Chapter 10
Early the next morning Dave walked in the front door to see Susan sitting at the kitchen counter looking out the window. She turned around, startled and surprised at first and asked him when he had left. He said that he was up just before sunrise and wanted to check out the first part of today's route early so they could get an early start and put the twenty five miles they had between them and their next stop at the lake.
He said everyone would be a little sore again after today and he thought twenty five miles was a reasonable goal and they could get there by mid afternoon along the relatively flat roads they had ahead of them. He suggested that the following day they could maybe make another forty miles.
Dave was concerned about rogues and highwaymen. There would be a lot of desperate people out there and he thought they were lucky having not yet encountered one. He wanted the group to be alert to this but not so alert as to be afraid. He would be afraid for them, he had seen the terrible things people could do to one another when they became desperate. He was particularly concerned when the group of them came near a bazaar or water source, where people tended to be traveling alone or in small groups and the lawless could find many victims.
It was not like Dave to be so talkative, particularly in the morning. Susan poured him a water and invited him to sit down at the table.
He sat down, let out a breath and said "I should probably tell you what I saw.". Susan moved from the counter and sat down at the table opposite to him. The sun rose to shine through the window lighting up the kitchen table as she sat down. He bowed and put his head into his hands and rubbed his eyes, as if trying to erase what he had seen, what he maybe had been the partial cause of, by letting those two Red Shirts slip away.
"I went up the road thinking I would have a quick spy on the farm with the binoculars. I expected the Red Shirts to be awake at sunrise and the cattle to be out. I don't know anything about farming, but I thought the cattle should be out in the fields and grazing after spending the night inside the barn and those boys would be outside making sure the cattle had water or something.".
"I waited there in the bush for a while after the sun rose, cattle started coming out of the barn and went to graze in the fields but I saw no Red Shirts. Dogs were barking. I saw their bikes on the front lawn when I went to take a closer look so I knocked on the door, waited, and went inside.".
"I could smell what had happened, they were dead. Their bodies were slumped over the kitchen table as if they were shot by someone they knew, I mean by total surprise. They had all been dead quite a while, maybe a day or two. I came back because I didn't want you and Lisa to worry about where I was.". He asked who else was awake. Susan told him that she was the only one awake. Emma was sound asleep and she hadn't heard Bob or Jennifer get up. Lisa was sleeping as well.
He reminded Susan about the two Red Shirts at the house they had put under siege back at the river and what had happened and that the two Red Shirts who had escaped had been through Mill Creek. He explained that it could be that those four boys at the farm knew that the two were in the group of twenty Red Shirts that had stolen all the bikes and guns. Susan asked "What about all the other villagers?" Dave said that they could have their suspicions but its very possible that none of them actually saw these two directly involved in what happened. He reminded her that all the rest of the twenty Red Shirts were dead.
The ones that had survived being thrown into the empty the pool died later that night of internal injuries. "How else do you formulate a motive for killing four innocent people and taking nothing from them? If those four boys did something so terrible as to warrant such a punishment, the people of Mill Creek would already know about it, their bodies wouldn't have been left to rot and ruin a good house.".
Susan asked him about the other villagers that had gone up to lay the siege suggesting that they could also recognize the two Red Shirts. Dave explained that it wouldn't matter if they escaped far enough away from the river village, no one could recognize them. They would just never be able to go back to the river village again, they would need to be far away from it. He said that if the two Red Shirts recognized him, all of them could be in danger.
He suggested staying at Mill Creek, that suggestion was immediately rejected by Susan. He was needed to help get them to Emma's and back safely. Susan seemed to be aware of the dangers of the highway. She said the chances of running into those two again were slim, but believed the chances of running into highway robbers were much more significant.
