Forlorn Hope

Chapter Five

Bear woke, but kept his eyes closed. He listened to the sounds around him. No birds greeted him this morning. The only sound was wind blowing through abandoned buildings. The sun was already up, casting welcome warmth upon his face. He expected hunger pains – he hadn't eaten since before he had left his village. But this morning was completely serene. His eyes fluttered open, revealing a sun higher in the sky than he expected. It was likely ten in the morning – he hadn't slept this late in years. He descended from the tree and started towards Gardiner. As he trudged on, he wondered what events he had missed this morning.

* * *

Anna usually woke before Garret. This morning was an exception. After their liaison the previous night, they had connected their thermal bags together and slept in each other's embrace. Both experienced a deep restful sleep that night. They both had vivid dreams. If they had mentioned those dreams to each other, they would have realized they had had the same dream. When she opened her eyes, a blurry Garret came into focus. He was shirtless and his hand propped up his head with his pillow wedged under his tricep.

She smiled, "How long have you been watching me?"

He lied, "Only a few minutes."

In actuality he had woken an hour ago. His dream had been disturbing. He tried to recall it, but he only succeeded in conjuring images of wild dogs, rabid wolves and bears.

Anna leaned into him and kissed him firmly on the lips, "Ready for breakfast?"

He was unable to respond, she was kissing him forcibly now, her hand gripping the back of his head. He felt himself harden, his body pressed against hers.

Anna noticed it too, "Not this morning mister! Mammoth Hot Springs is only twenty miles away."

He made a growling sound, deep in his throat. It reminded him of his dream and the mood was irrevocably destroyed. He lingered a moment longer, taking in her scent before extricating himself from the bag. They broke camp quickly and seemed to find excuses for brief contact with each other. After a meal of protein bars and water they started their trek north.

* * *

Bear made quick work covering the distance from the grove of trees to the closest abandoned house. He pushed open the door and looked around the first building he had been in outside his village. A broken window allowed in the crisp air. The house and its contents were well preserved. A kitchen table was set for a meal, but the contents of the large plate in the center had turned to dust long ago. Everything had a coat of dust and his footprints stood out as he disturbed the layer of dust on the floor. He stopped briefly before exiting; his footprints reminded him of the unblemished field between his village and the town of Gardiner, Montana.

He made his way south from house to house, all abandoned. Eventually he came to a river, but it was frozen over and he could hear water under the ice. He looked for a good place to cross and saw a two lane steel trestle bridge spanning the river. The bridge had been unused since the town was abandoned, but it appeared to have been designed and constructed to last. Other than being covered with a lot of snow, it appeared to be perfectly usable. After the bridge he no longer wanted to search each house. Now he looked for major landmarks, wondering what his next destination was.

A block and a half south of the bridge he stopped at an intersection. He turned west and continued his trek. Two more blocks and the road turned southwest, buildings petering out. He followed the street until he came to a building. He didn't know why he felt compelled to enter the building, but he loped up the ramp and pushed on the doors until they gave way. The walls and floor were covered with books – thousands of books. He had found the Gardiner Public Library.

He picked up random books and looked within. The books were in English, but all the letters looked weird. If he concentrated on the letters he could read, but it was a slow process. This treasure trove of information was too valuable to not take advantage of. He knew he would be in this library for the foreseeable future.

* * *

The trek north was proceeding rapidly. Highway Eighty-Nine was almost a straight run from Nymph Lake to Mammoth Hot Springs. Garret ignored his environment with a single-minded focus on his destination. Their pace was quick, the flat road beneath the snow made their hiking easier.

Garret was walking so quickly, Anna fell behind repeatedly needing to run to catch up. Other than that, it was boring – left foot, right foot. She kept putting one foot in front of the other and watched the miles melt away.

* * *

Bear read book after book, absorbing the information they contained. At first it was slow, but the more he read the easier it was. Soon he was reading rapidly. The tables were quickly piled with the books he read. These books told of a history different to that he had learned in school. Most of the dates were correct, but like the letters, the details of those events were slightly off. It made no sense that these books were so different from what he knew, but he was determined to read. He read until he grew weary and promptly fell asleep slouched in a chair. The book he was reading fell to the floor with a thump. Bear didn't react to the sound - he was already deeply asleep.

* * *

The sun was low in the western sky. Garret was several hundred yards ahead when Anna saw the Upper Terrace to her left. She peered into the distance and saw Garret beginning to skirt the Lower Terrace. She quickened her pace, a worry set upon her mind.

Where the hell is he going?

Garret kept walking, uninterested in the geothermal features of the terraces. She quickened her pace, worried about Garret's mental state.

When he appeared to continue heading north, her worry turned to fear, as the forty-fifth parallel got dangerously close.

She finally caught up with him, "Hey hon, what's the rush?"

"We gotta keep moving. Only about five miles to go."

She grabbed his arm to stop him. "Five miles? That's in Montana!"

When he shook off her hand and attempted to head north, she shouted "Garret! I thought Old Faithful and Mammoth Hot Springs were our goal!"

He stopped and considered her intently. "What gave you that idea?"

"Well, Yellowstone has the world's largest caldera and you are a geothermal expert."

"Yellowstone was never our destination."

She grabbed his shoulders, shaking him, her voice increasing to a shrill tone. "Where are we going?"

"Gardiner, Montana."

"Why the hell would we break the Montana quarantine zone?"

"I guess I should tell you our true purpose here..."