and I were both familiar with diesels, so we knew all about getting it started. We let it run a while, and then Jim started his instructions. He showed us how to unhook the trailer, then he drove us around for a while, telling us what he was doing and letting us get the feel of riding in something this big.

He took us back to the lot and had me get behind the wheel. God what a feeling of power. I won't say I was a natural. I ground the gears and jumped the thing on several occasions before I started to get the hang of it. He had me driving around the city streets for nearly an hour. Fred was a very attentive spectator the entire time. I don't know if he learned from my mistakes or if he was just naturally a better driver, but he was much smoother than I was starting out.

When we got back to the lot after Fred's driving, Jim had him hook it up to the trailer under his watchful eye. We then went through the driving process again. This time we were pulling a trailer.

"You have to be careful going around corners," Jim told us. "The trailer starts turning as soon as the cab starts turning. Since the wheels on the trailer are way behind the wheels of the cab, the trailer tries to turn the corner before the back of the trailer gets there. That's why you see trucks making such wide right turns."

Fred demonstrated the concept the first time he tried to make a right turn. The rear wheels of the trailer bounced up over the curb. If we had been pulling anything but a flatbed, we'd have taken out the "WALK" light as well.

"One advantage we have now," Jim said, "is that there isn't any traffic. Go all the way over to the left at the next corner, then turn into the left side of the street we're turning right onto."

Fred tried this and it worked fine. I didn't do too badly my first time driving with a trailer. I actually enjoyed the experience. I also developed a respect for the men who could handle these rigs in heavy traffic.

It was late afternoon when we decided we should get home. We decided to take the rig we'd been driving with us, so we each drove a vehicle home.

When we got there, we were starved, and luckily the women had dinner almost ready. The three of us ate like horses. None of us had really thought about lunch. We had a very successful day though. In addition to the things we had picked up, the three of us had become friends. There was a bond of mutual respect that formed that would be there the rest of our lives.

The women all had to tell us about their shooting experiences. Tina and Syl were pleased as punch with the progress that had been made. Sandy turned out to be the best shot of the bunch. She was almost as good as Tina. She was followed closely by Ellen. The rest were adequate and would be deadly, especially with the shotguns.

My wives and I turned in early that evening, mostly because it was our first night with our new spouse. Thank God for king sized beds. I got into the middle and Sandy got in beside me. Tina was beside me on the other side and Syl was beside Sandy.

What can I say? Sandy is a firecracker. I think she was cuming from the time Syl and I started kissing her face. As Syl and I worked our way down toward her breasts, Tina took over kissing her lips. It is the most loving feeling to have three sets of hands stroking your body at the same time.

After paying homage to Sandy's breasts, I moved on down her body, kissing and stroking as I went. When I reached her pubic hair I played with it for a while, tugging on it, blowing in it, and combing it with my fingers. I didn't tease her by bypassing her center, but began licking and nibbling her outer lips.

Sandy's pussy was a swamp. She was so wet there was already a wet spot forming on the bed. I teased her wet anus with the middle finger of my right hand as I feasted on her pussy. Syl and Tina were working on her breasts licking and sucking on her nipples. She went off, loud and strong, before I even touched her clit. I let her calm down a little, just gently licking and stroking until I felt her start to build again. As her tension increased, I pulled her clit into my mouth and began sucking gently as I flicked my tongue back and forth across it.

Sandy's world exploded. She passed out completely. I laid my head on her stomach and gently stroked her legs and hips while Syl and Tina cuddled her between them. She shuddered as she regained consciousness.

I gave her a minute to recover then asked, "Are you ready for the main event?"

"If it's any better that what I just experienced I may not live through it, but bring it on," she said with a languid smile.

I slid up her body and kissed her before bringing my rock hard cock to her opening. Tina and Syl were still working on her breasts and Sandy's pelvis was raising and falling as I aligned myself and started pressing in. She was so wet and so tight I was afraid I was going to cum before I bottomed out. I started thinking of all of the things we needed to get done and managed to control myself.

I started gently moving in and out, but Sandy was having none of that. "Harder, faster," she moaned.

Making love to Sandy was like riding one of those super fast, super thrilling roller coasters where the ride lasts less than a minute, but leaves you so wrung out you felt like it went on for a lifetime. Okay, so we lasted longer than a minute, but not by much. There was no way I was controlling this. Sandy was the engineer and I was just the conductor. I held back as long as I could, but her enthusiasm pulled me over the edge. Luckily she was on a hair trigger as well.

As my seed started splashing into her womb, Sandy screamed. The scream went on and on, then ended as she passed out again. We all snuggled her until she came back.

"I love you," I said when her eyes opened.

"Oh, God! I love you all," Sandy said.

-------

Day 47 - July 7

We took the truck back to town the next morning. I guess we were a funny looking sight. Right out of some porn movie actually. The three guys were dressed in rough clothes because we were going to be working at loading equipment. Our three guards, Sandy, Ellen, and Jenny were dressed in their altogether. Each of them was carrying a shotgun, and they each had a handgun in a web belt.

I volunteered to ride in the sleeper with the guards, but I guess nobody trusted me so they made me sit in the seat with the guys. Oh well, it was still a pleasant trip.

We went back to the trucking company and picked up two more flatbeds. We then split up with a driver and a guard in each truck. Sandy and I did a lot of smiling and touching as we followed Jim to where we were going to be loading equipment.

Jim had made up a list of the things we wanted. It consisted of two different sizes of bulldozers, two backhoes, a large trencher and a small trencher, two front-end loaders and a couple of fork lifts. We found most of what we needed at one site. Jim tried everything out before we loaded it. It took two trips and nearly the entire day to get everything to the house.

-------

Day 50 - July 10

We spent the next two days making trips to Midway and Lexington, loading up the things we'd need to do the building. We had a different set of guards each day, giving everyone some experience at protecting themselves and the drivers. We saw dogs everywhere. There weren't as many in the towns as there had been, but we saw them roaming the fields, or just watching.

I called everyone together before we left for Louisville and gave them a lecture on being careful while we were gone. "We're seeing the dogs farther and farther out from town every day. It's only a matter of time until they show up here. We may be fighting dogs for years, and until they are no longer a threat, we will be using the buddy system. No one goes out of the house without someone with them. Both people will be armed. I know it's going to be hard on them, but the girls are not to play outside unless there are at least two armed people watching them."

All of the women had been with us, at least once, on our trips to town, and I could see they agreed. "Once we have everything lined out as to where things will be, we'll put an eight foot chain link fence around the place, and we'll be able to relax a little more."

We took Jenny, Ellen and Sandy with us for our trip to Louisville. I couldn't see that much of anything had changed from when we had come through before, except for the dogs. There were literally hundreds of them, roaming around.

We stopped at a truck stop and picked up a city map and got the address of the place from a phone book, which we took with us. The place was easy to find. It was located in an industrial park on the east end of the city. The lot it was in was gated, but we had thought to bring our bolt cutters with us.

We parked the trucks and started looking around. We hadn't even gotten inside the building when we heard a small motorcycle of some kind approaching. We assumed a defensive posture and waited. We soon saw a young man, who couldn't have been more than eighteen, come riding up on a Yamaha.

He stopped a couple of hundred feet from us then started walking slowly toward us. He had on a pistol belt and a rifle of some kind on a sling over his shoulder. He held his empty hands out to his sides as he walked.

The young man stopped about forty feet away from us and said, "Hello folks. Welcome to Louisville."



-------

Chapter 6

I had to smile. "How do you know we're not from here in town?" I asked.

"Mister, I've been all over this town at least a dozen times. There are only three people who live here now. Where are you from?"

"I'm Ed James. We're from over near Lexington."

"I'm Bill Jenkins. Do you mind if I come over where you are?"

"No, come on, Bill. The big ugly guy behind me is Jim Fox. The pretty redhead is his wife, Ellen. This is my wife, Sandy, and the other two are Fred Davis and his wife Jenny. Jenny is the pretty one." Even Fred had to grin at that.

"I'm pleased to meet you all," he said as he walked toward us. "We saw your three trucks go by, and I just had to see who you were."

"We just came in to pick up one of the water treatment plants they made here," I told him. "We're building a community where we live, and we're worried about having enough fresh water."

"I might be able to help you a little bit," he said. "I worked here two summers while I was in High School. My brother worked here for five years before he died."

"Any help would be appreciated, Bill. We've got a hell of a lot of work to do in a short amount of time." I went on to explain what we were doing and that we expected a lot of people to show up in October. "You are welcome to come and join us if you'd like," I told him.

"Actually, I'd like that very much, Ed, but I don't know if you'd accept us. I have two wives. One of them is black."

I had to laugh, and all the rest of our group joined in. Bill was looking a little confused, so I told him what we thought was funny. "Bill, I have three wives. One of them is black. Jim has two wives. Fred only has one wife as yet, but I've seen Jenny trying to convince him he should be helping out at least one other woman."

You could see Bill visibly relax. "In that case, we'd be happy to join you. That is, if my wives agree. Let me get you started in the right direction here, and then I'll run back over to the house and bring them over to meet you."

We broke into the building and Bill showed us where all of the spec sheets were kept. "You'll find the completed systems over on that side of the warehouse," he said while pointing. "When you pick out what you want, I'll show you what all we shipped with it."

Bill took off, saying he'd be back within half an hour. We looked through the spec sheets and found that the biggest one they had would supply approximately five hundred people. We went down to the part of the warehouse Bill had indicated and found two of the five hundred person units and three more one hundred person units. The things were huge.

When the plant had been in operation, an overhead crane had been used to move the tanks out to the loading dock. Without power, the crane was useless. I could see we were going to have to move several things before we could get to one of the five-hundred person units, so I sent Jim and Ellen to get one of the trucks backed up to the dock while I went looking for a large forklift.

I was about ready to give up when I saw just what I was looking for. This forklift had two forks on it that were about eight feet apart and were at least twelve feet long. It looked like it had been used to bring the empty tanks in for assembly. I got it fired up and arrived back at the shipping area just after Jim had brought one of the trucks in to the loading dock.

The dock he used allowed him to back the trailer all the way inside the warehouse. That way it could be approached from the side for loading. Fred had gotten a normal forklift running while I was gone, and was busily moving things to clear a path so we could move one of the big units.

We already had the sedimentation tank loaded on the trailer and chained down when Bill came back with his wives. I was pleased to see that both of them were armed.

Bill introduced his wives, Diana and Shelly and we all introduced ourselves to them. "Jenny, would you be so kind as to tell our three new friends about our setup while we continue loading this monster? Be sure to mention the prejudice thing and the nudity thing. Sandy, you and Ellen need to keep a close watch while the rest of us are all busy," I said.

We loaded the main sections of the water plant, and then Bill started telling us the other things we would need to go with it. We dropped one of the flatbed trailers and hooked on to a regular trailer. We loaded that trailer with the smaller things like pipe fittings, filters, and chemicals. It was a full load, but we did manage to get everything we'd need for at least six months.

After we were loaded, I asked Bill and his wives if they would be interested in joining us.

"We definitely would," Bill said.

"How about you ladies?" I asked.

Both of them nodded.

"You'll probably have to sleep in one of the RVs for a while," I said. "Until we get the first house up. Even then, you'll have to share the house with other people. We're not going to have the luxury of having a house to ourselves for a long time."

"That's okay," Diana said. "Maybe that will help overcome the prejudice we all experienced before IT happened. It may also let us become a lot more open about things like nudity and sex. That can only be good."

"Okay, how are we going to do this? Do you guys have a vehicle so you can follow us?"

"Yeah. It's already packed. We're all ready to take off."

"Let's do it then," I said.

The trip back went quickly. When we arrived, the girls greeted us enthusiastically, then welcomed the newcomers to the group. Bill, Diana and Shelly were blown away by dinner that evening. They hadn't had any fresh meat in a while, and the women got together and fixed steaks for everyone.

Day 71 - July 31

God! What a month! I'm so tired I can hardly wiggle. We now have seventeen people in our group. Two of them are children. That leaves fifteen workers. We keep three people on guard at all times, so that leaves twelve who are actually working at any one time. The women rotate at the guard positions to share the actual burden.

I'm not going to go into the boring details of what we did the past month. Let's just say we worked our butts off. As of this date, we have installed the water plant and the water tower. We have installed the sewage disposal system, and we've run the main lines for water and sewer to the edge of the area where we are going to be putting the houses.

We have leveled the sites for ten houses and have three of them ready to install the houses themselves. Fred, Jim, Bill and I along with Ellen and Syl are going today to pick up the first house.

Jim did the truck driving since he was far more experienced than the rest of us. We had scouted out the dealer in Lexington beforehand and knew they had three that were the exact same outside dimensions. Jim had also brought in a huge crane he obtained from the same dealer. Jim got us through the loading, and then we followed him back while he drove the first half of the new house back to its permanent location.

Setting the house into place and putting it together wasn't nearly as bad as I was afraid it was going to be. Most of what we did that summer included a lot of hard labor, but it wasn't beyond us.

We also had a lot of fun during the warm months before it was time to start thinking of making the trip to Missouri. We took days off from working on the new village to do things we just enjoyed doing. One of our most interesting pursuits was of course exploring and scavenging. Part of the scavenging was beneficial to the community, but part of it was just for fun.

A couple of the women decided to build a music and video collection. By the end of summer we had so many music CDs and movie DVDs we were thinking of building a storage facility just to hold them. They started out cataloging them on paper, but I eventually convinced Tina to set up a couple of databases for them on a computer. That way they could print out a list of what we had before they went scavenging and they wouldn't end up with so many duplicates.

Watching movies with busy street scenes was bittersweet at best. It tended to remind us just what all we'd lost.

Day 103 - September 1

We had almost everything in place by the first of September, so I called a town meeting to decide when we were going to leave for Missouri and who all was going to go.

We now had four family groupings, which broke down as follows:

My Family: Me (Ed James), Tina Baronkowski, Sylvina Lathrop, and Sandy Callahan.

Fred's Family: Fred Davis, Jenny Wilkerson, Liz Mitchel, and Jane Frazier.

Jim's Family: Jim Fox, Sue Higgins, Ellen Bascolm, and Mary Clark.

Bill's Family: Bill Jenkins, Diana Spencer, and Shelly Cox.

Children: Kammie Winslow and Cindi Taylor.

We still considered Kammie as our daughter and Cindi spent so much or her time with Kammie; it was assumed by most that she was part of our family too. Cindi was a little sweetie, so I didn't mind at all.

After we had read the wonderful letter from the last of the family who had owned this place, we had all decided to call our village Weisberger in their memory. When we had all gathered together for our meeting, Sandy said we should officially elect a mayor for the village. This made a lot of sense, so I asked for nominations for the job.

"I nominate Ed James," Sandy said.

I waited for other nominations and when none were forthcoming I said, "Come on people. This is not a monarchy. Would anyone else be willing to take this job?"

"I'd be willing to do it if you weren't around, Ed," Jim said. "As long as you're alive, the job is yours, as far as I'm concerned."

There was a murmuring of agreement from everyone there. Sandy stood up again. "All those in favor of Ed continuing as mayor of Weisberger, signify by saying 'Aye'."

A rousing round of Aye's was heard.

"All those opposed signify by saying 'Nay'."

Total silence.

"Okay, I guess I'm stuck with it," I said. "The first order of business is to decide who is going to Missouri and who is going to stay and protect our home. Both jobs are equally important. I think we need to divide pretty much in half with half going and half staying. I'll tell you up front that since this was mine and Tina's idea that we will be going."

"If it's all the same to you," Fred said, "I think it would be better if my family stayed here. I want to keep my eye on the power plant and Jenny wants to keep a close watch on the ranch."

"That would be fine, Fred. You know you have seniority if you want to go though."

"Nope, we'll stay."

"How about you, Jim?" I asked.

"Well, we're a little like Fred. We'll go if you want us to, but there are a lot of things we could get done if we stayed. My wives and I have been talking about getting a fence around the housing area. I think we could just about have it done by the time you guys get back."

"That sounds like a great idea, Jim. I was thinking that an eight-foot chain-link fence with razor wire on top would be about right. We haven't run into any zoo animals yet, but I think it's just a matter of time. So, what do you think, Bill? Are you guys up for a road trip?"

I could see the excitement in Bill's eyes as he answered. "Absolutely! I didn't think we'd get the chance. We've talked it over and would really like to go."

"Great. Now let's talk about provisioning. If our family takes the RV we arrived in, we have that huge freezer already in it. Jenny, can you fix us up with enough beef to feed all of us, with some left over if we need to share with the new people?"

"Not a problem, Ed. I'd like to get the beef from one of the neighboring farms though if it's alright. I know we have plenty of cattle here on the ranch, but we might as well take advantage of wild beef while it's still readily available. There's not going to be any pork or poultry for this trip though. I know there have to be hogs out there somewhere, but so far we haven't run into any. Our flock of chickens has had an increase, but they're not ready to be eaten yet."

"Yeah, I know, Jenny. It's definitely something we need to be looking into."

"We should also be thinking about getting up some pole barns. If we end up with a couple of hundred people here, we're going to need at least six or eight hundred chickens to feed them and that's just the laying hens. We'd need four or five times that many for eating." Jenny said.

"You know, I was thinking. The power is probably still on in California. Maybe we should make a run out there and bring back a couple of semi loads of frozen pork and poultry. I think everyone here has been trained to drive an eighteen wheeler now, so we could really stock up," I said.

"It's something to think about," Jim said. "We could get some of those really big walk-in freezers and keep everything in there. We'd need pole barns or something to put the freezers in as well. One thing I'm really missing is my orange juice with breakfast."

"Okay, we'll see about making that a priority, right after we get back from Missouri. Bill are you and your wives checked out on the weapons we'll be taking with us?"

"Yeah, I guess we could all use a little more practice, but we can usually hit what we're aiming at."

"Okay, see Tina tomorrow. She'll give you all some practice and some pointers about how to become experts. Jim, do you need any help before we take off?"

"I could probably use some help getting the fencing in. I think I'll be able to load and unload everything by forklift, but It would be nice to have some assistance. I've put up survey stakes where I want the fence to run, but I haven't measured it out. If I could get someone to do the measuring, I'd have a better idea of what we need."

"That's no problem. Syl and Sandy, would you guys measure out the fence line tomorrow?"

"Sure, Ed," Syl said. "We should have someone to stand guard while we do it."

"I'll do that," Sue (Jim's wife) said. "I don't have anything scheduled for tomorrow."

Day 110 - September 8

Getting things ready to go proved a lot easier than we thought it would be. We decided to take the motor home we originally came in, and the one Fred had driven. Kammie had kicked up enough of a fuss that we ended up taking her with us. She had really adapted to life as it is now, but she still wanted to be with her new family at all times.

It would only take a couple of days to travel to Missouri, but we decided that since none of us had been east of Lexington since IT happened, we'd make a run to the east and drop off a bunch of new signs. These scheduled a meeting for November 1st at the Wal-Mart in Ironton, Ohio.

By now, almost everyone in the village went nude a good part of the time, even Fred. Sandy was nude almost all of the time, and Tina and Syl were almost as bad. They wore shoes when they were outside and work clothes when they were doing something that their bodies might need to be protected from, but at other times I got to enjoy seeing them walk around in their altogether.

Bill, Diana and Shelly had been a little hesitant at first about the nudity, but they soon came around as well. The two girls, Kammie and Cindi, both acted like things had never been any different. They took to being naked like a duck takes to water.

So it was that on September 8, we loaded eight naked people into two motor homes and headed east on I-64. I don't know how many stops we made going across Kentucky but we used up a fair number of signs. We left I-64 and went into Ashland, Kentucky. We didn't see anyone, but the dogs were numerous and very aggressive. Many of them ran after the motor homes as we passed them.

We went across the bridge into Ohio, then went on to the Wal-Mart store. It had been pretty well looted and the broken doors were hanging open. The rain that had blown in had ruined much of what was left at the front of the store.

We all got out, fully armed, and looked around. "From the looks of things," Bill said, "there have been several people scavenging here. Let's put up some signs. We may get lucky."

"Yeah," I said. "My only problem is that I don't like how they left the store. Smart people would have made sure the door was covered so all of this stuff wouldn't have been ruined."

"It could have been just one bad one in the bunch," Syl said. "The thing that worries me is that this is getting into redneck country. We may find a lot of prejudice here."

"Well, with Syl and I here we should find out pretty quick if there is prejudice against blacks," Diana said. "So, what are we going to do if there is someone who shows up that is perfect in every way, but thinks blacks are second class citizens?"

"We tell them politely that they are not welcome to come with us," I said. "If they try to follow us, we tell them more forcefully. If they still don't get the idea they're not welcome to go with us, we kill their sorry asses."

Diana looked a little shocked, but Syl hugged me and said proudly, "That's my man."

We decided to spend the night in the parking lot, so we moved the motor homes into a comfortable position then leveled them. Tina suggested we find a barbecue grill in the Wal-Mart and grill some steaks for dinner.

I have no idea why we hadn't thought of a barbecue at home, but the meal that night was the best we had since IT happened. There is something about steaks done over charcoal that beats any other way of cooking them. Diana and Shelly had gotten out some canned beans and made baked beans while my lovelies had made potato salad.

We had to keep a watch out for dogs while we were doing the steaks and we had to eat indoors, but it was a very nice evening. It was especially nice because we had more time to get to know Bill, Diana and Shelly than we'd had all summer.

Day 111 - September 9

We took off early that morning. We decided to go down through West Virginia and cross into Virginia at White Sulphur Springs. This is an exceptionally beautiful part of the country and is very rural for the most part. I thought there might be quite a few survivors in this area.

We spent quite a bit of time going through WVA, stopping to put up signs, and to just look around. On at least two occasions I felt like we were being watched, but no one came forward. We pulled into White Sulphur in the late afternoon and decided to spend the night there.

We found a nice spot to camp for the night and then decided to explore a little. There was a nice suburban station wagon in the parking lot where we had stopped. Bill and I were looking it over, wondering if we could find a spare key for it so we could do a little exploring, when I leaned against the hood. I jumped like I had been shot. The engine was hot.

All of us had started carrying radios with us whenever we were out of the RV. I clicked the transmit button and said, quietly, "We have company. This car was driven here within the last hour. Get some weapons and keep us covered."

Tina answered immediately, followed by Diana. Now I felt a little better. I started scanning around the area we were in, trying to get an idea of where the car owner might be hiding. Bill had crouched down by the side of the car and had his shotgun resting across the hood.

"Stay put," I told Bill. "I'm going to get a bullhorn."

Bill nodded and I used the radio to insure one would be waiting for me when I got back to the RV. Syl opened the door and handed me one as I reached the door. "I checked the batteries," she said, then disappeared back into the vehicle.

I walked back to where Bill was still crouched and raised the bullhorn to my mouth. "Hello people. We mean you no harm. We're just passing through. We're looking for people to join us in a new community. We have electricity 24-7. We have cattle, horses, sheep and chickens. We have fresh milk and eggs every day. If you'd like to hear more, join us for dinner. We're grilling steaks with potato salad and baked beans."

I gave them a moment to digest this then continued. "My partner and I are going into our RVs. If you want to avoid us, wait until we're inside and get in your car and leave."

I motioned to Bill and we went back to the larger RV. "You know they could shoot us all to hell right through the walls of the RV don't you?" Bill asked once we were inside.

"Yeah, I'm trying to show them a little trust. We could also blow them away when they try to get in their car. They'll have to trust us too."

We sat there another five minutes or so, then we saw a couple of women approaching the car. One was carrying a shotgun and the other was pushing a loaded shopping cart. They pulled the shopping cart up to the back of the Suburban and unloaded it into the back of the vehicle. They were talking, but we couldn't hear what they were saying. They moved to the front doors of the vehicle and both of them got inside.

I let out a big sigh and said, "Well, I was hoping to make contact. Maybe they'll see the signs and reconsider."

I hadn't more than finished saying that when the doors of the vehicle opened and they both got out. They walked over to our RV and knocked on the door.

"Tina and Sandy, cover us from out of sight," I said in a stage whisper. My two lovelies disappeared and I went and opened the door.

"Good afternoon ladies," I said. "Are you here for the barbecue?"

Both of them cracked up laughing. "If you'd like to come inside I'll introduce you to everyone," I said as I held the door open for them.

They did a quick glance at each other, then shrugged and came inside. The one with the shotgun sat it beside the door. Both had handguns on their belts, but I figured if they were going to trust us by coming into our RV, we shouldn't make a big thing about them wearing their sidearms.

The shorter of the two women stuck out her hand and said as she looked Bill, Syl and myself over, "I'm Tiffany Green and this is Eve Collum. Do you people always run around naked?"

Now it was our turn to laugh. "I'm sorry, Tiffany. Yes, we pretty much do. To the point we don't even realize we're naked at times. I'm Ed James. This is my wife, Syl and the other guy here is Bill Jenkins. We'll put on some clothes if we are making you uncomfortable."

"No, that's okay," Eve said. "I don't mind nudity at all."

"I kind of like being naked, myself," Tiffany said as she unbuckled her web belt and laid it over by their shotgun.

Eve saw what she was doing and removed her belt and handgun as well.

"Ladies, why don't you come out and meet our guests?" I asked my other wives. When both of them had come into the living room, I introduced them to Tiffany and Eve.

"So, what's this community you were talking about on the bullhorn?" Eve asked.

Tina handed them a couple of our flyers and let them read about our village. When they had finished, Tiffany asked, "So, everyone is equal in your community? Blacks are equal to whites and women are equal to men?"

"That's right," Syl said. "I've been on the short end of both of those prejudices all my life. It was only after I married Ed that I felt I was equal to everyone."

"I've seen prejudice all my life," Tiffany said. "My father was a racist and he thought women were here for his pleasure and nothing else. I don't know how Mom put up with him for as long as she did. Neither Eve nor I buy into racism, and we sure don't think women are second class."

"In fact," Eve said, "The reason Tiffany and I are by ourselves now is we killed the guy who thought we were his slaves. If that bothers you, we'll leave now."

"Not in the least," Tina told them. "I had to kill a guy a while back because he thought he could make Syl his slave."

Tiffany nodded at Tina and gave her a little smile.

I called the other RV on the radio and asked them all to come over. I introduced them all. Tiffany was immediately taken with Kammie and Kammie with her. "God! She looks just like my niece," Tiffany said as Kammie plopped herself on Tiffany's knee. All of us knew without asking that her niece didn't make it.

We all talked while the ladies fixed up the potato salad and beans, then Bill and I went out to grill the steaks. I was putting the steaks on while Bill stood guard. "So, what do you think of them?" I asked.

"Well, Eve said she was a computer programmer, so that could be useful. Tiffany was a college professor, so I'm sure she has some teaching ability, so that could come in handy."

"I know that. What do you think of them personally?"

"Tiffany seems nice. She doesn't seem stuck up although she was in a profession where she could have been. I like her. Eve is gorgeous. She has a great personality. I think they'd both fit in well with our group."

"Okay. I agree with you, although I think Tiffany has a better personality than Eve does. I'm going to ask them if they'd like to join us when we finish dinner, if our wives agree. Why don't you ask Diana and Shelly in private and I'll do the same with my wives. Let me know what they say before we finish eating."

"Will do. I don't think they'll have a problem with it, since that is what this trip was all about to begin with."

I don't care if dinner was a repeat of last night. It was excellent. Without being obvious about it, I got each of my wives by themselves and asked their opinion of the newcomers. All agreed they should be invited and when I looked over at Bill while we were eating, he gave me the nod that his family was in agreement.

I think Tiffany and Eve must have drunk three or four glasses of milk each with dinner. After everyone had finished eating we all leaned back and relaxed. "My God!" Tiffany said. "Just having milk would make it worthwhile joining your community."

"We were meaning to ask you about that," I told her. "We are all in agreement that we would like for both of you to join us. Are you interested?"

"I certainly am," Tiffany said.

"I agree," Eve added.

"How would we go about this?" Tiffany asked. "Would you want us to meet you in Ironton, or would we come with you now?"

"That would be up to you," I told them. "We have enough room in our RV for one more, if someone wouldn't mind sleeping with Kammie. I'm sure Bill has enough room for one more as well. So, if you'd like to travel with us you're more than welcome. Otherwise, we can meet you in Ironton in a month and a half."

Tiffany and Eve looked at each other then Eve said, "Now please."

Both women giggled then Tiffany said, "I suppose we'll be running out of milk soon. I'd still rather go with you guys now. I don't know what it is, but I've felt like we were with family since Ed cracked that joke about were we here for the barbecue. I've pretty much been a loner all my life, but since IT happened I've felt like I needed to be with family."

"I know what you mean," Sandy said. "I met Ed in a library. Both of us were nude at the time. When I saw him, I had chills run up and down my spine. I knew I belonged with him, and as soon as I met them I knew I belonged with his wives as well. They were gracious enough to take me in and make me one of the family. You don't have a problem with plural marriages, do you?"

"No. I would have before IT happened. Now, it only makes sense. It seems that many more women survived than men. Women have two choices now. They can either share a husband, or live alone. I don't choose to live alone."

"I agree," Eve said. "We wouldn't have had a problem sharing Tom if he hadn't been such a redneck. He thought he should be able to lay back and have us do all the work. Then if we didn't get as much done as he thought we should; he'd slap us around. The last time he beat me up was the last straw. I thought he was going to kill me and so did Tiff. I was badly bruised all over and I think I had a cracked rib or two. Tiff helped me until I could move around on my own and took a black eye for me when he got mad about dinner one evening."

"Yeah, he was a bastard," Tiffany said. "Once Eve was well, I told her we had to do something before he killed one or both of us. He wouldn't let us have any guns, but we waited until he was asleep one night and used a butcher knife on him. We'd have tried to run away from him, but he told us if we did he'd find us and make us wish we'd just killed ourselves."

"I don't blame you a bit," Bill said. "If you were still with him now, we'd ask you to join us, but tell him he was not welcome."

"I guess we should tell you the rules of our community right now. Most of our old laws are outdated and irrelevant. We've come up with some new ones to start things off. Rule number one: Clothing is optional at all times and nudity is an appropriate dress for any occasion. Rule number two: Nudity is not an invitation to intimacy. No means No!" Any violation of this is grounds for expulsion or even death. The third is against prejudice in general. If someone makes prejudicial remarks against anyone, they will be expelled from the community. Of course theft and murder are forbidden. Theft shouldn't be much of a problem because everything belongs to everyone. The punishment for murder is death."

"All of that sounds reasonable," Eve said.

"Yeah, I agree," Tiffany said. "You know it's going to be hard carrying out a death sentence though. It was hard enough for Eve and I to decide to kill Tom, even though we knew he'd kill one or both of us if we didn't."

"I've thought of that too," I said. "I don't know how we'll manage to do it if it comes up, but we know we have to."

Yeah, I guess so," Eve said. "Let's just hope we never have to do it."

"Amen," we all said together.

We decided that since Tiffany and Kammie had already formed a bond that they would share the pullout couch. Eve seemed just as happy to sleep in the other RV.

Day 112 - September 10

When Syl and I rolled out the next morning to make coffee, we had to pass the couch where Kammie and Tiffany were sleeping. They were snuggled together and to my eyes looked like a couple of angels. Syl and I both stopped and just looked at them for a minute.

Syl snuggled into my lap as we waited for the coffee to brew. "So, when are you going to give me a baby?" she asked.

"When do you want one, Love?"

"Now!"

"Okay. Stop taking the pill."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that. I think it's time we started rebuilding civilization."

I was smothered by a barrage of kisses. I finally captured her face and pulled her into a deep kiss. We held it for what seemed like forever and only broke it when we heard someone pouring themselves a cup of coffee.

We looked up to see Tiffany looking at us, wearing only a smile. "Now that's a great way to wake up," she giggled.

"Damned straight," Syl agreed. "This wonderful man just made me very happy. I've wanted to have a baby for years. My husband didn't want kids. When Ed and I got together, we decided to wait until we felt secure in our village before we started raising babies. He just told me he felt we were ready any time I was."

"Well, congratulations, you two. That maternal instinct is very strong. I'm twenty-four and I've started feeling it already."

"I must say you look to be the earth mother type," I said as I admired Tiffany's body. She was of medium height with a slender waist, wide, baby making hips and breasts that were perfectly proportioned to her body. Her strawberry blond hair on her head matched the delightful little patch above her compact little pussy.

"See anything you like?" Tiffany asked as my eyes again met hers.

"Oh, I'm sure he likes everything he sees," Syl giggled.

"I'm sorry, Tiffany," I said. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. You are a very beautiful woman though."

"That's okay Ed. You didn't make me uncomfortable. Actually it was kind of flattering. Here you have someone as gorgeous as Syl sitting on your lap and you still noticed me."

"Thank you, Tiffany, even though I know it's a lie. I'm the oldest one in this group and I know it. Ed never seems to let that bother him though."

"What doesn't Ed let bother him?" Tina asked as she came in and poured herself a cup of coffee.

"The fact that I'm an old hag," Syl said with a grin.

"Yeah, he doesn't let age bother him much. It's been at least a week since he called me a little kid," Tina said.

"Hey, I may have said you are a kid, but I never said you were little," I teased.

Tina came around and gave me a good morning kiss, just as Sandy came in to the kitchen. "Morning, Love," I said when Tina and I broke our kiss. "Did you sleep well?"

"As well as can be expected with that thing of yours prodding me in the butt all night," Sandy smiled.

"Well, if you didn't have such a sexy butt, maybe it wouldn't get prodded so much." I laughed.

"You guys have a great relationship," Tiffany sighed. "Tom just wanted to screw us and have us work for him. He never loved either Eve or me. You guys act like you are all in love."

"We are," I said. "I'll admit it didn't take long for me to fall in love with any of these lovely ladies and I worried about that for a while. Before IT happened, no one thought you could love more than one person at a time. We had these courtship rituals we had to go through and we all accepted them as the way things should be. They were just a product of the civilization we lived in though."

"Yeah, when IT happened, it changed the way all of us felt about things. I'm just sixteen. I won't be seventeen for a month. Ed is ten years older than I am, and when we first got together he was very hesitant about doing anything with me. I guess maybe it was because I was younger, but I didn't have any hesitation at all. He fought it tooth and nail for several days before he made love to me for the first time."

"He even fought it when I joined our family," Syl told her. "I knew as soon as I saw him that I was attracted to him. After we'd talked for a couple of hours, I knew I wanted him and wanted him badly. Tina and I talked it over and decided we'd share him. You should have seen him try to wiggle out of that. He wouldn't even make love to me until after we were married."

"He was the same way about making love to me before we were married," Sandy said. "He didn't fight me as long though."

"You've all mentioned being married," Tiffany said. "How can you be married if there are no ministers or judges around?"

"We came up with our own ceremony," Tina said. "At sunrise we pledge our love for each other. We're not just married to Ed. We're married to each other as well."

"You mean, you... You have sex with each other as well?"

"Yes," Sandy said. "Does that bother you?"

"I don't know," Tiffany said. "I suppose it should, but for some reason it doesn't seem to as much as I would have thought it would."

"I think mother nature stepped in when IT happened. I know my sex drive is much greater since then. Although Ed has been known to make love to each of us twice in a day, he isn't always up for it when one of us wants to make love. When that happens it's nice to know one of my other spouses is willing to help me out," Sandy said.

"Yeah, I can see that," Tiffany said, thoughtfully.

"Are you guys talking about sex stuff again?" Kammie asked as she came in and sat on Tiffany's lap.

"We were, Kammie my love," I told her. "We won't bore you with that though. Why don't you get one of the radios and see if you can wake your Aunt Shelly or your Aunt Diana up? We should get Tiffany's and Eve's things loaded up and get on the road soon."

Kammie jumped off Tiffany's lap and ran off with a giggle to try to wake the people in the other RV. Everyone else started working on breakfast. Kammie came running back in a few minutes and handed me a radio. "It's Aunt Diana," she giggled.

"Thank you, Sweety," I said. I keyed up the radio and asked, "Diana, are you guys ready to pull out?"

"Huh... Ed I'm the only one awake over here."

"Well, my dear, why don't you get that pretty butt moving and wake everyone up? Breakfast will be served in our RV in half an hour. I want to sleep in Washington, DC tonight."

"Okay, slave driver. I'm going to report you to the NAACP for cruelty to black people."

"Cruelty, my ass. Come over here and ask Syl how cruel I am."

Diana giggled into the radio. "Okay, I'll get them moving. What's for breakfast?"

"Biscuits and gravy this morning. That is if there's any left when you slug-a-beds get here."

It wasn't twenty minutes later when all of the people from the other RV came in as a group. I noticed that Eve had adopted the no clothing policy as well. I could see why Bill thought she was gorgeous, but she was far too skinny for my tastes.

-------

Tiffany and Eve had been living in a house on the outskirts of White Sulphur. It only took us a couple of minutes to get there and not much longer to get them loaded. "What did you do with Tom's body?" I asked.

"We just left him in the bed where we killed him and moved," Tiffany told me. "We didn't think he deserved a burial."

"I'll have to admit we did the same thing with the guy Tina had to kill. He had been very insulting to Syl, so she peed on him before we left him."

"Oh my God!" Tiffany laughed. "I wish Eve and I had thought of that. The bastard basically raped us whenever he felt like it. He never cared if we enjoyed it or not. In fact I think he enjoyed it more if we were fighting him."

"Tiff, my love, you're much better off without him. You did the right thing."

"Thank you, Ed. We both cried for days afterwards. It wasn't that we were sorry for him or anything. He got what he asked for. It was just that we both felt so bad about taking a human life."

"From the way you describe him, he wasn't human, Tiff. Tina is the only one of the rest of us who has had to take a life. It bothered her a little, but she bounced back from it quickly. I know if it comes to that, I'll be able to do it, and I don't think it will bother me that bad. Especially, if it is a lowlife like Tom was."

-------

Virginia was a lot more populous than the western states we had come through getting to our new home. There were a lot more towns and a lot more places we wanted to put up signs. It's only around 250 miles from White Sulphur to Washington, but it took us all day to get there.

We started out on I-64 and followed it to I-81. We followed that, north, until we reached I-66 then turned east. I-66 took us on in to Washington. I figured we might get a good response from the signs we left in Virginia. Although Virginia was very populous, it still had some farming communities. Surviving IT was only half the battle. Most city dwellers would scavenge until they ran out of food, then they would starve because they didn't know how to produce or find more. We left a lot of signs in Virginia.

It was getting dark as we pulled into our former capitol city. We found a mini-mall with a nice level parking lot and set up for the night. Dinner was roast beef sandwiches made from a couple of large sirloin roasts the ladies had roasted before we left home. We all turned in early.



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Chapter 7

Day 113 - September 11

We did a lot of traveling the next day and went through four states. We got on I-95 in DC and took it all the way to Trenton, NJ. We passed Baltimore, Wilmington, DE, and Philadelphia on the way. We didn't stop at every exit to put up signs, but we hit the majority of them.

For some reason we weren't nearly as tired as were the night before. We had taken turns driving during the day and those who weren't driving took turns putting up the signs. Sandy and Syl prepared our evening meal while we were driving, so after we had set up for the night they served us a wonderful Beef Stroganoff. This was made possible because Jenny had learned to make sour cream during the summer. It sure tasted great.

Tiffany had ridden shotgun every time I had driven that day and we did a lot of talking. I found out she had been a bit of a child prodigy and had finished high school at the age of fourteen. She'd had her Bachelor's Degree when she was seventeen and her Doctorate by the time she was twenty.

Tiffany's major had been in microbiology. She had taken a teaching position at a well-known university with the hopes of being able to do some research when she was established. Unfortunately, IT happened before she could accomplish that.

Since I was a virologist we had a lot in common.

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Day 114 - September 12

We stayed on I-95 the next day going through New Jersey and a tip of New York and on into Connecticut. It was almost like driving through the same city all day. The going was a lot slower here because of so many vehicles stopped on the highway. It seemed like the city dwellers weren't smart enough to get off the roads before they died.

Fred had welded a very solid bumper across the front of our RV. It was welded directly to the frame of the vehicle and it made short work of most of the blockages. We did have one spot where there had been an eleven-car pile-up where we had to hook on to some of the cars with a cable and pull them away from the pile before we could push them out of the way.

We were a tired bunch when we pulled into Stamford, CT, so we decided to call it a day. Dinner consisted of leftovers and sandwiches. No one felt like cooking.

The people from Bill's RV took off right after we ate, but the rest of us sat around talking for a while. Tina was snuggled on my lap while Sandy and Syl sat on either side of me. Tiffany was sitting in a recliner with Kammie snuggled on her lap. We had been talking about everything that had gone on during the day when Tina asked, "Ed, when are we going to marry Tiffany and make an honest woman out of her?"

I was thunderstruck. "What? Tina... You don't even know if Tiffany would want to marry us. Don't embarrass her like that."

"Oh, I'm not embarrassed, Ed," Tiffany said. "Actually Tina, Sandy, Syl and I have been talking about this a lot. We're all willing if you are."

I was smiling from ear to ear when I said, "Tiff, anyone would have to be out of their mind not to want to marry you. You and I have talked a lot over the last few days and we have one hell of a lot in common. Besides that, you are as beautiful as my other wives. The only problem I have is in what's going to happen when we get all of the new people in the community. Are you still going to want me or are you going to find someone else you like better. The commitment we've made to each other is for life. Can you handle that?"

"Yes, I can, Ed. We do have a lot in common, which would be grounds, itself for us to get married. Above and far beyond that, I've come to realize just how good a person you are. I love you, Ed and I love each and every one of your wives."

"Well, Tiff, I have to admit I've been very impressed with you as well. Not only in how you've interacted with my wives and me but in how you've interacted with Kammie. I think I've loved you since that first night you spent in our RV. Maybe even before. I know I was very pleased it was you and not Eve who would be sleeping in our RV."

"In that case, when's the ceremony?" Syl asked.

"Just can't wait to get your hands on her, can you, Sweety?" I asked Syl.

"I don't even know if she would be interested in that kind of thing," Syl said as she poked me in the ribs.

"Well... I've never done anything with a woman before, Syl, but I've never felt for another woman what I feel for you guys either. I guess we'll just have to see how it turns out."

"Just so you know," Sandy said. "You are not required to have sex with anyone. I'm sure you will want to with Ed, but if you just want to be our sister, that's alright too."

"I know, Sandy. That's one of the things I love about you guys."

Sandy decided she'd sleep with Kammie and give Tiffany a chance to snuggle with the rest of us. I must say, Tiffany is a pleasant armful. I was laying on my back with Tina on one side of me and Tiffany on the other. Syl was behind Tiffany, who had her head on my shoulder and her leg over mine. Tiffany's ample breasts were pressed into one side of my chest while Tina's were pressed into my other side.

I tilted Tiffany's head up and kissed her tenderly. We both sighed and snuggled in to go to sleep. After a couple of minutes Tiffany said, "Whoever is stroking my hip had better stop or I'm going to cum all over Ed's leg."

Syl giggled and said, "I'm sorry Tiff. I just couldn't resist it."

"That's okay, Syl. It felt really nice. You know, it didn't seem to matter that it was a woman's hand stroking me instead of a man's. It just felt good and loving."

We all drifted off to sleep shortly after that.

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Day 115 - September 13

Sandy roused us out before dawn the next morning and we went outside and repeated our marriage vows. Tiffany was now our wife.

We took I-95 until we came to I-91 we decided to head north there and ended up spending the night in Springfield, MA. My father had been stationed in Springfield when I was a kid, but other than some place names, I didn't remember it at all.

After dinner we all sat around for a while trying to decide where to go from here. Bill wanted to head east to Boston, then maybe go up into Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. I thought we should spend more time in New York state, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.

We ended up deciding to split up. I know that in some ways that didn't sound like the smartest thing in the world to do, but it also made a lot of sense in a way. We could definitely cover a lot more ground that way and we'd have a better idea of survivors from different parts of the country.

Tina said she'd sacrifice herself and sleep with Kammie, so the rest of us headed for the bedroom. Tiffany and I slid in beside each other and kissed for a few minutes. I noticed that Syl and Sandy were doing the same on the other side of the bed. "Does it bother you, having an audience?" I asked Tiff.

"No, I don't think so. I really hadn't paid any attention to them after we started kissing. Besides, one more kiss like the last one and I'd rape you on the fifty yard line in the middle of the Super Bowl."

"In that case," I said as I began kissing her again. I moved from her lips after an eternity and nibbled down her neck. I kissed and licked her shoulder then started working towards her breasts. I circled her left breast, kissing and licking, spiraling toward her very erect nipple, but I never let myself reach this morsel. Instead I moved to her right breast and gave it the same treatment. Tiffany's breath was coming in gasps as I finally took her right nipple between my lips and gently sucked it into my mouth.

I applied my tongue to her nipple, licking and sucking until I thought she was going to cum from that alone, then I moved to her other nipple and did the same. I could have kept playing with her breasts and nipples for the rest of the night, but I could tell Tiff was becoming a little frustrated.

I started kissing my way down her stomach and when I reached her belly button, I pressed my tongue inside. Tiff giggled and pushed my head away. "I'm very ticklish there," she told me.

I took the hint and moved on down to her pussy. I nuzzled her strawberry blond pubic hair for a few minutes while Tiff kept raising her pelvis, trying to get me to make contact with her pussy. I didn't tease her any longer. I made one long lick from her perineum to her clit, then narrowed my tongue and let it slide between her lips.

Tiff was a firecracker. I hadn't been working on her pussy for thirty seconds when her first climax hit. Her second came shortly thereafter. While she was coming down from her second orgasm, she grabbed me by the ears and pulled me up where she could kiss me.

"I need you inside me," she gasped. "NOW!"

"Yes, dear," I said with a grin as I moved my cock to where the head was splitting her nether lips. I was looking into her eyes as I slid inside her hot, wet channel. Both of us sighed when our pubic hair meshed.

Tiffany had two more major orgasms before I emptied myself in her tight, wet pussy. Afterwards, we snuggled and watched Syl and Sandy as they pleasured each other. We both drifted off to sleep before they finished.

-------

Day 116 - September 14

Everyone was up early. This was the morning we were parting ways with Bill and his family. We had fitted both RVs with CB radios and 2KW transmitters before we left Kentucky, so we knew we could probably keep in touch at all times. We all gathered outside after breakfast and said our good-byes.

Bill followed us to I-90 where he turned east and we turned west. We followed I-90 to Albany, NY, then turned west on I-88. It was a long day and we made a lot of stops. We had to stop once to load up on sign holders and I was beginning to wonder if the 2000 signs we had printed up were going to be enough.

We stopped for the night in a small town not far out of Albany. We had a nice family evening before turning in early.

I probably don't mention Kammie as much as I should. She is truly a joy to have around. On an evening like this, she would sit on each of our laps for at least a while. Although she was totally naive about some things, she could joke with the best of us on things she did know about.

-------

Day 117 - September 15

Up until this point, Tina, Syl and I had only seen one other vehicle being driven by someone outside our group since we had left California. That had really turned out badly, as Tina had to kill the other driver. When we saw the RV ahead of us trying to creep along on a blown front tire, we hoped we wouldn't run into some of the same problems.

I was driving at the time, so I asked Tiffany to call Bill on the CB and let him know we were going to be offering help to a motorist in distress. I let my other wives know to arm themselves, then I pulled alongside the other vehicle.

The other driver, a man, knew I was coming up behind him and I figured he'd taken some precautions himself. I waved to him, pulled ahead by about a quarter of a mile, then pulled over to the shoulder. I slipped on a pair of shorts and got out to wait for him. Tina put on some clothes and joined me.

The other driver pulled in behind me then got out of his vehicle. As he got close, he held out his hand and said, "I'm Rob Stamper."

"I'm Ed James and this is my wife, Tina," I said. "Can we be of any assistance with your tire problem?"

"That would be nice," he laughed. "Leave it to me to pick an RV with no spare and not even notice."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. I'm sure we can help you out. It looks like the rim is shot as well. Would it be easier to get a new tire and rim, or just get a new RV and move your stuff over?"

Stamper thought for a minute then said, "It'd probably be easier to get a new RV and move our stuff over. We don't have a lot except clothes and food stuff and those can be replenished anywhere."

"How many are in your group?" I asked.

Stamper seemed a little hesitant, but finally answered; "There are four of us, my three wives and me. Is that a problem?"

"Not at all. I was just wondering if you'd all like to ride with us to pick out a new RV, or if you wanted to leave some people here. There are six of us, my wives, our daughter, and me. There's plenty of room in our RV if you'd all like to come along."

"Let me talk to my wives and see what they say," Stamper said. His stock just went up in my market.

Stamper went back into his RV and Tina and I waited outside for him to return. He was gone for several minutes, but when he came back he was smiling. "My first wife, Jill, says that if you're willing we should just bring our weapons, some keepsakes, and a change of clothes over and not even bother coming back for the rest of the stuff. Could you guys handle that?"

I looked at Tina and she nodded. "Yeah, that would be fine," I said. "I'll let everyone else know what's going on, then I think we should take the battery out of your old RV so we'll have something to get the new one running."

Tina and I went back into our RV while Stamper went to help his wives get ready. We agreed that everyone should put on at least some clothing, so the women and Kammie scrambled around and got dressed. Not long after, we heard a knock at the door.

Stamper was standing there; his arms loaded with weapons. With him were three nice looking women similarly burdened. I stepped out and opened the luggage compartment for them. It took two more trips before they had everything they wanted to recover from the old RV. My wives helped while Rob and I removed the battery and stored it in the luggage compartment. It was nice to see that all of Rob's wives carried a handgun on a web belt.

We all piled into our RV and introductions were made all around. Rob's wives were Jill Bostwick, Linda Click and Charise Payne. Charise was a gorgeous black woman, who rivaled Syl in her beauty. I asked Rob if he'd like to ride shotgun while we drove on down to Binghamton. He agreed, so we took off.

Rob was a well-built, physically fit young man in his early twenties. I found out he had been an Army helicopter pilot before IT happened. He described what the last days had been like for him and how he'd met each of his wives.

"So, where are you headed?" I asked.

"Actually we don't have a specific destination. We're heading for a warmer climate where we hope to set up a farm. Scavenging is only going to work for a short while. If we don't start producing what we need, the race is going to die out," he said.

I yelled for Tina to bring up one of our fliers so he could take a look at it. I was a little surprised when Jill brought it forward. My ladies had already passed out fliers to Rob's wives, so they were ahead of their husband. Jill stayed and watched Rob as he read.

When he finished reading, Rob had a big smile on his face. "This sounds like just exactly what we need," he said. "Do you really have electricity?"

"Twenty-four-seven," I said. "We also have a water treatment plant and a sewage disposal plant in place and operational. We should have about thirty acres with a chain-link fence around it by the time we get back. Dogs have been a real problem."

"Yeah, we've had a lot of problems with them too. We've seen a lot of cattle and sheep that have been killed by what we guess were dogs."

"So, what do you think? Are you interested in joining us?"

Rob looked at Jill and she nodded enthusiastically. "Absolutely," he said.

I told them we were headed to Missouri and hoping to pick a lot of new people. "You can either follow us or we can meet you somewhere," I said.

"I think we'd like to follow you," Rob decided. "That way we can get to know you guys a little better before we get to the village."

-------

We found an RV dealer in Binghamton and Rob's family selected a large motor home. We made sure it had a spare tire and that all of the tires were properly inflated. We exchanged the battery in it with the one we'd taken out of the old RV. It didn't take us long to get it started, then we found a truck stop and filled its tanks and topped off ours.

The grocery store we found hadn't been opened since IT happened. We filled their water tank with bottled water and they stocked up on canned goods. It was late afternoon by the time we had finished all of this, so we decided to spend the night.

We learned more about Rob that evening and about Jill, Linda and Charise as well, as we prepared and ate a delicious meal. Rob was a fixed wing aircraft pilot as well as flying helicopters for the army.

Jill had been a paralegal before IT happened which was as she put it, "a totally worthless set of skills. I am a good cook though, and I'm as cute as hell." This was said with a giggle that made me agree with her, even though she had been teasing.

Linda had been an elementary school teacher and I assured her we'd be putting her talents to work. Charise had been a martial arts instructor. We didn't know it at the time, but hers would prove to be a very useful skill for us in the future.

-------

Day 118 - September 16

We now had two weeks until we were due in Crestwood, Missouri. I got out the maps and did some figuring and come up with a figure of roughly a thousand miles. In a car, before IT happened, I would have figured a two-day trip. Now, with the time it took to refill our fuel and water and the time it took to dump our sewage, I'd add at least another day.

Putting out signs almost tripled our travel time. Since I wanted to get there a few days early, we decided to start toward Crestwood. We headed south on I-81 until we reached I-80, then turned west. We were forty or fifty miles west of where we got on I-80 when I saw a sign advertising smoked, sugar cured hams, bacon and sausages.

We got on a walky-talky to let Rob know what we were doing, then followed the signs. What we found almost blew me away. Along with a typical roadside market, we found a warehouse full of smoked ham and bacon. The place had been the east coast distribution center for Southern Style Ham.

We had been without pork since we ran out of what we brought from California. I read some of the brochures and found out the bacon and ham were good if stored at room temperatures for up to a year, as long as they weren't cut. After cutting, they had to be refrigerated.

We all looked around then talked over what we could do to take some of this bounty with us. It was finally decided that we'd load a truck with the ham and bacon and take it with us until we reached Indianapolis. We'd leave the truck there until we'd made our run into Crestwood, then pick it up as we headed home.

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Day 119 - September 17

We didn't get on the road until almost noon, since we had only gotten part of the truck loaded the previous evening. We took half a dozen hams and a dozen slabs of bacon into each RV as well as what we loaded into the truck. My mouth was watering, thinking about how good bacon and eggs were going to taste when we got back to our village.

Syl, Sandy, and Tiffany stayed in the RV with Kammie, while Tina went with me in the truck. We kept in constant communications between the three vehicles with our radios. We made very good time and were north of Pittsburgh when we pulled into a rest area and decided to call it a day. Tina got a big kick out of a sign that said, "No Overnight Parking".

-------

Day 122 - September 20

Since we still had plenty of time, we spent the next three days putting up signs around Pittsburgh, Akron, and Cleveland. We passed through some really nice farming country and saw several herds of cattle grazing peacefully.

This morning, we headed down I-71 to Columbus. We made a leisurely trip of it and stopped for the night just west of Columbus on I-70.

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Day 123 - September 21

The trip from Columbus to Indianapolis went a lot faster than we thought it would. Here we were, one day out of Crestwood and it was still nine days until we were to meet anyone. We decided that tomorrow, we'd take the truckload of smoked pork on down to Louisville before heading west to Crestwood.

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Day 124 - September 22

We stored the truck in the parking lot of the place where we picked up the water processing plant. It was nice being back in the RV with my honeys. We headed west on I-64 and made it to well passed Evansville, IN before deciding to stop. I figured we were approximately 120 miles from Crestwood.

We had a nice meal and were relaxing and talking about what we'd find tomorrow. We figured it'd take us about three hours to get there, then we'd have at least a week of sitting around waiting for people to show up.

"You know, it's going to be nice to just sit around and relax for a few days," Rob said as he snuggled Linda on his lap. Rob's family had taken to nudity almost as readily as mine had. "This driving wherever you want to go is for the birds. I'd much rather be in a plane or a helicopter."

"We should look into getting a helicopter," I told him. "Do you know enough about maintenance to keep one flying?"

"I know some, but if it were anything major wrong with one I probably couldn't fix it. It would be nice to have some quick transportation though. You were talking about making a trip to California to stock up on perishable foods before the power goes out. Wouldn't it be nice to climb in a jet and be flown out? The drive back wouldn't take over three or four days, instead of spending six to eight days driving both ways."

"That sounds like..." I started to say, then it happened... again. There was a knock on the door. Everyone scrambled. Although all of my lovelies had been naked when the knock sounded, Tina and Syl both had handguns out before I could get to my feet. "Everyone disappear," I said.

Tiffany grabbed Kammie and headed for the master bedroom. I have no idea where everyone else went, but soon Rob and I were the only ones in sight. I went to the door and opened it.

"Please help me," a woman cried, not even noticing Rob's nudity or mine. She was a mess. She had a black eye and her lip was split. There was a trickle of blood running down from her hairline and her clothing was torn. I took her hand and pulled her, none too gently, into the RV. I quickly closed and locked the door as Rob helped her to a chair.

"Come on out, ladies," I said.

Sandy took one look at the woman, sat down beside her, and pulled her into her arms. The woman sobbed on her shoulder while Sandy held her and murmured unintelligible comforting sounds. "Tina, would you get me a warm washcloth, Honey? Let's get her cleaned up a little."

Tina was back in a couple of minutes and she and Sandy proceeded to wash the woman's face and check out her injuries. "Someone hit her just above her forehead," Tina said. "She's bruised all over from what I can see. It looks like someone has badly beaten her."

"It was that bastard I was living with," the woman said. "He's been getting worse for a while."

"I'm Tina and this is Sandy," Tina said. "Do you think he might be coming after you?"

"I'm Alicia Cunningham," the woman said. "He may be. I've never seen him crazier. I think he might have killed Evie tonight and he beat Bonnie and I something terrible."

"What's wrong with him?" I asked.

"Drunk. As usual. He was okay when we first hooked up, then he started drinking. It wasn't much to begin with, just one or two drinks a night. Then it started building up. The last month he's been putting away at least a fifth a day. Why aren't you people wearing clothes?"

"We're nudists," I said. "Where are these other women you mentioned?"

"They're five or six blocks from here. Al was raping Bonnie when I sneaked out. He could still be there. He's drunk enough he'll probably fall asleep immediately."

"Can you show us where they are?"

"Yeah, I'm really not hurt that badly. I don't think I have anything broken. I'm not sure about Evie though. He was kicking her in the ribs."

"Okay, we're going to get dressed. Tina, Syl, can you two come with me?"

Both women started to get dressed then Rob said, "I think I should go with you, Ed. This guy sounds dangerous."

"I want you to stay here and protect our families," I said. "Tina and Syl are better with handguns than anyone I've ever seen before. Tina had to kill a guy a while back, so I know she can if she has to. If you want someone from your family to go, send Charise if she'll do it. Her martial arts talents might come in handy."

Rob reluctantly agreed and Charise enthusiastically agreed to come with us. We were dressed and ready to go within a couple of minutes and Sandy had gotten Alicia a new blouse to replace her torn one. All of us except Alicia had handguns, while Tina and I carried M-16s as well.

-------

We could see the house when we were still half a block away. It was dark, but we kind of expected that. We had two large flashlights with us which Syl and Charise were holding, but had not turned on. We stopped outside the house and listened, but didn't hear anything.

