I gave him a blank look. If he wanted to impress someone with his football stats, he should be talking to Blake, not me. “So what are you saying?” I asked.
“I don’t know. You know I’m not perfect. I got kicked off my recruiting visit. Ever since all this stuff happened with the Visitors, I’ve been rethinking what I’m doing with my life. And when I needed help, you were there for me.”
“And you’ve been there for me too,” I admitted.
“So what do we do with all of this?” Colby asked.
I had no idea, but I did know that if the Visitors continued their attack on Earth, at least I had a chance to feel something I’d never felt with a boy before—a deep flutter in my heart.
But I still didn’t know how to say that to him.
He took my hand. “Maybe . . . whatever this is, we don’t have to give a name to it. Could be like the aliens, you know?”
I nodded. “Yeah, we know they’re out there. Even though we can’t see them . . .”
Colby squeezed my hand and said, “They’re here.”
***
I didn’t know how many people lived in Alabama, but there was a whole bunch at the shelter on the Merrimont campus. A lot of those people were Army personnel. There were working Army trucks too—Dennis figured they must’ve been safe in some reinforced bunker when the EMP knocked out everything else.
We were told to check in at one of the college’s main office buildings. As our group walked in, I heard some officers talking about using the Army trucks to send messages through other shelters within a fifty mile radius.
When the adults turned our way, their conversation stopped and they were all business. As they handed us some forms to fill out, I asked, “Do we have any answers as to what’s going on with the Visitors?” If the Army didn’t know, the rest of us had no hope of figuring anything out.
One of the officers said, “Bits of information are coming in. The alien attack is confirmed to have been an EMP blast, and there are some reports of smaller alien vessels coming from the motherships. But no confirmed sightings of the aliens themselves. Rescue and humanitarian organizations continue to get supplies from underground storage sites that were unaffected by the EMP, and they’re working on setting up more shelters. Meanwhile we’re assigning people here to rooms and providing meals. Electricity is still out, but plumbing is mostly working.”
“My brother and I are trying to get to Montgomery,” I told her. “Our dad is there.”
She wrote the names Bailey Clarke and Blake Clarke on their list of unaccompanied minors. Then she handed us several pieces of blank paper. “We’re asking all unaccompanied minors and other people who’ve been separated from loved ones to write down your names and any information that could help us locate your families. It’ll help to write something that will confirm your identity for your parents. With all the chaos right now, they might not be sure who to trust.”
I couldn’t imagine why someone would contact my parents pretending to be me. But then I remembered hearing about trolls setting up fake social media accounts for victims of disasters. Sometimes they did it to raise money, sometimes they just wanted to mess with people. Even though we didn’t have internet access, some people might be doing the same thing with letters.
I thanked the Army officer and took my writing materials over to a small table in the corner of the room. Colby got his own pen and paper and joined me there.
An officer led Dennis and Greta’s family away to bring them to their room. While Allison and John waited for us, we got to work.
I wrote two letters—one to my dad and one to my mom. At the top, I wrote their addresses and job titles. Then I got to the hard part.
I hope this letter finds you. It’s your Bailey, and I’m with Blake. We’re at the community college in Merrimont. The Army told us to write something so that you would know it’s your real children. Well, how about this: I’ve been a jerk, not really accepting that you guys are separated. Just upset for a year that I had to uproot my world. How selfish of me. Please forgive me for being angry.
Blake and I have had some bumps and bruises, but we are okay. When I see you, I can only imagine the reunion. Love you so much.
Yours,
Bailey
It was a relief to finally be real with my parents, even if it was just by letter. Truth was, I didn’t know if I’d see them again. But I had to hold on to hope that we would be reunited.
Once we’d finished the paperwork, the officer who’d answered my questions asked us to follow her. She brought us to a hall lined with offices. “We’re a little tight on space right now,” the officer explained. “The campus dorms have all filled up, so we’re housing people in other buildings too.” As we walked down the hallway, I noticed that every room was packed with families. Sleeping bags and packs covered the floors.
The officer stopped at one of the empty rooms. “You five can stay in here.”
We filed in, taking in the space. There was a desk with a rolling chair, a wall of shelves and cabinets, and one overstuffed armchair. No windows, so the officer handed us a single candle and a small matchbook. “We’re, ah, also a little light on resources,” she said with a tight smile.
“We’ll make do,” Allison said, though I saw her place a protective hand on her stomach.
“The dining hall is serving dinner until seven tonight,” the officer added. “Feel free to head over there once you’ve gotten settled. Breakfast is from eight to nine in the morning.”
I wished my phone still worked just so that I could set an alarm. Luckily John had an old-fashioned watch that was still ticking away. He promised to keep track of time so we wouldn’t miss dinner.
We gave Blake the armchair so he could try to keep his leg elevated. The rest of us took spots on the floor. Allison and John made a little nest behind the desk for some privacy. That left Colby and me sleeping on the floor in the front of the small office space. We would be sleeping directly next to each other. I tried not to think about it.
