Haven's Door
A Trauma Tale
It was quite the entrance! The Haven cooperative police cruiser had all its lights on. Every photon launched to maximum effect bouncing from every surface. A carnival on wheels rocketing along Main like Mardi Gra on speed. The big machine slewed to a halt in front of the Lazy kicking up dust like a market day herd. And the noise! Not so much from the cruiser itself, it was a quiet machine most days, but this particular night glass in windows sang along with the siren and the bull horn brayed to burst down the saloon doors.
Speaking of doors, the drivers side slammed open so hard its rebound nearly trapped Sam Clancy as he fell out of the cab and, stumbling to regain his balance, ran for the Lazy saloon doors.
‘Get your damn paws of me child! What the hell has got you so crazy?’
Sue-Anne’s complaint would have had more effect had she been able to stand her ground, but Sam has towed the owner of the Lazy Rustler half way across the floor before she could register the assault on her dignity. The customers of the Lazy were slow to react, partly because they were working out Sam’s authority, and partly because it was entertaining to see Sue-Anne hauled from the bar without a thought for the consequences. Sam Clancy was well known by all, and his sudden mutation from the polite and respectful young apprentice of Sheriff Tom’s to a mad man on a mission was providing grand entertainment. That Sam would soon regret his enthusiasm for his task was expected by all. But they were to be confounded, as Sam continued to drag Sue-Anne to the cruiser.
‘Boss needs you, Miss Anne.’
‘Tom sent you?’
‘Sheriff Tom needs you.’
‘He said that?’
“No ma’am, I said that. He said go and pick up Miss Coot Demure. I need you to help me pick up that old witch.’
‘Oh hell, Sammy. Is it that bad?’
‘Probably worse ma’am.’
‘Coot! Just get in the damn car!’
‘Sue-Anne? Is that you? What the hell is going on?’
‘If you get in the damn car you might find out!’
Coot Demure let go of Sammy’s hair and tried to push him away. Sammy, being a foot taller than Coot and a good fifty pounds heavier, didn’t move much, but he was glad to be able to stand upright again now his hair was released. The witchy old woman climbed into the back of the cruiser and turned back to shout at Sam.
‘Close my damn front door. Anything go missing its coming from your account, son.’
Sam looked into Coots front room. Noted the lights that were on and that the logs in the grate were safe and then closed the front door to Coot’s cabin firmly enough that the gnarly old buzzard of a woman could hear he had done the job properly. Sam slams the cruiser door shut on Coot because it makes him feel better.
The nose of the cruiser lifts and the tires scrub at the clay street and Sam launches the machine into the night. The complaints from the back seat help establish an appropriate understanding of the urgency as well, at least that is how Sam sees it.
‘Sammy this isn’t funny.’
‘And turn those damn lights off as well. You have made your point.’
‘Christ! look out for the boardwalk son.’
‘Slow down!’
Sam ignores the backseat drivers, turns the cruiser hard and heads out towards the barn some ways out of town. The two older women are soon reassembling their dignity in the back of the cruiser chiseling at one another, and thats fine by Sam.
‘What’s up Sammy?’
Sue-Anne is the first to stop complaining as he knew she would be. Coot is well known for nursing her grudges longer than time.
‘Came back about an hour ago. You remember when Jo Pepper lost his boy to that old cow trampling him?’
‘I do Sam. That was a bad day.’
‘That’s what the Sheriff looks like now. Like he has lost someone.Hasn’t said much. Didn’t need to for me to know it was bad.’
‘Why us, Sam?’ demanded Coot.
‘Don’t mean no disrespect ma’am, but don’t treat me like a fool.’
‘Fair enough, Sammy.’
‘That’s Deputy Clancy tonight, ma’am.’
Tom Ridley looked like the last ten years of his life had got tired of waiting and mugged him overnight. The lighting in the barn didn’t help. It was a big structure so during the day plenty of daylight got in. But the high lights cast cones of light that made more shadows on Tom’s face than was helpful. And he was covered in dust. Dust in his hair and on his brow and leaving circles where his goggles had been. His clothes are two tone. Denim to the rear and prairie dust to the front. The buggy was the same colour, like it had spent its life in a dessert. But it was Tom’s eyes where the age had gathered, and the creases on his forehead, and the stoop of his shoulders.
‘You eaten, Sheriff?’ Sue-Anne demanded, entering the barn after the briefest hesitation.
Tom Ridley frowned deeper, as if that was possible.
