Hunting Daybreak: A Post-Apocalyptic Survival Romance (Shattered Sunlight Book 2)

by E A Chance

  “He needs a minute. Let me go and I’ll get you when he’s ready. We’ll straighten this mess out.”

  She gave Riley another hug before hurrying into the house.

  “He’s been pretty mad at you,” Emily said. “We tried to explain, but he’s too much of a baby to understand.”

  “Come here,” Riley said, then put her arm around Emily’s shoulder. “I’ll need your help to get him to forgive me.”

  “You know Jared. He comes around eventually.” She stepped out from under Riley’s arm and turned to face Coop. “So, you’re my new dad?”

  “Looks that way,” Coop said, and flashed his biggest smile.

  “I guess that’s cool.” She turned and put her hands on Riley’s belly. “I’m going to have another brother or sister? When?” The baby gave a big kick under her hand before Riley could answer, and Emily giggled.

  “Isn’t that awesome?” Coop said. “I love it when he does that.”

  Emily made a face. “It’s a boy?”

  “We don’t know for sure, but I’ve decided it is. He’ll be born in about seven weeks.”

  “Jared’s going to hate not being the baby anymore. Who’s that in the car?”

  Riley had forgotten Emily’s way of changing topics with dizzying speed, but she turned toward the car and waved for Dashay. She got out and walked toward them, smiling.

  Riley took her hand and said, “This is Dashay, my best friend and new sister. Dashay, meet Emily.”

  Dashay picked Emily up and swung her around. Riley laughed at her shocked look.

  When Dashay put her down she said, “I’ve heard endless stories about you for months and couldn’t wait to meet you. Your mom talked about you every day.”

  Emily looked even more shocked at that. “You did, Mom?”

  Riley nodded enthusiastically. “I’ve been counting the seconds until I got home to you. Dashay is family now, and she’d going to live with us. Speaking of family, where’s your Papa?”

  A cloud passed over Emily’s eyes. Riley feared the worst, but Emily took her hand and said, “Come on. He’s in the house.” When they’d gone a few steps, she turned to Coop and Dashay. “You, too, Dad and Aunt Dashay.”

  As they started for the house, Ian got out and opened the trunk. “I’ll leave your bags on the porch. Best of luck to all of you.”

  “Thank you, Ian,” Riley said. “Take care of Adrian.”

  Ian gave a slight bow, then went back to unloading the car.

  “Who’s that?” Emily asked.

  “Someone we just met who drove us from Denver,” Riley said. “We’ll tell you about our whole adventure later.”

  “It’s a wild one,” Coop said. “Your mom and sister are quite the badasses.”

  Emily giggled again and cocked her thumb at Coop. “I like him.”

  “Yes, we all do,” Dashay said, her voice dripping sarcasm.

  Once they were in the house, Riley heard the soft mumble of Jared and her mother drifting out from the kitchen. She was dying to go to her boy and pull him into her arms, but she trusted her mother to tell her when the time was right. In the meantime, she needed to see her father.

  Emily led them to his study on the first floor. When they reached his closed door, she said, “Papa’s sick. Nana says it’s because he worked too hard saving people after the CME, but I think it something else she’s not telling us. Now that you two doctors are here, you can fix him.”

  “I promise we’ll do our best,” Coop said. “And Dashay’s a nurse. She’ll help too.”

  Dashay nodded. “Definitely. The two of you go in first. Coop and I will wait in the front room.”

  Coop squeezed Riley’s hand before they turned and went back to the front of the house. Riley let out her breath, then turned the knob to her father’s office. What she saw shocked her, but she hid her reaction. The man in the bed looked half the size of the robust father she’d left behind, and she wondered what could have caused him to waste away so much in such a short time. Her doctor brain began flipping through potential causes, but they were too dire for Riley to accept.

  They had converted his office into a bedroom and the bed was against the far wall.

  Thomas stirred and opened his eyes when he heard their footsteps. He stared at Riley, uncomprehending for a moment, then gave her a weak smile. “Is that my Riley Kate?” he asked in a raspy voice.

