Forsaken World:Coming of Age (4 page)

“Dude, it’s never been this high,” Lance said as Ian started turning a large valve on the pipe.

“How high is it normally?” Jennifer asked, hearing water humming in the pipe as Ian continued to open the valve.

“A few feet below the floor. Uncle Doug recorded once that it got level with the floor, but that was a year ago when we had that record amount of rain,” Lance said, looking down in the well.

“Overflow is open,” Ian said as he stood, and they watched the level slowly drop.

“Where does it go?” Jennifer asked.

“Come on,” Lance said, heading for the door. “We’ve never seen it actually shooting water.”

They followed him out, and Jennifer heard the roar of water long before she saw it. Moving over to the fence, she saw a pipe sticking out the side of the draw below them shooting water sixty feet across the draw and knocking shrubs and dead leaves to the bottom. “Kind of loud,” she said.

“It won’t last long, and we’ll see if we need to leave it open,” Lance said with a grin, watching the water race down the draw. “Almost makes me want to play in the water.”

“My mud pies were the best,” Jennifer giggled.

“Let’s get to work on the buggy,” Lance said, heading back down the rise.

Jennifer skipped after him, glad to be included again. When Lance opened the shop, Jennifer looked around again, still amazed that hidden behind the back wall was an area almost twice the size of the bunker. “Guys, I’ve noticed there aren’t that many tools here that run on gas,” she said, pointing at an electric chainsaw.

“Because there aren’t,” Ian said, pointing behind her. “That’s an electric auger. Dad said electricity was the cheapest form of power once you had a secure source.”

Lance grabbed her and turned Jennifer to the end of the shop. “That’s an electric saw mill to make lumber. I never understood why they bought so much electric stuff until I found out what this place really is,” he said. “Fuel will turn bad, and you can only make so much bio fuel, and it has to come from what you can eat. We have a secure form of electricity with hydro, so we can use tools without fuel.”

“What were those big white tanks near the pump house, water storage?” Jennifer asked, looking around as Ian opened the hidden door to the rest of the shop.

“Yes, they are water tanks, but no, not for storage,” Ian said, sliding the door open. “We were told they bought those to make a kind of water tower, but looking over the plans for the greenhouse, we found those are for the water storage for the hydroponics.”

Moving around the stacks and pallets of stuff, Ian and Lance grabbed what they needed and walked back out, sliding the door closed. “Hydroponics? Isn’t that what you did your science project on last year, Ian?” Jennifer asked.

“Yep, underground hydroponic rice production. Dad and Uncle Doug asked me to do it,” he said, walking out. “After reading the layout of the greenhouse, I realized they used my research.”

“Whoa,” Jennifer said as Lance opened the ATV shed and backed the hybrid buggy out.

Glancing over at her, Ian grinned. “If I would’ve known that’s why they wanted me to research it, I would’ve put more time in.”

“Ian, you got like third in the state,” Jennifer said. “Did they do that on any of Lance’s projects?”

“Yep.” Ian grinned as Lance jumped out of the buggy. “They picked our science projects out the last three years. Those are Lance’s Pelton-Wheel turbines in the powerhouse.”

As they spread a camouflage net over the buggy, they used zip ties to secure it, and Jennifer spray painted splotches on the tires and wheel well. “So when are we starting on the greenhouse?” she asked, moving to the other side.

“If we go by Doug’s outline, it’s soon, but we won’t be done with it for months, but I’m betting a year,” Lance said as he evened out the netting.

“So let’s not do hydroponics,” Jennifer said, looking up.

“You get a thousand percent increase in yield with an enclosed hydroponic system,” Ian said. “It’s labor-intensive upfront, but the biggest cost factor is electricity, and I guess you know we don’t have to worry about that.”

“Okay, so what’s the problem?” she asked, getting up as Ian ripped a piece of duct tape off and covered the taillights.

He pointed. “See that slope past the rec room?” he asked, and she nodded. “We have to dig back fifty feet, removing all that earth, then build it and cover it up like the rec room and shop.”

