He froze. Someone was opening the door.
He shoved a pair of tennis shoes on his feet and ducked behind the racks as he heard voices fill the room.
“We really need to get out of the city,” a man grumbled. Max heard the shelves being rifled through. He held his breath and hoped no one heard him.
“I know,” a female voice answered. “I just need a change of clothes. If we’re heading north, I’m going to need something warm.”
“I can’t believe we’re stealing,” the man hissed.
Max shifted into a more comfortable position and froze when he brushed up against the coats. They caused a quiet shushing sound to fill the room. Max cursed silently. Silence descended.
“Who’s there?” the female said, her voice sharp. “I know you’re there. Show yourself!”
Max stood up with his palms out. “Hi,” he said, trying to be sound friendly. “Weird day, isn’t it?”
The man chuckled. The woman shot him an angry look. “What are you doing here?” she demanded.
“Same thing you are, I bet,” Max said and made the clothes rustle against each other again. “Change of clothes.”
“Our house was raided,” the female said, sounding defensive. “What are we supposed to do? The world has gone to hell. Our friends stole all of our food and water and burned the rest of our belongings. At this point, stealing is surviving.”
The man snorted. “I can’t believe how everyone has turned on each other. Even our neighbors. They wouldn’t let us inside their house, for god’s sake. What’s your story?”
Max tried not to move as he let the conversation wash over him. The world ending? People looting regularly? What had happened since he’d been imprisoned? “Same,” he said.
The woman’s eyes narrowed and she eyed him up and down. “There’s a couple guards looking for an escaped prisoner. We ran into them not too far from here. Know anything about that?”
Max kicked the prison orange under the hangers in an attempt to hide it, and looked back at the clothes on the rack, pretending to peruse them. “Nope. Good to know, though. Thanks for the heads up. Maybe we’ll just keep this conversation to ourselves. Don’t want us all to be caught for stealing.”
The couple whispered to each other as if trying to decide what to do. He heard clothes being pushed around and the scrape of hangers sliding over metal bars. He winced and hoped that the woman wouldn’t have reason to come closer to this section of the store. He looked around for something to defend himself with and wondered how threatening he would look if he lobbed a pair of stilettos at them.
“Ah, maybe you’re right,” the woman said. The sound of clothes being pulled off hangers filled the room after a moment of awkward silence. “Okay. I think we’re good.”
“You’re taking three coats?” the man asked in a whisper.
“Of course,” the woman said. “Who knows when I’ll get the chance to get more clothes again? With everyone squabbling for even socks, this place is a gold mine.”
“We should check out the rest of the warehouse,” the man said, “and see if there are any other things we’ll need.”
“Good idea,” the woman said and looked back at Max. “Good luck to you. Even if we didn’t see you here.”
“Ditto,” Max said.
The door squeaked again. Max was suddenly alone. Relief washed over him. That had been way too close. He slung a backpack over his shoulders and eased to the front of the store. Looking out into the hallway, he didn’t see the couple. He snuck through the door and felt worried about leaving his jumpsuit in a pile on the floor. It was one link to where he’d been, but he didn’t want to go back and retrieve it. As soon as he bolted outside, he began to walk in the direction of the interstate.
If the world had really gone to hell, then it was only a matter of time before Colin and his friends got out of prison and sent someone after him. He knew they’d never let him go that easily.
Where should he go? Desperately, he thought about running to Galena to find safety with his sister at the hotel. Hide there. Enjoy the small pleasures of life with his family. But doing so would bring danger to their door. Just thinking about Kathleen when he’d been arrested—her anger and disappointment—hurt more than he’d expected. The way she tried to smile through her fear and tears when he’d last seen her had nearly broken his heart. He’d had to show her a side of himself he’d wanted to keep hidden: the reckless Max with a streak of cruelty that was only tempered by his enormous love for his family. The way he used to be able to get away with anything with the right amount of coercion. She knew he’d been like that when they were young, but now that they were older, he wanted to be friends with her instead of just her jailbird brother that she avoided talking about.
