Julia shook her head, jerking a shaky thumb over her shoulder in the direction she came.
“A-accident. Plane…” she said. Why was it so hard to talk? “Plane accident. Crash.”
It was so nice to just lean on the car. She wanted so badly to just lay down.
“A what now? I haven’t seen any planes. That head injury looks nasty, you could be delusional. It’s not uncommon…”
“I’m fine,” Julia said, fixing the man a stern glare. “I was on a plane headed to Philadelphia. Something happened, and it crashed. There are people still in there and we need to help. Call 911 now.”
The man nodded and dove back in his car. He came back with his cell phone in hand.
Julia watched as he fumbled with it.
“This damn thing won’t work,” he said. “It hasn’t been for a while. I think something’s wrong with the battery.”
“Did you charge it?” Julia said.
“Of course, I charged it!” The man said with a huff, handing it over to her. Julia didn’t know why until she realized she had reached for it. She fumbled with the phone, pressing the power button and home button like she had done earlier. Nothing. The phone wouldn’t turn on. Something told her this wasn’t a coincidence.
“You can’t trust technology these days,” he said, voice tightening to a frustrated grumble. “So damn complicated just to make a simple damn phone call.”
Julia tuned him out, trying to push away the sinking feeling of foreboding from her chest and stomach. It was odd that both phones would be dead like this. Julia’s mind suddenly brought back a memory of the plane, the way the engines had suddenly stopped working. It couldn’t be… could it?
“Hello? Miss?”
Julia looked up and handed the phone back to the man, “Nothing. It’s dead.”
“Well, what do we do now?” said the man.
Julia fought the urge to stare at him like an idiot. Did he just as a concussed and bleeding plane crash survivor what they should do next? She was literally unsteady on her feet and he thought she’d have answers?
He kept staring at her.
Julia sucked in a breath and tried to stand straight. Unbelievable.
“We need to find a phone… or someone with a phone,” she said. “Do you know where we are?”
“Last I checked… about ten minutes from Summersberg,” the man said, scratching at his head.
Julia pushed herself off the car and started walking around him. A persistent little chime reached her ears from inside the car. Oh good. It works.
“Take me there.”
She hobbled over to the passenger door and popped it open. She didn’t wait for him to respond as she collapsed into the seat. Every muscle in her body decided to protest when she did, exclaiming aches and pains that sapped her energy to care.
She needed a bed. A hospital and a bed. But before she could give herself the luxury, she needed to warn police about the plane and its survivors. She couldn’t trust the old man to do it for her at this point.
At some point the old man sat back inside and shut the door. For some weird reason they didn’t move. Julia shifted in her seat and fixed him an incredulous look.
“Drive.” Julia motioned like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
The man gave a start, as if he’d been caught daydreaming with his mouth open. What’s the matter with him? Julia caught herself from getting frustrated. Shock is a nasty drug. People don’t always react the same.
After an awkward moment, the man turned on the car—Julia let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding—and they lurched into movement. The engine chugged along, and it wasn’t a smooth start, but it was a start at least. Only at the rate they were moving, Julia doubted they’d make much distance.
“Step on it,” said Julia. “Those people out there need medical attention fast.”
The engine revved as the man squeezed the accelerator. Soon they were flying down the tree-lined rural-seeming road at a pace that put her a little more at ease.
“Take it easy,” said the man. Julia blinked in confusion before she noticed he was glancing nervously at her leg. It was bobbing rather fast. “We’ll be there soon.”
“How soon?”
“Less than ten minutes. Try and get some rest. You look like you need it.”
“I’m not tired.”
That was lie. Luckily, he didn’t push her.
Julia watched as he rose a hand toward the knob for the radio. Her body bristled, agitated.
“Could we not?”
“Uh, sorry,” he said. “I just thought about that plane crash… it could be reported by now.”
Oh. Right. Julia’s eyebrows knitted together. Why hadn’t she thought of that?
“Right,” she said, giving him a slow nod. “Good idea.”
He pushed the button. Julia braced herself for a loud sound… but nothing happened.
The man made a distressed noise, pressing the button again and again.
“Come on. Damned radio,” said the man, before he reached up and slammed his hand on the dashboard a couple of times. Julia winced at the harsh sound. Yet the radio would not turn on.
“Great. Just great.” The man said, grousing. “Damn thing is fried, too.”
This was…odd. Right? Julia wasn’t much of a conspiracy theorist but something about this didn’t smell right. First the plane crash…but not just that, the way everything just… shut off before it did. Then her phone. Then this guy’s phone. Now the radio isn’t working? If they were connected, how could they have been?
Trees and powerlines sped past them in a blur as they drove fast down the road. The man muttered to himself, cursing his luck. But Julia had a feeling that luck had nothing to do with this.
“You ever hear about an EMP, Julia?” her dad’s voice came to her then in the form of a memory. “Stands for Electromagnetic Pulse. A small charge could knock down anything electrical within a few feet. But a weaponized EMP? It could easily knock out the power from an entire city.”
