Chapter 23

Day 197 - December 4

Until Syl had become pregnant, she had always been one of the first ones to get up. After she had gotten pregnant, she had started sleeping later. Now, it was always Evie and me and usually Della who shared our morning snuggle.

Evie is always a delight to snuggle and talk with. She wakes up bright eyed and ready to talk about anything. Della on the other hand is there physically, but doesn't say much for the first half hour or so. She usually puts her arms around me and buries her head in my neck while trying to push her substantial breasts through my chest.

Evie is more inclined to kiss and nibble as we talk. This morning we were talking about what we might expect to find at the naval station.

"You know, Love, I'm almost afraid to meet anyone who was in command of a ship," Evie said.

"I have the same feelings, but tell me why you feel that way."

"Well... Advancement in the military is very competitive. The percentage of officers who don't care about advancement is very small. Say you have an Admiral in the navy. He's used to commanding thousands of men and women. If he finds himself in a position where he thinks his command may be the major portion of the people left on earth, he may just decide that since he is in command of them, he should be in command of everyone."

"I can see that. In fact I was talking with Homer about that last night. Even if that's not the case, he might feel that anyone he isn't in command of should be supporting the people he is in command of. In other words, he may try to tax civilians to support them. Taxes would probably take the form of fresh produce or something like that," I said.

"Yeah, I figure a military commander has two choices. He can realize that there is no longer a United States and tell his people to disperse and take care of themselves, or he can try to keep his command together. If he keeps them together, he has to either go through what we're going through and try to get a self sustaining community going, or he can try to take what he wants from people who have become self sufficient."

"So, what do you think that means to us?"

"From the navy, I'm not sure. We're quite a ways inland. With their weapons and their numbers, they could probably take us over easily, but would it be worthwhile? For us to be of real value to them, they'd have to move us closer or they'd have to transport the food a long way. That is if they wanted to stay on or near their ship. If they decided to move where we are then we'd be in real trouble. They'd probably want us to provide housing as well as food."

"You're painting a grim picture," I told her.

"I know. It's all conjecture. They could be as docile as lambs. They could decide to split up where everyone is on their own. They could form groups, either peaceful of otherwise. Who knows. I think mostly it depends on the commander."

The whole time Evie and I had been talking, Della had remained quiet. I had been holding her and stroking her back. Now, she decided to join the conversation. "I think contacting anyone in the military is dangerous. I can see where having more men in the village would be advantageous, but I'm afraid they'd just try to take over."

"That worries me too, Della. It's not that I'm afraid of not being in charge. I do have a dream though of how I want our village to evolve and I'm afraid that would be lost under military rule."

"So, what are you saying?" Evie asked.

"I'm saying I'd like to find out if any ships have visited Norfolk since IT happened, but I'm not interested in making contact with them. I don't want to leave any traces that we've been here," I said.

"I can understand that," Evie said. "We'll just have to be careful not to leave any traces."

Before long, Jim, Fred, Nat and Homer came in, so I sent Della to wake up Tina. Tina wandered out, got herself some coffee, and claimed a place on my lap while Della and Evie started breakfast.

"So, guys," I said. "Evie, Della and I have been talking about some of the consequences of making contact with a military force. We don't know for sure what would happen, but we don't feel it is advisable to take the chance."

"I think we've all been thinking about that," Jim said. "So, how are we going to handle this?"

"I think we need to go in and look around. We need to try to determine if anyone has been either at the naval station or the naval air station since IT happened, but we don't want to leave any tracks. There could have been looters here, or a ship could have come in and gone, or a ship could still be here. If there is a ship here or there are people here, get out immediately."

"Okay, that makes sense," Homer said. "If there is anyone chasing you, head in the opposite direction from the RVs. We can make contact later by CB."

"Good idea, Homer."

The naval station was almost a letdown. We explored the docks and saw several ships tied up to them. Using binoculars, we watched each ship, looking for any movement, but saw none. When we were sure there was no one within sight, we explored the stores areas.

The one thing we did find of interest was a notice posted on one of the buildings.

Captain Jacob Roberts
USS John C. Stennis

To whom it may concern:

The USS John C. Stennis was in dock for provisioning on November 1st. We will return to this station on March 1st. Contact us on emergency frequency 5.

Civilians are warned to stay away from this station.

"Do you have any idea what kind of ship the USS John C. Stennis is, Homer?" I asked.

