Pausing again, Patrick looked at his friends. He knew them both well and he knew this would be the part of the story where Vern would ask him a question, or Tracy would make a sympathetic noise. Both of them were silent now though, their words swallowed by the eruption.
“Mia arrived not long after. She wasn’t at the airport when it all happened. She and Jorge—he’s another guy who’s outside in the cars—they were at Yellowstone when it all happened. They’re scientists. What was it that she called it?” Patrick faltered, trying to find the right word. “Volcanologists. That’s it. They were studying Yellowstone before it erupted and just managed to escape in a plane. Then they found us all at the airport. Things would’ve been a lot worse if they hadn’t.”
Recalling more of his story, Patrick explained what had happened when Mia and Jorge arrived. He described how the helicopter had crashed into the building, leaving a gaping hole in the side of the airport and exposing them to the outside world. Vern and Tracy reacted as he expected, their expressions displaying how they felt even if their voices couldn’t. When Patrick finally started talking about the lahars, that was when Tracy struggled to listen any more. She squirmed on the couch next to Vern, imagining exactly what it had been like for her friend at that time.
“We lost Tilly first,” Patrick gulped, struggling to get his words out. “She slipped out of my grasp as the water came by, pulling her body away from us and forcing her underneath.” Recalling the moment made Patrick pale. That was his daughter. He had been there when she was born and—to his utter horror—he had been there when she died just a few short years later. Tilly hadn’t deserved that. She should’ve lived.
“Harriet went in after her. I—I couldn’t do anything. I had to look after Allie. We clung to a luggage rail and managed to stay out of the water. I saw it all. I watched Tilly drown. Then I saw Harriet swept away by the water too. The lahars killed them both. There was nothing I could do.”
Patrick couldn’t hold it in any longer. He broke down. A fully grown, adult man reduced to a blubbering mess as he let the tears fall from his face. His nose ran. His face turned red and his heart rate increased as he let all his emotions pour out on his old friend’s armchair in a small town by the woods. It was harrowing, but for the first time since watching Tilly be taken from him in the airport, Patrick finally felt some release.
“Thank you,” he mumbled as Vern withdrew a handkerchief from his pocket and held it out to his friend across the coffee table. “I’m sorry.”
After handing Patrick his handkerchief, Vern shook his head and pulled out a notepad and pen from his pocket. He flicked through several pages which already had writing on them and started to scrawl. Patrick could do nothing except wait. His friend always offered excellent advice and even without his words, Patrick knew Vern would have something to say.
My dearest friend, I am so sorry for what happened to you. Harriet and Tilly were both beautiful souls and they will be missed every single day that the world doesn’t get to see their faces. But remember Allie. You have to be strong for her now and you have to do everything you can to keep a smile on her face. That little girl is probably incredibly afraid of what’s going to happen next. You need to be there for her and ensure that she never feels alone. It’s hard, and I know you can’t be strong all the time. Regardless, you need to try. Also remember that we are here for you when you need a moment of weakness. We will always listen to you and we will always support you where we can. You’ll always be a part of our family.
More tears fell from Patrick’s eyes as he read the words, blown away by the kindness and love coming from his friends in that very moment. He couldn’t expect anything more from them. Even in their very worst moments, they were there for him. Even when death was just around the corner, they were willing to comfort him. He knew he didn’t deserve that kind of friendship from them, especially at a time when they had every right to be selfish. Instead, they weren’t. They were there for him just like they always had been. It was a true friendship and Patrick felt both incredibly lucky and incredibly grateful to have them in his life.
“Wait here,” he said with a smile after a few more minutes had passed. “I’ll go and get Allie from the car. I know she’d love to see you both. Is that okay?”
Vern and Tracy both nodded in unison. Allie was like a niece to them and they would never leave her outside in the cold if they could help it. Feeling touched once again by his friends’ kindness, Patrick made his way outside to collect his daughter. He knew this would be a difficult moment for everyone, and knew just as surely that Allie would understand. She was a smart child and already she knew how gravely what had happened had affected everyone. It was impossible for her not to, really.
“Do you want to come inside?” Patrick spoke softly to his daughter, a few others overhearing the conversation and deliberately looking away so they didn’t intrude on the moment. “Vern and Tracy would love to see you.”
“Are they okay?” Allie asked nervously, remembering what Mia had said earlier. “Can they not talk anymore?”
Patrick figured Mia must have briefed everyone when she left to go and see Doctor Reeves, giving the group the lowdown on what had happened to the people of Tanner. “They can’t,” he replied to his daughter, knowing there was no point in trying to hide the truth from her. “They’ve both lost their voices, but they’d still like to spend some time with you.”
“Okay then,” Allie smiled. “Can I bring Corker to meet them as well?”
“Why not?” Patrick shrugged, figuring he could just take the dog back outside if either of his friends objected to it being in their house. “Come on then.”
