"What do you mean came back? Why would anyone want to rob you?" Jack asked curiously.
"Well I had Sarah running the cash register and I was back in the break room watching TV," He took another draw of his cigarette. His voice when he recanted the story seemed ominous. “Breaking news came on and then stopped my wrestling program and it said that Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, Miami, and Los Angeles had been bombed. That news came on soon after you had paid for gas. I told everyone in the store and they all elbowed their way into the room and we watched about six minutes and the program which is based out of New York went out. So New York could be gone as well. I wasn't able to get any other stations either. The Emergency Alert System played on the T.V. and also the warning sirens went off for just a couple hours and then gone like someone shut it off. So I thought someone would take advantage of the times and come back and rob me like what they shown on the news. In cities that aren't hit people rioted," He took a longer draw off his cigarette and put it out. His fingers were shaking "So what happened to your leg son?" Pete noticed Michael limping.
"Well we totaled the car. I saw Louisville blow up, which happens to be the reason why we wrecked and the reason my knee, hurts." When Michael told the man about Louisville his eyes got wide.
Pete rubbed his temples. "This is real serious." He had a look of despair.
"Did they give us any alerts, instructions, or explanations?" Jack asked.
"Well, right before the T.V. went out the anchorman had said that military is being dispatched to every area and that we should wait for word through radio or for them personally to knock on your door. That is when Sarah started a panic with the customers in the room and everyone went off in a hurry. Some were crying and some were yelling. The T.V. said to stay in your homes until further notice. I just don't understand how the military will be able to keep order with just about every city destroyed or inaccessible along the eastern coast."
"There are thousands of towns between all these cities with National Guards and police forces. So I’m sure there will soon be some order. However, if the riots spread the limited number of personnel spread over a large area may not be enough to sustain and protect safe living in suburban areas." Michael stated as he rubbed his eyes thinking.
The depth of their situation and finally sunk in for the three individuals. They all stood there thinking, understanding, fearing, and plotting. Jack felt as if he were back in the service. He checked his gun magazine which was fully loaded and then his mind went directly to his family. He wanted to reach them quickly and as efficiently as possible. Michael questioned their next actions, he wanted the next move to be safe and calculated, he understood there was a chance their lives depended on it. Michael knew his daughter was safe. He had prepared her for something like this. He still wanted to get to her. His girlfriend on the other hand was probably in a stupor, most likely scared, and crying if she even made it back home.
Poor Pete who slept at the store some nights and lived out his off days in the small room in the back (when he wasn’t home which he never was) couldn't help but wonder and dwell on the fact that if their small town rioted his gas station would be ripped to shreds, emptied out of every last package of merchandise.
The silence had been broken by Michael who asked, "How come you didn’t come out shooting Pete?"
"Because the shells are under the counter here and I was in the break room with the shotgun from the beginning. So when I heard you comin' I figure I’d just hit ya' as hard as I could in the head. I keep it unloaded for safety reasons and i’ve used it to scare a few fellas in my day but i never thought i’d ever have to use it. " Pete laughed his usual raspy laugh.
"Well Pete if you would like you could come to my house. You could stay the night until we can safely get you home. I wouldn't feel right just leaving you here alone in this place with all this going on. Plus your wife is home alone." Jack offered and waited for Pete's response.
"Oh I suppose as long as there is a home cooked meal involved that as good as my wife's." Pete laughed once more.
"You've had my wife's cooking before Pete. You know that comes along with the deal." The men laughed.
"And Pete you might want to bring the shells along with that shotgun." Michael said.
Pete offered for the three to take his car. The Lincoln Town car wasn’t in the greatest of shape but it beat walking. He even offered snacks which Michael loaded up on. At times he was more a kid than his own daughter. Pete went to his room in the back after he locked up the shop. The door to his room was on the back wall outside the store. He grabbed a few personal items and they all piled into the car with Michael driving and Pete taking shotgun with his shotgun at hand. They pulled out of the station traveling down the road with no one else in sight. Heading back toward home.
They were five hundred yards away from the cluster of houses in which Jack and Michael lived. Jack took the small black bag out of his pocket. "Pull over here." Jack instructed. Michael did as he was told and pulled over a few stop signs before his street. At that spot and angle you could see Michael and Jack's house plus each house on either side of their houses. Jack took the binoculars out of the black bag. He watched his house and studied the street.
