Sky Fall (Book 3): Solar Storm Page 5

  That was her first real close call, and it had been from an old friend.

  Clive knew there was a story there, but he didn't want to pry just yet. Or, if she never told it, so be it.

  “I think the cloud has an end,” he finally said, because he had to believe that.

  “Okay,” was all she replied, as if his word was the forecast.

  The pressure was enough to push his acid reflux further up his throat. He felt stifled by it, ready to puke at any moment. “Let’s get into the city and figure out what to do next,” he said, more certain.

  There was only one way now.

  Later, when they were sweaty and the city loomed above and not below them anymore, she said, “Tell me about your wife again.”

  “Let’s see. Sara is fairer than I am and a lot easier on the eyes.” He winked, though with the fog and his mask she probably couldn’t see it. They’d have to sleep in these things. He didn’t even want to think about it. “We were high school sweethearts. Are. Were is…I mean, the past tense is because it was the past, not that she’s–”

  “Dead?”

  “I wish you’d stop saying it like that.”

  “Sorry.”

  Siri frowned as they picked their way over onto a dead-end street.

  Clive stopped so suddenly that she slammed into him. Bodies. Everywhere. He’d thought they were just lumps in the fog.

  They stared at them for a long while before they slowly moved on as if trying not to disturb one big grave.

  “I don’t think she’s dead. It’s just a word, Clive. Dead, I mean. It has no power over the truth.”

  It was darker closer to the city, but fires still burned. The charred remains were somehow worse than the others, catching the snow against their melted bones. “These poor suckers,” she said, her voice tight.

  The few that Clive looked closely at were twisted in agony from either being burned or from the poison—it was hard to tell with ash and snow still raining from the sky. The “poor suckers” were covered in the stuff so that everyone was a bit like a statue except red, bloody flesh puffed out between the cracks.

  Clive wished he could stop seeing it all.

  Siri mentioned truth. Well, here it was.

  9

  Baton Rouge, Louisiana

  There were only four of them now: Sierra, Kai, Quinn, and Mathew. Baton Rouge was on fire. Between the bouts of rain it just couldn’t be stopped.

  People were on the street, rushing one way or another. Away from flooding. Towards the flooding. Away from fire, or towards it.

  It was absolute chaos. There weren’t that many people, though. Not enough, Sierra thought.

  They had gotten out; she’d made sure of it. The place collapsed in a heap moments after they stepped through the door. How she knew where she was going was a mystery, but it had happened. They were alive. It felt like a miracle.

  “What now?” Kai asked her, face pale.

  She was probably pale, too.

  Jen was dead, her body still burning in the building behind them. Sierra hugged her turning stomach. They had nowhere to go. They had nothing.

  “We should travel further north,” Mathew said, the logical one of the group. Sierra nodded.

  Kai frowned. “No. West,” he said.

  “Yeah,” Quinn agreed, smacking away tears that made her face appear to have war paint of black everywhere but her eyes.

  She’d been sobbing since they left her friend behind. Mathew had gone into shock.

  “North away from the flooding. It’s bound to keep growing, right? I mean, Louisiana is all pretty low or whatever. I don’t want to stay here anymore,” Quinn moaned, and Sierra pulled her into a hug.

  “We have to be strong, okay?”

  “Arizona is where our parents are,” Kai said like it was obvious they’d be going in that direction.

  Sierra wasn’t so sure.

  Mathew shook his head, his expression determined. “I think north for now. North away from the water. North away from the fires.”

  “There are fires everywhere. Look around you, man!” Kai shouted, spinning a circle, arms wide, his eyes wild.

  Mathew clenched his fists, and Sierra stepped between them. “Now isn’t the time for fighting. I hate to break it to you, but…” She glanced between them and softly offered, “maybe we should split up.”

  “No,” everyone said together, and that made her feel a little better.

  “All right, then. Let’s make a plan. Let’s get off this street.”

  A woman ran by them with a backpack bouncing on her back, and Quinn tried to stop her. “Hey! Hey! It’s flooded down—oh, never mind.” Quinn’s face split into a tearful expression. “Just go and drown then!”

  Her fury snapped Sierra out of her lulling shock. She knew they were grieving and fighting, but if they had spirit enough to fight, they could survive. Period.

  She racked her brain for an answer, but then Kai relented. “We might have to do it, though. I mean, if you all need to go in a different direction than we do.”

  “Okay,” Mathew said, but he chewed his lip glancing around with what Sierra figured was a searching expression. He wanted someone to refute the idea. “Hear me out,” he said, and everyone listened. “What if first we try to find like a collective or something? We could go to camp Beauregard or Fort Polk. We find out where survivors are…uh…safely are, and travel with them from there? Maybe your family is already at a base near their home, too, and there’s communication.”

  Sierra gaped at him. “Mathew,” she said, grabbing onto him and pulling him into a hug. “That’s brilliant!”

  For the first time since they left their stranded place in New Orleans, a new sense of purpose and hope buoyed the group into action.

  “North,” Sierra said, her eyes finding and holding Kai’s. “We stay together. At least for now.”

  “Which of those places are also west?” Kai asked, still keeping a hold of his pride.

