The events of the day bothered me. I opened a warm beer and settled on the back porch before noon. I felt Alexis’s tears were somehow my fault. Bad habit I have always seemed to have. I’ve always wanted everyone to like me, and my family, heck even my dog. I have always wanted those around me to be happy. I wanted Alexis to be happy. But, maybe this was a time when that was an impossible thought. How could I expect to find happiness when the world around me had gone so wrong?
Normalcy was on holiday. That was the plain truth. Even if the power came back on now, people would still be suspect. In a little over 24 hours, attitudes changed 180 degrees. Normally happy carefree people were hiding or fleeing or arguing. Tempers would start to run short, that was a given. And the minute there was an issue, almost any sized issue, here in my neighborhood I expected the worst from my close friends. They were scared. I was scared. It was very natural, yet raw, emotion.
Nothing improved throughout the day. No one was particularly interested in any more cookouts. Some people went into hibernation mode. Others showed signs of fight or flight. There were several neighbors loading bikes and backpacks. These folks were ready to leave and hit the road at the first sign of trouble. Others began to fortify their homes. Some boarded windows; some put reinforcements to standard locks on all doors. Almost everyone somehow magically had produced a weapon of some sort. It soon wouldn’t be safe, for friend or foe. That worried me greatly.
The third morning of summer darkness brought two more families’ departure. Sergio and Veronica left on foot shortly after sunrise. Sergio had told me such the previous night. They had relatives in some small western Wisconsin community a mere 40 miles from here. They felt they’d be safer there, for now.
Drew and Lori Holmes packed up what they could carry and headed north along with their four small children, all on bikes. They had friends up by Zimmerman. That was a small quiet community I had driven through a few times. Drew told me the route he had chosen would take them around the east and north sides of the Cities. That way they could avoid as many people as possible, thus avoiding trouble, but it increased the length of their trip by at least an hour. They had to cover 75 miles in a single day, in the glaring heat and sticky humidity. Not an easy task.
By midmorning, I watched as the Holmes’ pedaled away. I stood in the middle of the street wishing them luck, wondering if I would ever see them again. They were good people, a nice family. I would miss them in my life. Alexis stood in her driveway watching them pedal out of our lives. Tears stained her face. Her typical look these days.
“Alexis, where’s Jim? I haven’t seen him much lately.” I walked over to speak with her, face to face. She looked up at me, frightened.
“He’s been inside,” she shrugged her slumping shoulders. “Getting ready I guess.” She looked at me sadly.
“Ready for what?” Jim had problems with depression. I hoped he wasn’t doing anything stupid.
“Ready for an attack. He claims all the gangs will be coming this way soon. He’s positive. He wants to be ready to protect me when they arrive.” Alexis spoke like this was no big deal. My eyes widened with each word. “Cleaning all the guns, loading them up, finding strategic places for them around the house.” She made it sound like Jim was ready for a war. I shook my head.
“We have no reason to do anything that rash yet, Alexis.”
She looked defeated. “Bill, we don’t have anywhere to go. Our home is the only place we have around here. We don’t have a lot of friends. All our relatives live out east.” She laughed slightly. “I don’t suppose they’re any better off out there, though.” She looked up at me, seeming to need something from me. I was out of magic words.
“I think a lot of people are in that same boat. Really.” I squeezed my forehead tightly with my left hand. “But we need to remain calm. I know trouble might come. But it’s not here yet. We just don’t want to take a chance of harming an innocent neighbor or friend. That’s all I’m saying.” I squinted at her. It looked like she hadn’t slept in 48 hours. At least she wasn’t crying. “Will it help if I try and talk to him?” I knew Jim could be quite a recluse at times. It was a self-defense mechanism he learned in dealing with his issues.
Alexis’s headshake told me her answer. “Not now Bill. Please, not now. I don’t want anything to push him over the edge. He’s dangerously close right now. I need him, I need him with a good mind. Maybe tomorrow, when he settles down a little bit.” She was most likely right. She knew her husband best.
“Okay. But come and get me if you need me.” Alexis smiled a little smile as she turned and went back to her house. I looked over at her neighbor’s place, Winston Hillsberg’s residence. It was obvious to me that no one was there. Barring some miracle, no one would be around for a while. Our group of eight families was down to four. Seven bodies in total now called this cul-de-sac home. In a mere 48 hours, more than half of our residents had either left or not come back. That included my wife.
I figured that Sharon wasn’t making it back to Woodbury. Not just yet. She was most likely safe at her parents’ place. That would be good for the kids to have their mom around if they were experiencing the same problems as we were up here. They’d need their mom. Grandma was fine when everything was okay, but mom was best when there was trouble. I’m sure my father-in-law was flat out hammered. He had a habit of drinking hard when times got tough. Aside from their grandparent’s interesting quirks, I knew my kids must miss me as well.
The other alternative was that Sharon was stuck on the road somewhere between Milwaukee and St. Paul. Lost somewhere on over 300 miles of highway. And she could be anywhere in that 300 mile stretch. Anywhere. That included pulling off at an exit in some little town. There was no way to find her and nowhere to start looking. I just had to trust she was still at her parents’. That was my best hope.
I wasn’t sure how long I should wait for Sharon. If, by some miracle, she was on her way and I had left before she got here, she’d feel abandoned. That was the worst case. If I waited too long and she was never coming, I could be trapped here for the long run. That wasn’t in my plans. I needed to set a time in stone, more or less, where I’d leave home to find my family. I needed a plan, and I wanted to be able to stick to said plan.
As I sat and thought hard on the situation, three weeks kept coming as the solution. Three weeks allowed enough time for Sharon to get here, if she was coming back. That would be enough time to stay ahead of any trouble. Trouble that my neighbors believed would be here soon. People would naturally stay put for a while. Food and water in the homes could last two weeks. There were a lot of suburbs between here and downtown St. Paul, much less Minneapolis, so I knew another week could pass and I’d still be safe.
With that settled in my mind, I began checking my supplies. Food, water, candles, flashlights (with batteries), dog food, plastic bags, a sturdy backpack, and clothing. The only thing I was low on was dog food. Buddy could always eat table scraps. I bet Sergio had some dog food at his place yet for that little ankle biter his wife loved dearly. Otherwise, I’d have to break into the Hillsberg’s place. They had a big dog, so I was sure they must have extra dog food somewhere.
Surprisingly I found our old camping lantern in the storage shed out back. I wasn’t sure it was still operational, so I smiled when it lit right up. At least I’d have something besides candlelight that night. It’s hard to believe just how dark your house can be, both day and night, until the lights go out. That’s when a person realizes every closet is dark; the kitchen pantry is twilight at best. And none of my bathrooms have any windows. So the lantern was an excellent find.
As I lay alone in bed that night, alone except for Buddy, my ears rang in the silence and stillness of the evening. It was like I was deaf or the world had lost all sound. No kids playing late outside, no cars going by, no airplane traffic overhead. Even the wind seemed to have gone missing with the electricity. Every sound seemed amplified. A squeak in the floorboards, Buddy smacking his lips, the seconds clicki
ng by on the battery powered clock. As poorly as my eyes worked in the darkness, my ears caught every sound. I listened carefully. So far, no sounds of danger. Sweating profusely, I finally fell asleep after midnight. I slept well for the first time in three nights.
Chapter 7