“This afternoon, can we go and visit my son, please?” Lily Stott beckoned from the other side of the circle.
“Absolutely. It will be a good source of news and he can give us a good lay of the land, too,” Cooper answered. “In the meantime, you and Julianne should be on guard and food patrol!”
Dranko shook his head, “Julianne’s tearing through that research. You won’t get her off the computer for nothin’.” Cooper caught Angela frowning out of the corner of his eye.
“I can help Lily. We can shout if anyone starts coming up the road, or,” Freddie paused, catching Jake’s eye, “I can fart real loud!” Once again, Jake laughed loudly while the adults groaned. Potty humor and eleven-year-olds!
“Right. Let’s do this. Everyone keep your weapons within arm’s reach, alright?” They all nodded and began drifting off to work.
“Wait!” Cooper shouted. Everyone was startled and a few of them visibly jumped. “What’s the air horn sign for come running and be ready to fight?”
They were startled by his outburst, just what he’d intended.
“Ah…one long blast!” Jake stammered.
He smiled at his son, “Good. I just wanted to test you. The surprise is the stress we all experience at a time like that. Or, at least a taste of it.”
Dranko patted him on the shoulder, “Clever bastard.”
“Best to test under stress.”
“Who said that?”
“My father. Who else?” Cooper responded with evident pride.
“Your father was one smart bastard. I wish I could have met him.”
Cooper nodded with a wistful look in his eyes, “Me, too.”
Dranko showed Cooper and the others where he wanted the outhouse trench dug and reinforced how deep it would have to be for a group of their size.
“Shovels over in that shed,” Dranko said pointing to a ragged wooden shed that lay next to the large gardening area.
“We got this,” Cooper said, dismissing him. He ambled off, back towards the cabin. “Who’d like to dig with me first? I think if we work in pairs in fifteen minutes bursts, we’ll get more done faster,” he said to the other men.
“I will dig first. ‘Work’s begun is sooner done.’ That’s what my father always said,” Calvin said as he marched off toward the shed to retrieve the shovels.
Within minutes, the two of them had fallen into an easy rhythm. Despite the chill in the air, they were both quickly bathed in sweat. When their first shift of fifteen minutes had finished, both men were stripping off their shirts as they handed their shovels to Angela and Tim.
“I’ll get us a pitcher of water and cups,” Cooper said before heading off to the cabin. Calvin nodded, gasping for air.
“I will go and see if there are gloves in the shed. My hands are already feeling it.” The two men moved off in separate directions, as the first spadefuls of dirt began flying from Angela and Tim.
Cooper and Calvin returned at about the same time. Cooper carried a metal pitcher and four plastic cups, while Calvin had two pairs of worn gloves in hand. He tossed them to the two digging, who welcomed the pause while they put them on.
They watched in silence as the others dug, breathing deeply to get as much oxygen into their muscles as possible, before their next turn would begin. When it was their time, they took one last deep breath, donned the gloves, and set to digging at a furious pace.
Six hours later, minus a short break for a lunch of beans and baked bread, the trench was finished. The bread had been a delicious surprise, courtesy of Lily Stott. It even had nuts and raisins folded into a deep, tasty wheat flour. Dranko came to inspect their work.
He nodded approvingly, “Good. Tomorrow, we can build up some walls for privacy. I think I have enough wood and plywood to make this work.”
The quartet of diggers smiled at one another. Their hands were raw, unaccustomed to manual labor. Their muscles hurt. And will hurt worse tomorrow.
“We did something good today, friends. We dug a shithouse. It’s symbolic, too. We will face more ‘stuff’ together. But, guess what? We stick together, we can get through it, just like we did this together,” Cooper observed and noted the agreement and appreciation from the others as they stretched and nodded. He recalled his father’s words about using every chance you had to educate people about their purpose and build a team. I must be getting better. I’m using his advice before I consciously remember it!
As the group readied to walk back to the cabin, Cooper pulled Dranko’s sleeve, “Can we chat for a second?”
Dranko looked at him, eyebrow cocked, “Sure.” They moved away from the group, walking toward the gardening area.
“I need a favor from you,” Cooper started.
“What’s that?”
“I know you’re just trying to tell everyone what to be ready for or offer that realistic viewpoint, but I think you’re bringing people down.”
Dranko turned to him with a confused frown, “Whatdya mean?”
“Like this morning, when Calvin was making light of the food situation and you went and told him that ‘being hungry isn’t any fun.’”
Dranko’s eyes narrowed, “I was just telling them what I thought. They need to be ready. This is serious business. Not some camping trip.”
Cooper’s jaw tightened, but he fought to keep his voice steady, “I hear you. I’m just asking you to not always say stuff like that.”
Dranko took a step back, “So, you want me to lie? That’s a surprise coming from you.”
Cooper growled, “I’m not asking you to lie. I just want you to think about what you say and how it will affect others.”
“Look, it’s not my job to hold anyone’s hands. That’s not my job,” Dranko said shaking his head slowly.
“That’s right. It’s my job. That’s why I’m talking to you and asking for your help.”
A long pause passed between them as Dranko stared at the ground before looking back up, “Look, I’m gonna do what I’m gonna do. I ain’t gonna sugarcoat things or hide the truth.”
Cooper’s hand exploded as he poked him in the shoulder and pushed his face to within inches, “What the hell is the matter with you?”
“I’m stretched out and now you’re asking for more.”
“What does that mean?”
“You wanna know? Do you?”
“Yes,” Cooper answered with furrowed eyebrows.
“I’m tired. I’ve shared my stuff. The stuff that I bought over the years by giving up the vacations and meals and clothes that the rest of you were spending your money on. I’ve shared my knowledge. I’ve shared my time. I’ve shared everything. And, I haven’t got a single ‘thank you’! Not once. And, now you want me to start watching every word I say? Screw that!” By the time he’d finished, his head was boiling red, bits of froth peppered his lips, and his eyes glistened.
Cooper faltered a step back, speechless for several seconds. Dranko stood before him, fuming. He took a step back towards his friend and put his hands onto his shoulders, “You’re right. I’m sorry. Let me be the first. Thank you. We wouldn’t have made it this far without you. My boy,” that word catching in Cooper’s throat, “likely wouldn’t be alive without you. So, words won’t ever express how much I appreciate what you’ve done.”
The color slowly drained from Dranko’s face and he washed his sleeve across his mouth, wiping spittle away, “It’s…ah…”