Mike climbed into the driver’s seat and soon they were travelling on the highway again, Toledo was about thirty minutes away.
“What do you think happened to that cop back there?” Liz asked
“I don’t know. I’m guessing that there was some kind of breakdown of society after that last announcement from the President, I mean people might have just gone crazy, not everyone but enough to cause trouble and mayhem. I guess the cop just got between those people and everyone else.”
“Is that what we’ve come to? Is this what humanity has risen to? Destroying everything we worked for?” Liz sighed and stared out the window.
“Not all people Liz, just some, but there’s enough of those assholes to make it bad for everyone else.”
“So what now?” Liz turned to face Mike.
“We keep going to New York. It doesn’t look like there’s any point in staying off the highway, pretty soon we’re going to hit the turnpike anyway. If we see trouble we’ll go around it but I think the important thing now is we get to Nadine as quickly as possible. We have to assume she’s holed up and safe. We’ll get there Liz, don’t worry.”
Liz looked at Mike and then reached over and hugged him.
“Thank-you.” she said quietly.
They reached the Ohio turnpike an hour later. The lights were still showing which lanes were open and Mike dutifully headed into one of the green lanes. He slowed as they reached the booth but it was empty, the door open and swinging in the slight breeze.
“It’s so weird seeing everything abandoned like this.” Liz said. There were no cars at any of the booths and none in the parking lot next to the facility for the booths.
“I think everyone just went home and never came back. If there’s anyone still alive out there they’re hunkered down trying to wait this thing out.” Mike observed. He gave the truck gas and they were soon cruising at just over 70 mph on the well maintained asphalt.
Mike had never enjoyed the drive on the turnpike. It was devoid of any character or distinguishable features, just one long gray strip of monotony stretching across Ohio and Pennsylvania. Occasionally a service area would appear but even these became mundane as each one was a cookie cutter copy of the next. The only thing that made this road interesting was the multiple speed traps set by Ohio state police. It was widely accepted in Michigan that the buckeye state troopers targeted Michigan license plates.
The radio had been scanning through the wavelengths for any indication of a signal but so far they’d heard nothing except the EAS message, until suddenly a voice came through, distorted but still audible.
“…this message you are less than fifty miles from me. My name is Jack Hutching. I’m broadcasting on the EAS frequency. Everyone is dead. I don’t know why I’m not dead. If you can hear me please come. I don’t know what to do and I don’t know where to go. I’m at a state police station on the turnpike.”
Mike looked at Liz, then turned back to the stare at the long road and wondered what was waiting for them ahead.
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Pandemia Page 9