by Tate, Harley
The group rippled as John squeezed in beside her. “What did I miss?”
“Us gawking over your lady friend here.” The older woman waggled her finger. “Tell me you know what’s happened?”
John scratched behind his head. “Can’t say I do. Was hoping you fine people could tell me.”
“Oh, Lordy. Here we go again.” A middle-aged man in a Kennesaw State sweatshirt pointed up toward the sky. “The sun belched. A big ole burst of energy. It hit the earth and zap! There goes the grid, everything connected to it, too. No more power. No more computers. Nothing. All fried.”
Emma glanced at John. “How big of an area?”
“I heard as far as Canada,” volunteered a squat man in glasses.
“I heard down into Mexico. Maybe even South America,” said a young woman with a tattoo snaking over her left arm.
It couldn’t be true. Emma looked around the circle. Everyone seemed in agreement. “What’s going to happen now?”
“Nothing good,” offered the woman who’d first made room. “We figure there’s a few days where people won’t know what’s hit them, when money will still have some value and we can get by. After that—”
“All bets are off.”
“I vote martial law,” Mr. Braves Cap said. “Tanks on the streets, man.”
The man in glasses shook his head. “We’ll have FEMA camps and hot rations in a week.”
Ms. Tattoos disagreed. “Anarchy. That’s the truth.”
Emma couldn’t process any of it. “You’re all talking like this is the end of the world.”
“It is, sort of.” Mr. Kennesaw State pounded a fist into his palm. “The end of the good ole US of A, that’s for sure.”
“I don’t believe it.”
“Then get back in your car, honey.” Ms. Tattoo shooed her with her fingers. “Be just like all the other sheeple out here waiting for Uncle Sam to save them. Baaaa.”
John slipped his hand around Emma’s arm. “We should go.”
Emma moved to pull away, but his grip tightened.
“Don’t want the old lady scared to death, huh, pal?” Mr. Kennesaw State grinned. “I don’t blame ya. Hard to keep ’em in line when they’re running around like a headless chicken.” The man guffawed.
Emma let John lead her away. When they were out of ear shot, she shook her head. “Those people are crazy.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.” He steered her down the road to another group. “We need more information.”
She balked. “After that crew? You really want to stay out here?”
He pointed up ahead at what appeared to be a family with small children. A pair of school-aged boys were waving at all the cars from the roof of a Suburban while a man leaned against the fender. “They seem normal.”
Emma tugged her arm out of his grip. “Fine. But that’s it and then we check on Holly.”
John nodded and plastered on a smile as he walked up to the vehicle. “Hi, there. Wondering if you all have heard any news lately?”
Emma smiled at the woman who was trying not to fall while a toddler wrapped around her knees. “We haven’t been able to access anything.”
“Neither have we.” The woman smiled with gratitude. “I can’t imagine what’s taking so long here. We’re headed up to Patrick’s parents’ place for the week. We’ve been stuck in traffic for ages with no radio.”
A thud sounded from the roof of the SUV and she turned. “David and Andrew, you two calm down. I can’t have you falling off the roof now!”
“Yes, ma’am!” the boys called out.
She turned back to Emma with a smile. “Where was I? Oh, right. We’ve already watched half the movies we brought and little Sadie here is two minutes away from an epic two-year-old fit. If this doesn’t clear soon—”
“We’re going to be in a world of hurt.” The man pushed off the fender and joined the conversation. “I tried talking to the trucker up that way,” he pointed at a tractor trailer a few cars ahead, “but he blew me off.”
“The group back there—”
“The crazies? Yeah, we tried them, too.” The man rubbed his shoulder as he glanced in their direction. “What a bunch of nonsense! They must be conspiracy theorists or something.”
Emma smiled. “That’s what I thought, too.”
They fell into comfortable conversation, trading details on where they were from and what brought them to the highway, all while the kids swarmed around like overgrown ants, yelling and laughing and crying when they fell.
