Stay Together Chapter 17 by Maira Dawn

Chapter 17

(COPYRIGHT©2024 MAIRA DAWN)

James led the way. He stopped and rolled his tense shoulders as he scanned the horizon. It was strange to look out over the suburbs and see almost no one. Most people must be sheltering-in-place at home or work.

And here they were, walking down the highway - in full view of anyone passing by.

He glanced at Emily and Michael, who trudged behind him and locked eyes with his wife, who brought up the rear.

Elizabeth glanced from one side of the road to the other, then grimaced and shrugged. The silence, broken only by their footsteps on the pavement, was unnerving her too.

He hauled in a sharp breath when his wife suddenly frowned and looked around. He heard it too.

Something faint, barely in earshot. He stopped and turned to the rest of the group. “You hear that?” he asked them.

The soft whisper grew with the next breeze. It was the sound of voices - many voices.

“People?” Ian said, looking as perplexed as James felt. After so many miles of emptiness, it seemed odd.

Michael perked up, hope lighting his eyes.

Emily tapped his arm. “We don’t know if they’re friendly.”

James and Ian quickly conferred. ”Let’s check it out - but not too close,” James said.

They quickened their pace, curiosity overriding their caution. The murmur of the crowd grew louder, punctuated by occasional shouts. James made out enough to realize that the man was encouraging the crowd to wait for help from the government.

“Can you hear anything they’re saying?” Elizabeth whispered.

James shook his head. “Seems like they’re hoping for a rescue.” He eyed the kids. “You know, it might not be a bad idea to take an overnight break here if it seems okay. Maybe someone can suggest a place to stay. The kids are tired. Everyone is tired. We could use the rest.”

Liz nodded and straightened as if energized by the notion. “I agree.”

A small thicket of trees stood by the road a head of them. James waved their small group toward them. “Maybe we can see from here without being seen.”

Ian nodded his approval. Each of them hid in the shade of the trees, craning their necks to see the crowd in front of them.

Once James saw how large the group was, he couldn’t believe he’d missed it the first time he’d looked.

In front of the thicket they stood in, on the other side of the road lay a rolling lawn. Just beyond that was a large depression in the ground, like a natural amphitheater, with a tall building to one side. A sea of people overflowed the amphitheater, standing on the lawn beside it.

A man stood on the steps of the tall building, a bullhorn in one hand. His other arm was a blur, frantically waving as he spoke, his words tumbling out in a rush.

“Whoa,” Emily breathed.

Michael bounced on his toes as if he hadn’t had this much excitement in months. “Who are they?”

“Maybe we should move a little closer and try to hear what he’s saying,” Ian suggested.

James frowned. “I’d like to see what we’re dealing with first.”

Elizabeth tipped her head to the side, trying to make out what was being said. She pointed to quite a few in the crowd who nodded in agreement, hope on their faces. “They seem to like what they’re hearing.” She shook her head at her husband, letting him know she couldn’t make the man’s words out. Waving her hand, she said, “The wind. The sound comes and goes.”

“Well, whatever it is, not everyone likes it.” He gestured toward a group of red-faced men and women shouting at each other at the back of the crowd.

Ian leaned toward James. “I think if we cut down this way, we can miss that mess in the back and listen in to see if it’s something we need to know.”

Torn between protecting his family and finding out what was going on, James groaned inwardly as he scanned the crowd. ”This has got a lot of people riled up.” He heaved a sigh. “I guess I’m okay with it as long as we got the way you pointed out. But keep a sharp eye out. A situation like this can get dangerous real quick.”

The group nodded and moved out of the thicket onto the road. James leading, the wives in the middle, and Ian bringing up the rear.

A few people on this side of the large group looked their way, but no one seemed alarmed. It was a good sign.

Emily glanced at her father, then back at the throng. “Some seem... hopeful?” she said, indicating some who stared at the man on stage as if he were their salvation. “Maybe they know something we don’t.”

Once they reached the crowd, they lingered around the outside to hear the man.

“The government will send the troops to help us. They will not leave us in the lurch. This is a minor setback. A few days at best. We just have to hang on,” he said.

James caught the eye of a man beside him. “Is he the mayor?”

“No. I don’t know who he is, but he said he’s, I don’t know, someone,” the man replied.

