by E A Chance
Riley had given up hope by the time Coop spotted the sign for another outdoor store. If it was cleaned out, too, they were in trouble.
He rubbed the stubble on his chin. “The entrance doors are closed and intact, so that’s a promising sign.”
“Worth a try, she said as she unhooked her seatbelt.
She clung to Coop’s hand as they slowly made their way passed the now familiar crashed cars and dead bodies littering the ground on the way to the entrance. “I’m afraid of what we’ll find inside?”
“At least it won’t be zombies,” Coop said and laughed.
She tried to smile but couldn’t manage it. “Silver lining,” was all she said.
Coop cupped his hands around his eyes and peered through the glass. “Looks untouched. We’re in luck.”
“Why do you think this store hasn’t been looted? Did people around here know something we don’t?”
As the words left her mouth, a gust of wind blew a store flier out of a garbage can near the door and dropped it at Coop’s feet. He picked it up and read, then turned it for her to see. It was an announcement for the store’s grand opening in three weeks.
He stepped back and pointed to a banner above the door. “My guess is people think the store hasn’t been stocked yet.”
Riley looked at the banner. "Hope you’re right.”
He shook the doors to see if they were open. “Not as lucky. We’re going to have to smash our way in.”
Riley stopped him as he searched for something to break the glass. “Can’t you pick the lock? I don’t want us to be like those looters you see on TV during a blackout.”
He raised his eyebrows as he stared at her. “How exactly did you think we were going to get in? Did you think a salesclerk would be waiting for us with open arms?”
“I honestly didn’t think about it.”
“We have no choice, Riley. This is about our survival. Days of a leisurely outing to the mall are gone.”
She put her hands on her hips. “Give me some credit. I just hoped the doors would be unlocked.”
“And how were you planning to pay?” She lifted her pant leg to reveal a canvas money pouch strapped to her calf. “What is that?”
“I always carry cash for emergencies. I have $5000.”
“You’ve been carrying 5K around all this time? Now who’s insane?”
“I haven’t been carrying it in the hotel. I had most of it hidden in a pair of socks in my drawer. I only brought $1000.”
“That money is worthless. Nobody cares about pieces of paper when they’re starving.”
“It won’t be worthless when power is restored. And what is it to you if I leave cash to pay for the things we take?”
Coop kissed the end of her nose. “Fair enough. No one but you would think to pay for looting. Each day with you is a revelation.” He brushed the snow off a bent metal car part near the curb and picked it up.
“Here we go, our first criminal act.”
Riley put her hands over her ears while he smashed the glass, then carefully reached in to unlock the door.
“I’ve always wanted to do that.”
They turned on their flashlights and gingerly picked their way over the broken glass. Riley shined her beam over the shelves and was thrilled to see they’d finally caught a break. The store had everything they’d need, including kerosene heaters and the fuel to fill them. They took out their lists and began collecting the items. When they finished, she hid her wad of cash under the register, then surveyed the stack of goods by the door with satisfaction.
“Wish we had a truck instead of my car. Imagine how much we could take back with us.”
Coop put down the two cases of water he carried and pointed to the opposite side of the parking lot. “What about that relic parked in front of the pet supply store?”
She covered her eyes against the sun and followed his gaze to the blue older model truck with a camper shell. “What if the owner’s inside the pet store?”
“One way to find out,” he said and started off at a jog across the parking lot.
She followed at a slower pace, crossing her fingers that the truck was abandoned, and Coop could get it running. After peeking into the empty pet store, he opened the unlocked door and lowered the truck visor. The keys dropped onto the seat. The engine whined for a second when he turned the ignition, then went quiet. He tried again with the same result.
“Dammit.” He banged his hands on the steering wheel, then got out to lift the hood.
Riley folded her arms and watched him fiddle with some cables like he knew what he was doing. “Think it might just be out of gas?”
“No, my guess is it’s the battery. A truck this old wouldn’t have computer circuits.” He straightened and scanned the parking lot. “We need to find a similar battery and switch them. This is morbid, but start checking some of these smashed trucks.”
He told her what to look for before they headed in opposite directions. She avoided the more severely damaged vehicles, or ones containing bodies, and tried not to overthink their actions. If it meant getting more supplies back to Hannah and Julia, it was worth the sacrifice.
After twenty minutes, Coop called her name and waved her over. By the time she reached him, he was already removing the battery from a full-sized SUV with its back end crunched into the back seats.
“This should work if the battery is the problem.” He carried the battery to the truck and had it switched with the old one in another half hour. When he turned the key, the old truck chugged to life. He glanced at the gages. “Full tank. Get in and let’s load up our haul.”
She planted a celebratory kiss on him and climbed into the sagging passenger seat. They were in business.
Julia’s gut had tightened when her mom told her she and Coop were going on a supply run, leaving her to take care of Hannah. She knew they didn’t have a choice, but Julia had been a nervous wreck since they left, which wasn’t like her. Her mom and Coop would probably have to start going out in search of food and supplies every day, so she’d have to get used to it. She squared her shoulders and pasted on a brave smile, then turned to face Hannah, who was curled in a heap under a pile of blankets on the couch. She looked as worried and forlorn as Julia felt.
