Harvest, Quietus #1

by Shauna King

  This is all so much more than strange.

  Another longer shiver runs up and down my spine, involuntarily, despite the heat. A sense of something very, very wrong invades my whole being.

  I shrug my shoulders, and sigh heavily, perplexed, then turn to walk back to my car.

  I suppose I should call in the incident to the police, then I can get on the interstate and head for home.

  At that second, I hear a low hum behind me and look over my shoulder, breathing a sigh of relief as I see another car, coming toward me in the distance, surrounded by a heavy heat haze.

  Thank God. Other people...

  As I climb inside the Chevvy, I turn on the engine and blast up the air con. I'm sticky with the cloying humidity and need to cool off

  Then I look up and see who's coming my way. I'm not sure if I'm pleased or disappointed that it's their Land Rover approaching. It slows and edges close until we're side by side, and he stops. We both open our windows to speak and the heat rushes in like a furnace.

  His face is full of worry and confusion and I start to panic inside as he explains his findings.

  “The road's blocked on the I-75, in both directions...and there's cars everywhere,” he gestures wildly with his hands, and shakes his head, seemingly at a loss. I sit quietly watching him and trying to listen, my panic levels rising fast. “...I just don't get it...no people... just empty cars. Tons and tons of cars... I'm heading to Spring Hill via the minor routes across to the US 19, it's the only way I'm gonna get through,” he informs me.

  “Really,” I say with a calm voice, covering my true feelings, “Well I live in Ocala, so I'm going in the opposite direction, but I'll keep off the interstate. Thanks for the tip. So you've no idea what the problem is?”

  “No one to ask. I tried to call the police but there must be an issue with my network, there's no signal. I'll check local news later in Spring Hill. I'm guessing it's a major problem though. I had a real good look from the top of the intersection. It's the same story everywhere you look. No one around or anything to explain it. And whats really weird...some of the car engines are still running. Who'd leave their car running? It must have been a very hasty exit. Perhaps something dangerous has spilled up ahead?”

  “You think?” Cold chills run up and down my spine in reaction. “Well I don't like the sound of this at all. Look, here's my number.” I hand him a card from the dashboard storage box. “Call me if you need to, okay?”

  “Sure, I will do, and thanks.” He smiles, and for a brief moment I warm to him suddenly, but correct myself, my expression telling him otherwise.

  “Purely in case of an emergency, that's all,” I clarify.

  He looks at the card.

  “Okay, Wynter. Nice name by the way. Unusual.”

  “Thank you.”

  “We're staying at the Holiday Inn, on the US 19 at Spring Hill. Let's see if I can text you my details.” He sends me a text and my cell bleeps loudly.

  “Well your network seems to be working again. Let's stay in touch until we're sure everything's back to normal. Call me when you get to your hotel or I'll call you. Hopefully it's nothing to worry about. Some weird military maneuver perhaps.”

  “Yeah, it's all weird today. Like the sky and the raging volcano heat.”

  “Mmm, very striking colors for mid afternoon. Maybe a freak weather system of some kind. A hot draft blown in from Mexico, at a guess. I know the weather has been horrendously hot down there this past week.” I try to sound unconcerned, not wishing to alarm them. Unfortunately, being a scientist has it's downside. My mind has been running riot up to that point, connecting the road situation with the strange sky and the intense heat and coming up with all sorts of scenarios that were not good at all. I am now praying that it is all a matter of coincidental events.

  “You really think this is all down to a weather system?” he asks curiously, his face registering disbelief.

  “I'm not entirely sure, meteorology isn't my forte,” I admit. “But it's my best guess. Bright color spectra in the sky can indicate an excess of temperature...or a sudden change in atmospheric conditions...major weather fronts meeting, all kinds of reasons. And it may be very strange but it's impressively beautiful,” I say, taking a deep breath, hanging on my steering wheel and gazing at the sky through my windscreen for a moment.

  “Mmm, very beautiful.” He subtly flares his eyes at me.

