After the EMP (Book 5): Chaos Gains

by Harley Tate

  “I didn’t know if you were strong enough to survive it. You’ve lost a lot of blood.”

  Dani swallowed and leaned back as her vision blurred. “Tell me something I don’t know.”

  “Will says the army took Melody and Gloria alive. He watched them get dragged out the back.”

  “So why aren’t you out there trying to find them?”

  “Because I’m here, making sure you don’t die on me.” Colt pressed the bandage back around the wound. “It was touch and go for a while.”

  She thought about all that had happened. Melody and Mrs. Wilkins kidnapped by the army. Getting shot. Almost dying. Dani’s eyes flew open with a start. “Did they find Lottie?”

  Will answered. “Nope. They didn’t even check the closets. I’d let you pet her, but I don’t think that’s good for a wound.”

  Dani smiled. Maybe Will wasn’t so bad after all. “Thanks.” She worked herself higher up on the pillows so she could see more than the ceiling and Colt’s face. Doug leaned on the wall across the room, arms folded. “I’m sorry I couldn’t protect your sister.”

  His shoulders eased and he dropped his arms. “It wasn’t your job. I’m sorry you got shot. We never should have taken off and left you here.”

  “Where’s Mr. Wilkins?”

  Colt glanced at Doug before answering. “He’s still at his house. Couldn’t leave with Gloria out there somewhere. We tried to tell him it wasn’t safe, but—”

  “Granddad knew that’s where she would go first. He didn’t want her to think the worst if she came home to an empty house.”

  Dani nodded at Will. She understood, even if it wasn’t the safest decision. She glanced down at her arm and back up at Colt. “Can we get it over with? The sooner you stitch me up, the sooner I can help get Melody and Mrs. Wilkins back.”

  Doug peeled off the wall and motioned to Will. “Come on, we can go root up something to eat.” Will stood up with Lottie in his arms and Dani watched as they disappeared into the kitchen.

  She sagged against the pillow. “Any chance Doug’s got some vodka?”

  Colt’s brow tucked in. “To disinfect the wound?”

  Dani grinned. “No. To drink.”

  He grinned back. “You know you’re not old enough to drink. Besides, straight vodka tastes awful.”

  “Didn’t seem to bother you back at the apartment.” She remembered doing the same thing to Colt not that long ago. Fishing bullets out of each other was becoming too common an occurrence around here. She reached out and stilled his arm. “Thanks for coming back. I don’t know how long I would have lasted on the floor.”

  Colt focused on her wound and swallowed hard. “I’m not really an emotional guy.”

  Dani tried to blow it off. “I know. It’s okay.”

  “Hear me out.” Colt dipped his head, brows working up and down. After a moment, he rose back up to look Dani in the eye. “Like I said when we first met, I’m not a family man. Never wanted to do the whole married with kids thing. But—”

  “You got stuck with me.”

  “No, damn it. Let me get this out.” He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand like his words pained him. “You’re the closest thing to family I’ve got. And not the bad kind you want to get rid of, like your uncle Howie who double dips in the guacamole.”

  “Or my mom.”

  Colt managed a small, sad smile. “Or your mother. We’re the good kind of family, Dani. I don’t want to lose you. Not now, not ever.” He swallowed and picked up a bottle of vodka he’d hidden at his feet.

  Colt pulled out two shot glasses and set them on the coffee table as he laughed back a wave of emotion. He filled them both and handed one to her. “I know it’s not official or anything, but you’re the best daughter a guy like me could ever ask for. So don’t go dying, okay?”

  Dani looked at the vodka in the shot glass and back up at Colt. After clinking her glass against his, she downed it all in one gulp and came up coughing. “You’re right. It’s terrible.” She handed him the glass, but held onto it until he looked her in the eye. “Thanks, Colt. For everything.”

  He nodded and set the glasses down. “Now for the fun part.” He picked up a pair of tweezers and Dani let out her breath in a slow stream. She remembered how Colt almost passed out when she rooted around in his arm. “I hope you’re a better bullet finder than I was.”

  “We’ll see.”

