By Way of Autumn Read online

  I answered. “He’s hot, he can’t sleep.”

  “Why don’t you let him dip in the pool? Millie is back there. I keep it covered during the day, to keep out the sun, and none of the …” he pointed to the dead birds. “…hit the water. Go on. It’s not cold but it will cool you down.”

  Tag looked up to me with his big brown eyes. “Can I, Marmie?”

  With a heavy sigh, I looked across the street to Sam’s. The blinds were closed so that told me he hadn’t started the generator yet. Thinking about it, wetting him down then taking him to Sam’s would give him a solid relief filled night from the heat. I would even dip my feet. The temperature was still high eighties.

  “You know what, Bill, thank you. He will.”

  Tag excitedly jumped and hugged my legs. Sam’s could wait, the swim was a nice idea and it couldn’t hurt.

  EIGHTEEN – GUESSES

  It was amazing what a five minute dip into a pool did for Tag. The water wasn’t cool, not at all, but compared to the outside air it was heaven. I kicked my feet in the water sitting on the side of the pool while Tag waded in water that came to his chest. Eventually he went under to soak his hair.

  Millie didn’t swim, the older woman only sat in the water. She said, “I’m enjoying this. Make sure you cover the pool each night.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “Bill and I are leaving in the morning. You heard Larry, he said what’s out west.”

  “What’s out west, Marmie?” Tag asked.

  “Nothing, Tag,” I answered and turned to Millie. “Be safe.”

  “You aren’t going?” she asked.

  “Oh, we are. Probably in a day or so. Pushing the safety timeframe I suppose,” I said. I didn’t want to tell her I wanted to wait until most of the town had left simply because I had a working vehicle. The last thing I wanted was to drive with a steady stream of residents escaping town. Not after how they reacted to the food distribution. If they looted from the law, sure someone would have no qualms over taking my car.

  I wasn’t the best of company, not feeling well and depressed over thoughts of Jeff and Nicole. After several minutes and some chat, I could hear the hum from Sam’s house and headed that way with Tag. My evening cooling salvation awaited and on this day, I needed it.

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  Sam gave a strange examining look to Tag when we arrived at his house. I thought maybe it was because I brought him over, then I realized that wasn’t it. Tag was always at Sam’s house before everything happened.

  “What did you do to him?” Sam asked, closing the door after we walked in. “Toss him in the water heater?”

  “No,” I said with a slight chuckle. “He was sweaty and hot. I let him jump in Bill’s pool.”

  “The pool,” Sam stated.

  “Yeah.”

  “Hmm.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, walking into his living room. I sighed out when I felt the coolness of it.

  “The pool. It hasn’t been filtering water for days.”

  “I could smell the chemicals.”

  “The birds fell today.”

  “He said he keeps it covered during the day.”

  “Hmm,” Sam repeated.

  “What, Sam?” I sat down. “Don’t make me paranoid.”

  “Nothing.” He waved out his hand. “You don’t need the paranoia. At least you don’t look like you do.”

  “Gee, thanks.” I instructed Tag to sit next to me.

  “You look drawn,” Sam said.

  “I had a moment tonight about Jeff.”

  “Ah.” He tipped his chin. “You sick, kid?” he asked me. “You look pale?”

  “I am. I’ve been battling kidney stones. And I have one that just won’t pass.”

  Sam whistled. “I had a kidney stone once. Worst pain I ever felt. Some say it’s worse than birth.”

  “It’s not quite that bad, but it’s bad.” As I said that I felt the pain to my back, it pulled across my side and shot down my thigh. I jolted.

  “You sure you’re okay?”

  “Yes.” I snuggled with Tag. “Better now.”

  Tag looked up to me. “Tell me a story now, Marmie?”

  “In a little bit, Tag.” I stroked his wet hair. “We’re visiting Sam.”

  “You can tell him a story.” Sam walked to the radios. “I’m only playing.”

  “I kinda like chatting with you, Sam.”