“By hand!” Jennifer shouted.

“Yeah,” Ian said, ripping another piece of tape off. “You see our hesitation now.”

Looking at the slope and just guessing where fifty feet went to, she moaned, “Using shovels would take forever.”

“If we had our dads, Uncle Doug, Jason, and Ms. Penny’s daughter’s kids, it could be done in the two months they had planned on taking to build it,” Lance said. “With just me, you, and Ian, I’m thinking close to a year. That is a shit load of dirt.”

“Let’s build the damn thing aboveground,” Jennifer groaned, moving to the next tire.

“We don’t have the supplies for that,” Ian said, moving to the front. “We are going to make lumber, but we don’t have the other stuff we need and would still have to level out an area by hand.”

“Shit, let’s plant a garden,” Jennifer said, getting up.

“Don’t have the pesticides to grow on the outside or the acreage to produce enough till next year’s crops,” Lance said and looked over at her. “We worked on a farm last year for merit badges.”

“We have like ten years’ worth of food now; we can grow a garden and work on the greenhouse,” Jennifer said with a shrug.

Ian shook his head, stepping back to look at the buggy. “We don’t have the time to do that along with everything else we still have to do,” he said, nodding at the buggy. “Looks like a bush with wheels.”

“Then we’ve done our job,” Lance said and started gathering what was left over. Jennifer darted forward and started grabbing anything—be damned if they were picking up again without her.

When they walked in, they found the girls working in the kitchen. “We’re making supper,” Allie beamed.

Carrie looked up with a grin. “You’ll like it.”

“Yes, we will,” Lance said, walking over and kissing each on the head, followed by Ian and Jennifer.

As Lance and Ian walked to their room, Ian leaned over to Lance’s ear. “They are making hamburgers to put in Hamburger Helper,” he whispered.

Looking at Ian, Lance shrugged. “I think that’s kind of smart myself.”

Ian laughed as they hung up their rifles. “Allie should’ve been your sister,” he said and looked at his clothes basket. “Hey, I’m going to shower; will you wash my clothes with yours?”

“Sure,” Lance said, pulling off his boots. After Ian left, Lance looked at the baskets. “It can’t be that hard,” he mumbled, dumping Ian’s clothes in his basket. As he passed through the kitchen, he saw Jennifer “helping” the girls with supper. Allie and Carrie where arguing as they broke up the hamburger patties they had made.

She waved at him as he headed down to the basement. Taking a deep breath, Lance walked over to the large, stainless steel washer and dryer. He looked at the top at the switches and dials then shrugged, opening the door on the washer. He looked inside then back at the instruments. “Where are the lines to tell me how much I’m putting in?” he mumbled, sticking his head inside the washer again.

“How do you know what’s large, medium, or small? I know what an extra-large load is,” he snapped, pulling his head out. Looking for instructions, he moved his head around the outside of the washer then looked up and saw the detergent. Pulling the box down, he started reading.

“Is this supposed to be some innate knowledge you’re supposed to have?” he snapped, slamming the detergent down. Seeing a handle on the top, he lifted it, finding a little door that covered three small boxes. “Instructions, thank you,” he beamed, seeing writing on the inside of the small lid.

Jennifer came down the stairs to see Lance leaning over the washer, studying something intently. “I’ve never found something that interesting on a washer before,” she mumbled, coming down the stairs. As she walked over, she saw Lance was reading a very tiny set of instructions. “Haven’t you washed clothes before?”

Lance jumped a foot off the washer. When he landed, he spun to face her. “I’m putting a damn bell on your little ass!” he snapped.

Jennifer laughed as Lance calmed his breathing. “Sorry,” she giggled. “But haven’t you washed your clothes before?”

“Ah,” Lance stuttered and glanced around. “No.” The giggle left Jennifer as she stared at him. “What, Ms. Penny or Mom washed my clothes,” he mumbled. “But I do know how to iron,” he said proudly.

Shocked, Jennifer looked down at the basket. “I can help.”

