Liam smiled. “That won’t be a problem.”
“Good. Now, you remember how to get back to the homestead?”
Liam pointed his finger at his forehead. “It’s burned in here.”
“Carla, too?”
“Yeah. We’re good.”
“Perfect.” Conrad then took hold of his bike, released the kickstand, and wheeled it up to him. “This is for you. Carla can ride hers again.”
“Dad, you need this!” Liam said.
“With one rider apiece, you’ll make much better time,” Conrad said, “This is how it’s got to be.”
“But on foot you’ll be a sitting duck,” Carla said.
“I’ll keep an eye out for a new ride,” Conrad said. Perhaps Conrad was signing his own death warrant, but he had no choice. He would give his new family every possible chance of survival.
“Alright,” Liam said softly.
Conrad gripped his son hard, then pulled him close and hugged him.
“I’ll see you in a few days,” Liam said.
Conrad blinked back tears. “See you,”
He and Liam separated. Then Carla approached him. She was smiling, even though her lower lip quivered. This was just as hard for her.
“Looks like I’ll miss the party,” she said with a chuckle.
“It’ll be one hell of an event. Those folks will wish they hadn’t crossed paths with us,” Conrad said with a smile.
Carla reached into her pocket and pulled out her lock-picking needle. “Here, you might need this. I mean, do you know how to pick locks? I’m so sorry, I forgot to ask.”
Conrad chuckled. “I watched you use it. I also looked at a few Internet tutorials. Let’s just say when the end of the world comes, you need to know how to get into a few locked places. I just hadn’t remembered those lessons very well until you came along.” Then he took the needle. “Thanks. I’m sure this will get us out of a jam, just as it did when you were using it.”
Carla suddenly hugged him. Conrad gave her a good squeeze. It was a short moment until they broke up and Carla returned to Liam, who was wheeling the bike toward the middle of the road.
“See you two kids around.” Conrad held up his hand and gave them a parting salute.
Liam and Carla mounted their bikes. They pedaled, slowly, until they finally picked up speed, perhaps satisfied they had made their goodbyes.
Conrad bowed his head. So, this was it. He was now shorn of any assistance, except for Tom, whom Conrad held low expectations for anyway. On the other hand, he also had no loved ones to risk as he pursued Sarah.
He turned to Tom. “Let’s get moving,” he said.
The hair salon was the only business on this block where the windows and doors weren’t smashed in, no doubt because in the aftermath of the solar event, people desperate for food and water likely didn’t think there was anything of value in a salon.
Tom had followed Conrad for the short walk from Travor Lane. He had said nothing since Liam and Carla departed. Conrad tugged at the front door. It was unlocked. Good. This would do nicely.
“First order of business,” he said to Tom, “let’s check our resources, especially ammo and weapons.”
As he walked into the salon, he realized what a risk this might be with only Tom with him. He had no idea if Tom would try killing him and running off. With Liam and Carla gone, it would be a prime opportunity to make an escape attempt. Perhaps Tom would take his chances out there alone, maybe find a way to escape the city.
But the thought didn’t make sense to him. This man didn’t have the eyes of a killer. A coward, perhaps. On the other hand, cowards can kill if the target is soft and it means they can escape with their skin intact.
And then there’s the chance he’s just an okay man who just screwed up, Conrad added.
Conrad set down his pack and opened it up. Tom did likewise. It was about ten minutes before Conrad got a good idea of what they had—and it wasn’t a lot.
Tom was armed with a handgun with a fully loaded cartridge of six rounds. He also had a few bottles of water. For food, he had canned fruit and tuna. The man may have exhausted a lot of his supplies, as it didn’t look as though he would last more than a few more days on his stuff. The weaponry, though, concerned him most. A handgun with six rounds just wouldn’t do. Conrad’s gear, with his spare rounds, wouldn’t be enough to even the score by a longshot.
Tom was gazing at something in Conrad’s pile. “Is that a radio?” He pointed to a pair of two-way radios near Conrad’s left leg. “I thought everything got fried.”
