The Bomb - 3. Chapter 3

Sleep came easy for me. I can hear the giggling from the back as I fell asleep.

I was the first up in the morning. I got Tom up and then the rest. “Let’s go and see if the restaurant has breakfast,” I locked up the RV. As we headed to the front of the building housing the restaurant, I noticed many of the semi’s were gone, particularly the one Tom arrived in.

The restaurant was open, offering mostly hot and cold cereal. If you wanted eggs plus any breakfast meats, you had to order. “Boys, get what you want, but make sure you get your fill. We won’t be stopping until we get to Jon’s grandparents.”

“Can we take some of this dry cereal to the RV?”

“Sure, you can take milk as well.”

I watched as the boys ordered their breakfast, I ordered mine, then paid for everything. Jon found a table for us; the boys followed as I did.

I got up, got my coffee, boys had orange juice, which they ordered with their meals. The talk was light. I wasn’t sure if the boys were tired or just not in a good mood, reflecting on their current situation.

Getting back in the RV, I headed to the dump station. Tom, Paul, and Ollie came out to see how I dumped the sump. “We can do that from now on. Think of it as our way to pay you back for helping us.”

I drove to the station, filled the gas tank, then look for the water hose. I needed to fill the water tank. Again I had an audience. “If you guys want any snacks or fruit, come with me while I pay for all of this.”

They did, and they got several bananas, apples, and oranges. Of course, they also got some chips.

It was 8:30 in the morning when we headed for North Dakota. Jon claimed the right-hand seat next to me. No one said anything. I think they’ll look upon him as a younger brother.

It was late in the evening when we drove into North Dakota. “Jon, do you have an address for your grandparents?”

“I have it in my bag. I’ll get it.”

He went to the back, got his backpack. “My mom said I should get off the bus in Towner, it’s the county seat or something and then call my grandparents.”

“Okay, this is what we’ll do. Get out the map in the glove box, find North Dakota and the city Towner.”

“Where are we now?”

I took a quick look at the mat. I point to where I thought we were.

“Okay, then we need to head north, take the next exit, that should lead us toward Towner. There should be signs."

“Okay, you watch for the signs.”

I took the next exit and headed north. We drove for about an hour, no signs, nor any road signs. I stopped at a gas station, filled up with gas, and asked about Towner. The man laughed,” You’re too far east, you need to go straight till you come to sign that says Route 31, take a left at that intersection, and it’ll take you right into the center of the town.”

I paid for the gas, started to drive out onto the road. The gas station attendant began waving his arms. I stopped, he pointed to something behind me. One of the boys got out of the RV, “There’s a bus coming up the road. The guy said to follow it.”

So we did. We came to the road sign and turned left, following the bus. We drove for an hour before we saw signs for Towner. Jon was excited.

Arriving in Towner, Jon called his grandfather from a gas station. “Grandfather said to wait here, and he’ll come to pick me up. I think he thinks I got off the bus.”

We fixed a light snack while we waited. About 30 minutes later, one of the boys, outside, came and said an old pickup was coming down the road. Jon got excited and started to run up the road toward the pickup. The pickup stopped, an older man got out, and Jon ran toward him. Soon he was in the older man’s arms.

Jon pointed in our direction. I started the RV and drove to meet them.

“Sir, this is my grandfather.”

I shook his hand, “I want to thank you for bringing Jon here. We tried to contact his mother when he wasn’t on the bus. We couldn’t make contact, and when we heard the news, I guess we assume that everyone was dead. My wife will be so glad to see Jon.”

“Well, he’s a good lad, and I’m afraid you’re right. The city was destroyed, and what the bombing didn’t get, the poisoned air did.”

“We want to thank you for bringing Jon here. My wife would like to thank you in person. Will you follow us to our farm?”

“Certainly, it would be a pleasure. I need to rest for the night and then replenish our water.”

I watched as Jon got in his grandfather’s truck. The boys and I followed till we reach the farm, about 40 miles north, very close to the northern border of North Dakota. It’ll be easy to drive into Canada from there.

As we got out of the RV, we could smell the aroma of home-cooked food. Jon’s grandmother came out to greet us. Jon ran to her waiting arms. We waited till she was finish hugging Jon before we headed to meet her. She was a typical farmer’s wife, and when she smiled at you, you knew you would be welcomed into their home. There was a lot of love in that woman, and Jon was going to ge all of it.

“Why don’t you all come and meet my wife, Emily. You can bet she’ll want you all to stay for supper, that is if she leaves Jon alone long enough to get it on the table.”

As we enter the farmhouse, Ephraim introduced us to his wife. With Jon’s urging, I had to introduce all of the boys. The hospitality of farmers is legendary, and their compassion and food aren’t fancy, but it’s good and healthy. Emily was a great cook; supper was just what we all needed.

We stayed there for two days. That gave me a chance to fill my water tanks, unload the waste tank, flush that tank, and wash the bed linens. Emily said she would do that, but I felt a little guilty to let her do it, so I told her I’d do it. She cooked for us, and that was enough.

One change occurred; the day I left, Ollie asked if he could stay at the farm. “Ollie, that decision needs to be made by Mr. Smithers. If you ask him and he agrees, I have no problem with it. Why don’t you ask him?”

Ollie did ask, and he agreed that it would be a good idea for him to stay. He extended the invitation to all of the boys to stay, only Ollie excepted. I think he agreed because it would be company for Jon.

Before leaving, I was given two smoked hams, some smoked beef, two fresh chickens, and three dozen of eggs. My trailer was full. I thank them for their hospitality. I needn’t worry about them. Efraim had shown me his 'fallout shelter’. It was at the base of a mountain, he had hollowed out a large room in the center of the mountain and a corridor that lead to that room. They must have been working on this project for two years or more. The amount of food he had stored in that mountain would sustain them for at least two years, if not longer.