“What?” CJ asked.
“I told you stuff. I said my mother was a proud woman. I didn’t know if she was.”
“What do you mean?” asked CJ.
“Mindy,” Ruben said. “You don’t need to tell us this.”
“I do. I do. We lived on the streets for a long time. My mom tried to take care of me, but the system took me away from her. I remember crying and crying, reaching out to her. She reached out to me and they took me away. I saw her a couple times after that, but they never returned me to her. I was adopted, given a new last name. I searched, you know, I searched for her. When I got old enough I hired detectives. By the time I found her, she had died. But I learned this, she looked for me. She looked for me, too. I believe Carter’s mom is out there looking. Please always look for her, too.”
“I’ll try.” CJ laid his hand on her arm. He wanted to retract it, pull back when he felt how cool she was. It frightened him.
“Thank you,” she said.
He leaned down to her. “I’m gonna let Ruben have some time with you. Okay?”
Mindy nodded.
“I’ll be back,” he whispered and kissed her on the forehead. “Thank you for all that you have done for me.”
Mindy’s lips quivered and she nodded again, trying not to cry.
CJ gave a look to Ruben and slipped from the room.
“Just you and me,” Ruben said.
“Like always. You aren’t giving up on Stewart are you?”
“Who me? Nah. Never.”
“Good. Promise me you’ll keep searching.”
“With everything I am, I promise you.” He grabbed her hand. “I will not give up. I will never give up.”
CJ sat down in the chair next to his father with a heavy exhale.
“How is she?” Guy asked.
CJ shook his head. “She so swollen, Dad. Just … it’s bad.”
“I’m sorry about your new friend.”
“Me, too.”
CJ closed his eyes and then he heard it. A hissing with a slight whistle sound. He opened one eye and looked to his father.
Guy had a vapor pen, he held in the steam, and showed the pen to CJ.
“No. I thought you handed it all over.”
“Not all.” Guy exhaled and then coughed, he coughed again. “I told him I hit the jackpot, just didn’t say how much there was in there.”
“Oh, my God, dad.”
Shaking his head, CJ looked at the door when Graham walked in.
“Sorry to hear about how bad your friend is,” Graham said.
“Thank you.”
“Listen … we really appreciate the truck and the …” he looked at Guy. “Pot. When you need to rest, there’s a Best Western down the street.” He handed CJ a key card. “Two-twelve.” Then handed one to Abby. “Ma’am, Two-Fourteen. Betty made some sandwiches, they are there.”
Abby took the key with gratefulness and clutched it in her hand. “Thank you so much.”
CJ took his card. “Thank you very much. We’ll find a way out of here first thing in the morning.”
“Yeah, I want to talk to you about that.” Graham rubbed his chin. “We appreciate what you gave us. You said you’re from the east?”
“D.C., yes,” CJ answered.
“You know ... you know it’s gone right?” Graham asked. “The whole East Coast is gone. Where are you headed?”
Guy shrugged. “Maybe find one of those refugee relocation camps. That’s all we can do.”
“Because you gave us that stuff and you have the boy, you’re welcome to stay here,” Graham said. “I do need some help the fences. And I can use some bodies on post. Think about it. Again, you’re welcome.”
“We appreciate it.” CJ stood and shook his hand. “Thank you for helping Mindy.”
“I wish it were more.” He turned around, tipped his hat and walked out.
“Now that’s good people,” Guy said with a point.
“Surprising huh?” CJ said.
“Ruben,” Abby said softly.
Both CJ and Guy turned around.
Ruben sighed out with such sadness, closed his eyes tightly and cleared his throat.
“No,” CJ groaned out.
“She’s gone,” Ruben cleared his throat again. “Mindy is gone.”
THIRTY
Kyle and Tom had rationed out the rest of the food and had one half bag of chips remaining and a few sip of water. Even though the rain was off and on, they weren’t certain about drinking it. If they got to the point that they had to, they would.
They drifted a long time.
Kylie dozed off last, it wasn’t by choice. They were both awoke by the sound of shouting and clanking.
The sky wasn’t even partially light yet. Kylie looked up to see another boat, this one larger, the passengers looked as bad as Kylie felt, yet then were enthusiastic about helping the drifting duo.
Kylie and Tom gladly accepted the ride.
The boat was motorized and eventually they made landfall.
Feeling so grateful to see it, Kylie joked with Tom, quoting his movie trivia. “Dry land is not a myth.”
“No. Not it’s not.” He smiled putting his arm around her.
They docked just beyond a National Bank and disembarked on a highway overpass. From here they walk. Kylie’s legs were weak and wobbled a lot, it took her a good mile of walking until she felt steady.
From the dry land of the overpass to ankle high water, they trudged on under the lightening sky until a school bus picked them up. From there they drove a few hours. Kylie was unsure how long because that was when she fell asleep.
She woke when the bus stopped in front of a building.
