Finding Sara

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Finding  Sara

BY – RAYDON COOLEY

©2017 TX 8-368686

COOLEY PUBLISHING LLC.

 

Finding Sara

 

BY – RAYDON COOLEY

CHAPTERS

1------NO LOOKING BACK

2------MY GRANDBABIES

3------THE AWAKENING

4-----A HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

5------WASHINGTON

6------NEW COMPANION

7------LESSONS TO LEARN

8------CABIN IN THE MOUNTAINS

9------BIG RED DOG

10----FARMHOUSE

11----RENO NEVADA

12----FINDING SERA

13----BONDING TIME

14----MY NEW DAD

15--THE BIG PLAN

Finding Sara

 

PROLOGUE

Born and raised in Erie Pennsylvania, Christina Tribal and her older sister Sara lived an average childhood. Their family owned a large horse ranch where they raised full-blooded thoroughbreds, and their parents were leaders in the local church. Christina always looked forward to spending her summer vacations down in Surfside Texas, building sandcastles with her sister at their family’s small beach house. When she was twelve years of age the world started to come unraveled as Civil Society began to convert into radicalism, which caused the United Nation to be deployed worldwide.

When she was fourteen, Sera was eighteen and drafted by the New U.S. Police Force, then sent to Seattle Washington to help with the unrest. One year later is when the electromagnetic pulse attacks happened, which destroyed electricity worldwide.

THE U.N. OUTLAWED ALL RELIGIONS.

 With Christina’s parents being the leader of their local church, they were forced to flee their home. She was sixteen when her parents were killed by the rogue “U.N. Demon’s.” That’s what her father had called the U.N. Peacekeepers. That terrifying day came when her mother and father had to make the decision to sacrifice themselves in order to save their youngest daughter. Now, she was left to learn to survive on her own, with a young thoroughbred named Blackwall her only friend and protector.

 “Go and find your sister.” was the last directive her father gave to her, which began Christina’s quest to track down her older sister. Her mother’s final words were “Never forget who you are.” and she took her parents’ last words to heart.

 With her horse Blackwall, her long fourteen-year journey begins. She heads down toward Texas to their beach house, trying to stay one jump ahead of the U. N. Demons and crazy renegades. Most have killed each other in this war of survival and civilized people were few and far between.

By the end of her quest to locate Sera, Christina will rediscover her faith and find the family she has always dreamed of. She will discover that sometimes God will go above and beyond your prayers.

 

 

CHAPTER ONE

NO LOOKING BACK

 

Christina is tall for a teenager, standing five-feet-nine-inches tall and still growing. Weighing in at one-hundred-twenty lbs. with long full wavy blonde hair and sky-blue eyes, she was a beauty.

She and her parents had celebrated her sixteenth birthday a few days earlier, after being on the run for the last year from fleeing their home and were now hiding out in a small group of warehouses just fifteen miles south of Oklahoma City Oklahoma. Christina could sense the fear resonating from her parents when the U.N. Demons began to move in on the building. Knowing there was no escape, they decided the ultimate sacrifice was in order to attempt to save their youngest daughter. Her father turned toward her and tenderly took her face between his trembling hands, and with tears streaming down both of their faces he began to speak.

“Sweetheart you must listen to me, Okay; you take the thoroughbred and go south as fast as you can. Go to the beach house and wait for a short while, if your mother and I do not show up in a week or two I want you to go north-west toward Seattle Washington, that is where they took Sera. You take off and go find your sister. Now, pay attention to me Christina. Do not look back; you hear me. DO – NOT – LOOK – BACK!!”

He ended his decree with a stern tone as she buried her face into his wide chest and tightly wrapped her quivering skinny arms around his large body. Sue gently pulled her away from Paul’s firm grip and squeezed her little girl tight into her bosom as she gave a nod to her husband to let him know the U.N. Demons were out front. She lifted her daughter’s face and held it between her two hands, then gave her a loving kiss on the lips after whispering through tears.

“Never forget who you are.”

They stood staring into each other’s eyes for a moment, then Sue hoisted Christina up onto the back of the black thoroughbred. She slowly pulled the sliding door open on the back of the warehouse and took a peek outside, then turned and looked back at Paul. He opened the front door than glanced back, giving Sue a quick nod. She slapped Blackwall on the butt hard as she yelled out as loud as she possibly could. Unsuspecting the sudden sting the young horse leaped into a fast run out through the door and quickly headed south. He reached out his long front legs as far as they would go and pulled large chunks of real-estate up under himself and pushed it out behind with his large powerful hind legs. Being only two years of age and still a bit wild, all Christina could do was hold on as tight as she could and do her best to keep from falling off until this wild thoroughbred ran out of breath.

 Hearing the loud sound of constant gunfire behind her, she desperately wanted to turn around and go protect her parents; but there was just no controlling this young coal-black beast as he quickly ate up the landscape at a hard run.

Late that evening as the sun was setting in the west, the distraught teenager guided Blackwall in the direction of a small trailer house that was slightly hidden in a group of trees, hoping to find a safe place to bed down for the night. They both were exhausted from the day's excursion with Christina’s constant outburst of emotions. Blackwall could sense the sorrow and fear resonating from the young girl and realized he was left with the responsibility of keeping her safe. Just as they approached the front of the house, Christina was startled by a loud demanding female voice.

“Who the hell are you?”

Blackwall came to a sudden stop causing the frightened girl to jerk on the rein, trying her best to make the large black animal turn and flee; but he stood still, refusing to move. She rocked hard back and forth in the saddle and kicked him in the attempt to force the large beast to run, but to no avail. Once again the female voice rang out.

“I asked, who the hell are you?”

Christina spotted an elderly woman obscured at the edge of the deck attached to the front of the trailer, and she was holding a bow-&-arrow pointing straight at her. She stared at the sharp tip with large eyes as her ears began to ring loudly, then the world started to whirl all around. Suddenly everything went black, and she went limp as she fell, hitting the ground with a hard thud. Blackwall lowered his head and gently gave her limp body a soft nudge with his nose, then looked up toward the woman. Debby set her weapon down on the deck and slowly walked over to focus down on the skinny teen lying on the ground and elucidated her sentiment.

“Well shit!”

Debby is a widow woman in her early sixties. six ft. tall with long black hair and well built. Her husband passed away a few years earlier, and with no children, she now lived alone.

 Carefully, she scooped the dirty teenager up in her arms and carried her up the steps and into the small trailer, then delicately laid her on the couch and gently covered her with a light blanket. Being completely exhausted from the tremendous tensions of the day’s events, Christina slept sound throughout the night.

As the morning sun seeped in between the curtains covering the small living-room windows, Christina slowly opened her eyes. She quickly rose up onto one arm and looked around the well-kept room, then noticed a large glass of cool water sitting on the coffee table. She instantly sat up and grabbed the glass, downing the refreshing drink, then with trembling hands slowly returned the glass onto the table. Unexpectedly, a sweet soft voice filled the room.

“Good morning young lady.”

Christina quickly turned her head to see who was speaking, and across a small breakfast bar was a lovely older woman standing in the kitchen over a hot stove flipping pancakes, then she realized the air was filled with the delicious aroma of frying bacon. She sat frozen with big eyes while watching this elderly woman slowly walk around the counter with outreached hands and a smile.

“Come on sweetheart, you need to eat.”

She gently pulled the skinny teen to her feet and in the direction of the kitchen table. Still disoriented from yesterday’s dreadful ordeal, Christina followed as she softly repudiated her statement.

“I’m not really hungry.”

Once seated, Debby sat a plate full of hot pancakes and crispy bacon down on the table in front of her and pointed while giving a directive.

“No ma’am, you are going to eat.”

Then she went to the cupboard and retrieved a jar of honey and sat it down on the table in front of the tall skinny girl. Debby took pride in her honey, honey that she’d gathered herself from her own bee-hives.

Christina quickly looked up with big eyes and a concerned expression on her face as she shouted.

“Blackwall! Where is Blackwall?”

        Debby slowly filled two cups of coffee while giving an answer.

“Your horse is fine; he is tied up out behind the house.”

She sat a cup down in front of Christina and pointed at the plate once again with a gesture that said eat, then slowly took a seat across from her. Christina began to eat slowly at first, but when her body’s need for nutrition took over, she began to eat faster and faster until the bottom of the plate was completely visible. They sat in complete silence for about five minutes sipping their coffee until Christina looked down in her lap at fiddling fingers, and with tears seeping from the corners of her eyes began to speak with a shaky voice.

 “I think Mom and Dad died yesterday saving me; I don’t know what to do.”

 Debby rose from her seat and moved over beside the sadden teen and gently wiped the tears from her cheeks with rugged farmhands while trying to console her.

“I am very sorry for your loss. This world has gone to hell, and many, many people are going to die. You have no choice sweetheart, you must grow up quickly; and by quickly, I mean now.”

Before responding in a daze, Christina leaned against the sturdy woman and went limp from confusion of the situation that life had put her in.

 “My Daddy told me to go and find my sister. so, I must go find Sera.”

Debby caringly helped Christina keep her balance as she lifted her up from the chair, then gently guided her down the hall with a suggestion.

 “Okay babe, come with me; I’m going to put you in the extra bedroom, and you can rest until tomorrow. I will gather up the things that you will need for survival.”

Christina wrapped her skinny arms tight around the sturdy woman as if her life depended on it as Debby slowly walked her down the hallway and into the extra bedroom. She lovingly helped the bewildered teen down onto the bed then removed her shoes and socks. After pulling the covers up over her, she gently pushed the dirty hair from the young, enchanted face and softly kissed her on the forehead. As the elderly woman turned toward the door, Christina whispered.

“Thank you.”

        Before closing the door, Debby gave a loving smile with her reply.

“You’re welcome sweetheart, now you get some rest.”

For the rest of that day and throughout the night, Christina would doze off just to be suddenly woken by realistic nightmares of U.N. Demons terrorizing the world. While lying awake in-between the nightmares, she would contemplate on what Debby had said to her about the whole growing up now thing and knew it to be true.

The next morning, she was awakened by the rays from the rising sun seeping in through the bedroom window, lighting up the dark. The prospect of leaving and trying to survive all on her own, and not having a clue where to begin, caused her to tremble with fright. She slowly pulled her socks and shoes on as the sweet aroma of breakfast filled the air, then slowly wandered down the hall toward the kitchen. Debby pointed toward a chair at the kitchen table as she greeted her new guest.

“Good morning young lady, how are we feeling this morning?”

She filled a cup with hot coffee as Christina took the seat with a response.

“Okay I guess; my name is Christina, and I don’t know how to hunt; what I mean is, I don’t know how to survive.”

Debby put breakfast onto a plate and set it down in front of the fragile teen, then pretended to be a bit agitated when she spoke.

“Well shit! I guess you will be staying for a while. I will teach you a few tricks on how to survive. My name is Debby.”

Christina stared down into her coffee with water filled eyes as she made her request.

“You said that I have to grow up now, but I miss mom and dad so much; so, I need you to teach me how to grow up.”

The elderly woman gave a few words of encouragement while watching the young girl cut into her pancakes.

“I do believe that you are going to be just fine sweetheart; just fine.”

        Debby started her off with simple tasks, such as sweeping and cleaning the house; but was a bit surprised when she took her to the barn, and Christina revealed her experience in the art of milking a cow.

“You have done this before.”

        Christina let out a slight giggle with her answer.

“Yes ma’am, I was raised on a farm.”

Christina paid close attention to Debby as she taught her survival skills and practiced endlessly on the art of archery. Debby demonstrated the best way to climb a tall tree to scout for danger; how to build a fire pit, and which wood was best to use, keeping it small so not to attract attention. She also showed Christina her windmill, making sure to teach her how it worked.

“You keep your eyes out for these things, most everyone built these for water.”

She explained the importance of spending every evening brushing and talking to her best friend, Blackwall.

“It will bond the two of you together.”

After four weeks, Christina woke up with the bright light from the sun shining in through the bedroom window, proud that she now had the skills and ability to survive on her own. The aroma of frying bacon filled the air as she slowly got dressed and made her way down the narrow hallway toward the kitchen with sadness. She knew it was time for her to leave and start her quest to find Sera. Debby always greeted her with a soothing voice.

“Good morning pretty lady, how are we feeling this morning?”

Christina poured herself a cup of coffee and took a seat at the table, then looked up and began to speak with a shaky voice.

“Okay, I guess; Debby, it’s time for me to go and find my sister.”

The elderly woman froze for a moment and stared out the kitchen window, then turned with water filled eyes and quietly replied.

“Yes ~ yes I know.”

They had become very fond of each other over the last few weeks and Christina quickly jumped to her feet and ran to take her new friend into a tight hug as tears streamed down their faces.

“I will never forget you; it might be a few years, but I promise, I will come back and visit.”

She held onto Debby as the elderly woman guided them over to the table.

“I will always be here; now, sit and eat.”

After breakfast, Debby helped Christina saddle up and pack the supplies she’d gathered upon the back of Blackwall. The elderly woman stood on the front deck watching through tear filled eyes as Christina rode away on the back of the large black beast with everything she would need to survive. Tears streamed down Christina’s face as well, while she headed out toward her family’s beach house to begin her quest to find her older sister. She worried about Debby being all alone in such a crazy world, and vowed to herself she would return.

 

CHAPTER TWO

MY GRANDBABIES

Christina was feeling the strain of the long hard day's ride as the sun was setting on the horizon. She found a place she considered was a good area to camp for the night and quickly unsaddled Blackwall, then gathered some tree limbs and built a small campfire. A big smile crossed her face as she pulled out the draping screen tent Debby had given her, and quickly set it up. After Blackwall’s brush-down, she settled into the tent for a well-deserved sleep. The sounds from the night critters seemed a little bit spooky at first, but before long she drifted off into dream-land.

As the morning sunlight began to win out over the darkness she had Blackwall saddled and ready to ride. Christina sat in the saddle looking around with that feeling of forgetting something; so, she closed her eyes and took a long moment to clear her mind. Suddenly, Debby’s voice echoed in her head, reminding her of the most important survival skill. She reached into the saddlebag and quickly retrieved the nice Celestron Echelon 20x70 binoculars Debby had given her, then slid down off Blackwall and headed for a tall tree; all looked clear.

She kept Blackwall at a fast pace for the next few days, not only because she wanted to get to the family beach house as soon as possible, but it also kept her mind from missing her parents, and Debby. When memories of that dreadful day seeped into her mind, she would quickly destroy the images and replace them with the joyful reunion she anticipated was waiting at Surfside Texas. She constantly practiced with her archery and was getting rather good at the art-of-the-hunt.

Midday Christina decided that it was time to take a short break; so, she climbed a tall tree to scout the area. A frightening chill ran down her spine, causing her to freeze in place as she sat atop of a tall tree looking around through her binoculars. A phrase she had heard Debby say many times came slipping out.

“What the hell is this?”

She could see the haze of grayish smoke drifting up into the air from a small campfire, and quickly focused her binoculars, slowly looking all around the camp. She spied two small children sitting on a huge log next to a small tent and could just make out that the smaller one was a long-haired little girl that looked to be around ten years of age. She was leaning up against a larger boy that looked to be around thirteen, and he was gently rocking her side to side as if giving comfort while she held onto him tight. Once again another one of Debby’s infamous phrases came slipping out of her mouth.

“Well shit.”

After slowly shimming down the tall tree and mounting Blackwall, she slipped the binoculars back into their place as she spoke to her best friend.

“Blackwall, we have to go and see if those two children need our help.”

She cautiously rode into their camp looking all around, but the two children seemed to have just disappeared, nowhere to be seen. She sat for a moment scanning the area, then dismounted. suddenly her concentration turned in the direction of the small tent when the low sound of a baby's crying penetrated her ears. She slowly made her way to the opening and took a peek inside. Her eyes became as big as silver dollars at what she saw, a small baby that looked to be about five months old. Christina’s attention was quickly diverted by the sound of a little girl’s weak voice attempting to shout.

“Get away from her; get away from her!”

She instantly turned to see a small three-foot-tall skinny little girl running fast, swinging a small stick around in the air in the attempt to protect her baby sister. She reached and easily took the weapon away from the tiny girl and pulled her into a tight embrace with words of benevolence.

“I’m not going to hurt you; I want to help.”

The small girl was wiggling around trying her best to escape the firm grip Christina held on to her when a pleading young boy’s voice filled the air.

“Please don’t hurt my friend.”

The young teen stepped out from behind a large tree and stared at Christina holding onto the tiny girl. Getting a bit agitated, she stared back at him and responded with a stern tone.

“Damn-it-all-to-hell, I’m not going to hurt you, I want to help. My name is Christina, now come talk to me.”

She gently picked the small girl up in her arms, then the girl wrapped one arm around Christina’s neck as she also stared at the boy. He cautiously started his approach toward the girls causing Sharon to quickly squeeze both arms around Christina’s neck and begin weeping. The boy warily spoke as he conceited.

“Okay I’m going to believe you; my name is Wesley, and you are holding Sharon, and the baby’s name is Lisa.”

Christina began to walk around swaying back and forth and hummed a soothing tune trying to comfort the tiny girl while making an inquiry.

“Okay Wesley, where are your parent’s?”

        Through her tears, Sharon gave a loud answer right into her ear.

“DEAD!!”

Again, another one of Christina’s recently learned phrases quietly came spilling out.

“Shit, shit, shit.”

She watched Wesley slowly walk past and enter the tent, then returned with Lisa cradled in his arms, copying Christina’s motions in the attempt to quiet the baby’s crying. Her suggestion caused Sharon to become all excited.

“Let’s make her some honey-water.”

Sharon began to bounce up and down in her arms as Christina slowly carried her toward Blackwall to retrieve the jar of honey.

“You have honey? Can I have some honey water too?”

        Christina gave a slight giggle with her answer.

“Yes you may sweetheart; we will all have some honey water.”

She gently sat Sharon down and took a jar from the saddlebag and gave it to the tiny girl with a smile. She held the jar tightly against her body so not to drop her precious cargo and carefully walked toward Wesley expressing her excitement.

“Look, Wesley, look; we have honey.”

Reluctantly, the young boy carefully handed Lisa over to the tall stranger, then took the sweet syrupiness from Sharon and twisted the top open. Christina could not help but smile while watching Sharon bouncing up and down in anticipation, intensely observing Wesley mixing the honey into a small canteen of water. She smacked her lips as he filled a tin cup with the sweet treat, then carefully handed it to her. After filling a baby bottle, he gently retrieved Lisa back from Christina and gave the baby her bottle. Lisa’s eyes became big with pleasure as she began sucking down the sweetness. Wesley took a seat on the large log and gently rocked her while giving a soothing hum.

Christina looked around the camp and noticed the small deep pan sitting next to the fire pit with brown water and a few bugs floating on the top. She turned and started toward Blackwall in order to retrieve her bow-&-arrow and hunting knife as she spoke to the children.

“Okay kids, I’m going to go get something for dinner; can I trust you to leave my things alone?”

Wesley quickly barked back at her as if she had just given him the worst insult.

“YES! We were taught not to touch other people’s things.”

        She turned and gave him a smile with her reply.

“Okay, it’s my turn to trust you.”

With her deadly weapon in hand, she headed off into the forest. Sharon looked up at Wesley with a firm grip on her cup of sweet water and inquired about dinner.

“So we’re not going to have to eat bug soup tonight?”

The young man gently took one of her hands, and with a smile, he offered his summery.

“No Sharon, I believe we will be eating real food tonight.”

They watched the tall lanky blonde disappear into the forest, then Sharon sat her cup down and leaned into Wesley with an admittance while gently rubbing her sister’s short blonde hair.

“I like Christina, she seems nice.”

        He placed his arm around her shoulder as he agreed.

“Yeah, I like her too.”

Sharon rose and went into the tent to retrieve a blanket, then laid it in the shade. Wesley placed Lisa down and turned to Sharon.

“I’m going to go and get some firewood; I need you to watch Lisa.”

Now it was Sharon’s turn to feel insulted, she quickly scolded Wesley as she took a seat on the blanket beside her baby sister.

“Wesley, you don’t need to tell me that; I know it’s left up to you and me to raise her.”

        He concurred as he headed off on his task.

“Yeah; I guess we have to grow up fast, Huh.”

        Sharon laid down beside the baby with a one-word answer.

“Yep.”

Two hours passed while Wesley, Sharon, and Lisa slept on a blanket beside a small pile of firewood that he had gathered in anticipation of the meal that was to come. Christina returned with three rabbits, three squirrels and a few wild onions, along with some potatoes she found growing. While preparing dinner she would occasionally glance over with a smile at the trio lying asleep in the shade, then Sharon began to stir; she rose up and looked over at Christina with a comment.

“Something smells great.”

        Christina carefully began to remove the food from the firepit while responding.

“You can wake up your brother; dinner is ready.”

Sharon began to shake Wesley as hard as she could while explaining their relationship.

“He is not my brother, he is my boyfriend; Wesley, wake up, we don’t have to eat bug soup tonight.”

        Christina paused for a moment in disbelief and glanced her way with raised eyebrows.

“Wait; you have been eating bugs?”

        Sharon scrunched up her nose with a dislike expression as she answered.

“Yeah, like forever.”

        All Christina could do was shake her head before responding.

“Well let’s eat, and then I will explain the plan I have come up with for you three.”

After the tasty meal vanished, Wesley and Sharon began cleaning the dishes while Christina gave her best friend his evening brushing. Sharon seemed taken by the tall blonde, and left Wesley to finish the dishes on his own. She quietly observed every move Christina made while following behind like a shadow. When Cristina began to set up the screen tent the small girl instantly fell in love with it, and quickly moved in to help.

“Wow, your tent is so cool; can I sleep with you tonight?”

        Christina giggled out her reply.

“Yes sweetheart, you may.”

When camp was set and the chores were done, Wesley rocked Lisa back and forth while giving her another bottle of sweet-water with a bit of mashed potato mixed in, then inquired about the tall blonde’s proposal.

“Okay Christina, what do you have planned for us?”

“Well Wesley, it’s getting close too dark, and the mosquitoes are starting to come out; so, we will talk tomorrow.”

 Wesley stood with Lisa in his arms and headed into their tent for the night.

“Okay, I will see you in the morning.”

Sharon had an uncontrollable giggle while climbing into the fancy screen tent with her new best friend, then quickly cuddled up against Christina and wrapped her tiny arms around her, then quickly faded off to sleep with the soft comforting sound of the tall blonde quietly humming a tune.

After a sound night’s sleep the sun slowly began to peak above the horizon. Christina was awakened by the crying of a baby and Wesley stirring in his tent. She lay still staring up through the screen tent at the clear blue sky with Sharon’s arm lying across her belly. Sharon wiggled a bit and snuggled up closer under her arm. Christina got a big smile on her face as she heard Wesley making a bottle of sweet water for the infant and fantasized about being all grown up and having her own little daughter. Being only sixteen, she knew that was far into the future. She jumped in her skin and was suddenly brought back to reality when Sharon began to scream.

“Momma! Momma! Momma! Where are you Momma?”

 Christina protectively wrapped her arms around the frightened girl then softly spoke, giving her solace.

“Hey, hey babe; everything’s okay.”

Sharon clenched onto her with a tremble as tears flowed from her eyes as she cried out.

“Christina, please don’t leave us alone.”

        Instantly she assured the child of her dedication.

“I will never leave you alone, I promise.”

Christina quietly began to softly sing a lullaby causing Sharon to settle back into her side and drift back into a sound sleep, then she carefully covered her and quietly slipped out of the tent.

She retrieved the large bag of homemade powdered mix that Debby had given her for making pancakes, and the utensils needed for cooking. After placing some small sticks on top of the hot coals left from last night's fire, she began mixing-up the batter. When a few pancakes were cooked and sitting to the side, Sharon stepped from the tent. Her tiny frame froze in place for a moment as she stared at the tall blonde in amazement, then quickly spun and ran toward the tent where Wesley was, shouting with excitement.

“Wesley! Wesley! Wake up! Wake up! We have pancakes! We have pancakes!”

        He responded with a chuckle as he exited the tent.

“Yes Sharon, I know; I have been watching.”

Christina felt a little bit grownup, sitting with Lisa in her arms while watching the two young children gobbling down their hot pancakes smothered with honey across the top. After breakfast and after the dishes were put back into their right places, Christina sat between Sharon and Wesley and began explaining her plan.

“Listen up kids, here is my idea; about a week’s ride north there is this lady named Debby, she is like a Grandma~.” Christina was explaining when Sharon quickly interrupted.

“I love Grandma’s; Grandma’s are always cooking.”

“Yes sweetheart, she cooks all the time; now, she lives all alone and I’m sure she would love for you three to live with her; so, I’m taking y’all to her house.”

Wesley moved Lisa over into one arm and wrapped the other around Sharon and gave Christina the most grownup look he could muster with his request.

“Can we leave today?”

“Yes sweetheart we can; but your horse is small, and you will need to downsize quite a bit; so let’s get started.”

Wesley gently handed Lisa over to Sharon and followed Christina to their tent. They listened to Sharon’s tiny, sweet voice singing soft lullabies to her baby sister as they sorted through what would be taken, and what would be left behind. When everything necessary was sorted and packed onto the back of the horses they mounted up and headed north for Debby’s little obscured trailer house that sat nicely tucked away in the tree-line. Sharon could not stop smiling as she settled into Christina’s lap high upon the back of the giant black thoroughbred. Lisa babbled with content in her small homemade baby carriage that was securely fastened to the rump of the small colt behind Wesley.

The second day into their long journey north, Christina realized that with two small children and a baby, it was going to take her much longer to reach their destination.

She began teaching Wesley the most important part of the hunt; how to sit very quiet and still for long periods of time while waiting for the animals to come out of hiding; then dinner was in the bag.

Sharon demanded to sleep inside the screen tent every night so she could snuzzle up against Christina’s side and fade off into a warm and secure sleep.