  “I’m sure tonight’s conversation will be censored.” He looked at Tag.

  “To a point,” I said. “Heard anything?”

  “Nothing. Larry is going back out again. We’ll know more tomorrow.”

  “What about the folks who came into town?”

  “That …” Sam held up a finger. “I did hear about. So far about three dozen have come through.”

  “Did anyone say what they saw? What happened?”

  “Not right now. Half of them kept going, the other half are down and out until they get well. Some sort of bug.”

  “Did Dr. Stanley say anything?”

  “Haven’t talked to him. I asked if it was radiation.”

  “Why would you think that?”

  Sam shrugged. “Because the sun is a big generator of radiation.”

  “You still think this was the sun.”

  “Absolutely, or a star gone nova. Thing is by the time we see a geometric storm, it had already happened thousands of years ago.”

  I squinted my eyes at him in curiosity. “Geometric?”

  “Yeah, I think that’s the term, it’s like a big old blast coming at the earth.”

  “I didn’t think anything like that could make it through our atmosphere.”

  Sam shook his finger at me. “Smart lady for a woman who is barefoot and pregnant half the time.”

  I laughed. I knew he was joking. “I read things on the internet. So this geometric thing. Can make people sick?”

  “Well, it’s more the gamma ray burst that will come with it.”

  Tag sat up. “Gamma ray. That’s what hit the Hulk.”

  “Yep.” Sam said. “Radiation.” He then waved out his hand. “Of course, don’t take what I say for gospel. I’m putting bits and pieces together from memory and I can be way off base. Still, I’m thinking radiation made these people sick.”

  “If they came from the west, and that was it, then if whatever is moving this way, it can make us sick, too. Right?”

  “More than likely. I mean, what else would cause it?”

  “What about the birds?” Tag asked. “They were sick.”

  I looked at Sam. “Could the birds have made people sick?”

  “Yeah, or vice versa.” He rubbed Tag’s head. “Man are you smart. When I was a kid …”

  A blip of static from the radio caused Sam to stop. He spun to face his set up.

  Another hiss.

  “Shit.” He raced over and took his seat.

  “Sam?”

  He lifted one hand to silence me, then raised the microphone calling out. “This is DX6675. Blackstone. Anyone there? Over.”

  Hiss.

  He repeated. “This is Operator DX6675. Blackstone. Repeat, anyone there? Over.”

  A few seconds went by and more static. Sam wrestled with the tuner. And before long bits and pieces of a voice emerged.

  We all squealed with delight.

  Sam continued to twist the controls and try to tune in the voice. He said he’d keep trying and wouldn’t give up.

  Although over the course of my time at Sam’s house nothing intelligible came through. Still it was a voice, calling out from somewhere. Even with the ratio of static overwhelming it, I took it as a great sign.

  We were not alone.

  There was at least an answer.

  Someone else was out there alive.

  Maybe, just maybe they knew what was going on.

  NINETEEN – DISCOVERY

  July 13

  It hit me faster than I expected. The overwhelm
ing need to vomit when I opened my eyes in the morning. For the first time, I didn’t feel the effects of the heat; I was too busy focusing on keeping the contents of my stomach down.

  The remainder of my water was on my nightstand and I sipped it, trying to keep the twitching to a minimum. I didn’t know what caused the instant upset stomach, but I wanted it to stop.

  Tag slept peacefully right next to me. His hair wasn’t soaking wet as it usually was, he was under the sheet instead of over it.

  Had the temperature actually dropped? The thought raced through my mind, and then I saw the amount of light seeping through the blind. It had to be before six am, it wasn’t quite fully light out.

  My stomach calmed and I decided to go back to sleep when I caught glimpse of the wind up alarm clock.

  9:55.

  Had it stopped from the night before or was it that late? The darkened sky meant one thing … rain.

  To say I was excited at the prospect of rain was an understatement. I quickly stood from bed and paused at the pain in my lower back. That kidney stone was close to making its way out; I knew it.