“Oh, thank you,” Lance sighed with relief. “Where are the lines to tell you what size load you have in? What do they consider heavy soil, and do I want it to be delicate with the clothes? I’m sure I want hot, but how hot is it? Will it hurt my clothes?”

Jennifer just stared at him with an open mouth then remembered to snap it shut. “How about you just watch me,” she said and started going through Lance’s basket.

Watching her make different piles, Lance shook his head and felt like hiding when she started pulling out his and Ian’s underwear. “It doesn’t like mixing colors? It’s that damn hot?” he cried out, realizing what she was doing.

Slowly, Jennifer looked up. “Um, it’s not that hot, but colors will stain other clothes. Wait till I’m done, and I’ll explain.”

Lance nodded and watched her start to shake out their pants and shirts then lay them in the washer neatly. Holding his tongue as the questions started flooding his mind, Lance leaned over with her as Jennifer filled two of the boxes under the small lid with detergent. Then standing on her tip toes, she pulled down a bottle with “Fabric Softener” written on the front.

Lance didn’t have a problem with that; he had a problem with the big teddy bear on the front. “Ah,” he started, and Jennifer held up her hand as she measured some out in the cap and poured it in the last box under the little lid.

She closed the door, locking the latch. “That is a max full load,” she said, pointing at the glass door.

“No it’s not; it’s barely halfway full,” Lance said. “It’s not at max full until you use your foot to push the stuff in so you can close the door. That’s full. I know I didn’t have enough clothes for a full load; that’s why I was looking for the lines for medium and small.”

Shocked, Jennifer stepped back, seeing Lance was dead serious. “Lance, you will bring me your clothes so I can wash them. You will not break this washing machine. I will not do this by hand,” she said, turning to the machine.

“Hey, I—”

She raised her hand. “Tell your twin the same thing,” she said, flipping switches. “I see his clothes in here as well.”

“Ian’s used a washer before,” Lance said proudly.

“Is that where you learned ‘full?’”

“Yep,” Lance smiled proudly.

“Neither one of you are allowed to touch the washer or dryer,” Jennifer said, putting herself between him and the machines. “I’m not kidding. I’ll bitch every minute of every day if you do.”

Tilting his head as he saw the washer start to fill with water, he said, “See, you could’ve put the rest of the clothes in.”

Backing up to try to block Lance’s vision of the machines, Jennifer shook her head, ready to fight to defend them. “You two can’t even look at them! Do I make myself clear?”

When Lance opened his mouth to talk, Jennifer lifted her chin, daring him. Seeing a look in her eye he didn’t like, Lance wisely left.

When he got back to the bedroom, Ian was putting shorts on. “Hey, thanks for doing mine,” he said, kicking his empty laundry basket.

“Jennifer kicked me away from the washer and dryer and said if either of us touches them, she will bitch every minute of every day,” Lance said, sitting on his bed.

“You let her see my underwear?” Ian cried out in shock. “Dude, I had skid marks on some.”

Looking up at Ian, Lance shook his head slowly. “Brother, she was ready to fight to get me away from those machines. I think she really likes them.”

“Lance, she can see our underwear!”

“Let’s just wear them in the shower from now on and wash them when we shower,” Lance offered. “I really think she will spin if we touch those machines.”

“I’ve washed before. I should’ve done it,” Ian huffed.

Jumping off his bed, Lance got in Ian’s face. “She flipped out when I told her what max full was. If you would’ve done it, she would be whooping your ass right now.”

“But you have to stomp on it to close the lid. That’s full. Jason said so.”

“Hey, I’m just warning you. Try it, and your girlfriend will whip your ass,” Lance said, spinning around.

Ian stepped around, getting in Lance’s face with a pleading look. “Dude, how the hell do you impress a girl when she’s seen skid marks in your underwear?”

“Get darker underwear?” Lance grinned.

Chapter Four

Hearing voices, Ian snapped his eyes open. “Damn it, Jennifer, slow down. I’ve never done this before,” he heard Lance say from the living room.

“You don’t have to be so gentle, Lance. It really doesn’t hurt,” Jennifer snapped, and Ian sat up in bed with a startle.

