Though Joel didn’t like to think about it, he couldn’t stop himself. There would be more encounters with bad people. He wasn’t being a pessimist; he was being real. They’d had enough run-ins with bad people to know that trouble would find them again sooner or later. That was why he’d promised himself to never hesitate when it came to protecting the people he loved. He would take action and deal with the emotional baggage that came with it later. Early on in their trip, he’d hesitated and it almost cost him the girl he loved. He would never make that mistake again.
No one outside this Jeep or the Blazer was worth a second thought when it came to survival. It was a harsh thought, but it was true. Being in this situation wasn’t his choice, and therefore, the things they had to do to survive weren’t their fault. Thinking that way helped alleviate the guilt. He knew it wasn’t entirely true. There were still good people out there—Cloverdale came to mind, and Grandpa Jack’s friends—but they were the exception, unfortunately. Joel wasn’t sure what was more upsetting: the fact that he thought this way or the fact that he believed it was true.
He looked over at Allie again, and his thoughts shifted to a better place. He couldn’t do this without her. She was all the reason he needed to keep going. Of course, so were his brother and sister and his dad, but there was no denying the inspiration and hope she instilled in him with nothing more than her smile.
He shuddered whenever he thought about what might have become of her if they hadn’t shown up at her house when they did. It would have been a different world than the one he currently knew, a much darker world. They might not even be where they were without her. But he wasn’t going to think about those things right now. All was good in the world, he knew at the moment, as good as it could be, all things considered, and he wasn’t going to let what had happened or what might happen ruin that feeling. Moments like this were fleeting, and he wanted to enjoy it while it lasted.
Chapter Twenty
Ben wasn’t pushing the Blazer quite as hard as he normally did. And he was still second-guessing his decision to let Bradley ride in the Jeep. It was too late to change that now, though, and his biggest concern was that the precedent was set. It would only be a matter of time before Emma would ask for the same. That was part of the reason he was going a little slower than usual—that and the fact that he was in no hurry to get out of the mountains.
As much as he wanted to get home, he understood that once they were into lower country and the sun was high, they would most likely be in store for a day similar to yesterday, weather-wise, and he was in no hurry for that. The one saving grace today would be the fresh water they had filtered this morning. They’d filled every empty container they could find, including the empty water bottles left over from the case of water the kids found the other day.
Ben wasn’t about to put them in the position of running low on water again. He’d made that mistake and overestimated their ability to find a clean water source on their way to Maryland. The polluted rivers and streams were unusable, and although they were farther north this time, he didn’t want to take any chances. They would be passing downstream of several major cities, cities that had a bad reputation for being polluted before the EMPs.
Most of the pollution was caused by sewage overflow and an ever-increasing homeless population. The majority of factories had been heavily regulated and reined in from their old habits of dumping runoff into the major tributaries. It wasn’t a bad thing, but it raised their operating costs and prompted many to move overseas, causing a lot of the industry-heavy cities to spiral into ruin long before the attacks. It seemed that most of these places were more interested in propping up their corrupt government and elected officials more than in preserving the way of life for the everyday working-class person.
Ben didn’t necessarily follow this type of thing on the news, but it had reached levels of such a magnitude that it was common knowledge, or at least he thought it was among most Americans. The number of people receiving government handouts and subsidies passed the tipping point and far outnumbered the people that contributed to the system. To him, what would follow was common sense, but nothing was done to stop the decline. Maybe it was because those that cared didn’t have the means to change things, and those that had the power to cause real change were too fat and content in the lavish lifestyles’ their shady dealings and industry sponsored kickbacks afforded them.
Jack was always complaining about Baltimore and the corruption there. He used to say, “When you can vote yourself a living, why work?” Of course, he was referring to the freeloaders taking advantage of the system. The promise of free stuff was enough to keep the crooked politicians in power, and eventually the money ran out.
Ben shook his head. Even without the EMPs, collapse was inevitable, at least for some of these places they were doing their best to avoid. None of it really mattered now, and in a way, it was like a reset for a lost system. He felt a little guilty for thinking this way, but he couldn’t help but take a tiny bit of pleasure in knowing that the greedy officials and dirty politicians who had built a life of luxury for themselves and their families on the backs of the working man would suffer the most. Their positions of power would mean nothing now. The EMPs and the loss of the grid as they knew it would be the great equalizer.
He checked the rearview mirror and laid eyes on the Jeep for a second. Emma was already asleep, and Sam was more than happy to be her pillow. The big yellow dog snored loud enough that Ben heard her over the exhaust of the Blazer and the hum of the tires.
Poor Emma. And Bradley, too, for that matter. Ben was sure neither had slept that well after the incident with the bears last night, and he could understand why. With any luck, they would have an uneventful day and both of them could catch up on their sleep. He knew the importance of getting the proper amount of rest and how much of a role it played in having a positive outlook on things.
Fortunately, Ben was paying attention as they rounded the bend on a blind curve in the road. A small herd of deer was occupying both the east- and westbound lanes and seemed oblivious to the Blazer’s approach, except for a few of them that scampered off into the woods as he hit the brakes.
