by Ellis, Tara
Grace whined from where she sat on the ground, haunches quivering. She heard them, too. Ethan hesitated, torn between wanting to prove to his dad that he could be trusted with more responsibility, and fear of living up to his father’s doubts.
Ever since he’d been reunited with his dad, Tom acted like Ethan was a burden to the rest of the adults, rather than a valuable part of the team. Ethan understood it was probably because his dad was just afraid of losing him again, but there was a part of him that couldn’t help but feel like it was because his dad blamed him for what happened.
Ethan was the one who had fallen for the trap and gone running up to Billy, lying in wait in the road. He’d just stood there and watched as Decker clubbed his dad, and then allowed himself to be taken. For five days, Ethan failed to find a way to escape, forcing his dad to chase after him, shot and with a serious head injury. Then, he’d almost gotten Danny and Sam killed…twice. First, when Decker and Billy tried to rob them, and then when his dad attacked them.
Ethan’s hands gripped the leather reins so tightly his fingers turned white. Maybe it was because Danny and Sam had seen him attack Billy, so they knew what he was capable of, but they showed him more respect than his own dad. Ethan was going to have to prove he was stronger than his dad thought.
His mind made up, Ethan slid off Tango’s back and tied the horse off to the nearest tree. “Stay!” he whispered to Grace, pointing a finger at her. She tipped her head at him, but sat obediently and watched as he backed away from the two animals.
It didn’t take long for Ethan to scurry through the group of trees at the top of the hill. When he dropped to a knee and peeked out around a large boulder, he almost whooped out loud.
Soldiers! Four men in combat fatigues, with automatic rifles slung across their backs, were casually leaning up against a makeshift fence they’d erected across the interstate. Ethan couldn’t tell from where he was, but he guessed they were either Army or Marines. Nailed to an old fence pole that was crisscrossed over another was a sign with the bold letters: FEMA.
Ethan knew what FEMA was, and it filled him with hope. A feeling of near-euphoria at the thought of essentially being rescued almost caused him to stand and shout a hello. However, his eagerness to live up to his dad’s expectations was stronger, and he slapped a hand over his mouth to muffle his gasp of disbelief at seeing them.
A little perplexed by the crudeness of the roadblock, Ethan studied the men more closely. Their uniforms were dirty, and there weren’t any vehicles nearby. However, now that he was concentrating, there was another, unusual sound coming from further down the road. Ethan strained to see in the distance, since shadows had already started to invade the small valley formed in between the low hills. He could see a couple of buildings to the right of the interstate, and Ethan assumed that must be part of Monida, the town they were looking for. On the opposite side of the freeway, a large field was partially obscured by more trees, but Ethan thought he saw what looked like the tops of tents. A light winked on in the developing twilight.
Ethan covered his mouth again. The sound must be a generator. It was the first time he’d seen any working electronics since the event, except for Danny and Sam’s flashlight. He thought he saw movement in between the buildings, but it was hard to make out how many people there were, and if they were in uniform or not. The whinny of a horse caught his attention and he saw there were four tied off beyond the fence.
So, the soldiers were using horses instead of cars. Well, at least they had working lights. Ethan scurried backwards on his hands and knees until he felt he was at a safe enough distance to stand without being seen.
He ran back to Tango, so excited to share his discovery that he barely felt the ground under his feet. “Good girl!” he whispered to Grace as she jumped up to greet him, still in the same spot as when he’d left.
Sam was already on his horse and getting ready to leave when Ethan came back into view, pushing Tango at a full gallop. Tom and Danny were tying down a bag on the pack horse and looked up in surprise at his approach.
“Ethan!” Tom shouted, clearly unhappy. “Where were you? And why are you running that horse so hard? You know better than to ride like that!”
Some of Ethan’s excitement deflated, but he was too amped up to let even his dad get to him. “Soldiers!” he shouted, while fighting to stay in the saddle as Tango sidestepped. Grace barked, picking up on his excitement, and causing Tango to sidestep again.