Several days into their journey, Christina recalled seeing a trip of goats with several kids a few days into her ride down and figured goat's milk would be just what Lisa needed. Sure enough, on the sixth day they came across the herd playing in a big field. She spotted a nanny goat with two small kids and eased Sharon down to the ground beside Wesley; then quickly rode Blackwall out to circle the doe. Protecting her kids, the nanny charged; Christina roped her hind legs then quickly jumped down and looped a small rope around her neck and front feet. Being raised on a horse ranch was coming in handy today. The doe surrendered and stood still as Wesley and Sharon stood at the edge of the large field watching in amazement. Once the small animal calmed down, she turned and looked toward the children.

“Bring me your deep pan.”

Wesley and Sharon cautiously crept up alongside the subdued goat as Christina filled her small deep pan, then Wesley set his pan down and quickly stepped back. Sharon held Lisa in her arms and watched with a quiet giggle as Christina filled the deep pan one squirt at a time. Christina switched out the pans and handed Wesley the full one along with instructions.

“Take this and fill Lisa’s bottle, then pour the rest into your canteen.”

With both pans and a canteen filled with milk, she slowly untied the goat, and they stood watching as the doe ran to her kids that were waiting off in the distance. Once the tribe vanished into the forest, Christina pointed toward the tree line with a suggestion.

“Let’s go over there and set camp early so we can enjoy our prize.”

After the horses were unpacked and camp was set, Sharon sat with a big smile on her face holding Lisa’s full bottle of goat’s milk and watched her gobbling it down. Christina informed the children of her intent as she retrieved her hunting paraphernalia.

“Okay kids, I’m going to go get dinner.”

Wesley quickly jumped to his feet and stared at her with large eyes as he asked his question.

“Can I come with?”

She stared at him for a moment with a big smile, then replied.

“Yes; yes you may.”

He followed her into the forest with his body slightly trembling and his heart pounding a bit stronger than normal with anticipation of going out for his first real hunt. After walking a short distance they settled down inside a thick bunch of bushes next to a small stream of running water that was about four feet across and only six inches deep and a stone's throw from a prevalent path where animals clearly crossed. Christina had taught the young man to breathe in and out slowly and not to move a muscle. He saw something move from the corner of his eye and had the bow up and ready when the young buck strolled up to the stream, Christina took in a deep breath and held it while praying he didn’t miss. When Wesley let loose of the arrow, the two-pointer never saw it flying at him through the air. It was a direct hit just behind the right front leg plunging through the skin and into the heart, causing the deer to drop instantly. She immediately jumped up with a shout of excitement.

“Steak tonight!”

She quickly started toward the deer with a hunting knife in hand as Wesley followed close behind. When she began to cut the skin away from the meat, he expressed his opinion through squinted eyes.

“Now that’s just plain gross.”

        Christina instantly rebuffed with the facts of life.

“No; no Wesley, its survival.”

She rose and took a step back, then held the hunting knife out in his direction as she pointed toward the deer.

His eyes widened as he loudly responded with a question.

“WHAT! You want me to do that?”

        She gently placed the knife in his hand while explaining her reasoning.

“Yes Wesley, you are the one that shot him; I will not always be here for you; so, you need to learn how to survive; I mean, you don’t want Sharon and Lisa to be eating bugs; right.”

        Wesley reluctantly gave in as he slowly stepped up to the deer with a scrunched-up nose and began to carve away strips of fresh meat.

“Okay ~ you’re right.”

The hunting party returned to camp with a pack full of deer meat. Wesley quickly built a small fire in the fire pit, then helped Christina prepare the meat. He was proud for playing a big role in supplying dinner for his younger girlfriend, and the two youngsters would glance over at each other from time to time and simultaneously give a wink and a smile. Christina could not help but shake her head with a giggle at the sight of the two lovebirds.

After dinner they sat around the fire and listened to Christina sing a few songs that she could remember listening to before all the earth’s electricity was eliminated. When the mosquitoes began to swarm and attack, Sharon quickly climbed into the screen tent with Christina and Wesley took Lisa into his tent. All slept sound through the night with full bellies; even Lisa had her fill from the last of the goat’s milk.

The morning sun quickly warmed up the crisp air as Christina climbed up a tall tree with binoculars in hand. She quickly turned the dial to focus on a small stream of smoke that was rising through the treetops way off in the distance. She focused in on four men sitting around a campfire, a chill ran through her body when she recognized the U.N. uniforms they were wearing and quickly shimmied down the tree. Wesley could hear the shaking in her voice as she spoke.

“We’ve got to move.”

        He instantly inquired about the situation.

“What’s up?”

She turned and looked at him while mounting Blackwall, then slipped the binoculars back into their place as she answered.

“U.N. Demons.”

They put their horses at a fast walk in the opposite direction as Wesley’s mind brought forth images of his and Lisa’s parents lying dead in the backyard, which caused an instant outburst.

“Damn-it-all-to-hell.”

        Christina expressed disapproval of his language with one loud word.

“HEY!”

        Confused at her outburst, he replied with a one-word question.

“What?”

Feeling the same sentiment, she kept silent for a moment before responding.

“From now on leave the cursing out loud to me.”

        Wesley agreed with a chuckle while shaking his head.

“Yes ma’am.”

After two days of hard riding they came upon a slow flowing river about one hundred feet across and five feet deep, so Christina smiled as she inquired about what they would eat tonight.

“How about fish for dinner?”

She felt the surge of excitement spring through Sharon, and this confused her. She pondered for a moment on how she could sense another person’s excitement, but her concentration on this new psyche experience was broken when the small girl began to speak with interest.

“Are you going to go fishing?”

        Christina’s response caused an uncontrollable giggle to come spilling out of Sharon.

“No; you are going to fish.”

Sharon could not stop giggling as Christina slipped her down to the ground, and she quickly started skipping her way over to Wesley with shouts of eagerness.

“Wesley; Wesley, I’m going fishing.”

He carefully handed Lisa down to her as he chuckled his reply.

“Can I join you?”

        This caused her enthusiasm to explode into giggles of agreement.

“Yes; yes, we both will fish.”

Christina and Wesley unpacked the horses while Sharon watched with Lisa cradled in her arms. After camp was set, Christina retrieved the fishing hooks, along with a spool of fishing string from her saddlebag. Wesley placed the baby crib next to his tent for Sharon to lay Lisa in. Christina cut two small limbs from a tree to make fishing poles, then taught the two youngsters how to tie the line on the ends and secure the hook, using a small stone as weight. With their poles in hand, Christina moved a dead tree trunk that was lying on the ground close to the water, then gave Sharon and Wesley a directive.

“Okay kids, both of you catch one of the worms.”

Without hesitation, both captured a worm, then Sharon quickly turned in the direction of Christina and held a long fat worm up in the air and enlightened her on preparing soup.

“This is how we make bug soup.”

Christina did her best not to let the image of eating bugs enter her psyche as she smiled at the excited little girl with her response.

“Well fish love to eat worms; now, let me show you how it goes on the hook.”

Christina took the worm between her thumb and fingers, then threaded the pointed hook through the center with Wesley and Sharon watching closely. Sharon quickly took her fishing-pole down to the edge of the river and tossed the hook into the water. Wesley carefully threaded his worm onto the hook and quickly followed.

Christina sat between the two with a smile of content on her face, letting her mind play the game of being all grown-up and a mom as she held Lisa in her arms, watching the tiny baby sucking down the sweet water as Lisa stared up into her eyes. Suddenly, there was a loud outburst from Sharon.

“I got one! I got one!”

She had to use all her strength to hold the pole up into the air as she stood and quickly walked backward, dragging the large flopping fish out of the water and onto dry land. The fish seemed to be hungry today as Wesley and Sharon pulled in one after the other, making their first fishing experience almost magical. Christina took Lisa and laid her back into the small crib, then took some string from a small spool and made a stringer and showed them how to secure the fish. While the two caught their fish and Lisa was sleeping soundly inside her small crib, Christina began to gather up firewood and build the fire pit. Wesley and Sharon laughed as they constantly ran to and fro from the rotten log for more worms, then back to the river. Christina kept a watch on the two as she gathered the utensils needed for cleaning and cooking the fish. She smiled while watching Sharon dragging a string of fish behind her into camp with Wesley carrying two fishing poles following behind. He disappointingly explained why they had stopped fishing.

“We can’t find any more worms.”

        Christina took the stringer and raised it up as she questioned the small girl.

“Okay, how many fish do you have?”

Before Wesley had the chance to answer, Sharon quickly shouted.

“We have twelve!”

        Christina smiled as she replied.

“Wow, you can count.”

Sharon turned her eyes down toward the ground with an admittance.

“No, Wesley told me.”

Christina gently placed her fingers under the young girl’s chin and lifted her face back up with a suggestion.

“Well; I bet if you asked Wesley, he would teach you how to count.”

She turned and grabbed her best friend by the arm and looked deep into his big brown eyes with a serious plead.

“Will you Wesley? Will you please teach me how to count?”

He reached and pulled her into a tight embrace and smiled up at Christina.

“Yeah, I can do that; considering we are going to be together like forever.”

        Christina gave the young man an edict as she headed toward the river with the string of fish and a couple of knives.

“Okay Wesley, come with me and I will teach you how to clean fish.”

He followed her as Sharon stayed at camp and tended to her baby sister.

For the rest of their journey every chance Wesley got, he would practice archery and began to get really good at the art. Christina had taught Sharon how to bathe Lisa and make her bottles, and was very proud of herself, being grown-up and caring for others; just what her mother would want.

After three more days of hard riding, Christina leaned forward in the saddle, causing Blackwall to pick up the pace, and Wesley ordered his pony to keep up. It had been three weeks since Christina had found the trio and before the end of this day, Wesley, Sharon, and Lisa would be meeting their new Grandma Debby.

Christina could sense Sharon’s excitement as she began to squirm around in her lap and start shouting when the little trailer came into view.

“Grandma’s house! Grandma’s house!”

Debby stood out on the deck in front of her small trailer looking through binoculars, impatiently watching as they slowly approached. She put down her binoculars and quickly made her way down the steps to meet the small caravan.

“What the hell is this?”

As Debby reached up, Christina carefully handed Sharon down into her waiting arms, then explained while dismounting.

“I found these kids about three weeks ago. Their parents are dead and bringing them to you was the only thing I could think of.”

She gave Debby a hug as Sharon wrapped her arms around both of their necks and squeezed with a loud giggle.

Debby gently set Sharon down and stared in disbelief as Wesley walked up with Lisa wrapped in his arms. She caringly took the small baby from him, then carefully walked up the steps and through the front door with tears slowly drifting down her face with her eyes locked onto the cute baby. Christina expressed her thoughts while taking Wesley and Sharon by the hand and starting up the steps.

“I think Grandma is in shock.”

When they entered through the door, Debby was sitting in her rocking chair softly humming a tune, still entranced with the presence of a baby. Debby looked up for just a second and gave instructions.

“Christina, this baby needs milk; so, go out to the barn and milk the cow.”

        Wesley made a statement as he followed Christina out the door.

“I need to learn how to do this.”

Sharon stood and stared at elderly woman, taking in every one of her features. The elderly woman looked up and gave a warm smile as Sharon placed her hand on top of Lisa’s head and gazed into Debby’s eyes.

“Are you going to be our Grandma?”

She stopped her rocker and gently put her hand against the tiny girl’s cheek.

“Yes, I can be your Grandma; now, what do I call you?”

        Sharon answered excitedly.

“My name is Sharon, and my baby sister’s name is Lisa.”

“And what is your brother’s name?”

Sharon quickly corrected her as Debby moved Lisa over to one side and pulled the small girl into her lap.

“He is not my brother, he is my boyfriend; we are going to get married someday, he promised me so; his name is Wesley.”

        The new Grandma giggled out her reply.

“Oh, I see.”

She began humming a soothing tune as she rocked the two girls into a peaceful sleep in her arms.

Christina and Wesley entered the small barn that was completely camouflaged with vines and bushes, almost unnoticeable from a distance. He reached and took the milk bucket from Christina.

“Let me, I need to learn how to do this.”

He slowly walked over to where the cow was waiting and squatted down, placing the bucket under the utters. Christina spoke softly as she watched him nervously sit down.

“Just like you saw me milk that goat.”

        Once he got the hang-of-it, He began to slowly talk.

 “Christina, I realize that you will not be staying; so, I want to say thanks for saving Sharon and Lisa.”

Christina’s eyes filled with water, and she responded with a shaky voice.

“You are welcome Wesley, but I don’t think I did all that.”

 “Yes! yes you did Christina; we were really starving. We were raised in the city and all I know is playing video games, and then the electricity went out. My dad explained to me about all the crazy things that were going on in the world, then one day about two months ago he and Sharon’s dad put us in the secret underground room behind the house and told us to stay in there for at least three days before coming out. We were so scared, Christina; and when we came out, both of our parents were lying in the backyard dead. Everything had been taken, I mean like all the food; so, we started walking through the wood trying to keep hidden and find things to eat. The camp we were in when you found us, we had just found a few days before. The man at the camp was dead; so, I used his horse to move the body away. I promise you; I will learn to survive. I love Sharon and I plan to marry her someday. So thank you.”

        Tears slid down her face as she gave him a bit of encouragement.

“My parents died saving me as well, and I believe you are going to be just fine.”

When he stood with the bucket of milk and turned toward Christina, she took the bucket and sat it down on the ground, then embraced him as tears continued seeping from her eyes. Wesley gave her a tight squeeze with his response.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. I love you too.”

He slowly stepped back and gave her a big smile, then picked up the bucket and headed out the barn door.

Debby was still sitting in her rocking chair softly humming a tune when the two dairy hands came through the door.

“Christina, take Sharon and put her in the extra bedroom.”

Wesley set the bucket of milk on the kitchen table and headed out the door as Christina carefully carried Sharon down the hall toward the bedroom.

“I will go bring Lisa’s crib in.”

She quietly put the tiny girl into the bed and sat down beside her, then hummed a soothing tune until she faded back off into a deep sleep. She returned to the kitchen and stood with a smile, watching Debby sit in her rocker with Lisa in her arms, humming a soothing tune. She reached into her small pack and retrieved a baby bottle.

“I will make Lisa a bottle of milk,”

        Debby softly began to speak.

 “Christina, I never had children; when Steve passed away a few years back, I felt abandoned. I was so delighted when you showed up last time, and so sad to see you leave. I am proud of you for caring for others, and now I have grandbabies; Thank you.”

Christina got a deep warm feeling when she realized she could actually feel the sincerity coming from Debby. She walked over and handed Debby the bottle with a big smile as she replied.

“You don’t need to thank me Grandma; the last thing mom said to me was ‘never forget who you are’; and helping others is what my family was all about. I was just doing what I was raised to do; now, you know I will be leaving tomorrow, right?”

Wesley came through the door with Lisa’s small crib and placed it next to the small wood heater. Debby stood to place Lisa into her crib while answering Christina.

“Yes sweetheart; you may go and find your sister; I will take good care of the children.”

        Christina turned and headed for the door as she spoke to the man of the house.

“Okay Wesley, you and I need to go and unpack the horses.”

When she and Wesley had both the horses safely tucked away into the barn and returned to the house, Sharon had woken and was now sitting at the kitchen table singing with her sweet-sounding voice, entertaining Debby with children's songs, watching her new grandma cooking dinner. Wesley quickly sat down beside her and joined in. Christina stood at the breakfast bar and smiled, with the feeling of her mother’s spirit filling the room.

After dinner, Debby sat in her rocker with the baby, very impressed with the two youngsters cleaning up the kitchen.

TIME FOR BED

Sharon and Wesley insisted on sharing the extra bedroom and demanded Lisa’s crib be put beside their bed. Christina tucked Sharon in and leaned over to give her a good night kiss when the tiny girl quickly wrapped her arms around her neck and squeezed as she whispered.

“I’m too excited to sleep; Wesley, Lisa, and me have a new Grandma.”

        Christina gave her a squeeze as she whispered back.

“Sweetheart, I am so tired; I need to sleep.”

Wesley saw a few books lying on the dresser and picked one out and held it up with a solution to their enigma.

“It’s okay; I’ll read to her until she goes to sleep.”

        Christina quickly headed for the door as she concurred.

“That will work.”

She slowly pulled the door closed and headed down the hallway toward the sofa that was calling her name.

 

[MESSAGE FROM BEYOND]

Christina's dream began with her sitting on the beach looking out across the water in front of her family’s home in Surfside. She quickly jumped to her feet and spun around when she heard her mother’s voice behind her.

“Mom, you’re here. You’re okay”

 Tears were running down her cheeks as she pulled Sue into a tight embrace. They held each other for a moment, then her mother released her and looked into her eyes as she quietly spoke.

“I only have a few seconds; so, listen to what I say. You have been given a gift and you must learn to use it.”

“Do you mean like feeling what others are feeling?”

“Yes, and another gift also.”

Suddenly a loud clap of thunder rang out above them which caused Christina to sit straight up out of her dream. She laid back down and considered what her mother had said and how realistic the dream had seemed, and gradually slipped back to sleep.

Bright and early the next morning Debby was already cooking as Christina sat at the kitchen table with Sharon sitting on her lap. Wesley sat with Lisa in his arms sucking down the fresh milk that he had gotten from Ms. Cow earlier; that is what he had named the cow. Sharon stared down into her glass of milk as she spoke with disappointment.

“Do you really have to go away?”

        Christina tried consoling the young girl with a vow.

“Yes dear, I have to go and find my sister; but I promise, I will come and visit; okay.”

        Sharon looked over at Lisa laying in Wesley’s arms with a request.

“Yeah; I understand; I love my sister also; just don’t take too long.

After breakfast, Wesley helped Christina pack up Blackwall, and Debby gave her more supplies for the journey while Sharon sat on the deck watching the ruckus with Lisa in her arms.

Debby, Wesley, and Sharon with Lisa in her arms, stood on the deck sadly watching the autonomous teen fading off into the distance.

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER THREE

THE AWAKENING

Since leaving what she had come to consider her new family, Christina has been riding south for three weeks at a fast pace. Most times when she would come close to a small town, there would be bodies of entire family’s lying beside the road. The teenager tried her best to stay away from main roads and big towns while making her way toward the family beach house, which made the journey much longer than it should have been. After a long hard day’s ride and a variety of new-fangled emotions, she decided to make camp early. She climbed a large, tall tree with her binoculars to scout the area; her tall slender teenage body began to tremble at what she spied through the looking glass; on a back road off in the distance there sat two U.N. vehicles, along with ten U.N. Demons that had captured a family. She watched in horror as four of the Demons tore the clothes off two teenage girls and began raping them, and when the father attempted to fight, another Demon shot him in the back, dropping him to the ground as his wife screamed. Christina could not bear to watch this situation unfold any longer, knowing she could do nothing to help. She quickly climbed down the tree and mounted Blackwall with a low shaky voice.

“We’ve got to go! We’ve got to go!”

With tears streaming down her face and the images of what she witnessed playing over and over in her mind, she rode far into the night before stopping and setting up her screen tent. Christina left camp packed upon the back of Blackwall, concerned that the Demon’s might come for her.

 

[“DREAMS OF REALITY”]

Tonight her dreams were so realistic she cried and screamed out in her sleep. The short flashes gave images of different towns and cities engulfed in fire, groups of people killing other groups, and then they would take the spoils. What few cars that were still able to run were out of gas, and people with firearms began to run out of bullets and abandon their guns.

Just before daybreak, Christina woke-up in a cold sweat and trembling with deep breaths. She sat with her head in her hands as she did her best to settle her nerves.

“It was just a dream. ~ It was just a dream.”

She sat in her screen tent until the sun was high enough to force the mosquitoes back beneath the underbrush, then carefully rolled it up and put it in its place. She climbed a tall tree and took a look around, then mounted Blackwall and headed south. Every couple of hours she would take a break and climb a tall tree to scout for danger, realizing that life on earth was no longer safe; {Many, many people are going to die} registered in her mind as the image of Debby replayed in her psyche on that first morning at the kitchen table.

After several more days of keen riding and dodging many crazy gangs and U.N. Demon’s, Christina was excited when she and Blackwall slowly crossed the deserted bridge that took them out to the beach of Surfside Texas as she shouted with excitement.

“We made it!”

She put the large black beast into a gallop down the sandy beach toward her family beach house just a short distance away, enjoying the gentle breeze coming off the water. Once reaching the house, she quickly dismounted, then tying Blackwall to the railing that surrounded the deck, she flew into the house. The teen ran from room to room as if truly expecting to find mom and dad, or even Sera waiting to greet her. After the second time of making the circle throughout the house, she slowly walked back out onto the deck and sank down on the steps, then stared out across the bay and whispered defeat with tears slipping down her face.

“Damn-it-all-to-hell.”

Noticing there was no one nearby, she suspiciously looked around, then realized that many of the houses that once lined the beach had been burned to the ground. She took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled as she reminded herself of what Debby told her.

“I have to grow-up now.”

She slowly stood and began the task of unloading Blackwall, once everything was placed inside the house she went into the kitchen to check the five-gallon propane tank and found it was still full. She quickly ran down to the storage room and found dad’s rod-and-reel was still where he had left it, along with the cast net used for catching bait. She quickly gathered up the fishing gear and headed for the beach with a shout.

“YES!! Fish for dinner.”

It took her a short time to remember how her father taught her to throw the cast net, and after many tries, began to get the hang of it and caught a few small croakers to use for bait. She baited the hook and slowly waded out into the bay up to her waist and cast the rod-and-reel, then returned to the beach and settled down onto the dry sand, patiently waiting for dinner. She began to build a sand-castle as her mind drifted back to the many times she and Sera played out on the beach every summer when on vacation, and once again tears slid down her cheeks. Suddenly, she heard the tiny bell on the end of the rod start ringing, and quickly jumped to her feet for the battle with the large fish.

After cleaning and preparing and eating dinner, she slowly drifted through the house looking at all the memorabilia her mother meticulously placed on the whatnot shelves along the living-room walls, remembering when and where each piece had come from. She slipped into her father’s study as if she might get in trouble for entering the room without permission, then began rumbling through his office desk. “YES” she shouted, while pulling out a small, laminated book from the bottom drawer that read [U.S. Atlas Map]. Lying under the map, she found a stash of new batteries in the bottom of the drawer and instantly made a mad dash to her bedroom with her prize in hand. Carelessly. she began pulling things from her closet and tossing them out onto the floor until the secret small metal box was found. She carelessly dug through her dresser drawer, tossing the clothes onto the floor until finding the tiny key to said box. A big smile crossed her face as she carefully opened it, then she gently pulled out her C.D. player along with all her C.D.’s. She quickly returned down the hall to the living-room, and her hands had a slight tremble as she meticulously placed new batteries into the player. She did a teenage flop-down onto the sofa and placed the earphones over her ears, then listened to music until fading off to sleep.

“Christina. ~ Christina sweetheart, wakeup; Christina, wakeup sweetheart.”

She woke in terror at the low deep voice whispering her name, which caused her to spring up like a bullet and make a mad dash for the kitchen, dragging the C.D. player behind.

“It’s me Christina, It’s me. Christina,  it’s okay; Christina.”

When she recognized the man’s voice, she instantly stopped and spun around, then stood for a moment staring at a familiar man in his late sixties. He remained in the middle of the living-room with a sidearm strapped to his hip as she quickly ran back across the room and into his waiting arms and began to weep like a teenager while crying out his name.

“Officer Jim! Officer Jim!”

        He embraced the sobbing girl tightly as he softly spoke.

“Where are your parent’s sweetheart?”

Jim is a big man, standing six-five, weighing in at two-twenty. He has let his gray hair grow out along with a ragged looking beard.

Christina squeezed into his embrace, then whispered as she buried her face into his massive chest.

“Dead.”

        He softly responded while gently stroking her hair to give some comfort.

“Sweet Jesus; I am so sorry sweetheart.

        Suddenly she leaned back and looked up into his eyes with concern on her face.

“Wait; where is your wife, Patty; and Jill, where is Jill?”

        Tears slipped from his eyes and down his rugged cheeks as he answered.

“They are dead sweetheart; they are both dead.”

        Christina buried her face back into his wide chest and sobbed a statement.

“Many people are going to die.”

While Jim held his best friend’s daughter and directed her to the kitchen table, her mind began to reminisce about the summer days when Jill, along with Sera and herself would play out on the beach. She had known Jim and his family her entire life and considered him family. Christina sat and watched as he put a pot of coffee on the stove, then he took a seat across the table from her as she asked.

“How did you know I was here?”

Jim took a long deep breath while mixing sugar and cream into their cups.

“I didn’t Christina, I have been living here; my house was burnt down in the gang wars last year.”

“I am so sorry; how many people are left?”

Jim stood by the stove and glanced at the young girl through sad eyes.

“It’s just me sweetheart; I had to leave for a couple of months until all the fires burnt out; but it is just me.”

They sat and drank their first cup of hot coffee in silence, then Christina’s mind began to churn fast as she poured their second cup. She slowly turned and gave a smile as she spoke.

“Jim, I have a good idea.”

He realized just how grown up this young woman had become as she sat his cup back down in front of him, then took her seat.

“I’m listening.”

She began to explain all about the situation of Debby and the children, and how they could really use his help. Jim got a confused look on his face as he responded.

“Why don’t you want me to stay here with you?”

“I’m not staying here Jim; dad told me to go and find Sera; so, I’m going up to Seattle Washington.”

“Christina, that is the stupidest thing I have ever heard; not only is that dangerous, but it will take you around two years to get to Washington.”

        She instantly retaliated with authority.

“It is dangerous everywhere, and I do not care if it takes me a hundred years, I’m going to find Sera; now, I need for you to go and take care of Debby and the children.”

“Let’s set and visit for a few days and discuss the situation.”

He stood and started for the living room when Christina firmly gripped his arm, bringing him to a stop.

“Okay Jim; but do not even try to talk me out of going to find Sera; I’m going, and that’s it.”

She stood and held onto him tight as they walked through the living room and out onto the deck.

Over the next few days they enjoyed long walks along the shore and time fishing together, causing Jim to realize just how lonely his life had been living alone with just the sound of waves caressing the sand his only companion. After long discussions and deep consideration, he decided having a family sounded pretty good and agreed to travel to Debby’s.

They stood at the kitchen counter studying the Atlas that Christina had found as she explained the safest route.

“Okay Jim, here is my plan; we can travel together until we get to Somerville; so you can bypass Houston; you do not want to go through what’s left of Houston, trust me; also. there is a lake in Somerville where we can take a break.”

