Page 67 of Waves of Fury

Within thirty minutes, I’m sitting beside Kellen in the bed of the truck on a thick blanket pallet we made. Wayne is up front, driving the truck, with Judy, Hailey, Silas, and Pretzel squished on the bench seat with him where it’s warm. Dan is on my other side with Gerry next to him. Jesse, Hope, and Aaron are sitting across from us. All our supplies are between us and the makeshift wind guard we made from bedding we procured from the hotel is tied to each corner of the truck bed, offering us some shelter from the cold wind. It’s not the best travel conditions, but it sure as hell beats walking. I’ll never admit it to Jesse, but I’m glad he found us a vehicle.

We drive for hours without stopping. When we do start to slow, I wonder if we’re making a stop for lunch or to stretch our legs. It’s not until the vehicle completely comes to a halt and Wayne emerges that we learn why.

“Out of gas,” Wayne grunts in frustration. “Looks like we’re walking from here.”

“Where is here?” Kellen asks.

“Panamint Springs.”

Someone unties the blankets and then we crawl out of the truck bed to get a sense of our surroundings. Ahead, there’s a small town with what looks like lodging, a gas station, and a restaurant. However, there are no cars and it’s completely deserted.

“How far until we reach Stovepipe Wells?” I ask, glancing at Kellen.

He studies the map for a beat and then sighs heavily. “Thirty miles or so.”

If we don’t find a vehicle along the way, we’re looking at least eleven hours of walking. Fucking great.

“If that’s a gas station,” Jesse says, pointing toward the town, “we can grab a gas can and fill this baby up.” He slaps the side of the truck. “It’s not the end of the world.”

I open my mouth to tell him it is, in fact, the end of the world, but Dan beats me to it.

“If the power is out, which it most likely is, that means the pumps will be shut off. We won’t be getting any gas.”

“For fuck’s sake,” Jesse complains. “Can we ever catch a break?” Pretzel peeks his head out of Jesse’s zipped up coat and yaps as though to agree with him.

“We will be out of this nightmare soon enough when we reach Stovepipe Wells,” Kellen says to him and then nudges me with his elbow. “Let’s see what we can find in way of supplies in this town and maybe hunker down for the rest of the day to recuperate. Tomorrow, we’ll head out early and get to our destination.”

Since we don’t have any better plans, we gather our stuff and start toward Panamint Springs.

Could this all really be over by tomorrow night?

I’m not going to hold my breath.

Kellen

Panamint Springs is an oasis in our current hell. Well, at least, that’s our hope. Our group stands together, discussing the best way to move forward. What if this town is like the last one we went through? Will it be abandoned or crawling with armed people who want us to move along?

From my vantage point, it’s evident the quaint, aging resort is still intact. It’s dark out now, but I don’t see any lights inside any of the structures. This could mean a safe place to hunker down for the night. We may even find more food and supplies. My stomach grumbles angrily at me. I’d give my left nut for a hot meal right about now.

“Maybe we can find a radio,” Dan says hopefully. “It’d be nice to have a better handle on what’s going on out there.”

“Are we close to the oven place?” Silas asks his dad.

Dan chuckles. “Stovepipe Wells. And we’re close enough. Probably another day of walking and we could be there.”

We’re putting a lot of faith into Stovepipe Wells. If it’s truly a place where we can receive aid and shelter, then perhaps I can also find a way to reach my brother and dad at that point.

“Like at the last hotel, we’ll send a scout team,” I say to our group. “Me and Tyler on one team and Aaron and Dan on the other.”

The rest of our group sits down in a huddle, tired but eager for a place to rest.

When we get closer to the resort, we decide to split up. Dan and Aaron will check the small cabins for people while me and Tyler scope out the restaurant. My stomach growls hungrily again, loud enough I earn a smirk from Tyler.

“Hello?” I call out in a friendly tone, casting the glow of my flashlight along the front of the restaurant building. “Anyone here?”

Like the last hotel, we discover a note on the door.

Resort has been evacuated. Please proceed to the next town, Stovepipe Wells, for lodging and food options. Resort is protected with cameras. Trespassing and theft will be prosecuted by the law.

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