by Hunt, Jack
Five years younger than him, Manny usually had her partnered up with Carl, the one and only person that somehow managed to keep his cool when she lost hers.
“You wait till Carl hears about this.”
Colby frowned. “Didn’t Manny tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
Colby looked at Alicia then back at Daisy’s piercing emerald eyes in the mirror. “Carl is dead.” She slammed the brakes on and all of them lurched forward as the truck swerved to a standstill. “Holy shit, Daisy. You want to give us a little heads-up next time?”
She turned in her seat. “How?”
“Those guys back there.”
“No, I mean how did he die?”
Colby swallowed hard. “Daisy.”
“How did he die!”
“They slit his throat.” She stared at him for a second then scooped up a pack of cigarettes and got out, hopping down to the ground. Colby told Kane to watch Alicia.
“Hey, I thought we were on the same team?” Alicia said as he got out.
“What gave you that impression?”
“But…”
He slammed the door closed and walked around to the front of the truck where Daisy was leaned up against the front grille, lighting a cigarette. She blew out a cloud of smoke and sucked on it again and again as if she couldn’t get enough nicotine to calm her nerves. There was a moment or two of silence.
“You okay?”
“I… uh. We had uh…” she began saying before shaking her head.
“By the time I got there, he was already dead.”
“Did you get the guy who did it?”
He nodded. “Yeah.”
She gave a strained smile. “You’re a good man, Colby. I know you have issues but you’re a good man.”
Issues? Sure he had a few skeletons in the closet and was prone to lose his temper a few times but could those be classed as issues? In a town where most with money sat on long couches talking to psychologists once a week, he prided himself on not needing to go down that route. It was all bullshit anyway. What could they do to help, or change the past? And he was already taking care of his future.
Daisy glanced up at Alicia. “That bitch. It’s her fault.”
Colby raised a finger. “Now, Daisy. Let’s just stay cool-headed.”
“I am cool-headed,” she said. “But if it wasn’t for her, Carl would still be alive.” He couldn’t argue with that. He was beginning to think that Manny was right. Maybe it was time to ditch her. With feds and Russians, that wasn’t heat he wanted on his back, not when he was so close to the goal of… He looked down the highway. Who was he kidding?
“This EMP. What can you tell me about it?” he asked.
“Not much. I just know the signs. It fries electronics and transformers, ends water and food supply.”
“Like will the grid come back up?”
“Probably.”
“Good.”
“No, not good. If, and I emphasize if, it comes back on, by then it will probably be too late.”
“I don’t follow you,” he said.
“If this is what I think it is, the outcome will be devastating. We’re talking 90 percent of the population could die. Starvation, disease, societal collapse. A super EMP — or better put, a high-altitude weapon — is no joke. Look around you,” she said. “Delivery trucks will no longer be in service which means no groceries, no medicines heading to hospitals or pharmacies. How long do you think the ill will live? They’ll be the first to go followed by the elderly, and then it will have a trickle-down effect, quickly spreading out of the big cities to smaller towns. By the time people realize, the stores will be empty. Especially in this shithole with all the riots going on. But…” she trailed off.
“But what?” Colby asked.
“Well, then again, some asshole could have just sat on the wrong switch.” She let out a cackle. The life came back to her eyes as she dumped the cigarette and crushed it below her boot. “But right now, we should get moving.” She pointed to several guys heading their way as she blew out the last plume of smoke. Instead of being scared, she just took out her 9mm and pointed at them and they soon turned tail. “Just what I thought. Keep on moving or I will give you plastic surgery for free.” She fired a warning round above their heads, and they took off, disappearing into the maze of stalled vehicles.
She shot Colby a smirk as he got in. This time he got in the front passenger side. As he twisted to get his seat belt on, Daisy said to Alicia, “Oh, hey darlin’, do you mind passing me that map back there.”
“This?” she asked.
“That’s the one.” Daisy grabbed Alicia by the wrist and head. It happened so fast, Colby barely registered it until it was over. Daisy had yanked her forward and bounced her nose off the center console. “That’s for Carl. You bitch.”
Alicia brought both hands up to her face, her nose was gushing red as they pulled away. Colby’s gaze bounced between them. Daisy had her eyes fixed on the road. He took a clean handkerchief from his jacket pocket and handed it to Alicia but she just slapped it away in anger. Tensions were running high, and the worst had yet to come.
They continued heading north.
Daisy said she had a few things to collect from her apartment even though Colby had told her to drop them off at Manny’s first. “It’s too dangerous,” she said. “When I left, those protesters were going nuts. Starting fires, smashing windows, destroying cop cars. Now with the lights out, it will be a free-for-all. No, we drop by my place, ride out the night if need be, and then head over once we see what’s occurred.”
“Are you crazy?” he replied. “I’m not staying in this hellhole a minute longer than I need to. Had everything gone well tonight, I would already be at home.”
“Yeah, well it hasn’t. And this is my vehicle, so my rules.”
She glanced up to the mirror. “So darlin’, you want to tell us why the feds and the Russians want to get their hands on you?”