"Don’t' you think it's odd that there isn't anyone out here jogging or walking their dog. Usually there is at least one person outside," Michael looked around. "You wouldn't think everyone would have known about what happened so soon. Not everyone would be gone. At the very least you would see our neighbors outside gossiping with one another."
Pete shifted in his seat and clutched his shotgun. He looked left and then right all the time wondering if there was someone out there ready to rob them. Pete had grown weary of being robbed over the past three decades or so. The old man had fell victim to more than his fair share of robberies working at the gas station.
Jack scanned the houses through the binoculars. His house looked intact but there wasn't any sign of Jake barking or outside on the front porch lounging in the sun. The house to the left of Jack's house was left wide open. His house seemed fine. On the other side was Michael's house, also seemed untouched however Jack was thorough and he scanned every inch of their houses and upon closer inspection of Michael's house showed several bullet holes in the window and the front door. A red flag had been raised in Jack's mind. Something happened and now the weight of an ever flowing waterfall would hang on their shoulders.
With a deep breath he turned, "Take a look Michael." Jack handed the binoculars to Michael. He looked through for a while looking from house to house and then once Michael lined the binoculars with his own house his mouth dropped. It instantly sent a pain through Jack's heart. Just looking at Michael's hung shoulders and and his mouth hanging open depressed Jack. Jack was not in the same situation and couldn't understand the thoughts devouring his mind or emotions coursing through his veins affecting his best friend's heart. Jack did know one thing from all their shared experiences of dire situations; Michael changes and that change is unpredictable.
Pete remained in the car. He sunk himself down in the seat to were just his eyes could see over the passenger side door. Even under their horrid predicament Jack thought it was amusing how paranoid Pete was acting. The bombs only went off a few hours ago. Chaos couldn’t be rampant this early on. He thought that small towns would maintain some kind of control over their civilians. Jack had faith in his armed forces.
Michael was eager, impatient, and on the edge. He wanted to get to the house as quick as possible. Sometimes Jenna would often skip school. He was worried Jenna could have been on the other side of the bullet holes.
"You want to get closer?" Michael asked leaning against the car next to Jack. Michael pulled out a candy bar he picked up from Pete's gas station and began to gnaw on it while focusing on each of the buildings between him and his house. Michael was trying not to show the worry even though he knew and everyone else knew that the emotion was justified but Michael was hardened by training and and b
rutality from a past world. In this moment Michael felt different. There was a certain sense of survival lingering in the air. Michael took a deep breath.
"Yes we need to but cautiously." Jack's eyes darted to every nook and cranny looking for any trace of destruction, one sign of an enemy, or any reminisces of recent unusual activity.
Michael and Jack both lowered themselves to Pete's eyesight level. "We’re going to check it out, stay here." Jack spoke to Pete from the driver side window. Pete nodded his head and sank lower into his seat. His knuckles turned white from the grip on his firearm.
Jack and Michael proceeded at a casual stride constantly keeping aware of their surroundings. They passed Delaware Street. All the houses seemed vacant. No one was out. There were some doors to a few houses that were wide open. One person's house had a water hose still flowing wetting the sidewalk. Windows to houses were left open. Some houses had windows shattered out. The two friends kept walking. They still were seeing the same thing with each street around them. On lawns there were clothes. Some yards had garments strung from the door and along down the walkway and into the street. Jack looked at Michael with a curious look as if to ask what happened. He didn't want to make a sound just to avoid attracting unwanted attention. There could be any number of people who have decided to prey upon the suburbs possibly trying to steal or force themselves on a victim if there were any.
Michael pointed left. Jack looked and there was a lawnmower still running. One of the neighbor's cats jumped onto an open window seal and down into the yard. The cat ran free from captivity. Through some windows you could see lights and ceiling fans still moving and Jack though he caught a glimpse of a refrigerator left wide open. The whole situation was perplexing to Jack. The whole scenario seemed like a script from the twilight zone. Michael mouthed the word evacuation. Jack nodded and suddenly it was obvious. No one was around because they had been moved. Why then were most cars still in their driveways? Jack knew that Marilyn wouldn't have left. She would await his return but what if they forced her? Whoever they were.