Alicia had told us that it was best if we went in the back door, which opened directly into the kitchen and dining room. The living room was directly across from the dining room and a hallway led back to the right. Al slept in the last bedroom on the left side of the hall.

The kitchen and dining room were empty as we made our way silently through the back door. There was enough moonlight filtering in to see fairly easily. We could see someone laying on the floor in the living room and Alicia whispered that it was Evie. We didn't stop to check on her, but turned back the hall.

As we got closer to his bedroom, we could hear snoring. I crept down the hall with Tina by my side. When we got to the door of Al's bedroom, I looked inside and saw the outlines of two people on the bed. I could tell from the direction the snoring was coming from that Al was the body on the right.

I whispered to Tina and Charise that he was the one on the right. Tina pulled out a pair of handcuffs and held them up. I nodded and said, "I'll hold the bastard down. You two get the cuffs on him."

Both women nodded and we made our way silently to Al's side of the bed. He was nude, lying on his stomach. His left knee was pulled toward his chest and his right arm was lying on the bed behind him. When we were in position, I dropped my right forearm down onto the back of his neck and put all of my weight on it.

Tina and Charise had his left arm cuffed before he even started to struggle. Due to his position, his right arm was almost useless. They easily got it cuffed to his left one.

The struggle had awakened Bonnie. "Whut?" she said in a panic stricken voice.

"It's okay, Bon. These people are helping us take care of Al."

Bonnie started sobbing and Alicia went to her and put her arms around her. Alicia held her until the sobs began to slow then she told her about how she had found us.

Charise turned on one of the big flashlights and sat it on a dresser, pointed toward the ceiling. The room lit up almost as well as there had been a lamp turned on. I suddenly realized I still had Al's head pinned down to the bed. I eased up the pressure on his neck and stood up.

"What the fuck du'ya think your doin'. This is my house. Get the fuck out," Al screamed.

I ignored him. "Syl, go check Evie, please. See if she's alive."

I looked at the naked girl who was still on the bed and shuddered. She had bruises as big as softballs over the upper part of her body and on her legs. Her right nipple was an angry red and was swollen to twice its normal size. "Are you okay, Bonnie?" I asked.

"I don't think anything is broken. I have a couple of loose teeth and I hurt all over," she told me.

"Alicia, could you get her something to put on, please?"

Alicia left the room just as Syl got back. "She's breathing, Ed, but she doesn't look good. It looks like she may have a broken jaw, and I think she probably has some broken ribs. Her left forearm is definitely broken."

"Fuckin' bitch," Al mumbled. Tina slapped him across the side of his face with her 9mm. Al spit out blood and said, "You'll pay for that, Bitch."

"No, you're going to be the one who pays, Al. This new world doesn't have a place in it for people like you," I told him.

"Tina, could you and Syl go back and bring the RV up here please? I don't want to have to carry Evie any farther than we have to. There's a stretcher in the luggage compartment. Also, the couch pulls out into a bed so we can put her there when we take her in."

"Sure, Ed. I can go alone if you'd like," Tina said.

"No, we're inside here and safer than you'd be walking back to the RV. Be careful, you two. I love you both dearly."

"Will do, Sweety. Come on, Syl. Let's get that RV up here."

-------

Tina and Syl must have run all the way to the RV. They were back with it much sooner than I thought was possible. Rob and Syl came in with the stretcher and Tina stood guard outside.

We loaded Evie on the stretcher as gently as possible and Rob and I carried her to the RV. Syl and Tina formed a corridor for us to walk through. I had no doubt we were safe from dogs. We laid the stretcher down on the pullout bed and I went back to make sure Alicia and Bonnie got in okay.

Once they were inside, I waved Syl and Tina back into the house with me. "So, what are we going to do with this bastard?" I asked.

"Good question," Syl said. "We know the guy's guilty. We know we're going to have to kill him. The question is, how do we go about it."

"I don't see the problem," Tina said. "We just tie him to a pole and shoot him."

"That's what we'll have to do, love, but the question is, how should we go about it. Whatever we do is going to set a precedent for the future. What happens if something else happens in a few months and we think we know who did it? Do we just kill them too? What if we're wrong?"

"Okay, I see your point. I guess we should have a trial for the bastard and let Bonnie, Alicia, and Evie if she's capable present evidence."

"Yes, and he needs to testify as well, if he's willing," I said. "Then I suppose we need a jury."

"Well, we could have a jury, or we could make it so the judge, you, decides," Syl said.

"I think a jury is best," I said. "Especially when it's something that could end in someone's death."

We secured Al inside the house, no one wanted to bring him into the RV, then went back to check on Evie. Someone had cut her clothes off of her and had cleaned her up. Her head was propped up and she seemed to be breathing better.

"I checked her pupils and she didn't seem to be concussed, so we gave her some morphine for the pain." Sandy told me. "I'm sure she has some broken ribs and her poor arm is definitely broken, but she isn't bleeding from the mouth and her breathing is definitely better. We'll need to set her arm tomorrow and tape her ribs, but I think she's going to make it if she doesn't have any internal injuries."

"Thank you, Sandy. Could I ask you to be on the jury in the morning? I want people who haven't been in contact with Al."

"Sure. I'll try to be as impartial as possible."

I asked Jill, Rob, and Linda to be on the jury as well and all agreed. Rob and Tina walked back and brought his RV back, then we all got ready for bed. Both RVs were packed.

-------

Day 125 - September 23

I was drinking my first cup of coffee, with Syl snuggling on my lap, when Alicia and Bonnie came into the kitchen area. "So, what are you going to do about Al?" Bonnie asked after she and Alicia had their own coffee.

"We're going to have a trial this morning," I told them. "If the jury finds him guilty, he'll be executed."

"I know that's the way it has to be, but I never was in favor of the death penalty," Alicia said.

"Think about it, Alicia," I said. "We don't have the facilities to keep him incarcerated. If we turn him loose, he'll find another woman to abuse. I don't think I could live with myself if he killed someone, or even abused them like he did the three of you, after we had let him go."

-------

We set up court in Al's house. None of us wanted a reminder of him in the RV. He was hungover, angry, and abusive.

"What the fuck do ya think you're doin'? There ain't no law now and you ain't no fucking judge. Let me the fuck outa here," he screamed.

"You'll get your chance to talk in a few minutes," I told him. "First, Alicia and Bonnie will make their accusations and give their testimony, then you'll be able to make your defense."

"What're ya gonna do to me if you find me guilty?" he asked with a sneer in his voice. "Slap me on the wrist and send me away?"

"No, if you are found guilty, you will be put to death. Alicia, please tell the jury everything that Al did to the three of you."

Strangely enough, Al shut up. I don't think he had even considered we might execute him.

"Al and I hooked up shortly after IT happened. At first, he was a very considerate man. We started working on getting things together that we could use to survive. About a week later, we ran into Evie Walters in a grocery store. After sharing some tears, she asked if she could join us. Al and I both agreed."

Alicia stopped and took a drink of her coffee. "It was almost a month after that when Bonnie Gillespie joined us. Things were still pretty good at that time. Al had started having a drink or two every evening, but the rest of us did too and it was no big thing."

Alicia looked over at Al with regret showing on her face. "The problems started when the rest of us continued with one or two drinks, but Al started drinking more. Soon, it was half a pint, then a pint, then at least a fifth of whiskey every day for him. He stopped helping stockpile food and other necessities, then he started becoming abusive."

"How was he abusive?" I asked.

"Well, at first it was just little cruelties. He'd pinch us or twist our arms if we did something he didn't like. Then he started slapping us. About three weeks ago, he hit me with his fist for the first time."

"Did all of these things happen when he was drunk?"

"At first, they did, then he started doing it when he was hungover too."

"What happened last night that got this all started?"

"Well, Evie found this sign out by the interstate. It was about a group that is trying to get a community started. She brought back a flyer and showed it to Bonnie and me, then she showed it to Al. She told Al that since it was close to us we should go and see what they had to say.

"Al told her to shut up and that we weren't going anywhere. Evie started to say something else, but Al hit her in the mouth with his fist. She fell down and he started kicking her. He was screaming the whole time and I thought he had gone completely crazy. I was afraid he was going to kill her, so I tried to get him to stop.

"He knocked me down and kicked me a few times, then he started on Bonnie. After he had hit her a few times, he dragged her off to the bedroom and raped her, although she was begging him to stop. I didn't know what to do, but I knew I had to get away from him before he killed me. I took off running. I was thinking the dogs would probably get me, but I knew he would. That's when I saw your RV."

Bonnie's story was pretty much the same as Alicia's. She gave a few more details about the beatings Al had subjected her to, but she agreed with the time frame and with what had set Al off the night before.

When it was Al's turn to give testimony, he tried to play on the jury's sympathy. He told of how he had lost everything and of what an important man he'd been before IT happened. He said that Alicia, Bonnie, and Evie had gone completely wild and that he'd had to discipline them.

"I've seen the condition all three of these women are in," I told him. "This is far beyond discipline, even if you had a right to discipline them."

"So what? They're only bitches," he said. "All three of them have fucked me, even when the others were watching. That makes them sluts and bitches. They deserve what they got."

"Do you have anything else to add before we ask the jury for their verdict?" I asked.

"Only that you people ain't got no right to do anything to me. You're not the law and you're not a judge. You all can just kiss my ass."

"Okay, I'm going to poll the jury one at a time. Rob, is he guilty or not guilty?"

"Guilty."

"Sandy, is he guilty or not guilty?"

"Guilty."

"Jill, is he guilty or not guilty?"

"Guilty."

"Linda, is he guilty or not guilty?"

"Guilty."

"Al Johansen, the jury has found you guilty of abusing these three women. The penalty for this is death. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"Yes, this joke has gone on long enough. My grandfather fought in World War Two. My great, great, great grandfather fought in the Civil War. More than one of my ancestors fought in the Revolutionary War. My family has money and breeding. These women are just sluts. They fucked me so I'd take care of them. There's no way you're going to kill me just because I slapped them around a little."

Al was still wearing his handcuffs and leg irons. I looked over at Rob and nodded. He and Sandy got up and grabbed Al by his arms. They tried to get him to his feet, but he refused. Finally, I told everyone to leave the house and get ready to get on the road.

"Are you sure?" Rob asked. "I can take care of this if you are having problems."

"No, I'll do it. Whoever has the keys to the cuffs and irons, please leave them with me." God knows I didn't want to do it, but I felt it was my duty as leader of the group.

Everyone left the room except Rob, Sandy, Tina, Syl, and Tiffany. I told them again to get going but Tina said, "You are our husband, Ed. If you have to go through this, we'll go through it with you. I had to kill once. I got over it quickly, mainly because you and Syl let me know it was something that had to be done. We're here to make sure you know that this is something that has to be done."

Al was screaming obscenities at us as I pulled my Glock out of my holster and walked over until I was just a few feet in front of him. I quickly shot him right between the eyes. He probably never even realized he'd been shot.

I was shaking like a leaf in a windstorm when my wives pulled me in and hugged me. They held me until I stopped shaking, then Syl and Sandy quickly took off the cuffs and irons. We turned and walked out the door.



-------

Chapter 8

Evie woke up briefly just after we got started. Tiffany made her some broth and she sipped most of it. She was still in a lot of pain, so Sandy gave her some more morphine, which knocked her out again.

We had decided to go to Crestwood before setting Evie's arm in case there was a doctor or nurse there who could do a better job of it. Even with the trial, we were in Crestwood by noon.

My heart was in my mouth as we approached the Wal-Mart parking lot. I knew we'd be very disappointed if there was no one there. We certainly didn't expect what we found when we got there.

Syl let out a scream and Tina started giggling. There had to be twenty motor homes or campers in the parking lot.

We pulled over near the entrance to the store and Rob parked off to our left. People started walking toward the RV before we were even stopped. Tina and I got out, but everyone else stayed inside for the moment.

A large burly man moved out ahead of the rest. He stuck out his right hand and said, "I'm John Mason, from Colorado. Where are you guys from?"

"Hi John, I'm Ed James and this is my wife, Tina. We're from California originally, but we've been living down in Kentucky for the last few months."

Half a dozen other people shook our hands and introduced themselves. I've always been terrible with names, but I tried to remember what I could.

"So, do you know anything about this shindig, Ed?" John asked.

"As a matter of fact, we're the ones who put up the signs," I told him. "We've got a nice little community started down in Kentucky. We have electricity and gas. We also have cattle, horses, sheep and chickens and we have some good farmland where we can grow some crops in the spring. We've put in a sewage disposal plant, a water treatment plant, and we have ten houses already up. There's a lot of work to do, but we think we can have something that approaches the comfort we had before IT happened if we all work at it."

By now there were at least twenty people gathered around us, most of them women of course. Everyone started asking questions, but I held up my hand and said, "I know you all have a lot of questions, but I have one for you first. Is there a doctor in this group? We have a lady inside who has been badly beaten. She has a broken arm and probably some broken ribs. We need help."

A woman near the back of the group said, "I'm Christina DeAngelo. I am a doctor."

She started pushing her way toward the front of the group. "Tina, could you take her in to see Evie and send Syl out?"

Tina smiled and nodded.

Syl was outside, standing at my side within seconds. I introduced her as my wife and no one blinked an eye. We answered questions for about twenty minutes, then I told everyone, "I seem to be repeating a lot as new people come around. What I'd like to do is get you all to make a list of questions each of your families would like answered. I'll go over them and get Syl to write out the answers on poster paper. We'll tape these in the windows of the store. That way, each of you can go over what's been asked and answered and think of anything else you'd like to know."

"That sounds reasonable," John said.

"I want to talk with each and every one of you before you all make a decision as to whether you want to go with us or not."

Everyone seemed satisfied with this, so Syl and I went back inside to see what was going on with the doctor. "How's she doing, doctor?" I asked.

The doctor looked up at me and smiled. "I think she's going to be okay. She does have at least two broken ribs. We've set her broken arm, but I'm going to have to make a scavenging run to get a splint for it. I'll also need tape for her ribs. At the same time, I'll pick up my bag so I can get her vitals. By the way, please call me Chris. I think all of this formality shit went out the window when IT happened."

"Thanks, Chris. Please call me Ed. Were you introduced to everyone else?"

"Yes, even to Evie. We used morphine to put her back out again before I set her arm. I was also told how you guys handled the guy who did this to her. Very commendable. I want to check over Alicia and Bonnie after I get my bag."

"Great. Do you need anyone to go scavenging with you?"

"That would be nice. I'm sort of by myself. I've been living with two other women and a guy, but I'm not married to or hooked up with any of them. The guy kind of gives me the creeps, but since IT happened you take your company where you can get it."

"Okay, Tina, would you go with Chris and I to pick up some medical supplies? I think I'll get Rob to go too. How about you, Syl, would you like to go?"

Tina and Syl both agreed to come along, so I called Rob on the radio and asked if we could take his RV for some scavenging. He agreed and his wives agreed to stay with our crew to help take care of the invalids.

After we were all loaded in Rob's RV, I asked Chris, "Do you have any idea where we'll need to go to pick up what we'll need?"

"No, we'll need to find a medical supply house. We'll probably have to go into St. Louis to find one. I'm from Salt Lake City, so I'm not familiar with this area at all."

I asked Tina to go back to our RV and get us a couple of battery-powered lanterns and some flashlights, since it would probably be after dark before we found what we wanted.

-------

We actually found the supply house we wanted fairly quickly. We were still glad to have the lanterns along, though, since there were no windows in the building and it was very dark inside.

The building had been broken into before, probably by someone looking for drugs. The section of the building where the drugs were kept was basically a vault within the building. It had reinforced concrete walls and a door a bank vault would be proud of. You could see where the door had been pounded on with a sledgehammer or something, but it didn't look like they'd made any headway toward getting it open.

We didn't need anything in that line anyway, so we didn't make any attempt of our own. Chris found what she was looking for fairly quickly and started loading things up. Tina and I acted as bodyguards to protect everyone from dogs or anything else that might be a danger.

It didn't take long for Chris to get Evie's arm into a splint when we got back to the RV. Evie was still knocked out, but was showing signs of coming around. Taping Evie's ribs took a little longer and before Chris was finished, Evie let out more than one groan from the pain. Chris took her vital signs and pronounced there was really nothing more she could do under the current, primitive conditions.

We talked a little while with Chris, then she excused herself to go back to her own RV.

-------

Day 126 - September 24

When I managed to stumble out into the dining area, Syl already had coffee made and was sipping at a cup. The surprising thing was, Evie was sitting with her. We had quit giving her any morphine after her arm was set, so she was alert this morning.

I introduced myself and asked her how she felt.

"Like I was run over by a truck," she told me. "I'm Evie Walters, by the way. Evelyn actually, but no one ever calls me that. I understand I owe you my life, Ed. Thank you for getting us out of that."

"You are most welcome, Evie. We just did what had to be done. People like that can't be allowed to hurt other people. If he'd just been quietly drinking himself to death, I wouldn't have had any problem with it. He would have just been hurting himself. When he starts hurting other people, then he becomes a problem."

"Well, whatever the reasons, I thank you. All of you."

"I'm just glad we came along when we did, Evie."

"So am I. Syl tells me you are the ones who are trying to get a community together. I know that I'd like to join you and I'm pretty sure Alicia and Bonnie would too. What are the requirements for us to join you?"

"I think you guys have already paid your dues," I told her. "Actually, we're just looking for people who can live together without prejudice. We're going to try to weed out people like Al and anyone who thinks someone is inferior because of their race, color, religious beliefs, or gender. We want a community where everyone is equal."

"That sounds fantastic. You know it's not going to be easy though, don't you?"

"Yeah, hopefully we can figure out who the worst offenders would be before we take them home. I know we can't expect to eliminate all of them, but we'll try."

"They're not always easy to spot. I was a psychologist before IT happened. Al seemed perfectly fine when I met him. I was charmed by him. It wasn't until some time after we were all together that things started falling apart. I should have realized what was happening before I did, but I felt safe when we were all together. Then he started the abuses. It was classic really. We made excuses for him. We tried to help him. I had finally decided that no matter how much I liked the comfort factor of being in a group, I was going to get out of it. Then he went nuts."

"Went nuts? Is that an approved psychological evaluation?"

Evie laughed, then grimaced from the pain in her ribs. "No, but it's the only way I can describe it."

"Evie, you can be a great asset to us in helping to evaluate the people we talk to, if you're up to it. Would you mind talking to a few people today?"

"Sure. I might be better acting as a silent observer though. I can make up a few questions that you could slip in, and then I can evaluate the answers we get. I'm still a little tired from what I went through, but I can always drop out if I need to. You're going to be talking to everyone, right?"

"Yes, Evie. I'd kind of be going against my own beliefs if I excluded anyone. Why do you ask?"

"Well, first off, I'm not trying to set myself up as an expert. My track record in selecting post-IT mates is pretty bad. I can give you a few ideas though, if you're willing."

"Certainly, Evie. Fire away."

"Okay, you're probably thinking of having casual chats with everyone and not mentioning that we are evaluating them. That was my first thought as well. Instead, I think you should make a brief speech to everyone, telling them we are going to be evaluating them."

"Why would we do that, Evie? Wouldn't that just put them on their guard? I'd think it would even cause some people to leave before we can even talk to them."

"Yes, it probably will cause some people to leave. They're probably the people we would reject anyway. You should make it clear in your speech that if they are part of a family group who doesn't want to stay around, they are free to do so as an individual. Hopefully that would prevent anyone from being forced to leave, who really wanted to join us. As for putting them on their guard, if anyone is on their guard, they are more likely to make a mistake trying to cover up what they don't want us to know about them."

"Okay, what else?"

"You should make up a list of laws for the community. It doesn't have to be all-inclusive, but it should include things like prejudice, murder, theft, and the like. This should be prominently posted on the front of the store. You should also make up a sign-up list for family groups and individuals. Then we should interview them in the order they sign-up."

"Okay, those things sound reasonable. Evie, the thought of punishment for breaking the community's laws kind of has me in a quandary. I can only think of a few punishments that would work today, and all of them seem cruel. The first would be death. That would have to be for something very bad. Another would be banishment from the community. That's almost as cruel, but at least they'd still be alive. Another would be hard labor. That one wouldn't be as easy to administer and it might lead to resentment, which would be directed at the community or it's leaders at a later time. Another would be whipping, which would have the same problems as hard labor, or maybe even more. I don't think incarceration is an option at all. Locking someone up wastes the community's resources on someone who has already proven they don't want to live with the community's rules."

"This is a tough issue, Ed. I didn't witness it, but I think the way you handled things with Al was appropriate. I don't believe that there was any hope for redemption with Al. But what about the guy who has been put through hell then finally breaks down and slaps his wife? If we assign the same punishment to him as we did to Al, it might not be appropriate. We might find out later that his wife is a shrew and that no one could possibly live with her. We're going to have to be very careful to find out all of the facts before we assign a punishment. I tend to agree with you that there are only two punishments that will work for us. Death and banishment."

"Evie, you are a very smart lady. I think the community needs to set up and formalize a set of laws, but I don't want them to be anything like what we had before. Our judicial system before IT happened was so worried about the criminal's rights; it almost completely ignored the victim's rights. I don't want that in our community. Therefore, I don't want anyone who was part of the legal system helping to make our new laws. Would you be willing to work with me and a few others over the next few months to try to come up with something that works?"

"I could do that, Ed. In fact, I think I'd like to help with that. I'm not going to be good for any physical labor for a while, so that would let me feel productive."

"Thanks, Evie. Syl, would you see if you could roust Tina out? I'd like for you and her to raid the Wal-Mart and get all the poster paper they have, along with some Magic Markers for making up some signs."

"Sure, love. I'll get the rest of the family up too, so they can make some breakfast while we do it," Syl said as she headed toward the bedroom.

-------

I knew things were going to be confusing, so after breakfast I put Syl in charge of organizing things. "We're going to need a place to interview people," I told her. "Maybe Rob can find us a place. Use anyone and everyone to help you. Evie and I will work on making up the signs with the laws. Get someone to make sign-up sheets on some of the poster paper. When the sign-up sheets are ready, get a couple of people to go around to all of the RVs and tell the people they need to sign up to be interviewed. Also, take care of anything else you can think of. I'd like for Evie, Chris, and all of my wives to be there when we do the interviews."

Chris came in as I was talking to Syl and did a quick check of Evie. "You're doing very well, considering what you went through," Chris told Evie. "I was worried about internal injuries, but I don't see any indication there are any. Are you in much pain?"

"No. Oh, there's a little, but I don't want to take any medicine I don't have to."

"If you need anything, just let me know," Chris said.

"Chris, we are going to start interviewing people today. Would you be willing to sit in on the interviews with us?" I asked.

"I suppose. I don't know I'd be much help though. Why me?"

"Chris, you are a well educated person, plus you are a medical doctor. I'd want you to be looking for signs of abuse or signs that someone might be an alcoholic or anything else your expertise might turn up that a layman wouldn't notice," I told her.

"Okay, that makes sense. I'd be glad to help."

"When we get home, I'd also like to have you help set up the laws we're going to live by if you would."

"I don't know anything about the law, so I don't think I could be of much help, Ed"

"We don't want people who know about the old laws, Chris," I told her, then went on to explain what we were looking to do and why. She agreed after a little coaxing.

It didn't take long to get our current laws/rules written up. Chris and Evie were a little amused by the nudity rule. "So, do you guys normally go nude?" Chris asked.

"Yes, we do," I answered. "In fact, it's difficult to get some of us to wear clothing at any time."

"I'm all for it," Chris said. "Other than protecting yourself from skin cancer or to help withstand the cold, there's really no reason to wear clothing at any time."

"I think you're right about the prejudice thing as well," Evie said. "As long as we consider nudity to be an evil, we'll think of ourselves and others as being evil when we're undressed."

"We're not saying people have to go naked," I told them. "We're just saying it's okay if they do. I'd like to make all of our laws like that if we could, unfortunately things like murder and rape have to be specifically forbidden."

"So, you'd like to get rid of all of the 'Thou Shalt Not's'?" Chris asked.

"Yes, because all of them are outdated. For example, 'Thou shall not commit adultery'. My wives and I feel just as married as if we'd had a minister perform a ceremony for us. Under the old laws we're not married, though. If I claim Tina, who was my first wife, as my wife, any relations with my other wives is adultery."

"I can understand that," Chris said. "I've known for years that the ten commandments were outdated. I've also known that there are laws on the books in the United States that are outdated. Sure, I'll help, Ed. It should be interesting to see if we can keep from falling into the traps that our ancestors fell into."

"Remember, also," I said. "The fewer laws we have, the better it will be. Everyone has to know that if they do something really bad, they'll be punished for it. But, we don't want things so confused people are afraid to sneeze because they don't know if it's against the law or not."

"Amen." Evie said.

-------

Rob set up the dining room of the house next to the Wal-Mart as an interview room and we managed to get the laws and sign-up sheet posted. After that, it was time to give my speech. I used the bullhorn to call everyone up near the RV, then stood on the hood of an abandoned car to say my piece.

-------

"Ladies and Gentlemen. My name is Ed James and the signs and flyers my wives and I left are the reason you are all gathered here.

"First off, I want to tell you we found what we believe is the perfect place to get civilization started again. It is a small valley in Kentucky. There are hills on all sides of the valley to shelter it from severe weather, so the setting is great.

"The main thing this valley has going for it though is that it has a source of electrical power. There is a hydroelectric plant that will supply our needs for many years to come. Since we found the valley, we have put in a water treatment plant that will supply the needs of at least 500 people, and we have installed a sewage disposal system that will take care of the same number.

"The valley also has a natural gas well that will provide for most if not all of our heating needs. There is also a flourmill in the valley, so we can have our own baked goods. There are approximately five hundred head of black angus beef cattle in the valley and a couple of dozen dairy cattle. We will soon have enough chickens for fresh eggs as well. There is also a lot of area that will be perfect for growing food crops for us and our animals.

"We have people working right now at putting a chain link fence around the village proper, so we will be free of dogs and other pests, both human and animal. When we left the valley three weeks ago we had a total of ten houses ready for occupancy. Each house has three bedrooms. People who come with us will probably have to share houses for the time being, but remember; these houses have electricity and hot and cold running water.

"What we want to build is an open community where everyone is equal. Before IT happened our world, not just our country, was rife with hatred and prejudice. The Arabs hated the Jews. Whites hated blacks. In many societies, women were considered inferior to men. We are not going to have this in our community. What we would like is to have all races, colors, and religions living together in harmony. If you don't feel you can live with these conditions, then please don't sign up to be interviewed. If your spouse doesn't want to sign up, feel free to sign up as an individual.

"If you do sign up you will be interviewed by us. Every member of a family group will be interviewed individually and privately. If we feel you are not being completely honest with us, we will not ask you to join us.

"It's as simple as that folks. I would hope that each and every one of you will be interested enough to want to join us. I would also hope that if you do want to join us, you will be open and honest enough that we will want to accept you.

"We will start our interviews this afternoon. We are not going to give you the exact location of the valley until we get there, so please don't ask. Thank you all for coming."

-------

We started interviews that afternoon. I wasn't too surprised to find that John Mason was the first name on the list. I introduced him to everyone in the room and told him to just relax. "This isn't a tribunal or anything, John. We are being a little careful about who we ask to join us though. We don't want any criminals or spouse abusers or anything like that."

"That I can understand, Ed. With as few a people as there are left, your valley is going to be almost like a family. Although you might have to tolerate a family member who is a thief, you don't invite him to stay alone with the family jewels."

I laughed then said, "Right you are, John. We do want as many people in the valley as we can get though, for genetic reasons, mainly. We don't want mutants being born a couple of generations from now. So, what did you do before IT happened?"

"I was a hunting and fishing guide. I know that's not very high tech, but I was raised on a farm and I know a lot about cattle and horses. In the off seasons I've worked in construction." He looked a little embarrassed by his former occupation, so I tried to reassure him.

"These are all very valuable skills, John. Have you ever done any trapping?"

"Yeah, some. I don't like trapping because it leaves the animal in pain."

"Do you think you could figure out a way to trap hogs that have gone wild since it happened? I mean trap them in a way that wouldn't hurt them, so we could get a hog farm going."

"I think I could probably come up with something," he smiled.

We went on with the questioning and I had a very good feeling about him. He told us he had three wives. I was happy to hear him say they were his wives, not women he was living with. Chris took him in one of the bedrooms and gave him a quick check, physically while we called in the first of his wives.

Becky Freund had been a nutritionist at a hospital in Denver. Donna Daniels had been a physical education teacher. Kristen DeLong had been a housewife. All of them appeared to be in good health and none of them appeared to have been abused or to be abusers. After giving each of them a checkup, Chris concurred.

We interviewed two more family groups that afternoon. We told all three groups that they were welcome to join us and all of them seemed pleased.

We got some lawn chairs from the Wal-Mart and a large group of us sat outside talking after dinner. Our RV and Rob's were packed with all of the people we had picked up, so we decided to see if we could find another RV tomorrow so we could sleep a little more comfortably. Rob and John volunteered to do some exploring and see what they could find.

-------

Day 127 - September 25

We started off the day much as we had the day before. Syl, Evie, and I were having coffee before anyone else in the RV were stirring. We hadn't much more than gotten the coffee poured when Chris came in.

"Ed, I know Rob and John are going to try to find another RV today. If they do, would it be okay if I moved into it?" Chris asked.

"Sure, Chris. Is anything wrong?" I was a little puzzled, since I knew she had been staying with a group.

"I don't know if I'd say anything is wrong exactly. Eric is acting a little funny though. You know, I have been living with him and Kim and Melanie, but I haven't been sleeping with him. It's been a little awkward at times, but he's never pressured me or anything."

"And that's changed now?"

"I'm not sure. When I got back to the RV last night, he chided me for spending the day helping you guys. He said I was neglecting my family duties. I reminded him that I wasn't a member of his family and he told me I should be or I should get out."

"Not a problem, Chris. Even if they don't find anything today, we can find you a place to sleep tonight."

Chris' look of relief was reward enough for any trouble we might have to go to. "Thanks, Ed. I really don't think he's going to do anything bad, but I will feel more comfortable."

We sipped our coffee for a few minutes then I asked, "How did you think the interviews went yesterday, Evie?"

"I was impressed by how quickly they went," she told me. "I think the questions you are asking should tell us if there are going to be any problems. Chris, when you examine them, are you having them strip?"

"The men I've had strip to their shorts and the women to panties and bras," Chris told her.

"Do you think there'd be any problems if you asked them to strip all the way?"

"I'm not sure. Why?" Chris looked puzzled.

"Some abusers are very adept at hiding their abuses. I had one patient before IT happened who's right nipple always looked like it had been through a meat grinder. Her husband would grab it and pinch and twist when he was pissed off at her. For some reason it was always the right nipple."

"We'll give it a try today," Chris said. "I'd rather have everyone a little pissed off at us for asking them to strip than to have someone get into the group that shouldn't."

"If you need any backup on it Chris, remember we are here to help. Not just the men, either. I'd put Syl and Tina up against anyone alive today, male or female."

I could see Syl beaming at what I'd said, so I squeezed her hand and leaned over and kissed her. "That's why I try to be good to them. I'm afraid of them."

Everyone got a giggle out of that.

-------

We decided to just interview four family groups each day, so we could have some time for other things. The first group went well and we picked up a chemist and an auto mechanic in the process.

The male in the second group was Mel Blankenship, a likeable guy in his early thirties. The interview went well until I asked him if he'd ever been in jail. He said he hadn't, but something about the way he answered caused me to have second thoughts. It wasn't in what he said, I think it was more his body language than anything else.

When Chris took him into the other room for his examination, I asked Evie if she'd picked up on anything.

"Yes, I did, Ed. The guy has been in jail. I don't know what for, but his body was telling us he had done time."

"So, what do you think we should do?" I asked, looking into her eyes. She met my gaze openly and honestly.

"Let's interview the women in the group before we do anything else. After we've talked with them, we can call him back in and confront him with what we think."

The women of the group were in good shape and all of them praised Mel. All three were as likable as Mel was and I just couldn't figure out what was going on. When we called Mel back in, I told him flat out that we thought he was not telling the truth about being in jail.

"Okay, Ed. You're right. When I was seventeen, two other guys and I got drunk. We thought we were kings of the walk. We started daring each other to do stupid things and one thing led to another. We stole a car, thinking we could have some fun and then get it back where it belonged before anyone even knew it was missing. It didn't work out that way. My friend George was driving when we hit a tree. We were convicted of 'Grand Theft Auto' and I served two years for it."

"That was a long time ago, Mel," I said. "Have you been in any trouble since?"

"No. That cured me. I haven't even had a drink since then. I was always afraid of what I might do if I was drinking. The only problem was, Grand Theft Auto is a felony. I could never hold a government job and I could never vote. Now, I guess it's going to keep me from joining your group. I know you have to be careful, so I guess I can't blame you. I would appreciate it if you'd let my wives join your group though. They shouldn't have to suffer for my screw-up."

I looked over at Evie, again making eye contact, and she nodded. "Mel, I don't think that something you did when you were a kid should keep you out of our group. You and your wives are welcome to join us."

You'd have thought he'd just found out that Santa Claus was real from the look on his face. He shook hands with all of us and thanked us more times than we were comfortable with. I felt good and I knew everyone else did too.

We were taking a break when Alicia came running into our interview room. "Ed, there's a guy named Bill on the CB asking for you. He says it's urgent."

I had no idea what it was about, but I ran back to the RV as quickly as I could. "Bill, this is Ed," I said into the microphone.

"Ed, I'm in a situation and I need your advice. We're in Muncie, Indiana, at the Meijer store. We were filling up the RV when we heard shots coming from over toward the store. There are two RVs in the parking lot. Five guys on motorcycles are riding around the RVs, shooting into them."

"Any idea if there is anyone in the RVs?" I asked.

"Yeah, every once in a while, someone in the RVs shoots back. Shelly, Diana and Eve want us to try to help the people in the RVs. I think we could take out a couple of the bikers before they even know where the shots are coming from."

"It's up to you, Bill. You guys have two of the hunting rifles and a couple of M-16s don't you?"

"Yeah."

"If you decide to do it, give the two hunting rifles to the two best marksmen. Set up to shoot two of the raiders at once, when they're coming toward you or going away from you. Try to get as many as you can before they start coming for you. Then, switch to the M-16s. Have your other two people set up with shotguns to help out if they get close."

"Okay, we're going to do it. I'll call you back as soon as we're safe."

"Good luck and be careful."

We waited on pins and needles for what seemed like hours, but was really only a few minutes. Finally I heard Bill's voice come back on the radio.

"That was almost too easy," he said. "We did like you said. Shelly and I took the hunting rifles and got where we could brace them against the side of the building. These idiots were riding their Harleys around and around the RVs. I told Shelly to line up on one who was going away from us and I took one who was coming toward us. I gave the word to shoot and two of them were on the ground."

"Great. What happened then?"

"They didn't even get close to us, Ed. Two of them stopped to look at one of the ones who was down and the other one stopped by the other down biker. Shelly and I got the two who were together at the same time. The other one must have heard the shots because he started to try to get back on his bike. I took him out while he was starting it."

"Are the people in the RVs okay?"

"Don't know yet. Diana and I are going to walk over there with Shelly covering us. We'll call you back as soon as we talk to them."

"Okay. Bill, it might be better if you approached them without weapons and with your hands up. They have to be pretty spooked right now."

"Yeah, we already thought of that. That's one of the reasons I'm taking Diana with me. That way we'll be less threatening than a man by himself."

"Okay, again, be careful."

"Will do."

The wait this time was interminable. It was over an hour before Bill came back on the radio. In the mean time, Chris, Tiff and Sandy fixed us some lunch. I had just finished my sandwich when we heard the radio again.

"Ed, this is Bill. Are you there?"

I quickly went to the radio and answered him.

"Ed, you're not going to believe this. There were eight women and two little kids in those RVs and no men at all. They'd been traveling down from Canada and had stopped at the Meijer store to stock up on canned goods. They were wanting to get to a warmer climate before winter hits."

"So, did you ask them if they'd like to join our community?" I asked.

"I did and they do. They are ecstatic about it, in fact."

"We're going to be really crowded for a while," I said. "We have approximately eighty people here right now and I'm sure more will show up before we're ready to leave."

"Yeah, I know. We'll have to think of something. Anyway, it's after noon, so the ladies in the two RVs are going to finish stocking up and we'll head out first thing in the morning to meet up with you guys. We should be there by tomorrow evening."

"Okay. Take it easy and we'll see you then."

-------

We managed to interview two more families. We didn't find any problems with either of them. By the time we had finished with the second family, Rob and John came back with two new RVs. Now, at least, we had enough room for everyone to sleep.

We were all sitting around after dinner, enjoying the stars, when John came over and asked if he could talk with us for a minute. We pulled up a chair for him and let him settle in.

"While we were out looking for the RVs today I spotted a bunch of hogs in a field not too far from the RV dealer. I've been thinking about what you said about trapping some of them and I have an idea I'd like to try out."

"Okay, what's the idea?"

"Well, if I can find a state fish and game office, they always have tranquilizer guns. With a few of those guns and a few men, I think we could bring home the bacon, so to speak."

I had to laugh. John had a very dry sense of humor. "That sounds like a fine idea," I told him. "We should be able to find a truck to haul them if you manage to capture any."

"I'd like to help on this if I could," Rob said. "John and I worked well together today, and I've always been a hunter."

"Sounds good. Why don't you guys start looking for the tranquilizer guns in the morning? You know, even if you don't find what you need to capture them, it'd be nice if you could kill one. A pig roast sounds like a lot of fun."

Alicia, Bonnie and Evie took over one of the RVs and Chris took over the other one. She said she'd like to set it up as a doctor's office. Almost everyone who heard about it volunteered to help get it going.



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Chapter 9

Day 128 - September 26

Syl and I were sipping coffee, naked for a change since we were just family in our RV again, when she came over and sat on my lap. "Could we make a run to a drug store this morning, Ed?" she asked.

"Sure, what do you need, Sweety?"

"A pregnancy test kit. I know it's early, but I should have started my period the day before yesterday. I'm never late, but I am."

I kissed her until our toes curled. Sometime during the kiss, Evie came in. She just watched us until we'd finished then looked at us quizzically. "Syl may be pregnant," I said.

Evie laughed. "If that kiss is any indication, I can understand why."

We were still laughing when Chris came in, looking for coffee. We had to explain to her what we had been laughing about.

"I'm not set up for it yet, but I want to keep close track of you if you are pregnant, Syl," Chris said. "I know of at least two other women who think they're pregnant as well. One thinks she's about three months along. I'm not saying this to scare anyone, but we don't know if IT had any side effects that would carry on to our children. Most likely, there wouldn't be any since you didn't come down with IT yourself, but I'd still like to keep track."

"You know, Chris, I was just thinking. You were talking about fixing up that RV as a mobile hospital. Why don't we look for a mobile hospital that is already fixed up instead? I'm sure the military has them, and there are probably private ones as well."

"That's not a bad idea, Ed. The military ones probably have generators in place to run the equipment as well. I wonder where we might find one."

"Let's ask Rob before he goes hog hunting today. He was in the Army. He might know."

"That sounds good. Say, I have a question for you. Do you realize that you and Syl are naked?"

"Yes, we're that way most of the time. We wore clothes while Alicia, Bonnie and Evie were staying with us because we didn't want to force them to be around nudity if it bothered them. We figured us being nude; especially when Evie woke up might have been traumatic for them due to the situation they had been in. I guess that's a little hypocritical because we are saying nudity is appropriate at any time."

"Well, as I told you before, I don't have anything against it. I was just wondering why you were naked now and hadn't been before."

"Syl, why don't we do the interviews in the nude today? It might help to get our point across."

"Not a problem," Syl said. "Tina and Tiffany won't mind and Sandy will be thrilled." Syl turned to Chris and said, "It's hard for us to get Sandy to put on clothes, even when she's cooking."

Chris and Evie laughed. "I'll join you in the nude for the interviews, if you'd like," Evie said. "I do believe you're on to something about being nude helping us to be more open with each other."

"No, at least for today, I'd like for you and Chris to stay clothed. This lets people know that nudity isn't mandatory."

"Okay, than makes sense."

It wasn't long after that when Rob came in. I asked him about mobile army hospitals. He thought for a minute then said, "The closest army hospital I know of is at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. If I remember right, it's about a hundred and fifty miles from here. I'd bet anything they have mobile hospital units."

"Do you know how to get there?" I asked.

"No, I was there once, a few years ago. I think it's on I-44."

Tina, Sandy, and Tiffany had come in by now, so we explained to them what was going on.

"Ed, do you think you could do without me in the interviews today? I'd really like to see if I can find one of those mobile hospitals." Chris asked.

"I think we can," I said. "One of the women we interviewed yesterday is a nurse. Maria something. We'll see if we can get her to do the exam. Actually, I'd like to go with you. I'd like to see if there is any military equipment we could use. Syl, do you think the four of you and Evie could handle the interviews?"

Syl looked over at Evie, who nodded her approval. "Yes, Ed, but I'd ask for you to take Tina with you. We have no idea what you might come up against, and I'd feel better knowing your back was protected."

"I agree. Are you willing to accompany us, Tina? We might have to spend the night there."

"Sure. The interviews are boring anyway. Besides, I don't know if I'd trust my virile husband spending the night alone with this gorgeous creature." Tina was grinning when she said it, but I wondered if there might be a little truth in it anyway.

Everyone got a laugh out of that then I asked Rob if he'd find us a car we could drive over to the fort. He took off immediately.

Rob was back within a half an hour with a nice Lincoln Town Car. "Might as well go in style," he said. He had filled it with gasoline and had two-five gallon cans of gasoline in the trunk. While he was gone, Tina and Chris had put together enough food to last us for the trip.

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We got on I-44 just outside of St. Louis and headed west. The drive was pleasant and although it took us a little over three hours to get there, it wasn't boring at all.

We found that Chris had been an internist. "An internist specializes in internal medicine," she told us. "It's the closest thing to a general practitioner there is today. I've done everything from treating a cold to delivering a baby and I've even done some minor surgery. I liked it because it was so diverse."

I told Chris about my specialty and of how I'd survived IT. Tina told her of how we had met and how we had met Syl.

"You had those flyers printed up before you met Syl?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, we'd already distributed quite a few of them before we met her," I said.

"You two are truly amazing then. You are truly non-prejudiced."

"Yep," Tina and I both said.

We took exit 161 to Fort Leonard Wood and found we were only about three miles from the entrance to the base. It seemed strange to drive up to the gate and not have a sentry challenge us. We found a map of the base posted on a board just inside the gate and it showed us how to get to the hospital. We'd have found it anyway because there were hospital signs pointing the direction.

The hospital itself was impressive. It looked like a hospital in any city in the US, not just a care facility for an army base. We drove around it first and didn't see anything that resembled a mobile hospital. I was feeling a little let down, but Chris suggested we go inside and see if we could find anything out.

We searched through the offices and found several references to a mobile hospital and a mobile lab. It took us almost two hours before we found something that gave us their location.

The vehicles were located in a huge hanger like building. There were actually two of the patient care buses and two mobile labs. I had never seen vehicles like these in my life. Each of them looked like a huge, white bus with a large red cross on the top, sides, front and rear. They were about twelve feet wide and fifty feet long. The first patient care vehicle had two examination rooms and six beds. Both of them had portable x-ray machines and ultrasound machines along with every type of diagnostic equipment imaginable. The other patient care vehicle was a surgical unit and was set up with a complete surgery that would handle anything from removing a splinter to bypass surgery. Each lab was a complete, functional medical laboratory. Chris said we could get by with one of them, but we decided to take them both anyway.

I was impressed and Chris was like a kid with a new toy. She bounced back and forth from vehicle to vehicle making unintelligible noises and smiling so bright she could have lighted the vehicles.

"You know we're going to have to make another trip, don't you?" I asked Chris.

"Yeah, I guess so. I hate to think of leaving these things after we found them, but I don't think I could drive one of them."

"Since there are only three of us and since our policy is that every vehicle will have a guard, we'd only be able to take one even if we could all drive them."

"Okay. Are we going to sleep in the one with these beds tonight?"

"Probably, unless we find somewhere on the base that would be more comfortable. Are you ladies ready to do a little exploring of the base?"

We drove around for a while and I finally found what I was looking for, the armory. It didn't look like anyone had been around it. The doors were locked and I couldn't see any immediate way to get in.

"We need to bring a large group back with us on the next trip," I told the ladies. "I don't expect we'll have trouble from other groups for a long time, but it's best to be prepared. There are a lot of things that would make our village more secure stored in this building, and I mean to get some of them."

Chris seemed uncomfortable with that, but I thought I noticed a little gleam in Tina's eyes as we talked about weapons. "You know, there's an airfield attached to this base. I wonder if Rob could get a helicopter going. It might be nice to have one available to us."

"That would be very cool," Tina said. "I've never ridden in a helicopter."

We looked around a little more, but didn't find any place we wanted to spend the night, so we drove back to where the mobile hospitals were stored. After we ate the dinner meal they had packed for us, we made it an early night and sacked out on the hospital beds.

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Day 129 - September 27

You know, I had gotten so used to my creature comforts that I woke up grumpy because I didn't have my morning coffee. Ain't life a bitch? We ate some granola bars and had a warm soda for breakfast.

The first order of business was to get the (for want of a better word to describe the mobile hospital) van running. I had noticed the night before new batteries of the type that all you had to do was add acid to the batteries and they would be fully charged. I charged a new one and exchanged it with the one in the van.

I'll give the old army credit. Their maintenance had been superb. The vehicle started with little effort. There was only about a quarter of a tank of diesel in one of the two tanks the van sported and the other one was near empty. I suggested we scout around a little more while the van warmed up. I had an ulterior motive.

I drove us to the PX and just smiled when Chris asked me why I was breaking in. Once inside, I found us a new automatic coffee maker, a can of coffee, some travel mugs, and a five-gallon jug of water. Chris and Tina were smiling too as we pushed our cart out to the car and loaded it in.

We had coffee brewing within five minutes of getting back to the van. While the coffee maker was doing its thing, I pulled the van over to the fueling area, which was, fortunately, gravity fed and started filling the tanks.

We sipped coffee while the tanks filled and I was in a much better mood when we pulled the monster vehicle out onto the street. This thing was huge and very different from driving an eighteen wheeler or the RV. I had to take corners much wider and I ended up using the entire road.

After we got out on I-44, things were much smoother. The trip back didn't take any more time than the trip out had, until we got onto city streets. We were back at the Wal-Mart shortly after noon.

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There were at least five or six more RVs in the parking lot when we got back. One of them was Bill's and two more belonged to the women he had rescued in Muncie, Indiana. I talked to Bill for a few minutes and he agreed to tell us about everything they'd done later in the day.

My wives and Evie had interviewed four families yesterday and two more this morning, so we talked to them first.

"We didn't find any problems with any of them really," Syl told us. "There might be a potential problem with one group, but we decided to invite them anyway."

"There are four women in the family and no men," Evie said. "The leader is Jan Hastings. She is one hundred percent pure lesbian. There's nothing wrong with that, especially since there are so many more women than men now. The potential problem exists because the other three women in the group are all bisexual. If any of these women decide at some point they'd like to hook up with a man and start a family, we don't know how Jan is going to react to that."

"You did right to invite them," I said. "There are probably enough other women who would like to hook up with Jan that they would more than replace any of the group who wanted out. We'll just have to see what happens."

Rob and John had found the tranquilizer guns they wanted, but not soon enough to do any hunting. I asked Rob to go around to all of the people we had interviewed and find out if any of them could drive an eighteen wheeler. John said he had worked as a driver part time.

"John, do you know if any of these people are aircraft mechanics?"

"Not that I know of. Would you like for me to check?"

"Yeah, talk to everyone. I see there's some new RVs in the lot. You might want to talk to the new people as well."

"Will do," John said as he got up to leave.

"So, Evie," I said after Rob and John had taken off, "How's the arm and ribs feeling?"

"Much better, Ed. My ribs still hurt a little when I get into some positions, but nothing I can't live with. I'm completely off any type of pain killers now."

"Good. Evie, you didn't deserve what happened to you. None of you did. It's good to see all of you are in such good spirits."

"Part of that is because of you, Ed. Before IT happened, there was a stigma attached to a rape victim. People looked at a victim as if they must be at least partially at fault. That's why many rapes were never reported. Even when they were reported, trials took months and sometimes years. The woman was spotlighted during the entire time. You, on the other hand, had a trial the very next day and justice was meted out at the end of the trial. Alicia, Bonnie and I were never submitted to the tortures that women prior to IT had to suffer." Our eyes locked again and this time held for some time.

"That's exactly why I want our new laws to be set up the way we talked about. If a potential offender knows that he or she is going to be punished if they're caught and that the punishment is going to be immediate, it might make them think twice about doing something."

"Why the hell did you have to have so many damned wives already, Ed? You're the kind of guy I could really fall for." Oh, those eyes. They can certainly get you in trouble.

I laughed. "Evie, I was hesitant about taking up with Tina, because she was so young. I was hesitant about taking up with Syl, because I was already with Tina. I hardly fought at all when Sandy wanted to join out marriage, and I was almost anxious for Tiffany to become our wife. I think I fell in love with you the first morning we talked."

"You really mean that?"

"Talk to my wives, if you're serious."

Evie just nodded, with a very serious look on her pretty face.

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Rob found several people who claimed to be able to drive an eighteen wheeler, but John didn't have any luck finding an aircraft mechanic. He did find two people who had been auto mechanics.

"What I want to do, guys, is make another trip to Fort Leonard Wood. I want to get the surgical van and the mobile labs. Since we're going to be there anyway, I'd like to load up on weapons. I'm thinking a couple of heavy machine guns and all the M-16s and M-16 ammo we can manage. I'd also like to load up on anti-personnel mines. It'd be nice to put a band of them outside our fence."

"That makes sense," Rob said. "Have you given any more thought to getting a helicopter?"

"Yeah, I'm sure we want one, but would we be better to get a military one or a civilian one?"

"Actually, we'd probably be better with a civilian one. Maybe a big Sikorsky sky crane or something like that so we could do some heavy lifting."

"We might want something smaller, too. Something we could use to scout around with."

"A lot of police departments flew the Bell Jet Ranger. It only has room for four passengers and not a lot of cargo space, but it would be great for looking around at things."

"Okay, so we'll wait on the helicopters until we get home. Do you know anything about weapons, Rob?"

Rob nodded, then said, "A little. One of the guys I was talking to this morning was a Navy Seal. I'll bet he knows more about them than anyone else."

"Great. Go back and talk to him again. I'll get set up and we can interview him and anyone else in his family group this afternoon. I'd really like to take him with us tomorrow."

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We did interview the Navy Seal, Glen Adams, that afternoon. If I had seen him before, I'd have known at a glance that he had been military. He carried himself with a confidence and grace that spoke well of his training. There were two women in his family group, Cassie Miller and Althea Winslow. All three of them were people we'd love to have with us.

We decided that Rob, John, Glen, Bill and I would be the drivers on the way back. Tina would go with me as my shotgun rider, and each of the other guys picked one member of their family to go with them and act as a bodyguard.

Everyone retired to their own RVs early. We all knew we'd be spending at least one night away from our families and we wanted an evening with them before we left. I was a little surprised that Evie and Chris decided to spend the evening with us.

We didn't do much. In fact, dinner was soup and sandwiches. Biscuit sandwiches at that. We did do a lot of snuggling though. Each of my wives and Kammie spent at least some time on my lap. When Evie came over and slid on my lap, I had to laugh at her.

"Evie, I must say you look a little weird. Your ribs are taped up and your arm is in a splint, but the rest of you is naked. It makes for an interesting picture."

"Yeah, add in my black eye and the bruises on my body and I couldn't be very appealing," she joked.

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder," I told her and hugged her gently. She paid her head on my shoulder and whispered in my ear.

"I talked to your wives."

"And?"

"They have no objections."

"Did they tell you we have made a life long commitment?"

"Yes, and so will I."

I kissed her for the first time. It was gentle and loving, but I could feel the passion underneath. We sat there for some time then Chris came over and smacked Evie on the butt. "Move it girl. My turn," she said.

Evie got up smiling and Chris snuggled in. "What's this?" I asked.

"I talked to your wives too," she told me. "They have no objections."

"Are you sure about this Chris? You would be my sixth wife. I'm not sure I could possible keep up with six women."

"It's not about sex, Ed. At least it's not all about sex. Yes, every damned one of your wives wants you sexually. But, there's a lot more than just sex. Every woman wants her mate to be someone they can love and respect. I've only known you a short while, but I respect you highly. You are one of the most honorable men I've ever met."

"Thank you, Chris. I'll have to admit I have a great deal of respect for you as well. Instead of falling in with the rest of the group you were with, you held yourself apart. That shows a lot of integrity. I'm going to ask you and Evie both to think about this until we get back from the fort. If both of you still feel the same way when we get back, I guess our family has gotten larger again."

"Oh, neither one of us are going to change our minds. Now, I'm feeling a little left out. You gave Evie a kiss and I'm still waiting for one."

What could I do? I kissed her. Again, it started out gentle and loving. When we finally broke apart, I thought they were going to have to hose me down with ice water. Later on, Syl got the benefit of my arousal.

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Day 130 - September 28

Since Chris and Evie were going to be moving in with us, we decided to take one of the RVs we had gotten to house them in as our transportation back to the fort. For one thing, we needed the space. For another, I wanted electrical power for helping break into the armory.

We took along extension cords, drills and some heavy-duty lighting. We weren't sure of what all we were going to need, so we took a little of everything.

Even with ten people going, we had plenty of room. Tina did most of the driving going over because she knew she was going to be riding shotgun on the way back. We had an early breakfast before we left and were at the fort long before lunch.

John and Donna agreed to get the medical vans ready to go, so we left them to activate the new batteries and get the vans started and fueled. The rest of us went over to the armory.

The outside doors weren't bad. We were in them within a few minutes. It was very dark inside the building. There was a line of small windows up near the top of the building, but they weren't letting in much light. We looked around for a few minutes using some battery-powered lanterns when I stumbled on to a panel that was labeled "Emergency Power". I opened the panel and the first thing I saw was a large lever. The handle of the lever was pointed toward a label, which said "Commercial Power". There was another label at what would be the other end of the lever's travel, which said "Emergency Power".

What the hell. I pulled the lever down to the emergency position. We immediately heard an engine start up, and within seconds it was running smoothly. I told Rob to hit the main lights for the building and we had light.

We followed the sound of the engine and found it in it's own room, which was vented to the outside. The fuel tank was full, so I figured we had plenty of time to do what we wanted to do.

The warehouse was broken down into sections, each of which was locked. Near the main entrance was a room for the guards to relax in when they were not standing post, and several offices. We decided it would be much easier on us if we could find keys to the locked doors rather than trying to break into each room separately, so we went in search of them.

In an efficient military manner, the keys were in a locked cabinet labeled "Keys". We managed to drill out the lock without too much trouble and were presented with a rack of keys, again efficiently labeled as to what each was for.

We took a quick look into each of the sections and found what we wanted. "Glen or Rob, do we use Army trucks for this or should we go into town and find something?"

"Let's take a look around," Rob said. "We'll probably find just what we need here on post."

We ended up loading two large trailers with ordinance. We had about 75% of it loaded by the time we decided we should knock off for the day. We turned the emergency power off when we left, to conserve fuel.

It would have been impossible for all of us to sleep in the camper, so Rob and Charise and Glen and Cassie volunteered to sleep in one of the medical vans.

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Day 131 - September 29

Thank God we had a coffeemaker in the RV to help us get our day started. We left the RV where the vans had been and took the vans over to the armory after topping off their fuel tanks. It only took us a little over an hour to finish loading the trucks. We locked all of the sections of the warehouse before we left and hid the keys where we could find them again if we needed them. We were back with the group by lunchtime, hungry and tired.

While Sandy and Tiff were fixing us some lunch, I asked Syl how the interviews were going. "Well, we wanted to talk to you about that. So far we've interviewed twenty families or seventy people. It seems like the best people were the first to sign up for interviews. There were two families yesterday and one today we are concerned about."

"What's the problem?"

Evie came over and pushed Syl off my lap, then took a seat herself. "The first family we are concerned about has a very dominant male. His name is John Emerson. He has two wives and he didn't want to let either of them talk with us unless he was present. When Syl told him we'd refuse to let them join us if we couldn't interview everyone separately, he finally gave in."

"Did the women give you any indication there were any problems with him?"

"Not in anything they said," Chris told me. "Both of them had bruises on their bodies they weren't willing to explain though. We ended up telling everyone we interviewed yesterday that they'd have to wait until you got back before we'd be able to tell them if they were invited to join us or not."

"Good thinking," I said.

"The other group we are concerned about from yesterday was just the opposite," Evie said. "That group has a very dominant female. The guy in the group is a real woosie. The woman's name is Sadie Osbourne. Neither the guy or the other two women in the group had any physical evidence they were being abused, but all of them were cowed. Getting them to answer questions even when they were alone was like pulling teeth."

"Okay, what about the one this morning?"

"Rick Cline is the guy in the group. He swaggers around telling you how great he is, how smart he is, and how tough he is. There isn't any indication he's abusing anyone, but I get the feeling he's totally worthless. I just don't think he would be an asset to us. He has two women in his family, both of whom seemed embarrassed by him. Both of the women have skills that would be beneficial to us," Evie said.

"Well, I guess we should have realized that the people who waited until later to sign up would be the toughest to decide on. I don't want to turn the entire family away in any of these cases. Tomorrow we'll bring each family in and offer to let all of them join, except the problem people. We'll do it individually, with the problem person being the last one in the group we talk to. We'll keep the ones we talk to first in the bedroom until we bring the one we are going to refuse in."

"That makes sense," Chris said, "But, why wait until tomorrow?"

"I'm going to have Rob take a crew out and get us some more RVs. We'll need three immediately, and I'd say five or six all together. Can you do that this afternoon, Rob?"

"Sure. I'll take John and Glen and our shotguns from today. We know right where to go. It shouldn't take us more than an hour to get them."

"Good. You know the Wal-Mart will have fresh batteries you could take with you for the new RVs. It might be easier to just change them out."

"Good Idea. We'll get on it right after lunch."

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All three questionable families came by that afternoon wanting to know their status. I put them off by telling them I hadn't had time to look over the notes from their interviews. It was almost two hours later when Rob, John and Glen came back with three new RVs.

