After the EMP (Book 8): Hope Stumbles

by Tate, Harley

  He squinted through the windshield, but he couldn’t make out the tracks. There were so many. After stopping the Jeep, Colt hopped out. He crouched to the left of the headlights, staring at the dirty snow. Tracks went everywhere. Some to the left, some to the right, some straight. He frowned. It was pointless.

  Any one of them could be the right ones for all he knew. Colt stood up and looked around. The sun hung low in the sky, an hour before sunset. A handful of abandoned cars littered the gas station across the road, but otherwise, the streets were empty. The sun would set within the hour and searching for Walter without any idea as to his whereabouts could get them both killed.

  Colt climbed back into the Jeep and dug around in the console. A single penny sat in the coin tray and Colt picked it up. Heads he kept driving, and tails he went home.

  He held his breath and flipped the coin.

  Chapter Four

  TRACY

  Clifton Compound

  Near Truckee, CA

  2:00 p.m.

  It took three kicks on the door and a labored shout from Tracy for Dani to open the door to the main cabin. Housing the kitchen, dining, and communal living areas, it was almost always occupied. Which was a good thing today.

  Dani pulled the door wide and her eyes followed, tracking the blood dripping across the wood as Tracy dragged Madison inside.

  “What happened?”

  “Injured fox. It attacked while Madison was checking the snare.” Tracy grunted as she lowered her daughter into the closest chair. Blood soaked the bandana tied around the wound. Thanks to the long, arduous walk in the snow, Madison had lost a fair amount of blood.

  Pale skin stretched across her cheeks and her eyes struggled to stay open. Tracy shook Madison’s shoulder and she groaned in pain. “You can’t pass out. Stay with us.”

  “How can I help?” Dani stood by the front door, lips pressed into a line.

  “Find Brianna. I need her knowledge.” Madison’s friend from college wasn’t a veterinarian yet, but she’d taken classes at UC Davis on the way to a degree. Before Tracy cleaned Madison’s wound, she needed all the information she could get. Brianna might not have any, but it was worth a shot.

  Dani nodded and rushed out the door, a blast of cold air filling the void in her wake.

  Tracy squeezed her daughter’s hand. The salty tang of sweat in the room drew acid up her throat. Foxes were usually scared of humans. Would the fear of being trapped cause a healthy fox to lash out? Tracy didn’t know, but Brianna might.

  If the fox that clawed Madison were ill, there might be nothing they could do to keep the sickness from spreading.

  Rabies killed. So did a host of other illnesses and diseases. Tracy snuffed up the snot in her nose, now thawing in the warmth of the cabin. As soon as the acrid scent of Madison’s blood hit her, Tracy covered her face with the back of her hand.

  I can’t sit here and do nothing. Waiting could get her daughter killed.

  She pulled off her jacket and snow boots and layers of warmth until nothing remained but a sweat-soaked T-shirt and pants. With slow, careful movements, she did the same for her daughter. Madison’s boots came off with little trouble, but she moaned as the jacket brushed against her leg.

  “Just hang in there, honey.”

  Madison nodded and leaned back on the chair. “I’ll have to have stitches, right?”

  “I don’t know.” Tracy gathered all of the clothes and gear and set them out of the way before heading into the kitchen for towels and alcohol and scissors.

  As she set the stack of supplies down on the table, the door opened and Brianna and her mother crowded in with Dani close behind.

  “Oh, no! Madison, are you okay?” Brianna rushed to her best friend’s side.

  She managed a weak smile. “I’ve been better.”

  “Dani said she’d been attacked by a fox?”

  Tracy nodded. “It was caught in the snare. She thought it was dead.”

  “I was an idiot. I should have shot it first to be sure.”

  Anne crouched down beside Madison and inspected the bandana. Brianna’s mom was about her age, with shoulder-length hair fading into gray streaks. She’d been nothing but warm and welcoming to Tracy and her family ever since they showed up uninvited all those months ago. “There’s a lot of blood. How bad is the wound?”