Susan suggested that they tell Mike and Alice and maybe spend the morning helping them out if they needed it, they would make friends that way. Dave agreed and said that she go tell Mike and Alice while he went back to the farm and cleaned up the mess before they saw it. He said "Keep them at that house for at least two hours before coming up.". Susan agreed and she left for Mike and Alice's. Bob and Jennifer came down the stairs after hearing Susan accidentally slam the door too hard. He told them about what had happened and told them that he would go back to the farm alone.
He went upstairs to wake Lisa and Emma and when they finally came down the stairs he asked all of them if they could go over to Mike and Alice's and told them Susan had something to tell them. Emma had questions that he just didn't have the time to answer and Lisa was sympathetic, hushed Emma, and said they could wait to find out at Mike and Alice's.
Bob decided he would stay and talk with Dave for a few minutes while the rest of them left. Bob offered his help at the farm and they agreed to go together. Dave said "I think maybe that guy they fed to the dogs was innocent, well I mean more innocent than these other two in our midst. I just wonder who else would have killed those four boys up at the farm. That guy they fed to the dogs didn't get much of a fair trial. We were not there and these two Red Shirts that helped us at the pool must have witnessed against him.".
He stopped to drink and think out loud. "I have to find them first or we maybe have them surprise us along our route, maybe from a distance, well hidden with long range guns. They have killed before and they are the only ones with motivation to kill. No one went through the house looking for stuff to steal or anything. They left bike tools sitting on the kitchen counter and four bikes outside. If their motivation was robbery, those bikes and tools would have been hidden somewhere or gone. They didn't even take the tools. They are maybe going to kill anyone that could recognize them from the river and that includes me, Richard and about ten or so villagers. My guess is that they are trying to get away from the river village and heading in the same direction as we are.".
He said that he had seen fresh bike tire tracks that left the property and that they looked like they were headed in their direction.
He stopped to take a breath and said. "Its our only choice, I have to go ahead and see if I can find these two, unless you have a better idea. We can do this or hike through the woods for two hundred miles. I say we do this.". Bob agreed.
He said that he could use Bob at the farm to first gather some wood for a big fire and watch the place from the rooftop to see if he could see the Red Shirts and to warn him if they came back while he dealt with the bodies. He would deal with the bodies then ride ahead first to look for the Red Shirts and come back so they could all get a start on the rest of their journey.
They rode to the farm and Dave went inside while Bob climbed up on the roof to have a look around with his binoculars. He waved over to Dave that he couldn't see anyone and that he would climb down and look around outside to gather some wood and build a fire.
Dave saw the smoke and went out to check the fire, added more wood and threw the bodies on top. Bob shouted to him that he could see the others coming up the road from the rooftop. Dave's hands were bloodied. He carried a sandwich bag of the slugs that he had dug out of the bodies.
Bob climbed down from the roof while Dave washed up and put the bag in his pocket, jumped on a bike to ride over to them and lead them to the house so that they wouldn't go over to the source
of the smoke and the smell.
They all rode onto the property with Mike and Alice with Dave leading them. They turned into the house together and laid their bikes beside the ones the Red Shirts left. Lisa pointed to the fact that they now had four extra bicycles to negotiate with and maybe get some help running the farm.
He said "You don't want to go over to the fire burning out back. I'll tend to that.". Dave rode away again quickly up a small hill, up the road looking for the two Red Shirts.
Bob looked at Jennifer and suggested that they help Mike and Alice since they were staying and didn't really have anything else immediate to do. She laughed a bit, looked at him and said "OK. Lets do it! What do we do first Mike?" It was characteristically unlike Jennifer to be impulsive but she was also kind and her attitude was changing about new adventures she wanted friends in Mill Creek. He thanked them and told them that their time would be well spent and be made well worth it.
Susan said she would help out as well, the others agreed to help out before they left. Mike gave them all instructions on feeding and watering the cattle and sent Susan, Lisa and Jennifer to start getting water from a nearby river while he, Bob and Emma took care of things there.
Alice had gone into the kitchen and came back out after opening all their windows and mentioning the smell. They would build another fire, cook and have a picnic outside.