“Screw you,” Alicia said, still cupping a hand over her nose.
“I’d be really careful what you say. If I had my way I would dump you on the side of this road with a bullet in your chest.”
“Well, aren’t you the sweet,” Alicia shot back.
Daisy eased off the gas so Colby intervened. “She didn’t mean it.”
“Yes I did,” Daisy added.
He twisted in his seat. “Look, I think we’ve all had a rough night so far. Why don’t we just head to your place, get whatever the hell you need, and then go from there?” Daisy glared at Alicia in the mirror but pushed her foot on the gas and continued driving along the hard shoulder. Every street light was out. Dozens of vehicles were at a standstill. As they veered off South La Brea Avenue and merged with the Santa Monica Freeway heading east toward Normandie Avenue, which would take them north into Koreatown, they got a better look at the true devastation.
The few buildings they’d seen burning on their way out to the airport now looked like child’s play in comparison to the huge pockets of fire north of the highway. Two planes had come down, obliterating everything in their path, cutting through the city like a hot knife through butter. Death and destruction abounded.
Add rioting into the mix and it was a wicked combination, the worst timing. Seeing protesters amped up, on edge, only increased panic.
Trouble was brewing, chaos was erupting and now that everything had gone dark, it was only a matter of time before things became even more dangerous.
SEVEN
ALICIA
As far as Alicia was concerned, they were heading into the lion’s den.
Turning onto Normandie Avenue, one of the longest north to south streets in L.A., might have made sense if thousands of people weren’t out on the streets to protest. With the city shrouded in darkness and most vehicles stalled, the few that were operating – old clunkers, classics from the ’70s to early ’80s – might as well have had a bulls-eye on them.
As the crazy bitch weaved h
er monster truck through the maze of vehicles, it wasn’t long before they caught the attention of the wrong group. With headlights on full beam, they had to have seen them coming. They heard the crack of a rifle before they saw them. A round speared the windshield. Had it been a few inches to the left, it would have killed Alicia. Startled, Daisy reacted, swerving and sideswiping two cars. The wrenching of metal was deafening. Hot sparks flew before she was able to gain control.
Alicia scanned the road.
There was nowhere to turn off with gated homes to the left, and a six-foot wall that surrounded Angelus Rosedale Cemetery to the right. Daisy had no choice but to continue forward.
“Sonofabitch!” she yelled.
More rounds erupted as they got closer.
Now they could see the shooters. Positioned in the center of the road, almost shoulder to shoulder, a crew of six hostiles had every intention of getting their grubby hands on their vehicle.
As smart as it may have been to scoop up a truck that wasn’t packed with a computer chip and was EMP-proof, it was like buying a noisy generator to avoid a power outage. It was all well and good if everyone else had one but in a city without, it was a red flag, a lighthouse beacon alerting others and beckoning them to steal it for themselves.
And that’s exactly what these men had in mind.
“Slow down,” Alicia shouted, leaning forward, fearful that she would lose control.
“Hell no!” Daisy accelerated hard. “I didn’t buy these 46-inch tires for the looks, baby.”
“Take hold of Kane’s collar,” Colby said to Alicia as if knowing what was to come.
“Are you crazy? I’m not putting my hand anywhere near your dog.”
“He won’t bite you without my command.”
She looked at Kane. The dog’s tongue was out and he was panting hard.
“If he bites me…”
“He won’t.”
Gingerly she brought her hand up to his collar and lo and behold he didn’t do a damn thing. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t scared of getting bitten. The sight of him sprinting toward her was still fresh in her mind.
As they got closer, they could see trucks and cars had been pushed out into the middle of the road to create a barricade. Daisy’s vehicle roared toward them as the men opened fire.
Seconds passed, then Alicia bounced in her seat as the truck crashed into the vehicles and the tires bit into metal and climbed, giving the vehicle lift. It soared in the air for a few seconds before landing hard and jerking them around in their seats. It felt like she was on safari being chased by wildlife. Gunfire continued to strike but now it was from behind. Daisy swerved the beast-like she was in a monster truck rally, all the while cackling like a witch. This woman was psychotic.
The victory was short-lived.
As they tore away from the violent mob and burst over 15th Street and then Pico Boulevard, what finally put an end to the hope of reaching Daisy’s apartment was a 747 plane that had sliced through the heart of the city. Rubble was everywhere, vehicles overturned, fires raging out of control. They arrived at a dead end and Daisy looked over her shoulder to begin reversing, but now the threat they faced wasn’t the violent but the desperate. One vehicle working amid a graveyard of thousands was like gold.
The homeless, drug addicts, those trying to flee the city saw it as their ticket out. Men and women, young kids bombarded the truck on either side, hands slapping. “Help us!” Someone tossed a brick and it smashed through the back windshield.
Daisy cursed.
Like rats crawling out of the sewers, they came at the truck, desperately yelling. Some hopped onto the front end grille, others climbed into the back bed of the truck, pulling some of their family members up.