  Riley sat on the edge of the bed and took her father’s hands in hers, disturbed at the feel of his bones through the skin. “I’m home, Dad. I’ve missed you every day.”

  “I never doubted that you’d be back, but no one would listen.”

  Emily moved to the end of the bed. “It’s true. Papa kept telling us. But we didn’t believe him. I’m glad you were right, Papa.”

  His voice caught when he said, “Me, too.” He glanced at Riley’s belly, and said, “What’s going on there?”

  “Mom got married. His name’s Coop. I like him. She’s going to have a baby, Papa.”

  He gave a faint chuckle. “That was my diagnosis, too. You got married?”

  “It’s a long story, Dad. There’s time for that later, but I can’t wait for you to meet my husband. We met at the conference. You may have heard of him. Dr. Neal Xavier Cooper III.”

  “The Dr. Cooper, inventor of the Xavier procedure?”

  “Yes, Dad. He’s incredible. I wouldn’t be here without him.”

  “And my Julia?”

  “She’d traveling with Uncle Mitch and Aunt Beth. I expect to see them show up any day. They’re bringing the whole crew. Fifty people.”

  “We’ll need a bigger house.”

  Riley laughed at his joke, then grew serious. “What’s going on with you, Dad? The truth.”

  “I honestly don’t know, but I have a few theories. Maybe your famous husband can diagnose me.”

  “If anyone can, it’s Coop.” Riley leaned down and kissed his cheek. “I’ll bring him to meet you in a minute, but I need to see Jared first. Mom’s talking him into not hating me.”

  “That boy loves you with all his heart. It just takes him a little longer. Go to him.”

  Riley left her father, hoping she was right about Coop’s ability to diagnose him. She hated seeing him that way and was determined to do whatever it took to get him well. She just hoped it wasn’t too late.

  Riley walked down the hall with Emily but stopped just outside the kitchen. “I better do this on my own. Why don’t you go get to know Coop and Dashay?”

  Emily left without arguing, and Riley was pleased to see some things had changed for the better. She tiptoed into the kitchen and stopped a few feet from where her mom and Jared sat at the table.

  Marjory stood and lifted Jared’s chin until his eyes met hers. “It’s time to welcome your mom home.”

  Marjory left the room, giving Riley’s hand a squeeze as she passed. Riley gazed at her precious son staring down at his hands resting on the table.

  “I’m sorry I took so long to come home, Jared. I didn’t mean to, and I hope you’ll forgive me. I’ve missed my special buddy every day. You wouldn’t believe what I went through to get back to you.”

  Jared didn’t move, and Riley was afraid she’d failed to reach him. Not knowing what else to do, she’d stood still and waited. A moment later, he jumped out of his chair, knocking it over with a crash, and ran into her arms.”

  She mouthed a prayer of thanks and stroked his hair while he had his cry.

  Finally pulling away, he said, “I’m sorry, Mommy. I was just so mad when you didn’t come back. At first, I thought you stayed away on purpose, but later, I knew it wasn’t your fault. So many bad things happened to everyone, even my friends. Some of them died.”

  Riley took his hand and led him back to the table, aching at the pain he’d known in his short life. He righted his chair and sat next to her. “Then why did you run when you saw me?”

  “I was just so surprised to see you, and you look so different with your black hair and
that huge stomach. Nana says there’s a baby in there.”

  Riley ignored the tears streaming down her face. “It’s true. You’ll have a baby brother or sister soon.”

  “I’m going to be a big brother?”

  Riley nodded. “You’ll be an excellent big brother. You want to feel it move?”

  He made a face, then said, “I guess.” Riley guided his hand to where the baby was turning cartwheels. His eyes widened when he felt it move. He held his hand on her belly for a moment longer, then pulled it back. “That’s weird.”

  Riley laughed. “I guess it is. Do you want to meet my husband, Coop?”

  “My new dad?”

  “He’d love to be your new dad, but that’s for you to decide. Get to know him first. I think you’ll love him.”

  Jared got to his feet and took a breath. “Let’s go.”

