“I think it’s a good idea, but we need to hurry. The storm will be breaking any time now, and we really need to be on the road before that happens.”
“Yeah,” he agreed readily. “Le’s get movin’.”
Two hours later, they had the bike on a small trailer, attached to the hitch on the Jeep. The water bottles had been filled, and they had the remainder of the food in the back seat, along with the new bedding that they had purchased, their winter type clothing, and an emergency road kit they had picked up at the auto parts store.
The last things he brought down were the weapons and ammunition that he had acquired and had hidden away, including the pistol he had given to Bailey for Christmas. We only made one trip to the gun range, he thought with a wry grin. She was pretty good with it, but I wish she had gotten a little more practice.
“I think we’re set,” he announced, as she jumped in the passenger seat next to him. “Hopefully it’ll be smooth sailin’ from here.”
“God, I hope so,” she agreed, giving her door a heavy slam and peeking over her shoulder at the back seat. “I don’t really know what we’ll do if it’s not, but I guess we’ll manage.”
Eye of the Beholder
Taking the highway headed west, the couple sat in an anxious silence, until they made the turn off and headed south. At that point, the dark sky, which had been threatening them most of the day, opened up and began pouring snow down like nothing Caleb had ever seen.
“Jesus,” he cursed under his breath, “Is this what it’s like up in Illinois?”
“Sometimes,” she breathed a soft reply, “Beautiful, isn’t it?”
He barked a laugh, “If you say so!” Shaking his head, he peered through the swirling flakes, their progress having slowed to a crawl, “I guess beauty really is in the eye o’ the beholder.”
The girl grinned, feeling more at ease since they were on their way. “You want to try the radio? See if we can pick up a weather report?” She pulled out her phone, glancing at it to see if she still had service, which for the time being she did.
“Sure,” he agreed readily, “But keep th’ volume down.”
Hitting the button, she began to scan through the channels, finding several playing music, but nothing that was of any use to them. With a small sigh, she switched off the device. Gazing out the window to the right, she felt amazed at how quickly the bar ditch had filled with the white powder. “Wow, this is one hell of a storm.”
“Yeah,” he agreed. “We’ll go as far as we can, but I don’t know if we’ll make it all the way on this one tank o’ gas.”
“Pete says it’s more than a tank to drive it. I’m not sure if that applies to all vehicles though. There’s that store we stopped at before,” she suggested. “I’m sure we could get some fuel there.”
“Maybe,” he half-heartedly agreed. “I’m a little leery though, especially with th’ way things have been goin’ in general. When you start talking about people who live off o’ the beaten path, the incidents of antisocial behavior tends t’ increase, an’ you really get t’ see the crazy side o’ human nature.”
“So, you’re saying we may want to avoid them,” she concluded.
“Yeah,” he shrugged his right shoulder, “Tha’s what I’m sayin’.”
“Ok,” she chirped, “Then I’ll see if I can find out something on the weather on my phone,” she whipped it out again, “And I don’t know that we could get the gas out of the bike, and put it in the tank, or maybe we could take the bike and get some gas to bring to the vehicle from the compound, if we can get close enough.”
“Maybe,” he agreed, still focused on the road and only half listening. A few minutes later, he realized she had gone completely silent, and glanced over at her swiftly, “Are you ok?”
“Yes, I’m ok,” her voice sounded small, and she sniffed slightly, “I just found a news story about what’s happening up north. Yahoo’s reporting that they’ve got rioting all over the place, and Chicago’s been burning for hours.”
“Oh my God,” he felt like he’d been kicked. “Have they declared martial law?”
“Yes,” she spoke, barely above a whisper, “In Illinois, Wisconsin, and Ohio. But they’re expecting it to go national anytime now.”
“Jesus Christ,” he leaned his left elbow against the glass, catching his head in his hand as it ran roughly over his hair and face before leaning on it. “Let me guess, California couldn’t stand to be left out.”
Her eyes shot up to glare at him, “This’s no time for jokes, Caleb,” but as soon as she said it, she found herself snickering. “Oakland, and LA,” she admitted with a tiny grin.
