Influenza: Viral Virulence (18 page)

As if picking up on the tension and fright from the people inside the truck, Sandy started to pant loudly from the backseat.

Michael quickly went through his options. From inside the truck, there was no way he could aim the long rifle at them. Even if he could, he might only get off two or three shots before the gang was on them. Lorie’s pistol would fare a little better. But even if they made every round count, there would still be more than a dozen gang members coming at them. And he didn’t think they would take kindly to him asking for a time-out in order to reload. There were too many of them, and they would overwhelm Michael and his friends easily.

The gang leader yelled, and the group in front of the truck started racing toward them, weapons raised. At the same time, the other group behind the truck also started advancing.

They were trapped, and time was quickly running out!

That was the moment when Michael was transported to that time when he was walking peacefully on a dusty, gravel road with his friends, Brian and Scott. He had just learned that the two Pennsylvania boys had gone without backup to an abandoned gas station to fill up their car. He distinctly remembered Brian saying that they hadn’t gone unarmed, that he was driving a two-thousand-pound weapon. Michael’s mind snapped back to the present danger.

He had just told Lorie about having to take the aggressive position and never give up hope. It was time to back up his words with action. With no other options available, Michael slammed the truck gear back into drive and floored the accelerator. Leaping forward with tires squealing, the truck exploded toward the leader and his group. They were stunned by the sight and sound of the large truck bearing down on them. Confused, they quickly looked at each other and their leader for direction.

Momentarily startled, the gang leader with the pistol hesitated.

Michael’s truck was gaining speed and getting close. The leader looked directly at Michael, and gaining some of his composure back, he lifted his hand and gestured that Michael was number one. Then, grinning, he aimed his pistol.

With nowhere else to go, Michael steered the truck directly at the guy with the gun. Lorie gasped, and someone in the backseat cried out. In the dwindling light of dusk, Michael suddenly flipped on his bright lights and blasted the horn. “Get down!” he cried to his friends.

Everyone in the truck got down. Behind the steering wheel, Michael crunched down behind the wheel as much as he could, but he could not duck any lower and still see where he was driving.

The leader had Michael dead center in his gun sights. Suddenly blinded by the bright lights and temporarily disoriented by the loud horn, the red bandana gang leader was immobilized, and his senses were overwhelmed. As some of gang members managed to dive out of the way of the fast-approaching truck, the leader and a few of his friends weren’t so lucky.

Michael heard a few thumps and felt the truck tires bouncing over something, first the front tires and then the back. Breaking through the line of gang members, Michael straightened back up and drove the truck out of the park as fast as he could. Lorie and the rest cautiously got back up. Glancing in the rearview mirror before disappearing around the corner, Michael saw the rest of the thugs gathering around some figures lying motionless on the pavement. He was glad they were more concerned with their friends than in pursuing his truck.

Leaving the park and turning out of sight from the red bandana gang, he hit the steering wheel with his fist in anger. He was upset at himself more than anything else at the moment. Because he had been weak…because he had just let those two kids run off…he had put all of his friends in danger. They had threatened Liz’s life, and he had just let them go. He was a fool.

In the passenger’s seat, Lorie looked at him but remained silent.

“Whew! That was too close!” Jeffrey said. “Does the supply of creeps ever end?”

“I just want to get home,” Liz cried out from the backseat.

“We’re almost there,” Jeffrey said, trying to comfort his big sister.

“Do you really want to go home now?” Michael asked, regaining his composure and looking at them in the rearview mirror. “Those people are still in the area.”

“Yes, we still want to go home,” Jeffrey said with conviction. “We live far enough away from here that those creeps won’t bother us. And if they do manage to stumble on our house, my father has a few surprises for them. My dad was in the marines.”

Chapter 18

Twenty minutes later,
they were parked outside a clean two-story home with light blue siding. It was fully dark now, and without the aid of any streetlights, Michael could only see what the truck headlights revealed. The lawn was overgrown, and the hedges needed to be trimmed. But overall, the house looked like it was in good shape. At least, no windows had been broken, and the front door had not been kicked in. He stopped the truck and before he could shift the gear into park, he heard both back doors open as Liz and Jeffrey jumped out.