Although it was approaching dinnertime, I decided to get at least one of the families taken care of. Evie suggested we do the John Emerson family first, since some of the women seemed to have some physical injuries. Rob went and got Emerson and his wives and brought them back while I asked John and Glen to stand by in case there was trouble.

We had the three of them wait outside for a couple of minutes then asked Edna Delmonico to come in. Emerson kicked up a fuss, but we just ignored him. (Actually, John, Glen, Bill and Rob were watching him closely.)

"Edna," I said after we were seated at the table with Chris and Evie. "We are concerned about your family group. Chris feels like you and Amber may be being abused and are afraid to tell us about it. So, we are not going to ask your family as a group to join us."

Before I could say anything else Edna broke into tears. She was sobbing so bad I was worried about her. Chris moved over and put her arm around the crying woman.

"Edna, listen to me! We're not going to ask you to join us as a group, but we would like to ask you and Amber to join us as individuals. We will guarantee we'll protect you if you decide to join us."

Edna's sobbing stopped almost as quickly as it started. She looked at us, wide eyed, and asked, "You really mean that? Amber and I could join you without John?"

"Absolutely. You and Amber are both welcome to join us and we will protect you."

"John told us there was no way you'd let us join except as a group. He told us that if we even hinted he'd abused us he'd kill us for spoiling our chances of getting in with you. I definitely want to go with you guys and I think I'll definitely need your protection."

"Well, John is a liar as well as an abuser. Let me call Amber in and let her know as well."

Amber Grisham was a little more hesitant in believing us. Finally, I told her, "Amber, the choice is yours. You can either go with us without John, or go with John. In either case, Edna is going to join our community."

"Ed, I want to join your community too. It's just that John has threatened us. I'm afraid of him. He's never been that bad, just slapped us around a little, but I'm afraid he might do more if we try to leave him."

"Amber, no one should have to put up with being slapped around. We guarantee you that we will protect you if you decide to join us."

"Then, I'm definitely in."

"Okay, why don't you and Edna go with Tina back to the bedroom while we talk to John."

When the ladies were out of sight, I went to the door and asked John to come in. Glen and Rob followed him in and stood by the door.

"Where are my women?" he asked immediately.

"John, we felt after your interview and after examining Edna and Amber that they might be being abused by you. We are not asking you to join our community, but we did ask Edna and Amber if they'd like to go with us. They agreed that they want to do that."

"Where are they!" he almost screamed.

"That's none of your business now, John. We're going to ask you to stay here with us while they go and get any personal items out of your RV. When they're finished, we would like for you to get into your RV and leave."

"Like hell!" he shouted. "You bastards are kidnapping my women."

"No, John, we're just giving them a choice. They chose to not be with you. I'd suggest you calm down. We're not going to put you on trial for abuse. The last person we had to do that to, we had to execute as well. If you calm down and do this quietly, you can walk out of here a free man. Fight us or try to hurt these women and you'll end up dead. It's up to you."

John remained surly, but he did shut his mouth, so I went back to the bedroom and asked Tina and Tiff to take Amber and Edna to their RV and help them get any personal items they might want. "Bring them back to one of the new RVs the guys brought in today. Tiff, you come back and tell us when you're through. Tina, please stay with them until we come for you."

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It was about half an hour before Tiff came in and let us know the women were moved out. John hadn't said a word the entire time.

"Okay, John, you are free to go. Please leave the parking lot immediately. The women have taken everything they wanted from your RV. If you come back, you will be shot. If you follow us when we leave here, you will be shot. Just as a word of advice, if you hook up with any other women, be nice to them. Tiffany and Eve had an abusive husband. They killed him in his sleep."

"You can't force me to stay away from here and you can't keep me from following you when you leave," John sneered.

"Yes, we can, John. If you want to make a big thing of this, we can take you out and shoot you right now. Is that what you want?"

"No."

"Then do as we ask and leave."

He left. Tiffany snuggled on my lap and asked, "You wouldn't have really shot him now, would you?"

"Not if there was any way around it love. If he'd forced the issue or tried to hurt one of us, then yes, I would have."

I had only been holding her a couple of minutes when we heard a shot, then a scream. We were up and out of the RV before I could even think. The guys had parked the new RVs close to us and there were several people milling around one of them. I ran over there and saw Emerson lying on the ground just outside the door. Tina was standing in the doorway, her Glock in her hand.

I ran to her and she threw her arms around me. "What happened, Love?" I asked.

"I guess we forgot to lock the door when Tiff left. All of a sudden the door flew open and Emerson yelled, 'Get your asses out here women, we're leaving'. He had a gun in his hand, so I shot him. Shit, Ed, that makes two people I've killed and I'm not even seventeen yet. What am I, Billy the fucking Kid?"

She started sobbing into my shoulder. I stroked her back and told her it was okay. I helped Tina back to our RV and asked Evie if she could help her, then I went back outside to face the crowd.

I climbed up on the bumper of the RV and yelled for everyone's attention. When they'd gathered around I said, "Unfortunately, this is something I was afraid might happen. John Emerson was abusing his wives. We managed to find this out during the interview we had with them."

There were some murmurs, but I continued. "We told him a short time ago that we weren't going to invite him to join us, but that his wives had decided that they would like to be in our community. I told him he was free to leave, but his wives did not want to go with him. We told him he was to leave them alone and that we'd like for him to leave the area immediately. Instead, he broke into the RV they were in, waving a gun and demanding they go with him. My wife, Tina, who is only sixteen had to shoot him to protect the women and herself."

"I heard him yelling at them," one woman said. "He yelled for them to get their asses out of there, that they were leaving."

"Thank you. That's pretty much what Tina told me. Does anyone here think we need to have a trial, or do you all agree Tina was acting in self defense?"

There was a rousing chorus of "Self Defense". "Does anyone think we need a trial?"

Total silence.

"Okay, people. I'm sorry this had to happen, and I'm more sorry than you can imagine that a young girl had to kill a man. I think we can just put the body in one of the empty houses around here, if no one objects."

-------

Tina needed a lot of loving that evening. I asked her after she'd calmed down some why this one was harder than the first one. "I guess it's because I talked to the guy. I asked him questions. I'd seen him around the camp since we first got here, and we always said hello. Also, this was face to face. It was very up close and personal. The first time, I was a hundred yards away. Does any of that make any sense?"

"Yes, it does. It's always harder to kill someone up close than it is from farther away. The guy that drops a bomb and kills a thousand people usually feels less remorse than the guy who has to kill a someone who is charging him with a bayonet."

When bedtime came, I slid in on one side of Tina and Syl slid in on the other. We didn't have sex, but we did a lot of cuddling before we all went to sleep.



-------

Chapter 10

Day 132 - September 30

Sadie Osbourne was a piece of work. She reacted almost as badly as John Emerson had when we told her she was not invited to join us. She demanded reasons, then demanded a trial.

One of the other women in her family decided she'd rather stay with Sadie, so we reluctantly wished them good luck. Henry Lasker and Sybil Green were glad to see them go.

Lily Hubbard and Heather McNeal were members of Rick Cline's family. We talked to Lily first. "Lily, before I cause you to panic, I want to tell you that no matter what you tell us, we are inviting you, as an individual to join our community."

"Thank you, Ed. Does that mean you aren't going to ask Heather and Rick to join?"

"No, we are definitely going to ask Heather to join. We're not so sure about Rick. Would you be willing to tell us a little more about him?"

"Yeah, Rick isn't an abuser, at least not physically. His bragging is an abuse to anyone within fifty feet of him. He is opinionated, self important and lazy. Heather and I have carried most of the workload since we've all been together. He makes big plans and never carries through on them, especially if he has to do any work to bring them to fruition. I'm not sure he would be a harm to the community, I just don't know how much of a help he'd be either."

"How do you feel about him personally? Are you in love with him? Would it be a hardship on you if we decided not to invite him?"

"No, Ed, how I feel about him is embarrassed mostly. I'll admit we've been having sex, but that was because there wasn't anyone else. It would actually be better on me, because there would be less work in the home."

"Okay, I'm going to bring in Heather now to get her opinion on Rick. Can I assume you want to join us even without Rick?"

"Definitely."

I had Syl take Lily back into the bedroom then called Heather in. I went through the same procedure with her, then I asked her what she thought about Rick.

"Ed, I hate to talk about anyone but Rick is a loser. He's not abusive, but I think deep down he's a bigot. He's also lazy and he thinks he's God's gift to the world."

"With the world the way it is now, everyone has to pull his own weight. I would assume from what you're saying that you don't think Rick would pull his own weight."

"Exactly."

"How do you feel about him personally? Are you in love with him? Would it be a hardship on you if we decided not to invite him?"

Heather laughed. "Personally? The only thing personal about my relationship with Rick is that I fuck him. I'm not in love with him and it certainly wouldn't be a hardship to do without him. I definitely want to be in your group, whether or not Rick is allowed to join."

"Okay, Heather, go back to the bedroom with Lily and I'll have a talk with him."

John and Glen followed Rick in to the RV. "What's this?" he asked, motioning toward The other two guys.

"Don't worry about it Rick. The reason I wanted to talk with you is that we're not going to invite you to join us."

"You have to be kidding me. I'd be more of an asset to your group than any of the fucking losers I've seen hanging around here. I was vice president of a multi-million dollar corporation before IT happened."

"Having been an officer in a corporation is not a big recommendation, Rick. It might show you had some organizational skills, but it doesn't say anything about the skills you might have that would be useful today."

"I have a degree in law from Rutgers. You're going to want a system of laws set up. What you have written up now is pathetic."

"You see, that's the thing Rick. We don't want lawyers making laws in our new society. We want our laws to be simple and we don't want to be so over protective of a criminal's rights that we ignore the rights of the victim. The days of evidence being thrown out because a policeman didn't turn around three times and spit on the sidewalk before he found it are over.Anyway, be that as it may, your wives have both agreed with our psychologist that you would not fit in with our community."

"You're making a big mistake, buster. Okay, we'll get out of here first thing in the morning."

"No, Rick. You'll be leaving by yourself. Both Lily and Heather want to join us without you. If you'll just sit right here with Glen and John, I'll have Lily and Heather get their personal stuff out of your RV."

Getting Rick's wives things out of their RV and then getting Rick on the road proved to be a lot easier than I had feared. By noon, we had caught up with where the women had stopped their interviewing. We found out that two family units that we had not interviewed had left during the night. One of them was the group Chris had been living with. During the morning, three new groups had shown up.

From our calculations, we had about six more families to interview in total. I figured we'd do two of the groups this afternoon and the other four tomorrow. We were taking a break for lunch when Rob came in with Bill and John in tow. "Ed, would you mind if we went pig hunting this afternoon? Glen has agreed to go find us one of those big rotisserie jobbies. We could start it slow roasting this evening and it'd be ready to eat by noon tomorrow."

"That'd be great guys. I think we'll wait until we get home to try to capture any of the critters. It'd be much easier to transport them."

"Yeah, we were kind of thinking of that too. I do want to talk to you about making another trip to the fort though. I was just thinking about a helicopter again. The army has been using those big Sikorsky H-53Es for a while now. They have three engines and can supposedly lift as much as sixteen tons. The have a cruising range of a thousand miles and cruise at 170 knots."

"My God! That's a beast. Let's think about it. It might be worth it to make a trip just to see if they have one."

We finished lunch and got into our interviews. The first one went well. The second one was a bust.

Frank James was a racist and a bigot. (Yep, same last name, but no relation to me or to the famous bank robber.) The woman with Frank seemed to be cut out of the same cloth. We interviewed them both and as soon as they were out of the house Evie began shaking her head. "No way, Ed. All we need is that kind of thinking to throw our community to the wolves."

I agreed with her wholeheartedly.

Since this interview took so little time, we decided to do one more. Looking back on it, I wish we hadn't. The male of the family was named Laverne Faulkner. He said he was from somewhere in Kansas. There were two women in the family, both of whom seemed subdued. Laverne, on the other hand, was anything but subdued.

He started off by telling us what a piss poor job we were doing on everything. He went on to tell us he thought our community laws were a bunch of hogwash.

"If you think we're doing that poorly, why are you interested in joining us?"

"I'm not," he said with a big smile. "I really just came here to get some more pussy. Put your hands on the table, Mr. James. I have a 9mm under the table aimed directly at your gut. There's some mighty fine pussy in this room and I intend to take some of it with me."

I put my hands on the table as he requested then said, "Mr. Faulkner, please put your gun down. No one has to get hurt here. You know there's no way you're going to get out of here alive if you go on with this."

"Oh. I don't think I'll have a problem with that... Little Missy," he looked at Tina. "If you don't want this man of yours shitting out his belly button, you'll gently put your gun on the table in front of me."

Tina looked at me and I nodded. She slowly removed her 9mm from her web belt and laid it in front of Faulkner. What he didn't see, but I did was Syl, just as slowly and carefully, removing her 9mm from her web belt. By the time Faulkner let his attention return to me, Syl had her weapon pointing at him just above the table.

The two shots went off almost simultaneously. I felt a burning sensation along my left side. A neat hole appeared just below Faulkner's breastbone. Before he could do anything else, Tiff had launched herself at him. She grabbed him by the hair and pulled him and his chair over backwards. As he hit the floor, Tiff dropped all of her weight, on one knee, on Faulkner's throat.

Tiffany must have collapsed Faulkner's esophagus because he made a couple of strange gurgling sounds then passed out. Tiff, Syl, Tina, Evie, and Chris were beside me in seconds. I had stood up, but all of a sudden I was dizzy. I took one step and felt my knees buckling. That's the last I remember for quite some time.

I found out later that I didn't even hit the floor. My wonderful wives eased me down to the floor. Being a doctor, Chris took over. "Someone get to the surgical unit and get a stretcher," she commanded. "Tina, cut that crazy bastard's shirt off and get it over here to me."

Tina evidently cut more than just the shirt, but she wasn't really caring. She had the shirt to Chris within seconds and then cut it in half at Chris's direction. Chris made two pads and pressed one over each of the holes in my side.

By now, most of the camp had heard the shots and were trying to get in to where we were. Syl was standing in the doorway, looking like a goddess refusing access to anyone.

Tiff got back with the stretcher just as Syl spotted some familiar faces. She called John and Bill over to help with the stretcher. While they were loading me up, Syl told everyone what had happened.

"We were interviewing Laverne Faulkner when he went nuts. He said he was going to take Ed's women and leave the camp. He shot Ed and I shot him. Ed has a wound in his left side and has passed out. Faulkner is dead."

Everyone had a million questions, but Syl waved them off. "As soon as we know anything, we'll let you know. For now, Chris has to get him into surgery."

Syl cleared a path as John and Bill came out with me on the stretcher. Chris was at my side, holding her two makeshift compresses against my wounds.

-------

Day 133 - October 1

I awoke with a soft hand holding mine. "Well, either I've gone to heaven or one of my wives is taking care of me," I thought before I opened my eyes. It was Tiffany. When my eyes opened, she was smiling from ear to ear. I started to say hello but she shook her head and pointed toward my feet. Syl was on the other side of the bed, her head and upper body resting on the bed, sound asleep.

I smiled and made a kissing motion toward her and she obliged me. She kissed me softly, gently and lovingly. What the hell, whether I was dead or not, I was still in heaven.

We sat for quite a while, just enjoying each other. I was curious as to how badly I had been hit, but I put that on hold as Tiff didn't act too concerned. Finally, I heard or felt Syl stirring. "Good morning, light of my life," I said.

I've never seen anyone come fully awake quicker. Syl grabbed me and kissed me almost viciously. When she finally broke the kiss I said, "Everything got a little confused there at the last, but I think I owe the two of you my life. Thank you both."

"I think it's Tiff you need to thank more than me," Syl told me. "The bastard started getting up just as I squeezed the trigger. Chris won't say if it was me that killed him when he bled out or if he died because of a crushed windpipe. In either case, Tiff kept him from getting off another shot. I've never seen anyone move so fast in all my life."

"What's happening with the women who were with him?"

"Evie's working with them. It seems that Faulkner killed the man they had been with and forced them to go with him. They're pretty messed up, but Evie says they'll be okay."

"So, how bad was I hit?"

"Chris says you're going to be fine. The bullet hit you in the left side. It traveled about six inches through your body, never getting more than an inch under the skin. It cut through some blood vessels, but nothing more serious. You lost a little blood, but not enough you needed any."

"If it wasn't all that bad, why did I pass out?"

"Chris says it was the shock of the bullet hitting your body and going through your body. She'll tell you more about it when she gets up," Syl said.

"She's pretty wiped out," Tiff said. "She worked on you for at least two hours. I don't think she'd have taken half as long if it had been anyone else. She wanted to make absolutely sure everything was perfect."

-------

We had been talking and enjoying each other's company for about an hour when Tina and Chris came in. I had been sort of drifting in and out, but Tina brought me fully awake quickly.

"You bastard," she sobbed, tears running down her pretty cheeks. "If you get hurt again I'm going to kick your ass. I thought he'd killed you, Ed. I was going to take him apart a little piece at a time, but these guys killed him too quick."

"It's a good thing they did, Tina," Chris said. "If that bullet had been one inch to the right, we would have had some serious damage. They kept him from getting off another shot, which probably saved Ed's life."

"I know. That's what's so scary. I was just sitting back down and was off balance when the shots were fired. Tiff must have been coiled like a snake ready to strike."

"I guess I was, Tina. I know my whole body was tense. I didn't even think. When the shots went off I was already moving."

"What ever made you think to do what you did?" I asked.

"I have no idea. It must have been pure instinct."

"Well, I like your instincts, sweet wife."

"I need for you guys to shut up and let me get Ed's vital signs," Chris said. The other three made agreeable noises, but Tina wouldn't let go of my hand.

"Chris, I'll only let you take my vitals if I get a kiss from you and Tina first," I told her.

I didn't have to ask Tina twice. It's a good thing I was on a cloth-covered mattress. Tina's kiss would have melted a plastic one. Chris's almost caught the cloth one on fire.

"Now I have to subtract ten points from all my readings," Chris told us with a giggle.

-------

It was about an hour later when Sandy and Evie came in. "We just finished our second interview of the morning," Evie told me.

"Yeah, and no more of this Mr. Nice Guy shit either," Sandy said. "Everyone checks their weapons at the door. Glen pats them down to make sure they're not concealing anything."

"I guess we should have been doing that all along," I said. "I wanted the process to be as inoffensive as possible and that is the only reason we didn't."

"Well, we're doing it now, whether they're offended or not. We added five more people to our village this morning. They were all some of the last to come in. Just when we thought we were about finished, two more families came in last night. I think we'll finish up today though and we'll just pick up any stragglers as they come in," Sandy said.

"Did the guys manage to kill a pig yesterday?" I asked.

"Oh, yeah," Evie said. "It's been roasting all night and it smells wonderful. Most of the people in the camp are contributing something and we're going to have a feast. We had nearly a hundred pounds of steaks and hamburger left, so we contributed the majority of that. Most of these people haven't had any fresh meat since shortly after IT happened. They're ecstatic."

I was surprised when Chris brought me in a plate of food later. She brought me some roast pork and some potato salad. I teased her about hospital food and she assured me this wasn't standard fare. God! It was wonderful.

Evie came in around three in the afternoon and told me they had finished with the interviews. She also asked if I was up to talking with Rob. Since I was feeling a little lonely, I told her to send him in.

After exchanging pleasantries and being pressed as to how I was doing, Rob came to the reason for his visit. "Ed, would you mind if Bill and I made a run back over to the fort tomorrow?"

"Not at all. Going to look for a whirly bird?"

"Yep. We'll drive a car over and just leave it there if we're lucky."

"Do you need anyone else to go with you?"

"No, I'd like for John and Glen to stay here. I'm sure nothing else is going to happen here, and your wives have proved their capability for handling anything that might come up, but we'd all just feel better if you were well protected."

The rest of the day was a pleasant blur. One or more of my wives was with me most of the time. Holding my hand while I was sleeping and fussing over me when I was awake. When Chris came in with my evening meal I asked her, "Are you keeping me drugged up, darling?"

"To some extent, Ed. I've had you on a morphine drip. I have cut down the flow twice today. You should be off it completely by tomorrow."

"When am I going to be able to get out of here?"

"Damn, that's the first question every patient asks. You're eating and drinking well. You have a catheter in, but I'll take that out in the morning. If you can pee on your own after that, I'll let you go back to our RV."

"Well, that's something to look forward to anyway. Have there been any more people come in today?"

"No, and you won't be interviewing any new ones anyway. You're going to spend the next week relaxing. If we catch you doing anything you shouldn't be doing, the rest of your family and I will tie your sorry ass to the bed."

"My, my. Feisty little thing aren't you? You know we haven't exchanged our wedding vows yet, so you can't treat me like an errant husband."

"No, but I can treat you like an errant patient," she laughed. "When are we going to do those wedding vows, anyway?"

"How about the day after tomorrow at sunrise? Sunrise symbolizes the start of a new relationship."

"Day after tomorrow is fine, Ed. A sunrise ceremony is a beautiful thing. It makes a lot of sense, and the symbolism is excellent. The thing we need to prevent is everyone in generations to come falling into superstition. I'd hate to think that two hundred years from now our descendants think they should be married at sunrise so they will have the blessing of the sun god."

"I know. I've worried about that. That's one of the reasons I've wanted to get as many people together as possible. I want to teach our children science and mathematics. I want them to learn how things work and why they work, rather than to think there's some kind of magic in them."

Chris and I talked for a long time. When she left, she hadn't been gone but a few minutes when Syl and Evie came in. They moved the curtains from around me then pushed another hospital bed up against mine. As they stripped their clothes Syl said, "Chris says she'll skin us alive if we hurt you, but I think you need the people who love you close to you tonight."

I couldn't have agreed more. A few minutes later, Tina and Sandy came in and repeated the process on the other side of me. I asked if Tiff and Chris were coming too, but they told me they were staying with Kammie.

-------

Day 134 - October 2

Okay, walking around again wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. My whole body wanted to lean to my left. It really wasn't that bad either. Chris told me to take it easy and I had no choice but to follow her instructions.

One more family came in during the night and my wives interviewed them immediately. When I found out they were from California, I begged Chris to let me talk to them. She finally agreed they could come to the RV for a little chat, but she would be there too and if I looked tired, she would kick them out.

-------

Russ Shepard was an intelligent looking guy who had been a forest service officer. He and his wife, Debi had been camping near Mt. Lassen when IT happened. They were about a week into a month long vacation when the missiles carrying the virus hit. They never even knew anything was going on. As far as any of us knew, they were the only married couple to survive the disaster.

When Russ and Debi started heading back toward civilization the SUV radio started automatically, but all that came in was static. Their first assumption was that something was wrong with the radio, so the didn't think much of it. It wasn't until they reached Ravendale that they realized something was seriously wrong.

Ravendale was a small, quiet town located high (a little over 4000 feet) in the mountains of northern California. Now, it was really quiet. Russ and Debi drove through town and didn't see anyone moving around, although it was midday. Russ was concerned at the lack of activity, so they drove around some of the side streets and still didn't see anyone.

A newspaper vending machine outside a little Mom & Pop restaurant caught Debi's eye, so they stopped and bought a paper. It was two weeks old, but the headline was what had caught her attention. There were reports of thousands of deaths. There was also a recap of the multiple missile detonations and of President Bush's unleashing of the nuclear arsenal against China.

Russ got on his forest service radio and tried to contact his home office in Redding. No one answered. They talked it over for a few minutes and decided to go on into Redding. They passed through several small towns on the way, but saw no one alive. They did start seeing dead bodies though.

Redding appeared to be a ghost town as well. They spent three days there and were just getting ready to head south when they ran into Sharon Jones. Russ had decided that if they were going to explore, looking for other people, they needed a motor home to do it in comfort. They had gone to the local dealership and were looking at what was available when Sharon walked around the back of the one they were looking at.

As you can imagine, all three were startled at first. Then, Sharon ran to them and threw her arms around both of them. Even Russ shed a few tears. Intellectually, Russ and Debi had known that there had to be others who had survived, but emotionally they had begun feeling like the last people on earth. Sharon, being completely alone, had been even worse.

Once they had all calmed down emotionally, Sharon asked if she could stay with them. Of course they agreed. They picked out an RV and stocked it that afternoon.

The next morning they headed south. Traveling was almost as depressing as staying in Redding had been. They passed through empty town after empty town, with no sign of other survivors. They pulled into a little strip mall in Sacramento one evening, intending to spend the night. Russ saw a sign and pulled up close to it. It was one of ours.

They all agreed that what we were looking for was what they wanted as well. Since it was only August 5th, they had almost two months to get to the rendezvous. They decided to do some exploring before they headed east, since power was still available and food was plentiful.

They spent the next six weeks driving around looking for other survivors. They ran into three more family groups during that time. All three groups consisted of one man and several women. Only one of the groups seemed slightly interested in going east. The others flatly refused. Finally, one night when Russ and Debi were talking in bed, Debi brought up the subject of the lack of men. She told Russ they should welcome Sharon into their marriage if she was interested.

They argued back and forth about it for some time. Russ could see the logic of the situation, but he felt he'd be cheating on Debi if he gave in. Finally Debi managed to convince him there was no other way and he agreed. The next morning they asked Sharon if she was interested. She immediately agreed.

The week before they were going to start for Missouri, they decided to go down to the Los Angeles area. They were about half way between Los Angeles and Sacramento on their way back north when Russ noticed they needed to stop for diesel. They filled up their tanks and were headed for the interstate when a young woman ran out into the road in front of them and started waving her arms.

Of course they stopped and the woman threw herself into the RV. "Get out of here quick," she screamed just as Russ saw a man with a drawn automatic running after the woman.

Russ threw the RV in gear and they were gone before the man was in pistol range. That didn't stop him from firing several shots at the retreating vehicle. They found out the woman's name was Paula Schwackart. She had been living on her own since IT happened. She ran into the man who had shot at them and the seven women he was with a couple of days before.

The guy had tried to convince Paula that there were now ten women for every man and that she should join them. At first he just tried to talk her into it, then he started making veiled threats. Today, he had demanded she go to bed with him. She could see he was getting angry, so she ran.

The next day, Russ, Debi and Sharon asked Paula if she'd like to join them. When they had assured her it was completely up to her and that she was entirely welcome to come with them to Missouri even if she didn't want to become part of their marriage, she agreed.

The one thing they hadn't counted on when they were figuring how long it would take to get to the rendezvous was snow in the mountain passes. They started seeing snow on the peaks shortly after they passed Salt Lake City. When they got to Rabbit Ears Pass, they knew it was a lost cause. They had to backtrack and take I-80 through the mountains. This put them at least three days later reaching their goal than they had planned on.

-------

Russ, Debi, Sharon and Paula told me their story and I filled them in on some of ours. Then, I asked, "Is the power still on in California?"

"It was when we left, for the most part anyway. Some areas were blacked out, like a local breaker had popped or something. We were also seeing lots of fires, which were causing more breakers to kick. If things go on the way they are now, it won't be long until the previously populated areas of California are burned to the ground."

"That's a shame," I said. "I was afraid there'd be a lot of people with the attitude of the ones you met up with. The power was on and there was plenty of food, so what was there to worry about? I wonder what's going to happen to them when the power goes off and the food starts to run out."

"Yeah, that's kind of the way we figured it."

"We have run out of some things, like pork, chicken, frozen vegetables and frozen juices. What part of California would you say we'd have the best luck in finding that kind of thing still frozen?"

"You know, I think you'd probably have the best luck finding that type of thing in the Chico or Redding areas. They are both close to Shasta Dam, which supplies electricity to most of northern California."

"That sounds reasonable. Since you were stationed in Redding, can I assume you're familiar with the area?"

"Definitely."

"I may ask you to make a trip with me and a few others to see what we can find. Two of our guys are out this morning looking for a helicopter we could possibly use to bring some stuff back with us. The one they're looking for has a range of a thousand miles and will haul sixteen tons at 170 knots."

"Wow! That's a horse. Sure, we'd be glad to help. How are you going to store the food after you get it home?"

"We'll need to bring in some big walk-in freezers and get them set up before we leave. If that looks like it's going to take too long to do, we can put it in refrigerator trucks for a few weeks."

"That'd work. Sure. Count us in."

-------

Bill and Rob came driving into the camp not long after noon. We thought at first they'd struck out, but then we saw they were grinning from ear to ear. They were also riding in an army jeep.

"As soon as you're feeling like it, you have to check this thing out," Rob told me. "We brought the jeep over just to see how it handled a load. It is fantastic."

"Great. I'll have to check with Chris, but maybe she'll allow me to go see it tomorrow. We may give it a real test in a couple of weeks." I explained to him what I was thinking about bringing food from California with the Sikorsky.

"I was thinking of that too. I figure it'd be about a fifteen-hour flight, counting two refueling stops. It will be a long day at the controls, but it's doable. By the way, I was talking with Les Gannon. He's flown some of the smaller helicopters. It should be fairly easy to bring him up to speed on the bigger ones."

"Great! I don't remember interviewing him."

"No, I think he was interviewed during one of your trips. He seems like a nice enough guy."

I didn't get a whole lot done during the day. I did spend a lot of time with my wives and wives to be. I don't think I was alone more than twenty minutes total during the whole day. By the end of the day I was walking a lot better. The pain in my side was nearly gone, unless I strained it.

-------

Day 135 - October 3

The day started perfectly. That usually indicates that something bad is going to happen, but not in this case. Chris and Evie officially became part of our family. We didn't invite anyone to our ceremony. I suppose in future years that may become a tradition, but for us, we wanted it totally private.

Afterwards, we were sipping coffee when I brought it up to Chris about taking a look at the new helicopter. We almost had our first fight because of it.

"No way, Ed," she told me. "I want you to take it easy for at least a week."

"Is there a reason for that, or are you just saying it because you have the authority to say it?" I asked rather testily.

Chris looked like I had slapped her. "That's not fair, Ed," she said. "I'm saying it because I don't know how badly you are hurt and because I love you."

"I'm sorry, Chris. That was unfair of me. It's just that I feel really good. There's almost no pain at all unless I press on it or if I bend in the wrong direction and you said that nothing important had been hit."

"I know, Ed, but I'm not a surgeon. I'm not used to the procedures for insuring that everything heals properly. I know that something like you had done would have meant at most one overnight stay in a hospital, but I'm not sure enough of what I did to say for you to go ahead."

"I can understand that, Love, so how about you go with me? That way you could keep a check on me and you would get to see our new toy also?"

Chris thought for a minute then said, "We could do that. I'd like for Tina to come as well for some help if anything goes wrong."

"Deal," I said happily. "If Rob's willing, is there any reason he couldn't take us up for a little test flight?"

"I knew you were going to ask that," Chris laughed. "As long as he doesn't go above about five thousand feet, I can't see it would hurt anything. Is there room for all of us in this thing?"

"Rob tells me it will handle over fifty passengers. It'd handle half the people here if we wanted to do it that way."

"Okay, let's get this over with. We might as well go now."

Actually, it took us almost an hour to get ready to go out to the airport where the Sikorsky was waiting. Part of that was because Kammie and all of my wives decided they wanted to go with us.

God that thing is huge! From what Rob tells me, it is 99 feet long. Awesome.

Rob showed us around the machine and explained a lot of its features. "It even has a pump for pumping its own fuel out of a container," he bragged. "That will help a lot when we land at airports that don't have electrical power."

"So, how long would it take for you to fly this thing from here to say Lexington, KY?" I asked.

"Do you know how far it is?"

"It's around 330 miles by car."

"Less than two hours then. This thing cruises at around 170 miles per hour. It should be less than that though, since you fly in a straight line with this instead of following the curves in a road."

"Very nice. How far will it go before you have to refuel?"

"A little over 1100 miles."

"Then you could fly to Lexington and back to here without refueling?"

"Ed, I know what you're thinking," Chris said. "Why don't we take a short test flight today and if you are doing okay, take a longer flight tomorrow? I'd feel a lot better."

"Okay, sweet love. We'll do just that. Can you take us up, Rob?"

"Sure can. After we get back, I'll refuel and we'll be ready to go tomorrow."

God! It was fantastic. Much quieter inside than I thought it would be, and as stable as a parking lot. I asked Rob to give us one turn around the greater St Louis area. He took us up to 3000 feet and you could see forever. I was especially interested in the highways approaching the area. There hadn't been any new arrivals for a couple of days now and we didn't see anyone on the roads.

I was sitting in the co-pilot seat so I asked Rob over the helmet radio, "How long before this thing needs maintenance?"

"It was just serviced when IT happened. We've got quite a few flying hours before it's needed. I'll have to look up the information though. This thing has three engines, so there's three times as much to do. We should pick up a smaller one for most of our needs."

"Okay, gotcha. Let's take her back in and see how the women liked the flight. You might want to ask Les if he'd like to go along tomorrow and get some flight experience."

"I was thinking of that. I'm sure he will. I brought him out to look it over last night and he was excited as hell."

Actually, my whole family was as excited as hell too. Kammie, Tina, Syl and Sandy were excited to be going home and to be seeing our friends we had left there. Tiffany, Chris and Evie were excited to be seeing their new home.

We were sitting around talking after dinner that evening, when Evie came over and sat on my lap. She snuggled in then whispered in my ear, "Ed, my ribs are still pretty sore. Would you mind if we didn't make love tonight?"

"Not at all, Love," I told her. "I'll have to admit I lust after your sexy body, but we can wait as long as you need to."

Evie giggled. "I didn't think you'd mind too much. Chris is as sexy as all get out and her main topic of conversation over the last couple of days has been getting you in bed. She's worried about your side though."

"I wonder about it too. It doesn't hurt unless I put pressure on it, or if I bend in a certain way, but good loving causes you to bend in all kinds of ways."

Actually, we tried it. Chris insisted she get on top and that probably was the best position to try it in, but there was still too much pain for it to be good for me. I ended up eating Chris to three orgasms, but didn't have one myself.

-------

Day 136 - October 4

Syl and I were sipping our morning coffee when everyone else started wandering in. I missed having one of my wives sitting on my lap in the mornings, but my side was still tender enough that it wasn't possible for any length of time.

I talked to Bill and told him that if Jim and Fred had everything ready for us, we'd probably head home tomorrow. "Would you go around and let everyone know? Also, I'd like for you to make sure that all of them are ready, with their RVs fueled, so we can get an early start. It's just a little over three hundred miles and we can be home tomorrow if we take off early enough."

"Sure, Ed, leave it to me. I know I need to get our RV fueled. We'll make sure all of the others are ready too."

We were in the helicopter by 8:00 AM and arrived at Weisberger shortly before 10:00 AM. I had Rob fly around the place once, and then he found a place in a pasture to land that was not too far from the houses. We hadn't been on the ground more than a couple of minutes when Fred and Jim came riding up on a couple of four wheelers.

When Jim saw who it was he started laughing. "I should have known you'd make a spectacular entrance. What the hell is that beast?"

I told them about the helicopter then introduced them to everyone. Jim said to hold on, that he'd run and get the Blazer. Since there were ten of us, I told him I'd ride in behind him. I knew it'd still take two trips.

I said hello to Fred and Jim's wives as Jim went back for the first load of passengers. We had a lot of catching up to do, but I fended off most of their questions until everyone was together.

I had been away so long I had almost forgotten how much I liked Jim. We all talked for a couple of hours then Jenny informed us that lunch was ready. The newcomers were blown away by the food. Kammie had to have had at least four glasses of milk with the meal and most of the rest of us had three. There was fresh butter and fresh baked rolls as well.

"You left this to come to Crestwood," Evie asked.

"He's a dummy," Jim said. "Now, Evie, would you be Ed's fifth or sixth wife?"

"Yep, fifth or sixth. Chris and I married them at the same time."

Jim laughed and turned to me. "You're a better man than I am, Ed."

"Your wives seem to think you're a good man, Jim. Now, tell us what all you got done while we were gone."

"Well, as you saw, we managed to fence in about thirty acres. We were kind of worried about dogs or something digging in under the fence, so we used a trencher to dig a six-inch wide by three foot deep trench along the fence line. We poured concrete in the trench and set the fence posts right in the concrete. The fence is eight feet high, chain link, and has razor wire along the top."

"That sounds formidable."

"Yep, we also got sites cleared and leveled for ten more houses, although we don't have the foundations poured yet."

"We're going to need the houses. How many new people did we end up with, Syl?"

"The last I knew it was 107 new ones."

"Wow. Some of them will probably have to live in their RVs for a few days. I can't see getting much more done before they get here. What else should we be looking into?"

"Yeah, we're going to want to get in some large walk-in freezers. We'll need a pole barn or something to put them in. The barn will need to be close to the house, or between the main house and the new ones. I have no idea how big the freezers will be or how big of a barn we'll need to put them in. Maybe you could see what's available."

"We'll do that this afternoon," Jim said. "You know, Fred's pole setter would make short work of setting the poles for a pole barn. We'll need to pour a floor for it though. That'll probably take the most time."

"Be that as it may, nothing is going to happen for a few days. We'll be pulling into here tomorrow afternoon late with 25 to 30 RVs. Someone needs to lay out a parking area for them. Everyone will stay in their RVs tomorrow night. Then, we'll start moving them into the houses the next day. We'll have a sheet with all of the family groups made up so we can assign the houses."



-------

Chapter 11

Day 144 - October 12

Damn! What a week! Things never work out the way you plan, but this turned into a real cluster fuck. Everyone made it in, but it was three days later when the first family moved into one of the houses. We had set Bill up in one of the houses before we left for our trip. Two of the bedrooms in each of the houses were big enough to take a king-sized bed. The other bedroom would handle a queen.

We put Rob's family and Glen's family into the house with Bill and that worked out fine. The problem was, we had to get furniture for each and every house. We tried to let everyone decide who their housemates were going to be, but of course there were problems with that as well.

As each family moved into a house, we moved their RVs to a farm about a mile down the road.

Today we finally got to the point where we are ready to start pouring the floor for the pole barn and the foundations for the next ten houses. We also started preparations today for our trip to Ironton, Ohio to see if we get any hits from our eastern signs.

After much discussion, we decided that Glen and his family would accompany my family to Ironton. Since Glen was an ex-navy seal, we figured he'd be the best at providing security.

Rob found a nice little Bell Jet Ranger helicopter at the Blue Grass Airport in Lexington. It used a lot less fuel than the Sikorsky and could be landed in much smaller areas. He said he'd check in with us every couple of days while we were away.

-------

Day 152 - October 20

Work seems to be going a lot quicker now that we have so many people to assign chores to. It also helps that the fence is in place and we don't have to worry about dogs. I'm still a little worried about outsiders though, so we do keep a guard detail. Eventually, we want to include the mill and the power plant inside our fence as well.

The pole barn went up easily. The hardest part of the whole thing was pouring the floor. Jim taught several people how to finish concrete. The floor of the pole barn, being their first attempt was a little rough, but it wasn't all that bad. We ended up making the building 50' by 30'. This allowed us to put in four 10' square freezers with room for six more if we needed them. This gave us a little over 2200 cubic feet of freezer space immediately and almost 3400 cubic feet we could add later in the same building.

John was proving to be a real asset to us. It seemed like he could do anything if he set his mind to it. He took over as construction boss for building the pole barn while Jim went ahead with pouring the foundations for ten new homes.

We now have 123 people in our community. There is no way we can get that many people together in any one place for a town meeting, so we decided to put together another pole barn as a meeting hall. We wanted to be sure we had enough room to last a couple of years, so we decided to make it 60' by 40'. We figured this would be big enough to handle at least 300 people. Building something this size proved to be a real pain in the ass, but after we figured out how to do the roof, the rest was a piece of cake. This project was put on hold until after we got the new houses in place.

We now had four children under the age of ten in our village, three girls and one boy. Missy Anderson and Tommy Jenkins were with the Canadians that Bill had rescued from the motorcycle gang. They made us feel like there was definitely hope for the future.

-------

Day 153 - October 21

Kammie decided she wanted to stay with the other kids this time instead of being bored to death for a couple of weeks in the RV. Rob's wife, Charise, agreed to look after all of the kids while we were away.

The rest of us, who were going on the trip, loaded into our RVs and headed out. It only took us a little over three hours to get to the Ironton Wal-Mart. We were pleasantly surprised to see half a dozen RVs already there.

We were not so pleasantly surprised when we saw what some of the people looked like. Then again, wasn't that being a little prejudiced in itself? It shouldn't matter what someone looks like and looks can definitely be deceiving. This was quickly proved to us by one of the first people who approached our RV when we pulled in.

To say this guy was huge would have been a gross understatement. He was around 6' 6" tall with reddish hair and freckles. He must have weighed close to 300 pounds and not an ounce of it was fat. His bib-overalls looked to be about four inches short for him and his flannel shirt wasn't much better. The only thing he was wearing that looked like they actually belonged to him were his highly polished army boots.

"Howdy, y'all. Ahm Homer Renfrow," he said as he stuck out a hand that was as big as a small ham.

"Hi, Homer. I'm Ed James. It's nice to meet you."

"Nice ta meet ya too," he said as he gently shook my hand.

"Homer, we're the ones who put up the signs. These are my wives, Tina, Syl, Sandy, Tiffany, Evie and Chris."

Homer blushed as he said hello to each of them. Syl had already made up signs about our laws and had made up sign-up sheets for interviews, so she and Tina started putting them up.

Several other people had come up by now and I shook hands with all of them. Some had very pronounced accents and others sounded like Midwesterners. I told everyone we were going to be grilling steaks for dinner later and they were all welcome to join us. Homer hung around after I told everyone we'd talk with everyone at dinner time and start our interviews tomorrow. Everyone else started drifting off to see what they could add to our meal.

"So, what did you do before all this happened, Homer?" I asked.

"Ah was in the air force, sir. Ah was right near the end of my enlistment and ah was tryin' ta figure out if'n ah wanted ta re-up. Ah had come home on leave ta talk ta my ma and pa about it."

"We've got several service people in our group," I told him. "Glen, here, was a navy seal, and Rob, who isn't with us was an army helicopter pilot. What did you do in the air force?"

"Ah was an aircraft mechanic. Both fixed and rotary wing aircraft."

"That's fantastic, Homer. We've been hoping to find a good aircraft mechanic. Rob has picked up two helicopters for us, but we didn't know what we were going to do when one of them developed problems."

"Ahm yer man," Homer said with a big smile. "Ah also have a pilots license for fixed wing and ahm certified to ferry aircraft up to four engine jets."

"Homer, you're amazing. You be sure you and your wives come over for dinner this evening. Okay?"

"Ah'l be here, but ah ain't got no wives. Ahm a little shy when it comes to women folks."

I watched Homer leave, smiling to myself. When Evie came over I asked her, "Well, what did you think of him?"

Evie smiled and said, "I think he's going to make some woman or women a very good husband. When he shook my hand a while ago it was so gentle I felt like my hand was being brushed with a bird feather."

"Yeah, he does seem like a gentle giant, doesn't he. I think we have our first recruit from this area."

"I agree. We'll have to go through the interview procedure though so we don't ruffle anyone else's feathers."

"Yep. I see he signed up for an interview before he left. At first glance I thought he might be trouble. I'm glad I was mistaken."

We spent the afternoon talking with people as they came by. Syl had taped my speech that I had given in Missouri and sometime in the last couple of weeks she and Tina had written it out on poster board. It was displayed on the front of the Wal-Mart, and we were asked several questions about it.

Homer must have come by half a dozen times during the afternoon. I think he was lonely. When I was busy talking with someone else, one of my wives would talk with him. Every time one of them would talk to him, he'd blush, but I could tell he was enjoying it.

We met another family that afternoon that caused us a little concern. Wilson Fouts was a skinny little guy with long hair and an unkempt look about him that made you wonder how often he bathed or washed his clothes. To make it even worse, he had a chew of tobacco tucked in his jaw that would have choked a horse. He had one woman/wife with him, Belinda Ferguson.

Belinda didn't seem to be battered or anything, but she was definitely cowed by Fouts, who ordered her around like she was his personal servant. The worst thing though was that he started flirting with my wives. I guess you could call it flirting anyway, in a ham handed kind of way. He sat with me and talked for a while. All of my wives came around at one time or another and when he spoke to any of them he had a big smile and called them 'darlin'.

I let it go without saying anything, but I was a little angry about it. After they had gone, I asked Evie what she thought about him.

"Ed, I don't know if he's into physical abuse or not, but he definitely mentally abuses Belinda. He also has a very high opinion of himself. I'm afraid he'd be trouble if we asked him to join us."

"What do you think of Belinda?"

"Honey, she is so beaten down by that man that I don't think she even has a thought of her own. If we offered right now for her to join us but refused to let him, she'd probably go with him. She wouldn't think she had any other choice."

"Yeah, that's kind of what I was thinking too. We can't force her to stay. Is there anything we can do about it?"

"Just leave it to your wives, love. We'll talk to her. I'm not sure it'll do any good, but we can be pretty persuasive."

"That you can," I said as I pulled her in for a kiss."

Homer walked around the end of the RV while mine and Evie's lips were locked together. I've never seen anyone turn any redder. He started to mumble something then take off, but I stopped him.

"What did you need, Homer?" I asked.

"Ah... Ah... wuz just gonna ask if'n there wuz anythin' Ah could bring tonight," he managed to get out.

"Consider yourself our special guest tonight, Homer. We've all talked it over and decided you're the first one from here that we'd like to ask to join us. We can't say anything in front of anyone yet, because we don't want anyone to get jealous, but if you'll join us, we'd sure like to have you."

"Oh, Ah'll join ya alright. Ah'd be honored."

"Good. Why don't you pull up a seat and sit a spell? I'd really like to get to know you better."

Homer grinned from ear to ear and grabbed a chair. After he was settled in I asked, "So, I take it you mother and father didn't make it?"

"No. Pa died right away. Ma lived long enough I didn't think she wuz gonna come down with it, then she passed too. Then Ah thought Ah'd be next. Ah just kinda waited but nothin' happened."

I told him how I had survived IT and how I had met Tina and Syl. "You're a lucky man, Ed," he told me. "All of your wives are beautiful."

"So, you like women? You're just shy around them?"

"Oh my gawd yes, Ah like 'em. Ah just never know whut ta say around 'em. Ah get all tongue tied."

I laughed. "I was a little way like that myself, before I met Tina. I take it you didn't grow up around girls. You didn't have any sisters did you?"

"Naw, only woman I wuz around wuz Ma. Ah had two brothers but no sisters."

"I was the same way. You just need to meet the right woman, Homer. I think any unattached woman out there would grab you in a heartbeat. I know my wives would if they weren't already married to me."

"Ur funnin' me, right," Homer said.

"No way, Homer. All of them are calling you the gentle giant. They all think very highly of you."

"Well, Ah'll be."

"For a change of subject, Rob is going to be flying over tomorrow to see how things are going. I'd like for you to meet him right away."

"Good. Whut's he flyin'?"

"He'll probably be flying the Bell Jet Ranger. It's easier to find a place to land it than the big Sikorsky."

"That's a good little machine. Very reliable."

"Have you ever worked on the Sikorskys?"

"Yup. They're good machines too. It's just the bigger ones have three engines and that takes a lot more work."

"You know, Homer, while we've been sitting her talking, your accent seems to be disappearing. Any idea why?"

"Ah'm not sure what causes it, Ed. While I was in the air force, I started losing it. Then, when I'd come home for a visit, it'd be right back. I guess I tend to talk like the people I'm around."

"That's interesting, Homer, and the change is awesome."

"Well, I guess I started trying to change how I spoke when I went in the air force. Everyone seemed to think that because I talked like a hillbilly that I was dumb. I'm not dumb and it was frustrating. I wanted to be an aircraft mechanic and I qualified for the school, but the instructors in the school acted like they had to explain something to me three or four times. Finally I got tired of it and asked them if they'd please move on. I told them I was bored at the slow rate they were going and that I could usually pick up on something the first time it was explained to me."

"Did that shake them up?"

"Some. One of them evidently got mad because he tried to make it as hard on me as possible. It didn't work though."

"Why not?"

"Some of the other guys started complaining that he was going too fast."

We both got a big laugh out of that.

"Would I offend you if I asked a personal question?" I asked.

"No, go right ahead."

"Why do your clothes look like they belong to your little brother?"

Homer's laugh almost rocked our RV. "I went into the air force when I was eighteen. Right after that I put on a growth spurt. I grew about four inches over the next couple of years. While I was on base, I wore mostly fatigues. I didn't buy many civilian clothes. All of my new civvies are dirty, so I put on some things I'd left at home before I enlisted. I guess they do look kind of funny."

"More than kinda," I laughed. "We'll have to find you a big and tall man's store when we get home."

"That would be nice. I have all of my air force clothes with me. I guess I could wear those."

"It's not a problem with any of us. If you want to catch a woman though, you should look your best."

"I'll think about that."

"Have you met Wilson Fouts?" I asked.

"Yeah, I've met him. He's a real piece of work, isn't he? He orders his wife around like she was some kind of slave or something. She shouldn't have to take that kind of treatment."

"That's what I thought too. Then he started flirting with my wives. They set him straight, but I thought it took a lot of balls to hit on them right in front of me."

"He thinks he's bad," Homer said. "He was bragging yesterday about all the fights he's been in."

"We don't need that in our new community," I said, then stopped myself before I said anything else.

Homer must have noticed because he said, "I know when to keep my mouth shut, Ed. Anything you say to me will stay with me."

"I figured that was the case, Homer, and I appreciate it. What I started to say is that we'll invite Belinda to join us, but not Wilson. We had a situation like that over in Missouri last month and the guy went nuts when his wives decided to go with us. Tina ended up having to kill him."

"That little slip of a girl had to kill a guy? That's a shame, Ed."

"Don't you know it. She had to kill another guy when we were coming from California. He was going to take Syl away from us and probably kill me in the process. I hope nothing like that has to come up again."

"Can I help out, Ed? Maybe act as a guard or something? I don't want to see her have to go through that again."

"I'd appreciate it, Homer. Glen's going to be helping too. He was a navy seal. Can you shoot a gun?"

"I qualified as expert on both pistol and rifle in the air force. I've been hunting since I was nine years old."

"Great. First thing in the morning, we'll do an interview with you. You don't need to worry about it because we've already decided you're in. Then we'll start pulling in people who've signed up. I noticed that your name is first on the list anyway, so it's logical to interview you first."

"Yeah, the second people to sign up were Mike Severt's family. They seem like good people."

"I remember meeting them. Do you know anything about them?"

"Not much. Mike was a pharmacist before IT happened. He has one wife, Joann."

"Well, I'm sure we can use a pharmacist. Anyway, I think it's time we see if we can find any barbecue grills in this Wal-Mart. Let's get one of my wives to stand guard for us so we can both push a cart."

When Tina came out, dressed only in her web belt and Glock, I thought Homer's eyes were going to pop out. "Did you read the rule about nudity?" I asked him.

"Yeah, but I didn't know if you were serious."

"We're serious. We feel that nudity causes people to be more open with each other. Does it bother you that Tina doesn't have any clothes on?"

"Oh, yeah, it bothers me alright, but I can learn to live with it. I don't have to get naked do I?"

"No, but if you feel you want to, then go ahead."

Homer blushed when Tina turned around and looked at him. "We really wouldn't mind," she told him.

-------

While Homer and I were setting up the grills and getting them burning, I asked Tina if she and Syl would go around and get a head count of everyone who was going to be eating with us. When they came back they were two pissed off women.

"What got you guys so pissed off?" I asked.

"It's that damned Fouts character," Syl told me. "When we stopped at his RV to see if they'd be eating with us, he looked at Tina and I and said, 'My, my. I didn't know black girls would be so pretty when they are naked. I'd just love to suck on them big black nipples.' I told him I wasn't a girl and that I am married to you and pregnant with your baby. He said, 'Well, we won't have to worry about birth control will we?' I thought Tina was going to shoot him."

"I thought about it," Tina said. "This guy's trouble, Ed."

"Tina, see if you can roust Glen out of his RV. I think it's time we had a talk with Mr. Fouts," I said.

"I'm going with you," Homer said.

"Thanks, Homer. We appreciate that."

"Syl," Homer said to my surprise, "I hope I don't offend you when I say you are a beautiful woman. Don't let scum like that make you think any less of who you are or what you are."

"Homer, I'm not offended at all when someone offers me a sincere compliment like you did. Thank you."

Homer just nodded and blushed.

When Glen came over I told him what had been going on. "I think we need to get him out of here, now," I told him.

Glen agreed and the three of us started for Fouts' RV. Tina tried to come along, but I told her I had two bodyguards and that should be sufficient. She didn't like it, but finally gave in.

I knocked on the door of Fouts' RV and Belinda answered the door. I told her we'd like to talk to her and her husband if that would be okay. She nodded shyly and invited us in.

Fouts was sitting in the living area and when Belinda showed us in he said, "Go on with your chores, woman. This is man's business."

"Actually, we'd like to talk to your wife too," I said.

You could tell Fouts didn't like it, but he allowed her to stay.

"Belinda," I said. "We'd like to extend an invitation to you to join our community. There's going to be a lot of hard work over the next few months, but the rewards are going to be worth it. Also, everyone there is equal."

Belinda blushed and nodded.

"What about me?" Fouts asked.

"Mr. Fouts, we are not asking you to join us."

"Why the fuck not?" he sputtered.

"Since we've been here today, you've insulted my wives several times. What you said to Syl earlier almost got you shot. It is also apparent to all of us that you are mistreating Belinda. Either of these reasons would have caused us to exclude you from our village."

"You sanctimonious hypocrite! Those cunts you call wives got upset because I was flirting with them a little. As for this whore here, it's none of your God Damned business how I treat her. I saved her ass when dogs were attacking her, so I own her. You might be able to keep me out of your fucking town, but you sure as hell ain't going to let this cunt in if I'm not with her."

Homer grabbed Fouts by the front of his shirt with his right hand and lifted him bodily out of his chair. When Fouts' head hit the top of the RV, Homer used his left hand to take Fouts' pistol out of his holster and hand it to Glen. "You watch your language around this lady, sir," Homer said in a low menacing voice. "We'll hear no more foul language from you, or I'll take you outside and teach you some manners. Do you understand?"

Fouts' eyes were nearly popping out as he nodded his head vigorously. Homer sat him down and turned his back on him as he turned to Belinda.

"Ma'am, I'm sorry for the way he talked to you. If you'd like, I'll thrash him good for you."

Belinda shook her head, but blushed and smiled. "Ma'am, we sure would be pleased if you'd leave this no good and join our community."

"I think I'd like that, Homer," Belinda said shyly.

"Ma'am, Mr. Fouts and I are going outside and take a little walk. I'm sure Ed and Glen will help you get your stuff together while we're gone," Homer said.

Glen and I assured her we'd be glad to help so Homer laid one of his giant hands on Fouts' shoulder and squeezed. "Come on, Mr. Fouts. I think we have a few things to talk about before you leave this camp."

Fouts didn't look happy, but he didn't try to fight as Homer led him out. I asked Homer later what he'd told Fouts, but all he'd say was that they'd had a friendly discussion. I let it go at that.

When Homer saw us carrying Belinda's few possessions over to my RV, he walked Fouts back to his vehicle. We could tell he was saying something to Fouts, but we couldn't make out what it was. Fouts immediately climbed into his RV and took off. That's the last we ever saw of him.

When Homer came over to where we were he didn't say a thing. Belinda looked at me and said, "I really don't want to put you out, Mr. James. I can just sleep in one of these abandoned cars."

"It wouldn't be putting us out Belinda. We have plenty of room," I told her.

"Miss Belinda, I have three beds in my RV," Homer told her. "You're welcome to take one of them if you'd like. I guarantee you I'll be a perfect gentleman."

"I just might take you up on that if it wouldn't be a bother, Homer. It'd sure beat sleeping in a car. Please call me Bell, though. That's what I've gone by all my life."

"Okay, Bell, let's take your stuff over while Ed gets the steaks started. There's nothing like a little confrontation to get my stomach rumbling."

My wives were outside and they heard this conversation. Evie looked at me and smiled, "They make a perfect couple, don't they?"

"Yes, my love, they do make a perfect couple. I think Belinda is the only person around here who is as shy as Homer."

I filled my wives in on what had taken place in Fouts' RV. "Oh, my God," Tiff laughed. "Homer is a goner. Belinda's knight in shining armor came riding in and defended her honor, and then he saved her from her oppressor. Homer doesn't stand a chance."

We all got a good laugh out of that, but I knew there was a lot of truth in it.

-------

When we saw Homer and Bell walking back across the parking lot a little later, we all exchanged smiles again. They were holding hands and talking animatedly. "I told you, he's a goner," Tiff whispered. "I think Bell is too."

"Pretty amazing isn't it? I don't think she said ten words a day while she was with Fouts," I contributed.

"Ain't love grand?" Syl asked as she kissed me on the cheek.

During dinner I tried to talk a little bit with everyone. Mike Severt was one of the most interesting people there. Mike was a pharmacist, but he was also a cowboy wannabe. He had had a friend who owned a cattle ranch in Montana. Every summer he'd get someone to cover for him at work and he'd go out and work on his friend's ranch for a month. Mike was in his late thirties, I guessed.

Mike's wife, Joann McConnel, was one of those people you just wanted to pick up and hug. She was cute, funny, charming, and bubbled with energy. I'd say she was in her mid-forties, which would make her the oldest person I'd seen since IT happened. When I asked her what she'd done before she said, "Oh, Honey, I was completely worthless before. I was married to a rich man, who left me sitting at home while he toured the world with his bimbos. Living by myself for two months was the best thing that ever happened to me. I had to scrounge for food. I had to learn how to make do without electricity. I also had to learn to survive the dogs. It's made me a lot better person."

"Joann, I have no idea what you were like before, but I certainly like the person you are now," I told her.

Her bubbling laugh caused several heads to turn our way. "Thank you, Ed. I'm sure you wouldn't have liked me then, but that woman died with all of the other society matrons. Now I can be just me, the me that was there, underneath, all of the time, but who I had buried so deep I couldn't even begin to look for her, let alone find her."

"It sounds like you're a survivor, Joann, and that's what we're going to need if the race is going to survive. Something like we've been through either brings out the best in a person, or the worst. With you, it was obviously the best."

"Yeah, and with Wilson Fouts, it was the worst," Belinda broke in.

"I was meaning to ask you about that, Bell. How long were you with Fouts?" I asked.

"Not very long. I think it was about three weeks. I had been living on my own and doing very well, then I made a stupid mistake and Fouts came along at the right time and helped me out. I'd have probably been okay anyway, but I was a little scared."

"What happened?"

