by RH Fox
I have got to get out of here and make it home! God help her, Dreia swore Abbie would never be in Carrie’s position as long as she had breath in her body.
Her throbbing head made it hard to focus on anything for longer than a few seconds and though she fought it, Dreia succumbed to a restless sleep when her body gave up against the pain.
A noise roused her hours later, and Melissa entered their small prison. She moved slowly with despair etched on her face. Z followed closely behind, carrying a flashlight. He moved the beam around the room and Dreia shielded her eyes when it landed on her.
“You’re lucky Wayne passed out before the others were done with your replacement. He planned to come back and get you.”
Dreia stayed silent and Z smirked, pivoting to leave.
“Water,” Dreia croaked. “We need some water. And the children need food.”
The man didn’t even turn around, and the shadows from his light danced behind him before morphing back into pitch-black darkness.
Dreia hesitated, not sure what to say, “Melissa, are you . . .”
“Leave me alone,” the woman said quietly.
“I’m . . . I’m so sorry,”
“Sorry for what? That you antagonized the asshole until he knocked you out, leaving one of us to bear the brunt of his temper?” Melissa spat.
“I . . .” Dreia didn’t know what to say. She felt guilty and was relieved the darkness hid the accusations that were sure to be on everyone’s faces.
“Save it! I don’t need your pity,” the woman said angrily.
Dreia pressed her lips together, tears sliding silently down her cheeks. Melissa’s traumatized face was added to the collection of grim images she now carried. One minute she prayed that Matt would show up to rescue her and the next she hoped he completely missed the sign indicating she’d come this way, terrified he’d end up in the canal.
Her head was still pounding when the absence of light began transitioning to gray. Dreia wondered how long they had before a truck showed up to cart them off to God knows what end. She hadn’t been able come up with any way out of this, and her empty holster mocked her for thinking she could.
15
Sunday, March 12th
Loud voices outside preceded the sound of a large truck’s engine. Dreia listened as grinding gears and squealing brakes signaled its stop in front of the office. The other women stirred and they all tensed when the door opened and men’s conversation could be overheard.
“How many do you have today?”
“Four, and a few more brats.” Dreia recognized Wayne’s voice.
“Not as many as yesterday. Jimmy promised Santos five a day, and you know what’ll happen if your guys can’t deliver.”
“Well, maybe Jimmy shouldn’t be making bargains with Santos. It’s asking for trouble. But since he is, what in the hell am I doing on this bridge in the middle of nowhere? There’s no way I can consistently produce here, unless everyone lowers their standards. We need one of the bigger bridges.”
“We’re working on it. That new pissant, wanna-be gang from Norfolk has somehow managed to snag control of three major crossings, but they made the mistake of grabbing one in the Tiburon’s hood. Jimmy put out feelers with them yesterday. You guys might help them take the one in their territory back in exchange for cooperation on the other two.”
“Jimmy’s making pacts with the Tiburons now, too? What the hell is he thinking?”
“It’s only a matter of time before the city self-destructs and people start turning on each other. The Council will be running things before the first die-off, and Jimmy’s trying to ensure we all have a piece of the pie when that happens.”
Wayne grumbled something Dreia couldn’t make out. She’d never heard of the Tiburons and had no idea what Council he was talking about. But, it was clear they weren’t discussing Samaritans working toward the common good. She strained to hear the new man’s reply.
“Stuff it, Wayne. Your boss is smart. He only turned over the promised five to Santos yesterday and kept the extra for later, so you’ve already got your quota for today. Plus, Jimmy had a hell of an idea last night. He’s sent a few guys to hit the high school offices. We’re about to have a bona fide shopping list at our fingertips. Then, they’ll be no shortage of young pussy to satisfy Santos, and you won’t need this bridge anymore.”
“It can’t happen soon enough,” Wayne complained as they moved to the cubicle doorway.
The man Wayne had been talking to was not what Dreia expected. He was extremely clean-cut and not wearing a leather vest. His unwrinkled khaki pants and trendy polo looked like they belonged on a country club golf course rather than helping mastermind some sort of criminal ring. She figured he’d greet them with the same fake politeness Wayne played, and jumped when he spoke harshly.
“Get up!” the stranger barked. “Let’s go.”
Dreia watched the two mothers pick up their children and hug them close as they walked out of the office. Tracy struggled to hold both of hers, but was too petrified to let either go lest they be taken from her. Melissa, head down and still shirtless, trailed behind. In the daylight her puffy eyes and bruised arms made Dreia feel even more guilt, worried it only hinted at what all of their futures now held. The new man whistled when Melissa walked past, her sports bra displaying her fit body, and this time she visibly flinched away.
When Dreia was the only one left, she stood. A wave of dizziness hit, and she steadied herself against the wall. Wayne smiled knowingly.
“This one’s going to stay one more day,” he told the other guy.
“What the hell for? You already kept the teenager.”
“She has a debt that needs to be settled.”
The man laughed, “This the one that got the best of you?”
Dreia saw Wayne’s hands close into fists before he responded through clenched teeth, “No one got the best of me.”