In a few hours the cattle were watered and fed and they had enough water to last another day or two. The cistern was already full from all the rain. Alice prepared some meat and potatoes and had cooked them over the fire and they all sat down at a picnic table. After they ate, Jennifer rode back to the houses to explain what had happened to the farm to Roderick and the others.
She came back shortly after to find the others sitting around the table listening to Mike explain farming. She said there would be two big boys who would work for food and a couple of the bicycles and that they would be there soon. Mike would have to give them some beef to feed their parents and younger siblings while they worked there. Mike thanked her for that and knew he had no logical choice but to accept the offer if he was to run the farm successfully.
Jennifer said that she was glad she was at the farm and not in that town. She said that Kevin Johnson had gone off again while she was there and she wondered if someone who could fix toilets and a good piano player with a singing voice was worth it all. She said didn't want to be around there if the cider ever ran out.
Dave rode back down the road over an hour later and ate what they saved him from the picnic. He couldn't find the Red Shirts and had rode almost ten miles along the road, not seeing anyone.
Emma asked him if he was ready to get going after he finished eating. He was a little surprised but said he could go if the others agreed. They said they were ready and got up, saying goodbye to Alice. Alice gave them some left over beef and some fresh vegetables and potatoes to take with them. Lisa thanked Jennifer for keeping them in such good shape doing all those exercises when they were at the shelter and said her goodbyes to Jennifer and Bob.
Emma went over to Bob and thanked him for everything and gave him a hug. He asked "So what does this philosophers stone say?" She whispered into his ear and told him to not tell anyone, and that she wasn't allowed to tell him that. He was surprised but disappointed, as if he already knew that. He said goodbye, told her he hoped to see her again and to be careful and walked away.
They could make the twenty five miles before dusk, Dave had already rode ten of the miles they would cover and said that he saw no one. They could take turns riding the bikes that were pulling the trailers and making better time until they reached the ten mile point. This part of the ride was level and they had the wind at their backs.
An hour after riding they reached the ten mile point and decided to hide in some bush and have a light meal in the shade beside a creek. They ate the food Alice had packed for them, then Dave rode up ahead until he got out of sight before coming back to ride the route with them. Dave had been constantly looking around, pulling his bike over to look at the road ahead and behind with his binoculars in case he had missed the two Red Shirts or other highwaymen. He thought they could have been hiding or sleeping in a tent in the bush in any good place for an ambush that he had rode by earlier. Susan had been nervous through the whole ride and kept looking backward and from side to side as they made their way to the destination for that day, a small lake not far from the main road.
The area along the road near the lake had lots of bushy areas where they could camp out and still remain hidden from any other travelers. It was late afternoon and Dave wanted some time to spy on the people at the lake to find out if the Red Shirts were there before they all went down. They set up a camp and ate the rest of the leftovers from Alice without a fire while Dave went on ahead to look around the lake.
He left on foot, after changing into camouflage and said he would be back in an hour or two, or maybe just before sundown and for them to stay quiet, not light a fire and keep their silenced weapons nearby and to stay low. He asked Susan to just keep watch over Emma and Lisa while he was gone in case they had already been seen. "If Lisa or Emma are asked to put their hands up you know what to do Susan, just like before." She didn't say anything but quietly nodded. Lisa and Emma set up a tent and laid down inside, both tired from the long ride. Susan climbed a small hill, set up a tent in the bush where she could lie down and easily see the tent Lisa and Emma were in without being seen herself. Any thieves that may have seen them and followed them would approach Emma and Lisa's tent and be in Susan's gun sights without knowing it.