James raised an eyebrow. Maybe that was why the guy seemed to be sweating bullets up there. He didn’t really know what was going on out there, maybe didn’t really understand this was most likely nationwide and the military had a lot to mop up in their own backyard.

Leaning toward Ian, James said, “This guy doesn’t understand what is going on. He’s frantic. Look at him. He’s trying to calm himself with this speech more than the crowd.”

His friend nodded his agreement. “Might as well move on.”

“Might not be a bad place to pass a night tho.”

As he spoke, a hard smack echoed through the amphitheater. Both men looked at the back of the crowd. The rowdy group had taken things to the next level.

A short red-faced man punched another taller, rougher looking guy. The taller one came back at him, knocking him to the ground and kicking him.

The short man grabbed his leg and yanked, pulling down the tall guy. Together, they tumbled onto the pavement behind them and kept bashing each other with all they had.

A woman, who seemed to be the girlfriend of one man, screamed in anger. She launched herself at the men as though she would stop them both.

The tall guy elbowed her in the face, most likely because she was in the way of his next swing, breaking her nose. Blood streamed out of it.

That act seemed to cascade instantly into an all-out fight in that section of the crowd - and it was growing.

James and Liz exchanged glances and pulled the children between them. “We need to go!” Liz urged her husband.

Going around meant they would head straight for those fighting. They would have to head straight through the crowd near the stage.

He pointed the way. “Through here!” Than waved the others to follow.

Slipping through the crowd became impossible as more of them joined the fight or tried to flee. They pushed through the crush as it closed in on them, holding their breath to avoid the stench of those with little opportunity to wash since the event.

Liz’s desperate yell above the surging sounds of the crowd caught his attention. Turning, he saw her being pulled along, her eyes filled with fear. He grabbed her arm, pulling her closer.

James thanked God for his height and searched for a way out. But the chaos had them trapped. He felt a sickening helplessness as the fight and the crush of the crowd threatened to overwhelm them.

Behind them, someone yelled, “I’m armed!” Two sudden shots echoed through the small valley.

He covered his family as best he could, squeezing them together as he moved one way, then another, for a way out.

Another gunshot. Something like an angry bee zipped over his head.

“James!” Liz said in horror, pulling him down.

The new threat changed the direction of the fleeing crowd. The path before them opened up.

“Run!” he said to his family, hoping the others had gotten out too.

Emily gripped Michael’s hand. “It’s okay. Just a little further.”

They fled with a flood of other terrified people. Bullets continued to sound behind them. Screams erupting. Fear thickened the air.

But their path widened the further they continued on. Eventually, they slowed as they reached a quieter area near an almost empty police station. One officer stood by the door watching the commotion from a distance.

When James glanced at him, the officer seemed to take it as an inquiry. “We already sent what we’ve got on over there, but there’s not many left. We sent a few to the other side of town, too. Takes a while when the vehicles aren’t working.”

Looking for the others in their group, he nodded absentmindedly at the officer. He made out Ian and his wife huddled together, running straight for them. Behind them was Will, his laid-back expression gone as he kept glancing over his shoulder.

As he waited for his friends to catch up, James could hear the frantic man on stage still trying to convince everyone that it was all okay.

“...help will be here soon...” “...our president will know just what to do...” “. . . be back to normal real soon . . . “

Elizabeth stared at the man on the stage. “That man is delusional. It will never be the same, will it?”

“Well, Hon,” he said. “I don’t think so. But it does warm my heart to see our friend got through that, too.”

Liz’s face broke out into a smile as Nancy reached them and the two exchanged a hug while the men thumped each other’s back.

Ian’s eyes rounded. “I’m too old for this nonsense! This was too close a call.”

“I agree. Let’s not be taken in my something like this again.”

Will turned back to the crowd. “Where’s the kid? He got swallowed by the crowd.”

They all turned to look back and waiting for Andrew to show up..

The din of the crowd and gunshots continued until the frantic voice stuttered and came to an abrupt stop. As the lifeless man fell, the bullhorn crashed to the stage floor with a heavy metallic crash.

Continued . . .

Please remember this is a developing story and in a rawer state than what I publish. As such, it has only been self-edited and you will see some errors.

In addition, some changes may occur between now and publishing, including major storylines. I try to avoid this, but it sometimes happens.

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