After setting up, we grubbed at the campus dining hall. I made sure Blake got plenty to eat. He hadn’t complained about his foot all day, but now that he didn’t have to walk on it as much, his mood definitely improved. In fact, everyone seemed to be in better spirits. John was making sure Allison was comfortable, rubbing gently on her belly, and even talking to it. She just chuckled, and I loved that. It felt like another sign that life as we knew it wasn’t gone completely.
Chapter 9
The next morning, I woke up to my brother’s moans. I rolled over and saw him clutching at his foot. When I tried to look at it, he shouted louder and scrunched up his face.
“It hurts, bad,” he groaned.
“What’s going on?” John asked sleepily.
“We need help—something is wrong with Blake!” I shouted.
Colby got up and sprinted out into the hall.
Blake lifted the leg of his sweatpants to reveal that his ankle was swollen again and looking a sickly color. I could hear footsteps pounding in the hallway and Colby’s voice.
“You’re gonna be fine,” I said to Blake, trying to use a soothing voice. “Help is coming. You hang in there. You’ve already made it this far.”
Colby led two Army medics into the room. Allison pulled me back so they could look at Blake. His face was scrunched up with pain, and as soon as one of the medics shifted his ankle, Blake screamed. Hearing that sound, I felt like I was going to pass out.
Colby grabbed my hand and dragged me into the hallway.
I couldn’t help myself this time—I broke down into tears. Colby wrapped his arms around me and let me cry against his chest. I couldn’t handle it if something happened to my brother.
Allison’s voice drifted over to us. I could hear her speaking calmly to Blake, telling him everything would be all right. I hoped she was holding his hand when I couldn’t be there to do it.
After a minute or so, the screaming stopped and Blake seemed to be calming down.
I turned in Colby’s arms to see the medics stepping out of the room.
One of them approached me. “They said you’re his sister?”
I nodded, wiping the tears from my cheeks. I stepped away from Colby. “How is he?” I asked.
“He’s gonna be just fine. It’s difficult to tell without an x-ray, but we think it’s a sprain. He must have agitated it in his sleep—all that walking wasn’t good for it either. We’ve fitted him with a brace and gave him some ibuprofen. He can come see us every few hours for another dose.”
“Okay,” I said. That didn’t seem too bad. I could handle that.
“Keep him off his feet for the next day or so,” the medic added.
“Thank you so much.”
As they walked away, I smiled at Colby. He wiped a stray tear from my cheek. I laughed, embarrassed.
“See?” he said. “Everything’s gonna be okay.”
But apparently he’d spoken too soon. Down at the far end of the hall, someone screamed out, “The faucet is putting out brown water!”
So not only did we have no power, but now we could add plumbing problems to the list. What was next? I certainly didn’t want to know the answer.
***
Over the next several days, people kept showing up at the campus. Most were looking for food and shelter just like us. But plenty were also looking for family members. I saw parents and grandparents clutching handwritten letters just like the ones I’d sent to my mom and dad. And I saw little kids, teens, even some grown people tearfully embrace the new arrivals.
Once these families were reunited, they didn’t leave the shelter. Instead they hunkered down. The office building where we spent most of our time had gotten even more crowded, with people and their belongings clogging up the hallways and common areas. The bathrooms were a nightmare. And at meals I noticed that the dining hall filled up, and the officers in charge started distributing smaller portions of food. But none of that was my main concern.
By the end of the week I was pretty sure Colby, Blake, and I were the only kids who didn’t have their families with them.
I was beginning to wonder if our parents would ever find us. But I didn’t want to worry the others, especially Blake.
Colby, however, seemed to notice my darkening mood. He took me aside one morning after we’d finished eating. “Hey,” he said. “I want to talk to you about something.”
“Okay.”
“And I need you to have an open mind.”
I arched an eyebrow at him. “Okay . . .”
“I’m serious, Bailey. We’ve been here for almost two weeks now and neither of us have heard anything from our families.” He lowered his voice and checked over his shoulders. “Camp conditions are getting real bad—we’re gonna run out of food soon, and they bring in new people every day. We need to flip things.”
I squinted up at him. I didn’t know where he was going with this, but I was beginning to feel worried about it.
He looked back at me, resting his hands on my shoulders. “There’s a group of folks who’re gonna try to steal one of the Army trucks and make it to Montgomery tomorrow.”
“Wait a minute,” I hissed. “What are you talking about? You’ve been telling me you want to start living your life the right way. How does stealing an Army vehicle fit into that plan?”
“It ain’t even like the surveillance cameras and stuff are working, Bailey. I’m not gonna get caught.”
He’d completely missed my point, so I tried a different angle. “I know things are bad here,” I said. “But we just sent out those letters to our folks. What if we leave and they finally get here?”
“What if they’re waiting for you in Montgomery right now?” he shot back. “We don’t even know if those letters got to them. Look, I still have my license on me. I can drive. You and Blake can—”
“No,” I cut him off, shrugging his hands off my shoulders. “I don’t want to take that chance. And my brother and I are going nowhere with you in some stolen vehicle.”
