by Logan Keys
“In this? You think they will? I’m not sure they can. If the power is out for them they have no place to…preserve and keep her. They will probably put her outside. They might even have a bunch of bodies piling up. So, you want her sitting outside in the cold like that? Waiting to be buried when it’s warm enough?”
“Wow,” Michelle said, pushing her hair out of her eyes. “Wow. You’ve really thought about this haven’t you? About burying bodies…? I’m just…I hadn’t. This is really it? The end of everything we know...?”
“When you were gone, Michelle, Carry was so bad one night that I wasn’t sure if…anyway.” He glanced away. “Yes, I’ve thought about it. I’ll give her a burial that she might not get from some stranger. You understand? Beneath my tree out back there isn’t much snow. I’ll move that old rickety shed and use the soft dirt there. Put her as deep as I can with the ice.”
Michelle paced back and forth. “We cannot have gotten this far away from civilized society. Dear God, this cannot be happening.”
Bob’s mouth curved dryly and sadly. “Seems you’re already practicing the prayer.”
Michelle stopped walking and threw her hands up. “She’s such a nice old lady, Bob. She might have family. What if they come looking and we have to tell them their sweet grandmother is buried in your back yard?”
“And now you’re already to give the eulogy. Start with the sweet grandmother bit.”
“This isn’t funny!”
Bob pinched the bridge of his nose. “Look. If she had family, would they have left her at the hospital like that? She’s probably alone. We can do this for her. Chung has been her friend. She’s had more friends since she came here from the looks of it. You and I made sure she didn’t die at the hospital alone. We will do right by her.” He touched Michelle’s shoulder. “We will.”
Finally, Michelle nodded. Though she was still horrified, what choice did they have?
Together, they moved to the living room and waited. It wasn’t long before Chung came out. “She’s gone.”
They all entered the bedroom and found Mrs. Haverstick laying at peace. Michelle sighed with regret. “I wish we knew more about her. I wish we had some clue of who to contact.” She wished Dana were there to check vitals, just to be sure. “Shouldn’t a doctor declare it? Something more legitimate to be sure?”
Bob came closer to gently touch Mrs. Haverstick’s neck and check her pulse. “She’s gone, Michelle.”
Bob seemed to be waiting for Michelle to take charge. To give permission to do this. Bob knew she was still reluctant but what choice did they have?
Michelle glanced in his direction and nodded. “Okay.”
He backed away from the body and turned for the door. “I’ll go start on the shed and digging.” His son followed him out with a backward glance.
“Thank you,” Donny mouthed, and Michelle realized it had been weighing on Bob up until now. What to do.
Michelle sighed and spoke softly as if Mrs. Haverstick could hear her when she said, “I’m going to wrap you in this sheet.” Chung came to help her. Together they shrouded Mrs. Haverstick like a mummy, the shape of her outline obvious, and so slight a thing that it made Michelle want to weep.
About an hour later, Bob returned to say it was as deep as it would be. He and Donny carried Mrs. Haverstick’s body outside. Michelle followed as they gently laid her in the earth.
Then, they all stood there unsure what to do.
Before they covered Mrs. Haverstick, everyone seemed to wait for Michelle to speak. She cleared her throat and opened her mouth. “God, you knew her better than we did. You know her even better now, I guess. Please tell her, for us, that she is missed.”
“A prayer maybe?” Bob said.
His son began for them, “Our father, who art in heaven. Hallowed be thy name…”
They finished the recitation and Bob and Donny began pouring the dirt back in. Michelle took in the surroundings, rubbing her arms as her feet and hands began to numb. It was a nice place to be buried, she thought. Right under Bob’s tree in his yard wasn’t the worst place to wind up in times like these.
Her thoughts turned to the dangers in the city all over again. Maybe Mrs. Haverstick was the lucky one after all. And then Michelle wondered if she might wind up buried like this too.
Chapter Seven
Outside of Chicago, Illinois
Brittany was supposed to know where she was or where they were going, but everything looked the same. Cornfield after cornfield. How was she supposed to find the farm house? How come she couldn’t remember?
