Chapter 2

I watched her for a few days and noticed that after going through the house and finding nothing she would venture out at night, but was always back before light. She would check the windows constantly and slept in the crawlspace of the attic during the day. She was gaunt and I knew she was near starvation but she was running and I was afraid whatever she was running from might be coming here.

I knew it was time for me to take some kind of action, but I also knew it wasn’t just up to me anymore. I sat with the girls and let them know the score. There was a mix of reactions but the biggest was the fear of opening the front door. They were all rightly afraid that if I opened it there would be signs of where it was. I was surprised that they had thought of that and it showed a desire to survive.

I told them that we needed to know the status of the outer world and she seemed the least threatening of all the possibilities we had seen up till now. I let them know I had a safe way to leave and find out more, but there was still the possibility that something could happen. We had been a year without outside contact and not knowing had been in the backs of everyone’s minds.

Mora of course was the strongest voice in the room. “We do need to know what is going on. We need to know what has happened and Dave is smart enough to deal with this. If he thinks he can get out and learn from her, then he should.” She took a deep breath. “What is hardest for me is leaving anyone in that world when we are safe down here.” Yep, that was the hardest question.

“Girls, it’s my call. This is our house and we all have a vote but in the end it’s my responsibility. What do you all think?” The twins were guarded but told me it was up to me. Ellen said she didn’t like brining in anyone. Bobby thought about it and was more for helping her out but sending her away. Then Mora looked me in the eyes. “You know what we have, how much we can stress the system, and the dangers better than we do. I will stand by whatever you think.”

Then it was time to share my last and greatest secret. The girls looked at the bolt hole and were shocked to know I had the ability to bring so much death. I decided to leave the car inside and just walk the distance to the house. I armed myself with both lethal and non-lethal weapons and a large pack of food. I kissed all the girls and knew that as soon as I had left they would be in my room watching.

It was just after sunset that I left my home and breathed unfiltered air. It was still cool, but tasteless after living with so much growth and life in our little Eden. I was ultra-careful heading to the house. I kept a watchful eye on everything, not trusting the silence at all. I slid into the house from a side entrance and crept through the house looking for my squatter.

She must have dodged into her hideaway when I came in so I took a defensive position nearby and waited. When she didn’t come out I decided to make my move. “I know your hiding in the attic girl. Come down and let’s talk.” Nothing moved. “You’re wearing a blue cap and a cammo poncho. This was my house and I know when someone is here. You can come out and talk, have a bite to eat, or I can leave you here. It’s up to you.”

It took a little while but I heard the ladder drop as darkness began to fill the house. Her outline appeared but the light glinting off a blade told me she was smart. “Who are you?” She asked in a small voice. “My name is Dave Bussard. This is my house, or it was before the fall.” She came in and sat down, but well outside of my reach.

“You said you had food.” I slid over a sealed MRE and waited. I watched as she fought the urge to eat over the urge to survive a threat. A slash of her blade and soon she was eating like a starved animal. “I came to talk to you. I’ve been hiding in the hills and haven’t heard about what’s going on down here. What can you tell me?”

“Talk quieter. The army has listening dishes hidden all over. They are looking for escapers.” OK that didn’t bode well. “Who are you?” She looked at me warily. “My name’s Mary Johnson. I used to live in town but my mom and dad took us all to the “refugee camp” the army set up. When people stopped coming in we all learned it was really what dad called a concentration camp.” This perked up my ears.

She sat there and her story came out slowly and with pain. Her family had gone to one of these camps. Soon afterwards the truth was shown. Forced labor for all under the guise of working for the betterment of all. Only that’s not what it really was. The government was using people to rebuild, but it was at the end of a gun. Food was scarce and those who didn’t work didn’t get fed. Those who argued were taken away and never came back.

I learned that she was just turning sixteen and she had an older sister. Not long after the truth came out her older sister had been taken away. They learned later that women over fifteen were being sorted out and then shipped off to “relief” camps for the military and a few others. I was surprised that was going on but not that much. The Japanese had done the same thing and so had the soviets. History was full of that kind of thing when you look at it.

