Gateway to Chaos (Book 2): Seeking Refuge

by Payne, T. L.

  With Antonio and DeAndre no longer slowing them down, they made better time but were still so far from their destination. They’d walked for hours and only gone a few miles. Brandon had replaced Raine pulling Antonio’s sled. Alicia was pulling DeAndre’s.

  “Momma, I can’t feel my feet,” DeAndre said.

  Raine looked around for somewhere to get out of the snow and wind. She doubted they’d find anywhere with the heat they all desperately needed.

  Up ahead and to her left, she spotted a white barn. It was such a strange sight to see in the city, she wasn’t sure exactly what it was. But as they got closer, she could see white fenced corrals and knew her assumption had been correct.

  “There,” she said, pointing to the barn.

  Brandon and Raine went in first to have a look around. It was deserted. It looked like it had once been a riding stable, but no horses were boarded there now.

  “They probably rode the horses out of town,” Brandon said.

  Raine stared into an empty stall. “Too bad. We could’ve used them.”

  Brandon walked over and looked out a window. “There’s a house or something over there.”

  “You think it’s safe to stay here then?” Raine asked, walking over and joining him.

  “We should check out the house. Maybe they have a fireplace.”

  “I don’t know. What if someone’s home?”

  “Stay here. I’ll go look in the windows.” Brandon sprinted down the aisle between the stalls and out the side door.

  Raine watched from the window as Brandon searched for a way in. A moment later, he returned, gasping for air.

  “Someone’s home. An older couple,” he said as he tried to catch his breath.

  “Did they see you?”

  He swallowed hard and took a deep breath. “No. But their big old dog did.”

  “Did he bite you?” Raine asked, looking him up and down for injuries.

  “No. He was inside. He barked, though.”

  “You think we should stay here then?”

  Brandon looked out the window then back at Raine. “Let’s give it a second. If no one comes out, then I think we’ll be safe to stay awhile,” Brandon said.

  No one came out of the house. Raine and her group huddled together in a small room filled with saddles, bridles, bits, and horse blankets. Sheena wrapped DeAndre in two saddle blankets, removed his boots, and placed his bare feet against her stomach to thaw them. Raine found a bin filled with saddle blankets and passed them out to the others. Raine held a pair of lined, waterproof gloves into the air.

  “Anyone need warmer gloves?”

  Tom raised one of his bandaged hands. “I need mittens if you find any. My hands are frozen.”

  Raine searched but didn’t find any. She did find a hammer, a file with a sharp pointy end, and a large pipe wrench. All things that could be used as weapons. Not very effective against bullets, but they were better than nothing. She reached up to a bin on a shelf above a row of pegs where the bridles hung and found a roll of duct tape. She wasn’t sure how, but she thought it might be useful, so she added it to her collection.

  She opened the door and walked down a short hall into another room containing hay and bags of horse feed. She was about to turn and go back when a bundle of empty feed sacks caught her attention. There looked to be at least twenty empty plastic bags tied tight with baling twine. Raine rushed over to the bundle, pulled out a bag, held it up, and examined it. She recalled that a girl in her dorm had made a tote from a plastic feed bag. Raine had something in mind that would help them stay warmer. She grabbed the bundle and headed back to the tack room where the others were resting.

  “What are those?" DeAndre asked.

  “Horse feed bags.” Raine dropped them on the floor and pulled one from the bundle. She held it out. “Here, Sheena, place his legs in here.”

  Sheena stared down at the bag.

  “It will hold his body heat in—kind of like a sleeping blanket. Wrap his legs in the saddle blankets and then stick them inside the bag. We’ll tie them tight with this piece of twine and his own body heat will keep his feet warm. It will help keep his feet dry when he is on the sled too.”

  “Hey. That’s a good idea. Can I have a couple of those?” Antonio asked.

  “Everyone should take some,” Raine said, handing three bags to Antonio.

  Raine distributed the feed sacks to the others, then took the remaining sacks and sat on the floor with them.