What if he showed up at her house and she wouldn’t let him inside? He’d lurk around the hotel like a stray, pleading for shelter, food, and scraps of attention, praying she didn’t see him as the black spot on their family. That he was unwanted. He’d make all kinds of promises: I won’t do it again, I was wrong, I didn’t know what I was doing, I made a mistake.
Please forgive me, Kathy. Please, please, please.
He closed his eyes, wishing he had a drink of water. He remembered the way Kathleen had grabbed his hand on her last visit. The alarm on her face when she’d recognized one of his enemies staring at him in the visitor’s lounge. Even though she’d been disappointed in him, she knew he was in trouble and he’d had to shake it off, tell her it was no big deal, even though he’d feared for his life.
He might as well take the chance and throw himself on her mercy. Await her judgement. If he’d lost her respect, fine. That was to be expected. If he’d lost her love…well, better to know it now, at the end of the world.
He tasted metal in the back of his throat. Twilight had settled into a dark wash of blue-black. Stars twinkled above him. He took a deep breath of fresh air, infinitely better than the recycled air in the prison, and began to plot his course for the River Rock Hotel.
8
Even though Matthew had dreamed of normalcy ever since he walked out of an antique shop and found his truck dead, it still felt strange to wake up and find himself in an actual bed—his own bed. The covers were pulled up tight around his shoulders, and the pillow cradled his head in just the right way. If he kept his eyes shut, he could imagine that the last week had never happened. He could pretend that the shotgun propped against the wall didn’t belong to him. That he could get up, stretch, and walk to the bathroom where the lights would work and he wouldn’t have to worry about the toilet not flushing or conserving water.
He barely remembered falling asleep. He’d had to coax Kathleen to bed the night before. She hadn’t said much, even when he tried to get her to open up about the vote to keep Jade around. They both shared the same dissatisfaction with the outcome, but for some reason, it felt like a wall had been erected between them. Gently, he’d asked her to tell him about her trip from Chicago. Instead, she’d curled herself into a ball with her back to him. He’d assumed she’d fallen asleep before he crashed himself.
Now, he tried to sense if she was still in bed with him and realized he slept alone.
Opening his eyes took monumental strength of will. He blinked at the dawn cascading through the windows and saw a dark shape blocking one side of a window. Kathleen stood close to the glass, most of her cast in shadow, except for her profile. She rubbed her thumb back and forth across her lower lip as though she were deep in thought.
Matthew eased out of bed and approached her carefully, suddenly worried he might spook her as though she were a cornered animal about to strike at the smallest provocation. Slowly, he put his hands on her shoulders and rubbed them. This close, he could see the dark circles under her eyes. Her face seemed gaunt. The rest of her appeared haggard, as though she’d barely rested before taking up this strange vigil beside the window. At his touch, her eyes fluttered. She let out a soft sigh as though coming back to reality. Yet she n
ever stopped staring out the window.
“Did you sleep?” Matthew whispered.
“I couldn’t,” she said. “Someone is out there.”
Matthew stopped rubbing her shoulders and felt a ping of concern race through him. “What do you mean?” he asked.
Kathleen’s thumb scraped over her lower lip again and she gestured out the window. “I saw someone watching the hotel from the woods.”
“Where?” he asked, leaning forward to get a better look. Her statements made him feel uncertain and on his guard.
“There.” She pointed toward the tree line. “You can’t see them anymore, but I watched them all night. I don’t know what they want, but I think they’re planning to attack us.”
Matthew’s uneasiness intensified. He slowly wrapped his arms around Kathleen’s waist and pulled her against his chest. Her whole body felt tense. He put his chin on the top of her shoulder. “I don’t see anyone,” he said softly. “Why didn’t you wake me?”
“They didn’t do anything threatening. You needed to rest, but it’s creepy that they’re just watching us. They’re there, Matt.” Kathleen sounded defensive.