After a few minutes, Emma smiled, about to beg off, when a crack startled her. Everyone turned toward the sound.
Chapter Ten
Holly
“I said, I’m coming!” Holly swatted at the alarm clock and pain radiated through her hand. She groaned and tried to roll over, but her face hit something cold and hard. “What the heck?”
She blinked her eyes open and it all came rushing back. Her dad. The killer on the loose. The endless traffic. She rubbed her hand as she sat up, the horror of the morning smacking her full force. Her life as she knew it was over. Nothing was ever going to be the same.
A horn sounded in front of the SUV and Holly eased between the front seats. John and Emma were gone. She frowned. How long have I been asleep? After rooting around on the seat, she found her phone on the floorboard. Seven already? Wow.
Another horn blared, this time more insistent. Holly slipped on shoes and opened the door.
“Get out of my way! Move or so help me God!” A man’s voice carried down the line of cars and an engine revved to life. What’s going on? Holly walked between the cars and trucks, all with their engines off, waiting for the who-knew-what traffic jam to clear. Some people were sleeping, but most were peering out the windows, squinting to see the commotion.
The engine revved again and as Holly kept walking, she made out a crowd gathered in the distance.
“I wouldn’t go up there.” A boy not that much older than herself spoke as she passed.
Holly paused. “Why not??”
He pushed himself off his perch on the hood of a hatchback and nodded at the road. “Some jerk in a truck wants everyone to get out of his way so he can cut across the lanes and get out.”
“So why don’t they?”
He snorted. “You see how much room there is between bumpers? Where are they going to go?”
Holly glanced at the nearest cars. She couldn’t squeeze through most of the spaces. As she began to respond, a gunshot pierced the quiet. A woman screamed. The kid beside her ducked inside his car and locked the doors.
Holly spun around. Where was Emma? If something happened to her, Holly would be all alone on the highway with a man she didn’t know. “Emma!” Holly shouted the woman’s name. “Emma!”
“Over here!” A shock of red hair emerged from the crowd and Emma waved.
Holly took off in a sprint, almost crashing into Emma as she stuttered to a stop. “What’s going on?” The words came out hot and quick.
“What are you doing out here?” Emma took her by the shoulders. “You should have stayed in the car.”
“I woke up and you were gone. I came to find you.” Holly pulled back. “What’s happening?”
John motioned for them to break away from the crowd. Only when they were alone and out of earshot, did he speak up. “There’s a man hell-bent on getting out of the line. He’s demanding people move their cars, but there isn’t any room. A few managed to pull over, but there’s one woman in a sedan who just refuses to move. She won’t even make eye contact with him.” John glanced up. “He’s fired two warning shots. I don’t think he’ll fire another.”
Holly’s tongue turned to cement and her spit to paste. “What’s going to happen?”
As John opened his mouth to respond, another gunshot boomed. A woman screamed, followed by another, and another.
“He shot her! He really shot her!”
Holly’s hand flew to her mouth as John took a step toward the commotion.
Emma reached for his arm. “What are you doing?”
He reached for his belt buckle, and for the first time Holly noticed the pistol tucked beneath his waistband. “Diffusing the situation.”
“You’ll get yourself killed!”
“No, I won’t.” John pulled away.
Holly turned to Emma. “We can’t let him go out there. He’s going to get hurt.”
Emma nodded. “Come on.” She took Holly’s hand and together they hurried after John. As they neared the scene, the sharp smell of gasoline wrinkled Holly’s nose.
A truck with oversized tires and mud splashed across a giant metal bumper lurched forward. It slammed into a Honda Civic. The little sedan lurched and wobbled. The truck backed up before accelerating again, shoving the smaller car further into the ditch and off the road.
Off to the side, a man held a woman half-upright as she wailed. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she clutched at the man’s hands and arms. What happened? Holly turned as a horn blasted. The truck reared, coming up on three wheels as it half shoved, half crushed what remained of the Civic before bouncing off the road and clear of the traffic snarl.