“Whatever. Your nose says otherwise. She’s not staying though. Your personal agenda takes a backseat to Jimmy’s plans with Santos.”
Wayne worked to hide his fury, “Fine. Take the others outside. I’ll bring this one out when I’m done with her.”
“We don’t have time for this, man, Santos is expecting me within the hour. You have until I see what’s left in the bakery, I’m starving. Put her in the truck when you’re done.”
“Plenty of time for what I have in mind.”
Dreia watched the other man leave, fear coiling low in her stomach. She cried out in pain when Wayne turned and roughly grabbed a fistful hair. She felt fresh blood from the opened scab on her temple start to drip down her face, but refused to reach up and wipe it way. Instead she stood frozen, waiting for what was coming. She stared at Wayne defiantly and took satisfaction from the bruises that had spread out under both of his eyes, which he now narrowed.
“I would have broken that spirit eventually,” he leaned in close, careful to keep a tight hold on her hair, so she couldn’t repeat her move from last night. “Do you know what’s going to happen to you and the others after I put you in that truck?”
Dreia ground her teeth together.
“Answer me!”
When Dreia continued to stare in silence, he pulled back his fist and slammed it into her ribcage. She couldn’t help the whimpers that escaped as her knees buckled. The hold on her hair kept her from going all the way down and she pushed herself back up against the wall to alleviate the pain his grip was causing. Her side was now on fire, too.
“I said answer me, damnit!”
“Yes.”
“Yes, what?”
“Yes, I know what’s going to happen to us.”
Wayne smirked, “What you think you know is not even close to the hell in store for you. You’ll be stripped of that attitude quickly once you’re sold to the highest bidder.”
There was no misunderstanding his words as he continued.
“By this time next month, you’ll wish you were dead. And in the meantim
e, Alexandreia, as soon as I get the chance, I’m going to go introduce myself to your daughter.” Wayne fished something out of his pocket and held it up.
Dreia’s eyes widened in terror as they focused on her driver’s license in his hand.
“For someone smart enough to carry half-way decent emergency supplies, leaving your address and pictures of your family right there in your wallet for anyone to find was pretty damn stupid.”
Dreia tried to grab it out of his hand, but Wayne just laughed and tossed it on the desk out of her reach. Dreia lunged for it, but her head snapped back when he tightened his hold on her hair. She fell to her knees again.
“Here, I tell you what. I’m a nice guy,” Wayne dragged her by her hair over to the desk, picked up the small square of plastic and held it up again. “What’s the magic word?”
She hated that answering him would feed into the pleasure he was getting from toying with her, but she couldn’t leave her address behind.
“Please.”
“Please, what?”
“Please, can I have it?”
Wayne laughed and clicked his tongue teasingly, “Do you actually think it matters? I already memorized the address while I was studying your cute daughter. How old is she? Sixteen? Seventeen maybe?”
“Please, don’t.” Dreia didn’t care how weak she sounded anymore, “Please, I’ll do anything.”
“Tell me, does she have your spirit? God, I hope she does.”
“What do you want? I’ll do anything you want me to do!” Dreia franticly pulled at his shirt under his vest.
Wayne laughed. “As much as I’d like to have a little more fun, you heard the boss. No time. But I’ll make sure and tell your daughter you offered. Come on, hellcat, time to go.”
He pulled her out to the waiting truck and ordered the man watching it to slide the large rear door up. It was the same moving truck that had picked up the other women. Dreia continued to plead with Wayne as he picked her up over his shoulder and heaved her onto the truck floor. She grabbed at his arms, trying to jump back down, but the other man came walking out of the market and raised his rifle.
“Problems?” he asked Wayne.
“Nope, not anymore. We were just saying our good-byes,” he smiled evilly as he gave Dreia a hard push and pulled the door down in her face.
“I’m going to come back and kill you!” she screamed in frustration and slammed her palms repeatedly against the metal door. The sting it caused paled in comparison to her aching ribs, throbbing head and all-consuming fear for Abbie’s safety. Wayne’s laugh was still audible when the truck started up.
Dreia finally leaned back against the wall in temporary resignation. The other women were sitting up against the front of the of the compartment where more boxes had been loaded, and everyone braced themselves as the truck jolted into gear.
Some early morning light seeped in around the edge of the door, and Dreia forced herself to calm down and concentrate on where it felt like the truck was turning. If it headed in the same direction as the day before, they’d cross back over the bridge and drive along the highway she’d previously traveled. She felt the truck bounce over the bridge and turn right, confirming her guess. Dreia tried to visualize what was passing as they drove, to give her a reference for the map she was plotting in her head.
None of the women spoke, worried about what was in store once the truck reached its destination.
Dreia guessed twenty minutes or so had gone by when the truck gently curved to the right. They had to be headed east on the 64. She felt her anxiety build with every minute they traveled in the opposite direction she needed to be going. It was no longer a matter of simply making it home to her kids. Now, a major threat to their safety had a face to go with it.
New fury built and she crawled around the metal floor, searching for anything she could use as a weapon on the person who eventually pulled the door up. Dreia had no idea how long it might be before the truck stopped.