  Is he flirting... at a time like this?

  I somehow find humor in the situation. I almost smile at him, but check myself in time.

  I lean forward and look around him to speak to his sister. “How did it go, by the way? The virgin dive, I mean...”

  “Fabulous thanks. I completely loved it.”

  “Well that's good, I was terrified on my first dive.”

  “You were?” James asks in surprise. He must be taken back that I'd told them something so personal. Either that, or that I'm admitting I'm afraid of anything. I know I'm perceived to be such a confident woman, breezing through life without a worry on my horizon. In truth my hard personal wall is a charade. I'm often terrified, of lots of things, but I hide it well.

  “I was seven years old,” I explain, “a little too young for it, in my opinion, but my dad believed in toughening us up at an early age, whether we liked it or not.”

  He snorts out a laugh. “So that's your secret, is it?”

  She could see he instantly regretted the words which had slipped out of his thoughts.

  “What secret?” I stare at him directly, my eyes holding his in a hard grip. I'm interested in what he thinks about my behavior. I know I appear to be tough, hard and cold, but I don't expect he's going to tell me that.

  “You're self assured and very capable, that's all. I'm sure your dad helped you a great deal with your character development. He sounds quite a guy.”

  He smiles briefly at me and I can't help it, my expression changes, softening, and my eyebrows rise questioningly. I don't know...maybe there's more to James Richardson than meets the eye, not that I'm the slightest bit interested in finding out.

  “Mmm, he's a real character. Anyway, I'd better be off, got a lot of video footage to add audio to, and render up. Take care, and don't forget to send me an update on your progress, call me, we need to keep in contact, just in case, okay?”

  “I'm in full agreement with that. Very close contact. Just in case, as you say,” he grins at me in a manner I find very appealing, much to my disgust. He's far too good looking for his own good, and mine.

  His expression takes me over and before I know it, a wide smile creeps up on my face. His eyes widen and his lips part in surprise. It's all very amusing and making me smile all the more. I know my smile is quite stunning... and captivating. I'm not big headed about it, but it's been said many times. I try not too smile too often just in case I stun or captivate the wrong people.

  “Yeah, 'bye then Wynter, it's been nice meeting you,” he replies in a low whisper. It's a tone of voice which I'm very familiar with. Sexy undertones. Proportionally, much too sexy and not so undertoned.

  Yeah, you too,” I say pleasantly. That's not entirely true, but who gives a damn.

  I close the window, my captivating smile still plastered across my face as I leave. I may as well let it have an airing now he's seen it.

  Chapter 2

  My smile disappears pretty damn fast. I don't very get far at all. After a few stops and starts and encountering blocked routes at every turn, I give up trying to drive to Ocala. It's at least twenty if not thirty miles away, on the minor routes, and I'm so hungry I can't think straight. The nearest town is two miles away from my current position. I get as far as I can by car, and have to walk in the rest.

  I call my mom as I walk, but she seems to be permanently engaged. So I send her a text to call when she's finished whatever is so important that she is saying. Then I try James. It annoyingly sends me to answerphone. I text him an update on my situation and position.

  - Lef
t car outside Floral City. Walking in for food and water and to see if anyone is there. How are you doing? Please call me :( - Wynter.

  It's so hot and I'm dying for a Coke. I think I'm hallucinating, seeing one hovering in front of me, covered in lovely cool condensation drips.

  The thought of a large Coke full of ice makes my mouth water like crazy and my brain fry even more...I'm getting desperate for a drink. The small bottle of water I'd brought with me, has long ago been consumed.

  I enter the town limits, exhausted by the walk in the heat. Floral City might have been a nice place to stop under different circumstances.

  On first sight, it doesn't look promising. I am met with the same things I've been seeing for a couple of hours. The same abandoned cars. No people whatsoever. Anywhere. I arrive at a gas station and enter the small provisions kiosk. The bell on the door rings loudly causing me to jump. It is overwhelmingly hot inside.