  Colt eased the bandage back and rinsed the tweezers with rubbing alcohol. As he bent forward, she looked away.

  Pain lanced her shoulder as Colt opened the wound and Dani squeezed her eyes shut against the tears. How Colt sat there while she poked and prodded him, she had no idea. All she could think about was ripping the tweezers from his hand and hurling them across the room.

  He poked something he shouldn’t have and all the air inside her lungs wheezed out in shock. A halo of black encircled the room. Ringing eclipsed Colt’s steady breathing.

  “Don’t pass out on me. I’m almost done.”

  Dani ground her teeth and dug her thumbnail into her palm.

  “Breathe. Even if it’s shallow. In and out.” Colt hunched closer. “I’ve got the bullet.”

  Dani concentrated on her breath. Her lungs sounded like a worn-out pair of Nikes with a hole in the sole, squeaking in and out. Colt grunted in satisfaction and sat up. In his hand a bloody pair of tweezers gripped a little metal slug, deformed from slamming into her flesh.

  “That’s it?” It seemed so small and pathetic.

  “Yep. Deadly little sucker if it hits you right.”

  She fell back on the couch. “Now you have to stitch me up, right?”

  He nodded. “Afraid so. The antibiotics will take care of the infection, so closing the wound is the best thing.”

  Dani steeled herself. “Do it.”

  Colt swabbed the skin around the wound before ripping open a suture kit. Euclid Avenue Veterinary was stamped across the front.

  “You’re using vet supplies?”

  He shrugged. “Why not? They’re just as good as human stuff. Probably more durable since dogs can be real jerks about stitches. Melody has a whole trauma kit in the kitchen. Doug said she used to carry it in the car in case she found a stray that needed help.”

  Colt pulled out the needle and thread and smiled. “Besides, it sure beats a strip of duct tape or some dental floss.”

  Dani nodded. He was right. “Thanks again for going to all this trouble.”

  He gave her hand a squeeze. “You’re welcome. Now brace yourself. This will hurt.”

  Colt was good on his word: the stitches hurt almost as bad as the tweezers look-and-find. But when he finished with a good cleanup and a fresh bandage, Dani could finally think. The pain ebbed to a consistent ache and she could handle it without fainting.

  A clean shirt sat on the edge of the couch and Dani picked it up before testing out her legs. She wobbled, but didn’t fall.

  “You sure you can walk?”

  She nodded. “I’m going to change.”

  Colt pointed. “The bathroom’s just past the stairs.”

  Dani thanked him and found the little room a minute later. She locked the door and faced herself in the mirror. Blood covered her ruined sweatshirt, smudged her face, and brought back memories of a Halloween party when she lived with Gran.

  All the kids came dressed in costume. Dani had been a ghost. Just a sheet with some eyes cut in it, but she’d had a blast, eating candy, dancing to silly music. One boy had gone all out: face makeup and effects to look like a zombie. Not too dissimilar to how Dani appeared now.

  She bit down on her cheek as she tugged off her clothes. Gran had been the only family she could count on. But now she had Colt. She cleaned the blood off her face and smiled. The world might have gone crazy, but she would be okay. Together they would make it.

  Knuckles rapped on the door and Dani jumped. “Get your clothes on quick. Harvey spotted a patrol.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

&n
bsp; COLT

  Harper Residence

  Eugene, Oregon

  9:00 p.m.

  Dani hustled out of the bathroom wearing one of Melody’s T-shirts and a panicked expression. Colt ushered her over to the kitchen table where Doug, Harvey, and Will gathered.

  Harvey scrubbed at his face where a beard now began to grow. Finding his neighbor murdered and his wife missing took a toll on the man. He nodded at Colt. “They were coming from the south, no attempt to hide or play coy. Three Humvees, one with a turret.”

  Colt stared at the map Harvey brought with him from his house. “We have to assume they’re coming back to finish the job. Either someone tipped them off to our presence or—”

  “Melody and Gloria talked.” Doug pinched the back of his neck as he stared at the little lines zigzagging all over the map. “If they tortured my sister—”

  Colt held up a hand. “We’ll deal with it. But right now, we need to focus on not being captured or killed.” He tapped his finger on the intersection three blocks away. “What’s up this way?”