"I have no idea. Maybe Glen would know. He was in the navy. Betty French was too."

"Good idea. I don't think we're going to find anything else around here, guys. Let's get back to the RVs.

It was around 2:00 PM when Jim's group got back from the air station. They had managed to find a little more than we had.

"There were at least three planes we believe were flown in here after IT happened," Jim told us. "I'm not sure what kind of planes they are. They look to be two seated fighter planes. There's also one of those big jobbies that has the big radar antenna on the top. I'm not sure if it came in before or after IT."

"I wonder where they could have come from," I said. "We'll probably never know."

Tina came out of the RV and came over and sat on my lap. "Glen didn't know about the USS John C. Stennis," she said. "Betty did though. It is the ship she was on leave from when IT happened. It is a nuclear powered aircraft carrier."

"Wow! That means a crew of over three thousand, at least," I said.

"Yeah, they're like a city that floats on water," Homer said. "Maybe Betty can tell us something about the Captain. We'll be better off if we know everything we can find out about him."

"You're right, Homer," Jim said. "Did anyone put up any signs around Norfolk?"

Everyone talked it over and none of us could remember putting any signs up within ten miles or so of town. "I don't think we should put up any when we leave in the morning," Jim said. "These guys are probably going to stay close to the station when they're in port, at least for the next time or two they come in. After that, we'll have already had our Knoxville meeting and it won't matter if they see signs or not."

Tina had been looking very thoughtful and now she spoke up again. "Maybe we should get Betty to meet us somewhere so we could pick her brain about the ship. I imagine what they're doing is visiting all of the ports and major cities up and down the east coast, looking for survivors. That's what I'd be doing anyway. Betty might have a better insight."

"That makes sense," I said. "I was thinking of heading for Raleigh tomorrow. It's less than two hundred miles. We could plan to stay at the Raleigh-Durham airport tomorrow night. They could meet us there."

"I'll go get them on the radio," Tina said. Then she kissed me until my toes curled and went inside the RV.

Della had been standing around on the fringes of the group. Now, she decided that Tina's absence was a good excuse for claiming my lap. She snuggled in and gave me a big smile, so I kissed her on the forehead and hugged her close.

I couldn't help but notice that Bell, Brenda, Tessa, and Patty had pulled up chairs close to Homer. I whispered to Della, "Homer's in deep trouble."

Della giggled and hugged me. "I think someone else is in deep trouble, but he just doesn't know it yet," she whispered.

"Who is that?" I asked quietly.

"You. I think it's time I became your wife instead of your daughter."

"You're not afraid any more?"

"You've been touching my pussy for a few days now. I don't get afraid, I just get wet."

"Yes, I've noticed a puddle on my leg a few times," I grinned.

Della pulled back then hit me on the shoulder. She leaned back in and gave me a five-alarm kiss. When we broke apart, I asked in a whisper, "Have you talked to my wives about this?"

Della nodded her head and whispered, "They all agree it's time. I love you, Ed, and I love all of them as well. I think I've found what I was looking for in life. It's not like the little girl dreams I had, but it is much better."

"I'm just sorry you had to go through everything you went through," I told her. "I think I fell in love with you the day I met you. You were so brave signaling Tina that something was wrong. Then, even though I'm sure you were as afraid as Bev was, you were the first to volunteer to testify against Blackstone. I fell in love with your courage, then later on with the beautiful young woman who had that courage."

"I didn't and don't feel courageous, Ed. I was afraid of being alone and I was afraid of being with people. I was especially afraid of men. You and our family helped me get over those fears. I could have stayed back at the village while you guys went on this trip. I just didn't want to."

"I'll have to admit, I didn't want you to either. Neither did any of our wives. Every one of us loves you, Della. Every one of us wants you with us."

"So, when do you want to do this?" Della asked.

"Do what? Play with your pussy?"

Della pulled back and hit me on the shoulder again. "No, dummy. When do you want to marry me?"

"I think you should talk to my wives about that."

Della kissed me again, then bounced off of my lap and ran into the RV.

"So, what were you two being so secretive about?" Bell asked.

"We were discussing the possibility of Della becoming my wife instead of my daughter, Bell."

Bell was grinning from ear to ear when she asked, "I take it she's all for that?"

"Yeah, I was perfectly content with her being my daughter, but I'm definitely not opposed to her as a wife."

Bell giggled then looked over at Homer. "Is it okay to make our announcement now, Homey?"