AGE SIX
“Let me see those hands,” Mama says. She looks at ten-year-old Ryan’s hands, flips them over a couple times, then moves on to six-year-old James. Satisfied they’re clean, she says, “Now your teeth.” Both boys open wide. When Mama gets to James, he burps as loud as he can. “James Rupert Rieder, honestly.” Ryan grins, trying to hold in his laughter. James covers his mouth. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you did that on purpose.”
“At least it’s minty fresh,” James tries.
“At least he didn’t fart,” Ryan points out. The two boys can’t hold it in anymore and start laughing.
“Mhm. All right, then. James, no drawing tonight, all right?”
“Oh, Mama, I won’t be late.”
“It’s already past your bedtime, young man, and you, Ryan,”
“I won’t be up long, Mama,” Ryan smiles politely.
“Don’t make me come into your room tonight, okay?”
“Yes, Mama.” She hugs each of them goodnight. Daddy comes in the front door, his rifle slung over his shoulder, his shotgun in his hands.
“Hey, guys,” Daddy smiles as best he can.
“What’s wrong?” Mama asks.
“You’re going on a camping trip, boys. Go get your stuff, and you’ll be on your way.”
“Marc,”
“C'mon now. You need to make an early start.”
“Aren't you coming with us?” Ryan asks.
“I have to work this weekend, but you and Mama have a good time,”
“Daddy, we know it’s the bugs,” James says quietly.
“Go on now. Make sure you pack your thermals,” Daddy says. The boys hurry to their rooms. “You, too, Rosa. Take the birth certificates with you.”
“I’m not leaving you here, Marcus,” Mama tells him.
“Now isn’t the time to argue, just help the boys get their things together. Please.”
James has a large suitcase open in the middle of his floor. He’s putting his underwear and thermals in the suitcase when Ryan looks in.
“James, get your clothes on.” James hurries to take his pyjama pants off. “You might as well leave them on. Just put your warm clothes on, James.” Ryan takes a pile of James’s shirts and puts them into the suitcase while James gets a flannel shirt, a sweatshirt, and lined pants on. Mama stands in the doorway.
“We’re almost finished here, Mama,” James says. Ryan puts some of James’s pants in the suitcase.
“That’s great. Ryan, how’re we doing?”
“I’m all set, Mama. I made sure I was packed from the last time we thought we had to go in a hurry.”
“Perfect. Make sure to bring your hunting gear, too, all right?”
“Okay,” Ryan says. “I’ll go get that now.” Ryan goes back to his room.
“Should I bring my tent and pillow and everything?” James asks.
“Yes, bring everything, including that pellet gun you thought I didn’t know about.”
“Oh, Mama,”
“No time for arguing, James. Let’s just get you ready to go.”
“Yes, Mama.”
“Wear your warm socks and shoes, all right?”
“Yes, Mama.” He puts on his thick socks and his high-top sneakers. He’s hot already. Mama zips the suitcase closed and takes it out to the living room. From his closet, James muscles his hunting case – not as big as the suitcase but just as heavy – and makes sure his crossbow, arrows, knife set, and pup tent are in the case. He gets his pellet gun from under his mattress and the pellets from the bottom drawer of his desk. The gun, pellets, and his sketch books go into his backpack. So do his pencils and a set of markers.
Fifteen minutes later, Ryan and Daddy are putting the large cooler in the van in the driveway. Three rifles and a shotgun are on top of the bags and coolers in the third row of seats. James folds his sleeping bag in two and puts it against the window on the driver’s side of the second row of seats.
“All right, guys. This is it,” Daddy says, hugging both boys.
“No, Daddy. You need to come with us,” Ryan tells him.
“I’ll be all right here, guys,”
“It’s not up for discussion, Marcus,” Mama tries.
Before he can say anything else, his radio sounds a long beep. “Attention Saint Louis Guard, Saint Louis Guard. Evacuate immediately. Situation dire! Evacuate immediately! Situation” there’s some crackling, clicking, and hissing, then nothing. Daddy tries to change the channel, but there’s nothing but static.
“They mean us, too, right, Dad?” Ryan asks.
“Time for all of us to go, guys,” Mama says. Resigned, Daddy gets in the driver’s seat and starts the engine. James sits in the second row next to his sleeping bag. Before Ryan can get in, two kids about James's size run to them from down the street. The girl is wearing pyjamas and sandals. The boy at least has sneakers, sweatpants, and a long-sleeved shirt on.