"Well, with the dogs getting the way they are, I always made sure I had a weapon on me, but that day I only had my 9mm. I was picking up canned goods and I didn't want to be burdened with a rifle or shotgun. Anyway, I had gone in this store and loaded up a cart. I had just pushed it back outside when I saw some dogs. The camper I was in was about thirty feet away, so I knew it was too far to get to it. I managed to shoot three of them as I was making my way back into the store, but I used up five shots in doing it."

Belinda stopped and took a big drink from the large glass of milk Sandy had given her, then she continued. "So, here I was, trapped in a store with eleven bullets left in my gun and at least thirty dogs between me and safety. I shot two more, hoping it would make the others run away, but they just moved back a ways and stood there glaring at me. That's when Fouts showed up and opened up on the pack with an M-16."

"And you felt that if you had just kept your cool and waited them out they would have eventually gone away?"

"Yeah, they had already torn into their fallen comrades and were eating them. I was perfectly willing to supply them with some more meat and I knew that when they had full bellies they'd go off somewhere and sleep."

"But, then Fouts showed up."

"Right. He told me of how much danger I had been in and I knew it had been dangerous. He told me how beautiful I was and he flirted with me outrageously. He said we should join forces for mutual protection and promised there'd be no hanky panky. I was lonely and I believed him."

"But that's not how it went?"

"It did for a few days, then he started telling me how stupid I am and how I needed someone to take care of me. Everything I tried to do, he told me there was a better way. I don't know if he convinced me I was stupid or if I was just so lonely and so much in need of approval that I allowed myself to go along with it. I started asking him about everything I was going to do. About a week ago, he told me it was time we started having sex. I thought that maybe it would make him a little less critical, so I let him."

"It didn't help though, did it?"

"No, actually, it got worse. Then, we saw the sign telling about your village. He said that was just what we needed, so we headed in this direction. You know the rest."

"Bell, you hardly spoke at all while you were with Fouts, now you really seem to be opening up. Evidently you feel better now that you're not under his control."

"Definitely. I was always a little shy, but there's something about you folks, especially Homer, that makes me feel like I'm with family."

"Thank you, Bell. That is a very nice compliment. What did you do before IT happened?"

"Ed, I'm only eighteen. I was a senior in high school when IT happened. My family were farmers though."

"Bell, if you know anything about farming, you're going to be a big asset for us."

"I guess I know more about raising food crops than I do about any of the big crops. I can show you anything you want to know about raising and canning vegetables, but I wouldn't know squat about growing soybeans."

"That's fantastic. Do you know how to make pickles?"

"Yep. Pickles, kraut, pickled beets, pickled corn, pickled beans, or just about any other kind of pickled something you'd want."

"That is truly amazing, Bell. I hope you'll share your knowledge with us."

"I'd be happy to, Ed. There's going to have to be several people working at gardening and canning though to feed an entire village."

"I had assumed that anyway, Bell. Everyone in our village will have to work for all of us to survive."

"You mean you're going to make this ex-society matron work?" Joann asked with a laugh.

"I might have to make you work harder than anyone else, Joann," I said with as serious an expression as I could manage. "I'd say you have to make up for all of those years you spent sitting on your butt."

"But, Ed, that's what I do best," Joann giggled.

"Joann, stop teasing the mayor or I'm going to have to paddle that pretty butt of yours," Mike teased.

"Sure you will," Joann laughed and moved over to sit on Mike's lap.



-------

Chapter 12

Day 154 - October 22

Evie and I were sitting, having our morning coffee. As usual, she was sitting on my lap, and we weren't wearing any clothes. I was gently rubbing her back as we talked about the people we had met the day before. The taping on her ribs was gone now, but she still had the cast on her arm.

"Chris is going to take my cast off this morning," Evie told me.

"Thank God," I said. "I won't have to worry so much about you knocking me you out when you have an orgasm."

"Yeah, but you'll have to worry about the claws," she giggled. "I may leave permanent scars on your back."

We were sharing a loving kiss when there was a knock on the door. Evie yelled, "Come in," not wanting to get up to check on who was there.

The door opened and Belinda came in, followed closely by Homer.

"Ahm... Ahm sorry. We'll come back later," Homer managed to say.

"Come on in and pour yourselves some coffee, Homer," I told them. "Homer, my wives and I are going to be naked when we do the interviews today. Are you going to be able to handle being our bodyguard if we don't have clothes on?"

"I certainly could," Bell said. "I went skinny dipping with my brothers all my life. There's nothing wrong with being nude, Homer."

"I guess not. It's just that I've never even seen nude women before," Homer said.

"Oh, don't give me that, Homer. I went into the bathroom nude this morning. The curtain was open to your bedroom and you were awake. Don't even try to tell me you didn't look."

"Well... Uh... I guess I did look. I'm sorry, Bell."

"Homer, if I hadn't wanted you to see me naked, I'd have been wearing clothes when I went into the bathroom."

Homer just stood there with his mouth hanging open. "You mean you..."

"Yes, you big dummy. I fell in love with you the day we pulled in here. I was trying to figure out how to get rid of Fouts from the moment I saw you."

"Well... Ah'l be."

"Homer, you're sunk," Evie told him. "Once a woman decides she is in love with you, you don't stand a chance. You might as well just relax and enjoy it."

"Yes ma'am. I'll surely enjoy it," Homer said, seemingly getting back some of his composure.

Belinda laughed and gave him a big hug. We were all laughing uproariously when Syl came in and demanded to know what was going on.

"It seems Belinda has set her heart on Homer," Evie told her. "I think it kind of shocked the poor man."

"You should have seen how shocked Ed was when Tina and I told him we intended on sharing him," Syl said. "He looked like he'd swallowed a bug. I thought for a minute he didn't want me, then I saw he had a hardon he could have driven nails with."

All the women looked at Homer's crotch, causing him to blush redder than I'd ever seen anyone blush before.

"What man wouldn't have an erection with three beautiful women in the room, two of whom are naked?" I asked.

"Let's just make it three naked women," Belinda said as she started removing her clothes.

Homer watched Belinda getting undressed with his mouth hanging open. The rest of my wives walked in while she was removing her clothes, but Homer never even knew they were there. His eyes never left Belinda's body.

Belinda stayed naked while they ate breakfast with us, but Homer kept his clothes on. When we finished eating, we said we were going to start the interviews in a few minutes, so Belinda asked Homer if he'd walk her back to the RV first. He just nodded and they took off.

When they got to the RV Belinda asked Homer to come in for a minute and when they were inside, Belinda pulled him to her and kissed him soundly. "I hope I didn't embarrass you too badly when I took my clothes off," she said when she had broken the kiss.

"No, Belinda, you didn't embarrass me," Homer said, still holding the nude woman in his arms. "You did scare the hell out of me though."

"How did I scare you, Homey?"

"Belinda, you are the prettiest thing I've ever seen. I haven't been around girls much. I don't know how to act around them. You being so pretty and telling me you love me scared me because I know I'm not good enough for you."

"You are good enough for me! You're good enough for anyone, Homer. You said you didn't know how to act around girls. What did you want to do when I took my clothes off?"

"I wanted to put my arms around you and kiss you."

"Well, I'm still naked and you already have your arms around me, so what are you waiting for?"

Homer kissed her again. This one seemed to Homer to last a lifetime. When they finally broke apart, Belinda whispered, "What else did you want to do, Homer?"

"I wanted to run my hands over your body and see if you feel as good as you look."

"Then do it."

Homer did.

-------

Our first interview was with Mike Seavert and his wife Joann. We already knew we wanted them to join us, so we told them so immediately, then we just chatted for a while.

"I don't think I've seen as much bare flesh since my parents used to go to a nudist colony when I was a kid," Joann laughed. "Do you guys always dress this way?"

"Pretty much," Tiffany told her. "Sandy is the one we can almost never get to wear clothes and I'm almost as bad."

"Does it bother you?" I asked.

"No. I'd have been scandalized if I'd have seen someone naked before IT happened. Now? No, it's no big thing."

Evie explained our thoughts about being more open when you're naked and Joann nodded her understanding.

"Does our being naked bother you, Mike?" Evie asked him.

"No. I'll have to admit it does have an effect on me. You young ladies are so gorgeous you'd have an effect on any man who had been dead less than three days."

Chris laughed. "Being aroused is perfectly natural. If you were naked and that happened, we'd just take it as a compliment."

"Mike, no one's saying you have to go naked. We're just saying it's alright if you want to," I told him.

The next person we interviewed was Carl Justice. Carl had three women with him, two he was mated with and one who was a free agent. Carl didn't seem like the brightest candle in the church, but he did seem like he was honest and from the look of his hands I would guess him to be a good worker. We talked for a few minutes and I started to like the guy. He didn't seem put off by our nudity, and he didn't try to come on to my wives. When he spoke of his wives it was with affection and when he spoke of the free agent, he referred to her as their friend. Carl told me up front that he could do about any kind of handyman stuff but that he wasn't a planner.

Alfrieda (Allie) Pancake was Carl's first wife. Talk about the odd couple, where Carl was quiet and slow, Allie was a bubbling, fast-talking, extrovert. The interesting thing was during the three months they had been together, she had fallen for Carl in a big way. She was truly in love with him. "You know," she told us, "I was in a profession that is totally worthless now. I was a political activist. I was nearly at the end of my rope when Carl found me. I had been eating out of cans for a couple of months and hadn't a clue as to how to do better. Carl found me in a grocery store, eating a can of ravioli with a plastic spoon. I almost died when he walked in. I hadn't seen anyone in two months and here was this guy, walking into the store, carrying some kind of assault rifle."

"Did it frighten you or please you?" I asked.

"A little of both, I think. Then he walked over to me and said in that quiet voice of his, 'Howdy, ma'am'. My knees got weak and my panties got wet before I could even answer him."

Chris giggled. "That was my first reaction to Ed, too. Although, I didn't let him know it for a few days."

"Well, I didn't let Carl know it either. He looked me over and asked where my gun was. I told him I didn't have one and didn't know how to use one if I did. He asked me if I'd been seeing dogs and explained to me that they were running wild and attacking anything that moved. We talked for a few minutes and he offered to teach me how to shoot a gun so I could protect myself. I told him I'd like that a lot. Then he asked where I was living and I told him I was still living in my old house."

Allie giggled then went on. "I know I must have looked like a real doofus to him. He asked how I was cooking and taking baths. I told him I wasn't doing any cooking because I hadn't figured out a way, so he offered to show me his RV. I was amazed. Not only could he cook a meal, he also had hot running water. He offered to help me find an RV of my own and help me get it set up. I asked him if he had room in his and if I could move in with him. His look was priceless. It actually took almost another month before we started sleeping together and having sex. I was ready that first day, but Carl was being a gentleman."

"This is a new community you're going to be moving into, and everyone living there is going to have to work. I know you said your previous occupation was worthless now and you're right, it is. Would you be willing to work as a cook or something like that to help out?"

"Ed, I'd clean toilets with a toothbrush if that's what it took to be able to live with people again. Just tell me what you want me to do and I'll do it. If I can stay with Carl that is."

"Good answer, Allie. I know you guys are going to be a real asset to our community. Chris is going to take you into the other room to do a quick physical on you now. You won't be rejected because of the physical, so don't worry about it."

Carl's second wife was Jessica (Jess) Rose. She was cute as a button and a lot more shy than Allie. Allie and Carl had met Jess when they were doing a little exploring of the area. Jess had heard their RV coming and had run out in the street and waved them down. "I'm sure I looked like something out of an Arnold Swartzeneger movie," she said with a laugh. "I had on a web belt with a 9mm automatic and a large hunting knife on it. I had a double barrel shotgun slung over my back and a bandoleer of 12ga shotgun shells diagonally across my chest. I'm surprised they even stopped."

But, stop they did and Allie, who was now married to Carl, asked if she'd like to join them. Of course she did. It was only about a week later when Allie asked Jess if she'd like to make it a three-way marriage. Jess said she would, but she didn't think Carl was interested since he didn't even talk to her much. Allie told her to leave Carl to her and that Carl wasn't talking to her much because he was interested in her.

Two weeks later and they were a three way. "I'm happier and feel better than I did even before IT happened," she told us. "Carl and Allie bring out the best in me. I was a reporter before IT and I hated it. I had been raised on a farm and I hated the big city life. Now, I feel like I'm home again."

"Well, Jess, I'm sure we're going to be able to use the skills you learned on the farm and we promise not to make you work as a reporter," I told her, then sent her off for her physical.

Pam Garcia was the free agent with Carl's group. Pam had met the group in pretty much the same way as Jess had. When I asked why she was a free agent and not part of the marriage, Pam said, "It just never came up, Ed. I guess if we hadn't seen your signs it might have eventually come to that, but we'd only been together for a week when we saw your first sign. I like Carl, but I really wasn't attracted to him. Jess and Allie are great, and we'll always be good friends, but I really couldn't see myself being a co-wife to Carl."

"It's not a problem, Pam. I was just curious. What did you do before IT happened?"

"Believe it or not, I was a fireman or fireperson or whatever is politically correct this week. I had just made captain when It happened. I don't know how much help my previous profession is going to be to your community, but I am strong and a good worker. I don't mind getting my hands dirty."

"Pam, we're all just kind of muddling through. I was a virologist before IT happened. Not much call for that now. Since we left California, I've learned to drive an eighteen wheeler, a bulldozer, an end loader, a trencher, and a forklift. I've dug ditches, installed a water and sewer system, and helped with installing manufactured housing. As long as you're willing to work, we'll have a place for you."

"Hey, those are a couple of skills I already have. I had to learn to drive the big rigs during my training. I've also driven forklifts and loaders. Maybe there is hope for me."

I looked over at my wives and all of them nodded. "We like you attitude, Pam. We are hereby inviting you to join our community."

"And I hereby accept," she said with a big smile.

When she had gone, we talked it over and asked Carl, Allie, and Jess to come back in. We then invited them to join us and they accepted.

There were two more family groups, one with three people and one with four, in camp at that time. We interviewed both groups that morning and invited both to join us.

Rob showed up just a little after noon in the Bell. Belinda had come over to have lunch with her new mate so she and Homer were with us when we heard the helicopter. Homer's mouth dropped open and he said, "My God. That's a sound I never thought I'd ever hear again."

Rob landed in one end of the parking lot and after going through the shut down checklist, came over to say hello. "How's it going," he asked as he came walking up.

"Great. We should have around twenty new villagers by the end of the day. Also, Rob, this is Homer Renfrow. He's an aircraft mechanic."

Rob and Homer hit it off immediately. I left them discussing the relative merits of different types of aircraft and went over to say hello to Mike and Joann.

Chris was talking with them when I went over, so I patted her on the butt and took her seat when she got up. She then settled into my lap. "What are you guys up to?" I asked.

"We were just talking about drugs," Mike said. "Chris says your supplies are fairly limited."

"They really are, Ed. We were fine until now, but I think we need to get in a big supply in case anything goes seriously wrong," Chris told me.

"So what do we do about it?"

"Well, I was just telling Chris, Rite Aid Pharmacies had a distribution center in Nitro, West Virginia, which is a little over an hour's drive from here. This is the center that supplied most of their mid-west operation. They should have any type of medications we'd want and in large quantities."

"Okay, we'll make that one of our priorities when we get back home. We can bring out an expedition in the Sikorsky and bring back as much as sixteen tons of medicines. You know, we need to be doing some thinking, though. We're bringing in food, but we're also going to be growing and preserving food. When the medications we can scrounge run out or become too old to use, what are we going to do?"

"You're right, Ed," Mike said. "It won't happen in our generation, but what about fifty years from now?"

"The obvious answer is," Chris said, "that we need to learn how to make these medicines ourselves. We have a good start. One of the people we interviewed was a chemist, Mike is a pharmacist, and Tiff is a microbiologist."

"But," I said, "None of these people were involved in making drugs. I'm sure that working together they could figure out how to do it if they had the processes. Maybe that's what we need to concentrate on. Preserving the processes. In other words, preserving the knowledge. We might also have to preserve the special equipment needed for this."

"Okay, I see where you're coming from," Chris said. "The same thing would apply to preserving other kinds of knowledge and equipment as well. Even simple things like the formulas and processes for making a good shampoo and conditioner."

"Exactly! Now, how do we go about it?"

Mike had been looking thoughtful. "You know guys, this really has to be our number one priority. You said we have over a hundred people in the village. Some of them are going to be working on construction. Some are going to be working on growing and preserving food. Others are going to be working on preserving our health. Some will be teachers. I think there has to also be a group, maybe a large group that has the primary job of preservation."

Everyone was quiet for a few minutes. "God," Chris said reverently. "No matter what we do, we're going to lose so much. How do we decide what to concentrate on? This is an awesome responsibility we've taken on."

"Yes, it is," I said. "We really need to think about this. We need to get a group together to decide what knowledge we need to try to preserve and to prioritize our efforts. There are large bodies of information I think we would be better off without. Others might think they are worthwhile."

"God, I hate committees, but I guess that's what we need," Chris said.

"Okay guys," I said. "Be thinking of who we would want on a committee. We need a diverse group, not just the eggheads of the group. Mike, we have a list of all of the people we currently have in our community along with their previous occupations. We should all look it over and make up a list of five to ten people we think should be involved in this."

I left them then and went off to stir up trouble somewhere else. I saw Tiff and Evie talking to a couple of women I didn't recognize, so I wandered over there.

"Hi ladies," I said as I walked up.

Tiff grabbed me and kissed me soundly. "Marj, Sheila, this is our husband, Ed," Tiff said. "Ed, this is Marj Wheeler and Sheila Duffy."

"Evie has been telling us all about you," Sheila said.

"Don't believe a thing she says," I told them. "I didn't do it, and even if I had, it would have been an accident."

Everyone laughed politely. "Marj and Sheila just arrived," Evie said.

"Fantastic," I said. "Is there anyone else in your group?"

"No, unfortunately," Marj said. "We do know of another group of three women that will be coming today or tomorrow though. We met them a couple of days ago and they said they were heading this way."

"We're always happy to get more people. What did you guys do before IT happened?"

"I was a machinist," Marj said. "A damned good one I might add."

"I was a... I guess you could say I was a doctor. I was in my last three months of residency. I was looking forward to getting on some regular hours after the rigors of residency."

"Our wife, Chris is a doctor. An internist actually. Would you like for me to introduce you?"

"Definitely. What did you do, prior to IT?"

"I was a virologist. Tiff, here, was a microbiologist."

"Geez and all I could do was make things out of metal," Marj laughed. "What were you, Evie? A rocket scientist?"

"No, just a lowly psychologist," Evie said.

"Geez!"

"If it makes you feel better," I laughed, "Our other wives were a secretary, a school teacher, and a seventeen year old kid."

"Who are you calling a little kid?" Tina asked with mock indignity.

I hadn't realized she had sneaked up behind me. "It wasn't me," I said with a straight face. "Tiffany was the one who was calling you a kid. Besides, I said kid, not little kid."

"Always trying to get out of it when you screw up," Tina said as she put her arms around me and kissed me soundly.

Chris was looking over at us while Tina hugged me, so I pointed to her and Mike and beckoned them over. When they came over I introduced them to Marj and Sheila. "Chris, I think you'll be happy to hear that Sheila is a doctor," I told her.

"Thank God. I was beginning to think I was going to have to take care of this whole motley crew by myself."

"Actually, I had almost three months of residency left, Chris. I've never practiced on my own."

"Not a problem Sheila. Think of it this way, you just haven't developed any bad habits yet."

Tina, Tiff and I wandered off, leaving Chris, Evie and Mike talking with Sheila. "Where's Syl and Sandy?" I asked.

"They're over talking with Rob and Homer," Tina informed us.

I wanted to ask Rob for a favor, so we went in that direction.

"Rob, would you make a run down the interstate and see if you see anyone else coming in?" I asked.

"Sure," he said. "I was wanting an excuse to take Homer up anyway."

-------

It was a couple of hours later when Rob and Homer came back and gave us their report. "We saw four RVs headed in this direction," Rob said. "Two were coming from the east on I-64 and one was coming from the west. There was also one coming south on route 23. We didn't go too far north on 23 so there could be others coming from that direction."

"Very nice. Did you enjoy your ride, Homer?"

"Yeah, it felt good to get back up again. Rob and I are going to be looking for something slightly bigger than the Bell soon though. Something that will seat six or eight people and have some lift capacity. The Bell's nice for scouting, but is about worthless for carrying a payload."

"Well, you guys are the experts on that kind of thing. Right now, how about you two helping me set up the barbecues and get them started?"

Shortly thereafter, Rob took off for home. I got my wives together and we did a quick interview with Marj and Sheila, then invited them to join us. Two of the four RVs Rob and Homer had spotted showed up before nightfall, but we decided to wait to interview them until morning.

-------

Day 155 - October 23

My whole family was up the next morning, drinking coffee, while Chris and Tiff fixed breakfast. Tina and Evie were sitting on my lap when Syl walked over and stood in front of us. "Since I'm pregnant I think I should be the one sitting on Ed's lap," she said.

"I think that too much sitting on Ed's lap is what caused you to be pregnant in the first place," Tina told her as she stuck out her tongue.

I ran my hand over Syl's stomach. "I don't feel anything yet, Love. Are you still as happy as you were?"

"I'm ecstatic, Ed."

I pulled her into a hug and put my face between her marvelous mammaries. "I love you, Syl," I told her. "You're going to make a wonderful mother."

I was still holding her when Belinda and Homer knocked on the door then came on in. "Oh, shit," Homer said. "I'm sorry we barged in on you guys."

"Not a problem, Homer. I was just enjoying my lovely wives."

"I can see that," Homer said with a blush.

"Since Homey and I have gotten together," Belinda said as Homer blushed again, "I've noticed I just can't get enough hugging and snuggling. With six women and one man, how do you guys get enough snuggle time?"

Chris and Evie looked at each other then Chris said loudly, "Switch!"

I don't know if my ladies had practiced this or what, but Tina and Evie jumped off my lap and Syl stepped back. Sandy and Tiffany each sat on my lap and Chris moved up in front of me. Sandy put her arm around my neck and leaned in until her lips were against my ear. "I want to have your baby, too, Ed," she whispered.

I looked at her and raised my eyebrows. Sandy nodded.

I placed my lips against her ear and whispered, "Have I been neglecting you, Sweety?"

"Some."

"It's not intentional," I whispered. "I love you, Sandy. You don't have to get pregnant to get my attention."

"I know that. I do want a baby. Our baby."

"In that case, why don't we start trying tonight?" I asked aloud.

"I'd like that," Sandy said with a big smile.

"You see, Bell," Chris said. "We manage to get snuggle time for all of us."

"But, don't you get jealous?" Belinda asked.

"Not really," Tiff told her. "We realize that the way the world is today, a woman has three choices. She can give up on men completely and make do with other women. She can give up on men and be by herself and lonely. Or, she can decide to share a man."

"We all chose sharing," Tina said.

"Besides, we all have each other to help out when Ed's not available," Syl added.

"You mean you... with each other?" Belinda asked.

"Yes, we... with each other," Tiffany laughed.

"Come on everyone. Breakfast is ready," Tina said.

We all stopped our conversation so we could eat and so that Homer and Belinda wouldn't die of embarrassment.

After breakfast, we decided to wait around outside until the new people showed up. We were all sitting outside in lounge chairs, enjoying what might be nearly the last of the good weather for the year, when we heard a shotgun blast.

We were all on our feet in an instant, weapons drawn, looking in every direction at once. I saw movement out of the corner of my left eye and whirled in that direction. There had to be at least ten large dogs running at us, flat out.

"To your left!" I yelled. I dropped to one knee, took aim, and dropped a lumbering beast that was not more than fifty feet from us. As I was taking aim at a second dog, someone started firing over my shoulder almost continuously. I got my second one as the person firing over me got their third.

Shots were going off all around us and by the time I was ready to aim at another one, they were all down. I felt a hand, trembling on my shoulder and looked to see Tina. She had been the one shooting over me. I stood up and took her in my arms. I don't know if she was scared or if it was an adrenaline rush causing her to shake, but I knew she needed held. Then Syl was there, in my arms as well.

"My God!" Homer said. "I've never seen anything like that in my entire life."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You, Tina, and Syl," he said. "The three of you must have taken out six or seven of them between you."

"Well, I got two," I said.

"Two," Syl added.

"Three," from Tina.

"And the other seven of us got four between us," Homer said. "I thought I was good, but you guys are something else."

Other people were running up by now, all of them armed to the teeth. After everything had calmed down, we walked over to look at the dogs. They were gaunt, all of them. "They haven't been eating well," I observed.

"That's right," Homer said. "I'd say it's because of the area. Ironton wasn't a big town, probably never more than ten thousand people. People around here were big on dogs though. These two here were coonhounds. That one was a red bone. Those two were blue ticks."

"Yeah," Mike said. "It's been illegal to fight dogs for a lot of years, but they still do it around here. These three were fighting dogs. See how scarred up they were?"

"We've been more used to seeing pets that have gone wild around the big cities," I said. "They're bad enough. We've seen a lot of mastiffs, great danes and pit bulls, but they were all pets at one time. These don't look like they were ever pets."

"True," Homer said. "Hunting dogs were usually kept in pens around here. Most of the contact they had with humans was that humans fed them and took them hunting. Not much affection between the dog and his master."

"The fighting dogs were even worse," Mike said. "Their owners actively mistreated them to make them meaner."

"We've been getting pretty blase about the dogs when there's been a large group of us. I guess we're going to have to be more vigilant."

Homer, Glen and Mike said they'd get rid of the bodies, so the rest of us sat down and tried to relax. Two of the new groups were among those still milling around. There were three women in one group and a man and three women in the other. The guy came over and introduced himself.

"Hi. I'm Jack Webb," he said.

"I'm Ed James. Jack Webb?"

"Yes. My mother was a big 'Dragnet' fan. I could have killed her for naming me that."

"Don't be too hard on her. When I was a kid, my doctor was named Justin Payne. Can you imagine a mother doing something like that to her son?"

"Yeah, that's as bad as a guy I used to work with. His name was Jack Imhoff." (This is actually true. My family doctor growing up was A.J. (Justin) payne. I worked for fourteen years with Jack Imhoff.)

We shared a chuckle then Jack motioned for his wives to come over. "Ed, these are my wives, Larry, Moe, and Curly," he said.

The one he had called Curly hit him on the arm then looked at me and said, "Actually it's Leslie, Marie, and Cindy. He thinks it's cute that we have the same initials as the three stooges."

"Don't you think it'd take a warped mind to even notice that?" I asked Cindy.

"Absolutely," Leslie giggled as she hugged her husband. "We know he's warped, but he's the only one we've got."

I liked these people immediately. Tina came over and I introduced her to them. "Sweety, would you gather up the rest of the family?" I asked her. "I'd like to introduce them to our new friends."

"So, you have more than one wife too?" Marie asked as Tina took off. "We were a little worried of what others might think of us."

"Yes, Marie. Actually I have six wives. So far we have less than thirty men in our group and almost a hundred women. From what we've seen so far, the ratio is going to be even more lopsided when all of the people have come in here. Women only have two choices now. Go without a man or share one. We do have some families where there is only one man and one woman, but I'll bet that before long there won't be. It's not fair, but that's the way IT left us."

All of my lovely wives had gathered around me as I was saying this. "It's taught us one thing though," Chris said. "It is possible to love more than one person at the same time. Ed loves each and every one of us equally. Above and beyond that, I find that I love each of Ed's other wives, or as we like to say, our spouses, just as much as I love Ed."

"We have the same kind of relationship," Cindy said. "I never thought I could love another woman. I mean as a spouse, but I do. I love Leslie and Marie dearly."

Marie leaned over and kissed Cindy on the cheek. "We love you too, Cindy," she said.

"It's a new world," I said. "IT brought out things in all of us that our race has kept hidden for thousands of years. Some of it is very good, like our marriages. Some of it is very bad. We've seen more wife abusers and bigots in the people we've met than we would have ever encountered before IT happened."

"Maybe they're just more open about it now," Jack said. "I was thinking about something along those lines the other day. We had been talking about how much we enjoy our relationship. Hell, I think every one of us is happier than we were before IT. Anyway, Cindy, who is the feisty one of the crew, made a remark about not getting into trouble if she decided to become a husband beater. I started me thinking about people. If a person had a tendency to be an abuser, they would think they could get away with it now, whereas before they had to hide it."

"Yeah, the guy Evie was living with thought that way too," I said as I pulled her close for a hug. "He learned differently."

"How's that?" Marie asked.

"The guy started becoming a drunk," Evie told them. "He started getting mean when he was drunk. It kept getting worse and just before Ed found us the guy went nuts and nearly beat me to death. He beat the other two women who were with us and dragged one of them off to rape her. The other one got away and ran off into the night. She was lucky enough to run into Ed's RV."

"And Ed came to the rescue?" Jack asked.

"Big time. Ed, two of our spouses and another lady came to our rescue. The guy never even knew they were there before they had him handcuffed."

"What did you do with him?" Jack asked.

"The next morning we held a trial. There were only four people with us at the time that hadn't been involved in their rescue, so they were the jurors. The other two women he abused testified and we gave him the chance to testify in his own behalf. Evie was unconscious at the time, so she couldn't have her say. She had a broken arm and two broken ribs. The guy admitted he had beaten them and said he was only disciplining them. The jury all voted that he was guilty of abuse."

"Okay, what did you do then?" Cindy asked.

"I shot him between the eyes," I said.

Everyone looked stunned for a few seconds, and then Cindy walked over and gave me a big kiss. "Thank you," she said. Marie and Leslie repeated her actions and her words.

"I'll be damned if I'm going to kiss you," Jack said. "I would like to shake your hand though."

"I'm not the only one something like this happened to," Evie said as Jack and I was shaking hands. "Tiffany had a little more direct roll in the punishment of the guy who was abusing her and another woman."

Evie put her arm around Tiffany and kissed her on the forehead.

"What happened, Tiffany?" Leslie asked.

"The bastard I was with didn't even have alcohol as an excuse. He would beat Eve and me whenever he wanted. After he had beaten me severely one time, I knew I had to get away from him. He threatened us that he'd find us if we tried to get away, so Eve and I decided to kill him. He wouldn't let us near any of the guns we had, so we used a butcher knife on him while he was asleep."

"My God, we've been so lucky," Marie breathed.

"We've also met some very good people," I said. "Men and women. We also have four children in our village under the age of ten. This gives us some hope for the future."

We all sat quietly for a few minutes then I asked, "Well, enough of this. Where were you guys from and how did you end up together?"



-------

Chapter 13

"Actually Leslie and I found each other first," Marie said. "I was living with my boyfriend in one of the suburbs of Boston when IT happened. Jim came down with the virus almost immediately. He was also one of the first to die. When his symptoms started getting bad, I got him to the hospital. It wasn't even that crowded when I took him in." Marie looked at her spouses and Leslie took her hand.

"Over the next three days I watched the hospital go from what I had always imagined one would be like to a complete madhouse. When Jim finally died, the halls were full of patients on beds, gurneys, stretchers, or just lying on the floor. I was with him when he died. I managed to get a nurse's attention and told her, but she just said she'd make sure someone took care of the body and hurried off.

"I sat with the body for hours, but no one came to take it away. One of the other people in the room died before I finally made my way out of the hospital. I didn't know where else to go so I went back to our apartment. When I turned on the television for some company, I began to realize how widespread the disaster was.

"Most of the TV stations weren't even broadcasting. The ones that were had gone to an 'All News' format. I watched the news and began to wonder when I was going to die. By that time I don't think I even cared.

Leslie took up the story at that point. "It was a little over a week after the missiles hit that I saw Marie for the first time. By then more people were dead than were left alive. The power was off and most of the people who were left were scrounging for food. The really stupid thing was, I saw people carrying off television sets and stereos.

"Marie was in a grocery store stocking up on canned foods. That's why I was there as well. We talked for a few minutes. She told me about her boyfriend dying and I told her about watching my parents pass away. We both agreed we were probably going to die as well. We ended up going our separate ways.

"We met again about two weeks after IT happened. By then almost everyone was dead. I hadn't seen another living soul in a couple of days and when I saw Marie, I lost it. I burst out crying and so did she. We ended up hugging and crying on each other's shoulders for ages. When we finally managed to calm down, we decided to stay together."

"Neither one of us had been thinking of the future," Marie said. "We were just kind of surviving from day to day, waiting to see what was going to happen. We went back to my apartment because it was closer. We cuddled together that night and talked most of the night. We came to the conclusion we should get out of the city.

"The next day, we got in my car and drove out into the country. We still saw a lot of bodies lying around, but the stench wasn't as bad. We drove until we came to a small town and raided the grocery store. My father had been into camping and I knew a little about it, so we found a sporting goods store and got ourselves a camp stove. We had our first hot meal that afternoon since the power had gone off.

"We found an empty house not far from town and set up housekeeping. Neither of us had the slightest idea how to get gasoline out of a pump when there was no electricity, so we stuck close to home. We did put a big sign up out front that said 'People Here' with an arrow pointing toward the house."

"By the time Cindy showed up three days later, Marie and I had become lovers," Leslie said. "We had just heated up some beef stew for lunch when we heard a car pull into the driveway. We totally forgot about our meal as we ran out to see who had seen our sign."

"They were a sight for sore eyes," Cindy said. "I was out of the car and we were all sobbing in each other's arms before the dust settled. They led me inside and fed me stew while we all talked over each other.

"We ended up with all of us in the same bed that night. We cuddled and talked, just enjoying human contact. It was a couple of days later when we saw this huge RV pull into the driveway. Before we could even get outside, this extremely handsome guy had gotten out and was walking toward the house."

"Don't let that go to your head, Big Boy," Marie said. "We figured out later that we only thought you were handsome because we thought you were the last man on earth."

All three women giggled and Jack beamed. He knew what they thought of him and he knew how he felt about them.

-------

The other new people were three women in a group. As I was talking to Sergeant Friday and the three stooges I noticed the three women might be drifting away, so I asked Tina and Syl to go over and talk with them until I could meet them.

I found out that Jack had been a mason. He claimed to be very good with concrete blocks, brick, and stone. Leslie had been the personal assistant to the president of a large company. Marie had been an account rep in an advertising company and Cindy had been a photographer. All of them seemed nice and I was sure that if they didn't show signs of abuse when they had their physical, we'd ask them to join us.

The three women Tina and Syl were talking to were a diverse group. Ruth Ann Green was a short, maybe 5' 0", redhead; Doris Gifford was a tall, 5' 10", willowy blond; and Betty French was a 5' 6" brunette. Although the three women were together, they were not lovers.

"Hell, honey, with no men around, I was thinking about becoming a muff diver. We hadn't even seen any men until we pulled in here today," Doris told me in a loud brassy voice.

"Muff diving is one of Ed's favorite sports," Syl kidded. "I'm kind of partial to it myself."

"Never tried it, Honey. I don't like living without a little recreation though, if you know what I mean."

"Well, Ed here is pretty much taken," Tina said defensively. "He has six wives already."

Doris's eyes got big. "He takes care of six wives?"

"Don't let that impress you, Doris. We resort to a lot of muff diving too," Syl said.

"Enough of this," I said, feeling a little embarrassed. "What did you do before IT happened, Doris?"

"I was a plumber," she said. "I had my own business with twenty people working for me."

"How about you, Ruth? What did you do?" I asked.

"I was a receptionist in a doctor's office. I was married and had two kids. All of them came down with IT."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Ruth. Tina here was only sixteen at the time and she had to watch her mother, father, and little sister come down with IT. What did you do, Betty?"

"I was a Navy pilot. Carrier based. I was on leave when IT happened."

"That's great. We have several pilots in our group and one aircraft mechanic. Did you ever fly helicopters?"

"No, fixed wing only. I do have a private pilots license for small planes as well as the jets."

"I'm sure we're going to be able to make good use of your talents. California still has electricity so we're going to make a run out there to see if we can stock up on frozen foods before it goes off."

"That sounds like fun. I have had a little experience with cargo planes. I had a friend who flew them for the air force and he gave me some stick time on them."

"Very good. Our helicopter pilot, Rob, will be flying in later today or tomorrow. He says he flies fixed wing also. You two should have a lot in common. He was army before IT."

"So, you're putting up a town," Doris said. "Did you have anyone who knew about plumbing to help hook up to the water and sewer lines?"

"Jim Fox was a building contractor. He's been handling all of that so far. I'm sure he will appreciate any help though."

Doris was just getting ready to say something else when a very large motor home pulled into the parking lot and drove up right behind Glen's vehicle. The vehicle had only set there a couple of minutes when a white haired gentleman got out. He was dressed just like the colonel of Kentucky Fried Chicken fame.

As he started toward our group, several women came out of the RV behind him. Each of them was dressed in a white robe and each carried a book. They didn't approach us, but formed a line in front of the RV.

The first thing I noticed about the guy was that he wasn't smiling like the chicken guy. The man had a scowl on his face that made him look like he'd been eating lemons. He stopped about twenty feet away from us and said in a grating singsong voice, "I am the Revvverend Michael Blackstone. Who is the leader here?"

"I guess that would be me, Reverend Blackstone," I told him. "I'm Ed James."

"This is a den of iniquity, Mr. James. I demand you break up this gathering and disperse immediately. It is my understanding, from reading your pamphlets that you are setting up a community where black people are allowed to associate with God's people. God doesn't want this to happen. That's why God wiped out most of the people on this wretched planet. The black race must be wiped out completely."

"How do you know what God wants?" I asked. I tapped Syl on the butt and when she looked at me I kept my hand down at my side and motioned toward our RV. She started moving slowly off in that direction.

"God has spoken to me in a dream, Mr. James. He told me he had killed off most of the people so we could have a fresh start. He described to me what a paradise we will have once we had rid ourselves of the Negroes, Arabs, Hispanics, and Orientals. He said we must do this before paradise can be achieved."

"If God wanted that done, why didn't He just kill off all of those people when he destroyed most of the people on earth?"

"He said it was something we had to do to prove ourselves worthy of paradise. Renounce the Negroes, Arabs, Hispanics, and Orientals Mr. James. Execute them as God wants and you can share in paradise. I will lead you all into God's promised land."

"Who are the women outside your RV?"

"The women outside my temple are the handmaidens of God. They are consecrated to God and to God's pleasure."

While we were talking, Tina had worked her way around behind Blackstone, then walked quickly over to the women. "Are you women okay?" she asked in a whisper.

The woman she was closest to looked terrified. "No!" she whispered. "We're being held captive. Be careful. Two other guys got out of the RV about a block from here. I think they're trying to circle around behind you."

Tina squeezed her hand and moved away. I was watching Tina while I tried to keep Blackstone thinking I was watching him. Tina held up two fingers then pointed behind me. "Oh shit!" I thought. "I think she means there's two more behind us."

"Reverend Blackstone, we have a guy named Glen, who was a Navy Seal, and another guy named Homer, who was in the army, back at our village. Both of these guys are really nice guys. They watch my back all the time when I'm in danger. They carry M-16s to protect us, but they are black. Are you saying we should just kill them?"

"I know that sounds cruel, Mr. James, but that's the way it has to be. It's the way God wants it."

I hoped I'd gotten my message across. Then I saw Glen and Homer start toward the door of our RV, so I knew I had. They disappeared around the front of the RV. Blackstone was continuing to harangue me about the heathens as he called them. I watched Tina head off toward Homer's RV with Belinda right behind her.

"Reverend Blackstone, I'm afraid you're wasting your time here. These people are our friends. The God I believe in wanted us to love one another, not kill one another. One of my wives is black and I love her dearly. So..." I said as I pulled my Glock out of its holster, "I'd suggest you peddle your racist crap somewhere else."

"Mr. James, I'm afraid you've made a serious error in judgment. God will smite you down for this."

"Is that God or the two goons you have sneaking up on us?" I asked.

"I don't know what you're talking about, suh."

"Why don't you just call them on in, Blackstone? They're going to end up dead if you don't."

"Again, I don't know what you're talking about."

"Well, let me tell you a little secret. As soon as I hear a shot, I'm going to put a bullet through the third button down on your shirt."

Blackstone pointed at me and yelled, "Shoot him!"

Nothing happened. A few seconds later someone said, "What the hell?"

Two groups came walking toward us from the end of the parking lot. Each group had one man with his hands raised above his head. In the group closest to the building were Glen, Syl and Tiffany. In the other group were Tina, Homer, Sandy, and Belinda. I was never so proud of a group of people in my whole life.

When they got close I said, "Sandy, there are handcuffs in the luggage compartment. Would you get out three sets please."

Sandy was grinning from ear to ear as she went over to the RV. She came back shortly thereafter with the handcuffs. They hooked up the two they had with them, and then Glen went around behind Blackstone and cuffed him then patted him down.

The women who had been standing in front of Blackstone's RV broke down crying as our two groups were approaching, then collapsed completely when Blackstone was cuffed. Tina, Chris and Evie ran over to them, followed closely by Sheila Duffy.

Homer went into Blackstone's RV while Glen guarded the prisoners. He came back out in a few minutes and said, "There's no one else in there, Ed. You should see the place though. I think there are copies of every piece of hate literature ever written in there. The back bedroom is a mess. It looks like the women may have been held prisoner in there."

We decided to lock the three prisoners in that bedroom until we decided what to do with them. We left the handcuffs on them just to be safe. When they were secured, I collapsed into one of the lawn chairs we had been sitting in before. Tina looked over my way and I motioned for her to come to me.

"There are nine of the women," Tina told me. "Most of them are too out of it to be coherent, but one or two of them are able to talk. Would you like for me to bring someone over to talk?"

"That'd be nice, Lover. Thank you for stepping in while I was talking to Blackstone. If those two goons had been able to sneak up behind us, I'd have been a dead man."

"I could tell they didn't want to be there, Ed. The youngest is a girl named Della Smith. She's only fifteen. She kept looking at me as if she were pleading for me to do something. I just had to sneak over there to see what was wrong."

"Is Della one of the coherent ones?"

"Yes."

"Bring her over then, if she's willing. Tiff, my love, would you sit with me and Tina and the girl she brings over? I don't want her to be afraid."

"Sure, Ed," Tiff said as she pulled over three chairs for us to sit in.

Tina came back in a couple of minutes, followed by the girl. "Hi, Della, I'm Ed and this is my wife Tiffany. Are you okay?"

"I think I will be now," Della sobbed.

Tina pulled her chair close to Della and put her arm around her. Della laid her head on Tina's shoulder.

"What was going on with Blackstone, Della?"

"Ed, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to use some bad language," she said.

I nodded. "If you don't feel like it, you don't even have to talk right now, Della. I know you must have been through a lot."

"I don't mind talking. In fact I've got a couple of months of talking bottled up that's screaming to get out. They wouldn't let us talk except to answer questions."

"It must have been bad."

"It was. Sometimes the other girls and I would whisper to each other when we were locked in for the night. Even that was dangerous though, because we never knew when one of them was going to come in and drag one of us out to rape us."

"They raped all of you?"

"Yes. I was one of the last to be added to the harem, as that cocksucker, Blackstone, liked to call us. I was doing okay, living on my own, when I saw this big RV coming down the street. I thought I was saved, so I ran out and waved them down. I learned quickly that I had been much better off by myself."

"You were locked in at night?"

The girl nodded. "There are nine of us. The back bedroom had a king sized bed, but that's just not enough space for nine people. We took turns sleeping on the floor. There were ten of us, but they killed Judy. They said it was an example of what would happen to all of us if we fought them. We were all scared to death."

"Why did they kill Judy?"

"We were in a little town in eastern Kentucky. Judy tried to escape. They hunted her down. Each of them raped her while the rest of us had to watch. Then they tied her to a lamppost and made us line up. Blackstone shot her in the head."

"Della, you've had it rough, especially for someone your age. My wives and I will make you a promise right now. We'll see nothing bad ever happens to you again."

Della smiled at me and leaned her head back on Tina's shoulder. I decided it was time to talk with the other people in the camp. I went over to where Homer and Mike were talking quietly. "Guys, would you round up the people in camp? I think we need to talk about this."

Both of them agreed and took off. It took about five minutes to get everyone gathered. When everyone had finally arrived, I stood up on the bumper of the RV and said, "I think you all know what's been going on here. Now, we have a different problem. If we were back in the village, we would have only one course of action. We'd have a trial and let a jury decide whether the three men we have in custody are guilty of what they are being accused of or not."

"What are they being accused of?" Doris asked.

"We haven't talked to all of the women yet, but the one we have talked to says they have beaten the women. Kept them locked up against their will and that all three have raped them. She also says they killed one woman who tried to escape."

"Why do we need a trial?" Doris asked. "Let's just off the mother fuckers!"

"I don't think you mean that, Doris. What if Homer here got mad at you about something and told everyone you were beating up on Belinda? If we just offed you just because he said so, we'd be wrong and you'd be dead."

"Okay, yeah. Then I guess we should have a trial."

"Do we have the right to have a trial? They're not members of our village and they've never agreed to our laws."

Mike spoke up and said, "Ed, some laws are universal. I don't care if you're here or in bum-fuck-Egypt, it is wrong to kill someone. It is wrong to take away someone's freedom. It is wrong to inflict physical injury on someone. It is wrong to rape someone. I think we have to have a trial."

"I tend to agree, Mike. What do the rest of you think? Every one in favor of a trial signify by saying 'AYE'."

There was a resounding chorus of ayes. "Everyone who thinks we should just turn them loose and make them leave the area signify by saying 'NAY'."

Absolute silence.

"Okay, then I guess we should have a trial. These ladies who will have to testify are pretty shook up. Chris and Sheila are seeing to them now. I think we'll do the trial first thing in the morning."

Almost everyone started wandering away, talking to each other.

I talked to Chris a little later and she was livid. "Every one of those women show signs of vaginal bruising. Most of them have had some anal tearing from being anally raped as well. I can't be on your jury because my mind is already made up. I do think you should let me testify."

"I agree. Did Sheila examine them too?"

"Yes. She can testify as well."

"Okay, my love, is there anything we can be doing for them?"

"They haven't been eating right either. We need to get them fed. I wish we had some of that milk from home. They could really use some."

"I'll get on the CB and see if we can get hold of the village. If so, we can get Rob to run some milk and some eggs this afternoon."

"The eggs would be good for them too."

I got lucky and got through to Jenny on the first try. I asked her about milk and eggs.

"You're in luck, Ed. I can send over as much as ten gallons of milk, and there should be five or six dozen eggs as well," she told me.

"Aren't you guys eating any eggs, Jenny?"

"Yes, we're eating plenty. John Mason is responsible. He's had a crew out looking for chickens. He got lucky the first day he was out. You were busy with other things at the time, so I don't think you were paying much attention. We have over 200 chickens now. He's also brought in another forty or so milk cows."

"I think John is going to be a real asset for us," I told her. "Anyway, could you ask Rob to fly over some of the milk and eggs? We have a bunch of women over here who are malnourished."

I told her who the women are and explained what had happened. I knew Jenny would be extremely compassionate. She said she'd have Rob on the way over within the hour. I asked her to have Jim come over with Rob, as I wanted to talk something over with him.

Rob really surprised me when he showed up about three hours later. I figured he'd be in the Bell helicopter, but he was flying something entirely different. It was much larger than the Bell and much smaller then the big Sikorsky.

"This is a Sikorsky S-76," he told me. "I found it at the Lexington airport. It'll carry 12 passengers or a little over 3000 pounds of cargo without passengers. It has a 450 mile range and cruises at 170 miles per hour. It seemed like a good mid sized alternative for us."

"Fantastic," I said. "I see you brought a disreputable crew with you."

Jim, John and Fred all laughed at that. "The reason I wanted to talk to you guys is about chickens and hogs."

"John has been finding more chickens for us every day," Jim said. "We've had to increase the size of the chicken house to accommodate them."

"That's what Jenny was telling me. What I'm worried about is the smell. Chicken houses stink. So do hog lots. Is there any way we could build some new facilities for them away from the housing?"

"Jim and I have been talking about that," Fred spoke up. "We think we have a good idea, but we wanted to run it by you first."

"Up until a couple of weeks ago, most of our exploring has been to the west of us," Jim said. "Just to the east of the hills around our valley is another valley very similar to the one we're in. There's a lot of relatively level, cleared land. There's also a nice creek running through it. We were thinking of moving the chickens over there. We could also build a large hog barn and a cattle barn for our milk cows."

"That sounds reasonable. We'd need to fence it, and maybe even have individual fences around each section of it."

"Yeah, we'd thought of that. We'd want to make each section large enough they'll not need to be changed for several years. One of the nice things is, between where our fence is now and where the fence will be in the new valley is only a couple of hundred yards. We could join the two with a fenced in road so people going back and forth between the two valleys would be safe."

"Okay. Does anyone we have know anything about large chicken farms?"

"Not that I know of," Jim said, "but Jenny said she'd like to do some research on it at the library. I'll have someone go with her tomorrow and see what they can find out."

"I'd also like to get the mill and the power plant inside the fenced area as soon as possible," I said.

"I have a crew of six working on that right now," Jim said. "They've dug the trench, poured the concrete and set the posts. We'll give it a couple of more days for everything to cure, then I'll put a crew of about twenty stretching the chain link fence and running the razor wire. That'll only take a couple of days."

"Guys, it sounds like you have a good handle on things. When do you think you could get started on fencing the new valley?"

"If you give us the go ahead, they'll start tomorrow."

"Go for it. John, have you found any hogs in your exploring?"

"Yeah, so far I've spotted approximately sixty of the critters. I haven't done anything about them because we don't have anywhere to put them. They are going to be a lot of fun to catch, but I've got some ideas as to how to do it."

"Great. Is the ham and bacon we brought back going over well?"

"Yeah," Rob said. "Most of us hadn't had any bacon or ham since shortly after IT happened. I think we should learn how to cure them ourselves. This stuff is really good."

Rob and the rest of them took off shortly thereafter. Chris was thrilled with the milk and eggs.

My wives had moved all nine women into our RV until we could figure out what to do with them. You talk about crowded. When I went inside, all of them seemed to be participating in the conversation. Chris introduced me to all of them.

I had already met Della. Beverly (Bev) Dumont looked to be in her early twenties. Chris said Bev had been a secretary. Jane Belmont was another schoolgirl, probably fifteen or sixteen years old. Laura Chase had been an early twenties college student. Winnie Silverstone was in her mid-twenties and had been a bank teller. Karen Wells was in her late teens and had been working to save money for her first year in college. Cheryl Baisden was in her mid-twenties and had worked in a law office. Roberta (Bobby) Langley was in her late twenties and had been a housekeeper. Susan (Suz) Williams was also in her late twenties and had been a housewife.

"Well, ladies, let me tell you what's going to happen. We will be having a trial tomorrow morning for Blackstone and the other two. We'd like for all of you to testify if you would."

"I'll certainly testify," Della said.

There was a general murmur of agreement from everyone else. "I'd like to talk with each of you before the trial. Nothing you need to worry about. Tina would you and Bev come outside with me? This shouldn't take over five minutes."

Tina and Bev followed me and we sat in some patio chairs. "Bev, I just need for you to tell me briefly the things you personally saw Blackstone or his two cohorts do. You don't have to go into a lot of detail if you don't want to."

"Yeah, Ed. Blackstone, James Dalton, and Sly Gutherie raped me on numerous occasions. At one time or another I've seen all three of them rape every one of the women in the group. I've seen all three of them beat each of the women. I was forced to watch as all three of them raped Judy Whitmore and then watched as Blackstone shot her in the head and killed her."

By this time, Bev was sobbing, so Tina put her arm around her and held her. "Bev, what you have said is enough for me. Do you think you'll be able to testify at the trial tomorrow?"

Bev nodded her head. "Ed, I'm just scared. If they escape they'll kill all of us. If they're found not guilty they'll kill us. If they're found guilty, even if they're executed, if Arnold Gutherie finds out about it he'll kill us all."

Tina's head popped up and before I could say anything she asked, "Who the fuck is Arnold Gutherie?"

Bev looked surprised. "That's Sly's brother. He's just as bad as the rest of them. They have a place down in Paintsville, Kentucky that is their home base. Arnold stayed behind this trip to watch the other women. Didn't anyone tell you about them?"

"No, they didn't. How many other women are there?" I asked.

"I think there's twelve. Melanie might have died though. They had beaten her pretty badly just before we left."

"How long ago did you leave down there?"

"Just over two weeks ago. They were trying to find more women on this trip."

"Are there any more men with Gutherie?"

"Yeah, there are two other men, Paul Sensemeier and Dave Lynde."

"Where are the women being held?"

"Everyone is at a hunting lodge outside of town. The place is made out of logs. The women are in two bunkrooms and they make sure the doors to the rooms the women are in are locked. It's pretty much the same setup they had in the RV, only there's a little more room."

"Well, Bev, it looks like there's not going to be a trial tomorrow after all. I think we need to get these other women out, then we can try the men all at once. What do you think, Tina?"

"Ed, they may not survive to come to trial. Let's go get the bastards!"

"Calm down, Sweetheart. Get on the CB and see if you can get through to the village. Tell them we want Rob, John, Jim, and Fred over here first thing in the morning. Tell them to bring anyone else they think might help with a rescue attempt."

Tina took off and I walked Bev back inside, then I went to find Glen and Homer.

-------

Day 156 - October 24

"So, how are we going to do this?" John asked. We were all in the living room of our RV.

"Paintsville is only a couple of hours drive from here, about seventy miles," I said. "I was thinking we could get closer to them if we drove up in their RV. They probably wouldn't even think anything was out of the ordinary until we were inside the compound."

"That makes sense," Glen said. "We'll have them outnumbered by about three to one. Maybe they'll give up without a fight."

"Don't count on them giving up," I told them. "I talked with all of the women they were abusing and all of them agreed these three would die fighting."

"Who's going to be in the RV?" John asked.

"Let's start out with who is not," I said. "Rob is definitely not. Rob, I want you to find a place a few miles from the camp and be there waiting with the S-76. Sometime today, I want someone to bring the mobile surgical unit over here from the village. If anyone is hurt, I want you to life-flight them here where Chris and Sheila will be waiting for them."

"Okay," Rob said. "You'll probably want to fly everyone back here after it's all over as well."

"Yeah, there's no reason to bring their RV back. Now, is there anyone here who would have a problem with shooting those bastards? I mean shooting first and shooting to kill if need be?"

No one voiced any reluctance. "Okay, Glen, you were a seal. Are you willing to do this?"

"Absolutely."

"How about you, Homer?"

"Ed, even if I was reluctant, Belinda would kill me if I didn't volunteer. I'm not reluctant though."

"Okay, that's three of us. Who else?"

"I'll go," John said. "I'm more used to hunting animals than I am to hunting men, but I feel I need to do this."

"I want to go," Charise said. She looked like she thought I'd have a problem with that, but I knew she had shown her courage when we rescued Evie.

"Thank you Charise. Tina and Syl already told me they're going whether I agreed or not, so that makes seven of us."

"I was blooded in Muncie, Indiana, Bill said. I'm with you."

"I'll be with you," Fred said.

"Count me in too," Jim added.

"Okay, that makes ten of us. I think that's more than enough. Rob, why don't you fly everyone back to the village so they can get what they need? I think everyone who goes should have an M-16 and a handgun. One of you will need to drive the mobile surgical unit back here."

"I'll drive the surgical unit back," Jim said. "Fred, will you ride shotgun for me?"

"Yep," Fred said.

"We have nine women here, who we need to find someplace to sleep tonight. We'll have as many as a dozen more tomorrow. Any suggestions?"

"We could find places for them in the village," Jim said. "We have new houses going in every couple of days, although we're having to go farther away to find them now. We could put most of them in your place until we find something better for them."

"That'd work," I said. "Do you mind doing some ferry work today, Rob?"

"Not a problem, Ed. It only takes about forty-five minutes to make the trip."

"Good. You can take these guys over then come back for the women. By the time you get there with the women, these guys should be ready to come back."

"Sounds like a plan. I'm going to have Les fly co-pilot with me. He's checked out on this bird now. If anything happened to me he could bring it in."

"Good idea. Okay, let's do it people."

-------

Chris was cuddled up on my lap as I was having a cup of coffee in our RV. I knew she wanted something, but I didn't know what. "Okay, Love, what is it?" I asked.

"Ed, I think you should let me go with you in the RV. If someone is hurt, I might be able to save them."

"It's not going to happen, Chris. I'll tell you what. How about if you wait in the helicopter with Rob? That way if anything happened, you'd be there."

"I could live with that, I guess. How about if both Sheila and I are in the helicopter?"

"Would Sheila want to do that?"

"Yes. We talked about both of us going in the RV."

"Okay. Both of you will be in the S-76."

"Thanks, Lover. Please be careful. You have six women who adore you. If you were killed, I don't think I'd want to go on living."

"Get that kind of thinking out of your head, little girl. If anything did happen to me, I'd want you to help our spouses get through it. I'd also want you to help get the village on its feet."

"I just don't know if I could do it, Ed. I love you more than I've ever loved anyone. I thought it was devastating when IT happened. That was nothing compared to how I'd feel if I lost you."

"Chris, I love you just as much. If something happened to you, wouldn't you want me to go on with my life?"

"Yes."

"And that's what I'd want for you."

We just cuddled for a while. Evie came in and got me another cup of coffee so I wouldn't have to get up, then she came over and claimed my other knee. No one said anything for a long time.



-------

Chapter 14

Mike and Joann had done some scouting and had found the Ironton city jail. It was a fairly old facility and didn't have any of the modern electrical locks. They found the keys for the cells and found the cells could be used for their intended purpose. The toilets would be a problem, but since holding anyone in the cells would be short term they didn't think that would stop us from putting our three prisoners in there for the night.

Glen, Homer, and Mike escorted our prisoners to the jail and locked them in. I felt a little safer now, knowing they were out of the way.

Rob took off with the people who would need to outfit themselves at the village. He was back about two hours later and took off with the women. Another two-hour round trip and the men on the attack force were back.

"Okay guys," I said. "Before the women left, they sketched out the compound for us. There are three buildings. The women are in the middle building. It sets about twenty feet further back than the other two. The building on the left is the cookhouse and dining room. The building on the right is where the men sleep. There are four bedrooms in the building on the right all of them leading off of a living area. The center building has a living area too and three bunk rooms leading off of it. The women are usually kept in the left and center bunkrooms when they're not working around the compound. Does anyone have any questions about the layout?"

"Not about the layout, as such," Glen said. "What time of day are we going to pull in and where can we expect the women to be?"

"The women tell us that the men never get up before 8:00 AM. We're going to pull in around 7:00 AM. One of the guys will be in the third bunk room in the building where the women are. The other two will be in the building on the right. If we get real lucky, we can catch them all asleep and take them without a fight. Don't count on it though."

