Contents
1. After the Strike
2. Before
3. Change of Plans
4. City Drowning
5. Haystack
6. Escape
7. Standoff
8. Homebound
9. Current Crisis
10. Lockdown
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1
After the Strike
On the snowy hills of an endless forest sat several cabins tucked way, miles from civilization. The families who lived there had found solace within their isolated surroundings, where they were free from the dangers beyond their camp. News from the outside world was rare. The information that managed to travel to them was less than encouraging. Their former town had been two months without power. It had since been looted, destroyed, and abandoned. No one knew when they could ever return.
The government was MIA. The country was at war. Law and order seemed to be relics of the past. A reckoning had befallen, the likes of which they had never seen. But for the time being, they were safe in their new camp, living off the land, with hope of better days.
In the early dawn, on the first day of the new month, Adam Fenwick awoke in his parents’ small cabin. He was short, even for a twelve-year-old, and he could often move through the forest and hide from his sisters and the other kids easily during their games. But he never stopped longing for home.
Dressed in his socks, long johns, and flannel jacket, he rose from his mattress and looked around the living room he shared with his two sisters, who were sleeping on a nearby mattress. Smoldering embers glowed from the fireplace in the corner, providing some warmth in the otherwise frigid room. Adam stood and stretched. Each day was the same with hope that they’d go home. His father Ray had told them that they would soon, but that day never seemed to come. One minute, his school was being evacuated, the next he was being forced to go with his parents to their cabin in the northeastern tundra.
Adam considered himself old enough to know the truth about what was going on. His father only told them that it was too dangerous to go back home. His younger sisters, Jess and Holly, who were nine and six, were equally confused. His mother, Evelyn, supported the decision to leave and repeatedly assured them that they were better off away from home. Their parents very much believed it, as did the other adults in the community.
Adam walked across the creaky floorboards to the window that looked out into the circle of cabins. He wiped some fog off with his sleeve and stared outside. Smoke rose from the chimneys of other cabins. No one was out yet. There were no lights on inside in the any of the cabins. He figured everyone was still sleeping. It felt strange to be the only one up so early in the morning. Not a day had gone by when Adam didn’t wonder at first if he was dreaming.
They’d been there for about a month now, retreating from the city to the cabins each family owned when they used to vacation during the summer. Now, they were staying in them to survive. Adam stared outside as flakes gently fell to the snow-covered ground. For a moment, everything looked at peace, but all that changed upon an alarming sight ahead.
A group of men emerged from the forest, and Adam didn’t recognize any of them. He inched closer and peered outside with his hands cupped against the cold window, counting at least twenty. They all wore heavy winter coats and beanie hats. Most of them had thick beards. They looked gruff and wild and not from around there. They were also armed. Adam knew a rifle when he saw one, and they had plenty.
At first, he hoped they were just passing through, but that didn’t seem to be the case. The men marched through the snow and to the center square where the community fire pit had been entirely covered. Adam watched in fear as they dispersed into groups, approaching each of the cabins. Something was terribly wrong. Adam’s father had warned him and his sisters about the danger of outsiders. He had told them not to get complacent and when outdoors to always be aware of their surroundings.
The men kept their voices low, careful not to make noise. As one group got closer to his cabin, rifles drawn and vapor flowing from their mouths, Adam knew that he had to alert his family before it was too late.
He turned around and hurried to his sisters’ mattress. “Wake up!” he said, shaking Holly.
Jess woke first, fluttering her eyes open. Then Holly, surprised to see Adam kneeling next to them.
“What is it?” she muttered.
“There are men out there,” he said with urgency. “Intruders.”
Holly sat up and looked around the room, still half asleep. Jess rolled out of bed and stood up, tugging at her pajama shirt. Neither seemed to understand the threat of the situation.
“I’m waking Mom and Dad,” he continued. “Get ready to leave.” He rushed toward his parents’ door and opened it without knocking. In the darkness, he saw then lying in a deep slumber. He went straight to his father and shook his shoulder, urging him to wake.
“What is it?” Ray groaned.
“Men outside…” Adam said, out of breath. “They-they’ve got guns.”
His father rose immediately with his eyes wide. “What men?”
“Right outside. Two cabins away!” said Adam, growing impatient.
Realization washed over Ray’s face as he gripped his wife’s shoulder, waking her. “Get up.” He then swung his legs out of bed and stood up in his red long johns, looking like someone from another century, especially with the beard that he had grown during their time of their rustic living. His father had also lost a lot of weight as they all had living out there.
“Go get your sisters ready,” he said to Adam as he began dressing. “We’ll go out the back door. Move!”
Adam ran out of the room just as his mother stumbled out of bed in a panic. She was instantly aware of what was happening and reached for her tattered blue jeans.