His first concern was if Joel had been paying attention and saw them stop. Thankfully, they hadn’t been traveling that fast. Ben had already slowed a bit to navigate the sharp curve, so it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. He watched the Jeep slow down and match the pace of the Blazer as Ben began to creep along.
They were all does, except for one large ten-point buck; its massive rack was matched only by the size of its body, and Ben figured it must have weighed close to 275 pounds. They were whitetails, but the buck reminded him more of a large mule deer. It would have fit in more with the animals they were used to seeing out west than what he pictured a whitetail deer looking like. In his house, Jack had several mounts of bucks he’d taken over the years, and he would have been happy to add this trophy to his collection.
The size of the Buck wasn’t the most extraordinary thing about the animal, though. What really captured Ben’s attention was the buck’s demeanor, along with that of most of the does as well. They really didn’t seem to care that the Blazer was bearing down on them, and Ben would even go so far as to say the buck seemed defiant about their intrusion into the herd’s morning activities. As they approached, the buck began to divert its attention from the does by its side and focus more on the approaching vehicles.
The encounter reminded Ben of a time he had a run-in with a moose in Wyoming while on a fishing trip. He’d been forced to run off the trail and had to make his way around the massive animal, then through the woods until he could make his way back onto the trail on the other side. But moose were known to be fearless and even aggressive during the rut. These were whitetail deer, and everything he knew about them, although it wasn’t that much, told him this shouldn’t be happening.
He thought about blowing the horn but really didn’t want to make that much noise. They hadn’t
seen anyone all morning, but it felt like the wrong thing to do. Another thing that struck him as odd was that the buck still had its antlers. He wasn’t sure about whitetails, but out west, the mule deer and elk would have shed their antlers long before now. It had only been a little over two weeks since the EMPs, so this was one oddity that couldn’t be blamed on that since the shed should have happened months ago.
In some ways, it was comforting to think that this behavior and abnormality wasn’t caused by the EMPs. But at the same time, it was disturbing because it meant that this freak of nature had something genetically wrong with it from the start.
“Go on, get!” Ben shouted at the animal as loud as he dared, not wanting to wake up Emma or Sam. But the buck remained steadfast, although a few of the does took the warning to heart and bolted for cover. The buck stared blankly at Ben as if it were deaf. They were close now, closer than he wanted to be, and he leaned back inside the window as he navigated as best as he could around the large animal. Fortunately, the few does that had run off created a narrow path around the right side, and it was just big enough for the Blazer to get by.
Ben rolled up his window as they passed. He wasn’t taking any chances. The buck’s massive rack was more than capable of doing serious damage to him or the truck. He was glad Sam was sleeping. If the dog had seen the deer, there would have been a lot of barking, and he didn’t want to excite the buck or risk triggering a response. He’d seen enough bizarre behavior from animals to know better than to push his luck.
Even with the Blazer’s suspension lift and larger tires, the buck’s rack towered over the hood as they passed. With the buck right outside his window, he got a close look into its eyes. Something wasn’t right about this deer. Its eyes were all black, and Ben wondered if maybe it was blind, but it was too healthy, too big, to be handicapped in any way. He also noticed what seemed like the yellowish foam and saliva near the edges of its mouth—the same type of thing he’d seen with the bear last night.
They finally passed the buck without incident, and Ben was relieved to be out of its gaze and no longer the focus of its attention. There was no mistaking the fact that this formidable stag was not happy about them being there.
Ben’s thoughts shifted to Joel, Allie, and Bradley behind them in the Jeep. The vehicle still had the soft top partially removed from yesterday, which left the kids exposed. Joel would pass the buck on the driver’s side and had the door and window for protection, but Bradley was in the back with Gunner and had nothing but a few bags of supplies between him and the outside world.
With any luck, like Sam, Gunner would be sleeping and the kids could sneak past quietly and without trouble. But he saw those hopes vanish as the buck took a few steps forward and put itself between the Blazer and the Jeep. It was as if it was squaring up on the Jeep and preparing to challenge its progress.
Chapter Twenty-One
Ben was amazed at how their peaceful, easy morning had evaporated in a matter of seconds. Less than a half-hour into the drive, they had their first problem.
“What’s wrong with it?” Sandy said softly.
“I don’t know. It’s definitely acting strange.” Just like all the other animals we’ve run into. Ben almost said the last part out loud but kept it to himself instead.
Maybe Joel could still manage to slip by. The Jeep was nowhere near as wide as the Blazer, and there might be enough room between the buck and the guardrail. Joel did his best to navigate through the narrow opening, but the buck was determined to block his way. Antlers lowered, the stag took a defensive stance, snorting and grunting loudly while squaring up on the Jeep. Now Ben was worried.
If the buck charged the Jeep, there was a good chance it could do some type of mechanical damage: a hole in the radiator, a punctured tire maybe. Not to mention, Bradley and Gunner were exposed to some degree if the attack came from the side. Ben weighed his options and instinctively reached into the center console for the Desert Eagle. He didn’t want it to come to that, but he would do what he had to do.