Julia held up her iPad. “Want to watch a video until the battery runs out?”
“Not in the mood,” Hannah answered softly. “Digging all that snow for water made me tired.”
“Why don’t you go to the room and take a nap? I can read a book out here.”
Hannah got up without answering and headed for the bedroom, but turned when she reached the hallway. “I’m glad to be here with you, Julia. Thanks for taking care of me.”
Julia gave a weak smile and stretched out on the couch to watch a video. She had just pushed play when someone knocked on the door. She hurried to answer and smiled to see Quinten through the peephole. When she opened the door, he came in, followed by three boys she didn’t recognize.
“Did my mom ask you to check up on me?” she asked.
Quinten shook his head and scanned the room with his eyes. “Just here to see if you need anything. Your mom and Dr. Cooper are gone?”
His voice sounded odd and made her uneasy. She hesitated before saying, “Yes, why?”
Quinten turned to the other boys. “Get the carts. Hurry.”
While they followed his order, Quinten started picking up boxes of food and stacking them near the door.
Julia grabbed his arm to stop him, but he jerked it free. “What are you doing with our stuff?”
He ignored her and kept going. The boys returned with four carts and loaded the boxes and supplies onto them.
“Stop it,” Julia said and yanked Hannah’s backpack out of one of the boy’s hands. He pushed her aside and reached for the evac bag. “Quinten, please tell them to stop.”
Quinten’s eyes narrowed. “Shut up unless you want to end up like Coop. What’s in the bedroom?” Julia ran to the hallway and
stretched her arms and legs across the opening. He reached her in three strides. “Out of my way.”
“Hannah, lock your door,” she screamed.
Quinten backhanded her in the eye before she could duck out of the way. The blow threw her off balance and the room started to spin. Her head missed hitting the wall by an inch on the way to the floor. Quinten sneered and stepped over her. Julia was desperate to get to Hannah before he did but was too disoriented to stand. She crawled to the couch, trying to use it as support to get to her feet, but it was no use.
The sound of Hannah shrieking came from down the hall before she ran into the living room five seconds later. She fell to her knees in front of Julia and screamed again when she saw Julia’s face.
“What did they do to you? What’s happening?”
Julia put her arms around Hannah. “I’m all right. Did he hurt you?” she whispered.
Hannah shook her head. “He just scared me and told me to get out.”
“We need to stay quiet and not interfere. They’ll be gone soon.”
Hannah stared wide-eyed at Julia’s face. Before Julia could stop her, she broke free and crawled to one of the carts, which was stacked with medical supplies. She silently peeked into two boxes before reaching in and snatching an ice pack and was back at Julia’s side before anyone noticed. She activated the ice pack and pressed it to Julia's eye.
Julia’s vision darkened twice while Quinten and his gang robbed them of all their precious supplies, but she refused to lose consciousness. She fought to stay alert and protect Hannah at all costs. She threw a blanket over Hannah’s shoulders and tried to shut out the sound of her whimpers. They huddled together on the floor until the boys left and the room was still thirty minutes later.
“Bolt the door,” Julia said.
“Why? There’s nothing left to take.”
“Just do it.”
Hannah obeyed and came back to help Julia onto the couch. “Your eye is swelling. Keep the ice on it.”
Julia lowered the ice pack and stared at it in a daze. “It’s not cold anymore. Did they leave any baggies?”
“They took everything. Everything. How could they do this to us? I thought Quinten was our friend.”
Julia didn’t have an answer. She was as hurt and bewildered as Hannah. Fighting back the tears, she said, “Find a towel and bundle some snow into it.”
Hannah took a dishtowel to the patio and gathered ice with her bare hands. Her gloves had been in her backpack.
This is my fault, Julia thought as she watched her. I’m such an idiot. How could I have let Quinten fool me?
Hannah came back and handed the bundle of snow to Julia, then tucked her frozen hands into her armpits.
“Check in the bedrooms to see if they took our clothes. I think my mom has an extra set of gloves.”
Hannah gave her a weak smile. “At least we won’t have to dig for snow anymore. There’s nothing to put it in.”
Julia tried to smile back, but it hurt too much. Her sight was obscured by her swollen eyelids and her temple throbbed. She gently pressed the towel to her face and closed her other eye, doing her best to calm her rising terror.
The return trip took half the time since it was easier for Coop to retrace their route. Riley had never been so happy to see anything as when the hotel came into view. They’d survived their first run without incident and had come away with a heat source, water, and enough food to last for several days. She hoped it was enough to convince Coop they should stay put.
Coop drove into the parking garage and pulled close to a first-floor entrance. “Get the girls to help us unpack while I load up.”
Riley grabbed a case of protein bars and went into the hall. When she got to the suite, she put the box down to knock. When several seconds passed with no answer, she tapped her knuckle on the door and said, “Julia, sweetheart, it’s Mom and Coop. Open up.”
Coop came up behind her with his arms full of boxes and raised his eyebrows. “Maybe they’re out back getting snow or sleeping.”