“Sounds good to me.” He agreed.

They drew out the directions that he would travel from there, then carefully picked out each item they would be taking on their journey. Christina almost cried when she placed her C.D. player back into the bottom drawer of her father's desk, knowing the batteries would not last long enough to make taking it with her worthwhile; but promised the animate object that she would be back someday and listen to her music.

With their horses all packed up, Jim and Christina began their journey. As they slowly rode north, he informed her the best way to settle a spooked horse.

“Horses love the soothing sound of singing and whistling.”

She slightly giggled at his suggestion when he began to whistle a tune, then noticed Blackwall nod his head a few times.

“I don’t know how to whistle.”

“Well then, I will teach you when we stop to camp; but, for now we will sing a song that we both know. ~ Row – Row – Row your boat.”

As he began to sing, Christina joined in with another giggle. The air was filled with happy children’s songs throughout the rest of the day to help pass the time.

A few days into their journey, they sat by a small campfire watching the sun sink below the horizon, they would break into laughter as Jim taught Christina the art-of-whistling and she was homing in on the skill. The sun slowly vanished from view, then came the invasion of the mosquitoes. Christina slapped herself in the face battling the annoying insects and quickly declared defeat.

“Screw this; I’m going to bed.”

Jim responded with a chuckle as he headed toward his tent.

“Okay sweetie; sweet dream.”

 

[DREAMS OF HAPPINESS]

Tonight she dreamed about her sister. She seemed to be extremely happy and content, humming a tune while preparing dinner for a man that Christina could not quite make out; but it was clear to see that Sara was very much in love.

Christina was woken from her dream at daybreak by a frightening sound. She set straight up with an intense scream as her ears rang from the echo of a loud gunshot.

“JIM!! JIM!! Where are you Jim?”

She was terrified, and looked around for her friend, then saw him standing beside the horses with a long gun in hand.

“Pack up the horses Christina; quickly, pack up the horses.”

He fired off another round, causing Christina’s adrenalin to explode and she rapidly packed up the horses while he stood guard. Occasionally, she glanced over to see him scouting the woods through the scope. The five minutes it took seemed like an eternity to her, but once everything was loaded and she was sitting on the back of her large coal-black beast, she shouted out.

“Okay Jim, come on; come on Jim!”

He quickly mounted his gray mare, then they headed north at a fast run. Jim constantly glanced back over his shoulder as they made their getaway and when the horses began to breathe hard and slowed to a fast walk, Christina quickly spoke between long deep breaths.

“What the hell was that?”

Keeping his eyes straight ahead, he slowly answered.

“There were three U.N. bastards.”

        Christina immediately looked back over her shoulder and nervously asked.

“U.N. DEMON’S! do you think they will follow us?”

        Jim kept his eyes focused straight ahead as he responded.

“No Christina, those three bastards won’t be following anyone again; as long as they didn’t have any friends, we are okay.”

        Her voice squeaked while making an inquiry.

“Wait. ~ What are you saying? Did you shoot them?”

        His answer was low and pointblank.

“I had no choice sweetheart.”

After a long period of silence, Jim began to whistle a tune, and Christina instantly joined in, as the phrase {Many people are going to die.} kept playing over and over in her mind. Suddenly, her mother’s face streaming with tears flashed through her psyche, {Never forget who you are.} she heard her say. Then she whispered to herself as she continued to whistle.

“I love and miss you mom; I promise, I will never forget.”

On the journey to Somerville, every so often, they would stop and climb a tree so to scout for danger. Jim being a long-time law officer and well trained in defense, would give Christina short lessons in self-defense at each stop, constantly reminding her of the most important thing.

“Always remember this one thing Christina, never trust anyone.”

It was mid-day when they rode through the small town of Summerville, most buildings and houses were burnt down or ransacked. They saw the remains of a few bodies lying here and there as they slowly rode toward the lake, but most people seemed to have fled. Jim brought his horse to a stop just before reaching the spillway on the dam.

“Let’s camp here for the night.”

Once camp was set and the horses had their nightly rub down, Christina was missing her father's rod-&-reel as she retrieved the fishing line and hooks from the saddle bag and headed for the lake. She and Jim sat quietly on a blanket and listened to the birds and patiently waited for dinner.

After staying at Somerville Lake two days longer than planned, and knowing it was time to go their separate ways, they broke camp with heavy hearts. With camp packed onto their horses they stood staring into each other’s eyes, knowing it may be years before they would see one another again. Jim pulled her into a tight embrace as he softly spoke.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you?”

        Christina quietly replied with a lump in her throat.

“No Jim, Debby and the children need you; I have a half a jar of honey; so, take the jar back to Debby; I also have this letter I wrote to her, please give it to her for me.”

He stepped back and unclipped the holster from his belt and held it out toward the young teen.

“I want you to take my handgun; I have twenty bullets left.”  

Christina quickly stepped back and placed her hands behind her back and exclaimed with a firm stance.

“NO!! I will never shoot anyone, that’s not who I am.”

He smiled down at her and took a mental picture while making a statement.

“You are a special woman, and all grown up.”

“Thank you Jim; I will see you in a year or two; take care of my new family.”

Jim slowly mounted his horse and headed northeast as Christina mounted Blackwall, then headed out for Seattle Washington on her quest to find Sera.

 

 

CHAPTER FOUR

HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

It has been three months since Christina and Jim went their separate ways, and fall is over with cold weather settling in. Blackwall is stepping high and enjoying the cool breeze coming from the north, along with a few snowflakes floating through the air from an overcast sky. Christina pulled her sleeping-bag tight around her body trying to stop the cold air from seeping in as she talked to her best friend.

“You know what Blackwall; I’m not sure of the exact date today, but I think it may just be close to our birthday’s.”

She let her mind drift back to her fourteenth birthday, when she and her father heated up the barn and helped deliver a foal during a furious snowstorm, and how the small coal-black colt had slowed them down on their escape; but refused to leave him behind.

 She noticed that all the high hilltops were now covered in white, and knew it was prudent that she find shelter within the next few weeks for the winter; a place where she and Blackwall would be able to hibernate. She leaned forward in the saddle, putting the large black beast into a gallop. Christina pushed hard the rest of the day, and by late afternoon the wind coming out of the north was as sharp as a knife and the snow was coming down in large flakes. With a few hours of daylight left, she came across a long high bridge that reached across a wide flowing river. Guiding Blackwall under the edge where the snow could not reach, she began to set up camp with her firm one-man canvas tent that was paramount for the winter. After camp was set she retrieved her fish-hooks and fishing line from the saddle, then pulled out the small package of spoiled squirrel meat she kept tucked under the edge of the saddle next to Blackwall’s warm body so it would not freeze. Finding a small tree next to the river, she tied the fishing line to it and put the rotten meat onto the hook then tossed it into the river. Picking up small twigs, smaller than her little finger was next on the agenda, then once a decent size pile of the small twigs were gathered it was time to advance to larger ones. She kept this up until graduating to limbs the size of her arm. She sparked-up the pile of tiny twigs, then piled on the slightly larger ones until the fire had reached a decent size, then the larger limbs to sustain the heat. She noticed the small tree that held the fishing line was wiggling and shouted with excitement.

“YES! Fish for dinner!”

After carefully securing the three-foot-long catfish at camp, she headed for the woods to scamper up some dry grass for her friend. luckily, she didn't have to search long, just a short distance away there was a large patch of tall wheatgrass.

“YES”

As Blackwall munched on his dry wheat grass, Christina cleaned her fish, sliced it into round pieces, then cooked her catch of the day while whistling a soothing tune, which perked up the thoroughbred’s ears. After dinner, she climbed into the tent and slipped into the sleeping-bag still fully dressed, then faded off into a deep sleep.

 

[DREAMS OF MOM]

Christina was sitting by the fire when she saw her mother walking from the edge of the woods. She quickly rose to her feet and ran to take Sue into an embrace as she shouted.

“Mom, you’re okay.”

Sue lovingly took her baby girl's face between her hands and stared deep into her eyes.

“Listen to me sweetheart, you must find shelter very soon.”

“Yes mom, I know it’s getting cold; where is dad?”

        Once again, Sue gave her order before  turning and fading back into the forest.

“I have to go now; you find shelter soon.”

        Cristina attempted to follow, but found she was frozen in place as she cried out.

“No!! Come back. I don’t want you to leave, please mom come back!”

She woke up screaming for her mother, then laid in her tent with tears pouring from her eyes, wishing she could hold her just one more time.

When darkness gave way to twilight, she slowly packed camp on the back of Blackwall as snow flurries drifted through the air. She stuck her foot into the stirrup and lifted herself into the saddle, then started north through a foot of snow.

“We need to find real shelter, my friend.”

She kept at a steady fast pace and by mid-day the snow had stopped, but the breeze still had a bite to it. Blackwall’s ears perked up as he moved his head in a slight up and down motion, so Christina brought him to a stop and held her breath so she could hear. Sounds of gobbling turkeys filled the air, and she instantly dismounted with her bow in hand. Moving behind some thick bushes, she patiently waited for dinner to come walking by. Her bow was up and ready when the large birds came into view. Taking a deep breath, she released the arrow and watched as it flew. She sat frozen in place, feeling a warm sensation of fear flow through her body as she stared at two turkeys with arrows sticking out of their sides lying in the snow, then shouted out before thinking.

“What the hell?”

She was suddenly startled when a man’s voice came from behind her.

“Well I’ll just be damned.”

Christina slowly turned to see an average size man standing next to a tree, twenty yards to the right and behind her. She quickly stood and swung her bow in his direction while pulling back another arrow, causing the man to immediately jump behind a tree.

“Whoa, ~ Whoa.; I don’t want no trouble with you, young lady.”

“What do you want?” Was the only thing her terrified mind could come up with as she kept a dead aim at the tree the man was hiding behind.

“Well, for starters; I would like to retrieve my turkey.” The man said with a slight chuckle.

        Still keeping her aim at the tree Christina spoke her demand with a shaky voice.

“Who are you and where in the hell did you come from?”

        From the protection of the large tree, Steve replied to her query.

“What a potty mouth on such a pretty little girl; my name is Steve, and my house and family is a few miles from here.”

        His words brought forth the image of the family she once had, and with a bit of relief in her voice she lowered her bow.

“You have a family?”

“Yes; yes I do.”

He carefully peeked his head out from behind the tree with his hands raised and gave a little friendly wave. then Jim’s words echoed through Christina’s head {Never trust anyone}.

“How do I know I can trust you?”

The large man stepped out from his protection to show trust as he offered proof.

“Well, I can show you some pictures.”

Steve is a forty-five-year-old man with short brown hair and brown eyes, standing five-foot-eleven, with a clean shaved face.

“Just stay where you are until I get my turkey.” Christina ordered.

She slowly walked backward in the direction of her turkey and whistled for Blackwall to come, while Steve stood with his hands raised and watched the young girl pick up the bird, then mount a massive pile of black muscles. Knowing there was colder weather on the way, he made another offer.

“There is a bad storm coming tonight, you are welcome to come have dinner with me and my family.”

        Christina wanted no part of that, and quickly rebuffed.

“No thanks, I’ll be fine.”

With the fresh turkey in hand, she leaned forward in the saddle and put Blackwall in a forward motion. After traveling only a short distance the white powder was once again falling from the sky, and she decided to stop and pitch camp. When trying to gather firewood to cook her prize for dinner became impossible when the snow started to come down hard, she expressed her disappointment.

“Screw this.”

She placed the turkey into a pouch and tied it up onto a limb, so to keep the varmints of the night from taking her prize, then climbed into her tent for the night.

 

[MOM RETURNS]

Tonight in Christina’s dream, she is standing in the center of a field with snow coming down so hard she can’t see more than a few feet in front of herself while slowly turning in a circle. Suddenly, she heard Sue scolding her.

“I told you to find shelter, why won’t you listen to your mother?”

Christina spun around and around until she spied a faded figure standing in the falling snow. She tried to move toward her, but found she was frozen in place as she responded.

“I’m trying mom.”

        Sue quickly explained the way life works.

“God will send people into your life to help you; you must learn to recognize these people.”

Once again, Christina cried out as her mother slowly faded back into the snowy background.

“WAIT MOM! WAIT!”

She tried with all her might to move in the direction of her mother but to no avail.

She woke up screaming, “wait..” then laid still for a few minutes wondering how much longer until daybreak. She slowly slipped her arms out of the sleeping bag and opened the front of the tent. Finding her tent was buried under a thick layer of snow and daylight had already arrived, she whispered to herself.

“Shit, shit, shit.”

The snow was still falling hard as she packed camp on the back of Blackwall, then pulled her frozen turkey from the limb as she pointed the thoroughbred back in the direction where she met Steve, with her mother’s words from the dream echoing through her head. After an hour or so the snowfall had increased, and a strong aroma of smoke from a fireplace began to fill the air.

“I think we are getting close my friend.”

As the distance that separated them from Steve’s farmhouse grew shorter, she began to hear people singing holiday songs. The house suddenly went silent when she brought Blackwall to a halt in front of the porch, and Steve stepped out the door onto the porch as he was slipping on his coat.

“Well potty mouth, I’m glad to see that you changed your mind.”

        She introduced herself and submitted to his original offer.

“My name is Christina; and yes sir, I do need shelter.”

She watched as a much younger version of Steve stepped out of the house and stood beside him. He gave the twenty-year-old looking man a hard slap on the back.

“Okay Christina; this is my son J.R. he will show you to the barn; it looks like we have a winter guest.”

As Christina dismounted, she handed Steve her solid frozen turkey and shrugged her shoulders with a smile. She noticed a pretty twenty-year-old red-headed woman with long hair, along with a woman that looked to be Steve’s age, staring out the window and waving with big smiles. She gave a friendly smile and waved back as she followed J.R. toward the barn. When walking past the window, to her surprise, she noticed the young redhead was holding a small infant.

With the horses put away, they quickly returned to the house just as the snowstorm became white-out conditions, and Christina was welcomed into the fold with a caring hug from the elderly woman when she entered the cabin.

        “My name is Lesley.”

The large fire in the fireplace had the three-room cabin nice and toasty with the holiday aroma of roasting turkey and baking bread filling the air. The twenty-year-old redhead introduced herself while pulling the tall teen into a welcoming hug.

“Christina, my name is Alice.”

She gave Alice a warm smile, and when she pulled away, Christina noticed this young woman was the same height she was, or maybe a smidge taller.

Alice lovingly took her by the hand and led her into a room at one side of the cabin, then began speaking while shuffling through a neatly stack of folded clothes with Christina watching.

“I’m Sorry Christina; but you really, really stink; follow me.”

Christina shyly followed her with her armload of clean clothes back through the main room where she knew everyone could smell her. Alice directed her into a tiny room attached to the back of the house, this room housed a large washtub with plenty of warm water that had been prepared for the occasion. Alice placed the clothes onto a shelf then turned and faced Christina.

“Okay, get undressed and into the tub; I’ll wash your back, then you can do the rest.”

        Christina’s eyes enlarged as she nervously replied.

“Wait; you want me to get necked with you in here?”

        Alice retorted with authority.

“Yes; you are family now, and I have the same thing as you; anyway, I’m married with a newborn; now, stop being silly and get your ass in the tub.”

Christina began to undress with a beet-red face, then slowly slipped into the tub and eased down into the warm water with her eyes closed, concentrating on the exhilarating experience. She devised that a conversation just might ease her tensions.

“Okay .... so, J.R. is your husband.”

Alice took a washcloth and a bar of soap, then started scrubbing Christina’s back.

“Yes, and he is the best; and our baby’s name is Steve the third.”

        Christina thought for a moment in silence with Alice washing her back then giggled out a reply.

“So, all the boys are named Steve.”

        Alice could not help but giggle along as she answered.

“Yes; Steve Sr.; Steve Jr. and Steve the third; now all done; you can do the rest.”

        Christina took the rag and soap as she whispered.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Sis.”

The tall redhead slipped out of the room through the cloth curtain, leaving the teen relaxing in a warm tub of water. Christina smiled when the house once again filled with the family singing familiar holiday songs, and she began to sing along while enjoying her warm bath. After many songs had been sung and the water in the tub, along with the air in the room started to get slightly chilly, she quickly dried off and got dressed in her new clothes, then slipped through the curtain to join the family around the fireplace. Alice leaned over and inquired about her age.

“How old are you, Sis?”

“Sixteen; no wait, what day is this?”

“It’s Thanksgiving day babe.”

Christina quickly set up a little bit taller as she proudly announced.

“In that case, I’m seventeen.”

Lesley stood, then pulled Steve Sr. to his feet and started toward the kitchen.

“Well, I guess we are going to have a double celebration, let’s go eat.”

Everyone gathered around the kitchen table that was filled with everything a Thanksgiving dinner would have for a king. Tears began to seep from Christina’s eyes and run down her cheeks when Alice started singing happy birthday, and the rest of the family joined in.

Christina and Alice became as close as sisters could be as she spent the cold winter with the family. She had marked the spot in her Atlas so to make sure she could find the way back, knowing she would be returning to her quest to find Sera as soon as spring arrived. For now, she was thankful to have found a home with a loving family for the holidays.

 

CHAPTER FIVE

WASHINGTON

Christina spent the winter with her second family that had taken her in and had celebrated her seventeenth birthday. As the sights and sounds of spring filled the air it was time to resume her quest to find her older sister.

The weather is quite a bit warmer in late June than in mid-March when she and Blackwall first headed out for Seattle Washington, where her father said the New U.S. Police had taken Sera.

It’s been three months since leaving the comfort of a loving family, and she has been camping on a hillside for the last two days watching a small farmhouse down in the bottom of a valley. She slipped the binoculars into their place and mounted up as she spoke to her best friend.

“I haven’t seen anything move for the last two days.”

Slowly, she headed down into the valley, continuously looking around for any sudden danger that might pop out. The quietness was eerie as she rode through the deserted farmyard, and the skeletal remains that laid in the backyard caused her to shutter; two were clearly those of small children. She slowly dismounted and walked into the ransacked house as she whispered her sentiment.

“Damned U.N. bastards.”

After examining the inside of the trashed house, she walked out through the back door and started in the direction of the barn with Blackwall tagging close behind. Carefully opening the barn door far enough to slip through, she laughed out a comment as the large horse made a beeline for a bag of oats lying open on the floor and began munching out.

“I hope those oats aren’t fermented.”

Like a large elephant in the center of the barn was a large canvas that seemed to have been coated with some kind of silver coating. She carefully pulled the edge back to reveal the fender of an older farm truck. She quickly pulled the tarp off and stared at the old ford for a moment, then opened the squeaky door to see the keys waiting. Rapidly jumping into the seat, she turned the key, but whimpered in disappointment when the battery was dead.

“Dammit-to-hell.”

She exited the truck, slamming the door shut as she used a phrase that she had heard Alice say many times.

“This is a big bag of shit!”

She slowly wandered around in the barn as Blackwall continued eating his oats and noticed a tiny room in the back with a door that had clearly been pried open. She cautiously walked over for a peek into what looked to be a large closet. Her eyes grew big at the sight of three new car batteries still wrapped in their original packaging sitting on a shelf. Being raised on a horse ranch, once again, was coming in handy as she quickly went to work changing out the battery in the truck. She jumped back into the seat and closed her eyes; turning the key, she raised her head up as if praying.

“Please; please; please.”

        She began bouncing up and down in the seat as the old truck started to spit and sputter, then it roared to life, causing her to shout.

“YES!! YES!! YES!! Thank you sweet Jesus.”

She instantly jumped from the truck and pushed the barn door open and then pulled it out into the driveway. After backing up to a single stall horse trailer, she glanced down at the fuel-gage to see it showing a full tank of gas.

“You better not be lying to me.”

Christina spied a pair of gloves tucked in the side pocket of the driver door and pulled them on as she headed to hook up the trailer. Blackwall had a bit of a stagger in his step from eating fermented oats as the excited teen loaded him into the trailer and loudly proclaimed.

“Seattle by morning.”

With a big smile, she pulled out onto the highway in her new older truck and began to sing familiar songs she could recall from her C.D.’s as she drove down the road with the window down and a cool breeze blowing through the truck. She would give out a “Thank you” every time she crossed a bridge and saw the raging water below from the melting snow as she stuck to the back roads to avoid the cities. The sun was sinking low in the west when she came across a bridge that had been washed away, and the closest driveway to turn around was one mile back. She was now getting a lesson on backing up a trailer; but, after one hour, Christina was back in a forward direction. She only had to backtrack twice due to bridges that had collapsed, and after driving all night and into the morning on deserted roads, she was just fifty miles from Seattle Washington when the old truck began to sputter and slow its momentum, then ran out of gas. She let out an exclamation as the truck rolled to a stop in the middle of the road.

“Shit, shit, shit.”

She exited the old truck and slowly walked to the back of the horse trailer while pulling the gloves over her hands. Once Blackwall was unloaded and saddled, she quickly packed her gear onto his back. When she caught the subtle aroma of campfire smoke, she instantly mounted up with a whisper.

“We gotta go, my friend.”

        She was suddenly startled by a man’s loud voice.

“What’s your hurry?”

She spun around in the saddle to see a small man standing at the edge of the tree line, looking to be at least one hundred years old, what was left of his long gray hair was all wiry, and a beard to match; his clothes didn’t look much better either. She considered he did not look much of a threat as she made her inquiry with a demanding tone.

“Who are you?”

        The elderly man stood staring at the teen as he replied.

“They call me Lucky; that is, they used to call me Lucky before the dirty bomb destroyed Seattle.”

        His words sent a shockwave through her body as she continued speaking with authority.

“What do you mean destroyed?”

        Lucky gave her a toothless smile while attempting to give a compliment.

“Has anyone ever told you that you have a sexy butt?”

        Christina quickly scolded the man.

“I don’t like that.”

        The man jokingly chuckled out his response.

“What; you don’t like that you have a sexy butt?”

Then he broke into a hefty laugh that quickly faded into a grueling cough as he slowly started sinking to the ground with a Trimble. Christina leaned forward in the saddle and moved toward the feeble man while asserting her opinion.

“This is a big bag of shit.”

Lucky sank to his hands and knees, coughing as if one of his lungs might be expelled at any moment. Christina slowly dismounted with her canteen in hand and squatted down to care for the elderly man. She helped him into a sitting position and leaned him up against a tree, then held the canteen sturdy as the old man took a sip with shaky hands. Lucky leaned back against the tree, closed his eyes, and took in a few deep breaths. Now, she was concerned about his health, and softly spoke.

“Are you okay?”

She carefully sat down on the ground in front of him, scanning his shriveled, wrinkled face, then he once again gave a toothless smile with his answer.

“I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time; yeah, I’m fine sexy butt.”

        Christina instantly made a request.

“Okay Grandpa, my name is Christina; call me Christina.”

She handed the canteen back to the elderly man and watched him take a long drink, then he smiled and chuckled his response.

“No; no, I’m going to call you sexy butt.”

Christina carefully studied him for a moment and realized this old man did not have enough stamina or strength to attempt anything devious.

“Okay Grandpa, you have laughed enough for one day; now, where do you live?”

It seemed to take every bit of energy he had to raise his arm and point toward the woods.

“Over there, behind those thick bushes.”

“Okay, let’s get you home.”

Pulling the small man's arm around her shoulder, she helped him into his camp with Blackwall following close behind. Seeing an army cot that was raised at one end sitting beside a small tent, she carefully helped him lay down on it, then looked around the small camp to see a stack of half-rusted unopened cans of food with no labels. She was relieved to see the small running stream just a few feet behind the camp as she slowly unpacked Blackwall and set up her tent, then she retrieved a bag of dry beans that Debby had given her and began the chore of building up the fire to cook. Lucky lay still and listened to the young girl whistling a soothing tune for a few minutes before interrupting.

“Why are you here?”

        Christina glanced his way with a smile as she placed a deep pot on the fire.

“I’m looking for my sister.”

She poured the beans into the pot of water along with a bit of seasoning that Debby had given her. Lucky carefully and slowly raised himself up into a sitting position before continuing.

“Okay: but that’s not what I meant; why did you stay here with me? Anyone else would have just kept going on their way.”

Her mother’s face immediately flashed through Christina’s mind, and her last words echoing through her head. “Never forget who you are.”

“That’s not how I was raised, that’s not who I am.”

She took a seat on the cot next to him and wrapped her arm around his shoulder, giving him a caring embrace while making her request.

“Now, tell me what happened to Seattle.”

He began to tell a story of horror about U.N. Demons violently taking over the city, then came the tale about the New U.S. Police, and the furious battle between the two forces that began about a year ago; but the large amount of U.N. Demons were just too overwhelming. Then the most terrifying scenario of his story, someone set off a small nuke that covered the entire downtown part of Seattle with radiation and it slowly spread outward. Christina quietly inquired about Sera with a shaky voice.

“My sister was a U.S. Police officer; do you know what happened to them?”

Lucky gently placed his rugged hand against her cheek as if remorseful, then his voice cracked a bit when he answered.

“The ones that came from other places and were still alive already left before the bomb. I guess they went back to where they came from.”

Christina sat staring forward as if in a trance for a few moments, then softly whispered.

“Okay: so, I have to go back to Pennsylvania.”

A tear slipped from one of Lucky’s eyes and slowly drifted down his cheek when he confirmed her statement.

“Yes; you can’t stay here for very long, sexy butt.”

        Christina quickly countered.

“I can’t just go and leave you here alone.”

Tears began to slip from her eyes when he clarified the situation, Christina could not take her eyes off his rugged face as she intensely listened.

“Yes, you have to leave: I am dying from all the radiation, and if you stay, you will also get sick just like me; now, tomorrow you will leave and go find your sister.”

After dinner, she said goodnight and settled into her sleeping bag, desperately searching for a solution to the situation. She laid awake in the screen tent, knowing there was no way she could just leave a helpless, sick old man behind. Once again her mother’s voice echoed in her psyche; “God will send people into your life to help you.”

“I miss you so much mom.” Christina whispered as she faded off into a deep sleep.

.

{WARNING DREAM}

Christina was sitting by the campfire when she heard Sue’s soft voice.

