Light At The End | Book 3 | Dark To Light Page 3

  “And here we are.” Quincy turned right and headed along a short glass corridor to the barn. “Fortunately, the number of windows around the top level of the barn is sufficient to give us plenty of natural light in here.”

  “I see you managed to get the big grain trailer parked before the tyres disintegrated.”

  “Yeah, Helen suggested that we got the trailer up alongside a wall so that it would continue to be used as a huge storage area for our canned and packet food. Again being a farm, we had a stock of decent strong bags to protect the packets from rodents. Helen positioned the trailer and then got the tractor out to to the middle.”

  “What would normally be in these large pens?”

  “We had seven Friesian cows, a bull, ten sheep and two rams, all of which were kept indoors for a long time. This place was spacious enough to store a lot of animal feed. After a year we let one cow and a sheep out to graze. They went to the nearby pasture and after a brief sickness died. It was another year before we gave another cow and a sheep the same opportunity and they died too, although they lasted longer.”

  “I take it nobody went outside with the animals?”

  “No, the main gate at the end of the driveway was closed, and the only field they could graze in was within sight of the house. It was mid-way in the third year when we had success, and everything was out there except one cow and two sheep. I’m the livestock man around here, and I brought the cow back in for milking. The yield was good, and it proved okay when I tested the purity.”

  “Did you guys start going outside at that time?”

  “No, only me, and then only for brief periods to get the animals back indoors. It was also the end of the second year before our canned food stocks started to run low. We’d rationed ourselves for months because we didn’t want to butcher any of our animals or birds. We opted to go vegetarian when the canned meat ended. The animals we kept were to provide us with milk, and wool and the hens provided our eggs.” He smiled. “A couple of the girls located a pond which was fed by a stream. Fish was added to our diet.”

  “I noticed there are at least four different crops in that field opposite, so how did you plough?”

  “It took a lot of effort.” Quincy extended his muscular arms and grinned. “We unbolted two blades from the plough attachment and converted it as directed by Helen. Like everything else, we didn’t get it right straight away, and it was hard work. Both Glen and I pulled, while two other people drove and guided the blades.”

  “You’ve all earned your success the hard way.” Bill looked around. “Could I have a look at your mill?”

  “Yeah, sure.” Quincy led the way. He pushed open a door at the back of the barn, and a few paces along a glass corridor went inside the gristmill. “As you can see, this is a small set-up, but it was originally intended as a demonstration model, purely to show how grain could be ground to make flour.”

  “I suppose this was another place for you and Glen to get things going?”

  “It was at first, and then Josh, Helen and the girls had a go, working in pairs. This is something that takes a lot of physical effort. Josh has worked out designs to produce gears and a driving mechanism, but we haven’t got the parts or tools to make the device he designed.”

  “You have a wind-pump somewhere out here—”

  “That’s set up over the flow from the spring. The water is fed by pipes to the well, but the pump works a piston down there. It provides pressure for our supply, although it blocks occasionally.”

  “I’m very impressed, Quincy. Do you still go to Aviemore on shopping trips?”

  “Yeah, but not so often these days, and, of course, it’s not for food anymore. A couple of us make the trip for things like footwear or clothing. It’s only about a mile to town, but there are feral dogs we have to watch out for—hence, one of us taking a rifle or shotgun whenever we go out.”

  “I’d like to take a walk to Aviemore to see if there is anything that might be useful for us.”

  “It’s a small town, but apart from the usual assortment of retail units there are camping, fishing and outdoor clothing stores so they would be good to check out.”

  The evening meal was enjoyed outside in the large square rear garden under the glass roof—another integral part of the all-weather design. It was by choice that Cherry and Victoria joined Emma and Imogen at a table with the three children. At the same time, the other adults mingled in two mixed groups of Aviemore and Auchcarn. Conversations carried on between all three tables as early bonding continued between the new friends.

  Victoria said, “I know that under the circumstances, this might sound random, but you all look as if you have access to a hairdresser.”

  Imogen laughed aloud and indicated the person beside her. “Emma is our uni-sex hairdresser.”

  “You’ve done a great job, and it’s strange for us now to see men with short hair and no beard.”

  “She won’t boast,” Imogen said, “so I’ll tell you. On one of our first trips to town when we’d gained the confidence to go there, we got access to a hairdressing salon and took a wide selection of equipment. We had no electricity, so it was down to each of us to have a go with scissors, manual trimmers and suchlike.”

  Emma laughed. “We were all in a bit of a state for a while.”

  Imogen said, “Until we found out that apart from being a domestic goddess, our Emma had a natural flair for hair.”

  “I’d really appreciate it if you gave me a trim,” Victoria said.

  Emma beamed. “I’ll be happy to.”

  The Aviemore group were excited at the thought that they were not the only survivors, and the Auchcarn team were happy to continue answering questions about their lifestyle inside a mountain.

  Helen said, “How long will you stay with us?”

  “We planned on a two-day turnaround,” Jay-Dee said. “That was before we knew you were here. How about three or four days?” He turned to Bill and raised his eyebrows.

  “That would be great if these guys are happy to have us—what do you think girls?”