"So, how are we going to do this?"

"We'll pull the RV into the compound so that the door faces away from the buildings. We'll wait a couple of minutes to see if anyone comes out. If not, three of us will go into the building where the women are and the other seven will go into the other building. We'll try to take them before they're even awake."

"So what happens if they come outside when we pull in?"

"Then, the shit hits the fan. We'll start firing immediately then we'll try to get everyone outside the RV and under cover behind it. Hopefully, we can kill them or wound them before they can get back inside. If not, then we're in for a fight and there's more chance that some of the women will be hurt or killed."

"We brought along a few things that might help us out if they get back inside," Rob told us. "We have a grenade launcher and both concussion and fragmentation grenades. We also have tear gas grenades if we need them."

"Very good!" I said. "Does anyone have any experience with grenade launchers?"

"I do," Glen said. "I'll be responsible for it."

"Okay, guys. We all need to get to bed early. This is not going to be a cakewalk. I am very concerned that something bad is going to happen, so please be as careful as you can. We have a lot to lose here. I have two wives who are going to be in danger and some of the best friends I've ever had are going to be in danger as well. I don't want to lose any of you."

-------

We were relaxing, after dinner, in our RV. Syl and Tina were cuddled up to me; Jim, Fred and Homer were there as well.

"Ed, I don't know if you were including me when you talked about the best friends you've ever had, but if it had been me saying it, I would have definitely included you. I don't know why, but we seemed to click from the start. I just wanted you to know that it's an honor to be going into this with you," Jim said.

"Ditto," Fred said.

"Jim, since IT happened, it doesn't seem to take long to form friendships, or to fall in love," I said as I squeezed my two wives. "I realized the first morning I met you that we were going to be friends. When you were teaching us to drive the big rigs, it hit me that you were going to be one of the best friends I'd ever had. Working with you has only strengthened that."

I looked over at Fred and said, "Fred, you loquacious bastard. If you'd shut up long enough for me to get a word in edgewise, I'd tell you the same thing. Both of you have proved yourselves time and again." Fred just smiled.

Next I looked at Homer. "I've only known you a couple of days, Homer, but I feel the same way about you. If something should happen to me I hope you'll try to get to know Jim and Fred better. They're both good people and I know they're going to like you just as well."

-------

It was like the first night we were married. Tina, Syl and I shared the master bedroom, by ourselves.

-------

Day 157 - October 25 

Everyone was up by 4:00 AM and we were on the road by five. It took us about an hour and twenty minutes to get to Paintsville and another twenty minutes to find the compound. We had decided that Tina, Syl and I would go after the guy who was in the building with the women. The rest of our crew would attack the other building.

We pulled into the compound and everyone scrambled out. We stood near the side of the RV that was away from the buildings and waited to see if anyone realized we were there.

I don't know if he heard the RV pull in, or if he had gotten up to answer a call of nature, but the guy who was in with the women came stumbling out onto the porch, rubbing his eyes. He looked at the RV and did a double take, then started walking toward it. He had only taken a couple of steps when he sensed something wrong and dove back inside the building.

He slammed the door, and then we heard a weapon go off. The next thing I knew, Syl was screaming, holding her left leg. I pulled her over behind one of the rear wheels and ripped her pant leg open with a knife. She had been hit in the meaty part of the calf. She was bleeding pretty badly, but the bullet didn't seem to have hit the bone.

Tina ripped off the tee shirt she was wearing and wrapped it around Syl's leg a couple of times. She told Syl to hold it tight against the wound. "That fucker is going to pay for this," my youngest wife growled.

While we were taking care of Syl, the guy in the women's building kept up a steady fire. The two men in the other building started firing as well. I slid under the RV, keeping the rear wheels of the vehicle between me and the man who had hit Syl. When I got to a position where I could fire, I started firing short bursts at the window he was shooting from. Tina slid her M-16 around the back of the bus and started doing the same.

I was too busy to pay much attention to what was going on with the other building, but I think everyone in our group, except Syl was firing. Then I heard a whump followed closely by a loud explosion. I looked around and Homer, Jim and Fred were charging the building. Jim hit the door with his shoulder at a full run and fell on through the door. Fred and Homer were right behind him.

"Tina, stop firing for a minute," I shouted.

No answering shots were coming from the building where the women were, but we did hear a lot of screaming and cursing. Within a couple of minutes, the door opened slightly and someone waved a white shirt up and down. There was no firing from the other building either. Less than five minutes and it was all over.

"Stay where you are," I yelled at the flag waver.

"Sensemeier is dead," a woman's voice yelled back.

"Okay. Stay there where you're safe. We're taking care of the others right now."

Jim, Homer and Fred emerged from the other building. Jim and Homer each had a guy by the collar of his shirt, dragging him out. I knelt beside Syl and asked her if she was okay.

"I'll live," she said with a little smile. "This hurts like shit, Ed."

"We'll have you out of here in a couple of minutes, Love. Just hang in there."

"Ladies," I yelled at the building. "Please come out one at a time and step to the side of the door. You're safe now, but we have to make sure you're not being held hostage."

The women started exiting the building, one at a time, with their hands up. When they were all out, Tina and I carefully went over to the door of the building and I looked inside. What I saw almost made me vomit. Sensemeier was definitely dead. In fact, Sensemeier was very dead.

"Don't look in there, Sweetheart," I told Tina.

"Why not?"

"These women did a number on him."

"That's okay. I was going to do a number on him anyway. He's the cocksucker who shot Syl. Ladies, thanks for doing a good job on the motherfucker." Tina said.

"You ladies can put your hands down now," I told them. "What happened in there?"

We heard the helicopter coming in as one of the women said, "I'm Hillary Johnson. Sensemeier was raping Martha Occhuizzo when you guys pulled up. At first I guess he thought it was Blackstone coming back. When he saw it wasn't, he dived back inside and started shooting at you. Martha sneaked and opened the doors to the rooms we were in. None of us knew what to do, but then Martha whispered to us to get his gun. I guess we got a little carried away."

Tina laughed. "From what Bev tells us, you had every reason to get carried away."

"Are the girls who were with Blackstone okay?" Hillary asked.

"All of them except Judy. Judy tried to get away and they killed her."

I left Tina talking with them while I ran back to Syl. I sat down and put my arms around her and just held her until Chris and Sheila came running up. Chris gently pushed me out of the way and said, "We've got her now, Ed." Then she gently kissed Syl on the lips before she started cutting off the leg of Syl's pants.

I started to say something and Chris cut me off. "Get out of here, Ed. We'll take care of her."

I got. Jim and his crew had the two other men handcuffed, so I went over to where they were. "They can't answer any questions for a while, Ed," Glen told me. "I used a concussion grenade on them. Both of them have ruptured ear drums and can't even hear us."

"You guys did a great job," I told them. "The other guy is dead. The women got him."

"Oh, shit!" Jim said. "How's Syl?"

"She took one through the calf of her leg. It didn't look like it hit the bone and the exit wound isn't any bigger than the entrance wound. I think she'll be fine."

"Be careful with these bastards," I said. "Even with ruptured eardrums they could be dangerous."

"I'd love for them to try something," Glen said. "We wouldn't have to give them a trial then."

"Ed," Jim said. "From what everyone tells us, you took care of that bastard over by Evansville after the jury found him guilty. Here we have five defendants. I don't think it's fair to have you take care of all of them if they're found guilty."

"I agree," Glen said. "I'll do one of them if need be."

"Same here," Homer said.

"I'll take one," Fred said.

"Same here," Jim agreed.

"If I take one, that's one each. Can you guys handle this?"

"I don't think I'll have a problem with it," Homer said. "I've been hunting all of my life. These guys aren't men. They're animals."

Everyone seemed to agree with that. "We're leaving," Chris yelled, so I ran over and gave Syl a kiss before they took off. She smiled but didn't say anything. I could tell the smile was very difficult for her, but she wanted to reassure me.

"Are you taking any of the women with you?" I asked Chris.

"Yeah, Sheila has been checking them out. We're taking the four who are in the worst shape."

I gave Chris a kiss then patted her bottom as she smiled at me. She climbed inside beside Syl and I backed away so they could take off.

I went back over to talk with Tina and the other women. "Ed, these people are telling the same story as the ones we took from Blackstone's RV. Melanie survived, by the way. She is one of the women that went with Chris. She's still in pretty bad shape," Tina told me.

"I'm so sorry this had to happen to you ladies," I said. "There are a lot of good people left. It's a shame you guys had to fall in with the bad ones."

"Tina was just telling us about how you and her met," Hillary said. "Now that had to be something special."

"Did you tell her about how we met Syl?" I asked.

"I was just getting to that," Tina laughed and turned back to Hillary. "Ed and I had been putting out signs all day and had stopped for the night. We had eaten dinner and I had snuggled up on Ed's lap in a recliner, both of us nude. We didn't know there was anyone within a thousand miles of us. We had just started a serious kiss when there was a knock on the door."

"Oh shit!" Hillary said with a giggle.

"Oh shit is right," Tina laughed. "It scared the crap out of both of us. I grabbed a gun and ran into the bedroom to cover Ed. Ed put on a pair of shorts and opened the door and there was Syl. She didn't even have a gun on her."

"After Syl was in the RV," I continued Tina's story, "Tina came out, still nude. Syl asked if she was interrupting anything and if she should leave for a while. Tina said, 'No, that's okay. We get so little company lately.'"

All of the women cracked up. It was good to see them laugh. Hillary sobered quickly. "And now, Syl took a bullet trying to save us."

"She did," I said. "We were all aware what we were doing was dangerous. No one should have to live the way you ladies have been living. We were all happy to come after you no matter what the cost."

"But, Ed, I don't know if we were worth it. I feel so dirty now. I don't know how I'm going to face normal people."

"Hillary, get that out of your head. There's nothing dirty about any of you women. When we get you all back to camp, we'll get Evie to talk with you all. She's one of our wives and is a psychologist. She also survived, just barely, a situation much like yours. She and two other women were living with a guy who had started out great, but later had started beating them and raping them."

"She was a rape victim and you married her?" Hillary asked.

"Hillary, it's not your fault you were a victim and it wasn't Evie's fault either."

"What happened to the guy who was abusing her?"

"We gave him a trial and the jury found him guilty. Then I shot him."

"Is that what's going to happen to these guys?"

"If they're found guilty... Yes."

-------

It took two more trips for the helicopter to get all of us back to the camp. Mike and Joann had brought in three new RVs so we had room for all of the women to sleep.

As soon as Tina and I were back in camp, we ran over to the mobile surgical unit. I didn't know if anything was still going on, so I knocked on the door. When Chris opened the door and saw who it was, she launched herself into my arms.

After we shared a brief kiss, she said, "Syl is okay. The wound was clean, and no bones or major vessels were hit. She's on antibiotics and I have her knocked out with morphine right now, but she should be waking up in an hour or so."

"Thank God!" I said. "Have you been able to look at any of the other women?"

"Yes. Melanie is a mess. She has several broken ribs. She has major bruising all over her body. She has some permanent hearing loss in her left ear, probably about a seventy percent loss. She is also missing a couple of teeth on the left side and there's not a thing I can do about it."

"Is she going to be okay?"

"Except for the missing teeth and the hearing loss, she should recover completely. The others are malnourished and show signs of both vaginal and anal rape. Some of them will need Evie's help, but all should survive."

"Sweety, I'm going to go talk to Evie and see if she can start seeing some of these women. Hopefully she can help some of them," I said.

Of course Evie was willing to see the women, but she had something to say to me first. "Ed, when Al Johansen was convicted of abusing Alice, Bonnie and me, you took care of the execution yourself. I don't want you to take care of all of these executions yourself."

"That's already taken care of, my love. There are five of us who will do one each. Jim brought up the same point."

"Good. Now about these women, I would imagine they are suffering from some self-esteem problems. Probably also some fear of men."

"True. Hillary says she feels dirty. She asked how anyone could want her after she'd been raped. I told her about your experience with Johansen. She was interested, but seemed unconvinced."

"Why don't you take me over and introduce me to her. I think we should do this in the nude though."

"Are you sure that's a good idea, love? These women were forced to stay naked most of the time."

"But, this is a reversal, Ed. They're clothed and we're naked. It should give them more confidence if anything."

"Okay, lover, you're the shrink. Let's get it done."

Evie and I stripped then went over to the RV Hillary was in. We took three lawn chairs over with us and I sat them outside while Evie knocked on the door. When the door was opened, I asked for Hillary and she came out a couple of minutes later.

"Hillary, this is my wife, Evie," I said. "Evie, this is Hillary Johnson."

They exchanged hellos then I said, "Hillary, Evie is the psychologist in our family and is also the one I told you was being raped and abused when we found her."

"Why are you guys naked?" Hillary asked.

"Ed and I and our other spouses are pretty much nudists," Evie laughed. "It's about all we can do to get clothes on Sandy and Tina at any time."

"Do we have to go naked?"

"No way. One of our first laws was that it is okay to go naked if you want, but you certainly don't have to."

I tried to excuse myself, but Evie said she wanted me to stay around for a couple of minutes. She then went on to tell about her ordeal with Johansen. When she was finished, Hillary asked, "Didn't it leave you feeling dirty?"

"Yes, it did, Hillary. You have to realize just like I did that you didn't do anything wrong. They did. You have nothing to feel guilty about, nor do you really have any reason to feel dirty."

"But, how could any man want me when he found out I'd been raped?"

"That's what I wanted Ed to stay around for," Evie told her. "Stand up for a minute please, Ed."

I stood up and waited to see what Evie was up to. She walked in front of me and put her arms around my neck. "I love you," she said, then pulled me into a five-alarm kiss.

I thought the kiss was going to go on forever and my body certainly reacted to it. When she finally broke it off I said, "I love you Evie. Now what was that all about?"

Evie pulled back from me and pointed at my obvious erection. "I was raped too, Hillary. Do you think from the evidence that Ed wants me?"

Hillary giggled when she saw my obvious response. "Is that all you wanted me for, you little minx?" I asked with a big smile.

"No, I want you in bed, but I want to talk to Hillary right now. Hold that thought though."

I walked off, shaking my head.

-------

I went back over to check on Syl and Chris told me her vital signs were good, but that she was still out. I pulled up a chair and sat down to talk with Chris for a few minutes.

Chris snuggled onto my lap and we kissed a while until Sheila came out. We told her to pull up a chair and she did.

"We've checked eight of them so far," Sheila told me. "Melanie is the only one with serious injuries. The rest are what I'd call walking wounded."

"Yeah, they have some serious stuff to get over," Chris said. "It was even worse getting over a rape before IT happened. Some never did get over it. I think a lot of that was caused by the stigma that was attached to a rape victim. 'She must have been at least a little bit at fault, ' was a common feeling. Then the damned defense lawyers would get up and try to make the victim appear to be a slut."

"That won't happen here," I said.

"How can you be sure it won't?" Sheila asked.

"We will have a trial tomorrow morning at 8:00 AM. If the jury finds them guilty, they will be executed within the hour. Each of the women who wants to will be allowed to testify, then I'd like for you two to tell us what you found medically. Then the accused will be allowed to testify. Then it will go to the jury for a verdict."

"It'll be over that quick?"

"Yep. The women need to be able to put this behind them."

"Chris, can I kiss your husband?" Sheila asked.

"Be my guest, Sheila. If you think I'm moving for you to do it then you're nuts though," Chris laughed.

Sheila came over and gave me a chaste kiss on the lips. "Thanks for getting them some quick justice," Sheila told me.

-------

I went inside the surgical unit and sat with Syl for a while. I guess I'd been in there about an hour when she started to stir. I was holding her hand as she awoke. When her eyes fluttered open, I squeezed her hand and said, "Welcome back, love of my life and mother of my child."

"Hi, husband of mine. Is the baby okay?"

"Chris tells me the baby is fine. You were shot in the meaty part of your calf. Clean wound and it didn't hit anything important. Chris got the wound cleaned out and put you on some antibiotics. She says you'll be walking in a day or two."

"How could I be so stupid as to get shot? I was behind an RV for Christ's sake."

"Honey, it was a fluke. He threw some shots under the RV trying to hit something. Unfortunately one of the bullets fragmented and one of the fragments hit you. It could have been any one of us."

"Did you get him?"

"No. The women did. He was raping one of the women when we pulled in. When he started shooting, the woman let the other women out. They literally tore him to pieces."

Syl smiled, "That'll teach the bastard."

"Syl, Honey, let me get Chris in here. She's going to skin me alive if she finds out I've been talking to you before she has a chance to get at you."

"Okay. Kiss first?"

Kiss her I did. Chris wasn't too mad when she came in and caught us. At least she let me out of there with my skin intact.

-------

Day 158 - October 26 

It took a while, but we finally found twelve people who had not been in contact with either the women or the prisoners. We had a jury. Glen, Homer, Jim, and Fred brought the prisoners up from the jail.

The prisoners were rather subdued, except for Blackstone. "God will strike you down for this," he yelled at me. "God told me that I was to gather together his handmaidens and I was to impregnate all who were worthy. I was just carrying out God's plan. You will be sorely punished for interfering."

"Sit down and shut up," I told him. "You will get your turn to speak after the women have had a chance to testify."

"I will not shut up. God's word will be heard."

Before he could say anything else, I turned to Homer and said, "Homer, could you find something to gag this bastard with? You might as well get gags for all of them. We won't use them unless they speak out of turn though."

"Sure Ed, I'll be right back."

Blackstone continued to rant and rave until Homer came back with several pairs of socks and five dog collars. He stuffed a sock in Blackstone's mouth, then fastened a dog collar around his head to hold the sock in place. I'll be damned if Blackstone didn't try to talk through his nose.

Della Smith, Bev Dumont, Hillary Johnson, and Martha Occhuizzo were each called to testify. They all told of being raped repeatedly by all five men. They told of being starved and beaten for minor infractions of their rules. They told of one woman being killed because she tried to escape. They told of two of the women whose husband was killed so Blackstone could have the women.

Then Mike brought Melanie Gilberto to testify in a wheelchair. In addition to what the other women had said, Melanie told of how she was beaten because she had trouble performing oral sex on Blackstone. She told of how she thought she was going to die for over a week and how the three who had remained at their home base had forced her to have oral sex with them even when she thought she was dying.

Then Chris and Sheila both testified about the injuries suffered by the women. They told of the vaginal bruising and of the anal tearing caused by anal rape. They described Melanie's injuries and told of her permanent hearing loss and of her lost teeth.

Then we had a surprise witness. Evie got up and testified about the mental health of the victims and of the difficulties they would have in adjusting to their new lives.

When all of the prosecution witnesses had testified, I asked Dave Lynde if he had anything to say in his defense.

"Yes, Sir, I do. I met Jeb Blackstone about a month after IT happened. I was raised as a Southern Baptist and that's what Blackstone said he was. He said he was a minister, ordained by God. I believed him. He asked me to follow him and help start the new world."

"Everything was fine for a week or so. We found two women, Henrietta and Valerie. They rejoiced and we rejoiced. Blackstone said Valerie could be his wife and Henrietta could be mine. They didn't object, so that's the way we set it up.

"Then we met Florence. Blackstone took her for his wife as well. It was about this time that we started traveling around in the big RV looking for other people. There isn't much privacy in an RV, so I started hearing things at night. I knew Florence hadn't seemed very happy when Blackstone had told us he was taking her for his wife, but now I could hear her crying at night, begging him not to rape her. I could hear Valerie crying too.

"I called him on it and he told me God had told him that man was to be the head of the household and that women were there to serve us. I told him I didn't agree with that and he told me it didn't matter if I agreed or not, that it was God's will. I probably should have gotten out right then, but we found two more women and Blackstone assigned both of them to me.

"Then Henrietta died. When I think back on it, I suspect that Blackstone killed her. Then we met the Gutherie brothers. They had seven women with them. I think the Gutheries were bad from the start. It was right after they joined us that Blackstone declared that all of the women belonged to all of the men.

"Henrietta, Valerie, and Florence were all dead by now. The new women didn't mean anything to me, so I went along with it. Dalton and Sensimeier joined us soon after with six more women. I know I did wrong by just going along with things, but Blackstone was in charge and I was doing what he said."

Syl Gutherie spoke up and said, "Lynde is a pussy. He knew exactly what he was doing. Yeah, Blackstone was our leader, but so what. We all liked the pussy and we all liked the fact that we didn't have to coddle the bitches to get it. As far as I'm concerned, you can keep the bitches. Just let us go and you'll never see us again."

I asked his brother if he wanted to say anything and he just shook his head. When I asked Dalton, his comeback was, "Go fuck yourself!"

"Okay, Homer. Let the Reverend have his say," I said.

Homer removed Blackstone's gag and he was off to the races. "First off, Lynde is a liar. I never killed anyone. I have been following God's instructions about what our new society should be like. He wants men to be superior. He wants white men to rule the world. He has told me I am under his protection. There's nothing you can do to me."

Surprisingly, he shut up.

Tina had made up twelve sheets with each of the defendants' names on them along with boxes to check if you believed the man was guilty or not guilty. She passed these out to the jury and they went into one of the RVs for some privacy. They weren't gone over fifteen minutes.

The verdict was unanimous. All defendants were found guilty.

"Michael Blackstone, Arnold Gutherie, Dave Lynde, Sylvester Gutherie, and James Dalton, you have been found guilty on all counts. I hereby sentence you to death. May God have mercy on your souls," I said.

Blackstone and the two Gutheries started screaming and cursing at us, so I asked Homer and Glen to gag them all. It took several of us to get them all moved over into the Taco Bell restaurant that was in the same mall as the Wal-Mart. The five of us who were going to perform the executions stayed, but we made everyone else leave. I had a big argument from my wives, but they finally gave in.

-------

I have to admit, I was a little depressed afterwards. I got Evie off to ourselves and talked with her for almost two hours. It wasn't so much that I regretted having to execute Blackstone. I was feeling more like I was responsible for all of the people he had killed, raped, and abused. I knew it wasn't logical, but it was there. I felt much better after talking with Evie.

I went in and talked with Syl afterwards, and she helped even more. I love all of my wives, but there is something about Syl that I feel I gather strength from. I felt a little guilty about leaning on her while she was in a hospital bed, but she didn't seem to mind.

I sat with her for a long time, holding her hand and talking about our future and the future of our child. "You know, if we want our child to have a future we have to take care of people like Blackstone," Syl said.

"I know, sweet love. Sandy wants to have a baby too. We have to protect our children."

"I love you, Ed."

"I love you too, Syl. Forever and always."

I went over and talked with Jack Webb and Carl Justice for a while. I had an idea that they might be really helpful to Jim in his many building projects that were going on. I asked both of them if they'd be willing to go on over to the village and get started. Both were enthusiastic about the idea, so I told them what exit to take off of I-64 and told them to wait there for someone to meet them.

Next, I got on the CB and let Jim know to have someone waiting for them at the exit. "Jim, do you know if Rob has made sure that the runways at the airport are clear?" I asked.

"I'm not sure," Jim said. "I'll ask him to do that though."

"Okay, also ask him to look for a cargo plane that can land at both Lexington and Redding. Preferably something fast. I'm thinking we need to get what we want from California as soon as possible. The winter rains will have started or be about to start in northern California. I don't know how long the dams and the power plants will last after the rains start. Tell him we have two people who can fly the cargo jets."

"Will do, Ed. I know the rains can get pretty bad in northern California. I'll get back with you later today and let you know what he says."

"Okay, tell him he might want to start planning a scouting trip to Redding. I don't know if he'd want to take the Sikorsky or if he'd rather take a small jet."

"Will do. Talk to you later."

-------

Rob called back a little later and told me he had already checked the runway at Lexington.

"I've also found a plane at Lexington that would be great for making a scouting trip to Redding. It's 2010 air miles from Lexington to Redding. There is a Cessna Citation Sovereign sitting at the Lexington airport that has a range of 2820 miles and cruises at 510 mph. That would be a four-hour flight time and we wouldn't have to stop to refuel. I've never flown one of them, but I'm sure I could handle it," Rob said.

"We've got a lady here by the name of Betty French. She was a navy pilot, but has some experience with cargo planes. Do you think she'd be a help to you?" I asked.

"I'm sure she would. This thing is a lot slower and is more bulky than what she's used to flying for the navy, but it should be a piece of cake for her."

"What about refueling?"

"We should be able to get one of their fuel trucks working to handle that. We'll take along a freshly charged battery for the truck."

"Are you thinking about a cargo plane instead of the Sikorsky for transport?"

"No, I still think the Sikorsky is the best for the job, either that or bring the stuff back on trucks. Redding doesn't have enough runway to land one of the bigger cargo planes. Yes' it's probably going to be about a fifteen hour flight, but with the auto pilot and two pilots, it won't be too bad."

"It's your call. Why don't you make a run over here tomorrow and talk to Betty about the Citation. You should also talk to Russ Shepard about going with you. He's familiar with the Redding area."

"Will do, Ed. I'll see you tomorrow."

-------

I went back over and visited with Syl for a while, then held her hand until she fell asleep.



-------

Chapter 15

Day 159 - October 27

There had been several new RVs that had come in during the last two days, so we decided we should start interviewing again. The first person to come in was Theodore (call me Ted) Applegate. He seemed like a nice enough guy and he disparaged his old occupation as a lobbyist for a major oil company. Ted was a little lacking in skills that were usable in the new world, but he said he was willing to work at anything.

Ted's first wife was Tilly Dauber, who had been a medical lab technician. Chris was thrilled. The second female member of the family was June Pacheck who had been a staffing coordinator.

"Just what did a staffing coordinator do?" I asked.

"I worked in a large hospital. My job was to make sure each department had the proper people with the proper skills to do their job on a daily basis. I scheduled time off and vacations so that every critical position was covered."

"That sounds like a very usable skill for us. By the time we get back, we're going to have a couple of hundred people and about a million jobs to get done. We'll need to work out a system for work assignments."

The last member of Ted's family was Stella Masters, who had operated a greenhouse. Another valuable skill.

The next group we interviewed was the James K. Smith family. James was in his early to mid twenties and had been a construction worker. He was very personable and I liked him immediately. He had operated almost as many types of heavy equipment as Jim Fox had and admitted to being a fair carpenter as well.

James' wives were Connie Lauper and Jennifer (Jen) Coleman. Connie had been a beautician and Jen had been a telephone operator. All three of them seemed like just the kind of people we wanted for our new society.

Rob came flying in while we had broken for lunch. We were all surprised to see Della Smith with him.

I introduced Rob to Betty French and left them talking about planes and flying. When I went back over to get a cup of coffee, Della and Tina were sitting together. I pulled up a chair and joined them.

"Hi, Della," I said. "To what do we owe the honor of having you visit us?"

"Hi, Ed. I'm a little embarrassed to tell you this, but I was afraid."

"Did someone do something that sacred you, Honey?"

"No, Ed, it's just that you guys saved my life and I feel safe when I'm around you. I know you're going to keep your promise and protect me."

I reached over and took her hand. "Yes, we will protect you, Della. We're trying very hard to make sure the only people who live in our village are safe to be around. I don't think there's anyone in our village who wouldn't protect you as well."

"In my mind I know that, Ed. It's just that when I'm with you guys I actually FEEL safe. Do you know what I mean?"

"I certainly do," I heard Evie say behind me. "Della, why don't you just stay with us until we go back over to the village. We have plenty of room if you'd like to."

Della squeezed my hand and beamed. "Could I, Ed?"

"If it's okay with Tina, Tiff, Chris, Syl, and Sandy," I said.

Tina gave her a hug and assured Della it was fine with her. The two young girls took off together to ask our other spouses. I pulled Evie down on my lap and asked her if she knew what she was doing.

"I don't know, Love. I do know this girl is scared. If we can help her, then I want to do so."

I had to agree.

-------

Our first interview after lunch was with Leroy Henderson. Okay, I thought Homer was big. This guy was bigger. He was about the same height as Homer, but he had to out weigh Homer by at least fifty pounds, none of it fat. He was also the first black male we had encountered since IT happened. He was a handsome man with a face like Denzel Washington and a voice like James Earl Jones.

I was so caught off guard that I just stood there looking at him. Luckily, he must have been used to that response, because he started laughing.

"I'm sorry, Leroy," I said. "I don't know if you've met Homer Renfrow yet, but I thought he was the biggest human being I had ever met. I was sure wrong about that."

"Would you believe I grew up skinny?" he laughed.

"I know there must be some kind of proverb in there somewhere, but I'll be damned if I know what it is. Anyway, it's nice to meet you, Leroy."

"Please call me Lee. It's nice to meet you as well, Ed. I've been hearing some very good things about you."

"Thank you, Lee. We're just trying to do what's right. The community we have going is going to be free of prejudice, and we're trying to exclude criminals and abusers as well. So, what did you do before all this happened?"

"I was a farmer. My parents were farmers, and that's the way I grew up. I never really had any desire to do anything else."

"That's good for all of us. Farmers are at a premium. Most of us wouldn't know which end of a hoe to pick up, and if we're going to survive, we're going to have to be growing our own food."

"That's the way I figure it too. I know a lot about food crops and about corn, wheat, oats, and soybeans. I'd planned on just staying on the farm after IT happened. I knew I could make it on my own."

"How did you meet your wives, Lee?"

"I'd been sticking pretty close to home, but I needed salt and flour and a few things like that so I made a trip to town. That's when I met my wife Sharon. Ed, Sharon is white. In fact, all of my wives are white. Is that going to be a problem with anyone?"

"It damned sure better not be," I said. "One of my wives is in the hospital right now, so if you want to meet her, you'll have to go there. Her name is Syl and she is black. If anyone says anything about you, they're saying it about my wife as well. I wouldn't take very kindly to that."

"No, I don't suppose you would."

"You said wives, plural, did you meet them all on the same trip to town?"

Lee laughed. "No, but I met them all because of that same trip to town. It wasn't much more than a week after they quit broadcasting on TV that the power went out. I decided I'd better stock up on things I couldn't grow on the farm, so I made my trip to town. One of the first places I headed was the grocery store."

"Yeah, that was my first excursion outside too."

"Anyway, when I pulled into the parking lot, here was this young woman trying to break into the store. She saw me pulling up and I thought for a minute that she was going to run. She didn't, so I got out of my truck slowly then introduced myself. She was scared, but she was more lonely and hungry than she was scared."

I laughed and said, "You can't blame her for being scared, Lee. You are one hell of a big guy."

"Yeah, and I was black and she was white. That never should have been an issue, but it always was. Anyway, we talked for a few minutes and she asked me if I could help her break into the store. I got a hammer out of my toolbox and broke the glass. As soon as the door was open, Sharon all but ran to the canned goods and grabbed up a can of ravioli. I could see she was going to have a problem, so I went to the aisle where they had the kitchen gadgets and got a can opener for her."

"Ed, she gulped down that can of gunk like there was no tomorrow. I found out later she hadn't eaten in three days. We talked some more and I asked her if she'd like to come back to the farm with me. She was really hesitant, but I told her the house had three bedrooms and that they all had locks on the doors. She finally agreed."

I told him how I had met Tina. "It turned out I should have had a lock on my bedroom," I told him, then Tina came over and slapped me around the back of the head. We all got a good laugh then Lee continued.

"Anyway, over the next couple of weeks we talked a lot. Heck, there isn't much else to do now. We were complete opposites. I was a farmer and she was a systems analyst. I'd always lived in the country and she'd always lived in the city. I was black and she was white. I was large and she was small. What the hell, we fell in love."

Lee stopped and took a sip of water. "We started out by cuddling together when we talked. At first, I think it was just for the human contact. Then I began to realize just how good it felt when I had my arm around her and she was snuggled into my chest. A couple of weeks after that and we were sleeping together. Ed, I love her with all of my heart and she loves me just as much."

"That's great, Lee. That's the way I feel about all of my wives."

"So, we started planning for the future. I knew there was a lot we were going to need if we were going to make it on our own, so we started making lists of what we were going to need. Sharon was a city girl, but she was a quick learner."

Lee shook his head and laughed. "Then, we decided to make a run into town to start stocking up on the things we needed. That's when we met Beth Ann and she pretty much saved our lives."

"How did that happen?"

"We had broken into a hardware store and were carrying things out to our truck. We didn't know there was anyone within ten miles. We had the tailgate of the truck down and were loading in a generator. Both of us were lifting the damned thing. Then we heard shots. I gave a big shove and the generator slid on in and we whirled around and saw a pack of dogs heading at us."

"We've had a lot of dog problems too."

"Then we saw Beth Ann. She was standing across the street from us, firing into the dogs with a shotgun. I think it was six shots she got off with the shotgun. By then there were only three or four dogs left. Beth Ann pulled out a handgun and started firing at the last ones. They broke and ran. Sharon and I had been standing there, frozen to the spot the whole time."

"I've seen it happen. Until we realized that dogs were now our enemies instead of our friends, being attacked by them shocked us to the point we basically froze."

"Yeah. Beth Ann is a piece of work. She reloaded her shotgun then came over and read us the riot act. After she had yelled at us, she grabbed us both and hugged us. She had been so afraid she'd never see another human being, then to find two of us and almost lose us to a pack of dogs was more than she could take. She started sobbing and collapsed into our arms."

Lee took another drink of water. "Anyway, I may be dumb, but I'm not stupid. I told Sharon to get inside the hardware store, then picked Beth Ann up and carried her inside. To make a long story a little shorter, Beth teamed up with us and helped us get the truck loaded. Then she made us go to a sporting goods store where we nearly cleaned out their inventory of firearms."

"After that we decided to make one trip a month through all of the surrounding towns, driving slowly and blowing the horn frequently. That's how we met both Lily and Julie."

"Sounds like you've had some interesting times, Lee. Is that how you ended up seeing our signs?"

"Yes. We were a little hesitant at first about wanting to join you. We had most everything we needed on the farm. The only problem was, we didn't have full-time electricity. We had a generator, but we had to keep the gas tank filled. Anyway, I'm glad we decided to come."

"We're glad you did too, Lee."

Lee's wives were a delight. They had been so totally different before IT happened, and there wasn't a one of them who would have even thought of dating a farmer, let alone a black farmer. Now, they were so devoted to Lee and to each other, they reminded me of us.

Sharon White had been a systems analyst. Beth Ann Julian had been in marketing. Lily Timlinson had been a chemical lab technician. Julie Anderson had been a nurse. Now, they were a survival group.

We asked them all to join us after Chris had examined them and they all accepted.

Rob and Betty had hit it off quickly. I found them talking a mile a minute to each other. "Rob, why don't you take Betty back over to the village with you, if she'd like to go? That way you could show her the Citation and introduce her to some of the clan."

"That's a great idea, Ed. Betty, would you like to go over and meet some of the crew?"

"Let me grab my toothbrush," Betty said, then took off for her RV.

"Better watch out, Rob. You may end up with another wife," I told him.

"I could do worse," he said. "Problem is, I have three wives now."

"And, I have six. What's the problem?"

Rob just laughed.

-------

We only interviewed three families, since we had talked so long with Lee. I visited with Syl for a while, and then Tina called me to dinner. Syl told me Chris said she would get out in the morning.

Chris and Tina took a plate over to Syl and kept her company while she ate. Della was eating with us and we were all inside, since the weather was starting to get a little nippy at night. I was about half way through eating, when Evie came over and pushed her way onto my lap. Okay, I didn't fight it too hard.

"Ed," Evie whispered into my ear. "I think Della needs a positive experience with nudity. We're all going to strip. After we're all naked, then you strip too."

I nodded and then Evie nodded at Sandy. Sandy stood up and started removing her clothes. She folded each item of clothing and laid it neatly on the counter. When she was naked, she sat back down and resumed eating.

Tiffany took that as her clue and got up and repeated Sandy's performance. Okay, so by now I was sporting a woody.

Della asked, "What's going on?"

"Don't ask me. Ask my wives," I said.

Evie kissed me on the end of my nose, then got up and performed her own strip. As she removed her clothing, Evie said, "Della, our whole family goes naked most of the time when there is just family or friends present. I know that all of you who were with Blackstone were forced to go naked at times. We just wanted you to be able to feel what it is like to be with people who are naked, but who want to be that way instead of being forced to be that way." She then sat back down on my lap and snuggled in.

"Do you... Do you want me to get naked too?"

"No, Honey," I said. "What these wonderfully crazy women are trying to get across is that it is okay to be naked, but it also okay to not be naked. It is entirely up to the individual. Does it bother you that these three lovelies are nude?"

"No... No it doesn't bother me. This definitely isn't like the situation with Blackstone. You are not like those men. Are you going to get naked too, Ed?"

"I don't know Della. None of us want you to feel threatened and I'm afraid me being nude would bother you."

"I don't think it would," Della said shyly as she looked down at the floor.

"Are you afraid of men?" Evie asked her.

"Yeah, I think that's what most of my problem with being at the village was all about," Della said.

"Are you afraid of Ed?" Evie asked again.

"No. Ed is different."

Evie stood up. "Della, would you be willing to sit on Ed's lap?"

Della nodded. "I think so."

"Why don't you come over here and sit on Ed's knees. He won't put his arms around you or touch you in any way until you're ready. Would that be okay?"

Della got up and came over beside me. She sat on my knees, very stiffly. I just let her sit there. She was there for several minutes before I could see her start to relax. Finally, she leaned over against me.

Again, I just sat there. After a while, she seemed to snuggle in a little, so I asked, "Would it be okay if I put my arms around you, Sweety?"

Della nodded, so I gently put my arms around her. I didn't hold her tightly, because I didn't want her to feel like I was holding her against her will. We sat there for quite a while, and then I saw that tears were flowing down her face. I squeezed her a little tighter and she threw her arms around me and started sobbing. I held her until the sobbing stopped, then I kissed her gently on the forehead. "It's okay, Della. No one is going to hurt you again, Sweety. All of us promise you that."

"I... I know, Ed. It's just that... Oh, it was so bad, Ed. They hurt me. They'd beat me up and kicked me and..."

"It's okay. It's okay to cry, Della. We've got you now, but we know you have to cry."

"But... Ed... You're not supposed to treat people that way. Why were they like that?"

"Honey, I don't know. Evie probably has a better idea than most, but I'm sure she doesn't have all of the answers either. All I can tell you is that some people are bad. You just had bad luck in running into them before you ran into us. I wish it were different. I wish I could take away the pain, but I can't. All we can do is make sure it doesn't happen to you again."

"Ed, my parents were good people. They didn't have me until later in life, so they were older than most of the other kids' parents. Sometimes I was ashamed of them because of that. Now I'm ashamed of myself for ever feeling that way. They were good to me. They loved me and they showed it. They always hugged me, even when I was a brat. This is the first hug I've had in five months."

Della broke down, sobbing again, so I held her until she was under control again. "Della, my love, I know it had to be hard seeing your parents die. Talk to Tina about that. She went through the same thing you did with her parents. Almost all of us had to watch loved ones die. I know that's no consolation for you, but we all understand what you're going through."

"I think the worst part was the sex, Ed. I was a virgin. I was only fourteen at the time they raped me the first time. I'd had all of these fantasies about how great sex was going to be, but it wasn't. It just hurt. Now I'm afraid."

"Della, talk to Evie about this, but you are still a virgin. You didn't have sex. You were raped. Rape is not about sex. It's about control. By raping you they show they control you. No one is going to look down on you because you were raped. There are people in this world that love you. We love you for who you are, not for what happened to you or what didn't happen to you."

"He's right, Della," Evie said. "Rape isn't about sex. He's also right in saying you are still a virgin. You have never willingly had sex."

"But I don't feel like a virgin, Evie. I had all of those dreams that teenage girls have about meeting a great guy. We'd fall in love, and eventually, I'd give him my virginity. He would be sweet and gentle, and it would be the greatest thing that had ever happened to me. Now, I don't think I'll ever be able to enjoy having sex."

"You might be surprised, Della. The guy I was with before Ed, Tina, and Syl saved me, was an abuser. The night they rescued me he had beaten me until the other women we were living with thought I was dead. I had several broken ribs, a broken arm, and I had softball-sized bruises all over my body. During the last couple of months I was with the guy we never had regular sex. Instead, he would rape me whenever he felt like it, no matter what I wanted."

"How did you manage to get over it?"

"Ed, Tina, Syl, Sandy, Tiff, and Chris."

"How did they help you?"

"They just made me feel like a human again. They took care of me and loved me and showed me they loved me without making any demands on me. I felt like I was with family. I felt safe and protected. Eventually, I felt loved and in love. This was followed shortly by desire."

"Wow! Did you enjoy sex after being raped all of those times?"

"From the very first time. In fact, I don't think I had ever enjoyed sex before I met these guys. I thought I did, but it was a pale shadow compared to what I have now."

Della didn't say any more. I just held her, letting her think her own thoughts while I gently rubbed her back. Before long I realized she had gone to sleep. Evie and I carefully put her to bed and then went into our bedroom and enjoyed some of that great sex she had been talking about.

-------

Day 160 - October 28

Evie and I were up first. She was sitting on my lap with our second cup of coffee when Della came in. To be honest with you, we hadn't even thought about her being here, so we were nude.

Della poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down across from us. "I see you do go nude most of the time," she smiled.

"I'm sorry, Della," I said. "I'll go and put something on."

"No, don't, Ed. It really doesn't bother me. Besides, with Evie on your lap, I can't see anything anyway."

"I can get up if you'd like a peek," Evie giggled.

We talked for a while longer, then I asked Della to wake up my wives so we could get started on our interviews. I got dressed and went outside to a very nippy morning. I had started a brisk walk around the parking lot when Ted Applegate stopped me.

"What can I do for you, Ted," I asked.

"Well, I don't know how to say this without sounding like a bigot, which I'm not. It's about Leroy Henderson."

"Okay, what about Henderson?"

"Well... He's a black man and he has four white wives. It just doesn't seem right."

"I'm a white man and I have a black wife. Do you see anything wrong with that?"

"No... Somehow that's different."

"Then, it's because he's a black man?"

"I guess. It just doesn't seem right for a black man to be with white women. It seems dirty, somehow."

"Well, I don't know what to say, Ted. Could we talk about this later? I want to finish my walk before we start interviews this morning."

"Sure, Ed. Just think about it, would you?"

"Will do, Ted," I said as I took off, walking more briskly than I had before."

When I got back to the RV, I called all of my wives together. I told them about my conversation with Ted.

"So, what do we do?" I asked.

"I don't think we have any choice," Tina said. "Even though he used mild language in how he stated it, he is still showing he is bigoted."

"There is some bigotry there," Evie said. "The problem is, we don't know what he is really feeling. Obviously he doesn't think Lee should be allowed to be part of our community if he has white wives. I agree with Tina. We don't have a choice."

"His wives seemed nice," Tiffany said. "Maybe we should talk with them separately and see how they feel."

"That makes sense," Sandy said. "Is there any way we could get Ted away from camp today without his wives?"

"That's a good idea, Sandy. Maybe there is a way. Chris, would you ask Mike if he'd like to make a trip down to Nitro today and check out the Rite Aid distribution center? We could get Glen and Ted to go with him and maybe they could bring back some antibiotics or something."

"That sounds like a great idea," Chris said. "They could take a pickup truck and bring back a load. I'll go see Mike and Glen right now, and ask Mike to see if Ted will go with them."

-------

After the group had left for Nitro, we called Ted's wives in one at a time. The first one we called in was Tilly Dauber.

"Tilly, I have sort of a delicate question to ask you. I don't know if you have met Leroy Henderson or not, but he is a black man with four white wives. Someone raised the question as to whether he should be allowed to join our group. We were just wondering what your opinion was."

"I don't have a problem with it, Ed. It sounds to me like the person who brought this up is prejudiced."

"Would it surprise you to know that it was Ted who brought it up?"

"Actually it does surprise me and it pisses me off. I thought I knew him better than that."

"Putting this as delicately as I can, we don't feel that we can invite someone into the group if they have Ted's attitude. We are going to have to tell Ted we don't feel we want him in our community. That doesn't mean we wouldn't still want you, if you wanted to join us without Ted."

Tilly thought for a couple of minutes before answering. "It's really not that hard of a decision. I like Ted, but I really don't love him. I can understand why you can't allow prejudice in the community, so I understand why you have to exclude him. I still want to join you, even without Ted."

"Thank you, Tilly. I think you're making the right choice. Could I get you to go into the bedroom with Tina while I talk to Ted's other women?"

After they had gone, Chris brought in June Pacheck. We went through basically the same line of questioning with her, then asked if she'd still like to join us without Ted.

"That's a tough one, Ed. I feel like I would be betraying Ted if I go with you."

"Do you love him, June?"

"Not really. I'm used to him. We've been together since about a month after IT happened."

"Did you guys make a lifelong commitment to each other?"

"No, in fact none of us have ever talked about a commitment. I was always a little put off by that."

"No matter what you decide to do, we will be telling Ted we don't want him to join our community. So, your decision is whether you want to stay with Ted or you want to live in our village. You have to examine how you feel."

"Well, I don't feel good about it, but my own self interest says I should go with the security of joining your group."

I sent her in to stay with Tina and we brought Stella Masters in. After I had explained the situation to her, I was surprised by her anger. "If this is the kind of nit pickers you are then I want no part of your fucking village. We'll make it just fine without you."

I told her I was sorry she felt that way, but that it was her choice. I called Tina out to the living room and asked her to keep watch over Stella while the other women got their belongings out of Ted's RV. This pissed Stella off even more, so I asked Homer to help Tina.

By the time Tilly and June had their belongings, I thought we were going to have to restrain Stella.

-------

Luckily, I'd had the foresight to explain the situation to Glen and Mike before they took off. When they got back, Stella ran over to the truck before it even stopped moving. She immediately started telling Ted what had been going on.

Ted started to come over to our RV, but Glen stopped him cold. "Just get in your RV and leave," Glen told him.

"No, damn it. I want to talk to Ed about this," Ted said.

"I'm sorry, Ted, but I can't allow you to do that. Ed has been shot, and three of his wives have had to kill people because of people who were not allowed to join us. Just get in your RV and leave."

Surprisingly enough, he did.

-------

When Tina called me in to the RV for dinner, I was greeted with a pleasant surprise. All of my lovelies were there, including Syl, and all of them were naked. Syl was on crutches, but was moving around quite well. She told me she could put her weight on the leg with very little pain, but that Chris insisted she use the crutches for at least a week.

I stripped down like the rest of my family and Sandy brought me a plate to the recliner. I had just started eating when Della came in. She was as naked as my wives were. I almost choked.

Della gave me a tentative smile and fixed herself a plate. I tried to ignore the fact that she was naked, but I was definitely having a hard time of it. From the looks of her nipples, so was Della. The bruises covering a large part of her body detracted from her beauty, but even with the bruises, she was a delight.

When I finished eating, I started to take my plate into the kitchen, but Della told me to sit still. She took my plate and went in to help with the dishes. I was still feeling down about having to send Ted on his way. Evie must have sensed that, because she came over and sat on my lap. After she was snuggled in, she said, "You had to do it, you know."

Yeah, I knew, but it still left me with a bad taste in my mouth. I just squeezed her tight without saying anything. She laid her head on my shoulder and we sat there cuddled up for a while. When the rest of the women had come back from the kitchen, Syl came over and threatened to hit Evie with her crutch if Evie didn't relinquish her seat.

Evie got up and kissed Syl soundly before letting her sit on my lap. When Syl had snuggled in as best she could with her wounded leg; she put her head on my shoulder and said, "Thank you, Ed. I know what Ted said seemed minor, but the attitude was there. The problem is, I don't know if I would have done it. I guess I had gotten so used to the minor prejudices over the years that I would have probably ignored it. So, thank you for taking care of me better than I would have taken care of myself."

"You're welcome, Love. I guess I've just been afraid I overreacted."

"I don't think so and neither does anyone else I've talked with."

"Thank you for telling me, Syl. You know I love you and would do anything for you, don't you?"

"Yes, Love. You know I missed this while I was in the hospital."

"I know, Love. That was the worst part of getting shot for me. Even after I got out of the hospital, I had to forgo this because of my wound. I'm making up for it now, though."

-------

It was getting well toward the end of the evening. Tiffany was cuddled on my lap and we were conversing in whispers when Della came over and stood in front of me. She stood there for a few minutes so I asked her if I could do something for her.

"Ed, could I sit on your lap for a few minutes?" She asked.

I looked at Tiff, who just smiled and got up. I wasn't too sure about this, first because Della and I were both still nude and second, because Tiff had given me a very obvious hardon.

Della didn't even hesitate. She plopped herself on my lap and wiggled around until she was comfortable. She then leaned into me and pulled my arms around her. I didn't take an unfair advantage of her, but I did start stroking her back and telling her she was safe.

It couldn't have been ten minutes later that I realized she had fallen asleep. Tiff and Chris helped me put her to bed.

-------

Day 161 - October 29

Evie and I were having our morning coffee, with her snuggled on my lap, so I whispered to her that I wanted to talk with her in private later. I think she knew what I wanted to talk about, so she just nodded.

Before long, we heard the door opening and Homer and Belinda came into the kitchen. Homer must have been getting used to us being naked because he didn't even blink. They got themselves a cup of coffee and joined us at the table.

"Homer, I think I'm going to get Rob to bring over someone to guide the people we've invited to join us over to the village today, but I'd like for the two of you to stay with us. Would that be okay with you?" I asked.

"Sure, that'd be fine, Ed. I wouldn't want to leave you without enough bodyguards anyway."

I knew we had at least three more groups to interview today, but I really didn't feel like getting into that. When everyone was up, I asked my wives if they would mind doing the interviews without me. They all agreed and Homer assured me he'd make sure they were safe.

Before they got started, I asked Evie to take a walk with me. When we were out of earshot of anyone else, Evie started the conversation.

"You're worried about Della, aren't you?"

"Yes, Evie, I am. She seems to be getting very close to me and to all of us for that matter. I'm just worried that it isn't the best thing for her."

"I, personally and professionally, think it is the best thing for her. I'm not sure you're going to like what I suggest though."

"And, what would that be?"

"First off, let me tell you what I think. I think Della has attached herself to our family. I think, at the present time she sees us as the family she lost. I know she feels safe with us and she needs that."

"Okay, I can see that. So, what do we do about it?"

"We have two choices of what to do immediately. We can let things go on as they are and accept her as a member of the family or we try to get her to stand on her own. If we try to force her away from us it is going to be very traumatic for her. She just turned fifteen. In the society she grew up in, that's still a kid. Before IT happened, her family would have taken care of her for at least three more years and possibly as long as seven more years."

"Okay, so what happens if we let her become part of the family?"

"Eventually, and it may be a lot sooner than you think, she's going to want to marry us."

"Oh, shit! That's what I was afraid of."

"I knew it was, you much married man. Unfortunately, it's kind of like that thing the Chinese had where, if you saved a person's life, you were responsible for them until they died. We saved her, now we're responsible for her."

"So, what do we do?"

"We welcome her into the family. We don't have to say anything to her. Just let her stay with us. When she needs it, let her sit on your lap; rub her back; and pat her pretty bottom. Eventually, you'll have a wife for every day of the week."

"Maybe if we let her stay with us she'll meet someone else."

"Maybe, but I doubt it. She already worships you, Tina, and Syl."

"Well, I don't see how we could just kick her out."

"Neither do I and neither do our spouses. We've talked it over and agree she has to stay with us no matter what the consequences."



-------

Chapter 16

Evie decided to go and help our spouses with the interviews. Since it was such a nice autumn day, I decided to sit outside for a while. I hadn't much more than gotten seated when Della came up and asked me if I'd like some coffee. I had to agree that sounded nice.

Della brought me a cup and asked if she could sit on my lap for a while.

"You don't have to ask that, Honey. If it's empty, then it's yours to sit on. I think you just want to sit there so you can fall asleep though," I teased.

Della giggled as she settled in. "I guess I have fallen asleep both times I sat on your lap. It's just that I feel so safe there that I relax."

This was the first time I had heard Della laugh. It made me feel good.

Della started telling me about her life before IT happened. She told me about her parents and about the school she had gone to. She'd had a boyfriend. Their dates had consisted of one of the parents taking them to a movie then picking them up when it was over. She said they'd kissed a couple of times, but had never done anything else.

We had been there for over an hour and I was really enjoying hearing what her life had been like when we saw a pickup truck with two men in it pull into the parking lot. "Della," I whispered. "I want you to slowly go over to where they are doing the interviews and get Glen and Homer to come over here. Don't run and don't call attention to yourself."

Della kissed me on the cheek, then wandered off as if she didn't have a care in the world. My estimation of her maturity went up two notches. When the truck pulled up, the two men got out.

"Howdy, I'm Cliff Adkins and this is Sal Neal," the driver of the truck said.

"Hi, I'm Ed James. It sure is a beautiful fall day, isn't it?"

"Yeah. Do you know who's in charge here?"

"That would be me. Are you interested in joining our village?"

"No, we're interested in you poaching in our territory."

I could see Homer and Glen approaching from the corner of my eye. "Poaching? We haven't killed any animals in the area except for some dogs that were attacking us."

"Poaching people," Adkins said. "We have started our own town over on Hog Run near where the old cement plant used to be and you are stealing people we need for it."

"I'm glad you have a community going," I said. "If we are going to rebuild civilization, we're going to need all we can get. Most if not all of the people gathering here aren't from this area though. We made a trip through a little over a month ago putting up signs. We put up signs all the way into Maine and all the way west into Missouri. People are coming in from all over the east and Midwest."

"The point is," Adkins said, "You're still recruiting in our area. We don't like it, so we're asking you to move along."

"You really should consider coming in with us, Mr. Adkins. We have a lot to offer, like full time electrical power. Read one of our flyers."

"I have read your flyers. It seems to me like you are a bunch of nigger lovers. That's not something we want. Now, I'm asking you again to move along."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Adkins, but we can't do that. When we put up those signs we made a commitment to people to be here on the first of November. We plan to do just that."

"Listen, fuck head, I tried being polite, but that didn't work, so now I'm telling you. Get the fuck out of here before the end of the day, or we'll run you out." Adkins stormed back to his truck, followed closely by Neal.

I looked over at Glen and Homer when the truck had pulled out and said, "I think we have a problem."

-------

I had Homer and Glen get everyone together while I called for Jim on the CB. Jenny was the one to answer and she said she'd get him and would be back in a few minutes.

While I was waiting for Jim, I filled my family in on what was happening. "I don't know how many there are in their group," I said. "I haven't seen any signs or anything, so I would assume they are all local. That probably means there aren't more than twenty or thirty of them."

"So, what are we going to do?" Tina asked.

"I'm not sure yet, Love. I want to talk it over with Glen and you and a few others. Glen should have everyone together in a few minutes, then we can talk."

The CB announced that Jim was ready to talk, so I filled him in on what was happening. "Is there anyone over there who might be able to help with tactics?" I asked.

"The only people over here with any military experience that I know of are Rob and Betty. Since both of them are pilots, I doubt they have much knowledge of tactics. I'll ask them though."

"Great. I'm not sure how many of them there are, but we may need to get some people over here. At the very least, I'd like to get some M-16s and plenty of ammo."

"That's not a problem. Anything else?"

"Not that I know of. Everyone has gathered together here so I need to talk to them. I'll call back later."

-------

I quickly explained to everyone what the situation was and asked for any suggestions.

"Can't we just leave?" Albert Finney asked.

"You can, Al. I can't. I made a commitment to people when I put those signs out. I said I'd be here to meet them on November first."

"Al Finney, if you're thinking about leaving, you're going to do it without me," Meg Akers said.

"No, I wasn't thinking about leaving, at least I wasn't thinking of leaving by ourselves. I just wondered if we could all leave," Al said.

"Okay, does anyone have any suggestions of how we can prepare for this?" I asked.

"Circle the wagons," Mike said.

"What do you mean?" someone asked.

"When the pioneers were heading west, if they were attacked by Indians, they pulled their wagons into a circle to give themselves something to hide behind to fight," Mike told them.

"We have something better than that," Glen said. "A bullet can go right through the sheet metal of an RV. We have a Wal-Mart store with concrete walls. It'd take a pretty large weapon to penetrate the walls of this building."

"Okay, so what do we do about the RVs?" I asked.

"We can either leave them in the parking lot, or we could move them down to the high school. It isn't too far from here. Actually, I think moving them would be the best idea. It would give them less cover to shoot from," Glen said.

"Okay, that makes sense. Any other suggestions, people?"

"Yeah, why don't we get Rob over here to do a scouting run in his whirlybird? It might give us a better idea of how many of them there are if we can find their camp," Glen said.

"That's an excellent idea. Okay, I'm going to get on the CB to the village. Glen, organize people to get the RVs moved out. We're also going to want to make sure we have plenty of food and water in the store."

"We'll take care of getting the food and water," Al said.

"Does anyone here know where Hog Run is located?"

"Yeah, I do," James Smith said.

"Would you be willing to take a helicopter ride and point it out to the pilot?"

"Sure thing, Ed."

I went into the RV and got back on the CB. I asked for Rob and he came on immediately.

"Hi Ed. They're loading the S-76 with weapons and we'll be able to take off in a few minutes. Would you like for us to bring some people too?"

"Not at the moment, but I am going to ask you to take a reconnaissance flight for us. If we can figure out how many buildings they are occupying, maybe it'll give us an idea of how many of them there are."

"Not a problem. In that case I'm going to bring Betty with me. She's had training in that kind of thing."

"Good. Get here as soon as you can."

We had fifteen RVs to move and around fifty people. Mike took over getting the RVs taken to the high school and transporting the people back to the store. I asked Homer to see about some kind of barricade to go across the windows at the front of the store, as the glass went almost to the floor.

By shortly after noon Homer had a barricade up that would have taken armor-piercing shells to penetrate. Mike had moved a few of the RVs into the automobile service bay, including ours, and had closed the doors so they weren't immediately apparent. The rest of the RVs had been ferried to the high school.

We did a big barbecue for lunch and everyone stuffed themselves. Della had claimed a place on my lap while I ate and afterwards I talked with her for a few minutes. "Della, would you consider going back over to the village with Rob until this is over?"

Della looked like she was going to burst out crying. "I'd really rather stay here with you."

"It's okay Della, you don't have to go. I was just thinking it would be safer for you. Would you and Tiff stay with Syl in the RV then? Syl will need the company since she can't help with the fighting."

"I'll do that, Ed. I can shoot a gun you know."

"What type of guns have you shot, Della?"

"Shotguns and rifles mostly. Dad had an old revolver he'd let us shoot sometimes, but not very often."

"Okay, tell Tiff and she'll get you a shotgun. You can use it to protect Syl."

Della was smiling when she went in search of Tiff.