“Christina I am very proud of you.”

She jumped to her feet and began turning in a circle until she spied her mother standing a few feet away with Lucky standing beside her with his toothless smile.

“I will never forget who I am, I promise.” Christina assured her.

She was a little bit confused as to why Lucky was there, as Sue continued with authority in her voice.

“Listen to me sweetheart, there is coming a time when you will have to kill.”

        Christina instantly rebutted.

“No! No! I will never kill anyone, that’s not who I am.”

        Sue conceded, then bid a bit of foreknowledge.

“I understand; there will be a teacher sent to protect you for a short while; now, I’m going to take Lucky home; I love you sweetheart.”

She and Lucky both faded away into a fog as Christina softly whispered.

“Goodbye mom; I love you.”

She woke with tears streaming down her cheeks, then slowly set up and turned to look over at Lucky through her screen tent, and it was clear to see he was no longer breathing.

“Thanks mom.”

She slipped from her tent and covered the elderly man with his blanket and said a quick prayer, then packed up camp and headed for Pennsylvania.

 

CHAPTER SIX

NEW COMPANION

Christina decided on taking highway [2] that runs most of the way across the country at the border of Canada, it would give her easy passage over high mountains, and bridges to cross raging rivers. It’s a back highway with mostly small towns; but a safe pathway to take; so she thought.

It’s been three weeks since leaving Seattle, and she was now on highway [2] heading east as she reminisced about their journey.

“I really miss our old truck.”

As the sun began to sink low in the west, and knowing the nights were still getting cold this time of year, she guided Blackwall into the tree line to set camp for the night. She climbed up a tree with her binoculars to scout the area the way she does several times a day. She was looking to see if the person that her mother told her would be sent was anywhere in sight. She held the binoculars as sturdy as possible as a terrifying chill surged through her body when she spied four large men dressed in U.N. uniforms riding healthy looking horses heading in her direction, following her exact tracks.

“Nooo; no, no, no.” She whispered.

 The frightened teen quickly shimmied down the tree and mounted-up as she repeated one of Debby’s infamous phrases.

“Shit, shit, shit.”

The large black thoroughbred could feel the intense fear resonating from Christina as she leaned forward in the saddle.

“We gotta go; we got to go.”

She put the large black beast into a fast trot through the woods as the sun disappeared below the horizon and darkness defeated the light. When it became too dark within the cover of the forest, she exited the woods and put Blackwall into a slightly faster run down the shoulder of the highway with tears rolling down her cheeks as her mother’s words kept running through her head. “You will have to kill.”  She was glad the moon was full and shining brightly as she reached the crest of a long sloping hill. Pulling to a halt, she turned to look back down the road through her binoculars and could see the men were keeping pace. As she slipped the looking glass back in its place she nervously shouted.

“This is a gigantic bag of shit: Go, go, go!”

The powerful black beast instantly sprang into a hard run and could sense her fear as he put large chunks of real-estate behind them. The rest of the night he would run for a while, then slow to a fast walk while catching his breath. As the morning sun began to peak above the horizon, Christina sat on top of another hill looking back through her binoculars. She could feel Blackwall’s deep heavy breathing.

“Dammit all to Hell; they're gaining on us my friend.”

She quickly turned her focus toward the direction they were headed in and spied an abandoned gas station a short distance away. Being inexperienced with this type of situation, she headed for the deserted building at a fast trot. Once reaching the station, she quickly dismounted and pushed the front door open, pulling Blackwall through the door. she headed for the open walk-in refrigerator and sank to the floor in the back of the  empty box, then began to cry and tremble with fear. When she suddenly realized they were trapped, the large thoroughbred quickly put himself between her and the door.

When the men entered, they spoke a language Christina had never heard. She refused to let herself pass out from fear as she trembled uncontrollably. When a large ugly fat face with cheeks that hung halfway down his neck gave her a snaggle-tooth smile through the glass door that a customer would have used back in the day, she released a tremendous scream. When the door handle to the refrigerator began to jiggle, the young teen became so terrified it was hard to breathe, and all she could think to do was pick up empty bottles and throw them at the door. Instantly her ear drums began to reverberate as a thunderous sound echoed throughout the building. The door handle went still as the ugly snaggletooth man turned toward the front of the store with a look of shock on his face. Another thunder echoed throughout the building as the fat ugly man with saggy cheeks instantly dropped to the floor with blood squirting from his head. All Christina could do was sit still and stare as the other two men ran through the store and out the back. She sat frozen when the door handle began to jiggle once again. When the door swung open she saw a tall slender woman with long coal black hair and big brown eyes standing there holding a huge handgun at her side. Christina began to giggle as the world started spinning, and then everything went black. The tall woman softly spoke to the large black horse as she carefully maneuvered around him.

“Easy boy, easy.”

The woman reached down and scooped up the skinny teenage girl into her arms and carried her out of the store with Blackwall following close behind.

When Christina began to regain consciousness, she looked up as her eyes slowly opened. New sprouts on the large tree limbs above her came into focus as she ran her hand over the soft blanket she was lying on. She looked around and realized she was lying on a soft sleeping-bag in the shade under a huge tree, then she was startled by a robust female voice.

“About damned time.”

She instantly moved into a sitting position, staring at the woman with wide eyes, and replied with fear prominent in her voice.

“Who the hell are you?”

        She stared at Christina as she took a long draw from her small corn-cob pipe, then slowly exhaled before responding.

“Who the hell are you; and what the hell were you thinking? That had to be the most ignorant thing I have ever seen anyone do.”

        The stench that filled the air from the smoke caused Christina to choke out her answer.

“My name is Christina.”

        The older tall woman held the pipe out toward the frightened teen in a demanding gesture while introducing herself.

“Rosie.”

Christina slowly shook her head at Rosie and made her statement.

“No thanks, I don’t smoke.”

        The long-haired female kept staring into the frightened teen’s eyes as she shoved the pipe farther in her direction and spoke with authority.

“Take a drag or I will shove it down your puny little throat.”

Christina slowly reached and took the homemade apparatus with one hand and held her nose with the other, then reluctantly lifted the pipe to her lips as Rosie made a demand.

“Big drag; and inhale.”

The burning pain caused the young teen to drop the pipe and fall over onto one elbow, coughing as if she were Lucky. Her world started spinning, accompanied with a loud ringing sound penetrating straight through her ears followed by a deep warmth surging through her body. Rosie picked up the pipe with a giggle and took another long drag and waited for the teen to catch her breath. Christina finally coughed out.

“What is that shit?”

        Rosie answered as if she should have known.

 “Marijuana.”

 Feeling her body going numb, Christina fell back on the soft sleeping-bag with a shout.

“Are you trying to kill me?”

Rosie took another huge, long drag and watched as she faded back into a deep sleep.

“No sweetheart; but you will sleep sound for a while longer.”

Rosie is a Native American Indian; forty-six-years-old; six-foot-tall; one-hundred-sixty lbs. of pure muscle; with unusually soft smooth skin and large brown eyes on her enchanted features.

With Christina in a sound sleep, Rosie retrieved her bow-and-arrow then headed into the woods to collect dinner.

An hour, and a couple crazy dreams later, Christina struggled to get her eyes to open when she began to wake. She stared up at the tree limbs high above her and could see small spots of blue sky through the newly green sprouting leaves. With a mouth so dry from the effects of the marijuana, she could not even swallow. Slowly bringing herself up, she staggered her way over to Blackwall. It seemed to take forever to pull the canteen from the saddle, then she quickly removed the lid and chugged down the satisfying liquid. She laid her head up against her companion for a long moment and took a few deep breaths, then sluggishly walked back over to the sleeping-bag. Getting her brain to function correctly seemed to be an impossible task as she took a seat and whispered to herself..

“I don’t like this feeling.”

Christina began to recall her narrow escape while looking around the camp, then she noticed the large solid white horse standing next to Blackwall. She whispered as she forced her brain to remember what had happened.

“Rosie.”

Christina heard a noise coming through the woods behind her and turned to see a beautiful tall woman with long raven black hair carrying the hind quarter of a deer across her shoulder. She watched as Rosie leisurely walked into camp and plopped the meat down beside the fire pit, then the stranger complained with a demanding tone.

“You’re awake; why haven’t you built a fire?”

Christina sat silent for a moment and watched the stranger break up small limbs and place them into the pit before scolding her.

“I’m not thinking straight; I don’t like that you forced me to do drugs.”

Rosie froze from her task and glanced over at Christina.

“I did not force you to do anything.”

“Yes you did, you threatened me.” She countered.

Rosie gave a slight laugh with a statement as she returned to starting the fire.

“Yeah I did; but I did not force you. You must learn to take a stand for yourself.”

        Christina stared at her for a long moment before making a proclamation.

“Mom sent you to me.”

Once again Christina’s words caused Rosie to freeze in place and look her way with a question.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Christina lowered her head as she nervously explained.

“In a dream; my mom said she would send a teacher to protect me.”

As soon as those words had spilled from her mouth she wished she could have taken them back, realizing just how crazy that sounded.

Once the twigs in the fire-pit began to burn, Rosie walked over and took a seat beside the tall petite teen.

“Well I’ll be damned; a child dreamer.”

        Christina was a bit relieved Rosie did not laugh.

“So you don’t think I’m crazy?”

Rosie wrapped her arm around the skinny teen’s shoulder and gave her a gentle smile.

“No; no sweetheart, I believe you have a special gift; now, as long as we are traveling together, I want to hear every dream you have.”

        Christina quickly let her new friend know she would probably be disappointed.

“Okay, but most of my dreams are not very pleasant. So, where did you come from?”

        Rosie expressed her thoughts on all dreams.

“The nightmares are the most important, and I’m from upstate New York.”

“No. I mean when you found me. Christina corrected.

        Rosie giggled out her answer.

“Oh; well, I started following you from the old man’s camp.”

Christina quickly leaned back far enough so she could see Rosie’s eyes.

“Wait!! You knew Lucky?”

“No babe, I came upon you the morning you left his camp.” Rosie clarified.

Christina was glad she had a friend to talk to as she laid her head down on Rosie’s shoulder.

“So you are like me, you take care of people that need help.”

“Well not exactly like you; I mean, I would never hide in a room with only one way in and one way out.”

Christina closed her eyes and covered her face with her hand and giggled slightly.

“Yeah, that was kind of dumb; so, why were you in Washington?”

“About three years ago the government sent me to Port Angeles; now, I’m on my way home in upstate New York. Rosie answered.

Christina quickly sat straight up and grabbed her arm and looked her directly in the eyes.

“Wait!! Wait! You are a U.S. Police?”

“Yes; yes I was, until about a year ago.”

Christina’s grip tightened around the woman's arm and her eyes widened.

“Did you know Sera?”

Rosie carefully pried her fingers from the tight grip as she replied.

“Yes, I knew a young girl named Sera; and now that I think about it, you do look a lot like her.”

Christina jumped to her feet and stared down at her.

“Do you know where she is?”

Rosie reached up and gently took her by the hand and pulled Christina back down beside her.

“No; she did say she was going to go find her family.” Rosie answered.

        Christina stared out across the camp in a daze as she quietly whispered.

“I have to get to Pennsylvania.”

        Rosie promptly comforted her new companion.

“Hey; slow down babe; we will go to Pennsylvania together; now, let’s start dinner.”

Christina agreed while putting her arms around her in a tight squeeze.

“Yeah, your right.”

After dinner, they sat around the campfire taking turns singing their favorite songs, Christina sang the most recent ones she could remember hearing on the radio before all the electricity went out, then Rosie would chant her favorite ancestor’s Native American songs. At the end of the day, once Blackwall had his rub down, the mosquitoes began their assault on the two girls; so, they said their good-nights and retired into their tents.

 

CHRISTINA ’S DREAM

[A MESSAGE FOR A FRIEND]

Christina’s dream started out with her and Sue standing on the front porch of a small cabin on the side of a mountain, deep in the woods. A young Native American woman looking to be in her early twenties was in the front yard playing with a small child. She had her long hair tied up in two ponytails and the child looked to be about three years old. As they watched, Sue softly spoke.

“I want you to mind Rosie; she is a very smart and important woman.”

Christina wrapped an arm around her waist and vowed to do just that.

“I promise mom; I miss you a whole bunch.”

“I have to go now; remember to listen to Rosie.”

“I will mom.” Christina agreed.

The dream slowly faded away.

As the morning sun peeked up over the horizon, Christina woke-up with a pleasing smile on her face and quickly got dressed. She exited the tent, and quickly went to prepare breakfast. She started the fire, hoping to have breakfast ready before her proverbial protector woke up, then she retrieved the box of pancake mix that she picked up from an abandoned house along the way and began to make pancakes.

Rosie had a corncob pipe sticking out of her mouth when she exited her tent, she stopped for a moment and gave Christina a smile.

At the sight of the tiny pipe sticking out of Rosie’s mouth, Christina shook her head with a comment.

“You gotta be kidding me; how can you even think when you’re smoking that shit this early?”

        Rosie instantly countered her remark.

“I can’t think without it, babe; but I think I do need to go pee.”

She inhaled a deep breath of smoke and started toward a large tree a ways out of camp.

Christina finished making the pancakes and went to retrieve the last jar of honey from the saddlebag while loudly making an inquiry.

“Where do you even get that crap?”

“It’s a damned weed sweetheart, It grows wild in the woods.” Rosie yelled back.

“WAIT! Are you saying you just pick it from the woods?” Christina surprisingly asked.

        Rosie giggled her reply.

“Yes babe, after breakfast I’ll show you.”

Christina answered while slowly pouring honey over the pancakes as Rosie rinsed her hands with water from her canteen.

 “Okay; but I need to tell you about my dream first.”

They were quietly eating their pancakes as she began to tell Rosie about her dream. She explained that in her dream Rosie was in her twenties and had a three-year-old little girl.

Rosie seemed to be in shock as she slowly sat her plate down and stared at Christina for a moment.

“Christina, if you are a true dreamer, you do not dream of things in the past; you will only dream of the present or future things.”

Christina stared straight ahead for a few moments considering her statement, then slowly sat her plate down and turned to face Rosie.

“So, what you are saying is, this woman and child are at the cabin now.”

Rosie gently took her hands and looked deep into her eyes with instructions.

“Yes; now, listen to me, okay; close your eyes and concentrate; look at the woman and tell me what you see.”

This was the first time Christina had seen a tiny crack in this sturdy woman’s shield as water filled her eyes. She gave Rosie’s hands a caring squeeze, then closed her eyes. She let her mind drift back to the dream and the cabin seemed to come alive within her psyche, and she was amazed at this newfound ability she had.

“I see her; she looks like you, just younger; she is playing with the little girl in the front yard of the cabin up in the mountains.”

Tears began to slip down Rosie’s cheeks at what Christina was saying to her, and with a calm voice asked for details.

“Okay Christina; look at her hair, does she have anything in her hair?”

Christina let herself relax a bit more and concentrated on the young woman’s hair.

“Her hair is in ponytails; yes, she has like these tiny silvery tie thingy’s holding her long ponytails together; SHIT!!”

Christina shouted, pulling her hands away from Rosie’s and quickly opening her eyes.

Rosie gently took her hands again with tears slipping down her face.

“WHAT! What did you see sweetheart?”

Christina began to tremble and shouted as she pulled Rosie into an embrace.

“She saw me; my god Rosie, she saw me.”

They sat holding onto each other in a tight embrace for a moment, both trembling with tears running down their faces, then Rosie took a deep breath.

“It's okay babe, you were just remembering your dream; she did not see you.”

Christina quickly leaned back so she could see into Rosie’s big brown eyes.

“No Rosie, it wasn’t the same as my dream; it was different; she had different clothes on; it wasn’t my dream; how could she see me Rosie? She looked straight at me with a shocked look on her face; she saw me Rosie, she saw me.”

Rosie held the crying teenager and gently rocked back and forth considering what she had said, then slowly reached into her pocket and pulled out the small corn-cob pipe. Christina instantly grabbed it from Rosie’s hand and tossed it across the camp with her demand.

“NO!! Hell no; I need you to talk to me!”

Rosie sat with a look of disbelief on her face as she stared at the upset teen, then turned and looked at her pipe lying on the ground across the camp, then turned back to Christina and began to speak softly.

“Christina sweetheart, have you ever known someone who took medicine from a doctor to keep their nerves calm, and without the medicine they could not function?

Her question brought forth memories of a few of her mother’s friends, and Christina slightly tilted her head to one side and gave her a confused look.

“Yeah; back before everything went crazy, I knew a few people like that.”

“Well babe, there are no more doctors; the pipe is my medicine.” Rosie explained.

Christina slowly rose to her feet and walked across the camp and retrieved the pipe, then gently returned it.

“I’m so sorry Rosie, I didn’t know.”

She gently pulled her new friend up, then placed an arm around Rosie’s waist with a suggestion.

“Let’s go and find you some medicine.”

They strolled down a deer trail through the woods with Rosie occasionally bringing them to a stop to indicate different plants and berries, taking the time to describe the healing powers of each one. Christina paid close attention, remembering her mother’s words; “Listen to Rosie.” while taking mental pictures of each plant. Suddenly, while sniffing the air, she pulled Rosie to a quick stop with a warning.

“Okay; stop Rosie, I think I smell a skunk.”

        Rosie quickly asked while sniffing the air.

“Yes; which way?”

Christina slowly turned in a circle taking short sniffs, then stopped and pointed off to the left side of the trail and whispered.

“That way”

        Rosie responded with excitement in her voice.

“Perfect.”

Christina stood frozen in place with her eyes bugged out, watching as her teacher started in the direction she was pointing.

“Where in the hell are you going?”

“Marijuana.” Rosie said with a smile.

She cautiously followed Rosie into the brush until they came across the one allocating the unpleasant scent. Rosie began to break off the big tops from the plant and stuff them into the small leather saddle bag that she had brought along as Christina giggled out a question.

“Wait; are you saying marijuana smells like a stinky skunk?”

“Yes dear, the good stuff does.” Rosie replied.

Rosie pulled out her pipe that she had filled before leaving camp and sparked it up, then offered it to a declining Christina.

“No; no thank you, my nerves are just fine.”

Once the saddle bag was filled to the brim, Rosie turned with a big smile.

“Okay; let’s go break camp and be on our way.”

 

CHAPTER SEVEN

LESSONS TO LEARN

Over the next sixteen months, they became very close while travailing across high mountains, flat plains and down through the bottoms of enormous valleys, surviving together. Christina came to realize the hard-ass exterior her friend betrayed wasn’t the peaceful soul that kept within. Rosie continuously taught her how to identify a variety of plants and how to mix them together to use for diverse ailments, also teaching Christina all about her dream powers and how to interpret them. but Christina refused to use her newfound out-of-body capabilities, afraid that another spirit might take over her body; and that just scared her too much.

Christina was contemplating her twentieth birthday as she and Rosie rode onto her family’s big horse ranch in northern Pennsylvania. Her breathing became very jagged, and tears streamed down her face when she noticed most everything was gone, burnt to the ground. The only thing left standing was a small sagging hay barn. Christina took a deep breath and spoke slowly.

“Do you think Sera was here?”

        Comprehending Christina’s torment, Rosie  caringly made a suggestion.

“I don’t know sweetheart; let’s set up camp in the barn, then tonight we will meditate and try to have a dream that will let us know.”

Rosie could sense the pain her friend was in as they slowly rode through the snow toward the small hay barn. Once inside they unsaddled their horses in silence with Christina stopping every couple of minutes to peek out the barn door, then she would begin to sob. Slowly camp was set, and the horses were put into stalls where hay was plentiful. The light began to dim inside the barn as the sun set in the west and they settled down on a sleeping bag as Rosie filled her corn-cob pipe. She used one of many lighters she had gathered every time they passed through a small town; but Rosie got a surprised look on her face when the young woman reached and took the pipe from her and whispered.

“I think I need some medicine tonight.”

“Are you sure babe?” Rosie asked.

She watched Christina hold her nose with one hand and lift the pipe to her lips with the other, taking a tiny drag and inhaling. After a hard cough she took a loftier drag, then a huge one. she tried her best to hold it in like she had seen Rosie do, then began to cough hard while holding the pipe up in the air for Rosie to take. She retrieved the pipe and watched her friend collapse across the sleeping bag with her head landing in her lap. Rosie inquired of her wellbeing as she gently stroked Christina’s hair.

“Are you okay babe?”

“Yeah; today is my birthday; I’m twenty years old today.” Christina answered.

Rosie reached and pulled another sleeping bag across them as she laid down to cuddled up close for warm, then softly replied.

“I’m sorry that I forgot. Wait; that means you are no longer a teenager.”

        Christina giggled her response before fading off to sleep.

“Yep; today I’m a grown woman.”

 

 

[SPECIAL DREAM]

In Christina’s dream tonight, they are sitting on the front porch of the cabin up in the mountains, watching the younger version of Rosie playing in the yard with her daughter. Sue came walking out the door and took a seat beside her, then put her arm around Christina.

“Happy birthday sweetheart. Now, you can stay and visit for a short time; but you must keep looking for Sera.”

Christina lovingly leaned into her warm embrace with a question.

“So, Sera’s is Okay?”

        Sue expressed her answer as the dream began to fade.

“You must keep looking for Sera; I must go now.”

She woke with a smile on her face and the scent of wood burning, mixed with a sweet aroma of food cooking. She looked around the barn and could tell the sun was shining today, but there was no Rosie. She climbed out of the warm sleeping bag and went to peek out the door, there stood her teacher in front of a large barbecue grill cooking. She quickly slipped on her coat and stepped outside with a greeting.

“Good morning; what’s cooking?”

Rosie raised the top of the grill and flipped over the three chickens that were roasting.

“Well; good morning birthday girl, I was hoping to give you breakfast in bed; Oh well, I found where the chickens are laying all of their eggs; so, we are having roasted chicken and fried eggs.”

Christina gently leaned her head against Rosie’s shoulder.

“I talked to mom last night; Sera is okay.”

Rosie placed her arm around Christina’s shoulder and gave her a gentle squeeze.

“Wow, so you saw Sera?”

“Well no; I did see your daughter, and mom told me that I had to keep looking for her; if Sera is not okay, then why would she say that?”

“Sweetheart, there are some things that we are not allowed to know; because if we did, it would alter the big plan.” Rosie explained.

The big plan was a phrase Christina had not heard in a long time and it brought a smile to her face, so she confirmed the statement with a giggle.

“Okay; I’m going to go with you to your family’s house and meet your daughter, then I have to go and look for Sera; I mean, I would not want to screw up the big plan.”

“Okay, I will allow you to be little Miss. Smartass on your birthday; now, let’s eat so we can get on our way before the big snowstorms get here.” Rosie suggested.

Mid-day, they rode out of the ranch in silence with tears rolling down their cheeks, and Christina could not bring herself to look back at the devastation.

After a week of hard riding, the day was overcast with a cold bite in the air. Rosie pulled Snowflake to a stop and spun him around. She closed her eyes, turned her face upward, then took a deep breath. While exhaling, she quietly spoke.

“Christina, we are being followed.”

Christina quickly turned Blackwall around and looked back in the direction that they had just come.

“How do you know that Rosie?”

“Well babe, the same way that you have dreams; I was also given a gift.” She explained.

Christina tilted over and whispered low, as if someone might hear.

“Okay, what are we going to do?”

        Rosie turned and headed them back up the trail as she responded.

“I want you to follow Snowflake, she will lead you to a good hiding place; wait there until I whistle.”

She scanned the trail ahead for a low hanging limb, one she could grab onto as Christina argued.

“NO!! You can’t fight them all alone, I can’t lose you Rosie.”

“No sweetheart, there is only one; and whoever this person is doesn’t have much confidence; now, do what I said.” Rosie ordered.

No sooner than she finished speaking, Rosie reached up and grabbed hold of a low limb and quickly disappeared off the back of Snowflake. That caught the birthday girl completely off guard, and she began to laugh while turning in the saddle to see Rosie sitting on a limb in the tall tree. She followed the white horse a short distance down the trail until the she quickly turned and went behind a group of tall thick bushes, then just stood still as if she had done this many times.

After sitting for thirty minutes and watching the white statue, Christina was starting to become impatient. Suddenly, Snowflake’s ears perked up and she started back down the trail in the direction where they left Rosie; Blackwall instantly followed. When Rosie came into view, Christina could see a Native American man in his early twenties with long black hair sitting and leaning back against a small tree with a bloody nose with Rosie standing in front of him. She quickly dismounted and stared at the young long-haired man holding his bloody nose.

“You have ‘GOT’ to teach me that trick.” Christina exclaimed.

“I can do that; I caught myself a real live man.” Rosie asserted.

Christina did her best not to crack a smile while sounding sincere as possible.

“Yes; I can see that; so, are you going to kill him now or later?”

The two stood and stared at the young man as he held his nose between his thumb and fingers, trying to stop the bleeding. With eyes the size of saucers, he sat and mumbled uncontrollably while shaking his head. Rosie slowly turned toward Christina and spoke with a straight face.

“He is about your age; I thought you might like to keep him as a pet.”

Christina turned her back to the man, unable to control the smile coming across her face, then replied.

“Why would I want a man that just got his ass kicked by a woman?”

Rosie calmly walked over to Snowflake and reached into her saddlebag, pulling out her Colt 45.

“Well shit; I guess we’ll just kill him now.”

They broke into laughter as the man began to whine like a scared puppy, then Rosie put the gun back in its place as she began her interrogation.

“Oh shut up dumbass, we’re not going to kill you; but I do want to know who you are and why you are following us.”

When the two girls turned back toward the man, he was lying flat on the ground passed out cold. Rosie laughed in disbelief.

“Well shit!”

“I concur.” Christina giggled.

Rosie took the man’s sleeping-bag off his horse and rolled him into it and zipped it up, then they began to set up camp for the night. After camp was all set and the fire pit built, Rosie turned to Christina.

“I know you don’t like to hurt people; so, you go get dinner; I will keep an eye on our guest.”

“I made a promise; and that’s not who I am; but don’t you hurt that man” Christina explained.

She went to retrieve her bow and quiver of arrows when she heard the man moaning from inside his sleeping bag, so she gave an order with a giggle.

