Cory hurries to turn the wheel right again and maneuvers us back onto safer ground. A few shots ring out and an occasional ding, coming from bullets hitting the bus. Something shatters, and I realize that even though the thugs missed the panorama window, somebody managed to get one of the windows in the back.
Angie screams and wails; the wind now coming through the shattered window is almost as loud as her.
As more shots ring out, I cower as low as I can in my seat. And all that’s left to do for me is to pray the bullets won’t hit the gas tank or tires.
I hear Jose speak Spanish to Angie, trying to calm her down, but even if I spoke Spanish, it’s far too loud to make out any words.
Finally, the flames fade into the darkening evening, and the shots stop. The boys rise and cheer; some clap. I laugh in relief and turn my head to watch the burning cars and the men fade into the background.
“You can ease off the gas now,” Blake advises with a smile and claps Cory on the shoulder. “That was some good driving; your uncle should be proud of you, Landers.”
Cory uses one of his hands to wipe the sweat off his forehead but grins from ear to ear. “That was intense. What an adrenaline rush, whoa!” He holds up the hand he just used to wipe his sweat for a high five.
Blake looks at it skeptically but indulges Cory, giving him the much-deserved praise.
“Wow, Landers, that was something else.” Ace comes forward and claps Cory on the shoulder too.
“Who were those guys? They didn’t seem as crazy as the ones from the park.” Jason sits down next to me.
I shrug my shoulders. It’s Ty who answers. “I think they were gang members; did you see their tats, man?”
“It was all too fast for me, but I’ll take your word for it.” Jason leans back.
The wind is still rushing in through the shattered window. Ryan and Jason make their way back there to figure something out to block the window off.
Chapter 6
One glimpse at our motley crew makes me realize that everybody is as dead tired as me. The only ones who appear somewhat awake are Blake and Cory, and I credit the adrenaline rush of the past few minutes to that. They are bound to crash soon.
Ryan and Jason return from jerry-rigging the broken window. I don’t know what they did, but it seems to work. There is only a slight low-pitched whistling sound now coming from it.
“Alright, Thornton, I guess now would be the time to share your scuba diving experience with us.” Ryan challenges.
Blake nods. “Probably.”
He garners our attention. “Depending on the kind of tanks we find, we’ll probably have enough oxygen for about one or two hours.”
“How far did you say we’ll have to swim?” Ryan asks.
“About six or seven miles.”
“No way we can swim that distance in one or two hours.” Jason intercepts.
Blake nods. “I’m well aware of that. We’ll not be diving the entire time, only if we need to if we see or hear helicopters or boats.”
“If we hear them, and we have to dive, it’ll leave Angie exposed.” Jose worries out loud.
“We’ll disguise whatever she’ll be floating on so nobody will consider her a target.” Blake offers, which seems to pacify Jose somewhat.
“Okay, so how do those tanks work.” I want to know.
Blake gives me one of his lopsided smiles, the one that makes my heart skip a beat, the way it’s supposed to when Ryan touches me. No, I admonish myself, now is not the time to think about this or to explore if I like Blake as a man or brother.
“Don’t worry. I’ll set it up so that all you guys will have to do is breathe through the masks in case we need to go down.” He swivels his head to face all of us.
“The hard part will be to communicate with each other once we’re underwater.”
He shows us some simple hand signals for up and down, for running out of air, and for keep going.
“The problem will be visibility. It’ll be dark by then, and we can’t take a chance of using flashlights; we need to stay close together.”
“What about a rope,” I ask, and when they look questioning at me, I explain. “To stay together, like in Kindergarten? We can all tie each other together, or we just all hold on to it.”
Blake nods at me. “Good idea, Viv. Let’s do that; that way we can keep hold of Angie too.”
The bus turns slightly, and we adjust our balance.
“I need somebody to get a map to tell me where we’re going. We are entering Santa Monica, and there’s a gap to an offramp on the other side. I thought we might as well get off now; we don’t know how badly congested the rest of the freeway will be,” Cory calls.