Tom moved up and took hold of Tango’s lead rope. “What do you mean, soldiers?”
Ethan huffed, exasperated. “Soldiers! You know, the kind that wear fatigues and carry guns? There’s a bunch of them right up the road. They’ve set up a roadblock. Oh! And there’s this sign that says FEMA, and I think there are tents with a generator running!”
Tom let go of the rope and stepped back, startled. Danny came rushing up to his side, her face hopeful. “Did you talk to them? What did they say?”
Ethan shook his head emphatically. “No, I figured Dad would want to talk to them first.” He felt a brief flash of pride when he saw his dad nod approvingly.
“Good, Ethan.” Tom looked up at Sam, who had maneuvered his horse over to them.
“What are you thinking, Tom?” Sam coughed and wiped weakly at his mouth.
“That we need to be cautious.” Tom turned to Danny when she balked at his comment. “We don’t know who they are, or what’s going on.”
“You can’t be serious,” Danny said, waving her hands in the air. “If it’s the US military, then yeah, we do know who they are and I’ll bet you they can tell us what’s going on.”
“Then why set up a roadblock?” Tom countered. “With armed guards? All I’m saying is that I think we should take some time to figure out what their objective is.”
Sam was nodding. “I agree. We’ve all seen what’s going on in the cities, and now even out in the countryside. The military has probably invoked martial law—” a coughing fit forced him to stop until he could catch his breath. “I think Tom’s just saying we don’t want to end up on the wrong side of a fence.”
“Well, I disagree.” Danny turned to Tom and looked up at him pleadingly. “Please, Tom. Sam needs medicine. Tonight.” She waved a hand in the direction Ethan had come from. “And your son has just informed us that a FEMA camp is up the road. The medication he needs is common and I’d expect them to have some.”
“They had lights,” Ethan offered, not knowing why that bit of information might help sway the argument any. “Electricity. I saw it.”
His dad looked from Ethan, to Sam, and then back down at Danny. He looked uncomfortable, but finally ran both of his hands through his hair before flashing a rare smile. “Let’s go get some help.”
Chapter 9
DANNY
FEMA Camp M3, Montana
“What took you so long?” Danny made no attempt to hide her irritation with Tom. He had insisted on traipsing through the woods that lined the far side of the town. He wanted to work his way around to the northern end of the FEMA camp and hide his .45 beyond the other entrance, near the interstate. Their only weapon with a bullet left in it.
Danny chalked some of his paranoia up to the last remnants of his concussion, but was regretting playing into it. He’d been gone for more than an hour and it was getting dark.
“It was farther than I thought it’d be,” Tom answered unapologetically.
Ethan was bouncing on the balls of his feet, excited to hear the details. “Well, what did you see?”
Tom rubbed at the back of his neck and then ran his hand down his right shoulder, where the gunshot wound was still healing. Danny noticed the back of his hand was scraped and there was fresh dirt on his shirt. He must have fallen at some point. “Not much. I didn’t want to get too close. Monida’s another two-street town, and it looked like the few buildings there are occupied by the military. At least a dozen soldiers that I could see, all of them armed.”
“Occupied?” Danny
echoed. “It’s not an invasion, Tom. It’s FEMA. They’re there to help.”
“Maybe,” Sam said, his voice hoarse. “Sure is a lot of artillery though, for a rescue mission.”
“You guys were at the same town as me yesterday, right?” Danny asked, her voice rising. “Because from what I saw, those people would have welcomed an ‘invasion’. How else do you expect the military to intervene? We’ve seen and experienced dozens of reasons to justify them treating it like a warzone.” Danny didn’t understand Tom’s hesitation. He was a cowboy, for crying out loud. Of anyone, she expected him to show more patriotism.
“I don’t disagree with you,” Tom said, turning to face her. “That’s why I’d rather avoid them. Because you’re right. The majority of the people left out here right now are helpless and need to be rounded up and told what to do in order to keep them from killing each other. I’m afraid that’s exactly what they’re doing, and I don’t want us to get caught up in the middle of it. We don’t need to be saved. We just need to get home and they’ve set up a literal roadblock that could prevent that.”
