by Logan Keys
An entire family, ruined, and for what?
Michelle felt cold rage take place of her grief. Bob’s family suffered a blow too great to accept. No one could replace the loss of a son.
**
Bob spent the rest of the day with his family, all of them pale-faced and unable to come to grips with a life without their brother, son, father. But towards the end of it, he sat down with Cameron and Jensen and told them about the ice.
Bob’s face was stricken but serious. “I’m not willing to risk more of my family. We have to move south. Now.”
“The ice…” Jensen didn’t know how to put it delicately it seemed. “It killed Donny?”
“No,” Michelle said. “It was Mr. Chung who died during the freeze, but we could have, too.” She snapped her fingers. “It was that fast. Bob’s right. The weather is getting far worse than we imagined. South might be better. We aren’t sure. But this is dangerous. Trust us when we say it’s not at all normal and very deadly.”
Jensen seemed as though he’d expected this for a while now. “I’ve got the van and we can pack up and leave at any time,” he said.
Cameron shook his head.
“What?” Michelle asked.
“I want to stay,” he said. “I’m going to try to make this right.”
Michelle frowned. “It’s suicide.”
“Well. My choice, right? Besides, wouldn’t be the first time.”
Michelle sighed. “When would we leave?”
Bob pointed at the ground. “Today. Now.”
He wasn’t going to watch anyone else die, and she understood that.
“I’ll help you all get ready to leave,” Cameron said. “I have a car, too, if you need. It’s got a full tank. Take it.”
Bob answered, “Thank you. But keep it. In case you change your mind.”
**
They didn’t need Cameron’s car after all. With the passenger van and Bob’s truck, Donny’s car and even Dawson had two trucks, they had plenty of room for everyone to go. But as Michelle packed them all in, she started to get a sinking feeling inside of her gut.
Reese had chosen to stay with Cameron, which was surprising, but Michelle kept glancing at Bob, and finally she caught his eye and stopped him from packing and pulled him aside.
“Bob,” she said, her voice wobbling with the fear of what she was about to commit to. “I want to stay.”
He did a double take. “What?”
“I want to stay and help Cameron. He says he might be able to get back inside the headquarters of the company and try do something about the shields before the freeze strikes. I want to help.”
Bob shook his head. “You’ve lost your mind. Let’s get out of here. There’s no guarantee that will even work.”
“But it might. It might work. And Cameron’s going to need help. He isn’t a fighter, Bob. And with Seagerman on the loose, and your old partner, Al, I feel like…like I could make a difference. I know you think I’m crazy, but if they could fix this…How many lives would we save?” Michelle rushed on before she lost her nerve. “Look. You have a family, Bob. I don’t. Go with them. You are my family now and…I’m not sure I can do this if you ask me not to, so please. Just go. Be with them. I am going to help Cameron try to undo this thing.”
Bob stared at her like she’d grown two heads.
“If he does it,” Bob asked. “Then what?”
“I can use his car. I will catch up afterwards. I promise.”
Bob nodded but still looked like he didn’t understand.
Still, she readied for her part in all of this. Michelle made sure she got one of the guns they’d had before and she kept that at her side per Jensen’s recommendation. She said tearful goodbyes to Dana and Carry and then watched as everyone packed into the cars.
She helped the last few people aside from Bob with the rest of the supplies before she stood and waved at them as they drove off.
Bob and Carry, and his other son were all waiting last, and Bob hugged Michelle tightly. “I want you to go,” he said.
“What?” she pulled away.
“I want you to get into the truck and leave. Al is my problem. Not yours. I can take care of Cameron. I won’t take no for an answer.”
“But---”
“Michelle. Please,” Bob said with a look in his eyes that had her wishing she could help him not seem so lost.
She opened her mouth to argue but he squeezed her tightly again. “Please,” Bob whispered.
“Okay,” she said, squeezing his arm that shook just slightly. “Okay.”
Michelle turned and got into the car. She glanced at Carry who watched her with red eyes as if she’d known all along what Bob would do.
They all said their goodbyes once more, only this time, she was leaving Bob behind.
And Michelle stayed as strong as she could until they started to drive away.
“Wait,” Carry said when Michelle reached for the door. “Wait.”
Michelle was ready to leap from the car but Carry stopped her. Michelle didn’t look back as they drove.
“Wait for what,” Michelle asked, the tears budding on her lids.
She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t leave him to whatever fate.
“Wait until we are at the corner,” Carry said stoically. “Then he won’t have any choice but to take your help. We will be long gone.”
Michelle wiped her tears and she swallowed. “Okay.”
Carry and Michelle held hands until they stopped at the corner. Then Carry told her, “You make sure he stays out of trouble. Promise me. You brought him home once, Michelle. Do it again, okay?”
Michelle nodded and wiped her eyes. “He knows where to find you all?”
Carry nodded. “He does.”
“Goodbye, Carry.” Michelle hugged her tightly.
“Goodbye.”
Michelle got out of the car and she started running up the block. The car was long gone when she glanced back.
