Lydia perked up. “He’s talked about you a lot. I’m pleased to meet you.”
“I have a million questions for you.” He’d been wondering about Lydia’s origins ever since Garth mentioned her on the ferry. How long ago was that? It felt like months, although it had only been two days. “First, however, I need to know if you are sore or need anything after your crash.”
“I feel fine, but I’m disappointed in myself for letting this happen. Garth asked me to keep him awake as it became night, but once the sun went down, it was more difficult to think of things to say.”
“We couldn’t stop. Danger was everywhere. Couldn’t let Lydia take over.” Garth’s upper eyelids seemed magnetically attracted to the lowers.
Lydia didn’t take offense. “I cannot drive.”
Buck chuckled. “Somehow, I bet you’d be a good driver. You hung with my son when he needed help, and I appreciate that more than you know.”
Lydia grinned. “Garth said you would help me find my wagon train, but after living in your time, I don’t think I ever want to go back. There are so many wonderful things in your world. I could live here forever.”
Buck imagined he was talking to Connie. She hadn’t expressed much excitement about the prospect of going back either. She wanted to find out if her son had survived Iraq, but she was happy in the year 2020. Despite the fact that with all their technological advances, none of his web searches had turned up anything on a Phil Stanwick. She didn’t know that he had tried. He didn’t want her to get her hopes up only to crush them moments later.
The time had come to make a decision about everyone’s future.
Monsignor volunteered to drive Garth’s taxi out of the median and park it next to Buck’s Peterbilt. Looking at it from across the lot, the front wheel leaned outward at a strange angle. Buck was sure it was no longer safe to drive.
“Come on, guys. Let’s get up and go back to the truck. We’ll grab stuff out of your car, then you can ride with me.”
“The weapon,” Garth said carefully. “I have a rifle on the floor of the backseat, Dad. I’m sorry, too. I lost most of the guns I brought with me from the house. One of them got stolen by the mobster who talked to you on my phone.”
Buck’s blood pressure spiked just thinking about the mob guy. He still wished he could go back east, find the bastard, and go full Marine on him. However, he didn’t want Garth to think he was upset about the firearms.
“He also left some of them behind when he saved my life from radiation.”
That’s my boy.
He beamed with pride as he walked his son up the parking lot and back to his truck. A second before he got to the bug-encrusted semi, he remembered the last call he’d taken.
“Sam is safe, son. I heard from his parents tonight.”
Garth’s eyes were practically shut as he climbed up into the sleeper. He didn’t even seem to notice the caked-on locust mess. “No, they’re not. None of us are safe. The lights are going to take Lydia away from me, and the rest of us are going to disappear like the St. Louis Arch. It’s going to be bad…”
He shared a look of concern with Connie as she helped Lydia up the steps.
I have to prove him wrong.
Kansas City, KS
Garth had never felt safer. He snuggled into the warm sheets of his dad’s truck, as he’d done on other overnight trips they’d taken together. He vaguely remembered a horribly long drive and a wreck he had barely survived, but it faded away before he let himself recall the details.
He rolled over, intending to sprawl out and revel in comfort, but something wet slapped against his face.
“What the hell?”
The lights inside the cabin were low because they were on the road, but it was bright enough to see the panting Golden Retriever. The dog licked him again for good measure.
He recoiled in shock for a moment, but when he roused a bit more, he couldn’t help but chuckle. “Aren’t you a good pup?” Garth scratched the dog behind the ears. “Yes, you are.”
A shape moved behind the dog.
A girl.
Lydia was under the same blankets as him, although she was still asleep.
He panicked, forgetting where he was for a second, before realizing he was in bed with a girl and a strange dog. Before he could straighten himself out, a redheaded woman crouched at the edge of the bed.
“I’m Connie,” the woman whispered. “We met back at the McDonald’s, but you were kind of sleepy.”
“Hello, Connie. I’m Garth.”
“I know. I’ve been traveling with your father for a few days now. The only thing that kept him going was knowing he would see you again. I think he’s high on driving right now because he’s so happy to have finally made it to you.”
“I crashed,” he said, suddenly remembering more.
“Don’t worry about that. You’re safe now. Buck is working on getting us somewhere where we can all be safe for good.”
“The cops said they were going to Denver.” He blurted it out as if it were important to impart the information.
Buck half-turned to him. “Thanks, son. That’s where we’re heading.”
Garth replied with a thumbs-up.
“Tell him about his new friend,” Buck said to Connie.
“Right. So, this is…” Connie whispered. “Big Mac.” She rubbed the Golden’s back and spoke a little louder. “He loves to bark when he hears his name. I didn’t want him to wake up your girlfriend.”
“Oh, she’s not my—”
“It’s fine. I only meant she’s a friend.”
He thought he saw the woman wink at him, but he wasn’t all the way with it, so he didn’t comment on it.
“I love Golden Retrievers,” he said quietly.
“Your dad got him for you. He explained how he picked up this pup when he left New York, and they’ve been traveling together for the past week. They were inseparable when he rescued me, so you might have to fight him for possession.”
