Ninety Degrees Out

Erik and Armaruq reined their horses down to a trot and then walked slowly up the path.

“I see Rocky and that’s Catherine’s gelding. I can’t see them though,” Erik said softly as they passed the small meadow.

“Let’s leave our horses there too. Better for us to sneak up on foot if those damn bikers are back.” Armaruq nudged his horse in beside Rocky and the two stable mates nickered to each other.

Erik dismounted and led his mare into the clearing. A huge Tennessee Walker crossed with a Percheron, she matched him perfectly. His long legs gave him a strong seat over her broad back. He collected his shotgun from the pocket holster beside his saddle and dropped a few extra shells into his fanny pack. Patting his mare on her rump he dropped her reins into the lush grass and left her cropping a meal. She’d still get her oats when they got home.

“They’re out of sight if anyone approaches from the other side. Good thinking on Catherine’s part to leave them there.” Erik said.

“Follow me,” Armaruq gestured with a come ahead motion.

“There they are. Must have been waiting off the path,” Erik said, as he spotted Jett and Catherine coming out of the spruce forest.

“Do you guys hear the bikes?” Catherine asked.

“No, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t in the Markham place.” Armaruq answered.

“Let’s take our time getting up there. Walk softly and carry a big stick,” Erik said. “Teddy Roosevelt had a very good point.”

“Are your guns ready to go?” Armaruq asked.

“Loaded and safetied,” Catherine said as she nodded.

“All right. Make sure of your target before you shoot. We’re going to be in a possible crossfire situation,” Erik instructed as they worked their way up the pathway.

As they reached the break in the forest at the back of the house, they noticed the tarp was still in place. Chay and Alicia had taken the time to get the lower pieces back up, tacking them to the wooden framework that used to hold the big sheets of glass.

“Do you want to take the back or work your way around front?” Erik asked Catherine.

“I’m not sure. It doesn’t look like there’s anyone doing any damage. The fruit trees are all okay, even though they’re only a couple of feet tall now. I don’t see any damage to the raised beds either.” Catherine eased her way to the sidewalk at the north edge of the yard.

“I’ll go with you,” Armaruq volunteered.

“Jett, you come with me. We’ll lift the tarps and slip inside. You take that side, I’ll take the other one,” Erik decided as they watched Catherine head to the front.

“Sure, I’m a bit worried about Cat,” Jett said as he walked over the deck. “How about I take the door? As I recall it isn’t locked. No one but Alicia and Chay has been up here.”

“That’s a better idea. You go right toward the kitchen island I’ll take the great room and head out to the garage to clear that. Catherine and Armaruq should be coming from there.”

Jett tried the door, finding it unlocked, he cautiously pushed it open.

“Hey, guys, look what we found,” Catherine’s cheerful voice, belied her stance. Armaruq held his pistol between the shoulder blades of bearded man.

Catherine had a woman in a wrist lock. Pushing her from behind as they followed Armaruq. “They were just getting off their bike.”

“Hey guys, I don’t know anything about you, but Sara here, is Joe Markham’s daughter. It’s taken almost two months to get up here. We’ve had nothing but trouble, but the bike was the only way to get here. We were able to siphon enough gas out of broken down cars along the Al-Can highway, to make it here.”

“Sara? I didn’t recognize you,” Catherine let go of the woman and she turned around.

“God, Cat. How did you turn into such a bitch?” Sara said bitterly.

“Long story. I’m sorry, but we can’t trust anyone.” Catherine told her.

“My face isn’t the same. We’ve been through hell getting up here, if Aaron wasn’t a special ops veteran, I’d be dead.” Sara said.

“Sara?” Erik looked over the woman’s disfigured face, studying her eyes, he said, “You’re in there. I would know your eyes anywhere.”

“You two can talk later. It looks like this place has been hit pretty hard by damage from the quakes,” Aaron stated.

“Yeah, but we were thinking about boarding up the open area where the great room windows were. It might be better than all that glass, even if we could get replacements.” Erik said.

“A lot cooler, in any case,” Sara said.

“What happened to your parents, your family?” Cat asked.

“Long story, just like yours. Mom and Dad drowned in the tsunami that hit Seattle after the first series of quakes after the flip. My babies were with them. They were out looking at the ocean and hunting for clams. Swept away, and I was trapped in our condo for days before Aaron found me. My husband left to look for fuel for the car. I have no idea if he survived or not.”