“Get off!” Daisy yelled but they weren’t listening.
All around was devastation. For those unaware, they must have thought this was the big one, the one that all the news media had been talking about for years. Pick a Middle Eastern country, any country, and at some point, the news had marked it as a threat to the United States. Kane began barking wildly. Colby tried to keep him calm but it was useless. Unable to see a damn thing because bodies were clambering all over the vehicle, Daisy shifted the truck into drive and floored it, almost crushing several people. That only enraged the mob, shifting them from desperate to angry. And if that wasn’t bad enough, she jerked the gearstick into reverse and tore backward with zero care for those behind. Alicia felt the bounce of the vehicle as it rolled over bodies.
“Daisy!” Colby bellowed but she wasn’t listening to him.
This woman was psychotic.
Boots thumped against the top of the roof, hands appeared at the sides as people tried to stay on but it was useless. Bodies slipped off the sides, some being steamrolled by the large tires as they continued to pave a way through the angry mob. In the darkness, with only fire to illuminate the streets, she could see bodies strewn, those that had fallen beneath the truck. Dead, injured. What came next was no surprise. Those carrying handguns opened fire.
Daisy spun the wheel as they reversed out onto West Pico Boulevard.
The passenger side window exploded as several rounds cut through, one striking Colby in the shoulder. He let out a yell and doubled over, which only made the dog more stressed. It was taking everything she had to prevent Kane from clambering to the front and soaring out the window. Clutching his arm, teeth gritted, Colby cursed Daisy as she gave the truck gas and peeled out, heading west then swerving up Ardmore Avenue, two streets over. “Damn you, Daisy,” Colby barked.
“If I had stopped we would all be dead. That mob was out of control.”
Colby pulled off his jacket to get a better look at the wound. While he was doing that, steam was starting to come out of the front of the truck.
“Bastards!” she said. “They’ve killed my damn truck.”
“Are you serious?” Alicia said. “You ran over at least ten people back there and you’re worried about a heap of metal?”
“Lady, the reason we are in this mess is because of you. My friend is dead because of you, so get off your high horse, bitch, before I rearrange your face again.”
“I’d like to see you do that.”
“Don’t tempt me.”
She glared at her as Colby pulled his arm around and ran his hand over the wound. The bullet hadn’t entered the arm, it had taken out a chunk but it was just a flesh wound. A bad one but a flesh wound nonetheless. He took out the handkerchief he’d offered Alicia earlier and used it to wipe the wound and then create a makeshift bandage.
It didn’t take long for the truck to start coughing and spluttering as plumes of steam seeped out from beneath the hood, blocking her view. Daisy swerved to the side of the road as they turned west and the engine bit the dust. She got out, climbed up onto the front of the truck, and opened the hood only to be engulfed in steam.
She returned a moment later, climbing up and reaching inside for her packet of cigarettes. “It appears we are going on foot from here on out.”
“You think?” Alicia added.
They exchanged an icy glare as she got out.
The only upside to the truck’s demise was that it had managed to get them away from one crowd, but now it had dumped them into another. Pedestrians surged down the street, many scared, confused, others angry.
As soon as she was out, Daisy pushed her up back against the truck and cuffed her.
“Hey, get off me.”
“Daisy,” Colby said, coming around and catching the tail end as she locked steel teeth in place, pinching the skin around her wrists in front of her. “You want to tell me what you’re doing?”
“You want her to get away?”
Colby glanced at Alicia. Something had shifted in his demeanor, his eyes, the way he looked at her. If she wasn’t mistaken, she was beginning to think that perhaps he was having second thoughts about bringing her in.
A sliver of hope rose in her.
Instead, he put out his h
and.
“Give me the key.”
There was hesitation on Daisy’s part.
“She’s my bond, Daisy. Give me the key!”
Reluctantly she handed it to him.
Colby shoved her forward as Daisy took off leading the way.
“You know, for a second I thought you weren’t as nuts as her but thanks for proving me wrong.”
She berated herself for not taking the opportunity to run when he was distracted back at the interstate. Then again, she might be able to outrun them but not Kane. And if it was true about K9s, that dog would have been able to find her fast.
“Daisy might have a few loose screws but she’s right. After all the crap you have put us through, EMP or not, I’m taking you in and getting paid.”
She glared. “Yeah, you do that.”
They forged on up the street.
The sidewalks were overflowing with people, most walking with purpose, heading home, or better still trying to escape the city. North, south, east, or west, they were heading in every direction. She felt like a fish heading upstream as they stayed close to the buildings on either side, crossing only when necessary.
“Do you trust her?” Alicia asked.
“I don’t trust anyone,” Colby replied. “But I’ve known her longer than you if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Look, even if you get paid, do you think it’s going to be much use to you now? If she’s right, cash won’t count for much.”
“Until I know different, it’s business as usual.”
She scoffed, shaking her head. “Hey nutso, how far away is your place?” Alicia asked.
“In the heart of Koreatown. North of here. And you call me that again, and I will shoot you and dump your body in one of these alleys.”