Could it have been an EMP? No way. That seemed a bit too much even for her. Besides, if it was then why was the car able to work? Julia glanced down at the radio and dashboard. Old. Practically ancient. There was nothing electrical about this except the radio. Maybe this kind of system wouldn’t be affected by an EMP…
Julia looked up to see a recent model BMW parked off the side of the road with the hood popped up. She barely saw the confused expressions of the people around it before they disappeared behind them.
BMW’s have electrical systems these days…
Julia’s lips thinned into a tight line. No way… no way.
She must’ve dozed off because next thing she knew the old guy was slowing down before fully stopping.
“What’s the matter?” she said, voice coming out in a slur.
Up ahead, a black SUV with painted blue lettering that read, SUMMERSBERG POLICE, lay parked laterally across the street. A police officer with a wide-brimmed hat waved them down before approaching the car. The old man rolled down the window.
“Officer,” said the man. “Thank goodness. We need…”
“I’m sorry,” said the officer. “I can’t let you through here. Turn around.”
“But, there’s been a plane crash!” said the man, waving his hands in the air hysterically. “A plane crashed! a few miles up the road. Don’t know where. This girl. She—one of the survivors—she needs help. There are people who need help!”
“Take it easy, slow down,” the officer said, shaking his head. Not buying it. “You can’t get through here.”
Julia leaned across her chair to meet the officer’s gaze.
“Officer, I just got out of a plane crash. I was on the plane headed to Philadelphia International Airport, but it crashed in the woods.” Julia said as slowly and as clearly as she could. The officer’s jaw dropped when he got a good look at her. “You need to radio some backup and head over there as fast as possible. There are peop
le who need help.”
“Holy shit,” he said, scrambling for the radio on his shoulder. Julia sagged a bit on her chair. It was getting harder and harder to keep it together. “This is officer Tanner, I’ve got a 10-60, repeat 10-60. Request immediate dispatch, over…Damn. Why aren’t the radios working?”
Julia perked up at that, the back of her mind tingling with foreboding.
“I’ll… shit… I have to head to the hospital and get help.”
“Can’t you use your cell phone?” said the man next to Julia.
“It’s dead,” said the police officer. “Nothing’s working.”
The officer turned and rushed to his car and sped off. Wheels peeled off the asphalt with a screech as the SUV headed towards town.
“We better follow him if he’s headed to the hospital. I don’t want you dying in here.” said the man, shifting gears and following. The engine sputtered but they moved fast enough to see the SUV appear within sight.
“I’m fine,” said Julia. “Just take me somewhere where there’s a working phone.”
She needed to talk to her parents, and not just because she’s scared and needing to hear their voices. Something about this is all off. If this was an EMP, they’d have an idea on what to do. Concussion or not, she needed better instructions than a hospital can give her.
“Who do you need to call?”
“My parents,” Julia said. “Believe it or not but they’re what you’d call preppers. All my life they’ve told me stories and tales about what to do in events like this. A bit paranoid, but they always had answers to this sort of stuff.”
“What, end of the world sort of stuff?” the man said, his tone sounding like he was trying to make a joke. Julia didn’t laugh.
“Do you think your parents really know what’s gonna happen?” the man asked after she said nothing.
“My dad likes to think so,” Julia said with a snort. “He likes to think he knows all the answers to all kinds of possibilities. It gets old after a while.”
Yet some of that must’ve stuck even after all the years of her trying to tune it all out. Who else would plant the idea of an EMP so thoroughly into her brain? Back then it always stunk of conspiracy theories, paranoia and distrust in the government and world at large. It’s crazy how much that can change with a single crash.
The truth was… she was scared. Terrified.
Strong willed and maybe even stubborn, yes. But she’s still just a kid heading off to her first year of college away from her parents. She’s allowed a bit of fear.
Everyone does. And if this is what she thinks this is… food, water, tools…those were going to be crucial to get her hands on until she can figure out an answer to all this.
Suddenly her vision blurred, and Julia groaned. She vaguely remembered hearing the man say something before she was teetering.
“I don’t wanna go… hospital…” she tried saying. She can’t remember much else from that before she blacked out yet again.
When Julia woke up, her head felt like a screw had been wedged into her skull. She groaned in protest but something about her mind felt clearer. Hurt like hell, but clearer.
What happened?
She opened her eyes and saw she was laying down on a hospital bed in a hospital room. Cold and dark save for sunlight peering through the tall blinds to her left. The bright sunlight was too familiar and suddenly she remembered.
The crash. People screaming. Possible EMP. The cop. The man and the car with the broken radios. She sat up and looked around.
“Hello?” said Julia.
No one answered.
The lights were off. She checked her arms. No IV. No beeping machines.
Julia fumbled for the buttons on the side of her bed. She hit all of them, hoping it would gain some attention and someone could hear. But no kind nurse appeared in a rush to check on her. Nothing happened.
No one came.
“Hello, anyone?” Julia called out, her throat aching.
She moved out of bed, realizing she still had her shoes on. She glanced down. She was still in her clothes from the crash.