Taking his daughter’s hand in his own, Patrick gave it a little squeeze as they started walking toward the front door. Corker padded along on the ground beside them, his leash grasped firmly in Allie’s hand. Vern and Tracy had left the door ajar, so reaching it Patrick only had to push it open and make his way inside. His friends remained seated on the couch, their heads turning in his direction as he re-entered their home, daughter and dog in tow. Allie squealed in delight as she saw Tracy, dropping Corker’s leash and rushing over to her, pouncing on the woman in a massive hug.
For the third time since entering Tanner, Patrick felt tears pricking at his eyes. It felt incredible to see his daughter so happy, Corker bouncing around at their feet and trying to get involved. Tracy scooped up the little dog and planted it on the couch beside her, Allie sitting on the woman’s knee and wrapping her arms around her, whispering about everything she’d seen so far.
As Patrick watched, Vern pushed himself to his feet and walked over to his friend. With his notebook in his hand he scribbled down a quick note, the words brief and the message clear. As he handed it to Patrick, the father felt yet another stab to his heart. He didn’t know what to do. The decision was huge, but all he really wanted was for Allie to have the best future possible. He stared down at the words, wondering exactly what the best way to respond to them was.
Do you want to stay with us?
Chapter 12
“Stay low,” Connor whispered as he led Chase and Riley down another small alleyway, weaving their way out of the city. “The Authority has eyes everywhere.”
Chase did as he instructed, his nerves increasing as he and Riley spent more time with Connor, Nate, and Mindy. The three adults had shared some more information with them about the Authority, which appeared to be the name they had given to the group controlling the city. It made them sound incredibly dangerous and not a group to be messed with, although Chase couldn’t help but see some of it as propaganda. Nonetheless, Connor had assured them that he could take them on a route out of the city that would lead past an area perfect for roofing supplies. The two siblings were left with little choice save to follow and hope for the best.
What had happened did sound awful. Chase was very thankful for the Re-Breather that his sister had created, its design allowing them to breathe freely in the toxic air that h
ad infected the city. The sky above the city was still dark and ominous, the cloud hanging well below the tops of most of the buildings and making Houston seem considerably smaller in size. Normally you could see for miles down the straight highways that divided the city. Now no matter which direction you looked in, the visibility was no more than a hundred yards or so.
Chase felt like they were boxed off from the rest of the world, moving inside a ball of smoke that dulled all their senses. It made him feel vulnerable. Like anything could jump out at them and he wouldn’t have time to prepare for it. Even the buildings themselves seemed to have been affected by the ash cloud that dominated the city. Their once-clean brick walls were now a dark color, stained by the dirty particles that had been carried over from Yellowstone on the wind.
As a result of that dirty air, Connor, Nate, and Mindy all spoke with raspy voices already, their sentences often punctuated by coughing fits. Other than that, the three of them didn’t look particularly ill—not compared to some of the people they had seen lining the streets earlier that day—yet it was still obvious that the toxic cloud was affecting them. He wondered how long it would take to create serious health problems for the adults left in Houston, their lives now apparently deemed expendable.
It was an interesting question to Chase why the Authority continued to bring out food and water to the surviving adults once a day. If the air was killing them anyway, why not just let them suffer by themselves? Why waste resources on prolonging an already doomed life?
Nate explained to them that it was a peace-keeping technique. Although all of the adults knew they were dying, the food and water rations kept them alive a little longer and meant they didn’t suffer too much. That, in turn, meant that they were much less desperate to fight back against the Authority. Combining that with the fact that the Authority could threaten their children to keep them in line, there was pretty much no reason for anyone to dispute what was happening. Very quickly a totalitarian state had been created in the city, a regime built on of the back of fear and a parent’s undying love for their children. Chase knew better than most how far a parent would go to protect their children; it was a love more powerful than almost anything he had ever come across.
Their guides went on to explain that there were, of course, factions of adults who hadn’t previously been parents. These groups had very quickly tried to revolt against the regime put in place. Equally quickly, they had been silenced. Nate didn’t disclose exactly what silenced meant, but both Chase and Riley could make a solid assumption. If you didn’t fall into line behind what the Authority wanted, you would be killed. It was a shocking way of life, one that seemed very firmly enforced within the city walls. It was very easy to imagine that Houston had been like this for years, rather than just days, something that frightened Chase to his very core.
“How much farther?” Riley questioned as they rounded another corner, her body sandwiched tightly between Chase and Mindy. Connor was leading the group, followed by her and her brother with Mindy and Nate bringing up the rear. They’d been meandering through the streets for about twenty minutes since leaving Connor’s house. Riley’s sense of direction was truly shot and she had no idea where they were heading, meaning she just had to keep her head down and trust the rest of her small group.
“Not much farther now,” Connor replied in a cheerful voice from ahead of her. “We’re almost at the construction site.”
“What was it you needed again?” Nate asked, enquiring about the list that Chase carried in his back pocket. The teenager rattled it off by memory now, well aware of what they were looking for. He was anxious to get it all packed up and in the truck; too long had been spent away from the farmhouse and he was starting to worry about his grandparents. No matter how fast he had to drive, he wanted to be home by nightfall.
“Yeah, that should be easy enough,” Nate confirmed with a nod after he’d heard what was on the list. “It’s just around this next corner.”