“I kept a bunch of little devices in a faraday cage. Shielded them from the EMP. These radios will come in handy. I can give you one and we can keep in contact if we split up,” Conrad replied.
Tom nodded. “Right. I guess we can’t take the warehouse together, right?”
“If you’re right about how many men Maggiano’s got, then facing them head-on is suicide. Our only real chance is creating a serious diversion to draw the bulk of the men away.” Conrad narrowed his eyes. “Chances are the man who finds Sarah is the only one who’s going to get out of this alive.”
Tom chuckled. “So, what, this is going to be a competition for her hand? First one who gets to her rides off into the sunset?”
Conrad frowned, but just kept his gaze on the radios. “This is about saving Sarah. I don’t give a damn about winning her hand or anything. Besides, I’ve been out of the running for about thirty years.”
“Then you’re just doing this for Liam,” Tom said, “You’re in this just to save his mom.”
Tom sounded somewhat surprised and relieved. Conrad tilted his head up to look at his traveling companion. “Do you have kids?”
“No. Not a one,” Tom replied.
“Then you wouldn’t know what it’s like.” Conrad sighed. “What it’s like to give of yourself for your children.”
Tom softly laughed. “Maybe not. Maybe I’d rather live my life first, see what it has to offer. Kids just nail you down.”
“Is that why you ended up with a woman past her childbearing years?” Conrad asked.
“Well, who knows? Maybe I wasn’t meant to be a father,” Tom said.
“Maybe not. But at least you can be a man who will give his all for his woman.” Conrad then took out his street map of the city. “Now, point out where they’re keeping Sarah.”
Tom pointed to a spot on the map. “There. The warehouse district, off Crane Street.”
Conrad quickly sketched out a route from their location. “Good, good. If we shake a leg, we’ll make it there just ahead of dusk. Better if we find a bike or two on the way.”
He and Tom packed up and walked back outside—and right in the midst of a light rain. Apparently, the gray clouds had indeed returned for an encore.
“Shit!” Tom held out his hand to catch some droplets. “Looks like we’ll have to hunker down here until it passes.”
“Like hell. This is just a light soaker.” Conrad turned and flung open the door of the salon. “Check for umbrellas, coverings, anything to help take you through this rain.”
Tom hesitated. Conrad wondered if he’d flat out refuse, use the rain as an excuse to bail. But instead he acquiesced, and opened the nearest closet to check it out.
Damn, I don’t need this, Conrad thought. I got to make this trek with a man who could bolt from me at any moment. He just hoped this, along with the rain, wouldn’t cost him valuable time until sundown.
Chapter Eighteen
Fresh sweat dripped down Liam’s face as the sun reached its peak. He didn’t mind it. He had spent the past few weeks without the cold comfort of an air conditioner in his face. In all likelihood, he never would feel it again. Such was the reality of his new life. He believed his body was conforming to these new conditions. His skin, his muscles, all of it now was learning what it could expect about the new rules governing rest and comfort.
At least he and Carla had been spared a downpour. They had successfully
bypassed the flood waters of Veterans Blvd. and made it to higher, drier land. Once they had passed the city limits, the cloud cover started to decrease. By now there were only a few small, puffy clouds in the sky. It was likely that they would encounter no bad weather by the time they reached the homestead.
As he pedaled down the state road, he glanced at his companion pedaling close by. Amazing that someone he knew for years still had possessed so many secrets. He knew Carla’s early family life had not been rosy, and that she had been shuttled between a few foster families. But the fact that she could get into locked houses and buildings still blew him away. Carla’s ensuing explanation that she had broken into places to steal money and food as a young girl, was no less shocking.
Had this unrevealed truth harmed his view of Carla? Liam was sure it had not. Actually, he was surprised how little he thought about it. He mostly was surprised that Carla had not told him until now.
But maybe she had, Liam thought, Perhaps she had hinted at it, and hoped you’d catch on.