“Can the horses make it around?” Sam asked, and Danny looked at him incredulously.
“Sam! You need help. He needs help!” she shouted at Tom, taking a step toward him while pointing at the older man who was doing his best not to slump over where he sat.
Tom nodded and surprised Danny by reaching out to take her hand that was still outstretched. Holding it, he looked at her with an intensity that reminded her of the way he was the night they met, and she resisted the urge to pull away. “You’re right. We need to go. I just want you to be careful. The horses can’t make it the way I went,” he continued, dropping her hand and addressing Sam. “And according to the map, the river we’ve been playing hide-and-seek with for the past two days borders the far side of the opening where the camp is set up. There’s no way of knowing how deep it is or what the terrain is like around it. Danny’s right. Our only option is to stop here, rest up, and hope they let us through.”
“Why wouldn’t they?” Ethan asked. Danny had sensed a tension between the teen and his dad ever since the day after they’d been reunited. His tone was more challenging than questioning and she winced at the way Tom looked at him.
“Because they’re blocking the road for a reason, and it would be foolish to assume they’re going to treat us like we’re anything other than the other lunatics we’ve been trying to avoid.” Tom took an audible breath and pressed a hand to his head. Ethan took a step toward him, concerned, but his dad waved him away. “I’m fine. Let’s get moving.”
Danny wasn’t sure if she was experiencing apprehension or excitement as they approached the soldiers. The horses announced their arrival well in advance, so there was no chance of startling the armed men.
“Hello!” Tom called out when they were still a good fifty feet away. “We sure are relieved to see you guys.”
“It’s rough out there,” one of the men said, standing at the ready, his weapon slung casually across his chest and gripped firmly in his hands. “I’m Private First Class Moody. On behalf of the United States government, welcome to FEMA Shelter M3.”
After a brief round of introductions, Private Moody stepped back and gestured for the other soldiers to move the barricade. “I’ll see that your horses are cared for, if you’d like to follow me.”
Danny waited, holding her breath. She considered Tom unpredictable and she had no idea how he’d react to them taking the horses out of his sight. After a long, obvious pause, he was the first to dismount, landing only a couple of feet away from Private Moody, and towering over the smaller man.
“I’m sure you understand how important our horses are. We’re only passing through, on our way home. I expect I can check on the horses whenever I want?” Tom pressed, showing no sign of intimidation by the weapons or uniforms.
“Of course,” Private Moody confirmed, taking a step back. “And I’m sure you can understand, Mr. Miller, that we have protocol that needs to be followed in order to keep everyone safe. I’ll need to relieve you of your weapons while you’re in the camp.”
Danny knew Tom was expecting to have to hand over the guns, which was why he’d insisted on hiding the one, just in case they didn’t get them back. She withdrew the Glock from her leg holster and carefully presented it to the soldier closest to her, while Tom gave his to Moody. “They aren’t loaded,” she offered, smiling. “We’ve been out of ammo for a while now.”
The private gave a nod of approval when Tom lifted his shirt and turned around. “That’s all we have.”
The walk into FEMA Shelter M3 was rather short and thankfully uneventful. The roadblock was less than a quarter mile from the exit ramp for Monida, and there wasn’t even an overpass. Ethan had been right; there were lights glowing in several windows in two of the three formidable buildings in the town, and they weren’t twinkling like candles. They were electric, a conclusion confirmed by the oddly comforting humming sound of at least two or three generators.
“Can we see someone about Sam’s smoke inhalation before we do anything else?” Danny asked. They’d explained what had happened during the introductions and were assured that there was a medic on site.
“A medical screening is part of gaining entry,” Private Moody replied, not looking back at Danny. It wasn’t really a direct answer and she stared at the back of the soldier’s head as he led them to the opposite side of the freeway before they entered the town.