“Help us! Help!” the little girl screams.
“What happened?” Mama asks.
“They came so fast, we have to get our family,” the boy says between breaths.
“There are bugs here?” Ryan asks.
“Let’s go, kids. Get in.” Mama helps the girl into the van then gets into the front passenger seat, and the boy sits with James. Ryan gets in the first row of seats then slams the sliding door closed.
“You have to help us!” the girl screams. Instead, Daddy turns away from the neighborhood and drives as fast as he can. “No! You’re going the wrong way! Stop!” Ryan and the boy keep the girl from hitting Daddy.
“We can’t save your family now,” Mama tries.
“But everybody was there,” the boy says. “We can save some of them.”
“They’re gone, son,” Daddy says quietly. “We need to get out of here as quickly as possible.”
“I hate you!” the girl yells at the top of her lungs. As her brother hugs and holds her, she hits him and kicks him until she’s tired. “You killed my family! You killed them all! I’m going to kill you when I get a chance! You’ll see! All of you!”
“The bugs killed your family,” James says. “We’re going to make sure you’re safe.”
“I don’t want to be safe,” she replies. “I want my mom and dad.”
“The first bugs got mom,” the boy tells her. “Don’t you remember? That’s why dad told us to run.”
“We should’ve stayed, Keith. We could’ve helped them fight.”
“No, Linda, we would’ve been eaten, too, if we stayed.”
“At least we would be with our family.”
“Have you seen what they do to people?” Ryan demands.
“Don’t, Ryan,” Mama says quietly. “Let her be.”
“She needs to know, Mama.”
“She’s a little girl. She’s seen enough for now.”
“All right, all right. In the meantime, Mama, do you want the shotgun?”
“Yes, Ryan. Thank you.” James gets the gun from the back and passes it to Ryan, who gives it to Mama. She gets the shells with salt, pepper, and poison in them then loads as many shells as she can into the shotgun.
“Are you sure that'll work on the big bugs?” Keith asks.
“Mama makes the poison that kills the insects,” James says. “Salt dries them out, pepper stings and burns them, and the poison kills them.”
“Should we have a rifle ready just in case there're a lot of them?” Ryan asks.
“Might as well,” Daddy says. Ryan takes the rifle from James and gets bullets from a case under the first row of seats.
“Maybe I’ll shoot you all tonight,” Linda mutters.
“Stop that,” Keith snaps. “We’re alive because of these people, so just stop.”
“Fine. I won’t say anything anymore. Ever.”
^*^*^*^*^
Six hours and a fuel stop later, all the children except James are asleep, and Daddy is no longer going as fast as the van can go. He's keeping up with the middle lane of traffic that's almost exclusively going north even in southbound lanes. Mama still holds the shotgun, but she's having a hard time staying awake.
“Hon, it's okay if you need to sleep,” Daddy says quietly. Mama sits up straight and shakes her head a little. “Rosa, we're all good here. A few more hours, we'll be in Canada.”
“Shouldn't we put out the solar panels?” she asks instead.
“The next time we stop, I'll get Ryan to help.”
“Let them sleep,” Mama says. “It's hard enough for them without making them stay up all hours.”
“I can help, Dad,” James says. “Ryan showed me how to hook them together.”
“That’s good, James. When we stop, you can help me, okay?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
Keith wakes with a start. He looks around and relaxes a little. “Where are we?” Keith asks.
“We're in Minnesota,” Daddy tells them. “Do you need to pee?”
“That sounds good,” Keith says. Daddy pulls over to the shoulder of the road.
“Go ahead, James. You can help me when you come back,” Dad says. James and Keith disappear into the nearby corn field.
“Don't get lost,” Mama warns them. She puts the shotgun down between the front seats then gets out and meets Daddy on the side of the van. “I think we can do this without waking the other two,” she says.
“Let's give it a try,” Daddy says. They get the inside roof liner unscrewed and out of the van when James and Keith return.
“Daddy, Mama, they cut down the corn in the back here,” James reports. Daddy folds the liner as small as he can.
“Did they burn it?” Mama asks.
“Looks like it,” Keith adds. “Are they getting ready for the bugs?”
“Looks like it,” Mama says. “Are you boys hungry?”
“I'm more thirsty,” James says.
“Daddy, do you need help?” Ryan's voice comes from inside the van.
“Is Linda awake?” Mama asks.