“Damn it, Jennifer, this is my first time, and if you don’t slow down, I’m going to bite one of your fingers off,” Lance snapped.

“If you moved a little faster, we could get done with this. Everyone’s first time doesn’t take this long, and only the girl hurts,” Jennifer said, and Ian jumped up, looking for clothes in a panic. “Are you trying to make this last all day?”

“Jennifer, slow down, and move your hands some so I can see,” Lance almost shouted. “Are you putting it in or taking it out?”

“It goes in then pull back, grab, go back in, and move around. It’s not that hard, Lance, now speed up,” Jennifer giggled. Ian cried out in a low whimper as he dug in the dresser, pulling out shorts and jumping in them. Both legs went in one side of his shorts, and he busted his face on the floor.

Not feeling any pain and yanking the shorts off, Ian rolled on his back and put them on right but pulled them up way to fast and gave himself an atomic wedgie. As his manhood got squished, Ian saw stars as he moaned, rolling on his side and cradling his groin.

“Will you just hold it for a second and let me catch up with you? This is a lot of work,” Lance snapped. “Now, you grab, roll, and put it in again, right?”

“Yes, that’s it, Lance. You got it. Now speed up, and you’ll see it’s easier, but don’t make a mess, or we have to start over,” Jennifer laughed, and the stars vanished from Ian’s sight as he jumped to his feet.

“Do you have to make it so tight? It doesn’t feel right. Can’t you make it a little looser?” Lance asked, and Ian charged to the door of the bedroom with his vision getting red.

“Don’t be a sissy, Lance. The tighter it is, the longer it lasts,” Jennifer smirked as Ian hit the door and threw it open, breathing heavily in grunts and balling his fists. He froze, seeing Lance and Jennifer sitting side by side on the sectional. Carrie was standing in front of Jennifer, and Allie was in front of Lance; Jennifer was showing Lance how to French braid the girls’ hair.

Feeling light headed and sighing with relief, Ian walked over as Lance reached the end of Allie’s hair. “It doesn’t look comfortable,” Lance said in a low voice.

“It’s easier to take care of,” Jennifer laughed as Ian stopped behind the sectional, and Lance put a rubber band on Allie’s hair. “Now, take the rubber band off, and let’s do it again,” Jennifer said, reaching for Allie’s hair.

Grabbing her wrist, Lance narrowed his eyes at her as he growled. “You take that rubber band off, and I’ll bite two fingers off.”

“Excuse me,” Jennifer laughed and noticed Ian. “Hey, Ian.” She smiled at him.

Giving a weak wave, Ian put on a stupid grin as he looked at the clock. “Lance, why are you learning to braid hair at five a.m.?”

Allie spun around and hugged Lance. “Thank you so much,” she said and kissed his cheek.

“You’re welcome,” Lance grumbled, moving Allie out of the way. He jumped up and spun around, glaring at Ian. “I was asked to braid her hair,” he said in a low voice with a hostile look on his face.

“Dude, I didn’t ask you,” Ian said, stepping back as Lance just walked over the sectional.

Jumping off the back and landing in a crouch, Lance snapped, “What was I supposed to do? She had sad eyes and everything.”

Ian rolled his head, looking at Allie, who was just grinning at Lance with lovey dovey eyes. “Allie, you need to stop,” he said then turned back to Lance. “You tell her ass, ‘No.’ Mom and Dad have both told you that. Hell, that’s the only time they ever took the damn snowman movie away because Allie wouldn’t quit asking you to do stuff for her.”

Spinning around, Lance threw up his hands. “Oh, so she can cry, make me feel like shit, and I’m the bad guy.”

With a grunt and a shrug, Ian said, “Shit, I do it all the time, and I don’t feel like shit or a bad guy.”

Lance started pacing back and forth like a caged animal. “I need to do something manly,” he huffed. “I feel like a sissy.”

“Hey, we can go find someone and kick their ass,” Ian grinned.

Coming to a stop, Lance spun for the front door. “I’m going to pee outside.”