He crossed his arms and looked away. “Suit yourself, then.”
“Yeah, suit yourself, then.”
Before he could say anything else, I walked away. I hated being at odds with him, but I had to stand my ground. I didn’t want to be a part of this—and there was no way I was going to let Blake.
I went back to the living quarters. There was a small reception area in one of the office spaces that everyone had turned into a community space. The rest of our group plus a few others were sitting in the cluster of couches and armchairs. Everyone seemed so somber.
“What if this is the end?” Greta was asking. “What if the lights and power never come back on? How could we survive?”
“What if the Visitors come down here and attack us?” asked a guy.
“Who knows what they might do,” an older woman pitched in. “They might even take some of us to their world.”
Allison was tearing up. “I get what I’ve always wanted, and my baby might not even have a chance.”
“I just wanted to play football,” Blake said. “I get to finally meet a five-star player who can give me some pointers, and I might not even get to use what he told me.”
“I just got a promotion at work,” Greta said. “Now, I’ll probably never get to see that first paycheck.”
Tired of the negative vibes, I sat up straight in my seat. “Okay, okay, we gotta stay positive. I know it’s important to be realistic, but we don’t even know what’s really going on. So hanging onto hope will keep us moving. We don’t know what’s going to happen with the Visitors yet.”
I turned to Allison and John. “Your baby is going to be amazing. You’re going to give it a good life.”
“And Blake.” I looked over at my little brother, who was watching me with wide eyes. “Maybe you won’t get to grow up and become a five-star athlete—maybe you will. Either way, you’ll still be able to use those skills.”
Blake gave a small laugh then. “Yeah, maybe someday I’ll get to tackle some alien butt.”
The rest of the group laughed at that, and I could tell spirits were lifting. Maybe our lives wouldn’t turn out the way we’d all imagined for ourselves, but we were still holding on. We’d get through this.
Chapter 10
The next morning when we showed up at the dining hall for breakfast, an Army officer told us there wouldn’t be a morning meal today. “We’re cutting back until we can top up our food supply,” he explained.
“How long is that going to take?” I asked, but he didn’t have an answer.
“What are we gonna eat?” Blake asked me. I didn’t know how to answer him.
I looked at him and said, “Come on, let’s go back to our room. There’s still some food in our suitcase.”
Over the past week resources had become increasingly scarce. We’d run out of soap. The rations of bottled water were running low. And since things were tight, the people were very irritable. Fights were breaking out, and the hopefulness I’d been trying so hard to hold onto a few days ago already seemed like a distant memory.
Back in our room, I opened up a pack of peanut butter crackers for Blake and me to split for breakfast, just like we’d been doing for the past few days now. I was sick of peanut butter crackers. But it was better than the cans of sardines sitting in my backpack.
“Here,” I said, handing another pack of crackers to Blake. “Go give these to Colby.”
He’d been avoiding me for the past week, but I knew he hadn’t been eating much. Even though I was still annoyed with him, I couldn’t help but worry about him.
Blake wandered down the hall in search of Colby. Allison and John were sitting with me, and I watched as John gave up his breakfast for the third morning in a row so Allison could have more to eat. He took some sips of a sports drink, insisting that he wasn’t really that hungry anyway. Allison sniffled to herself as she scarfed down the protein bar. I could tell she didn’t want to take away John’s share, but she also knew she had to
keep herself as well fed as possible for their baby.
My stomach twisted. How long can we last like this? I wondered.
Blake came back to me with the packet of crackers in his hand. “We’ll have to give it to him another time. He just jetted out. Did he tell you about his plan?”
I frowned and brought him out into the hall so Allison and John wouldn’t hear us. “Did he tell you about his plan?” I whispered.
“Uh—yeah. He’s gonna get a truck.”
Huffing in frustration, I nodded. “Steal a truck. He didn’t ask you to go with him or anything, did he?”
“No, no. I mean, I’m only in eighth grade. I don’t even have a license. But I said I’d be the lookout person.”
I glared at him. “Don’t even talk stupid.”
“I’m just playing. But he said he’s coming back, and if he gets a car, we need to be ready.”
I put my hand on my hip and rolled my eyes at Blake. He put his hands up innocently but said, “For real, for real. If he comes back with a car, I’m tossing in. Look around here. People don’t even have anything to eat. And we gotta get to Dad.”
I sighed, knowing that underneath Blake’s worshipping of Colby, he was really trying to find a way to help. “We will see Dad soon, but this isn’t the way to make that happen. Even if I felt okay about using a stolen Army truck as a getaway vehicle, I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to leave Merrimont. Dad or Momma might be trying to get here right now.”
Blake nodded. “So when Colby’s gone, it’s just gonna be you and me.”
I turned to him with a big smile, nudged him in the arm, and said, “Not bad company.”
Blake laughed, but I knew he was worried about the same things that were keeping me up at night: Would we see our folks again? What was going to happen with the Visitors? How long would we be able to stay here before the Army ran out of resources?