“Okay dumb-ass, get up and set your tent.”

The man cautiously stuck his head out and looked up at her with a request.

“My name is Stormy; please call me Stormy.”

“No; no, I’m going to call you dumbass.” Christina informed the young man.

        Stormy quickly informed her of his vocation.

“I’m a tracker, not a warrior.”

Christina instantly froze and turned back toward the man that was making his way to his horse.

“What did you say?”

Stormy retrieved his canteen and a handkerchief, then began washing the blood off his face as he responded.

“I’m not a warrior.”

Christina quickly took a few steps toward him.

“No; before that.”

He proudly held his head up high and stared at his adversary through two eyes that were starting to swell and turn black and blue.

“I’m a tracker.”

She gripped his arm and looked straight into his eyes with a request.

“Will you teach me how to track?”

He thought for a moment, then turned and looked at Rosie.

“Only if you promise your friend will not attack me again.”

Cristina agreed as Rosie stood tall while giving them a big smile.

“I promise, all the ass whippings are over; right Rosie?”

Rosie reached into her vest pocket and retrieved her pipe as she gave a condition.

“As long as he behaves himself.”

Stormy gave a big smile of his own, then also reached into his pocket and pulled out a handmade pipe. Christina glanced at him in disbelief, then turned and shouted as she headed toward the woods.

“Shit! I’m surrounded by druggies.”

Later that night, when the darkness had overtaken the daylight, Christina lay in her tent fading off to sleep with a strong stench of marijuana filling the air. Rosie and their newfound friend began chanting native songs as they sat around the campfire. Christina gave way to sleep with a smile of content.

 

[CHRISTINA   DREAMS]

Christina is once again sitting out on the front porch of the cabin with Rosie, watching the little girl play in the yard. She noticed the younger looking Rosie was sitting on the corner of the porch wrapped tightly in the arms of Stormy, completely content. Christina heard her mother’s voice coming from behind her.

“I’m very proud of you Christina.”

She turned to see Sue sitting in the rocking chair, and quickly replied.

“I’m paying attention to everything that Rosie is teaching me mom.”

She quickly stood and went to stand beside her mother, and Sue took her by the hand.

“There will be many people sent into your life to teach you many things; you must learn to recognize these people.”

Christina squatted down beside her with a serious look.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah mom, you already told me that; now, tell me where I can find Sera.”

“I don’t know sweetheart; but you must never stop looking for her; some things we are not meant to know.”

Sue stood and pulled her baby girl up and into a loving embrace as Christina sarcastically replied..

“Yeah, yeah, yeah; we wouldn’t want to screw up the big plan.”

Sue took hold of her shoulders and pulled back so to look into her eyes.

“Don’t you ever take that sort of tone with me, young lady.”

        Cristina immediately pulled her mother back into a tight embrace.

“I’m sorry mom; I’m really sorry.”

Sue gave her a motherly kiss and then gently placed her hand on her cheek.

“Okay sweetheart; I have to go now; I love you.”

“I love you mom.” Christina whispered as the dream began to fade.

 

She laid still for a few moments listening to the chirping early birds breaking the morning silence, then gave a strenuous waking stretch. Rosie and Stormy were still sleeping after their late-night smoke-out as she slowly exited her tent, pausing for a moment and giving another hard stretch. She meandered around the camp and started the chore of rekindling the fire in order to cook breakfast, when the fire flamed to life, she looked up to see Stormy exiting his tent with a greeting.

“Good morning Christina.”

Christina went back to her chores as she acknowledged with a giggle.

“Good morning dumbass.”

Stormy stopped and glared at her way.

“And you want me to teach you to track.”

Christina stood and quickly went to give him a big hug.

“I’m sorry; I’m sorry; I will only call you Stormy from now on.”

He gave her a smile as he took her by the hand.

“Thank you; now, come with me and I will show you a few tricks on tracking.”

        She quickly reached for her hunting tools.

“Wait; my bow.”

Stormy understood what she wanted to learn; not so much tracking for food; but, how to erase her own tracks in case she were ever to be hunted.

“Remember, it is almost impossible to track something across rock.”

Christina thought about his comment for a moment, then reached and pulled him to a stop.

“What do you mean, almost?”

        Stormy gazed out through the woods and spoke as if in a trance.

“There are some trackers of old; not many, most have died; they have the ability to see the heat prints in the rock for several hours after something has crossed.”

For the rest of the hunt, she paid close attention to what he had to teach. Occasionally she glanced down at his steps determined to capture the heat print, but to no avail.

Rosie was sitting by the fire waiting for the team to return from the hunt, and already had most of the camp packed and ready to go. The only things left in view were utensils needed for cooking breakfast.

 

CHAPTER EIGHT

CABIN IN THE MOUNTAINS

Christina and Rosie rode side-by-side while Stormy brought up the rear. Rosie glanced back over her shoulder to make sure he could not hear, then turned her eyes back up the trail as she quietly spoke.

“We can’t take him all the way to the cabin; you do know that; right?”

Christina turned and gave her one of those strange sideways looks with a counter prediction.

“What are you talking about? He is going to be your new son-in-law.”

Rosie brought Snowflake to a sudden and complete stop.

“What ‘IN THE HELL’ are you talking about?”

Christina brought Blackwall to a stop and glanced back at her with a giggle.

“Wait; I didn’t tell you about my dream a few nights ago did I?”

Rosie gave one of her disappointing stares with a sarcastic reply.

“NO! I do not believe that you did.”

Christina looked back up the trail and began to giggle.

“Well; if I’m a true dreamer as you say, then he is going to be your new son-in-law.”

Stormy rode up beside the two girls and pulled his horse to a stop.

“Is everything alright ladies?”

Rosie gawked at him as she angrily pointed back down the trail.

“Hell no, everything is not alright; now, get your ass back; this is girl talk.”

“Yes ma’am; ‘sorry’.” Stormy responded.

Rosie sat staring at his back for a moment before heading back down the trail.

“That is what my little girl wants.”

Christina leaned forward in the saddle with assurance.

“Your little girl has her own little girl; he is going to make her extremely happy.”

Occasionally Rosie glanced over to see Christina sporting a big smile, then she would look back over her shoulder while shaking her head side-to-side, causing Christina to loudly giggle.

After several more days of fast hard riding through snow flurries and strong cold breezes, daylight was becoming dimmer as the clouds thickened and the wind greatly increased. Stormy quickly rode up beside Rosie with some advice.

“We need to set camp, now.”

Rosie was aggravated that they were so close to home but had to admit defeat to the weather.

“I know damnit; I know.” She shouted back.

She rode up beside Christina and pointed to a group of large trees just off the side of the trail, and the trio quickly moved into the center and began to unpack their tents. Stormy quickly yelled over the howling wind and pointed out just how bad it was going to get before morning.

“No ~ No, we all must sleep in one tent.”

“Do you really think it’s going to get that bad?” Rosie shouted back.

“Yes; and worse than that.” He advised.

Rosie and Stormy began to secure the tent to the large sturdy trees that surrounded the camp, while Christina held the horses as she watched them battling against the strong wind. After the battle was won, Stormy pointed for Christina to get into the tent, then took the smaller tents from their places and wrapped them around the horses, giving them some shelter from the freezing winds. Soon the trio were sitting in a small circle inside the tent wrapped in their sleeping bags. Rosie pulled out her pipe and gave Stormy a smile as he quickly followed suit. Christina laid down and pulled her sleeping bag tight around herself as she shook her head.

“Great, trapped with two druggies.”

        Rosie rebutted her comment with a giggle.

“Sweetheart; I am going to get so stoned tonight you will not know who or where you are.”

Christina rocked back and forth to create warmth within her sleeping bag as she replied.

“I don’t think so; I’m not smoking any.”

        Rosie responded, then sparked up the pipe.

“Babe, you don’t have to smoke it; just breathe it.”

In no time Christina was completely out-of-it as the enclosed area filled with smoke and the two Native Americans started chanting their favorite songs.

 

[REALISTIC DREAM]

Tonight’s dream had Christina out on a warm beach building big sandcastles with her mother. They could hear a radio playing off in the distance of Indian chanting songs. Christina informed her mother about their predicament.

“There is a very bad snowstorm coming tonight mom.”

“Yes, I know sweetheart; but you will be fine here where it’s warm.” Sue explained.

Christina stopped for a moment and gently took Sue by the hand.

“Mom, I miss you so much, and dad, and Sera.”

Sue pulled her baby girl into a caring embrace as she replied.

“Yes Dear; and we miss you just as much.”

“Where is dad? I want to see him.” Christina demanded.

“Well, he is busy with something very important.” Sue explained.

        Christina sarcastically contended.

“More important than me.”

“I’m sure it has something to do with you.” Sue explained.

“Like what?”

“I have already said too much; now, let’s just enjoy the warm sunny day together.” Sue insisted, then began to hum along with the radio.

“Yeah; Yeah; Yeah; “THE BIG PLAN.” Christina once again said sarcastically.

Sue looked up with pain written all over her face while scolding her daughter.

“C H R I S T I N A!”

        She quickly apologized while pulling Sue back into a tight embrace.

“I’m sorry; I’m sorry; I’m sorry.”

She gave Christina a kiss and a loving smile.

“It’s okay babe; now, it’s time for me to go.”

“Will you tell dad I love and miss him?”

        Sue made that vow as the dream faded.

“Yes, I promise I will do that. I love you.”

She woke up with her head in a slight spin while attempting to focus her eyes, then recalled the toking party she was forced to participate in last-night as she softly spoke.

“Are you guys still alive?”

        When there was no response, she sat up and whispered.

“Dammit; I hope you two didn’t O.D.”

Christina felt a bit of relief when Stormy chuckled, then Rosie responded.

“You can’t O.D. on marijuana.”

Christina got a pleasant smile on her face and a happy-go-lucky tone in her voice while crawling out of the tent.

“Yeah, I did enjoy last-night.”

Rosie quickly reached and grabbed hold of her leg.

“Wait; you had a dream didn’t you.”

Christina kicked loose from her grip and hurried out with a reply.

“Yes; yes I did.”

Rosie and Stormy quickly followed with the sun shining bright. The horses were clear of snow and ice as they stood wrapped like a three-layer burrito in their tent covering. Rosie quickly barked out orders, knowing just how close she was to home.

“Okay, no breakfast this morning; get the sleeping-bags and let’s get moving.”

Stormy turned and gave her an angry look with a disagreement.

“Wait a damned minute, we have to dig out my tent.”

Rosie countered his statement while unwrapping the horses.

“No, you don’t need the tent anymore; we will be home before dark.”

Stormy folded his arms across his chest and refused to move.

“You will be home; but I will need this tent in the future.”

“No, Stormy you won’t; you will be staying with me and my daughter; Christina had a dream.” Rosie informed him.

“Christina had a dream.” Stormy repeated point-blank.

“Yes, a dream; now, get the damned sleeping-bags.” Rosie insisted.

Stormy gave a smart-ass remark as he turned to retrieve the sleeping-bags.

“My dad warned me that women were crazy.”

The rest of the day was spent at a fast pace, and by late afternoon Rosie became excited as the aroma of a fireplace started filling the air. She put Snowflake into a fast run after topping a ridge overlooking the small cabin in the woods, Christina pulled Blackwall to a halt and signaled Stormy to do the same. Rosie’s daughter heard the sound of horse hoofs pounding the ground and looked out the window to see her mother coming home. Instantly, she ran out the door to meet Rosie in the front yard. Stormy sat upon the ridge and watched the two greet each other with a long-awaited embrace as he whispered.

“WOW; that’s her daughter?”

Christina responded while leaning forward in the saddle to put Blackwall in a slow walk.

“Yep.”

The reunited women kept one arm around each other as they watched Christina and Stormy dismount. Both Rosie and her daughter had wet faces from all the tears.

Rosie raised her hand and gave Stormy a signal as if calling a pet.

“Come here Stormy, I want you to meet Misty.”

Christina broke into a hard laugh as Stormy slowly moved toward the two women causing Rosie to turn and give her a strange look.

“What the hell is so funny?”

        Christina continued giggling with her reply.

“Rosie, Stormy, Misty; I can’t wait to hear your granddaughter’s name.”

Misty began to give the new brave a once over, as she answered Christina.

“Her name is Violet. What did you expect, Jane, or Paula. We are Indian.”

Misty suddenly stopped and considered what Christina had been saying, then turned and looked at her mother.

“Wait; how in the hell did she know that I have a daughter?”

        Rosie explained while introducing the two.

“Misty, this is Christina, and she is a true dreamer.”

Misty tilted her head to the side and stared at tall slender blonde for a moment.

“Yes; yes, I saw you, not too long ago; you were standing on the porch watching me and Violet play.”

Rosie walked over to Christina and put her arm around her shoulder.

“Yes; she has that gift also; but she refuses to try and use it.”

“Trust me Christina, I understand; I refuse to use mine also. I don’t want another spirit slipping into my body” Misty agreed.

She gave her mother a tight hug then gripped the new brave by the hand, then headed toward the cabin while glancing back over her shoulder to give her mother instructions.

“You can put the horses in the barn; this handsome Brave needs a bath.”

        Christina and Rosie watched the two walking away as Rosie whispered.

“Well, I guess we better take our time.”

Christina kept quiet as they slowly led the horses to the barn, and once they were unsaddled, Christina’s could not keep her curiosity from seeping out.

 “Rosie, is Misty going to have sex with Stormy? I mean they just met.”

        Rosie smiled with her response.

“You are a virgin aren’t you?”

Christina turned and looked at her as if that was the most stupid question that she had ever been asked.

“Uha; Yeah!”

“Well sweetheart; the day will come when you meet that special man, and then you will learn that sex is more addictive than any drug, and if you lose him you will crave it even more.” Rosie explained.

After giving the horses an abundance of hay and a good brushing, Cristina quietly announced a commitment as the two slowly started toward the cabin.

“I’m going to wait a long, long time before I do that.”

Rosie laughed and squeezed the tall skinny girl into her side as they walked up the steps onto the porch.

“That would be a smart thing to do babe.”

 

Growing up

Christina’s twenty-first birthday came and went while spending the winter in upstate New York; joyful she had another group of people she could call family. When spring sprung, Misty and Stormy informed everyone that Violet was going to have a sibling, and Christina hoped she would see them again as she said her goodbyes, and once again continued her quest to find her sister Sera.

 

[YEARS PASS BY]

Over the next nine years, she developed into an expert at tracking, hunting, and eluding the U.N. demons, along with avoiding groups of radicals. With meeting decent people becoming farther and farther apart, life seemed to get harder throughout the years.  She consistently made the full circle from Pennsylvania down to Texas and then back up to Washington, making sure to stop and visit each one of her new families every time and making new ones along the way. From time-to-time she would start getting discouraged in her quest, but Sue always came in a dream and reminded her about “THE BIG PLAN.” “You must keep searching for Sera” she would say. Christina began to argue the point about the situation. After fourteen years of none stop searching, she was growing tired of the chase and desperately wanted to stop, find a good man, and have her own daughter that she could love.

This year will be the last time she will make the trip between Texas and Seattle Washington. She will rediscover her faith and find the family she has always dreamed about and discover that sometimes God will go above and beyond your prayers as her part of ‘THE BIG PLAN’ comes together.

 

 

CHAPTER NINE

BIG RED DOG.

At thirty-years-old, Christina is a beauty, standing five-feet-eleven with long wavy blonde hair and deep blue eyes; one-hundred-forty-five lbs. of pure muscle. To survive nowadays with no law to help guide society, staying in great shape is a requisite.

She slowly rode the large black thoroughbred across the bridge that led out onto Surfside Texas, knowing there was no one waiting at the beach house. It's been five years since being here, and the tide, along with the storms, have cleansed the beach of all debris from burnt down houses that once scattered the landscape. There was still a bit of a chill in the night breeze coming off the gulf as she dismounted Blackwall and tied him to a rusty rail on the sagging deck, then slowly began the chore of unpacking and giving him his rubdown while whistling his favorite tune. His hair now has speckles of gray; but Christina was thankful he was healthy and in perfect shape. She picked up the door that had rotted off its hinges and tossed it onto the beach, then carried her supplies in through the hole as she disappointedly whispered.

“This is a gigantic bag of shit.”

She set her screen tent in the living-room with tear-filled eyes, then climbed into it and faded off to sleep for the night.

For the next several days, Christina would sit on the beach and fish, and cry: and fish, and cry. She was becoming a little depressed and felt that life had not been fair; crying herself to sleep every night, filled with loneliness.

The big shiny ball of orange slowly rose over the horizon, with a light crisp breeze coming off the gulf this morning. Christina stood out on the deck watching endless waves softly kissing the dry sand as the sun glistened across the water. After fourteen years of relentless searching, she had come to the conclusion that locating her sister Sera was never going to happen. She also knew there was nothing else worthwhile except to continue her quest. She has been here at the beach-house now for six days and staying in one place too long is a dangerous thing to do; so ,she decided it was time to head toward Washington.

“Sera’s not here this time either; I’ll leave tomorrow.” She whispered to herself.

Tears slid down her cheeks as her mind reminisced about all the times she and Sera would build sandcastles out on the beach when they were seven and eight years old.

“I miss you so much, Sera.” She softly whispered through tears.

The heat from the hot sun began to burn her bare skin, so she turned and walked inside through the hole where the door once stood. She slowly ambled through the living room looking at all the broken windowpanes and sagging floors, realizing exactly how bad the beach house had decayed over the last fourteen years.

“I won’t be coming back here.”

She wandered down the short hallway and stopped at the door that led into the room where her father spent a lot of his time.

“Dad’s study.” She thought.

Slowly, she wandered into the room as the morning sun shined through the only window that was still in one piece. She smiles at the CD player lying in the desk drawer knowing it was beyond working; then, gazing over at the bookshelf that covered the back wall from top to bottom and corner to corner behind her father’s solid oak desk, she froze in place when she spied a particular book.

“Dad’s favorite book.” She whispered out loud.

Raising up on her tippy toes, she retrieved the book from its place on the top shelf as her eyes filled with water. She stared at the hardback cover for a moment before gently rubbing her finger across the lifted white letters on the black background. “Holy Bible” is what she read. Christina heard a thud from where the book had been, and carefully moved the footstool into place, then stepped up to look.

“A bottle.”

Reaching in, she pulled the bottle from its little cubby-hole and quietly read the label out loud.

“BLACK VELVET. But dad didn’t drink.”

She gazed toward her father’s empty chair behind the desk as she embraced the book and the bottle, then shouted.

“DAD!”

After staring up at the ceiling with tears drifting down her cheeks for a moment, she returned to the living room and pulled her cut-off blue jean shorts and a bikini top from the saddle-bag. She stood glazing at the garments in her hand, then considered there being no one around for many a mile, she tossed them back onto the saddle-bag and decided to spend this one last day wearing nothing but her birthday suit. Christina remembered the beach umbrella that was tucked safely away in the hall closet and quickly went to retrieve it, then placed the umbrella out onto the deck and opened it up; she spread her beach towel out and took a seat with both the book and the bottle. Opening them both, she listened to the continuous waves softly kissing the sand as she spent the rest of the day reading, drinking, and sunning. One particular passage in the book caused Christina to pause when she noticed it.

“Thou shall not kill: Well God, times have changed.” She loudly pointed out.

Turning the bottle up to her lips, she contemplated the passage.

She spent the day darkening her already tan skin while reading her father’s favorite book, then gazing out across the water and contemplating on the words. The sun slowly disappeared below the horizon as darkness, with its large swarms of mosquitoes, silently consumed the beach. Christina realized she was unable to stand and walk after drinking half a bottle of Black Velvet and slowly crawled inside. Collapsing into her screen tent, she quietly pleaded a prayer as she faded out.

“Lord, please help me.”

The large consumption of alcohol helped her sleep sounder than she had in a very long time.

 

[FAVORITE DREAM]

Christina’s favorite dream came tonight as she slipped into a deep sleep. It’s the one with the small child; her pretty daughter that she never had. The girl looked to be around seven or eight years old with long straight coal black hair and big sparkling brown eyes. She seemed to always be happy as she played in the front yard. Christina sat on a porch-swing on a wrap-around porch of a big farmhouse and watched the tiny girl play.

 

Sometimes she wondered about the small girl’s appearance, for she herself has long blonde hair and blue eyes; but Christina still cherished the dream.

This morning wasn’t very crisp; in fact, it was starting out to be a down-right warm morning. She laid in her screen tent trying to focus her Black Velvet bloodshot eyes. Once her eyes began to focus, she noticed a red blur.

“There is something red in the corner.” She thought out loud.

While doing her best at attempting to force her eyes to focus, Christina felt a cold chill run down her spine as she loudly whispered.

“S H I T!”

There it was, a huge ball or red hair lying in the corner, with a black nose, two large brown eyes staring back at her from across the room. Her mind raced as she laid as still as she possibly could.

“Do not move.” She told herself.

It was a big red dog; a very big red dog, looking to weigh at least one-hundred lbs. with the look of a survivor. Thinking she was in for the fight of her life, her eyes darted around the room.

“I need a weapon.”

Turning her focus back toward the large K9, he cautiously stood and stretched. Reaching out with his front paws as far as they would go, he then shook back into a stance; never taking his eyes off Christina. This giant of a dog had bulging muscles that seemed to roll across his firm body when he slowly started across the room. With big brown eyes locked on target, he gradually approached the screen tent. He cautiously laid down and slipped his nose under the edge of the screen, and just laid there. With her eyes transfixed on his little wet shiny black nose, she softly made her plea, which caused his long-haired red tail to begin sweeping the floor.

“Please, don’t bite me.”

When he gazed up through sad brown eyes and sniffed the air, Christina slowly sat up crossing her legs Indian style, then stared into his eyes as he lay still with just his tail swinging back and forth. She began to move her hand in slow motion toward the large dog, and when she reached his little black shiny nose and gently rubbed it with her fingers, he began licking her hand with a small whimper. After a few minutes, Christina set back up straight with a name.

“Big Red.”

Cautiously raising up, keeping her eyes locked on Big Red, she made an inquiry.

“Can I get up now?”

The large animal quickly jumped to his feet and gave a loud bark, then turned and pranced out onto the deck with his beautiful long red hair flowing across his muscled body while clicking his toe-nails across the hardwood floor as if doing it on purpose.

“BLACKWALL!” Christina gasped.

Concerned about her horse, she instantly ducked out from under her screen tent and ran over to the living room table and retrieved the hunting knife from the inside of the saddle bag. Warily, she walked over to the hole in the wall that led out onto the deck and slowly peeked around the edge of the door frame where the door once stood. The huge thoroughbred was still tied to the corner of the deck, so Christina stepped outside where Big Red was lying on a beach towel beside half a bottle of Black Velvet and her father’s favorite book. She stood curiously gazing toward Big Red for a moment, then realized she was in the buff, standing out on the deck with a knife in her hand. He stared out across the bay not paying any attention to the tall blonde as she notified him of her next move, then turned and headed back into the house.

“I’m going to go get dressed.”

Filled with despair, Christina slowly packed her things onto the back of Blackwall while experiencing a variety of sad emotions. She knew they would never be coming back here again as she emptied one of her waterproof saddlebags, then placed her Father's favorite book, along with the half-bottle of Black Velvet into the bag. She carefully attached the bag onto the saddle and mounted the large black beast as she thought out-loud.

“Brazos river; water, fishing, and hunting, a girl has to eat.”

She noticed the big dog had decided to join in on the last trip they would be taking from Texas to Washington. He constantly ran way out in front as if assuring them a safe passage, stopping time from time, look back with his ears straight up and wait for Christina to catch up; then up the trail he would run again, staying keen on his surroundings.

“This dog has been well trained.” Christina thought.

At dusk he would always scout around the area as Christina set camp, making wide circles, and sniffing everything while marking his territory.

A few weeks into their trek, as the day faded into darkness, Christina set up her screen tent and built a fire-pit, then gathered firewood with a smile while watching Big Red making his round. The two had grown secure with one another, and the large dog always slept halfway between Christina and Blackwall as if he was their protector, and she was sleeping better knowing this large dog was continuously on guard.

Today began sunny and warm with a slight cool breeze from the north, helping to dry the sweat. Christina slowly rode along enjoying the day while softly whistling a soothing tune that Blackwall especially liked, causing his ears to stand, and putting a bit more style in his step. She realized Big Red had not been seen in quiet-a-while, so she came to a stop and stood way up high in the stirrup and looked up the trail. She gave a loud whistle, but there was no Big Red. She whistled again; but still, no Big Red.

“This doesn’t feel right.”

Christina dismounted and gave one long loud whistle, suddenly a big red ball of hair came over the hill at a hard run. He came to a stop right in front of her, completely out of breath as if he had been running for a long distance. She gave him a stern look as she scolded him.

“Where you been?”

Big Red stared at her and let out a large puff of air from deep down inside with his tail and ears straight up, then turned his attention back up the trail. Christina quickly looked up the trail with her question.

“What, is there trouble?”

She immediately retrieved her binoculars from the saddle and headed for a tall tree. While looking through the binoculars, she yelled down to Big Red as if he understood English.

“U. N. DEMON’S!”

Christina had learned to avoid these men at all costs, and quickly climbed down the tree as she whispered to Blackwall with a trembling voice.

“These men have never read ‘thou shalt not kill.’ We gotta go, my friend.”

She mounted the huge thoroughbred and hurried back down the trail with Big Red taking the lead. With Christina following behind for a short distance, Big Red took a right turn into thick tall bushes. She yelled out while watching the thick bushes swallow him up.

“Where in the hell are you going?”

He gave a loud deep bark as if to say, follow me.

“And I thought you were a smart dog.” She yelled back.

She stood high up in the stirrups trying to see Big Red through the thick bushes as he gave another loud deep bark and kept going.

“Okay-okay-,I’m  coming.” She conceded.

Cautiously turning Blackwall, she crashed through the thick bushes, quickly pulling her feet upon to the saddle with a complaint.

“Mosquitoes, Spiders, and Snakes; I do not like this situation Big Red.”

For the next two hours she, Big Red, and BLACKWALL plowed their way through the thick brush and low tree limbs. Christina was thankful when the landscape cleared as Big Red led them to a small river where she decided this was a good place to stop for the night.

