Duck for Cover (Nuclear Survival: Northern Exposure Book 2)

by Harley Tate

  After.

  A gun discharged and someone screamed. A hot, sticky splat landed on Danny’s cheek. The barrel slipped away. Something loud flumped to the floor.

  Danny opened his eyes. Patted his chest. Touched his face. His fingers came away coated in blood. I’m alive. He looked about, eyes unfocused and watery. Randy’s brother sprawled across the concrete, a single gunshot wound blooming scarlet across his back.

  “Are you all right?” Midge’s voice warbled as she called out.

  Danny leaned back on his haunches. “I think so.”

  She closed the distance between them and bent to pick up all the weapons. With a handful of guns cradled in her arms, she turned to Danny. “Are you sure?” Fear and trepidation tugged her mouth into a frown and pinched her eyebrows tight. She’d saved his life.

  “I’m fine.” Danny staggered to his feet, still hardly believing his existence. She’d saved him against all odds. Danny reached out and touched Midge’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

  She shrugged him off. “You’d have done the same for me.”

  “Doesn’t mean I can’t be grateful.” He sucked in a deep, shuddering breath. “I didn’t know you had any rounds left.”

  She shrugged and a lock of hair fell across her face. “Last one.”

  Danny almost laughed out loud. “Guess I’m lucky you were such a good shot.”

  “He was pretty hard to miss.”

  Danny turned around as Jack, Cassandra, and their baby eased out from behind the horses. Jacob had picked up Emily and was carrying her across the room, her face buried in his shoulder. Everyone was all right.

  Except for Tito. Danny looked down at the two men and the blood congealing on the ground. Regret and disgust welled up inside him and Danny fought the urge to vomit. Tito deserved better. He bent and laid a hand on the man’s shoulder and whispered a few words of forgiveness and sorrow.

  It wasn’t nearly enough. As he stood back up, Midge motioned toward the HVAC and the space beyond.

  “We might have solved that problem, but we’re not out of the woods yet.” She let out a heavy sigh. “The storage locker was ransacked. There’s almost nothing left.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  MIDGE

  Tuesday, 10:00 am CST

  The Heritage Arms Apartments

  Gary, Indiana

  Midge dumped the pile of handguns on the driver’s seat of the carriage and went about figuring out what was loaded and what might as well be a paperweight. It wasn’t easy, but she’d given up pretending she didn’t need to learn about firearms and how they worked. Based on the events of the past two days, she planned to carry a gun everywhere she went and sleep with one beside her, too.

  Thanks to Tito, DuBois’s gun had a full magazine, as did his own. The guns he’d lifted off Randy and Mikey were empty along with Max’s revolver. The dead idiot bleeding all over the concrete contributed six rounds and a hell of a lot of trouble. Midge cursed beneath her breath. Tito didn’t deserve to go out like that. She shoved Randy’s gun beneath her waistband at the small of her back and turned around.

  Two full, one partial. It wasn’t the greatest of odds, but they could make do.

  Jacob approached the carriage. He held Emily in his arms. Midge hoped the little girl hadn’t seen too much. Although maybe it was for the best. If this was the new world order, she should get used to it.

  He nodded toward the carriage. “Is this yours?”

  “Not originally. The owner died and we inherited it.”

  “And the horses?”

  Midge nodded.

  Jacob glanced over at Cassandra and Jack, still huddled together near Bethel. “Are they riding with you?”

  “We’re headed to their lake house in St. Joseph. Hopefully we can use their boat to sail up to Traverse City or Suttons Bay.” She knew he wanted a ride, but there simply wasn’t room. “How about you?”

  “My wife’s got a sister in Joliet. I figure we should head there.”

  “Is that near here?” Midge hadn’t a clue.

  “A ways south of Chicago.”

  “Oh.” Midge tried to keep the relief from her voice. “Guess we can’t all go together, then.”

  Jacob stuck out his hand. “Nice to meet you.”

  “You, too.”

  As he turned to leave, Midge caught his attention. “Wait!” She reached for the two empty pistols. “They aren’t loaded, but there might be some ammo down in the shelter. In Tito’s locker.”