  “More neighborhood.” Harvey ran his finger down the street and paused at a blob of green. “This is a park. It’s not big, but it has quite a few trees. Some decent cover at night.”

  “Only if they aren’t using night vision.”

  Dani glanced up at Colt. “If they are?”

  “Then we’re screwed. They can see us two hundred yards away.”

  “Shit.” Doug leaned back and crossed his arms. “So we can’t use the dark to get out?”

  “It won’t matter if we’re dressed in all black and keeping to the shadows, current NVGs are almost as good as daylight.” He turned his attention back to the map. “Our best option is to find another place to hide. Somewhere they won’t be able to find us.”

  “Like a basement?”

  “Or an attic. A neighbor’s house they’ve already cleared. If we can get inside quickly and quietly, we should be able to hunker down and wait them out.” He pointed at the map. “A street or two away would be ideal.”

  Doug spoke up. “Lucas lives over here.” He pointed at a street much closer to campus. A mile away, at least. “He would take us in.”

  “It’s too far.”

  “But it’s closer to the University. We’ll be in a better position to rescue Melody and Gloria.”

  Colt glanced at Dani. “We aren’t well enough to travel that far.”

  “Yes, I am. I can make it.” She pinned him with those big, unflinching eyes of hers and Colt softened. Such a tough kid. He needed to protect her, not force her to run through the streets of Eugene with the army on their tail. “We need to figure out what they’re planning. We can’t just rush out of here and head straight for the lion’s den. For all we know they’re hoping we do exactly that.”

  Colt reached for his binoculars and handed them to Will. “Can you set up on Melody’s porch upstairs and watch the street? They won’t be as good as night vision, but your eyes should adjust quickly to the dark.”

  Will nodded and rushed up the stairs, binoculars in hand.

  Colt stared at the map in an attempt to memorize the streets and the best ways to make it to Lucas Shaw’s apartment. After satisfying himself, he clicked off the small lantern and plunged the first floor into darkness. “Now we wait and watch. As soon as we figure out what they’re up to, we can decide.”

  It didn’t take more than a minute for Will to come rushing down the stairs. Even in the dark, Colt could make out the whites around his irises. “We have to go, now!”

  “Why?”

  “They aren’t canvassing door-to-door. They’ve got a torch. I think they’re going to light something on fire.”

  Colt grabbed the binoculars from Will and rushed to the front window. He brought them up to his eyes and focused on the end of the street. A dark plume of smoke rose up at the edge of his vision, sparks of color visible at the edge of the horizon. Damn it.

  He put the binoculars down and turned to face everyone. “They’re trying to smoke us out.” So much for hunkering down in one place and riding out the neighborhood search. “Guess they didn’t like not finding us at home.”

  “What are we going to do?” Will’s voice cracked on the last word, but he stood firm at the edge of the table. Poor kid would have to grow up fast. Dani had already learned the hard truth about life before Colt met her, but Will… He’d been lucky.

  Doug offered a suggestion. “What if we split up? Two groups, one goes toward campus, one goes away.”

  “We’ll be too thin. There aren’t enough of us who can shoot and aren’t injured. Dani and I aren’t one hundred percent. Will hasn’t learned. We have no means of communication.” Colt scratched his head. “I say we leave, but all together.”

  Harvey shook his head. “We can’t just run. They’ll burn my house. Gloria’s garden. It’ll all go. I can’t let that happen. The garden was everything to Gloria.”

  Dani spoke up. “She doesn’t care about the garden, not the way you think.”

  Harvey started, shoulders bunching up as he came close to shouting at Dani. Colt held up a hand. “Let her finish.”

  “When we were shelling peas, we talked about it. She told me life was all about facing challenges and putting in the effort. That you couldn’t just sit back and watch life happen to you.” Dani swallowed and kept going. “When I asked if she’d leave everything behind, she said yes. She would want us to do the same thing.”