The cold was worse than it had been in the morning, which felt opposite. Seemed to her that the sun should start to warm them all for the afternoon, but instead it was bleak out. Freezing. Her teeth chattered despite the heater in Chuck’s truck being full blast. Her head pounded with the worst headache she’d ever experienced, but she’d refused the pain pills. Though, she was beginning to regret that. Still, she wasn’t ready to go off into lala land while the kids and Colton, even Bart, were on her mind.
Brittany racked her brain for information again. How had they gotten separated? What had happened? It must have been bad.
Every corner of her mind that lead down that one thread of memory was dark and foggy with jumbled glimpses of a burning Chicago, an exploding gas station, the farm at midnight, and her world turned upside down—literally, the car flipping end over end. Then, darkness.
She even had flashes of a man she didn’t recognize. But that was murky, and his face was in the shadows. Always. Nothing else came to mind other than her last memory that was clear. Her waking up in the sleeping bag and searching for the kids. Otherwise…it was fractured pieces…clues.
The farmhouse couldn’t be far though. The caravan had even stopped at one they’d spotted from the road, but it wasn’t the right one. She recalled what it looked like just not its exact location.
“Still trying to remember?” Chuck asked from the driver seat.
“How can you tell?” Brittany asked.
“You get a scrunched-up look on your face.”
“Oh. That obvious, huh?” Brittany sighed and rubbed her temple.
“Yeah.”
“I’m sorry I’m useless.”
Chuck raised his brows, eyes trained on the road. “Why’re you sorry? I’m the one who’s sorry for you. Not knowing would drive me crazy. You said you have people you care about…out there…in this.”
“Yeah it is driving me crazy. I do have people somewhere…in this.” She gazed out of her window. More corn. She didn’t even know Illinois had corn let alone field after field. She’d only known Illinois for Chicago before this. The windy city.
“Maybe I can help,” Chuck said. “I can ask questions and if you can’t remember, just shake your head. Don’t force it. That probably makes it worse. Who knows, maybe something will shake loose.”
“Okay,” Brittany agreed.
“You were driving away from the city. Do you remember it?”
“Yeah. It was burning. But that’s all I remember. I don’t even know who I was with.”
“It’s still burning,” Chuck said darkly. “Never seen anything like it in my life. Okay, what about the car you were driving? Do you remember that?”
She’d seen it after the crash. “SUV. Black.” Then she sat up. Thinking about the car had made her think of driving it and a memory came of a lady with blonde hair at the wheel. “A woman. I remember!”
“Oh, that’s good! What did she look like?” Chuck was as excited as she was. It was endearing to have a perfect stranger egging you on.
“She was pretty. But sad…or scared. She was scared.” Brittany grabbed the sides of her head. It hurt to think.
Chuck held out a hand as if to stop her. “Whoa, don’t force it. We’re just talking. Light conversation. Nothing special.”
Brittany nodded, tears stinging her eyes. She felt so helpless, but Chuck’s positivity was winning the battle. “How did you get to Illinois?” he as
ked.
“I was driving to New York, bringing the children to their mother. She’s there. Their father passed away.”
Chuck’s expression dimmed. “That’s…that’s terrible. Were you alone, I mean, with the kids?”
Brittany shook her head. “Colton and Bart had joined me. Brothers. The earthquake hit, and we lost everyone else.”
“I remember you said that name before. Colton. I’m sorry you lost your friends, Brittany.”
“Yeah. Me too. They were their friends not mine. Then we…we were in a field. We had tried to help as many people as we could when the quake struck but wound up coming here. There was an explosion at a gas station, I think. We needed gas. But that part is fuzzy. I remember I was in the farm house. That’s the last clear memory I have, well, sort of. I think someone was with us, but I can’t remember who.”
“But you remember a farm house. For sure. Around here somewhere?”
“Yes.”
“In this direction?” Chuck glanced at her with a hope-filled expression.
“Yes.”
“Maybe you were headed back?”
“Maybe.”