Within a minute, it disappeared through the tree line. What remained of the little sedan tipped into the ditch, sides gnarled and torn.
“I smell burning rubber.” Emma turned around in place, one hand above her eyes to shield against the setting sun. “Do you see John?”
Holly wasn’t looking for John; she was squinting at the car. Something moved inside. Holly took a few halting steps forward. Emma didn’t notice. She took a few more. There! At first, she’d thought it might be a child or a passenger collecting their things, but it wasn’t.
It was a dog.
Holly took off, running straight toward the wreckage.
“Holly! Stop!” Emma called after, but Holly didn’t listen. As she reached the vehicle, the smell of gasoline filled her nose and she gagged. A paw landed hard on the side window, followed by a German shepherd’s snout nosing the glass. Holly yanked on the door handle. Locked.
She rushed up to the driver’s side and—“Oh, no.” She froze.
The driver was still inside, what was left of her anyway, impaled by the steering column when the front of the car crumpled in the collision. Blood oozed from a crater the size of a softball hollowing out the back of her head. Brain and blood and bits of bone flocked the seat.
Emma caught up to her, panting and out of breath. “We have to—” She stopped when she saw the body. “Oh, Holly, I’m so sorry.” She reached for her arm. “We need to go.”
“There’s a dog!” Holly shrugged off Emma’s grip. “We have to save the dog.”
The German shepherd pawed again at the glass, trying in vain to dig his way free. Holly sucked in a breath and reached for the driver’s side door. Also locked. She cursed. “We’ll never get in.”
Emma hurried around to the ditch. “Come over here! The door is warped. We might be able to get him out.”
Holly ran to join her, using her sleeve to cover her mouth as the smell intensified. It coated her nostrils and turned her stomach to sludge. “What is that?”
“Something’s smoking in the engine. We need to hurry.”
Together, Emma and Holly wrenched on the door, pulling with all their might. It wouldn’t budge. Holly propped her foot on the rear fender and tried again. Nothing. She bit back a sob.
“What the hell?” John’s voice cut through her frustration and Holly perked up.
“Hurry! We can’t leave him!” She beckoned him forward, but he stalled at the sight of the driver.
“I didn’t think anyone was injured.” He palmed his forehead. “I never should have let that guy drive away.”
“How could you stop him? He was in a massive truck.”
John ignored Emma’s question. “We have to get out of here.”
“We can’t leave the dog.” Holly grasped the door again and wrenched on the metal. The dog nosed the glass and pawed at the scant opening. Just a little more—
John grabbed her by the arm. “I said we need to go.”
“Not without the dog!” He pulled. She resisted. “Get your hand off me!”
“Can’t you smell that? The car’s going to explode!”
Emma shoved a clump of sweaty hair off her face. “Then quit standing there like a disappointed drill sergeant and help us.”
John muttered something under his breath, but squeezed in, gripping the top of the door while Holly and Emma worked on the bottom. It moved, just not enough.
“It’s not going to work.” John pulled back, ready to give up.
Holly reached for his arm. “Try one more time. Please.”
He stared at her for a moment, hard expression softening into something she couldn’t read. Without another word, he lent his support again, wrenching the top of the door until metal popped and groaned and finally lurched free. John stumbled back and the dog catapulted out, toppling Holly to the ground. He licked her all over, big, flat tongue scraping across her cheek and chin. Yes, we did it. You’re free!
She laughed and pushed him off as a deafening boom filled her ears. A rush of heat and bits of metal flew toward her. She twisted, shielding her head with her arms as clouds of black smoke billowed overhead.
The dog pawed her shoulder and nuzzled her arm. He was right. If she didn’t get up, she was going to die.
