EMP Survivors (Book 1): Destination Lost

by Christof, Norman

  "I'll just carry him. Here, give me a hand."

  Together, they managed to get Wayne up in William's arms. "Lead the way," William said. "I can't see my feet, and I don't want to trip over anything. Man, he's a real dead weight." Becky glared at him. "Sorry, I didn't mean it that way, he's just real heavy."

  They made their way as quickly as possible to the elevator.

  "This thing has got to be easier to take down than it was to manually crank up, right?" William said.

  Becky nodded in agreement as she turned to check on Wayne before they got into the elevator. She put her fingers on his throat again, and leaned in to listen for breath.

  "Could you hear anything?" William asked.

  "I think so. It's hard to tell. My heart is racing so fast right now, it makes it hard to hear his."

  Just then, they heard a loud booming sound from below. William quickly sat Wayne down, then they both peered over the side. Just as they looked, another explosion went off, even louder than the first. It occurred right at the foundation of the building. Something had ignited a fuel truck in the construction parking lot. The first truck in turn ignited another two trucks nearby, creating the second explosion. It was powerful enough to send a fireball five stories up, and shake the floor Becky and William were on.

  "What the hell was that about?" William asked.

  "I don't know. I hope nobody got hurt."

  "This is crazy. Helicopters crashing into buildings, and fuel trucks exploding. How can all this be happening to us? This doesn't make any sense."

  "No. Terrorist attacks usually don't."

  William shook his head. "It can't be. There's no way. With all the security we have these days, there's no way they could get away with something like this."

  "You don't watch the news much, do you?"

  "I do. Still. This is America. We're better at this kind of thing. We've got Homeland Security."

  Becky stood up. "We gotta go. C'mon, this is the last place I want to be right now. Who knows how long it's going to take us to get that elevator to the ground."

  They got Wayne loaded into the elevator as gently as possible, then tried to crank the manual wheel in the opposite direction. Nothing. It wouldn't budge. Not in the least.

  "Are we doing this right?" William asked.

  "I don't know. Try again, turn it towards me. The same way we did going up."

  They tried again with all their might, but nothing. It wouldn't budge.

  "This makes no sense. It was working like two hours ago. Now it won't do anything."

  William tried the power buttons again, but still nothing. They tried turning the wheel, both directions, multiple times, but to no avail. William retrieved the hammer and wrench and tried pounding on the mechanism in an attempt to release whatever was locking the manual controls. Nothing.

  Finally, after fifteen futile minutes or so, they both dropped to floor exhausted and frustrated. The stress of the day was starting to get to them.

  "It must have been that explosion from below. It vibrated the whole building. Something broke or seized in place."

  Becky started to get misty eyed, but refused to cry. She wiped her eyes with her sleeve. "The stairs are the only way down now."

  "The stairs? They're not finished this high. That's nuts. We'll just have to wait for help. Someone will have to be coming soon."

  "Nobody's coming. Something's gone terribly wrong, and nobody is coming. My phone still isn't working. Totally dead. Yours?"

  "No, it hasn't worked since yours died."

  "You saw what I saw down there at street level. Even before that explosion. It wasn't normal. Something's gone terribly wrong, and nobody's coming. We're on our own. I'm not even sure I want to be down there, but we can't stay up here."

  "We're going to have to use that safety gear and figure out a way to get past the sections of stairs that aren't finished. What about him?" William looked at Wayne. He was still breathing, but barely. "There's no way we can get him down those stairs. Not all those floors."

  "We'll have to make him as comfortable as possible, with some shelter from the elements. Then we move as quickly as possible." Becky drew a deep breath. "And hope for the best."

  Chapter 11 ~ Realities

  Holly and Garrett made their way out onto the small observation deck that sat below the main bridge of the ship. They could see the windows of the bridge, but couldn't make out the personnel inside. Damien stood with them, along the front rail of the deck.

  "It was like he didn't even care what we had to say," Holly said.

  "Didn't care, or didn't believe us," Damien added.

  Garrett looked back at the bridge and said, "He didn't care what we had to say because he knew it would happen. He knows very well exactly what situation he's in. Exactly what situation we're all in. He knows that there are far too many people on this boat for the state it's in. If he and his crew can't get this vessel back in working order, and in a hurry, he's going to have mass panic on his hands."

  "Mass panic?" Holly said.

  "Yeah, you'd be surprised how quickly people can go from civilized to irrational and then outright dangerous when they don't have enough food, or think their lives are in peril. The fact that we're surrounded by miles of water is only going to compound the problem. The thrill of being out here will quickly turn to terror when people realize there's no way to get back to their regular homes."

  "What about Becky?" Holly asked, changing the subject.

  "Who's Becky?" Damien asked.

  "Our daughter," Garrett answered. "And that's exactly what's going to get people worked up. They're going to start worrying about their friends and families that aren't here. They're going to start to think that they're trapped here, and they'll never get back to them."

  Holly looked at Damien. "You should go and find your parents. I'm sure they're worried about you."

