The Scout

Chapter - 1

Amy was cold, she was tied up so tight, & had no coat, they took it from her and gave it to a teenager. This was night 2 she was held captive in a rebel camp. After the meteors, & long burning fires decimated North America she had been walking north for months, trying to get back to her people in what was left of Alberta and see if anyone or anything was still alive at Heartland. She shivered and tried to slide under some pine branches for protection from the wind. They had caught her in a net trap, deep in the woods on the Wyoming Trail, that followed the old Interstate 25 out of Laramie. She had hidden and evaded the roving rebels gangs for weeks; but little missed their heat seeking sensors. An elderess had brought her a small meal of venison, blackberries and mushrooms for a late dinner.  She was still hungry.

Amy watched the moon travel across the night sky, and figured it was between midnight and 2:00 am.

She had been walking for 3 months after leaving Texas, or what used to be Texas. It had to be below zero, she could see her breath in the moonlight and the cup of dirty water they gave her, was froze solid. She had become a tough & resilient woman the last 3 months; the sole survivor of a Horse Behavior Conference near Houston; she looked nothing like a cowgirl now, she wore tennis shoes, and a rope for a belt. All she carried was a backpack with a few first aid supplies she took from an abandoned aid station outside the conference center.

Her one prized possession......... a simple tattered napkin, which once held a cranberry muffin. A parting gift from an elderly blind woman in Cheyenne.

Amy would never forget the old woman......
She ran the Cheyenne Rest Station, hidden deep in a forest. Travelers from across North America stopped and rested a day or 3. It was a place of fortitude, where kindness greeted everyone.
Home cooked meals, a place to bathe, and stare up into the Milky Way. There were no strangers there, just new friends to meet, hugs to share and smiles to pass around. Amy stayed 2 nights, soaking up the generosity of strangers. And sleeping in sweet safety.

But now, all alone, cold, hungry & depraved of even a smile, Amy thought of the final words the old woman shared with her.........

Amy, you be careful, let the forest hide you, pay attention to the songs of birds. They will warn you of danger. And fear not, my young friend, for on your darkest night, a man who jumps from the sky will find you. He will take you to safety. Your heart will know him. Here, take a muffin & never forget this place!! She hugged Amy for a long while, then whispered......run child!! Run like the wind!!
Amy looked into her dark eyes and softly replied.....
I love you!! You've been like a mother to me!!
Amy turned and ran north up the trail; she was all alone again, kept company only by her tears.

Amy shivered and thought of home. She yearned to sit in front of Grandpa's warm roaring fireplace, sip hot cocoa and watch her grandma's needles knit a sweater......
Now all Amy had of home, was a tiny stuffed horse she kept hidden safely in her pack.

She saw a great horned owl high atop a nearby pine tree, his big eyes looking down at her. She softy talked to the owl who somehow understood......
This is my darkest night!
There is no man here to rescue me, the old woman was senile or crazy. I don't want to be here!!
God!! I don't want to be here!!
I just want to go home!! Can you take me home please!! The owl hooted once & leapt up into the air.
He was free to live wherever he wanted..,...

But for Amy........she was property of the Rebels. The elderess said she would be awarded to a young man at noon and expected to produce children.
She wanted to cry, but Amy knew the tears would evaporate on her face and further lower her core body temperature. She had been shivering for hours, and had asked for help earlier and got a piece of firewood thrown at her in reply. Her feet were tied under her and her hands behind. She tried to sleep, but forced herself to stay awake. She was hungry and thirsty.