  Mathew thought about it. “Polk.”

  “Polk then,” Kai said, and Sierra nodded.

  She offered, “To Fort Polk. But first, let’s find us some supplies and rest.” Both she and Quinn were on shaky legs. Kai was pale and looked as if a stiff breeze was going to blow him away. He’d lost a lot of blood and didn’t have time to recuperate.

  Together they moved down the block, but it was difficult to stay out of trouble. There weren’t that many people left, but they were ganging up on others like the group they’d met before.

  They agreed to avoid conflict by going several blocks at a time out of the way. They found a grocery store that looked empty, but they decided that staking it out first was wise.

  “You see anyone?” Mathew asked Kai.

  “Not yet.”

  They waited as long as they could, but the cold forced their hand.

  Quinn complained she couldn’t feel her fingers and toes when Sierra said, “All right. Guess we have to risk it.”

  Under the cover of night, they approached the large super center that would have everything they needed, though it had already been looted and partially burned. Quinn and Sierra quietly sifted through clothing and found jackets, gloves, and hats for everyone.

  Kai and Mathew searched for food and water.

  “What did you find?” she asked her brother when she saw him, but he shook his head. “Most of it’s gone. You?”

  “We got clothing. Let’s try to find a place to say.”

  They turned to leave, but Quinn was hunched down by a rack of clothing and refused to move. She impatiently motioned towards the door until the rest noticed people had come inside.

  They all hid together, listening.

  “What do we do?” Quinn asked. Mathew grabbed her by the hand and towed her towards the rear with Sierra and Kai trailing behind.

  “Let’s hide in back,” Mathew said. “Maybe we get lucky and they leave soon.”

  They found a place in the shadows of the storage area and crouched dow
n. Whoever it was was already smashing through the store, destroying things looking for whatever it is they wanted.

  A beam a light came through the tiny window to the back room and Sierra flinched when she saw it.

  “Kai,” she said softly, urgently.

  “I know,” he whispered back.

  It would have been nice if they still had that sword.

  Sierra reached around until she touched what felt like the end of a baseball bat on the ground.

  She pulled it into her hands and then ignored her brother’s raised brows.

  “No one takes me this time,” she said.

  “Hey, back here!” someone shouted, and Sierra braced herself.

  The door flew open and three guys came sauntering in.

  Light bounced around from the flashlight until it landed on Quinn. “What the–”

  Sierra jumped to her feet and brandished her baseball bat. “Leave us alone!” she said.

  Kai was already at her side.

  More flashlights turned on and a deep voice said. “Woowee, you guys look like you caught the worst of it.”

  “Yeah, well, you can be on your way,” Sierra spat.

  “You must have had a run-in with the creeps,” a younger voice muttered, and then she heard him spit.

  “The creeps?”

  “Yeah.”

  Confusion filled her voice. “You named the looters?”

  The older man chuckled. “Looters? Is that all you think they’re doing?”

  The third man brushed past the standoff as if Sierra wasn’t going to hit him with a bat and moved towards whatever he’d been looking for. He tossed a few boxes aside. His voice was strained, and when a light fell on him, Sierra gasped. Half his face was angry, bright red burns.

  “You guys,” he coughed. “You guys find any medicine back here?”

  Sierra slowly put down the bat, and she and her brother shared a glance and shrugged. “No,” she said. “But we can help you look.”

  Kai watched his sister do what she did best: Be charming and full of life, with her smile that wrapped a million people around her little finger, including him.

  They found something for the burns, and she was busy helping the stranger clean his wounds. His name was Kace.

  It was Kace, his Uncle Neven, and a younger man, Brett.

  Kace’s burns were even worse underneath his clothing than they were outside of them. The bandages immediately soaked through with patches of blood, and he had a wet, rattling cough.

  Neven’s dark eyes tracked the progress with sadness, but Sierra took Kace’s mind off it all with her dramatic retelling of their escape from New Orleans to here.

  “We better move on,” Neven said during a break in the talking, his deep voice friendly.

  “They should come with us, right, uncle?” Brett glanced between the groups, and Kai helped out the elder by saying, “Nah. We’re headed north. It was nice to meet such decent people for once. I mean, it’s not been too pleasant, to say the least.”

  “The creeps,” Brett said knowingly. “That’s what I call them. At night they creep around looking for weaklings to pick off.”

  “That’s enough,” Neven said, but he didn’t say it wasn’t true.

  Kace coughed until he barely caught his breath on a wheeze. “Drug addicts, most likely. Meth heads. They’re all jacked up on stashes they’ve probably looted or killed for. It makes them super strong, fast, and for now, invincible almost.”

  Sierra glanced at Kai, and he turned red under her thankful gaze. “Almost invincible,” she said softly.

  Neven nodded. “They are up to no good for sure.”

  Kace was giving his uncle a nod.

  The older man sighed, rolling his neck until it cracked and popped. “I guess you guys need a place to refuel yourselves, right? I have a farm outside the city. It’s not much, but it isn’t burned, and the creeps won’t try to come there.”

  “They won’t?” Quinn said.

  “Not on your life,” Neven answered with a smile.