“Mom and dad talked to a man at our camp. He told them that there might be a way for me to survive but that it was a slim chance. He said that if I came here and waited I might be taken to a place that was safe like his daughter.” Oh shit. Someone was sinking the boat for me and the girls. “Don’t worry. He’s not telling everyone.” She looked at the empty packages on the floor in front of her. “He used to work with my mom at the school.” Her voice began to get tight. “He said Rissa was alive and hiding in the hills with a friend of his. She was my best friend and I miss her.”

Well I felt my heart twisting in my chest. This girl was close to Rissa and Jess. “Mister if you know where she and her sister are please help me.” She told me as she fought the tears. “How did you get away from camp?” The girl curled up a little. “There are ways if your smart and have what it takes. The guards let some people escape so the trackers can keep sharp.” So that was what I had seen before, Trackers.

“How did you get away from the trackers?” She told me the man had told her where to hide and how to hide. She had slept in small drainage pipes at night and hid in other ones the whole way here. She had been tracked for days but after a week they seemed to have given up. She did what she was told and had headed in first one direction and then in another till they stopped looking. Only after they stopped looking was she to head toward the cabin.

“Well you found me, but I’m not sure what to do with you.” She looked at me with scared eyes. “But Mr. Dallas told me that you would take me to Rissa.” She had panic in her voice. “And I might, but you have to understand the situation I’m in. I don’t have a lot of food, and the more mouths the less food. Also I don’t know if you’re really who you say you are. You could be a trap from the soldiers sent to bring me and the others in.”

She began to panic. “But ... why would I do that to my best friend?” I shrugged. “To save a parent, or maybe get your sister back. They could be promising food or better conditions. There are a million ways to get someone to betray a friend or even family. What I risk is taking you to the people I care about and betraying their trust.”

She nodded but curled into a small ball. I had an idea but it would strain the bonds I had built up already. I pulled out a little gizmo I had prepared. “Here’s a chance.” I said and waved the little wand up for her to see. “I want you to standup and strip to the skin.” She looked at me with suspicion but did as I asked. She stood in the cool night air in just her panties and glared at me. I waved the wand over her body and got nothing from it. I hit a button that sent a wideband signal and still nothing from her. I waved her over to the side and one piece at a time I went over her clothes the same way. Nothing. She was clean of any bugs or tacking devices.

“Is this all you have with you?” she shook her head. After scrambling upstairs she came back with a small sack. I waved my wand over the contents and still nothing, but when I hit the signal I got one back. I looked at her but she didn’t seem to know what that meant. “You were bugged. Want to explain?” she looked at the small stuffed animal I held in my hand. “I got it from another girl at the camp. I’ve had it for months.” She seemed scared and looked out the window. “Trackers are still out there.” She said with a fear that couldn’t be faked.

I looked the toy over and couldn’t see anything that looked new. I tore it apart and found a small, cheap signal repeater. You would have to be close to trigger it and when I thought about it hiding in drainage ditches might have blocked the signal to and from it. No wonder Dallas had told her to sleep in them. She may be a trap, but maybe an unwilling one. Damn it all there was just too many variables and too much risk. I found an envelope which she grabbed away from me. “It’s mine.” I held out my hand and she placed it there still glaring. There was nothing in it but a letter so I gave it back to her unread.

“Get dressed. I will give you the benefit of a doubt this once but if you disobey me I will leave you to whatever fate you made, understand? She nodded as she dressed in front of me. I took the small toy and bagged it in a Mylar static bag. This should keep any radiations coming to or from it. “Get in the attic and stay there.” I pulled out food and few ziplock bags. “Eat this slowly it will be all you have for a few days. These bags are for your waste, as in poo and pee. Do it in them and keep them sealed up. Don’t come out of the attic for any reason, if you do I will know and you will never seem me again. Understand?” she just nodded.

