October 3 — Wednesday — evening
Mitch and Kelly had eaten supper at an inexpensive restaurant near light number eighteen. Even though the daytime had been warm the temperature had turned much cooler as they left.
When they arrived at her cabin and Kelly unlocked the front door, Perra zoomed outside with scarcely a pause to sniff the recent diners. Usually she took several deep whiffs and one could imagine her ticking off the menu items which had been consumed. But that night, Perra had urgent business to tend to down in the dry creek bed to the east. No doubt some groundhog had waddled from Point A to Point B.
Once they got inside, Mitch started to sit in the recliner.
“Oh, before you get too comfortable, could you help me haul my trash can out to the curb?”
“Way out there? That’s over two hundred feet!”
“Probably more. But the exercise will do you good after all you ate.” Kelly winked. “Plus, I’ll have to drag it otherwise.”
“Okay, but it’ll cost you a kiss.”
“First let me see how strong you are.” She gathered a small plastic bag from the kitchen to add to the large container.
The forty-gallon can was kept outside, right next to the rear steps. Kelly taking one handle and Mitch the other, they slowly made their way north along the whitish gravel driveway toward Butler Cemetery Road.
Perra had returned from her urgent business and zoomed at them in the darkness. She quickly took her protective position about a dozen feet in front of them.
About half way, they switched sides. At the corner, they placed the trash can with a loud smack. Kelly rocked the container slightly to move it back a little and the sharp-edged gravel scraped the bottom aggressively.
“Kelly, for most folks, a trip to their curb is about thirty feet.”
“I’m not like most folks. Or haven’t you noticed?”
“Oh, I’ve noticed all right.” He reached for her, but she dodged in the darkness. Mitch came back around and captured her in a clumsy embrace.
“You realize that hugging outdoors is really invigorating?” She was breathing faster than normal.
“I’m just as randy indoors, without all the gross smells from the cattle yard next door.”
“You’re impossible, Mitch.” Abruptly, she pointed. “Let’s go up there a minute.”
“I’m not traipsing up in your graveyard again.”
“No. Just up this little hill.” She started walking and Mitch followed. “It’s peaceful up here at night. Look at the fields and the lights over there.” She pointed north and then east. “This little summit is about the highest place on Pop’s ninety-nine acres. We’re level with the top of my cabin from here.”
Mitch sufficiently enjoyed the night view, but he kept looking at Kelly. The last quarter moonlight barely allowed him to see her face but it nicely silhouetted her figure, even with her short jacket.
“You know, I realize I’m just renting here, but I wonder what it’d feel like if there were barbarians about to break down my gate. Did you hear that part of Miss Dottie’s interview?”
Mitch nodded but Kelly wouldn’t have been able to see his face since the moon crescent was behind him.
“I wonder what I’d do. Whether I’d fight.”
“Might depend on the odds.” Mitch’s mind was really on something else.
“Before World War II, America had such a small army and our navy was unbelievably weak. Those were terrible odds. But we — well, they — hunkered down and did what it took to mobilize.”
Both were silent for a few moments.
Mitch looked up at the bright stars in the black sky and then back at Kelly. “So what do you think you’d do? I know you wouldn’t just walk up the ramp to a cattle car.”
“Impossible to say what you’d do until you’re faced with the actual decision.” Kelly shuddered, but not from the cold. “But no, I don’t think I’d go nicely. I’d like to think I’d put up a fight of some kind. But I’m afraid my overwhelming tendency would be to run, just try to get away if I could.”
“Escape and evasion. That’s a form of fighting back.”
“But not the same as Miss Dottie was talking about — make the barbarians invest in their gains. Don’t just give in and don’t just let them have it free. We need to make it cost them to commit their barbarity.”
Mitch looked at her face as intently as he could with illumination from nothing but a sliver of moonlight. “Kelly, I don’t believe I’ve ever thought about that before.”