“Awesome,” Chase replied. He felt bad for the three adults who were guiding him and Riley out of the city. For them to have had their children taken away from them must’ve been terrible. He could only imagine what that would feel like. As a result, he was naturally incredibly grateful to them for their help, but he didn’t want to spend any more time with them than absolutely necessary. His own family was his priority and he missed them greatly.
“And voila!” Connor announced, holding his arms out wide as they rounded one final corner and approached the entrance of a large building site. “Here you go.”
Chase exhaled, very impressed by the sight in front of him. They were on what had clearly been a big construction site before Yellowstone erupted. It looked like the foundation for a new block of apartments in their very early stages. What was ideal was that the building supplies looked to have all been dropped off already. Everything was piled up in a neat stack, just waiting to be used. There were copious rows of congregated metal sheeting, exactly what was required for the roof back at the farmhouse, and loads of other equipment that they could use too.
“Incredible,” he remarked, “this is great. Thank you so much.”
“Happy to help,” Connor smiled. “We’re not far from where you said you’d left your truck either, so one of us can bring that around for you while you find everything you need, if you want.”
Chase paused. He had quite deliberately only told Connor and the others the rough location of their truck. It had been a complicated decision: he knew they needed to be near to the truck in order to transport the supplies, but he felt reluctant to disclose its exact location. As a result he’d pointed out the area on a map, then claimed he couldn’t remember the exact street. His sense of direction was fairly good and he knew that Connor had led them in the right direction—given a few minutes in the street by himself he was sure he could find his way back. Chase differed from his sister completely in that sense; he knew if it was down to Riley, they would never find their way out of the city again.
“Um, yeah, just give me a minute,” Chase replied, thinking on his feet for a way to keep the truck to himself. He still didn’t trust Connor, Nate, and Mindy completely, though he doubted they would try to steal the vehicle. He was more concerned about the supplies within it; there was food and water in there which anyone in Houston would be a fool not to want. Although the city seemed to be run by the Authority, Chase was certain the adults would still trade and try to stockpile supplies for themselves.
“Is everything okay?” Riley whispered to her brother, edging closer to him as the three adults all moved to one side and began to talk amongst themselves.
“Yeah,” Chase replied, “I’m just not sure about letting one of them go and get the truck is all.”
“Why not?” Riley asked her brother, a puzzled expression on her face. “I don’t think they’d steal it, Chase. They’re nice people. They’ve just been through a lot.”
Chase considered his sister’s words for a second and agreed with her on the last point, while still feeling uncertain about the truck. “I just don’t want to risk it,” he explained. “If we… Hey,” Chase paused, looking over at Nate and Mindy. Connor seemed to have disappeared, the man nowhere to be seen. “Where’s Connor gone?”
“He’s just stepped outside,” Nate replied as casually as he could manage, but Chase could tell immediately something was up. Mindy wore a strange expression on her face, like she knew something was about to happen. She kept looking over to the site entrance, unable to keep her eyes still.
“Get behind me, Riley,” Chase spoke in a low voice. “Outside where?” he then asked Nate, taking a rather defensive stance and looking between Nate and Mindy and the exit to the building site. Somehow, they had moved quite a way from it while reviewing the supplies, their escape route blocked by the two remaining adults. “What’s going on?”
Mindy looked to her husband with a questioning gaze, Nate shaking his head and overpowering the woman. “Nothing,” he declared. “You’
ve got nothing to worry about.”
Suspicion had already taken over Chase’s mind; he didn’t believe Nate and decided that no matter what supplies they needed for the farmhouse, being in the building site with them wasn’t worth the risk. Houston was huge. They could find somewhere else to gather the equipment on their own.
“Come on,” Chase whispered to his sister. “We’re getting out of here.”
“I’m afraid I can’t let you do that,” Nate stepped forward, seeing Chase and Riley preparing to leave. “I’m sorry it had to happen this way.”
Chase opened his mouth to argue again, still shielding his sister with his body when four men in uniform suddenly appeared, stepping into the building site, Connor accompanying one pair. Immediately Chase and Riley froze. It didn’t take much for them to determine that the men in uniform were the Authority. Each of them wore a utility belt around his waist, filled with equipment that could only be described as riot gear. More terrifying were the automatic weapons they held in their hands. They didn’t point them at Chase and Riley, but both of the siblings were reluctant to move should that suddenly become the case.
“Whoa!” Chase exclaimed, holding his hands in the air while ensuring his body was still positioned in front of his sister’s. “What is this?”
“I’m so sorry,” Mindy suddenly broke down. “This was the only way.”
Chase looked at her in shock as all the pieces suddenly fell into place. The Authority. The children. There was no safe way out of the city. This was a hand-off. Connor, Nate, and Mindy were handing them in to the Authority.
“They have our children,” Mindy wailed, practically hanging off her husband. “You have to understand!”
“Understand?” Chase spat back at her, rage burning inside of him as members of the Authority started to slowly approach. He could see their fingers resting on the triggers of their weapons, poised to shoot at any moment. “How could we understand? We have a family too, you know! We have people who need us!”
Escaping Darkness (Book 3): Landslide Page 9