The First Hours Page 23
“Gone? My parents…” Ryan shook his head. In the back of his mind, he’d already processed the fact that his Mom and Dad may not have made it, but hearing the words from the sheriff’s mouth, made it real. Ryan wasn’t sure where that left him and Trevor. They had some relatives; his father’s brother and wife, but they were going on the Alaskan cruise with his parents. The ship was to have departed from Seattle today. The thought that stood out prominently amongst many, is; was he now fully responsible for Trevor? Trevor was legally an adult with his last birthday, but he was anything but mature enough to look after himself.
“Sorry son. We don’t know who or if anyone could survive at this point, but you can’t give up hope.” As much as Tom was a realist, he wanted to give Ryan something to cling to. In the face of the adversity ahead of them, hope would be the only thing any of them could cling to, and if it made the boy feel even a little bit better, then Tom was going to give it to him. He didn’t know anything beyond what he’d said, but he felt leaving the area was their best alternative for survival. At this point, he didn’t know how they would be effected by a nuclear blast three hundred miles away but putting some distance between them and the blast zone made sense to him.
If Seattle was destroyed, it hadn’t been by an EMP, it had to be a direct hit from a nuclear device. He didn’t understand how anyone could have gotten close enough to use it with the U.S. National Missile Defense system in place. He didn’t know enough about it, but he did know it was a limited ground-based nationwide antimissile system that had been developed sometime in the 1990s. The way he understood it, the system was designed to intercept nuclear-armed ICBMs in the mid-course phase, using interceptor missiles launched from within the United States in Alaska and he wondered if it had failed. Something had gone wrong or they wouldn’t be facing the disaster in front of them.
Tom looked around at the faces staring at him. It was up to him to see that they got safely away; somewhere to sit out the confusion and chaos he was sure would be coming their way. Somewhere his daughter wouldn’t be forced to kill people to defend herself.
He turned to face the road, noticed the black had grown worse toward the coast. It appeared as if the whole state was on fire.
Would the cabin be there?
Could they even make it?
Could they put off leaving any longer?
All questions running through Tom’s mind that needed to be addressed, and soon.
“Dammit, Eric! Where are you?” Tom’s voice was barely audible, but Ryan heard him. That was twice he’d heard of this mysterious Eric in as many days.
Never the end;
to be continued.
Thank you for reading the first book in this series; Apocalypse. If you enjoyed it, please feel free to leave a review so that others can see why you enjoyed it. Reviews are very important to an Indie author. Without them, our books would go unnoticed. I try to give some useful information as well as entertain my readers.
Being prepared is as simple as having enough supplies on hand to get you through any event which cuts a person or family off from receiving outside help. Buying a few extra cans, boxes of prepared meals, or a bag of beans or rice when you grocery shop is the cornerstone of being prepared. While beans and rice can be boring to eat on a daily basis, they are rich in protein, and you will survive. Consider adding a few spices or maybe salsa or dried onions for added flavor.
My point is, being prepared isn’t all about bullets and guns.
Other books and series I’ve written;
Dangerous Shores; book one; https://www.amazon.com/dp/B016QUC4SI
An act of terrorism or an act of God, no one knows for sure. The consequences are the same. The power grid is down, people have already begun to act as if the last days have started, thievery, murder, and mayhem ensue. The first 24 hours have shown what people are capable of. A staged protest against the Palmetto Police Department escalates into a full-blown riot. The town is on fire. Ellen, a single sailor finds herself placed in a position of a reluctant rescuer when she sails into port to find out why the lights have gone out on shore. At the marina, she walks into the middle of a robbery gone wrong. With no other recourse she ends up having to flee aboard the Annie-C, her 34 foot Catalina sailboat. While it goes against her basic instincts to be held accountable for anyone other than herself, she offers an escape to a marina employee. By day two, having him along would prove to be the right thing to do. Ellen continues to find herself labeled “The Rescuer” as their crew grows in size. With no more room on board and her resources stretched to the max, it’s time to take her crew and go home. The question that haunts her is which way to go. Washington State is thousands of miles from Florida, no matter which course they decide upon. How could she know the decision would be taken out of her hands, with the last rescue.
Hell or High Water; book two; https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018RHC4Z6
Safely away from Garden Key, the journey continues. They have doubts as to what has happened on land and whether the effects are short term or if it was the beginning of the end of life as they knew it. The information they learned at Garden Key was enough to convince them that whatever was going on, they didn’t want to be involved in a personal level.
With Ellen disabled, it is up to Frank to assume the duties of Captain. Hoping he has made a decision that will keep them all safe, he sets a course south into Cuban waters.
What they discover in Cuba is enough to convince them that this tragedy is not confined to the United States alone. They are witness to a family who will do anything to see that they will live on. Fleeing the chaos and sickness of Cuba, they turn the Annie-C towards Panama. However, when they finally reach Panamanian waters, Limon Bay is empty of cargo or pleasure ships waiting to cross through the canal.
The wind carried the unmistakable odor of decay and smoke. Once the sun sets, they can see lights on the shore. Not the lights of a thriving community, but the few they do see indicate some people have survived. To know anything concrete, it is up to Frank and Alan to leave their anchorage and go ashore. They had not wanted to leave the girls alone on the boat, but they all agreed they had to know if they could cross or not. What they found left them struggling to understand why anyone would want to bring down the world in such a heartless cold-blooded manner.
Most people were dead either from starvation or killed for what they had. To compound matters, they learned an illness much like a super-flu has decimated those that have survived. They could only pray it was not the same illness to decimate Cuba. If it were, they would not be able to return to the Annie-C and take the plague back with them.
The End of the Road; book three; https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01AY96Z9G
Dangerous Shores; The End of the Road
The journey continues in spite of every obstacle thrown in front of them. The crew of the Annie-C has faced danger and death from circumstances beyond their control. Only the determination of Ellen; the boat owner and Captain convinces them to go home.
With more than 4500 miles of open water between them and their destination they leave the relative safety of Panama. Setting their sights on San Diego they say good-bye to the American soldiers and Panamanian waters. They shared the secret thought that maybe things have righted themselves while they were gone only to have the idea squashed on reaching San Diego.
The trip up the Californian coastline offers no relief from the tragic end of the United States of America. Months after leaving Florida they now have renewed hope of reaching their final destination. However, they had not counted on interference from Mother Nature nor the savagery of the people they encounter.
Civilization had decayed far more than they could have imagined. Death is now stalking them with a vengeance. Who will survive to make it to the farm and who will give their lives to ensure the others have the chance? Once they have set foot on land they have to decide if they can even make the long walk home or if it will even be there.
Life on Land; boo
k four; https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DSBQI44
Finding her boating lifestyle has come to an end with the loss of the Annie-C, Ellen, and her friends begin setting up their home and planning for a future. The idea of returning to any kind of a normal life was quashed almost from the beginning. Everywhere they find nothing but suspicion, distrust, and greed. A self-proclaimed king has set himself up imprisoning women and children forcing the men to scavenge for him, and taking the young people to train as his personal Army.
They form an alliance with a group of Preppers and Hippies who call themselves, The West Coast Militia. Only fifty members strong, but there are times when determination and courage carry more weight than self-indulgence and murderous intent.