asked.
“There’s a rally being held down on Main Street. But I don’t think they are planning on staying there. I think they are just gathering everyone together and then the real anarchy will start.”
“Hell, it’s already begun,” someone else muttered.
Some older women walked into the room. The moment their eyes locked on me I could see the fear. “What’s he doing here? He’s one of them.”
Four guys who worked for the local lumberyard must have overheard them as they came rushing into the room pointing towards the back door. “Get him out.”
“Now just hold up,” Murphy said putting his arm between them and me.
“What are you doing? He’ll bring ’em this way.”
One guy tried to go for me and Murphy pushed him back. “Back off.”
The air was thick. Everyone’s eyes were on me.
“He’s not one of them,” Murphy said before looking at me. I had to wonder if that was truly what he believed. I didn’t reply as it didn’t matter what I said; the others wouldn’t have believed me.
“You’re telling us he’s not one of them? Look at him.”
The green bomber jacket and black Doc Martens weren’t exactly helping. Had I known before I left the house, I would have chosen something else. It was just force of habit.
“Why is he even in here?”
“Because he’s my son.”
I turned around to see Brett. “You made it.”
They came into the room breathing hard. Alongside him were Jodi, the Robertsons and their daughters. Directly behind them was an injured police officer. He stumbled into the room with a wound in his side. Several other men tried to support him. Sara who was a nurse immediately went to work on trying to help. One of the women disappeared and returned with some towels.
“I thought you hadn’t made it,” I said to Brett.
“We nearly didn’t. If it wasn’t for him,” he motioned to the officer, “we all would have been killed. Of that I’m sure.” The officer looked up from the table. Sara tore open his uniform. There were two knife wounds in the lower part of his stomach. He was bleeding out fast.
“Go to the front desk. There should be a first-aid kit in the third drawer down,” she muttered. The officer’s gold badge on his chest had the name Ridgewood etched into it. I knew I recognized him. He was one of the main officers who had pulled me in on misdemeanor charges. He was in his late twenties. Built extremely well, he almost looked like he was stitched into his uniform.
A few minutes passed and one of the women returned with a first-aid kit. She glanced at me again and kept her distance. Sara went to work on dressing the abdominal wound.
“Not even the shortwave radio is working.”
“I have Dan’s CB and two sets of two-way ham radios at my place,” Murphy said. “I need to get to it and make contact with him.”
“And what? Is he going to bring the cavalry? For all we know he’s already dead.”
Murphy must have found that humorous. The guy had lived his entire life in the military. This must have seemed like a walk in the park to him. When all of us were falling apart at the seams in the wilderness he looked as if he was in his element.
“Wouldn’t that have been affected by the EMP?”
“No, Dan was big on keeping those protected. It’s stored in a small Faraday cage.”
Murphy was assisting Sara. I noticed the guy who came in with Sara looked at Murphy. There was some definite animosity there.
“Should I even bother asking what that is?” Brett asked.
Murphy didn’t reply immediately.
“It’s a means of protection from electrostatic and electromagnetic interference.”
“What the hell, was Dan expecting this to happen?”
He glanced over at everyone who was watching him and for a brief second smirked. “You obviously don’t know Dan very well. The guy expects everything to happen. Now don’t stand there gawking. Barricade the doors with anything you can find.”
“And then what?” one of the older women
“There’s a rally being held down on Main Street. But I don’t think they are planning on staying there. I think they are just gathering everyone together and then the real anarchy will start.”
“Hell, it’s already begun,” someone else muttered.
Some older women walked into the room. The moment their eyes locked on me I could see the fear. “What’s he doing here? He’s one of them.”
Four guys who worked for the local lumberyard must have overheard them as they came rushing into the room pointing towards the back door. “Get him out.”
“Now just hold up,” Murphy said putting his arm between them and me.
“What are you doing? He’ll bring ’em this way.”
One guy tried to go for me and Murphy pushed him back. “Back off.”
The air was thick. Everyone’s eyes were on me.
“He’s not one of them,” Murphy said before looking at me. I had to wonder if that was truly what he believed. I didn’t reply as it didn’t matter what I said; the others wouldn’t have believed me.
“You’re telling us he’s not one of them? Look at him.”
The green bomber jacket and black Doc Martens weren’t exactly helping. Had I known before I left the house, I would have chosen something else. It was just force of habit.
“Why is he even in here?”
“Because he’s my son.”
I turned around to see Brett. “You made it.”
They came into the room breathing hard. Alongside him were Jodi, the Robertsons and their daughters. Directly behind them was an injured police officer. He stumbled into the room with a wound in his side. Several other men tried to support him. Sara who was a nurse immediately went to work on trying to help. One of the women disappeared and returned with some towels.
“I thought you hadn’t made it,” I said to Brett.
“We nearly didn’t. If it wasn’t for him,” he motioned to the officer, “we all would have been killed. Of that I’m sure.” The officer looked up from the table. Sara tore open his uniform. There were two knife wounds in the lower part of his stomach. He was bleeding out fast.
“Go to the front desk. There should be a first-aid kit in the third drawer down,” she muttered. The officer’s gold badge on his chest had the name Ridgewood etched into it. I knew I recognized him. He was one of the main officers who had pulled me in on misdemeanor charges. He was in his late twenties. Built extremely well, he almost looked like he was stitched into his uniform.
A few minutes passed and one of the women returned with a first-aid kit. She glanced at me again and kept her distance. Sara went to work on dressing the abdominal wound.
“Not even the shortwave radio is working.”
“I have Dan’s CB and two sets of two-way ham radios at my place,” Murphy said. “I need to get to it and make contact with him.”
“And what? Is he going to bring the cavalry? For all we know he’s already dead.”
Murphy must have found that humorous. The guy had lived his entire life in the military. This must have seemed like a walk in the park to him. When all of us were falling apart at the seams in the wilderness he looked as if he was in his element.
“Wouldn’t that have been affected by the EMP?”
“No, Dan was big on keeping those protected. It’s stored in a small Faraday cage.”
Murphy was assisting Sara. I noticed the guy who came in with Sara looked at Murphy. There was some definite animosity there.
“Should I even bother asking what that is?” Brett asked.
Murphy didn’t reply immediately.
“It’s a means of protection from electrostatic and electromagnetic interference.”
“What the hell, was Dan expecting this to happen?”
He glanced over at everyone who was watching him and for a brief second smirked. “You obviously don’t know Dan very well. The guy expects everything to happen. Now don’t stand there gawking. Barricade the doors with anything you can find.”
“And then what?” one of the older women
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