“Bob!” she shouted before he got all the way back inside. “Bob! Wait!”
He glanced at her running up the street in surprise. “What are you doing!” he shouted.
She arrived, out of breath and smiling. “It’s you and me. Until the end. Okay?”
Bob waited a moment and then gave in. He smiled. “Okay.”
Chapter Eleven
Just Outside of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
They had beat the traffic. Word was, everyone was headed south now, but they’d gotten out off of major highways and were on a rural side road now, having to backtrack here and there whenever they hit cracks in the earth. For Brittany it was like taking a tour of the devastation. Every town they went to was in ruins or had become a cesspool of evil people who took advantage of the lack of power and police. Cities were worse, so Chuck avoided them altogether.
He was in a rush to get down south because, as he put it, the gas would run out faster than George’s mouth. They needed to get to a spot to bunker down and be done.
They had enough to get there and that was it, he’d said. And it was a mad dash across the states, trying to make it before the cold caught up, or worse, they were stranded in one of the places that Brittany had seen as a pit of vipers.
“We’re stopping in Oklahoma City,” Paige said cryptically from her place in the driver seat.
“Really? I thought he was avoiding those places now?”
“We don’t have a choice. The road around flooded.” Paige sighed. “It’s like it knows we are trying to just hightail it out of here.”
“What if…”
“I know. But let’s see how it goes.”
Before they even got close to the city, Brittany had anxiety. She remembered hearing about Chicago. Oklahoma couldn’t be much better.
“Looks like the military has this place on lockdown,” Paige said, as they pulled up to a checkpoint.
The entire highway was roughly blocked off and soldiers with guns waited.
“Paige, this is a bad ti
me, but I need to use the restroom.”
“Hmm. Can it wait?”
Brittany shifted in her seat with discomfort. “For what? An actual restroom in the city? Where we can get jumped and murdered?”
Paige sucked on her teeth. “Good point. Okay. Let’s pull off here. We can catch up with the rest in a few.”
They pulled off the highway, but they could still see the group in line waiting to get in. Paige pulled the radio up to her mouth. “I’m taking little pee pants to the potty.”
“TMI,” Chuck replied with a laugh.
Brittany hopped down from the truck and walked off the road. She found a bush and she did her business quickly. It was nearly night and the temperatures had dropped so she was freezing when she pulled up her pants and rushed back for the truck.
“You good?” Paige asked her, as they pulled back onto the highway.
Brittany noticed something strange that caught her eye.
“Paige.”
“Yeah.”
“Paige. That guy right there. The one who’s tied up in the back of the truck with a gag….Turn around. Paige! Turn around!”
“What? Why?” Paige slammed on the brakes.
“I remember him. He’s a soldier and if he’s trussed up like a criminal it might mean…” Brittany couldn’t figure out why that would be a bad thing, but she had learned to trust her instincts.
“Got it,” Paige said and she turned around just as the line of cars, trucks, and RVs were surrounded on all sides.
Paige hit the gas and pulled the radio from its place on the dash. “Get out of there, Chuck. The loons are running the asylum. You hear me, bro?” She cursed at the empty silence in reply. “Chuck. Get out of there! Those are civilians. They aren’t really military! The real military is in the back of that truck!”
But Brittany flipped around to see that it was too late. The pretend military was arresting all of Chuck and his group and bringing them into the city. To who-knew-where. They’d managed to take over the place and were probably poaching people for goods.
“Pull over!” she shouted, knowing that Paige had frozen up. They were going too fast, in the wrong direction. No doubt her mind was reeling as was Brittany’s.
Brittany gently touched Paige’s arm. “We’re far enough away. Pull over,” she said gently.
Paige did and then she pushed her head into her hands. “I can’t believe this is happening. I can’t believe this is happening.”
How was it possible that Brittany was the calm one? She finally grabbed Paige’s arm hard enough to leave marks. “We have to make a plan. Panic won’t help.”
It was as if Brittany had stepped outside of herself and could be the calm and collected one. Perhaps she’d been in this situation before, but she’d blocked out those memories. “We will get them free. We will.”
Paige glanced at her with wild eyes. “Yes. Sorry. I should have told you I was diagnosed with PTSD, and well, it sort of goes off over anything to do with Chuck. I can’t…” her voice broke. “I can’t lose him.”
“I know.” Brittany rubbed her face, trying to think. “Let’s circle around, walk if we have to. Try another entrance.”
Paige nodded. “Check the perimeter. Smart. Okay. Let’s do it.”
She handed Brittany a gun from the back, but Brittany knew she wouldn’t use it. She hadn’t gotten that far down yet to have to kill someone, that much she knew, even without all of her memories.
Brittany kept the weapon. Either way, she would brandish it if need be and hope for the best.
After trying several routes, all blocked off, Paige and Brittany ditched the truck and hiked along the freeway until they got close, then broke off for the non-surfaced areas. Good thing too, there was no one manning the places between the main roads. They’d expected everyone to trust the military and pull right on up before they realized the trap.