“Yeah,” Ian said, raising his fist and pumping it in the air as Lance dug out his key. “Write your name on the driveway, and let the world know men are here!” Ian shouted as Lance stormed out.

Ian looked at the girls’ shocked faces staring at him. He hit his chest with his fist. “Men!” he roared with pride. The girls continued to gape at him. Not liking his audience, Ian headed to the kitchen as he looked up at the monitors on the wall and grinned.

Jennifer turned to the monitors and saw Lance dancing around on the driveway. “What’s he…” She stopped.

“He’s man and writing his name in cursive to prove he has a man card!” Ian called out from the kitchen.

Jennifer shook her head. “How can females even intermingle with the other half of the species?”

“What’s he doing?” Allie asked, looking at the monitors.

“Acting like a boy,” Jennifer said and turned the girls to face her. “You two can’t pester Lance today; otherwise, he’s going to do more stupid stuff.”

“It’s called the macho factor,” Ian howled from the kitchen. “We are men; hear us roar!”

Allie shook her head at Jennifer. “When they did this at the house, Momma would call Ms. Sandy and tell her their sons were crazy and they needed to go shopping so they wouldn’t kill them.”

“Allie, that’s why you two have to give Lance a break,” Jennifer said as Lance came in the front door, howling. They all turned to watch him run to the kitchen. Ian stepped out, and they both jumped in the air, bumping chests. “Girls, I mean it. I can’t take much more of this manly show.”

After breakfast, Ian and Lance dressed, and when they came out of their bedroom, they looked like walking bushes. Jennifer stepped back. “Where the hell did you get the bush suit?”

“Hunting. It’s a 3-D, scent-proof suit,” Ian said as Lance pulled up a face net and put on camouflage sunglasses. “When you hunt turkey with a bow, you better be hidden.”

Jennifer walked over and pulled Lance down, looking at the lens of his sunglasses. The camo pattern was filled with tiny holes so he could see. “They sell camouflaged lens sunglasses?” she almost cried out.

“Duh,” Lance said, putting on his gloves. “We didn’t make them.”

Shaking her head to stop a torrent of comebacks, Jennifer took a deep breath. “Please be careful, and hurry back.”

“We will,” Ian said, putting on his glasses. “Remember to keep your replies on the radio one or two words—no more.”

She looked down at their feet and noticed heavy lace-up boots that came all the way up to their knees. “What the hell kind of boots are those?”

“Scent-controlled, snake-proof boots,” Lance said, heading for the door with Ian behind him.

She could tell by the way they were strutting and not walking they had huge chips on their shoulders. When they opened the door, Dino trotted out with them. “Carrie, head down to master control, and Allie, hold the door open while I open the gate for them,” Jennifer said, wondering if this was a good idea with both of them feeling belligerent.

Opening the front door, Jennifer ran to the gate in the early morning light and unlocked it then waited until she saw the buggy coming to open it. She had to admit the buggy did look like a bush on wheels as it passed by with a small trailer. After locking the gate, she ran to the house with Allie holding the door open.

When the door closed, they headed down to the basement. “When they start acting like this, it lasts for a few days,” Allie said as they went downstairs.

“I know. Remember, I lived beside you. I’ve never seen them act it out so…weird,” Jennifer chuckled.

“Momma told them the last time she was taking their man cards away, and they showed her the rules that she couldn’t.”

Jennifer stopped and shook her head, confused. “What?”

“Their man cards from the Man Club,” Allie said with a smile. “They have cards and a big, shiny paper that says they are in the Man Club.”

Closing her eyes, Jennifer sighed. “Allie, please tell me you’re just making fun of them.”

“Uh-uh,” she said, shaking her head. “Jason has one, and Uncle Doug has one, and last Father’s Day, Ian got one for our dad and Lance got one for his dad.”

“That’s the stupidest shit I’ve ever heard,” Jennifer huffed and headed to the bunker.

“Momma said the same thing,” Allie said, shaking her head as she trotted along with her.

