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“Should we split up?” Jane asked. “One of us can get the tank topped off while the other two go look for supplies?”
“No.” Rick’s reply was firm and immediate. “We’re sticking together, not splitting up. The last thing we need is to have one of us get hurt or into a bad situation on their own. That’s doubly true because we’ve got no weapons to speak of right now.”
“That’s not entirely true.” Dr. Evans reached under his seat and pulled out a thin, narrow plastic case. He popped it open to reveal a small semiautomatic pistol along with two seven-round magazines. “I found this under the seat while you were napping in the back earlier today.”
Rick’s eyes widened at the sight of the gun. “And you were just going to tell me about it now?!”
Dr. Evans shrugged as he closed the case back up. “It slipped my mind. My apologies. But at least we have something, right?”
“Absolutely! You know how to handle a gun?”
“Not… very well.” Dr. Evans shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I’ve never been a big fan of them. I suppose there’s no better time to change that point of view than now, eh?”
“Yeah, I’d say so.” Rick eased to a stop and shut off the car, unbuckled his seatbelt and accepted the case from Dr. Evans as he looked between him and Jane in the backseat. “Look, here are the basics. Just in case we get into trouble.” Rick popped open the case and demonstrated how to load the pistol, eject a round from the magazine, where the safety was and how to hold and fire the weapon. When he finished he slipped the small .380 into his right pants pocket and put the spare magazine into the left. “First priority right now is fuel. We won’t make it to DC without it. Once we have that we’ll go look for more food, water and weapons. I doubt we’ll find much of anything but given that all these cars are still here it’s possible there are small pockets of the city that have been untouched.”
It took less than an hour for the trio to locate some plastic tubing—taken from the fish section of a pet supply store—and siphon out enough gas to fill up the tank on the general’s car. When they finished they began searching the shops in the area surrounding the parking lot. Water and food were their priorities but Rick knew how much more valuable weapons would be especially since they had a working vehicle with enormous range.
Rick took point on the search, leading them up and down streets and sidewalks as they searched through the area. Every once in a while they found a bottle of water here or an unopened candy bar there; nothing could be found in large quantities but the small finds slowly began to add up. It was the early evening when they had strayed half a mile from the original parking lot when they found themselves standing in front of a big-box grocery store set smack dab in the middle of the downtown district. While normally a bargain-priced store filled with cheap, shoddy overseas merchandise and food with questionable origins, the store had received fresh branding for its location in the heart of the metro area. The parent company was experimenting with offering its usual products with an upscale feel and a higher price-point and had decked out the building in spades.
An underground parking garage with a thousand spaces sat beneath the store, ensuring that customers would be able to visit with ease. The store itself was four stories tall and encompassed nearly a full city block. Constructed of brown brick and large glass panels, Rick was taken in by the pleasantness of the design until he noticed the cracks and broken glass in various places.
“Looks like the same kind of damage we saw on other buildings.” Dr. Evans pointed at the cracks. “This absolutely looks like seismic activity.”
“I haven’t felt any tremors since we got here. Have you?” Rick replied.
“No, but that doesn’t mean anything. If we’re going to search inside for supplies then we should be quick about it. We don’t want the place coming down on top of our heads.”
“Shouldn’t we have brought the car?” Jane looked both directions down the street. “We’ve got a bit of a hike to get back.”
Rick shook his head. “I’d rather not get cornered somewhere while driving it. On foot we can move faster in all of the mess on the roads. Plus, while the electric motor doesn’t make any noise, the three of us on foot will attract less attention than that thing will.”
“Let’s get inside, then.” Jane rubbed her arms through her jacket, feeling a chill despite its warmth. “I don’t like being out here.”
As they walked into the store Rick was taken aback by the amount of natural sunlight inside. As he looked up at the ceiling and walls, though, he quickly discovered the source. A transparent roof coupled with a complex mirror system redirected and redistributed sunlight through the building. What was once a feature that provided shoppers with a feeling of being in a natural environment now ensured that Rick, Jane and Dr. Evans could browse through the store at ease despite their lack of flashlights.
“Okay, now we spread out a bit. No more than an aisle or three between us, though.” Rick looked at Jane and Dr. Evans. “Stay on the same floor. Let’s try to keep the noise down, too. No telling who might be around.”
The trio each grabbed a shopping cart near the front of the store and began browsing, staying close to each other and communicating through loud whispers instead of shouts. It was apparent that the store had been looted, though whoever had done so hadn’t been very thorough about it. Stacks of batteries and flashlights went into their carts along with the occasional package or can of food, a few jugs of water and clothing that—while dirty and smelling vaguely of smoke—was still in good condition.
While the bounty of the store was more than welcome, the more time they spent inside the building the more nervous Rick and Dr. Evans grew about the integrity of the structure. The cracks to the outside of the building were just as pronounced inside and in some areas they ran from the floor all the way to the ceiling. Bits of glass and metal from the roof and levels above were scattered across the floor though there had thankfully been no sign of anything fresh falling while they were walking around inside.
“Dr. Evans.” Rick stopped his cart at the end of the aisle and whispered. “Let’s get Jane and consolidate what we’ve found. I don’t like the look of this place and we need to get out of here soon.”
“Agreed.” Dr. Evans stood from where he was pawing through a pile of sweaters and pushed his cart, following Rick down a couple more aisles. Jane was standing at the end of the aisle going through an endcap when Rick tapped on her shoulder.
“Get your cart and let’s consolidate what we have.”
Jane nodded and retrieved her cart and the three of them stood whispering while they compared what they found. There hadn’t been much food but with what they found and what they already had there was enough to make it all the way to Washington and back. Water was more plentiful, though, and they had an adequate amount to see them through at least the next few days. Dr. Evans had picked up a few dozen disposable lighters and a couple packs of firestarters and Rick found some empty containers that could be used to store some excess gasoline. Jane’s cart was mostly empty, but when she pushed aside the underwear, socks and shirts she grabbed, she revealed a find that made Rick’s eyes grow wide with excitement.
“Where did you find these?!” Rick reached down into her cart and pulled out a pair of 9mm pistols along with five boxes of ammunition. He passed one of the guns to Dr. Evans and looked at Jane. “Seriously, where did you get these?”
Jane shrugged. “You two seemed like you had the food and water in hand so I headed over to sporting goods.”
“You went off by yourself?” Rick shook his head. “Dammit, we were supposed to stick together.”
“Yeah, yeah. You didn’t even notice. Anyway, all the display cases were smashed in and looted. They even took the stuff near the paintball section. These and the ammo boxes, though, were in a locked cabinet underneath the counter with a note on them saying they were being held for some guy who I guess never came in.”