“Hey, now,” Buck complained.
“My dad rescued you?”
She nodded. “I’ll tell you all about it sometime. For now, get your rest, okay?”
It felt nice to have a motherly figure more or less tuck him in. It had been years since his own mother had done that. The sensation of safety led him deeper into the grasp of sleepiness. The rocking action of the truck in motion also helped.
“I’m glad I got to meet you, Garth.” She got super-quiet again and spoke like she was from the South. “I knew you’d be a hero just like your daddy.”
The flattery wasn’t a requirement to fall asleep, but it added to the pile of things dragging him into Dreamland.
I’m never getting out of bed again.
He rolled away from Connie and Big Mac, intent on going right back to sleep. However, when he opened his eyes one last time, he saw the biggest grasshopper of his life crawling up the back wall of the sleeper.
“Bug!” he whisper-yelled.
All at once, he remembered seeing about a million locusts all over the side and top of his dad’s truck as he got inside. Black streaks ran sideways on the door, as if the wind had blown the juicy insides toward the rear.
Connie chuckled. “You get used to them.”
Twenty
Search for Nuclear, Astrophysical, and Kronometric Extremes (SNAKE). Red Mesa, Colorado
Faith had to pull rank on the woman who’d spotted her using a phone. It was a scientist she didn’t recognize, which meant she was part of General Smith’s contingent.
“I’m Dr. Sinclair, nice to meet you. Please, this phone call is a matter of worldwide importance, all right? I need you to walk away and pretend you didn’t see this phone. If the guards see, they’ll take it away.”
“Can I use it later?”
Faith experienced a pang of guilt in advance of the lie she needed to tell. “Yes, when this is all over, you can use this phone as much as you want. The guards won’t stop you, most likely.”
&
nbsp; “I’ll be back,” the woman casually replied.
Faith’s heartbeat had been out of control since the woman almost gave her away. She scanned the edges of the room to see if any of the guards had noticed the interaction, but they were all busy talking to each other.
“Phew!” she let out.
“You getting anywhere?” Benny asked.
She re-dialed CERN. “Yes. I should be done momentarily.”
Dr. Johnson picked up again. “This is CERN. Is this Dr. Sinclair?”
She hunched over in her seat as if she were extremely interested in her shoes. It allowed her to maintain a low-key conversation without raising her voice above the background noise of everyone else in the auditorium.
“Doctor Johnson, this is very important. You have to evacuate. They said they were going to send the military to get you out, but I guess they never arrived.”
“They were here, yes. A group of American soldiers came into the facility earlier today, but Dr. Eli wouldn’t say where they went. He left early, saying he had the mother of all headaches.”
“They were there to evacuate you,” she said in a calm, cool, and composed voice.
He chuckled. “If I called you in the middle of the night and said you had to abandon your facility, do you think you would do it? Oh, and if I also said you needed to evacuate Denver, do you think you could convince anyone to believe you? I’ll save you the trouble: no, you wouldn’t. You’re welcome.”
“Doctor, this isn’t a joke.” There was no way to prove she was telling the truth. “However, I see your point.”
“Good,” he replied.
“Listen, aren’t you seeing any odd things going on there? Planes dropping from the sky? Disappearing landmarks? Weird weather?”
He laughed pleasantly. “We haven’t had a good rain in a month. We could do with some odd weather, I’ll tell you that right now. As for weirdness, the only thing even remotely out of the ordinary was those military men showing up, then going missing, but they were with the Army, you know? They can do whatever they want without telling anyone about it. I’m sure they’re out in the mountains somewhere having a good laugh at Dr. Eli’s expense.”
Faith schemed in her mind as she tried to think who she could call so they, in turn, would call CERN and confirm her story. General Smith had never told her who ran the show in Europe, so there were no ins there. The NORAD guards were no longer around so she couldn’t ask them, either. There were no other options.
“Look, Dr. Sinclair, I know your voice from some videos you did during the construction of SNAKE, so I know you are who you say you are. You don’t have the authority to shut down CERN, and this may surprise you to know, but I don’t either. It has to go through the twenty-two-member council. If you give me a little more to go on, I might be able to present the idea to them as soon as they reconvene next month. Assuming that won’t be too late?”
She didn’t have a firm timetable, but the Dr. Johnson here at SNAKE had made it seem like the destruction was going to happen sooner rather than later.
“That’s it!” Faith said a little too loud.
“What is?” the man on the phone replied.
“Doctor, I’ll call you back. I’m going to talk to someone who’s going to take care of you, okay?”
“This is one of the strangest phone calls I’ve ever had, but I’m working all night so I won’t be going anywhere. I’d love to hear from someone who can confirm your fanciful plea.”
“Talk soon.” She hung up on him.
She was going to give the phone back to Benny because she wanted him to make the call to his boss before she risked losing the phone, but she had another person to call first.
Without shifting positions, she silently dialed the next number.
Off the coast of Australia
After striking the giant marine animal, the Majestic took about fifteen minutes to lower its scientific equipment into the water to see if they could find it again. However, no one wanted to delay for too long, and they were soon going full speed again.
