by Hunt, Jack
“Jessie Riker. I should have expected it would be you.” Luke paused in front of him, placing his nose almost to the very tip of Jessie’s rifle. It was all a show. Showing off in front of his kin. Pathetic even. “So when did they let your ugly mug out?”
“Around the time your mother stopped dropping by for our weekly conjugal visit.”
He flashed a grin before strolling past and eyeing each of them. “Rikers. Think you own the town, don’t you?” He blew smoke in Dylan’s face and called him a derogatory name. “So how much have you taken?”
“Less than you would have.”
Luke walked back to Jessie but took a seat on one of the pallets covered in boxes. “You know, I could have you all arrested. You’d be in the pen within the hour.”
“You could try.”
Luke dipped his head and flicked ash off his cigarette. When he realized that he wasn’t able to wind Jessie up, he turned to the one thing that he knew mattered to them. “So I hear your pops is dead.” He tutted. “I wonder who could have done that? Not having your old man around. That’s gotta hurt.”
Jessie had enough of his crap.
“We’re leaving and we’re taking what we came for.”
“No, you’re not. You will stay here until my uncle shows up.”
“Interesting. Or I could put a fucking bullet in your head and then well, it wouldn’t matter, would it?” Jessie said.
“You’re full of shit.”
“Should we see about that? If I was going to do it before this blackout, how much more do you think I would do it now?”
It was checkmate. If any of them squeezed a trigger, there would be losses on both sides. “You can leave but you aren’t taking anything and expect to hear from Dan.”
With a jerk of the head, the others moved to let them out. Lincoln, Zeke, and Dylan moved toward the exit but not Jessie. He stood his ground, rifle still aimed at Luke.
“I’m taking what I came for.”
Lincoln chimed in. “Jessie. Let’s go.”
“No.”
Dylan hurried over and pulled at his arm. “Let’s go.”
“Not until we get what we came for.”
Luke shook his head. “I would listen to your brothers. Last chance.”
Jessie smiled. “You think Skye would have wanted this?”
His face twisted in anger. “Don’t you dare bring her into this.”
“I’m taking what I came for. Dylan, Zeke, Lincoln. Go get it.”
They hesitated so he barked the order again. “GET IT!”
Eyes bounced and then they made their way inside. The Stricklands moved as Luke told them to. All the while he never took his eyes off Jessie. He just sat there casually smoking as if trying to weigh his options. “You and me. It’s not over. You wait. Next time I see you.” He didn’t need to say it. As Jessie’s brothers returned and rolled out the overfilled carts, the Stricklands looked at what they’d taken. “Enjoy it while it lasts.”
Jessie moved slowly, backing up to the rear door.
He wouldn’t turn his back on them for even a second.
“Nice doing business with you.” As he walked out, Jessie eyed Nina, someone he’d had eyes for before he went into prison — Luke caught it, his gaze darted between them.
THIRTEEN
ALICIA
Los Angeles
Destruction and death spread like wildfire. Law and order had vanished and everyone with a chip on their shoulder knew it. Like the perfect storm, a brutal combination of many factors had brought them to this moment.
Had there only been one ingredient, maybe the streets would have been empty instead of full of protesters and thugs capitalizing on weakness. It was a layered effect, a mishmash of the worst. Anger. Bottled-up frustration. Lockdown fever.
Like others, she’d closely watched the steady breakdown of society. The etching away at people’s mental strength and what they would accept. It was one thing after another, mass shootings, terrorist attacks, black people killed, huge uncontrollable riots in the cities, election arguments, and then a global pandemic to top it all off.
That was a recipe for disaster right there.
But throw an EMP into the mix and it was the straw that would break the camel’s back, a toxic brew that only had one outcome — total collapse.
It was happening fast, too fast.
But how could it not? The trouble had been bubbling below the surface, building for months on end. Alicia’s gaze roamed faces as people ran past her, others in fear peeked out from behind drapes, silent observers while the rest of the city unleashed pent-up frustration and took whatever they felt they deserved.
Crossing Normandie Avenue, relieved to have escaped her captors, she looked on in horror as looters burst out of shattered windows carrying armfuls of clothes, sneakers, flat-screen TVs, anything they could carry. The idiots honestly thought these things mattered. They were the ones who thought the world was going back to normal.
It wasn’t, except almost no one knew it right then.
They saw it as an opportunity. No cameras to snap their illegal activity. No cops to strong-arm them into a cruiser.
Gunshots rang out, and Alicia ducked behind a car. Two people collapsed, caught in the crossfire. A woman screamed bloody murder, rushing by her holding a limp child in her arms.
Fear coiled around her heart, strangling it, making it beat hard and fast.
The United States had become a giant pressure cooker and with the power grid down, computers no longer working, cars stalled and communication gone, that cooker had finally erupted. With police unable to respond, roads clogged up, and too many incidents happening all at once, it was every man and woman for themselves.