“See,” he smiled for a moment as well, “We’re gonna be ok, little bit. We jus’ have t’ make it to The Ranch, an’ it gets better for us.”
Returning to her search, she located more on the weather, “Well, when it rains, it pours. Or snows, as the case may be. We aren’t going to see a break in this line for at least three days. The front goes from Florida, all the way across New Mexico. It’s unreal.”
“Lovely. Well, I think we’re gonna pull in at the gas station an’ try our luck. I’ll go in, an’ pay for the gas; an’ I’ll put your pistol in my pocket, just in case. It’s smaller, so it’ll hide easier.”
“Won’t that be dangerous?” she demanded loudly. “What if they think you’re trying to rob them?”
“They’re not gonna see it unless there’s trouble, an’ there won’ be no trouble, unless they start it,” he clarified. “Either way, I’m not stoppin’ there empty-handed.”
They crept along, still moving, but not making good time at all. The sun had already dropped low in the sky, and the soft grey of the storm would be shifting to dark before long. Adjusting herself anxiously in her seat, Bailey dug in her bag, locating her charger, and inserting it into the USB outlet in the dash, then plugging in her device.
Continuing to scour the net, she shared her next discovery, “They’ve announced a quarantine in Odessa. They’ve had almost three hundred new cases of the flu diagnosed in the last twenty-four hours, and suspect hundreds more are infected.” Her head popping up, a look of horror crossed her soft features in the dim glow, “You don’t think we were exposed, do you?”
Frowning, “I doubt it, why?”
“Well, I’d hate to show up out here and make everyone sick.”
“That’s true,” he agreed with a bob of his head, “No, I don’ think we were exposed. Not that I took note of, anyways. Anywhere else reporting outbreaks that severe?”
“Yeah, several, in fact. The one in Washington State has escalated, and they’re under quarantine too, with public schools shut down completely. You know,” her mind shot into a tangent, “It’s amazing, having the internet like we do. We can find out about everything, almost in real time. Isn’t that nuts?”
“Sure is,” he agreed with a scowl, not completely convinced it was a good thing. “What else?” he glanced at her again, not willing to take his eyes off the road for longer than a few seconds, but glad she had something to distract her during the harrowing ride. “Any good news in there?”
“Jim Carrey’s birthday is today.”
He laughed out loud, “Well, I’m sure that’s good news to someone.”
“Yeah, I’m sure it is,” she giggled with him. A few minutes later, she cursed under her breath, “Signal’s gone.”
“Aww, that sucks,” he agreed, noticing she still fought with the device to no avail. “Well, at least now you know why th’ other one quit working. You’re in a dead zone.”
Bailey stopped moving, her finger poised above the device. “I’d rather you didn’t call it that,” she grinned nervously, laying the phone over on the dash to finish charging.
“Right,” he nodded. “Well, we got some valuable info while it lasted. Jim Carrey’s birthday at the top of the list,” he laughed again for good measure.
Riding in silence a few miles longer, a coyote dashed in front of the headlights,
causing Caleb’s lightning fast reflexes to hit the brake for an instant, before he chastised himself and released the pressure. It was too late, and the car had slid out of control, careening into the ditch and coming to an abrupt stop.
“Well, fuck,” he swore loudly, the wipers still swiping full blast, while the rest of the vehicle remained still. Throwing the shifter in reverse, he tried to back out, and up onto the road, but nothing happened. Slamming it back to a forward gear, he got the same result.
“Son of a bitch,” he pounded the steering wheel with his fists.
Bailey twisted in her seat, laying her hand on his arm. “It’s ok. We weren’t hurt.”
“Yeah, but we’re stuck now. An’ I ain’t seen another vehicle in hours. No one else’s stupid enough t’ be out in this mess!”
“It’s ok,” she reassured again, “We just curl up and stay warm. We’ll figure out how to get unstuck when the sun comes up.”
He turned in his seat, peering into the area behind him. “Well,” he blew a loud puff of disgusted air, “We got supplies.”