“I'm hungry,” Linda responds.
“Let’s get the solar panels up, and we can eat on the road,” Daddy tells them. “Linda, if you need to pee, there's paper under your seat.” Linda takes out a roll of toilet paper and goes to the edge of the corn field.
“Do you want me to come with you?” Keith asks her. She scowls and disappears into the field. Keith heads in after her. “Linda, stop! Quit being stupid!”
“You're being stupid!” Linda's voice carries over the vegetation.
“Should I go get her?” Ryan sighs.
“No, let her get tired out,” Daddy says. “We'll put these panels up and see what happens.” James muscles the folded liner to where the panels had been. Ryan stands near the third row of seats, takes one end of the array of panels, and screws it into the roof. Mama gets in the front passenger's door and screws the other end in place. “Ryan, are the wires connected?”
“Almost. There. All set.”
“Are the batteries on?” James asks. Ryan checks the panel next to the sliding door behind the front passenger seat.
“Yes. Everything's all set. Now we just need the other passengers.”
Almost on cue, Keith pulls a fighting Linda out of the stalks. Toilet paper streams from the roll in Keith’s hand. “If you don't stop, we'll have to leave you here,” Keith says.
“Good. I can go home and save our family.”
“Don't you understand they're not there? The bugs got them. They're never coming back, Linda.” Linda stops fighting for a moment. “Don't make us chase you again.”
“Are my mom and dad dead?” Linda asks Mama.
“Yes,” Mama answers.
“And we're going far away from the bugs?” Linda asks.
“Yes,” Mama answers.
Linda thinks for a moment then crawls back into the van. “I still hate you. You killed my family.”
“Oh, Linda,” Ryan says, rolling his eyes.
“Leave her alone, boys,” Mama tells them. “We need to get going.” Ryan drops the dirty paper onto the ground, and everyone gets back in the van. Daddy plugs the panels into a transformer in the dashboard and rejoins traffic on the highway.
“Daddy, aren't you hungry?” Ryan asks.
“Not really,” Dad answers, “but you should eat something.”
“James, see what you can get out of the cooler,” Mama says, holding the shotgun on her lap.
“Rosa, are there bugs here?” Linda asks.
“No, honey. They're far behind us now.”
“Then why are you holding the gun?”
“Just in case something bad happens. You four should eat something.”
“You need to eat, too, Mama,” James says. He feels around in the nearest cooler he can reach. Out come a bag of dried meat and a bottle of apple juice.
“Don't be worrying about me, James.”
“But, Mama, you always said you can't shoot straight on an empty stomach.”
Daddy laughs. “He's got you there, Rosa.”
Mama puts a smile on her face. “Thank you for thinking of me, kids. I'll eat what you don't, all right?”
“Okay.” James takes some meat from the bag while Ryan drinks from the bottle.
^*^*^*^
“James. James, wake up.” Ryan shakes James gently ‘til his eyes open. “You were yelling.”
James looks around the van, sees that everything is okay. Mama is driving now. Dad is in the front passenger seat, holding the shotgun. Keith has the rifle, pointed down to the ground. “Are we still in Minnesota?” James asks.
“Yes, but we’re almost to the border,” Mama says.
“How much longer ‘til we get there?”
“I don’t know. It depends on traffic,” Mama responds.
“Do we need our passports?”
“If we do, we have ours under the front seat here,” Daddy says.
“What about me and Linda?” Keith asks.
“We tell the truth - we picked you up after your family was killed.”
Traffic comes to a stop. The border crossing is ahead of them with a lot of gates and security officers around.
“You're on your best behavior, kids,” Mama says softly.
“Mama, is there a bathroom nearby?” James asks.
“We'll stop at the visitors' center across the border, okay?”
“Okay.”
Quickly it is their turn at the border. Mama and Daddy put their windows down. Two security officers in white jump suits with white backpacks and electronic weapons come to Mama and Daddy.
“Name and rank,” the one by Mama says.
“Rosa Rieder, Specialist.”
“Coming from where?”
“Saint Louis. We're members of the Guard.”
“And you, sir?”
“Marcus Rieder, Captain.”
“Are there bugs in Saint Louis?”
“Yes, sir,” Mama replies. “We had to run, or we would've brought more people with us.”
The security officers come together at the front of the van. One of them starts talking on their radio.
“Mama, are they going to make us stay out here?” Ryan asks.
“No, son. They're just trying to see where we can go.”