Rob and Betty came in shortly after that. Everyone helped them unload the guns and ammunition then Tina took everyone behind the building and gave them a short course on how to use an M-16.

Rob, Betty, James, Glen and I went up in the helicopter to look around. James told us to fly up route 52 for a couple of miles and we'd see the remains of the old cement plant. Rob kept to a fairly high altitude so if anyone shot at us it would be ineffective.

We turned left at the cement plant and followed the paved road. In less than a mile we found what we were looking for. They had basically taken over a trailer park.

It was almost impossible to tell how many people were occupying the park. There were probably twenty or thirty who came out to look up at the helicopter. Almost all of them were women.

They had brought in a large diesel powered generator to supply the park with electricity. I couldn't tell what they were doing for a water supply for a while, and then I spotted a water truck at one end of the park. One of the buildings looked like it might be a community center or something similar. There were a dozen Harleys and a couple of pickup trucks parked around it. No one was visible around the building, but I did think I saw movement at a couple of the windows.

We hung around for a few minutes, hoping to see more of the inhabitants of the trailer park, but no one else showed themselves. "I think we've seen all we're going to see here, Rob. Let's get back to camp."

Rob turned the chopper and headed us back toward our camp.

-------

"Okay, so what did we learn?" I asked after we were all sitting around in front of the Wal-Mart store.

"Well," Betty said, "We saw approximately thirty people around the trailers. I only counted three men. We saw a large building with a dozen motorcycles and two pickup trucks parked outside. There was movement at a couple of windows. I also saw movement in three of the trailers."

"Okay, I didn't see the movement in the trailers, nor did I count the men. Anyone else?"

"It looks like they're trying to keep some things working. The generator is a huge one, I'd say around 1000 Kva. It would probably supply power for the entire trailer park. The water truck doesn't seem to be connected into the water system, so I'd say they are carrying water for drinking, cooking, and bathing. That's not too bad right now, but when winter comes, it's going to be a bitch."

"I didn't see any signs of defenses," Glen said. "At first glance I'd say they were a peaceful community. If it weren't for those idiots who came by this morning, I'd say we should contact them."

"It is kind of a strange situation, Glen. I was sort of getting the same feelings, but I was afraid I was just being naïve. So, what does everyone think we should do?"

The discussion went on for several minutes. Betty brought up the fact that although most of the people we saw were armed; none of them made any threatening gestures toward the helicopter.

We finally just decided to wait and see what happened when the deadline Adkins had given us ran out.

-------

Evening came and there was no sign of Adkins. We all pitched in to put together a meal and we were allowed to eat it in peace. We pulled all of our lawn chairs inside and most of us just sat around enjoying the feeling of being with others. We posted a guard to watch for anyone entering the parking lot

When it became apparent we weren't going to be having visitors; a group of people started bringing mattresses into the cafeteria area for everyone to bed down on. The cafeteria proved to not be big enough, so we started putting them in the wider aisles as well.

My family ended up with three mattresses pushed together in one of the wide aisles. I was a little surprised when we were all ready for sleep when Della pushed her way in beside me. Everyone slept in their clothes in case anything happened during the night, but Della wanted to snuggle and I couldn't see the harm in it.

-------

Day 162 - October 30

Okay, something strange is going on. Most of us were awake by 7:00 AM. It was now nearly two hours later and no one had showed up.

We were discussing getting Rob back in to do another reconnaissance of the area when our sentry yelled that someone had pulled into the parking lot. All of us headed toward the front of the building to see what was happening.

A single car had entered the parking lot and had stopped just off the road. A man and a woman got out and the man held up a broom handle with a white tee shirt attached. They started walking slowly toward the front of our building.

"Tina, would you go with me please?" I asked. "Take your handgun only. They don't appear to be armed."

Tina and I went outside and walked about twenty feet from the door. It only took a couple of minutes for the other couple to come up to us, but it seemed like an hour. They stopped about ten feet in front of us.

"I'm Alex Gibbons and this is Brenda Coffman," the man said.

"I'm Ed James and this is my wife, Tina," I told them.

"I understand one of our people came over here and made threats to you," Brenda Coffman said. "We came to apologize and to find out what you are actually doing."

"Apology accepted, Brenda. When we passed through here a month ago, we put up signs explaining what we are trying to accomplish and setting up a meeting time for the first of November. I noticed when we came back here to meet with people that our signs were gone. We are basically trying to do the same thing you're doing over on Hog Run."

"You're trying to get people together for survival?"

"Yes. As of right now, we have around a hundred and fifty people. We have a hydroelectric plant supplying us electricity. We have a gas well supplying all of our heating needs. We have a water treatment plant and sewage disposal plant that will take care of up to five hundred people. We have a herd of cattle, a herd of sheep, and chickens. Soon we will have a hog farm going as well. We're putting up manufactured homes as fast as we can get them in, although at present we still have several families sharing each home."

"It sounds like you are a long way ahead of us," Alex said. "We're trying, but apparently we don't have the resources you folks have."

"Can you tell us why Adkins threatened us?" Tina asked.

"Adkins was a hothead. Him and two other guys were apparently members of biker gangs before IT happened. They have nine women with them and all of them ride Harleys. They've been trying to take over our group ever since they arrived. None of us knew anything about your group or about the signs you put up, so it must have been some of them that took them down."

"How did you find out about what was going on?" I asked.

"Adkins came in yesterday afternoon saying there was a bunch of people over at the Wal-Mart. He told us he'd talked with the leaders and that although most of the people seemed okay, the leaders were a bunch of losers. He tried to talk us into attacking you and killing off the leaders. He said we could bring the rest into our group and that they'd be a big help in getting our town going."

"And you guys didn't buy that?"

"No, we didn't. Brenda said we should come over and talk with you. Adkins said he'd already talked with you and that if we came back over, you'd just attack us. It seemed to us like he was trying to keep us away from you. When we refused to attack you guys, he said it was time our group had some new leaders. He grabbed me, but Brenda got away and organized our people to fight his group."

"Oh shit!" I said. "What happened then?"

"I was going from trailer to trailer warning people of what was going on," Brenda said, "When a helicopter flew over. This was the first aircraft we'd seen since IT happened. I don't know who it was, but it certainly shook everyone up."

"That was us," I said. "We have three helicopters at our disposal right now and a couple of planes."

"Anyway, I got about twenty people together and we marched on the community center where Adkins was holed up. We demanded he let Alex loose and he told us to go to hell. It wasn't long after that when Adkins or one of his group started shooting at us. We had the place surrounded and we started shooting at any movement we saw behind the windows."

"Was anyone hurt?" Tina asked.

"Yeah, we had one woman killed and four people were wounded. The fight lasted about an hour when someone waved a white flag out the door. We all stopped shooting and Sally Neal came out. He said that Adkins had been killed and that they'd let Alex go if we'd just let the rest of them leave in peace. Of course we agreed."

"They all took off on their motorcycles," Alex said. "Adkins had indeed been killed along with two of their women."

"Do you need any help with your wounded? We have two doctors and a mobile hospital with us."

"Oh, God, yes," Brenda said. "One of our women took a bullet in the chest. I don't know if she'll make it or not. We can probably handle the others, but if you have a doctor, it would be nice to get them checked out."

"It'd be best to bring the badly injured woman over in an ambulance. Do you know where we could find one quickly?" I asked.

"Over at Kings Daughter's hospital would be quickest," Alex said. "One of us can guide you there."

"Tina, get Glen and Chris and everyone else out here. I think our worries about an attack are over."

Tina ran off to get everyone and I stayed to talk with our new friends. "I think a little cooperation between groups will help us all," I said. "We have quite a few resources that will be beneficial to you."

"It's much appreciated, Ed," Brenda said.

Glen and Chris went with Alex to get an ambulance while Mike organized a group to bring back the mobile hospital and the RVs. Homer and I organized guards to keep watch for dogs and for the biker group. In less than an hour, Chris and Sheila were working on the woman who had taken the bullet in the chest.

Alex stayed with the Hog Run group and brought them up to date on what was going on while Brenda stayed with us. We called back to our village on the CB to let them know we were safe. I talked for a few minutes with Rob, and then Jim came on line.

"Ed, I've had several people on our fencing details report seeing someone watching us over the last week. I don't know who it is, but I just thought I'd let you know we're being watched," Jim said.

"Have you taken any precautions?" I asked

"I've doubled the guards with the fencing details, but I really don't know what else to do."

"I guess that's about all you can do," I said. "How's the rest of the construction coming along?"

"We now have twenty-two houses up and should have thirty within the week. We have the sites cleared and leveled for fifty houses and should have all of the footers poured for all fifty within the week as well. We'll be close to having single family housing within a month. I have four teams bringing in the houses. We're having to go as far as Louisville to get them now."

"Wow! That's amazing, Jim. How's the fencing coming?"

"The Mill and the hydroelectric plant are now inside our compound. We're working on the next valley where the chicken and hog farms are going to be. It's really nice having all of these people who are so willing to help."

"It sounds like you're doing great. We have a construction worker and a plumber in the group here who I'm sure are going to be a big help. The plumber is a woman and she seems to be a little bit full of herself, but I think she'll fit in."

"Is there any chance you could send them on over? We could use both of them."

"Probably, the plumber is a free agent, but the construction worker is in a family of three. Could you find a place for them to stay?"

"Not a problem. Rob is going to be coming over there in a few minutes. If these people are okay with it, why don't you send them back on the S-76?"

"Will do, Jim. It's great to see this coming together."

"For us, too, Ed."

I took off looking for James K. Smith and Doris Gifford. I ran into James first and asked if his family would be interested in being flown to our village. "We're putting in houses as fast as we can get the foundations laid," I told him. "Having a another construction worker there would be a big help."

"Do they have somewhere for us to stay?" he asked.

"Jim says they do," I told him. "He says we'll have single family housing within a month."

"Let me talk to my wives. We'll get back with you within the hour. I don't see why we wouldn't want to do it though."

Doris was actually enthusiastic about being flown over. James found me a few minutes later and asked if they could take their weapons, a few suitcases and a couple of boxes of keepsakes. I assured him that wouldn't be a problem, so he agreed his family would go as well.

-------

Chris and Sheila spent over five hours with the wounded woman. Julie Anderson, one of Leroy Henderson's wives was a nurse and she assisted them. When they were finished, Chris came out and collapsed on my lap.

"How did it go?" I asked.

"I think she's going to make it," she said. "She'd been hit in the right lung and it had collapsed. She lost some lung tissue, but I think she's going to be okay if she doesn't come down with some infection. I just wish we had been able to get to her right after it happened."

"Good. How about the other three?"

"There were two of them with leg wounds and one that had a scratch on the arm. No broken bones. Sheila is taking care of them now, since I did most of the work on the lung."

"Okay, Love. Why don't you just snuggle here for a while? I really like holding you, you know."

"And I like for you to hold me," Chris sighed. "Why the fuck can't people just learn to get along, Ed? There are so few of us left. It's such a shame to see us trying to kill each other."

"I know, love. It doesn't make any sense. The problem is, I think it will always be this way. I don't think we'll ever get rid of all of the bad apples."

Della brought supper out for Chris and me and we ate while still snuggled together. When she had finished eating, Chris said she wanted to check on her patient and took off.

Alex and another person we hadn't met came back over to pick up Brenda. She asked if they could visit again tomorrow and we readily agreed. Almost everyone turned in early. I think we were tired from the stress of the day.



-------

Chapter 17

Day 163 - October 31

We had two new RVs show up during the night. Evie and I cuddled for quite a while over coffee before anyone else got up. We were just enjoying the closeness when we heard a knock on the door. Evie figured it was Homer and Bell, so she just yelled for them to come on in.

Surprise, surprise, it was Brenda from the Hog Run group. "Oh shit! I'm sorry. I'll come back later," Brenda said as she turned to leave.

"Come on in, Brenda," Evie said. "You're not interrupting anything. We go nude most of the time."

Brenda hesitated, but finally came back in. Evie told her to get herself some coffee, which she did, then she took a seat across from us. Evie explained to her how we felt about prejudice and why we felt nudity would help with those beliefs.

"I must say it is a refreshing attitude. Most of the older generation around this area were prejudiced against blacks and most of the men treated women like they were chattels. Most of my generation are better although I'm sure there is some still there, especially toward women."

"That's a shame, Brenda, although it isn't just around here. Evie was in a situation where the guy treated her and the other two women they were with like he owned them. We've run into that as far east as Virginia and as far west as California."

"Ed, the reason I wanted to come back this morning was to talk to you about the possibility of merging our two groups. It sounds like you have a much better situation where you're living, so I talked with our people last night and told them about some of your resources. The consensus was that we'd like to join you."

"Brenda," I said after a moment's hesitation, "I'm sure we'd like to have all or part of your group join us. I can't give you a blanket okay because we will want to interview each member of your group before deciding on that individual. Would that be acceptable to you?"

"I suppose so," Brenda said hesitantly. "What is your criteria for acceptance?"

"We're just trying to eliminate spouse abusers, bigots, and criminals. It doesn't matter how smart you are or how skilled you are or how you look. We just want good, honest people."

"That makes sense, Ed. I'm sure everyone would consent to an interview. If one member of a family proved to be unsatisfactory, would that exclude the other members of the family?"

"Not at all. In fact, if the person who was excluded was an abuser, we'd try our damnedest to talk the other members of the family into joining us."

"Okay, I can live with that. I'm going to go back over and talk with my people again. I'll tell them what you're looking to exclude. Some of them might want to back out. How do we handle it for the ones who want to join you?"

"Everyone would need to come back over here and sign up on our interview sheet on the front of the building. We'll interview everyone in the order they sign up on the sheet. How many people are in your group?"

"There are thirteen men and forty-six women since the Adkins group left us. Would that many people put a strain on your community?"

"Not too much of one. Our construction manager is telling me we'll have fifty houses up within a month. If everyone in your group is included and we get a dozen or so more here, we'll have nearly 250 people in the village. That's just five people per house. That'll mean a little house sharing, but even that will probably be eliminated by spring."

"Wow! That's amazing."

"Actually, that's cooperation. Everyone works for the good of the community. Everyone is treated the same, no matter what their talents. The only thing we won't tolerate is someone who thinks they are too good to help. After we get everything set up, it's going to be a rather easy life for everyone. Yes, all of us will have to spend some time working in the gardens or with food processing or something, but the hours we spend working each week will be much less than we experienced before IT happened."

"How do you figure that, Ed?"

"Well, for one thing, before IT happened we worked until sometime in May just to pay our taxes. Now there will be no taxes. For another thing, life is a lot simpler now. How many weeks did we work each year to pay for a vacation? How many weeks did we work to pay for a car or a home or for any of the luxuries we no longer have? Although life is simpler, it will also be easier."

"I never thought of it that way, Ed. So far, we've been scrambling just to live. What you're describing is actually a better life than we had before."

"Yes, it is. There's going to be a lot of work right at first, but that's going to improve as time goes by. There are some things we want to do for our children and our children's children. For one thing, after the building is completed, we plan to start retrieving and preserving knowledge. We haven't even figured out how yet, but we know it has to be done."

"I can see that. Okay, let me get over and tell my people what's going on. I'll put my name on your sign up sheet before I take off."

-------

Again I let my wives do the interviews. I don't think I was just being lazy. I had a lot to think about. It was right after they started talking to the male member of the second family that Glen stuck his head out of the RV and beckoned for me to come to him.

"What's up?" I asked.

"They're talking with a guy named Tom Masterson right now. He's going to be a problem. I thought you might want to be there."

I slipped inside just in time to hear Masterson saying, "It's not that I'm prejudiced against black people or Mexicans, it's just that when I've had to work with them I usually haven't liked them. If I don't have to work with them everything will be fine."

When we had met up with Jeff Combs in Utah, Syl had been shocked and hurt by how he felt about blacks. Now, that kind of attitude just made her angry. "So, what you're saying Mr. Masterson, is that you're not prejudiced. You just don't want to have to associate with black people or hispanics. As long as we stay in our place, you're okay with us. You're okay with us as long as you don't have to work with us. Of course, you wouldn't, for God's sake, want to eat with us. How about shitting with us? Do you think we should have separate restrooms? Maybe we should have a separate sewage disposal system. You wouldn't want your shit to get mixed up with ours at some point, would you? Maybe we should have a separate water supply as well. You wouldn't want us to contaminate your water, would you?"

By the time Syl had run down, Masterson was looking a little green. I walked over behind Syl and put my arms around her. When she looked up at me, I kissed her gently then said, "Easy, Sweety. Mr. Masterson, I don't feel that we can ask you to join our community. Glen, would you and Homer escort Mr. Masterson back to the bedroom and keep him there until we have talked to his wives?"

Masterson cursed and sputtered and I thought he was going to threaten until Homer laid his hand on the man's shoulder. Masterson just seemed to melt. Homer and Glen led him out.

"I'm sorry, Ed," Syl said. "I guess I just got carried away. Sometimes these people just make me so mad."

"It's okay, sweetheart. Sometimes they make me mad too. At least you didn't shoot the prick."

Everyone laughed at Syl's embarrassment, but the tension was broken. Masterson had three women with him so we called them in one at a time to see what they were like.

Emmy Lou Hobbs had been a factory worker before IT happened. She had been married but hadn't had any children. "We were waiting until we could afford kids," she told us. "My husband worked in the same factory and between the two of us, we just barely made enough to get by. The first thing we paid every week though was our savings account. We were getting close to having enough saved up for a down payment on a house."

"Did you work with any blacks in the factory you were in?" I asked.

"Sure. Jeana and I worked on the same machine for five years. It stamped oil pans out of sheet metal. One of us would load the sheet metal into the machine and the other would pull the oil pan out. Jeana was my best friend."

"Would it surprise you to hear that Masterson said he didn't want to have to work with blacks?"

"Well, yes, it surprises me and pisses me off. I'd have never thought that about Tom."

"Well, he did, Emmy Lou. Since that is his attitude, I don't feel like we can invite him to join us. I would like to ask you to join us as an individual though."

"Sure, I can see why you wouldn't want him. I guess I don't want him either. Yeah, I'll join you."

"Good. We are holding him in our bedroom until we've talked with you women. Why don't you go to your RV and get out anything you want to keep. Della will show you which RV you can put your stuff in."

Justine Grey had been an electrician in her prior life. She was a serious lady who had been making it in a trade that was predominately male. She didn't seem to have any prejudices and when we asked her if she'd rather join our group or go with Masterson, she didn't even hesitate.

"I want to join your village," she said with conviction. "I was never in love with Tom. I guess you could say we were using each other. We exchanged values equally and we both got what we wanted out of the relationship."

Della had come back from going with Emmy Lou, so I sent her off with Justine.

Theresa Simpson was a little older than most of the women we were seeing. There was also something there that wasn't ringing true. She never really said anything that I could pin down and say was a racist remark, but it was there, under the surface. I looked over at Evie and she shook her head.

"Theresa, I'm sorry, but I'm getting the feeling that you aren't totally comfortable around blacks. If I'm wrong then I apologize, but I have to go with my gut feeling. We are not inviting Tom to join us because of his racist leanings, and I'm afraid we're not going to invite you to join either. The other two women in your group have been asked to join us and they have accepted."

"Well, fuck you, then," She said. "Where's Tom?"

Glen and Homer brought Tom back into the living room. "Tom, Emmy Lou and Justine are going to be joining our group. You and Theresa will not be. Emmy Lou and Justine have removed their belongings from your RV, so I'd ask you and Theresa to please leave the area immediately. I'm not meaning to be disrespectful, but we have been attacked by more than one person who we've not asked to join us. Glen and Homer will be watching the two of you until you leave."

"Come on, Honey. Let's get the hell away from these assholes," Theresa said.

Tom took her hand and they left without another word.

-------

There were two more families to interview so I let my wives get back at it after we all had eaten lunch. Della came over and sat on my lap for a while during the interviews. "Thanks for letting me help out this morning," she said.

"You're very welcome, Della. I expect you'll be helping out a lot once we get back to the village. We'll all be working hard for a year or more."

"Yeah, I know. What happened to my junior prom and senior prom and school dances and basketball games? Sometimes I feel like a kid and I get angry that all of those things were taken away from me. I know that's selfish. I should just be glad I'm alive, but it seems like I've lost so much. I was thinking about going to college to be a veterinarian. I'd even decided that Duke was where I wanted to go to college. Now I'll never have that."

"Ahh, but that's where you're wrong, my lovely young lady. We're going to need vets even more than they were needed before."

"But, how can I study to be a vet? There aren't any colleges any more."

"No, but the knowledge still exists. We are going to have a project going to preserve knowledge. We'll go to a good college and find out what courses were required for becoming a vet. Then we'll find out what was taught in each of those classes. When you've studied everything you need to study from the books they would have used in the classes, you'll be just as much of a vet as if you had actually gone to the schools. Chris and Sheila can help you a lot with what you are studying and with the lab work, because they had to take a lot of the same courses to become doctors."

I could see Della brighten up. "You'd actually do that for me?"

"Honey, I'd do it for you, but I'll actually be doing it for all of us. We'll all benefit if you become a vet."

"Yeah, I guess you will. Thanks, Ed. For some reason that makes me feel lots better."

Della snuggled back into me and I put my arms around her. That's the way Brenda found us a short time later. Brenda pulled up a chair and smiled at us. "You guys seem like a loving bunch," she said.

"We try to be, Brenda. Della went through a real bad time and she needs a little TLC," I said. I went on to explain about the Reverend Blackstone and what all he'd done to the women who had been under his control. To say she was shocked would have been a major understatement.

"My God! We have been so lucky. We've still been thinking the way we thought before IT happened. I never even considered there might be people like Blackstone out there."

"They're out there Brenda. There are also some very good people out there. The dogs that attacked Tina that I saved her from when we met made us wary of animals. Then when we started back this way from California, we met a guy on the highway. We were headed east and he was headed west. Syl and I got out of the RV to meet him. He decided he was going to take Syl for a sex toy and kill me. When he pulled a gun on us, Tina was watching from the RV. She shot him. That made us wary of people."

"Do you really think there's that many bad people out there?"

"There was a man in the group Sandy was in before she joined us who was trying to force her to mate with him. The man Tiffany was with before she joined us was beating her and the other woman who was with them. The man Evie was with before us nearly beat her to death. The man Chris was traveling with was trying to force her to join his family. The man Belinda Ferguson was with was abusing her. I could go on and on, Brenda. There's a lot of it going on."

"So how can we be safe?"

"We can't be 100% safe. We can do things to try to insure we're as safe as possible. Part of that is interviewing everyone who wants to join us. We've put a chain link fence around our village, but that only protects against animals. A man can shoot you from half a mile away. There's no way you can protect yourself against that."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. It just makes me realize just how unsafe we are where we are now."

"We can take precautions but we have to try to not become so paranoid that we are afraid to live. In some ways IT happening has been a blessing to us. We no longer have to worry about taxes or paying the mortgage or making a car payment. We don't have to worry about the politicians passing laws to control our every action. We do have to worry about the more important things like food and shelter. I feel like we've traded an artificial world for a real world."

"Were you a philosopher before IT happened, Ed?"

"No, I was a virologist with a broken marriage whose self confidence was at an all time low. My wife had filed for divorce saying I wasn't exciting enough for her. I burned with a desire to work on something important, like a cure for AIDS, but instead was working on a vaccination for the common cold."

"Yet now, you're a dynamic leader. How did that come about?"

"I don't know about dynamic. I think that pretty much everything I am today can be attributed to Tina and Syl. I told you about rescuing Tina from the dogs. That did something to me. I knew I had to take care of Tina as well as myself. Then, Tina fell in love with me. My God! This young, beautiful woman fell in love with me. My self-esteem went through the roof. Then we met Syl. I don't know what it is about Syl. At first she was completely vulnerable. She couldn't even shoot a gun, but even then I drew strength from her. Now, whenever I'm down about anything, all I have to do is cuddle up with Syl and I feel whole again."

"God! I wish I had a relationship like that. I've been trying to organize things in our group, but it has been tough going. I don't have the knowledge of how to do things that you have. No one else seemed to want to be in charge, so it was just kind of thrust upon me."

"What did you do before IT happened?"

Brenda snorted. "I was a legal secretary. Shit, the guy I worked for was a shyster. If you looked up ambulance chaser in the dictionary, you'd have seen his picture."

I laughed and asked, "So how did you get involved in starting a new community?"

"I was scavenging for food over in Ashland when I met two other women doing the same thing. None of us had a clue as to how we were going to survive in the long run. We did decide we should stay together since there was security in numbers. I moved into the house they were living in and right from the first, they started asking me what they should do about this or that. We talked it over and decided to do a little exploring."

"Yeah, I think everyone has done the same thing. There's always the hope in everyone's mind that they'll run into someone else."

"Well, we did that. We drove around Ashland and Huntington for a couple of days and didn't see anyone. Then we came over on this side of the river. We met Alex Gibbons and his first wife the first day we were over here. Now, Alex isn't a survivalist, and he certainly isn't a take charge person. Hell, he was an accountant before. He does have a lot of knowledge though. We talked about survival and what we'd need to do."

I broke in on her then because I was becoming parched. "Della, would you get us all some iced tea please? We'll wait to go on until you get back if you'd like to hear the story."

"Yes, I'd like that, Ed. I'll be right back."

Brenda talked about little things until Della brought out three glasses of tea.

"Anyway, Alex told us about this trailer park on Hog Run. He and his wife, Gina, had just found it. He said the cook stoves ran off of propane so we could actually cook our food again. I asked about water and he said he knew where there was a water truck and where we could get it filled with good water. It wasn't a perfect solution, but it was definitely better than how we were living. We moved into two of the trailers that same day."

Brenda took a sip of her tea. "We didn't have any electricity, so we couldn't keep anything refrigerated. Alex and I discussed it on numerous occasions and he said we should look into a generator. We were out looking for a generator large enough to supply the entire trailer park when we ran into Sam Delany. Sam was doing the same thing we were."

"We talked things over with him and found they were trying to get power to two houses. Sam thought the trailer park was a good idea since it used propane for cooking and heating, so he asked if his group could join with ours. There were ten people in his group, and with the five in ours, we were starting to get a respectable number of people.

"I still don't know why it was just assumed I was now in charge of the larger group. People kept coming to me to ask for advice and I kept giving it out. Alex and Sam got a generator in and got it hooked into the main line coming into the trailer park. We continued to explore the area and we continued to meet people and ask them to join our group. Everyone just assumed I was in charge."

"That's interesting, Brenda. Obviously people recognized leadership qualities in you that you weren't aware of. I was just lucky in the people I met first. Fred was an electrical engineer and Jim was a building contractor. Without them, I have no idea how far along we'd be now."

"I think all of us from the Hog Run group are going to be happier in our new home. We just didn't have the people or the resources to get things going the way you have. Maybe things will work out for me on a personal level as well. It gets pretty lonely living by yourself after a while."

"You haven't hooked up with anyone yet?"

"No, I just haven't found anyone I was attracted to. I see that you guys are like we are, with multiple partner marriages. That doesn't bother me. If I had found a man I was attracted to, I'd have married him if he already had a dozen other wives. To be honest with you though, Ed, the pickings around here are very slim. Alex is a nice guy and he keeps himself clean, but he isn't the brightest candle in the church. Most of the other guys are good people, but some of them think a bath once a week is more than enough. Others make Alex look like Einstein. Maybe I'm just being too picky, but I want a guy who makes my motor rev."

"So, what kind of guy would make your motor rev, Brenda?" I laughed.

"Well... He'd have to be tall. I like tall guys. He'd be muscular. He'd have to be intelligent and he'd have to be a take charge kind of guy in an emergency. He'd have to be strong, but gentle. He'd make me feel safe and protected."

I cracked up. "I'm sorry, Brenda, but you just described one of my best friends. He's a little shy around women, but he's the salt of the earth. Is 6' 6" tall enough for you? He also has red hair and freckles."

"Oh, my. I like shy. Is he in a multiple marriage?"

"He has one wife, who he acquired about a week ago. I really think he was a virgin before he met Bell."

"You're kidding me aren't you, Ed? How old is this guy?"

"No, I'm not kidding you. I think he's around twenty-two. How old are you?"

"I'm twenty-four. Not too bad of a difference."

"I'll introduce you, but I'll tell you right now, it's Belinda you'll have to convince if you want to become a part of their marriage. She's only eighteen and when I first met her, she was in an abusive relationship with a guy. Now, she has blossomed. She's madly in love with Homer and has become a real house afire."

"By all means, introduce me. Maybe you should wait until after I've been interviewed though. I wouldn't want to get my hopes up and then find I couldn't join your group."

"Consider yourself interviewed, Brenda. I wish we could find a hundred like you. Della, my love, could you go and see if Homer could come out here for a minute?"

Della kissed me on the end of my nose and said, "Sure, Ed. I won't tell him what you guys have been talking about though. She got up, giggling, and went off to get Homer.

"That's the first she's laughed since we rescued her," I told Brenda.

"You'd better watch out or you're going to end up with another wife, Ed."

"Yeah, I know. I just can't see turning her away though. She was a real basket case when she came here. She was afraid of all men."

"Yeah, I can see where you're coming from. How do your wives feel about her?"

"About the same way I do. They're the ones who suggested I let her sit on my lap. They say she needs to find out that all men are not bad and that I should let her get as close as she's comfortable with. Here comes Homer."

Brenda turned and looked at the giant of a man who was approaching us. Belinda had cleaned his clothes and he looked like a million bucks.

"Homer, I just wanted to introduce you to Brenda Coffman. Brenda is the woman in charge of the Hog Run group, and she's already been interviewed so she's now a member of our group."

"It's nice to meet you, Brenda," Homer said.

"Brenda, this big guy is Homer Renfrow. He's an aircraft mechanic and one of my best friends. Right now he's acting as a bodyguard for my wives while they interview prospective villagers."

"It's nice to meet you, Homer," Brenda said as she offered her hand for a handshake. "You certainly are big enough to be a bodyguard. Are you from around here?"

"I'm from Virginia, Brenda. I came up here in response to Ed's signs. Where are you from?"

"Just across the river in Ashland. I've lived there all my life."

"I was in the army when IT happened. Until I went in the army I'd never been far away from the farm I grew up on. I did get to see some of the country while I was in the service though."

"I was a farm girl, myself, Homer. I think farm life teaches you a good work ethic and if your family was anything like mine, it teaches you good values too."

"Oh, yeah. Ma taught us values with a peach switch. I learned very young what she thought was right and wrong. You know she was right though. What she taught me will last a lot longer than what I learned in school."

"Well, Homer, I don't want to keep you away from your duties. Ed was telling me about you and I said I'd like to meet you."

"Yes, ma'am. I guess I should get back. It was nice meeting you. Maybe Bell and I will get a chance to talk with you again."

"I hope so, Homer. I'm going to try to get Ed to introduce me to Bell too."

Homer smiled and headed back to the RV where the interviews were taking place.

"Did he make your motor rev, Brenda?" I asked.

"Oh God! He made my panties wet, Ed. He is truly a gentle giant. I could feel the strength in his hand when he shook mine, but he was so gentle I almost swooned. Would you introduce me to Bell?"

I patted Della on the bottom and said, "Let's go play matchmaker, Della."

The three of us walked over to Homer's RV and I knocked on the door. Belinda opened it, naked as a peeled grape. When she saw who it was her face lit up like a Christmas Tree.

"Hi Bell. How's it going?"

"Hi guys. Come on in. I just made an apple cobbler. Would you guys like to try it?"

"Oh yes," I said. "Bell, this is Brenda Coffman. Brenda was the leader of the Hog Run group. Now, she's a member of our group. Brenda, this is Homer's wife, Belinda Ferguson."

The women shook hands and Brenda said, "Bell, I just met Homer, so I asked Ed to introduce me to you. I hope we're not intruding."

"Not at all, Brenda. I'm pretty new at this housekeeping stuff. I was still in high school when IT happened, and Homer and I just got married."

"Ed tells me you were raised on a farm, Bell. I was too. I've been away from it for four years though. I'll have to admit I missed it though."

"Yeah, I kind of miss it too. Ed tells me I have to teach everyone about canning and the like when we get to the village. Maybe you could help me with that."

"I'd love to, Bell. You said you and Homer just got married. How did you manage that?"

"We asked Ed the same thing, then we did what he and his wives did. We exchanged vows at sunrise and pledged a lifelong commitment. It was beautiful and I feel as married as if we'd have been in front of a minister."

"That is beautiful, Bell. From what I saw of Homer, I don't think you could have done wrong. He really seems like a nice guy."

"Oh, he is. I'm really enjoying him. He's so strong and gentle. I know, the way the world is now, I won't have him to myself for long, but I can live with that. We've already talked about it a little. He's so shy, I don't think he'd have ever brought it up, but he finally agreed that if we did find someone we both liked and we both agreed, we'd add them to our marriage in much the same way Ed has."

We all finished a helping of the cobbler and I said I thought we'd better be moving on. Bell seemed a little disappointed. As we were getting ready to leave, Bell asked, "Brenda, do you have anywhere you have to be?"

"No, Bell. I was just kind of hanging out with Ed."

"Would you like to stay a while for some farm girl talk?"

"I could do that," Brenda said with a big smile.

Della and I took our leave, both of us smiling. Della took my hand and held it until we got back to our RV. "That was a good thing you did, Ed," she said.

"Well, I like Homer and I like Bell and I like Brenda. If I can get them together and they're all happy then I'll be happy too."

-------

It wasn't long after that when Alex came back over and asked if they could start bringing people over for interviews tomorrow. I told him that would be fine and that we would be interviewing around four families each day, maybe more.

When my wives finished interviewing their last family they all gathered around for a talk and snuggle. We were sitting in the living room and I was nibbling on Tina's neck as Evie told me about the last family they'd interviewed.

"Do you guys realize we have sixty-eight people so far, before we even start on the Hog Run group? There are fifty-nine in that group. We should have well over a hundred new people from this trip," I said.

"Yeah, it's a shame so many of them had to come from Blackstone's group. Some of them are going to take a while before they come to grips with being abused," Evie said as she squeezed Della to her.

"I'm doing better now, Evie," Della said. "Did Ed tell you we'd played matchmaker today?"

"No, with whom?"

Della told them the story of how we had introduced Brenda to Homer and Bell.

"Brenda said Homer made her panties wet?" Evie asked with a giggle.

"Big time," Della said. "Brenda and Bell seemed to get along well too. Brenda has been over at their RV for a couple of hours now. I think Ed was right that they are a good fit."

We had dinner and there had still been no sign of Brenda. We were all joking about it when we heard a knock on the door. Tina yelled, "Come in," and the three people we had been talking about entered the RV.

"Hi, guys," I said. "How are you all doing?"

"We're doing good," Homer said. "I came over to ask you a favor, Ed. I was wondering if you could do without me as a bodyguard tomorrow morning?"

"Sure, Homer. That's not a problem. I'll just get my lazy butt busy and help my wives in the morning."

"Homer and I need to help Brenda move her things over," Bell said. "Since she doesn't have an RV, we're going to let her move in with us, at least until we get to our new home."

"That's fine, Bell. I guess we're going to have that problem with most of the people from your group, aren't we, Brenda."

"I would imagine, Ed. Bell is so sweet, she invited me to stay with them for a while. Homer didn't fight it too hard."

"Brenda, I just don't want to hurt your reputation," Homer said.

"Phooey on my reputation. If people don't like the fact that I'm staying with you guys, they can just kiss my butt."

"Now that's an interesting thought," I said.

"What's an interesting thought?" Della asked.

"Kissing Brenda's butt," I said.

Brenda, Bell and all of my wives giggled and Homer blushed. Evie slapped me around the side of my head and said, "Behave yourself, Ed." Then she kissed it better.

"Ed likes to kiss our butts," Tina said, "And anything else in the vicinity."

"Ooh. Lucky ladies," Brenda laughed.

"I guess I'm going to have to teach Homer that," Bell teased.

You could have used Homer's face for a stop light by now. I decided to give him a break. "Alex tells me he's going to start bringing people over for interviews in the morning. Is there anyone we should beware of, Brenda?"

"I'm not sure, Ed," Brenda said, getting serious. "George Clifton always struck me as a bit of a bigot. I've also wondered if he was treating his wives okay as well. When I told them about the interviews, he still seemed enthusiastic though. I'm pretty sure Molly Branson is prejudiced. I've heard her make remarks about Spicks. I'm not sure it's worth interviewing her, if she even shows up. I took some of your flyers over and passed them out, so that may eliminate some people."

"Good thinking, Brenda. Anyone else?"

"Well, Fred Pancake has three wives. Fred talks a lot, but his wives never say a thing. That's always seemed funny to me. I could see one wife being quiet, but not all three of them."

"We'll definitely keep our eyes out for problems there. If you can think of any other strange behavior, please let us know. We want people like our gentle giant here, not like Adkins."

"Amen to that," Tina said.

-------

Day 164 - November 1

I have always been a morning person. I've always enjoyed sitting with that first cup of coffee, savoring the smell and taking those first sips when it is really too hot to drink, but you just have to have that taste. Evie is just like me in that respect. We're usually up at least a half an hour before our other spouses.

This morning was no exception. We were sitting, snuggled, silently communing, when Homer, Belinda, and Brenda came in. "Ho, ho, you really mean it about that nudity thing," Brenda said.

"Yes, and there's so much less laundry this way," Evie giggled.

"Get yourselves a cup of coffee," I told them. "Are you guys getting ready to take off, Homer?"

"Yeah, we should be back in an hour and a half or so. I'll be able to take up my guard duties then."

"Brenda, have you ever shot a gun?" I asked.

"Sure, but not for a few years," she told me.

"I think Homer should give you some practice and check you out on all of the different guns we have at our disposal," I told her.

"Homer has already been checking her out, Ed," Belinda said with a giggle.

"Bell! I have not!" Homer said as he started turning red.

"Oh, Pooh. Brenda did the same thing this morning that I did the first morning I stayed with you. She went to the bathroom nude. I saw you watching her and I felt the reaction Homer junior had when you saw her."

"I'm sorry, Bell. I couldn't help but notice that she is a very pretty woman," Homer said.

"Homer, my love, who do you think told her to go to the bathroom that way? I'm not mad at all. We just wanted to get your attention."

"Poor Homer doesn't stand a chance, does he?" I asked Evie.

"Not in this life," She answered.

Homer and crew had one cup of coffee with us then took off to get Brenda's things just as Della came in. Della got herself a cup and started another pot before claiming one of my legs to sit on.

I put an arm around Della and gave her a hug as she snuggled in. She reached up and gave Evie a kiss on the cheek and said, "Thanks for sharing, Evie."

"That's okay, Della. You know we all love you, don't you?" Evie asked.

Della let out a big sigh. "Yeah, it's the first time I've felt loved since IT happened. I love you all too,"

"How's your firearms training coming along, Della?" I asked.

"Tina says I'm doing real well. She says she's going to give me a 9mm today and that I should always have it with me from now on."

"Tina wouldn't say that if she didn't mean it, Hon, and she certainly wouldn't give you a 9mm unless she thought you were ready for it. You should be proud of yourself."

"I guess I am. Its just that sometimes I get a little down, thinking about why we need to do it."

"Yeah, we all do, Love."



-------

Chapter 18

There were three new RVs in the parking lot when I went outside. There was just enough chill in the air that I put on a light jacket. Della followed me out, then went back inside and got a blanket to wrap around us as she sat on my lap.

We hadn't much more than got settled in when people from the new RVs started wandering over. I got up and shook hands with each of them. I explained to everyone about the interviews and all of them signed the sign-up sheets.

Alex came over while I was talking with the new people, so I sent Della in to tell my wives they could start interviewing. "My family is going to be the first to interview," Alex told me. "We told the next group to be here in two hours, Is that okay?"

"That'll be fine, Alex. You might want to change that to an hour and a half between interviews though. Maybe we can even get five families a day that way."

"Will do. As soon as you finish with us, we'll send the next group over."

"That'll work. After you guys finish your interviews, I'd like to talk with you for a few minutes. We need to work out some logistics."

"Okay. Ut oh. I see Della waving me in. Wish me luck."

"Luck isn't needed, Alex. In your case, this is a formality. Brenda has already vouched for you."

Alex gave me a big smile and then went inside. Della reclaimed her spot on my lap.

"So, is there a long wait before we're interviewed?" Dennis Kippenbrock, from Maine asked.

"It'll probably be two or three days, Dennis. We have a group a few miles from here with fifty-nine people in it that just started their interviews today."

"It's not a problem. We may have to do a little scrounging, but that's not a problem either."

"So, what did you do before IT happened?" I asked.

"I was a surveyor. A damned good one too. I kept all of my tools, so I could do any surveying you need."

"That's great, Dennis. We've been doing everything by guess and by gosh up until now. What have you been doing since IT?"

"Sometimes I feel like I haven't done anything. I was so lost for a couple of weeks that I don't even remember what I did. Then I met Ronnie. I had just been wandering around. I was still driving the pickup truck I'd had for three years. I lived in a small town and I'd gone through it completely. I guess sub-consciously I was looking for other people."

A nice looking woman in her mid-twenties walked up and put her arm around Dennis. "By the way, this is Ronnie," Dennis said.

"You don't look like any Ronnie I ever knew," I said as I extended my hand for her to shake. "I'm Ed James and inside the chrysalis on my lap is Della."

"Veronica Cartwright," she said. "Everyone calls me Ronnie."

"It's nice to meet you, Ronnie. Dennis was just telling me how you guys met."

Ronnie laughed. "Yes, my dear, tell them ALL about it."

Dennis blushed. "Well, I had decided to drive over to a town that was about twenty miles from where I was living. I was driving along, minding my own business. There was a nice stream running along side the road and I was wondering if there were any trout in it. Fresh fish sounded good after eating out of cans for a couple of weeks. Anyway, I was driving slowly when I see this water sprite bathing in the stream."

"I was as naked as the day I was born." Ronnie said. "I started to try to cover up, and then thought 'What the hell?' I turned toward Dennis and gave him a full frontal view."

"I almost swallowed my tongue," Dennis laughed. "Hell, I'd have settled for finding an old hermit by then, just for someone to talk to, and here was the most gorgeous creature I'd ever seen waving for me to stop."

"Well, I certainly didn't want him to drive on by," Ronnie said. "All I could think of was my family and friends whom I had watched die. I cried myself to sleep every night and woke up with an empty, gnawing feeling in my stomach every morning."

"Anyway, I stopped; got out of my truck; and walked down to the stream. This lady plowed through the water like a motorboat. As soon as I reached the stream, she threw her arms around me, soaking my clothes, and started crying on my shoulder. She didn't know it, but if she hadn't have come out of the water, I'd have waded in clothes and all. I needed the physical contact as much as she did."

"When we both stopped crying," Ronnie said with a grin, "I asked Dennis what his plans were and he said his only plan was to stay with me."

"Hell, I wasn't going to let her get away. I know that Ronnie realizes it and I'm sure most people who survived do as well, but the loneliness was almost overpowering. Before I met Ronnie, I was living in the moment. I was surviving. After I met Ronnie, I started thinking about the future. What would WE need to do to survive."

"I know what you mean," I said. "Until I met my first wife, Tina, I wasn't even sure I wanted to survive."

"Yeah, I was kind of feeling that way too," Dennis said. "Anyway, we decided we needed to continue looking for people. Ronnie got dressed and we talked for a while about how to survive. It was Ronnie who thought of an RV. Neither of us had anything holding us to where we had been living, so we drove on into Bangor and found an RV dealer. We picked out a good one and hit a grocery store to stock it with food."

"By then it was getting late, so we decided to call it a night. Dennis had some weird idea that we were going to sleep in separate beds, but I quickly set him straight on that. We didn't make love that first night, but we did cuddle naked together. That was the first night since IT happened that I fell asleep without crying."

"We were looking through the grocery store again the next morning when Letty White and Jenny Toliver came in. They were as surprised and excited to see someone else as we were. After the hugging and crying was over, Letty and Jenny decided they'd like to travel with us, looking for other people," Dennis said.

"That was the night Dennis and I made love for the first time," Ronnie said. "We decided the next day to start a systematic search of the state for survivors. It wasn't very productive."

"I think we went through every town in Maine," Dennis said. "We actually drove around for months. I was beginning to think we were the last people on earth. It was in Augusta that we met Sally, Georgette, Cindy and Sue. It was also in Augusta that we just missed you guys. We had just gone passed this one intersection and had driven up a side street for maybe twenty blocks. We turned around and headed back and when we got to the intersection, your sign was there. It hadn't been there when we turned up the side street."

"Anyway," Ronnie took over, "We had no idea which direction you were going, so we just read your flyer and decided immediately that we wanted to join your group. We were standing there reading when another RV pulled up with Sally, Georgette, Cindy and Sue in it. They had been doing the same thing we were. They were completely shocked when they saw Dennis. He was the first man they'd seen since IT happened."

"We talked for a while and they were very interested in joining your group as well. Especially after they read the part about prejudice, since Georgette is black. They told us about another group they'd run into about a month before who said they were going to Lewiston. It seems like one of the women in that group had grown up on a farm around Lewiston and they were going to see about getting it going again," Dennis said.

"It took us nearly two weeks to find them," Ronnie said. "When we did, we showed them one of your flyers and they started packing. One of the RVs broke down on the way here and we had to exchange it for another one."

"So, that's what we've been doing," Dennis said. "We started having trouble with dogs, so we armed ourselves. Then we realized we could kill some of the cattle and hogs we saw and have fresh meat. None of us knew how to butcher anything so we went to a library and learned. We've learned a lot over the last few months. Mainly it was learning to survive. Now we'd like to start learning to rebuild."

"Rebuilding is harder than surviving at first, but the rewards are really great," I said. "You guys will do fine."

-------

When my wives finished interviewing Alex's group, Chris came out and sat on my lap for a while. I told her I'd been talking to the new groups that had come in. "There are three groups," I said. "Only one of them has a man in it and he seems okay. One man and ten women. The man to woman ratio is getting bigger every day."

"You know, it makes you wonder if this isn't Mother Nature's plan. In the animal kingdom there are always more females than males. One bull can service dozens of cows. One rooster can service many chickens. Now, it's going to be one man servicing many women."

"For some reason I don't want to think of myself as a rooster," I said.

"Then think of yourself as a stallion," Chris laughed.

I pulled her close and kissed her. "I'd rather think of myself as a man in love."

-------

Homer came back with Brenda and Bell. All three of them were holding hands. Brenda and Bell sat down while Homer went to take over his bodyguard duties.

"So, how are things going?" I asked either or both of them.

"Things are going just fine," Brenda said.

"Better than fine, I think," Bell said. "You know, Ed, I told you I'd share Homer with the right woman? Well, I think I've found the right woman."

"That's great, Bell. When you're all sure and when you've all talked it over and agreed, talk to my wives. I think we all have a great relationship. They might be able to give you guys some pointers."

"We're going to do that, Ed," Brenda told me. "I know Bell and I are all for it, I just don't know how Homer feels about it yet."

"Oh, Homer won't be a problem," Bell said. "You should have seen him this morning when you went to the bathroom naked. I thought he was going to jump my bones right in front of you."

"Men just don't stand a chance, do they?" I asked.

"Not unless they're into other men," Brenda said with a laugh. "You know there's a gay male couple in my old group, don't you?"

"I didn't know it, but it won't be a problem," I said. "We really aren't prejudiced here. There may be some jealousy from some of the unattached women though."

"I don't think so," Brenda said. "When the women see that these guys aren't attracted to them, they'll give up quickly."

"Is that what happened in your group?"

"Yeah, we had one woman who kind of threw herself at these guys. She kept thinking if she could seduce them they'd want her instead of each other. Finally she got it through her head it wasn't going to work."

"I really think that will happen in our group too. At least I hope it will. I was telling Chris earlier that the woman to man ratio is getting worse all of the time. I think we have over two hundred women now and around fifty men. I'm wondering if that isn't going to be a problem in the long run."

""I don't think so," Belinda said. "If it were the other way around, it probably would. Men aren't as willing to share as women are."

"Bell, how the hell did you ever let Fouts convince you the he knew more about anything than you do?" I asked.

"It's just another trait that women have, Ed. Women, at least in this part of the country, defer to men. Since men are physically stronger, they have always been the hunters, the providers of food. So, if a woman wanted to eat regularly, she had to let the man think he was smarter as well. She did this by seeming to defer to his judgement on everything, while secretly controlling him without his knowing it. I guess I had bought into the deferring part without learning the controlling part."

-------

My wives interviewed Sam Delany and his two wives, Anne Riesling and Tina Tolliver that morning. All of them seemed like nice people. We asked them to join us and they accepted.

After lunch, I helped out with the interviews and we talked with Josh Frazier who had been a butcher and his three wives. Millie Winslow had been a factory worker; Carolyn Roach was a former nurse; and Paula Smith had been a secretary. All were nice people and all accepted our invitation to join our group.

We also talked to Kevin Cline and Bill Self that afternoon. Kevin had been a high school teacher Bill had been a travel agent. Kevin was a take charge extrovert. Bill was a little more reserved, but both were personable and both agreed they'd work at anything.

When we didn't show any signs of prejudice against their relationship, they opened up about it. I think the fact that we were so accepting made us their friends for life.

-------

We invited Homer, Belinda and Brenda over for dinner that evening and we all had a great time, mainly teasing Homer. I'll have to give him credit; he can take teasing.

After dinner, Homer asked me if I'd take a walk with him. I agreed, and we put on jackets before going out. When we had gotten away from the RV he said, "Ed, I need some advice. I love Bell with all of my heart. She's the kind of girl I've been looking for all of my life. She's so pretty I'd have never even thought of asking her out before IT happened. Then, when she moved into my RV she made it very clear that she felt the same way about me."

"Yeah, I could see that, Homer. I think she had a thing for you anyway, then when you stepped in and took up for her against Fouts, she fell for you in a big way."

"We married each other the way you and your wives married each other. We made a lifelong commitment to love and protect each other. I was happy with that and I'd have been happy living with just Bell until I died. Now, Brenda has come into our lives and I don't know what to do."

"Homer, women get together and talk about their relationships all of the time. I think it's time guys started doing the same thing. First off, the reason I introduced you to Brenda was that she had been describing to me what her perfect man would be like. It was like she was describing you. When you went back to work, I asked her what she thought of you. She said you seemed perfect and that you made her panties wet."

"Oh my God!"

I had to laugh. "Yep. Then I introduced her to Bell. Bell and I had already talked a time or two about how there were so many more women than there are men. She said she knew she'd have to share you and that if you guys could find the right woman, she wouldn't mind sharing. After she had met Brenda, she told me she thought she had found the right woman to share with."

It was dark enough I couldn't see Homer's face, but I knew it had to be as red as a stoplight.

"I guess the main thing is, how do you feel about Brenda?"

"That's where I've been confused, Ed. I've only known her for two days, but I think I love her. I wouldn't have thought it was possible to fall in love with someone that quickly. I was always taught that you could only love one person at a time, but I love two women. How is that possible?"

"I don't know how it is possible, but obviously it is. I'm married to six women, Homer, and I love every one of them. I love each of them for different reasons, but I love them all equally. I know that Bell loves you and I think that Brenda loves you too. The question is, what are you going to do about it?"

"I just don't know, Ed. What should I do?"

"What I think you should do is when we go back to the RV, you should go over to Brenda, pick her up, kiss her silly, then ask her if she'll marry you and Bell."

"Oh my. I don't know if I could do that, Ed. I'd be too embarrassed."

"If you do, she'll think you are the most romantic, most exciting man in the world. Bell will think you're pretty special too."

We walked on in companionable silence for a while. Finally, Homer said, "Let's go back to the RV, Ed."

Before we went inside, Homer shook my hand. He didn't say a thing, but I knew he'd made up his mind.

When we got inside, Homer went over to Bell and kissed her tenderly. He didn't even blush, but she looked like someone had run over her with a truck.

Homer then went over to Brenda. He picked her up and wrapped his arms around her. He kissed her for at least a couple of minutes and when he pulled away, she was gasping for breath. Homer looked into Brenda's eyes as he asked, "Brenda, will you marry, Bell and me?"

Brenda looked like she was in shock, but she started saying, "Oh my God, yes. Oh my God, yes. Oh my God, yes. Oh my God, yes." Then she pulled Homer in for another kiss. Bell jumped up and threw her arms around both of them.

They finally broke the kiss and then Homer kissed Bell again. They joined hands and left the RV without saying another word.

I looked around at my family and they were all grinning from ear to ear. I felt good.

Day 165 - November 2

Evie and I were snuggling and drinking coffee the next morning when Homer, Bell, and Brenda came in, holding hands. I just looked up at them and Homer said, "We all got married this morning."

I congratulated him and shook his hand. Homer was beaming and the two women looked like they had won the lottery. Evie just looked smug.

The three newcomers got themselves some coffee and Brenda made a new pot. Homer had to repeat his news as each of my wives wandered out.

George Clifton's family was the first to be interviewed that morning. I remembered what Brenda had said about him, so I decided to sit in on the interview.

"So, Mr. Clifton, tell us a little about yourself," I said.

"Well, I lived in Arlington, Virginia before IT happened. I dabbled a little in politics, but I wasn't holding any office at the time."

"What did you do for a living?" Evie asked.

"Well, I had some money in the stock market. My financial advisors pretty much took care of that for me."

"How do you feel about black people?" Syl asked.

"I don't have anything against blacks," Clifton said. "I wasn't around them much. We moved in different social circles. My family had been in Virginia since the early 1700's and were prominent socially."

"Were your family plantation owners?" Chris asked.

"What are you trying to get at?" Clifton asked.

"We're just trying to get a picture of who you are and what you can contribute to our community," I told him.

"Well, I was thinking of running for office of some kind," he said. "I think that as a professional politician I have a lot to offer the community."

"Mr. Clifton, I'm afraid that all of the people in this room and most of the people in our village would disagree with you. We believe that politicians did more to damage the quality of life in the United States than any other single factor. What kind of usable skills do you have? Can you dig a ditch? Can you drive a nail?" Tiffany said.

"Don't be insulting, young lady. You are far too young to have enough education or experience to talk to me this way. I have had no reason to have ever driven a nail or dug a ditch. My skills lie more in the organizational level. I can see no reason why I would ever want to dig a ditch or drive a nail."

"Mr. Clifton, most of the people in this room are better educated than you are. I have a Ph.D. in microbiology from Duke University. Ed has a Ph.D. from USC. Evie is a psychologist. Chris is a medical doctor. All of us have scrubbed floors, dug ditches and driven nails since IT happened. People have to work in this new world to survive. Politicians have no place in our society because they perform no useful function."

"I beg to..." Clifton started to say, but I cut him off.

"Mr. Clifton, we are not going to invite you to join our community," I told him. "Glen, could you please take Mr. Clifton out the back door and keep him in one of the unused RVs until we've had a chance to talk to his wives?"

Clifton started to protest, but Homer laid a hand on his shoulder and he became deathly quiet. Glen took him out and we called in his first wife.

Gina Davidson was a quiet lady, somewhere around Syl's age. She had worked in the state license bureau issuing car licenses, drivers' licenses and the like. "My husband worked in a factory and the money wasn't that good. My job at the license bureau helped to pay the bills," she told us.

We went through our standard list of questions with her and she seemed like an open, honest person. "Gina, I'm sure you realize that everyone in our new community is going to have to help out."

"Sure, I'm not afraid of work. I can do most anything if I set my mind to it."

"Okay, there's one other thing we need to talk about. Would you be interested in joining our community even if we didn't ask George to join us?"

"Certainly. George is a pompous ass. I'd be very surprised if you did invite him to join. All he's been able to talk about since he heard about you is becoming president of your town."

"Well, consider yourself a member of our community, Gina. We are detaining George until you've had a chance to get your things from your old place. Alex will take you over and help you load it up."

"Thank you guys. You won't be sorry."

George's other two wives reacted in much the same way and we sent them off to get their things.

Fred Pancake and his wives were the next to be interviewed, so I decided to stay for their interviews as well. As Brenda had warned us, Fred talked a lot. He rambled on for quite a while about his life before IT happened. If you could believe him, he had a lot of skills that would be very helpful to us. There wasn't anything he said that would give us any indication that he was anything but a hardworking family man. I didn't like him. I don't know why. Maybe it was because of what Brenda said, but I really don't think so."

Frieda Belleville was the first of his wives to be interviewed. She had been a schoolteacher prior to IT. Most teachers I've come in contact with are fairly outgoing. Frieda was quiet and reserved. She didn't say anything bad about Fred, even when she was asked directly. In fact, she didn't say much about anything.

Chris took Frieda into the bedroom for a physical and was gone for quite some time. When they came back, Frieda's eyes were downcast and Chris was fuming.

"Frieda, you tell them or I will," Chris said in a voice I would have found frightening if her anger had been directed at me.

"Fred spanks us," Frieda said in a soft voice.

"Her butt is a mass of bruises and welts," Chris interjected. "If they don't do exactly what he says, when he says it, he uses a paddle on them. She refused at first to get undressed, but I told her we wouldn't let her join us unless I examined her first."

"Does he paddle all three of you?" I asked.

Frieda nodded her head.

"We're going to ask you to join our community, Frieda, but we're not going to let Fred join us. Could you live with that?"

Again she nodded her head.

"Frieda, I'd like for you to stay in one of the bedrooms until after we've talked to Fred's other wives. Then, we'll give you a chance to get your things. Don't worry about anything. We'll protect you."

Frieda gave me a timid smile when Tina took her to a safe room.

Jennifer Dailey came in looking much like Frieda had. As soon as the door had closed behind her she changed completely. "I was hoping I'd get to talk to you guys in private," she said before she even sat down. "Frieda, Sue and I need help. Fred is beating all of us. If you don't believe me, look at this."

With that, she dropped her pants and panties. Her butt looked like five pounds of raw hamburger. Tiffany let out a gasp and Chris said, "I'm going to cut his balls off."

"Jennifer, I'm so sorry you had to put up with that. We finally managed to get it out of Frieda that he'd been spanking you guys. I had no idea it was this bad."

"He isn't just spanking us," she said as she pulled her pants back up. "He sometimes uses a belt on us, or a switch, or a board, or anything else that'll make us hurt. He's a sadistic bastard and really enjoys hurting us."

"Has he been raping you or has he threatened you?" I asked.

"He hasn't been raping us. In fact, since he started beating us he hasn't wanted sex at all. He did threaten to kill us if we tried to leave him or if we told anyone what he was doing."

"You're safe now, Jennifer. We aren't going to let him get to you again. We're going to put you in the bedroom with Frieda while we talk to Sue, then we'll decide what to do about Fred."

