Wish Us Luck
Jennifer Wedmore
Wish Us Luck
Copyright 2018 Jennifer Wedmore
Cover Art by B Creative Creations
Formatting by Celtic Formatting
All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Catherine Perce didn't expect tucking her son into bed that night would be the last normal thing she did for a long time. Flashing lights outside her window were the first indication, the second was the knock at the door.
Quarantined.
When a soldier, Captain Jake Deakon takes refuge in her house her ordinary life takes another twist. Together they must survive and protect her son Mitch.
Now that time is up, they must see what awaits them outside their door. Neither could expect the truth they find. Will their new reality be one they can live with?
Dedication
To Patti, Gracen, Sheri, Kristi and Kelsie for reading as I wrote, editing and loving this story as much as I do.
To my husband Paul for asking every day how the story was coming and telling everyone about it. I love you.
To my kids, Gabriel, Alex and Devyn- I hope you enjoy this story.
One
“Good night baby, I love you,” Catherine said as she pulled the door shut to her seven-year-old son’s bedroom. Some days she felt like weeping with relief when the clock chimed eight p.m. Having a rambunctious child, while fun, can be quite exhausting, especially for a single mom. She slowly dragged her weary body to her bedroom for some relaxation, maybe some reading… anything really to just have alone time.
As she entered her room, she saw lights outside the window moving in an odd fashion. Intrigued, she walked over and peeked out. She expected to see police cars, an ambulance... typical things you would see. It didn't dawn on her until it was too late, that the lights were not red and blue. Outside her normal suburban house was a military truck, with soldiers carrying guns and covered from head to toe in protective gear.
Catherine jumped back with a loud gasp, her hand flying up to cover her mouth. She thought this only happens in movies, not in real life and not in her city. Before she comprehended what was happening, she heard a banging coming from the living room.
Mitchell, her son, yelled from his bed, “Mommy, what’s going on?”
Catherine ran out the bedroom door and quickly yelled to Mitchell to stay in his room. She stopped in front of the front door. Thirty seconds of agonizing terror filled her while she debated opening it, to find out who was on the other side, what they wanted, or if she should just take her son to hide and pretend it was all a bad dream.
Common sense won out, and she cracked the door to see a soldier standing there.
“Ma’am, the city is now quarantined. We must ask you to stay in your house. Rations will be delivered.” Over his shoulder, she could see another soldier painting a red circle on the house across the street with a diagonal line through it. Then he wrote a four in one half of the circle.
“I don't understand, what’s going on? Quarantined from what? Are we safe here? Can’t you just evacuate us, it's only my son and me? We have no protection here.” At this point, she was screaming hysterically.
“Stay inside. Do not open your doors or windows. This isn’t a virus, it hasn’t infected people yet. I can’t say anymore, but you should be fine,” the soldier replied, then turned and walked away, while another walked to the house and started drawing a circle on her house.
Catherine shut the door slowly, in shock and bewilderment. She leaned back against it and slid to the floor. She didn't know how long she sat there, but when she came out of her mental fog, she jumped up and turned on the T.V. The news had to be reporting what was going on, maybe she could get more information from there. Just as she had hoped the local news had a breaking news alert.
“Authorities are saying there has been a gas leak in the local metro area. All residents are advised to stay indoors. Do not open windows and do not let anyone in your home.”
Catherine was confused, that wasn’t what the soldier said, it sounded like completely different stories. She flipped the channels and checked out the other news stations. They all reported a gas leak. Why not let anyone in our homes if it was a gas leak? Nothing made sense. Why the red circles on our houses?
What was going on? She ran to her bedroom to grab her cell phone and see what was being reported on Social Media. You can't silence the people, someone had to have seen or heard something. Catherine logged into Facebook to see what her friends and neighbors were saying. Everyone talked about the news with the military presence and speculated what was really going on.
Everyone had a theory, but no one was sure yet what the truth was. The whole city was quarantined, and the military was everywhere, this was bigger than she had expected. After an hour of scrolling through all the social media sites and checking the news for new updates, she decided to curl up with Mitchell. She needed the reminder of something good, and he was all that was good in her world right then.
Two
Catherine sat up and looked around the bedroom. For a few seconds, she had no idea where she was or what had happened. A few blissful seconds of complete ignorance, it was a welcome relief. Everything flooded back when she felt Mitchell shift beside her on the small twin bed. She eased out of bed and went to the living room to see what was happening outside.
The only change she saw was the house across the street now had a two in the other half of the circle. She knew a family of four lived there, so she could only surmise what that actually meant. Two infected, two dead, two left, two missing. But the soldier said people weren’t infected, and it wasn't a virus. Could that much have changed in eight hours?
“Mommy, what are you looking at?”