  “Hello, anyone home?” I call out. But my words hang in the heavy, humid silence. I huff a long drawn out sigh, which I seem to be doing a lot today. “God, please...what have you done with all your people?” The sentence sounds ridiculous as it leaves my lips, but at that moment the whole situation is ridiculous.

  Wearily, I open the cooler and retrieve a few bottles of water, and finding no cans of my desired Coke, I opt for Dr Pepper instead. The drinks don't feel as cold as I expected. But I really don't care all that much. A drink is a drink when you're thirsty. I find a bag behind the counter and put the water bottles in that, then I open my can of soda. It hisses, spraying my hand with a light mist and enticing me to glug it down in one big gulp. I try to hold out a little, to five long and gloriously satisfying fizzy slurps.

  ”That was just so...mmm,” I say to myself.

  I take a deep breath, getting another from the cooler.

  I'm thinking I'll sit a while and call mom before I look for food. I'm tired with walking this far. I need a rest.

  It appears the whole area is affected, by this mysterious event, and has been evacuated. I'm hoping mom can find some information for me from her side.

  Then I think of something, and why the hell I didn't think of it before, I have no idea. Google. News channels...

  I flick around on my cell and get the Internet up. The signal is weak and it's slow, but I get there eventually. I check the major news channels websites for Florida news, weather channels, just about everything I can think of, but no luck, with anything.

  For a few seconds I look at my cell phone, praying it would somehow magically give me the answers. But it's a useless weight lying in my hand. I call my mom, but she's still engaged. I really do not understand this at all. Who the heck is she speaking with? I suppose it could be my gran? I try my dad, my friend Lucy and James again and it's all answerphone or no reply at all. I'm getting frustrated and anxious now.

  I can't help it, as I look out, and down the road outside, I have a very worrying thought cross my mind. Maybe I'm paranoid and have seen too many sci-fi movies, but what if I am discovered here, by some government agency? How will I be treated, being in what appears to be an exclusion zone? I could well be infected with something. Anthrax. Plague. Something even worse than I could possibly imagine. My heart begins to pound alarmingly.

  I rub the worn black leather seat I'm sitting on, to get comfort from somewhere. But it doesn't do me a lot of good. It's sticky and hot.

  My head is swimming.

  I need to find some food, more than the confectionery and packets of potato chips, which are all that are on offer here. There's bound to be a grocery store up ahead, or a restaurant somewhere nearby. Even if no one's here, I can feed myself and keep trying to call someone.

  After I've eaten, I'll find a motorbike and get going. The thought had crossed my mind before, as I passed a motorcycle lying on the road, but after David, I couldn't begin to go there. But now, I'm reconsidering. I need to get over it, and fast. It may well be the only way I'm going to get anywhere.

  “I'm going to steal a motorbike...and go joyriding.”

  I force a smile on my face. Actually, I'm borrowing it in an emergency situation, having no other choice, but I need humor at the moment. I'm getting desperately worried.

  I spot something useful and stand up.

  A house phone. Shall I dare to try it?

  I walk over and pick it up, pressing the buttons.

  But it's dead. Maybe there's no electric? That wouldn't surprise me. The drink cooler isn't cooling anymore. I try the lights and they don't work. I stop wasting time in the kiosk. I'd better get on with food and finding a bike. I don't want to leave it too late. It'll be dark soon. Maybe completely dark.

  I leave the stifling hot kiosk and after a quick visit to the bathroom, I walk across the forecourt and out to the road.

  I decide to keep a low profile. Who knows what's gone on or who's around. I keep to the shadows, where possible, appreciating all might not be that great in my current lonesome situation. There could be risks and dangers. But what those may be I have no idea.