Those who’d prepared were probably laughing at the foolishness of others, sitting in judgment after years of mockery — but they were in the minority. Preparations might have given them a foot up but stupidity could still trip them over. With the average household only having enough perishable food supplies to last three days, it was clear why many were entering grocery stores and stripping them bare.
The reality was it wouldn’t last.
Even if the prepared had enough to hold out for a few months, other factors could cripple them. Lack of sanitation. Disease. Many didn’t have working generators. If a generator could even work now? No power meant no gasoline pumping, no heat for those chilly nights, no medical equipment operating.
Those with solar, wind, and other alternate fuel supplies would be envied. And, it wouldn’t take long for people to turn on one another, for jealousy to take over as they coveted a neighbor’s cache. That’s when the true madness would begin.
Humans were worse than animals, one step away from crossing the line.
She knew that better than anyone. Her time in Seattle had proven that.
And that was back when there was law and order.
How naïve people were if they thought they would all help each other.
Some, maybe. But the tide would turn and she didn’t want to be in the city when it did.
Alicia darted across the street and through a parking lot. She looked back just to make sure Colby and that psycho weren’t on her tail. Why on earth would they continue to hound her? Money meant little now, did it not? Well, it would matter for a while, but as people bartered for what little remained, it would soon go the way of the dinosaurs and society would return to exchanging goods for goods.
Better still, ripping each other off and leaving the gullible dead.
Yuri had told her about this. She didn’t want to believe it — that Russia was capable. But they’d done it. They’d pulled it off and she was now caught in the middle.
She figured Colby would head to her apartment but she wasn’t going there. That would have been too obvious. A stupid move. No, she had different plans. She made her way past a Greek Orthodox cathedral, through another car lot and was about to cross Mariposa Avenue to go to a two-story apartment block when a woman barged into her, k
nocking her to the ground.
“Oof!”
A large flat-screen TV hit the pavement with a crash. She’d obviously looted some store and was on her way home with her prized possession. The woman went to pick it up but it was clearly broken. The shards rattled, a shattered screen inside made her explode with anger. “You dumb bitch!”
Alicia was about to apologize when the lady turned on her.
She grabbed hold of her hair and punched her in the face. It happened so fast. Alicia head-butted her nose, then tried to run but the woman spun her back around. Alicia shoved her back and then dove for her knees to dodge a right hook. She held on to her legs doing the only thing she could to avoid being pummeled. But that didn’t work. She continued to rain down blows on Alicia’s back. Each one harder than the last. Pain radiated.
Moving from confusion to anger, Alicia took hold of the woman’s pant legs, hands still in cuffs, and pulled her feet out from underneath her, only expecting to bring her down so she could escape. Instead, the lady hit the ground hard, harder than she figured. Her skull bounced off the pavement.
There was no movement.
“Lady?”
She kicked her foot.
Nothing.
Shock took hold as Alicia scanned the street.
Panic filled her chest as she crawled forward to check the woman’s pulse. A pool of blood spread wide around her attacker’s skull. As soon as Alicia touched her neck she jerked her hand back as if it had been placed on a hot stove.
No pulse.
“No. No.”
She’d never taken anyone’s life.
This wasn’t happening. The woman was alive seconds ago.
Alicia backed up, frightened, horrified. She bolted fast, slamming into another pedestrian. “Hey. You! Wait!”
She didn’t slow down or stop. Her boots pounded the pavement, every step faster than the last as she burst across the road, then darted down an alley and into the apartment block.
As soon as she was inside, Alicia was greeted by even more trauma.
Someone was lying dead on the staircase, a wound to the head, blood streaming down the steps like a waterfall. Her pulse sped up as she stepped over the victim.
Glass shattered behind her and a shot of cold fear spiked as she scaled the stairs, taking them two at a time.
When she made it to the apartment, the door was slightly ajar.
Alicia used the tip of her boot to push it wide.
Inside it was dark, the only light came from a fire across the street, its flames creating shadows inside the apartment, giving the whole place an ominous feeling.
“Dad?” The word left her mouth almost as a whisper.
A door opened behind her, his neighbor stepped out, a bulbous looking man. He glanced at her, locked his door, then hurried down the steps.
Moving inside the dingy apartment, Alicia stepped on broken glass. Glass from a photo frame. The apartment was in complete disarray. Someone had been through it, tearing everything apart. The living room furniture was overturned, the TV gone. Her eyes scanned the floor, expecting to see her father but he wasn’t there.
No blood was a good sign.
Maybe he’d gone to a friend’s. He was older now. Early seventies. Already at the end of the road but she wanted to make sure he was safe. To see if he wanted to go with her. He’d been the reason she came to L.A. She’d only been there once before, six years ago.
She wandered into the bedroom, the curtains were drawn. It was hard to see anything. Just mounds of clothes, a thick light-yellow duvet covering the bed. “Dad?” As she pulled back the curtains to get a better look and her eyes adjusted, Alicia saw a pair of feet sticking out beyond the bed. “Dad!”
She scrambled over the futon and lifted the duvet which was half on the bed and half hanging off, mostly covering his body. “No. No.” She clenched her hands, reaching down and touching his body only to find her hand gloved in blood.