  Tracy glanced at Brianna’s mother. “I’m about to find out.” With the scissors in one hand, Tracy pulled off the bandana and gauze before cutting away Madison’s pant leg below the knee. From mid-calf down, her leg was a bloody mess.

  Anne stood up and reached for the bottle of rubbing alcohol and a towel.

  Brianna scooted into the space her mother left. “Is it a bite?”

  Tracy took the supplies from Anne and popped the bottle open before handing the towel to Brianna. “Let’s find out.”

  With a tight smile of encouragement in Madison’s direction, Tracy poured the alcohol over the wound.

  Madison screamed and jerked in the chair.

  Dani rushed forward and grabbed her hand. “Squeeze my hand if it hurts.”

  Madison nodded as tears slipped from the corners of her eyes. “Thanks.”

  Tracy leaned closer. The alcohol helped, but it didn’t remove enough of the clotting blood to get a decent look at the wound. She glanced at Brianna. “What do you know about rabies?”

  “It’s nasty, I can tell you that.” Brianna leaned back on her heels, trying to remember. “I know that cleaning the wound is the most important thing. We should rinse it out with soap and water and then disinfect it.”

  Tracy glanced up at Anne, but Brianna’s mom was already on it, hustling into the kitchen for a bowl, water bottles, and soap.

  “What else?”

  “It’s a long incubation process. Some animals are infected for months or even years before the virus reaches their brain.”

  “Is that when the symptoms show up?”

  Brianna nodded. “All the things you see on TV—foaming at the mouth, aggression, stumbling—that’s when the virus is in the brain. Until then, an animal might not be infectious. Their saliva might not have the virus.”

  Madison leaned forward. “I don’t even know if it bit me.”

  “We need to clean it to see.”

  As Anne returned, she set a bowl of soapy water on the floor and handed Tracy a larger bucket. “Will that work?”

  “It should.” Tracy lifted Madison’s leg and put it in the bucket before motioning to the bowl. “Brianna, you pour the water on the wound, okay?”

  The young woman nodded and picked up the bowl, concentrating on not spilling. “I’m sorry if this hurts.”

  “It’s okay. Just do it.” Madison braced herself as Brianna tipped the bowl. The second the soapy water hit the wound, Madison launched off the chair.

  Dani grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her back.

  Brianna kept pouring. Little by little, the wound irrigated and the damage revealed itself. It wasn’t a scratch. Not possible. From the puncture marks oozing blood, there was no mistaking it for anything other than a bite.

  Madison must have seen it in her mother’s face. “That bad?”

  Tracy flicked her eyes up for a moment. “Worse.”

  “It probably wasn’t sick. Rabies isn’t common in the winter and I don’t think foxes are usually infected in this part of the country.” Brianna set the bowl down and leaned back. “But she should have the vaccine to be safe.”

  Anne looked at her daughter with a frown. “We don’t have any. It wasn’t something we could get without a prescription or a veterinary license.”

  “And we can’t reach Colt or Walter to add it to the list.” Dani let go of Madison and glanced at the door. “Should one of us go? We might be able to find a vaccine in town.”

  Tracy glanced at the time. Already four thirty. Dusk would hit soon. She turned to Brianna. “How long do we have? If the fox was infectious, how long can we wait to give Madison the vaccine?”<
br />
  Brianna hesitated. “I don’t know. My professor said right away, but we read a story about someone getting the vaccine two months later and being okay. It depends on how long it takes the virus to get to Madison’s nerves. Once it reaches the brain…” She trailed off and Tracy knew what that meant.

  If the rabies virus reached Madison’s brain before she was vaccinated against it, there was no cure. She would die an agonizingly painful death.

  She exhaled. “Do we close the wounds?”

  “No. Leave them open to drain. We don’t want to seal the infection inside.”

  Tracy clamped her lips shut to keep from cursing. She wished her husband were there. He would be able to make the hard decisions and go off in search of a vaccine right then without any regard for the consequences. Walter had a capacity to do the right thing even if it was a horrible experience. Tracy wasn’t so blessed.

  She wanted nothing more than to put on her coat and hit the road, but her daughter needed her to stay. There were no good options. Tracy glanced up at Madison. Her face was deathly pale apart from two little circles of flame on either cheek. Her eyelids fluttered as she moaned.

