Miles looked confused, “Sure. He’ll take that, if you have it.”
“You have something you want to say?” Cooper asked him.
Dranko shook his head nonchalantly, “Nope. Just curious.” Sorry, Dranko, I’ve beat you too many times in poker. I know you’ve got a stash of some kind, you sly one!
“What else is he doing?” Cooper asked.
“Lots of rules, curfews, restrictions on movement. He’s formed a security force that keeps everyone else in line. You can’t criticize him. Several people have already been hauled in as ‘undesireables’.”
Cooper’s lips curled up, “How’d this happen in just a few weeks?”
Miles cocked an eyebrow, “He acted swiftly and just stepped into the vacuum. It’s almost like he had a plan.”
“You think,” Dranko asked.
“Either that or he was very, very smart and fast on his feet. For example, he took over the gas stations and the grocery store on the very first day that Brushfire went public.”
“That is strange,” Angela commented.
“He’s a bastard for sure, but his son is even worse,” Miles spat. Bethany shuffled her feet and cast her eyes downward. Cooper noticed the faintest flush of red onto her cheeks.
“Who’s he?”
“Junior Hodges. He’s in his twenties. Randy as a cooped up rabbit. Rumor has it he’s built himself quite a little harem these past weeks. You don’t want to cross his path. He shot Mr. Waters down in cold blood just last week. Claimed that ole’ Walt was fixing to draw on him. I talked to men who saw it go down, complete hogwash.”
Bethany glanced up, “He’s got his problems, but he has kept us supplied with milk for our kids.”
Miles scoffed, “That’s just cause he’s sweet on you, baby, and he’s trying to get into your…” Miles caught himself, realizing his kids were there. Her cheeks turned unmistakably red this time and her eyes were downcast once more.
“If you’re going to just talk politics, I’m going to take the kids and get to work in the garden,” she said, before gathering the kids and moving off.
“Just don’t touch too many of the seeds as you’re liable to just kill them. Bethany’s a good woman, but she’s got the opposite of a green thumb,” Miles said with too much edge to his voice. A lot of tension between these two. Bethany stalked off, ignoring him.
Miles laughed at his joke and motioned the others to move inside the house, which was a simple affair, with the kitchen off to their left as they entered and a large mixed family and living room straight in front of them. A hallway led to the bedroom to their right. A woodstove was burning in the corner. The familiar smell of it made Cooper long for his own woodstove back on Lincoln Street in Portland. The home was furnished with plain, worn furniture, except for a remarkable kitchen table. It looked to have been cut from a huge Cedar tree, stained, with remarkable grain patterns.
“I built that one myself,” Miles commented with pride when he noticed their stares.
Toys were strewn about the floor and across the rooms, “Damn woman can’t keep these kids in line,” he scowled as he kicked a toy truck across the room.
“Miles, be kind. Mothering is always easier to the men who don’t have to do it,” Lily said, weighing in.
“Whatever Ma, you don’t know the half of it,” Miles said, staring at her sharply. Awkward tension filled the room.
The group took seats around the beautiful table, while Miles offered plastic cups and a pitcher of water. Cooper poured for the group and passed out the cups to everyone. As he took his seat he began, “So, what else do we need to know to get along here?”
“Avoid the downtown as much as you can. That’s where Hodges and his crew do their worst. Whatever you do, stay out of the one bar that’s functioning down there. And, be ready for a Levy Collector to come a calling as soon as they figure out your place is occupied again.”
“We might as well get it over with then,” Dranko said in a matter of fact manner.
“What?” Cooper asked.
“We need salt. I completely screwed up on that.”
“Salt?”
Dranko nodded emphatically, “Yup. Your body needs it to survive.”
“I never thought about it,” Lily continued.
“Nobody does. We usually have a problem of too much of it with all the processed food we’re used to. Now, we’re going to have to make sure we have it.”
“How’d you screw up? What do you mean?” Cooper asked his friend.
“Last month, I traded my salt supply for some tools I needed. I figured I’d get more salt easy enough. Then, Brushfire happened.” He paused, and then shrugged, “At least I got a good deal on the trade. But, we need to get salt. As much as we can get our hands on. And, it’s something that will just get more valuable as time goes on. Better to get it now, at whatever price Hodge is demanding.”
Cooper nodded, “So, today?”
“Don’t see why not.”
“I should go with you, to make sure you get by okay,” Miles offered.
Cooper shook his head, “I appreciate the offer, but you can brief us the best you can and then let us go. If we run afoul, it’s best we can claim the ‘we’re new in town’ defense.”
Miles nodded at that.
“That’s smart. Besides, you might not want to be associated with us, anyway,” Dranko added with an impish smile.
“Why’s that?” Miles asked, confused.
“Don’t you know who this is?” Angela said, motioning toward Cooper. Miles offered a blank look in response.
“My dad told the truth about the Brushfire Plague,” Jake blurted out. His voice was fixed dead between pride and sadness.
Miles’ head jerked around to stare at Cooper, “What?!”
“You heard about all that?”
“Well…sure…hard to know what to believe.”
Cooper stared at him intently, “Believe it. Every word. It’s the truth.”
Miles sank back into his chair, “Really? All of it?”
“All of it,” Lily added.
“You mean my boy is dead because of some damned hippies?”
Cooper returned a measured look, “It’s more complicated than that. But, yeah, Brushfire was no act of God.”
Miles fists balled as Lily extended a hand to comfort his son. He was left alone to his thoughts for several seconds and then his eyes alighted, “You got trouble, my friend. Hodges would likely shoot you on sight!”
“Why’s that?”
“He’s been calling you a damned liar and a scoundrel. He says the entire conspiracy theory is a bunch of BS spread by the enemies of America.”
Cooper sat back, arms folded on the table, “Interesting.”
“You’re going to have to use a fake name when you roll into town.”
Dranko exhaled, “Well, that should be interesting.”
Miles face grew clouded, “Why’s that? No big deal. Just come with your own version of John Doe.”
A sardonic smile infused his words, “Cooper don’t lie. Never.”
“Oh my. I see,” Miles responded. “Why don’t you just stay out of town?”
Cooper thought for a moment, “Two reasons. First, I want to get a feel for what’s going on around here. I can’t do that hiding up in Dranko’s cabin. Second, since this whole thing started, I’ve learned that trouble is going to find me, no matter how I might try to avoid it.” Cooper’s attempted joke fell flat.
“Maybe you ought to rethink that,” Dranko said, looking at him intently.
“We’ll figure it out,” Cooper said, irritated.
Dranko shook his head in resignation, “Ever the optimist, brother.”
Dranko was at the wheel once again, with Angela sitting next to him in the front seat. Cooper sat in the back seat alone, Lily and Jake having been left at the Stotts’. Miles had finished briefing them so they had their pistols holstered, as it was very common in Estacada for people to be carrying. They had left their rifles behind, as well. Sheriff Hodges was fond of confiscating any long arms brought into town, especially military styled weapons. They had decided it wasn’t worth the risk. Cooper felt agitated without them. I don’t like going into a potential bad situation under gunned. He had his pistol out, trying to burn through his anxiety by checking the function and thumbing the rounds out and then back into the magazine. Miles had filled them in on what to do, how to act, and what to look out for as they made their way around the town. He had drawn them a rudimentary map, as well. This showed the key buildings and the main store that functioned as the place to buy and sell goods.