“Hal, did we have to alter our route?”
“No, sir. We are traveling on the same detour we took to the Castle.”
“Are you sure? Run a diagnostic on the GPS systems.”
“Of course, sir. Standby. Diagnostic complete. All systems are functioning properly.”
“Okay. Well then, where the hell is Denver? We should see the lights on the horizon.”
“Sir, my sensors detect that the city of Denver is in fact to the northwest. It should be visible.”
“Well, Old Man, either my eyesight is going or something isn’t right.”
“Standby, sir. Give me a moment to investigate.”
“Hurry up; I don’t like this at all.” Howard was getting very nervous. Did something happen while we were in the Castle? Am I losing my mind?
“Sir, the city of Denver is currently in a blackout. Electricity ceased functioning approximately forty-seven minutes ago.”
“Well, that’s a relief. I thought the city had vanished. Makes sense. Any idea what happened?”
“It is hard to discern the exact cause from the current data. Reports of widespread rioting might be the cause.”
“Did the rioters sabotage the power grid? That seems a little complicated and organized for a mob.”
“I tend to agree with that assessment, sir. The logical assumption is that the authorities disabled the power in an attempt to regain control of the city.”
“Well, night-vision would give them the upper hand. Let’s just hope it doesn’t backfire and they start setting fires.”
“That would be unfortunate, sir.”
“Do you anticipate any trouble along our current route?”
“My analysis does not indicate any reason to alter our route. If you would like, I can take a route that puts us further away from the city. The new route would add twenty-three minutes to our trip.”
“Do it.”
“Yes, sir. I will continue to monitor the current situation. I have heightened security at the residence and launched sentry drones to monitor the immediate area.”
“Excellent. I need a distraction. Play an episode from season six of The Next Generation. Pick one at random.”
“Yes, sir.”
The windshield blackened out the frightening world as the episode “Tapestry” played.
“Good choice, Old Man, one of my favorites.”
The rest of the drive was uneventful. They arrived at the estate, and Howard entered his home. He was happy to be safe in his private world. He decided to scour the Internet and the major news outlets to see if he could find out anything that could explain what was happening to Denver. What he saw confirmed Hal’s theory. The authorities did in fact disable the power to the city to confuse the rioters and prevent them from organizing. Howard looked at the time and realized it was past 2am. He climbed into bed and gave Hal some final instructions before he went to sleep.
“Hal, I want you to extend the perimeter of the drones by fifty percent. Monitor any traffic that enters the perimeter. If any vehicle is on a direct route to the residence, I want you to wake me immediately.”
“Yes, sir. Sleep well.”
Howard drifted off to sleep. Hal stood watch over the estate and monitored the ten-mile perimeter. He monitored some sporadic traffic that entered the perimeter and did not wake Howard because their routes did not come near the residence. At 4:30am, Hal took notice of a large convoy of vehicles headed in the direction of the estate. They slowly approached a four-way stop. If they turned left, Hal would wake Howard. The convoy stopped and a few people congregated near the intersection, clearly discussing which way to turn. They got back in their vehicles.
Hal turned on the lights in Howard’s bedroom.
“Excuse me, sir. Are you awake?”
Howard sat up and rubbed his eyes. “Yes, Hal, what is it?”
“Sir, a contingent of National Guard soldiers is approaching the residence. If they maintain course and speed, I estimate they will be passing in front of the residence in twenty-five minutes.”
Howard Beck was terrified. He did not like guests. He certainly didn’t like multiple guests that carried big guns.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“ALL INMATES ON THE YARD RETURN TO YOUR ASSIGNED CELLS!”
“Eat shit!!”
“Fuck off!!”
“Make us go to our cells, you cocksuckers!”
Richard Dupree knew that things were about to get very bad in a very short amount of time. The nine hundred inmates on the yard had completely forgotten about the ash that was covering the ground and getting in their hair and eyes. They readied themselves to do battle with the three squads of Riot Control Teams staged behind gates that would spill them out on the yard in three directions.
“ALL INMATES ON THE YA…”
A live voice silenced the loudspeaker. The recreation yard fell silent.
“Gentlemen, may I please have your attention?”
“Who the fuck is that?” asked Head.
Richard had heard the voice before. He never forgot a voice or a face.
“That’s the Warden,” Richard answered.
“No shit?” Tank asked.
“Big man himself,” answered Richard.
Three things about the words he had just heard made Richard realize that they were in deep shit. The first was that the warden had called them “Gentlemen.” He had never once in his incarceration been called a gentleman. The second was that the man said “please.” Hacks don’t say please, it just didn’t happen. The third and most troubling was that the top man at the prison had asked a question. Inmates were not asked to do anything. Inmates were given a command and if they did not comply, the next step was, well Richard had never witnessed the next step for himself. Non-compliant inmates were taken to the Special Housing Unit to be locked in a cell with three other inmates twenty-three hours a day for a very long time. The cells down in the SHU were about the size of the average American’s bathroom. Four men living on top of each other in such a small space made for a living hell.
The warden’s tactic had been effective. You could hear a pin drop.
