by E A Chance
“A few days can feel like a lifetime in a crisis. You were kind to stay and try to save Kyle. No one would have blamed you for leaving him there to die.”
She turned to face Riley. “I never could have done that.”
Hannah ran to Angie and took her hand as she and Riley rejoined the group. “I’m sorry your friend died, Mrs. Hughes. You can be part of our family now. Coop and Riley will take care of you.”
Riley was touched by Hannah’s words, but she couldn’t mistake Coop’s thoughts on the matter when she glanced at him to gauge his reaction. They barely had enough to survive on with only four of them after what Crawford and his men took. Taking on another adult would tax their rations to the breaking point.
Coop closed the tailgate and shoved his hands in his pockets. “We’ll take care of Kyle’s body in the morning,” he said, letting Hannah’s comment drop. “Let’s see if the occupants of the house are willing to put us up for the night.”
They were parked in front of a quaint yellow house with an old model Buick in the driveway. The house and yard were well maintained and surrounded by a thick grove of trees.
“It’s cute,” Julia said. “Like a cottage from a fairytale.”
“Let’s hope there’s not a wicked witch inside,” Coop mumbled. “Riley and I will check first. The rest of you wait in the truck.”
“Back in the truck,” Julia grumbled as she opened the door. “I’m sick of the truck.”
“Be grateful we have it,” Riley said, as she followed Coop to the front door.
He knocked politely and waited for a full minute before knocking louder.
“Maybe they’re asleep,” Riley said.
Coop knocked a third time. “Or even better, maybe there’s no one here.” He slowly turned the doorknob. It was locked, but he had no trouble kicking it open. “I’ll go first.”
Riley was more than willing to let him take the lead. He pulled Crawford’s gun from his coat pocket and flicked on his flashlight. The interior of the house was as well cared for as the exterior. From the crocheted afghans and outdated upholstery, it was clear the cottage belonged to someone elderly.
The house was freezing. Ashes in the fireplace were cold even though there was a stack of wood on the hearth.
“Hasn’t been a fire here in for at least a day,” Coop said. “That’s a sign in our favor. Check the kitchen, and I’ll take the bedrooms.”
He disappeared into the darkness of the hallway. Riley clicked on her penlight and headed from the small living room to the cozy kitchen. Unwashed dishes with the remnants of breakfast rested in the sink. An open newspaper from the day the CME hit lay unfolded on the table. The pantry was stocked with canned goods and other nonperishable foods. They’d hit the jackpot.
“Riley, you need to see this,” Coop called from the opposite side of the house.
She followed his voice to a small bedroom at the end of the hall. His flashlight beam illuminated the body of an elderly man motionless on the bed. An oxygen cannula and tube attached to a concentrator lay next to him. Coop glanced at Riley, then shifted the beam to the body of an elderly woman crumpled in a heap on the floor.
“Explains why the cupboards are stocked,” Riley said. “He must not have lasted long without his oxygen once they lost power.”
Coop gently rolled the woman onto her back. “Doesn’t explain what happened to her.”
“She didn’t starve or freeze to death. I found cases of water bottles in the kitchen. Makes no sense.”
“Might not have been capable of caring for herself. Alzheimer’s, maybe?”
“Doesn’t matter now. What are we going to do with them?”
“I saw a shed off to the side of the yard. I’ll see if there’s room for them in there. Kyle, too.”
Riley took an afghan from a rocking chair in the corner and covered the woman. “I don’t like the idea of chucking them in the woodshed, but it’s late, and the ground’s too cold to dig graves.”
Coop wrapped the man in the bedspread. “I didn’t say chuck them. We’ll put them there for tonight and figure it out in the morning.”
The sound of the front door banging open made Riley jump. Coop grabbed his pistol off the bed and put his fingers to his lips.
“What’s going on in there? We’re about to freeze to death,” Julia called.
Riley let out her breath. “I told you to stay in the truck. Don’t come down the hall, sweetheart. Coop and I have something to take care of first, but you can start unloading the cab.”