Carla had said little except for pleasantries and a few jokes. Liam decided he wouldn’t press the matter. Better to let the two of them discuss it after they had settled down at the homestead.
Still, it was amazing that out of the many women who he could have met in his life, that Carla, with her past and skills, would be the one. Perhaps it was fate. It could be that she was destined for him, as a companion for the harsh life to come. She had saved his life, and then his and his father’s, a number of times by getting them into locked shelters.
But he couldn’t rely on Carla to get him out of tight spots forever. A man has to protect his woman, Liam thought. He had to take the lead, to protect both the woman he loved, and now the child she carried within her.
As he continued pedaling, he noted how there was nothing but grassy fields on either side of the road. No cars or vehicles. If he remembered their journey correctly, there wouldn’t be any stranded automobiles on this road for a good while. Liam and Carla’s journey was sure to be peaceful.
Unless we run into any dogs again, Liam thought. He shivered. The encounter with the feral dogs was the site of his one failure on this journey. He harbored vain hopes that he would spot the gun again on the side of the road and be able to reclaim it. Conversely, he feared running into the dogs again, or some other wild animals.
But as the hours passed without incident, he stopped thinking about it. What’s done was done. Besides, the firearm he now carried held much more meaning to him. It was held by a man who gave his life to protect others. It was like a scared item. Liam decided that losing his first gun was worth it if he got this.
His muscles started to burn. He lost track of how long he had been pedaling, but it had to have been for hours. Perhaps he should take a break.
He turned again to Carla. Her gaze was straight ahead. Her hair was glistening with sweat. But her breathing wasn’t rapid or loud. She still had energy to go. So, he should as well. The more distance they covered, the closer they would be to the homestead.
I can’t believe it’s been so long, Liam thought. Thirty years since he had been with his father. What must have that been like for Dad? To be barred from your own flesh and blood must be torture. He imagined what would happen if he was suddenly cut off from his own child. What would he do upon meeting his son or daughter? What would he do to make up for lost time?
Liam wondered if he should have been surprised. He remembered his father as a strong man. Still, the years could have changed him, made him so embittered at Liam’s mother that the thought of risking his neck for her should have driven him into an angry rage. Yet he jumped back in the saddle. He went off to Redmond, put himself in danger and was prepared to sacrifice everything for the woman who had left him and taken so much from him.
I guess that’s what a real father would do, Liam thought. If the time came, would Liam do the same?
As he kept pedaling, a new, more unsettling, even chilling, thought took hold. Just what was happening to Mom right now?
Maggiano walked through the storage section of his warehouse, with Marco chatting beside him. The old New York restaurateur largely was bored with Marco’s ramblings, a bunch of babble about how the solar event destroyed the taste of his wine supply in his Redmond hotel room.
“It was a goddamned tragedy. Eight bottles of fine wine, all gone to shit.” Marco held one bottle in his arms. “This was the only one I salvaged. Got it to a cool space in my room just in time.”
Maggiano eyed the refrigerators they passed by. They were dark, the food inside them long cleaned out after rotting from lack of electricity. He didn’t need another reminder of how the loss of power had ruined so much of his empire.
He yanked the bottle out of Marco’s hands. “If this one also tastes like shit, I’ll make you harvest and squash the grapes yourself to make me a whole new drink.”
Marco nodded. “Of course. Only the best for you, Marcellus.” He watched nervously as Maggiano looked at the cork. Would he drink it now? Marco sure as hell didn’t want to be anywhere near Maggiano if the wine turned out to be crap.
But Maggiano didn’t bother any more with the bottle. Instead he turned to the door leading to the women’s barracks. Marco followed until the pair reached a private room, a small place with a big open window where Maggiano often did his work with the women. Jack was there, with a female sitting in the dark shadow of a wall corner.
Maggiano sat in a padded chair made ready for him and set the bottle down on the small table next to it. A set of drinking glasses awaited him. “What good’s a drink without someone to share it with?” Maggiano asked, almost mockingly, before turning his steely gaze to Jack. “So, what do you have for me?”
