Teri’s eyes were fixed on the road and the cars around her. Her knuckles were white on the wheel.
‘I don’t know, Gem. We’ll just keep going and see what happens.’
‘If you don’t go on the motorway it should be easier,’ Alex chimed in from the back seat.
Teri flicked her eyes to the rear view mirror and gave him a look. ‘Thanks,’ she said. ‘I hadn’t thought of that.’
‘Jeez,’ he grumbled, sitting back. ‘No need to bite my head off. I was only trying to help.’
She glared at him in the mirror. ‘Well it’s not a normal fucking day is it, Alex? I don’t know what the average day is like in IT, but at Reception we don’t normally have buildings blowing up and people dying. And aside from that, my car will probably overheat unless this fucking traffic hurries up, and that’ll piss me off too.’
Gemma kept her thoughts to herself and her eyes on the road. Teri didn’t normally swear like that, and she had a fair point. The tension in the car was palpable and she didn’t want to add to it with pointless chatter. She tuned an ear to the radio instead, but amongst the traffic updates and repeats of the Prime Minister’s announcement, there was nothing new.
She ran through a mental checklist of what she had with her. Enough food and water for 24 hours. A torch, basic first aid kit, emergency shelter. Spare pair of socks, a thermal top, a waterproof jacket. Nothing luxurious, but it was enough to get her home if the car broke down or there was some kind of emergency that required her to abandon the car.
A normal emergency, that was. She was pretty sure that Mark hadn’t counted on a national state of emergency being declared. He used to joke about the North Koreans and Chinese invading but it had never seriously been something he’d planned for.
She didn’t fancy walking all the way home. It was a hell of a hike and would take her probably three days if she was walking in a straight line. She didn’t have the supplies for that, and presumably it would mean sleeping rough and taking her chances on the street.
She shuddered at the thought. With any luck she’d be able to get her hands on a car, or even a bike. Maybe the trains would be running and she could get to Pukekohe. Mark and Archie could come and pick her up and she’d be home in no time.
The thought of it lifted her spirits.
They had reached Ponsonby and were tracking south, but it was still slow going. Gemma checked her watch, realising it had been more than forty minutes since they’d left work. The time had slipped by while she was lost in her thoughts, and she wondered what else she had missed.
The radio was still on and she turned the volume up. The announcer was partway through a message.
‘…phones are down, I’m guessing they’re jammed up with emergency calls, but we have had reports of gas explosions in downtown Auckland and casualties coming in. We don’t know the extent of the problems there, or anywhere else around the country to be honest, so all we can do is just hope and pray that people are safe and keeping off the streets.’
‘Not by the looks of it,’ Alex said.
‘There hasn’t been any further updates issued from the Prime Minister, at least none that have been received by us, but as soon as we do hear anything we’ll be sure to let you know. As we’ve already said earlier, the latest we’ve got is that a state of emergency has been declared nationwide…’
Gemma turned the volume back down again. Negativity on a loop would do none of them any good.
‘What’re your plans when you get home?’ she asked Teri.
Her friend barely moved her eyes from the cars in front of her.
‘I think I’m gunna sit on my couch and eat chips,’ she said. ‘Hopefully Andrew will be home.’ She risked a glance at Gemma. ‘We can eat chips together.’
Gemma raised an eyebrow. ‘Really? That’s your solution? Sit on the couch and eat chips?’
Teri gave an exaggerated nod. ‘Yup. What else can I do?’
Gemma could think of a hundred things better than that plan, and she was debating which one to suggest when she realised her friend was smiling.
‘So gullible,’ Teri grinned.
Gemma felt a reluctant smile cross her lips. ‘Dickhead,’ she said.
‘Meat and veg,’ Teri retorted.
They drove in silence for a while, each of them lost in their own thoughts. They were nearly at Mt Eden when Teri groaned.
Gemma looked up sharply and saw steam rising from beneath the bonnet. ‘Uh-oh.’