She was so startled by her son’s question, she jumped and turned around quickly. “Hey baby, I was just looking outside. Nothing special. Did you sleep well? Come in the kitchen, and I will make you some breakfast.” She realized she was rambling, but she didn't know what to say, it wasn't like she knew what was going on so she could share information with him, and he was only seven. Could he understand and should he have to?
“Okay big guy, what do you want today?” Catherine wanted to keep everything as normal as possible for as long as she could. It was going to be hard enough to keep him inside for the foreseeable future.
Mitchell pretended to be in deep thought, his finger tapping on his chin for a few moments. “It feels like a french toast kind of day.”
She could always count on his antics to keep her amused. She needed that today more than ever. “One order of french toast coming up.” Catherine turned to the stove and started gathering supplies. She wanted to watch the news but was afraid of what Mitchell would see. “I have a special surprise for you today. Normally the rule is no cartoons, right?” She waited while he nodded in response. “Well, today you can watch as much as you want. Sound good to you?”
She could only smile when he let out a huge yelp and started dancing around the kitchen. “Best day ever, best day ever!”
Catherine's smile faltered when she realized what he was chanting. This was by far not the ‘best day ever,’ and she was afraid they wouldn't have a ‘best day ever’ again.
The odds had to be against them. They were stuck in a quarantine zone, no one was telling the truth, and they were told not to leave their houses. It couldn't be long before the seedier side of humanity emerged, and the true horror would begin.
“Here you go, love.” She set a plate on the table in front of him. “Eat, and then we will put on cartoons for you.” Catherine gave Mitchell a kiss on the head and walked back into the living room.
She turned on the TV to see what the news had to say today. Hopefully, more information was coming in. Just as she sat, she heard a knock on the door. Catherine’s whole body started to shake. Did she take a chance and answer the door or pretend the house was empty? What if it was rations, or another person wanting to get in, or someone wanting to vandalize the house?
She was just about to grab Mitchell and run to the bathroom to hide since it had a lock and she would barricade every door on her way. “Ma’am this is the U.S. Military, we have rations for you. Please answer the door if you can.”
She rushed to the door and peeked out. There was a man there wearing a uniform, so she had to assume he told the truth.
Catherine opened the door to see the same soldier from the night before. “I’m so glad to see you, I was afraid to open the door.”
“I’m sorry for scaring you. I have your rations. Are you doing okay? Is your son okay?” The soldier asked.
“I don't understand. Why wouldn’t we be okay? You said this wasn't a virus and no people were affected. Please tell me what is going on.” Catherine begged the soldier.
From behind she heard, “Mommy, why is there a soldier here?” She spun around. “Mitchell, this nice soldier was delivering some food for us. Do you want to say hi before you go watch cartoons?”
She placed her hand on his shoulder and turned to the soldier. She hoped seeing her young son would weigh on his mind and he would tell her what was really going on. Guilt was a powerful thing, and a good mother used any weapon to protect her child.
Mitchell got really excited and bounced on his feet. “Are you really a soldier? It’s so cool to meet you. Can you come in and play with me?”
Thank you, Mitchell, Catherine thought, let's see him ignore that kind of request.
“Hi, Mitchell, My name is Captain Jake Deakon. I’m a real soldier, but I can’t play today. How about I come by when my rounds are done, and we can talk for a few minutes?”
Captain Jake glanced up at Catherine and smiled.
“Mitchell and I would like that.” She smiled. “Time for cartoons, go ahead to your room sweetie.”
Mitchell ran away with a wave, and Catherine turned back to Captain Deakon.
“My name is Catherine Perse, please tell me what is going on.” She fidgeted with her fingers. “I’m afraid, and I don’t know what to tell him. I don’t know what is going on out there and the news is not telling us the truth.”
“I wish I could ma’am.” The Captain glanced to his right. “I’m not sure, I know it started just outside of the city with livestock and spread rather rapidly. I’m not told specifics, but it's safer to stay inside and away from animals. Good day, ma’am.”
He turned to walk away when Catherine asked one more question. “Why does the house over there now say two of four?”
Captain Deakon paused and only said, “It’s spread faster and easier than we thought. They didn’t make it.”
He then walked away and only glanced back at her for a moment before continuing on.
Catherine found herself on the floor leaning against the door again. She didn't recall shutting the door, or how long she sat there, but she did bring in the rations. Small blessings and all that. She quickly moved to the couch to tune into the news and check her social media. Someone had to have more information and some answers, or she could hope this was a sick and cruel joke.
The news still reported a gas leak. That was not what the soldier... no, not just a soldier, his name was Captain Jake Deakon, and he said whatever was happening was spread by animals at first and now people. My neighbors didn't make it, but what about the other two?
Are they still in the house? Did they take them away? Can they infect us? So many questions left unanswered, and it left her gut clenching in fear. She flipped the channel almost mindlessly until one word caught her attention.
