Two weeks passed quickly. Jamie had organized the two children into some sort of schedule involving ad hoc home schooling. Tammy made progress in healing. She was no longer limping. Casey managed to kill two deer and a grouse, giving Father a chance to teach all how to hang, clean and prepare animals for eating.
Casey and Joe decided to create army like guard duties, which involved teaching Father how to use a pistol. He knew how to shoot rifles, and took to his new skill well.
Joe thought more and more about how long they would need to stay here. Derek's last message, "One Month" indicated that, perhaps, martial law was half way over.
Father had dug out of a corner an old short wave amateur radio. They decided to think about using this after the month was out. Joe knew some amateur enthusiasts who would be against the present regime and could be broadcasting in this area. But, he waited.
This September brought much colder weather than usual. The contrived, odd darkness lingered, but it seemed to be abating. At night, some stars, and the moon shown through the cover of blackness.
No one approached the area, but on the Monday of the third week, something happened which caused great sadness and consternation.
About two in the afternoon, Casey, while on his "guard duty" saw a tall, thin man walking around the path from the lake. The man looked ill, and wobbled a bit. Casey signaled Joe, wand ho was walking behind him. They watched the man. Suddenly, the man fell, and lay as if dead.
The two raced over and turned the man right-side up, as he had fallen on his face. "He is sick, not dead. Look, feverish." Casey noted.
Joe was kneeling next to the man. "And, here is why, look, an old wound, with the bullet caught under his arm. Let's get him back. You run ahead and have the women get a bed downstairs. I can carry him."
Joe lifted the unconscious man and flung him over one shoulder. Once at the lodge, Joe laid the man in one of the small beds Jamie and Casey had brought down to the long room. Jamie had told the children to stay upstairs, but Thomas was looking into the room from the winding stair. "Dad, " he cried and rushed up to the sick man. The man opened his eyes and smiled, "Thomas. Son." Just then, Mary ran up and threw herself on the sick man's chest. Tears came to his eyes, but he passed out again.
"I hope I can get out that bullet. Jamie, help me and have Tammy keep the kids upstairs."
Joe had seen men die of infections less invasive than this one. The man's entire arm was swollen. Joe got to work and did his best.
Father James blessed the man and anointed him. The man seemed to be sleeping.
"I'm going back on guard duty," said Casey and he left suddenly. He truly was afraid the man would die.
But, the children's father, Mr. Haweraus, did not die. By the evening, he was awake and talking with his children. Joe watched him carefully. He knew Bob, for that was his name, was not "out of the woods", yet.
Bob looked at Joe, "Can you do me a favor, please, Joe?" Joe said of course. "There is a paper in my left jacket pocket. I brought it here on purpose when I heard in the country that perhaps a boat of people had escaped from the city. No one knows you are here and no one knows who you are, but something told me to bring this."
Joe took the crumpled paper out of the worn jacket. It was a newspaper item from the City Herald Newspaper dated two weeks ago. The article headline gave Joe a shock. Local Soldier Court-martialled. Fiance Missing. "Just like it for the authorities to keep printing and scaring people into submission," Joe thought. "Blast, I have to tell Jamie." He read the first paragraph.
Corporal Derek Jackson had refused to use force to clean out the camp on the Canada side of the river, in a cooperate effort to stem terrorist camps, with the joint operation involving American and Canadian forces. Derek faced the tribunal on Monday and was found guilty. He is imprisoned at F.D. awaiting sentencing.
Joe would ask Father James to break this horrible news to Jamie. Joe could not even bring himself to read the details of the article. Derek had refused to follow orders to round up Arnold's campers.
Joe wondered who else refused to carry out such orders-how many soldiers would act against citizens? Joe knew most would obey.
After dinner that night, Jamie and Father James went outside and talked for a long time. Bob fell asleep for hours, eating a huge dinner for a man in his condition. He had seen the soldiers come. He had seen Corporal Derek put in a truck and taken away. Bob said because he and the kids were hiding they could not hear, even across the water, but they could guess what had happened.
When Jamie and Father James came back in, Jamie excused herself and went upstairs. Tammy said "Leave her alone. She likes to work out suffering herself. I know her."
The next morning, Casey and Joe decided to try the radio after the end of the fourth week. Bob said he knew quiet a few ham radio operators in the area. They were all against the present tyranny.
Still, Joe held a niggling doubt about using it. He wanted news of the outside world, but did not want to endanger the little group here. Bob had an idea.
"I know the territory. Let me go back out and get some news. The closest farm house is about 49 miles west and south. I know the people there. They are Quakers. I am related to them, although they think I am a heretic."
Casey objected strongly, "You have children You cannot take another shot. To be honest, you are not strong enough, Bob." Joe agreed. He said no one was to leave at this time anyway, and he left for his guard duty.
Father James thought it odd that he had never met the Quaker family so close, realtively, to his place.
He asked Bob some questions, "How long have they lived there, Bob?" Bob said he really didn't know. They were originally from Upper State New York, but had moved to Vermont because the community broke up, some going west.
Father James watched Bob. He did not exactly distrust the man, but why did he want to go out so soon, and just for news, which could wait?
Father decided he would watch Bob. The priest's instincts told him something was not right.
Two days passed and Jamie came downstairs to eat for the first time. It was obvious that she had cried her way out of grief and was accepting the worst. She knew Derek would most likely be shot.
No one talked about Derek, but Bob, at dinner, brought up his plan to go to the farm again. No one agreed with him. He seemed agitated.
Joe and Casey switched guard duty. Joe sat down and took a mug of coffee from the low table Casey had made out of wood scraps. Bob started talking about his idea again, Father James noticed that Bob was sweating and then, the thin man began to tremble.
Joe took over. "Get him on the bed. I need to look at the wound." When Joe took off Bob's shirt and opened the bandage, he sat down and wrapped Bob up again. "Jamie, get me some pain meds, please."
Father James began to pray over Bob, and when he bent over, Joe whispered, "Blood poisoning."
Tammy took the children upstairs. Father James followed. "Children, your dad is so sick, he may not make it." Thomas looked stern, but Mary cried. Tammy held her. The four sat together for a long time, and when Father James went back downstairs, he saw that Bob's face was covered with the blanket.
Joe just looked at the floor, "There was nothing I could do. No antibiotics."
Father put his hand on Joe's shoulder. "This is not your fault."
to be continued....