They drove past the long line of scared people sitting in their cars waiting to get gas. Quite a few of the cars were stalled out where the owners had run out of gas waiting in line. The people who’d run out of gas had evidently just abandoned their cars there. Drew and Yue were careful not to make eye contact with anyone as they drove past. People were staring openly at Drew’s truck. More than a few of them looked like they wouldn’t mind getting a little violent. Yue figured all the timid people were safely locked away in their homes where they’d eventually die while hoping the badness went away on its own.
The Walgreens parking lot was packed with cars and people. Drew drove around to the side and went in the exit to see if they could get close enough to get in the store. Towards the front of the parking lot a crowd had gathered. They were standing around watching as two men walked supplies out of the Walgreens and tossed them into the back of a U-Haul. It was one of the large rental trucks that you could use to move a two to three-bedroom home .
The front doors of the store had been smashed to pieces. A few men and women were busy going in and out of the store transferring as much as they could from the store to the U-Haul. Three men were standing in front of the entrance with hunting rifles guarding the people going in and out. They were nervously moving their weapons this way and that urging the crowd to stay back. The crowd kept encroaching on the space as more people arrived to try to get medicine and food.
“We should get out of here.” Yue said nervously.
“Probably.” Drew agreed nodding. “How bad does dad need that medicine?”
“His skin was red all around the bullet holes. Especially where we had to pry the bullet out of his bone. It’s not like we were using surgically sterilized equipment for it like you’re supposed to. We literally held a lighter underneath a soup spoon to clean it. We operated on our dad with the same level of hygiene crackheads use to prep their drugs.” Yue said. She was trying to joke but it was coming out more sad than funny.
“So, we need the antibiotics.” Drew summarized.
“Pain pills, ointment, real gauze and pretty much anything else we can get our hands on.” Yue said staring at the men guarding the U-Haul. They were skinny white guys dressed in hunting coveralls. Not super intimidating. The rifles they held up were nice but made for shooting out of a deer stand. They weren’t designed for combat.
“The Publix is played out and this place is going to be empty in another thirty minutes. I don’t think we have a chance if we try to find somewhere else. They’re all going to be like this.” Drew said. His heartbeat was starting to accelerate. He felt a cold chill in his blood. He felt like he had to pee really bad. All that just from thinking about what he knew they had to do.
“We can’t get in there. They’re guarding the hell out of it.” Yue said.
“We have guns. That crowd will either scatter or attack them depending on how desperate they are. I’m leaning towards they attack them. I don’t see us sitting here nicely waiting our turn and hoping something’s left when we have better weapons.” Drew said nervously pulling his pistol into his lap and making sure the magazine was fully inserted.
“Ok. I agree. I think we should hijack them though. We try and fight them right here that crowd is going to end up cleaning out the store and the U-Haul anyway. Let’s wait until they get everything loaded then follow them and take the truck.” Yue was thinking on the spot. Her plan became the de facto plan anyway as the little redneck gang robbing the Walgreens all hopped up in the U-Haul to drive away. Three of them in the front of it and three of them jumping in the back with the supplies they’d just gathered.
“You drive.” Drew said jumping out of the cab and into the truck bed. He’d killed one man already today. Hopefully these guys would give up but if not, he’d do what he had to do to get the medicine his dad needed.
Chapter 12: Pancakes to Piracy
Yue sped up to catch the U-Haul that was barreling down a side street in front of them. The road they were on was the same one Yue used as a shortcut to get to her waitress gig. That life seemed like a million years ago now as she worked on circling around the moving truck to get her brother a clear shot at the driver. She was having a hard time wrapping her mind around the circumstances leading to her needing to Mad Max this U-Haul to get the medical supplies needed to save their dad.
The U-Haul slowed down to make a turn. The driver conveniently putting on his turn signal to let them know which way they were going. Yue pictured the guy slapping himself in the head and swiping the turn signal to turn it off once he realized the pickup behind them wasn’t just casual traffic. She accelerated rapidly to get them even with the driver of the U-Haul. He looked down at them looking like he might wave at Yue before he noticed Drew sitting in the back pointing the AR-15 at him.
Before Drew could pull the