  Tracy asked one more time. “Are you sure we shouldn’t close it?”

  “I’m sure.” Brianna stood up with the empty bowl and Tracy lifted Madison’s leg out of the bucket before setting her foot on a dry towel. The wound still oozed, but most of the bleeding had stopped.

  Tracy forced herself to stand up and carried the bucket into the kitchen area.

  As Brianna tucked the alcohol back on the shelf, she turned to Tracy. “Did you see where the fox went?”

  “No. By the time I found Madison, it was long gone.”

  “Do you really think it was sick?”

  Tracy glanced back at Madison and dropped her voice. “I have no idea. Even if it didn’t have rabies, it could have something else. We need antibiotics and a vaccine.”

  “We’ve looked every time we’ve gone on a run.” Frustration raised the pitch in Brianna’s voice. “Pharmacies are trashed, hospitals are worse. Even the warehouses have been hit.”

  “We don’t have a choice.”

  Brianna shut the cabinet door. “Maybe Colt and Walter already found what we need. They’ve been gone two days. That has to mean something, right?”

  Tracy opened her mouth to respond when the door to the cabin burst open. Colt stood in the entryway, forehead creased with dirt and worry.

  A pit opened up in Tracy’s stomach. “What’s happened?”

  Colt pinned her with a stare. “Walter’s disappeared.”

  She gripped the counter for support. “What do you mean, disappeared?”

  “I can’t find him anywhere. He’s missing.”

  Chapter Five

  TRACY

  Clifton Compound

  Near Truckee, CA

  5:30 p.m.

  Colt shut out the darkness behind him as he strode into the cabin and closed the door. His neck muscles stood at attention, tight and strained.

  Tracy waited for him to shed his coat before she spoke again. “I thought you were working together. How did you get separated?”

  Colt ran both hands over his head to the back of his neck and held them there as he spoke. “We had a system. Walter gave me cover while I entered the store. We’ve done it a million times before. He’s better with the shotgun, I’m better with a handgun. It makes sense.”

  He pulled out a chair and sat down beside Madison, registering her condition for the first time. “Are you okay?” His gaze landed on her wounded leg and Colt jerked his head up in alarm. “Was there an intruder? Is everyone all right?”

  Dani spoke up. “She tangled with a fox in a snare. We’re okay.”

  Colt leaned back in relief and Tracy bit her tongue to keep from pushing. Every second that ticked by increased her worry tenfold. At last, he continued. “I was in the pharmacy way in the back of a grocery store on the other side of Truckee, elbow-deep in broken boxes and twisted shelves.”

  He focused on Tracy and her heart thudded. “A shot rang out. I couldn’t tell if it was Walter or not, so I hightailed it back outside. He wasn’t there.”

  She swallowed. “Any sign of him?”

  Colt hesitated and glanced at Madison. “A few drops of blood.”

  Brianna reached out to steady Tracy and she took the young woman’s hand.

  “I searched on foot for an hour, but couldn’t find him anywhere. I was about to give up when I spotted something in the snow a few blocks from the store.”

  Tracy tensed.

  Colt pulled out something gold and shiny. Walter’s watch. She staggered back. “Walter got that as a retirement present when he left active duty.” She remembered the party his fellow officers threw the weekend they moved. They made him open the watch in front of everyone. He’d put it on and never taken it off.

  “Was there anything else?”

  “Tire tracks. I can’t be sure they were related, but I saw them outside the grocery store, too.”

  “Where did they go?”

  “I hightailed it to the Jeep and followed the tracks as best I could. I lost them at a major intersection.” He held the watch out to Tracy, obvious tension in his voice. “I’m sorry.”

  She snatched it from his fingers, barely able to contain her anger. It bubbled below the surface and flushed her skin.

  Brianna and Anne asked a few questions, but Tracy wasn’t listening. All she could think about was Walter out there somewhere, needing help, while Colt sat in the comfort of the kitchen. She jerked her hand out of Brianna’s and stepped forward. Everyone turned to stare.