Jason steps forward and takes his phone from where it’s charging. “I got this; keep doing your schooling, Thornton.” He nods at Blake.
“That’s pretty much it; I’ll explain more of the equipment once we get there and see what’s available. We’ll hopefully have fins, so we should be able to swim faster.”
“We should stop at a pharmacy too if we see one on the way,” I say. “For the Benadryl for Angie. We still want her to sleep, right?” I explain further to the blank stares I receive.
Jose looks worried, and I smile at the mother hen, the tough wide receiver has become. “What if she is allergic to Benadryl?”
I shrug my shoulder, but I’m as concerned as he is. “I don’t know. It’s not like we can ask her parents or her.”
After a few seconds, I have an idea: “What if we try to find an Epi-pen?”
Jose looks doubtful: “I’m not sure about that, but it’s probably our best option.” He finally agrees. “It’s not like we have much of a choice. Who knows how Angie will react on a raft out on the ocean?”
Jose is right; I doubt any four-year-old would handle this situation gracefully.
The bus keeps swerving as Cory maneuvers it down the on-ramp on the wrong side of the freeway, dodging broken and abandoned cars as he drives. There is a slight dragging sound on the right front tire as if something got stuck. But after all the giant beast went through, it doesn’t seem worse for the wear. I send a silent Thank you up to whoever is listening.
The streets become narrower, and the sheer devastation hits me again. More cars and stores are up in flames. In some places, it looks like people have begun to loot. But we still don’t see any living soul.
Bodies of the dead are strewn haphazardly as if a giant kid decided to drop their dolls. Empty cars and abandoned cars complete the picture of every apocalyptic sci-fi movie I ever watched.
It has gotten dark, and the streetlights cast eerie shadows. On the upside, it means we still have electricity.
After the encounter with the gang earlier, we keep a watchful eye on the streets. Ace, Ty, and Drew have claimed the shotguns and assault rifle. Conner still has the 38 tucked into his pants.
I lean back against my seat and close my burning eyes for a second; I don’t think I have ever been this tired in my entire life. The seat next to me sags a little as somebody sits down.
“Want to be left alone?”
I don’t have to open my eyes to recognize Blake’s voice, and as much as my body craves some rest, I don’t mind his company at all. “No, I’m just resting my eyes for a moment.”
“It’s been a long day, and you did well.”
Now my eyes pop open to search his expression suspiciously, but there is no trace of condescension or sarcasm on his face; he means it. “Thanks,” I mutter. “I think.” And I remind myself that Blake is Blake and not his brother Colin. With Blake, what you see is what you get. With Colin, not so much.
He smirks his Blake smirk at me.
I cuff him lightly in the arm. “So, when did you become a scuba diver? I thought you wanted to be a Marine like your dad?”
He leans back in his seat, but the relaxed posture doesn’t fool me. Even though we haven’t talked in a couple of years, I know him too well and know that the tick in his jaw is full of t
ension. “I thought I would give the Navy Seals a try instead.”
His words surprise me, but I get it; our parent’s betrayal hit him just as hard as it hit me. I take his hand in mine, a gesture of comfort and understanding. He tilts his head in surprise but doesn’t say anything and doesn’t try to pull his hand away. Instead, he gives it a light squeeze.
“I didn’t want to fully step into my dad’s footsteps. Especially after… well, you know.” He catches himself. Neither one of us wants to think about our parent’s betrayal. “Anyway, dad pulled some strings, and over the summer, a couple of his buddies trained me for a while. I think my dad hoped that I would either fail or hate it.”
He pauses, and I wait expectantly for him to finish. He grins from ear to ear. “Instead, I loved it. There’s something about being in the water that is absolutely freeing to me.”
“Am I interrupting?” Ryan leans against the seat in front of us; his eyes go pointedly to Blake and mine interlocked hands. I want to pull away, but Blake keeps our hands in place. I sigh at the show of possession but don’t resist.