‘Fuckity-fuckity-fuck-fuck!’ Teri slapped the steering wheel and groaned again. ‘It’s all this bloody idling, it always overheats when I’m stuck in traffic for too long.’
‘Better pull over,’ Alex said.
‘Thanks, genius. I hadn’t thought of that either.’
She steered to the side of the road and switched it off. ‘No point calling the AA, I suppose.’
Gemma checked her phone. ‘Still no service anyway.’
‘It’s alright,’ Teri said. ‘I’ve got water, I’ll just wait for it to cool down and top it up. It’s not far to go now anyway.’
‘How far?’ Alex said, leaning forward between the seats.
‘I don’t know, not far.’
‘Like, how long to drive in normal traffic?’
‘I don’t know.’ She screwed her nose up at him. ‘I don’t pay any attention to that, and besides, I normally go on the motorway.’
Gemma checked her watch again. 2.15pm. It was over two hours since Mark had contacted her, a bit less since the official announcement had been made. A lot had happened since then but it felt like she had barely progressed at all.
Her experience with overheating cars told her they would be waiting the better part of an hour before they could get going again, pushing them out past three o’clock. She didn’t want to be waiting that long. The traffic was hardly moving, so she didn’t fancy their chances of getting very far in the car anyway.
‘We need to make a decision,’ she said. She turned in her seat so she could see both of them. ‘Do we wait here with the car or do we just walk it?’
The other two exchanged looks, neither wanting to take the lead and voice an opinion. Gemma didn’t have time to waste.
‘I vote we walk,’ she said. ‘Mt Eden’s not far from One Tree Hill, maybe three or four k’s? We could easily make that in less than hour.’
‘I think it’s further than that,’ Teri said doubtfully. ‘And what about my car?’
‘Leave it here. It’s not going anywhere anyway.’
‘That’s still a fair walk,’ she said.
Gemma bit back her impatience. ‘It’s not far. We don’t have to set a record, we’re not in a race.’
Her friend still looked dubious and Gemma turned to Alex.
‘What d’you reckon, Alex? Wait or walk? If Teri’s not coming then I’m going to head to the train station and see if they’re still running.’
He hefted his bag. ‘I’m on for a walk. We can’t wait here all day, and I can get a train to Manukau or Manurewa and go from there.’
‘Teri?’
Teri chewed her lip silently for a long moment, then shook her head. ‘No,’ she said. ‘I’ll stay with the car. It’ll be fine.’
Gemma sat for a moment, waiting to see if either of them was going to suggest an alternative plan or if Teri would change her mind. When nothing happened, she cracked her door.
Teri joined them on the footpath and gave them each a big hug. They sorted out rough directions to the Mt Eden train station and checked their gear. Gemma secured the day pack on her back and carried the jute shopping bag with the extra gear. Alex had his own bag on his back. He held out his hand for the shopping bag, but Gemma declined with a smile.
‘It’s okay, I’ll carry it,’ she said. She knew it was extra weight and he was only being polite, but she wanted to keep her gear with her.
She had the feeling that today, more than ever before, she needed to rely on herself.
Eighteen
Rob spotted the pall of smoke before they hit the tailback, and knew right away that they were in for a wait.
The tailback was at least a couple of k’s long already and not moving.
‘Is that a fire?’ Sandy said, craning to try and get a better angle.
‘I’d say a car fire from that black smoke,’ Rob said, slipping the bus into neutral. ‘The engine’s on fire.’
Sandy sighed and sat back. ‘I’ve text them again,’ she said. ‘I don’t know if they’re going through though.’
‘Have you heard from Carla at all?’
‘Not yet…oh, hang on, here we go. Must be in a good spot here.’ Her phone pinged as messages came up. ‘Carla… “got the messages and will contact you tomorrow. The kids have practice today and Ryan is not home until late so no rush”.’
She looked to her husband and he looked at her. It was typical of their oldest daughter.
‘I think she’s failing to grasp the seriousness of the situation,’ Rob grumbled. ‘Tell her to get her backside in gear.’