I packed up and prepared for the worst. “Get up there, I will be back if everything works out right.” Then I headed out. Now I was going to be playing a very dangerous game. If I was under satellite surveillance it was already too late. If this toy was all they were using then there was a chance they would follow it. If they had given up, and she was telling the truth, then all of this was just a precaution.

I headed across my property and into the hills. I knew a few caves up here and they would make convincing hideouts. I hid her toy in one and then took up a roost in another. I prepared myself for a fight and waited. After two days nothing happened. The third night I snuck home and slipped in to find Mora waiting for me. She jumped into my arms and she kissed me like I had been gone for months not days.

We got reacquainted and headed up to talk to the others. I got a similar welcome from the others and then told them the story of what was going on. Rissa asked a few questions and told me all about the girl. It hurt to know that the girl had been honest about their friendship, it would be harder for me to leave her there if I had to.

I went to the computer and saw that Mary hadn’t left the Attic the whole time and I figured if something was going to happen it would have already happened. We all sat down to talk about what we were going to do. It took a while but we decided to go with a combination of plans to get her here and do it safely.

First I had to catch a few small critters and drain them. It was a sick thing to do but it would save a girl’s life. Then I went back to talk to Mary. I told her what the general plan was and she agreed to it. When we left the cabin it looked like she had been shot and then carried away. We went to my previous hideout, and stayed there for two days. I left her things tossed about as if to look for something valuable and then came the hardest part. I used a few chemicals to mix up a little batch of inhalant anesthetic.

In other words I knocked her out and carried her home. We went in the bolt hole but she was asleep and never knew about Eden. We would do to her what I had done to the girls. Until we knew the truth of her we would only let her know about the bunker. Rissa looked at her for a little while and then both Jess and Rissa smiled at me and hugged me tight. “It’s Mary, it really is Mary.” I sat down and we talked about who she was and I learned a little more about the girl.

Both of the twins were sitting with her when she started to come around. Seeing a concrete ceiling and electric lights must have freaked her out. She sat up and looked around her franticly till she saw the twins smiling at her. Her face caved in and she threw herself into their arms sobbing and shaking. They all held onto each other while the twins looked at me in confusion.

I sat next to them and smiled at the girls. “Mary is just glad to find the two of you. She’s been through a lot and has seen way too much for a girl your age.” Then the girls understood and held her till she calmed down. When she did she looked around in awe. The twins gave her a guided tour of the place with full knowledge that she was to be kept in the dark about the rest.

We were glad to have helped the girl but everyone was a little pouty about having to stay in the bunker. They had gotten used to the freedom of the cave, the ability to do so much, that when they had to spend all their time upstairs everyone seemed to be a little in the dumps. After a few week of that the girls began to sneak down after lights out to just go down and breathe for a while.

Another thing that took some adjustment was the alternating evenings with me. Mary kept her mouth shut when it was the other girls turn, but when the twins left her alone the first time she got freaked out about it. The next morning after breakfast she pulled Rissa into the bedroom and they were in there for a while.

The door flew open and Rissa came out looking upset while Mary followed but was looking uncomfortable. We were all sitting around the TV when Rissa came over and sat in my lap. Mary stood there looking even more uncomfortable. “Dave, Mary thinks you are making us all go sleep with you.” Poor Mary just seemed to shrink in on herself.

“Rissa, why are you embarrassing your friend like this?” She looked at me, startled that I would be confronting her and not Mary. “What do you mean?” I shook my head at Rissa. “I mean that she asked you in private what was going on. She is probably afraid that I am doing something here like what happened to her sister.” Rissa just looked at me funny.

She looked at Mary. “What happened to Janey?” Mary just looked sad. I realized she hadn’t told them what happened to her sister. I took a deep breath and then patted the couch next to me. Mary sat down but with room between us. “Mary’s sister was taken away from her family. She was old enough to be sent off to work in what is called a joy house. It’s a place soldiers go to have sex with prisoners.”

