Read The Last Peak (Book 2): The Darwin Collapse Online
Authors: William Oday
Tags: #Post-Apocalyptic | Infected
The sickening screams of his final seconds were lost as the chopper lifted higher into the air.
Mason held the overflowing trash bag open as Beth shoved another outfit of Theresa’s inside. Her room looked like a poltergeist had crossed over. While she rested in the chopper out on the street, they packed up one trash bag each of personal possessions.
One bag each to contain the entirety of their lives.
That was hard enough. But the fact that they had exactly five minutes to make those decisions made it next to impossible.
How was a person supposed to look at a lifetime of accumulation and memories and decide which handful made the cut?
And how was that supposed to happen when each decision got less than a second or two of consideration?
It
was
impossible.
And so they did the best they could.
Beth dug through Theresa’s sheets and fished out a prize. Lambchops. As bedraggled as ever. Both eye buttons missing and ears frayed into stringy threads. The loyal lovie looked more like garbage than something you’d want to shove into a trash bag of your dearest belongings. Despite his appearance, or maybe because of it, his inclusion was never in question.
She crammed him inside and Mason tied the top into a knot. He hefted the bag over his shoulder and was about to walk it out when Elio appeared in the doorway.
“I got it,” he said as he grabbed the bag. “You need to go easy on that ankle.”
“Thanks. You’re a good kid, you know.”
A lopsided smile spread across his face. He nodded and departed with the last bag.
Mason checked his watch.
Forty-two seconds left on the clock.
He gathered Beth in his arms. He glanced over her shoulder at the corner of the room. “I remember the night we put together Theresa’s crib. In a room about half this size. How we argued if it should go by the window or in the corner.”
She squeezed him tight, shaping her body into his. She rested her cheek on his chest. “And I remember how I convinced you I was right.”
Images flashed through Mason’s mind. Beth’s bare skin moving in ways that would make the Pope blush. They’d built a life together. Much of it here.
A cat meowed in the hallway.
Mr. Piddles strolled in and wrapped his body around Beth’s leg. He twisted through her legs with his long tail curling around behind.
“Looks like we’re all out of trash bags,” Mason said.
Beth arched a brow at him. “He’s going. Iridia is going to need him now more than ever.”
Iridia was in the chopper in Miro’s arms. She hadn’t stopped sobbing since losing her father. Beth was right, as she usually was in matters of the heart.
Mason surveyed the overweight feline. “Well, I suppose we could eat him if food gets scarce.”
Beth cuffed his shoulder. “Not funny.”
Mason laughed anyway. It was an empty sound, but at least it existed for a brief span. The sadness in his heart needed whatever help it could get.
They stared at Theresa’s room in silence, knowing they would never see it again.
“Hey,” Mason said, “the upside is that you’ve always wanted to live in San Francisco. Weird that it’s going to be the new capitol.”
“This wasn’t exactly the scenario I’d envisioned.”
Mason nodded in slow motion. “I know.”
“Do you think life will ever be normal again?” she asked.
“I hope so.”
He knew it would never be like it was. He knew that world was gone forever. Whatever came next might aspire toward similar ends, but whatever it became, it would undoubtedly be different.
Because every result was a combination of the innumerable conditions that preceded it. And the world they now faced had been fundamentally altered. Whatever came next would grow from that changed soil.
Beth’s expression darkened. Moisture welled in the corners of her eyes.
“What’re you thinking about?” he asked.
“We need to check on my parents on the way north,” she said. “They might still be alive.”
“We will,” he said, without knowing if the diversion was actually possible. He had no idea about the refueling situation or any number of other factors that might preclude another waypoint in the journey.
The not knowing didn’t matter.
It was a dilemma that didn’t require an immediate solution. It could wait a few minutes. And with only seconds remaining of their old lives, the future seemed far away.
Captain Whitaker appeared in the doorway.
“We’ve got contact outside. It’s time to go. Now.”
Beth scooped up Mr. Piddles.
“Ma’am, the President didn’t say anything about a cat.”
“He’s going. It’s not up for discussion.”
Beth marched past the captain staring holes into him as she went.
Mason passed him with a lopsided grin. “She loves animals.”
Mason followed her out of the house they’d spent so much time, money, and energy making their own. As much as his heart mourned the loss, the depths of his soul appreciated a more important truth.
He still had his family.
Billions of people had died or lost those they loved. Incalculable loss. Incalculable suffering.
And yet he still had the two things that mattered most.
His daughter and his wife.
He helped Beth into the chopper and climbed in behind. Six trash bags were crammed into the rear area. One each for Mason, Beth, Theresa, Elio, Noor, and Maria.
The President motioned for Mason to return to the empty seat next to him.
Mason sat down and secured his seat belt. He accepted the headset offered by Captain Whitaker.
“Take us back to the capital,” the President said over comms.
“Yes, sir,” the pilot replied.
The President turned to Mason. “Mr. West.”
“Yes, Mr. President?”
Mr. President.
Weird.
“You’ve saved my life on two occasions. You seem to have a knack for it.”
Mason had no interest in gratitude or back-patting. His daughter was still very sick and, despite receiving the serum, still had a hard recovery ahead.
“Sir, no thanks are necessary.”
“I wasn’t going to thank you. I was going to offer you a job.”
Mason’s head spun, seemingly faster than the rotors as the chopper lifted into the air. The pilot yawed to the north and picked up speed while continuing to climb. Far below, Mason watched as a pack of deltas stood in the street, looking up at the beings that, from their perspective, must’ve seemed like gods.
Fragile gods, to be certain.
“A job, sir?” Mason asked.
“A position in the Presidential Protective Division.”
“Sir,” Captain Whitaker cut in, “Alpha team is more than capable of attending to that duty.”
“Captain, your skills are required for higher priority missions.”
“I’m sorry, sir. But your safety is
the
highest priority.”
“This isn’t a discussion, Captain,” the President replied with an edge of impatience creeping into his voice. “Besides, it’s high time we reconstituted the Secret Service and its mission.”
The President turned back to Mason. “What do you say? Will you keep me alive while I go about the dangerous business of rebuilding civilization?”
It was insane to even consider. And yet, it made perfect sense. He’d had over a decade in the close protection business and many years in the Marine Corps before that. He knew how to save a life, and he knew how to take one.
If this man could bring mankind back from the brink, then he deserved everything Mason had to offer.
Even his own life, if it came to that.
Beth wouldn’t like it, but he didn’t really have a choice.
“Yes, sir, Mr. President.”
THE END OF BOOK 2
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I’m pounding away on the next story in this series, The Darwin Evolution (The Last Peak, Book 3). If you’d like to find out how Mason and his family fare in a world gone mad, please click the link below.
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William
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William
About the Author
William Oday grew up in the Midwest, the center of the states. He later meandered out to the West Coast and has remained off-center ever since. Living in Los Angeles, he achieved his Career 1.0 dream by working on big-budget movies for over a decade. If you’ve seen a Will Smith or Tom Cruise blockbuster action movie, you’ve likely seen his work.
He is now pursuing his Career 2.0 dream—a dream he’s had since youth—to write thrilling stories that pull a reader in and make the real world fade away.
He has since moved to a more rural setting with his lovely wife, vibrant children, and a dog that has discovered the secret to infinite energy.
You can find out more about him and his stories at
WILLIAMODAY.COM
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