Outbreak.
What outbreak? Was someone finally telling the truth? One station, the local broadcast channel that anyone could stop in and do a live show was airing an interview with a farmer. He claimed his neighbor's livestock got loose and started attacking each other and anyone that went near them.
Mr. Henry claimed he saw his neighbor take a nick to the arm. Within a few hours of the scratch, Mr. Henry’s neighbor was dead, and so were the animals he had running loose. Catherine took the man's bad grammar as a sign he was crazy and that he had no idea what was actually happening. Though his story did have a similarity to what Captain Deakon was saying.
Surely the livestock wouldn’t be affecting the city. They couldn’t have traveled that far right? Once again Catherine found herself so lost in thought, she had no idea how much time had passed. She went to check on Mitchell and found him asleep in front of the TV. Well, she guessed that gave her an idea of how long she watched the same interview replay, just trying to process. Process, as well as one, can expect, it wasn't every day she found out something was spreading from animals to humans and killing them within hours or days. At this rate, they were all doomed, and there was no hope for salvation. How could she hope to keep her son safe if the virus was already in her neighborhood?
“Suck it up Catherine, you have to make sure the house is safe. They didn't say how it was spread or if someone or an animal would try and attack the house. Protect your son!” She had to stop talking to herself, for all she knew hysteria could be the first sign of being infected.
She ran to the garage and broke the control that automatically opened the door, then locked the side door. Next, she searched for anything to cover her windows. She hoped she wasn’t being paranoid, but Mitchell was worth it. She found two six-foot folding tables, and some plywood and began dragging them into the house.
“Mommy, there is a doggy outside my bedroom window. Can I go play with him please?” He came running down the hall and skidded to a stop when he saw her. “What are you doing? Can I help you?”
Catherine spun around and screamed, “Stay away from the dog! Stay away from any animal. It's not safe, baby. There are sick animals and people outside, so we have to cover the windows. Will you help me with that?”
She figured the less he knew, the better, but she wanted him to feel involved and not shut him out. “Okay, I’m going to move that big bookshelf in the living room over in front of the window, do you want to help push?”
In response, Mitchell ran over and leaned his little body against it and started pushing with all his might.
Once they covered the window, they moved back to the kitchen. For once she was thankful her house had so few windows and no big sliding glass door to the backyard. “Baby, what do you think we can use to cover the kitchen window above the sink?”
Mitchell put his hands behind his back and started pacing.
Catherine burst into laughter, that was what she needed; a break from the tension.
“I know what we can use.” Before he could finish his sentence, she heard banging on the front door.
“Mitchell,” alarm flashed through her, but protecting her son was at the front of her mind, “run to your bedroom and get under the bed. Do not make a sound until I come to get you.”
Catherine waited until he ran down the hall before taking a tentative step towards the door. Her whole body shook with her fear, and the banging on the door didn’t help, as it kept getting louder and faster. She knew she should hide, but she had to see.
“Ma’am, please open the door. It's Captain Deakon.” He gave her door another rapid, urgent sounding knock. “I need to come inside right away. I have extra rations.”
>
She ran to the door and peeked out the eyehole, she did see the soldier from before and saw boxes behind him. Cautious, she slowly opened the door. “Our truck was attacked a couple miles away. Can I please come in? I have extra food, and I can help keep your son safe.”
Catherine gasped and took a step back.
“How do I know you’re not sick?”
Captain Deakon shook his head. “I wouldn't have thought to bring food if I was infected, please let me in.”
She guessed that made sense and moved to the side of the door so he could enter.
Captain Deakon took that as an invite and turned to start tossing boxes inside. “I have enough to feed us for 6 months.”
Catherine just stood there as he tossed in the boxes with no care.
“Why are you rushing? What is going on?” Catherine tried to keep the hysteria from her voice. In the back of her mind, she realized she was hysterical around this man frequently.
After throwing all the boxes inside, Captain Deakon slammed the door shut. “They were coming this way, both animals and people. They were breaking into houses. I couldn't leave you alone, so I came back to help. My unit… most didn't make it. Let’s get these doors and windows boarded up. We can close off the bedrooms and sleep in the living room, so there is less area to protect.”
At the sound of a new voice, Mitchell came running into the room. “Mommy, I was tired of hiding under the bed. Did you figure out what to put in front of the kitchen window? Hey, it's the soldier! I’m so glad you came back!”
Catherine stared at Captain Deakon. “But... are we going to be here for 6 months? Surely help will come right?” She replied in a vaguely dreamy tone.
This was not happening, this couldn't be real. She had to be dreaming at this point.
“I wish I was joking,” Captain Deakon said. “The sick are coming, and I don't know how long we can hold out or if help is coming. You can call me Jake since we are about to get real personal.”
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