The girls all looked at me in shock. “You mean she’s a prostitute?” Ellen asked and Mary glared at her. “No honey, a prostitute does it for money. Her sister was sent to a place where she is forced to have sex if she wants to eat, not be beaten, or even killed.” Ellen went over to Mary and knelt on the floor. “I didn’t know.” she said apologetically. They held hands and smiled at each other sadly.

I looked at Rissa. “She came here because her family didn’t want her to be sent to one of those places. She went through a lot to get here to be safe and she was worried she wasn’t. She was afraid she was going to be forced to sleep with me too.” Mora came over and sat on Mary’s other side. “You are safe here Mary. We all take turns sleeping in Dave’s bed for comfort. We all began to miss our families and he is like a second dad to all of us.”

She smiled at me and Mary just looked at her. “Then with time it felt different, at least with me. I stopped wanting a dad and needed something more. I needed a different kind of love. It took us all a while to convince Dave about it, but eventually he began to give all of us the love we needed.” Mary looked at me and then at her hands.

Bobby came over and sat on the floor in front of her. “He would never hurt you or make you do anything.” She smiled at me with real love in her eyes. “He’s too loving to do that.” Jess was leaning over the back of the couch and rested her head on my shoulder. “He took us in when he could have said no to our families. He shared his safety and his life with us. He protects us, feeds us, and loves us. And we feel the same way towards him.”

Ellen smiled at me. “He’s patient and never demands anything from us. He understands us and gives us everything he has to make us happy.” She reached out with her free hand and took mine off of Rissa’s leg. “He saved is all in a lot of different ways.”

Mary looked at me, but I was too busy looking at all my girls. I never knew they felt so much love towards me. I loved them all with all of my heart after a year of being together, but I had no idea they felt the same towards me. “That’s why I couldn’t understand what you meant Mary.” Rissa spoke up. “I’m sorry I embarrassed you. I should have thought about it, but I just couldn’t imagine Dave being like that.”

Mary looked at me funny and then she wrapped her arms around me and held me tight. She started crying and I sat there rubbing her back and letting her know I was here for her. Then the others each seemed to take a part of her body and either just touched her, or stroked the arm, or leg they were touching. Everyone was there for her and wanted her to know we were a family in this place.

When Mary had been with us for a month and grew comfortable I began to interrogate her, but I did it subtly. Just small questions about what was going on and what it was like outside. Then a bomb dropped in my lap. Mary came to me one afternoon when everyone was playing video games and gave me the letter. “Rissa’s dad gave this to me. He told me to keep it till I was sure things were right.”

I opened the stained envelope and pulled the paper out.

*Dave, I send this letter and a little girl for you to take care of. I can’t tell you how bad things are because I don’t have the words. The war was nothing like the hell we live in out here. The army is now just a collection of desperate men who will do anything to stay in power. Civilians are just slave labor now and kept in line with fear and death. They say it is a temporary situation, but I have a feeling that it isn’t

I don’t know what else to say but to stay hidden for as many years as possible. Don’t come out and don’t trust anyone. You and the girl’s secret are safe and will stay that way. I’m the last of us who came to you that day. This winter did its best to make sure you were all safe. Mary is a good girl but I am only giving her general direction to your house, and that will be just before she leaves and can’t tell anyone else. She doesn’t know when or if you will find her but I hope you do. Stay safe and keep our children free.*

I held that letter in my hand and felt tears burning my eyes. All those people dead. I could see their relived faces in my head as they walked away from my house after leaving the girls. The last smiles as they waved goodbye for the last time. I never knew them well but they were family to me now. “He told me that you would take me in and keep me safe. My parents told me that if the other girls trusted in you I should too.”

The girl sank to the floor and looked at the tears in my eyes and she began to shed them too. “My mom hugged me and whispered in my ear that they wanted part of them to live on and be safe.” Her eyes bored into mine. “Am I safe?” I sank to the floor and took her hand in mine. “If you want to be safe, if you want to stay here till I say, then we are and always will be safe.”