Dave began to walk through the bush ducking trees and avoiding paths where he could run into someone. After climbing hills and crawling under bush he found a hill and climbed up it to look down at the lake. People were swimming, fishing, had fires going and had about a hundred tents set up. It looked like everyone that had a house within twenty five miles or so had packed a tent and gone to this lake after their wells stopped working and their cisterns had dried up. They were all around the perimeter of the small lake. Some had guns but most were on a beach in shorts or bathing suits and relaxing and enjoying the sun, canoeing out on the water or fishing at the shore. He could see some of them hiking through the bush.
He scanned the area looking for the Red Shirts at the lake and in other gatherings of people and could see nothing, then decided to look around the entire perimeter of the small lake before returning to camp. He crawled and walked through bush, occasionally hiding from people walking down paths and over hills as he made his way around the perimeter. Sometimes he climbed trees to get visibility over long distances with binoculars. He saw smoke rising from a fire a half mile from the lake on a rocky hill at the base of a mountain.
He found what he was looking for when he got closer to the source of the smoke. There were five men gathered around a fire outside a cave. They had a fire and must have come up from the beach, he thought, seeing that they were wearing bathing suits and T shirts and they had a fishing rod. He could see the two Red Shirts he was looking for through his binoculars. One was sitting down and the other was standing and talking to the group. The group looked to be attentively listening and Dave needed to get closer to hear what was being said.
He found a place that he could hide and listen to them without being seen while scanning the area with his binoculars. He spent the next few minutes crawling over and hiding behind bush and rock then climbed into a well concealed place between two large rocks. Their voices echoed around the rocks and he could hear them talking clearly. He had a silenced forty-five at the ready and his three-o-eight strapped on his back as he crouched and listened. They were quite far away but he could hear them clearly, the acoustics of the cave amplified their voices.
The Red Shirt had finished talking and another member of the group was speaking. He started talking about a salt deposit that was near the lake and suggested that if they could control that they could establish a good stop along a possibly busy
trade route. He said he knew that there wasn't another salt deposit that was easy to access within hundreds of miles.
One of the Red Shirts said that if they were to control the salt deposit they had to take the guns away from the people so that they would be in no position to make demands or get the salt for themselves. He said that the location of the salt deposit had to remain a secret but that they would have to get a few of the people down at the camp working the mine and carrying salt.
These people would have to be the kind that knew how to keep a secret. They would have to invent a secret ceremony and an oath. They would have to be made to feel special. They would have to get to know them all before choosing ones that could be co-opted by puffing up their egos and testing their morals. It would take some time but that this was a lot easier than most people thought, and easier to do with a well chosen group who believed themselves to be exceptional.
They would find people who thought they deserved a little more than everyone else, were not ambitious in any useful sense of the word, and only having more than everyone else could satisfy their appetite. They would find people who's needs outstripped their abilities and believed that others should be responsible to make up the difference. They would have to search for special costumes for a ceremony, maybe they could trade for some trinkets and baubles at a bazaar at another village. He went on to cite the effectiveness of ceremony in shaping world history and getting soldiers to fight wars.
He suggested that they give bicycles to some in return for their co-operation in carrying the salt up to the road and along the highways for trade. They could access enough salt to trade for almost anything and keep the people in the little hamlet well fed, comfortable and not feeling the need to ask any questions until they had everything set up. He said the people that lived by the lake could be their eyes and ears for any travelers that came through and attract fellow-travellers that could perhaps be useful.
They could use the few young and strong boys to do the actual work of the salt mine as well as keep everyone in line with whatever rules they made up to protect them and their knowledge of the mine.
More and more people could be employed by the salt mine as trade routes developed and people stopped at their post. As they established themselves they would be regarded as guardians of the mine and no one would dare take salt. The two Red Shirts said that they knew how to kill the lake and prevent the people from accessing the fish and water and therefore become dependent on the salt mine for trade, for food and water. He could stage something to wreck the bikes, like a fire. No one could leave, they would all be dependent on the salt mine.