  “You’re telling us you don’t know where he is, or who took him, or if he’s even alive?”

  Colt’s jaw ticked. “That’s right.”

  “Then why are you here? Why aren’t you out looking for him?” Tracy’s voice rose just shy of hysterical. “How could you just leave him out there?”

  Dani stepped forward, hands on her hips. “Colt told you why. He didn’t know where to look!”

  “It’s okay.” Colt reached out and took Dani by the arm, but she shrugged him off.

  “No, it’s not. She shouldn’t be mad at you.”

  Colt managed a sad smile. “Actually I agree with Tracy.” He turned to her and the pain in his eyes deflated her rage.

  “You do?”

  He nodded. “We can’t leave him out there. I only came back because I needed more people. I can’t search for him alone.”

  “I’ll go with you.” Tracy walked toward her boots and coat, but Anne held out a hand.

  “We should get everyone together and decide as a group.”

  Tracy sidestepped and reached for her things. “Walter’s my husband. It’s only right.”

  Anne leaned close enough to whisper. “Madison’s your daughter.”

  Tracy froze.

  “If Walter doesn’t come back, she’s going to need her mother. What about the vaccine?”

  Brianna walked toward the door. “I’ll go find everyone. They should be about done in the barn.” She eased out the front door and Tracy stepped back to Madison’s side. She put a hand on her daughter’s forehead. It was hot to the touch.

  As much as she hated to admit it, Anne was right. She needed to stay by her daughter’s side. But that meant putting someone else’s life in danger for her benefit. It didn’t sit easy. She turned to Colt. “I’m sorry I jumped on you.”

  Colt nodded. “I deserve it. I shouldn’t have left him on guard for so long.”

  Tracy waved him off. “It’s not your fault. Walter’s a grown man. He can make his own decisions.”

  The door opened and Peyton, Larkin, and Brianna filed in, followed by her father. Everyone except Tracy’s husband now crowded into the kitchen area with expressions ranging from anger to disbelief.

  Brianna shut the door. “I filled them in.”

  Colt turned to address the men. “We need to head back out to search for Walter, the sooner
the better. I’m thinking three people and Lottie, too.”

  “Why the dog? Won’t she get in the way?” Larkin found a spot on the wall and leaned against it. Career army, Major James Larkin spent a few months at Walter Reed rehabbing at the same time as Colt. They’d run into each other in Oregon and after a crazy few weeks, ended up together at the Cliftons’ place.

  Colt shook his head. “She’s got an amazing nose. If anyone can figure out where Walter went, it’s her.”

  Larkin raised his hand. “Then count me in.”

  “Me, too.” Dani flashed a tight smile at Tracy. “I’m good in the city.”

  Brianna threw up her hand. “I can go, too. I’m one of the best shots. If he’s in trouble, I can help.”

  Even Peyton volunteered, raising his hand as soon as Brianna finished. “I owe Walter my life. It wouldn’t be fair not to go look for him.” The kid might look like a football player, but he was all squishy insides and teddy bear emotions.

  Tracy smiled.

  That everyone was willing to help her husband meant a lot, but they couldn’t all go. “Colt’s right. It should be a small group. With Madison hurt, we need to keep some people here who can defend the place.”

  Peyton ducked down to Madison’s side. The pair exchanged a few words while the rest of the group broke out into overlapping conversations and arguments.

  Larkin eased over to Brianna and waved his hand at the cabin. “You need to stay here. If everyone competent with a gun goes on this mission, the place will be defenseless.”

  Brianna pushed her unruly curls off her face and stood her ground. “My dad’s a better shot than me and Tracy and Peyton can hold their own.”

  Dani spoke up. “Larkin’s right. I’m not as good as you out in the forest, but I know my way around a city. If Walter’s holed up somewhere in Truckee, I can find him and not get caught doing it.”

  “The girl’s right.” Larkin nodded in Dani’s direction. “She’s right up there with Lottie in the urban tracking.”

  Tracy frowned, but Colt stood up and closed the distance between them. He took her hands. “I know you want to go, but Madison is hurt. She needs you.”