Her voice cracked and she sobbed. “I know this is my home now. When they didn’t catch me the solders will go after my parents. This is all I have now.” I pulled her into my arms and she cried like her heart was being ripped out. Mora came to the door looking worried and saw what was going on. She nodded to me and then left.

A few days later I was surprised when I went to bed and found Mary curled up on her side looking at me. I didn’t say anything I just stripped to my shorts and slid into bed. I lifted my arm up and she curled up against me.

I saw how she was adapting and brought Mora into my thoughts. I told her I was thinking of opening the rest of the complex up to Mary and Mora smiled. “I think it will be good for her to know just how safe she is here. It will also be great for the others because we are all going a little stir crazy.” We went into the living room and I called out to everyone. “Hey, who wants to go for a swim?” There was a cheer from everyone but a curious look from Mary.

Everyone grabbed a towel and Karis threw one to Mary who caught it and followed in curiosity. When we went down the stairs and through into Eden Mary reacted like everyone else the first time. I stood behind her and put a hand on her shoulder. “Mary, welcome to Eden.” She took my hand and we began the walk to the pool. By the time we got there everyone was naked and splashing in the water. She looked at me and I just waved her forwards.

She stripped but as she headed to the water she looked at me and blushed at me seeing her young naked form. I headed off and let the girls have fun while going back to check on how things were going. Without the girls down here to do much of the work I knew we would need to catch up on what needed to be done.

There was something I had forgotten in this little heaven that would have spelled doom for me if the girls weren’t here. Bugs. More importantly insects to pollinate the plants effectively. I had even started calling the girls my ladybugs when they were going from plant to plant with swabs to cross pollinate all the flowering plants. This was an incredibly critical job and I was proud of the job the girls had done. Almost every flower became a fruit thanks to them.

We had enough food now that more and more of the crops we had were now being let go to seed so we would have food for years if not decades. Between freeze drying and freezing we were doing great on vegetable mass. I went over to the ponds to check on the fish and was glad to see the development of them all. The girls had been doing a great job of netting enough fish to keep things doing great. Mora told me that she was even slipping a fish from one pond to the other to keep the genetic pool varied.

I had done a lot of planning in a short amount of time and now that I stood in my cavern filled with light and life so I felt good. I hated that the world outside was falling apart at the seams, but down here we were working hard to maintain life in so many varieties. Just then then I heard the girls laughing as they got out of the pools and I knew the future down here had a real chance.

It had been half a year since Mary came to us and things had been strained for a while but were doing better now. We had a lot of pain in our home when it was discovered that everyone but Dallas had died in that first winter. I couldn’t keep this from them, I knew they had to be told, but it wasn’t easy. I was going to break it to them alone, but then I remembered we were a family and we would face it like one.

I brought the letter out and after I had read it we all sat down on the living room floor together. I told them we had news of the outside and read it out loud to them all. The twins held hands but didn’t show much. Ellen looked happy her dad was alive, but then felt the pain of the others loss. Mora laid her head in my lap and began to sob, but it was Bobby’s reaction that shocked me the most.

She sat there looking at me and then she calmly began to comfort the others. We all had our own ways of coping, tears, anger, or just the need to be alone for a while. I worked with all the girls at some point to help them through this but when I finally had time alone with Bobby I asked her how she was dealing with it all.

I was slipping into bed with her and she cuddled up with me as was her want. I held her tight and asked her. “Bobby, all the girls have had a hard time with this news, and I am so proud of how much you have helped the others. But I’m worried that you haven’t had much time to deal with this, can I help?” She leaned up and gave me a sweet kiss on the cheek. “You already have Dave. When my parents left it was kind of a given that I wouldn’t see them again.”