They would always act respectfully when with the others so that they would be above suspicion, they would watch each others backs. They would always be respectful and courteous toward the villagers. They would control the economy and make the rules that people would come to regard as laws. He explained that this would not be necessary for some time and that for now the small group of them were the only ones that needed to know anything. They had to earn everyone's absolute and unquestioned trust and respect before they even started putting the pieces in place.
They could be there to help resolve the conflicts they created and after a while take the role of being the law themselves, using a complicated set of rules made to confuse everyone. They would treat everyone generously and fairly until they became the sole, uncontested dictators of the law. They would become synonymous with the law. "The devil is always a gentlemen", one of them said.
One of the group asked "What about the Christians? They will go around spouting laws from their book." The Red Shirt responded "Their faith is weak, they have little understanding of that book and we can simply claim to be of the Lord. They could be our most obedient subjects and do everything we say. After we get our hands on all of the bibles, they would have nothing in terms of a written law. The written word is their strength, when they understand it.". He paused and added "When they do not, or when they misunderstand it, it becomes their weakness. If they lose their word, they become like a ship without anchor or mooring, easy to paddle anywhere.".*"What Is Enlightenment?" Kant.
"Its like having a gun", he went on "If you know how to use it, it's an asset, but if you carry it around just because it looks good you might get shot at and not be able to hit anything when you shoot back.".
He explained that if some of them wanted to live near the salt mine rather than by the lake they could be the security for the mine. They could stage an event in the hamlet, maybe shoot a couple of kids. This would scare everyone into giving up their guns because they would be suspicious of one another. Perhaps they could have a hunting accident, or just get everyone intoxicated and then to give up their guns. They would think of a way to get all the guns. They could attract wild animals to the area and everyone would be afraid to leave and be easy to watch at the lake. There would be no way of anyone discovering the true location of the mine by happenstance, wondering through what would be believed as dangerous territory filled with hungry wild animals.
"We need to keep them busy" he added. "They may wonder why they can't spend their time swimming in the lake, building their own shelters and going on hikes and have to work all the time. They can wonder and complain but we can watch and listen and stay one step ahead. Always give them something to work toward, make them feel as though there is relief just around the corner, just as long as they keep their noses to the grindstone for just a little longer. Put the carrot in front of the horse.".
"Make them worship speed and efficiency." he went on. He looked at each one of them before continuing "Let anyone who wants to slow down be ostracized for it and be called lazy and stupid. We can create conflict among villagers when things get slow. We can start rumors to destroy the trust and social fabric of the community. They will come to us as trusted members of society to resolve their conflicts and we will make them worse by over complicating things and drawing them out over time.".
"We will find a way to put them into debt. We can lend them the salt, accepting their tents, guns and bicycles as collateral. This way if any of them wanted to leave on foot, they leave with nothing. We could make salt the universal currency. Using that currency they would build permanent shelters and fire pits, adding value to our village. The people in the hamlet could trade with visitors, salt for tools and hunting equipment and the five of us will own everything that was ever paid for with salt.".
He said they could make it appear that the salt was much more difficult to get and show them a dangerous hole that they would have to climb down if they wanted to get salt for themselves. This would add value to the salt and respect for us. They could set a trap in the hole to make sure anyone, other than them, who went down never came back up.
"We will create an election and make sure our man wins. We will make the other candidates our men in time.". He was interrupted "I'm not interested in killing anyone and I sense where this is headed.". One of the Red Shirts answered "You won't have to, we will create a small army and police to do that and simply tell them that they are not responsible for any killing that becomes necessary.". The five remained silent while thinking about this.
He added "We will tell them that killing without consciousness is a noble thing that they will do for us, we will reward them with ceremony.".
They could create a society that would serve their every need and not have to work. They would be kings and he said this is how kings came into being. He said most people were just corrupt and stupid, made that way from the powered society and they had to use that to their advantage to corral them, or else someone else would. "Much of our work has already been done for us in the powered society, thanks to the disciples of Marx.". Remember the phrase always, "Clever but stupid".