Both of the men's minds were lit with a fiery rage of theories and possibilities but they forced themselves to remain calm. They would soon get to exchange ideas. Michael began to walk slightly faster. Jack kept pace. Soon they stood in front of their row of houses. Jack drew his gun and advanced to his doorstep. Michael mirrored his every movement.
Chapter Nine
No Time To Mourn
Once in his house, Jack looked in the kitchen swiftly aiming at every nook and cranny of the room. The closet opened. Clear. He moved to the living room. A three sixty scan of the room. Clear. He noticed that everything looked wrecked. Like someone had come in and pushed everything into the floor. Could they have been robbed. He moved upstairs. Hopefully Jordan fell back asleep and was still here which was unlikely. If someone was here they could have found his son. Jordan's door was open. No one in the room. He walked over to the closet. Grabbed the handle opened it. Nothing. Jordan's room was clear and no more messy than he kept it any other day. He advanced to his own room. He opened the door. Clear. Both closets clear. All bathrooms were checked and cleared.
The only place left was the basement. So Jack continued downstairs and opens the door in the kitchen that led to the damp space beneath the house. He stepped down. First step was always the roughest. It was a one foot drop. He then proceeded down to the bottom of the stairs. The light switch to the left of Jack was switched. He thought to himself. Please be here Marilyn. I know you wouldn't leave me. You have to be in the basement. Jack didn't think that there was anyone in the house who wasn't supposed to be but he sensed movement and was on high alert. He took the final step from the stairs to the ground and took one step forward when he hardly had time to throw his hands up before the baseball bat smashed his forearms into his face and he fell off his feet back first against the steps. He hit hard and the blow to his forearms shot hard pain up his arm. He quickly realized the bat was being swung again and again wildly. Without a clear view of his perpetrator he quickly went for the legs and tripped his attacker. The attacker fell. To Jack's surprise it was Marilyn. Her eyes wide and her hair strained. She looked into his face and her face instantly changed into relief. She rose from the ground into his arms. Jake then came bounding up to Jack wagging his tail. Jack patted him on the head.
“Where is Jordan?”
They held their embrace for a long while. "Jake must have smelled you because he didn't even bark," Marilyn stated. "I'll tell you everything."
Michael walked into his house. In the hallway the vase was shattered, every picture frame's glass was blown out, and the wall had several bullet holes. On the floor lay Anne his girlfriend. Michael ran and crouched next to her. She had two bullet holes in her forehead and three in her chest. He dropped his head. His emotional state was mind numbing. They had only been dating for a little over a year. The blood had already pooled around her. She must have gotten news at work about the bombs and came home early. Michael told himself not to be soft. He would have to get to the bottom of this tragedy. He brushed his dark hair out of his eyes, tightened his bandage, and stood up. He still had to find his daughter.
He began to search his house from top to bottom, each room, each closet, and each bathroom. Why did Jenna have to pick today to go to school? She had no problem skipping ny other day. He checked each room twice. He even checked the cabinets twice. Jenna used to hide in the cabinets when she was younger, usually when she was scared of a storm or a fight Michal and his wife was having. The longing to find his daughter started to be a consuming and unbearable plague on his mind that was unable to be blocked out. He sat on his recliner in the living room and rested his head on his knee. For the first time he wasn't one hundred percent sure what to do. Had she made it on the bus or was she evacuated like the rest. A tear welled in his eye. He didn't want to lose his daughter. He had already lost his girlfriend. It had only been a year but he had grown close to her especially since Jenna liked her. Finding the kids had to be the top priority going forward. Michael needed to check back with Jack and see if he has found one of his family members. Then it should shed some light on where Jenna may be. Michael and a new determined state of mind as he rinsed his thoughts of all the pain of the unknown and walked next door.
Jack and Marilyn sat on the couch having a discussion. They noticed that Michael had entered the house. Marilyn stood and hugged Michael. Jake sat next to Jack
"So what happened to Anne?" Marilyn asked with tears in her eyes once she didn't see Anne.
"She didn’t make it." Michael said somberly. Marilyn gave a whimper at his words.
"I'm sorry." Jack comforted.
"I'm more concerned about Jenna. I couldn't find her. Did you find out what happened?" Michael asked.
"I was just telling Jack. He says you two picked up Pete?"