  I walked to the window and peered out. The sky was overcast and there was without a doubt more of a green tint to the day. No sooner had my fingers released the parted blinds, I hear the sound of the twin-engine plane. Larry was flying out. We’d get some news, hopefully good news.

  With the sun not beating down, the temperature would be tolerable.

  I hoped.

  After kissing Tag on the forehead I grabbed my water, used the last few drops to brush my teeth, peeked in on Julie and went downstairs.

  I had several jars of tea brewing in the sun, and with the recent warmth, I was certain I could steal a bit and have a warm drink in the morning.

  In the kitchen, I opened the cupboard for a mug and felt a breeze against my chest as it made its way through the slightly opened window. It didn’t carry a stench. Either I was used to it, or the smell wasn’t as bad.

  Grabbing my mug I went out the back door to where I had the jars hidden just behind the dying plants on the patio. I supposed I didn’t need to hide them, but I didn’t want to take a chance of someone needing something to drink and stealing them.

  The temperature reading was eighty. It was like an arctic blast compared to what we have had.

  I fetched the jar placed by the blue flowerpot, twisted the lid and poured some in the cup. It felt and tasted good, I started to feel somewhat better. The baby kicked after the third drink, he liked it too.

  As I sipped I noticed Bill fixing the pool covering. It struck me as odd because Millie told me they were leaving early.

  Finally he spotted me and waved. I stepped from the patio nearer to him.

  “Everything okay?” I asked. “I thought you guys were leaving.”

  “We were,” Bill answered. “Then Millie wasn’t feeling well. Her fibro was acting up and we decided to wait.” He peered up to the sky. “Looks as if we caught a break in the weather. We’ll know more when Larry gets back.”

  “Yeah, we will. I hope Millie feels better.”

  “When are you and the kids leaving?”

  “Probably tomorrow,” I said. “I’m waiting on Larry as well.”

  “If you hear anything before me, let me know,” he said.

  “I will. Give Millie my best,” I told him then after grabbing a jar from the patio, I headed back to the house. When I walked in, Josh was in the kitchen.

  He set a bag on the counter. “I brought some stuff. My mother said I needed my own rations,” he said.

  “They left?” I asked.

  “Yeah, about two hours ago.”

  “Where are they going?”

  “I have an aunt in Flagstaff, that’s where they’re headed. They said to go there, they’ll leave word if they leave.”

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  “Yeah, I’m good. You? You look pale.”

  “The kidney stone is getting close to passing. It must be a big one.” I was ready to explain how this was not my first round in the kidney stone rodeo when there was a knock on the front door.

  Josh jolted and turned. “Stay here.” He said with concern.

  “Josh, really, it’s fine,” I said, heading from the kitchen. “Someone meaning us harm won’t knock.” And I knew my words were correct when I saw Reverend Ray at the front door.

  He looked tired. The usually, ‘put together’ crisp tee shirt and jeans, down to earth reverend was slightly disheveled. The handsome and youthful African American man was not his usual self at my door. In fact, in an off occurrence, he wore a baseball cap with a wrinkled Marvel Comics tee shirt and carried a clipboard.

  “Morning, Tess. Sorry to bother you.”

  “Did you want to come in?” I asked, holding open the screen door.

  “No, thank you.”

  With his decline to come in, I stepped out.

  “Are you feeling all right?” he asked.

  With his question, the third in twenty-four hours about my health, I decided to make a mental note to look in the mirror. I explained about my kidney stone and how it didn’t go well with the pregnancy.

  “Well, make sure you rest and get as much water as you can,” he said. “I’m here to see if you need anything.” He looked at his clipboard. “Sherriff has you listed as one of the people he took items from that didn’t come to the distribution to get them back.”

  “You mean didn’t loot.”

  “I was being polite about it.”

  “So basically, he listed me as one of the ones who didn’t raid the center.”

  “Exactly.”

  “I’m okay, right now. Are there still items?”