“Yes, we do. Cut off the engine so we don’t waste the fuel; we’re going to need it later,” she suggested.
“Right,” he switched off the ignition. “I shoulda let you drive,” he mumbled, climbing over his seat and beginning to rearrange the back.
“Why?” she watched as he pushed the bags with their clothes in them between the water bottles, “I’m from up north, but I haven’t driven on this stuff much. I didn’t even have a car when my parents were alive. They drove me around.”
“Oh,” he lamented, using the sheets and comforter from the apartment to create a small nest. “Come on,” he indicated the make-shift bed, “We’ll curl up in here, and stay warm.
Bailey’s mind drifted to the hiking boots she had left at The Ranch, thinking they might have come in handy pretty soon. Working her way between the seats, she noted his prone position, the back of the longer seat behind him. “You’re too tall to actually lay down,” she observed, “I’m just thankful we brought the pillows and blankets.”
“Yeah, an’ it’s ok,” he helped her get the cover smoothed over the top of her, “You bend your legs an’ I’ll spoon up behind you. That’s it.” A moment later, they were both beneath the heavy comforters, semi-comfortable with the tops of the water jugs sticking up in a few places.
Her body contorted, she groaned, “Can I face you instead?”
“Sure,” he held the blanket up enough to allow her to roll over, then repositioned it behind her, with his leg laying across hers. “Better?”
“Yup,” she rested her hand against his chest, her cheek pressed into it. “Yes, I like this much better.”
“It kinda puts an end to the spooning,” he complained in a playful tone.
“But I can see you,” she cut her green orbs, which were as wide as saucers, up at him, and his smile lessened slightly, “What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry I crashed us,” he breathed against her scalp. “It was a stupid move.”
“Really, we’re ok. We need to be patient and conserve our resources, and we’ll get unstuck in the morning.”
“Yeah,” he agreed, giving her a squeeze. “Goodnight, Bailey.”
“Goodnight, Caleb,” she agreed, laying her face back against his firm muscles and breathing deeply.
Listening to her, he deduced soon after that she had drifted off to sleep. Allowing his hand to grip her hip firmly, he thought about how she had filled out, muscle-wise, since he had been working with her. She’s grown a lot tougher, he consoled himself. We’re gonna be fine.
His breath moving across the top of her auburn locks, he sighed deeply. All that time and effort, an’ she’s not even gonna finish school. But they had given it their best, and their friendship had grown stronger in the process. Friends. He hadn’t had many in his lifetime, only having been surrounded by the limited number that inhabit The Ranch for the majority of it. However, the one who lay in his arms at that moment had become his best, and the thought of losing her at this point sent a shiver down his spine.
“I’m gonna take care of you, Bailey-girl,” he promised her quietly into the darkness. “The best that I can,” he tightened his grip as he swore his oath to her.
Cold Outside
Bailey felt cold when she awoke, noticing her breath frost in the dim light. Her chest burned when she inhaled, and she shifted slightly, stiffly pressed against the man next to her. Her hand mashed against his muscular chest, she could feel his ribs rise and fall, deducing he was still asleep.
Pushing against him, “Caleb,” she called quietly to rouse him. “Caleb, it’s too cold.”
Sliding his hand up from her waist, along her back and into her hair at the base of her scalp, he smiled down into her upturned face, “You want I should warm you?”
“Yes,” she whispered hoarsely in return, “But we can only run the engine for a few minutes at a time.”
“Sure,” he continued to smile, his reference lost on her innocent nature, “Gimme a sec.” Gazing out into the darkness that surrounded the vehicle, it appeared to be almost completely covered in snow, which obstructed his view. “The exhaust could be blocked,” he grimaced. “We really can’t run it for long.”
Leveraging himself over her, he left her curled in the warmth of their nest, and moved into the driver’s seat. Reaching up, her hand grasped his shoulder, and she scooted into the space next to him, between the seats.
“Do you hear something?” she whispered loudly, her heart pounding out of control.
Sitting still, the air coming out of his mouth and nose turned into a white cloud and hung in the air. “Coyotes,” he agreed. “Like the one that put us here.”
