by Mike Kraus
“Okay… so what do we do? Try more antibiotics?”
“Nothing you’ve got here is going to help. Mark helped me go through every last bit of meds you’ve got. They’re fine for small wounds and infections but something this serious needs something real.”
Dianne took in a deep breath. “Where do we find what he needs?”
Tina ran her hands through her greying hair and exhaled sharply. “That’s what I needed to talk to you about. The only places that will have something like this are hospitals or LTAC hospitals.”
“What’s an—”
Tina interrupted Dianne, answering her question before she could finish. “Long-Term Acute Care. It’s kind of like a mix between a normal hospital and a nursing home. We send folks there who need weeks or months’ worth of hospital-level care.”
“And a place like that is going to have antibiotics?”
Tina nodded rapidly. “Yes. More than a normal hospital, most likely. They’ll have mass quantities of broad-spectrum antibiotics and fluids that he’s going to need to survive. He’ll need to be on an IV for a while. Couple of weeks, maybe. Possibly less, maybe more.”
“Shit.” Dianne cursed under her breath before glancing over at Mark who was still focused on watching out through a crack in the covering over the back door. “How long does he have?”
“Twelve hours at most. Beyond that he could go at any minute. As it is it’ll be a struggle to keep him functional for that long.”
“How did this happen? Was it something with the wound?”
“It was probably contamination from something. We cleaned everything as best as we could but given the situation and what I had to work with I’m not surprised it happened. That was a pretty nasty shot he took. A few inches over and he’d be six feet under right now.”
Dianne shook her head, both in disbelief at what was happening and with amazement at how casual Tina could be about Jason’s condition especially given that she had so recently lost her husband. You are going to need so much therapy when this is all said and done. Dianne thought about how much Tina was keeping bottled up inside, wondering how long she’d be able to hold it in before she lost control. After a few seconds she pushed the thoughts from her mind and focused on the task at hand.
“Okay, so somebody has to get to a hospital or this laser thing.”
“LTAC. Long-Term—”
“Right, right. LTAC. Got it.”
“I think there’s one in Blacksburg, on the western side, but I don’t remember the address.” Tina furrowed her brow as she tried to remember the location of the facility. Dianne, meanwhile, stood up and walked over to a kitchen drawer, opened it and pulled out a tattered book from inside. She tossed it on the table, sat down, opened it up and began flipping through the yellow-colored pages. Tina nodded and smiled at the sight.
“Everyone says to just get rid of your phone books because cellphones and the internet’s where it’s all at. I’m glad to see you hung onto yours, too, because mine’s part of a giant pile of ash.”
“Absolutely I kept one around.” Dianne continued flipping through the pages, searching through the medical care section. “The phone numbers are out of date but if this LTAC you’re talking about was a major facility then they probably haven’t changed locations in a few years. Wait. Here we go.” Dianne pointed at a faded advertisement on the right side of one of the pages. “Regency Long-Term Acute Care Facility. That the place?”
Tina nodded. “Yes. Bingo. That’s it.”
Dianne retrieved her notebook, tore out a piece of paper and scribbled down the address two times. She tore the page in half and stuffed one copy of the address in her pants pocket and left the second copy on the table. “Okay. So this place will have meds, you say. If they don’t, where do I go?”
“Try Montgomery or Hillendale. My guess is that looters would have targeted them first given that they’re very obviously hospitals and would have stuff like opiates on the premises. Regency, though...” Tina shrugged. “I think it’s the best bet.”
“Okay.” Dianne took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I’m exhausted. But I’ll leave in twenty minutes.”
Tina stood up. “I’ll go with you. I can leave instructions with Sarah and Mark for taking care of Jason and—”
“No way.” Dianne held up her hands, stopping Tina from coming around to the other side of the table. “You’re staying right here.”
“You can’t go out there alone. You’re tired, you’ve been through hell and if that group finds you then you’ll need backup.”
“You need to stay here and hold things down. Sarah’s an absolute wreck and completely out of it. If Jason takes a turn for the worse, you’ll be the only one who can help him. Mark, Jacob and Josie can handle most of the lookout and cooking jobs. Just trade lookout shifts with Mark, keep an eye on Sarah and keep Jason alive. I’ll be fine on my own.” Dianne put on a smile that she knew was completely unconvincing.
Tina slowly sat back down in her chair, turning over their options in her mind before finally nodding in agreement. “You’re right. I hate it, but you’re right.” She grabbed Dianne’s notebook and began writing in it.
“What’s this, a shopping list?” Dianne turned in her seat to read Tina’s scribbles.
“Yep. The names of all the different antibiotics that will work. We’ll also need bags of fluids to help rehydrate him and I want more lines and needles. If you can find all of this then you can get these things, too.” Tina spent a full five minutes thinking of a laundry list of supplies for Dianne to get. When she was finished she tore out the page and handed it to Dianne.
“These are in order of importance, right?” Dianne looked at Tina.
“Yes. The top five are absolutely required. The rest would be good to have.”