  “Can I see that knife, Brandon?”

  He wore a curious look as he pulled it out of the pack and handed it to her.

  Raine slit the sides, opened the sacks, and aligned them side by side into one big sheet. She grabbed the roll of duct tape from her pile of finds and taped the bags together into a small tarp.

  “It’ll make a good ground cover. Put this under you and it’ll help block the cold and moisture from the concrete floor,” Raine said, spreading the homemade tarp out on the floor.

  The others joined her sitting on the tarp, covered in the saddle blankets for warmth.

  They talked as they each ate a few crackers with cheese spread from the MREs and took a few sips from a water bottle. Raine stared down at Sheena’s chipped blue nail polish. She admired her ability to stand out and be noticed. Raine had never sought attention. She’d convinced herself that she didn’t want any. Now, when it looked like the world she knew was over or at the very least put on a long hiatus, she wished she’d done more to stand out, make her voice heard, lived a little.

  She chewed her bottom lip. It was still cracked, and the cold air only made it worse.

  “You from here, Raine?” Lucy asked.

  Raine turned to her. She’d never been comfortable talking about herself, especially with strangers. Telling Lucy where she was from was such a small thing, but the next question usually had to do with where her family was. That… That she didn’t want to discuss.

  “No,” Raine replied. “I was here for college.”

  Lucy nodded.

  Raine glanced over at Brandon. He’d been wrapping duct tape around the end of a metal pipe. He looked up, and their eyes met. Raine averted her gaze.

  Raine fiddled with her nose ring.

  “Where’s your family?” Alicia asked.

  There it was. She knew it would come. It was like she had a big sign posted above her head saying, “ask me about my screwed-up family.”

  “Florida. Panama City, Florida.”

  “Gawd! I’d give anything to be there right now. The apocalypse sure would suck a lot less on the beach,” Lucy said.

  The apocalypse. Was that what this was? Was this the end of the world?

  “I know, right!” Alicia said.

  “I haven’t been to Florida in years,” Tom said. “We used to go every year when I was a kid. We’d spend Christmas with my grandparents down near Tampa before my dad died. We didn’t go anywhere after that.” He looked down at the injured hands in his lap.

  Raine stared at him. He looked so different with his hair singed and short. Something else was different, but she couldn’t place it. Then she realized he’d shaved his goatee off. He looked younger. He looked up. His eyes were moist. Raine wondered if the memory had made him emotional or if it was drugs. She wasn’t sure if he had any. He likely hadn’t given Brandon the last he had to make the trade for the food and water.

  “Are you heading back to Florida when the lights come back on?” DeAndre asked.

  “Yeah. I’ll have to, I guess,” she said.

  “You can stay with me and Momma. Can’t she, Momma?”

  Sheena rubbed his feet. “Yeah, Dee. Raine can stay with us.”

  Raine smiled. “Thanks, Sheena.”

  Raine knew that most of them didn’t have a home anymore. Except for Alicia, that was, but even she was planning to abandon it and head to the country to stay with her sister. They all were officially refugees. She hoped they’d all be able to find refuge somewhere and soon. Silence fell ove
r the travelers as they waited for their extremities to thaw so they could continue their journey. To where, Raine wasn’t even sure. Alicia’s house first but for how long? Then what? She was exhausted already. Walking in the deep snow really took a lot out of a person. With her feet finally thawing under the saddle blankets, Raine’s eyes grew heavy. She leaned her head back on the post of a shelf and closed her eyes.

  The door into the tack room flew open. Raine opened her eyes and turned toward the door. The barrel of a rifle poked through the opening, followed by a husky man in a robe and slippers. Raine’s eyes were fixated on the rifle he held in his hands.

  “What are you doing in my tack room? Are you here to steal from me?” the man yelled, jabbing at the air with the weapon.

  No one spoke.

  Raine was frozen in fear. Her mind raced as she tried to comprehend what was happening. Her gaze shot to Lucy. Would she pull her pistol to defend them? She looked back to the homeowner.