“Best news I’ve ever heard,” Julia said, slamming the door behind her.
“Hurry,” Riley told Coop. “We have to move Kyle’s body before we can unload the truck bed.”
They returned to the front of the house. While Coop pried open the frozen back door, Riley searched for mail or something else to identify the couple. A black pocketbook rested on a small table between the kitchen and living room. Riley hesitated to invade the woman’s privacy, but she wanted their names to say a few words when they buried them in the shed. She found a large wallet containing a checkbook with the names Charlie and Elsie Stevens.
She was about to drop the wallet into the pocketbook when she noticed an insulin pen and an empty refill cartridge at the bottom. The mystery of Elsie’s death was solved. She was diabetic and had run out of insulin. When Coop burst through the back door, stomping the snow from his boots, she turned her back to wipe away tears with her coat sleeve.
Without facing him, she said, “How’s the shed?”
“Plenty of room. I found a hose to siphon gas and a few other supplies we need, but I’ll pack them into the truck when it’s light.” When she didn’t respond, he said, “What’s wrong?”
She crossed the room and wrapped her arms around him. “I’m just sad for the Stevens. They look like nice people. I wonder if they had grandchildren.”
Coop put his hands on her shoulders. “The Stevens?”
“That’s the couple’s last name. Let’s get them moved so we can settle in and get some sleep. This has been the longest and most harrowing day of my life.”
Every inch of Julia’s body throbbed. After endless hours cramped in that stinking truck and multiple rounds of loading and unloading their supplies, she’d still had to help carry in their belongings while her Mom and Coop took care of Mr. Bradley and the Stevens’ bodies. She thought she’d drop right to sleep after their meal of canned stew and toast heated by the fire, but she was wide awake.
The five of them were snuggled up on mattresses in front of the fireplace in a small den at the back of the house. Hannah and Angie were out cold, and her mom was snoring like a lumberjack, which Julia had never heard her do.
Coop’s mattress was near the door. She could see in the firelight that he was on his back, staring at the ceiling. While she watched him, she thought of how her mom, Angie, and Hannah had cried while Coop told them about the Stevens, but she hadn’t felt a thing and worried she was getting numb to the sight of death.
Not wanting to be alone with her thoughts, she turned to Coop and whispered, “Why are you still awake?”
He rolled onto his side and propped up on an elbow. “I’m keeping watch, but I should be asking you that question.”
“Wish I could sleep. I must be overstimulated. Mom always says that when Jared’s wound up and can’t sleep.”
Coop chuckled. “Sounds like your mom. Try relaxation exercises. Picture your muscles relaxing and take deep, even breaths.”
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Can we stay here for a while, Coop? It’s such a cute house. There’s lots of food and it’s so warm. I bet there’s even a well, so we won’t have to collect snow for drinking water.”
“I didn’t see a well, but there’s a creek at the edge of the yard. I need to survey the property in the morning. If it checks out, we’ll stay a few days if your mom agrees, but I know she’s anxious to get to your uncle’s ranch.”
She took one more deep breath
and let it out slowly. “Me, too, but I need a break before another day like this one.”
Coop yawned and rolled onto his back. “Same here. Trust me, tomorrow will be easier.”
She wanted to believe him, but he couldn’t know for sure. None of them could.
The fire was getting low, so she got up to throw on a log. She left the screen open and stood on the hearth, letting the heat sink into her bones. She’d never experienced cold like she had that day, especially in the woods with Hannah. The warmth soothed her muscles, and she began to feel drowsy.
Coop’s eyes were closed and his breathing was deep and even when she climbed back onto her mattress. So much for keeping watch, she thought as she closed her eyes. She couldn’t blame him. He must have been more exhausted than the rest of them put together.
The next thing she remembered was hearing a loud pop in the fireplace. She sat up as a shower of sparks landed on the ratty old rug in front of the hearth. Flames leaped up and licked the corner of her mattress. She sprang up and tried to smother the blaze with her blanket, but the fire was spreading too fast.