What time was it? Julia looked up toward the digital clock on the wall and found it blank and dark. She walked toward the door and pushed it open. The hallway was dark and empty.
“Hello? Anyone here?” Julia called out. Her voice echoed back eerily. Julia shuddered.
Was this hospital wing abandoned? No. No way.
Julia took a step and nearly crumbled to the floor. Her arms tightened around her cramping stomach. Her throat hurt, and her mouth ached with how dry it was. She was starving.
And parched. Weird how her body didn’t notice these things right off the bat.
To her relief, there was a water fountain nearby. Julia didn’t waste time wondering about the sanitary issues with a water fountain in a seemingly abandoned hospital. She needed water.
She hit the latch and shoved it down. There was a minute of nothing but silence. Julia wiggled the latch when she heard a strange rushing sound. A stream of water bubbled out of the fountain’s mouth before gaining strength. Julia sighed in relief and ducked down to drink until her belly grew full of water and the foggy pain in her mind cleared.
Julia wiped her mouth with the back of her sleeve when she felt something crusty on her face. She rubbed it and saw it was a dark rust color. Blood?
No one cleaned it off? Did anyone even look at her when she was dumped here, or did they just toss her in a room and left?
This whole place was creeping her out.
Julia wasted no time and hurried down the halls until she found a fire escape door and opened it.
A concrete staircase yawned before her. Light from the large windows keeping it bright. She hurried down until she found the exit doors and pushed her way out. She was out of breath by the time she got out, her injuries protesting and leaving her light headed.
A breeze filled her lungs and Julia felt her energy rise under the warmth of the sun.
Everything was so peaceful and quiet.
Too quiet…
She was out behind the hospital, where the dumpsters and air conditioners sat undisturbed. The air conditioners were silent as the hospital. There was no doubting it now.
This had to have been an EMP. Julia couldn’t think of anything else that could have caused such a power outage like this. Hospitals are supposed to have backup energy systems. They’re own power grids in case the city power goes down and patient lives are at stake. But no. Everything was dead. Even the emergency lights were dead.
Suddenly Julia was struck by a memory of the plane crash. All that screaming and panicking. All those people crying out before it all went to black. All those dead bodies…
Julia’s stomach lurched. She couldn’t do anything for them now and thinking about it wasn’t going to find her help.
Julia sighed and kept moving until she found a back road.
She needed to find food and water, she needed to find a working phone. It was a long shot but maybe there’s a chance she could get in contact with her parents. Even if this EMP hit California, she was certain they’d be fine. All their talk and preparation were most likely serving them well now. She just needed to tell them she was okay and that she was alive in Pennsylvania.
Maybe this was all just localized here, thought Julia. The government could be scrambling their forces to fix this situation as we speak. If that was the case, it was only a matter of time.
Her stomach twisted and churned. Water wasn’t a good enough replacement for food. Julia walked along the road until she came to town.
But no one was around. It was deserted.
Julia had no clue what was going on. She walked around, peeking through windows and calling out for anyone. Nothing. Not even an echo. It was a ghost town.
She doubted she’d have luck finding help in the nearest Sheriff’s station either. Something about all this made her think they’d be just as useless as she felt.
She could do this
. This was the first time she’s ever been so truly alone, but this was what she was preparing for. Okay, maybe not on this scale…but she had always been independent and strong. Moving out, living on her own, it was all her idea.
But that was all that was—an idea.
She had never actually done anything like this before without her parents. It was scary as hell… but what choice did she have?
“Get it together, Jules,” she said. That’s right, the only person she could trust right now was herself.
Even so, Julia’s mind was scattered. Her thoughts seemed to tumble over each other, like big snakes swallowing each other up.
The rumbling sound of an engine somewhere behind her made her freeze. Julia turned around and saw a truck making its way in her direction. It was a pickup and it looked to be heading out of town. Good.
Julia waved her arms and flagged the truck down.
Julia sighed in relief when it slowed down and stopped by her.
“You alright?” the driver asked from a rolled down window. Julia nodded. The driver was a woman in her early thirties, pretty and with black hair that hung down over her shoulder in a thick braid. She had a sensible sort of beauty, nothing all done up like the girls Julia knew back in California.
“You need a lift? Looks like you got a nasty cut there,” the woman said pointing to her temple.
“Yeah. Long story.” Julia said and reached up toward the door. The woman unlocked it and it swung open. Julia hoisted herself in and sighed when her back met with sun-heated faux leather upholstery.
“Looks like you’re the only one left in town,” the woman said, as Julia settled on the bench seat. There were wood carving tools on the floor and the interior was dusty.
“Sorry about the mess,” said the woman. “I’m a carpenter. Shit gets everywhere, you know how it is. Hope you don’t mind.”
“It’s cool.” said Julia.
“Name’s Susan.”
“Julia…can you tell me what’s happened? I woke up in the hospital and everyone was gone.”
Susan’s face brightened with alarm. “Hospital? And no one saw that cut? You sure you’re alright?”
“I’m alive…” said Julia before adding, “I was in a plane crash.”
Crash Page 2