Chuck thought for a moment. “Were you always in the SUV? Before?”
Brittany shook her head. “We were in a Jeep. A rented one and then…wait. The van! We were in the van, but it broke down on the side of the road.” She sat up fast and started searching the opposite lanes of travel. “The Jeep fell into the crevice and we had to use the van. It was white. It’s here somewhere.”
“That’s good. That helps! Hold on.” Chuck pulled his radio off the dash. “Sis, you on?”
“What else would I be doing?” came the gruff but feminine voice.
“I need you to keep your eyes peeled. Brittany here has some new info.”
“Roger that, bro. Whats up?” Paige sounded pleased that they’d ferreted out more information.
“White van. Broken down on the side of the road.” He glanced at Brittany.
“Old,” she offered, and Chuck repeated.
“Got it. Soccer mom wheels, a real grocery getter, plain as a daisy, and aged like a fine wine. I’m on it. Hey, bud. You got any snacks back there?”
Chuck laughed and shook his head. “Yes. But we promised we’d save these ones for dinner.”
“Dinner shminner. If we don’t see a white van in thirty, we stop and eat the reserves, capiche?”
“Roger that.” Chuck put down the radio. “Sorry about that. I wouldn’t want you to think we were making light of your bad situation.”
“No. I get it. It’s better this way. I don’t want to keep thinking about it because I can’t help them if I don’t remember. The more I stress, the less I can recall.”
Chuck sighed. “That makes sense if you think about it. Stress seizes up the brain. How about I turn on some music and we see if that helps?”
“Sure.”
Chuck put on some country music. Brittany sat back and tried to watch the road, but the music and the warmth was lulling her to sleep. Her body needed to heal, and her mind needed a break. Just a few minutes of rest, she told herself, but once she relaxed for the first time since waking up in the torn-up vehicle, she was down for the count.
**
Brittany woke in the darkness in a panic. She had forgotten where she was, and her body was stiff and achy, her head throbbing beyond what she could stand. She sat up and frantically struggled to find the car door’s latch, and when she did, she tumbled out of the truck from way up high and slammed into the asphalt. People, shadows in the darkness, rushed to help her, all grabbing for her at the same time. “No!” she screamed, remembering an evil person with a gun shooting and killing innocent people. “Leave me alone!” She fought until a familiar voice called her back from the edge of a breakdown.
“Brittany. Hey. It’s me, Paige. It’s okay, girl. I got you.” Strong hands pulled her up and then she was enveloped in a tight hug. “It’s okay. Shh. It’s me. You’re safe.” Brittany broke down sobbing in the woman’s arms.
“Is she okay?” a deep, soothing voice asked.
Chuck, Brittany remembered. She’d been in an accident and he’d saved her. Chuck and Paige were the good guys. “How long have I been out?” she mumbled pulling back from Paige, embarrassed at her idiocy.
“Half a day,” Paige said and then at Brittany’s gasp, she rushed on to explain, “But we’ve been looking for the van the entire time. You needed to sleep. Now here, water. Some food. It’s night time. We will look again tomorrow okay? The guys are setting up camp, but you and I will sleep in the camper, okay? Jude lent it to us so that you could stay in a real bed. With your ribs, that would be best.”
“What? No. I can’t. I can just…”
“Sleep in the truck? That went well, didn’t it?” Brittany could hear the woman’s smile. It made her give a small one in return. “Besides,” Paige added. “This is a good excuse for me to get to use a bed myself. I think what we should do, is get you some rest, maybe you should take one of those pain pills you’ve been avoiding and have some proper sleep. Tomorrow we can look for your friends again. Deal?”
Brittany didn’t have much choice. She followed Paige to the RV and was happy to see it would just be them inside it for the night. “Eat something before you take these.” Paige handed her the bottle and Brittany wasn’t going to argue this time. She was barely able to function the pain was so bad now.
She swallowed what little food she could get past the lump in her throat, and then she drank enough water for a camel. Brittany then took the two small pills and downed them without thinking.