“Fire! Everybody up!” she cried.
The flames had covered a third of the room by the time the rest of them were on their feet. They swatted at the fire, but it overwhelmed them in seconds. It curved around toward the door, blocking their exit.
Coop yanked open the window, and the flames soared higher. “This way,” he yelled over the roar.
Hannah reached him first. He thrust her through the opening, and Riley and Angie climbed out after her. Coop lifted Julia through just as a spark landed on the leg of her sweatpants and caught fire. He pushed her out and dove after her. Riley rolled her over to douse the flames in the snow.
They all scrambled to their bare feet and dashed to the street, twenty yards from the inferno. They stood on the frozen ground and watched in shock as the fire engulfed their sanctuary and the rest of everything they owned.
When Hannah started shivering, Coop ran to the truck and drove it up to the road. “Get in before you freeze.”
The rest piled into the truck, but Julia stood on the edge of the pavement, hopping from foot to foot against the cold before taking off at a sprint toward the burning house.
“Julia!” she heard her mother scream but ignored her and kept running.
Coop was behind her seconds later and grabbed her arm to stop her from reaching the flames. “Julia, what are you doing? Come back to the truck.”
“No,” she cried and struggled to free her hand. “Let go of me. The fire’s my fault. I didn’t close the fireplace screen, and now everything is gone. The fairytale cottage, our clothes, shoes, first aid supplies, and the wonderful food, all gone. I saw pancake mix and real maple syrup in the cupboard! We’re all going to die because of me.”
Coop took her by the shoulders and shook her. “Listen to me. You’re in shock. I won’t let any of us die. Things can be replaced but you can’t. I’d trade all of it for one of you.”
Her eyes widened as his words sunk in, and she became still. “You mean that? After what I did?”
He put his hand to his heart. “Would I lie? Come back to the truck. Your mom’s freaking out. You don’t want to scare her more than she already is, do you?”
A wall caved in and sent sparks flying toward them. Julia jumped out of the way and took Coop’s hand to let him lead her to the truck. He opened the door and helped her up to the seat beside Hannah.
Her mom opened her mouth to speak, but Coop said, “Don’t ask.” He pulled the truck closer to the house but kept a safe distance. “The fire will keep us warm until morning, so we won’t have to waste gas running the heater. Once the fire’s out, we’ll see if there’s anything we can salvage. If not, we’ll move on and look for a new place to restock. In the meantime, I suggest we get some sleep.”
There was a frightening crash as the roof crumbled and fell to the floor. Julia rested her head on the cold window and watched her fairytale go up in flames.
Sunlight crept over Riley’s face, and she let its warmth sink into her skin before opening her eyes. The heat from the fire had kept them from freezing during the night, but the flames had faded, and the temperature inside the truck was dropping. She rubbed her face and sat up to check on the others. Angie and the girls were still sleeping, but Coop’s seat was empty. She wasn’t worried. He couldn’t have gotten far on bare feet.
She needed to go to the bathroom and hoped the trusty bucket had survived. She tore up a sweater she’d left on the seat and wrapped her feet in the pieces before climbing out as quietly as she could and tiptoeing to the back of the truck. Coop wasn’t there, but the tailgate was down, which meant he was nearby. The bucket was on its side in the bed next to a tarp and tool chest. Angie joined her just as she reached in to grab it.
“I tried not to wake you,” she said.
Angie shook her head. “You didn’t.” She looked at Riley’s sweater-clad feet and raised her eyebrows. “Glad I sleep in socks, though they won’t keep my feet warm for long. My bladder’s about to burst. You don’t happen to have a porta-john, do you?”
Riley held the bucket up by the handle. “Best we’ve got.” She set the bucket down and leaned against the truck, staring at the smoking remains of the house. “Still glad we rescued you?”
Angie gave a half-grin leaned against the truck next to Riley. “Believe me when I say yes.”
“I can’t imagine what a nightmare it must have been living in that plane for a week.”
