by Logan Keys
Mexico
Through the driving rain, they pressed on. German was on the makeshift sled and any moment could finally be his last. Josephine had said those two words: I’m sorry, and he’d thought the worst. She’d waited a beat and then added, “He’s holding on, and I got him breathing, but Lucky, I can’t promise anything. He’s too far gone to count on him being alive when we get there.”
And so they were trying to go as fast as they could. The rain still beat down on them, and they picked their way across the desert in record time with the help of their new friends.
Each hour they checked on German, but they finally saw the crossing up ahead. When Luckman spotted the border, he’d never been so overcome by emotion in his life. “We’re here!” he called, jumping off his horse to check on German. The big man was out cold, but he was breathing shallow, rapid breaths.
At the border the Mexicans hesitated, but Joseph spoke in Spanish and waved them through.
Luckman and the Mayor shared a long look that asked: What did any of that matter now?
They got to Nogales just as the rain stopped, and Joseph offered for Luckman to bring his group to their home, a small ranch just a few blocks south of downtown. Everyone worked together to get German off the shift and up the front porch steps before carrying him into the large ranch-style home.
Josephine said, “He needs blood, Lucky. See if you can get him awake enough to tell you what his type is. I’ll check if we can find any at the hospital. Maybe some of it’s still there. It would be cold enough even without the power, I think.”
Luckman leaned down to German and shook him gently, “Hey, buddy, you made it. We’re here. We are going to patch you up, okay? But I need to know if you know your blood type.”
German didn’t even flinch when Luckman patted his cheek. “He’s out cold,” he told Josephine.
“That’s okay,” she said, “I’ll see if I can find any O left. It’s not always in stock.”
“I—I’m O!” Jean pushed her way to their side. “I’m type O. Please. Let me help.”
Josephine brightened and rolled up her sleeves. “I’ll be right back after I get my supplies then. Just….keep talking to him, Lucky.”
Luckman nodded and turned to German, squeezing his arm. “Do you hear that, big guy? They’ve got your blood type on its way. Don’t be greedy though, Jean’s just a little thing.”
Luckman turned to see that Jean was speaking with Terry, but her gaze strayed to him.
She couldn’t hear him when he said to German, “I’m thinking she’s got the hots for me, all right? So…dibs.”
He wished German would open his eyes. Laugh at his lame jokes. But the man was silent as the grave.
Luckman touched his arm. “He’s burning up,” he said as Joseph came over.
“I can give you some wet rags, lets trying to keep his temperature down.”
“Okay.”
They all worked together taking turns, each of them with rags until Josephine returned. Alongside her was a young man who oozed cleverness. His intelligent gaze was moving about the room, always assessing. He unrolled a bunch of wicked looking instruments while Josephine searched for a vein on Jean.
“Are you sure about this?” Luckman asked Jean and she nodded. Though she looked exhausted and giving the blood would be dangerous after so little food and rest, she wasn’t going to change her mind, he could tell.
Once Josephine was finished, she turned to Luckman. “This is Cal, he’s a surgeon—one of the best. He’s going to try to patch up German now, and I need you guys all to go into the other room. He’ll have blood and everything he needs. We will do our best,” she finished, and Luckman wanted to hug her.
“Thank you,” he said. “Thank you. I mean it.”
She nodded and they all filed out of the room.
**
Josephine came out to update them after what felt like a day later, though it had only been a couple of hours. She was dead on her feet.
“He’s stable,” she said. “We don’t have everything. He will need more blood. If Jean could get some food in her and rest…”
“I’ve sent someone to try to find another O donor,” Joseph said and his daughter nodded.
Josephine swayed, and Joseph took her aside and made her sit down.
“I’m not sure he’ll make it, Lucky,” the doctor said. “I…I’m just not sure. He’s a strong one, I’ll give you that.”
Luckman noticed how pale she was. “I’ll never forget how hard you fought for him. All of you,” he said, glancing around.
Josephine sank wearily into the chair. “It’s in God’s hands, now.”
“You did the best you could.” Joseph pulled her into a hug. “You did good, sweetheart.”
It was strange to hear the brave doctor whisper in reply, “Thank you, daddy.”
“Can I see him?”
Josephine nodded, and Luckman entered the room. Cal was there, busy with cleaning and putting away his instruments. Luckman strode over and shook his hand. “Thank you,” he said.
The man smiled. “Some time you’ll have to tell me about your grand adventure. The two of you must have really been through it. He has more scars than anyone I’ve ever worked on before.”
Luckman shook his head but with a laugh. “I’m not sure adventure is the right term. Survival.” He moved to German’s side and squeezed the big Russians arm. “We were in Antarctica, drilling.”
It felt like ages ago. Like he’d known German far longer than a short while.
“Wow,” Cal said. “That’s impressive. You’ve come from there during all of…this?”
“Yes.”
The young man rocked back on his heels. “Then I hope this is your final stop. It’s a good place with what’s happening to the rest of the country.”
“I’m afraid not,” Luckman said with a sigh. “We’re headed to New York.”
“New York?” Cal looked surprised. “Then you’ve not heard. I…I’m so sorry. I hope you don’t have family there.”
