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The initial explosions killed two hundred and eighty people. Tens of thousands more have perished in the firestorm since. A million more will die before the day is out. There is no salvation for those in the city or in countless others across the globe. All the victims can hope for is a quick death, free from pain and suffering.
Most will experience the opposite.
Chapter 4
Somewhere between Ellisville, VA and Blacksburg, VA
“We’ve got to pick up the—”
“If you tell me to pick up the pace one more time I’m going to take these slippers off and jam them where the sun doesn’t shine!”
Dianne stifled a snicker at Tina’s annoyed response. Dianne had been encouraging Tina to try and walk faster ever since they got away from the compound but Tina’s footwear made traveling quickly over the rough terrain difficult to say the least. Moving through the trees, brush and open fields in the dark was challenging enough during the times Dianne dared to turn her flashlight on. She did so sparingly, though, as she wanted to try and avoid any possibility of being spotted by the group at the gas station.
The pair walked along mostly in silence except for the occasional whispers and huffing and puffing from Tina. A lifetime of working as a nurse meant she had been on her feet far more than she ever wanted and after retiring she confined her walking to an indoor treadmill, at the mall or while on vacation. Hiking through the woods—especially while wearing slippers—was not on her itinerary.
“How much farth
er till we get to your truck?”
“Not long. Five, ten minutes maybe.” Dianne turned and looked back at the orange glow behind them. “Good grief. You can still see the fire back there.”
Tina didn’t bother looking back as she replied in a gruff tone. “I’m not surprised. Jason nearly killed all of us with that explosion.”
“He also saved our lives.”
“Fair point.” Tina shrugged and called back to Dianne who was standing still staring at the glow and smoke over the hills. “You coming or not?”
A little under ten minutes later Dianne and Tina crested a hill, went down the other side and found the truck in the cluster of trees and bushes where Jason and Dianne had left it. It appeared to be untouched and there was no sign of anyone else in the vicinity. While that normally would have been a comfort to Dianne she suddenly grew worried.
“Where’s Jason?” Dianne turned on her flashlight and scanned the woods and field nearby. “Jason?” She hissed loudly, not wanting to yell for fear of attracting unwanted attention. “Where are you?”
“Where was he? When you were getting me out, I mean.” Tina opened the passenger door to the truck and climbed in, groaning as she rubbed her sore feet.
“On a hill overlooking the compound. He should have gotten here first, though. He had a faster path to the truck than we did.
“Maybe he had to take a different direction to draw them off or something? There were those gunshots coming from the gas station.”
“Maybe…” Dianne opened the truck and reached into the back, grabbing a couple of bottles of water and two energy bars from under the seat. She handed one of each to Tina and they both ate and drank, finishing their impromptu meal in haste. After Dianne finished draining the bottle she threw it into the back seat of the truck and closed the driver’s side door. “I’m going to look for him.”
“Not a bad idea.” Tina nodded. “I’d come with you except…” She motioned down at her bathrobe and slippers as she trailed off.
Dianne nodded. “There’s a pistol in the glovebox and more food in the back. Just stay in the truck and you’ll be fine. I’ll be back in t—wait. Did you hear that?” Dianne turned and crouched next to the truck, moving down to the back and through the trees to peer out into the field beyond. The sound of a faint groan had caught her ear and she scanned the dark field, looking for any sign of movement.
Off to the right of the field, near the road, Dianne finally spotted the source of the noise. A lone figure was walking towards the truck. The figure moved slowly, staggering along as they went, all while carrying a pair of packs on their back and a gun in one hand. Dianne stared at the figure for several seconds, trying to make sure it was who she thought it was before running forward.
“It’s Jason!” A voice in Dianne’s ear made her jump in surprise and she turned to see Tina crouched next to her.
Dianne ran out into the field, meeting Jason a good fifty feet from the truck. It was dark enough that Dianne could just barely make out the contours of his face, but as soon as she reached him she realized that something was terribly wrong.
“Jason? What happened?” Dianne whispered to Jason as he stopped and dropped to his knees. He slowly fell backward, letting the backpacks break his fall. His breathing was labored and slow and his shirt and jacket clung to his side awkwardly, like he had fallen in a puddle. Dianne flicked on her flashlight as she leaned down to see what was wrong with her friend only to gasp in surprise and shock at what she saw.
Dried blood caked Jason’s face, smeared across by his own hand as he wiped sweat from his forehead and cheeks. The blood appeared to originate from his right side, where his shirt and jacket were sticking to his torso and stained a dark red. Jason’s skin was exceptionally pale, looking a near-white in color. His eyes fluttered as he struggled to speak, barely able to pass more than a few breaths of air across his lips.
“What the hell happened to him?!” Tina stood over Jason and Dianne, pushing Dianne to the side to get a better view of the man lying on the ground. “Get that gear off of him and get him to the truck, quick! You got any supplies in the back of that truck?” A nurse for over thirty years of her life, Tina wasn’t about to let a little thing like being kidnapped stand in the way of her helping one of her friends.
Dianne nodded and looked up at Tina. “In the back seat. And our packs, too. Do we move him, though?”
“Of course we move him! And by ‘we’ I mean you! Get him in the truck, quick!” Tina was already heading back towards the truck as Dianne slipped the packs off of Jason and grabbed his rifle.