“As many of you already know, much of our state is seeing the worst wildfires in our state’s history, the evidence of which is falling all around you. The ash falling to the ground is only the first stage and will be the easiest for us to manage. The second stage of this disaster puts every one of us, staff and inmate alike, in great danger.
“Get us the fuck out of here!”
“You gonna let us die in here? You can’t do that!”
“We don’t wanna die!”
The inmates on the yard were on the brink of an all-out riot. Many began to run around in circles screaming at the four speakers on each end of the center guard tower. Richard laughed out loud when he realized most of the inmates thought the warden was addressing them from inside the tower. Richard knew the man was on the other side of the electric fence sitting comfortably in his gigantic office deep inside the Admin Building, talking into a microphone. The inmates began to pile up on the fence leading to the corridor that led out of the prison.
The Warden continued, “Please, please, you have to listen to me! Please, remain calm! Your lives depend on it, I promise you!”
That got the attention of the inmates, who continued to pile on the fence trying to get out. They didn’t stop their aggressive behavior; they did however, stay quiet enough for the Warden to continue.
“Thank you, I appreciate your cooperation. For the last twelve hours we have made preparations to lock the facility down and ride out the disaster. Our previous estimate led us to believe that we would have another twelve hours to prepare. That has changed. A massive cloud of smoke and ash was due to hit Highland Valley later tonight. However, a weather system twenty miles away has changed direction and will meet up with the smoke cloud, blowing it to us sooner than we had anticipated. The weather system will drop the smoke cloud into Highland Valley, keeping it on top of us fo
r eight to ten hours.”
“Jesus, does anybody understand what that asshole is talking about? Is he speaking English?” asked Spider.
Richard knew he couldn’t make Spider understand weather systems, so he tried to dumb it down the best he could. “Spider, he’s saying the Smoke Monster from Lost is coming for us.”
Spider got angry with Richard. “Fuckin’ Smoke Monster? Dude on the speakers is making more sense than you, man. Jesus.”
“Dude, you’ve seriously never see Lost?” Head began to laugh.
“Naw man, we didn’t have no TV when I was a kid.” Spider tried not to look embarrassed.
“For real man, best show ever made. No joke, you should check it out. It’s about these people who crash on some island, I’m gonna say Atlantis or some shit. Then some whispering dirty people kidnap the fat dude, the…uh…what was that guy’s name from Party of Five? Fuck, never can remember. The doctor guy and I think like four other dudes. Then the bald guy and uh… it was Jack!! Yeah, that’s it. They blow up this underground house from the 1950s, had to be some old shit cuz the music was played on these mad huge black things as big as a dinner plate…”
Richard seriously enjoyed listening to Head confuse one of his favorite shows, but they didn’t have the time to listen to him tear J.J. Abrams masterpiece to shreds. “Head, shut up. I’m starting to wonder if you’ve actually seen the show or just listened to an Alzheimer’s patient describe it to you.”
The Warden continued, not having paused for Head’s review of Lost. “…..are confident that the air handlers in the cell blocks will keep the smoke out. What little smoke does enter the buildings will pass through air filters. I give my solemn word to each and every one of you that you will be safe. I also give you my solemn word that if you remain on the yard for another, uh… Kevin, how much time do we have? … forty-five minutes, you will die out here. Please, I am begging you, return to your assigned cells so that we can batten down the hatches and survive this disaster.”
The Warden had to wait through a full minute of quiet murmurs and inmates running back and forth talking with their respective gangs before large groups began to turn and walk to the cellblocks.
“Thank you gentleman. Let’s show the country that the Highland Valley State Prison is the best of the best.”
Richard didn’t move. He had to think about everything that the Warden had just said before he did anything. Tank, Head, and Spider looked to him for guidance. Richard would have a plan.
Richard always had a plan.
*
Two hours prior to the ashes falling, Warden William Vandehoef had met with his Executive Staff in his office. The people who helped him operate his facility were seated on couches opposite each other. To his left were Associate Wardens Kevin Kapparis and Stephen Courts. Seated next to them was Captain John Zamir. On the opposite couch and to the right of the warden sat his Executive Assistant Jose Bertrand, Utilities Executive Richard Landry, and Emergency Preparedness Officer Jay Foxworth. The Warden first addressed his EPO. “Jay, is there any chance at all that this thing will miss us?”
“Warden, this thing is coming right for us unless we’re lucky and get blessed with some divine intervention.”
“God will not intervene and save these animals,” A.W. Kapparis said.
The warden addressed the man who had just spoken. “Kevin, is there any chance at all that the buses can make it in time?”
“No, sir, I’m afraid not. I’ve been on the phone with Vegas for the past hour, and the fastest they can be here is eight hours.”
The closest major city was Las Vegas, fifty miles to the east. The best they could offer was a fleet of school buses. The inmates would have to be in full restraints, so the preparations would take some time. That was the original plan, based on now erroneous information that led them to believe that they had until 10PM to get everyone out. With the weather system pushing the black cloud to them earlier, the buses would arrive far too late.
