Time Lost: Teenage Survivalist II (14 page)

Chapter 28

Trouble

We camped by a pond in a thickl
y
forested area north of the town of Savannah on the sixth day of our journey. Early in the morning, two does and a fawn came to the other side of the pond to drink while we watched in awed silence. After they left, we excitedly talked about how great it would be if we could catch a deer and started thinking about how we could manage that. We knew we’d have to have to have something bigger than the traps and snares we used for small game, so we threw around some ideas using the stun guns and/or knives, but none sounded sufficient to bring down something that large. Still, we couldn’t let the thought of a juicy slab of venison go, and we continued to talk about it as we resumed our trek.

Late in the afternoon we passed a farm next to the highway. We could see a man, woman, and two teenagers working out in the field with what appeared to be some old-fashioned farm equipment and horses, presumably planting or getting the field ready to plant. Several minutes later, we passed the farmhouse and thinking that nobody was probably home since they were in the field, we decided to “borrow” some items. We all felt kind of bad about it, but this was survival after all. We were careful not to disturb anything, taking just some hard biscuits, a few potatoes, and some apples. As we were leaving, something shiny must have caught Doug’s eye, because he went back in and came out carrying a pistol and a partially full box of bullets.
Dakota about had a cow when he saw it.

—
What the hell are you doing with that? You can’t just take that!

—
We’ll just borrow it for a while. Maybe we can shoot a deer tonight, then return the gun tomorrow.

—
I don’t know. You’re crazy, man. Taking some food is one thing, but a gun…

—
It’s alright. I said we’ll return it. They probably won’t even notice it’s gone.

We got to thinking about how nice it would be to eat some real meat and to have a full stomach for the first time in a long time, so we finally all agreed to go along with Doug’s plan. I think hunger and exhaustion were getting the better of us by then and none of us could think straight.

That night as we camped, we kept hearing animal noises. We could identify the mooing of cows and neighing of horses, and even the occasional crow of a rooster. There were other noises, which we thought might be sheep or goats, but we weren’t sure. Since we hadn’t seen any deer, we decided to investigate the farm animals and maybe take a few chickens, a lamb, or a goat instead of worrying about trying to catch a deer.

We walked toward the animal sounds and found that they were coming from a nice farm just off the highway. As we hid in the trees, we could see, by the light of an almost full moon, pens of goats, chickens, cows, and horses behind a large, dark farmhouse. Three big silos sat on the side of a gravel driveway between the pens. We started to creep closer to the driveway, but some dogs caught scent of us and came barking. Dakota quickly took some pieces of rabbit meat that he had saved to cook later and threw them to the dogs. That quieted them down and placated them enough to let us into the yard.

We decided that Matt and Doug would take one of the goats and Dakota would grab a couple of chickens, but first I would climb the silo to see if I could get some grain to lure the animals to us. The bottom rung of the ladder to the silo was about shoulder-high to me, so I had to jump up to get my feet on the bottom rung. As soon as I touched the ladder, I knew I was in trouble as an intense pain shot into my arms and through my entire body. The ladder had apparently been rigged to deliver an electrical shock. After that, I lost consciousness for a time. The next thing I knew I was being dragged by someone toward the house. I knew I had been caught.

I panicked, my body still tingling and my mind exploding with fear. I was sure that whoever had captured me was going to kill me. I didn’t even remember at that point that I had wanted to die; instinct took over and my only thought was that I had to get loose. I started to pull and roll out of my captors’ grip, but I wasn’t strong enough yet. A few seconds later, a gun was shoved into my face and a woman yelled at me to stop struggling. I was about to give up when a shot rang out and I thought for a fraction of a second that the lady had shot me after all. But the reactions of the woman and the two teenage boys holding me told me that the shot came from the distance. The guys! I heard someone yell and then men shouting.

I gave up then. I didn’t even want to face it if one of the guys had been shot. An old man rushed out of the house and he and the woman carried me inside while the boys ran off toward the field where the shot had come from.

They sat me in a wooden chair by the fire and tied my hands in front of me. I had expected them to tie me to the chair or beat me, but instead they tried to make me comfortable. The woman who had held the gun on me looked me over and asked me if I was alright. She was a pretty woman, dark blond hair, probably in her late thirties or early forties. I nodded in response; I didn’t trust my voice at that moment and I didn’t want to sound like a simpering fool. Besides the older man, there were two older women, grandmas probably, who were looking at me with concern. My mind was still a little numb from the electrical shock and the fear of being caught, so I couldn’t figure out why they would be treating me with such care.

