Time to Leave

"Please put that down, I don't want to die because you don't know how to handle dad's old hunting knife." James looked over his shoulder, scolding his younger sister. Jenni carefully set the knife on the beat up wooden table and tried to hide her shame. 

"Sorry James, I just want to help..."

"You want to help? Go grab those cans of black beans from the shelf. They're up a little high, do you think you can do it on your own?" 

Jenni looked around the room. When she spotted a small step stool in the corner behind a ladder her eyes lit up and she nodded. Running to the step stool, she carried it awkwardly across the room to the shelf with the food. Setting it down, she stepped on it and got a much better view of the room.

James was working over the table, hunched down close to the gas lamp grandma had given their parents as a decorative gift when she was a little younger. Jenni was always fascinated with it. It was like a candle, but so much brighter. She knew it wasn't like the lights in the house, they had all stopped working about two months ago. Somehow this lamp still did. It amazed her.Shifting her focus she looked back to the shelf in front of her.

Dusty cans sat lined up like little toy soldiers. Beans of all kinds, pears, pineapples, peas, ham, and evaporated milk. The shelf above was filled with plastic bottles and two five gallon jugs of water. The shelf below had thermal and fleece blankets, flashlights with batteries still in their box, and a box full of matches and mini lighters.

Grabbing the black beans, she hopped down from her stool and made her way over to James. She marched over and set them on the table, a little too hard. James jumped and looked at her with anger in his eyes. Jenni shrunk back, fumbling with her hands as she looked at the ground.

"Jenni, please get it together. I need to know you're ready. I can't baby you anymore. We need to go out there and we can't do that if we're not prepared." James ran his hands through his hair, and Jenni saw the slightest bit of shaking. He had been working on packing their backpacks for their "adventure"--as he had called it to make Jenni more excited about it, making sure they both had enough food, water, and protection to leave the safety of the basement.

Their parents had first heard of the riots through the news. Like everyone else, they didn't think much of it. They lived in a smaller community anyway, that type of stuff just didn't happen there. But soon the news reported more riots, more murders, more acts of violent rage throughout the country. Finally, it had reached their doorstep. The town square was ransacked and every business front was destroyed. Glass and fire was everywhere for weeks. Their dad had had enough of it and decided he would keep their family inside for as long as he could.

One clear day he ran out to the store and loaded up on non-perishables and anything else he thought might help. He stopped at the hardware store to buy flashlights and a large deadbolt. He was surprised by how many others he saw doing the same. When he got home, he instructed their mother to move their mattress to the basement and bring down any pantry items she could find. He got to work installing the new lock and cleared the shelving unit that had previously held spider webs and Christmas decor. 

They stayed down there as a family for four weeks before anyone even went up to the main level again. Without the news (the power to the town had been turned off two weeks in), no one knew how bad things were. Their dad wanted to check and see if the neighbors had been doing the same, if they needed any help. On a bright Tuesday morning, their parents kissed them goodbye and told them they would be right back.

An hour passed. Another. Another. A night. A day. After the third day, James knew they weren't coming back. At fifteen, he was now guardian to his seven year old sister.

James knew they couldn't stay down there forever, but he also knew if people were able to take his parents, they could easily take two kids. He planned that they would go to the elementary school. He knew the route was easy and they could get there taking back trails instead of the main road.

For two days James had been sharpening knives, rolling blankets as small as he could, packing socks, and taking an inventory of their food and water. He wanted to split everything evenly in case of the unfortunate possibility they were separated. He would hate himself if he put all the fabric and weapons in one backpack and food and water in the other, and suddenly his sister is on her own without something she needs.

 James stepped back from the table, two fully packed backpacks in front of him. He looked at his sister and saw she was still sulking from his scolding.

He knelt down and lifted her chin so she would look him in the eyes. "Which bag do you want? You pick." He smiled and hugged her. Jenni looked at her choices and smiled.

"I want the blue one! You can have the green." She reached for the blue backpack and slipped it on. "It's a little heavy... what if I fall?"

James slipped his bag over his shoulder and smiled. "If it feels too heavy, I can carry it for a while. But I want to make sure you have it most of the time. It has a bunch of important stuff in it that you will need. So don't take it off, okay? I need you to always have it unless we're both sitting down and eating. The bag will get lighter too, so you should be alright." He then walked over to the shelving unit and reached for a box on the top shelf, a box that Jenni wouldn't have been able to get even standing on the stool.

He set it on the table and rummaged through it for a moment. "Ah, here we go. Perfect." He gently pulled out a silver necklace with a small heart shaped locket. He carefully opened it to find an old photo of their parents from their honeymoon. He stood behind Jenni and unfastened it. Carefully moving her long hair to the side, he put it on her. 

Jenni held the locket in her hand, slowly wrapping her fingers around it. "This is mommy's. She'll be upset when she sees me wearing it." She looked up at her brother who suddenly looked sad. "What's wrong James?" 

James looked up at the ceiling fighting to keep his tears in his eyes. He didn't have the heart to tell her they wouldn't ever see mom again. "Nothing. I think mom would say you look great wearing it."

He feigned a smile and walked up the creaky stairs. He motioned for Jenni to follow him so she did. Leaning softly against the door, he grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "Ready?"

Jenni squeezed his hand back. "Ready."

He leaned into the door as he unlocked it, slowly revealing a growing sliver of sunlight and the faint smell of smoke.