Riley banged hard as she could. “Julia, Hannah, where are you?” The door swung open, and Hannah faced them looking pale and frightened. Riley rushed past her and said, “Where’s Julia?” She came to a dead stop in the empty living room. “Where’s all our stuff?”
“They took it all,” Julia said, from where she sat bundled in blankets on the sofa.
Coop followed Riley in and whistled when he saw the cleaned out room. “Who took it?”
Julia buried her face in the blanket and burst into tears. "It’s my fault. I let them in, and now we’re going to starve to death.”
Riley went to her and pulled her into her arms. She stroked Julia’s hair while she sobbed. Hannah covered her face and cried in chorus with Julia. Coop guided her to a chair and squatted in front of her.
“Can you tell us what happened?”
When she shook her head, Julia sat up and said, “I will.”
Riley looked into her face and gasped. Her eye was swollen shut, and an angry bruise spread from her temple to her cheek. “Holy hell, Julia! What happened to you?”
“Quinten hit me. He and his gang came about an hour after you left. I let them in because I thought you sent them. They stole all our stuff. I tried to stop them, but Quinten did this, so I let them go. They took everything but our clothes.”
Riley took out her handy penlight and shined it into Julia’s healthy eye before gently lifting the swollen lid on the other. “Coop, we need ice.”
Hannah wiped her nose on her sleeve and pointed to the wet towel on the floor. “We’ve been using snow.”
Coop took the towel and headed for the patio.
“Smart thinking,” Riley said. She laid Julia’s head in her lap. “How bad does it hurt, sweetheart?”
She sniffled and said, “Not as bad as it did, but I can’t see out of that eye.”
“That’s from the swelling, but you should be fine in a few days. I’ll see if those monsters left anything you can take for pain, but first, listen to me. This is not your fault. You had no reason to suspect Quinten. We all trusted him.”
Coop handed Riley the snow-filled towel. “Your mom is right. No one is to blame but Quinten. I’m sick that he did this to you.”
“Me, too,” Riley said. “I’m sure we’ve seen the last of him. He thinks there’s nothing left to take and doesn’t know about the truck we brought back, filled with supplies.”
Julia stared in disbelief. “We have food? We’re not going to starve?”
Coop nodded. “We have more than just food. We’ll unload the truck after we eat.”
Coop and Riley prepared a meal of MRE beans and franks and reconstituted hot apple cobbler from a dehydrated mix. They splurged and heated the food with the small camping stove they’d found earlier. The girls weren’t too fond of the MRE’s, but Riley gave each of them a double ration of cobbler to cheer them up and assure them that they weren’t going to starve.
While the girls ate, Riley helped Coop drag the mattresses into the front room. They set up the heater and cracked the windows for ventilation.
“These things make me nervous. I wish we had a carbon monoxide monitor,” Riley said. “Should we open the windows wider?”
“If we open them any wider, the heater will be pointless. I read the safety instructions carefully. We’ll be fine.”
She set the fire extinguisher next to the heater and reminded the girls for the third time to be careful not to knock it over.
“It’s in a corner, Mom,” Julia said. “Why would we even walk over there?”
Riley was glad to see the fight coming back into Julia, who had been despondent through dinner.
Riley hurried through getting the girls settled down for the night before escaping to her room while Coop carried in supplies. She’d held back her emotions for their sake, but once alone, she dropped to the floor and curled into a ball. Coop found her weeping in the dark thirty minutes later. He joined her on the floor and let
her have her cry.
When she quieted, he said, “I came to tell you how impressed I was with the way you handled yourself today.”
“Sorry to disappoint,” she whispered.
“Not what I meant. I’d rather see you crying than debilitated by a panic attack. This is a natural response to what you’ve been through. You deserve a meltdown. I’m still impressed.” He clicked on the battery-powered lantern he’d carried in with him. “Come here.”
Riley scooted closer, and he put his arm around her. “If I hadn’t left, none of this would have happened. I abandoned Julia when she needed me most.”
“This isn’t your fault any more than it’s Julia’s. It’s the fault of some bad actors.”
Riley wished she could agree but still felt responsible. She’d told Coop only days earlier that Julia was her top priority, but she’d failed her.
He gently stroked her shoulder with his thumb. “Do you see why we’ve got to leave? This is only a taste of what’s coming. If grown men with weapons had broken in instead of unarmed boys, even you couldn’t have stopped them. I’m regretting we didn’t add a few more guns to the Glock I took today.”
Riley sat forward and faced him. “Do you think you could shoot someone if it came to that?”
“If someone was trying to harm you or the girls? Without a second thought. Don’t you think you could?”
“I’m not sure. Part of me wants to hunt Quinten down and make him pay for what he did to Julia, but the other part, the healer part, shrinks at the idea of causing harm. If someone or something threatened Julia or Hannah, I hope I’d be able to do whatever it took to protect them.”
“Let’s hope we’re never forced to face that choice. You evaded my question about leaving.”
Riley didn’t know how to answer. She doubted Quinten would dare show his face again, and as far as he knew, they had nothing left to steal. There might be others inside the hotel who would gladly take their supplies, but even with the attack on Julia, the hotel felt like a more secure place for them. “I still think staying is the safest choice.”