  “Four days sounds good,” Victoria said.

  “I agree,” Cherry said, “and over the next couple of days, I’ll have a look at the electrics and appliances around here.” She nodded across to the next table. “Who is your handy person?”

  “That would be Glen— the tinkerer,” Imogen said. “and Josh is our ideas, man—the thinker.”

  “Well that’s my four days arranged then,” Cherry said. “We’ll start tomorrow if you like and make an inventory of what can be repaired and what can be salvaged for recycling.”

  Victoria laughed. “I reckon we might be extending to five days.”

  Helen sounded like a different person to earlier. “You take as long as you like, Cherry, and if you don’t get finished, you’ll be welcome to come back.”

  “One thing I must do is take a couple of you guys down to the sub-station to let you see where the electricity is coming from.”

  “Isn’t it dangerous in there?” Josh said.

  “Don’t worry, Josh, I’ll only be showing you the basics—trip switches and suchlike.”

  Bill said, “Is there any equipment apart from the tractor that is out of use that you’re not sure how to repair?”

  “We’ve still got the wind-pump working,” Amber said, “but it’s not as efficient as it once was.”

  Jay-Dee said, “Maybe we should get Archie to pay a visit next time.”

  “Is Archie good at that type of thing?” Helen said.

  “He was a plumbing engineer in his previous life.”

  “Would he be willing to make the trip—it’s a long way to check somebody’s plumbing?”

  Everybody laughed, and after stifling it for a moment, Helen joined them, laughing at her own statement.

  Victoria said, “When we get back and tell them about you guys, there will be plenty of volunteers to make the journey to visit you.”

  Once again, there were questions as
ked about the previous professions of the Auchcarn team’s community. As the assembled group discussed the variety of skills available, it gave the Aviemore team fresh hope that anything on the farm could be repaired or improved upon.

  Bill said, “Quincy was telling me earlier that you have a good range of stores in Aviemore and a couple of us would like to get along and have a look.”

  Glen said, “Are there particular things you’d be looking for?”

  “Clothing, footwear, camping gear and fishing supplies would be good for us, and more electrical tools would be handy for you guys. We could take a walk around to see what’s on offer and if necessary, make more than one trip to get some of what we need.”

  “That would be great,” Glen said. “We’ve got a few things here, but now that we have the power we could supplement our tools with better ones.”

  “May I make a suggestion, boys?” Victoria said, which got a laugh from the others.

  “Go ahead,” Glen said.

  “How about us organising our various outings in the morning after a good rest and breakfast?”

  “That appeals to me,” Cherry said. “We can all sit out here and thrash out who is going where and with whom.”

  It was difficult to quell the excitement among the new friends, and idle chat went on long after the three small children had been put to bed. Five of the six rooms were allocated, so the sixth room was offered to Cherry and Victoria to share. Bill and Jay-Dee were content to stretch out on the comfortable sofa and armchairs in the living room.

  Helen McKenna lay in bed with tears rolling down her cheeks. She’d been thirty-two on the fateful day she drove from Glasgow to Aviemore with eight of her agriculture pupils. Everyone had been excited about spending a few days living and working on a farm, and for Helen, it would take her back to her childhood. As a farmer’s daughter, she’d been perfectly suited to study and teach farming.

  She had given up on her own individual case long ago but still cared that her young friends had a fulfilling life. Helen quietly cried herself to sleep, grateful that after six years of worry and effort, something good was happening for those she thought of as her new family.

  3. Progression

  Sunday 7th August

  Aviemore

  Amber, armed with her shotgun led the way, followed closely by Victoria with her spear. Quincy and Glen were next, pulling a two-metre trailer which fortunately had long-life, nylon-compound tyres. It was wooden, low profile and had small side panels. Bill brought up the rear, alert as ever and carrying his laser rifle.

  It was eerily quiet walking along the main road for the one-mile trip to town. For Bill, at least, it was even stranger to see the place with no people and no vehicles. He’d become accustomed to the desolation, but this post-apocalypse town was one he’d seen and known from before. Bill’s memories of Aviemore were of a small tourist resort. Most visitors would have been in outdoor clothing ready to go hiking, or they were carrying ski-ing equipment.

  “First up, ladies and gentlemen, camping and outdoor equipment,” Amber said. She and Victoria stepped aside outside the store.

  Glen came forward and untied the rope from around the door handles. “You guys will see if you look around, that in each case when we’ve raided a store, we broke in and then boarded up if we broke the glass.”

  “You did well,” Victoria said. “Not many animals can untie knots and apart from basic security, it lets you know if the place has had visitors.”

  “It was Helen’s idea,” Quincy said. “If it had been up to us we’d probably have just smashed doors and windows open.”

  Glen laughed. “Yeah, this is the same Helen who gained access to the supermarket by taking out the front door locks with an iron bar.”

  Quincy said, “Hold on for a minute, and I’ll find the fusebox and switches for this place.” He went towards the back, and after a few loud bangs and thumps, a door opened. Two minutes later, the store lighting started flickering and gradually illuminated the place. Several small, furry creatures scurried out of sight.