“I believe you,” he said, and tried to make it sound convincing. “I’ll go outside and check.”
“I had to make sure they didn’t come any closer,” Kathleen said, her defensive tone escalating with frustration. “I had to make sure we were safe.”
“I know,” Matthew said and rubbed her arms again. He studied the tree line, looking for any sign of movement. Anything that might look out of place. Instead, he saw green buds beginning to flourish on the tree branches. Spring had arrived and had brought the beginning greenery of new life with it. He peered harder, trying to see what Kathleen saw, but he only saw beautiful foliage shedding the winter and the sharp mountain vistas that had drawn him here in the first place. “I promise, I’ll look at every nook and cranny.” He pulled away from her. “I’m getting dressed, but let me know if you see them again.”
Kathleen didn’t respond and instead crossed her arms. Her hands stroked her elbows as though trying to self-soothe. As Matthew pulled on his jeans, he felt a strange tug of loneliness inside of him. He and Kathleen had never had problems talking to each other before. They’d always been best friends who shared every inner thought. The fact that she seemed so guarded from him hurt in an unexpected way. Somehow, he needed to get her to open up about her experiences. Something had happened to her that she was scared to tell him.
Either that, or she’d become scared of him. He hoped that wasn’t the case. He didn’t want her to be fearful of him in any way.
He couldn’t push her. She needed time to process whatever had happened to her. He had to trust that Kathleen would come to him on her own terms.
“I’m going to go downstairs,” he said, once he was fully dressed. He waited, but again, she didn’t respond. “Are you coming?” he asked.
Kathleen shook her head. “I’ll be down soon,” she said, sounding far away.
Matthew waited a moment, hoping she would change her mind. “Are you sure?” he asked.
“I just need some time alone,” Kathleen said.
Matthew sighed. “Okay. I’ll see you later, then.” Concern filled him again as he walked out of their bedroom. Don’t push her. Even so, he couldn’t help but say, “I love you.”
As he headed downstairs, he heard the familiar movements of his family. The soft tones of his father and mother filtered through the air. He passed them sitting at one of the big tables in the dining room. Their heads were bent together in deep conversation. He smiled wistfully but snuck by them. He didn’t want to disturb them. That was the kind of intimacy he hoped he would once again have with Kathleen.
He walked to the front door, paused, and with a stab of uneasiness wondered where Jade might be. He couldn’t be concerned about her at all hours of the day. It would eventually drive him insane, but he couldn’t help but wonder if she was the mysterious person Kathleen had seen. Was Jade taking stock of their property? Assessing it for weaknesses? Perhaps she was working with another group and had infiltrated them in the attempt to take the hotel from them. For a moment, he felt breathless with fear. Then he shook the thoughts away, packaging them up so that he could think more clearly. First things first. He had to have proof and evidence. The only way he could get that was to walk outside and see if he saw any sign of an intruder.
The morning was chilly, but the sunlight provided a welcome warmth. He tried to close the broken door behind him with a frustrated sigh. Samuel West had damaged it when he’d kicked it in. It would have to be one of the first things they repaired.
He walked down the porch and toward the tree line. Halfway between the woods and the hotel, he looked back over his shoulder toward the window of his and Kathleen’s room. The window looked dark and the room somewhat unwelcoming. He didn’t see Kathleen’s figure standing there any longer. He gave the window a wave, just in case she was there, and turned back around to walk closer to the tree line.
He didn’t see anything unusual. The pines swayed in the breeze. The tall grasses rustled back and forth. Moss grew on some of the bigger boulders. Pursing his lips, he bent closer to the ground to scan for footprints or tracks. The hard earth hadn’t been disturbed. Nothing looked out of place.
Maybe she had seen a wild animal. He looked up to study the branches and grasses for a sign of animal hide or hair that might have gotten snagged. Nothing. The place felt idyllic. If this were any other day, he might make himself a cup of coffee and come out here to reflect. With a shrug of resignation, he turned back around and walked toward the house. He couldn’t let these worries eat at him. Hopefully, the rest of the family was awake and they could make a plan for the day.
