Tipping Point (11 page)

8

M
UCH
A
DO, AND THEN
L
ESS

Mac let everyone else head into the house while she continued to work around the yard. She scattered some more feed into the chicken pens, just to calm them down a bit. Then she got to work on a nesting box setup. The hens would need a place to lay eggs.

She’d forgotten a lot of stuff from her childhood farming experience, and even though she’d been reading through as much material as possible, there weren’t enough hours in the day to learn everything a person needed to know to be self-sufficient.

Mac had spent years studying solar energy and electrical circuitry, and then she’d gotten her amateur radio licence and learned to set up a ham radio. She had relearned vegetable gardening, studied electromagnetic pulses, absorbed knowledge on medicine and human anatomy, and had boxes of books on every subject she could think of. It was overwhelming.

Part of her wanted to shut out the responsibilities she was faced with, and just drift. Mostly with thoughts of Neil. She was a practical woman, though, and romance wasn’t her strong suit. They’d spend what time together they could, when she was able to take time away.

She was finishing up cutting the slats she needed when the phone in her pocket vibrated. She took off her gloves, removed the ear protectors, and pulled it out to look at the display. Neil.

“Was your brain burning?”

“Not that I could tell, no. Isn’t that supposed to be my ears?”

“I’m not sure. I think that’s when someone’s talking about you, not thinking about you.”

“Well, I’ve got a bit of heart-burn. I just thought that was lunch coming back to haunt me. Guess it must have been you.”

“Food, huh? Guess I’ll have to get to that.”

“You haven’t eaten yet?”

“No. Too busy with live chickens to deal with a dead one right now.”

“How’s that going?”

“Disgusting.”

“You’re really a glass-half-full kind of woman aren’t ya? Well, this should cheer you up. I talked to Gerry’s dad, and he didn’t even try to pretend his kid wouldn’t do something like that. Most parents would, but I’m sure he’s been told time and again that his son’s a little shit. It’s a small town, and people are only too happy to shoot you down. I didn’t tell him anything about us, because I didn’t want his son to find out. If he thought you and I were seeing one another, he might try to stake out my place looking for you.”

“You’re a pretty smart cookie for such a stud. I ended up seeing an old friend when I went to make my report, so he’ll make sure the complaint is taken seriously. Hopefully the kid will be scared shitless for the time being, and he’ll cross to the other side of the street if he sees me again. I can deal with him if I have to, but I don’t want it going that far. I don’t want to be living with something I can’t take back.”

“No, you don’t. For now, what are you doing about food? Can I bring you something after I close the store?” Mac groaned.

“I’d love that, but I’ve got so much to do, and stuff that really needs to be cooked tonight. It thawed on the way up here, so I can’t refreeze it. I’ll take a break when I go to make dinner and eat, but then I’m going right back to work. I should have proper nesting boxes for the hens in an hour, and little cubbies for each rooster, but I need to build something for the back of the truck for bringing the goats home. The more I think about them, the more goats I feel I’m going to need, too.”

“Here’s a thought. I’ve got a horse trailer you can borrow, instead of building something. I was able to bring home a dozen goats in it. I’ll bring it over, and then cook up whatever you say needs to be made while you finish what you’re doing. I’m closing up in an hour, so I can be there in about two.”

“That sounds wonderful! Let me know when you need me to come down and open the gate. A bit of a walk will feel good by then, and clear my head. I’m pretty filthy right now, though, and I probably smell a lot like chicken shit and sweat.”

“Who could resist?” Mac started to laugh.

“You’ve sure got strange tastes, cowboy, but that works out well for me. You didn’t run away from the ferrets, so I’m sure you’ll do okay. I need to get back to work. See you soon.”

“Later, honey.” Mac heaved a sigh of relief. Her night wasn’t going to be quite the hell she’d envisioned. In fact, it might turn out to be pretty damn good. If she finished the nesting boxes in time, she could shower before he arrived.

She got back to work with a new energy, and after ninety minutes she was done. The rooster boxes were filled with hay and placed inside their sections. Mac attached more hardware cloth to the roof and attached it to hooks on the dividing walls to keep the roosters in their pens. It was a temporary fix, but she wasn’t ready to deal with fertilized eggs yet.