“There must be quite a few,” she trembled, leaning back into the blankets. “Ok, you can start it,” she gave her consent.
Once the engine had begun to heat up, he switched on the fan to warm the pocket of air surrounding them, then cut it off and made his way next to her once again. Sitting up this time, she leaned into the crook of his lap, the back of her head against his chest.
His arm resting around her, his hand spread across her belly, causing him to grin for a moment. Nuzzling the side of her head, he instructed, “Get some more sleep, little bit,” and she didn’t bother to disagree, being wrapped in the warmth of him putting her at ease.
The next time the girl opened her eyes, she saw pale light through the windshield ahead of her. Shifting her gaze, she could see that the windows were covered about halfway up with snow, the upper portions being bombarded with flakes. Climbing out of the blanket, she moved to her passenger seat and did her best to peer out of the narrow band of unobstructed glass.
“Hey! That’s a building!” she called quite loudly, waking the man with a start.
“What?!?” he stretched and fought to sit up at the same time.
“Over there,” she poked the portal with a stiff finger, “There’s a house or something over there.
Twisting in the seat behind her, he looked out as well, “Hit the engine,” he instructed, “Get it warm in here for a minute.”
Doing as he asked, she moved to check out each of the other windows, but didn’t find anything else of interest. Finally able to kick the fan on, it noisily filled the space with warmer air, leaving the cold outside for the moment.
Moving to join her in the front section, he hit the wipers to see if they would flick over. The snow covering too heavy to allow it, he sighed at the discovery. “We’ll dig ourselves out in a few minutes. I need something to drink first.” Fighting with the blankets, he managed to free two of the smaller bottles from their plastic shrink-wrap prison. “Don’t lose these,” he warned her. “We’re gonna wanna refill them.”
“Right,” she agreed, “Hauling a five gallon jug if we have to hike won’t cut it.” Caleb stopped moving and shifted his eyes over at her, blinking a few times until she noticed and met his stare. “What?” she demanded flatly.
“I wa
dn’talking about refillin’ ‘em with water,” he kept a straight face.
Her eyes grew wide, a hot flush shooting up to stain her cheeks from her chest when she made the connection, “Oh my God! Men... are... disgusting! And what am I supposed to do?” she pointed the narrow opening at him, “No way in hell can I pee into this little thing!” She could see the grin slowly curl his lips, “Oh, that’s funny. I guess I get to hang my rear out the window in the snow.”
“Naw, I’m sure there’s a funnel in the emergency kit. You just cop a squat over it an’ you’re home free.” Tilting his bottle, he nonchalantly polished it off while trying to avoid outright laughter at her indignation.
Refreshed, the pair continued to assess and discuss their situation. Reaching in his back pocket, Caleb pulled out his own cell, as if he suddenly remembered that he had it. “Fuck,” he mumbled a moment later, “This really is a dead zone. I don’ have any bars either.”
“Damn,” she agreed with his assessment. “Ok, we might as well see if we can get a door open. The emergency kit we picked up has that fold out shovel in it, too.”
“Yeah,” he agreed, “It’s dinky, but better than nothin’. See if you can get to it for me, an’ I’ll either get my door open, or go out the window.” Looking around again, he altered his plan, “Actually your window, since the car’s leanin’ that way.”
Rummaging in the box, she located the device, and tugged it free. “We got a lot of crap in this car,” she declared, “If we can’t figure out how to get unstuck, we don’t deserve to get out of here.”
Unable to get the door to budge, Caleb rolled down the passenger window, pushing the snow out of the way and sliding out, “Oh, hell yeah!” he called joyfully.
“What?”
“It’s not bad out here at all. I mean, it’s still comin’ down, but it’s only piling up here on the car. The rest o’ the area’s not so deep. Once we get free, we should be able t’ roll ahead, no problem.” Taking the short shovel from her, “I wish we had gone ahead and asked if they had any snow chains, though. I didn’ really think we would need them.”
The Irrevocable Series Boxed Set Page 30
