She didn’t wait for guidance. As the woman searched for her target, Grace let off the gas and slammed her boot into the brake pedal. The truck skidded, sloughing off all the speed she’d built up in her short escape.
Misha tumbled forward.
Nerio’s aim was disrupted. It went in front of the truck, as if she’d been anticipating its movement. Then the blazing light turned off again.
“Hang on!” she advised before kicking her beloved Suburban in the guts one more time. “And get in the very back!”
“I try,” Misha squawked, bouncing around the cabin.
There was only one place she could go.
On the Missouri River
They gained a good number of miles before the sun was totally gone. Based on what he saw on his map, he guessed they were on the outskirts of Kansas City. As much as Ezra wanted to keep going into the night, prior experience with the debris in the water made him pick a spot to beach the pontoon boat until morning. Since they had tents and sleeping bags, all they needed was a patch of forest to hide in.
“I’ll put the girls’ tent over here,” Haley said in a mocking tone.
Butch was already setting up what Ezra assumed was the boys’ tent.
After securing the lines and checking his epoxy patches on the bullet punctures in the pontoons, he came over to where Butch had piled a few branches for a fire. “Need me to collect some wood?”
Butch nodded. “I’ll have this tent up and the tinder started by the time you get back.”
Haley made less progress on her tent. If she was still at it when he returned, he’d offer a little help. They were going to be on the water for a long time, so she might as well learn how to set it up at her own pace. It’s what he would have done with Grace.
He walked into the trees, eager to find dry wood for the fire. His eyes were adjusted to the moonlit darkness, making it easy to see the numerous logs and sticks on the ground. After filling his arms and turning to go back, however, he heard the distinct footfall of someone crunching a branch.
Without waiting for it to happen again, he dropped his bundle and unslung his rifle. There was no way he’d ask if anyone was there. He was sure someone was close. It wouldn’t be Butch; he wouldn’t play around when weapons were involved. Haley might be out there, but he didn’t think she was that reckless, either. Plus, Butch wouldn’t let her go off alone. All signs pointed to it being a stranger.
The crackle of a human’s steps happened again. Closer.
He gently set the safety to the hot position.
“Hello?” a man asked from the darkness. “I give up.”
Ezra hesitated for half a minute. Was it a trick? A trap? Should he respond?
The voice came closer. “I’m done for. You got me.”
He saw the outline of the man in the moonlight. He was much closer than he would have thought. Ten feet, at best.
Ezra needed to reply. “I’m not here to hurt you. I came from downriver.”
“Really?” The talker stumbled forward, out of the brush. It was a dangerous act if the man really thought someone was out to get him. Didn’t he know how easy it was to be shot these days?
“Hold up! I don’t know who you are.”
The man stopped a little beyond arm’s length. “I ain’t nobody. I’m unarmed. Got nuthin’.”
“Why are you out here sneaking around?”
The man seemed surprised. “Because it’s the only safe time to move. Don’t you know about the gangs up and down the river?”
“No,” he admitted.
The guy whispered. “The gangs make sure no one can walk down the street no more without being hassled for food and water. Even sitting inside your house ain’t no guarantee. They come in and help themselves to what’s yours.”
“So you came out here?” he asked with doubt.
“We try to escape. Most of KC was blown up by the falling star. I had to go out to find some, uh, food for my family, but the gangs chased me all the way to here.”
“How far are we talking?” The answer might give him a clue how many people were on shore in the miles ahead.
Even in the darkness, the shrug was evident. “Not sure how far. Ran all day in the woods along the levees next to the water. It’s the only place they don’t have eyes. I got turned around a couple times. Now I’m too far to get back through all them tough guys. That’s why I was giving myself up. I’ll take my medicine from them and get back inside the city.”
He heard laughter in the distance, causing him to seize up like a rabbit spotting a hawk. “Are they still following you?”
Ezra thought the man nodded yes, but he didn’t wait. He spun around and ran for his friends.
“Wait up!” the guy said in too loud a voice.
“Come on,” he replied, anxious to get the man to shut up.
He ran around the trunk of a huge tree and found Butch stoking a tiny fire. “Put it out!”
“Why?” his buddy replied, instantly tipping the kindling and throwing dirt on it.
“Company. We have to get out of here.” He almost forgot about the man behind him. “The first guy is with me.” As he said it, he wondered if it was true. How easy would it be for a group of bad guys to send one loner in front of them to lure victims into a false sense of security?