There were ten nesting boxes in the main structure she’d built, and it would be slid through the gate once she had someone outside to make sure no chickens got out.

Cam and Kirk came to help, while Leigh remained on the futon, reading her book. Mac wasn’t happy about the attitude she was catching glimpses of, but there was still a possibility it would work itself out once things were settled.

Kirk helped her carry the nesting unit into the enclosure, while Cameron ran herd on the two that made an escape attempt. She was laughing when Mac and Kirk finished.

“Having fun?” Mackenzie wanted to know.

“They’re just so ridiculous, aren’t they? They have no clue what they’re doing.” Mac just shrugged, too tired to see the humour.

She grabbed the ramp she’d made for the chickens to get to the second level, and put it in place. Then she packed each of the cubbies with hay to make them comfortable.

“Neil will be here soon with a trailer I can use to get the goats, and he offered to cook up that chicken we’ve got in the fridge. While he’s doing that I’ll get the mushrooms going so we’ll have the spores ready in a day or two.”

“Kirk said you knew the cop today.”

“Old friend. You knew him a long time ago. You might remember him if you saw him. Really, really tall guy. Chuck Forrest.” They all headed back to the house.

“I’m not sure. The name doesn’t sound familiar. I don’t really remember your old friends.”

“Doesn’t matter. He was a good friend, though, and I trust him. He’ll make sure the situation is handled. The only thing we have to worry about now, is if there’s a breakdown in law and order. Neil also talked to Gerry’s dad, who said he’d have a word with him.”

“What about my dad? He refused when I asked him to come the first time, but maybe if you talked to him he’d change his mind. I don’t know if he’s got his own car, though. He has the cab, but I’m not sure if it’s his or belongs to the cab company.”

“I can try, but you know how stubborn he is. Easy-going, maybe, but stubborn as hell. Or maybe it’s just that he’s too easy-going to want to go anywhere. Give me his number. I’ll try to talk some sense into him. It’s a much better life for him here than in town, but with his allergies he might disagree.”

“Thanks mom. I’ll send you his number and let him know you’ll be getting in touch.”

With that, Mackenzie went straight to the shower. She wasn’t a two-shower-a-day kind of person, but she was disgusting right now. She pulled the phone out of her pocket and dumped her clothes straight into the washing machine as she pulled them off. Tomorrow she’d wash everything that was in there during peak sunshine hours, instead of using up their stored energy.

She turned on the water and stepped in. This was almost a luxury, and one she’d been looking forward to in their plans to move here. Instantly-hot water that never budged in temperature, no matter what else might be running in the building. She had a main tankless water heater for the house, but a separate one for the shower. She would only need one in this building once the house was built, so she’d move this one over, but she also had three more waiting in boxes. Every shower would have its own.

The water pressure was amazing, too. She hadn’t scrimped on the pressure tank, but she’d also lucked out with a flowing artesian well. She planned to run two buildings, along with hydroponics and watering the outside garden and animals, so there needed to be enough pressure.

With the water spraying from every direction, she was able to get showered off in less than five minutes, even after standing in the spray for a full minute to let the jets massage her aching body. Not all of the aches were from the day’s work, either, she realized with a smile.

Once she dried off she picked up her phone and sent a text to Neil, suggesting he bring Billy. It would be good for him to get to know her better after what had happened at the store.

Mac went to her room and got dressed while the ferrets circled her feet, licking her ankles. Pickle suddenly became very playful and nipped her foot, making her yelp.

“You little bugger!” She had to laugh. He was sort of bouncing with his toes splayed. He looked so happy with himself for catching her off-guard. She scooped him up from the floor and ruffled his silky fur.

“You think that’s funny, don’t you?” She pretended to bite his neck while he squirmed in her arms.

“Well, that’s what you get for biting the ankle of the hand that feeds you. Okay, that really didn’t make any sense, but you know what I mean.” Meanwhile Squeaker was launching himself at her bare calf. He didn’t like Pickle being out of his reach.