They went down a side road that had a lone, darkened gas station on the corner, surrounded by what used to be an open field. It now contained several military-style canvas tents, with more being erected. It was clearly a work in progress. In the middle of the open space was a small lake, and more tents were poised on the far shore. It was already enough to house dozens and Danny figured it would eventually become a small tent city.
Sam stumbled and began another coughing fit, so Danny took him by the arm to help him along. She was worried about her friend and prayed they’d made the right decision to bring him there.
It was dark enough that it was hard to make out who was moving in the distance, in between the tents and scattered campfires, as there weren’t any working lights in that area. Private Moody was keeping them to the far edge of the camp, and it soon became apparent that they were headed for a lone shelter, situated away from the main grouping. Not far beyond it was a barbed-wire fence. Danny squinted, trying to get a better look at it in the fading light. The fence was obviously already there long before FEMA moved in, but it looked like a fresh string of wire was added to the top.
“Quarantine?” Tom shouted. “You didn’t say anything about isolating us!”
Danny’s attention was jerked back to the group in front of her. Tom was pointing at a sign on the outside of the tent. Sure enough, in bold red letters it declared the tent as a quarantine.
Private Moody looked over at the two other soldiers who had followed them into the camp, and they all raised their weapons. “It’s for everyone’s protection,” he explained. “There’s been an extremely deadly outbreak of some bacteria resembling cholera, so we’ve been forced to quarantine all new arrivals for twelve hours. If you’re clear of any symptoms after that time, you’ll be welcome to move about freely.”
“Does that include leaving?” Tom barked, not backing down.
Private Moody hesitated a moment too long. “Of course. We’re not here to force our help on you, sir. But we do have to protect everyone else, which is why the quarantine isn’t optional. Please leave your bags at the door and enter the tent.”
Tom bristled again and the private put a hand up. “You’ll get it back at the end of the twelve hours. Protocol.”
“Sure,” Sam huffed, dropping his backpack. “We wouldn’t want to break protocol.”
Danny set a comforting hand on Grace’s head to keep her from reacting to the increasing tension. She didn’t want to draw any extra attention to the dog. So far, they hadn’t seemed at
all interested or concerned about her. She gestured for Ethan to go ahead of her, and then followed him inside the tent after adding her own belongings to the pile.
Once inside, it was easy to feel a sense of relief, in spite of the weapons and questionable actions. A table with four chairs occupied the center of the large open space, and six cots complete with pillows and blankets lined three of the walls. An oil lantern was centered on the table, offering plenty of light, and there was even a deck of cards and a Yahtzee box next to it.
Private Moody moved to a storage crate in a corner, while another soldier remained at the entrance. From the box he took four plastic bottles of water and tossed one to each of them. Danny caught hers, and looked at the white paper label with the word FEMA in bold black letters on it. “Here,” Moody said, handing her a black marker. “Write your name on it.”
“I have my own water bottle in my bag,” Danny said stoically.
Private Moody pressed his lips together. He was nearing the limits of his patience. “Ma’am, while in quarantine you will be restricted access to anything other than that which you are given. You told me you’re a paramedic, so I’d expect you to understand the need for caution. This bug has an incredibly high mortality rate.”
The tent flaps were pushed aside and another soldier entered, his hands full of tan, military MREs. They were already opened and steam was escaping the top as he handed one to Danny. She looked inside and saw a plastic fork was stuck in what looked like macaroni and cheese.
“Mac and cheese!” Ethan shouted when he got his. “Yes!”
Danny laughed, finding it hard to remain pessimistic when given the opportunity to eat something other than fish. It didn’t even matter if it tasted like cardboard. Sniffing at it, she looked at the cot and imagined what it was going to feel like to sleep on something other than the hard ground.
An hour later, she sat across from Tom and Ethan at the table, finishing off a box of stale crackers and playing their fourth round of Yahtzee. Grace lay on the ground next to Sam’s cot, where he’d collapsed after eating only half his food. Aside from basic vitals that Private Moody recorded when they first arrived, no one else had been in to see them or to check on Sam.