At that moment all the energy was sucked from the room.
Her world or what was left of it came to a grinding halt.
Alicia wasn’t sure how long she sat there at the edge of the bed, but it had to be long enough for Colby to find her. She heard the scuttle of paws and Colby calling her name as he entered the apartment. Could she have hopped out the window? Probably but the urge to escape was no longer there. Escape from what? To what?
Kane appeared in the doorway, held back by a leash. He sat down, tail wagging, his job done once again.
“Should have figured you’d come here,” Colby said before his eyes diverted to the body. Daisy, unaware that her father had died, came barging in, all mouth and fury.
“The next time you decide to pull a move like that, I’ll shoot you.”
She must have expected to get an angry response, a glare even, but Alicia remained expressionless. What tears had come out were already depleted. Numbness replaced what emotion she had left. A second or two passed before Daisy spotted the body.
“You kill this guy?”
She had no idea who he was.
“Daisy. Give us a moment,” Colby said.
“What?”
“A moment alone.”
“Look, Colby, I know you have a strong sex drive but this is not the time.”
He glared. “Get out. Go on!”
She threw her hands up and squeezed past him. “All right. All right. I could use a cigarette anyway. You want me to take Kane out for a piss?”
“Sure.”
“Don’t be long,” Daisy said.
Once she was gone, Colby stepped into the room, still looking at her father.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
That was the first decent thing to come out of his mouth since they’d met.
“Was he alive when you arrived?”
She shook her head. Colby exhaled hard, shaking his head. He cursed.
He drew a heavy breath as he went over to the window and looked out. “You asked me how I found you. This is how.” He looked over. “Most bail-jumpers screw up by returning to family, except yours is in Portland and you were seen heading for L.A. That makes things a little difficult but not impossible.” He paused. “I dug into your background. Your father in Portland is the same one you grew up with. Your mother even had you take his last name except he wasn’t your biological father.” He pointed. “Robert Harrington was. A British immigrant. Your mother left him before she found out she was pregnant with you. Your real name is Alicia Harrington, isn’t it?”
She nodded, unable to even form words.
“That’s why others couldn’t find you. They were searching in the wrong place.”
“How did you know?” she asked.
“It’s my job to know. Years as a cop helps too. People who jump bail don’t realize how hard it is to live on the run. It’s a lot harder than it looks. Even those who take steps to hide their tracks still leave behind bread crumbs. Phone records, purchases, internet search records, forum posts, it didn’t take long to find you in a DNA group and discover a test you took to find out who your biological father was. There was only one listing for a Robert Harrington in Los Angeles. But you were careful not to show up here. He would meet you in a public place. I watched from afar, took my time as I had to be sure. I lost you a few times in traffic but we are creatures of habit and you returned to meeting him the following week at the same coffee shop at the same time.”
She looked at him, her hands still in cuffs. “Well, you’ve got me now. Just take me in. I don’t care anymore.” She lifted her wrists, expecting him to pull her up and guide her out but instead he stared at her. “C’mon. I won’t run again.”
Colby looked out the window, then took out a key to the cuffs and crossed the room.
“What are you doing?”
“What’s it look like? I’m letting you go.”
They went loose and he removed the cuffs.
“I’m confused. Why? I mean why follow me if you were—”
“I don’t
know, okay?” Colby said, cutting her off. Looking pissed. “I’ve never done this before but then we’ve never been in a situation like this before.” Outside, gunshots erupted, screams followed as the chaos intensified. “Just seems the right thing to do. Listen, just go before I change my mind.”
She rubbed her wrists and was about to say thank you when Daisy blindsided Colby from behind by hitting him across the back of the head with a long, thick metal pole, probably the same one that had killed her father. His body fell forward on top of Alicia like a sack of heavy potatoes, crushing her small frame.
“Bitch, you aren’t going anywhere. Put these on.” Daisy tossed another set of cuffs on the bed while keeping a handgun aimed at her head. Alicia rolled Colby off her. Blood was dripping down the side of his face. Kane was barking loudly but never came to the door. “Shut the hell up!” Daisy bellowed over her shoulder. “Damn dog.” She contemplated running but after what had happened to Carl, and how crazy Daisy had been acting, she figured it would have been a dumb move. Instead, Alicia slipped on the cuffs, though she kept them loose enough that she could get her hands out when the opportunity presented itself. But Daisy was smarter than that. The second she had her on her feet, she checked them and squeezed them tight. “You must think I’m a fool.” She shoved her out of the room. “Sorry, Colby,” Daisy said. “I won’t have Carl die for nothing. And I sure as hell won’t settle for less than you.”
Strong-armed through the apartment, Alicia saw Kane tied to a pipe in the bathroom. He was clawing at the vinyl floor, trying to get out, barking furiously as they walked past. “Keep moving!” Daisy bellowed, jabbing Alicia between the shoulder blades, pushing her toward the front door, back out into the frenzy that lay beyond.
FOURTEEN
MANNY