“I just pray our ignorance doesn’t cost us a life,” Blade said sadly.
“Life is eternal,” Joshua chimed in, “if you have living faith. Even if one of us is killed, we will pass on to the mansions on high. ‘I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness,’” he quoted from John.
“All well and good,” Blade said. “But I’d still prefer to get all of us back to the Home in one piece. I just wish there was a way to minimize our mistakes.”
“Life is a learning experience,” Joshua replied., “We learn by doing. Unfortunately, some of the lessons we must learn can only be derived from bitter experience. Have faith, Blade! All will come out for the good of the Spirit in the end.”
Blade concentrated on his driving.
The countryside was changing. Around the Home, the vegetation was lush, the forest thick with trees and brush. The same held true for Thief River Falls, its park and other natural areas. The terrain near Detroit Lakes, however, was different. The trees were sparser, shorter and gnarled.
Tall grass, waving in the wind, surrounded Floyd Lake.
“This is prime grazing country,” Hickok commented.
“Too bad we don’t have some cattle,” Geronimo said, lamenting the Family’s misfortune.
“The Family would be delighted if we could return with a cow,” Blade agreed.
“What’s a cow?” Bertha asked.
“That’s a cow!” Hickok said, excited, pointing.
Blade slowed.
Several hundred yards distant, near the southern shore of Floyd Lake, grazed a small herd of cattle.
“I don’t believe it!” Hickok pressed his face against the SEAL. “Must be twenty, thirty head out there. Do we stop and try to capture one?”
“No. We can’t spare the time. Maybe on our way back from the Twin Cities,” Blade answered.
“What kind of cows are they?” Joshua asked.
“Beats me,” Blade said. “But if they’ve been running wild all these years, I can see where catching one is going to be extremely difficult.”
As if to accentuate his statement, the herd, having spotted the mechanical intruder, took off, following the shore of the lake towards the east.
The SEAL easily negotiated the rolling fields, circling Detroit Lakes. At one point, when they were bearing south, they crossed a pitted, worn road.
“Highway 34,” Geronimo announced. “It runs east and west.”
They maintained a southerly course until Blade was satisfied Detroit Lakes was well behind them. He turned west, and within three miles they came up on U.S. Highway 10. It turned out to be in the best condition of any roadway they had traveled on so far.
“It’s incredible that these roads have survived this long,” Geronimo mentioned.
“I recall reading in the library,” Joshua said, “that roads built by an ancient civilization called the Romans were still in existence, some even being used, at the time of the Big Blast.”
Blade had a thought. “Say, Bertha?” he called to her.
“Yeah, Big Guy?”
“You’re familiar with the Twin Cities?”
“I know my way around pretty good. I should. I’ve lived there all my life.
You know that. Why ask such a dumb question?”
Blade grinned at her frankness. “What I meant was, how well do you know what’s in the Twin Cities? What buildings are there and even more importantly, what’s inside those buildings?”
“Well,” she said, scratching her head, “I know the north and west parts of the Twins pretty good. The north part is Nomad turf, and I used to be a Porn, so I know the west real good. The south part is where the Wacks hole up, and nobody goes there unless they’ve got a death wish, so even the Porns don’t use it that much. I ain’t never been in the east part. That’s Horn turf, enemy territory. Why you askin’ these questions?”
“You know we must find certain types of scientific and medical equipment,” Blade answered. “Can you think of any buildings that might house what we need?”
“Scientific and medical equipment?” Bertha repeated doubtfully. “Don’t rightly know what you’re talkin’ about, but I might be able to help some.”
She thought a minute. “Most of the Twins, you gotta understand, was trashed long ago, right after the war. In the center of the Twins is an area that doesn’t rightfully belong to anybody. It’s kind of a no-man’s-land.
Least that’s what it’s called. You might find what you’re lookin’ for there, though you’d be crazy to go in there.”
“What makes you think we’ll find what we need there?” Blade asked her.
“I’ve been there, once or twice,” she said grimly. “There’s some big buildings called hospitals there, and one part, Zahner told me, used to be what they called a university. There’s a bunch of signs that call it the University of Minnesota. Aren’t they what you told me you were looking for?”
Blade smiled. “That sounds exactly like what we need.”
“You boys is nuts!”
“Why do you say that?”
“Cause a lot of the Wacks is there, and the Lone Wolves, and worse. The Wacks come up out of the tunnels. They’re based in the south, but you never know where they’ll appear. The Porns and the Horns and the Nomads are always sendin’ patrols in that area. You try going in there, you’ll wind up dead. I know I ain’t going in there!”
“You won’t have to,” Hickok assured her.
“No,” Blade added. “You just point us in the right direction and we’ll take care of the rest.”
“Another town up ahead,” Geronimo announced.
This one was a small town called Frazee, abandoned and disintegrating from the decades of neglect and abuse from the elements.
“We’ll keep going,” Blade said as they drove through the former business section. “I want to put more distance between Detroit Lakes and us. What was the name of the next town?”
“It’s named Perham,” Geronimo responded. “Had two thousand inhabitants before the Big Blast.”
“We’ll stop there for the night”
“But it will still be light,” Geronimo pointed out. “Shouldn’t we take advantage of the light and keep traveling?”
“I’m thinking of all of us,” Blade replied. “We must all be rested when we enter the Twin Cities.”
“We’re okay, pard,” Hickok said.
“Don’t stop on account of us,” Bertha stressed.
“I am stopping on account of us,” Blade reiterated. “We’ll be refreshed when we reach the Twins. A good sleep will help immensely.” Blade turned to Geronimo. “When do you think we’ll reach the Twin Cities?”
Geronimo spent several minutes computing, correlating the information presented on the map. “If my calculations are correct, and bear in mind this is a rough estimate…” He tapped the map, reviewing his data. “Keeping in mind Blade’s speed, which has been hovering at fifty miles per hour, and taking into account detours to avoid possible Watcher stations, and…”
“Will you just answer the blasted question?” Hickok interrupted.
“You’re beginning to sound like Plato!”
“…and subtracting time for potty breaks, we should reach the Twin Cities…” Geronimo glanced up, smiling. “By tomorrow night.”
“Yee-hah!” Hickok shouted.
“That soon?” Joshua asked.
“As near as I can tell,” Geronimo confirmed.
“Back to the Twins,” Bertha said apprehensively.
Blade looked at the speedometer. Maybe even sooner. He had picked up speed since encountering U.S. Highway 10. On Highway 59, which had been considerably narrower, and in rougher condition, he’d kept the SEAL
at close to fifty miles per hour. But he should be able to average sixty on U.S. Highway 10, just as he was doing now, all the way to the Twin Cities if their luck held. The SEAL was capable of much greater speeds, but Blade was reluctant to open the vehicle up. He still entertained lingering doubts about his driving ability, and they couldn’t afford to damage the SEAL through his carelessness.