He found his sisters already dressed in their winter coats and scarves, not taking any time. Holly was helping Jess lace up her boots as Adam realized he needed to get ready himself. He hurried to the window and saw that the men were close, but they hadn’t quite made it to the door. He moved to his bag in the corner and pulled out his jacket and gloves, throwing them on faster than he ever had before.
He slipped into his boots and then listened at the door, shushing his sisters, who were huddled together, terrified. The front door was locked, but that only provided a small comfort. In the tense silence of the room, he listened as two voices spoke right on the other side.
“Be careful. They could be armed,” one man said.
“You guys ready?” another man asked.
Adam bolted away from the door toward his parents’ room just as they stepped into the hall, dressed and ready to go. The look of dread on Adam’s face told them everything they needed to know.
“They’re right outside,” he whispered, shaking.
Ray pulled him close and looked inside the living room where Jess and Holly stood frozen. “Okay…” he said, slow and calm. “Everyone move toward the back door and stay quiet.”
He pushed Adam forward as they headed toward the kitchen to the left. His father had a pistol in one hand. He waved Holly and Jess over with the other. Escape was only a few feet away, but it was too late. The front door burst open with a kick and a group of men stormed inside with their rifles drawn. Evelyn screamed as Ray moved in front of his family, shielding them with his pistol raised.
“Drop it!” one of the four men inside shouted. They steadily approached Adam and his family, rifles
pointed directly at them. Ray’s pistol fell to the floor with a thud. Adam’s sisters huddled close to Evelyn as Adam peered out from his father’s side, just above his waist. The door creaked open as the cold air rushed in from outside. Adam could hear distant screams from the other cabins.
He didn’t know why the men were there, but he knew it wasn’t good. His father had warned them about outsiders. He had told them that they could never take their safety for granted and to always be on alert. But it didn’t matter anymore. The intruders had found them.
“Glad to see that you’re all dressed and ready,” one of the men said, stepping forward. “We want everyone outside, so move it.”
“What do you want?” Ray seethed.
“Outside. Now,” the man said, aiming his rifle at them.
Adam hoped that his father still had a plan; something that would make everything all right again.
“Whatever you want, you can discuss it with me,” Ray said. “Leave my family out of this.”
The man lowered his rifle and scratched along the side of his beard as though he’d consider it. “Sorry, it’s not up to me. It’s not up to any of us. Brant wants to have a word with you.”
“Brant?” Ray said, cock-eyed as though the name had resonated.
“That’s right,” the man said. “This place is under new management.”
The men ushered Adam and his family out of the corner. Despite Ray’s pleas, they jabbed at them with their guns, ordering everyone outside. Adam gripped the end of his father’s coat as they were pushed through the door and into the barren, snow-filled open space in the center of the cabins.
There were other families already outside and standing in a line while the invaders rustled more people from their cabins in the morning dawn. Evelyn held Jess close in both arms as the young girl whimpered into her shoulder. Holly grabbed Adam’s hands as they trudged on, following their father to an open area where more members of their community were forced to gather.
“That’s it. Keep together, and stay in line,” a man said, pacing back and forth in front of everyone with his rifle over his shoulder. “Nice and easy.”
Adam’s family lined up behind ten or so people in front of them. He saw his friend, Sam, standing in the first row, holding his father’s hand and shaking from the cold. Orders were being shouted at them from all around as all twenty-two men, women, and children were lined up, shivering in fear and cold, in three rows.
Adam had never felt so afraid, even after everything that had already happened. He heard his mother whisper to his father, “What are we going to do?” Her voice was stricken with fear.
“Just stay calm,” he told her. “They’ve come for our supplies. That’s all.”
But the situation appeared far more ominous to Adam, especially as he watched one of the men drag a crying woman out of a cabin by her hair. Adam turned and saw Mrs. Kemp and her daughter, Rose, in the line in front of them. Mrs. Kemp did all the sewing around the camp. His father’s hand suddenly passed quickly across his head, brushing along his beanie.
“It’ll be okay, son,” Ray told him.
“Promise?” Adam asked, looking up.
Suddenly, a man in front called out in a loud and authoritative tone. “Is that everyone?” Adam could barely see him through the adult blocking his view.
“That should be it,” another man said. “All the cabins are empty.”
“Good,” the man said, tugging at his own brown-grayish beard. He wore sunglasses, even that early in the morning. And he stood tall with his shoulders out and back arched as though he was the only man in charge now.
Evelyn leaned close to Ray and whispered to him. “Where are our lookouts?”
Keeping his eyes forward, Ray simply shook his head. “I don’t know.”
“All right, listen up, everyone,” the same man called out. “We’ve got business to conduct here. I know that we’ve got you a little startled, but this won’t take too long.” He paused and drew closer, pacing along the front row. “Who’s in charge here?”
Silence followed among the community as the man stopped and looked around. Adam turned to look behind them and saw that they were surrounded and being watched on all sides.
“Come on now,” the man continued, scanning the rows. “Don’t be modest. There’s a leader among you. I want to speak to him right now.”
