“Listen to me, in case we lose connection. Get a few things not much, clothes, blankets. Just grab. Flashlights and lighters, too. Everything. We have got to leave the city baby, and we have to do it now. We’re under attack.”
“Washington D.C.?”
“The whole country. Baby… they dropped nukes in Montana already.”
“Oh my God.”
“I got supplies from work, we’ll be good, we just need to get far away from D.C.”
“How much time do we have?”
“I don’t know. It’s getting crazy out here. I don’t want to leave the car alone for a second. I’ll be there in twenty-five minutes. And baby, grab my gun.”
He hung up the phone and said a prayer that he’d make it to his family in time.
He lived in a neighborhood southeast of downtown the complete opposite end of town from where his hotel was located north of the city. His apartment was on the third floor of an eight story building. It took Terrence a little longer than he anticipated, but he finally pulled in front of his building. The neighborhood was quiet as if they still were unaware, unlike three miles away. He popped open the trunk and started to move supplies from the back seat into there.
Macy, the two girls and his mother were in the entranceway waiting when Terrence pulled up. They raced from the building as he was moving items.
“Just squeeze inside, doesn’t matter, just get in,” Terrence ordered.
Once they were all in the car, Terrence didn’t wait to see if everyone was buckled. He peeled out.
“How are we on gas?” Macy asked.
“Nearly a full tank. We’re good.”
“Where we gonna go?”
Terrence’s mother leaned forward. “Uncle Leo lives in West Virginia. We ought to head there. Go west. That’s our best bet.”
Macy nodded her approval.
“Daddy, I’m scared. What’s going on?” his oldest daughter asked.
“It’s gonna be okay,” Terrence replied, then watched his mother place her arms around both girls as she sat between them in the back.
In a whisper, Macy asked. “Is it? Is it gonna be okay?”
“It has to be.”
“Have you been listening to the news?”
“Yeah, I’ll put it back on. I just don’t want to scare the kids,” Terrence said.
“Oh my God, this isn’t happening. This can’t be.” Macy brought her hands to her face.
“Forty minutes ago they took out NORAD,” Terrence paused. “It’s happening.”
He placed on the news to stay informed, and with a feeling of desperation and fear, Terrence moved quickly to put distance between his family and the city.
ELEVEN – Target
“They’re sealing up,” the fire chief told Harland. “You can check. Make it fast. I want to get home.”
Kit went inside and down to the hall below the fire department to check the survivors to see if any of them were her son or brother. Harland spoke with the fire chief, while Abe stayed at the top of the stairwell eavesdropping on their conversation.
The elementary school had already moved everyone to the bottom floor and into the halls to protect from radiation, they weren’t letting Kit in, they were hunkered down.
This was the last stop for at least a week, probably longer. Abe guessed Kit was going to stay at the fire station, especially if her son was there. He himself was going to take Harland up on his offer to go to his place and shelter there. Abe had lots of questions, ones that could get answered easier in a small group situation rather than being one of many sleeping on the floor of a place used for wedding receptions.
Harland was monitoring the news when it broke, Harland knew the state of the country better than Abe, because he was up in the air in an evacuation that went bad.
Now Harland talked in depth with the chief.
“Protect your devices,” the Chief told Harland. “Don’t be confident yet.”
“How am I supposed to run my filtration? I have to run it at least three times a day.”
“Then I don’t know what to tell you,” Chief said. “Run it and hope for the best. Keep what you can in a faraday.”
Harland groaned. “Well this sucks donkey balls. How long you think?”
“Three days we should know what was hit, what was not and if it’s over. That’s word from Civil Defense.”
Civil Defense? Abe thought. Was there even a Civil Defense anymore?
He was under the assumption that Civil Defense went out with the cold war and came in as Homeland Security.
“Do we know if we shot our load?” Harland asked.
Abe didn’t get to hear the answer, Kit returned.
“They aren’t there,” she said.
Abe stood from the top of the step where he was seated. “I’m sorry. At least you know they aren’t injured, right?”
“Yeah, my choices dwindled down to they’re alive and fine, or dead.”
Abe cringed. “Don’t… don’t think like that.”
Harland interrupted with, “We have to go. Head out now.”
Abe looked at Harland, nodded then turned back to Kit. “Good luck.”
“You aren’t coming?” Harland asked her. “Are you afraid of me?”
“No.” Kit shook her head.
“Him?” Harland pointed at Abe.
“I don’t want to be a bother. You have helped me enough and I’m afraid my mood is horrible.”
“It’s not a party you’re spoiling,” Harland said. “But suit yourself. I’m sure it’s cozy down there. Of course my place is like… what’s that fancy first class Las Vegas hotel? Riviera, yeah, my place is the Riviera compared to that.”
“Um, Harland?” Abe said. “That hasn’t been first class since 1955. They also tore it down.”
“You don’t say. Now for sure my place is top notch.” He paused and took on a serious tone. “Come back to my place. Once the danger has passed that no more bombs are coming, I’ll start radioing out. We’ll find your family.”
Kit glanced to Abe as if seeking permission for some reason, then agreed to go. She apologized to the fire chief for not staying, and she, Harland and Abe left the fire station.
On the walk out, Abe thought about what Harland said.
‘Once the danger has passed that no more bombs are coming…’
It was baffling to Abe that it was even a possibility. The bombs could fall again? Even if the only place hit was Colorado, Abe knew nothing was going to be the same again.
The moment they got into the truck, Harland pulled out the orange radiation card. His exhaled conveyed frustration. “I didn’t think it would come this fast.”
“How bad?” Abe asked.
“We’re at twenty R’s. We gotta get below. Within a few minutes that can be as high as five hundred. Not good. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen.” He put the truck in gear, backed out of the spot in front of the fire station and hightailed it out of town.
He drove out of the small town, down a dark road, and turned only a few minutes into the ride into a long driveway. At the end, even dark, a single story home was visible. On the property was a shed and beyond that a barn.
Harland pulled to the barn and into through the open doors, parking his truck. He handed Abe and Kit each a flashlight, popped the hood, stepped from the truck and grabbed a silver blanket from the ground. He lifted the hood of the truck all the way, covered the engine with the blanket and shut the hood as best as he could.
“This way, hurry,” he instructed. Harland closed the barn doors and led the way toward the house.
The three flashlight beams danced across the darkness.
The shutters on the outside of the house were closed and Harland took them to the rear of the home where there were a set a Bilco storm doors. He pulled out his keys and unlocked them, then stepped to the side.