Chapter 2
|September 9th, 2010|
Eleven days have passed since the large family settled into the far-corner of the quarry campsite. The rush had slowed considerably as the shelves within the trailer filled with barrels of purified water, bags of dry cement and sand and wood dust, rolls of pelts weaved and treated, packages of freeze-dried foods and drinks, bottles of solutions and soaps.
The greenhouse was freshly harvested, the rabbit and quail hutches have been expanded, and the industrial fridge was full of bottles of alcohol, water, sports drinks, energy drinks, sodas, juice, teas, coffees, and ciders. An entire shelf still had freeze-dried basics such as bread mixes, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, eggs, milk, cheese, etc.
The sun was beginning to set at the end of a long productive day and the large family was lounging in the tent eating a nice dinner, vehicles began to roll into the campsite. They had been expecting one vehicle, the truck with a nice cap that belonged to the final member of the family, Merle Heath Dixon. The old Winnebago, church van, and small car that followed hadn't been expected and they were more than a little shocked at their arrival. No one had ever been here at the same time as them and most people wouldn't willingly follow Merle anywhere.
"Stay here." Freya told her daughters before walking out of the tent with her husband right behind her. Merle hopped out of his truck and greeted the couple with a wide smile and a hug. "We're glad you made it safely."
"Thanks for the warnin'." Merle told them with a genuine smile. "Ya were right that somethin' was off with the city. I found these nice people on the highway tryin' to find a safe place nearby and figured ya'll would know better than me."
Faye and Daryl shared a long look. It was worrying that things were getting worse, but they had expected it. They didn't mind offering a helping hand these people, but they didn't trust easy, and they weren't bleeding hearts.
"Alright." Daryl said giving his father a genuine smile as he was really happy the man was safe and no worse for wear. He didn't often think about the fact that Merle was his father and not his brother, as they had known for the first eight years of his life, but at time of great emotion it popped into his head.
"Excuse me?" A man a few years older than Merle asked while walking over. He wore sandal, a bright short-sleeved button-up, and tan shorts looking like he belonged on a beach rather than the campsite. "We didn't mean to intrude, but we didn't know where else to go."
Faye offered him a smile and waved her hand. "Don't worry about it." She told him kindly, giving the gathering group a quick look over for any signs of injury or sickness. "I'm Faye Dixon."
The semi-large group introduced themselves as Dale Horvath, Theodore 'T-Dog' Douglas, Andrea and Amy Harrison, Glenn Rhee, Jacquine 'Jacqui' Jamison, Diago and Miranda Morales with their children Eliza and Louis.
"I don't suppose ya brought your own camping equipment." Faye said dryly gaining sheepish looks and shaking heads. She looked at her husband for a long moment and he nodded. "We've got four spare tents, a few cots, and some beddings to spare."
"Thank you." Diago said gratefully. They all understood why as that family of four had driven in with the small car that could barely seat all four of them with their minimal supplies.
"I'll get the girls ta help." Daryl told Freya before turning to his brother. "Pull the truck 'round the camper and back near the edge."
"I'll leave ya to it." Merle told his daughter-in-law before walking off to move his truck.
"Is there somewhere specific you'd like us to park?" Dale asked curiously wondering if there was some sort of unseen organization that they had. If so, he didn't want them to overstep especially with how generous they were being.
"Not so much specific as organized." Faye explained to their confusion. "We're just keeping the campsite small and together to minimize the risk. If you'd line your vehicles along the edges and set up your person spaces in the gaps between it'd be greatly appreciated."
"Sounds like a good idea." Dale said looking at the two other men who nodded. "There doesn't seem to be much even ground."
"That's another reason." Freya stated calmly. "Mostly it's to provide designated spaces."
The vehicles were quickly lined along the far edge of the cliff near the road by largest to smallest with the largest gap between the church van and the old RV.
"My daughters, Mara and Maya." Freya introduced as the duo laid supplies out on the ground in front of the group. They waved before racing back around the camper and into the tent. "Looks like we've got six square-tents, six double cots with sleeping matts, six standing hammocks, two double mattress pads, eight double sleeping bags, ten cotton blankets, two folding picnic tables, one multi-layer folding table, one folding campfire grill, one mess kit, and one utensil kit."
"That's more than generous." Dale said, having become somewhat of a spokesperson for the newcomers. "Could we trouble you for help setting up?"
They set up one tent between the small car and the church van with two double cots with sleeping matts and two double sleeping bags. This tent was for the Morales family of four and they were grateful to know they had a semi-warm and comfortable shelter to sleep in.
There were two tents between the church van and the old RV. The one closest to the RV was for the girls and had two double cots and two double sleeping bags. The one closest to the van was for the guys and had two standing hammocks and two cotton blankets. Between the two tents were both picnic tables separated by the multi-layer table and the campfire grill.
There were still three tents, two cots, four hammocks, two mattress pads, four sleeping bags, and eight blankets.
"We can take the back seats out of the van and lay one of those pads down." T-Dog offered as the group looked over the leftover supplies in the fading light of the sunset. "Give the kids somewhere safe to chill."
"That's a good idea." Freya told the man kindly. "We can line the seats along the vehicles, so people have somewhere to sit without crowding the picnic tables."
There were three rows of seats to remove, and the longest one was placed under the awning of the RV while the other two were placed in front of the doors on either side of the van. The mattress pad fit just about perfectly, and they threw the spare sleeping bags and blankets inside to act as pillows and backrests and blankets for whoever decided to lounge inside. The other mattress pad, cots, hammocks, and tents were stored in the passenger seat.
"Thank you." Dale said softly to the kind woman. "We're very grateful."