Paige showed her to the shower and Brittany removed her clothing and bandages. She avoided getting her head wet, rinsing just from the shoulders down, and some of her face. The water was cold, so it provided no relief, but as the pills settled into her guts, she warmed up enough to stop shaking while she bathed. Afterwards, she was about to put back on her dirty clothes, which sort of ruined the effort, but Paige knocked on the door and offered her some of her own. They were long in the arms and pantlegs, and loose in the waist, because Paige was taller, and muscle bound, while Brittany had lost a ton of weight during the struggle of late. She just now noticed how her ribs protruded and her stomach had a sunken-in look.
Brittany barely made it to the bed before her legs gave out. She slumped down and sighed, the pills helping to finally relax her body for the first time in what felt like forever. They made her forget her troubles too, and she felt light and ready to sleep away this bad dream.
“Paige,” she asked.
Paige pulled her earbuds from her ears. She was in the high bunk up front of the RV. It only hosted two beds and was medium sized. Nothing fancy. “Where are you guys headed?” Brittany asked.
“Good question.” The woman smiled. “We aren’t sure yet, but with this weather, it’s only going to get worse, we think. Chuck makes plans. It’s what he’s good at. So, he wants to head southwest while the gettin’ is good, as he tells it.”
“Are you supposed to go back to the military?”
“Observant, huh? No. I’m retired. I still wear my tags, though. Once a marine always a marine.”
“A marine? Wow.”
“Well, thanks! You’re the first person to not ask me that question about ‘doing a man’s job.’” Paige huffed a laugh, but Brittany could tell it was a bitter one. “What about you? Where were you headed? Oh. Sorry, I forget you…forgot.”
“No. I mean. I know where I’m going. New York. So, north and east. Opposite to you all, I guess. I have to get the kids to their mother,” Brittany said and left off the fact that she had no kids with her or even knew where they were.
Worst nanny ever. Brittany fought tears, and Paige spoke softly from the other side of the RV. “We’ll find them, Brittany.”
Chapter Eight
Just Outside of Chicago, Illinois
“That’s not your dog! Now, give him to me and I’ll return him to his rightful owner!”
Colton was almost to the alleyway where Trevor had been shot by Safford when he heard someone shouting. He was just a few feet away when he paused in surprise. He would recognize that bark anywhere. Rex was going crazy and he was here, and that was a miracle enough but the fact that he also recognized Rufus yelling at whoever had Rex, was mind blowing altogether.
Colton crept up to the corner of that street, and sure enough, there was the handler with the truck that had the dogs inside of their kennels. And Rufus was squared off with the soldier, shouting him down.
“He’s out of control. Should put him down,” the sergeant said. “Has been going crazy since I picked him up. I’ve been ordered to get rid of him.”
“Get rid of him?” Rufus went toe to toe with the soldier. “Over my dead body, you will.”
The soldier pulled a pistol from his hip. “Back off, bud.”
Rufus shook his head. “Sad state of affairs when one of us is turning on our own kind. You sure you want to meet Jesus after shooting an innocent brother of combat?”
Colton stepped out of the alleyway with the M16 trained on his shoulder. “Sarge. Put your weapon down.”
The guys eyes widened. “Have you lost your mind?”
“Put it down. You’re outgunned. I won’t hesitate to shoot you.”
“Okay. Okay.” The sergeant set down the pistol, and Colton realized he had meant it. If this guy was going to shoot Rufus, he’d put him down first. And then Colton wondered when he’d turned so cold.
Rufus grabbed the pistol and held it on the sergeant as well.
Colton took that moment to free his dog. His—as he now thought of Rex. Well, his and Benton’s and Lily’s…and Brittany’s as well. He swallowed a lump in his throat when he thought of her. Like a weird survivalist family, they’d survived all together. Well, not together yet, but soon. He would not let her down. “Come on, Rex,” Colton said. The dog lunged from the kennel to his side, tail wagging.
“He’s been looking for you ever since you two split up,” the sergeant said with an apologetic tone.
Colton nodded. “I don’t want trouble. I just want my dog.”