  Brett laughed. “My uncle has enough hound dogs to literally take up a small city. They’re loud, always eating everything they can, and turns out they’re the best deterrent for the freaks.”

  Neven scratched his neck but had an affectionate gleam in his eye. “Champion bloodhounds,” he corrected. “They sniff a man out if he’s trespassing, tree ’em, and then I come for the rest. That is if they don’t tear him to shreds before I get there.”

  Brett was watching Quinn with a blossoming adoration. “Hated them dogs all my life, but now I love the mutts.”

  She was oblivious, scooting closer to Mathew.

  “That’s champion mutts to you, boy.”

  Mathew interjected. “I think we should leave, either way. If you, uh, think these creeps are around, then they are bound to come here for supplies soon.”

  “You want to go with them?” Kai asked.

  Mathew shrugged, Quinn nodded, and Sierra smiled a little too brightly at Brett. “Yes, definitely.”

  The young man glanced away from his sister, looking down at the floor. It’s funny; Quinn was pretty, but Sierra was a whole other level for a youngster like him. Her attention could feel like a police helicopter spotlight. His ears were practically see through they were so red.

  The group began to move, filing out of the store together, but Kace was slow, so they had to wait for him to limp along.

  As they made their way back to the city, Neven explained that they’d have to go through it to get to the other side where his farm was. “It’s a ways. Gonna take us half a day, easily. You okay with that?”

  They said they were, but they were only a mile in when Kace stopped his uncle. “Neven,” he said, his breathing labored. “I’m not gonna make it, man.”

  “Yes, you will, son.”

  “No.” He shook his head, hands wrapped around his sides. “I think I’m gonna try to find a place to rest for now. Go on without me.”

  “No,” Neven said. “How about we all find a place in the city for the rest of the night? Deal?”

  Everyone agreed. “We have food and supplies,” Brett said. “We’ll just stay here until Kace is ready to move on.”

  Kai shared a worried glance with Sierra, but she only shrugged.

  They found an apartment in the middle of the city that hadn’t burned. Their group was weary of buildings that might catch on fire, so they hesitated at the entrance. Kace’s expression showed he definitely understood their fear, as well.

  “We will post watch for fire, each of us taking turns,” Neven said.

  With that decided, they found a large room three floors up that didn’t smell too badly and was empty.

  Brett watched the hall while they all took turns eating and drinking.

  Sierra helped Kace rebandage himself, gently and painstakingly removing each bandage with soft hands. By the time she was through, he was shivering from a fever. She found him some antibiotics and made Kai sit down to take some pills, too.

  Then she rebandaged Kai as well.

  Suddenly Sierra was standing next to him, leaning heavily to the side.

  Kai only barely caught her as she fell into a faint.

  He gently laid her on the ground on top of a sleeping bag they’d brought.

  “Girlfriend?” Brett asked, and Kai startled to find him leaning over them both. Kai stood; his fists tight. “Sister,” he said, and Brett backed off as if he realized he was hovering.

  Quinn had propped up against the wall and was snoring softly with Mathew leaning heavily against her side.

  Brett checked on Quinn then went dejectedly back outside.

  Nevin laughed and shook his head. “That poor kid thinks he’s going to be the last man in the world.”

  Kai sighed. “He might be right at this rate.”

  “Yeah.”

  Kai covered Sierra up to make sure she was warm enough. He checked her breathing, and she just appeared to be in a deep sleep, so he left her alon
e.

  Neven stood at the window watching something with narrowed eyes.

  “What is it?” Kai whispered as he moved to Nevin’s side.

  “What’s that sound?” Mathew asked sleepily.

  And then Kai heard it, too. It was like the yipping coyotes from home out in the desert.

  “The creeps,” Neven answered. “They’ve taken over the streets.”

  10

  Outside of Baton Rouge, Louisiana

  In the real-world, Kentucky was sleeping, or was delirious, or was seeing a vision of his past before his death.

  But in his mind, he relived that harrowing day.

  Or days, rather…

  Kentucky was alone. He remembered rolling onto his back, just like with the sub now, only this time, when night fell in his memories, a hand grabbed his. “Hey,” a voice said. “Come on.”

  It was the woman soldier.

  “I thought you were dead,” he told her, frowning at her strange clothing.

  “No, I just thought I’d change out of our uniform for a little while. You game?”

  She’d camouflaged herself in civilian clothing from the locals somehow.

  She offered him a robe and he took it.

  “Wrap your face,” she said.

  "You think we can sneak out of here?”

  "You have a better idea?"

  He didn’t.

  “Kentucky,” he said, not bothering with what she should call him. He thought he was going to leave his hiding place and die; he wanted her to know his real name.

  She understood and said her name was Bethany. She was tiny. Literally. A driver who’d spent what she thought were her last moments alive protecting the people in her truck. But she’d lost them all.

  Kentucky had been underneath his truck for three whole days and nights. When he stood for the first time, his joints were stiff, and his legs were asleep. “It was a trap,” he said, and she gave him a funny look like he was captain obvious.

  “You all right, Sergeant?” Worry pushed her eyes narrow as she looked him over.