"Yeah we did. I'll get him and then you can tell all of us what happened." Michael left keeping his thoughts focused on the task at hand, Jack went off to get some of his supplies back from his infantry days (of course Jake followed), and Marilyn went to make something to eat which had always been her way of comforting anyone.
Michael walked slow and cautious. He tried to make a little noise as possible. He walked halfway to the car when he found that Pete had noticed Michael coming toward the car. Pete's eyes were hardly visible above the door of the vehicle but Michael could still tell Pete had his eyes locked on his movement as if Michael was coming to rescue the old man from certain death. Michael made a hand gesture of clutching a steering wheel and driving and then motioned for Pete to come close. Pet sat there and watched as if he were unsure of Michael's motions. Finally Pete raised his head higher where his entire head was visible through the window. He looked around slowly and then slid over into the driver's seat and started the car. He picked Michael up halfway.
"Is everyone safe?" Pete asked. His eyes were wide and scared. He squeezed the steering wheel and looked around.
"The kids weren't
there." Michael stated quickly and gazed out the window. Pete sensed that Michael didn’t want to discuss the matter. They drove for the next few moments in silence. Pete pulled into Jack’s driveway. The two got out, Pete hurried into the house, but Michael took a three sixty to scan his area just to make sure they weren’t being watched.
“You know Michael, this whole situation would be so erie or stressful if there were people around to help discuss the problem with.” Nervously, Pete made conversation as he removed his truckers hat and scratched his aging head.
“That is a mystery we are about to solve and is also the reason why we can’t drop our guard, not even for a second.
Jack sat on the couch pilfering through a large camouflage duffle bag. Jake sat next to his him. Marilyn tended to a tray of cookies and sat glasses of milk on the coffee table. Pete sat next to Jack looking from the bag to each individual in the room. The poor old man seemed spooked and fearful as if everything was out to get him. Michael stood and leaned in the doorway of the living room with his back to the hallway.
Marilyn sat down and Jack and Michael knew what was coming next.
“This is what happened,” Marilyn began. She dropped her head and took a deep breath. She exhaled slowly. A tear welled in her eye as she recanted the memory. “Thirty minutes after you two left the school bus picked up the kids in the neighborhood. Another thirty minutes went by and then dozens of military vehicles appeared from every corner. Soldiers knocked on every door. They rushed around giving instruction and explaining little reason for their arrival." Marilyn wiped yet another tear fighting against hysteria. She composed herself and began again. "A soldier knocked on the door. He kept knocking. I answered and he just started rambling on. He said everyone in this area is to be evacuated to a Fallout Safe Zone. He said our location is among the few that is far enough away from major cities. Any town closer than ours wouldn’t be evacuated. He said I had three minutes to gather any belongings I wanted to take and fetch any family members that were coming as well. There were so many people hurrying with their things. People’s thing were strung everywhere and people themselves were being hurried like cattle into long trucks. Many parents were wild and screaming about their kids at school. The soldier said that all schools were being evacuated in this area. We were allowed to stay if we wanted. Then the troops left as quickly as they came and Anne and I talked about what was happening. We could see that there were a few people who had stayed as well and then there was a faint flash off in the distance and we saw the tiny cloud and we both went back into our houses. Twenty minutes later more people came. They were convicts. They were let loose from the prison and arrived in three trucks. They swarmed house by house wearing these green jumpsuits others wore orange. If they found people in their homes they killed them and they stole everything else. Anne wouldn’t let them in which was a mistake many people made. I saw through the curtains that two of them were coming for our house. So I hid underneath the stairs in the basement. I was so scared but I knew I wasn’t going anywhere until Jack got home. I can’t believe the army is letting countless people die. Everything happened so fast liked organized chaos. So many people were rushed to get their belongings. Some people didn’t even have time to shut off their car. And anyone who stayed behind were slaughtered. It was so horrible. Those poor innocent people. Elderly who couldn’t defend themselves could be heard screaming from inside their homes. I don’t think I can ever get their screams out of my head.” Marilyn began to whimper. It was hard to keep her story straight. “The army asked if there were military personnel living in my home as he stared at a list on a clipboard and I just asked him to leave.” Marilyn looked relieved to get that off her chest but jack could tell his wife was traumatized by what she had seen.
No Time To Mourn Page 9