Angie closed her eyes. “No, you can’t.” Riley put her hand on Angie’s shoulder. “But that’s over, and I’d like to use that bucket now if you don’t mind.”
Riley pulled a dirty, half-used roll of paper towels from the truck and handed it to her. “All yours.”
Angie crossed the road with the bucket and went into the woods for privacy. As Riley hopped onto the tailgate to wait her turn, Coop came up the driveway and stopped in front of her. He shook his head and stared at the ground.
“Nothing’s salvageable. The fire incinerated everything. Even the shed got torched. Kyle and the Stevens were honored with a funeral pyre. We won’t need to dig graves.”
“Not sure if we can call that a silver-lining or not, but the way the house went up like a matchbox, we’re lucky we didn’t join them.” Riley watched the rising swirls of gray smoke. “What happened with Julia last night?”
Coop rubbed his forehead. Without meeting her eyes, he said, “She was in shock and blames herself for the fire. She forgot to close the screen after she added a log and it sparked. If she hadn’t been awake, we all probably would’ve died.”
“Poor Julia. This is the last thing she needs.” She rubbed her arms. “I need to get back into the truck after I use the bucket.”
He kissed her cheek. “I’m going to make use of a tree, then we’ll plan our next move.”
She squeezed his ice-cold hand. “We’re in trouble, aren’t we, Coop?”
“Not a bit. You have me,” he said, as he wandered off toward the woods.
Angie came back from the opposite direction and handed her the bucket and paper towels before getting back into the truck.
Riley set them on the ground. “This will have to do,” she said to no one as she pulled down her sweatpants and squatted over the bucket.
When she was finished, she woke the girls and told them to hurry so they could get moving. Julia was the first to come back to the cab. She climbed in and hooked her seatbelt without uttering a word. Riley looked at Angie and rolled her eyes toward the door.
“I’ll check on Hannah,” she said and left them alone.
Riley tried to brush the hair out of Julia’s face, but she ducked out of the way. “Coop told me what happened with the fire. I know you feel responsible, but it was an accident. Stop blaming yourself.”
Julia looked her in the eye. “Doesn’t matter if it was a mistake or accident. It was my fault.”
“Your fault or not, it’s in the past.
We can’t change it, and the way I see it, you saved our lives.”
Julia studied her for a moment. “I thought you’d be so mad at me.”
“You thought I’d be angry over a mistake?”
Julia nodded slowly. “You’re always telling me to pay better attention and not rush.”
Julia shivered, so Riley draped one of the surviving blankets around them and rested her chin on the top of Julia’s head. “I’m sorry I made you feel that way. It’s important to pay attention, but after what we’ve been through these past two days, any of us could have made that mistake.”
Julia pulled away and met Riley’s eyes. “But I’m the one who did.”
“What if it had been Hannah or me? Would you hold it against us?”
“Never, but I’m the one who has to be strong and take of you and Hannah.”
“Is that what you think?” When Julia nodded, she said, “You have that backward. I’m supposed to care for you. I know I haven’t always been there since Dad died, but I’m the parent, and I promise to be there for you from now on. I do appreciate you being a big sister to Hannah, too, but you’re not responsible for her. Let’s put this behind us and face forward.”
Angie and Hannah climbed into the truck, so Riley unwrapped herself from the blanket and motioned for Julia to cover Hannah. Julia gave her a knowing smile.
Coop emptied the bucket onto the glowing embers of the cottage and rejoined them after closing the tailgate. “Our top priorities in this order are shoes, warm clothing, water, and food. Do you all agree?” The four women nodded. “I got out of the fire with my gun and a full cartridge, but we lost the ammo, so we need to stay close and be alert. And let’s avoid any more accidents.”
Riley caught him glancing into the rearview mirror to give Julia a wink. She smiled and took a deep breath, reminding herself how lucky they were to be alive and wondered how much longer that would hold true.
“That looks promising,” Angie said, as Coop passed a pretty brick farmhouse missing a front door.
