Once outside the SUV I sat at the rear watching the darkness and listening for any sounds that I hadn’t heard before. I was no expert of the area or the wildlife that lived in and amongst the woods, but I had spent one night there so far and was working on the second night. So I knew what sounds to look for, which were normal, and those that were out of place in the wee hours of the night. Convinced that no one was around, I moved along the interstate and cut off to the left, down a slight embankment and hustled along the trees toward my destination.
The wind blew through the trees and sounded like a freight train at times, masking the sounds of the forest and any potential threat that could be just out of sight or perhaps around the next large tree. Thunder rumbled in the distance and I waited for the lightning to follow before moving any further. None did. My legs felt as though I had run for a hundred miles or more, yet I knew that wasn’t possible. It had been only a few miles, if that. I was amazed at how out of shape I was and knew that with this new world, I would either have to adapt or fade away.
Several times I came to a large stream too wide to jump, which forced me up toward or onto the interstate where I’d quickly sprint the width of the obstacle before heading down to the tree line and out of sight. Once or twice I stopped as a distant noise sounded far too close to me and I needed to hear if it was coming my direction or fleeing the other way. A trip that I thought would take only two hours round trip was pushing forty minutes so far, and I still was nowhere near the gas station.
“Dammit, how much further could it be?” I whispered, stopping to catch my breath. As if God himself decided to answer the question, another bolt of lightning leapt across the sky and revealed the two dark signs on the right side of the interstate where the gas stations were. I smiled and looked skyward. “Thank you.”
On the left side of the interstate, between the onramp and actual lanes, was a small group of six pine trees. From there I could clearly see the two stations on the right and the single station on the left without being spotted by anyone that may be in the area. There was a reservation about going to the station on the left, as that was where I first encountered the Two Men who threatened to kill me and take the Pathfinder with Kember asleep inside. There was no way to know for sure if the thing had gotten them or if they had run off into the woods. Either way, at least one of them could still be in the area and I didn’t want another confrontation with them even though I was heavily armed this time around. If I could avoid a fight I would in a heartbeat. I wasn’t the hero type and I wasn’t about to start.
Although the station on the left was much closer and it would allow me to stick to some sort of a time schedule, the other stations may have more to offer me, although I was opposed to the idea of crossing the open interstate and taking even more time. Besides, other than the obvious reasons, like being out in the open and being an easy target, I already knew the things I would grab from the first location… so that’s where I went.
The back door was still open as I approached and I was careful with each foot placement, as were my eyes, which continuously searched for any movement in the darkness as my ears listened for the slightest sound of other humans or those things. I had the revolver out and aiming directly in front of me. The Beretta was down the front of my pants, so if anyone was able to disarm me of the revolver, I could easily get to the other handgun.
There is no margin for error… absolutely no margin for error.
My mind reminded me. “There is no room to screw up here… if I screw up even the slightest, she dies all alone.” I wished to God I hadn’t said those words, as now my mind was hovering over her and watching her slowly starve to death. The crying she would offer for no one to hear. Sitting in waste for days until her little bottom was so red that it started to bleed. The dehydration brought on by the warm sun filling the SUV with hot thin air and nothing to drink. I stopped and pushed myself against the wall. “Is this worth it, I mean
really
worth it?” I had come this far, no since in wasting the trip and going back empty-handed now.
I took several deep breaths and told myself that I wasn’t going to screw up, there was too much at stake and I’d fight the pits of hell for her if I had to.
The store was completely quiet. A pungent odor of gunpowder still filled the air as if I had fired the round just moments ago. The cooler lights no longer glowed, yet I could still hear the fans and motors running normally. As I moved further into the store I spun the .357 magnum in the direction of my head, that way if my eyes crossed something the muzzle of the revolver would also. All I would need to do then was pull the trigger. My two handed grip held the firearm firmly, hammer cocked and my finger resting just forward of the trigger guard. As I moved deeper into the store I wished that I had taken a class when I purchased the Beretta, not so much to learn the basics of the weapon, but mainly to learn how to shoot properly. When it came time to shoot, as I had earlier, I had put several rounds into my target before it went down. That wasn’t an option, because I was limited on the amount of ammo with me and if I ever had to take several of those things down at once, I would have to reload at some point and that is where it got really uncomfortable.
Just dropping the mag and putting a fresh one in, playing around, took several seconds, not to mention the fact that I was under no pressure or emotional strain. How would I react with all of those things combined when each shot needed to count? Quickly I wanted to run back to the SUV and stay there. I could worry about drinking when that time came, not currently.
It has to be done now… there may not be another time to go and look or there may not be anything left. Suck it up and do this.
My mind hammered out.
“I know. I know… I’m doing my best here, so give me a damn break,” My voice echoed across the empty store and I instantly went to work grabbing the things we would need over the next several days. Every few minutes I found myself stopping and letting the silence pour back in, listening for the slightest noise that shouldn’t be, watching for any movement across the road in the darkness and toward the rear of the store. My instincts were forming and I let them go wherever they needed. I went back to filling the carry bag with supplies as well as a backpack I had found in the brown sedan.
The storm was growing closer and the lightning was growing hotter and brighter with each passing minute, not to mention the intensity of the rolling thunder that easily shook the windows of the store with great ease. I had to get back to our make-shift home before Kember was pulled from her slumber and began crying when she couldn’t find me. I hated leaving her behind, but there was no way I could have brought her along and guaranteed nothing would have happened. Yet I couldn’t guarantee that nothing would not happen leaving her, as she could easily wake up and start crying. If any of those things were nearby she wouldn’t know to be quiet or sense the danger. She was a toddler after all… she knew nothing of the real world or any of its murderous truths.