Just then a young man and woman came in. The woman—or maybe she was just a girl—was crying and the man was holding his ear, with blood dripping through his fingers. I had a sick feeling in my gut, thinking that maybe Doug had shot at him. That was so uncharacteristic of the usually happy-go-lucky guy I knew, and I couldn’t quite wrap my mind around that thought. The first woman—I thought she must be the mother of one of these two—started tending to the bloody ear, and then the door opened again. A man carrying a dog and the two teenage boys came in. The man laid the dog on the coffee table and looked over at me.

—
What’s his story?

The older man answered.

—
He’s just a scared and hungry kid, John.

The man with the dog—John—looked thoughtfully down at the dog for a few seconds, then back at me. His voice was quiet when he replied.

—
Well then, give him something to eat.

That set off a flurry of activity with the grandmas scurrying into the kitchen like someone had just pushed their “on” buttons. They soon came back with a plate of delicious-smelling food and a huge glass of milk. I tried to refuse it. I didn’t deserve their kindness; after all, I had trespassed on their property and tried to steal from them. Yet I hadn’t seen this much food—normal-looking food—or even milk for over a year and a half. I fought off the hunger and the desire, but they got the better of me, so I accepted the food with shame in my heart and tears in my eyes. One kind grandma patted my shoulder, but instead of comforting me, it just made me feel guiltier and I couldn’t stop the tears flowing down my cheeks.

I was embarrassed and ashamed, but I knew I needed to apologize. I squeaked out an apology, and the woman who patted me smiled kindly at me. Then she turned and said,

—
John, couldn’t we untie him now? He doesn’t look like he’ll hurt anyone.

John agreed and the older of the two teens came over and untied me. He asked me my name, but when I told them it was Ben, they all looked startled and a little suspicious. I found out later that the dog’s name was also Ben and that Doug had shot him as well, luckily just nicking him in the shoulder. The mom—Lauren—made a joke about it being a good thing that the guy was a bad shot, and I couldn’t help but smile a little with relief that Doug hadn’t seriously injured anybody.

The boy who had untied me told me his name was Bracken and that I could stay in his room. He gave me some of his clothes to wear and let me clean up a little in the bathroom. I couldn’t believe they still had warm running water, although not quite enough water pressure to take a full shower. Bracken told me they had made a solar hot water heater and a special kind of pump to bring water in from the well. After months of sleeping on the ground with just a few blankets to keep warm, I couldn’t believe how comfortable the bed was and how warm the house was. Clearly, this family was surviving better than the people living in cities; they had heat, shelter, clothing, plenty of good food, and even running water.

That night, before exhaustion finally took over my brain and body, I told Bracken a little bit about my experiences in the city, leaving out any reference to Sara, of course. I felt like I owed this generous family an explanation as to why the guys and I were trying to steal from them. Bracken seemed to not only understand, but to feel sorry for me. I wasn’t sure I wanted anyone to feel sorry for me, least of all the people I had tried to rob.

Right before going to sleep, I asked Bracken what day it was. When he answered April 13
th
, I had to smile at the irony. Of course. On my unlucky birthday I almost get electrocuted and my friend shoots an innocent man and his dog.

Chapter 29

Life on the Farm

I decided not to tell Bracken it wa
s
my birthday. After the suspicion caused by my name being the same as their dog, I figured the coincidence of it being my birthday was just too great to be believed, so I told Bracken that my birthday was in five days and that I would be turning 16. He offered to teach me how to drive even though there was no gas to get anywhere, and I told him I’d like that. I had no intention of staying there that long, of course, but it made us both feel better to end that awful day on a bright note.

Early the next morning, I crept out of Bracken’s room and quietly made my escape. I wasn’t sure where I was planning to go, but I hoped to catch up to the guys to make sure they were okay and to continue our journey north. Apparently I wasn’t as quiet as I’d thought, because Bracken caught up to me as I was leaving the yard. He grabbed me by the shoulder and turned me around to face him.

—
Hey, where’re you going?

—
I don’t know. Just going.

—
Why? You can stay here. Don’t you want a home to live in?

I thought about that for a moment. What if I couldn’t find the guys? What if they had already left the area, thinking I was dead, pushing harder than ever to get to Omaha? I was forced to think about what it was in Omaha that I wanted and it all came down to this, a home, and here was a home—a nice home with a nice family—being offered to me like it was on a silver platter. But why would they?

—
Yeah, more than anything. But why would you guys want me? You don’t owe me anything.

Bracken sounded perturbed when he answered.

—
It’s not about owing anybody anything. You need a place and we’ve got a place. And plenty to feed you too. Besides, you’re just a kid. We want you to stay.

I was tired. Tired of arguing, tired of traveling, tired of trying to survive. What Bracken offered me was so tempting, but I was also scared. I had promised myself not to get close to anyone, but I could see myself really getting close to this family. I longed for a mother and a father to take care of me. I longed for doting grandparents to love me unconditionally. I realized that I was jealous of Bracken, of his life and his family. I wanted it so badly, but I was scared of losing everything again. I started crying tears of longing, of sadness, and of shame. Bracken pulled me close and comforted me and I craved that closeness, the acceptance that the guys had given me. If they were indeed gone, maybe I could find it with Bracken, and everything else I desired here with his family. Finally, I gave up and let Bracken lead me back inside.