Sandy snorted. ‘And when did that ever work? She’s got your genes – stubborn as a damn mule.’
Rob let it slide, mostly because he knew it was true. It didn’t make him any less worried about his daughter or granddaughters.
‘Have you text Ryan as well?’ he said, already knowing the answer.
Sandy gave him another look. ‘Have you?’
He gave a slight smile. ‘I’ve been busy driving, my girl,’ he said.
Sandy frowned and said nothing. She tapped out another quick message to Carla.
We r on the way to GnMs. This is serious.
She was about to hit Send then reconsidered. She added Luv Mum xxx and hit Send. She didn’t normally add endearments like that, but hopefully it gave the message some emphasis. She put her phone away and looked out the window. It didn’t look like they had moved an inch.
‘We haven’t,’ Rob said, as if reading her mind. ‘And nothing’s coming the other way, either.’
He switched off the engine and they sat. Waiting.
Nineteen
The dog raced off after a rabbit and Archie and I watched him go as we crossed the paddock.
The three heifers at the other end chewed grass and watched us. One of them lifted its tail and took a dump before stepping forward a pace and eating some more. Life was simple when you’re a heifer. I checked the fence and tracked down the line to the next paddock. Archie walked beside me, swishing a stick through the grass. We were quiet, there being no need to talk just now.
Jethro bounded back to us after a fruitless hunt, a big grin on his face. I was convinced he had missed the “How to catch a Rabbit” tutorial at dog school. He bunted Archie’s stick and backed off, shifting his gaze from Archie to the stick in his hand.
‘No Jethro,’ the boy told him firmly, ‘you’re not having it. This is my walking stick.’
Jethro wagged his tail and a second later the stick was flying through the air with the dog dashing after it.
‘Crazy dog,’ Archie said.
I ruffled his hair and was about to speak when I felt the hairs on my neck prickle. I removed my hand from his head and shifted it closer to the Browning I had tucked in my waistband. I couldn’t see or hear anything but my sixth sense was pinging.
We reached the end of the paddock and Jethro raced back with the stick in his mouth, dropping it at Archie’s feet. I intended to cross into the second paddock and check the fence there too, but I couldn’t ignore the feeling that we were being watched.
I paused at the fence we were about to cross, listening hard, and finally clocked a slight movement on the other side of the treeline. I put myself between the trees and Archie.
‘Who’s there?’
There was a rustle of movement and I saw a figure through a gap in the trees.
‘Alright, Mark?’
I felt my breath release when I recognised the voice. It was Bevan Shaw, one of the other neighbours.
‘All good, Bevan. What’re you up to, mate?’ His block was across the road and down further, but I knew he did a bit of pest control for the Macklin’s, on whose property he now stood. I could see the shape of a rifle by his side.
‘Just checkin’,’ he replied. ‘Same as you. Clearing a few rabbits.’
I forced a chuckle, his vague response not sitting right with me. ‘Can’t let these beasts get out through a broken fence mate,’ I said, ‘I’d hate to see my steaks running down the road.’
It wasn’t a great joke and he didn’t laugh. My sixth sense hadn’t eased off though, and I felt horribly vulnerable standing there with Archie at my side. There was an awkward silence for a moment.
‘So you heard the news then,’ Bevan finally said. It wasn’t a question and his tone was gruff.
‘Yeah we did,’ I said carefully. ‘Not great, eh?’
He grunted.
‘You going to be okay?’ I said. I figured that talking couldn’t hurt right now.
He ignored the question. ‘S’pose you heard about it first,’ he said, more of an edge in his voice now.
My warning bells were going for it now, clanging in my head like a church steeple in a hurricane.
‘How’s that?’ I said. There was no way he could know my brother worked for Parliamentary Services.
‘Huh. You bein’ a cop an’ that,’ he said. ‘S’pose you all got told first so you could get…you know…organise your shit and that.’
I didn’t appreciate him swearing in front of Archie, but it wasn’t the best time to call him on it. I gave a short shake of the head.