  Riley held his hand as they walked to the living room. Coop got up from the sofa when they came in.

  He put his hand out to Jared, and said, “Hey, big guy, I’m Coop. You’re much taller than your mom described you.” Jared took Coop’s hand and gave it an exaggerated shake. “That’s a firm grip. Just what I like in a man.”

  Jared turned to Riley, beaming at her. Coop had won him over in ten seconds.

  Riley took a moment to take in the sight before her. It had been a dream for so long that it was a feat for her mind to accept what she saw was real. Once Julia was safely under their roof and her father recovered, she’d possess everything she could wish from life.

  Julia sat at her desk in their house in their third internment camp. She still blamed herself for letting the guard in Memphis overhear her say her mom was on the wanted poster. They’d questioned the entire family for days, then moved them to Kansas City for two months and finally to this dinky little town in the middle of nowhere called Woodward, Oklahoma. She liked the house better than the one in Kansas City, and it wasn’t too far from home.

  There had been talk at one point of using the family as bait to catch her mom. Nothing ever came of that, but it proved to Julia that her mom was still free and it gave Julia an idea. She finished writing her tenth letter for the day and folded it into an envelope with one of the wanted posters of her mom she’d torn down. She wrote Dr. Katie Cooper on the envelope and dropped it on top of the other letters.

  Holly was watching from her bed on the other side of the room. “I don’t know why you bother with those letters. What are the odds that any of them will ever get to your mom?”

  Julia turned her chair to face her. “I don’t know the odds, but what does it hurt? Lightening might strike one day, and Mom will find out where I am. She’s probably been in Colorado Springs for months now. I hate to think what it was like for her when she got home, and I wasn’t there. You know she’s blaming herself, but she shouldn’t. If she and Coop didn’t leave when they did, they’d be stuck in Oklahoma City with us, and we’re never getting out of here.”

  Holly slumped against her pillows and crossed her arms. “I told you to stop saying that. Grandpa heard that people in the WSA are going to fight to stop Kearns. If they win, we’ll get out of this hellhole compound.”

  “I hope he’s right, but that could take years. What do we do in the meantime? Sit around crying? I’m going to write my letters and sneak them to people the guards are moving to other camps. Someone will escape and give my letter to Mom.”

  “You’re delusional.”

  Holly’s words stung. Julia got up and dropped onto her bed. “I don’t know why you care, and what would you do if it were your mom? Besides, it’s not like we have anything else to do but go to that joke of a school. I’m smarter than our moron teachers.”

  Holly was quiet for a minute before saying, “I’m sorry, Julia. Don’t listen to me. I’m just so sick of this place and the guards and all the people.” She moved to Julia’s bed and put an arm around her. “Keep writing your letters. One day, your mom and Coop will find out where we are and come to the rescue.”

  “Thanks, Holly. I’m sick of this place, too, but Mom always taught me to find the good in any situation. Maybe we can figure out a way to make things better for the younger kids. It would take our minds off our problems.”

  Holly jumped and grabbed Julia’s notepad and pen from their desk. “Excellent idea. Where do we start?”

  Julia sat up and smiled at her cousin, glad for something to take their minds off their problems. She imagined what would make Jared and Emily happier if they were in the camp. Whenever she thought of them, she saw them the same as they were the day that she and her mom left for DC. She’d changed so much since then but hoped her brother and sister wouldn’t change too much before she made it back to Colorado, however long that would be.

  Yeager parked his bike in front of the Dancing Ghecko and made his way into the darkened bar. After the cart incident, he’d struck out on his own to find Daybreak, no longer trusting anyone else. The track had gone cold for weeks, but he’d had a breakthrough when someone had seen a group matching Daybreak and his companions. He’d followed their trail to this bar, certain he was close on their heels.

  He lowered his cowboy hat over his forehead and walked to the bar. “Someone sent me here to ask for Jax,” he told the bartender. “Is he here?” The bartender cocked his head toward a table in the far corner where a young, dark-haired man sat alone. Yeager touched the rim of his hat. “Obliged.”

