We bring in and erect fuel storage tanks in a section of the fields close to the edge of the far parking lot to allow vehicles to refuel. The tanks are located as far from the main building as possible in case of an accident. We make sure to ground them in the event that lightning, rare in this area, decides it would like to pay the tanks a visit.
The long, blessed summer continues. We find other survivors trickling in from both our forages for supplies and our drive through the areas for the burns. Our numbers swell to almost a hundred by the time the wall nears completion. The burns have taken out large tracts of land and have left an overhang of smoke in the area. We eventually clear out most of the city neighborhoods in our proximity. We are fortunate with the layout of the cities in that we don’t have our fires run away from us into the areas where we want to scavenge supplies. The teams allocated for burns are put on a search of outlying areas for survivors bringing in several more; some days finding a few and some none at all. The upper story of our sanctuary begins to get a touch crowded but it’s good to see there are others who have survived. Additional trips to the armories are conducted and supplies, arms and additional vehicles are brought in.
Robert and Bri’s training concludes and I begin taking them out when we have time to add to that training. I take all teams and those who finish Lynn’s initial training through advanced training, designed by Lynn and I, but take Robert and Bri through a little more. I want to give them every ounce of my knowledge and give them every chance at surviving. We still continue to have our little moment of time together, with Lynn joining us, on the roof but have to step a little more carefully with the top covered in solar panels.
Talks during our nightly meetings encompass longer range plans for when the wall is completed. Some of these include bringing livestock and long-term food supplies in, setting up the pastures, feed, buildings, and other aspects to include the construction of a large greenhouse. Bannerman mentions that it would be nice to erect a water tower to pump the well water into and utilize the gravity flow. That would conserve on the pump being constantly utilized and preserve not only our electricity, but the pump itself. He also wants to rig up and install one of the wind towers to make the pumping more of manual process with the windmill. For some reason, both of these seem much larger projects than building the wall.
The day arrives, in late summer, when we are ready for the last sections of wall to be placed. All of us gather outside to watch the wall teams pound the last beam into the ground. Our measurements haven’t been exact and we have to cut the last partitions with a concrete saw but as we all look on, the last partition slides into place.
A cheer rises from the group as the partition settles into place and the crane shuts down. Our wall is built. Four miles of concrete partitions twenty feet high. Our place is as secure as we can make if for the moment. We have a gate spanning the width of the entrance road; two great slabs of steel, which Bannerman managed to locate in a foundry, are bolted into the wall and secured with a steel bar. The gates took some engineering to fit them without handholds that would allow night runners to scale them. The wall itself is set several feet into the ground, thanks to the use of a ditch digger, in case the night runners try their hand at becoming moles. This also adds to the structural integrity of the wall.
Watching the partition slide into place and hearing the cheer, I feel a sense of warmth flow through. I can’t believe we’ve actually done it. I think back to the stresses I had on our journey back and how much of an overwhelming project this seemed. Especially coupled with our having to survive each and every night and gather supplies. We’ve added to our group and built a place to be secure during the night, well, hopefully as it has yet to be tested. We’ve come a long ways from our drifting from airfield to airfield, obtaining supplies and information, and surviving up close and personal encounters with the night runners on a much too often basis.
We celebrate our first night’s rest without the continual hammering at the front doors that night. The peace and quiet we experience is almost as loud in the absence of the constant noise as it was when it was here. We decide for everyone to have the next day off and allow some relaxation and recuperation before we set off on the next phase of our sanctuary. Ah, sanctuary. How sweet that sounds! Robert asks the next morning if he and Michelle can go down to the bay and hang out by the water for the day. Bri asks Robert if she can go along. I tell them I don’t have a problem with that but I want Gonzalez to go along.
“Dad, we can take care of ourselves,” Robert says in response to my request.
“I know you can but you’re taking Gonzalez with,” I reply. “Go ask her is she’s willing to accompany you.”
Robert returns a short time later with Gonzalez, Michelle, and Bri in tow. He asks if I’d like to go along but I know he wants some time with Michelle without his dear old dad around so I make up some excuse for staying. I take Gonzalez to the side and tell her to make sure she keeps them safe; for her to come back at the first indication of something that doesn’t seem or feel right. I tell everyone that Gonzalez is in charge and what she says goes. They depart within the hour with the sun shining down on this glorious beginning of a new day. The wall blots out the view of the immediate area but it’s nice to see it anyway. The mountains still peak above to the east and west.
Their Humvee departs and I watch them disappear over the hill. I look over at the helicopter sitting by itself in a corner of the parking lot and think about taking it up. When out on practice flights, I make sure to drop by Fort Lewis for fuel before heading back so I know it has almost a full tank. The thought of taking it out for a pleasure flight seems appealing with the morning sun casting its yellows rays down and warming the air. It seems like a different place now, almost has a feel of home.
I head back inside after basking for a while in the sun’s warmth and watch several flocks of birds flit about the fields surrounding us. The days are getting shorter now but it is still in the late summer and the shortened days aren’t noticed as yet. I walk over to the base radio area and the maps Frank has set up wanting to check in with Gonzalez. It’s only been a short while since they left and I’m feeling like the worrisome father but I want to assure myself nonetheless.
The radio crackles as I draw near, “Base, Gonzalez here.”
“Base here, go ahead,” Kathy, who is on radio watch at this time, says in return.
“We have a vehicle that has started following us. Large red pickup truck,” Gonzalez’ voice comes through the speaker.
“Tell her to turn around and come back,” I tell Kathy and motion for her to relay the message.
Before she can press the mic button, Gonzalez’ speaks again. “Oh shit, they’re trying to force us off the road,” she says with her voice higher pitched.
Her mic is still pressed but it is evident that she is talking to someone else by the subdued nature of her voice. “Turn the wheel to the…” And there is a click over the speaker as the transmission ends.
Epilogue
He rises as he has on many nights previous. The breathing of his pack within the darkened room fills to his ears, panting with their quickened breathing. He knows instinctually that it’s time to rise; time to hunt.
The past nights have been episodes of the previous ones, searching for the meager food still remaining in the area. The nights recently have taken on some differences. Several times in the night, while running through the night streets, flashes of light reach out from places as they trot by. The flashes startled him and he searched for their sources the first few times it happened but without finding it. Several loud explosions erupt in the distance occasionally. One night, while investigating the source of one of the loud bangs that rang out in the night, he found members of a small pack lying in the street and on the raised concrete sidewalk; their bodies mutilated beyond recognition.