  Harvey blinked in rapid succession and eased into a chair. “That sounds like Gloria. Always looking forward, never back.” He cradled his forehead in his hand. “I’m the one who has trouble letting go.”

  Colt gave the older man a solid pat on the back. “You’re not the only one. But Dani’s right. We need to move. Staying here only increases the risk.”

  “Hand me the binoculars. I’ll check it out from the backyard. I built a berm back there for the pit toilet. It’s got enough of a rise to see over the fence.” Doug hustled out into the yard.

  A breeze blew in the open door and brought a whiff of smoke along with it. If they could smell it already, the blaze was large and unpredictable.

  Doug rushed back in, pale and disbelieving as he focused on Harvey. “Your house is on fire.”

  Harvey hung his head.

  “But not only yours. It looks like the army is out for vengeance. They’re lighting every house on the street. People are in the road. My friends. Neighbors. Some of them I haven’t seen in weeks. I thought they were gone.”

  Colt nodded. “What’s the army doing with them?”

  Doug shook his head. “Nothing. Ignoring them, mainly.”

  “How much time do we have?”

  “Minutes.” Doug glanced back at the yard. “They’re a few houses down, but it won’t be long. If we’re leaving, we need to go. Now.”

  “Then let’s do it.” Colt barked out orders. “Everyone grab some gear. Dani, hand out the rifles. Will, get Lottie in that traveling bag of Melody’s. Doug, sling that trauma bag on your shoulder. I packed a bag full of water, so I’ll get that.”

  “What about me?” Harvey stood on shaky legs.

  “You take the binoculars. We need you to tell us where to go.”

  In a matter of minutes, they were ready. Dani held a rifle in her good arm, Colt stood at the back door with a pack and his Sig, and the rest of the team followed behind. He motioned to go and Harvey took the lead, sneaking out the back and into the side yard.

  They worked in a pattern, zigzagging around bushes and fences and away from the fire. When they reached the intersection Colt had pointed out on the map earlier, they paused to regroup. The house on the corner offered near perfect protection with a gangly, vine-covered fence. Everyone except Colt crouched behind it.

  He took the binoculars and eased as close to the street as he dared. Doug was right. Neighbors in nightgowns and boxer shorts stood in the street, pointing and hugging each other. Fires leapt and danced across the roofs of at least four
houses. Soon, it wouldn’t matter whether the army lit more fires or not; the flames would spread. The whole neighborhood might burn.

  They had to move. Somewhere the army would never expect to look for them. Somewhere they could set up camp and regroup before attempting a rescue mission. Colt hurried back to the group and found Doug in the shadows. “Can you get us to Lucas Shaw’s apartment?”

  Doug nodded.

  “Then lead the way. It’s as good a place as any.”

  Doug headed around the back of the house and out to the cross-street. Dani and Will followed, but Harvey hung back. Colt crept up to his side. “Is there a problem?”

  The older man frowned. “Gloria and I lived in that house for forty years.” He wiped at his eyes. “We raised our son there. Birthdays. Christmas. So many memories. Now there won’t be anything left but ashes.”

  Colt wrapped an arm around Harvey’s shoulder and squeezed. “But you’re still alive to remember. And so is your grandson and your wife. We’ll get her back, Harvey. But only if we run.”

  Harvey nodded and turned away from his life. Colt ushered him along and the pair caught up with Doug and the children.

  The rag-tag crew hustled away from Bellemeade Way, dodging bushes and fences and one abandoned play set after another. When they were five blocks from the street and the smell of smoke barely reached their noses, Doug slowed.

  “It’s a straight shot now right toward campus. If we get separated, Lucas is the brown three-story walk-up at the corner of Pope and Sinclair. Top floor.”

  Everyone nodded. They had to make it. They had no choice.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  MELODY

  University of Oregon Campus

  Eugene, Oregon

  9:00 p.m.

  Melody backed into the corner. The second the soldier shoved her into the room, she knew her day had gone from bad to horrible in an instant. They weren’t going to lock her in a hole. They weren’t going to forget about her in some dark, windowless room where she could sing to herself and count down the hours until someone rescued her.