Our interview with Sue McGhee was short. When the door closed behind her I said, "Sue, we know Fred has been hurting you guys."

Sue sat down and started crying.

"Is your butt as bad as Frieda's and Jennifer's?"

Sue nodded.

"Do you want to get away from Fred?"

Sue nodded again.

"Okay, Chris, would you take Sue back with Frieda and Jennifer please? Homer, would you and Glen take Fred down and lock him in a cell in the jail please?"

"Tiffany, my love, would you go over and get Brenda and bring her back here, please? I think we need a council of war as to what we're going to do about Fred."

When everyone had gathered back with us, I said, "Brenda, you were right about Fred Pancake. He has been abusing his wives. We have asked his wives to join our community and they have agreed. In any case, Fred will not be allowed to join us. Our dilemma is, what do we do about Fred?"

"What do you mean?" Brenda asked.

"Do we turn him loose, or do we have a trial?" I asked.

"Oh... I don't know, Ed. If we had a trial, we could either banish him or execute him. We're going to banish him anyway, so what you're really asking is, do we execute him."

"Not really, Brenda. Yes, he is going to be banished anyway, but if there isn't enough evidence to prove he is guilty then that's all that will happen to him. I guess what I'm really asking is do we have the jurisdiction to put him on trial."

"Before anyone says anything else, let me tell you a little more about what he has been doing," Chris said. "When I took Sue back the other two women started telling me more of what he has been doing. At first it was just the spanking. The spankings kept getting worse until they were bleeding when he finished. Lately he has started tying them up and putting clamps on their nipples and the lips of their vulvas. I don't mean the kind of clamps that are sometimes used in sex play. These are cruel and vicious. Jennifer has definite bruises on the lips of her pussy that are consistent with them being clamped or pinched. He has also started pulling out their pubic hair with tweezers. Who knows what will be next?"

"Oh shit," Brenda said.

"Ed, I think this is exactly like Blackstone. There are some things that can't be allowed to go on. If we just banish him, he will find another victim or victims and continue until he kills someone," Homer said.

"I have to agree with Homer," Chris said. "I don't think we can allow people like Fred Pancake to torture other people no matter where they live."

"But, Homer," Brenda said. "Putting him on trial and convicting him would be sentencing him to death."

"Brenda, I love you with all of my heart, but I can't agree with you on this. You didn't see Jennifer's butt. I did. It looked horrible. If we don't put him on trial then I'll go out and kill the bastard myself. Then you all can put me on trial."

"Take it easy, Homer," I said.

"Homer, I'm sorry," Brenda said. "I had no idea you felt so strongly about this."

"I'm sorry too, Brenda. I just can't stand to see someone hurt like Jennifer was hurt. It makes me a little crazy."

"It makes us all a little crazy, Homer," I said. "Chris said she was going to cut his balls off."

Homer looked sheepishly at Chris and said, "I'll hold him down for you, Chris."

"All of my scalpels are too sharp," Chris said. "Does anyone have a dull knife?"

Everyone cracked up and the tension was broken.

-------

Tina fixed up ballots for the jury which had check boxes for: Guilty, Not Guilty, Banishment, and Death.

We selected twelve people for the jury who did not know either the accused or the plaintiffs.

I instructed the jury that it was mandatory for them to select either Guilty or Not Guilty. I told them that the boxes for Banishment or Death were a recommendation and that I would appreciate them filling it in so I would have some idea of how the community felt about it.

Frieda Belleville, Jennifer Dailey and Sue McGhee all testified. I had Jennifer go first. After she was so outspoken and had dropped her pants so everyone could see what had been done to her, the other two opened up as well when it was their turn. Pancake, of course, denied everything.

When everyone had testified, I instructed the jury to go off and fill out their ballots. It didn't take the jury long to decide. I read off each ballot as I opened it. All twelve jurors found Fred Pancake guilty. The voting on an acceptable punishment was mixed. Eight jurors thought he should be executed. Four jurors thought he should just be banished.

"Well, folks, this is a difficult decision and it is entirely mine to make. I have to decide whether I think Mr. Pancake will change, or if I think he'll go on the way he has been. If we banish him and he hasn't changed, sooner or later he will torture someone to death. Evie, what are the odds that Mr. Pancake will be scared enough by this trial that he will change his ways and will not abuse others?"

"That is almost impossible to guess at, Ed. Typically, in a case like this, the perpetrator will straighten up for a while, but he'll eventually go back to his old behavior. Just as a pure guess, I'd say the chances he'd do the same or worse again are above 95%."

"In that case, folks, I don't think I really have a choice. Mr. Pancake, you are hereby sentenced to death. Sentence will be carried out immediately."



-------

Chapter 19

After Glen had handled Pancake's execution, I went into the RV and asked Evie to come talk with me. We talked for over an hour, then Della came in. She took off her clothes (Evie and I were still dressed) and sat on my lap. She didn't say a word, just put her arms around me and held me.

This little girl who had lost so much, who had been through so much, was trying to comfort me. I laid my head on her shoulder and cried my eyes out. When I had cried myself out, I said, "Thank you."

Della's smile was a mile wide when she said, "You're welcome," and then kissed me.

-------

Day 173 - November 10

When we came home from Ironton, everything was chaotic, but not as bad as it had been when we came back from Missouri. Fred and Jim had claimed one of the new houses that had gone in as their own, so that left my family in a house by ourselves.

We were getting close to having single family housing capacity, but my wives suggested we invite Homer, Bell, and Brenda to live with us anyway. I had no problem with it, so we did. They accepted eagerly.

There were five bedrooms and two baths in the house. In addition to Homer and his wives we had Della, Kammie and Cindy. The other two kids stayed with the Canadian women.

I had Jim Smith come in and look at what it would take to make the master bedroom and the bedroom Kammie had been using into one large bedroom. He suggested we move the bathroom over to where the den had been as well.

"That way you could have even more room in the master bedroom and we could fix up a bathroom that all of you could be in at once if you wanted to," he said.

My wives all loved the idea, but Tiff suggested that we could make the old bathroom into a huge walk-in closet. Jim said he'd get a crew right on it.

Today was the day we were going to make our scouting trip to Redding. There was going to be quite a group of us going. First off, Tina and Sandy refused to let me go if they couldn't go along. Rob and Betty were going to fly the plane. I wanted Russ Shepard, Homer, Brenda, Glen, and John with us as well.

We took along some charged batteries for cars and a fuel truck and plenty of flashlights and lanterns. All of us were armed with M-16s and handguns. Since we were planning an overnight stay, we took sleeping bags and some camping equipment.

We also took along a small generator and a fairly high-speed pump for filling the Citation's tanks for our return flight just in case we couldn't get a fuel truck running.

I don't know if all Citations were fitted out as luxuriously as this one, but this one made it a pleasure to fly. The seats were wide and comfortable. The space between the rows of seats was wide enough you could really stretch out.

It is just over two thousand air miles from Lexington to Redding. The flight took four and a half hours and we arrived in Redding around 1:30 PM. Luckily the Redding airport runways were clear and we were able to land on the second pass. Rob taxied the plane over toward the terminal where we could see at least one fuel truck parked.

We had talked about things before we left and had decided the first thing we needed to do when we landed was refuel the plane. That way, if anything went badly wrong, we had a way to get away quickly.

It took us about an hour to get the plane refueled and while we were doing that, Homer and Glen found a couple of vehicles we could do some exploring in and got them started.

Rob said there were some things he wanted to check out on the plane and Betty decided she'd stay and help him. The rest of us loaded into the vehicles and took off to find a food warehouse.

Russ told us there was a Safeway distribution center in town, so we followed him. He drove straight to the warehouse. It was nice having someone that knew the area along.

The warehouse still had power! It wasn't even locked. We started looking around like a bunch of kids who found themselves in candy land. It was a treasure trove.

There were freezer suits hanging in a dressing room, so a couple of us put those on and went into the freezer area. There were probably half a dozen semi loads of chicken and chicken parts in the freezer. There was even more of beef and almost as much pork. We ignored the frozen dinners and things of that nature, but were very happy to see a large stock of frozen juices.

"It's a shame to realize that all of this is going to spoil shortly," I told Homer as we were walking around.

"Yes, it is a shame, Ed, but there's not a thing we can do about it."

"Yeah, I know. Everything's like that. Russ was telling me that big areas of the cities here in California have burned down already. They'll be earthquakes and floods that will do their damage as well. Within just a few years, the whole west coast will be beyond repair."

"I imagine the whole country is like that, Ed. It's just more apparent here because the power is still on. I have a question for you, Ed," Homer said as we walked back out of the freezer. "How do we know how much meat we're going to need?"

"Jenny has been doing some research on that. She found out that Americans eat around a hundred pounds of beef, seventy pounds of pork, and ninety pounds of chicken every year. Some of those things are going to have to change a little. We have around 250 people in the village. I figure most chickens are going to dress out around three or four pounds. Let's say three for ease of calculation. That means that each person eats around 30 chickens a year. It would take 7500 chickens to supply the village with poultry for a year. There's no way we'll be able to supply that many chickens for a few years."

"Yeah, I can see that," Homer agreed.

"Now beef, on the other hand, is a little easier. A beef cow dresses out at over 700 pounds, so one beef will supply seven people for the year. That would mean we'd need around 35 beef cattle per year for the village. Hogs dress out around 200 pounds, so we'd need around eighty of them per year."

"Well, I think we have all of the beef we need running loose. Are we going to load up on pork and poultry?"

"Pretty much. Poultry especially. John has spotted a lot of hogs running loose as well. They're harder to find than cattle, but not impossible. Ham and bacon has to be cured to be at it's best, so we're going to load up on a bunch of that. We also want to pick up a bunch of frozen juices."

"Are we still planning on using the big helicopter to transport everything?"

"I've been thinking about that. It would take quite a few trips with the chopper to get everything we want. I think I'll ask Rob to follow I-80 through the mountains to see if it's passable. If it is, we just might take three or four truckloads and drive them through. Can you drive a semi?"

"Yep. I know John and Glen can drive them too."

"We have enough people here to take back four truckloads. I think that'd pretty much hold us until we can start producing on our own."

-------

Rob and Betty decided they didn't want to take the Citation on a trip to scout out the highway. "It just goes too fast," Rob told me. "I saw a twin engined Cessna over here that looks to be in good shape though. If Homer can help us check it out, it'd be a much better choice for a scouting mission."

Homer agreed, so the rest of us started looking for refrigerated trucks to make the trip east. We found four likely suspects and got them fueled, then ferried them over to the warehouse. I decided I didn't want to start loading the trucks until we knew what the road conditions were going to be like, so we went back over to the airport.

Homer was there, but Rob and Betty had already taken off. It was a little after 3:00 PM, and Rob wanted to be back before dark. As it happened, I was beginning to think we had delayed too long as it was. Dusk had crept in before we heard the approach of the Cessna.

Rob was beaming when he exited the plane. He told us that the roads were clear through the mountains. "In one of the highest passes, there's maybe a quarter inch of snow on the road. That's nothing to worry about," he said.

I agreed, so I told him I thought he and Betty should take off first thing in the morning and let Jim know he needed to get more freezer units installed as soon as possible. Rob and Betty decided they'd sleep in the Citation and take off at first light. The rest of us would be sleeping in the cabs of our trucks.

Tina, Sandy and I were snugly warm in our nest and we slept as well as if we'd been in our bed at home.

-------

Day 174 - November 11

Shit! No coffee again, I thought as I pulled myself out of the sleeper. I'm sure Tina knew what I was thinking as she got out of bed too, but she didn't say anything. She said she had to go to the bathroom and then disappeared inside the warehouse.

About fifteen minutes later, she came back out carrying two travel mugs of freshly brewed coffee. I could have kissed her. Well, actually I did kiss her. "Where did you get this," I asked, amazement written all over my face.

"This place evidently sold coffee makers as well as coffee," she said. "Sandy and I found them yesterday."

"That is so neat," I said. "We should take it along with us. This truck has an inverter to give us electricity. We can take along a can of coffee, some filters and a jug of water and we'll have coffee every morning."

-------

We had backed all four trailers up to the loading dock the night before, so we were ready to start loading as soon as everyone was up and around.

We went heavy on chicken, but included a good supply of hams, bacon, and sausage as well. We also loaded several pallets of orange and grapefruit juice. As we were nearing capacity, we added french-fries and hashbrowns and frozen vegetables.

It took us nearly all day to load the trucks, so we decided to wait until the next day to leave.

-------

Day 178 - November 15

Well, we got in late this afternoon from our cross-country trip. It was actually a rather boring trip. There was, of course, no traffic to keep it interesting. The biggest hardship of the trip was trying to stay awake.

My four wives, who I had left at home, attacked me as soon as I was out of the truck. They also attacked Tina and Sandy. It wasn't too much of a surprise that Della threw her arms around me and kissed me as enthusiastically as my wives had.

-------

Day 179 - November 16

Jim wanted to show me what all they'd accomplished, so he took me on a tour right after breakfast. Someone already had crews moving the frozen food from the trucks into the freezers. I started to tell someone to try to group the different types of foods into different freezers, but I saw they were already doing that.

"These people seem to be well organized." I told Jim.

"Yeah, we've got some good help. June Pacheck has worked out work assignments for everyone. Jenny tells June what has to be done for the livestock. I tell her what has to be done about construction. Fred tells her what has to be done about the mill or about electrical. Lee Henderson and Bell are kind of in charge of food, so they both tell June what is needed that way. June figures out who to assign to what and who to put in charge of the detail."

"There are some things that have to be done every day. Are people assigned to those details permanently?"

"Pretty much. If someone really wants to be on a detail permanently, they're encouraged to let June know. Likewise, if there's something they purely hate doing."

"What do you do about things that fall in different categories, like milking. That could be either livestock or food?"

"Usually, the two supervisors just get together and decide who's going to handle it. If they can't agree, they'll be coming to you," Jim said with a big smile.

Okay, I kind of expected that. We walked up through the houses so I asked Jim how we were coming on them.

"Well, there are a couple of things we wanted to talk with you about," he told me. "We're kind of at a loss as to what to do with all of the single women. If we keep up with the single family housing units like we are now, the only options we see are to give each single woman her own bedroom or to have several women in one room. If we try to give each of them their own room, it will take a hell of a lot of houses. We could easily put four bunk beds per room, and that would cut down a lot of space needed. The other option is to get some prefab barracks from one of the army bases."

"What do the women want?" I asked.

"We haven't had a formal meeting about it, but I'd say most would accept the four per room. It depends, we might even get it so they could be only two per room before it gets too cold. I don't think they'll like the barracks idea."

"Why don't you call a meeting of all of the single women and put it to a vote? I'm sure that most of them are going to be as reasonable as possible."

Jim sighed and said, "I guess it is my responsibility. Okay, I'll call a meeting for tonight."

"How's the fencing coming?" I asked, deliberately changing the subject.

"The fencing is pretty much done," Jim said with a big grin. "We even have the pole barns up in the three different areas. The hog barns proved to be a lot more complicated than we thought they would be. Jenny has moved the dairy cattle over into the pasture around the cattle barn. She's also ready to start bringing the equipment she'll need for the chickens. Jim Smith is working on pens for the hog barn and Doris Gifford is working on getting water to all of the barns."

"I'd like to walk over there after while and take a look around," I said. "Who is in charge of security?"

"Well, we really don't have anyone assigned to that job. I guess we probably should do that though."

"How about Glen? He was a navy seal before IT happened. He's proved himself time and again to me since he's been with us."

"Yeah, I think Glen is the perfect candidate for the job. You know this being a supervisor isn't what it's cracked up to be, Ed. I don't have much of a chance to do anything but tell other people what to do. I'd much rather be getting my hands dirty."

I had to laugh at that. I knew exactly what he meant. As we were walking back to the house, a young man came up that I hadn't seen before. Jim introduced me to Al White, who had found our village by accident while I had been in California.

Jim invited him to go along with us over to the animal barns. I stuck my head in the house and yelled that we were going to the barns if anyone wanted to come with us. I heard a mad scrambling in the house and got out of the way as Homer, Brenda, Bell, Della and all of my wives came rushing out.

Al seemed like a bright young man of around eighteen. We started a conversation with him telling all of us what he had gone through before he found us. We were about half way between the village and the barns, still inside the fenced area when a shot rang out.

I yelled, "Down!" and we all hit the dirt.

I had no idea where the shot had even come from, but Homer did. He pointed to a wooded hillside about two hundred and fifty yards from us and said, "Up there. I saw him moving right after he shot."

None of us had a weapon that would reach that far, so we hugged the dirt for a few minutes. After a while, when no more shots were forthcoming, I told everyone else to stay down and I got up. When nothing else happened, I said, "I think he took one shot and ran. Let's get back to the house and get a couple of hunting rifles."

"Stay low and move fast," Homer said.

We all started getting up to run back to the house. All of us except Al White. "Down," I yelled.

Everyone hit the dirt again. I crawled over to Al and I knew immediately we had lost our first villager. He had fallen face down. There was a hole the size of a saucer in his back. When I rolled him over you could see where the bullet had entered. It was right over his heart.

We started running back to the house and were met by Glen when we got close to the mill. He had heard a shot and had come to investigate. We told him what had happened.

"He was either using a hunting rifle or a sniper rifle," Homer said.

"I wonder what he had against Al," I said.

"I don't think he was shooting at Al," Sandy said. "I was walking right in front of Al just before the shot went off. I stepped away to tell Chris something and then I heard the shot. I think he was shooting at me."

"But who..." I started to ask, then it hit me. "Bob Roberts."

"That's who I'd guess," Sandy said.

"I'm going to kill that mother fucker," Jim said. His tone of voice made a chill run up my spine.

"Easy, Jim, we'll get him," I assured him. "He's long gone by now, so there's no hurry to chase after him. He probably had a car somewhere close."

"I don't know where he could have hidden one where we wouldn't have seen it," Glen said. "We go in and out our road several times a day on scrounging expeditions."

"Let's ask John. He probably knows the area better than anyone," I said.

We started back to the house and I asked Glen if he could round up John and Rob for us. He took off and we went into our house. Sandy started a pot of coffee and the rest of us sat around the table to wait for the others.

They were all back by the time the coffee was ready. "I have some people going after Al's body," Jim said. "We'll need to think about a funeral for him."

Everyone agreed, so I went on with the business at hand. "Rob, you and John know the area better than anyone else. Do either of you have any idea where the bastard might have had a vehicle waiting for him?"

"Yeah, that's easy," Rob said. "There's another road not more than half a mile from where he was hiding. I'd say he had something parked along that road."

"There's one good thing about that road," John said. "It runs through open fields for at least a quarter mile on either side of where he was hiding. A car or motorcycle would have had to be left out in the open."

"Okay, Glen is going to be our new security chief around here. I'm just springing this on him, so I'm going to put my two cents worth in first, then I'll turn this meeting over to him. I think the first thing we need to do is start making passes over this other road with the helicopter. That way we'll know if he's lying in wait for us."

I nodded at Glen and he said, "Okay, I agree with Ed on the aerial recon. Does anyone else have any suggestions?"

"Yeah," John said. "Man traps. From what I understand, this guy is always in the same area. I think we should set some traps and snare him."

Glen had a big smile when he agreed. "Why the big smile?" I asked.

"I learned a lot about dead falls and traps while I was in the seals. I guess I was just thinking about the bastard hanging by one foot until we decided to check on the traps."

-------

We had our first meeting of the Preservation Planning Committee that afternoon. The committee consisted of myself - Virologist, Syl - School Teacher, Tiffany - Microbiologist, Chris - Physician, John - our go to guy, Mike Severt - Pharmacist, Bea Mayhew - Biologist, Cindy Webb - Photographer (one of the three stooges), Martha Occhuizzo - Purchasing Agent (one of the Blackstone women), Melanie Huff - Librarian, Eve Collum - Computer Programmer.

There were a total of eleven people, with Rob as a consultant on anything that might need to be moved by air.

I really didn't expect to get a lot done in this first meeting, but I did want to get these people thinking about what we were going to need and how we were going to accomplish getting it.

"First off, I said after everyone had settled in, "I think you need to elect a chairman to run your meetings. Do I hear any nominations for that position?"

"I nominate Ed James," Eve Collum said.

I held up my hand and said, "I'm sorry, but I will not accept the nomination. I have too many other things going right now."

"I would have to decline a nomination as well," Chris said. "My duties as a physician come first."

"I nominate Martha Occhuizzo," Tiff said.

Martha looked like she wanted to sink under the table, but she didn't demure.

No other nominations were forthcoming, so Martha was elected by acclimation.

"I really don't know what I'm doing here," Martha said. "Ed, do you have any suggestions as to how we should get started?"

"Maybe," I said. "Martha, since you were a purchasing agent, you'll probably know a lot more about these kinds of things than I do. Having said that, here is my best shot. First off, I think we need to identify the kinds of things that need to be preserved. We also need to determine where and how we are going to store things. I was playing around a little last night and these are the things I thought of.



Knowledge or information.

Food supplies

Equipment

Materials.



"I'm sure there are a lot more."

"Okay," Martha said. "I think that is a good start, but I think we need to identify things a little more closely. Let's schedule another meeting in one week and between now and then let's expand and add to Ed's list. What kinds of knowledge do we need to preserve? What kinds of equipment do we need or will we need? What types of materials do we need? I would like for each of us to make up a list being as all-inclusive as possible. After our next meeting, we'll compile those lists into a master list."

Everyone murmured agreement. "The master list will be a dynamic entity. In other words, it will change as we think of things to add to it, or change our minds as to whether we need to preserve something."

"You know, Martha," Eve Collum said, "What we're talking about is all well and good, but even just preserving knowledge is going to be a phenomenal task. Most knowledge or information is already stored on computers somewhere. One of the main problems is that there are many different types of computers and dozens of different types of media for data storage. Just to be able to tap the information already stored somewhere is going to be a monumental task."

"I know it is, Eve. Instead of working the types of information needed, why don't you start thinking about what types of equipment we're going to need to be coming up with just to be able to store everything? I know you can't have anything completed in a week, but maybe you could give us some idea as to the size of facility we would need."

Eve nodded and Martha went on. "These things are probably enough to keep us busy for a week. Let me know if anyone has any special needs."

The meeting broke up and I felt good. At least we'd gotten everyone thinking.

-------

Day 180 - November 17

I was up early, as usual, and I was sitting in my recliner, drinking coffee and thinking about how quickly the six months anniversary of IT was approaching. I hadn't been sitting there but a few minutes when Della came out and fixed herself a cup. She came over and sat on my lap and snuggled in.

"Good morning, Sunshine," I said as I put my arms around her.

Della smiled and said, "Good morning."

"I was just thinking," I said. "It's only four more days until it'll be six months since IT happened. In some ways it doesn't seem nearly that long, but in others it seems like it has been a lifetime."

"Yeah, I know. Six months ago I was a little girl. Now, I don't know what I am, but I'm certainly not a little girl."

"I know exactly what you are. You are a beautiful young lady," I said as I hugged her.

Della laughed, then said, "I'd like to talk to you about something serious, if it's okay."

I saw Evie coming down the hall and I motioned for her to wait. "Sure, Sweetie. What is it?"

"Well... I've been kind of talking... talking to your wives about maybe me... me marrying you guys."

"Okay. You know we all love you, don't you?"

"Yes, I know that and I love every one of you."

"So, what did you decide?"

"Well... I don't know. I want to marry all of you, but I'm a little scared."

"What are you afraid of, Honey?"

"I guess I'm afraid of sex. I want to be with you and I want to be your wife, but I'm afraid of sex."

"I can understand that. You've gone through some really bad times. You know there's no rush, don't you?"

"Yeah, it's just that I want to, but I'm afraid."

"I know, Sweety. Right now, I'm enjoying having you as my daughter. Could we leave it that way for a while?"

Della giggled. "I'm not sure, but if you think of me as your daughter, then you must be into incest. I kind of enjoy the way you are rubbing my butt, so if I stay your daughter for a while you have to promise you'll keep doing that."

I kissed her on the nose. "I'll do anything you like, Sweety. I kind of enjoy caressing your butt myself."

Evie was standing back down the hall, so I motioned that it was okay for her to come on in. She got herself a cup of coffee and claimed part of my lap.

"Did you know that Glen and John set some traps last night?" Evie asked me.

"No, I knew they were talking about it, but I was so tied up with that preservation meeting that I didn't know much else of what was going on."

"I'll swear, those two are something else. John was talking about snares and animal traps and Glen was talking about dead falls and land mines. I almost feel sorry for the bastard they're after."

"I don't feel sorry for him no matter what happens to him. I had just met Al and he seemed like a really nice kid. Besides I think the bastard was really shooting at Sandy."

"Yeah, I know. That makes it personal. Do you think it's Bob?"

"I think it probably is. He is the only one I can think of who would have anything against Sandy. Whoever it is, we have to make sure it doesn't happen again."



-------

Chapter 20

Rob did an aerial recon of the other road later that morning and since he didn't see any vehicles, we decided to go over and look at the barns.

Jim asked John, Jenny, and Doris to go with us so they could tell us the status of what was being done. Jenny started explaining things as we walked over.

"The dairy barn actually turned into two barns," Jenny said. "One barn is for feeding and milking. It also has stalls for birthing. The other barn is for storage of hay and grain. We've run electricity over to the livestock valley and after doing a little research, we installed automatic milkers. We have the potential for milking up to thirty cows at once."

"That's impressive. How about the hogs?"

"The hogs require even more room than the cattle. Again there is one barn for food storage. There is one smaller barn that is split in half. One side is for birthing and the other side is a nursery, where the sows and piglets can be together. There is a very large barn for pigs that are being raised for slaughter. One end of that barn is partitioned off for sows and boars that are the breeding stock. Then there are the outside pens, part of which are covered by another pole barn roof."

"The chickens are basically treated like the hogs. I learned that chickens require about three square feet of barn space per chicken. We have one barn that is fifty feet by one hundred feet for chickens being raised for slaughter. There is another barn for chickens being raised for egg production. Both of these barns have food storage in one end of the barn. There are outside lots for both types of chickens. Part of each lot is covered."

"How are you coming on supplying water to the barns, Doris?"

"We had to do a lot of thinking on that, Ed. We're using a pump to pump creek water up into a water tower. Jenny tells me the low temperature in the winter months averages around twenty-five degrees. We had to take that into consideration too. We have watering troughs set up for the cattle and we have most of the equipment in place for the chickens and hogs. We should have everything completely operational within a week."

"It sounds like you guys are really on top of things."

"We're working hard at it," Jenny said. "John is champing at the bit to start bringing in hogs and additional chickens. That should be happening soon."

We looked around at all of the buildings. John showed me the waste disposal systems for all of the animals. We planned on using most of the manure for fertilizer. We also looked over all of the stalls and he explained why they were set up the way that they were.

-------

Martha Occhuizzo was waiting for me when we got back to the house. "Could I talk to you for a minute, Ed?" she asked.

"Sure, Martha. What's up?"

"I was just thinking about storage for the things we are going to try to preserve. Do you know if anyone has given that any thought?"

"Not that I know of. I do know it's going to take a lot of room. Some of the storage areas don't have to be close to the village, but other things like computer storage will have to be where it can have access to electricity 24/7. Also, food storage should be fairly close."

"Do we have anyone in the village who knows anything about long term storage of things like machinery?"

"I don't know. Maybe June would know. You should at least talk to her. I know that years ago they used something called Cosmoline. It was sprayed on anything that was to be stored and it formed an airtight seal that prevented the thing from rusting. There has to be better ways of doing it now. The Cosmoline was a pain in the butt to get off."

"That's something else we'll have to do research on. Maybe we'll even have to invent a new method."

"I think we do have at least one chemist in the group. Maybe he or she can help."

"That's a good idea, Ed. I guess I will talk to June. Maybe I'm getting the cart before the horse, but I'm worried about how badly things have deteriorated in just the last six months."

-------

That evening we had quite a surprise at dinner. It was Bell and Brenda's turn to fix the meal. Homer had been talking with me for a while, then had gone off to the upstairs bathroom to clean up.

When the meal was ready, Homer's wives went off to get him. They came back a few minutes later with a very nude, very red-faced Homer in tow. They practically had to drag him to the table, but when he was seated, he seemed to relax a little.

My wives ignored his nudity and didn't make any remarks about it. It was only when the three of them had gotten up and headed for bed that anything was said. They had almost reached the bottom of the stairs when Tina said, "Homer." Homer looked back over his shoulder at Tina. "Nice butt," Tina said.

I think Homer's entire body was red as his giggling wives led him up the stairs.

-------

Day 181 - November 18 

Evie was sitting on my lap and we were sipping our morning coffee when she asked, "We didn't get a chance to talk yesterday. What was Della talking to you about yesterday morning?"

"She said she wants to marry us, but that she's a little afraid."

"What did you tell her."

"I told her there was no rush and that I was kind of enjoying having her as my daughter."

Evie nodded her head. "That was probably a good thing to say. What was her response?"

"She said she was enjoying being my daughter too. She also said she was enjoying my rubbing her butt and she wanted me to continue with that."

I was afraid Evie's laugh was going to wake the rest of the family. "That is fantastic. She is coming along. She is definitely not afraid of you any more and I've noticed she is even a lot more relaxed around Homer, Fred, and Jim. Even if she is still a little afraid of sex, she's starting to enjoy the contact with you."

"I want her to enjoy sex, whether it's with us or with someone else. I'd still prefer she found someone closer to her own age and someone without six other wives. She's like a puppy that's been kicked. She didn't trust anyone at first. I know that she said she trusted us, and she did trust us more than she trusted anyone else, but there was still something there that caused her to not open up completely. Now, she seems to be blossoming."

"You're right, but now I think she trusts us completely. Especially you. I think it's time to take it up a notch."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, the next time she's sitting on your lap, start out by holding her and stroking her back as you usually do. Then when she's relaxed, stroke her butt for a few minutes. After she is completely comfortable with that, caress her side for a few minutes, then gently run your hand over her breasts. When you've done that, go back to stroking her back and see what her reaction is."

"Are you sure that's wise?"

"Not entirely, but it is the next logical step. If she seems upset, wait a few days before trying it again."

It wasn't but a few minutes later that Della joined us. She got herself some coffee and claimed part of my lap. We said our good mornings and Della snuggled in. A few minutes later, Evie winked at me and said she wanted to start breakfast. Della started to get up and help her, but Evie told her to just sit still.

I took Evie's advice and started rubbing Della's back. I did this for a few minutes, then lengthened my strokes to include her butt. She smiled at me and snuggled closer.

At the end of one of my strokes, I just left my hand holding one of her butt cheeks and started stroking her arm with my other hand. After a while, I brushed my hand across her breast. Della's whole body jerked and she gasped.

"I'm sorry Della," I said. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"It did startle me, but it didn't scare me. Actually, it felt kind of good."

I brushed my hand across her breast again and she just snuggled closer. I continued stroking her arm and occasionally caressing her breast in passing. Then, I gently cupped her breast and held it for a minute. When she didn't object, I started playing with her nipple, which immediately started to grow in my hand.

When her nipple was long and hard, I started rubbing it between my thumb and forefinger. This elicited another gasp and she arched her back, pushing her breast against my hand. I leaned down and kissed her. When we broke apart, I removed my hand from her breast and said, "I think that's enough for today, love. Besides, I think Evie has breakfast ready."

Della just smiled at me and got up. When I started for the kitchen, Della put her arm around me and walked beside me.

-------

Homer and I were sitting around after breakfast talking about what would need to be done soon on the helicopters for maintenance. He was telling me that the big Sikorsky had about one more California round trip before it needed service, but that the little Bell needed it now. I told him to go ahead with it and he asked if Rob was available to stand guard while he did the work.

Rob came in before I could even answer Homer. With him were Jim, John, Fred, and Glen. Homer immediately asked if Rob could help him.

"I could do it tomorrow, Homer, but why don't you ask June to get Les Gannon to help? He's as good with the Bell as I am and it would give him some experience," Rob said.

"Homer, how hard would it be to train an auto mechanic to do maintenance on the choppers?" I asked.

"Well, for the general run of things, like what I'm going to do on the Bell, it wouldn't be hard at all. It wouldn't even be too bad on any of it, I'd just want to oversee it the first few times they did it."

"I know George Simonson is an auto mechanic," I said. "There may be a few more. Why don't you get June to assign all of them to you tomorrow and use the maintenance as a teaching session?"

Homer grinned, "I could do that. Are you planning to do a lot of flying?"

"Yeah, some," I said. "I'd like to get some medicines brought in and maybe do some other exploring. After we've had some time to consolidate and to get some more houses put in (Jim groaned) I'd like to travel through the south and the southwest and try to find more people to join us."

"That brings up one of the things I wanted to talk to you about," Jim said. "Do we want to continue putting houses in?"

"I think so," I said. "I don't know how many people are left alive out there, but I'd like to have a couple of thousand people here if we could. For one thing, it increases the gene pool and for another we need as many people as we can get to work on this preservation thing."

"We're going to have to increase the size of our fenced area if we add that many more houses. We'll also have to bring in some more water treatment plants and sewage disposal plants to service them."

"Yeah, I know it's a lot of work, but at least in this climate we can work on it year round. We're also going to want to look into what kind of building we're going to want for Eve's computer system. It can't be a pole barn."

"I worked on one computer building a few years ago," Jim said. "It was a lot different than regular construction. I was just a grunt, so I wasn't privy to the planning or anything, but they had some really big assed air conditioners. The floors were panels that could be removed for running wiring under the floor."

"I'm pretty sure we can find plans at the library or at the UK library for what we need, but we will need to build it once we have the plans. We have some good people here and any kind of equipment we could possibly need to help them, so the building shouldn't be a problem. We do need to figure out where we're going to put things like that."

"Okay," Jim started, "What are we going to..." A distant explosion cut him off.

"What the hell?" I asked.

Glen was grinning. "I think we may have just solved our problem with the sniper," he said.

I had several M-16s in the house, so I passed them out to everyone and along with Tina and Sandy, we headed out to see if Glen's land mine had netted our sniper. Glen told us all to stay behind him, as he knew where all of the mines had been placed.

It was a pretty good hike up to the hill where the sniper had hidden before. None of us said much as we made our way there. We were all very vigilant as we hurried toward the site.

Glen motioned for us to stop as we neared the top of the hill. Up ahead, we could see a body dressed in camouflage lying on the ground. Glen approached it cautiously.

When he was standing by the body he motioned us forward. We all made sure to follow in Glen's tracks. The man was lying in a large pool of blood. His left leg was missing, just below the knee. Bits of meat and bone were strewn around over the entire area.

"He almost made it through," Glen said. "He hit a mine in the last tier."

Jim moved forward and turned the body over. It was Bob Roberts, or at least what was left of him. He was dead. Even if he hadn't been, there wasn't much we could have done for him. We couldn't have taken him into our village, and a man with one leg wouldn't have been able to make it on his own, even if Chris had nursed him back to health before we made him leave.

"What should we do about the body?" Glen asked.

"Leave it," Jim said. "The bastard doesn't deserve a burial."

The rest of us agreed, so we just turned around and walked away.

-------

After dinner we were sitting talking with Homer, Bell, and Brenda about Roberts and about doing some exploring. Each of my wives had taken a turn on my lap and Della moved in to take her turn.

I gently started stroking her back as I normally did, then Della captured my other hand and brought it to her breast. I looked her in the eyes and she shyly smiled and nodded. I spent the next half hour or so caressing her breast and playing with her nipple. She was melted against me the entire time.

Finally, Kammie came over and smacked Della on the butt. "That's not fair," she told Della. "He's my daddy and I should get to sit on his lap."

Della grabbed Kammie and tickled her. Then, when Kammie was almost hysterical with laughter, Della kissed me and relinquished her place to Kammie.

Kammie climbed on my knee then gave me a big hug. "I love you, Daddy," she said.

"I love you too, Kammie," I said as I hugged her back. Life couldn't possibly get any better.

-------

Day 184 - November 21

The next couple of days went by quickly. I had several meetings with Martha about preservation and one with June to talk about staffing. Homer did the maintenance on the Bell helicopter and started training George Simonson and two other guys.

Glen came to me at one point and discussed security with me. He wanted to put a band of antipersonnel mines around the entire property. Although I agreed with the sentiment, I wasn't sure if now was the time to lay a minefield.

I explained to him we're still growing and I wasn't sure how large of an area we're going to want to eventually have fenced. We talked it over and decided we'd just mine the areas like the hillside where Roberts had sniped at us. In other words, we would only mine areas where someone could observe us or shoot at us.

Jenny informed me that over the last couple of weeks she had found three steers and half a dozen sheep that had been killed by animals. We talked with Jim about it and all of us agreed we should get chain link fence around some of the pastures. Jenny said she'd show Jim which pastures he should start on, since she was going to have to move the cattle and sheep in a couple of weeks anyway.

This was the six months anniversary of IT happening. I asked Evie if she was aware of that as we were cuddled, having our morning coffee.

"No, I hadn't realized it had been that long," she told me.

"I think we've accomplished a lot during that time," I said.

"We have," she said. "Plus, we seem to have done a good job on selecting the people who we've asked to join us. I haven't heard of any arguments or squabbles among any of the group. June set up a complaint box in one of the pole barns and she checks it once a day. So far, the few complaints she's gotten have been very minor. I'm very encouraged."

"Yeah, I think June is doing a good job. I guess Jim had a meeting with all of the single women and they all agreed to living two to a room for the time being. That means six people per house. If they do it that way, we're going to have single family housing before Christmas."

Della joined us and after we had said our good mornings, I continued with what I'd been talking about. "We only have around two hundred and fifty people here now. I hope we can raise that to two thousand within the next couple of years. That means a lot more housing, and a lot more area for food production."

"You mean for growing crops?"

"That and for pasturage. This is a great area for grazing. Given that, it is still going to take between 1000 and 1500 acres just for grazing our beef cattle. It'll take another 300 to 500 acres for the sheep. That's a lot of acreage to fence, but we're going to have to do it. We're also going to have to fence the areas where we grow hay, corn, and other vegetables. This is not only for safety while we're working in the fields, but also to prevent wild cattle and deer from destroying our crops."

"In some ways, it just sounds impossible. How are we going to do all of that?"

"That's one of the reasons we need more people and we need them quickly. Within the next two months, Jim can double the number of houses we currently have. I'd like to have people to move into them soon after. That means another recruiting run or two. Could you and the rest of our family handle that?"

Evie laughed. "Actually, I didn't mind living in the mobile home. I don't think our spouses did either. Do you want me to talk to them?"

"Why don't you. Della, would you like to go exploring with us?"

"As long as we're all together, I don't care where we are. I didn't get to see anything while I was with Blackstone, since he kept us locked up."

I gave her a hug and said, "Good, because we wouldn't want to have to go without you."

Della smiled from ear to ear.

"We're going to have some logistics to work out," I told Evie. "For one thing, I'd like for Homer to go with us and he has his helicopter maintenance to keep up with."

"That shouldn't be too big of a problem," Della said. "If there's something he has to do, Rob or Les could always fly him back here to do it, then fly him back to us."

"You're a smart girl, Della," I said and hugged her again.

-------

Martha came by not long after we had finished breakfast and wanted to talk about storage of things we were trying to preserve. I asked Evie to stay and talk with us, and Della decided she was staying too.

"You know," Martha said after we had gotten her settled with a cup of coffee, "There's no way we could possibly preserve everything, don't you?"

"Yeah, I know. If we tried to store one of every type of machine that was built in the US, we'd need a warehouse the size of Texas. Some things we're going to have to try to preserve where they are sitting, others we'll need to bring to warehouses closer to us. A helicopter wouldn't do us much good if it was sitting in California."

"So, what I'm thinking is that we should concentrate on certain things, things we know we are going to use. We should definitely try to preserve a stock of automobiles. We'll also need construction equipment and tools. We should try to store some helicopters and airplanes. We'll need food and medicine. These are just a few of the things we should define as critical."

"Okay, we define a critical list and a non critical list. What then?" I asked.

"Everything on the critical list, we should find places to store and determine the best methods for preserving the items. We should try to preserve the knowledge of how to build or make or grow everything on both lists."

"You know, Martha," Della said. "This is going to be like a snowball effect."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, say you want to preserve the knowledge of how to build a car. First off, you need to define the processed for putting the pieces together. Then you have to describe the painting techniques used. Then you have to define the processes for making the paint and for every component part of the paint. Next you would have to define how the paint sprayers were made, and every component part of them. You'd have to do that for making every part in the car. By the time you're finished you'll have a document that is as large as several books."

"I've been thinking about that," I said. "What we need is a database, a huge database. Making paint for a car would be similar to making paint for a refrigerator. The actual chemicals would be different, but the processes would be nearly the same. What we need is a database that will list the ingredients for a particular paint for a particular purpose, then refer you to the appropriate processes."

"That does make sense," Martha said. "It would definitely cut down on duplication of information. We have some computer people in the village. I'll talk to them and see if we can come up with something."

-------

The Weisberger farm had been a big one. There were probably close to three thousand acres in the farm. To the south of us, passed the hill where Roberts had lurked, was another farm that was almost as big. So far, we hadn't been making any use of that farm at all. In the next valley to the east was where we had set up the chicken and hog operations. The only thing we had done in the valley to the west was set up the concrete mixing plant.

I talked with Jim, Fred, and Jenny that afternoon, then decided to call in Bell and Lee Henderson. "Guys, what I wanted to talk about was land usage," I said. "So far, with the exception of the livestock area, we've been kind of haphazard. We need to be thinking about areas for preservation of data and equipment; areas for food production for both people and livestock; and areas for livestock grazing."

Everyone nodded, but no one offered any suggestions. "Has anyone given any thought as to where we should start growing crops?"

Leroy looked at Bell then said, "Well, Bell and I have been looking around. All of the land around here is fine for growing crops. I think that we've about decided that the area passed the hill where Roberts was killed would be the best. It's relatively flat and the soil is excellent. The only problem is, it would need to be fenced to prevent animals from ruining the crops."

"Does anyone have any objections to that land being used for farming?" I asked. When no one objected I asked, "Jenny, how much area would you need for livestock?"

"Well, Ed, this valley would be sufficient for herds two to three times what we have now. If you are thinking about larger herds than that, the valley where the livestock barns are is actually much larger than this valley. If we used both of the valleys, we'd be able to run herds ten to twenty times as large as we have now."

"Okay, that kind of goes along with what I've been thinking. Jim, how hard would it be to move the concrete plant in the next valley?"

"It'd take a couple or three days, but it wouldn't be too difficult."

"Fred, how hard would it be to run power lines over to the area where the concrete plant is now? We would need to be able to run a massive computer system from them."

"Running the lines wouldn't be too bad."

"Why don't we plan on using that valley for our computer center then. Jim, I'd like for you to get with Martha Occhuizzo and have her come up with some requirements for what we're going to need."

Jim nodded. "I have one other thing I'd like to talk to you guys about," I said. "I've been thinking about road conditions. Right now, our highway system is in good condition. As time goes by, it's going to deteriorate. Within a year or two, there are going to be landslides that cover roads and there are going to be bridges that are washed out. I think we're going to have to make another recruiting run and I think we need to do it soon."

Jim sighed, "I was afraid you were going to say something like that. We're averaging one house about every three days now. If worst comes to worst and you get in more people than we have houses for, we could put in some septic systems and run water to an RV park. That would hold things off until we were ready for them."

I had to smile at Jim. "Who is your number one deputy, Jim?"

"I guess that'd be John. He seems to be able to do about anything he sets his mind to. He's also good with people."

"Could he run things for you if you went on a recruitment trip with us?"

Jim started smiling. "I think he could do that. I also think my wives would like to take a little trip."

"Fred, could you and Jenny find someone to fill in for you if you'd go with us?"

"Justine Grey could handle the electrical work. She's been helping me a lot."

"Mike Severt could handle the animals," Jenny said. "I don't know about Fred, but I'd certainly like to get away for a while."

"Bell, I'd like for you and Homer and Brenda to go with us too. I'm sure Lee can take care of things of a farming nature."

Bell smiled. "I think we'd like that."

-------

We were sitting around after dinner, talking about a recruiting trip when Homer had an idea. "I've been talking with Jack Webb. He was a ham radio operator before IT happened. He was saying we'd be a lot better off with ham radios in our RVs than the high power CBs. He says we'd be able to stay in contact with home or with each other no matter where we went."

"I've thought about that, but I don't know a thing about ham radio."

"Jack said he'd set everything up for us and teach us how to operate the radios if we'd like."

"Talk to him tomorrow. Maybe we could get that done before we leave for our recruiting trip," I said.

Everyone got quiet for a few minutes. I think we were all thinking either about what all we had accomplished, or about the upcoming trip.

"You know," I said. "We've come a long way in just over six months. We have a lot to do, but we're going to have a lot of fun doing it."

Everyone nodded, then Tina said, "I think we have definitely made a good start."

"A New Beginning," Syl said.



-------

Chapter 21

Day 185 - November 22

My wives were all a twitter about the upcoming trip. That was the only topic of conversation at breakfast. Bell and Brenda were just as bad. I asked Homer if he could think of anyone with military or police training we could take along as security.

"Well, there is one guy who I'd recommend. He was a highway patrolman before IT happened. His name is Nathan Adams."

"I don't remember him," I said. "Does anyone remember interviewing him?"

"I do," Evie said. "We interviewed his family during your first trip to Fort Leonard Wood. If I remember right, he seemed like a nice guy."

"Yeah, one of his wives is named Robin," Sandy said. "She's a lot of fun."

"Evie, why don't you and Homer talk with him and his family today and see if they'd be interested in going with us. Syl, would you find Fred and Jim and set up a time we could all get together today to make some plans?"

"Sure, Ed. I have a couple of ideas about that myself."

-------

When we all got together, Nathan Adams and his three wives joined us. I liked Nathan immediately. "Call me Nat," he said as he was introduced. I remembered seeing him around, but I'd never talked to him.

Tiff and Syl acted as our hostesses and made sure we all had some kind of beverage. I led things off. "We're going to need five RVs for the trip," I said. "I really liked the bumper you welded on our RV for the last trip, Fred. Could you do that for all five of them?"

Fred nodded.

"Ed," Syl said. "There are some things I think we should do differently this trip. Would you care to hear about them?"

"Sure thing, Sweety."

"Okay, first off, before we've kind of stuck to the interstates. I think we're missing out on a lot of people by doing that. I think we should have a car or van for each family as well as an RV. A different person could drive the RV every day, and two or more people could go off in the cars. The RV would move ahead to the next rendezvous point and the driver and whoever else is in the RVs could fix dinner for the family. The people in the vans would branch out to each side of the interstate and go as far as they could and still meet at the RVs for dinner."

"That does make a lot of sense," Brenda said. "There are only three in our family, so it would be a little harder on us than it would be on the rest of you. I'd be willing though if Bell and Homer are."

Both Bell and Homer readily agreed.

"Okay, what else, Syl?"

"Each RV should be equipped with a ham radio for contacting home base. Each RV and each van should be equipped with a CB so we can all keep in contact with each other. Every person should have a walky talky for individual communications."

"I agree with all of that," Jim said. "Having vans is going to present some additional logistics. We'll need one or more pumps for gasoline as well as pumps for diesel. We'll need to be sure the vans have plenty of room for signs and the like. We'll also need a hell of a lot more signs."

"Does anyone have any idea where we're going?" Jenny asked.

"I was thinking about zigzagging down to Florida," I said.

"Okay, we'll probably need to have more than one rendezvous point," Jenny said. "Maybe two or three points scheduled a month apart. Any ideas where?"

"How about Knoxville, Atlanta, and Jacksonville?" Chris asked.

We all agreed that sounded good. Jim said he'd talk to June and get someone scheduled to print the signs and Fred said he'd get right on to finding suitable RVs and getting bumpers put on the ones that needed them. I asked Nat and his family to stay after everyone else left so we could get to know them a little better.

Nat and his family were all from Colorado. Nat had lived in Denver. Jan Patterson and Robin Hale were both from the Colorado Springs area and Sally Smith was from Boulder.

"How did you all meet?" I asked.

Nat nodded at Jan and Robin and said, "Why don't you two start it off?"

Robin jumped right in. "Actually, I found Jan first. I'm afraid I'm a talker and I was about to go nuts without anyone to talk to, so I decided to start trying to find someone. I don't think Jan would have ever seen your signs if it hadn't been for me."

Jan was a much quieter person than Robin, but she broke in and said, "Robin is right. I probably wouldn't have found your signs if it hadn't been for her. After living with her for two weeks, her incessant talking was driving me nuts, so I suggested we see if we could find anyone else."

Robin hit her on the shoulder and they exchanged grins. "We decided to go up to Denver and see if we could find anyone. We hadn't even seen any signs of anyone else in Colorado Springs. Denver was another matter though."

"We saw several grocery stores that had been broken into," Jan said. "We didn't know if the people who had broken into them were still around or not, so we decided to put up some signs at each of the grocery stores."

"At one store we said we'd be there at 9:00 AM daily for a week. At another we said we'd be there at noon and at a third we said we'd be there at 3:00 PM," Robin said. "It was on our third day of visiting the stores when we met Nat. We met Sally the next day."

"I'd met one other group from that area the week before," Nat said. "There was one guy and four women in the group. They were heading for California and tried to talk me into going with them. I really wasn't interested in going into an earthquake area, so I declined."

"I had met another group too," Sally said. "There were three people in the group and they said they were heading for Texas. They seemed like nice people and I hope they're doing well, but I'd seen one of your signs and had made up my mind to find your group."

"Yeah, she talked us into it pretty quickly," Nat said. "She had picked up one of your information sheets and it sounded like just what we wanted."

"None of us are sorry we came here," Robin said. "We've worked every day since we've been here, but I think we're all going to enjoy the fruits of our labors."

Tina and Syl filled them in on how all of us had gotten together. They seemed like a good group and I was happy to have them going with us.

-------

After dinner that evening, Della came over and sat on my lap. She put her arms around my neck and asked, "Do I really get to go with you guys?"

"Of course you do, Sweetheart. You are a member of our family aren't you?"

Della smiled then nestled her head in against my neck. "I really loved my parents, but I think I feel closer to you guys than I ever did to them. Why would that be?"

"I think it's because of everything that's happened to the world, Love. I think we all feel things more deeply now and more quickly as well. I also think a lot of it is because we aren't as afraid to show our feelings for each other as we were before. If we can survive, I think what happened is actually going to strengthen the race."

Della sighed and I rubbed her back until she did something she hadn't done for a while. She fell asleep on my lap.

-------

Day 186 - November 23

As Evie and I were having our morning coffee, we got to talking about the trip. "I know it's a little premature to be talking about interviews, but I think we need to be thinking about them," Evie said. "We were pretty relaxed about them in Missouri until you were damned near killed. We were a little better in Ironton, but I think we need to be even more careful in the future."

"Okay, I tend to agree. What did you have in mind?"

"Well, first off, I think we should all take turns doing the interviews. After a while they become boring. If we're bored, we're not going to be as alert."

"That makes sense. Do you have any ideas as to how we should form the teams?"

"Well, Jenny was a nurse, so she could do the physical exams for one team and Chris could do them for the other. I would volunteer to be on one team with Jenny, Brenda, and Sandy. We'd also need two guards, maybe Homer and Fred."

"That sounds like a good mix."

"The other team could be Chris, Syl, Tina, and Tiffany with Jim and Nat as the guards."

"What about me?"

"I think you should just talk to people. Maybe you and Della together. People are going to relax more if you're just shooting the breeze, especially if you have what most perceive as a little girl with you. I think you might find out a lot that would never come up in an interview."

"How would you see rotating the teams?"

"We'll have to just see what works best. We could take one day each or we could even change after each interview."

Della had come in and claimed part of my lap as we were talking. Now she spoke up. "If I do my hair in two pony tails or in braids I look like a little girl. Mom used to want me to wear it that way and it embarrassed the hell out of me. I could do it that way when we talked to people if you thought it would help."

"I think it would," Evie said with a smile. "You could play daddy's little girl."

Della giggled and said, "As long as daddy doesn't start thinking of me as a little girl."

I hugged her and told her I thought of her as my big girl.

-------

Kammie and Cindi came to me right after breakfast and asked if they could go with us on the recruiting trip. I can't refuse Kammie anything and I'm almost as bad with Cindi, so I agreed. Then, I got to thinking about how many people were going to be in our RV.

There would be ten people. I talked to Fred and asked him if there was another RV that didn't have a freezer installed that we could use. He informed me that there was one that was identical to the one we had used before that didn't have the freezer, so we decided to use that one. He said his family would use the one we used before.

We also decided to fix up one more RV with a freezer, as there were so many of us going. I asked him how long it would take to get all of the RVs fixed up and he assured me they could be done within a couple of days.

I talked with Jenny and she told me there was plenty of frozen beef for us to take and that John had killed several hogs the week before and that we could take all of the pork we wanted. I figured that most of the people we'd be finding from this point on would have been killing cattle and hogs, so I didn't expect to have too many people who had been without fresh meat.

-------

Several of the people who would be going with us stopped by after dinner to talk. In some ways I think we all dreaded to think about what we might find.

"It's been over six months now," Jim said. "I suspect that many of the weak sisters have died off by now. I think that the people we are going to find now are going to be survivor types. I don't mean survivalists, just people who can think and figure out how to do things on their own."

"Yeah, you have to remember what part of the country we're going to be going through," Syl said. "This is redneck country. There are going to be a lot of people who survived in this area because these people were always self-sufficient. We're also going to see a lot more prejudice."

"If they're prejudiced, then fuck 'em," Bell said.

"Bell!" Brenda said.

"I mean it," Bell said with feeling. "Syl is one of the best friends I've ever had. If anyone says anything bad about her I'll kill their sorry ass."

I cracked up. Here was this girl, who had been so subdued when she was with Fouts, snarling like a bulldog. "Belinda," I said, "We'll take care of situations like that by not allowing the person to join us. There's really no need for you to kill anyone."

I knew that Bell wasn't really planning on killing anyone and so did Syl, but Syl was smiling from ear to ear.

-------

Day 194 - December 1

The past week went by very quickly for us. We did have a great Thanksgiving feast in which every villager participated. I had several talks with Martha Occhuizzo that week about preservation. She and one of the chemists came up with an idea for large Plexiglas boxes that would be gas tight for storing machinery. The machinery would be stored in the box and the atmosphere in the box would be replaced with an inert gas, eliminating corrosion.

We also talked about data storage and decided we'd probably use several different redundant methods. The latest DVDs will hold 23 gigabytes and will last for a hundred years if stored properly. CDs have nearly as long of a life expectancy, but hold much less data. Tape has a much shorter life span, but this can be extended with good storage techniques. IBM has a system that can address up to a million gigabytes, but would require much more maintenance.

Anyway, the morning finally came for us to leave on our recruiting trip. We had quite an entourage. Twenty-five people total, two of them children. Ten of us would be in our RV. The RV we would be traveling in was very spacious. The two girls immediately claimed the cubby over the cab as their bedroom. This left two more permanent beds and a sofa bed for the rest of us.

Each RV was equipped with a tow dolly for towing the five Chevrolet Suburbans we would be using. We didn't know how long it was going to take us for making the excursion, so we set up the first meeting to be in Knoxville on February 1st.

Our route would start out the same as when we made our trip to the east, at least until we got to Charleston, W.Va. We didn't expect to find many people through that area, but we diligently followed our route and branched out on both sides of the main highway. Even though Kentucky was comprised of mostly farmlands and horse ranches, we went through dozens of small towns and ended up spending the night in Ashland, KY.

We agreed before we left that our family would take turns as to who went in the Suburban and who went in the RV. Today, Tina, Sandy, Tiff and I went in the van. We were all tired when we pulled into the Wal-Mart on the southwest side of Ashland. The people who went in the RVs had gotten together and prepared a communal dinner for the entire group.

As we were eating, Brenda mused, "I wonder how the people who stayed at Hog Run are doing?"

"Would you like to make a run over and see?" I asked.

"No. I'd kind of be surprised if they are still together. None of the people who were left were leaders. You can't keep a group together unless there is at least one leader."

"I guess that's true. Speaking of leaders, you all realize that someday soon we're going to have to establish a government, don't you?"

"What do you mean?" Della asked.

"Well, right now, we have what amounts to a dictatorship. I'm in charge. That's okay for a community of a couple of hundred people. As our village grows, we're going to need more of a formal government. We're going to need someone who has overall responsibility, but we're also going to need other people who are in charge of specific things."

"We kind of have that now," Tina said. "Jim is in charge of construction, Glen is in charge of security. Jenny is in charge of animals. Bell and Lee are in charge of crops. Fred is in charge of the power plant. What more do we need?"

"What about new laws?" I asked. "Do the leaders have the right to make new laws? We need something to protect the peoples' rights. Maybe all we need is a constitution."

"I do think we need a constitution," Homer said. "I don't think we want anything like we had before though. Our leader should be elected. You were. I know some of you have been working on a set of laws. Maybe what we need to do is have everyone vote on the laws after you've finished writing them. At the same time, you could write up a Bill of Rights and everyone could vote on that."

"I agree with Homer, as far as he goes," Chris said. "I don't think we need a group of Congressmen making up laws for us. Maybe what we need is to allow anyone in the village submit anything they think should be made into a law to a review board. The board would have a set of guidelines they would use to determine if the suggestion would meet the requirements to become a law. If they thought it did, then it could be put to a vote by the entire village."

"That kind of makes sense," I said. "What kind of things would meet the requirements?"

"Well... First off, it would have to be such that it didn't infringe on the rights of anyone else. It would have to be something that wouldn't hurt the village or anyone in it. It could not be for personal gain. There are probably dozens of things we could think of that would keep a law from being enacted. This is just an idea."

"Okay, maybe we need to follow the US as an example and have a Constitution and a Bill of Rights. The Constitution could lay out the criteria for making laws. We have a lot to think about," I said.

Everyone agreed with that.



-------

Chapter 22

Day 195 - December 2

The next morning, Della and I were snuggled, drinking our coffee and talking about the plans for the day. She had expressed a desire to go in the van on the sign planting detail, so I was telling her what we did. As we talked, I was stroking her back, then I started stroking her butt.

Della smiled at me and pulled my other hand up to her breast. Evie, who was sitting across from us, smiled. As I was caressing Della's breast with my left hand, I was still stroking her butt with my right. I decided now would be a good time to escalate the touching, so I let my right hand move down the crack of her butt and let my middle finger slide across her anus.