“Setting up camp right here.”

She unsaddled her best friend and led him toward the river for a well-deserved bath with Big Red close behind.

Christina retracted the comment she had made previously as they played in the cool water.

“Big Red, you are a smart dog.”

The camp was set with fish for dinner, with enough daylight left to read a little from her father’s book. Christina pulled the prophecies from the leather bag, along with half a bottle of Black Velvet. She leaned back against the saddle and opened the bottle and the book as Big Red came and sat in front of her. He stared with his sad eyes and gave a small whiny bark, bringing her attention to him as she took a drink from the bottle.

“What!.”

He gave another whining bark and continued staring at her, causing her to speculate.

“What, you want me to read to you; out loud? I can’t believe I’m doing this.”

He slowly laid his head down on top of her feet with his ears straight up.

She continued to read as requested for several minutes, then looked up. She took another drink from the bottle then held it out in the direction of Big Red with a sarcastic question.

“You want some of this also?”

He gave a loud sneeze and shook his head as he looked away.

“Okay smartass.” She remarked.

Big Red laid his head back down on her feet and listened as she continued reading until the sun went down.

Christina laid in her screen tent staring up at the stars and meditated upon what she had read, trying to understand what it was that made her father love this book so much. She recalled one particular story and made an analysis while fading off to sleep.

“That makes no sense; how can the woman get herself pregnant without having sex? Can’t happen!”

[FAVORITE DREAM RETURNS]

Christina sat on the front porch watching her beautiful daughter, with long black hair and big brown eyes, chasing a big green beach ball across the yard. The small girl tossed the ball in her direction as she made a request.

“Mom, come play with me.”

        Christina rose from her seat as she responded.

“Okay Sweetheart.”

The two played and laughed together until the dream faded away.

As the sun was rising above the horizon, she laid still relishing the memory of the dream for a few minutes. The morning brought another hot sunny day as Christina began breaking camp as Big Red disappeared into the woods; going to look for breakfast she figured. She always took care when rolling up her screen tent, the only protection she had against mosquitoes and night crawling bugs.

Camp was packed upon the back of Blackwall when Big Red came running up to her. He looked up and gave one of his deep-down puffs of air, then turned and looked north with his ears and tail standing straight up. She immediately grabbed her binoculars from the saddle and climbed a tree, her heart skipped a beat when she saw smoke rising through the treetops. Quickly focusing her binoculars, she counted the U.N. Demon’s.

“One… two..three…four… five; Dammit all to hell.” She whispered.

Instantly climbing down the tree trembling with fear, she put her foot in the stirrup and lifted herself onto the back of Blackwall while looking down at Big Red, then shouted out instructions.

“Go west young man…. Go west.”

Blackwall lunged into a hard run when she leaned forward in the saddle, and Big Red was keeping pace with the escape. They kept at a hard run until Christina felt the large black beast breathing heavily, then slowed him to a fast walk. By midday, the sky had become overcast with a mist of rain starting to fall, along with a slight cool breeze coming from the north-west. She leaned forward, putting Blackwall into a gallop as she spoke to her tribe.

“We need to put as much distance between them and us as possible.”

After several days of extreme riding with little sleep, Christina was confident that the Demons were not in pursuit. Most of these men were heading south in order to escape the cold weather that would soon entrap the north, they would not be inclined to track anyone headed north. She noticed there were fewer trees and more open spaces with a few windmills starting to appear across the landscapes. People built these to pump water when the electromagnetic pulse zapped out all electricity, they were built extremely tough, and most were still working to this day. When the day came to a close, she found one that was working and gratefully made an announcement.

“We have reached the plains of North Texas; let’s set up camp.”

She dismounted and unsaddled Blackwall, then gave him his rub down while whistling his favorite tune.

The night air was now perfect for sleeping, not too hot; and not too cold. Christina was thankful the sky had cleared to where she could count the stars as she lay in her screen tent drifting off to sleep.

 

{Tonight’s dream is a nightmare}

She was in a flat desert plain with many U.N. Demons in fast pursuit, and there was no place to hide. No matter which way she turned, there was more Demons coming straight toward her. Now, she was riding around in circles, trying to stay out ahead of the aggressors. She was shaking with terror as Blackwall’s breathing became way too labored, knowing if she did not stop soon he would not last much longer. The Demons were closing in, and Christina began to cry hard as tears streamed down her face, and Blackwall was starting to lose momentum.

Christina sat straight up out her sleep with an adrenaline rush, and quickly looked around. Burying her face into her hands, she regained control of her trembling and breathing as she repeated herself over and over.

“It was only a dream…It was only a dream.”

Although she slept on top of the sleeping bag in the buff, and the morning air was cool, she was still soaked with sweat. Once camp was packed, Christina went over to the windmill and stood under the waterspout, taking a long relaxing shower to wash away the anxiety.

The sun began peeking up above the horizon as the tall well-developed thirty-year-old blonde climbed the windmill with binoculars in hand. knowing the Demons were on their southern migration, she would find a high spot and scout ahead several times throughout the day. She could see forever in this flat part of the country and was relieved there was nothing to see of any concern. She decided to make it an easy day, taking the time to hunt small varmints that came her way, and every couple of hours stopping to rinse off underneath a windmill. The last time she made this trip was west through the desert, and she declared not to make that mistake again. This time she planned to go northwest toward Reno Nevada. She arrived at the next working windmill as dusk crept across the landscape and sat camp and cooked the two rabbits she managed to spear earlier in the day. With camp set and the dishes back in their place, she stood beneath the waterspout, under a full moon, and took an extended deserving shower. Tonight was another perfect one; not too hot; not too cold. She and Big Red sat by the fire for a time, conversing, as if they understood each other. When the flames died to a mere bed of red coals, Christina climbed into her screen tent and faded off into a deep sleep, with Big Red in his place between her and her best friend.

[TWILIGHT]

Twilight, the Sun just minutes below the horizon when Christina was woken by the constant barking. Big Red was standing on the south side of the water tower barking in the direction they had come the day before. She instantly sat up and looked to see what was going on, aggravated by the disturbance of a peaceful sleep.

“This better be damned important.” She demanded.

She could see the mosquitoes flying around outside were the size of horse flies, and reluctantly climbed out from the tent, retrieving her binoculars from the saddle, she climbed up the windmill. She gasped as she counted the U.N. Demon’s heading her way at a fast pace.

“One,-two,-three-,four,-five six,; six U.N. DEMON’S.”

“S H I T…S H I T…S H I T.” Christina kept saying as she quickly climbed down as fast as she could.

“10 miles… 10 miles… 10 miles.” She repeated over and over.

She packed camp as fast as she possibly could, wading up her screen tent into a ball and just stuffing it into the saddle bag.

“No time, got to move; no time, got to move.” she kept repeating.

Fear was prevalent in her voice when she mounted Blackwall, she quickly leaned forward in the saddle, causing him to lung into a fast run.

“G O… G O… G O.” She demanded.

Her survival mode kicked in as she looked back to see Big Red at a hard run south in the direction of the Demon’s.

“Big Red! ~~ No Big Red!” Christina shouted to no avail.

He may be getting older, but the black beast could still outrun the wind, and he was giving it everything he had. Christina knew she could stay ahead of them, even gain some ground; but she also knew they would never give up until they lost her trail; After all, they have nothing better to do but enjoy the chase. Once Blackwall slowed to a walk, she notified him of their situation.

“We will have to lose them.”

After two days of hard riding, Christina sat on the back of the black thoroughbred looking through binoculars back in the direction of the horizon from which she came, desperately searching for a red spot.

These new generations of U.N. Demons are not very experienced at tracking, unless there was an elder among them, ones that were in the war. There’s not too many elder’s left, but they were good at tracking. Christina learned this the hard way a couple years ago, it took her a month to lose an elder, that was up in Tennessee and down through Louisiana, but this is flat land with no place to hide. She slipped the looking-glass back in its place while explaining her plane.

“If we go west there are canyons in New Mexico; it’s a three-week ride; but, I know we will lose them there.”

She turned Blackwall toward the west, and for the next three weeks, she pushed hard; a fast trot for five minutes; walk for five minutes, she was up before daybreak and rode until after dark. Every three hours or so, stopping at a windmill for a fifteen-minute water break and rest. Every night when she set up camp, tears would begin to stream down her face as her mind speculated on the fate of Big Red. she knew he had gone back in order to slow down the Demons, in order to give her a head start on her escape.

After weeks of hard restless riding, she smiled when they entered the canyon landscape of New Mexico; relieved she won this round. Christina set for a few minutes scouting the horizon for a red spot; but there was no Big Red, then moved on with directions.

“Let’s turn north and lose these bastards.”

Every evening when she began to set up camp, she would constantly look around and imagine the huge red ball of hair sniffing every tree and bush within his circle around the camp, and the way he always marked his territory. She began to tremble, feeling the emptiness deep down in her gut, and every time she attempted to read from dad’s favorite book her eyes would fill with water causing the words to blur together. Her psyche would bring forth a picture of Big Red laying with his head on her feet and his ears perked up, listening while she read out loud.

Every morning, looking through her watery eyes, she would search the horizon for a red spot, then turn Blackwall and head through the canons. Several streams were now filled with the rainwater from all the fall rains and maneuvering through them was becoming extremely dangerous; but, not nearly as dangerous as what was behind her.

Fall was definitely in the air this morning as the sun peeked up above the horizon, and Christina could feel the chill in the air as she packed up camp. She climbed a tall tree with her binoculars and looked back to the south, still no Big Red. She noticed there were dark clouds forming to the north-west. She put her foot into the stirrup and mounted Blackwall, as she once again informed her best friend about the situation.

“Bad storm is coming; we need to find shelter, my friend.”

CHAPTER TEN

FARMHOUSE

Christina rode hard the rest of the day through the canyons until they became large rolling valleys. She sat up on top of a ridge overlooking a huge valley, enjoying the serene mountainous scenery; then scouted through her binoculars and examined a farmhouse across the valley. She spied an older looking man behind the barn feeding chickens.

“S H I T…S H I T…S H I T.” She mumbled.

Christina took a moment to ponder what she was seeing, then gave Blackwall a strange sideways look.

“What in the hell; it looks like he is feeding the chickens.”

Loud thunder rumbled across the dark sky as she turned her attention back to watching the old man. After a few more minutes, she mounted up and headed in the direction of the farmhouse where the old man was feeding chickens.

“U.N. Demons don’t tend to animals; we need shelter; Now!”

She knew that U.N. Demon’s never stay in one place, and they definitely did not tend to chickens; They destroy everything and then move on. When she was close enough for the old man to spy her approach, he quickly moved to the front porch.

“OH…MY….GOD;…He has a gun.” Christina whispered.

She had not seen a gun in many a year, most ammunition had become impossible to find which made guns obsolete. Christina saw the lightning strike the ground on top of the mountain and felt the strong wind blowing through the valley. She brought Blackwall to a halt with the old man pointing his gun straight at her with a warning.

“That’s close enough; I have bullets.”

With her hands up in surrender, Christina gave him her most feminine voice and the prettiest smile she could muster.

“I’m not looking for trouble sir, just a place that I can take shelter from the storm; and then I’ll be gone tomorrow morning.”

Suddenly the man turned his gun to the left of Christina and shouted.

“A wild U.N. beast!”

Christina quickly turned to see a big red ball of hair slowly moving in the distance, limping toward them from the direction she had just come.

“NO! ~ NO!- BIG RED – BIG RED!” She screamed out.

She quickly turned and put herself between the man and Big Red, then bolted toward her friend. Big Red immediately collapsed when he saw her coming to his rescue. She dismounted before Blackwall came to a complete stop, then quickly sat down on the ground, and pulled him into her lap. Tears of happiness streamed down her face as she held him in a tight embrace, burying her face deep into his hair. He had a few fresh scars where a sharp knife had made contact with his skin but no deep cuts, just superficial battle scars. He was completely exhausted from tracking the one he had chosen to protect as fast as he could, and she gently picked him up and placed him across the saddle, then mounted the large thoroughbred. Christina turned and started back toward the man that was waiting on the porch in disbelief. Suddenly, there was a humongous lightning strike atop of a tall tree not far across the valley as she brought Blackwall to a stop in front of the man waiting on the porch. She turned her head when the wind gusted through the valley blowing dust into her face.

With a look of disbelief, the man looked up at this tall blonde which he considered to be a bit crazy and pointed at the barn.

“The dog sleeps in the barn.”

“That will be fine; I will sleep there as well; thank you.” Christina sharply replied.

She turned toward the barn as her ears caught the sound of a woman’s voice, causing her to instantly turn back toward the porch to see a sturdy woman in her late sixties stepping out onto the porch while wiping her hands on an apron.

“You come back to the house and eat dinner.”

Not wanting to be bothersome to the elderly couple, Christina replied with a smile.

 “I don’t want to be any trouble.”

“I won’t hear of it; now, you go put the animals up, then bring your butt back to the house.” The elderly woman insisted.

 She waved the back of her hand toward her as if to say, hurry up, as Christina conceded.

“Yes ma’am.”

 She quickly turned and started for the barn as a light drizzle began coming down. She was impressed at the excellent condition the barn was in as she opened the door and led Blackwall in. She stood for a moment and looked around, then laid Big Red down on a clump of hay. She noticed the building had a good roof with sturdy walls, and plenty of feed and hay. The stall she put Blackwall in was in excellent condition, and Big Red was sound asleep before she had unsaddled and given him some hay. While giving Blackwall his rubdown, she quietly expressed her thoughts.

“This is a genuine farmer, and somehow he has managed to survive; I would be willing to bet his guns have something to do with that.”

The storm had arrived with its bright blinding flashing light show and loud clashes of thunder. A hard rain was now falling as Christina stepped upon the front porch and knocked on the door. The elderly woman quickly pulled her through the door, wrapping a large dry warm towel around her.

“Hurry up, get in here before you catch your death of cold.”

“Thank you. my name is Christina.” She responded.

The woman took her hand and led her toward the kitchen table while making introductions.

“My name is Mary, and grouch is Joe.”

It had been a long time since Christina attended a homemade dinner with a real table, inside a real house, with decent people, and she was definitely hungry. When the elderly couple acquired one of her hands each, then the man delivered the blessing, her eyes began burning as she tried holding back the tears. She’d been a teenager the last time she had seen or heard anyone praying, which flooded her memory with images of her father and mother. Christina ate in silence and let her mind take a stroll down memory lane. After dinner, Joe went and sat on the porch as the two women cleaned the kitchen. Mary paused for a moment before speaking.

“Can I ask you about your dog?”

“Yes; I was wondering what Joe meant by U.N. beast.” Christina replied.

Mary turned to look at her as she explained.

“Those dogs were imported by the U.N. about ten years ago; they are highly intelligent and very fast, also practically impossible to kill; most were killed for food by their masters, and the rest have become wild; if this dog has accepted you as his master, then you are a very lucky woman.”

        Christina instantly countered her description concerning the relationship between herself and Big Red.

“I woke up one morning quite a while back and he was just there; he has saved my butt so many times since, and I am not his master; I am his friend; I thought I lost him about a month ago, I am…. overwhelmed’…., to have him back.”

When they heard Joe’s voice, they turned to see him standing at the kitchen door.

“Well; whatever you wish to call him, you are a lucky woman to have such a dog.”

With the kitchen clean and everything put back in its place, Christina and Mary sat at the table sipping on tea when  Christina’s curiously got the best of her, and she had to ask.

“Mary, how do you have electricity?”

Mary leaned back in her seat and gave a loud giggle.

“My man is amazing; he took the alternator off the tractor and put it on the windmill, then hooked it up to a row of batteries.”

After chatting a few more minutes, Christina gave her thanks, and headed out through the door into the pouring rain, with this huge bright yellow raincoat Joe insisted she put over her head. She was thankful that inside the barn it was calm and dry.

 

{TIME TO SLEEP}

Tonight Christina’s dream is a nightmare. It started out with her sitting on Blackwall outside of a small town and watching in horror as the group of U.N. Demons terrorized the people. They were burning and destroying everything in sight and killing everyone they could find. One of them spotted Christina and started to give chase, she turned and ran as fast as she could get Blackwall to run. The Demon began to catch up as he shouted at her, but all she could hear coming from his mouth was the sound of a rooster crowing.

 

Christina woke up to a rooster crowing out on the side of the barn, and quickly sat up and buried her face into her hands with a whisper.

“I hate those damned Demon’s.”

After getting her jagged breathing under control, she took a peek outside the barn door to see Mary sitting in her favorite rocking chair on the porch.

“I guess we are not getting away that easy.” She informed Big Red.

She placed the bright yellow raincoat over her shoulder, then she and Big Red started toward the house. Mary gave a big smile, amazed at the love this dog showed for tall blonde, and it was prevalent in his actions by staying close to her side.

“Well; good morning pretty lady, and very good morning to you big red dog.” Mary greeted.

Christina laid the bright yellow coat on one of the rocking chairs and gave her a kind greeting.

“Good morning, Mary; I brought back the coat, and thank you for everything; I’ll be on my way now.”

        The elderly woman held up her bible in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other.

“Nooo…no. no. no; you can’t be going anywhere; you know today is the Sabbath.”

Once again Mary managed to trigger memories of her mother and father, she hadn’t heard the word, “Sabbath” for what seemed like an eternity. Christina countered while holding her hand's palms up and looked to the sky.

“But it’s a perfect day for riding.”

        Mary stood and headed for the door as she replied.

“No matter; today is for praying, singing, and talking to God; now, would you like a hot cup of coffee?”

She opened the screen, then turned and waited for an answer about the coffee.

“Yes; I would love some coffee; I guess Big Red could use a little rest anyway.” Christina gave in.

She sat down in one of the rocking chairs, rubbing Big Red on the head as he lay down next to her. Mary went into the house and returned with two cups of coffee.

“Do you have a Bible?” She asked Christina.

“Yes ma’am, it was my dad's; but I find it just a little confusing.” Christina admitted.

She accepted the coffee, then Mary took her seat while responding.

“Well; you have to read it over and over, then you will begin to understand.”

Without thinking, Christina just blurted out what was on her mind.

“Maybe that is why dad read it so much; so, tell me how a woman, who has never had sex, can still have a baby.”

Christina turned, startled at the words coming from behind he, she had heard those exact same words so many times when she was a child.

“Anything is possible with the power of God.” Joe said in a quiet soft voice.

He stepped out the door onto the porch with Christina looking up at him with hope-filled eyes.

“Can this power help me find my sister?” She quickly countered.

Joe slowly walked across the porch and took a seat in his favorite rocking chair, then began to rock while giving a gentle smile with his answer.

“If you ask the right question, God will give you what you need.”

Mary reached and lovingly took one of Christina’s hands with a request.

“We will pray with you; tell me about your sister”

Christina’s eyes filled with emotion as memories of Sera flashed through her mind.

 “She was my best friend, my hold world; when she turned eighteen, I was fourteen; that’s when the U.S. Police took her away and sent her to Seattle Washington to help control the unrest in the area.”

Mary’s eyes filled with water while listening to her story.

“Did you ever hear from her?” She asked.

“Yes, four times; then the electricity went out and the U.N. Demons began rounding up all the Christians; so, my parents and I had to run.” She explained.

        Joe stopped rocking for a moment as he asked his question.

“So, your family is Christian?”

Christina wiped the tears from her face with her hand.

“Yes, my dad was a preacher; but my parents were killed when I was sixteen, and I have been searching for Sera ever since.”

Seeing the conversation was making Christina sad, Mary decided it was time for something upbeat.

“Let’s sing some happy songs.”

The rest of the day was spent singing, praying, eating, and reading. Christina hung onto every word Mary and Joe had to offer about this book that her father loved so much and concluded that prayer was where all the power came from; but, decided to read more just to be sure.

At bedtime, she was exhausted more than she could ever remember being, along with a stomach that was too stuffed to get comfortable; but she finally faded off to sleep.

 

[DREAMSTIME]

Christina’s favorite dream came tonight. As she sat on the front porch swing, her beautiful little daughter played ball out in the front yard. She joyfully watched her chase the big beach ball while laughing and playing.

{Christina always cherished the dream}

It was still dark out when she was awakened by the crowing of roosters, it was still dark out, but it was time to go.

Christina, Blackwall, and Big Red,

Headed toward Washington.

 

 

CHAPTER ELEVEN

RENO NEVADA

        Christina held her hand over her nose as she slowly rode into Reno Nevada.

“What the hell happened here?” She asked Big Red.

She always talked to Big Red as if he understood her every word. The dream she had back at the farmhouse flashed through her mind.

“I have seen this before.” She softly whispered.

Everything was burnt or flattened, not one thing was left standing. The stench that filled the air burned her eyes. Christina felt her skin crawl with cold goosebumps, then leaned forward and shouted.

“Let’s get the hell out of here.”

Blackwall lunged into an extremely fast run, as if the gates of hell had just opened up behind him. Big Red ran as fast as he could to keep up, and after ten minutes she slowed them to a fast walk. Half a day later the stench began to fade from the air, and she could feel her best friend was breathing way too hard. She finally found a windmill that was in working condition and unsaddled Blackwall, then gave him a well-deserved brush-down.

She grabbed her binoculars and climbed up the latter attached to the side of the water tower, and the landscape was not what Christina envisioned. This landscape was barren, rocks and dry weeds covered the ground as she scanned in all directions. It seemed she could see forever, but there was nothing to be concerned about. She looked back toward the direction they had come from and caught a glimpse of a white dot; maybe not; it’s gone now. She set camp and began the chore of cleaning and cooking the ground squirrels she’d gathered throughout the day. Ground squirrels are not very tasty, but they were plentiful in this part of the country. After dinner was finished, she had happy teardrops rolling down her cheeks as she sat with Big Red’s head laying across her feet with his ears perked up as she read her father’s book out loud through watery eyes. Christina went to bed and faded off to sleep, perfectly content with her situation.

She woke this morning with no Big Red in sight, worried he was on another one of his dangerous missions as she packed camp. After camp was all packed, she saw him slip back into camp.

“Yeah right, now you show up; let’s head north.”

Keeping a steady pace northwest, the next two weeks were uneventful. Every-so-often she would climb up a windmill to have a look around to make sure there were no migrating U.N. Demon’s.

This evening while scanning through her looking-glass, she spied that white dot again. She quickly focused the binoculars and saw a small Palomino vanish right before her eyes.

“What the hell, a Palomino; okay, I am not a skitzo, someone is following us.”

She watched for a long time and determined this person was small, and an expert at the art of camouflage.

“Maybe it’s one of those Chinese people, they are supposed to be some kind of ninjas with disappearing ability.”

She descended from the tower and stood beside her best friend and Big Red, considering the situation. She decided they would camp here for the night, because whoever it was did not seem threating.

This morning the sky was overcast with a light breeze coming from the northwest, making the morning feel even cooler than it really was. After Christina packed camp upon the back of Blackwall, she climbed the tower to scout the area. The Palomino with the little person was nowhere in sight, and she nervously giggled as she spoke.

“Damn you are good. We are going to ride a little fast today to see if the palomino can keep up.”

Christina leaned slightly forward in the saddle, putting the black horse into a fast trot. She spent the rest of the day moving quickly as if she was in a hurry, but nothing life-threatening.

Midday, she stopped for a lunch break and took her binoculars up a tall tree. She began to scan back down the trail.

“Where—are—you?” She asked precisely.

Suddenly, she proudly spied the Palomino behind a group of large bushes.

“There…you…are.”

The horse and its rider seemed to vanish once again, right before her eyes, as she wondered out loud.

“Who… in the hell… are you?”

The trees were more prevalent in this part of the country. Christina was entering a lush forest landscape, and she was thankful for that. As daylight slipped away she came up to a welcoming stream of water where she decided to camp for the night. She climbed a tall tree with binoculars in hand and waited to see her stalker. Just as the stalker got into sight, the person turned toward the stream and disappeared.

“There you are. I see you’re good at camouflage and good at tracking; but who the hell are you and just what is it that you want.”

She carefully climbed down the tree and began the chore of unsaddling Blackwall and giving him his rub down. After camp was set and the campfire was sparked, she retrieved the fishing line and hooks from the saddle and headed for the river. Big Red looked forward to this particular event, Christina would always sing while fishing. After dinner everyone settled into their sleeping area.

 

{D R E A M -T I M E}

[ NIGHTMARE]

Christina stood at the bottom of a long hill looking up, she saw her sister Sera standing at the top waving with a big smile. She started walking up the hill with a big smile on her face, happy to see her sister.

“There you are. I have been looking for you.”

When she started climbing up the slope, a little girl’s voice screamed out.

“Over here - Over here! We must hide; NOW!!”

With fear in her voice, she was waving her arms up into the air while standing at the entrance of a large cave. Christina felt fear cascading through her body as she watched her dream daughter point toward the cave.

She sat straight up out of the traumatic experience.

“It’s just a dream. ---- It’s just a dream.” She declared to herself.

She concentrated on controlling her breathing and trembling as the vision haunted her psyche while packing camp. Christina made today’s ride an easy one, slowly ambling along, not too concerned about her stalker so much as she softly sang some tunes. She was conflicted about dad’s book and how Mary and Joe had said if you ask the right question he will answer you.

“Okay God, here’s the deal. I’m asking to find Sera.”

She wasn’t sure she had done it right, but there it was, she had put it out there. Christina meditated on a few passages as she recited them out loud.

“[Ask and you shall receive,] -  [He that lacks knowledge let him ask and the father will give it freely.”]

Suddenly she sat up high in the saddle and shouted, as if discovering all the secrets to the universe.

“THAT’S IT!! All I got to do is ask God to give me knowledge of what the book is saying.”

Big Red approached, rushing from up the trail. He stopped in front of Christina with one of his famous deep down air puffs as he looked up at her.

“You have got… to be shitting me; more U. N. Demon’s; okay you pick the direction.”

Big red gave a loud bark and headed back down the trail like he understood what she had said. She turned in the saddle with a reminder, while looking at his backside.

“There is someone that way too.”

He gave a loud bark and kept his sturdy trot back down the trail, so Christina turned Blackwall and followed.

