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”In Year Ten, the numbers lost to the flu reached a crisis level for the remaining services. The train system shut down for a time. Only two processing plants were still working to put out the emergency rations. The loss of workers was so drastic that production halted entirely.”
History of a Changed World, Angus T. Moss
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THE OLD BOARDS ON THE back porch groaned as Darrell charged up the steps. An errant breeze brought the fragrance of food cooking.
“Food and sleep,” Wisp said. “After you clean those wounds.” He gestured to Nick’s battered face.
Nick grunted an agreement, almost too tired to speak. He could relax his guard for the first time in days, and he was looking forward to the hot meal waiting for them.
Everett sniffed the night air. “Manure?”
“Whole herd of cows over there,” Nick said waving back the way they came. He followed Darrell into the house.
“Cows?” Everett jogged after him. “How big’s a herd?”
“A lot.” Nick shrugged. “There’s a slaughterhouse over there, but the people are dead or gone. I let the cows out of their pens.”
Both Istvan and Everett looked alarmed. “You can’t just let them loose,” Everett said.
“Well, I did.” Nick went to the stove to sneak a peek under pot lids.
Everett halted in the doorway, concern on his face. “They need access to water and−“
Nick cut him off. “There’s a meadow with a stream. They seemed happy enough.” He pointedly looked to Wisp. “Any sense of them?”
“I don’t feel any great distress,” he said. “But reading animals is difficult.”
“I guess there isn’t anything to be done tonight. What do you plan to do with them?” Everett asked.
Nick stared at him. “It’s a herd of cows. What could I possibly do with them? Load them into vans and drive them back to High Meadow?”
“They had to get here somehow,” Darrell said. “Did you see a cattle truck anywhere?”
“No, I had other concerns,” Nick said, pulling off his gun belt. He dropped it with a clatter on the counter.
Darrell looked chastened, but Everett didn’t give up. “We can’t just leave them there. How large is the field? How many cows? They’ll starve if we can’t find them adequate forage.”
Nick sighed. “You’re right, sorry.” He didn’t want to be the cause of death for those animals out of his own ignorance.
“I think I might know where they came from,” Istvan said.
“You know the farm that supplies this slaughterhouse?” Nick demanded.
Istvan snorted. “The slaughterhouse. There’s only one now. And these people are insane. They take the animals without any thought to the future. Three ranches wiped out in the last couple years. They take all the animals, male, female, yearlings.” He shook his head. “Can’t take them all.”
“That’s stupid,” Everett said, eyes flashing with anger. “There aren’t enough of them left to cull like that. If we don’t have adequate numbers left to breed, we’ll lose them. Why would the ranchers agree to that?”
“Nothing to agree to when they arrive with guns,” Istvan said.
“They aren’t thinking that far ahead,” Nick said in a low voice that caught their attention. “I met with the so called president. They have no understanding of reality. They’re just trying to create more government. They’re living in the past, expecting things to return to the way they were before Zero Year.”
“What did they say?” Ted asked. Nick could see a shadow of fear in his eyes.
“They want to reestablish the states and set up governorships.”
“To what purpose?” Everett asked.
“To set up a system that funnels all the food to a central location.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” Ted said, his face scrunched in confusion.
“It will never happen,” Wisp said. “They can plan all they want, but unless they have the force, settlements will not be willing to give up their food to strangers.”
“Do they have the force?” Darrell asked.
“I don’t think so. There were a lot of armed guards, but I got the feeling they had a different agenda.”
“Or they lied to you,” Wisp said.
“A definite possibility,” Nick agreed.
Nixie announced that dinner was ready. They filled plates in the kitchen and settled around the dining room table. Ted halted them long enough for him to wipe off the thick layer of dust on the old table.
“So what’s next?” Darrell asked looking to Nick.
“That slaughterhouse must supply a Stew-goo plant. I want to see if we can locate it. They can’t be too far from here.”
“But first we take care of the cattle,” Everett said. “How far is the closest ranch?”
Istvan raised a finger until he could swallow his mouthful of food. “I’m not sure where I am. I can tell you in the morning.”
“I’ll scout tonight if you like,” Wisp offered.
“I’d appreciate it if you could assess the area,” Nick said. “I feel very exposed out here.” He looked around the table meeting every eye. “And very glad to have backup.”