by Lee West
Less than a minute later, two armored Humvees careened around the corner of the building and barreled down the alleyway. They froze in place as the trucks sped down the alley and turned on another side street, exiting their view. He looked down the alley for the others. Brett moved the dumpster slowly and peeked at them. They acknowledged each other with a nod, and Frank breathed a sigh of relief.
Still, he wondered how bad it would be if they were caught. Where would they be taken? What would become of them? Were the paranoia and feeling of danger warranted, or something created by Nancy and the others?
“Looks like they’re moving!” whispered Mike.
“Alright, let’s go!”
Before they took off, Mike rolled the dumpster back into its original position, in case Chrissy and John needed to use the hiding spot. Once the dumpster was in place, the men quickly sprinted to the next one.
The group continued their slow crawl through the city for the entire day, pausing frequently to listen for soldiers and drink water. They could hear voices from the streets in front of the buildings, but couldn’t decipher their words over the persistent engine rumbling. Something was different. The first day they walked into the city, all of the streets were quiet. Now—those same streets crawled with soldiers.
— 5 —
Nancy and Brett stuck as close together as possible, without tripping over each other, while they moved through the city. Standing side by side behind a particularly smelly dumpster, the two of them waited for their chance to run to the next dumpster. Hopefully a far less odorous one. She scanned their surroundings, wondering what could cause such a strong smell. A few seconds later, she figured it out. They had stopped behind the Fish Monger—the smell no doubt the byproduct of rotting fish parts.
“I don’t think I’ll ever eat fish again,” she said.
“Me neither. Geez, what’s taking them so long?” said Brett, peeking down the street. “I’m ready to turn myself in just to get away from this.”
“I’m just glad we haven’t had to jump inside.”
“Yet,” said Brett.
Finally, Joe and Meg dashed from their hiding spot, giving Nancy and Brett a chance to escape the stench. They ran faster than usual, still reeling from the smell when they reached the next dumpster. Nancy grabbed the side of the next heavy metal container and wiggled her way behind it, careful not to move it too far away from the back of the building.
“Why do you think there are more trucks out today? We didn’t see nearly this much traffic before. What could be happening?” she asked Brett.
“Beats me. Can’t see a damned thing back here. It’s a great idea, though. Disgusting fish smells aside.”
Meg frantically waved at them from behind the next dumpster.
“What’s she doing?” asked Brett.
“Looks like they want us to join them. Let’s go!” said Nancy.
They ran to Meg and Joe, who stood behind a row of three large dumpsters. The space was large enough for the entire group to congregate. Brett waved to Marvin, Frank and Mike, signaling for them to join the others.
Once the group was assembled, Joe said, “I want to see what the military is up to.”
“Us too,” said Nancy.
“But how? They’ll see us if we try peeking from the side of a building,” said Frank.
“We stopped here because we noticed the back door to Ulters is open. We might be able to get inside and look toward the street. I want to make sure we aren’t heading straight toward a group of them. Chrissy and John were helpful, but I don’t think they encountered this much traffic on their travels,” said Joe.
“Me neither. I think it’s a good idea,” said Frank.
Nancy rubbed her tired eyes. Sweat poured down her dirty face. After a moment she said, “I like the idea, but we have no idea what we’ll encounter once we’re inside. I don’t think all of us should go inside together. If there’s a problem, we’ll all be caught.”
“I agree, but how will we choose who goes in first?” said Meg.
“I’ll do it.”
Everyone turned to face Marvin. Despite the stress and strain from the heat, physical exertion and fear—Marvin looked more alive than ever. Like he’d come to life during their exploration.
“I’m fine with going in. If they catch me, I’ll just act like I have dementia. I do it all the time when I get into a bind. It works like a charm,” he said with a wink. “Nobody suspects an old man of pretending to be senile.”
“I’m going to have to use that one! Could save me all sorts of hassles,” said Brett.
“I thought you were already doing it,” said Nancy.
“Nice.”
“Thanks, Marvin. If nothing seems amiss to you, then wave us on so we can all come inside,” said Frank.
“Sure, sure.”
Marvin ran from behind the dumpster and through the door labeled Ulters.
Turning to Nancy, Brett said, “What do you think he’ll find in there?”
“I’d guess nothing, but he sure looked happy to do it. I think he’s actually enjoying all of this. Like somehow our predicament has made him come to life.”
“Funny you say that, I couldn’t agree more.”
Nancy felt her anxiety welling as she waited for Marvin. They had been close friends and colleagues for so many years that he felt like family to her. Risking his life made her more uncomfortable than she expected. She prayed that he wouldn’t run into anyone in the department store.
— 6 —
Marvin gently pulled the handle on the heavy metal door to Ulters, relieved when it opened. He eased it the rest of the way, cringing every time the rusty hinges squeaked. His adrenaline flowed as he crossed the threshold into the stale, sweltering darkness of the department store. The door closed behind him with a few more squeaks and a soft click, plunging him into a silent black corridor. Quick to pull out his flashlight, Marvin illuminated the way and proceeded deeper into the building.