Brittany and Paige carefully moved through the city once they snuck inside. Some people were peeking out of their blinds, but most everyone was inside…hiding.
“They can’t run the entire city. It’s too big,” Paige said.
“Yeah. They’re probably just holding the roads hostage, maybe?”
“That would be smart. Just get what they need then move on.” Paige checked that her rifle was ready.
They decided to double back towards where Chuck and the others were. Brittany started to have flashbacks that tripped her up. She was seeing another city. Chicago. On fire. She remembered being afraid. She was with a bad person. Of course, right now was when her brain decided to fire off with these images.
Her palms started to sweat, and she realized she probably had a touch of PTSD now, too. But if Paige could manage, so could she.
“This is the main road,” Paige said quietly. “Let’s go down the side in that ravine for as long as we can.”
Brittany nodded. They still hadn’t seen much of anyone. “Where is everyone?” Paige asked.
“I’m not sure. But if they’re staying in, there’s a reason.”
It was eerie to Brittany that the place remained a broken-up, rundown ghost town. No way all of the people had left. They were hiding.
And now Brittany and Paige knew why.
“Is that…” Brittany gaped.
“Yes. Yes, it is. Get down.”
They both flattened down in the ravine, laying cheek to dirt as the tank drove by. Then another went in the opposite direction. They were on shifts, going back and forth.
A bull horn sounded in the distance. “Bring your food and supplies outside. We don’t want to hurt anyone.”
Brittany squeaked when she heard gunfire going off in the distance, in answer. Someone was fighting back.
“What do we do?” she whispered.
“Just stay down until this one is gone.”
“Then what?”
Paige didn’t answer. What could she say?
Finally, the one nearest to them turned off the road and made a U-turn that took out the highway signs in the process. The click-clicking of the giant gun spinning on top to aim was making Brittany’s nerves jangle.
It clicked and clicked then stopped.
“Cover your----”
Boom!
The tank fired off into the distance. A building caught the round like a punch in the gut. The middle was missing on one side. Brittany watched in horror as it tilted impossibly then broke off. The top dropped in a free-fall and collided with the earth. Brittany now noticed quite a few buildings she’d thought had been brought down by the earthquakes had been tanked as well.
“Oh my God,” she said, hyperventilating. “There are people in that building.”
The fires and ash were like a dark filter, but still, one could see the humanity struggling to get away from within. There were twisted forms of agony rushing from the building’s remains, probably those who’d been on the lower levels. Some were still burning.
Tears filled Brittany’s eyes. How low humanity had fallen in just a short time.
“Let’s go,” Paige said. Her face was pale. She pulled Brittany further down the ravine.
Brittany’s legs shook with fear. She hadn’t realized what they were up against. They stood no chance and risked everything. They should…they should just….but she couldn’t leave Chuck with these monsters.
They stayed low but ran down the ravine. Brittany wanted to tell Paige to wait. To think about things. That maybe she’d been hasty before. She couldn’t even shoot a gun!
But they had to do something, right?
The trucks were still all on that side of the highway, but there was no sign of Chuck or his group. Brittany searched but didn’t see him. He’d probably been tied up in the back of one of the transports.
“What do we do?” she asked Paige.
They were on their bellies peeking over the edge of the ravine. “See that one right there?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m going to shoot him and while they’re distracted, you run around
the back of the trucks and untie Chuck. Hopefully he can steal a weapon or something and we can get them all out.”
“But how do you know that…”
Paige aimed and fired.
“Go!” she shouted as the men at the checkpoint tried to find which direction the bullet had come from. The one Paige had aimed for dropped like a ton of bricks.
“Go!” Paige said.
Brittany felt numb with fear, but she climbed to her feet and bolted out of the ravine. Paige shot another of the guards and they were looking in the wrong direction, towards the outside rather than in.
Brittany made it to the truck and she squatted down and crept around the side to the back. She glanced inside. Chuck wasn’t there.
The soldier from before, the one who the man had punched was sitting there, bound and gagged. Brittany didn’t think, she just pulled out her pocket knife she’d found before in Paige’s truck, and started working on the ties. If it were Colton, she hoped someone would help him too.
“Thank you,” he said, after she pulled the gag out of his mouth.
“Do you have any weapons in here?” she asked him, but he shook his head.
She handed him the knife. “Cut the rest out, would you?”
Brittany crept over to the second truck. Chuck wasn’t inside that one either. The young man was at her side and he had the knife. “Sir,” he said sawing at the binds of an older soldier.
They all jumped down and started to run back toward deeper in the city. Brittany stopped the one younger soldier. “Have you see the group they just took?”
“They bussed them into the city. Hey.” He grabbed her wrist. “You’d better get out of here. These guys are…” He swallowed. “Just come with us.”
“I can’t.”
He seemed conflicted but spun and took off after his group.
“Hey, wait! “she called quietly. “Damn.” She watched the good guys flee in the opposite direction.
Brittany had to go to the other side of the road to get back with Paige. The soldiers were on this side, but Paige was across two lanes. Carefully, Brittany checked to make sure she wouldn’t be seen before she ran across.