Zandre leaned against the railing while he smoked a cigar in the afternoon sunshine. “You almost discovered another new species, Dez. I think this change, whatever you call it, is going to rewrite the animal kingdom in ways we can’t anticipate. You play your cards right, and you’ll make millions, mate.”
“Me? Why me?” She was a naturalist, which was not exactly a high-paying field.
He flicked his cigar before glancing at her. “Imagine a zoo filled with all these wonderful new animals. Humanity is hungry for something different—a new experience. These extinct creatures could deliver that for decades to come.”
“You sound like that bloke in Jurassic Park.”
“Spared no expense,” he said, mimicking the rich character who had set up the doomed park in the movie. “But seriously, I have the land, and you have the talent.”
“Oi. This is about money?” Zandre had gone off to kill a Duck of Doom so he could collect a huge bounty. Sure, it was to pay off his property, but it was still a bit selfish to her way of thinking.
“No, this is about survival. We need to understand the animals dropping into our new ecosystem. I’ve lived my life as a hunter and guide in the bush, but I’d be happy to track and hunt animals so you could tranq them. Bring them back to our land. Understand what makes them tick.”
She had to admit, it sounded better than what he did now.
The phone rang in her pocket.
“Holy shit! It’s Faith!” She answered immediately.
“Hello? Dez? It’s me.” Her sister’s voice sounded like it was coming from the other end of a long tunnel.
“I hear you!” she replied. “It’s good to hear your voice.”
“I can’t talk for long,” Faith spoke in an even tone, like she was calling from a library. “Where are you? Can you get to America?”
“I’m trying,” she answered. “I’m on a boat heading there at this very minute. I convinced the Sydney Harbor Foundation they needed to go there, like you said.”
“That’s great,” Faith replied with more emotion. “Where are you now?”
She looked around. Mainland ‘Straya was out of view, but they were still at the start of their journey.
“Zandre, do you know how long it will take us to get to America?”
“The captain said it’s going to take three weeks, assuming we don’t run over any other monsters.” He laughed and took another drag on his cigar.
“Crap, sis. It’s going to take three weeks.”
Far down the tunnel, Faith gasped.
“Will we make it in time?” Destiny asked her sister.
After a long pause, Faith replied. “I have no idea. Just keep coming, okay? Don’t stop for anything, you hear me?”
“Yes, ma’am,” she assured her. “I’ll tell the captain to give me his best speed the whole way.”
“Dez, I’m scared. The Army is going to nuke the collider in Europe, and people are going to die there. We don’t know what it’s going to do, but they say it will return things to normal here—just here, inside the ring.”
That caught her by surprise. “So, I guess we’re going to live with these strange animals all over the place. Zandre and I were talking about starting a zoo together. We’re going to fill it with totally new species.”
“You do that, sis, but only when you get back. I need you to promise you won’t stop trying to get here, no matter what.” Her voice echoed in a weird way, as if someone was messing with the sound tube between them.
“Three weeks will go by before you know it.”
Faith was silent for a few moments, then spoke at a barely audible volume. “Dez, I love you. I’m sorry this is happening, and I’m sorry for how this might turn out. I’ll do my best to keep this place open for you.”
“Nothing can stop me, Faith. You know that. I love you, and I’ll see you soon.”
“Bye for now,” Faith replied.
“For now,” D
estiny told her before hanging up.
Hays, KS
The nighttime sky glowed orange ahead, and the smell of smoke was pungent. He’d been driving for the past several hours while the others slept soundly in the back. Even Big Mac was out cold.
Connie was curled up in one of his sweatshirts in the passenger seat.
No need to wake them.
The city of Hays was on fire, there was no question of that. The flames rose a hundred feet into the air to the south of the highway. Homes and businesses along the interstate still smoldered, as if the fire had burned them earlier in the night. A fifty-foot-tall water tower was the only thing not scorched.
People stood along the left side of the highway, and he immediately recognized what they were doing, because he’d seen the Iraqis behave in a similar way when insurgents had wasted their villages.
They needed help.
I’m sorry.
The refugees hailed him like he was a giant taxi, but he dared not stop. If he did, he risked being swamped or worse by the desperate townsfolk. Once he let one person on board, hundreds of others would demand the same.
He engaged the Jake brakes to bleed off some of the dangerous speed he’d been carrying, but he still passed them at more than sixty miles an hour.
To his shock, the heat of the fire came through the glass on his left side even though the worst flames were hundreds of yards away. He couldn’t imagine how the people were able to stand it.
He and his two trailing trucks stayed in the right lane, which gave them the most breathing room between the fire and them, but as he continued through the small town, people also appeared on the right side of the highway.
A crowd of hundreds had gathered right off the shoulder.
“Damn,” he whispered.
A quarter of a mile later, the crowd was even thicker, as if the whole town had evacuated to the interstate. He had to slow down some more because a few children hung out close to the concrete roadway.
The CB chirped. The volume was as low as he could make it so it wouldn’t wake up his family. When he answered, Monsignor was on the line.
End Days Series Box Set [Books 1-4] Page 83