  "I doubt it. It's too early in the day for that. They're usually just on their second round at the bar by now. They'll be oblivious to all this."

  "Then you need to go and make them aware," Garrett added. "If we know this much, and other people are already talking, then word will travel fast. Trust me. This will quickly go from the vacation of a lifetime to the voyage of the damned. From the sound of your parents, you may have to be the grownup in the family. Go on."

  Damien hesitated briefly, as if unsure of what to do.

  "He's right," Holly added. "You may not think so, but once they start to get a whiff of what's going on, they're going to be worried, and looking for you. It would be better for all concerned if you found them first."

  "Alright. Alright. I'll find them." He took off down the steps towards the lower deck, and passed a younger, concerned-looking couple making their way up the stairs.

  The lady nodded as she passed Holly and Garrett, then turned around and asked, "Is this the way to the bridge?" She pointed to a door.

  Holly nodded her head. "Yes. Just down the hall, and follow the signs."

  "Thanks." The couple hurried on their way.

  "The captain's going to have a busy day if he keeps getting interruptions like this," Holly said.

  "That's why he gets the big bucks," Garrett said with a smile.

  It had been a long time since they'd had something in common. Something that mattered to both of them. Six months of separation is more than enough time to start new habits and a new life. That's the thing that worried Garrett the most about their split. What if they just got used to being apart? What if it seemed easier to stay separated than to be together? That's why he insisted on finding a furnished apartment. Nothing in it belonged to him. He didn't want any personal connections with the things that surrounded him in a life separate from Holly. It made his place seem more like a hotel room than an apartment. A temporary place. A place he knew he'd be leaving one day.

  "We have to get to Becky. Somehow," Holly said.

  "I know. That's what I'm trying to figure out."

  "Any ideas?"
/>
  "Not yet. You?"

  "Nothing. She was at work when the phone went dead?"

  "Yeah. At the construction site. That's what I'm worried about now."

  "Why?"

  "If all those ships are out of commission, and no one is coming to help, I'm thinking that whatever hit us could have hit New York City as well. The entire eastern seaboard, or the entire country for that matter. We have no idea."

  "If it did hit when she was up in that skyscraper, then what? She'd be trapped."

  "She might be safer up there than she would be on the streets. There are a lot more people in New York City than there are on this cruise ship. The panic and unrest there will make this place seem like a cake walk."

  "I'm not liking the way this conversation is going. You're scaring me."

  "I'm scaring myself the more I think about it, but this isn't the kind of thing that just goes away on its own."

  "What would she do? All alone in the big city without any power, and people panicking." Holly put her face in her hands. "I never liked the idea of her being all alone in a place like that. We never should have let her go."

  "I know this all sounds scary, but we can't let ourselves just imagine the worst."

  "I'm a parent. That's part of my job description."

  "I know. Mine too, but we also have to remember that we raised a smart kid who has become a very resourceful adult. She'll make the right choices for whatever situation she's in. I have to believe that. We ... we have to believe that."

  Garret wrapped his arms around Holly, and she hugged him back.

  "We can figure this out. We'll be OK. There are people here working to find a solution. That captain may seem like a jerk, but he knows what he's doing. They've been trained for events just like this."

  "You really believe that?"

  "I have to. At least a part of me does."

  "And the other part?"

  "That part tells me to get my ass in gear and figure this thing out for myself."

  "That's the part I'm agreeing with right now. We need a plan."

  "We do, and I think it starts with getting back to our own room, in spite of the captain's orders. I don't want to be stuck out in the open with thousands of people when things really get bad."

  "At least there'll be a locked door between us and everyone else. Getting there in the dark with no power could be tricky."

  "I've got a few ideas about that."

  Chapter 12 ~ First Steps

  Becky and William stood at the top of the opened stairwell shaft. The concrete landings were all poured as part of the flooring, but the steel stairs that connected the landings on each floor weren't in place this high up. Normal safety regulations stated that they should be in place before workers were allowed on the floor, but when things get behind schedule on major construction projects like this one, things don't always go by the book.

  "I really wish they would have finished these stairs," William said.

  "I really wish we didn't have to leave Wayne back there like that. It doesn't seem right. He could die." Becky sat down near the edge and crossed her arms. She sniffled, but was determined not to start crying.

  William sat next to her and hesitantly put his arm around her. They'd been friends at school and work, but never anything more than that. He didn't want her to get the wrong idea, but felt she could use some comforting. Becky put her head on his shoulder.

  "The sooner we can get on the ground, the sooner we can get help for him. He was still breathing on his own, and he's been in this condition for a while now. That's got to be a good thing. It's probably good that he's unconscious. The pain of that broken leg has to be incredible. This is the hard part. Right here. Once we make our way down this unfinished section, it'll be easy. All downhill, right?"

  "Right. Yeah. Of course." Becky stood up and looked across the gap to the next landing. "The sooner we get down, the sooner we get help to Wayne. Assuming, of course, it's not a total disaster down there."