When he finally got back inside the hotel and into the dining room, he saw that Ruth had laid out a sparse breakfast on the big table. Dry cereal had been set out beside a bunch of bananas that looked more brown than yellow.
“Good morning,” she said to him with a smile, and nestled a cup of warm coffee into his hands. He breathed a sigh of relief when he smelled the steam rising from the mug. Taking a quick sip, his pleasure soured. The coffee was bitter, and he could see grounds swirling in it. They must have tried to make it without a coffee maker, he thought, but gave his mother a smile anyway. “It’s delicious. Thank you,” he said.
She scoffed. “I’m not sure about that, but it’s the thought that counts. Sit down. The kids are up. I’ll be right back.” She disappeared in the direction of the kitchen.
Matthew pulled out the chair at the head of the table and sank into it. He took another sip of coffee with a grimace. Maybe it would get better the more he drank.
Allison stumbled into the room with dark circles under eyes and slumped in a chair next to him. As if still asleep, she reached for the Lucky Charms and poured some into a bowl. Not long after, Patton followed, looking much more chipper than his sister. He spoke amiably to Jade, who’d followed him into the room. Matthew couldn’t focus on the conversation, and so he finished his cup of coffee as Patton sat down next to Allison.
Jade glanced at him nervously before being pulled back into Patton’s rambling conversation. Matthew watched her reach for a banana and begin to peel it slowly. Allison looked at Matthew, gestured toward Patton with her thumb, and rolled her eyes.
“He’s always been a morning person,” Matthew said in response to her wordless irritation.
“An enthusiastic morning person,” Allison grumbled.
Ruth and David finally emerged and sat across from their grandchildren. For a moment, Matthew gazed at his family as love rose in his chest. It was the perfect family gathering, except that Kathleen was missing. He hoped she’d gone back to bed. Maybe, if she got some rest, she would feel better and would talk to him.
Ruth peeled a banana and looked around, noticing Kathleen’s absence as well. “Where’s Kathleen?” she asked, looking at Matthew.
Matthew poured some cereal into a
bowl for himself and avoided her eyes. “She’s having a rough morning,” he said and hoped his mother would leave it at that. “She wasn’t able to sleep last night, not after everything that had happened. I wanted to let her rest a while longer. She’ll be down later, I promise.”
Jade looked ashamed. Ruth nodded in agreement and bit off a small chunk of the banana. Matthew felt grateful that she dropped the subject and began to eat his cereal. It tasted bland without milk. As everyone finished their meal, he cleared his throat and said, “I wanted to talk with you all about how we should approach the day. There are a lot of tasks for us to do. I think if we divvy up the work, it might not feel so overwhelming. If we split up, we can get the most done in the least amount of time.”
Ruth and David nodded in agreement. Jade said softly, “That’s a good idea.”
Irritation filled Matthew. He couldn’t help but think Jade was agreeing with him just to stay on his good side. He decided it would be best to ignore her. For some reason, he was beginning to feel as though she were to blame for Kathleen’s behavior. If she wasn’t here, Kathleen might act more normal. His wife might have felt safer. He brushed off the thought before it began to poison him.
“Mom, I think it would be a great idea if you could inventory our food supplies,” he said, turning to look at Ruth. “Since you’ve been here from the beginning of this whole debacle, I’m assuming you probably have a good idea of where everything is and what we do and don’t have.”
“I’d love to,” Ruth agreed and nibbled on some cereal.
“Could you make a list of everything we have in the kitchen and pantry? Then we’ll know how long the food we do have will last and can figure out what we will eventually need to get. I’m sure Kathleen can help you when she’s up.”
“Of course. That’s a task that is right up my alley,” she said.
Matthew smiled. “Thank you, Mom.” He turned to look at Patton and Allison. “As for you two, I think it would be good for you to canvass the hotel rooms.”
EMP Catastrophe | Book 2 | Erupting Danger Page 6