The sign on the building read Coahoma County Assistance Office and they were led into a large waiting room where they filled out papers, then led to an office with a many cubicles. Kylie and Tom took a seat before a desk, there was a pamphlet there for expectant mothers.
“Sorry about the wait,” a man with a checkered tie sat down. “I see you are from Washington D.C...”
Kylie nodded. “I am.”
“Wow, you’re the first person I have heard of that has made it out of there.”
“There a few others,” she said.
“You, sir, are not too far from home.”
“Depends where we are,” Tom replied.
“Clarksdale, Mississippi.”
Tom whistled. “Well aren’t we closer to our destinations.”
“And where would that be?” the man asked.
“I’m looking for my wife and daughter,” Tom answered.
“I’m looking for my son. He is with his father, they were in California.”
The man sat back. “You know both those areas were devastated. Not shattering your hope. But letting you know. There are people coming out of Vegas, but not many are coming from California. Now the good news is there are designated refugee centers for different areas, you can start your search there. The registry should be up and running in a week or so. Should make your search easier. Ideally that registry is supposed to be a database, so you can stop at any city and search. But … worst case, you go town by town.”
“Thank you,” Tom said. “Do you have a center here we can rest up before we move out?”
“We do. We can give you a place to rest,” he said. “I’d take a few days. Recover then we can see what we can do about assisting you in your search.”
“You are the country assistance office,” Tom joked,
“Funny, huh, last week I was approving food benefits. This week, I’m trying to hand it out. Same job, different circumstances.”
“We appreciate the help,” Tom said.
“If you give me a few more minutes, I’ll get you a place to go. Excuse me.” He stood and walked from the office.
“We’ll find them.” Tom patted Kylie’s hand.
“I know.” Kylie nodded. The man suggested a few days wait, she didn’t want to do that. But she understood his reasoning. G
oing out there, searching before the names were registered was like searching for a needle in a haystack. At least with the designated cities, they’d have direction, and that was a start.
<><><><>
“Hey, Buddy,” Ruben spoke in a morning whisper to Carter.
Carter opened his eyes.
“Give me a hug, I’m leaving.”
Carter rubbed his eyes. “Are you going to come back?”
“I will eventually, I promise”
Carter sat up and placed his arms around Ruben.
“Be good, okay?”
“I will.”
He rubbed his hand over the boy’s already messy hair, then tucked him back in and walked from the motel room.
He pulled the door closed behind him chuckling at the dangling ‘do not disturb’ sign Guy insisted on putting out.
It didn’t seem quite as funny when he spotted the housekeeping cart and a maid pushing it.
“Morning,” he said to her.
“Morning,” she replied.
Carrying his one and only bag, Ruben made his way down the stairs, where CJ and his father were standing by an old pick-up truck.
“Your chariot awaits,” Guy said. “Nice of them to give you one.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“Any idea where you’re going?” CJ asked. “Plan of action?”
“Texas. Find the university. Start there. Graham said College Station was hit but not too bad from what he heard. Earthquakes you know. I’m sure there are refugee places there.”
“What if he’s looking for you?” CJ said.
“A parent looks for their child,” Ruben said, looking at Guy. “The child needs to stay put.”
“Unless of course, the child is looking for their child,” Guy said. “Whole different ball game.”
“Fortunately, that’s not the case for me.” Ruben stepped to Guy and gave him an embrace. “Take care of yourself. I’ll be back.”
“I’m sure you will. Are you certain you don’t want to take Abby? She offered.”
“No. And it’s simply because I don’t know where I’ll go or how I’ll do it. She needs to stay here.” Ruben looked at CJ. “Take care of your dad and that boy.”
“I will.” CJ shook his hand and opened the door for him.
Ruben tossed in his bag and slipped in.
“Any problems, you come back.” Guy said, closing the door.
Ruben leaned toward the open window as he started the engine. “I will. I know where to find you.” He tapped his hand a couple times on the steering wheel. “CJ, about what Mindy asked. She wanted you to find his mother.”
“I know.”
“I’m glad you guys decided to take root here. Stay put. If she’s looking, you need to stay put.”
“And if she’s not?” CJ asked.
“Then I would believe the worst occurred. I can’t imagine any parent not wanting to search for their child. Can you?” He put the car in gear, then with a simple wave and no more lingering goodbyes, Ruben backup and pulled away.
“What now?” CJ asked.
“Right now, you are with Carter until they figure out what job to give you. You know they’re trying to keep things normal when housekeeping is on the clock. Me, I’m reporting to the hardware store. I’m helping with the wall.”
“Dad, do they really need it?”
“Honestly, son, maybe not now. But if the government doesn’t get back on its feet, if law and order is determined by each area, then yep. They’re gonna need it and maybe a whole lot more.” Guy gave a swat to CJ’s arm and walked off.
CJ stood alone, he could hear the squeaky wheel of the housekeeping cart.
Normalcy.
The town was trying its hardest to be normal in the wake of everything that had happened. Keep people busy.