“Wait!” he called out, but his words fell on deaf ears.

While he was unbuckling himself from the seatbelt, the two siblings had already crossed their front yard and were using the key to open the front door. Michael had planned to scout the neighborhood for any signs of danger and then make sure the house was safe, but Liz and Jeffrey were so excited to be home that they had rushed on ahead.

By the time he, Lorie, and Sandy had gotten out of the truck, Liz and Jeffrey had disappeared into the dark house. He could hear them both calling out for their parents from within the depths of the home. He imagined that they were running from room to room searching for them. Having known the layout of the house for so many years, they probably didn’t need any light as they looked for their parents.

Michael and Lorie shared concerned glances as they crossed the lawn to the wide-open front door. They stopped at threshold and waited. Michael reached inside the door with one hand and felt against the interior wall. He located and flipped the light switch. Of course, nothing happened. Like everywhere else, the electricity was out. Without any light, neither he nor Lorie felt comfortable entering an unknown house. They’d probably trip over a coffee table or bang themselves into a chair in the darkness. Sandy sniffed some grass and then came over and sat down beside them.

“What was that all about back there?” Lorie took the opportunity to ask him while they were alone.

“What?” Michael asked.

“Your little temper tantrum in the truck back there.”

“Oh, that,” Michael said sheepishly. “I screwed up. I should never have let those two guys get away. Because I didn’t stop them, they had time to round up their friends. We were lucky to get out of there alive.”

“But we did get out. And look,” she said. “I still don’t have a scratch on me. You saved all of us.”

“I know. We were lucky. But how long will our luck hold out? My bad decision put us all in danger.”

“And what were you supposed to do? Shoot them?” Lorie asked bluntly.

“Maybe,” Michael stammered. Then he looked down at his feet in confusion. “I really don’t know. Is this what we’ve become? Killers?”

Lorie moved forward and put her hand on his cheek. She turned his face to her and looked him in the eye. “You do what you think is right. If it means that you have to kill someone to save a life, then I don’t see a problem with that.”

Michael looked back into her eyes. The warmth emanating from her hazel eyes penetrated his soul. “Brian said not too long ago that we might be in danger of losing our humanity in times like these. I see his point now. Where do we draw the line? If we kill, what makes us different than those people out there?”

“We’re different because we are the good guys,” Lorie said confidently.

They could hear Liz calling out for her parents as Jeffrey’s face suddenly appeared before them in the doorway.

“They’re not here,” he announced, frustrated and worried.

From the noise they were making, Michael wasn’t surprised. If Jeffrey’s parents had been home, there would have been a happy reunion as soon as Jeffrey and Liz had entered the house. He was afraid that the commotion they were causing inside the house would soon attract unwanted attention. He could still hear Liz running from room to room, opening and closing doors, and calling out for her parents.

“If we get some light in here, we can help you look. They may have left you a note somewhere,” Michael suggested. “I’ll go get a flashlight from the truck.”

“No, don’t bother. We keep some battery lanterns stashed in the closet just for emergencies. I’ll go get them.” He disappeared back into the dark house.

While Michael and Lorie waited outside on the porch, they watched the neighborhood. Soon, a faint glow came from somewhere inside the depths of the home. The light got brighter and stronger until Jeffrey, holding a lantern in front of him, appeared from around a corner. He handed Michael a second lantern, and they all entered the house together. Searching room by room, they found no sign of the parents.

Gathering in the kitchen, Jeffrey and Liz searched for a note that their parents may have left. Scouring the table, cabinets, and refrigerator, they found nothing.

“Do you think they’re still at Uncle Bill’s?” Jeffrey asked his sister.

“It’s possible. But I would have thought they’d be back home by now.” Turning to Michael and Lorie, Liz explained, “Our parents were going to visit my mom’s brother over in Columbus. But that was before the virus thing exploded. I thought my parents would have come home by now, especially since they knew that Jeffrey and I were trapped at the school without any way to get home.”