  He strode to the table and sat across from Jax without being invited to do so.

  Jax studied him for a moment, then said, “Do I know you?”

  Yeager sat back and folded his arms. Keeping his voice low, he said, “My sources tell me you’re the person to see for crossing the border.”

  Jax chuckled. “Your sources? I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m just here enjoying my beer.”

  Yeager pulled a folded paper from his pocket and slid it across the table. “That will explain why I’m here.”

  Jax ignored the paper and took a sip of his beer, so Yeager unfolded it for him.

  Jax glanced at it. “That you?” Yeager lifted his hat for Jax to get a look at him, then lowered it again. “I see new wanted posters every day. Half the country is wanted by Kearns.”

  “But not on her top ten list.”

  Jax gave the wanted poster another glance. “How do I know you don’t deserve it?”

  “I can’t prove it. Listen to what I have to say.”

  “How do you know you can trust me?”

  Yeager leaned closer to him. “I don’t but I’m out of options. Kearns’ people are closing in on me. I was one of her top military commanders from the beginning, but I became disillusioned when I saw the atrocious way she was treating her own citizens. She’s power hungry and insane, if you ask me. So, I deserted. She’s desperate to find me because I possess vital information she doesn’t want shared with the enemy, but that’s exactly what I plan to do.”

  “Who told you to come to me?”

  “I came on a group of people who said there’s a faction helping people cross. They mentioned you.”

  Jax eyed Yeager as he toyed with his beer. “This isn’t usually how this works.”

  “I understand but look at it this way. If I’m not who I say I am, I’m just one guy. How much trouble could I cause?”

  “Good point. You know how to ride a dirt bike?”

  “I’m a fast learner.”

  Jax got up without a word and started for the door. Yeager followed, not knowing if he was getting help to cross the border or if he was walking into another trap. But one thing he’d told Jax was true. He was out of options.

  Once they were outside, Jax ducked around the side of the building and motioned for Yeager to follow. He led him to a shed, then unlocked the chain holding it closed and waved Yeager inside. Two dirt bikes stood at the back of the shed.

  “You’re lucky you caught me on a slow night. I’ll get you as far as the border fence, but you’re on your own to cross to the other si
de. I know when to expect patrols, but we need to time it exactly right. We’ve had some botched crossings lately and they’ve stepped up surveillance. Once you’re in no-man’s-land, it’s your neck.”

  Yeager tried not to smile while Jax explained how to operate the dirt bike, as if that was something he didn’t know. He listened intently, then nodded politely when the other man finished. Jax handed him a pair of wire cutters for the fence on the other side and warned him to make sure he rewired the strands once he crossed over.

  They were on their way five minutes later. He rode behind Jax along a trail through a field covered in sage brush. Not only was he getting one step closer to Daybreak, but he was gathering valuable intel to share when he returned.

  Jax stopped thirty minutes later and got off his bike to cut the fence. He held it open until Yeager had pushed his bike through the opening.

  “Good luck, man,” he said. “You’re a true patriot.”

  He rewove the fence, then took off back towards the bar. Yeager mounted his bike and reached the far side with no trouble three minutes later. He cut the fence, rolled his bike through, then rewired the fence. It was all too easy. No wonder Daybreak made it to the pretend country. He’d have to have a word with the border patrol commander when he returned.

  Riley stood at the kitchen window watching Emily and Jared play with their fifteen-month-old cousin, Miles. Riley had been delighted to learn her sister, Lily, and her husband, Kevin, had moved into their parents’ home with Miles when their apartment became unlivable after the CME. They’d had a wonderful time getting reacquainted the past three weeks, and Coop and Kevin had hit it off from day one. An added perk was Coop spending time with Miles was helping prepare him for fatherhood.

  Riley was also grateful that Lily and Kevin had taken over working the farm when Thomas fell ill and didn’t know how they would have managed without them. Dashay and Coop had gone to work at Riley’s old hospital a week after their arrival, and Riley wasn’t much help with heavy work in her condition, so having Lily and Kevin picking up the slack was a blessing.