CJ had really nothing on his plate for the day. Unlike his father, he wasn’t handed a job. It was all new to him. Twenty-four hours earlier he wouldn’t have imagined that he’d be stopping and finding a new home in a small New Mexico town. Because twenty-four hours earlier all he focused on was finding help for Mindy.
After that, CJ didn’t really think about it. Now he had to. With his home gone, he had to find a safe place with Carter. An area where the child stood a chance amidst all the chaos and destruction in the world. A situation that climatically would get worse.
Dig in, brace for it, and hope for that best while keeping his son safe and alive.
That was all CJ could do, beyond that … he just didn’t know.
It was a whole new world. CJ was content keeping Carter from it and with his father behind the helm of walling them in, Lordsburg was a good place to be.
EPILOGUE
FOUR MONTHS LATER
Sergeant Joe Lawson drove Charles to Midland and had stayed by his side ever since. Helping out as best as he could. So when Charles asked him to drive him back to Cheyenne Mountain, he didn’t hesitate to do so.
Midland, despite how big the refugees’ displacement camp was, ended up being over crowded. There was nothing they could do about it. It wouldn’t be long, both he and Charles knew, before the camps became a breeding ground for crimes.
They were already on their way.
Food resources were scarce. Fighting was a daily event, and disease spread quickly.
Medically they couldn’t keep up. For a while, in the beginning help was promised from the countries across the globe that weren’t touched. That help never arrived.
It didn’t take long for the cities that were still standing, the areas still functioning to fraction off on their own.
Unwritten laws were in effect. People didn’t travel between communities unless they had good cause and they better have bartering power to get in.
Midland didn’t operate like that, at least for the time being, it was a free state.
How fast, how incredibly fast it all fell apart.
“We’ll bring some of them back,” Charles said.
“Oh, I know.”
“We’ll try to get the others help.”
“I know that too. I’m really curious. I had friends there.”
“So did I.”
Communications with Cheyenne were never restored, they never heard from them again. The weather was already dangerously cold and winter had taken hold by the end of September. It wouldn’t be long before the light snow that fell turned into crippling blizzards. The few scientists that remained and spoke up were predicting that.
Unfortunately, by the time they reached Colorado, the bad weather had already begun and they never were able to get close to Cheyenne. Without road crews or cars driving, the streets were impassible, most of the roads weren’t even roads any longer.
When they stopped the truck to turn around, Lawson cleared a section of the snow, he wanted to see if they veered of the highway somehow because it felt rough. When he did, he uncovered what looked like coal. The surface below the snow was rigid and black.
“What is it?” Charles asked.
“The ash turned to stone,” Lawson replied. “Remember they said if it mixed with rain. I guess it did.”
Charles shuffled his foot in the snow. “It’s everywhere.”
“This whole area.”
“Buried.”
Lawson lifted his head. “We need to go, it’s coming down pretty good and I don’t want our tracks to get buried.”
Charles nodded and got back in the truck. Even with a Humvee they didn’t want to chance it.
They gave an effort, making it within hours of Cheyenne. Perhaps in the future they would try again, but until then, unless communications were restored, they probably never would know what happened to the former president and the five hundred and four people that remained at Cheyenne Mountain.
<><><><>
One of the things that Ruben did, like many others searching for family, was they made return trips to different camps and small towns. The numbers changed daily. People passed through, and even though everything seemed
divided, one thing remained. Everyone kept track of who passed through their town.
He never did find his son Stew at Texas A&M. His dorm building was destroyed and Ruben spent a week going through that rubble. He found Stew’s baseball cap, at least he believed it was Stew’s. He never was without that Las Vegas cap. It had blood on it, but that meant nothing to Ruben. He wasn’t giving up until he knew one way or another.
What else did he have to do?
He went from town to town, camp to camp. The truck had held up well, and he gathered a lot of items to barter with by giving people rides.
He thought about taking a break, going back to Lordsburg. Settle a bit, get his body back in shape. It had taken a beating on the road. The weather was getting bad and soon he wouldn’t be able to search. Until he reached that point he’d keep going. He had been back there when he passed through to go to Tucson once. Guy gave him a hard time, jokingly, then let him pass. Only after he stayed the night and rested.
He was on his fourth time through his places to check, and was glad Midland was next. It was one of the only places remaining that didn’t ask for anything to check the registry.
However, when he arrived, that didn’t stop Ruben from grabbing a pair of gloves to trade. The lines were always long, and sometimes just something small would bump him up a space or two. Like others, he had the searching thing down to a science. It still didn’t stop the surprises from popping up every now and again.
<><><><>
Kylie bounced back and forth, blew into her hands to try to warm them through the tattered gloves. Four hours in that line, and it wasn’t that long. She just wished there was a room somewhere with the registry logs so people could search for themselves.
But they were almost there, they were next in line.
Every city, town or place they went was a challenger. Kylie and Tom were what people called Road Warriors. They walked most of the time and bartered rides the rest.
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