“There something you want to say, McCarthy?” Blake asks lazily. But he doesn’t fool me; I can still see that little tick in his jaw.
“Just wondering why you’re cozying up to my girlfriend, holding hands and all.”
“Girlfriend, huh?” Blake looks at me questioning. “That so?”
Anger rises in me. We are in a battle for our lives, and these two idiots are starting a fight over me? I get up and move out of the bench seat ungracefully. It’s not easy. Blake is occupying the aisle seat, smirking at me; he’s not moving an inch, forcing me to climb over his outstretched legs. He’s taking way too much amusement out of all of this.
“Don’t you two have anything better to do than to measure your dicks right now?” I snarl angrily. “And for your information, I’m nobody’s girlfriend.”
I stomp down the aisle towards the end of the bus. My blood is boiling while the other boys hoot and holler at my words. I can feel my face turn red, but I don’t care; I’m too angry right now.
Chapter 7
It only takes another half hour before Cory slows down the bus again. When I glance through the windshield, I notice how congested the roads have become, and my heart sinks at the realization that we won’t be able to drive any further.
“Okay, we are almost at the first diver supply store, but we can’t take the bus any further, so we’ll have to hoof it.” Blake looks around and meets Ryan’s hostile glare, but for once, Ryan refrains from challenging him.
“There isn’t much sense in us taking a lot of stuff; we won’t be able to swim with it. Take your phones and weapons, and let’s go.”
I admire how he has taken charge of our little group, even though I’m still a little irritated with him about his earlier behavior.
“People with guns first,” Blake orders, exiting the bus slowly, his Glock at the ready. Ace, Ty, and Drew follow him, while Conner and I take the rear.
It got dark quickly, but the streetlights provide enough illumination for us to see. The streets are eerily quiet; the only noise we hear is the wind rustling some trash. There is no sign of life anywhere, not even a bird. We follow Jason and Blake, who have taken over the lead, Jason has his phone in front of his face, and I’m suspecting he has Google maps open.
Ryan walks beside me but doesn’t try to make any physical contact, although I can sense an occasional glance my way from him. We fall into a rhythm and quietly make our way down the abandoned streets.
At some point, Ryan pulls at my arm and points up at an apartment building. I follow his outstretched finger and notice a white sheet hung out of one of the windows. Somebody has written HELP in large, black letters on it.
For a second, we grin at each other, happy to know there are other people out there, alive and looking for help like us.
“Should we go there?” Ryan asks.
I’m tempted, but Blake shakes his head. “Not a good idea. We can barely help ourselves, plus it could be a trap.”
Well, that definitely puts a damper on our short-lived excitement. Realizing he is right, I try to take the feeling of comfort with me that knowing there are others alive gives me, and we walk silently on.
After about a mile, we reach the first diving store, and right across the street is a pharmacy. I can’t believe our luck. I hold my hands out to Jose.
“Give her to me; I’ll take her to the pharmacy, and she can pick her favorite juice, and you guys go find the diving stuff.”
Jose gives me a skeptical once over, and I arch my eyebrow at him. Really? my expression screams at him. He reluctantly hands me Angie, who is so sleepy, she can barely keep her eyes open. She is sweaty against my skin from where Jose has been cradling her.
“You shouldn’t go alone,” Blake states.
I’m about to argue with him when Conner offers, “I’ll go with her. She is right; this way, you guys can start on the scuba stuff, and we get out of here faster.”
I shrug, annoyed. Part of me is irritated. They think I need protection, but the other part of me is glad too; the last thing I want is to run into those crazy people by myself. Although since the freeway brawl, we haven’t seen any more of them.
But then I remember the burning cars and realize the crazy people aren’t the only dangers out here. Plus, we are in a strange city in unfamiliar territory, and I’m way out of my comfort zone.
I half expect the store to be closed, but the doors open automatically as if they were just waiting for customers to come in. The normalcy of it makes the situation even more surreal. My skin is sticky from all the sweat. A silent witness to the heat of the day and all the running we had to do. Thankfully with it getting dark, the temperatures dropped quite a bit.