I looked into her eyes in the dim light but there was just love facing me. “They talked about it with me, they told me that things were already bad and that was why they were leaving me with you. They knew we wouldn’t be seeing each other again and so did I. That night, when you accepted me as a girl meant so much to me. It told me that there was someone left in this world who knew what I was and loved me anyway.”

She leaned down and kissed me gently. “That night you helped me bury my parents with love and joy in my heart. That night I laid them to rest and knew they had made the right decision.” Then she pulled back and laid her head on my chest. Her warmth and closeness filled me with comfort I hadn’t known I needed after everything else that had gone on. She actually helped me deal with a burden I hadn’t realized I had been carrying. That night I slept well for the first time since Mary showed me that letter.

It was also about that point when everyone but me stopped caring about the world. Well about the outside world I should say. I still checked things out to make sure it was safe for us above. No one ever came to the cabin after Mary got here. None of the approaches to the cabin or the mine ever showed any kind of incursion other than medium sized animals. I came to the conclusion that the new world order had made sure that anyone out there was being captured or killed.

Mary slowly got used to the life inside. It took some time for her to get used to how we did things but before you knew it she was running around in a wrap top and panties like the others. There was still a sadness in her eyes at times but she had become used to our life here.

I was shocked none the less when I crawled into bed with her one night and as she cuddled up with me as she always was. She crawled up my side and with a smile leaned in and kissed me. It was a small kiss, but more than she had done before. “You know I come to bed with you to see what you will do don’t you?” I nodded. “I’ve been wanting to know if I can trust you.” I nodded again. “I know.”

Mary rested her chin on me and looked into my eyes. “You’ve hugged me, and slept next to me.” I saw pain pass over her face. “You were there to hold me when I cried about my mom and dad.” Her eyes looked sad but hopeful. “Do you love me Dave?” I reached out and stroked a stray hair from her face. “I think I am starting to. You already seem like a part of our little family here.”

She smiled and laid her head down on me. “Do you really love all these girls? I mean do you love any more than another?” That made me pause but in a good way. “I love Mora for her strength and guidance, I love Ellen for her soft heart and warm smile, I love Jess for her spark and energy, and I love Karis for her calm and her ability to look beyond the face of something to find the heart, and I love Bobby for her ability to be so steady. “ I nodded to Mary. “So yes I do love each of them. For who they are and how they create a balance in our family.”

Mary looked away for a moment lost in thought. “Is there anything I can even add to what you have?” she said in a small voice, uncertain of herself. “Mary, you can add yourself. You are a part of this family as much as any. You have already worked hard to ensure we survive down here. I have watched you work hard, I have watched the care you show for everything and everyone.”

She still seemed unsure of herself. “I never told anyone, but there was a man. We had been in the camp for a long time and winter had just arrived. People were already starving, freezing, dying. He was one of us, but he was in charge of giving out things like food and wood. I had seen women try to buy him with sex and stuff but he always laughed at them.”

Mary curled up a little on her side but she still laid her head on me, looking me in the eyes. “Then I saw him giving another cabin extra stuff. I wondered why but that night I saw him go back to that cabin. He left with a girl that was about my age. I stayed up all night waiting and then I saw her come back. She was walking funny and seemed sad.”

She took a deep breath. “The next time he came with stuff I asked if we could have more wood. He looked around real quick and asked what I had to give him for it. “Me” was all I said. He smiled as he handed me an extra bag of food and threw down an extra bundle of wood.” She took a long sad breath. “For the rest of the winter I would wait at night for a small knock on the back door. I would slip away and let him do things to me. Sometimes it hurt, sometimes there would be other men. But my family never knew, no one knew.”

I pulled her tight to me and stroked her back. “I sold myself to keep my family alive.” She began to cry against me. “So that’s what you thought I was doing here, hurting the girls so they could stay.” She nodded. “I know you don’t, but I can’t stop thinking about it. When I lay next to you I can still smell him, feel him touching me.” I felt her hot tears against my skin. “I want to be loved. I don’t want him in my head anymore. I want to forget it ever happened.” She sobbed against my side.