  She held the guns out.

  Jacob stared at the cold metal for a few moments before picking both up. “I hate to think this, but I’ll probably need them, won’t I?”

  Midge gave a quick nod. “Probably. Good luck.” She leaned forward and tousled Emily’s pale hair. “Don’t forget to tell your friends my riddle.”

  The little girl blinked red, swollen eyes and managed a small smile. “I won’t. It’s a good one.”

  “Goodbye, Emily.”

  “Bye, Midge. Tell the other ninjas I said hi.”

  Jacob carried his daughter back to his wife and together they made their way back down the stairs. Midge sighed. They needed to get moving.

  “Look what I found!” Danny came lumbering up, a sack of oats in his arms. “Guess gang members don’t know how to cook old-fashioned oats.”

  Midge rushed to help him. “Thank goodness. They’ve got to be starving.” She helped Danny tear open the bag and together they filled Bethel and Beatrice’s feed bags. The horses immediately took to eating. It wouldn’t last long, but at least their bellies would no longer be empty.

  “I can’t believe they were still here.” Danny brought his fingers up to his swelling cheek. “With Randy’s brother trashing the food, I thought there would be nothing.”

  “We’ll need to stop for the night in a field or a pasture somewhere if we can find one.”

  Danny looked dubious. “We’re in the middle of a bunch of warehouses.”

  Midge reached out and stroked Bethel’s neck. “We won’t be forever. There can’t be continuous city from here to St. Joseph.” She hesitated. “Do you think it will be safe to let them graze?”

  Danny shook his head. “I don’t know. But we don’t have much choice.”

  Jack strode over, leaving Cassandra and April sitting on an old foot locker as far away from the grisly scene as possible. He glanced at the dead bodies and then back at Danny. “About the carriage. Are you still willing to drive us to our house?”

  Danny nodded. “Can we still use your catamaran if it’s seaworthy?”

  “If you can get us back there safe and sound, you can have it.”

  Midge clamped her jaw shut to keep it from falling open. They could have it? “Are you sure? What if you need it later?”

  Jack ran a hand over his dark hair. “I’ve got a newborn baby. I think I’ll be a bit preoccupied. Besides, it’s not meant for living on. It’s for taking day trips on the lake without babies.”

  “If you’re sure,” Danny stuck out his hand, “then it’s a deal.”

  Jack shook it. “Are we—” he glanced again at the fallen men “—doing anything about them?”

  “Jacob offered.”

  Midge glanced at Danny in surprise. “He did?”

  “Said it was the least he could do.”

  Jack spoke up again. “So we’ve packed up all we could—Tito scrounged up towels we could use as cloth diapers and April’s been nursing like a champ, but—” Jack shifted his weight back and forth on his heels. “We need to get home.”

  Midge shared his impatience. The sooner they left The Heritage Arms and got out of Gary, the better. “I agree. Let’s get out of here.”

  Danny jerked his thumb toward the HVAC unit. “There’s a couple granola bars and bags of chips left back there. I’m going to grab them.”

  “I’ll harness the horses.” Midge set to work connecting Bethel and Beatrice’s gear back together while Jack, Cassandra, and little April climbed aboard the carria
ge.

  “There’s some supplies in here still.” Jack picked up Danny’s backpack, half full of food and water. “Not a lot, but it’s something.”

  Midge nodded as she headed over to the doors. “It’s all we could scavenge as we left Chicago. We need to ration.”

  Danny reappeared a moment later carrying the meager food stores he’d been able to find in the locker. While he’d been away, he’d also managed to clean the blood off his face and hands. He couldn’t do anything about his ruined shirt, but at least he didn’t look like an extra from a zombie movie any longer.

  He climbed up into the driver’s seat. “Ready?”

  Midge stuck up her thumb and yanked open the doors. The morning sun greeted her and she blinked at the brightness. Birds still chirped. A chipmunk ran across the alley. If she hadn’t seen the bomb blast with her own eyes she might not have believed it happened at all.

  Were those little animals on borrowed time? Would they succumb to vomiting and blisters and death?