  Amber said, “I’ll stand guard if the rest of you want to do the shopping.”

  The others wandered around inside at their leisure.

  Bill was first to reappear. He placed a cylindrical nylon bag and six smaller lightweight bags into the trailer. “Four-person tent, and a few lightweight, thermal sleep sacks. I’ll be back in a moment—I’ve just spotted a few other useful items.”

  Victoria came outside and dropped two large bergens into the trailer. “Thick socks and some outdoor clothing for a few people, and I’d better stop.”

  Amber said, “The most important thing is that you guys can carry—”

  “What the hell is that noise?”

  “Get inside, quick—dogs coming, guys!” Amber remained at the doorway.

  “How many?” Bill said as he approached.

  “Usually around ten or twelve,” Glen said, “but it depends which pack it is.”

  “You have more than one?” Victoria said.

  “We refer to them as packs,” Amber said, “but feral dogs don’t form packs like wolves or wild hunting dogs. Around here we have two leaders and a few strays that remain as loners but tag along when there’s a chance of a meal.”

  A large red deer stag sprinted along the narrow main road past the store. As it tried to change direction to go along a side street about one hundred metres away, it slipped and fell over. The sound of the baying dogs became louder.

  Amber peered through the side window and shook her head. “He won’t last long now—he was limping when he got up.”

  “Which group, Amber?” Quincy asked in a matter of fact tone.

  “The Akitas.” She turned to address Victoria and Bill. “There are three Akitas in that group and a few other breeds which tend to appear in ones and twos when there is a commotion. The undisputed leader is one of the Akitas.”

  Bill said, “What leads the other pack?”

  “A Rottweiler. The last time we saw him, he had ten drifters waiting to join in for a meal,” Glen said. “The big Rottweiler has two friends who usually hang out with him—a pair of Dobermans.”

  “I think I’d prefer our wolves,” Victoria murmured.

  “Wolves?” Amber said and squinted.

  “We had a bit of a run-in with a small pack of wolves on the way up here.” Victoria gave a brief account of the standoff and how frightening it had been for a few minutes.

  “Hold the door ready for me,” Amber said. “I’ll go and see where our furry friends are.”

  “You’re going out there?” Victoria was aghast.

  “Yeah, I just want to know if they’ve caught the stag.” She pulled the door, looked both ways along the main road for any threat, and then lowered her shotgun, but it was ready to use before she walked along the pavement.

  “Amber is a bit of an adventurer,” Quincy said.

  “I’ll back her up.” Bill went outside, smiling, laser rifle at the ready.

  Five minutes later, the pair returned.

  Amber said, “We couldn’t see anything, but it sounds like the stag made it as far as the golf course before they got him.”

  “That’s so sad,” Victoria said.

  “It is sad,” Glen said, “but there are hundreds of deer around this region now.”

  Quincy said, “The frustrating aspect of it is that while they’re on a grass surface, the deer are pretty safe and can outdistance or out-manoeuvre most dogs. When they wander onto the tarmac, it’s a matter of time before they slip.”

  “If we’re ready to move on—where next?” Amber said.

  “Hardware, I think we agreed,” Glen said.

  Fifteen minutes later, Amber and Victoria stood outside the hardware store. At the same time, the three men went inside for a look around. For good measure in case of any visits by either pack of dogs, Victoria had Bill’s laser rifle for the extra stopping power.

  “I know Helen went to the sub-station this morning,”
Victoria said, “but does she go out often apart from working on the farm?”

  “No,” Amber said. “If you asked any of our guys, they’d tell you that this surprise visit by your team has lifted her spirits so much. We know that from the outset she’s felt deep guilt about our circumstances. We’ve all tried in our own ways to reassure her—we’re alive because of her.”

  Victoria nodded. “I’m the same age as Helen, and I can see why she’d feel that way, but you’re right, of course, and I think you’ve all done a marvellous job.”

  The three men appeared briefly to place items in the trailer and then they went back inside to check for more. They returned with a few more useful tools and added them to the pile in the trailer.

  .

  Aviemore - Sub-station

  When the first group went left from the driveway toward town, the second group turned right and headed south along the main road. Cherry and Helen walked together at the front, followed by Josh and Jay-Dee. After a few paces walking forwards, Jay-Dee would turn and walk a few paces backwards, carrying his laser rifle in the alert position.

  Josh said, “Have you had military training?”

  “Only enough to perform basic patrol techniques, mate.” Jay-Dee grinned. “Apart from Bill, who is an ex-Serviceman, we have two younger guys who are soldiers or at least were soldiers. Between those three, there is a helluva lot of knowledge and expertise.”

  “I’m not really an action type of guy—I’m more of your thinker, as the others would say.”

  “Hey, there’s nothing to be ashamed of in being a thinker. If we’ve learned nothing else, we know that it takes a little bit of everything to get by.” He laughed. “I’m carrying a rifle, but I’m a nurse.”

  Josh nodded and smiled, aware that Jay-Dee’s assurance was justified.

  “The sub-station is only about two miles away,” Cherry said. “You’ll see it as we go over the next rise in the road.”