“Why? What happened?”
“There’s been a freeze. They’ve evacuated is what they’ve said. We don’t have much information but apparently whole sections of Long Island and Staten Island are frozen solid. Not a soul lives.”
“And the city?” Luckman asked hopeful, trying not to think of his neighbors frozen and gone across the bridge.
“Evacuated. It’s far too dangerous to go there now, my friend. Everyone’s moving south. The quicker, the better.”
Luckman gaped. All of this time he’d been planning to head north. Could it be true? Was the killing cold already there? He was too late.
Jean met him in the living room. “Shouldn’t you be resting?” he asked her.
“I can’t sleep. Not until I know that German’s okay. I’ve had some orange juice. If he needs blood…”
“Joseph is trying to get someone else right now. You need a break. You look pale.”
“Speaking of sleep…you look like you need some. How long has it been?” Jean asked.
Luckman couldn’t hardly remember the last time he’d slept. He guessed he’d not really gotten rest since New Zealand.
Jean took his hand. “Come on. Oh, don’t give me that look. If I wanted to sleep with a man that looked like roadkill, it wouldn’t be after giving enough blood to feel like I’m about to pass out in the middle of it.”
Luckman chuckled and let her lead him up he stairs “Isn’t this place fabulous?” she said.
Even without heat or electricity, the place had fireplaces in the rooms upstairs and down, though Luckman wondered when they used them in the desert.
Now. The answer would be now.
Jean pulled him over to the bed. “Get in,” she prodded. “I won’t bite.”
“You gonna sleep in here with me?” he said, pulling off his shoes and almost groaning at the softness of the bed. “What is this? Memory foam?”
“You bet.” Jean pulled off her jacket, then sw
eater, and lastly her shoes. She got under the covers on her side, and turned her back to him. It was only after a few minutes of watching her when her breathing evened out, and she was fast asleep.
Luckman leaned back on the soft pillow and pulled the covers over himself as well. The gentle feeling, even distant, of a soft body right next to him brought back good memories, happy ones. It lulled him into a deep relaxation that he felt all the way in his soul.
Had he died in the desert? Was this heaven?
**
Luckman sat up with a start. He clutched at his chest. He’d been dreaming. Holtz had been there. He’d shot Luckman for leaving him in the desert. Luckman panted and glanced over, expecting to see a clock, or light, something. It was pitch black.
Night. And without electricity.
Distantly a coyote howled and yipped.
“They’ve been doing that all night,” Jean said quietly.
Luckman about jumped out of his skin. He’d forgotten she was there.
“German?” he asked.
“Still holding on. Josephine said they gave him more blood an hour ago.”
“How long have I been asleep?” Luckman rubbed his face, trying to see through the blackness to Jean. Between them was a giant void and with it came a feeling that something was wrong.
“Six hours.”
“Six hours!”
She sat up. “You needed it.”
“What going on? What aren’t you telling me?”
She sighed. “Apparently some of the local troublemakers came into the city and started shooting up the place. Josephine and Cal have more patients. And there are police officers downstairs. The national guard was supposed to show up and help but apparently they’ve been waylaid in the bigger cities. It’s chaos, Lucky. The world has finally gone mad.”
Just to punctuate her words, a few pops sounded in the distance.
“Is that…automatic gunfire?”
“Probably. I’m not sure. Joseph has help though. Some of the local police are still doing their job as a favor to him. He says we’re safe. For now.”
Luckman went to get up, but Jean stopped him with a hand. “Lets just stay here a while longer, okay?” Her voice shook. “Just…for a few more minutes.”
“Okay,” he said, and they sat there in the darkness together.
He waited for Jean to fall back asleep, but she laid there with a tenseness that made him feel sorry for the woman. She’d lost two siblings already and now it seemed nowhere was safe. Terry would want to go to California to find her family. He wondered if Jean would go with her.
The coyotes started again. Their howls were eerie in the silence.
Chapter 6
New York
“Absolutely not. That’s crazy,” Bob said. “And you know it.”
“Do you have another idea? A better one?” Michelle said, crossing her arms.
Cameron and Reese had watched the exchange with a mixture of interest and derision as Michelle explained her plan and Bob argued against it.
“I go up five floors. I get inside that office and barricade it. You and Cameron wait for whoever is out there to chase me up before you sneak down to the basement while they are busy trying to get to me. I will time you. Cameron, how long will it take you to get down there and back, you think?”
“I…uh. Not sure.”
“An hour,” Michelle suggested. I’ll give you both an hour. Then I’ll open my door and make noise. Once they come for me again, you make your move back up to this floor. Since you’ll have turned on the power to some of the offices, maybe Cameron can get the elevators working. We stop them on our floors so no one else can use them. Can you just make one work, Cameron?”
He thought for a moment. “I don’t see why not.”
“Good. Then only we have access to them. We can emergency stop them at every floor we use.”
Reese nodded, seeming to come to life. “That could work. Then we could go up and get Michelle. She wouldn’t have to come back outside. None of us would need to.”
Bob shook his head. “What if they catch you?”