‘Sue? What the hell are you doing here?’
‘Your deputy has been improvising. Be glad he did. Deputy Clancy, you got any fresh eggs and ham in this shed worth eating?’
’Uh, yes I guess so…’
‘Well don’t just stand there gawping. Show me the stove.’
‘Wait up. Coot, did you bring the maps.’
‘What maps?’
‘Dammit Sam, I said to get Coot’s maps…’
Sam had looked happier.
‘Sorry boss, I thought…’
‘Never no mind we are here now. Sam. Stove.’ intercepted Sue-Anne and Sam led her to the back of the barn.
Coot Demure had helped herself to a seat and is busy lighting up her pipe.
‘You look like shit, Tommy. What did you see?’
Tom Ridley rubbed the tendons on the back of his neck.Swung his head from side to side to stretch out the tension.
‘I needed the damn maps, Coot.’
‘Don’t blame the boy. He got backup in case I turned him into a frog or spider, not that I wouldn’t be tempted if I could. What did you see?’
‘More history.”
That made Coot pause. She glared at Tom with her sharp intelligent eyes.
‘What sort of history?’
Tom sighed heavily, staring right back.
‘The wrong kind.’
‘Sam, this all stays in this group and no further, OK?’
They were standing at the front of the barn which was clear of machinery and spotlit by the big light overhead. Coot was on her second pipe. Sue-Anne was twitching to get Tom to eat the ham and egg that was sitting on the roof of the half built Ridley coupe he was building. Sam is nodding, he’s looking to one side, not comfortable at returning his bosses stare yet.
‘Got it?‘ Tom asks, looking at the two women.
‘Will you just get on with it. I was having a nice quiet night shrinking heads until Deputy Panic here showed up.’ Coot grunted, sucked on the pipe, blew out some fumes. Sue-Anne was looking at the egg and ham.
‘Yeah, get along Tom, foods getting cold.’
‘Call this Haven.’
Tom made an X in the dirt on the barn floor with a welding rod.
‘I drove straight out to the edge of the solar fields before the lines of the turbines. Takes nearly an hour in the buggy. That’s about forty mile. Then I turned and drove for two hours straight. Never did get to an end.’
Tom drew another straight line in the dirt floor of the barn.
‘Now I am guessing and that’s all we got until we can do the job properly, but I am guessing that if I had turned the other way I may have traveled another two hours and not come to an end. ‘
He drew another line to make a T with the cross marking Haven at the tail.
‘The solar fields are huge. The maps we have show they are big, but they seem to be much bigger than the maps allow. It all looks right if you keep to the roads and the tracks, looks like the maps, but go out into wild country and, well, they might as well go on forever. That’s way more power than Haven can use.’
‘What about the other cooperatives? Do the farms give them any juice?’
‘Thought about that, Coot. Can’t make a case for it. None of the towns use that much power. I mean, think about it. We create our own fuel to run generators to juice our cars. No longer sure why we do that unless all the batteries have degraded. Before my time. Then there are the turbines. I never saw a break in their line either.’
‘Then what’s it all for, Tom?’
Tom Ridley made another X on his barn floor
‘A different Haven.’
‘Big enough for a truck. Like that old wreck rusting out behind Dino’s?’
‘Easy. And it’s massive, steel thick as a vault.’
‘How do you know that Tom?’ Sue-Anne, having made supper, is returning to her role in the Lazy as professional sceptic.
‘Cause I have worked metal since I was a boy, Sue. You can hit that door as hard as you like but you won’t get more than a dink out of it.'
‘It said Haven 7 on the door. Does that mean there are more Haven’s or is there more than one entrance?’
‘Search me, Coot. But putting things together, I’d guess it’s the one bunker.’
‘How do you get there?’
‘Stack up the facts. The Princess arrived here. Her suit took itself on tour around here. It was looking for something. We know it lied about this being the only place to watch the breakup. If there are other bunkers why come down here to this one? What would be special about the seventh’
‘They were bailing out of a crash landing, Tom. May not have had much choice.’ Sue-Anne challenged again.
‘It was a Bright suit,’ said Coot. ‘They ain’t famous for being sloppy.’
‘So what do you think? Oli?’
‘Only one way to know for sure. Gotta get inside.’
You do a great job with dialog. It's got a nice flow to it and you always know who's talking. I'm still getting the hang of this, trying to cut down on "he said/she said" fluff.
Great read!