“I guess we are going to meet the Chinaman today.” She whispered.

A little way down the trail Big Red made a right turn into the stream and swam over to the other side, and Christina followed as she bolstered to her protector.

“Have I ever told you that you are the best damn dog that I have ever met?”

Big Red stayed in the lead throughout the day. As the evening crept closer he brought them back to the river a little bit further to the north of the Demons. Christina set camp, cooked dinner, then waited until dark, then climbed a tree to take herself a look down the river to see if her stalker had kept up. She could see the reflection of a small fire glistening off the water a couple of miles back.

“Son-of-a-bitch; who in the hell are you?”

Her sleep was restless tonight, but she finally faded off to sleep.

This morning when Christina woke up she did not see Big Red, and even though there was no one around to give an answer, she yelled out.

“Where in the hell is Big Red?”

She packed the camp, then Big Red slithered up beside her. She scolded him with a disappointed look.

“You’re not much of a watchdog; where have you been?”

Big Red gave a small bark, then went and laid down in the shade to wait.

Their journey began today with sunshine and a slight breeze, Christina’s mind kept wandering back to her stalker. He was always just far enough away that she could never get a decent look at him. Her mind slipped into gear on devising herself a plan.

“I need a plan.”

The plan that she concocted consisted of a trick she learned way back when she was a young girl. She would grab onto a low-lying tree limb and shimmy down the tree and hide. Then lay and wait for her stalker to pass by. She knew Blackwall was well trained at this game and he would keep going until out of sight, then hide and wait for her all-clear whistle. She had figured the stalker would most likely keep his eyes fixated on Blackwall’s tracks. Christina spotted a low limb hanging across the trail and implemented the plan.

“Sounds good on paper; so, here we go.”

The vines growing up the trunk were a bit rougher on the skin than she cared for; but soon, Blackwall was out of sight, and she was on the ground. Finding a group of thick bushes, she ducked in behind them to wait. While positioning herself so to have a good view of the trail, Big Red came and imposed himself into her space, then laid down and went to sleep.

“I see how you are.”

After about an hour into her stakeout, Christina heard the sound of the Palomino and the stalker coming up the trail. She sat up with intensity in her bones, then it dawned on her; she had not planned for the actual catching of the stalker. When the pursuer passed under the limb she used, instantly the small horse turned in retreat as if Satan himself had reached up from beneath the ground and tried grabbing them. The Palomino’s withdrawal was one big dramatic experience, the small pony was giving it everything it had to satisfy its owner.

Christina sat entranced in complete shock with the look of terror on the stalkers face etched into her mind forever. She glared over at the big sleeping dog with suspicion, then reached and angrily slapped him on the butt hard. Unsuspecting the punishment Christina imposed upon him; Big Red jumped straight up with a loud squawk.

“YOU KNEW!!!--- YOU KNEW!!!” She accused.

Slowly walking out onto the trail with Big Red cautiously following, she stared down the trail in the direction the Palomino had made its escape.

“That is where you have been going when I wake up early and you are not there; that is where you have been going.” She scolded Big Red.

Christina whistled all clear to Blackwall while continuing to stare down the trail. She stood between her best friend and Big Red, contemplating this unexpected, disturbing, and concerning situation. She looked down at Big Red with watery eyes as she softly spoke.

“It’s a child, ---- it’s just a damn child.”

Big Red stood looking up at her in complete confusion.

“What are we going to do, Big Red? It’s just a small child.” She asked him.

He had never seen Christina act this way before as tears began to seep from her eyes, then she gave a directive with authority.

 “I know what we are going to do; we will pitch camp right here until that child comes back.”

She quickly began the chore of unsaddling and pitching camp, right in the center of the trail.

 

CHAPTER TWELVE

[FINDING SERA]

The Palomino was squeezing out every bit of energy it had in order to satisfy his owner’s demands. He had begun to breathe hard as Sera pulled back on the reins and slowed Crazy Horse to a walk, glancing back over her shoulder still trembling from the frightening experience.

“The giant should have caught us by now.” She told Crazy Horse between gasps of air.

She turned him to a stop and stared back up the trail, expecting to see a large black beast charging down the trail any second.

Sera is a twelve-year-old girl, four feet tall when she stood up straight; with big brown eyes, and long black hair, weighing 90 lbs. soaking wet.

Her mother died during birth and Sera was raised by her grandfather; but he died in his sleep about thirteen months ago. Her father had been killed by U.N. Demons before she was born, and now she was entirely on her own.

She listened intensively, focusing her ears as hard as possible to separate out the sound of Crazy Horse’s breathing and her own heart pounding. Knowing there was no way Crazy Horse could out-run such a huge animal, she concentrated on the sound that the giant’s monster black beast would make. She slipped down from the saddle and led him behind a tiny group of short trees. Being small has a lot of advantages, and Sera knew how to exploit every single one of them. She stood for a minute watching the trail as she quietly spoke to Crazy Horse.

“Where is she?”

Retrieving her binoculars, she pulled the strap up over her head and quickly climbed up the tallest tree she could find.

“This makes no sense at all.” She whispered.

She watched Christina set camp right in the middle of the trail while continuing to speak to her horse.

“Doesn’t she know how dangerous it is to be out in the open like that? But her tent is so freaking cool.”

She slowly climbed down the tree feeling a bit of relief that the giant was not in pursuit. With her anxiety beginning to calm, Sera began setting up camp as dreary thoughts of being lonely seemed to diminish her fears about the giant.

Christina sat camp as Big Red watched from under a tree. He was still confused as to why she was so upset with him; he liked the small person; small people seemed to be more playful than the big ones.

Christina pondered to herself as she leaned back against the saddle, with binoculars in hand.

“How do you approach a small child?”

Gradually, the strong scent of a wild boar filled the air, and instantly she jumped to her feet with a shout.

“That’s it, roasted pork.”

Quickly retrieving her self-made three-piece throw spear and hunting knife from the pile of supplies, Christina disappeared into the woods whilst putting the spear together. The aroma of roasting pork would soon be filling the air. She was careful to keep downwind from the sounders of wild boar as she closed in on their position, and the herd did not seem to be bothered by her presence as she threw her spear. She quickly climbed a tree for safety, just as Rosie had taught her to do, until the turmoil subsided. Christina returned from the hunt carrying the hind quarter from her prize. She built an enormous campfire around a large rock to make sure that the tiny child would be able to clearly see the flames, then sat the hind quarter of pork onto the pit.

Sera watched the large flames leaping into the sky, then made a deduction.

“Giants must have very small brains.”

It didn’t take long before the aroma of roasting pork permeated the air, and with an empty stomach, Sara whispered.

“Okay, I know she is not a real giant; but geez, she is Soooo big.”

Sera drifted off to sleep with the thoughts of her grandfather standing over an open fire pit cooking dinner for the two of them.

 

{SERA’S DREAM}

Sera’s favorite dream came tonight, the one with the mother she never had. They were standing in a big garden with all sorts of vegetables, picking tomatoes. She would shout, “food fight,” then she and her mother would throw tomatoes at each other as they laughed and played in the garden.

Sera woke up with a tremendous smile on her face and wondered at the blonde hair and blue eyes her mother had; but she always relished the dream.

 

[CHRISTINA ’S DREAM]

Christina’s favorite dream came tonight. While she was preparing dinner her beautiful daughter sat at the table pleading.

“Mom, I’m hungry; how much longer? I’m starving.”

The small girl walked over beside her and looked at the huge roast as Christina explained.

“Pork can only cook so fast, you must learn to have patience.”

The girl leaned over and gave her a hug, and with a whiny voice asked Christina a question.

“Can I have a tomato while I wait?”

“Yes, you may.”

Christina answered.

 

Sera and Christina woke up with the strong aroma of roasting pork, then they both climbed out of their tents and retrieved their binoculars. With all the excitement yesterday, there had been no time for hunting dinner, and Sera’s stomach was growling loudly as she climbed a tree to get a good look toward the giant’s camp.

“God, I’m starving.” She whispered to herself.

Settling into a place in the tree, she focused her binoculars up toward the giant’s camp, then jolted back behind a small limb attempting to hide when she saw the tall blonde standing in plain sight beside the fire, looking back at her through binoculars.

“She can see me!” Sera exclaimed.

Christina watched when the small child had climbed the tree and found a little humor when she attempted to hide behind the small limb. While slowly peeking around the small limb through her binoculars, Sara whispered.

“Gees, I am so hungry.”

She decided for a taste of freshly cooked pork, she would embrace the dangers of meeting the giant.

Christina got excited when the tiny figure climbed down the tree, then started packing camp onto the back of the palomino.

“I think she’s coming.”

She quickly glanced down at Big Red with a worried look on her face.

“What if she doesn’t like me; “MY GOD” what if she does; what in the hell are we going to do with a small child?”

She paced back and forth across the camp talking to herself, anticipating the girl’s arrival, constantly stopping to check on her progress.

“Come on dammit, can’t your horse run?” She whispered to herself.

Sera slowed her horse to a crawl as she drew close to the giant’s camp, then brought him to a stop while professing to Crazy Horse.

“I don’t know about this.”

She sat 50 yards away focusing on the giant, not 100% devoted to the situation. Big Red noticed the hesitation and ran to his tiny friend with enthusiasm. He darted around and around Crazy Horse and Sera slipped from the saddle and gave him a tight squeeze around his neck. Christina had never seen Big Red act this way before and watched in amazement as the two seemed to be the best of friends. Sera whispered to the big dog as she slowly rose and looked toward Christina.

“Gees Red, she is really big.”

He gently put her hand inside his mouth, then slowly began to walk toward the giant. Christina stood frozen in place like she was a statue as small child stopped ten feet away.

{A DAVID AND GOLIATH MOMENT}

“4 feet -V- 5 feet 11 inches.”

They stared in amazement at the size of the other, taking in every square inch of each other’s features. Christina noticed how much Sera looked like the girl in her dreams, with long straight coal black hair and sparkling brown eyes. Sera noticed just how much Christina looked like her dream mother, with long wavy blonde hair and sky-blue eyes. With a soft voice and friendly smile, trying her best not to be intimidating to the tiny frame that was standing in front of her, Christina broke the silence.

“Hi, my name is Christina.”

Sera did her best to control the trembling in her voice, knowing this giant of a woman could easily crush her.

“Hi……I’m…..Sera.”

When Christina heard the name Sera, she felt a fusion of sensations flash through her body as the name echoed through her head.

Sera became concerned about the look on the tall blonde’s face.

“Are… you…okay?” She asked.

Christina quickly tried to regain her composure while focusing on this tiny girl standing in front of her.

“Yes…Yes…I’m fine; are you hungry?”

No sooner than she asked the question, Sera’s stomach gave out a loud, deep, recognizable growl as she replied.

“Yes, please.”

        Christina turned and started toward the fire pit where the appetizing meal waited.

“Great, let’s eat.”

She cut large portions off the roast for each of them and placed it onto tin plates. Pork is a real treat these days and times, and Sera had her big hunting knife ready when she excepted the plate. They both sat and ate in silence with only the sound of smacking lips, enjoying the tasty meal. When they had their fill, Christina leaned back up against her saddle as Sera laid back against Big Red and began to relax.

“That was... fan~tas-tic.” Sera commented.

She laid her head back and looked up at the fluffy popcorn clouds that were floating by,  happy she had a new friend, and just wanted to relax and enjoy the company; but knew they needed to get moving. She slowly rose and looked over at Christina with an evaluation.

“This is not a very good situation.”

Christina turned and looked at her with a wary look on her face and concern present in her voice.

“What do you mean?”

Sera stood and looked down at her with a serious expression.

“We are way too full, and this is now a dangerous place to be.”

Christina considered their situation, then quickly realized what Sera was talking about.

“Because~ I had a big fire and cooked a lot of meat; now every wild animal and radicals can smell it all.”

“Exactly right.” Sera replied.

“I’m going northwest to Seattle Washington, so maybe you will join me.” Christina suggested.

Sera looked up at her with a twinkle in her eyes and a tremendous smile on her face, then responded with enthusiasm.

“YES!! I mean, no one is waiting at home for me; so, I would love to.”

“Great, let’s ride.” Christina suggested.

They were both excited to be on a new adventures together as they quickly started packing camp. While riding along their minds filled with a variety of emotions, recalling all the dreams they had of each other. They rode in silence until Midday when the decision was made to take a short break, and quickly began conversing about their lives.

“Christina, do you have family?” Sara asked.

“Yes, I have an older sister that I’m looking for; how about you.” She answered.

Christina was curious as to why such a small child would be out here all alone. Sera looked down and turned her eyes away.

“Nope, all dead.”

Christina lovingly placed her hand on her back and gently began to rub.

“Okay; how long has your mother been gone?”

“My mom died before I was born; so, my grandpa raised me.” Sera replied.

Christina sat quiet for a few moments and considered what she just said, as her forehead wrinkled from confusion.

“Wait.--- Wait.-- How can she die before you were born?”

Sera raised her arm up in the air and made a slashing motion as if she were holding a knife while clarifying.

“Grandpapa said one minute after she died, he cut me out.”

Christina found herself lost for words to express her emotions.

“WOW.—I mean… I can’t….Just,… WOW.” Was all Christina’s mind could come up with to say.

Sera pulled in a long deep breath and summoned the inner strength she possessed.

“Yeah,… I know, and my daddy was killed by those U.N. people before I was born.”

Christina stared out into space still trying to process everything the small girl just said.

“And your grandpapa?” She softly asked.

“He just didn’t wake up one day; that was over a year ago.” Sera answered.

Christina noticed that she had started to fidget, and her eyes were filled with water, so she quickly changed the subject.

“How old are you, sweetheart?”

Sera turned and looked at her with a tear slowly drifting down her cheek. No one had ever called her sweetheart before, except for her dream mother. Christina felt moisture building up in her own eyes.

“Are you okay.?” Christina asked.

“Yes.—Yes.- just no one ever called me that before; I am twelve years old.” Sera proudly announced.

Christina took the time to study the small girls' features a little more thoroughly before commenting on her age.

“Wow, twelve; you look around seven or eight.”

        With humor in her voice, Sara replied.

“Yeah, I know; I look good for my age.”

Christina could not help but laugh at the sarcasm, and soon both were laughing as they mounted up to continue on their long journey.

The day was sunny, warm, and breezy, a perfect day for riding as they rode side by side, once again the little girl came shining through when Sera began with her questions.

“Christina.”

“Yes, sweetheart, what is it?” Christina responded.

Sera quietly stared straight ahead for a moment trying to figure out exactly how she wanted to phrase what she wanted to say, then turned and looked at Christina with apprehension in her voice.

“If I let you continue calling me sweetheart, then I get to call you, mom; Deal?”

Blackwall came to a sudden stop and gave out a loud nay when he felt the surge of energy shoot through Christina’s body. Sera pulled Crazy Horse to a stop and turned in the saddle to look back at her as Big Red gave a loud bark. Christina looked deep into Sera’s dark brown eyes and answered with pride in her voice.

“Yes,… Yes, sweetheart, you may.”

The rest of the day Sera would say, ‘mom,’ just to hear the word and to feel it upon her lips. Christina would smile and say, my little sweetheart. As the sun was settling close to the horizon they came upon a small river about 20 ft. wide and 4 ft. deep.

“We will camp here tonight.” Christina announced.

As Sara dismounted and took a look around; never missing any chance she could find to call Christina, mom; she quickly replied.

“Sounds good to me, mom.”

After camp was set, Sera retrieved her binoculars and started toward a tall tree, desperately wanting to prove she could take care of herself.

“I got this.”

Christina watched her walk away with the binoculars, heading for a tall tree.

“She is too damn young for this shit.” She whispered to herself.

The fish for dinner was delicious, and the bath in the cool river was fantastic. The small fire to warm up by was perfect. Christina took the hairbrush from Sera’s small hand and slowly began to brush her long black hair from behind. Sera closed her eyes and embraced the feeling of having a mother.

“God, that feels so good.” Sera softly whispered.

There was just enough light left to read a little from dad’s book, and Sera listened intensity while gently running her hand over Big Red. When Christina closed the book, Sara quickly spoke.

“Interesting book, who is it about?”

Christina gently reached over and pushed her dark hair back behind her ear as she answered.

“The son of God.”

Sera quickly reached over and gently pushed Christina’s hair behind her ear.

“WHAT! I didn’t know God had a son.”

“Yes sweetheart, he did.” Christina replied.

As she put more wood onto the fire Sera stared hard into the flames and asked another question.

“Is it hard to read?”

“Are you saying, you can’t read?” Christina inquired with surprise in her voice.

Sera continued staring deep into the fire and answered as if it were no big deal.

“Nope, neither could grandpapa.”

Christina lovingly put her arm around her shoulder, pulling her close with an offer.

“I can teach you if you would like.”

Sera instantly turned, wrapping her arms around Christina as tight as she could.

“YES!! Thank you mom; thank you so, so much.”

They sat by the small fire holding each other with Sera slowly fading off into dreamland as Christina sang a lullaby. Refusing to give in to sleep, she opened her eyes and stared at the fire and sleepily asked another question.

“Were you named after your mom?”

Christina smiled as she laid her head on top of Sera’s, knowing she was fighting to stay awake.

“No sweetheart, after my grandmother.”

Sera searched for Christina’s hand, then intertwined their fingers.

“Grandpapa named me after my mother.”

Christina began to gently rock her to-and-fro, attempting to get her to sleep as she softly responded.

“You look American Indian; was your mother also an Indian?”

With her voice fading, Sera squeezed out her answer,

“No, grandpapa said she was white; but dad was Indian.”

“How long did your mom and dad know each other?” Christina whispered.

Sera slowly answered as her eyes were now completely closed, and she was fading fast.

“Not long, mom was from pepsi--vina.”

Christina sat and thought about what she had said for a few minutes, then stopped rocking and raised her head up off of Sera’s.

“You mean Pennsylvania.” She corrected.

“Yeah, that sounds right.” Sera mumbled.

Christina began to gently shake the young girl with a request.

“Sera, sweetheart; I need you to wake up.”

Sera immediately lifted her head up and became aware of her surroundings.

“What’s wrong?—What’s up?”

With a tremble in her voice, Christina began to shake.

“This is very important, okay; do you know how old your mother would have been when you were born?”

Sera quickly became agitated that she had been woken just to keep talking.

“Yeah,- twenty-two; she was too young to die is what grandpapa said.”

“Do you know if she worked anywhere?” Christina asked.

Now Sera was starting to get suspicious, and she slowly sat up and grew concerned about the interrogation. She may be young but she’s not stupid.

“Grandpapa said she was a U.S. police; why?”

Christina was now noticeably trembling as tears started to spill out of her eyes. Sera stood and moved around in front of her and placed a hand on each side of Christina’s face.

“Okay- I’m not a stupid little girl; what’s up?”

Christina took a deep breath and wiped her eyes, then gently took Sera by the hand, and looked into her eyes.

“Okay; here’s the deal; my sister is white; she would have been twenty-two when you were born, and her name is Sera.”

She had to stop and regroup, taking in another deep shaky breath as Sera stared into her eyes.

Sera herself began to tremble with tears running down her cheeks.

“Was she a U.S. police!?” She shouted.

“Yes,- Yes she was.” Christina whispered.

Sera turned and started running toward her saddle as fast as her tiny legs could go.

“I have a picture of my mother; I have a picture. I will go and get it.”

Christina put more wood onto the fire to give more light as Sera began digging into her saddlebag.

“I found it; I got it.” She yelled.

She came running back to the fire waving the picture around in the air. Christina waited patiently while she slowly and carefully unwrapped the picture from its waterproof packet, then held it up to the light. Christina softly drifted her finger across the picture as she whispered.

“My sister, Sera.”

They sat in front of the fire holding onto each other, crying then laughing, then crying together. Sera squeezing as hard as her little arms could possibly squeeze and began to speak.

“Mom, I think I really,- really need you to sleep in my tent with me tonight.”

“You know what, I think I need that too.” Christina agreed.

 

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

BONDING TIME

There was a slight chill in the air when Sera woke up alone in her tent. She stretched hard before climbing out and taking a look around. She saw Big Red lying next to the fire and the horses standing under a tree. Crazy Horse looked like a little toy next to Blackwall. She slowly strolled down to the river to wash up, always loving days when there was water to rinse off in. While walking back toward the campfire, she noticed Christina coming down the trail from the woods with binoculars in hand. She ran straight into her arms and squeezed into Christina as hard as she could, filled with joy like she had never known.

“I love you so much, mom.” She giggled loudly.

Christina returned the embrace as tight as she dared.

 “And I love you so very much, my beautiful little daughter.” She replied.

Christina sat behind Sera braiding her hair into ponytails as they sat enjoying the warmth from the fire, lost in the moment of mother and daughter emotions.

“Time to make a new plan.” Christina suggested.

“I’m glad I have someone now.” Sara remarked.

“Me too; I have always wanted and dreamed of having a daughter.”

Sera reached and took Christina’s hand for a moment.

“And I have always dreamed of having a great mom.”

Christina gave a suggestion as she turned Sera around to examine her handy work.

“I see no reason for us to keep going north, it’s beginning to get damn cold up there.”

Sera began to giggle as she swung her head side to side so that her ponytails would plop back and forth.

“So, are we going back to New Mexico?” She inquired through her giggling.

“Wait,--what do you mean back; when were you in New Mexico?” Christina questioned.

“I started following you back when you left that farm.” Sera informed her.

The two continued talking while packing camp to get ready for the day's ride. Christina considered all the flat land and rough terrain she crossed between the time leaving Mary and Joe’s farm, and the first time she had spotted the white dot far off in the distance.

“No way,--- No way you followed me that far without me seeing you.”

“Get over it, mom; I’m good; Grandpapa was a good teacher.” Sera proclaimed.

“Yes you are. Okay, we will head south to Arizona then east to New Mexico.”

Christina put her foot in the stirrup and mounted Blackwall as Sera mounted Crazy Horse with a big smile.

“Let’s ride.” Sera said loudly.

This day was a nice day, not too hot, not too cold. Christina started to sing songs that Mary and Joe had taught her and was amazed that Sera could hear her sing a song one time and remember every word with the right tune. Sera was constantly inquisitive and listened with intensity to everything that Christina was teaching. It reminded Christina about her teenage years, and how Rosie had taught her.

Singing and talking helped the day pass quickly, and after they settled on a place to camp, they climbed a tall tree together with binoculars in hand. This was the most fun part of the day, and they both liked being way up high looking out far beyond what the imagination could envision. Christina was now teaching Sera how to read using her father’s favorite book, also math, clearing a spot on the ground to use as a tablet. She was amazed at Sera’s ability to remember everything she saw and heard, never forgetting one thing. The two have complete devotion to their mother-daughter relationship and have grown to love and care deeply for each other. If the nights were warm and clear and calm they would share their net tent if the night was cold and rainy they shared the solid tent. Considering the devastation of today’s world, they were living a good life.

The flames flickered in the night air as Sera sat facing the warmth, relishing the sensation from the tender touch of Christina brushing her long hair.

“Mom, will you tell me about my mother?” Sera quietly asked.

“Yes, of course I will sweetheart.”

She started with the horse ranch her family had long ago, then told of the happy times when she and Sera built sandcastles out on the beach.

They have been riding hard, trying to stay out in front of the cold weather coming down from the north. They were entering northern Arizona, close to Flagstaff, a mountainous region with lush green forest. The nights could get extremely cold this time of the year, even though the days would get nice and warm.

They agreed to set camp early so to have time to build a fire for the night. They found a cave about the size of a three-bedroom house, but it stank too bad to use for sleeping; so, they set camp a short ways away.

Christina went to hunt for dinner, leaving Sera responsible for building the fire pit. She had just finished with the pit when Big Red came running from the north at top speed. When he reached her he came to an instant stop and stared up at her with one of his deep-down whisper-air barks.

“What is wrong? Is it mom? Is she hurt?”

Big Red ran to the cave entrance while giving a deep loud bark, then he ran back to Sera. When he ran back to the cave, she realized what it was that he wanted. He stood at the entrance with low shallow woofs, waiting impatiently for Sera. Understanding the danger, her adrenaline was pumping extra hard, making the saddles feel like feathers as she packed camp onto Blackwall.

“Let’s go!” She shouted to the horses.

She quickly moved them to safety inside the cave, then turned her concern back to Christina and turned to head back out the entrance.

“MOM! – I have to go find mom.”

Big Red stood blocking the entrance with his head down staring straight at her with his large k-9 teeth showing, refusing to let her out of the cave.

“Okay; okay, we will wait.” Sera conceited.

Retrieved her binoculars from the saddle bag, she sat at the entrance watching smoke rising up through the trees close enough to see without binoculars. She frantically scanned the forest for Christina, and jumped up beside Big Red when she spied her coming from the south.

Christina walked into camp without an inclining to the trouble. She frantically looked around for Sera and felt her heart begin to pound when she noticed the camp was empty.

“OVER HERE! OVER HERE! We have to hide now.” Sera screamed.

Christina looked up the hill to see her nightmare coming to fruition, with the small child’s arms waving frantically in the air. Her mind flashed back to the nightmare she had back at the farm and quickly ran up the hill.

“SHIT!_SHIT!_SHIT!” She kept repeating.

She stood beside Sera and Big Red at the entrance of the cave and considered their situation. She looked north through her binoculars and knew that Crazy Horse could never run faster than the U.N. Demon’s horses, especially if their horses were good ones.

“We have no choice but to hide in here.” She concluded with a shaky voice.

They quickly gathered up their bow-&-arrows and throw-spears, then placed them next to the entrance. Sera quietly spoke as she began to tremble with tears rolling down her cheek.

“I have never killed anyone before.”

Christina wrapped her arms around her, pulling her tight with a confession.

“To be perfectly honest sweetheart, I’ve never killed anyone before either.”

They both knew they were at a disadvantage, especially if the Demon’s discovered their hiding place. Big Red lowered his head and gave a loud deep growl as he stared up at Christina.

“What’s up with you?” She asked.

“He wants us to go inside; that’s what he did to me earlier when he wouldn’t let me out of the cave to go and find you.” Sera explained.