  William stood up next to her. "There will be. Help, that is. There are always people to help. Even during 9/11, there were people to help. New Yorkers can seem nasty and mean, but when it comes down to it, they stick together."

  "You from here? I thought you grew up in Florida."

  "I did. My parents are still there." He shrugged his shoulders. "Just call it a feeling. I've been here a few years now; these New Yorkers are good people once you get to know them."

  Becky smiled. "Yeah, I know. OK, so how are we going to get down there? It doesn't look that far across. You think we can jump the gaps?"

  William looked over the edge. "Maybe, I'm not sure. As long as we get a good step and push off from the landings we might be able to. It's further down than it is across." He thought for a minute. "I'd feel better if we tied a safety line around ourselves and fastened it to these brackets." The edge of each landing had a steel bracket embedded in the concrete where the steel stairs would eventually be bolted. "If I tie a buntline knot, we'll be able to release the line as we go."

  "A buntline knot?"

  "It's a knot with two lines coming out of it. You pull on one line, and that makes the knot tighter. When you pull on the second line, it releases the knot. We should wear those safety harnesses we used on the boom and attach it to the first line. The release line we can hold while we jump. When we make it to the next landing, we pull it to release the rope and repeat the whole thing on the next landing."

  Becky gave William a questioning look. "What are you, some sort of Indiana Jones or something?"

  He smiled. "What? No. Why?"

  "Who knows how to do that sort of thing?"

  "It's just a buntline knot. Nothing special. My parents had a sailboat when I was younger, and I'm an only child. You have any idea how boring it can get on a sailboat when you've got no one your own age to play with and it takes forever to get anywhere? I had a lot of time to kill, and when I complained about being bored, my dad insisted that I learn to tie knots. Turned out I didn't mind it. Kind of had a knack for it."

  "And knowing how to tie knots somehow inspires you to go leaping across open stairwells and not worry about falling to your death."

  "It just seems to be the best way to make it across."

  Becky shook her head. "Wow. OK. I don't have a better idea, so I guess we go with the Indiana Jones flying rope move."

  There were several ropes long enough amongst the safety gear, so they each took an extra one and looped them around their shoulders, fastening them in place.

  "Just in case," William said.

  "In case of what?" Becky asked.

  William shrugged. "Just in case." William found the mid-point of the third rope, and tied the buntline knot to the bracket. He made Becky watch him, then he untied the knot and made her retie it. Just in case. He tugged on the tightening line to firm up the knot. "You want to go first, or you want me to?" Becky looked over the edge.

  "Probably makes sense if it were me. Easier for you to pull me up than for me to pull you up if I don't make the gap."

  "You'll make the jump. Don't worry."

  They'd retrieved two safety harnesses from the crane boom. Becky placed it on, and tied the secure end of the rope to it. She took a deep breath and looked over the edge of the landing.

  "Don't look down. Look across," William said. "That's what you need to focus on. The gap across. You can do it. That's all that counts. Back all the way up and take two steps, making sure to plant your right foot on the edge and give a good push."

  "Let me guess," Becky said. "You're were a long jump star in high school as well."

  "No, in reality I was more of a bookworm. I did a lot more reading about guys like Indiana Jones than actually acting like them. Truth be told, I'm just making this up as I go. I figure if I say it confidently enough, you'll believe me. Apparently, I need to work on that part."

  Becky relaxed enough to smile. "I can do this."

  "You can do this." William nodded in agreement. "One st
ep, two steps, push."

  Becky took a few practice steps while repeating the mantra. "One step, two steps, push. One step, two steps, push." She stepped back all the way to the wall and took two deep breaths. "Here I go."

  William watched as Becky pushed hard from the wall, placing her first step just past the halfway mark of the landing. Her second step placed her foot just a little over the edge of the landing. She flexed her right knee and pushed hard, propelling herself through the air towards the next landing below.

  Chapter 13 ~ Survival

  Even though the captain had declared that the accommodation hallways and rooms were temporarily off limits, no one was enforcing the ban. Elevators weren't working, so Holly and Garrett made their way through the stairwells. The stairwells were pitch black, but they'd stopped in one of the gift shops looking for something to light their way, and found those glow-in-the-dark bracelets that kids like so much. The hallways weren't totally dark though. There was still some light shining into the hallways from the cracks under the room doors that were partially lit from external port lights. It still seemed strange and unsettling to be in the belly of the ship when it was so silent.

  "Does this feel wrong to you?" Holly asked.

  "No, not really. Why would you say that?" Garrett answered.

  "It just seems like we're breaking the rules that are supposed to be for everyone. Rules to keep everyone safe."

  "Well, we are breaking the rules, but I'm not so sure they're making it safe for everyone. The captain issued those orders to make his life easier. He doesn't want people getting hurt, or worse, and have to deal with that. Although I think what he's really trying to do is keep everyone where he can keep an eye on them. There are too many people for the crew to manage in a situation like this, but if they can see problems before they begin, they have a better chance of dealing with things. Stuff like this has happened before, you know."