Later that morning, while I savored a delicious breakfast and watched this happy family who seemed almost oblivious to the hardships of much of the rest of the world, I began to worry about the guys. What if one of them was shot and was lying out there, bleeding to death? The guys had become like older brothers to me and I knew they were kind and generous, really good people. I was scared to bring up the subject, though, worried that the bad feelings Bracken’s family held for Doug would spill over to me and I’d be kicked out of the house. Maybe that would be better, I thought. Maybe I deserved to be. So I decided to ask.

—
Do you think you shot any of the guys I was with last night? I just don’t want them to be lying out there bleeding to death. They’re really not bad guys; they took care of me after my parents died.

John, the dad, looked a little pissed off, but he answered nicely enough.

—
Well, they ran off and left you hanging there. But don’t worry; we shot over their heads. We just wanted to scare them off, not hurt them. Alex and I’ll go down there and check around later just to be sure.

Alex was Bracken’s older brother, the one whose ear had been shot, and the pretty girl with copper-colored hair, who had been clinging to him the night before, was his wife, Robin. They made a cute couple and were pretty nice to me even though I had caused them so much pain and heartache.

Later in the day, two cute girls rode up to the house on horses. I had never been so close to a horse and I had certainly never ridden one, but one of the girls, named Jenny, let me ride double with her. The weather was warm and sunny, the girls good company, and for a while I was able to mask the pain in my heart and bury the haunting memories of the city. It was almost like that part of my life had been a dream and I was just now waking up to reality. My old nemesis Time decided to play nice and let me enjoy the afternoon, stretching it out slowly and deliciously, so I could pretend to be happy and normal for a while.

Bracken’s girlfriend, Skylar, was a beautiful girl about the same size that Sara had been, but with light brown hair. Something in the way she talked and looked at Bracken reminded me of Sara, and I realized that I kept staring at her longingly because every time I did, Bracken would glare at me. Later that night, Bracken warned me off her just in case I didn’t understand that she belonged to him and that he intended to marry her. I hadn’t meant to threaten their relationship or to steal her away from him. It’s just that I felt myself drawn to her like hapless waves to a comforting shore. After that, I made more of an effort to control my emotions when I was around her.

For the next two weeks, I tried to fit in to the family, helping with household chores and various farm projects. I tried to please Lauren and John to show them my gratitude and that I was worth their trouble, but when they weren’t around my heart just wasn’t in it. They reminded me of my parents and I so desperately wanted a relationship like that with them, but I knew in my heart it would never be the same; that stage of life was over for me now. I had been too long without parents to care for me; my heart felt hardened and crusted over, too rigid to allow anyone new in. Especially these good, happy people who had no clue what I had been through and could never understand the damage that had been done to my heart.

One day I was out walking the fence line with Bracken and his younger brother Calvin. I tried to keep my mind focused on the task, but it just kept fogging out, making it impossible to stay focused. I don’t know what was wrong with me; I felt like my mind was shriveling up even as my body began to fill out from the good food. Bracken kept telling me to keep up. I tried my best, but it just wasn’t good enough; I lagged behind the others.

At one point, I passed a large clump of bushes. I was almost past when I heard my name softly called through the bushes. It took me a second to realize it was Dakota and another few seconds to figure out what to do. I told Bracken and Calvin that I had to take a leak, and then disappeared into the bushes.

I was so happy to see all three guys hiding deep in the bushes, and they were apparently elated to see me. They hugged me so hard I almost passed out. They were whispering excitedly, Dakota with tears in his eyes, exclaiming that they had thought I was dead when they ran from the farm and were overjoyed when they heard from Jenny and Skylar that I was alive and well. They explained that after secretly returning the fateful gun to its owners, they had sought refuge in the nearby town where Skylar and Jenny happened to live. It seemed that fate had brought us back together and I decided that I’d leave with them later that night. At least with these guys I didn’t have to pretend to be interested in life and the mundane things that go along with living. They understood what I’d been through and didn’t try to push or pull me into being something I just didn’t have the strength to be anymore.

Late that night, after everyone in the house had been asleep for several hours, I slipped out the back door and met up with the guys by the fence. I had taken some bread and a few slices of ham to placate the dogs so we could make a quiet getaway. As I climbed the fence, I looked back at the sleepy house, so pleasant and unaware of the hell that the sun had unleashed in the cities. On this farm, Time had plodded along almost like nothing at all had happened. I was tempted to stay, but I felt I could never fit in with the peace and happiness it contained.