“No, it hasn’t come back on. Why do you think they would have sent you to the Hive?” He asked, holding her close. They’d lost power two days before and had yet to gain it back. Luckily, their food could be set on the back porch and kept cold, or down in the basement.
“There were a lot of cars, I mean a lot of cars and that was just one road out of the city. What about the others? Where else could they put them? Also, the patients who’d been at the ER, the ones that had been involved in the violence, they were taken away. But not by cops. The people who took away the injured wore the same uniform that the lady wore at the blockade. I don’t know if it is private security or National Guard. But it definitely wasn’t police.”
“But why would they take them? What jurisdiction would they have, what right? This just doesn’t make sense. I’m glad you got out of there. I think things are starting to spin out of control. I say, we just hunker down here and ride it out.”
“Yeah, I think I was just freaking out. I couldn’t seem to stop myself. I don’t know what I would have done, if she’d not let me through. I think I would have run the roadblock. Something inside told me I had to get out of there at all costs.” Trish whispered.
“Well, you’re on an unexpected vacation. Oh, and guess what happened after you left this morning?” His voice upbeat. He wanted to get her mind off the incident.
“What?” She grinned a little, looking sideways at him.
“I shot a deer.” He grinned broadly.
“What? Oh my god, that is wild. I didn’t even know you were going hunting!” She laughed.
“I didn’t. It was in your back pasture.” He sniggered.
“Holy shit. How big? It’s been years since I’ve eaten venison.”
“Come on, it’s hanging in the barn. The dogs have the antlers.” He pointed to all three dogs, who were laying in the front yard, spread out from each other. Each dog had settled down to serious gnawing. Trish laughed and for the first time in days, sounded lighthearted. Hogan smiled and pulled her up out of the glider. He was glad she’d gotten past the roadblock. It had been a close call, too close. It was a haunting thought.
They walked out and around the house. Hogan was excited to show her the deer. It was a big deal. This was a lot of meat they could store for the winter and into next year. He’d have to keep an eye on the pasture early in the mornings. Once they finished processing the meat, he’d try for another one. He’d been unable to order food off the internet. Going to the store was too dangerous. He had managed to order and receive the NVGs. He could only get one pair; the price had doubled. They weren’t the best, but they would do the job and were better than nothing.
He looked around, checking the tree line. Trish had a good-sized property, with a nice big pasture. It also had large thickets of woodland and he was glad. That was where he found quite a bit of the deadfall. If they were careful, it would last them for years. Years.
It was the first time he’d even admitted to himself that he would be there for years. If not, forever. He’d been there over three months. The country was shutting down around them. Economic ruin was just around the corner. No power now, no food. North Korea had done its job well. It had divided the country in more ways than one. The populous no longer trusted the government. News about Washington’s antics had stopped, either blocked or completely censored.
They were getting close to the barn, and he realized that he was still holding Trish’s hand. As though it were the most natural thing in the world. He looked over at her and she looked up at him and smiled. He opened the large barn door. Then a gunshot exploded, jarring him.
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Topeka, KS
Ian Dent stood in line, there were people all around him, complaining and talking at once. He was in stunned disbelief. He’d just planned to go to the tractor store, that was it. A quick run in and back home. Yet, here he stood, with all these people, waiting to be processed into the Hive. He’d gotten into town earlier that day and had made a couple stops. He’d stopped by the bank to pick up cash, only to find out they now had coupons that were to be used at the local stores.
He knew things were bad in Topeka, but not this bad. He and his family had stayed on the farm and had been watching the drama unfold, all over the country. Things were getting bad. When he’d headed to the tractor store, there had been a roadblock. He’d been ordered to drive to the Sear’s parking lot and leave his truck and get on a bus. When he’d tried to protest, the guard had threatened him.
“Sir, the city is shutting down and martial law is in effect. We can handcuff you and take you that way, or, you can do as I say and go to the Sears and leave your truck. You’ll get it back; this is only a temporary situation.”
Looking around at the angry and confused people around him, it didn’t look temporary to him. He’d tried to call his mother, but the cell service wasn’t working. He’d asked to use a phone but was denied. He
