{"id":329,"date":"2011-06-20T00:00:09","date_gmt":"2011-06-20T04:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=329"},"modified":"2011-06-20T00:00:09","modified_gmt":"2011-06-20T04:00:09","slug":"day-3-chapter-7-03","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=329","title":{"rendered":"Day 3 – Chapter 7 – 03"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Horses.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He was pitching a tent for horses<\/em>.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t working alone, of course.\u00a0 No way in hell could he get one of these big blue and white monsters up without help.\u00a0 But for horses?
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Davon exhaled.\u00a0 Of course he understood the logic\u2014the barn they\u2019d found the horses in was much too far away for them to hike every day to check on them even if it wasn\u2019t in constant danger of collapse, so they\u2019d brought them back to campus, knowing that there were at least two more large tents that they could use.\u00a0 Davon had tried not to feel bewildered when he\u2019d seen the small group of riders leading more horses by their reins trotting up between shattered buildings.\u00a0 He\u2019d even wondered aloud if anyone knew how to take care of horses.\u00a0 One of the camps staffers, Stasia Lane, piped up that she\u2019d grown up around animals all her life and was more than capable of taking care of the dozen horses they\u2019d found.\u00a0 Everything would be fine<\/em>, she\u2019d declared, and with that, Davon had found himself working with a few others to pitch another one of the large tents.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I guess I shouldn\u2019t be too upset, <\/em>he thought glumly.\u00a0 At least this way, we\u2019ve got help with heavy lifting and hauling.<\/em>\u00a0 It was small consolation.\u00a0 He was still in part struggling to understand why no one had shown up to help them, trying not to admit to himself that he already knew the answer\u2014there was no one out there who could<\/em>.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 So he\u2019d pitched in to help, hoping that everything he did would<\/em> be for naught, that all of a sudden the National Guard would show up and take them away from the shattered wreckage of the university, take them to a place where there was still civilization.\u00a0 The more he looked around, though, the more he realized that was never going to happen.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Doesn\u2019t mean I have to be cheerful about the prospect of freezing or starving to death out here.<\/em>\u00a0 When his friends had \u2018picked teams\u2019 for the end of the world, he\u2019d jokingly attached himself to one of them.\u00a0 Now that it seemed that the end had come, he found himself wishing he\u2019d been among the lucky ones to die.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDavon!\u00a0 We\u2019re ready to start getting those walls up.\u00a0 You done with those stakes on that side?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He shook off the morbid thoughts running through his head and cursed under his breath.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, it\u2019s set, Matt,\u201d he called back.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s get those walls up.\u201d\u00a0 He ducked through the center of the tent to help Matt Astoris with the walls.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou had a thousand mile stare going on there for a minute,\u201d Matt observed as they started clipping up the tent\u2019s heavy walls.\u00a0 \u201cYou okay, or should I not ask questions I don\u2019t want to know the answers to?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Davon grimaced.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t sure which one it was.\u00a0 \u201cJust wondering if this is worth it.\u00a0 Hell.\u00a0 Wondering if it\u2019s going to work.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Matt poked his head around the side of the heavy tarp.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s that supposed to mean?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI just\u2026Matt, do you think it\u2019s the end?\u00a0 You think they\u2019re right?\u00a0 That what we\u2019re doing here is a good idea?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s a lot of questions there, Davon.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI know.\u201d\u00a0 Davon shook his head and went back to rigging up the walls.\u00a0 \u201cPart of me thinks it\u2019s crazy and part of me thinks we\u2019re not working toward the long term fast enough.\u00a0 Then another part of me wishes I died with all of those people we buried out by the PAC.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not crazy,\u201d Matt said.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNo, it\u2019s crazy.\u201d\u00a0 They finished with the first tarp Davon headed to grab the next one.\u00a0 \u201cWho the hell could have predicted this shit happening?\u00a0 Who would have imagined it?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMarin did.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Davon made a face.\u00a0 \u201cMarin had a nightmare a few years ago.\u00a0 That\u2019s all it was.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know why we\u2019re all hanging on her every word like it\u2019s gospel.\u201d\u00a0 He paused, watching Matt\u2019s expression darken.\u00a0 \u201cLook, I know she\u2019s your sister and everything, but this is a little nuts.\u00a0 Maybe we should be working harder on finding somewhere else to be than working on building something out of this wreck.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThree days ago, you were all for finding a way to eke out an existence.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThree days ago I was happy the library hadn\u2019t collapsed on us.\u00a0 Now I\u2019m bloody tired.\u201d\u00a0 Davon scrubbed a hand over his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cYou believe them, don\u2019t you?