  She swallowed down the bile rising up her throat and climbed up into the carriage. Danny flicked the reins and the horses eased out into the light.

  Everyone stayed quiet for the first few blocks, adjusting to life outside of a grimy, dank warehouse. Midge kept squinting. Cassandra shielded the baby from the sun. Danny shifted on the seat. At last he turned to Midge. “We need to think through our priorities. What we need to get, where we need to go. That sort of thing.”

  “Food, first and foremost.” Midge glanced back at the backpack. “We’ve got enough for maybe today.”

  “Weapons, next.” Danny offered. “The pistols are fine, but going forward, we’ll probably need a rifle and a shotgun.”

  Midge couldn’t fathom why. Handguns were easy to conceal and had worked for them so far. Learning another gun only filled her with dread. “What for?”

  He scratched at a scab on his forehead. “Hunting. At some point, that’s going to be the best chance we have to eat.”

  Spit lodged in Midge’s throat and she coughed. The only thing she’d ever hunted was a discount pair of sunglasses in the bargain bin.

  “A holster would be nice, too. I’m sick of almost dropping that gun. It weighs a ton.”

  That Midge could agree with. “So we need a shop or a sporting goods store that sells hunting equipment and guns.” She turned to Jack. “Do you know of anywhere?”

  He shook his head. “Not here. We usually stick to the interstate.”

  The horses whinnied and the carriage jerked abruptly. Midge fell back, barely managing to hold on as they came to a stop. “What the heck?”

  She struggled back up and turned to face the front. A group of men stood in the road. Arms across their chests. One wore a baseball cap with Fresh written across it. Midge’s stomach soured. You can’t be serious. She clenched her fists in her lap.

  They would never survive another chase through the streets. It was one thing when it was just Danny and Midge and the horses, but they had a family to worry about now. Without a place like The Heritage Arms to run to, they would be driving blind. A handful of bullets weren’t enough. She pressed her lips together. They would have to talk their way out of this one.

  She rose up in the carriage and palmed her hips. “Who’s in charge here?”

  “What are you doing?” Danny hissed at her and tugged on her shirt. “Sit down.”

  She ignored him. “I’d like to speak to whomever is in charge. Now.”

  A few of the men catcalled and whooped. A couple pointed and mock-whispered.

  “Silence!” A real beefcake of a man strode forward, leather jacket straining across his chest. “Dom at yo’ service.”

  “We’re just passing through. We don’t want to stay and we don’t want any trouble.”

  He lifted his chin and stared. “So?”

  Midge steeled herself for what she was about to do. She knew Danny would hate it, but it might be the only way. She turned to Cassandra with a question in her eyes. The new mother nodded. “We have a newborn baby and a nursing mother. They need safe passage out of the city.” She sucked in a breath. “We’ll give you all of our supplies if you’ll let us go.”

  Danny rose halfway up off the seat, but Midge cut him a sharp glance. He eased back down.

  “A baby momma, huh? Let me see.”

  A few of the men in the back of the group whistled and threw out some vulgar barbs. Dom held up a hand. They silenced.

  Jack helped his wife stand and she lowered the blanket to reveal baby April. As soon as the sun hit her cheeks she began to cry. The sound was unmistakable to anyone who’d ever been around a newborn.

  Dom waved them back into their seats. “What kinda supplies we talkin’ ’bout?”

  “Aw, naw, man, you ain’t serious?” One of Dom’s goons with Fresh Boys written across his T-shirt strutted forward. “Those horses are a real piece.”

  “Shut it ’fore I shut it for you. I got four kids, remember? Ain’t no disrepectin’ a mother goin’ on while I’m in charge.” Dom straightened his jacket and turned back to Midge. “So what is it? Whatcha got?”

  She picked up the backpack and stuffed the few stray bags of chips and granola bars inside before turning to Danny. “Give me the gun.”

  Danny’s eyes widened. “What?”

  “They’ll find it if they search anyway. Just give it to me.” Midge licked her lips. She hoped Danny understood what she was doing. It was a risk, but she didn’t see another way out.