“With the gasoline shortages, they may be having difficulty making it back,” Michael said. “Just remember how many running cars we’ve seen since leaving the school. There was only the truck in Lima. Despite that, I’m sure your parents are trying their best to get back here. If I were a parent, I wouldn’t let anything stop me from getting home and making sure that my children were safe.”

“Let’s check the bedroom once again,” Jeffrey said. He turned and led them up the stairs to the master bedroom. Opening the closet door, Jeffrey noted that his parents’ suitcases and some of their clothes were missing.

“Yep. Looks like they’re still at Uncle Bill’s,” Liz said. “Or, at best, they’re on their way back here as we speak.”

“I’m hungry,” Jeffrey suddenly announced from out of the blue.

Until Jeffrey said that, Michael was unaware of just how hungry he was. Since leaving this morning, he hadn’t put anything in his stomach. No one had. As if in agreement, his stomach suddenly growled.

Lorie tried to stifle a giggle.

“That, I can take care of,” Liz said. “Lorie, would you like to come help me?”

“Sure,” Lorie said and followed Liz out of the room, leaving Jeffrey and Michael alone.

“Jeffrey, we need to talk.”

“Okay?”

“I don’t want to say it, but maybe your parents are…”

“…I know, I know,” Jeffrey said, reading his thoughts. “But I have to hope that they’re coming back.”

“You may want to think about coming with us. I’m planning on taking Lorie to her parents. Then, I’m going to go meet up with mine. If Lorie and her parents want to come with me, I’d be happy to take them. And if you and Liz want to come, you can join the party too.” Michael sat down on the edge of the bed.

“I’ll talk to my sister about it, but right now, I think I want to stay here and wait. We’ve lived in this same house forever, and it’s the only place that I know. I feel comfortable here. I think Liz doesn’t want to leave our home either. If there’s even a chance that our parents are coming home, we should be here when they arrive.”

“You could leave a note in case they get here and don’t find you,” Michael suggested.

“I’ll have to talk to Liz about it,” Jeffrey repeated. “But my vote would be to stay here.”

“Okay. I can respect that decision. But if you or Liz change your mind before we leave, the offer is still open. In the meantime, I think we need to make you as safe and secure as we can in this house. What kind of protection do you have in case the red bandana gang comes over for an uninvited visit?”

Smiling, Jeffrey walked back over to his parent’s closet. Standing on his tiptoes, he rummaged around the top shelf until he finally found a laminated mahogany box. Placing the box on the bed next to Michael, he opened it, revealing a shiny semiautomatic pistol with a steel finish. “And there is plenty of ammunition still in the closet.”

Gently taking the gun from the box, Michael looked it over. He ejected the magazine. It was empty. “Under normal circumstances, for safety reasons, this gun should be empty like this. But now, it would be wise to load this and have it ready at all times. Also, get all the ammo out of the closet so you have easy access to it.”

Jeffrey returned to the closet and retrieved multiple boxes of ammunition. He placed the heavy boxes on the bed. He also found a spare magazine.

“Great!” Michael said, seeing the extra one. “Keep both of these full. By the way, you have used this gun before, right?”

“Yes,” Jeffrey said much to Michael’s relief. “My dad and I used to go out to the range, and he showed me how to use it. We practiced often while Liz and Mom were out at the mall. I got better over time, and I can hit the target most of the time.”

“That’s good,” Michael said. “But you said you and your dad went to the range. What about Liz and your mom? Have they had any practice shooting the gun?”

“I don’t think Liz knows that Dad has a gun. My mom hates guns and probably doesn’t know that Dad taught me how to use it.”

“So Liz doesn’t know about the gun. And more importantly, Liz doesn’t know how to use the gun?”

“I can teach her,” Jeffrey said. He took a box of cartridges and systematically started loading both pistol magazines.

