THE PASSAGE

TWO WEEKS LATER

Chapter 48

I wake up this morning, not wanting to open my eyes and get up just yet, thinking I would lie here and rest for a little longer, and then I hear Cain cooing across the room from Toby's bed. It has been two weeks since we found that journal under the mattress, and since then, we have come to accept the fact that this place, this beautiful world we are in now, will probably be our permanent home. We have started making plans for our future, discussing repairs to the cabin, and possibly expanding it. Cain had slept with Toby again last night, and I realize that he had not even woke up once.

I open my eyes and look in his direction, surprised to find that Cain is alone in the bed. I pick my head up and scan the cabin but don't see Toby. I look next to me and find that Solstice is also gone.

I get up out of bed and quickly step over to pick up Cain, wondering where Toby and Solstice are and why they didn't let me know they were leaving. I suppose that I did sleep in a bit later than usual this morning, but they should have told me they were leaving, or at least put Cain next to me.

"Good morning, Cain. Where is Uncle Toby?"

I pick him up and sit at the bedside with him. At that instant, the cabin door opens, and Toby walks in.

"Toby, where have you been?"

"I just stepped outside to use the bathroom."

"Oh, how long have you been up?"

"Just for a little while, Cain woke me earlier."

"Okay, I thought you and Solstice abandoned me this morning. Speaking of Solstice, where is she?"

"I don't know. I didn't even notice that she wasn't in bed. She probably got up early this morning and is already out doing something."

"Oh, um, yes, I suppose." Darn it, why did I sleep in so late?

We have discussed plans for a garden, the possibility of making a wood-burning stove from stone to make cooking easier, and other things that would improve our lives here.

"Toby, are you going to cook for us this morning? Cain has me occupied."

"Of course, my dear, what would you like?"

"How about fried eggs, hash browns, and bacon?"

"It'll take a while."

"It'll be worth the wait."

Toby was able to bag his first pig here two days ago, using that bow that has become his favorite hunting weapon. We smoked part of the pork belly and cut it into thin strips, and now we have bacon and lard for cooking. We discovered another potato patch in the area near the grove of fruit trees and thoroughly enjoyed those, especially to make hash browns in the mornings.

Toby is near fully recovered now. The only evidence that he was ever injured is the small scar left behind from the knife wound. He has already taken over the duties of hunting and fishing for us. In his spare time, he has been going on a few day-scouts around the area to explore and to look for other people, but so far, he has found no evidence of any human existence besides us. He has also been practicing tanning a few deerskins using bat droppings from a cave that he discovered.

Solstice and I gave the cabin a proper cleaning last week. We made a rudimentary broom from dried straw-like vegetation and a stick that Solstice whittled smooth for us. We also washed out all the blankets, towels, and washcloths and dried them on a clothesline we strung out between two trees, using the black nylon string I had found in the boat.