She grabbed hold of Christina’s arm and pulled her into the cave, then they quietly sat and listened as Big Red sat halfway outside the entrance.

Christina heard a man’s deep loud voice with a foreign accent echoing through the cave.

“I think I found them.”

“Comrade; Comrade, come on out of the hole. Maybe I let you live.” Another man yelled out.

Christina turned and gave Sera the most frightening look Sera had ever seen.

“We are going to have to kill these men Sera; if we don’t, they will kill us.”

Sera buried her face deep into Christina’s bosom as tears streamed down her face.

“NO!” She quietly shouted.

Christina wrapped her arms tight around her and stared at the entrance with a somber look.

“We have no choice baby girl.”

“NO!- All we have to do is keep them outside until tomorrow morning.” Sera argued.

Christina softly rubbed her hand over Sera’s hair as she placed her head on top of hers.

“And tomorrow will change things, how?”

Sera raised her head and looked up through tear filled eyes.

“Dad will be here tomorrow morning.”

Christina lovingly wiped the tears from the child’s face.

“I love you sweetheart; but my dad and your dad are both dead; so, I don’t think they will be coming.”

“Don’t be silly mom, I mean my new dad; I had this exact dream, and my new daddy always came to save me.” Sera replied.

She returned her face into Christina’s body and squeezed with trembling arms. Christina slowly lifted Sera up into her arms.

“I had this same dream myself. We’ll wait until morning for your new dad.”

        Suddenly, a man’s voice yelled out.

“Son-of-a-bitch, they have a guard dog.”

Big Red stood with the hair on his back raised, along with his ears and tail standing at attention, giving a cold hard stare down on the U.N. Demon’s.

Christina sat Sera down and pointed to the back of the cave, then turned and walked over to the entrance. She stood tall next to Big Red; all five ft. eleven in. She looked down at the men and counted eight while advising her adversaries.

.

“I do have weapons and prepared to use them.”

        One of the men shouted with a deep German accent.

“I gotta get me some of that.”

Christina stood at the entrance hiding her fear, watching the Demon’s whoop and yell with laughter.

“I will give you until tomorrow morning to reconsider, and then I am going to burn you out.” The man yelled.

The men laughed as they began to settle in for the night, and Christina turned and walked back into the cave where Sera sat waiting. She concluded those men would not wait until morning if they realized a beautiful little girl were inside.

“You stay out of sight.” She demanded.

“I know mom, I’m not stupid.” Sera whispered.

Christina sat down beside her little girl, trying to hide the fear and control her trembling. She slowly leaned back against the wall and took a deep shaky breath as Sera crawled into her lap and buried herself into her bosom, then began weeping uncontrollably. Christina gently rocked her back and forth, desperately searching her mind in hopes of figuring a way out of their dilemma.

 

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

MY NEW DAD

Christina sat with Sera sleeping on her lap, and from time to time she would occasionally drift off for a moment then jerk herself back awake. Big Red stood guard at the entrance keeping alert all night, watching the U. N. DEMONS with keen eyes and ears.

Christina was getting plenty of practice in her praying skills. She prayed for a miracle, for deliverance, then prayed hard for Sera’s mythical dad to come and save the day; but most of all, she prayed for God’s power to protect them.

“GOD.- No matter what, please protect Sera.”

When the sun peeked above the horizon, Sera began to stir. Christina packed the essentials to ensure Sera’s survival onto Blackwall, then gently took Sera’s face in her hands.

“Listen to me very carefully; you will have to hold on tight, as tight as you possibly can when Blackwall starts to run. He’s very powerful and very fast; do not~.. listen to me…, do… not… look… back; you go as fast as you can, and we will meet at the farmhouse.”

She did her best to control the trembling in her voice as tears streamed down her face.

Sera held onto her for dear life as she buried her head against Christina’s body, nodding in agreement as she cried.

Christina picked her up into a tight squeeze, then sat her upon the back of the large thoroughbred. Sera’s small body seemed to just vanish into his  massive black frame.

“I love you, my little sweetheart.” Christina said through tears.

“I will always love you mom.” Sera responded with jagged breaths.

Sera gripped the front of the saddle and wrapped her legs tight around Blackwall in preparation for the rush from the massive pile of muscle she was sitting on.

As Christina prepared to release the tight hold she held on to the bridle an extremely loud thunder echoed throughout the cave, causing her and Blackwall to jump at the unexpected loud sound.

“What the hell was that!?” She shouted.

She tightened her grip on the bridle while rubbing Blackwall’s neck while Big Red stood at attention, staring out the entrance. Suddenly another extreme thunder roared through the cave, tightening the grip Christina held to the bridle.

“Get down sweetheart, hurry.” She told Sera.

She helped the small girl off Blackwall as he began to prance around, spooked by the loud noise. She rubbed his neck and whistled a tune to settle him down, then quickly tied him to a large tree root sticking out of the dirt wall. She suspiciously walked to the entrance with Sera hot on her hills and carefully peeked outside to see eight Demon’s riding frantically to the north. Fifty feet from where she stood sat a fine specimen of a man, looking to be in his early to mid-thirties; six-foot-two, 250 lbs. with blonde hair, blue eyes, and shoulders wide enough to completely fill a doorway. The sight of this man sitting on his gigantic gray mare with a long gun in hand caused Christina’s knees to grow weaker than they already were, if that was even possible. Sera darted past her as she stood completely entranced by this gorgeous man. He secured his gun back into its holder and gracefully dismounted, then watched this tiny girl running toward him.

“I knew you would be here daddy; I just knew you would come.” Sera shouted.

When she reached the man and put him into a tight embrace, he looked up at Christina with a curious look on his face. She slowly reached and pulled Sera’s arms out from around the man then took a few steps back.

“My name is Mike, are you ladies alright?” He asked with a cute grin.

Christina picked Sera up as if she were a five-year-old little girl and held her tight, as if she might try to get away.

“I’m not sure, are we?” She nervously inquired.

Mike was mystified by the beauty of this lovely lady standing in front of him and gave his assurance.

“I promise you are perfectly safe with me; my mom would skin me alive.”

Christina was doing her best to look like she was in complete control.

“I’m sorry about Sera, it’s just that we thought—well, we thought this was it for us.”

Sera began squirming in an attempt to escape from her tight grip as she spoke.

“We need to go get our horses.”

Christina set her down and took her hand, then started toward the cave with Sera glancing back and yelling out at Mike.

“Don’t you go anywhere.”

When they reached the entrance of the cave, Christina pulled her to a stop with a suggestion.

“Sera; let’s not call him daddy; we wouldn’t want to scare him off.”

“Did you see how big he is, he’s even bigger than you are.” Sera pointed out with excitement.

Christina’s face turned a deep red with a sensation she never knew existed, and one she had never experienced before.

“Yes sweetheart, I definitely noticed.” She admitted.

“I’m being silly, aren’t I?” Sera quietly asked.

“You are twelve years old; you are supposed to be a little silly.” Christina giggled.

As they exited the cave and walked over to where Mike was waiting, Sera quietly whispered as if she was sharing a secret.

“Your right, and he will be the best dad ever.”

Mike was still amazed at the beauty of this tall well-built woman as he watched her and the tiny girl coming out of the cave, followed by horses that matched their sizes. When they reached him, Christina could not stop the fluttering in her stomach while glancing up at the tall handsome stranger.

“I’m sorry that I didn’t introduce myself, I am Christina.”

He gave her a wink and a smile with hie reply while staring into her blue eyes.

“Christina,- Beautiful; I like that name.”

        Christina’s mind seemed to melt into mush from his wink and smile as she tried to make sense of his words to herself.

“Did he say I am beautiful, or my name is?”

Big Red gave a loud bark so to say, don’t forget me. Christina reached down and gave him a pat on the head.

“Oh Yes, this is Big Red.”

After everything was packed back on the right horse, Sera mounted Crazy Horse with anticipation in her voice as she quickly began to speak.

“Okay Mike; we are headed east, over to New Mexico; so, maybe you can come with us.”

She sat staring at him with her head bobbing up and down in a yes movement. Christina gave her a look that said, {what in the hell are you doing}. Sera just gave her a huge smile and shrugged her shoulders.

Mike could not help but chuckle at Sera with her head still bobbing up and down.

“I am going east for a few days; but we will leave it up to your mother.”

Christina put her foot into the stirrup and mounted Blackwall, then gave Sera a weird look with a sarcastic reply.

“Not a problem.”

The day had become cloudy but warm as Sera played hopscotch; first, riding alongside Christina, then she would trot Crazy Horse up beside Mike, to Sera it seemed life just couldn’t get any better than this. Every time she would ride beside Christina she would give her a big smile with a twinkle in her big brown eyes that almost looked magical. Back and forth she went all day long until nighttime grew close, then they found a working windmill.  Sera quickly took command as if she were an adult.

“We will camp here tonight.”

Christina and Mike gave each other a smile, recognizing the glee the small girl was showing as they set camp.

“I’ll go get dinner.” Mike confirmed.

He went and pulled his rifle from the holder and started for the woods. Christina quickly moved and caught up to him, then with her fingers up under her nose, she pointed toward the water tank and explained what was on her mind.

“Mike; Sera and I were stuck inside that cave a long time, and it really stank; so, maybe you will take your time.”

Mike turned and gave her a wink and a smile.

“Not a problem.” He chuckled.

        Christina turned to find Sera standing right behind her as Mike headed for the woods. She stared down at the small smiling child for a moment, trying to regain her thoughts.

“Damn him; when he does that I forget what I was thinking about.” She whispered to Sera.

She closed her eyes and listened to Sera’s loud giggling while trying to comprehend these emotions she had never felt before, but decided she really liked the feeling.

She and Sera built the campfire before taking a long deserving shower to wash away the bad smells from the cave.

Sera sat with her eyes closed pretending to be a helpless little girl as Christina meticulously braided her long coal black hair. After her ponytails were in place, Christina pulled out her father’s favorite book, and Sera into her lap, then began their reading lesson.

Mike returned from his hunt with the hind quarter of a deer and a few wild onions, wild potatoes, and a small wild watermelon. He noticed the girls were reading from the Holy Bible as Sara snuggled into mom’s lap. They glanced up as he walked by and gave his wink and smile, causing Christina to completely lose her train of thought, and a loud giggle from Sara. When the short reading lesson was over, they joined him by the campfire and watched Mike prepare dinner. He would occasionally glance over at Christina with his wink and a smile, which caused Sera to giggle and Christina’s face turn a deep red. It did not take long for Sera to grow bored with the hum-dumb chore of cooking.

“I’m going to go and play.” She informed them.

She took Big Red to play a game of fetch, leaving the two adults tending to dinner. Christina gave Mike an erotic look, worried if she was doing it right, with the hope he would notice.

“Mike, I want to thank you for everything; I mean, like saving our lives.”

He glanced over with his cute wink and smile.

“I’m always glad to help ladies in distress.”

Christina fidgeted with her hair and turned to watch Sera and Big Red playing.

“Well, I’m very thankful.”

“I saw you and Sera reading; most kids don’t like to read.” He commented.

        Christina responded with pride in her voice.

“Yeah, Sera couldn’t read when we first met; but she learns so fast it’s amazing.”

Hearing her words spiked Mike’s curiosity.

“So, she’s not yours?”

Christina was letting her mind drift back through all the memories the two had made together when Mike’s question brought her back to reality.

“No; no, we met a couple months back, a long story on the two of us.”

Mike took a short break from cooking and sat down beside her, causing Christina’s mind to short circuit.

“Well that’s an interesting book you chose to use, and it sounds like you two have a very intriguing story; I can’t wait to hear it.”

Christina nervously twirled at the ends of her hair and did her best to keep the conversation going.

“You know the book?”

Mike got a big smile across his face as he stood and waved for Sera to come and eat.

“Yes,.. yes I do, very well in fact; my dad is a preacher.”

Christina got a sensation that sent a warm shock throughout her body, but she managed to keep a calm exterior.

“Well then, I guess we have something in common. My dad was also a preacher.”

Sera came and squeezed between Mike and Christina, forcing him to move over a tad and make room for her. She was also curious about her new dad, and who he was, and what he did.

“So, what’s up with this~riding with us for only a few days?”

Mike slightly chuckled as he rose and started dishing out a meal fit for a king.

“Well young lady, I live about a three-day ride east of here.”

Sera considered his words for a moment, then took the plate he was holding out for her. She suddenly squealed with excitement.

“Wait… You mean you have a house?”

Mike carefully handed the beautiful blonde a plate full of food, then sat back down beside Sera.

“Yes,.. yes I do.”

Sera straightened up her back and leaned her head against Christina for just a second and proudly made an announcement.

“We don’t have a house. It’s just me and mom, Big Red, and our horses against the world.”

Mike was amazed, watching the two and their tight relationship as Christina leaned over and gently kissed Sera on top of the head.

The night had descended upon the trio as Mike rolled his sleeping bag out on the ground about 40 feet away from Christina and Sera’s tarp-tent, where they had already gone for the night. It wasn’t long before the night was filled with the sound of a man’s sleeping. Christina thought Sera was already sleeping as she lay with her back snuggled up against hers. Sera squeezed Christina’s arm and began to giggle.

“Grandpapa used to snore like that.”

Christina had to fight hard to keep from laughing out loud.

“So did my dad.”

Sera lay still for a few moments trying to find the right words to say, then rolled over to get a good look into Christina's eyes.

“Mom,… We need to talk.”

Christina's mind flashed with “The birds and the bees.” and her nervousness was clear in her voice as she stared into Sera’s eyes.

“Okay  sweetheart, what’s up?”

Sera’s face was inches from hers and she had a serious look while speaking with an authoritarian tone in her voice.

“Okay… here’s the deal mom; you have to stop cursing.”

Christina slightly moved her head back so she could clearly see Sera’s face, then gently reached, and pushed Sera’s hair back behind her ear.

“Wait; what the hell are you talking about, I don’t cuss.”

Sera lovingly reached over and pushed Christina’s hair behind her ear, then began to sarcastically spill the cuss words.

“Shit, damn it to hell, bastard, bag of shit~ shall I go on?”

Christina laid staring into her eyes for a moment, then attempted to correct her.

“But that’s not cussing, that’s just English.”

Sera could tell she had struck a chord as Christina’s eyes filled with water; but she did not let her off the hook.

“No mom, it’s cussing; I don’t mind it myself, but a good man doesn’t like a woman who cusses; I know, because grandpa told me so.”

A tear slipped down Christina’s face as she realized she had just gotten schooled about men, by a twelve-year-old.

“Can I sleep on it.?” She softly asked.

Sera quickly turned over and snuggled her back up against Christina.

“Sure mom, I love you.”

Christina wrapped her arms tight around Sera with her response.

“And I love you dearly.”

CHRISTINA AND SERA FADE OFF TO SLEEP

The rise of the morning sun was just moments away as Christina laid still with her eyes open, completely confused at the sound of rain, yet no raindrops were hitting the outside of their tent. She slowly sat up and listened, then slowly opened the tent, and slipped her head out. The sun was still just below the horizon, but the twilight was enough to see. She looked around the camp and saw Big Red lying next to a small fire, then turned her attention in the direction of the sound. She gasped at what she saw and jolted back into the tent. Mike was standing under the waterspout in all his glory, and she had never encountered a situation like this in all of her thirty years. She squeezed her eyes closed tight and attempted to erase the image, but the gesture just confirmed the depiction was etched into her psyche forever. Sera began to stir and stretched in her sleeping bag as she woke.

“I need to peeeeee.” She announced.

Christina quickly placed her fingers over her lips to keep her quiet.

“Not right now!” She demanded.

Sera gave her a weird look as she spoke through her fingers.

“What’s up mom?”

Sera noticed the strange look Christina had on her face as she attempted to remove the fingers from her lips, then she heard the water quit running.

“OWWWW, I seeeee.” She said sarcastically.

Sera and Christina started playing a game of fingers-to-lips fighting as Sera kept trying to remove her fingers.

“Shhhh. He can hear you.”

Sera quickly sat up with big eyes and covered her mouth with both hands, then mumbled.

“Mom, he’s just taking a sho…. “O-MY-GOD”-you saw him.”

Christina immediately pulled Sera’s face tight against her bosom.

“Be quiet, now!”

With her face being forcefully buried into Christina’s bosom, Sera's voice was muffled.

“Mom, it’s not like you have never seen a…..; “O-MY-GOD”…. you are a virgin.” She whispered.

Still holding Sera tight against her body Christina thought she was making a good point.

“Well, aren’t you?”

Sera gently leaned back and smiled up at her.

“Yeah mom, but I’m like twelve years old.”

Christina searched her mind for a good excuse as she stared into Sera’s eyes, then pulled her face back into her bosom.

“Well…. I just never got around to it.”

Sera began to giggle as she wrapped her arms around Christina and squeezed as hard as she could.

“I am so proud of you, mom.”

“Okay; not another word about this.” Christina whispered.

Sera turned her head up with a tremendous smile.

“Mother--daughter secret; but I still need to go pee.”

Christina cautiously peeked out the tent to see Mike had his jeans on and was standing next to the fire-pit. She quickly moved to the side so Sera could make her escape.

“Okay, go.”

Sera moved like a bullet toward the closest tree and disappeared while Christina slipped from the tent and walked straight over to the fire, avoiding eye contact with Mike. He looked up with a smile as he poured coffee into his cup.

“Would you like some coffee?”

Christina used her long blonde hair to attempt to hide her embarrassment.

“Yes, thank you.”

Mike noticed a slight difference in the way she was acting while filled her cup.

“Are you alright?”

Christina kept her eyes on the cup as her mind kept replaying the image of this beautiful firm muscled up man through her head.

“Yes ~yes, I’m just having some kind of weird feelings going on this morning.”

She glanced up at him for a second and gave a wink and smile, then quickly looked back down at her cup. She had never done that before, ever, and wondered if she may have crossed an imaginary line. Mike refilled his cup and took a seat next to her.

“If we ride hard today, we can make it to my house by tomorrow.”

“I could use a good hard ride. ~ [Her face turned beet red.]~ I can’t believe I just said that.”

She turned her face from his view in the attempt to hide her blushing as he got a huge smile on his face. He stood and began to pack up camp with Christina helping while avoiding eye contact until everything was packed and everyone mounted their horses. She gave him a quick glance just as he gave her a wink and a smile, which caused Sera to look over at Christina with a loud giggle.

Throughout the day Sera played her hopscotch game again, jumping back and forth from Mike to Christina. They kept a fast pace until the sun reached its peak up in the sky, then they came to a working windmill where the decision to take a break was made. Christina took advantage of the situation to investigate the life of this man that seemed to have captured her heart.

“Do you have family waiting at home?”

Mike took a sip of cold coffee from his thermos and stared out across the landscape for a moment.

“You could put it that way.”

Christina recognized he was being vague with his answers but refused to give in on her inquisition.

“Kids?”

“There are lots of kids.” Mike responded.

She turned her head away and rolled her eyes, knowing he was not giving direct answers on purpose. She paused for a moment, then turned back to face her evader in the hopes of getting some clarity.

“Okay; so, you have lots of kids.”

He took another drink as he stood, then started toward his horse.

“You will see; time to ride.”

Christina put her foot into the stirrup to mount Blackwall and asked one last question while lifting herself into the saddle.

“Is your house safe from U.N. Demon’s?”

Mike smiled at the nickname and gave his answer as he turned to start down the trail.

“My house is safe from all Demon’s.”

Throughout the rest of the day, she pondered on their conversation. “Someone is waiting at home with lots of kids,” Christina imagined a one room cabin, a wife, and five kids surrounded by 20 U. N. Demon’s. Mike did not seem too eager to indulge very much information, then her mind drifted to his sexy smile and hypnotizing wink, then lost all train of thought. She was thankful when today’s journey was over and time had come to set camp, it helped take her mind off her daydreams, adult things that she had never even considered before.

Mike insisted on delegating the hunt as Christina and Sera did their bathing. The mother/daughter duet sang their favorite songs as Christina braided Sera’s hair, then a little reading. Christina took more time with her own hair this evening with a little help from Sera, then they sat by the warm fire watching Mike cook dinner. It was always better when Mike the chef did the cooking, and by the time they had finished dinner, it was sleep time.

Sera stood and gave Christina a hug and a kiss, then gave Mike a kiss on the cheek and a tight hug.

“I’m going to bed.”

Christina desperately wanted to learn so much more about this handsome man that had her filled with emotions she never knew existed. She sat beside him and carefully picked her questions, in an attempt to pry a direct answer out of him.

“So, Mike, you have family at home?”

Mike decided that he may like the idea of having this beautiful woman for his wife, so he let his guard down a tad.

“Not blood, but I consider them family.”

She felt the crack in his armor the second it happened and began to fiddle with the ends of her hair as she continued.

“So, no living family?” She pried on.

Mike slowly rose and walked over to his horse and retrieved the sleeping bag, then rolled it out beside the fire and took a seat before answering.

“Yes, I have family; my parents have a small farm about two weeks ride east of my place.”

Mary and Joe’s farm immediately crossed Christina’s mind and she giggled while jokingly commenting on her friends.

“Let me guess, their names are Mary and Joe, and they have chickens.”

Mike’s eyes opened a bit wider, and his forehead became wrinkled, also his voice filled with surprise as he stared at her.

“Yes, you have met them?”

Sera laid in the tent listening and had grown aggravated with Christina’s beating around the bush questions.

“ASK HIM IF HE IS MARRIED!”

Christina turned and looked toward the tent as she felt a flash of warmth surging through her body, and Mike could not help but let out a loud chuckle.

“Never married.” He responded loud enough so that Sera would hear.

“YES!” Sera screamed.

Christina turned back toward Mike with a smile on her blushing red face.

“I’m so sorry, it’s just she had a dream that you were her father.”

Once again Mike got a huge smile across his face.

“Well, I did make an impression on her back at the Cave.”

Christina didn’t stop to consider what he might think about what she was saying before her words came spilling out.

“No, before that Mike; it’s kind of hard to explain, but Sera and I have these dreams, and sometimes these dreams will come true.”

Mike looked at her with one of his famous winks and smile.

“Oh, I see; and do you ever have dreams about me?”

“Not when I’m sleeping.” She answered.

No sooner did the words leave her mouth, she closed her eyes and desperately wished she could turn back time five seconds. He could see her embarrassment and quickly changed the subject.

“So, tell me how you met my mom and dad.”

She was thankful he changed the subject as she told her story.

“They gave me shelter and let me sleep in their barn one stormy night.”

He laid back on his sleeping bag and stared up at the stars as he continued to talk.

“If you’d been there for the Sabbath you would have enjoyed that.”

“I was; so tell me Mike, what are you doing way out here so far from home?” She inquired.

That brought Mike back to reality and the seriousness of his mission.

“I was looking for you.”

Christina could not help but giggle with her response.

“Mike; have you been having dreams about me?”

He sat up and turned to face her as he spoke.

“No, nothing like that; I travel around this part of the country looking to find good decent people that might want to come join our little community. Over the years I have managed to gather thirty couples, most with kids. Maybe you and Sera will come and stay with me.”

Sera could not control her excitement and yelled with joy at the thought of a genuine family.

“YES! YES!”

Christina glanced over at the tent where Sera was supposed to be asleep and did her best to control her breathing, then turned her attention back to Mike.

“Mike, I don’t think I can be living with a man that I’m not married to; I have to consider what Sera would think.”

Mike considered what he could say that might change her mind, then spilled how he was feeling about her.

“No, of course not; you and Sera will have your own rooms. Come spring we will go to visit my parents, and there just might be a wedding.”

Christina felt a fluttering deep down in her gut and a pounding in her chest as her voice became shaky.

“MIKE!! Are you asking me to marry you?”

“Well, not today; but maybe someday.” He answered.

Sera sat in the tent bouncing up and down on her butt as her voice echoed across the camp with excitement.

“YES!!  YES!! YES!!”

Christina could hear a constant giggle coming from the tent and rose to her feet, giving Mike a wink and smile.

“I better go and get her to sleep; goodnight Mike, sweet dreams.”

The morning was perfect for riding as the sun rose above the horizon and they were on their way. Christina and Sera began to sing songs as they rode along anticipating their arrival. Around mid-afternoon Big Red came running down the trail, he ran up to Christina and gave one of his whisper barks. She quickly pulled Blackwall to a halt.

“Someone is up ahead.” She informed Mike.

He kept his slow steady pace up the trail.

“It’s Okay, they are some of my people.” He assured her.

Christina settled Big Red, assuring him everything was fine as four men approached from up the trail, each wearing a gun.

“Boss-man, I’m glad to see your home.” One of the men said.

Christina turned and gave Mike a strange look.

“Boss-man?” She asked.

Mike gave one of his winks and smile as he explained what the man was talking about.

“Yeah, this is my land, my community.”

Houses began to dot the roadside with people waving from their porches. Sera became all excited as the small town came into view and the trail became much wider and well travailed.

“Mom, look; a real town with stores and houses; a school, a real school.” She excitingly exclaimed.

They turned down a long drive lined with tall trees. At the end of the driveway, they saw a big ranch house with a wraparound porch with a porch swing. Behind the house, they could see the huge garden with all kinds of vegetables. Christina and Sera turned and looked at each other and simultaneously said.

“[ HOME ]”

 

 

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

THE BIG PLAN

When the weather began to warm, Christina, Sera, and Mike made the trip to his parents’ house. Mary and Joe were excited to see Christina and fell in love with Sera. In mid-March, Christina and Mike were married, and Sera could not control her giggling as she walked down the aisle while spreading the flowers out onto the ground in front of Christina as she slowly walked beside Joe. Mike and Christina were very surprised that at least thirty people from Mikesville attended their wedding.

Sera now worked as an elementary school teacher, constantly reading. With her photographic memory, she was even tutoring some of the high school students. She was so excited on Christmas day all she could do was sit and cry when Christina delivered her a very special present.

A BABY BROTHER.

Mike had put together a brigade of twenty well-armed men and women to go with him on his trips to gather others to join their town. On long trips, Christina and Sera would insist on going along, and Sera always insisted that her little brother Joshua come with.

After a few years, Christina had all her friends she had met throughout her journey living in Mikesville.

“THE BIG PLAN”

CHRISTINA  WHISPERED.