“I think it’s vital that both of you know how to use this,” Michael said, indicating the pistol. “Can you imagine if you’re caught in a desperate situation and Liz doesn’t know how to shoot? Or doesn’t even know to flip the safety off?”

“I know.”

“If you can teach her, you really need to. And soon,” Michael continued. “We don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow. My only concern with teaching her how to shoot is that you need to be careful about firing the pistol. The sound could bring unwanted company. I don’t have a solution for that right now, but I’ll think about it. In the meantime, we need to think about fortifying your home.”

Michael and Jeffrey left the master bedroom and stopped in the kitchen. Sandy was sitting in there where all the food was located. Her tail was wagging as if expecting some tasty treat. Liz was showing Lorie the inside of the pantry, which was packed full of canned items.

Michael couldn’t make out what some of the canned food was, but it didn’t look very appetizing to him. The girls were talking about preserving food, and Liz was giving Lorie a lesson on the proper technique of canning food. Most of it was over Michael’s head. They were talking about salt, sugar, and vinegar. What that had to do with canning food, Michael had no idea. But Lorie was completely absorbed in what Liz was saying. She was soaking up every bit of information that she could.

Jeffrey rolled his eyes and the guys left the kitchen with the girls deep in discussion. They drove the truck into the empty garage, hiding it from view. They had to use the manual override on the garage door to open it and then close it after the truck was inside. Once that was taken care of, Michael unloaded their suitcases while Jeffrey took them inside. With the extra luggage gone, Michael put the bungee cords and ropes back into storage. The backseat was now vacant, and he was able to store all of their stuff that needed protection from the elements.

Afterward, Michael found Jeffrey in the family room. They both sat on the sofa in front of the dead flat-screen television attached to the wall.

“I see that you have a fireplace, which is great. Do you know how to build a fire?”

“Yes,” Jeffrey replied.

“Do you have firewood for the winter and for cooking?”

“Yes. Dad and I felled an old tree in the backyard last summer, and we cut and split wood for weeks. It took forever, and swinging that heavy splitting axe was tiring. Dad wouldn’t let me use the chainsaw. But now we have a huge pile of wood stacked up in the back. A couple of cords, I think.”

“Then you have heat for the winter and fuel for cooking. Just be aware that the smell of smoke can attract people too. At least your wood is in the back and out of view from the street.”

“And, as you saw, we have plenty of food.”

“Yes, you do. But even that will eventually run out.”

“My mom is a fanatic about canning and storing food. She always bought lots of stuff in season and spent days canning it. She said that was the way to save money.”

Michael nodded and then turned to the windows. “We need to cover and protect the windows with something. You wouldn’t happen to have any plywood?”

“No.”

“Any wood sheets of any kind? Two-by-fours?” Michael asked.

Jeffrey took a moment to think. “Just the firewood out back.”

“We need to cover the windows with something heavy. Heavy enough to block any light inside from being seen from the street.”

Getting up from the sofa, they went back into the kitchen. Jeffrey asked his sister if they had extra blankets to cover up the windows.

“You can find extra blankets in the linen closet. And speaking of blankets…” Liz looked at Michael and Lorie. “We have our rooms, but I’m sure it would be okay if you guys wanted to crash for the night in my parents’ bedroom.”

“I’ll be fine out on the sofa,” Michael said.

“Oh,” Liz said, looking back and forth from Michael to Lorie. “I thought you two were…”

“…good friends,” Michael finished her sentence.

Turning to Lorie with a surprised look on her face, Liz said, “Girl, if you don’t snag him, I will.”

Lorie laughed sheepishly at Liz’s comment and then looked down at the table. Her cheeks got a little red, and she avoided eye contact with Michael.

In the meantime, Michael thought it wise to remain silent. He could feel his own face getting hot, and he asked Jeffrey to show him where the blankets were. They gathered the blankets, and with some tools and nails that Jeffrey retrieved from the garage, they spent the rest of the evening covering all the windows. Finally, they both moved the heavy living room sofa to block the front door. Wedged between the door and the wall, the sofa prevented the door from being opened easily from the outside.