“We don’t have that kind of time,” said Captain Zamir.
“The state can be here in roughly two hours,” replied A.W. Kapparis.
“Well that’s good news!” said the warden.
“Not exactly. They can only provide buses to hold maybe five hundred inmates.”
“Shit, that’s barely a third of the population.” A.W. Courts shook his head and rolled his eyes.
With the plan of moving the inmates out of the facility impossible, the Warden turned his attention to the utilities executive.
“Rick, how long will the inmates last in the cellblocks?”
Landry knew he was about to piss off his boss. “An hour, maybe two at the most.”
The executive assistant turned and addressed the man sitting next to him. “I thought the upgrades to the air handlers had been finished?”
“We did upgrade them.”
The warden look confused. “So what’s the problem, Mr. Landry?”
“The problem, sir, is the ash. Once the ash starts falling, the air ducts will be clogged within an hour. Once the hot air from the smoke pushes the ash out of the way, smoke will pour into the cellblocks. At that time, the air handlers will turn on and try to pull the smoke out of the unit. The ash already in the air handlers will burn out the motors, might even catch them on fire. The air filters were never designed to handle that kind of load and will be essentially worthless. The inmates will be dead in an hour, two would surprise me.”
“Shit! Shit! Shit! What the hell are we supposed to do, people? I need answers and I need them fast!” The warden looked desperate. The inmates had already been walking the yard for some time when this meeting began.
The executive assistant was the first to speak. “Mr. Landry, couldn’t we rig the air handlers to turn on now so the smoke could be pulled out?”
“Mr. Bertrand, that was my first thought. There are forty-eight air handlers, four in each cellblock. I estimated that our best shot was to rig two in each block to come on and hope for the best. The problem is, if we started immediately, we might get eight of them rigged in time.”
A.W. Courts did the math. “So four units out of twelve could be saved.”
“Exactly, but that’s if we start immediately; we don’t have a second to spare.” Utilities Executive Landry looked to his boss for the go ahead.
“Get started,” the warden replied.
“You got it, boss.” Landry keyed up his radio and gave the order.
“Jay, how long do we have before ashes start falling on us?” the warden asked.
“An hour, maybe two,” the EPO replied.
“Shit. That only gives us time to finish one cellblock.” Richard Landry looked defeated.
“Are you sure about that, Jay?” the warden asked.
“Yes, sir, I am.”
Most of the men in the room started looking around to see if anyone was going to speak up.
The Warden could tell he was missing something. “What is it? What am I not being told? Somebody better start talking and quick.”
“Well, pretty soon we’re gonna be dusting the ash off our resumes so I’ll say it.” Captain Zamir leaned forward in his chair, ignoring the stare of the emergency preparedness officer.
Zamir pointed to Jay Foxworth. “This guy has no idea what he is talking about.”
“Hey, not called for!” Foxworth said.
“Oh, shut up, Jay! We all know the reason you got this job was because of your wife. You have absolutely no clue what you’re doing.”
“Not true! How the hell was I supposed to know some weather would come out of nowhere and blow the thing right to us? No way are you going to pin this on me!”
“It’s called The Weather Channel, mother fucker; maybe you should check it out!”
“Hey spic, you wanna take this shit outside? Call me mother fucker one more time and see what happens.” Jay Foxworth stared daggers into the man.
Captain John Zamir stood up and bowed out his chest. “You so much as ope
n your idiotic, racist mouth again and you’ll be swallowing your teeth!”
“What are you going to do, beaner? Cut me?”
“That’s it! You opened your mouth, told you not to open your mouth.”
Zamir started towards his target when the rest of the men in the room quickly held the two men back from fighting each other. The men calmed down and stood on opposite sides of the room.
The warden hadn’t moved from behind his desk. He felt that to do so was beneath him. Someone needed to maintain a level of composure and control.
“Sit down, all of you.”
The men took their seats. Zamir and Foxworth didn’t look at each other.
“Mr. Foxworth,” the warden began with frightening calm, “Captain Zamir is right; this is your fault. It is your job to monitor anything outside these fences that could do harm to the inmates in our charge. If an earthquake hits, we look to you to do your job. If the facility managed to catch fire, you would be our liaison to the emergency crews. AND IF A FUCKING CLOUD OF SMOKE AND ASH IS HEADED FOR US WE LOOK TO YOU TO DO YOUR GODDAMNED JOB!”
The warden slammed both fists down on his desk and swept everything on his desk in the direction of the Emergency Preparedness Officer.
“Gentleman, someone get this piece of shit out of my office.”
“What? You can’t do that! You don’t know what kind of trouble you’re gonna be in when I te…”
“What? You mean when you cry on a vid-con like a little bitch to your wife in Sacramento? Is that what you were going to say to me? I can give one good goddamn if your wife works in the governor’s office.”
“You’ll regret this; I promise you’ll regret it.” Foxworth said with a cocky smile.
“Not today, I won’t. Why is no one getting this man out of my sight?”
The men in the room watched in awe as the dumb ass was finally getting what he had coming to him. No one wanted to move an inch for fear of missing the show.
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