From the front row, Charlie Stevenson stepped forward with his hand up. “That’s me.”
Evelyn gripped Ray’s arm. “What’s he doing?”
“Don’t worry,” Ray whispered back.
Charlie stood in his thick flannel shirt with a matching bomber hat that had flaps reaching past his ears. Charlie was Ashley’s father, a girl at the camp, roughly Adam’s age who he went to school with. He could see the back of her as she held her mother’s hand, sniffling.
“Excellent,” the man with the rifle said. He pointed to the snowy ground beside him. “Come. Please. Let’s talk.”
Charlie approached and turned around to face the crowd before them.
“What’s your name?” the man asked.
Charlie introduced himself as the man tugged at his own graying beard. “Charlie, my name is Brant. There are some questions I’d like to ask you. I need you to be honest with me.”
Charlie stared into the crowd and nodded. “Sure. I’ll try my best.” Sensing a rapport, he then asked what the men wanted, which was the wrong question. Brant smacked Charlie’s hat off in an instant with a stern warning. Gasps followed from the crowd as Ashley screamed out, “Daddy!” in panic.
“No questions,” Brant said. “Now pick up your hat.”
In the stunned silence that followed, Charlie awkwardly went to his knees to retrieve his hat, brushing the snow off as he apologized.
“Just listen and answer, okay?” Brant told him. Charlie nodded as Brant stepped forward. “What are you doing out here?”
Charlie stared ahead nervously as he struggled for the right answer.
“It’s not difficult,” Brant assured him. “Just tell me the truth.”
“We’re hunkering down,” Charlie answered. “Holding out until things blow over.”
Brant rocked his head back and laughed, his breath billowing in the cold air. “That’s where you’re wrong. I don’t know how long you’ve been out here, but things aren’t going to blow over anytime soon, my friend.”
“So be it…” Charlie said with a tinge of defiance.
Brant directly faced him. “I bet you’re wondering how we found you.”
“That thought did cross my mind.”
“Well,” Brant said, pivoting to the crowd. “We saw your lookout and surprised him.”
“Dale!” His wife, Lisa, shouted from the front row. Adam knew them but not very well.
“What did you do to him?” Lisa rushed forward, shouting and hysterical.
Brant turned toward Charlie in response. “Tell her to calm down. We don’t want things to get unpleasant now, do we?”
Charlie nodded and outstretched his arms. “Lisa, please.” He made a shooing motion and she backed up, and friends reached out and pulled her into the line.
Brant suddenly leaned in closer and said something to Charlie that made his eyes widen.
“What?” Lisa demanded amid her sobs. “What did he tell you?”
“N-nothing,” Charlie said, nervous.
Adam looked around and saw that they were being watched on all sides by armed men.
“Next question!” Brant announced with his arms out. “Why didn’t you leave with the others? Why didn’t you listen to the evacuation orders?”
All eyes went to Charlie as he thought to himself. “I…” he began. “We had cabins out here. We didn’t see the harm in it.”
Brant shook his head. “You do know that everyone who stayed behind was told to check in, didn’t you?” He paused and then looked at the crowd, answering for them. “Yes, you did, but you chose to do things your way.”
“We’re
only trying to survive,” Charlie said.
Brant got right in his face, boots crunching in the snow. “And we want to help. But we can’t do that when you’re hiding from us and not contributing to the effort.” He then turned again to the captive audience before them. “You’re a rogue community, and rogue communities don’t get any protection from us.”
Charlie stepped forward with his hand up. “Brant, if I may.”
Brant whipped his head around with fierce, unblinking eyes that caused Charlie to stumble back a step. “What is it, Charlie?”
“We’re not out here to bother anyone, least of all you and your people.”
An abrupt shout followed from the second row as a man Adam couldn’t see stepped forward, livid. “That’s enough! We don’t have to answer to these men. They’re nothing but thieves. Take what you need and get the hell out of here!”
A smile came across Brant’s face as he approached the man. “And who may you be, sir?”
“My name is Jeff Ortiz,” he answered.
Brant suddenly put his arm around Charlie. “And here I thought you were the leader. Sounds to me like we’ve got a mutiny on our hands.”
Charlie laughed while nervously shaking his head. “That’s not it at all. It’s just—”
Brant slapped him hard on the back and stepped away, inching closer to the crowd. “You’ve answered my questions, Charlie; now let’s get down to business.”
He paused and adjusted the bandana on his head while pulling a tin flask from his coat and taking a quick swig. His breath flowed out like fog as he exhaled with satisfaction. “We need to know if you’re an ally or an enemy. As penalty for this slight, we will take all the supplies we can carry. Once we’re done, you can get back on with your lives. But we’ll be back in one month’s time for more supplies. Understand?”
There was rustling in the crowd and a few feeble gasps, followed by silence. Adam couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
Hideaway (Book 0): An EMP Thriller Page 1