“Help me find something we can use!” she beseeched the other women.
No one moved.
“Please! Think about your children,” she appealed to their maternal instincts.
“It’s no use, Dreia. We’ll be outnumbered. Fighting is more likely to get someone killed than just doing what they want,” Tracy answered.
“Melissa?”
“There’s no point,” Melissa answered, completely defeated.
“No!” Dreia screamed, standing up. “I refuse to give up. I have to get back to the bridge or he’s going to go after my daughter!”
The truck suddenly braked and Dreia was caught off balance. Her arms flailed as the momentum carried her toward the other women on the floor. When she fell, she landed across their legs and it took her several seconds to get untangled. Despite the fresh pain stabbing through her ribs, Dreia popped up and moved quickly to the rear, ready to jump out as soon as the door went up.
They listened to gunshots and yelling outside the truck. Dreia tried to make out what was being said.
“Let them go and get this truck open, so we can see what they’re moving,” someone yelled nearby.
Less than a minute later the door rolled up and another voice shouted, “Freeze!”
16
Dreia was ready to ignore the command and jump anyway. Then, she saw their uniforms and sagged to her knees.
“Thank God!” She wrapped her arm around her ribs and scooted to the edge of the truck.
The other women had identical looks of relief on their faces. When the soldiers saw only a few women and children, they lowered their weapons and looked to the man in charge for direction.
“Help them out of there!” their sergeant ordered.
Dreia cautiously slid off the back of the truck to the ground, grabbing onto the frame when stars danced around the edge of her vision. The sergeant moved close and reached out to steady her. When he saw the crusted blood and bruising, he led her over to a hummer yelling for a first aid kit.
“What happened to you?”
“Bridge ambush, down on the old canal. You’ve got to send soldiers down there to stop them. I watched them let a few people walk away, but they’re killing most of the men who try to cross and keeping the women.”
“I’ll notify my superiors, but in the grand scheme of things it’s probably not going to be a high priority right now.”
“What do you mean it’s not a priority? They’re killing people and kidnapping women and children!” Dreia was incredulous at his placid reaction.
“Ma’am, look around. Now that rioting and looting have started, there’s not enough of us to stop everything.”
Dreia followed his gesture and looked out past the highway they were standing on. The sky over downtown was filled with smoke, creating a haze over the city. She could see the light from some of the flames dancing around buildings.
“It’s only been three days,” she whispered.
“Long enough for some to see this as their golden ticket. Looting started last night. Unbelievably, the markets and stores with practical supplies were some of the last places to be hit, except for the alcohol.” The older man looked disgusted, “Instead, people were fighting in the street over things that are completely useless now.”
Dreia was stunned by the short timeframe. She’d really thought human decency would last longer. A young soldier with a first aid kit offered her a bottle of water, which she accepted gratefully. The tiny sips hurt to swallow but helped soothe her dry throat. Next, he dabbed at the cut on her forehead with an antiseptic pad. After placing a bandage over it, he gave her a small cotton cloth to clean the dried blood. Dreia tipped some water onto the cloth and gingerly wiped at her face. Her mouth was swollen where Wayne had backhanded her, and there was nothing she could do about the bruises on her face and neck.
“Anything else, ma’am?” the young man asked politely.
“My ribs are sore, but I’m pretty sure they’re just bruised, too.”
“May I?”
Dreia stood up so he could feel along her ribcage. She sucked in a sharp breath as his fingers gently probed the tender area.
“You’re right, nothing feels broken. When we get back to base, you need to get checked out by a real doctor though.”
“What? I’m not going to base.”
The young soldier looked uncomfortably toward the sergeant, who was standing next to another hummer and talking to the driver.
“I’m sorry, ma’am. We’re taking all refugees back to base. Sergeant’s orders.”
“We’ll see about that,” Dreia said over her shoulder and marched up to the man in charge. “Sergeant, I appreciate the help, but I’m trying to get home to my kids. I’m not a refugee.”
“That may be the case, but I can’t in good conscience let you run off, especially in your shape. Things are getting bad on the streets and you’ll all be safer on base.”
“But . . .”
“I don’t know how much longer they’ll be letting us bring civilians back, so you’re lucky we’re taking you now.”
“Sir,” Dreia said firmly, “I’m not going to be shuffled off to a refugee camp, because I’m not displaced. My house is barely twenty miles from here and I need to get home to my children.”
“I’m sorry, my decision is final.”
“Now, wait just a minute! You can’t force people to go simply because you’ve decided that’s what’s best for everyone.”
“Yes, I can. Martial law was declared yesterday. The military has full latitude to do what’s necessary to help bring back order. If I say you need to be off the streets and taken to a safe location, then that’s what happens. When we get there I’m sure there’ll be someone you can talk to about your individual situation.”
“I am not. . .”
“Enough!” the sergeant barked and turned to a nearby soldier. “Private, take these women back to the seven ton and find them seats. Ma’am, we’ll be at the base in about an hour and you can continue this conversation with someone else. I trust we don’t need to use restraints to ensure your cooperation?” He glared at her and she had no doubt he’d follow through if she kept arguing.