  “Yeah, they’re at the church if you need some. I took over yesterday.”

  “Where’s the sheriff?”

  “He left this morning. That makes about half the town gone now.”

  “You’re not going?” I asked.

  “Unfortunately, I cannot,” he replied. “We keep getting stragglers trying to go east and half of them coming through are pretty sick.”

  “What’s wrong with them?” I asked.

  “Flu like symptoms.”

  “What about Doc Stanley.”

  “He’s doing what he can. He thinks it could be cholera. Then again, Dr. Melvin who is still in town thinks its radiation. I think … it’s the bird flu.” He nodded to the carcass of a bird on the step. “Truth is no one knows. They’re just sick. We set up the church and library as a makeshift clinic.”

  “What about the hospital.”

  “Three blocks is quite a walk when you have a church and distribution center to run as well.”

  “You know they aren’t your responsibility,” I said. “You don’t have to take care of them.”

  “Yeah, I do, Tess,” he said. “People are my responsibility. They need help. I’m here.”

  “Are they that bad? Will they get better?”

  He shook his head. “They’re that bad and whatever it is, it seems to be contagious by close contact. No worries.” He held up his hand. “I’ve been sanitizing and using precaution.”

  “I’m not worried. But I appreciate you stopping by.”

  “If you need anything you know where I am.” He stepped back. “I’m gonna go check on Del and Mary right now.” He pointed to next door.

  “Oh, they left town. I think either yesterday morning or the day before. I haven’t seen them. In fact …” I walked down the step. “I put water in the door. Why don’t you take it?”

  “Are you sure? You don’t need it?”

  “We seem good right now and I plan on leaving tonight or tomorrow anyhow.” I cut through the hedges and walked to Del’s path. “I’ll stop by before we do to say goodbye. Plus, I want to see what Larry has to say.”

  “Yes, I’m interested in that as well.”

  “So, might as well, take this water,” I reached for the screen door. “I didn’t count it in our rations …” I stopped, immediately and ins
tantly I couldn’t move and within seconds of grabbing that handle, the nausea I had been diligently fighting won the battle when a wave of stench blasted me the second I opened that door. I stumbled back, spun clockwise and without control vomit shot from my mouth. I tried to block it with my hand, but that small amount of tea I consumed seemed like a waterfall as it erupted over my fingers.

  Ray rushed to me, extending a handkerchief. “Tess, are you …”

  He stopped.

  He didn’t say anything. He caught the smell. “Oh my God,” he said.

  “Is that smell what I think it is?” I took the handkerchief, wiped my mouth and then my hands. I placed it in my pocket pretty sure he didn’t want it back.

  “It may be a pet or the birds. We can’t be sure. You said they left.”

  Emotionally I responded, peering over my shoulder to him. “I didn’t see them leave. Oh, God.”

  “I’ll check.” Ray cleared this throat, brought his hand over his mouth and stepped to the door.

  I had to see, I had to know. Besides, I didn’t think there was anything left in my stomach to throw up. Covering my mouth and nose with my hand, I followed Ray inside.

  We didn’t have to go far.

  Both of them were right there and showing signs that they had been decomposing for days. The heat took their toll on them during life and after death.

  Mary was in the chair, her head tilted to the side, eyes open and white. Her body was bloated in her housedress. Her legs, propped up on the recliner chair were so swollen the skin had split.

  Del lay on the floor, he wasn’t wearing a shirt, and he too was swollen. However his belly was distended and green, and it appeared to have burst. His insides, blackened, spilled out onto the living room carpet.

  I had seen enough and I ran out.

  Ray came out a few moments later, pulling the door closed.

  “I covered them,” he said. “Not that it matters. We don’t have the hands to move them and bury them.

  “Was it the heat?” I asked. “Lack of water?”

  “I’d say both. The green stomach …” Another clearing of his throat. “That usually means the body reached an extremely high temperature.”

  My head dropped and I felt the sickening feeling in my gut, this one from emotions.