  The man pointed to the exit door.

  “Get out of my stable.”

  Brandon stood and held his arms out, palms up.

  Raine slowly rose to her feet.

  “We just needed somewhere to warm up,” she said.

  “Not here,” the man said flatly.

  “We’re just trying to survive,” Raine said, her tone low.

  “So are we,” the man replied.

  “You can take your finger off that trigger, mister. We’re leaving,” Brandon said, backing toward the door.

  Sheena reached over and grabbed DeAndre into her arms and ran toward the door. Alicia jumped up, wrenched open the door, and the three of them fled into the cold. Lucy helped Antonio to his feet and the two followed Gage and Tom through the door. Brandon stood in the doorway waiting for Raine.

  She turned and backed toward the door, her focus never leaving the rifle in the man’s hand, his finger still in the trigger guard.

  He twitched the barrel slightly.

  “I said get.”

  Raine took two steps back. Her foot landed on something. She looked down.

  DeAndre’s boots.

  She pivoted, bent over, scooped up the boots from the ground, grabbed her bundle of extra clothes, and ran for the door. Brandon stepped outside and held the door open for her. As she went through, Raine turned to look over her shoulder.

  “I’m sorry,” she said.

  “Me too.” He looked remorseful, just not enough to let them stay, she guessed.

  Raine didn’t blame the man. He was just trying to protect what he had. He didn’t know them and didn’t owe them anything. Raine was surprised at how quickly life had evolved into every-person-for-themselves. But would it soon come to kill or be killed? The first people they’d encountered after leaving the shelter had shot at them without even shouting a warning. At least this man had given them the chance to leave with their lives and limbs. Would everyone they meet now be so unwelcoming?

  Raine and Brandon caught up with the others back on Baxter Road. She was relieved to see that most of them had retained their saddle blankets. They’d be somewhat warmer, but they had stolen them, so she had mixed feelings about the matter. They’d left the food and water, though. That was a problem. A big problem.

  “You got Dee’s boots,” Sheena said, relief filling her voice. DeAndre was still wrapped in his handmade sleeping bag.

  “We should get out of here before he realizes we stole his saddle blankets,” Brandon said.

  “And these,” Raine added, holding up the file, pipe wrench, and duct tape she’d rolled up in her blanket.

  Chapter 13

  Baxter Road

  Chesterfield, Missouri

  February 19th

  Brandon and Lucy led the group away from the riding stable. Raine wasn’t sure if the others had noticed, but Lucy gripped her pistol inside her coat pocket, the butt of the pistol peeking out. Alicia and Sheena had grabbed the two sleds when they fled the barn. After Sheena slid DeAndre’s boots back onto his feet and wrapped him back up in two saddle blankets, she retied the feed sacks around him. They followed Brandon and Lucy. Raine picked up the rope of the sled carrying Antonio and pulled as Gage gave him a gentle shove from behind to start their forward momentum.

  Raine thought she should have felt more rested after their break, but she wasn’t. After fleeing at gunpoint, she was drained. The thought that they had at least seven more miles to go before they reached Alicia’s had her spirits at an all-time low. She questioned whether they could even make it at this point.

  When Baxter Road widened, Raine’s stomach clenched. The road widening probably meant they were leaving the quiet residential neighborhood and entering a potentially dangerous commercial district. Her fears were confirmed when she spotted the first commercial building up ahead.

  The two-story mortgage company’s windows were smashed. Looters likely looking for cash rather than liquor or electronics. The convenience store across the street had been looted for sure. Trash was strewn across the parking lot.

  “We should check it out and see if they left anything edible behind,” Brandon said.

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea. It’s too dangerous. Someone could still be in there,” Sheena said.

  “I’ll go with you,” Lucy said.

  Brandon nodded. “You guys wait here. We’ll go check it out.”

  Brandon and Lucy disappeared into the store and reappeared a moment later.

  “Anything?” Raine called.

  Lucy shook her head. “Nothing.”