  Danny dragged DuBois’s enormous piece out from beneath his waistband and handed it over. One of the Fresh Boys whistled.

  Midge walked up to Dom and held the gun out flat in her palm like he was a horse and it was an apple. Then she set the bag on the ground at his feet. “This is all of our food and water and the only weapon we have.”

  She swallowed as he picked it up. “It’s fully loaded.”

  Dom checked the magazine and held the gun up, pointing it at a stop sign across the street. “Where’d you come across a fancy piece like this?”

  “I stole it.” Midge cocked her head. “After I stabbed the owner in the nuts.”

  Dom cracked a smile. “You ain’t too dumb, are ya, sweetheart? Wanna join the Fresh Boys? Could make you a’ honorary member.”

  Midge smiled like her sister used to do for the news camera. “Maybe another time. Do we have a deal?”

  After a moment, Dom reached forward and took the bag. “Deal.”

  Now was the moment of truth. He could double-cross her, shoot her where she stood, and still take the carriage. Or he could let them go. Midge turned around and walked slowly back the way she came. As she climbed inside, Dom motioned toward the street.

  “Affiliated owns everything five blocks over. You get that far, ain’t no Fresh Boy that’ll help ya.”

  “Thank you.” Midge nodded at him as Danny flicked the reins.

  As they passed the group, Dom tipped his head at Cassandra. “You take care of that baby, you hear? Ain’t safe in these parts.”

  The Fresh Boys surrounding Dom laughed.

  Midge held her breath until the carriage passed out of earshot of the men. As Danny turned a corner a few blocks away, she leaned back in relief. She’d done it. She’d kept the horses and the carriage.

  The only problem? They were now completely out of food.

  Chapter Eighteen

  MIDGE

  Tuesday, 12:00 pm CST

  Outskirts of Gary, Indiana

  Midge glanced at Danny. Ever since they left Dom and his groupies behind, he hadn’t said a word. He hadn’t even looked at her. She chewed on a nail. Giving them the food and the gun had been the right call, hadn’t it?

  At last, she couldn’t take it anymore. “We should look for a store that’s open. Somewhere with food.”

  Jack spoke up from the back. “The men who jumped us took my wallet and all of our money. How can we pay for it?”

  Midge turned around. “I’ve got cash.”

 
“How have you managed to hang onto it this long?”

  Midge wasn’t about to tell them all she’d been through and that there were some people who wanted things other than money. “Lucky, I guess.”

  Danny snorted beside her and Midge’s irritation tipped over. “Just say it. Whatever you’re thinking, spit it out.”

  He focused on the road ahead. “You shouldn’t have risked your life like that. What if they’d found out you’d lied about the other guns? Or what if Dom decided he’d rather have you instead of a bag of food?” Lines etched his forehead as he looked at her for the first time in over an hour. “I couldn’t have saved you.”

  Midge reeled. All this time, she thought he’d been mad that she traded away DuBois’s gun and the food. Never once did she think he was upset that she’d taken a chance. She swallowed down a wave of embarrassment. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know what else to do.”

  “You could have waited. We could have come up with a plan together. You don’t have to do everything on your own.” He flicked the reins and the horses sped up a bit. “I thought by now we were a team.”

  Is that what they were? Midge looked out at the street. Sometime over the past hour, they had traded boarded-up windows and abandoned warehouses for clusters of older homes with tidy front lawns.

  A sign for I-94 pointed straight and Jack leaned forward in the seat. “We take 94 to get to St. Joseph. There’s a hunting and fishing store right off one of the exits around here. You know, one of those huge ones with a fish logo?”

  Danny turned. “Bass Pro Shops?”

  “Maybe, although it might be locally owned now.” Jack glanced at his wife. “We’ve only stopped there once, but it had everything from tents to fishing gear to a little restaurant and tons of packaged food for camping.”

  “What about guns and ammo?”

  Jack nodded. “I think so. We didn’t go through the hunting department, but it was pretty big.”

  Midge swallowed. If they could find it and restock their supplies, maybe Danny would forgive her for taking on Dom on her own. She scooted forward on the seat. “I’ll keep an eye out.”