Dave had heard enough and decided to leave before the Red Shirts did, rather than risk being discovered. He got up to leave, his rifle barrel banged against the rock as he turned around. The group of men talking at the cave all went silent as he crept away qu
ietly. They knew someone was watching, he thought, he heard them begin to move. He continued and crept along the side of the hill concealed from their view and found a hole.
He crawled inside on the hope that it wasn't the home of a fisher, a ground hog, a badger, a pack of wolves, a bear, a cat, or a snake pit. He got far enough down the hole to be hidden by darkness and watched the entrance. He saw two of them look down the hole, right in his direction, but they didn't see him in the darkness. He hadn't been bitten or attacked by anything and considered himself lucky.
He had to get back before dark, or else he couldn't find his way and the others would be worried and maybe look for him and be discovered. He slowly and quietly crawled toward the front of the hole to listen to the men talk. He heard one say "We have to find out who that was. Keep looking, come over to me quietly if you see something!". He recognized the voice as one of the Red Shirts.
One Red Shirt said he would go to the top of the hill then circle it as he walked down in a spiral to smoke out whoever was there while the others watched the perimeter of the hill. They all had their guns ready and Dave watched a group of them walk further down the hill and spread themselves out around the perimeter. They hid and he could see them looking up the hill from their hiding spots. He heard the other Red Shirt's footsteps as he continued walking up the rocky hill in his direction.
He waited for the Red Shirt to walk past the hole having climbed back far enough to not be seen in the darkness. The Red Shirt passed him, stopping for a cursory look down the hole again before continuing on his path. Dave waited a few moments then crawled up toward the exit of the hole to see outside again. He might throw a big rock down the hole next time if this looks like one of the better hiding spots, he thought. Maybe some fisher, badger, cat, dog, snake or bear was already planning its attack while lying in the connecting hole.
He noticed a path well covered with bush when he poked his head out all the way of the hole. He could crawl along the path under the bush and get back to the cave where he initially saw them, where they probably wouldn't look again. He could see the one Red Shirt had almost made it to the top of the hill. He got up and did a short run and made it to the cave before the Red Shirt had reached the top of the hill and turned around and start making his way back down. He found a spot inside the cave to hide behind in case the Red Shirts came back to it on their way down. It may get a cursory search, he thought. He waited and watched the Red Shirt walk by the cave on his circular path down the mountain. They would have to give up before dark but they would keep looking backwards as they made their way to the lake. He was sure they didn't actually see him.
He thought about killing the Red Shirts. He had no idea how experienced they were and he knew that they knew the terrain better than he did. They had found the cave and upon considering the well used fire pit and stack of wood, he knew they had been regularly meeting there and knew the area. The two Red Shirts were also smart enough to get away from the villagers who had been guarding them back at the river. They had already slipped through his and Richards fingers once. He would be smart to avoid a conflict he may very well lose.
He watched them walk toward the lake and he saw them look back less frequently as they grew further away. He saw that most of the people around the lake had started to gather around fires and were no longer out hiking as he made his way back around the perimeter of the lake. The others were all walking in the same direction, toward the fires that had been started at the beach area and had their backs to him. He quickly made his way back to camp.
He explained what he had seen after arriving back at the camp. Susan went to sleep with Emma and he and Lisa took the tent hiding in the hillside. He would be the one to first wake up if anyone approached. They went to bed, and they all understood the need to get going right after waking up in the morning. They decided to get up at dawn and start riding and put some miles between them and the lake before breakfast. The night would be warm and they wouldn't need a fire.
They didn't hear any animals that were close through the night and had all slept well, except for Dave. Dave never slept well outside the shelter in the presence of danger. He woke up and easily woke the others as soon as light began to diffract around the horizon the next morning. In a few minutes, after they packed up their tents and he had scanned the area with binoculars they were on their way. He decided to ride with them without checking the road ahead first to quickly put distance between them and the lake.