Tony Littlejohns - The Hoffmann Plague

Jamie walked to the cab and came back with the box he’d got from Jane’s attackers and gave them to Bill, who was pleased with the gift and thanked him sincerely. The two kids came out to say goodbye and to stroke Max again, then they got in the truck and drove off down the track, waving goodbye. At the bottom, Jane got out to put the barrier back in place and they drove onto the road, heading home.

They stopped off first at the railway bridge when they got back to Bexhill, and Jane went up to check the snares, coming back with a rabbit and a big grin on her face. Jamie clapped his hands and kissed her on the cheek. They carried on driving and discussed moving the snares to another location. They wondered if the rabbits might get used to them and start avoiding the area, so they thought it best to move them for a while to somewhere else, and then put them back at a later date. They agreed to try the green space around Down Road and also Collington Wood, just past the railway, and to take Max with them to sniff out the burrows.

Their second stop was at the kitchen shop on Devonshire Road, where they came out with several boxes of preserving jars. Jamie had to break the glass with a hammer to get in, but it wasn’t a problem. Back home, they hauled the bags of logs off the truck and dragged them into Jamie’s garage.

They spent the remaining afternoon preparing and cooking the rabbit and pheasant for preserving. Now that they had a good supply of logs they fired up the Rayburn for the first time, so they had the two hotplates and the two ovens to cook with. Jamie played some music on his MP3 player while they were working and they chatted about Bill and Emma, saying how great it was to have met them and that there were other survivors for them to interact with. They roasted the pheasant for that evening and the next day, and cooked up the rabbit meat and sealed it in preserving jars. Max was given the leftovers, which he scoffed out in the garden.

After their evening meal of roast pheasant they sat in the conservatory with a bottle of wine and ate some of the cheese Emma had given them, savouring the taste. They talked for a long while, with Max curled up between them on the sofa, going over plans and ideas, and also resolved to go back soon to see Bill and Emma. They were more realistic by now about the hard times that lay ahead and what they needed to do. They knew that despite their efforts in the garden over the past week and in the future, they would be at the mercy of nature and the weather. They fully expected to have setbacks and failures, and that survival and self-sufficiency were going to be tough. They both agreed, though, that in the scheme of things today had been a good day.

They said goodnight and hugged, then Jane went next door. He filled Max’s water bowl, stroked him and then went to bed, where he lay awake for a long time thinking about many things.

The inclement weather continued for another two days and got worse, peaking early on the Monday, with regular squalls of wind and rain from leaden, overcast skies. It was certainly too rough to think of taking the boat out to do more fishing. They did some more garden work on the Sunday but soon gave up as the soil was difficult to work and they just ended up covered in mud. After getting drenched they went back inside. Jane went next door to change into dry clothes then they lit the stove in the kitchen and hung up their wet things to dry.

Instead, they decided to visit the other areas that they thought might be good for laying snares. It would still mean getting wet, but there was nothing they could do about that, and at least they wouldn’t be constantly scraping clods of mud off their boots, spades and forks. They took Max and visited Collington Wood just the other side of the railway and then went to the green space along Down Road, laying new snares and marking their positions clearly with Christmas ribbon so they could find them again easily. Max seemed almost impossibly jubilant, both with his new tasks and with his new family, and didn’t seem bothered in the least by the weather. His back legs had healed well; he loved the work and being outside with them both, running around like a mad thing when he wasn’t tracking for them.

It took the rest of the morning to locate new burrows and lay the snares, and by the time they’d finished they were drenched again. It made them realise that they needed better outdoor clothing than they currently had if they were to work outside in all weathers. They couldn’t think of anywhere in Bexhill where they would find appropriate clothing as there weren’t any camping or outdoor-type shops, and neither of them fancied going into bigger towns like Eastbourne or Hastings. Jane knew of a country clothing shop in Battle, so they decided to drive over there after lunch and get kitted out with some better coats and maybe trousers also. During lunch Jane mentioned an idea she’d had.

‘I’ve been thinking since yesterday about Bill and Emma, and about what we could give them as a thank-you for their generosity and hospitality to us.’

‘What did you have in mind?’

‘Well, I wanted to ask what you thought, and if you had any ideas.’

Jamie thought for a few seconds, recalling what he’d seen at their house. ‘I think treats would be good; they seem to be pretty well set up with the basics and the essential things. So why not get them some nice things they might be lacking? I don’t suppose the kids have had much in the way of treats since this all began. What about things like sweets, crisps, snacks and sodas – stuff like that?’

‘Yes, and I’m sure Emma would be grateful for some pampering things for herself, as well as feminine hygiene products.’

‘That’s a good idea. I’m sure Bill would like some more whisky and brandy, and he needs more shotgun cartridges. I know we’ve got a good supply at the moment, but we’ll need to see if we can find a local supplier where we can stock up for ourselves, anyway.’

‘The house where you got the shotguns from: where did they use?’

‘I was just thinking the same thing myself,’ he replied, smiling. ‘I’ll walk there and have a look around – won’t be long.’

He put on his coat and boots then left, after picking up the Smith and Wesson and putting it in his pocket. He walked a few streets away to the house where he’d found the guns and went up to the study. He rooted through the desk, finding an address book containing the names of various suppliers to the shooting fraternity, along with flyers, business cards and pamphlets obtained from gun clubs and shooting competitions. He sorted through them all; some were internet-based companies but there were also details of gunsmiths and suppliers in the south. He found there was a gun and shooting-supplies store on the outskirts of St. Leonards and Hastings, on the road to Battle. Perfect! He took the pamphlet and went back to the bungalow.

Max greeted him like he’d been gone for hours, rather than just thirty minutes, as usual. He relayed the news to Jane and said they could stop there first on the way to Battle. They now had a small fleet of six vehicles at their disposal, depending on their requirements: their two cars, the Land Rover, the Toyota pickup, the BMW estate and the Escort RS2000. They decided to take the Land Rover as it had a covered load area, and they never knew what they might find and need to bring back with them, or where they might need to drive; its four-wheel drive could come in handy.

They packed a few things into Jamie’s rucksack, along with his sawn-off, and put some tools in the back of the truck. Jane took an over and under shotgun into the cab along with a box of cartridges, then Max climbed in and she closed the door on him. She went to open the garage door but stopped for a second and turned to Jamie.