In the real world that was easily considered abandonment and I could lose her and go to jail. Yet in the new chaotic world there were no defined rules or laws. You took what you needed to survive and you were forced to do things that you didn’t want, were immoral or downright evil just to wake up the next day.
Even with all that said I still felt like a worthless father.
I grabbed the carry bag when it was full and put it on my left shoulder, feeling a tad bit like a cross-dresser. All I needed now was some high heels and a skirt and I’d pass for a woman, well sort of anyway. One that had a partial beard and short hair. I shook my head in finding humor in the midst of danger and threw the idea away, moving down the middle isle toward the order pick up counter just right of the registers.
A shadow moved along the glass windows outside watching him. When he stopped to survey the store one last time in the event he had forgotten something, the shadow ducked out of sight and peered around the side of the door facing to watch him. Brandon kept getting the feeling that he was being watched, although everywhere he looked there was no one there and no one had come out at him or ambushed him. So he left it at unsteady nerves and headed for the back door. The shadow hurried across the front of the store and rounded the corner heading toward the back.
Lightning tore across the sky, scattering into three different main directions before fading and pounding thunder took over. The storm was now just a few miles away and I worried that I might not make it back before the heavy rain started. That bothered me greatly as there were no headlights, stars, moon or any lights for that matter to point me in the right direction or show me if anything was walking toward me in the pitch black. I could easily walk up on several of those things and not know it until it was too late or wonder aimlessly through the woods in circles not knowing where I was or where I was heading.
The idea, even though it had been very successful, turned out to be completely stupid and extremely irresponsible.
I headed out the back door, stopping long enough to look left, and then right for any signs of other humans or any of those things. I was about to take a step when my head started to feel hot. The dizziness returned and I fell back against the wall. “No, no… not good timing,” I said softly. The .357 felt heavy in my hand like it was thirty pounds or more and it began weighing me down. I had to consciously fight through the effects just to keep from dropping the weapon; there was no time to give in to the darkness, which was closing in on me like the storm clouds. “I have to get back to her… go away and leave me alone.”
I fell to my knees, yet tried my best to continue forward, making it only four feet before I hunched over on my left hand. The carry bag hit the ground and I could see several cans roll away from me. Vainly I grabbed at them until a tall shadow came into view and the fear returned.
I tried to raise the revolver to protect myself, although every time I attempted this I found the task virtually impossible. I couldn’t bring the weapon any higher than a few inches. Kember crossed my mind and once again I hovered above and watched her die slowly and painfully. Her little life was in my hands, literally, and I had only seconds to change the situation or it was over for both of us.
“I’ll… kill you.” I was barely able to get out as I was rolled onto my back.
The shadow raised an assault rifle from nowhere and the barrel was pointed directly at my face. With the flicker of an index finger the weapon would speak volume; however, I would never hear its pointed words or feel its loud actions.
“I have a daughter… she needs me,” I added and instantly blacked out.
The Shadow stood there watching him for a few moments before gathering up the items and returning them to the carry bag.
Through hazy vision and warped hearing, I looked up to see an unrecognizable person looking down at me. Their voice called to me, offering me something which was placed in my mouth followed by some water. The world grew dim and faded to black once again. Unfamiliar sounds filled my ears, and then there were familiar sounds such as Kember laughing and babbling on about eating, daddy, mommy and bubba. I didn’t know if I was dreaming it all and would soon wake to the warmth of the sunlight or if I had died and was reliving specific events in my life that mattered more than any other time. I was told that your life flashes before you just before you die. Could it be possible that after you die, your entire life replays, but in a slower motion, one where you can actually relive those times and feel alive with the raw emotions of that specific memory?
I could feel the tears running from my closed eyes down my cheeks. The pain was very much real, the sorrow was harder than any steel I had ever felt. There was an emptiness that was unfillable and definite. It was eternal. I had to be dead; there was no other explanation for it. Yet I could still hear and feel… or perhaps that was just my body dying and since my soul had not left yet, I was interpreting what it was going through?
Chapter Four.
Aches and pains shot through my legs as I tried to move them. I lay on a small cot in the fetal position with several blankets piled on top of me; four rusty colored walls encircled me. My body was hot to the touch, as though I had been under an electric blanket that could reach two hundred degrees, yet I was freezing. There was a full set of plaid pajamas on me and ankle socks that looked brand new.
As my vision slowly focused I could see three small hanging candles, which lit the narrow room dimly but well enough for me to make most things out. Searching for a door that could grant me freedom with my eyes, my right hand felt along the cot for my Beretta or the revolver to no avail. I was unarmed and in a very bad position, as the walls resembled those of trailers that big trucks would carry up and down the interstates of America. Was I in one headed somewhere?
Where the hell am I?
My mind screamed.
I tried to get up only to teeter on the edge of the cot, threatening to fall to the metal floor. I fought with gravity and quickly lost as I and the cot tumbled over. The fall was short and didn’t hurt, although my legs had involuntarily straightened out and the pain scorched me like fire. I tried to put out the invisible flames with my right hand. The fire continued to rage.
The sound of metal clanging against metal called my attention and blocked the pain out. I looked toward the far wall that had no hanging candle and waited with anticipation for what would happen next. It was obvious to me that I had been captured and with no motion bumping me around or noisy tires shooting up from underneath, I was sure that we were not moving.