  “We’re going to check a couple more stores along here before we push on,” Brandon said.

  They turned left onto Clayton Road and weaved between the stalled cars in the intersection. Raine joined Brandon in trying the car doors. The few cars whose owners had thoughtfully left their vehicles unlocked for them were empty. All they found were packets of ketchup and breath mints left over from their trips to drive-thru restaurants. Raine thought of her own car still back at her apartment. She wondered if it too had caught on fire when the wind swept flames from building to building. There had been a treasure trove of fast-food condiments in the console of her Ford Focus.

  As they searched the shops and restaurants, they found very little food. In the pizzeria, all that was left were packets of parmesan cheese. It wasn’t nothing, but it was a long way from anything that would provide energy for the next seven miles of walking. The Subway sandwich shop and Mexican restaurants only held condiments as well. Even the fitness center’s windows were broken out. They checked out a few more restaurants and a wine and cheese shop before giving up on finding anything substantial to eat and heading back toward Baxter Road.

  They kept pushing south until Baxter veered off to the east through more residential subdivisions. The houses were close together on this stretch of road. It made Raine very nervous because at any moment, a homeowner could step out their front door and take a shot at them as they passed. But no one did.

  Raine looked over the guardrail as they passed over Grand Glaize Creek hoping to see running water. If the creek was running, she couldn’t see it beneath the deep blanket of snow. Anxiety was mixed with hope when the street widened from two lanes to four again. Raine was hoping they would find somewhere to rest and warm up again, perhaps somewhere with something to eat and drink, but she knew that was a long shot.

  “How far do you think we’ve walked?” Sheena asked.

  “About five or six miles, I’d say,” Antonio said.

  “How much farther?” DeAndre asked.

  “About another five miles,” Alicia answered.

  Raine looked over her shoulder. The sun was getting low in the sky, and the temperatures were dropping rapidly. She wasn’t sure she could make it another five miles. She especially wasn’t looking forward to walking in the dark.

  To her left, Raine spotted another shopping center with a grocery store. All the shops appeared looted, but they needed to check them for food and useful items. They needed to m
ake it quick, though. They would need to find a place to spend the night. It just wasn’t feasible to keep going in the dark.

  Brandon made the left turn into the center’s parking lot. “I’m going to check it out.”

  “I’ll go with you,” Raine said. She wanted to make it a quick in and out before anyone spotted them.

  “Me too,” said Lucy.

  The three of them fast-walked toward the grocery store at the end of the building. It looked like people may have been there very recently as the footprints weren’t filled in with snow like the ones they’d seen at the other stores. As soon as Brandon stepped onto the walkway leading to the grocery store, a gunshot rang out from inside. Raine dropped to the ground and covered her head with her arms.

  Lucy tapped her on the shoulder. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Raine stood and followed Lucy back to the road. Brandon shot past them. The others had taken cover behind nearby cars.

  Lucy ran up and grabbed the rope to Antonio’s sled. “Hurry. Get back on. We need to get away from here before they decide to come after us.”

  Raine followed Lucy as they rushed to distance themselves from the shooter. Sheena passed her pulling a smiling DeAndre as fast as she could go.

  “There,” she said over her shoulder. “Up ahead. That bridal shop. I doubt anyone would be hiding in there.”

  “I don’t know, Sheena…” Raine started to say before more gunfire rang out behind them.

  They turned right and cut through a car dealership before coming out in front of the bridal shop. Sheena didn’t wait to form a consensus. She yanked on the sled and hurried around to the back of the building. The others followed her. Brandon pulled on the door handle. It was locked. He stepped back and looked at the ground.

  “What are you looking for?” Raine asked.

  “Something to smash the window.”

  “They’ll hear that," Raine said, looking over her shoulder for any sign of the shooter.

  “Raine’s right. We have to find a quieter way in,” Antonio said.

  Brandon headed off around the side of the building. Everyone fell in and followed him to what looked like a set of fire escape stairs leading to a door into the second floor. Alicia put her foot on the bottom step.