‘No mate, and I’m not a cop anymore, remember? So even if that did happen I wouldn’t have been told. And I doubt it happened anyway.’
He gave another grunt and shuffled his feet. ‘Well I’m ready,’ he said. ‘And better be no shitbirds come beggin’ for help when the shit hits the fan.’ He hefted his rifle in his hands. ‘I’ll fuck ‘em up.’
Archie looked at me, picking up on Bevan’s demeanour.
‘Right,’ I said. ‘We’ve gotta crack on and get some dinner organised. We’ll catch ya later, Bevan.’
‘Sure,’ he said, and began to move off.
I moved at an angle to keep him in my peripheral vision, and shielded Archie with my body. I got nothing but bad vibes from the man, and it felt reassuring to rest my hand on the concealed butt of the Browning in my waistband.
‘He’s a strange man, Dad,’ Archie said. ‘And he’s not very happy.’
‘No, he’s not,’ I agreed. I could see Bevan heading back towards the road, hopefully no longer concerned with us. I whistled for Jethro and he galloped over to us, still full of beans.
I’d never had a problem with him before, but Bevan was not someone I considered a friend.
The fact that he was on Macklin’s property wouldn’t normally concern me, but today it did. His whole demeanour was all off.
And more than anything else, I’d never seen anyone use an AR15 for rabbit hunting before.
Twenty
The train station was jampacked with people, despite the handwritten sign at the entrance stating that all trains were cancelled.
A train manager was trying to usher people out, loudly telling them that there was no point waiting as the power was out and no trains would be running. Her efforts were in vain, and Gemma wasted no time mucking around.
She turned and steered Alex back out towards the road, struggling to force their way back through the crowd. The footpath was packed as well and nobody was giving an inch.
‘Excuse me, excuse me.’ She tried to wriggle her way through, Alex tight up behind her, fighting the irritation she felt at people’s ignorance.
They had just made it to the footpath when she became aware of pushing behind her, the crowd moving like a wave, bodies pressing and rolling with an unseen current. She felt the weight of people weaving off-balance and elbows and hands started to work as people fought for room. Panic began to rise in her chest a
s the pressure built, people shouting and shoving all around her.
Gemma stumbled, unable to keep her feet beneath her, and felt herself falling against the bodies crushing around her. She wanted to scream but it was hard enough to even breathe. An elbow clocked her in the side of the head and she felt hands tearing at her day pack, yanking her further off balance.
She tried to turn but stumbled again. Somebody pushed her back and she twisted, getting her feet set, seeing Alex behind her. He was grappling with a bearded guy who had one hand on Gemma’s day pack and one hand in Alex’s face, pushing him away. He was swearing and shoving and she could see that he easily had the better of Alex. The mass of bodies rolled again and they went with it, stumbling towards the road.
Alex had his face twisted away to escape the guy’s fingers, but he was managing to hold onto his opponent’s shirt front. There was nothing Gemma could do to help him right now – it was all she could do to stay upright, but the guy holding her bag wasn’t helping that either. The mass of bodies reached the road and began to break up, releasing the pressure.
Gemma pushed away from those around her, seeing a few people trip and fall as they came free from the crowd. One woman was holding a baby in a front-carry sling and she went down to one knee, huddling over the baby as people blindly staggered and bumped around her. A man tried to help her up but was knocked down by the crowd.
Gemma was jerked backwards by her bag and she staggered to regain her balance, holding onto her carry bag with one hand and flailing with her other arm. She turned to see that Alex was still being held at arm’s length by the guy, the hand in Alex’s face having caused a nosebleed. The guy was scratching at her companion’s eyes and Alex was twisting away, stuck in a stalemate. She’d had enough of this.
Shrugging her right arm free of the strap, Gemma gave herself more room and pushed away from the people surging past her. She lashed out at the guy, catching him with a decent slap across the cheek.
Early Warning (Book 1): Martial Law Page 8