“Oh, here!” She picked him up, too, and bundled the two of them together. There was something so comforting about having their noses nuzzling her wet hair, and sniffing in her ear.

Mac had just managed to put on her deodorant when her phone vibrated, right before it started to ring. She snatched it up, sliding her thumb across the screen to take the call.

“Does this mean you’re almost here?”

“Does this mean you never say hello when you answer the phone?”

“Does this mean you answer questions with questions?”

“Okay, you’ve got me there. Yeah, we’ll be there in a minute or two.”

“See ya soon, cowboy!” The ferrets were pouncing on one another now, which kept them busy enough for her to get out of her room.

Leigh was still reading on the futon when Mac ran through on her way out the door. Kirk was coming out of the bathroom. There was no sign of Cameron, but then Mackenzie knew she was likely in her room, playing a game on her computer or something. Once things were a bit more settled, she figured the three young adults would spend time playing console games together, but they weren’t in a routine yet.

Mac slipped on her sandals and set out for the gate at a light jog. This running back and forth to the gate was going to get her in good shape one day. She liked running. Amongst all the building supplies there was a treadmill waiting to be moved into the main building, along with a Bowflex, and in the winter there would be plenty of time to use the equipment.

She was at the gate wondering what Neil’s place was like, when she saw the headlights of a truck. She figured it was him, but waited until he rolled down the window and stuck his head out to look for her before she pressed her thumb to the plate.

She watched him pull the trailer through, and then sidled up to his waiting vehicle.

“Doth mine chariot await, good sir?” She could just see the crinkling around his eyes when he grinned at her.

“It most certainly doth, mine lady faire.” Billy gave his dad an incredulous look.

“Dad?” He sounded almost worried.

“It’s okay, Billy. I’ve only driven your father slightly mad. He may recover yet.” Neil barked out a laugh.

“I think it’s fair to say it’s more than ‘slightly,’ honey, but it’s a trip I’m happy to take. Hop in buttercup.”

“Buttercup, dad? Sheesh. When did you get so weird?” Mac could see him smile, though, so it looked like everything would be fine on that front. It would certainly make things easier if he considered this a positive thing.

“Hi ho Silver. Away!” Mac started laughing.

“That was really sad, cowboy.”

“It’s what you get for calling me a cowboy.”

“You just have that way about you. Like an ‘Aw, shucks and howdy ma’am’ vibe. It’s not a bad thing. Lots of women go for that. When it’s coming from someone who’s sincere about it anyway.” Mac shrugged her shoulders.

“I don’t care about lots of women going for it, as long as you do.”

“Okay then. Never change. Pretty simple.” Mac couldn’t help herself. She reached forward and started playing with the hair lying on his neck, threading her fingers through it. When he pulled up to the house and stopped, she saw him shiver. As soon as they were standing together beside the vehicle, however, he seized her and started kissing her. She collapsed against the truck when he was done.

“I like when you do that, honey. Probably not the best time for it though.”

“Do what? What did I do?”

“The neck thing.”

“Oh yeah? Alright. I’ve got a good memory, and I’ll be keeping track.” He groaned. Billy came around the truck just then.

“Dad? Are we unhitching the trailer or what?”

“Yeah, alright. You okay with it here, Mac, or do you want it moved somewhere?”

“Here’s fine, so long as you’re okay to pull your truck out. I can back up to it easy enough.”

Neil went around and got the trailer jack set up, while Billy unhitched. Once the trailer was lifted off the ball hitch, Billy went around and pulled the truck up out of the way.

“He got his licence?”

“Yeah. Couldn’t stop him once he turned sixteen. He had to have it.”

“I wish my daughter had been like that. I had to push her to get it last year.”

“By the way, that has got to be the strangest smelling chicken shit I’ve run into in my entire life. You buy some fancy chickens that shit flowers or something? You smell really good.”

“Amazing what a shower will do, isn’t it? I managed to finish the nesting boxes a while ago, and decided I’d shower since I wasn’t going to have to build anything else and could relax. You want to see it? The chicken pen I mean, not the shower. Shower’s for another time.” She winked, and he followed her over to the enclosure.