Dianne grabbed a permanent marker from a drawer and wrote out the names of the top five items on the list on the inside of her left arm, along with the address of the facility. She then folded the paper and tucked it into her pocket before looking around and taking a deep breath.
“Seems like I just got back here a few minutes ago and now I have to leave again.”
Tina took a step forward and lowered her voice to a whisper. “You really aren’t in a good condition to go out there right now. You’re exhausted, you gave all that blood, there are people out there searching for us. It’s a bad situation all around.”
“What choice do I have?” Dianne sat down and began putting on her shoes. “We can’t let Jason die if there’s a chance to save him.”
“That’s beyond question. I just…” Tina hesitated. “I just don’t know what I can do to help you.” She looked down at the table and shook her head. “You two risked everything to pull me out of that compound and now you’re having to go back out again.”
“You do what you do best. Keep Jason alive. I’ll be fast and as soon as I find what we need I’ll radio back.” She shook her head. “Though based on how well that worked the other day I don’t know that you’ll even get my message.”
“Just be safe, Dianne. If you see even a hint of trouble you need to get out of there and forget about all of this. I know I sound like a cold-hearted machine saying this but losing another person just isn’t worth it. Especially when that person’s you.”
Dianne took a deep breath and nodded before turning to look at the blanket covering the entrance to the dining room. “I’m going to give them a kiss goodbye and let Mark know what’s going on before I go.”
“I’ll get food, water and ammo together for you.”
As Dianne crawled along the floor to kiss Josie and Jacob’s sleeping forms, she felt an intense wave of emotion rise up inside of her. She had barely gotten to see and interact with them after returning with Tina and Jason and the very idea of leaving again made her want to snatch up her children, run away and hide somewhere where they could live in peace and no one would ever bother any of them again.
Reality, however, is a harsh and
cruel mistress, and Dianne had to settle for a kiss on Josie and Jacob’s cheeks before standing up and walking out into the front hall. She sat on the bench in the entryway with Mark for a few minutes, holding a whispered conversation with him about what was going on, before she gave him a hug and a kiss as well. She was surprised by how well he took the news of her having to leave again, but she chalked up his lack of a reaction to him trying to be the new man of the household.
The last thing she wanted to see was for him to grow up so quickly but the days of his innocence and being able to just be a kid were long and far away. She was perpetually sad for how quickly all three of her children had to grow up but was also incredibly proud at how well they—and especially Mark—were rising to the challenge.
As she walked out across the driveway and around the house to get in her truck and start her journey she cast a quick glance back to see Mark’s face in the window, watching her go. In that moment she saw the face of his father staring back and wondered for the thousandth time where Rick was and if he would ever come home to see her and his children again. She looked up at the twinkling stars in the sky, shining like an infinite array of diamonds and whispered her perpetual prayer.
“Come back home, Rick. Please come back home.”
Chapter 12
Kansas City, Missouri
Jane and Dr. Evans stared out the right side of the car, watching in horror at the building that was toppling over above them. Window panes were breaking into individual shards from the strain they were under and the metal twisted and snapped, slowing the rate at which the building fell over but not by enough to matter. Shorter buildings that were in the way between the skyscraper and the road helped to slow the building’s fall as well, but it was clear that nothing would make much of a difference if they didn’t get out of the path of destruction.
Rick didn’t allow himself to glance over at the falling building, though he could tell based on the ever-widening shadow that they were far too close to for comfort. He kept the accelerator pressed down to the floor and engaged the gasoline engine, trying to eke out a slight boost in speed to get them past where the structure was about to hit. “Come on….” Rick mumbled to himself, still fighting against the tremors to keep them on the road.
As the toppling skyscraper came crashing down onto the road, Jane and Dr. Evans both closed their eyes and turned away, each of them convinced that their lives would be snuffed out within seconds. An earth-shattering crash was accompanied by a fiercely blowing wind, a cloud of dust and debris and the sound of Rick shouting at the top of his lungs as he grinned from ear to ear. “YES!” Their car had cleared the edge of the falling skyscraper by less than twenty feet. The margin of error was far too close for comfort and the experience wasn’t one that any of them wanted to repeat, but they had managed to survive.
Before Jane and Dr. Evans could join in on Rick’s celebration of their escape from near death, Rick’s face darkened. “Look, up ahead. Is that… are those people?” Due to their speed the cloud of dust and debris had only partially overtaken the car so they could still see out the windshield well enough to discern that there were people moving farther down the street.
“I think so… yes.” Dr. Evans nodded. “Most definitely, yes. It looks like they’re running.”
“Probably from the quakes.” Another tremor struck as Rick was speaking and he let off of the accelerator as he fought with the steering wheel. The car’s tires squealed as it slipped to the right and the left, then Rick pushed down on the accelerator again to straighten out the rear and stop the fishtailing from getting any worse. Once they had straightened out again he slowed down even more. “Yeah, they must be trying to escape. Why would they still be here, though? This place has been totally demolished!”
“Where else do they have to go?” Dr. Evans shook his head. The people were spread out along the side of the road with some walking and some running away from the center of the city. As the car passed by they gasped in shock, many of them reaching out as if to try and grab hold. “If they can’t get to a vehicle and use it to get somewhere then this may be their best chance of survival. There aren’t that many options outside of the city.”