“Someone a little more mature this time.” Jack smiled. “Though she doesn’t look her age. She has the best of both worlds.”
“Maybe I do prefer a woman with a little more experience,” Maggiano said, “and a little more brains to go with it. Where did you find her?”
Marco laughed. “She was practically handed to us. We ran into a little pissant who worked for me trying to flee town with her. We made a nice little agreement. She comes with us, and in return we didn’t marry his head with a concrete sidewalk.”
The woman’s eyes flashed with intensity. Anger? Hatred? Marco’s words surely got a brief rise out of her. Maggiano was intrigued.
“What’s her name?” Maggiano asked.
“Sarah Sandoval,” Jack said.
Marco smiled. “A Latina. Rather exciting, don’t you agree?”
Maggiano didn’t act impressed. Instead, he extended his finger to the woman in the corner. “Come here.”
Sarah obeyed. As she approached Maggiano, her body was awash in the sunlight from the window. She was dressed in a purple sports bra and black yoga pants that extended from above her waist to just above her ankles. Typically, her outfit had been picked by Jack in a shameless effort to accentuate her feminine features, as it was obvious her sports bra gave her chest ample lift, and her pants contained a little padding for her rear. It didn’t hurt that Sarah herself obviously was in good shape, with the only real clue to her middle age being the grayness in her short hair.
But Maggiano didn’t act impressed with her physique. He had other things in mind. He popped off the wine bottle’s cork, then poured a little wine into one of the glasses. “Now,” he said, “you will drink that.”
A bit of confusion washed over Sarah’s features. Clearly, she wasn’t expecting this offer, but she quickly pushed aside her confusion and did as she was told. Maggiano watched as she gulped the drink down her throat.
“Now, how does it taste?” Maggiano asked, “I want full honesty. No lies.”
Sarah let out a breath as she stared at the empty glass. “Good.” She licked her lips. “Of course, I’ve had more expensive wines than this.”
Suddenly, Maggiano laughed. Marco’s skin chilled. What the hell did it mean if Maggiano laughed?
“It see
ms your choice of wine is not up to this woman’s high standards. How embarrassing for you, Marco.” Maggiano poured wine in his own glass. Sarah set her glass on the table, but Maggiano quickly poured more in before she could withdraw her hand. Clearly, she was meant to drink more.
Maggiano and Sarah drank while Marco fumed. Damn her! he thought. And damn him, too! though he did his best to hide his disgust, turning aside so he faced the back wall.
“You are spared, Marco,” Maggiano said, “Just as long as you find better wine next time, I won’t put you out in the fields.”
Marco mentally responded with an especially crude private epithet toward Maggiano’s girth and his sexual prowess.
Maggiano and Sarah both emptied their glasses. “Now,” Maggiano said, “I have another test for you.” His eyes met Sarah’s.
“You have some promise. But I’ll only know how…” He turned his empty glass in his hand. “…useful you can be once I’ve examined you.”
A tremor ran through Sarah’s body. She knew what was to come. Marco stepped a little closer. The humiliation would be worth it if he saw this lady in all her glory.
“Marco, get out.” Maggiano pointed his thumb to the door as Jack stepped behind Sarah with a slight smile, as if this was his expected job, nothing extraordinary for him.
Marco bit his tongue, least he say something that could turn him into the next Anthony. So, Marco obeyed, though not very quickly. He lingered long enough to see Jack undoing Sarah’s bra, but not to see the garment fall from her body. He knew what would happen, that Maggiano would be carefully examining this woman in the buff to see how she would be best useful to him. However, Marco would be denied the pleasure of her unveiling.
After he closed the door, he stormed off down the hall, unleashing a torrent of cursing under his breath until he was sure Maggiano was nowhere near close enough to hear them. He was getting sick of Maggiano’s shit. Marco was a business success in his own right, and expected to be treated as something of an equal. Instead, he was no better than an errand boy, a servant, a footstool.
The Off Grid Survivor: An EMP Survival Story Page 14