Libby waited for a moment, and they listened to the sound of the engine in the distance and the water underneath the dock. “What happened?”
Reese shook his head. “I-I don't know. We stormed the convention center—-like their headquarters or something—and it turned into a big gunfight.” Reese frowned. “There were explosions…it sounded like World War III in there. And when I found Jo…these two guys, they were…” he looked at Libby askance. "Well, they’ll never hurt anybody else again…”
Libby nodded. "The waves wiped out anything that made sense about a week ago. Everybody's getting desperate now. We've only been on the water a couple days—we were out at sea when it hit. Our homes…our families…” she said, her voice cracked with pain. “Everybody's gone. We don't even know how much time they had before the waves hit. Did anyone make it to safety? We’ve heard nothing but emergency calls on the radio and even those have stopped. It’s like the Coast Guard disappeared…”
Reese swallowed. “If they were smart, they went home. The waves went almost 12 miles inland—more in some areas. We've been walking since the day they hit. It's real bad—whole towns have been wiped out. Some of the people we’ve met just barely survived…everything changed. They're setting up roadblocks and shooting people that try to enter their towns,” Reese said as he thought back to Ellsworth, Belfast, and Liberty. “Everything is crazy."
Libby frowned. “What happened to Congress? The government? The President? Aren’t they supposed to be helping…?”
Reese shrugged. "Haven't heard anything for a few days, but the last rumors we picked up…well, everything’s shut down. Everybody's kind of on their own, and the power is going out over most of the country. I don't know if it’s true, or even if it's related to all this," he said, indicating the ruined coastline, "or something else. But the end result is the same: the whole dadgum country is falling apart. And if this thing was as big as my wife said it was going to be, then everybody—from Canada down to Argentina—is in for a world of hurt.”
“I-I…I just can’t…” Libby said. Out of the corner of his eye Reese saw the shotgun tremble. He turned and looked at her. "Look, we’re going to get through this…somehow…I don't know how. I just know that my wife and daughter are waiting for me in South Carolina. I have to go to them, so just because of that, we’re going to get through this."
She scoffed but smiled. "That's sweet that you would try to reassure an old woman, Reese, but I've been through enough in my time to know a con artist when I hear one."
"I'm no con artist," Reese said with as much sincerity as he could muster. "I swear to you, I'm going home to my wife and child. And if you can give me a lift, or at least get me and Jo a ways down the coast, I’ll do everything in my power to make sure you and your family stay alive while we’re together.”
Libby stared hard at him for a long moment, then smiled. The tiny crow’s feet at the corners of her eyes filled with moisture. "You got yourself a deal, mister.”
"It's Reese," he said with a grin.
Tires squealed up the street, and they both turned to face the new threat.
"Looks like we got company—where are they?" he asked. “I don’t see anything.”
Libby turned away, then turned back. “Tony’s on his way back, so he must've dropped off your friend and Byron already."
Reese looked around. Of all the places they'd encountered so far, none had been so clear of debris as the dock. Seaweed, draped over three-foot tall pillars that rose from the water above the dock, offered little protection from incoming rounds if Sean Mayo found them. But it was all they had. "Okay,” he said. “You get over to that side and take cover behind that pillar. I’ll stay on this side.”
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, but there's no way my big butt will fit behind that," Libby muttered.
"Well, if you don't try, your butt’s gonna get shot off, if these are the people I think they are. Look! Somebody's coming. Quick, get behind that pillar!” Reese took his own advice and moved left to duck behind the pillar on the opposite side of the dock.
He risked a glance out to sea—Tony was halfway to the dock and held the throttle wide open. The little dinghy didn't move with nearly as much speed as the black zodiac he’d acquired in Maine, but it plowed through the debris field with as much pluck as possible.
"Come on…come on…” Reese willed the little boat.
"We know you're down there! Come on out—don't make this any harder than it has to be," a strong voice yelled from the street.
Libby looked at Reese and opened her mouth. Reese put a finger in front of his lips and shook his head.
"Come on, I can see you down there behind those pillars!"
Libby stood up. "Are you saying I'm fat?" she shouted.
"No, I’m—who are you?" the deep voice yelled.
Reese closed his eyes. He stood. “Sean Mayo,” he called out. "What do you want?"
"What do I want?” the crazy gangster said, his arms wide. “You. That's what I want. I lost most of my people, I lost most of my men. And I still owe you for Charlie.”
“Who’s Charlie?”
“His brother. I may have killed him,” Reese said out of the corner of his mouth, “in self-defense.”
"Gonna take a while for me to build up the strength we had to take