The exterior door spilled into a long narrow hallway, which snaked through the building until it opened into a large storeroom. The staff of Ulters must have used the hallway for deliveries and garbage removal. For a moment he became disoriented looking into the storeroom.
The space contained floor-to-ceiling metal shelves, which extended the entire length of the massive room. He had never worked in retail and was struck by how utilitarian the storage area seemed in comparison to the elegant sales floor. Glancing around the space, it was difficult to determine which way he should proceed. The endless rows of merchandise formed a seemingly impenetrable barrier, rendering him dumbfounded.
After careful consideration, he decided walking the perimeter of the room rather than cutting through one of the rows would be prudent. Concern for becoming lost in the maze fueled his decision. If the tactic worked for mice, it would work for him. Nearly blind, mice navigated the dark recesses of basements by always keeping a wall at their side.
Flashlight in hand, he started walking and stopped. It occurred to him that he should mark his progress in order to be able to easily find the door again. Even with a flashlight, this room could disorient the keenest of navigators.
He grabbed the nearest box, pulling it to the floor with a thud. It was a large box of ladies’ black bras. Not the best choice for marking his trail. The black would merely fade into the concrete floor, creating a trip hazard instead of a path out of the maze. The next box contained white thong-style underwear. Touching the undergarments made him feel like a pervert. Shaking his head at the silliness of his hesitation, he pulled out a handful of garments, shoved some in his pockets, and threw some on the floor—careful to mark the door to the hallway.
With the wall to his side, Marvin moved quickly through the space, marking his progress every five to ten feet with one of the thongs. Eventually he made his way to a swinging half door, which opened to the retail floor. Peeking through the door, he didn’t detect anything out of place.
Ulters was a large
department store that sold both clothing and home goods. The glass-fronted building faced the main road into the city. The perfect place to determine what was happening on the streets. Satisfied that no one had hidden in the building, or that the soldiers weren’t inside, he turned and started his walk back to the others.
The return trip went far smoother than the journey inside. The thongs were easy to follow, showing him precisely where he needed to go. Finally, at the exterior door, he turned off his flashlight and cracked the door slightly. His eyes needed a minute to adjust to the light from the complete darkness of the hallway. When he was ready, Marvin eased the door open a little more. His friends were waiting for him behind the dumpster. Waving them on, he held the door as they dashed across the wide alley toward him.
— 7 —
Joe was the last person through the door to Ulters. He wanted to be sure the group safely crossed the open alley before dashing across. Once everyone was inside, he closed the door behind him. The group waited together in the dark for another minute so their eyes could adjust to the darkness. It would have been easy to lose someone in the dark or be caught because a lost, panicked person screamed for help. Waiting until they were clumped together made a lot of sense, another one of Nancy’s ideas. Joe didn’t know if she was brilliant or so paranoid that everything she did was beyond most normal people, making her appear smarter than she was. In any case, he liked that she was always thinking, and so far, he also liked most of her ideas.
He took Meg’s hand, which was sweaty and shaky. The day’s journey had been tough on everyone. The worry about getting caught and the heat had definitely caught up with them. Their progress was slow going through the city, and he doubted they were even halfway to Nancy’s house. Getting a good look at the streets from a concealed position would be helpful. Maybe if the area was clear, they could move in the open and make better progress.
“Are those thongs?” said Nancy.
“It was all I could find,” said Marvin.
“I underestimated you, Marvin. I didn’t peg you as an ass man!” said Frank.
Marvin sputtered, clearly unsure how to respond, as the group laughed at Frank’s comment.
As they made their way toward the interior of the store, the soft light from the front windows exposed the empty store. Smiling mannequins in odd poses greeted them instead of clerks or customers. The scene reminded Joe of something he’d seen in a Hitchcock film. Creepy and sinister, he wanted to get out of the store as quickly as possible. Meg must have felt the same way, because she moved closer, cinching an arm around his waist.
“Let’s get upstairs. I’d like to see as much of the city as possible,” said Nancy.
The group rapidly made their way up the frozen escalators to the fourth floor of the department store.
“This is perfect. We should be able to see most of the city from here,” said Mike.
“I hope so. It would be nice to see what’s happening. I feel really blinded by running through the alleys. I think it’s a great idea, but it has been hard to determine when and from which side the patrol trucks are approaching,” said Frank.
“I agree. On more than one occasion, I was wrong and had to hope for the best,” said Marvin.
The floor-to-ceiling windows gave them a commanding view of the city and its large waterfront. They could even see the mountains to their north.
“Holy crap! Look at the waterfront! It’s crawling with Coast Guard vessels. Were there that many before?” said Nancy.
“I don’t think so. Yesterday it seemed like there were just a few small patrol boats,” said Meg.
“Something is happening. Look over there!” said Mike, pointing toward the edge of the city.
“What are they doing?” asked Joe.
Brett kneeled down and took out his binoculars. Adjusting them, he whistled and then said, “Looks like they’re barricading the city!”
“We were lucky to get through when we did. If we had waited at my house, we would never have made it in,” said Mike.