The ground shook again and Rick cursed as the car nearly spun out of control yet again. “Nobody’s going to survive here if these earthquakes don’t stop!”
“Can’t we help them?” Jane watched the people as they drove past, her sympathy strengthening since the people weren’t trying to shoot at them. “They seem harmless enough. We could pick up one, maybe two?”
Rick shook his head. “No.”
“Why not?”
Rick sighed. “I appreciate what you want to do with helping these people, but the answer’s no.”
Jane crossed her arms and took on an indignant tone. “I didn’t realize this suddenly became your sole decision.”
Dr. Evans licked his lips and spoke hesitantly. “Perhaps we could… maybe just one of the children?”
Rick ground his teeth together again. “I said no. I mean no.”
“Then can you explain why not?”
Rick looked at Dr. Evans and Jane. “Have you two not been paying any attention to what’s going on? Or have you not seen the people trying to kill us? Just because they’re not openly shooting at us doesn’t mean—dammit!” Rick struggled again as the car fishtailed from another tremor. “It doesn’t mean that they’re friendly!”
“But what if they are?” Dr. Evans replied quietly.
“If we stop for these people they might turn on us, mob us, steal our vehicle and supplies and leave us with nothing. Tell me, either of you, how that helps us. Because I’m pretty sure it helps no one.”
“They have children!” Jane implored.
“So do I.” Rick’s tone grew dark. “My family’s out there waiting for me. And I’m potentially giving up on ever seeing them again to try and stop this madness. That’s not a decision I make lightly and there’s not a chance in hell that I’m going to jeopardize what we’re doing. Some risks we have to take. Others we don’t. Right now we don’t have to take this risk.
“I know that’s hard to swallow and believe me, if we had room for every one of them and a way to ensure everyone’s safety I’d stop in a heartbeat to pick them up. But we don’t. And we have something bigger and more important to focus on. So that’s what we’re going to do. Got it?”
Jane and Dr. Evans both sat quietly after Rick’s response, watching as the car went around a bend in the road and the people disappeared. With nothing but silence and tension filling the car, each of the trio was left to their own thoughts, each of them wondering if the decisions they were making were actually the correct ones. Mistakes were easy to make but difficult to correct in their current environment. None of them wanted to be the one to make a call that could potentially destroy their fragile attempt at stopping Damocles.
Now Available: Surviving the Fall: Book 8
The Edge of the Knife
Author’s Notes
October 22, 2017
Hoo boy. Things are really starting to heat up for Dianne and Rick. We’ve moved into the part of the story where the action is going to continue pretty much non-stop. I like that part of the story. The slow build-up (particularly on Dianne’s part) earlier in the series is going to pay off here soon as the defenses she and the kids have set up will be tested. Hopefully everyone makes it out alive.
One of the hard parts about writing a story like this is coming up with a “big bad” that is interesting, engaging, powerful (but not overly so) and fits in well enough with the storyline that it doesn’t completely yank away your willing suspension of disbelief. Coming up with Damocles as the main “bad guy” for Surviving the Fall took a lot of thinking and an even greater amount of time was spent thinking about how he/it can be defeated.
If you’ve read my Final Dawn series then you’ll know that the “big bad” there had a few similarities to Damocles but was ultimately a bit more in the science fiction
realm than in the realm of reality. When I came up with Damocles I took a hard look at where we are right now with our technological capabilities, thought about where we might be in 10-20 years and figured ‘yep, this actually seems pretty realistic.’
We’ve already got self-driving cars and one of the future requirements of them will be that they can communicate with each other. We’ve seen in the past that super-secret viruses have penetrated government and commercial networks and sat undetected for long periods of time. We’re more connected than ever with the Internet of Things growing larger every single day. How long will it be until all of the bugs and security holes are exploited by a nefarious person or persons? Couple that with the startling advancements being made in artificial intelligence projects and you don’t need a sentient program to bring out a huge swath of disasters. You just need someone with a chip on their shoulder who knows what they’re doing to bring about serious harm on a lot of innocent people.
Okay, enough about the potential realism in the book. Let’s talk about Ruskies. :D
In case you haven’t noticed from reading my other books, I sort of have a thing for putting Russians in my stories. When I decided to make the Russians play more than a minor role in Surviving the Fall (as we saw here in Episode #7), I thought more about why I like putting Russians in and I think a lot of it has to do with the cultural stereotypes surrounding their people and their culture. This was reinforced in me by watching Star Trek (The Original Series) a lot when I was younger.
What I saw (both in Star Trek and in cultural stereotypes) was that Americans/Federation were generally the more technologically advanced, more sophisticated and “better” people while the Russians/Klingons were less advanced, less sophisticated and morally grey in a lot of what they did. What stuck out to me, though, was this idea that despite the lack of sophistication on the part of the Russians/Klingons, when they made something it tended to work no matter what. The AK-47 is a great example like that. You can drop it, freeze it, heat it up, pour sand into it, drag it through the mud but it’ll still fire.