Chapter Eleven
Emma
Emma couldn’t hear a thing. She pressed her hands to her ears, but the ringing only intensified. A blast of heat washed over her, straight through her blouse, blasting her skin. She recoiled on instinct, curling up in a ball against the onslaught. What happened?
Something tugged her sleeve and she rolled. John. He crouched in front of her, his mouth opening and closing, but no sound came out. “What? I can’t hear.” She batted at her ears.
He gestured behind her. As Emma turned, heat seared her cheeks like forty ovens on broil. Flames licked the hood of the little sedan, twining in the air as smoke blotted out the setting sun. Holly! She spun to find Holly on the ground, the dog pawing and licking her cheek.
Oh no. Emma scrambled over and grabbed the girl by the shoulder. She shook a little too hard. Holly rolled, blinking in confusion.
“We have to go!” Emma tried to shout, unsure the teenager could hear, unsure if she was even making noise.
Before she could try again, John swept in, hauling Holly up by the armpits. The girl stumbled upright, and Emma latched onto her side. Together, they staggered away from the burning wreckage. A sea of onlookers cleared at their approach. If anyone offered assistance, Emma couldn’t hear them. As they followed the line of cars back to John’s SUV, Emma swallowed and pressed her ears.
As she neared the Jeep, the sight of the hood stopped her still. The explosion had blown the hood back, leaving the engine exposed. She didn’t know the first thing about cars, but the flayed rubber running through the machinery couldn’t be good. She leaned against the bumper as Holly bent to check on the dog.
“Emma!” The voice sounded tinny and far away. She looked up. John stood in front of her, ducking to catch her eye. “Can you hear me?”
“Barely.” She swallowed, but it turned into a cough. “What happened?”
“The car exploded.” He turned to Holly, hands balled into fists. “You were so stupid back there! You could have died! And what for? A dog?”
Holly’s face scrunched and tears filled her eyes. “I wasn’t going to watch it die!”
“You’d risk your life for an animal?”
“Wouldn’t you?”
John turned at Emma’s question. “You agree with her? Die out here on the highway for some stranger’s pet?”
She stared at him, horrified. “I would at least try.”
John stepped back, jaw locked, eyes cold and bitter. “We need to leave.”
Emma didn’t move. Up until then, John had seemed too good to be true. A little quick to get over Zach’s death, mayb
e. But Emma had put that on not knowing the man. The gun she’d written off as personal protection. He was in a lawsuit against his employer, sort of like her. He probably felt better with a pistol on his hip. And if he knew how to use it...
But this? Being more than willing to leave a trapped animal without a second’s hesitation? Blowing up when they saved it?
Maybe she shouldn’t be traveling with him. Maybe she shouldn’t have let a stranger into her confidence at all. She didn’t know the first thing about him. Not really. She turned and focused on Holly. Had she unwittingly put the girl in more danger?
“Sorry. That was uncalled for.”
Emma lifted her head.
John held his forehead as he stared out at the hazy, smoke-filled sky. “I shouldn’t have said all that. I just don’t like it when people I’m responsible for do things that could get them hurt.”
She humored him. “Has it happened before?”
He nodded. “In Afghanistan.” He turned to face her. “A couple guys in my platoon were killed when they didn’t follow orders and tried to be heroes.” He exhaled. “I couldn’t stay in after that.”
Emma softened. What a jerk she’d been. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”
“No reason you would.” He walked around to the driver’s side door and wrenched it open. “I for one want to get out of this smoke.”
As John climbed into the driver’s seat, Emma helped Holly coax the dog into the back. As the door shut, Emma closed her eyes. She didn’t know anything about John’s life or his past apart from a few superficial comments he’d shared earlier in the day. And she’d assumed the worst. Emma opened the passenger door, shamed and contrite.
John held the steering wheel like he was about to shift into drive even though the ruined hood obscured the view. A piece of lint suddenly became fascinating and Emma plucked it from her pants. “You were in the military?”
“Yeah.”
“Branch?”
“Marine Corps.”
