The Gathering of the Clans

Book 1 Chapter 7

The Gathering of the Clans

Book 1 Chapter 7

<<<Pepepski >>>

Ian and Kyle's House

Tray Nelson could only smile and chuckle around his mouthful of pie at the antics of Joel and Forrest trying to get their papas to agree to them going to see the train. Better them than him. He felt a poke in his back and looked over at Vance and Zackarias. Both men were wearing evil grins and motioning with their thumbs at the kid's table. Tray turned and discovered seven death glares directed at himself. He choked on his pie.

Wyatt, Tray's 13-year-old nephew was shoved from his chair and pointed in Tray's direction by the group of boys. "Umm Uncle Tray can we boys go to see and help out at the train too?" Tray finally got that misplaced piece of pie to move and took a sip of his coffee to finish washing it down.

"I'd love to go see a train to kiddo but you're asking the wrong guy." "Uncle Tray adults are confusing. I'm asking you because you said you're in charge and then Uncle Vance and then Uncle Zackarias." Tray shrugged and pointed with his fork at Ian. "Ian is the one you need to be asking. He's in charge of everybody in Pepepski and that is where we live now. Besides, it's his train."

Wyatt chewed on his lip and looked back at the table of boys who were waving him on and hissing at him to go ask as he stood there shaking his head no at them. He finally screwed up his courage and walked around the table to Ian. "Umm, Mr. Ian sir would it be alright with you if we, I mean the other boys and myself, could go along and help look for treasure at the train too?

Ian took a long sip of his coffee. "Are you and the others willing to help out with watching the younger boys out there and to help load and unload the stuff we decide to take?" Wyatt grinned and stammered out " You bet! I'm the baby of our little family and the older ones all get stuck watching me all the time and the others are all stronger than me too." Ian looked over at the other boys to see them all nodding. "Then yes, you can all come tomorrow and help us hunt for treasure." Wyatt shook Ian's hand and practically ran back to the table where he got fist bumps and pats on the back from the other boys.

Ian smiled at Tray. "Ready to tell us about your group?" "For another piece of that pie, I'll tell you anything you want to know. Before this all I ever ate was made by Sara Lee," he confessed. The seven boys with him all began to laugh. It was young Wyatt that piped up "He even burns those. We eat lots of ramen noodles in a cup. He hasn't managed to burn water yet!" Vance and Zackarias were nodding and helping themselves to another piece of the pie. Rod laughed "Is that all? My wife had to have a cook prepare our meals. She managed to burn water and set her parent's kitchen on fire...TWICE!"

"Adelard is in the same shape as Ethelwood. I lived with my older sister and two nephews, you met the youngest of the two Wyatt, and the other is Wade. My sister had a small orchard mostly of pears. She was finishing up the canning for the year when I came down with the Sickness. The boys fell ill the next day."

"She nursed us through it, only to catch and die from it herself. By the time we were back on our feet, the people in Adelard were dying so fast that I put my name, number, and address up on the post office door as someone to call for help. At first, we got lots of calls every day but out of everybody that called no one was surviving." Tray sighed and put down his fork.

"The Bridges brothers were the first survivors we got. Rafferty, Roman, and Ryan are all that survived out of the south and east areas of the town." Tray grinned "Don't let their innocent faces fool you they hotwired a car and drove to our place." Three days later we picked up Nathaniel from his family's farm just a bit out of Adelard on County T. All he had in this world was his Grandparents and they didn't make it." Tray gripped his coffee cup harder.