Post Plague Kidnapping - Published!

Chapter 1

7/21/2019: Updated to the published version.

April 2037 – Southeast Texas

Leah took careful aim, the compound bow in her arms strung tight. All her father and brothers had taught her hung in the air so thick they were almost there in person. She released her breath and with it the arrow, which shot past her cheek and struck the cow she had been aiming for through the neck. The hide of these cows was very tough, so she had no chance of piercing the heart or skull. A slice through the neck took a little more time, which she didn't like, but was the fastest way with the bow. The blood would flow out quickly.

Leah didn't use guns. They made too much noise. She loved animals and was as humane as possible in their dispatch. In this world, there wasn't much choice about killing them. There were no more supermarkets filled with fresh food. Plenty of canned, dried, and vacuum-packed food stuffs were available, but a person got sick of that fast. Fresh food meant work, but if she got lazy, she would just deteriorate like everything else man-made.

At least there was no population shortage of cows. They covered the open Texas landscapes like lakes. Leah had seen paintings of the buffalo herds before Europeans came to the west and thought it looked very similar. Packs of now-wild dogs often hunted them.

It took her a few hours to carve the cow into portable chunks. She left the remainder for the dogs, cats, and other wildlife. She placed each piece into a two-gallon Ziploc bag and then into the large basket cart she towed behind her bike. When she finally got all the meat home, she cut it into small portions, packed it in smaller freezer bags, labelled it, and stowed it in the freezer.

The house she lived in had a bomb shelter built beneath it, complete with water and air filtration and recycling. Generators produced electricity from diesel and waste, but most electrical needs were satisfied by solar panels on the roof of the modest two-story house above and two stationary bikes that also provided exercise for anyone locked inside. There was a walk-in freezer. The cow she killed today would feed her for three months or more. She also had an impressive collection of frozen vegetables taken from the gardens. She mostly ate them fresh but kept a supply in the freezer for the winter months. It was spring, and the gardens were in bloom again.

She had started in the early morning, but it was mid-afternoon when she finished processing the cow. Her next task was harvesting some vegetables to go with her dinner. There were many gardens behind the homes along the street she lived on, which she tended regularly. She chose romaine lettuce, a red onion, a cucumber, a tomato, and a potato. She placed the produce in a basket she had brought along and began to walk back around to the street. A very foreign sound stopped her in her tracks.

It was a man's voice, amplified. She couldn't make out the words as it was coming from very far away. Quickly, she double-checked the street to make sure there were no signs of her living there. The grass in front of the houses was high since it was never cut, and she had always been careful not to make paths through it. The bushes and trees grew out of control and provided plenty of cover. Leah only kept the vegetation back from her garden plots, but those were hidden behind the houses.

She tucked herself behind some overgrown bushes at the side of the house she was at. The voice was growing in volume, and she realized it was coming over a loudspeaker. The sound of an engine arose and then tires. The man was moving in some sort of vehicle and drawing closer. Leah made sure she was completely covered by the bushes but had a view of the street.

The words became clear. "...food, medicine, and doctors. If anyone can hear me, please show yourself. We mean you no harm. We want to help you and bring you to our community. You'll be safe there."