Della let out a little gasp, but didn't flinch. Instead, she leaned her head over and kissed me. I rubbed her little rosebud for a minute, then let my fingers slide forward and gently trace her pussy lips. I didn't try to penetrate, I just let my fingers gently caress her outer lips. I could feel the moisture start to flow as I stroked her.

I let my hand slide back up to her butt and Della broke the kiss. "My God! That felt good."

"I'm glad it did, Sweetheart. Now, I think we'd better get breakfast started so we can get on the road."

Della and Evie got up and started for the kitchen. Evie leaned in and gave me a kiss as she passed.

-------

Even though we were branching out quite a bit and would be taking a zigzag course on our way to Florida, we knew we'd still be missing large portions of the country. We could only hope that people were moving about and would see our signs.

We decided to spend the night where we had met Tiff, in White Sulfur Springs, WV. What would have normally taken three hours to drive took us almost nine hours. We had to have visited at least thirty to forty little towns that day. When I say little, I mean little. A few of them had never had more than a hundred people living in them.

We pulled into the parking lot where we had met Tiffany and Eve. The RVs were already there and so was the van Tiff and Eve had been driving when we met them. The people who had traveled in the RVs had barbecue grills set up and the coals were already hot.

When the last of our vans had caught up with the RVs, steaks were put on the grills. We hadn't even turned them over when a strange car pulled into the parking lot. I'll have to hand it to our group. There was no wild scramble for weapons, but I did notice Tina and Syl disappeared.

Four people got out of the car, two men and two women. They walked over until they were about twenty feet from us and stopped. "Howdy," I said. "I'm Ed James. How are you folks today?"

"Hello, I'm Herb Winslow," one of the men said. "This is Al Green and the two ladies are our wives, Beth and Julie."

"It's nice to meet you folks," I said.

"I have to apologize to you, Mr. James. We've been following one of your vans most of the day. We read one of your flyers just after noon, and decided we wanted to meet you folks."

"No apology needed. Have you folks eaten? It'd be easy to throw four more steaks of the grill."

Herb looked at the other four people and when they nodded, he said, "I think we'd like that, if it isn't putting you out too badly."

"Not at all," I said. "Pull up some chairs and I'll introduce you to everyone."

After introductions were made and we were all sitting eating our steaks, Beth Winslow asked, "You have over twenty people with you. How many are in your village?"

"We have a little over 250 people," Brenda told her. "How many are in your group?"

"There are six families and five singles," Beth said. "Twenty-seven people total."

Brenda went on to explain to the new people about Weisberger.

"Do you really have electricity all of the time?" Julie asked.

"Yep, 24/7," Brenda said. "What are you guys doing for electricity?"

"We have a diesel generator," Herb said. "It works well enough, but we're concerned about what's going to happen in the future when the diesel runs out."

"Yeah, that's one of the reasons we started looking for some place with a hydroelectric power source," I said.

"What are your plans for the future?" Beth asked.

"We would like to have at least a couple of thousand people in our village," Brenda told her. "We're getting things set up right now for housing that many people and for food production. We're also starting a project for preserving information and equipment."

Herb was nodding the whole time. "The rest of our group don't even know you guys exist so we haven't talked to them, but what would it take for our group to join yours?"

"Well, Herb," I said. "We're trying to insure our village doesn't have any prejudice or abusers of any kind or any criminals. We'd have to interview every member of your group and we'd decide on each member individually."

"I guess I can understand that," Herb said. "It doesn't seem very trusting though."

"It's not very trusting," Syl said. "Ed and I have both been shot since IT happened. We've seen a lot of abusers and a lot of prejudice as well. We're pretty sure we can trust anyone in our village now with our lives. We want to keep it that way."

Julie asked how we had come to be shot and Syl filled them in on what had led up to both incidents. When Beth asked where our village was located, I said, "I'm sorry, Beth, but we won't give out that information. I will say it is around Lexington, KY."

"I can understand you being a little secretive," Beth said. "We're just outside Charleston and I wouldn't want to tell anyone exactly where until we trusted them completely."

We all talked for a while, and then Herb said they needed to get back to their village. They agreed that if their group or any part of their group wanted to join us they'd meet us in Knoxville.

After our visitors had gone, we discussed them. All of us agreed they seemed okay and we agreed we hoped they'd show up at Knoxville.

-------

Day 195 - December 2

Evie, Della and I were waiting for the rest of our family to get up and talking about the people we had met the night before. "They seemed okay," I said. "I wish we had talked a little about what skills any of them had."

"You seem a little hesitant about them. Was there something in particular that bothered you?" Evie asked.

"Not really. I guess it just seemed they were being a little too secretive. Almost everyone we've met so far has wanted to tell what they were doing when IT happened and how their group had formed. These people didn't even bring it up. Maybe I'm just becoming paranoid."

"I don't know, Ed... Your instincts have been good so far. If these people show up in Knoxville, we should make sure we interview them carefully."

"I did notice one thing," Della said and then hesitated.

"What was that, Honey?"

"The guy Al kept looking over at Syl, especially when she came over and sat on your lap. I couldn't tell if he was wanting to jump her bod or if he was thinking she shouldn't be with us."

"Did you notice that, Evie?"

"No. I did notice he didn't say much and that he seemed to fidget a lot."

"Well, it's something to think about when we interview them. In the mean time, I think the three of us should start breakfast for our lazy spouses. What do you guys think?"

-------

The area we would be going through today was one of the most beautiful in the country. The Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia have marvelous vistas, slow moving streams and raging rapids. It isn't one of the most populous areas of the country, but the people there knew how to live off of the land.

I was driving down a narrow country road when we saw something we hadn't seen, in at least the last six months, and never in the wild. A white tiger crossed the road maybe a couple of hundred feet in front of us. I stopped the van immediately and we watched the big cat to see what he would do.

The tiger wasn't in any hurry. He stopped and stared at us as if he was trying to decide if we'd make a good lunch. I don't know if it was the size of the van or if he couldn't figure out how to open the can, but he finally moved on across the road and into the forest.

We all gave each other a look of relief before I put the van back in gear and we took off. "I knew that we'd meet zoo animals someday," I said. "For the most part, I don't think they're going to be too big of a problem, at least for a long while."

"Why's that?" Syl asked.

"For one thing, I don't think that even that big guy could get across our fence at the village. For another, there are just too many horses, cattle, sheep and hogs running around loose right now. It is much easier for that guy to kill a cow than for him to try to break into the village."

I hoped what I said had relieved the women. I still had chills running up and down my spine.

We were just talking about stopping and eating lunch when the CB came alive. "Help! We need help!"

It was Bell's voice. I grabbed the CB microphone and keyed it up. "What's going on, Bell. Where are you?"

"Ed, Homer was putting up a sign when six women came out from behind a building. They're holding Homer at gunpoint. They haven't tried to break into the van as yet, but a couple of them are pointing guns at me too. We're in Buenavista."

"We're only about seven or eight miles from you, Bell. We're on our way."

"Hurry, Ed. One of them is coming toward the van right now."

By now our van was hitting seventy. "Can you hear what they are saying, Bell?"

"No, they weren't talking very loud. We had the CD player going and I just turned it off. The one that was coming to the van is tapping on the window with her gun barrel."

"Talk to her, Bell. We're almost there."

There was silence for a couple of minutes then Bell came back on the CB. "It's okay, Ed. At least I think it is. Evidently they were just being cautious. They know you're coming, so they shouldn't react when you get here."

"Okay, Bell. We're going to be a little cautious ourselves though. We're almost there."

"Gotcha."

When we pulled up, about twenty feet behind Homer's van, Homer and Bell were laughing and talking with six women.

Della and I got out of our van and started toward the group while Tina and Syl moved behind the van. As we walked up, Homer introduced us to all of the women. Patty Long was a medium sized brunette in her early twenties who had been a waitress and had been taking courses at a community college. Janet Davis, an early thirties red head, had been an Emergency Medical Technician.

Dinah Hunt and Alice Conyer were both schoolteachers and had actually worked in the same school district. Each had known who the other was before IT happened, but they hadn't been friends.

Carolyn (Caro) Washington was a nice looking black lady in her early thirties. Caro had worked with crippled children as a physical therapist. Tessa Albright had been a college freshman.

Patty and Tessa were the two most outgoing of the group and carried on most of the conversation. "You know," Patty said, as she looked Homer and me up and down. "We were beginning to wonder if there were any good men left."

"There are a lot more women than men now," I said. "We do have around fifty men in our village though. There are also around two hundred women."

"So, if you don't bring your own man, you're out of luck?" Tessa asked.

"Not necessarily," Tina said. "Ed has six wives and most men have three or four wives."

"Does that work?" Caro asked.

"It does for us," Syl said as she walked over and joined the conversation.

"I'd think there'd be a lot of jealousy," Patty said.

"Not really. Everyone has to accept that life has changed. Once you accept that and realize that you either share a man or do without, most of us decide to share."

"What happens when Ed shows favoritism?" Tessa asked.

"Ed doesn't show favoritism," Tina said. "He loves each of us equally and we all love him and we love each other."

"Homer doesn't show favoritism either," Bell said. "He only has two wives, but he loves us both equally."

"Wow. That sounds too good to be true," Patty said. "What are you guys doing out here in the wilds of Virginia?"

Tina handed each of them one of our flyers and said, "We're trying to find people to join our village."

When the women had finished reading the flyers, they all looked at each other and nodded. "What do we need to do to sign up?" Tessa asked.

"Well, you could meet us in Knoxville or you could go along with us and help us put up signs," Homer said. "We'll need to interview each of you individually though."

"Could we talk about this for a minute?" Patty asked.

"Sure," I said.

They walked off about twenty feet and stood close together talking. We could see a lot of smiles and a lot of head nodding. In a couple of minutes they came back and Patty asked, "Would it be okay if we wanted to go with you now?"

"I think we would enjoy that," I said.

"We could interview you tonight," Tina said. "We were going to try to make it to Richmond today."

"I don't think we're going to make it that far, Sweety," I said. "We can call the RVs and have them stop in Staunton. Do you ladies have anything to travel in?"

"We've been staying in an RV," Tessa said. "It's brand new and should be fine to travel in."

"Okay, why don't you follow us or Homer. When we stop for the day, we'll do your interviews. Primarily, we're trying to weed out abusers, people who are prejudiced, and criminals. We also give each of you a quick physical to insure you haven't been abused. One of our wives is a doctor."

"I can vouch for the fact that none of us are prejudiced," Caro said. "We're more like sisters than friends. I don't think any of us would mind a physical."

"How do we prove we weren't criminals?" Tessa asked.

"You don't really have to prove it," Tina said. "We assume you aren't. I wouldn't worry about any of it if I were you."

"Our RV is just about a block down the street," Patty said and pointed in the direction of the RV.

"There are only two people in your van, Homer," Tessa said. "I was wondering if I could ride with you and help you put up signs."

"I was thinking the same thing," Patty said.

"I don't see that that would be a problem," Bell said. "It would make sign planting a lot easier."

Dinah and Alice went off to get their RV while the rest of us talked. They were back within a few minutes and we all loaded up.

When we were all back in our van, Della said with a giggle, "I think Homer has two new wives."

"Why do you say that?" I asked.

"Didn't you see how they were looking at him?" Della asked.

"I certainly did," Tina said. "They'll swallow him whole if Brenda and Bell go along with it."

-------

We managed to get hold of the RVs and the other vans and arranged to meet in Staunton, VA. When we all pulled in to the parking lot of the strip mall where the RVs were waiting for us, we introduced the newcomers to the rest of our group. It was still early in the day and our people who had been in the RVs hadn't even thought about starting dinner as yet.

I noticed right away that Della was probably right about Patty and Tessa. Most of us had pulled up lawn chairs in the parking lot and were getting to know the new people. We were still vigilant for attacking dogs, but there didn't seem to be nearly as many in or near the cities as there used to be. I assumed this was because there just wasn't enough food to support them in cities.

Homer seemed to have an entourage. Brenda and Bell were sitting on either side of him and Patty and Tessa were sitting three quarters toward facing him. Homer had come a long way since we'd met him, but he still blushed when Tessa or Patty asked him a question.

He really started blushing when Brenda and Bell started teasing him about going nude. The weather was just a little too cold for outdoor nudity or I'm sure some or all of my lovlies would have been setting the mood with a little nudity of their own.

I could tell that Bell really seemed to like the new women, and Brenda seemed to be taking to them as well. After a while, Bell suggested they show Patty and Tessa their RV and the five of them disappeared for almost an hour.

Caro Washington was an interesting lady. She told us that the reason she had become a physical therapist working with crippled children was because of her younger brother. "He was born with a birth defect," Caro said. "His right knee wouldn't move at all. They did surgery on his leg when he was a baby and straightened the leg, but then they stopped doing anything at all for him. I think it was because we were poor blacks."

"Caro," I said. "I'm sorry to say there was a lot of that kind of thinking before IT and there's still a lot of it now. One of our primary concerns in our new community is to not let people who think that way in."

Syl smacked Della on the butt and made her move off my lap so she could sit down. "He's telling you the truth," Syl said. "He and Tina already had flyers printed up saying no one who was prejudiced could join us, even before they met me. I think that's one of the reasons I fell in love with him."

"I wish I had found someone like you guys before IT," Caro said. "My husband was black and he was just as prejudiced against whites as any redneck was against blacks. He was a real pain in the ass to live with."

"My husband was to some extent, but he wasn't really too bad," Syl told her.

"Mine was always complaining that what the white people did to the blacks five generations ago was why black men were still having it so rough. I know there was still prejudice, I experienced a lot of it myself, but there were also many black people who had gotten ahead in the world. There were black doctors and lawyers and executives in business and high-ranking military officers. Anyone, black or white, could make it if they really tried."

"I agree with you to some extent, but there were still things that were still stacked against the blacks. Take schools for instance," I said.

"Okay, let me ask you this," Caro said. "Were the schools made bad because there were going to be black students in them, or did the black students take a perfectly good school and turn it into something bad?"

"I don't have an answer for you," I said. "Are you talking about the school building or the quality of education?"

"Both. If you're a student, I don't care if you're black, white, yellow, or red. If you use your race or religion or economic status as an excuse for not trying, then you're going to fail. Failure leads to violence and despair. Despair leads to drug abuse."

"I guess I'd never thought it through. What you are saying makes a lot of sense. What have you been doing since IT happened?"

"The same as you," Caro said. "Surviving. I think Alice and Dinah probably got together first, didn't you guys?"

"I would imagine," Dinah said. "We lived within ten miles of each other. We were teachers in the same school district, but not in the same school. I knew who Alice was, but we weren't friends."

"Both of us heard about what was happening right away. I was married and my husband was in Miami attending a seminar when the bombs started going off. I tried to get in touch with him, but I never heard from him again," Alice said.

"I was single and was between boyfriends, so I wasn't really close to anyone at the time IT happened. My parents had both died a few years before and I didn't have any siblings. I guess that made it a little easier on me than it did on some," Dinah said. "I actually went in to school the day after the missiles hit. Everything was chaos. There were so many kids that were sick that they closed the school."

"I didn't even bother going in," Alice said. "I'd been watching TV almost all night. I started out with CNN, but then almost every station went to an all news format, so I was kind of switching back and forth between channels."

"When people started dying, I think both of us decided the safest thing would be to stay away from other people. I know I didn't stick my head outside my house for almost two weeks. I wouldn't have gone out then, but I was running out of food," Dinah said.

"We ran into each other scrounging for food," Alice said. "We may not have been friends before, but it was like seeing a long lost sister. Almost everyone who was going to die had passed by then, so we were feeling very alone."

"We had no idea what the situation was like. Intellectually, we knew there had to be other survivors, but emotionally we felt like we were the last ones alive. We spent another couple of weeks just enjoying each other's company before we started looking for other people. Actually, it was Alice who came up with the idea of using an RV."

"My husband and I had been talking for years about buying an RV. Both of us enjoyed camping and an RV just seemed to make sense. The problem was, they were just too expensive to buy and then to operate. Now, they seemed the best way to get out and look for other survivors."

"We found an RV and got it running. We talked a lot about where to go looking for others. We were thinking about trying to get to Miami to see if we could find Alice's husband, but we finally decided he'd be trying to get home to check on her if he was alive. We left a note on her house that we were looking for survivors and took off toward Washington."

"Washington was a bust. There wasn't a single soul who came forth to see who we were. We did run into a very weird couple in Maryland. They were convinced God was punishing us for our iniquitous ways. They scared us, so we didn't tell them where we were from."

"We saw a couple of dead guys in Arlington," Dinah said. "They were in the middle of a street in front of a jewelry store. There were two motorcycles near them and a bag of diamonds spilling out on the street. It looked like they had shot each other over the diamonds."

"Now that is weird," I said. "We ran into one guy who had a suitcase full of paper money. I guess that's even stranger."

"Yeah," Syl said. "I can only think of a couple of things paper money would be good for now. One of them would be for starting fires."

"What would the other one be?" I asked, knowing I really shouldn't.

"Toilet paper," Syl said with a big grin.

Everyone got a giggle over that.

-------

Day 196 - December 3

Evie, Della and I were snuggled together, having our morning coffee when Cindi came in. She didn't drink coffee yet, but Evie fixed her a cup of hot chocolate.

"So, are you enjoying the trip so far?" I asked her.

"Yeah, it's okay," she said. "I enjoy watching the scenery and I enjoy watching everyone."

"You're a people watcher, are you?"

Cindi giggled. "People are fun to watch. Sometimes they do the silliest things. They don't think other people notice what they're doing, especially a little kid."

"Like what?" I asked.

"Well, like when you guys start petting on each other in the evening. Kammie and I know we're going to be hearing funny noises coming out of your bedroom."

I know I had to be blushing a bright red. "Oh, you little minx," I said and grabbed her and started tickling her.

Cindi isn't as ticklish as Kammie, but I got a nice giggle out of her anyway. "I was watching Patty and Tessa with Homer, Bell, and Brenda last night. I'll bet there were funny noises coming out of Homer's bedroom after they went to bed," Cindi said.

"Why do you say that?" Evie asked.

"They all kept touching each other on the arms or shoulders and they all kept looking into each others' eyes and making lovey faces."

Evie looked at me and winked. "I think she may be right," she said.

"Well, they seem like nice girls," I said.

"I have to agree. I'm a little protective of Homer I guess. He's not nearly as naive as he was when we met him, but he's not a sophisticate either."

"Homer may be naive, but Brenda isn't and Bell has become a terrier. Homer may protect that family physically, but Brenda and Bell are the ones who are going to protect them emotionally."

-------

We made it to Norfolk that day and decided we wanted to spend at least one day exploring the area. I definitely wanted to explore the naval yards. I remembered reading somewhere that the Norfolk Naval Station was the largest in the world.

Della, Tina and I went over to Homer's RV after dinner to talk with him about it. Nor surprisingly, Patty and Tessa were there.

"You know, Homer, the Norfolk Naval Station is one of the largest in the world," I said, starting the conversation.

"Yeah, I had heard that. I've never been here, but I read somewhere that there were over a hundred ships stationed here. There are more than seven miles of docks."

"One of the things I was wanting to do while we're here is look for signs that anyone has been here recently. There had to be a lot of ships at sea when IT happened. Some of them probably survived IT."

"I remember hearing of battles between Chinese aircraft and ships. Some were probably taken out by enemy planes, but there should have still been some that survived."

"Yeah, most nuclear powered aircraft carriers had a crew of over three thousand people. I would imagine there were a lot more men than women."

"I had to do a paper on women in the military not long before IT happened," Tina said. "If I remember right, women made up less than ten percent of the crew."

"If I had been the captain of a carrier and I knew what was going on, I think I'd have waited as long as I could before going ashore," I said. "Some ships could stay out for months at a time."

"What do you think would be the attitude of a ship's captain? Would he declare himself president or military governor? Would he try to enforce all of the old laws?" Homer asked.

"That's something I've been worrying about, Buddy. The one good thing that's come out of this disaster has been ridding us of all of the old restrictions. Our Congressmen didn't pay much attention to the wants or needs of their constituents. Did you ever know of a Congressman who checked with the people in their district about how they should vote on an issue? I didn't. I've become too independent over the last few months to go back living the way we did before."

"Yeah, that was what I was thinking too. So, how are we going to handle this?"

"I think we need to check out the naval base, but I think we need to be very careful when we do," I said.

"Why don't you, Homer, and I check out the naval base while Jim, Fred, and Nat check out the air station?" Tina said.

"What do you think, Homer?"

"That sounds good to me. I'll let Jim know what we're going to do so they can be ready in the morning."

"Do you really think there might be a problem with military men wanting to take over?" Tessa asked.

"I just don't know, so I think we need to be careful. It's the military mind set that worries me, Tessa. There's one person in charge, then he has a group of people who are directly under him. Each of these people have a group of people who report to them and so on, right down to the grunt who actually does the work. It's a lot different in our village."

"From what Homer tells us, you're in charge in the village. He says there are people in charge of different activities, but they all report to you. How is that different?"

"Okay, let's take Homer as an example. Homer, who do you work for?"

"No one, really. Rob and I get together and decide which aircraft need servicing, then I just figure out when I want to do it."

"So, you don't feel like you report to me or to Rob?"

"No, I have a responsibility that I chose to accept. I don't think you or Rob either one ever told me to do something."

"Okay, I agree. You're pretty much your own boss. Before long you're going to have a crew of mechanics working for you. You'll have to tell them what has to be done and you'll have to supervise them until you know they know how to do the job as well as you do. Is that going to be like the chain of command in the military, or is it going to be like a supervisor on a job breaking in new employees?"

"Oh, definitely more like the supervisor on a job."

"Do you see the difference, Tessa?" I asked.

"I'm not sure," Tessa said.

"Okay, you heard Homer say how we do things about aircraft maintenance. In the military, General A would publish a directive that aircraft would be maintained on a schedule appropriate for each aircraft. The staff officers in the aircraft maintenance section would have studies done on each aircraft and then they'd have directives written up as to how and when each type of aircraft would be scheduled for maintenance. These directives would specify what was to be done to each type of aircraft when maintenance was performed. Do you follow me so far?"

"Yes."

"Now, the directives are passed down to the officer in charge of maintaining the aircraft. The officer has a crew assigned to each type of aircraft and he passes the appropriate directive to each crew. Now, PFC B is working on an aircraft and he sees something wrong. Does he fix it?"

"Uh, I don't know."

"No, he doesn't. It isn't in the scheduled maintenance he is performing. He goes to his boss, Master Sgt. C and tells him about the problem. Master Sgt, C then goes to his boss, Lt. D and explains that something has come up that needs to be fixed. Lt. D requests permission to fix the problem. Once he has permission, he tells Master Sgt. C to go ahead, then the Master Sgt. tells the PFC to go ahead. If it was Homer or someone in his crew who found a problem, they'd just go ahead and fix it."

"And you wouldn't even know or care that it was done or how it was done," Tessa said.

"That's right. The military is very structured. No one does anything without the permission of their supervisor. Permission can be either explicit or tacit, but it has to be there. We are a lot more relaxed and I'd like to keep it that way."

"Okay, this may sound crass, but in some ways I like how it is now better than I liked the way it was before," Tessa said.

"In many ways I do too," Patty said. "Before it happened I was working my butt off trying to keep enough money ahead so I could continue talking classes so that someday I'd have a job that supported me comfortably. The people whom I served in the restaurant where I worked were almost universally rude. Oh, there were exceptions, but most of them seemed to feel that I was responsible for the prices and for the quality of the food."

"Being a waitress is a tough occupation," Brenda said. "I did it for a few months. I wouldn't have wanted to have done it for any length of time."

"Things aren't a bed of roses now, Patty," I said. "We all work to keep the village going. A lot of us work at things we didn't do before IT. Tiffie was a microbiologist before IT, now she helps with whatever needs done. Evie and I are the same. There's not much call for a psychologist now and a virologist is completely useless."

"I don't mind getting my hands dirty, Ed. It's just that now I won't have to put up with rich bitches who think the pate is overpriced and 'just tastes funny'."

"No, there are no rich bitches now," I laughed. "If you get lonesome for that kind of treatment though, Joann McConnel was a society matron before IT. Now, she's a sweetheart, but she can still put on the act."

"Yeah, she's hilarious when she starts in on her rich bitch act," Tina said.



-------

Chapter 23

Day 197 - December 4

Until Syl had become pregnant, she had always been one of the first ones to get up. After she had gotten pregnant, she had started sleeping later. Now, it was always Evie and me and usually Della who shared our morning snuggle.

Evie is always a delight to snuggle and talk with. She wakes up bright eyed and ready to talk about anything. Della on the other hand is there physically, but doesn't say much for the first half hour or so. She usually puts her arms around me and buries her head in my neck while trying to push her substantial breasts through my chest.

Evie is more inclined to kiss and nibble as we talk. This morning we were talking about what we might expect to find at the naval station.

"You know, Love, I'm almost afraid to meet anyone who was in command of a ship," Evie said.

"I have the same feelings, but tell me why you feel that way."

"Well... Advancement in the military is very competitive. The percentage of officers who don't care about advancement is very small. Say you have an Admiral in the navy. He's used to commanding thousands of men and women. If he finds himself in a position where he thinks his command may be the major portion of the people left on earth, he may just decide that since he is in command of them, he should be in command of everyone."

"I can see that. In fact I was talking with Homer about that last night. Even if that's not the case, he might feel that anyone he isn't in command of should be supporting the people he is in command of. In other words, he may try to tax civilians to support them. Taxes would probably take the form of fresh produce or something like that," I said.

"Yeah, I figure a military commander has two choices. He can realize that there is no longer a United States and tell his people to disperse and take care of themselves, or he can try to keep his command together. If he keeps them together, he has to either go through what we're going through and try to get a self sustaining community going, or he can try to take what he wants from people who have become self sufficient."

"So, what do you think that means to us?"

"From the navy, I'm not sure. We're quite a ways inland. With their weapons and their numbers, they could probably take us over easily, but would it be worthwhile? For us to be of real value to them, they'd have to move us closer or they'd have to transport the food a long way. That is if they wanted to stay on or near their ship. If they decided to move where we are then we'd be in real trouble. They'd probably want us to provide housing as well as food."

"You're painting a grim picture," I told her.

"I know. It's all conjecture. They could be as docile as lambs. They could decide to split up where everyone is on their own. They could form groups, either peaceful of otherwise. Who knows. I think mostly it depends on the commander."

The whole time Evie and I had been talking, Della had remained quiet. I had been holding her and stroking her back. Now, she decided to join the conversation. "I think contacting anyone in the military is dangerous. I can see where having more men in the village would be advantageous, but I'm afraid they'd just try to take over."

"That worries me too, Della. It's not that I'm afraid of not being in charge. I do have a dream though of how I want our village to evolve and I'm afraid that would be lost under military rule."

"So, what are you saying?" Evie asked.

"I'm saying I'd like to find out if any ships have visited Norfolk since IT happened, but I'm not interested in making contact with them. I don't want to leave any traces that we've been here," I said.

"I can understand that," Evie said. "We'll just have to be careful not to leave any traces."

-------

Before long, Jim, Fred, Nat and Homer came in, so I sent Della to wake up Tina. Tina wandered out, got herself some coffee, and claimed a place on my lap while Della and Evie started breakfast.

"So, guys," I said. "Evie, Della and I have been talking about some of the consequences of making contact with a military force. We don't know for sure what would happen, but we don't feel it is advisable to take the chance."

"I think we've all been thinking about that," Jim said. "So, how are we going to handle this?"

"I think we need to go in and look around. We need to try to determine if anyone has been either at the naval station or the naval air station since IT happened, but we don't want to leave any tracks. There could have been looters here, or a ship could have come in and gone, or a ship could still be here. If there is a ship here or there are people here, get out immediately."

"Okay, that makes sense," Homer said. "If there is anyone chasing you, head in the opposite direction from the RVs. We can make contact later by CB."

"Good idea, Homer."

-------

The naval station was almost a letdown. We explored the docks and saw several ships tied up to them. Using binoculars, we watched each ship, looking for any movement, but saw none. When we were sure there was no one within sight, we explored the stores areas.

The one thing we did find of interest was a notice posted on one of the buildings.

-------

Captain Jacob Roberts
USS John C. Stennis

To whom it may concern:

The USS John C. Stennis was in dock for provisioning on November 1st. We will return to this station on March 1st. Contact us on emergency frequency 5.

Civilians are warned to stay away from this station.

-------

"Do you have any idea what kind of ship the USS John C. Stennis is, Homer?" I asked.

"I have no idea. Maybe Glen would know. He was in the navy. Betty French was too."

"Good idea. I don't think we're going to find anything else around here, guys. Let's get back to the RVs.

-------

It was around 2:00 PM when Jim's group got back from the air station. They had managed to find a little more than we had.

"There were at least three planes we believe were flown in here after IT happened," Jim told us. "I'm not sure what kind of planes they are. They look to be two seated fighter planes. There's also one of those big jobbies that has the big radar antenna on the top. I'm not sure if it came in before or after IT."

"I wonder where they could have come from," I said. "We'll probably never know."

Tina came out of the RV and came over and sat on my lap. "Glen didn't know about the USS John C. Stennis," she said. "Betty did though. It is the ship she was on leave from when IT happened. It is a nuclear powered aircraft carrier."

"Wow! That means a crew of over three thousand, at least," I said.

"Yeah, they're like a city that floats on water," Homer said. "Maybe Betty can tell us something about the Captain. We'll be better off if we know everything we can find out about him."

"You're right, Homer," Jim said. "Did anyone put up any signs around Norfolk?"

Everyone talked it over and none of us could remember putting any signs up within ten miles or so of town. "I don't think we should put up any when we leave in the morning," Jim said. "These guys are probably going to stay close to the station when they're in port, at least for the next time or two they come in. After that, we'll have already had our Knoxville meeting and it won't matter if they see signs or not."

Tina had been looking very thoughtful and now she spoke up again. "Maybe we should get Betty to meet us somewhere so we could pick her brain about the ship. I imagine what they're doing is visiting all of the ports and major cities up and down the east coast, looking for survivors. That's what I'd be doing anyway. Betty might have a better insight."

"That makes sense," I said. "I was thinking of heading for Raleigh tomorrow. It's less than two hundred miles. We could plan to stay at the Raleigh-Durham airport tomorrow night. They could meet us there."

"I'll go get them on the radio," Tina said. Then she kissed me until my toes curled and went inside the RV.

Della had been standing around on the fringes of the group. Now, she decided that Tina's absence was a good excuse for claiming my lap. She snuggled in and gave me a big smile, so I kissed her on the forehead and hugged her close.

I couldn't help but notice that Bell, Brenda, Tessa, and Patty had pulled up chairs close to Homer. I whispered to Della, "Homer's in deep trouble."

Della giggled and hugged me. "I think someone else is in deep trouble, but he just doesn't know it yet," she whispered.

"Who is that?" I asked quietly.

"You. I think it's time I became your wife instead of your daughter."

"You're not afraid any more?"

"You've been touching my pussy for a few days now. I don't get afraid, I just get wet."

"Yes, I've noticed a puddle on my leg a few times," I grinned.

Della pulled back then hit me on the shoulder. She leaned back in and gave me a five-alarm kiss. When we broke apart, I asked in a whisper, "Have you talked to my wives about this?"

Della nodded her head and whispered, "They all agree it's time. I love you, Ed, and I love all of them as well. I think I've found what I was looking for in life. It's not like the little girl dreams I had, but it is much better."

"I'm just sorry you had to go through everything you went through," I told her. "I think I fell in love with you the day I met you. You were so brave signaling Tina that something was wrong. Then, even though I'm sure you were as afraid as Bev was, you were the first to volunteer to testify against Blackstone. I fell in love with your courage, then later on with the beautiful young woman who had that courage."

"I didn't and don't feel courageous, Ed. I was afraid of being alone and I was afraid of being with people. I was especially afraid of men. You and our family helped me get over those fears. I could have stayed back at the village while you guys went on this trip. I just didn't want to."

"I'll have to admit, I didn't want you to either. Neither did any of our wives. Every one of us loves you, Della. Every one of us wants you with us."

"So, when do you want to do this?" Della asked.

"Do what? Play with your pussy?"

Della pulled back and hit me on the shoulder again. "No, dummy. When do you want to marry me?"

"I think you should talk to my wives about that."

Della kissed me again, then bounced off of my lap and ran into the RV.

-------

"So, what were you two being so secretive about?" Bell asked.

"We were discussing the possibility of Della becoming my wife instead of my daughter, Bell."

Bell was grinning from ear to ear when she asked, "I take it she's all for that?"

"Yeah, I was perfectly content with her being my daughter, but I'm definitely not opposed to her as a wife."

Bell giggled then looked over at Homer. "Is it okay to make our announcement now, Homey?"

Homer blushed then nodded.

"Patty and Tessa are going to become members of our family as well. We've only known them a couple of days, but we've gotten to know them well. We haven't decided when we're going to have the ceremony as yet, but it will be soon."

"The sooner the better as far as I'm concerned," Tessa said. "I've never felt toward anyone the way I feel for these guys."

"Same here," Patty said. "It's not just Homer. Brenda and Bell are like sisters to me. I love every one of them."

"Patty, how did you guys end up with the rest of your group?" I asked.

"Well, Tessa and I were going to the same college. As far as we know we'd never seen each other before IT happened. I was working as a waitress and going to school part time. Tessa was a freshman."

"A clueless freshman," Tessa said. "I was still living at home and it was almost like the thirteenth grade in high school. I hadn't really gotten into campus life. Actually, Patty is responsible for us meeting."

"It was almost a month after IT happened when I started getting desperate for some company. I didn't know what to do, but I figured everyone would have to stock up on food sometime. I put up a sign in a grocery store and said I'd be there at noon every day."

"Patty said it was only the second day after she put the sign up when I saw it. I had gone to the store right after breakfast to see if I could find something better than what I had at home to eat. I saw the sign and my heart did a flip. I didn't even go home. I stayed right there until noon."

"When I pulled up, Tessa was standing there with a big grin on her face. I know I was grinning so big my face hurt as I got out of the car. We ran to each other and threw our arms around each other. I'll bet we hugged each other for five minutes before we even introduced ourselves."

"I was so excited at seeing someone else I almost peed my pants," Tessa said. "Neither of us had thought of an RV as yet, but Patty had a camp stove set up so we could cook."

"My family had been into camping, so we started thinking how nice an RV would be. We hadn't gotten around to looking for one when Alice and Dinah showed up. They had seen my sign in the grocery store and waited until noon to see if we were still coming at noon every day."

"I think I was almost as tickled to see them as I had been seeing Patty."

-------

At dinner, Chris said we should have a family meeting. After everyone had finished eating and we had cleaned up the kitchen, we all gathered in the living area.

"Della told us this afternoon that she was ready to get married and that Ed had agreed to marry her. We've all talked about this before and everyone agreed they wanted her to join our family. Would anyone have any objections to us having the ceremony tomorrow morning?" Chris asked.

No one had any objections, so Evie said, "Della, you know you don't have to rush into anything don't you?"

"You mean like sex?" Della asked.

"Eewh," Kammie and Cindi said in unison.

"Yes, Evie, but I'm ready for that too... More than ready."

"Eewh," Kammie and Cindi said again.

We all got a laugh out of that. When we went to bed sometime later, a very naked Della cuddled up to one side of me. Syl was on the other side of me and Tina snuggled up behind Della.

Day 198 - December 5

We all had tears streaming from our eyes when we exchanged our vows the next morning. I now, as Evie had so aptly put it a while back, had a wife for every day of the week. I was beginning to feel like the guy from St, Ives.

-------

This is a reference to a riddle I heard when I was a kid. The riddle goes like this:

(As I was going to St. Ives, I met a man with seven wives. Every wife had seven cats and every cat had seven kittens. Man, kits, cats and wives, how many were going to St. Ives?)

Anyone care to try it?

-------

All of us would have liked to take some time to welcome Della to the family, but we also wanted and needed to get away from Norfolk. We had breakfast and when everyone else was up and ready, we hit the road.

There weren't many small towns or side roads in the area we were going through, so most of us were in a pretty good sized caravan traveling down US58 when we saw someone approaching us on a motorcycle.

Tina got on the radio and told everyone to stop, but to be ready for trouble. I got out of the RV and stood in the middle of the road as the guy slowly approached us. Tina, Syl, and Homer joined me before the guy even got close to us.

The man stopped his motorcycle about twenty feet from us, got off of the bike, and took off his helmet. "Hello, folks," he said as he extended his right hand and started walking toward us. "My name is Haslow T. Freemantle, but everyone calls me Hasty."

"Hello, Hasty. I'm Ed James and these ladies are my wives, Syl and Tina. The big guy here is Homer."

I watched him as Hasty shook hands with everyone. He was around 5'10" tall and weighed around 220 pounds. He wasn't fat, just big. His shoulders were so broad he looked like he'd have to turn sideways to get into an elevator.

"This is the most people I've seen since the epidemic," Hasty said. "Where are you folks headed?"

"We're out recruiting people for our village, Hasty. We've got around 250 people in it now, and we'd like to have a couple of thousand."

Tina had gotten on her radio and asked someone to bring out a flyer while I was telling him this. Della brought it out and stood beside me while he read it.

His eyes lighted up as he was reading. "This sounds great," he said. "What do I have to do to join you?"

"Well, we'd need to interview you first, but that's about it. The only people we are trying to exclude are criminals, racists, and abusers. We've turned away a few of each, but we really do want and need everyone we can get."

"Do you really mean what you say here about prejudice?" Hasty asked.

"We sure do, Haslow," Syl told him. "That goes both ways though."

Hasty nodded. "It'd have to," he said. "Would it be okay if I followed you guys? You could interview me this evening then."

"That'd be great, but do you really want to keep the motorcycle? You could store your stuff in one of our RVs and we could interview you as we drive if we abandoned the motorcycle."

"I don't really have any attachment for the bike," Hasty said. "That would probably be a good idea."

By now almost everyone had come up to meet the new guy. Caro Washington introduced herself and said, "We have a lot of room in our RV, Hasty. Why don't you store your stuff there?"

Hasty was grinning from ear to ear as Caro, Dinah, Alice, and Janet helped him unload his bike and carry everything into their RV. We were back on the road before long. Tina took over driving so the rest of us could talk to Hasty.

Hasty had been working as an auto mechanic in southern California when IT happened. "If you had been in California, how did you end up here?" I asked.

"I came back to Tennessee to check on my mama," he said. "I grew up near Chattanooga. I thought that since I hadn't come down with the disease that she might have been spared as well. That wasn't the case though."

"I'm sorry to hear that," I said. "So, what were you doing when I met you?"

"I was out looking for people. It gets lonely after a while. I'd better warn you guys about something I ran into. I was heading down I-95 a couple of days ago and some clowns had a roadblock across the interstate."

"Did you see the people or talk to them?"

"No. I saw the roadblock and I stopped a couple of hundred yards from it. I still had the bike running, in neutral, when they shot at me. The shot hit the pavement just in front of and to the left of me. I kicked the bike into gear and got out of there fast."

"That's weird," I said. "It looks like they'd have wanted to let you get close before they tried anything."

"Yeah, I thought so too. There were several campers pulled off to the side of the road close to where the shot came from. I still had my helmet on, so I just barely heard the shot."

"We're planning on going down I-95. Was this north or south of US-64?"

"It was about twenty miles south of US-64," Hasty answered. "Which way are you guys going?"

"We'll be heading west on US-64 to Raleigh. We're supposed to meet some of our group at the Raleigh-Durham airport this afternoon."

"There shouldn't be a problem then. The people you're going to meet aren't coming that way are they?"

"No, they'll be coming in by helicopter," I told him.

"Cool. I was a helicopter mechanic when I was in the army. Do you guys have anyone to work on them?"

"Homer was an aircraft mechanic. We can always use more though."

"That's what I wanted to do when I got out of the army. I couldn't find a job though, so I had to work as an auto mechanic."

"Were you married, Hasty?"

"No. I never married. I guess I just never found the right woman. I always wanted to get married and have a family, but it just never happened for me."

"Okay, I'm sorry to have to ask you this, but it's something we ask everyone. Were you ever in jail?"

Hasty laughed. "No, there were probably a few times I should have been while I was growing up, but I never was. I used to like to race motorcycles. Mainly on country roads. That's pretty stupid, but somehow I managed to survive until my brain started working."

I looked over at Evie and she smiled and nodded. I glanced at all of my other wives and they nodded as well. I was glad they did because I really liked this guy. "Hasty, you can consider the interview over. We'd like for you to join us if you are interested."

"Oh, I'm interested alright. You people seem to be just what I've been looking for."

-------

We hadn't been at the Raleigh-Durham airport more than half an hour when we heard a helicopter coming in. It was early afternoon and no one was in a hurry to get dinner ready, so we had all pulled chairs outside and were just enjoying the mild weather.

As nice as the weather was, I was kind of surprised when Della sat on my lap and pulled a blanket around us. She had a big smile as she snuggled in, then she took my hand and pulled it up under her shirt to cup her breast. I looked into her eyes and smiled. She smiled back and kissed me on the end of my nose.

"You know," Homer said. "That sounds like an Apache."

"Really?" I asked.

"Yeah, an Apache has a distinctive sound. That sounds just like one... By gosh, it is an Apache!"

Let me tell you, an Apache helicopter pointed straight at you is a fearsome sight. I started to get up, but Della moaned, so I figured, what the hell. If I die I'm already in heaven.



-------

Chapter 24

The bird landed about a hundred feet from us and after it was shut down, Rob and Betty climbed out. They both had smiles that would have lighted the airport.

"Hey, guys," Rob said as they walked over. I noticed they were holding hands. "I'll bet you didn't expect to see an attack copter, did you?"

"No. Where'd you get it?" I asked.

"Fort Knox. We picked it up yesterday. With those outside fuel tanks, it has a range of almost eleven hundred miles. I'm going to train Les and Betty to fly it too."

"That sounds good," I said and looked down pointedly at his and Betty's locked hands.

Rob grinned and blushed. "Betty is now one of my wives," he said as he grinned at Betty.

"Well, congratulations. Della is now one of my wives," I said as I gave her a big squeeze. Della was smiling from ear to ear.

I introduced Hasty to Rob and Betty and told them he was an aircraft mechanic. After everything had settled down I asked, "So, Betty, can you tell us anything about this Captain Jacob Roberts?"

"Probably more than you want to hear," Betty said. "Admiral Prentis should be on board as well and if he is we don't have a problem. Prentis is a good man. He's calm under fire and he's fair to everyone. Captain Roberts is just the opposite."

"How do you mean?"

"Well, let's take a for instance. Women make up about ten percent of the crew of the Stennis. Women use tampons. Captain Roberts said the usage of tampons was far too great and demanded that the female crew members cut down on their use. He put up a proclamation that female members of the crew would cut the use of tampons by ten percent."

"That's stupid," I said. "What did the women do?"

"They started using more pads to cut down on tampon usage. Then Roberts threw a fit and put up a notice that if the usage of tampons and pads didn't decrease he was going to quit supplying them to the crew."

"What happened then?"

"We didn't know who did it, but someone brought everything to the Admiral's attention. The notices disappeared and we didn't hear any more about it."

"So, the guy is a nit picker and probably has something against women. Is there anything else we should know about him?"

"Nothing that I could swear to. There were rumors that he had really screwed up during the Gulf War, but none of them were specific about how he had screwed up. He's also a martinet. Rumor has it that he has had more people court marshaled than any other Captain in the navy. "

"How old is the guy?"

"He's got to be crowding sixty. It was obvious to everyone that he was never going to make Admiral."

"That has to tell you something right there. Well, I guess all we can do is try to avoid him. We'll steer clear of any seaports from now on."

"There's something Betty and I were talking about on the way down here," Rob said. "What about Cheyenne Mountain? I would think anyone who had been there would have survived. I don't think there are normally more than three hundred people stationed there, but a lot more could have gone there if they had any warning."

"I hadn't thought about that. Cheyenne Mountain is the place where they track all of the aircraft and missiles, isn't it?"

"That's the one. It might never be a problem, but then again, who knows."

Rob and Betty didn't stay much longer. Everyone was pleased when they pulled out five gallons of milk and several dozen eggs for us before they left.

We invited Hasty to have dinner with us, but he said Caro had already invited him to eat with them.

-------

Well, tonight was to be Della's big night. She sat on my lap most of the evening and we spent a lot of time gently caressing each other. We also exchanged several kisses that had a lot of promise of what was to come later.

I'll never know how my wives work things, but Chris and Evie followed Della and I into the bedroom. Della and I got in the middle while Chris cuddled up to the other side of me and Evie snuggled up to Della.

We all kissed, cuddled, and caressed for a few minutes, then Chris said, "Della, we know you were forced to watch when the women you were with were raped, but did you ever see two people make love when both of them wanted to?"

"No... Evie and I have talked a lot about the difference between making love and being forced to have sex. All of our spouses have told me it is a wonderful experience, but I have to admit I'm still a little frightened by it."

"Would you like to watch Ed and me make love so you'll know what it's like?"

"Yes. I think I'd like that."

Chris smiled and put her leg across me. She leaned in and we exchanged a five alarm kiss. I let my hand move down and gently caressed her breast. I could feel her nipple growing against my palm as she moaned into my mouth.

We kissed for a couple of minutes and I started caressing Chris' butt. Della was watching wide eyed as Chris started hunching her pussy against my hip. I rolled Chris onto her back and brought my lips down to play with her right nipple. Chris moaned deep in her throat and pressed her lovely breast into my mouth.

As I moved down Chris' body, I could see that Evie was caressing Della's breasts. Della's pelvis was rising from the bed and falling back, rhythmically as Evie worked on her. Chris gasped as my tongue invaded her pussy and I heard Della echo her gasp.

I heard Della say to Evie, "I didn't know guys really did that."

"Oh, God, yes," Evie said. "If the guy enjoys what he's doing it can be a wonderful experience."

Chris usually has a short fuse, but tonight it was a lot shorter than normal. I don't know if that was because she was just especially horny or if it was because she knew we were being watched. Her first orgasm started when my tongue made contact with her clit. I grabbed one of her butt cheeks in each hand and held on as she blasted through it.

I let Chris come down and then started running my tongue up and down her very juicy slit. I avoided her clit as I cleaned the juices from her wonderful pussy.

"You know girls can do that to each other too," I heard Evie say. "Would you like for me to show you how it feels?"

"Yesss," Della said.

Evie looked over at me and winked as she positioned herself between Della's legs. I could see Della arching her pussy up toward Evie's mouth from the corner of my eye as I continued making love to Chris' lovely slit.

Within moments Della had her hands in Evie's hair, pulling her into her pussy. When it looked like she was getting close to an orgasm, I started paying attention to Chris' clit. In less that a minute, Chris was screaming out her climax and she was followed seconds later by Della's very vocal acknowledgment of her own orgasm.

I crawled back up beside Chris and held her as she came down. Evie was doing the same for Della. After a while Chris languidly stretched and said, "God! That was nice."

I smiled at her and asked, "You liked that, huh?"

"Oh, yes. Della, did you enjoy what Evie did for you?"

"I've never had anything feel that good in my life, Chris. It never felt that good when I played with myself."

"They best is yet to come, my dear. At least it's the best for me," Chris said then she kissed me. "I'm on top," she whispered."

Chris sat up and then straddled my hips. She rubbed her pussy along the underside of my cock for a few strokes, then raised up on her knees. The tip of my cock followed her up and was almost vertical as she positioned herself over it.

Della's eyes were as big as saucers as Chris lowered herself on to me. When our pubic hair meshed, Chris let out a big sigh and Della asked, "Does it really feel good when it goes in you that way?"

Chris looked over at her and grinned. "Della, honey, it makes you feel like you found a piece of yourself that was lost. It makes you feel whole and complete. Then, when the two of you have worked yourselves to a climax, it makes you feel like the world has exploded and your pussy is the center of the universe."

"Wow! When those guys raped me it always just hurt."

"I'll guarantee you this won't hurt," Chris said as she started moving on me. Before long, I was thrusting upward, countering Chris' strokes. Chris was smiling, the moaning as she rode me. I knew I wasn't going to last long, but luckily Chris was on as short a fuse as I was. We yelled out our orgasms together, then Chris collapsed on top of me.

After she had recovered, Chris looked over at Della and asked, "Did that look like it hurt?"

"No... That looked like it felt really good."

"It did," Chris said as she moved off of me. "Now, I want to make Evie feel good."

Della scooted over beside me and we watched as Chris started making love to Evie. I kissed Della lightly then asked, "Are you still afraid?"

"No. Not any more. Are you going to make love to me too?"

"If you want me to, Love. You know we don't have to tonight, don't you?"

"Oh, I want to. I want you to wipe away all of those bad memories."

"I'm not sure if one time will do that, Sweety, but eventually they'll all be gone."

We watched Chris and Evie for a few minutes, then I could feel my cock starting to swell again. I had been caressing Della's breasts as we talked and watched, now I slid my hand downward and cupped her pussy. It was a swamp. Warm and wet.

I hooked my middle finger back and dragged it from the bottom of her pussy to the top, gently caressing her clit as I passed it. Della gasped and I locked eyes with her. I brought my finger up to my mouth and sucked her juices from it.

"You are delicious," I said reverently.

I started to move down her body, but Della stopped me. "Ed, I want you inside me," she said. "Would it be okay if I got on top like Chris did?"

"Whatever and whenever you want, Honey," I told her.

Della got up on her hands and knees and kissed me. This brought my cock to full alert. She looked at it and smiled, then she swung her left leg across me and positioned per pussy along my cock. "I was watching Chris when she did this. It looked like it really felt good to her."

"Remember, Honey, just take your time. Also remember, we can stop at any time if you want to."

"I'm not going to want to stop," Della smiled as she moved back and forth on me. There was no look of apprehension on her face as she positioned herself above me, then started lowering herself onto my cock.

"Chris is right. It doesn't hurt," she said as she slowly lowered herself onto me. "It feels wonderful."

When Della had lowered herself all the way down, I could see her whole body relax. She just sat there for a minute and watched our bed mates. Chris had turned around and they were going at each other in a 69. Both of them were moaning.

Della started using her internal muscles to grasp and release my cock. It felt wonderful and I told her so. After a while she raised herself up a couple of inches and the lowered herself back down. Her smile widened as she experienced the wonderful sensations.

Soon she was raising and lowering herself in a nice, slow rhythm. Her strokes got longer and faster as she went along. I held myself still for as long as I could, then I started moving in counterpoint. Della gasped the first time I thrust up to meet her, then her smile got even bigger.

Della wasn't on as short a fuse as Chris had been. It was a good thing I had already cum once or I'd have probably left her hanging. As it was, I was barely able to hang on until I could feel her internal muscles start to quiver before I emptied myself inside her. Della was right with me.

She collapsed on top of me when we had both reached our peak. I held her and stroked her back and butt as she came down. Della was making contented little sounds as she lay there. She turned her head and watched as Evie and Chris climaxed almost simultaneously.

Della raised her head and smiled at me. "Thank you," she said. "That was what I always hoped my first time would be like."

"This really was your first time, Love. It was the first time you voluntarily made love."

"It was making love, Ed. I do love you, you know."

"Yes, I know. I love you, Della, and all of our spouses love you."

Della's smile got even bigger as she said, "I know."

We went to sleep with Della still on top of me and with Chris and Evie on either side of us.

Day 199 — December 6

Evie and Della were both very loving the next morning. We spent more time kissing and caressing than we did drinking coffee and talking.

Finally, I asked, "Do you still feel good about last night, Della?"

"Oh, God, yes! It was wonderful."

"I told you it would be," Evie said, then she kissed Della on the end of her nose.

"I always had dreams about how good my first time would be. Last night was a hundred times better than my dreams ever were."

I kissed Della and there was a knock on the door while we were kissing. Evie yelled for them to come in and Homer, Bell, Brenda, Patty, and Tessa came in. Homer must have really been getting over his shyness because he didn't even blush when he saw we were nude.

"Good morning," Bell said. "I hope we haven't interrupted anything." Tessa and Patty giggled at that.

"Not at all," Evie said. "Help yourselves to some coffee. You may have to make another pot though."

The women went off to get coffee so I asked, "So, what brings you out this early, Homer?"

"We just wanted to stop by and tell you the five of us exchanged marriage vows this morning."

"That's great. Congratulations, guys."

"Thank you," Homer said. "We were also wondering where we were headed for today."

"Well, I'm hoping to get as far as a little town called Hickory, NC today. The GPS says we're about 170 miles from there. I don't know if we'll make it that far though because Raleigh, Durham, Greensboro, and Winston and Salem are all good sized cities. We'll waste a lot of time putting up signs."

"I was just wondering if it was going to be a long day or not."

"Homer, we're not going to be needing all of the help we've got today. In fact, I expect we'll all just get in each other's way. Why don't you guys just get on I-40 and go on over to Hickory and find us a place to spend the night. We'll all meet you there."

"I don't know..." Homer said.

"We'll do that," Bell yelled from the kitchen. "You just shut up, Homer and do what the man says."

"Are they going to be doing what I think they're going to be doing?" Della whispered.

"If you'd just gotten married, wouldn't you want to be doing that?" I whispered back.

Della giggled. "I did just get married and I do want to be doing that."

I kissed her softly then broke it up when Homer's wives came back in the room.

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We spread out on both sides of I-40 and put up about half a million signs that day. At least it seemed like we put up that many. I think every one of us were dragging our butts when we pulled into Hickory.

When we pulled into the parking lot where Homer was waiting for us we were very pleasantly surprised to find that Bell, Brenda, Tessa and Patty had set up tables and had laid out fresh baked bread, thin sliced roast beef, thin sliced ham, potato salad, baked beans and all the condiments you could ask for.

All of us pigged out as we sat and talked about our day. My sweet, quiet, shy Della shocked the shit out of Homer when she asked him how his day had been. When he had stammered out that it had been a good day, Della asked, "So, what did you guys do to keep busy all day?"

Everyone there cracked up except Homer whose face looked like a traffic light. "The same thing you were doing last night, Little Missy," Bell giggled.

Day 200 — December 7

After Evie, Della and I had our morning snuggle, we got on the radio to Jenny and asked if she could have Rob meet us at the Wal-Mart on Chapman Highway in Knoxville that evening with some more milk and eggs. She said she was sure it wouldn't be a problem and that she'd get back with us if he couldn't make it.

From the looks of the GPS map it didn't look like today was going to be nearly as difficult as yesterday was. There weren't as many large cities that we would want to saturate with signs.

We all got together in Asheville for an early lunch then hit the road hoping to get into Knoxville by the middle of the afternoon. Tina, Syl, Della and I were in our van going down US-19, which parallels I-40 for a long way. We had just passed state road 151 when we saw a sign.

The sign had obviously been put up recently. There was one word, SURVIVORS, on it with an arrow pointing up a narrow blacktop road. Syl was driving and she stopped the van immediately.

"What do we do?" Syl asked.

"Well, we're survivors, so I guess we should follow the sign. Let's call the others and let them know where we are and what we're doing first though," I said.

Tina got on the CB and gave everyone directions to the sign. All of us were wearing our sidearms and we had one M-16 in the van. I didn't expect there'd be any trouble, but I wanted to be as safe as we could.

We had gone about a mile up the road when we saw a cluster of buildings ahead. I told Syl to drive slowly and tap the horn every few seconds. I didn't want to surprise anyone.

As we got closer to the buildings, two men armed with shotguns walked out into the middle of the street. I told Syl to stop about fifty feet from them.

I got out of the van and said, "Howdy, folks. I'm Ed James and these are my wives. We saw your sign out on the road."

The smaller of the two men stepped forward and said, "I'm Bill Haddock. Where are you folks from?"

"We've been living up in Kentucky for a while now. We're out trying to recruit people for our village," I said. I turned toward the van and Tina handed me one of our flyers. I walked slowly toward the smaller man with my hands well away from my body. I handed him the flyer then stepped back while he looked it over. When he finished he handed it to the other guy.

"That looks good, Mr. James. We've pretty much got all of that here though."

"I can understand if you'd be reluctant to move if you already have everything we do."

"Wait a minute, Bill," the larger man said. "We should find out all we can before we make any kind of decision."

"Yeah, I reckon we should. We've got a good water supply here, Mr. James. Every house in the village has a good well. We've got a big diesel generator that supplies the whole town."

"We had to put in a water treatment plant in our village," I told them. "By now, it should be able to supply a thousand people or so. We also have a hydro-electric plant that would supply electricity to a town of forty thousand. We've had a lot of problems with dogs, so we put a chain link fence around the housing area and we're currently fencing in all of our pasture area as well."

"We haven't had much problem with dogs, but I expect we will. There are a lot of them running around just outside of Asheville."

Other people had started to wander our of the houses to listen to our conversation. Most of them were women of course. I could see about twenty people now and only one of them was a man, besides the two in front of me.

"We've got over 250 people in our village now and we're shooting for two thousand. We're running about four women to one man. It seems that more women had an immunity to the disease than men did."

"Yeah, we have a lot more women than men here too. What else do you have in your village?"

"Well, we have a flour mill. It'll grind anything from the finest pastry flour to the coarsest grits. We have a herd of beef cattle and another of milk cattle. We have sheep and chickens and will soon be raising enough hogs to have all of the pork the village can use. In the spring we'll be planting every type of food crop imaginable as well as feed for our livestock. By spring we'll also have single family housing for up to five hundred people."

The bigger man spoke up and said, "Mr. James, I'm Roy Akers. The biggest thing I worry about here is that sometime we're going to run out of diesel for our generator. How many years do you think your hydro-electric plant will operate?"

"Well, Roy. We've thought of that too. We have an electrical engineer in our group. He says the life expectancy of a generator depends on how well it is maintained. He says the two generators we have will last for years, especially since we're only running one of them at a time. We've also been able to locate nine others that are identical to ours. We'll be flying them in as soon as we have a place built to store them."

One of the women had come over and asked to see the flyer. I looked over at the car and Tina stuck her hand out the window with a hand full of them. I handed them to the woman and asked her to pass them out.

"It sounds like you guys have your act together," Roy said.

"There's still a lot to do, Roy, and we'll be starting some new projects shortly. I do think it's going to be a nice place to live though."

The woman who had wanted to read the flyers came back over. What do we need to do if we'd like to join you?" she asked.

"Just be in Knoxville on the first of February," I told her. "Everyone has to go through an interview. We're trying to weed out abusive people and people with prejudices. We also want to eliminate any criminals."

"If I wanted to join your community, is there any way I could go with you now?" she asked.

"No!" Bill yelled.


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Incomplete and Inactive
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Posted:  2004-10-03
Last Modified: 2005-10-21 / 10:55:30 am
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