Just then, Emma woke up and noticed the pistol in his hand.
“What’s going on?” She rubbed at her eyes and repositioned herself in the seat. Fortunately, Sam remained asleep and oblivious to what was going on.
“There are some deer blocking the road,” Sandy answered.
“You’re not going to shoot them, are you, Dad?” Emma was looking around at the deer surrounding the vehicles now.
“I don’t want to, but that buck behind us doesn’t want to let them by. I’m afraid someone’s gonna get hurt.” Ben was trying to reassure Emma that his intentions were good. As he made his way out of the truck, he wasn’t sure what other option he had. Maybe he could scare it off, although he doubted that would be possible. If the vehicles weren’t a deterrent, why would the buck be worried about him?
“Please don’t hurt the deer,” Emma pleaded.
“I’ll do my best, honey. I promise.” Ben thought about his next move. He couldn’t shoot the deer from this position anyway; the chance of the bullet going straight through and hitting the Jeep was too risky. If he could angle himself so that the Jeep wasn’t in his line of fire, it would mean putting himself out in the open and away from the Blazer, where he would be at risk if the buck charged him, but he had little choice. That was one of the reasons he’d grabbed the .50; it would drop the large animal in a hurry if it decided to have a go at him.
If the deer was sick, maybe he’d be doing it a favor by killing it. He’d never heard of a deer getting rabies before, but anything was possible. He thought again about the bears last night. Both they and the buck were behaving strangely and had excessive saliva dripping from their mouths. No doubt something larger was at play here. Whatever it was, Ben hoped it was confined to this region.
He jumped when he heard the high-pitched blare of the Jeep’s horn.
“No!” The word came out louder than he wanted as he waved at Joel to get his attention and prevent him from doing it again. But the buck seemed unfazed by the horn. Instead of focusing on the Jeep, it turned to face Ben, lowered its head, and charged.
The Blazer door was still open, and Ben swiftly covered the short distance he’d wandered away from the vehicle, jumped inside, and pulled the door closed behind him. The buck made contact with the side of the truck and dug its antlers in as hard as it could. The sound it made was like fingernails on a chalkboard and gave Ben goosebumps as he looked on in disbelief. The buck kept at it all the way down the side of the Blazer until it ran into the sideview mirror and ripped it off. Emma screamed and pulled to the far side of the rear seat while Sam came to life, instantly barking before she even knew what she was barking at. One of the antler points broke off in a splintered mess but failed to slow the animal in any noticeable way.
The buck, apparently satisfied with its prize, broke away from the truck and continued running for the woods, the mirror dangling from its antlers. The remaining does, spooked by the commotion, scattered in every direction. But Ben kept his eye on the buck as it disappeared into the trees, shaking its head from side to side to rid itself of the mirror. Within seconds, the whole thing was over and the buck was gone, mirror and all.
Ben shook his head and let out a sigh of relief, happy to have made it back into the truck and closed the door in time.
“That was too close.” He sat for a second, staring at the empty space that once held a mirror and processing what happened.
“Easy, girl. It’s okay.” Sandy rubbed Sam’s neck and tried to calm the still-excited dog. Emma joined her in an effort to quiet Sam down.
Ben glanced at Emma and then at Sandy. “You guys all right?” He knew they were, but he was at a loss for words and it was all he could think of to say. He slowly opened the door as Emma nodded at him.
Sandy bit her lip. “That was crazy.”
“Yeah.” Ben scoffed and glanced back in the direction the buck had run off before he examined the damage. There were three jagged holes through the shee
t metal where the mirror bracket used to mount to the door. The bolts holding it in place were gone now, along with the mirror. He traced his finger along the deep scratch in the paint, following it toward the back of the truck and thinking the whole time about what kind of shape he’d be in if he hadn’t made it into the truck in time. They were lucky not to lose any glass.
The Jeep door opened, and Joel hopped out. Allie and Bradley were doing their best to keep Gunner restrained and calm, but he still managed a few grumbles and barks.
“What was that all about? Have all the animals gone insane?”
“I’m beginning to think so.” Ben looked back at the Blazer. Joel walked over and inspected the side of his truck.
“Oh man, look at that scratch. And the mirror!” Joel ran his hand through his hair, letting out a big sigh. Then he turned to his dad. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” Physically Ben was fine, but the incident had left him a little shaken. It was more than the deer; it was the fact that he knew now, without a doubt, that there was something affecting the animals’ behavior and that it was more than likely going to be the same everywhere. He was looking forward to the peace and quiet of their home in Durango. They would be somewhat isolated from people once they reached the house, but now he wondered if the animals would present a bigger threat. There were plenty of black bears, elk, coyotes, and mountain lions that roamed the woods around their house. Normally, they did their best to avoid human contact, but that might not be the case anymore.
They had wasted enough time with this already. “Let’s get going. Nothing else we can do about it.” Ben was also thinking about the fact that Joel had blown the horn. If there was anyone nearby, they would’ve heard that. It was probably just him being overcautious, but why take the chance and linger here any longer than necessary?
Dark Road (Book 7): Deception Page 10