Erik shuddered at the loss. “Sara, no matter how we parted, I still consider you a friend. Aaron, welcome to Alaska. Sorry for the rude welcome.”

“No problem. Glad to see someone is looking out for this place. I’ll see what we can do about boarding up that gigantic hole in the wall. Do you think the window framing is sturdy enough to take the weight of logs if we use sapling lodgepoles? I noticed quite a lot of them in between the bigger trees.”

“That’s Aaron. Always thinking about survival and safety. He’s my miracle man.” Sara linked her arm through his. “I’m not letting him go.”

“One thing. I’m sure you noticed the motorcycle skid marks on the driveway and in the garage. We had a bike gang move in here, and some pretty bad stuff went down. Can you live with one of their dead, buried in the back?” Armaruq asked.

“Hell yes, good to know that’s why you were so cautious.” Aaron answered.

“Me too, I’d rather a dead one than his live buddies.” Sara began to pace restlessly.

“I’m Jett. My sister is the one who leased this place from your parents. She’ll be glad to know there’s someone here that will take care of the gardens she started. The solar cells on the roof are working well. You have enough power to run the ceiling fans and keep the fridge and freezer cold. As long as you don’t use the washer and dryer more than for one load a day, they won’t drain the batteries too far either.”

Sara nodded her head. “Thank you so much for taking care of the place. At least I have their home to remember them by. So, I know Erik, and I think I remember you Armaruq. Say hello to Aaron McCoy.”

Introductions completed, Erik asked, “Do you have any firearms?”

“Just a pistol. I haven’t got any ammo though.” Aaron made his way back toward the garage. “It’s in the saddlebags on my bike.”

“We’ve got a reloading operation going down on the ranch,” Armaruq explained. “We can get more made for you.”

“Wow! Sara, sweetheart, you were so right to head home.” Aaron wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

“Where’s Chayton?” she asked.

“On a trail ride to Dad’s place. They’re rounding up wild horses. We’ll need more of them. You’re going to have to build a couple of stables into the garage. We’ll make sure you learn to ride and have mounts to keep here,” Armaruq told them.

“My sister is with him. Took her daughter with her too.” Jett added.

“Okay, then Chay the loner, has met his match?” Sara said as she finally took her hat off exposing a livid burn scar on the right side of her head.

“Yeah, it looks that way,” Catherine put in. “I’ll be back up to talk. Right now, Erik needs to get back to the ranch. He’ll let our only law enforcement know you’re back and staying here. We’re expecting that damn bike gang back. There’s been reports of them hanging around Juneau, but the troopers down there have managed to chase them out.”

“What about the gardens? Do we need to water them?” Sara wandered through the great room toward the open door onto the deck.

“Not really, the daily rain showers take care of it.” Erik said. “Alicia will kill us all if we don’t keep up with the weeding though.”

“See the path out there?” Catherine asked

“Yeah. If I remember right, it leads to Chay’s place.” Sara said.

“It’s quicker to walk there from here. Jett and I are staying there while Chay, Alicia and Arimina are gone. Come on over whenever you want. But we need to go. Sorry about twisting your arm like that,” Catherine apologized again.

“Never mind, it didn’t do more than give me a bit of scare. Is there any food in the pantry?” Sara walked back into the house.

“Nothing right now. We’ll fix that for you. I think there’s some moose meat in the freezer, and you can help yourself to whatever is ripe in the garden,” Jett said.

“Not to worry. I’ll scrounge through the woods too,” Aaron said. “The strawberries are ripe.”

“See you all soon. Right now, we’ll go back and collect our horses. Time to let the law know you aren’t illegal squatters.” Erik said. “Sara, if you want to talk, I’ll always be there to listen.”

“I know. I just had to get out of here. I’m sorry I just disappeared,” Sara said.

“I’ll take care of her now,” Aaron said. “She’s the first woman to ever believe in me.”

Erik caught the underlying tone of mine in the dark haired soldier’s voice. “I’m sure you will.” He lead his companions out the door. “Keep your eyes open. I’ll send help once you figure out what you need to get that wall fixed. We’ll bring you a handheld radio to use. It’s how we talk to each other now. Our cells are hit and miss to say the least.”