  The bright colors of the sky are still blazing on the horizon although the blue parts are now getting noticeably deeper blue. And the heat seems more intense than ever. Sweat is pouring from me and my energy is waning fast, the life being sucked from me like a soft fruit baking in an oven. After five boiling minutes, which seem a lot longer, I reach the center of town. The street is full of crashed cars, but I barely notice them anymore, it's becoming such a normal part of the scenery. The food store is of course empty of customers, and it's very evident, from the heat inside, that the freezers and coolers are no longer functioning. It's also very dark. Definitely no electric flowing in here for sure. I gather a basket full of essential provisions. A couple more drinks, cookies, cereal bars, and some bananas. Then I cross over the street and enter the little diner I'd spotted earlier. Four burger meals lay untouched, by the kitchen hatch, ready to be delivered to the tables. My mouth produces a rush of saliva.

  “Thank you God.” I say with a sigh, rushing over to grab a plate and stuffing a burger into my mouth greedily. I'm more than grateful as I sit down and eat it, and even though the food is greasy and cold, I actually think that nothing could taste better. And I don't even like burgers much. I laugh at myself as I close my eyes in bliss.

  Cold burger and cold fries...mm mm.

  I finish my meal fast, following it down with an orange juice which I help myself to from the glazed-doored cooler sitting on the counter. “Right. Let's find us a bike shall we?” I tell myself. Definitely a sign of madness. I'm now, referring to myself as us and we. Maybe it's the heat.

  I hope so. Although this situation is enough to give anyone the crazies.

  Chapter 3

  I strain my eyes into the distance from my vantage point on the roof of an abandoned truck. I'm drinking the bottle of Pepsi I've found at the gas station I've just stopped at. Although the bike had a half tank, I planned to fill her up with fuel. But all the pumps were dead. The absence of a current the cause, I assume. I stare for quite a while, looking for any sign of movement along the interstate as I sip slowly, enjoying my drink like I've never had one before. I look first in one direction and then the other. Not only is the main road a nonnegotiable mess, the minor routes are proving to be more of a hazard than I imagined. Even on a bike. In fact every route I've tried is a nightmare. And it would take me a while to get anywhere, weaving my way around all that.

  Shit, this is just so, so bad...

  I'm beginning to feel very alarmed at my predicament. I should have stayed with James and his sister. There was comfort and safety in numbers; three minds were better than one. Normally I love my own company, when I choose it, but now that it has been forced upon me in such a forbidding situation as this, I want someone to talk to. Even him.

  But despite all the vitriol that I hold inside for Joe and his type, I'd really like to hear James's voice at the moment. And, I reconsider, maybe he wasn't all that bad. He had a pleasant manner of speak
ing that suggested a good upbringing and education, and he seemed to be very caring and protective toward his sister. That was a sweet and very positive attribute. I generally like to associate with people who have a deeper, caring side to their nature. And perhaps he has other hobbies, besides cave diving, that are character redeeming.

  I drag my thoughts back to my situation. Basically I just want some company, that's all, whoever it is. And the only whoever roundabout these parts, is him.

  I wonder how they're both coping at the moment. I guess his sister must be really freaked out by all this. But at least she has her big brother to look after her. I'm all alone.

  I have to admit, right now, I'd find a big manly hug very comforting.

  The intensely radiant heat rising up from the truck roof suddenly overwhelms me and I take a long drink from my bottle, quenching my raging thirst.

  Hell, I seem to be dehydrating faster than I can drink!

  I wonder why he hasn't he called me back? I was very specific about stressing my point. That we need to keep in contact. And he'd agreed. In a flirty style, granted, but he understood the gravity of the situation, surely? Well he must do by now, if his situation is anything like mine. I'm torn between hoping it was and hoping it wasn't. If he'd found people, civilization and normality, that was great for him, but he may not think I'm in need of a call. And on the other hand, if he's still alone, he'll be more likely to keep in contact, but being alone isn't so great for him. Either way, I'm getting so damn lonely here.

  I've called and text him three times in the last hour. I try to reason with myself. His cell phone could be dead. Maybe he's in a bad area for reception? Atmospheric interference, perhaps? There are a number of reasons why he might not be able to reach me.