When we enter the store, the cold chill from the air conditioner gives me goosebumps on my naked skin, and I’m glad I remembered to put on the pilfered sweatshirt before leaving the bus, but my legs in the shorts are getting cold, and I regret not having snagged some sweatpants as well.
The store is well lit but has an empty feel to it. “I’ll go find that Epi-pen in the pharmacy; you guys go get the Benadryl and juice.”
I sigh heavily. Why does everybody seem to feel the need to boss me around? Is it because I’m a girl, I wonder? Or is it just the natural male desire to set a pecking order?
Of the two of us, I would probably be the better choice to rummage through the pharmacy. This is not worth an argument, though, so I comply; he’ll call out if he can’t find it, which I suspect he will.
Angie’s head bobs against my shoulder, and when I check on her, I notice she’s fast asleep. I brush a kiss against her damp forehead—poor little angel. I think of everything we’ve been through and wonder if it’s easier or harder for her since she doesn’t really understand what’s happening.
My eyes scan the big signs over the aisles to find the one that says, Antihistamines and walk towards it. It doesn’t take long, and I have a bottle of children’s Benadryl in my shorts pocket and stand in front of the coolers to pick a juice.
“Hey, I think I finally found….” I hear Conner’s voice followed by a thump.
Instantly my heart rate picks up. “Conner?”
I inch slowly towards the pharmacy portion of the store. “Conner, please, this is not the time to play games.”
I want to pull my gun out, but Angie is snuggled against me, and some instinct prevents me from holding a toddler in one arm and a gun in the other hand. Turns out, this is the biggest mistake ever.
The moment I see Conner’s convulsing legs protruding from the counter, I sense a presence behind me. I don’t have time to comprehend what I see before a hand clutches my free arm. Something cold and silver presses against Angie’s head. A whimper escapes me as I realize that somebody has me in an iron grip, holding a gun towards Angie’s head.
I stiffen and freeze at the cold voice, whispering into my ear. “Don’t move, chica or the little one is dead
. And you probably too.” A snickering laugh follows.
My stomach churns in horror, and my heart beats so fast I worry it’ll jump out of my chest. My eyes follow the hand holding the gun and land on a brown arm with several tattoos.
On the fingers boring into my other arm’s flesh, the word kill is spelled out evenly across them. I start to shake. I think about the gun stuck in the back of my shorts, so close, yet so unreachable.
“Any more friends of yours out there, chica?”
His breath against my ear sends a wave of revulsion through me. My eyes roam frantically around and land on Conner’s legs, which have stilled, at last. It’s when my abductor forces me towards a door announcing Employees Only that I can see Conner’s whole body. Blood is everywhere, so much blood. Bile rises, and I force myself to swallow it down. Blood seeps from a wound that stretches along the length of Conner’s throat. His glassy eyes stare up at the ceiling, and all I can think about is how he bossed me around just a couple of minutes ago, all happy and alive. How he joked and how he offered to go with me. Tears rise in my eyes and blur my vision.
“Seems like my lucky day.” The man laughs. “Empty store, full register, all the drugs one can want and not just one, but two pretty chicas for dessert.”
His cackle raises every single hair on my head. I turn slightly and now I can see his face. He is bald, and several tattoos adorn his head and neck. Some are tear-shaped, winding their way down his right cheek. With a shudder, I think about rumors I heard about killers putting teardrop tattoos on their faces, representing people they murdered. I don’t know if that is true or not, but I wouldn’t put it past this guy. His eyes remind me of those of a shark’s. Completely black and emotionless.
“Who knows, you behave yourself, and I just might let you and the little one live.”
He laughs again and reaches for the doorknob. To turn it, he needs to let go of my arm, but I’m still frozen stiff with fear, plus he would blow our heads off before my hand could even reach my gun.
The Rain | Part 1 | The Beginning Page 7
