Although the power was off, the water was not, and they availed themselves of the employee showers after they had quickly moved through the store and picked out what they needed. They had gone together through the deserted aisles of the store, unwilling, or unable, to split up.
Frank, his hair still wet from the cold shower; dressed in a faded pair of jeans and a blue chambray work shirt, leaned up against the wall outside the rest room with the other men, and waited for the women to come back out. They talked quietly among themselves as they waited.
"You think Rochester will be the same as here?" Dave asked. He had seemed especially shaken by the alarm in the parking lot, and still seemed shook up over it.
Mike stood silently next to Gary, tapping the heel of one work boot against the cinder block wall. "It does sort of seem like everyone is gone," he said, as he stopped tapping the boot heel and straightened up.
"Could be," Gary said, solemnly. "It really could be, but I don't think so. I think there are probably people right here in Oswego. They're scared, is all. I can't say as I blame them either, they don't know any more about what's going on than we do. Even if they saw us come in, I don't think they're about to come running up to say howdy. I wouldn't," he paused, before continuing. "If I saw a bunch of people come driving in, I'd probably want to stay away. No police means there is no protection, and they don't know who we are, or even where we came from, or what we want for that matter. I think though, that there are people. Maybe it's just going to take some time before we all get back together. I just can't believe we're it, I guess."
"I have to agree with you, Gary, "John said. “If we were to stay here awhile, I would bet we would probably see someone. The curiosity would bring them out, I think."
"I agree," Frank said. "I was none too keen on approaching you guy's back in Watertown either. I thought about avoiding you, as a matter of fact, just going in the other direction."
"Glad you didn't, Frank," Gary said. The other men nodded agreement as he spoke. "I can see though where a body wouldn't want to. Especially since there was more than a few of us carrying guns, or rifles, at that point. I am glad you did though. I sure as hell wouldn't have wanted to end up with that Ron Saser trying to take charge. He was already pushing it pretty hard. Probably would of shot him myself if he had tried. Who the hell knows what a guy like him would do."
"You don't think they'll follow us do you?" Mike asked.
"No telling," Gary said, "but I wouldn't doubt it. Guy's like him are all over though, and I suppose we'll run into a few just like him eventually. Not much we can do except to be careful, I guess."
"Think we'll make Rochester today?" Dave, asked, as Gina and Connie came walking out of the rest room.
"It's not far, only about another sixty, maybe seventy miles," John answered, "but I doubt it. We will probably get there tomorrow sometime, depending on the stalled traffic of course."
"That's about what I figure," Gary chipped in, "probably late tomorrow at that."
Annie and Lisa opened the door and walked out, and the small group prepared to leave.
Everyone, at Gary's suggestion, had changed into sneakers or boots in case they ended up walking. They had taken the time to pick up extra clothes, as well as some more canned goods to replace what they had eaten, and Frank had found some Quick Cold in one of the side aisles.
Quick Cold had only become popular in the last couple of years as a retail item. Before that it had only been used by the medical profession, to transport anything that needed to stay cold, or frozen. Organs for transplant, fresh blood, and countless other things. The plastic bags contained a small stick shaped tube. Frank had filled three large coolers with soda and beer, and tossed in several of the bags after snapping the small cylinder within, to activate the chemical the bags contained. They had instantly frosted up and began to cool the warm cans.
After they had loaded the Jeeps, they had left the abandoned shopping center and began to work their way through the seemingly empty city. When they reached the first bridge they were forced to stop.
The bridge was still standing, that was not the problem. The problem was that it was packed bumper to bumper with wrecked and burned out cars and trucks. A large city bus also sat within the wreckage. Dave and Frank scrambled over the cars to see what had caused the huge accident.
At first it seemed that the wreckage went on forever. But as they neared the second bridge the problem became apparent.
The bridge, or more properly put, the twisted steel girders and huge chunks of concrete that had been the bridge, lay at the bottom of a deep gorge, partially submerged in the water. Reluctantly they scrambled back over the cars to tell the others that were waiting.
"Think we could move them?" John asked, as Frank and Dave returned. "I saw a wrecker back up the highway a bit; we could go back and get it."
"Wouldn't do any good," Frank said his voice somber. "The second bridge is nearly