“Or if we had waited on the cruise ship, we would’ve never made it into the harbor. Things have really changed,” said Joe.
Oversized military cargo trucks and armored vehicles moved about in the distance, giving the city an ominous vibe.
“Things have really moved quickly. It’s like the feds have overtaken the entire city,” said Frank.
“This can’t be good. They round up all of the citizens then militarize the city! That’s insane. I never thought a takedown of this scale would happen. Sure, Waco-type attacks I could predict—but this? No way. I wonder if we’re the only ones or if this is happening all over America,” said Marvin.
“Look over there! Do you see anything on that side?” asked Nancy, pointing toward their home.
Brett turned and adjusted his binoculars. “I don’t see much happening over there. We should be fine to keep moving in that direction.”
“But should we?” said Frank, standing beside Brett.
“What do you mean?” asked Nancy.
“We’ve only gone about half of the distance out of the city. The pace we’re going is way slower than you probably anticipated when you said it would take eight hours for us to get to your house. At this rate, I don’t see us getting there before dark,” said Frank.
Joe didn’t like the idea of being out on the streets at night. Chrissy and John were certain that the city became more active at night, if that were even possible. Plus, if the soldiers were using any type of heat-sensing equipment, they wouldn’t stand a chance of going undetected.
“Me neither. Not only were we going slow, which was fine, but we also spent quite a lot of time pinned down, unable to proceed. If the rest of the trek is anything like what we experienced today, it will take us the remainder of the day and half the night to get to your house,” said Marvin.
“Why don’t we hunker down here? Then we can get a very early start in the morning,” asked Frank.
“No freaking way! This place gives me the creeps!” said Meg.
“Me too. I don’t want to be here a moment longer than necessary,” said Joe, backing her up.
Nancy glanced into the interior of the store and said, “I’ll give you that. The creepiness factor is high in here. However, I don’t see a better place for us. We’re high up from the patrols on the ground, the place has toilets, a café and bedding. It’s actually a pretty good place to rest and wait until morning, all creepiness aside.”
“Do you think you guys could manage for the night? I know it’s not ideal, but we don’t have a whole lot of options,” said Brett wearily.
Joe glanced at Meg. She gave him a slight nod, agreeing to the plan. He squeezed her hand and said, “We’ll manage. But if one of those mannequins comes to life, I’m out of here!”
Although he laughed, Joe couldn’t help but notice Marvin glance uncomfortably at the nearest mannequin.
“Where should we set up for the night?” asked Meg.
“I plan to plop down on one of those king-sized beds they have in the furniture department,” said Frank.
Mike gave him a high five and then added, “I want one of those oversized sectionals to sink into.”
Ignoring the men, Nancy shook her head and said, “I was thinking we should go to the office. It’s on this floor in the corner of the store. We could sleep in the safe, if it’s open. That way, if someone comes into the store, we aren’t exposed. The safe will keep our heat signatures concealed.”
“Uncomfortable, but practical given the situation,” said Brett.
“I agree. As much as I’d love to stretch out on a king-sized bed, I have to defer to Nancy. We need to be hidden in case we have company,” said Marvin.
“Why don’t we grab some pillows and blankets from home goods? It won’t be as nice as a bed, but at least we’ll have some comfort,” said Meg.
“That sounds like a plan. I’ll help get the blankets,” said Mike.
Joe followed the others to the cor
ner of the floor containing the office. Like most department stores, the office was tucked away from view when walking through the store. The office served as a customer-service point, where people purchased gift cards and processed returns. It was also where the store’s safe was situated.
While in high school Joe worked one summer as a salesclerk in the men’s shop of another local department store. It was the worst job he had ever had because of the customers. Some were nice and chatty with him, but others were demanding, entitled and downright mean if they didn’t get their way. He found there to be a direct correlation between the meanness and wealth. From his experience, the richer they were, the meaner they got. He could hardly wait to finish his summer and get back to school.
“Here it is. Let me see if the door is open. If not, we’ll have to rethink this plan,” said Nancy.
The office had a large open window with a counter for people to walk up to. A door displaying an “Employees Only” sign closed off the entrance to the back area of the office. Nancy walked over to the door and tried to open it.
“It’s locked,” she said.
“Here, let me get it.” Joe hopped over the chest-high counter and jumped down on the opposite side. “I’ll check the safe and see if we can get inside.”
The door to the massive walk-in safe was in the corner of the office. As he approached, he could clearly see that the door to the safe was ajar. Someone had already opened it. Or they’d left it open. Either way, it was odd.
“It’s open. Let me let you guys inside,” he said.
He opened the exterior door and let them inside the space behind the counter. Then they proceeded into the safe. The large safe would accommodate them all with relative comfort for the night.
“Wow! Someone cleaned out the safe. It’s entirely empty,” said Joe. “Department stores always have tons of cash, bank checks and cashier checks in the safe. At the end of every day, each register’s overage gets brought to the safe. The next day, it’s counted and then picked up by Brinks. However, there’s always a base amount in the safe for making change and stocking the registers. Someone cleaned out all of the cash before leaving.”