After the Fall: Jason's Tale by David E. Nees Page B

winter.
With his smoked meat and his gear packed, he set out.

Chapter 2
    By the third day, Jason had worked his way further north and
then crossed over a ridge to the west of his smoking camp. From this ridge he
spied a fort shaped valley through his binoculars. The valley was enclosed by
ridges on all sides. To the south the rise was gentler. The floor of the valley
was marked by fields, now lying fallow. Numerous small creeks meandered through
the valley floor, draining the ridges and feeding into a stream that had cut
its way through the southern wall of the valley to join a larger river. A
narrow macadam road followed the path of the valley stream through the southern
embankment, ending in a single lane, iron truss bridge. From the narrow gorge
to the south, the road wound up the valley. There were no signs of movement on
it. The roofs of the few farm houses he could see were set quite apart from one
another. From his vantage point, Jason could not tell if they were inhabited or
not. He moved north, on the eastern side of the valley, keeping to higher
elevations.
    He worked his way past two farmhouses near the valley
entrance. The grounds looked overgrown, the barn doors were open, there seemed
to be no signs of habitation. They offered possibilities for shelter, but were
too close to the road and bridge for Jason’s comfort. Half way up the valley he
spied a farmhouse that looked promising. It was set back further from the valley
road on a cleared shoulder of the hill. A strip of woods screened the house
from the road. Below the woods the slope flattened into fields bordering the
road. The driveway went gently uphill before a making a switchback to cross a
steeper grade then arriving at the flat area in front of the house. The house
was on the eastern slope, facing south, looking down the valley, with a view
across the valley to the western ridge. There was a barn on the west side of
the house, closer to the tree line. Two fields stretched out behind the house
to the north separated by a row of brush and trees. East of the yard stood the
overgrown remains of an old apple orchard. It ran uphill towards the forest;
the trees looked to be dying and probably bore little fruit.
    The house and its position in the valley seemed ideal. It
was shielded from the road, yet with a good view of the valley. It was late and
the house was still quite far so he camped on the ridge that night. He lit no
fire.
    The next morning Jason found a closer vantage point
providing a good view of the farmhouse. He wanted to observe it before
approaching. A stand of rhododendron bushes shielded him. Lying there
undetected, he settled down to watch.
    It wasn’t long before he saw a woman emerge from the house.
Jason experienced a confusing surge of emotions. The house was not empty and
that was a problem for him to use the place for shelter. But seeing another
person made him realized how much he missed human company. The memories from
his time with Sam and Judy came rushing back. A moment later two more figures
emerged from the house. Through his field glasses, Jason could see they were
girls in their teenage years. His mind raced; were they alone?
    He watched; no one else emerged. The three females went out
into the field. They looked like they were gathering what they could from the
growth left over from last year’s planting. They moved slowly and after an
hour, drifted, one by one, back into the house with what they had collected.
Later the woman went out to the well pump in the front yard and pumped some
water into a jug. She pumped slowly, tiredly it seemed toJason. Then
she went back in. Soon smoke arose from the chimney.
    They must be cooking what they’ve gathered .
    Jason crawled back into the trees and sat quietly for a long
time to think.
    This won’t work. There has to be a man somewhere and
he’ll shoot without warning to protect his family. I’ve got to move on.
    But he couldn’t leave. Something kept him there. It was