Ian drove up to the ridge that ran behind the cabin and headed east, following the ridge. Lance kept his M4 aimed out the side, looking around with Dino trotting along beside them. “Lance, you have got to start telling Allie no,” Ian said in a low voice barely heard over the electric buggy.

“Ian, I tried, but she’s a little girl and breaks out those puppy dog eyes, making me feel like I just stomped a kitten to death.”

“I’m just saying,” Ian said as Dino stopped, and Ian took his foot off the pedal, letting the buggy stop.

“I don’t smell shit,” Lance whispered.

“Dude, we have other shit out here to worry about besides stinkers. Stinkers weren’t on motorcycles trying to kill us.”

Looking around more carefully, Lance mumbled, “Valid point,” as a deer bounced in front of them and continued over the ridge. “We are going deer hunting soon.”

“I’m for it,” Ian said, pressing the pedal and weaving the buggy through the trees with Dino moving beside them again. “Want to check the site we dumped those bodies from the valley?”

“Yeah, we’ll be right above it, so might as well.”

“Just how did Allie get you to braid her hair?”

Letting out a big sigh, Lance said, “She and Carrie woke me up.”

“Shit, I would’ve started yelling,” Ian chuckled. “I could care less if she cries. It doesn’t last for long.”

“Yeah, I should’ve,” Lance mumbled. They rode in silence for half an hour, and Ian let off the pedal, and they looked down into the valley below. “Pull up some. I can’t see,” Lance whispered.

Glancing out Lance’s side through the netting, Ian kept moving until he got to a break in the trees that let them look down into the valley where they pulled the bodies. “It seems our theory is right,” he said, seeing figures standing around the pile of bodies.

Reaching in the back, Lance pulled out binoculars and looked down into the valley. A quarter of a mile and six hundred feet below them, he saw ten figures standing around the pile of bodies. Scanning around, he saw two figures walking away and three walking toward it. “Some are leaving, but some are coming.”

“Are those at the turn down the road coming or going?” Ian asked, looking several miles further down the valley.

Moving his field of view down the valley, Lance jumped. “Shit,” he mumbled. “They’re leaving,” he sighed.

“How many is it? It looks like a lot.”

“Can’t really tell, but I’m guessing like thirty,” Lance said, lowering the binoculars. “You realize they are almost at Donald’s.”

“We are coming down that draw behind his house, not the road,” Ian said. “They should be past it by the time we get there. We still have half a mile before the ridge turns down the valley and another two miles to Donald’s.”

“Dog, I’m just sayin’,” Lance said, putting the binoculars up. “We don’t know if another group is in front of them coming or going.”

“We have bullets; we can subtract,” Ian said, pressing the pedal to ease through the trees.

“Fuck that with a limp noodle. I’m dividing on their asses.”

As Ian picked his way through the trees, he glanced over at Lance. “So you had to talk Jennifer into showing you how to braid hair for the ladybug?”

“Yeah, like I’ve ever done that.”

Chuckling as he weaved around a deep hole, Ian said, “I heard you two this morning, and I thought you were shagging her.”

Slowly, Lance turned to Ian and pulled his sunglasses to the end of his nose, looking over them at Ian. “Brah, I know she’s your woman. I’d chop my dick off before I made a move on her. Bros before hos.”

“She’s not mine. Hell, she’s not even my girlfriend,” Ian said.

Pushing his glasses back up, Lance turned and looked around. “You think and dream she is, so that’s all that matters to me. I do see her as a friend though.”

“I know,” Ian grinned. “Maybe one day, I’ll get the nerve up to ask her to be my girlfriend.”

They rode through the woods at a fast walk, looking around. “Be kind of weird living in the same house as your girlfriend,” Lance said.

“I’d move out to the shop if she wanted me to while we dated,” Ian grinned.

Shaking his head, Lance said, “Fuck that. We may have a fence, but it’s still spooky out here at night,” Lance said.

“What if she wants to date you?” Ian asked.

“She’s yours as far as I’m concerned and nothing but a friend, and I hope you don’t mind that.”