“They won’t,” Michelle insisted. “We can make sure it’s clear. I’ll run. If they start to catch up, I’ll go to the nearest office on that landing. I don’t have to do five whole floors, but I’ll try. It will give you more room. Just be quiet as you go down. I will be super loud to cover your noise.”
“It’s suicide,” Bob said. “We don’t know who’s out there.”
“It’s Al,” Reese said. “It has to be him or Seagerman. No one else has the keys.”
Michelle asked, “And why would Al want to hurt me? It’s you guys he hates. Sorry,” she said to Bob. “Look. This is why we’re here right? We might have a chance to do this thing. Are you with me or not?”
Bob remained stubborn. “Not.”
“Doesn’t matter. I’m going. So if you want to waste the opportunity, that’s on you. Reese, give me the keys.” Reese handed them over. “Which of these will open the above offices?”
Reese answered, “All of the ones from this level up are mine and are the same key. This one.”
“Okay. Got it.” Michelle headed for the door with Bob was hot on her heels.
He growled. “Dammit, Michelle. This was not the plan!”
She spun around and pointed in his face. “When has any of this been to plan? When has any of this been safe! I made it out there on the streets all by myself. I didn’t want to do it, but I did. I came out, didn’t I?” More quietly she added, “I know you’re scared. I know what happened to Donny was terrible.” She touched Bob’s arm. “But I don’t want his death to be in vain. I don’t want any of this awful stuff to just have happened and the world still freezes to death anyway.”
“It might all be in vain no matter how we try,” Bob said. “Cameron’s not sure he can do anything.”
“But there is a chance that he might. A chance. To save the world. And we can’t not take it.”
Bob’s mouth jerked on one side. “Such a hero. Michelle. The hero reporter.”
Her half-smile bit deep into her cheek. “Anything for a story.”
Her gaze grew serious. “Let me do this. I need to.”
“Fine. All right. But let me check first to make sure it’s clear.”
**
They listened at the door for a solid ten minutes. Either no one was outside of it or they were quiet as a mouse.
Bob finally unlocked it and opened up, albeit with his gun raised. He made a motion for them to stay back as he went into the stairwell. Moments later, he came back with his finger to his lips.
Michelle nodded and passed by him but not before he grabbed her arm. She nodded at his desperate expression. “I’ll be fine,” she mouthed.
Michelle started climbing the stairs. The cold was already stealing into her like a sharp ache that she couldn’t get rid of. Her head pounded from a headache and her teeth felt like ice. Still, she fought through it and climbed as quietly as she could.
After two floors she breathed a sigh of relief. The plan could work. It might.
On the third floor she heard a noise below and she slid against the wall and stopped moving until nothing more happened. She began upwards again.
Each step on the last floor felt like a million miles. She was five floors above the others. She carefully pulled the keys from her pocket. They jingled when she put them to the door and she unlocked it as slowly as possible.
The door was loud when she opened it, creaking and straining at the hinges.
She cringed but now was the hard part. She needed to make enough noise in the stairwell to draw them up before she barricaded herself inside. Michelle took a deep breath and filled her lungs. Then she screamed as loud as she could.
Her voice echoed through the dark stairwell. Immediately, a door far below slammed, open and feet pounded out onto the stairs
Michelle banged on the door, yelling some more. She had to keep at it until they were above the floor wh
ere Bob and Cameron were waiting. She had to keep going until they were only a few floors below her.
Her heart pounded so hard, she felt faint. But still, she screamed and yelled and pounded on the door some more before glancing down to see where they were.
Two shapes in the darkness flew up the stairs. They were moving so quickly that she fumbled with the door. They had to be only a floor away below. She’d waited too long!
Michelle leapt into the office and slammed the door behind her. She locked it but knew they also had a key.
She rushed over to the nearest desk and pushed it against the door. Then she ran to the filing cabinets and started pushing. The one she tried first wouldn’t budge. She tried it a couple more precious second then gave up and move to the second one which was lighter, but it only moved a few inches at a time.
They made it to her floor and the keys were already jiggling inside of the lock.
Michelle shoved the filing cabinet completely over on its side and drawers flew open sending papers in every direction.
Almost on her knees, she leaned down, sliding the cabinet a little further just as the door opened a few inches and hit the desk. The desk began to move, they were almost inside.
“Come on!” Michelle cried as she shoved the cabinet with all her might. It moved a foot, and then another. She forced it against the desk and that shoved the door almost closed.
The person on the other side grunted and fought to push through. “Help me with this!” A familiar voice shouted.
It was Al. She’d known it would be but still, she wasn’t prepared for Bob’s partner to still be there in the city. It seemed so strange that they’d not given up and evacuated with the rest. But then again, everyone with the company had backwards motives.
They fought with the door while Michelle found more cabinets to prop next to the first. By the time she was done, the door was closed and there was a train of cabinets from the door to the middle of the office.
They pounded and shoved on the door, but she felt certain they couldn’t get in now. She breathed a sigh of relief and started counting the minutes.
**
An hour passed. Then another. No lights came on. Nothing happened. She was starting to worry. What if their plan failed? What if Seagerman had hung back and caught Bob and Cameron trying to get to the basement. What if they’d killed them all and she was alone?