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Matt shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cNot sure what else to think, Davon.\u00a0 She\u2019s my sister.\u00a0 I used to think she was full of crap, but now I\u2019m not sure anymore.\u00a0 You\u2019re right.\u00a0 No one could have predicted this, but she<\/em> did.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Dammit.\u00a0 I was afraid he\u2019d say that.<\/em>\u00a0 \u201cAnd then the world ended, and now we\u2019re setting up a tent for a bunch of horses.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Matt managed a wry smile.\u00a0 \u201cAnd probably supplies, too.\u00a0 Horses won\u2019t take up the whole space.\u00a0 One of the groups is trying to hotwire one of those trucks out by the new apartments they were going to build so they can haul the wood and bricks over here.\u00a0 Rory thinks he can get it pretty close.\u201d\u00a0 Matt hauled the tarp up toward the lines hanging underneath the tent\u2019s roof flap and held it there while Davon started clipping the wall into place.\u00a0 \u201cIf the National Guard was coming, we\u2019d know by now.\u00a0 If there was something else out there, we\u2019d know by now.\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head a little.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve been fiddling with the radio at night.\u00a0 There\u2019s nothing out there, Davon.\u00a0 Nothing but static.\u201d\u00a0 The other man swallowed and shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI really think we\u2019re on our own.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYour professional opinion, huh?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Matt shrugged a little.\u00a0 \u201cSuch as it is.\u00a0 Don\u2019t you think that we\u2019d have heard something<\/em> by now, even if it\u2019s just an emergency broadcast signal?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He hated to admit it, but Matt was probably right.\u00a0 That didn\u2019t make it any easier to stomach.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s forty of us, Matt.\u00a0 How\u2019re we going to pull this off?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhat we\u2019re doing right now is a start,\u201d Matt said, coming around the edge of the wall as they finished getting it up into place.\u00a0 He started knotting off the overlaps.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cCan we start bringing them in, Davon?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It was Stasia\u2019s voice.\u00a0 She held one of the horses by its bridle, already unsaddled, tail swishing lazily back and forth, standing near the edge of the wall they\u2019d put up, the open edge that faced the tents on the hill. \u00a0Davon considered for a moment, then nodded.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYeah, start bringing them in.\u00a0 Don\u2019t tie them to anything of the tent, though.\u00a0 We\u2019ll have to figure something else out to make sure they stay put.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Stasia smiled.\u00a0 \u201cWe can drive a few stakes into the ground and tie them off, I think, though when the weather turns again, I think these guys\u2019ll be happy not to be out in it.\u201d\u00a0 She patted the horse\u2019s cheek.\u00a0 The horse stared at Davon and he felt a strange tickle at the back of his mind.\u00a0 He stared back at it for a moment, then the horse nickered and tossed its head a little.\u00a0 She let go and the horse edged forward, nudging Davon with its nose.\u00a0 Stasia laughed.\u00a0 \u201cI think she likes you.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A sense of gratitude spread through Davon, though he didn\u2019t know where it had come from\u2014certainly not from him.\u00a0 He smiled back at Stasia.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced toward Matt, who was waiting for him.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019d better finish getting those walls up.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Stasia nodded.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll leave you to it.\u00a0 I\u2019ll grab someone to come drive those stakes for us.\u00a0 Is it okay if we set these guys up at the far end?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 Need us to leave access back there, too?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWould be nice,\u201d Stasia said, then led the horse away.\u00a0 Davon headed back over to Matt.|
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou okay?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Davon nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 Let\u2019s get back to work.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Matt nodded in agreement.\u00a0 Davon took a breath and exhaled it slowly.\u00a0 The feeling of gratitude was fading.\u00a0 Where had it come from?\u00a0 Stasia?\u00a0 She didn\u2019t seem that grateful.\u00a0 He mopped his brow with his sleeve.\u00a0 No time for it now.\u00a0 Probably imagining things.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Yep, that\u2019s it.\u00a0 Imagining things.<\/em><\/p>\n

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\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Horses. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He was pitching a tent for horses. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t working alone, of course.\u00a0 No way in hell could he get one of these big blue and white monsters up without help.\u00a0 But for horses? \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Davon … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-329","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chapter-7","category-day-3"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1EBlN-5j","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=329"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=329"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=329"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=329"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}