“I do want you to put the top up on the Jeep before we pull out of here, though.” Ben didn’t want the people waiting outside to get any ideas after spotting the supplies and gear they were carrying.

  Joel threw his head back and sighed. “It’s so hot, though. We need the air.”

  “I know, but if those people see what we have, they may change their mind about letting us leave peacefully. I’m not even sure they will as it is,” Ben reminded him.

  Normally, Joel’s attitude would have annoyed him, but he was actually glad to see his son had the energy and mental capacity to complain. The drugs were wearing off, but was he clear enough to drive?

  Allie started pulling the top into place, and Joel joined in after another deep sigh. Ben watched the two work at putting up the soft top for a bit, trying to ascertain whether or not either of them was fit to get behind the wheel. The box of pills he’d taken from Amelia’s pocket was half full, but he had no idea how many of the blue liquid pills she’d injected into the ice pops. Brad was the worst off because of how much he ate and his small size, but Joel and Allie seemed to be coming around quickly from their drug-induced daze.

  Ben pulled the box from his pocket and handed it to Sandy. “What do you think? Should they drive or should we each drive a vehicle out of here? I’d rather be on a gun and ready to deal with the people out there if need be.”

  Sandy studied the box and counted the leftover pills. “All right, a quick test. Joel and Allie, I want you to stand on one leg with your eyes closed and see how long you can balance.”

  Allie rolled her eyes. “Mom, I feel fine.”

  “Just humor me, please,” Sandy asked.

  The older kids gave each other a look and abandoned the soft top. They moved out in front of the Jeep and started balancing on one leg.

  “Now close your eyes,” Sandy instructed. Brad joined them, although it was unnecessary. Allie only lasted a couple of seconds before she started swaying back and forth, eventually leaning on the Jeep in order to keep from falling altogether. Brad lasted even less time than her and ended up on his butt, laughing about how clumsy he was. Joel, on the other hand, seemed to be doing just fine with the impromptu sobriety test.

  “Now touch your nose with your finger,” Ben added.

  Joel managed to hit his nose almost dead on. “See? I’m fine to drive.”

  Ben gave in. “All right.”

  He couldn’t argue with the results, although his real concern was with Joel’s ability to stay awake behind the wheel. The drone of the tires and the sweltering heat were enough to put a person into a trance under normal circumstances. And if Allie and Brad fell asleep, there’d be no one to keep Joel company or awake.

  Joel and Allie went back to covering the Scrambler with the soft top while Brad seemed content to stay seated on the cooler concrete where he’d landed. Ben checked his watch; they were supposed to clear out in less than fifteen minutes. He was genuinely surprised they hadn’t heard anything from the people who’d been shooting at the building.

  Ben organized the back of the Blazer, making sure there was a decent spot to set up in the prone position if he had to shoot his way out of here. As a precaution, he moved his M24 to the back and made sure he had easy access to extra rounds of ammunition for both his long rifle and the AR-15.

  In addition, he loaded the MP5 with a fresh magazine and kept it handy on the center console for Sandy, along with a few spare magazines stacked in the cup holder. If things went south, the little submachine gun would be easier for her to handle while driving.

  Sandy probably wouldn’t be very accurate shooting the fully automatic weapon one-handed. But sometimes the display of firepower superiority was enough by itself. And maybe their willingness to spend ammunition would help persuade the mob outside that Ben and his crew weren’t worth the risk of messing around with.

  “You think they’re gonna try and stop us?” Joel approached Ben, his tone serious. The complaining teenager was gone.

  “Not sure, but let’s assume the worst. I want you guys to be ready. If you’re driving, that means Allie and Brad should be ready to shoot. Well, maybe not Brad.” Ben glanced over at his youngest, who was busy throwing rocks at a paper cup.

  “I’ll talk to Allie and make sure we’re ready.” Joel started to leave but stopped. “How far are we going today?”

  Ben closed the Blazer’s tailgate. “It’s only another twenty miles or so to I-70. Once we reach the interstate, I’m hoping to make up for lost time. Do you remember those mallards you shot near Alton, where we crossed the Mississippi?”

  “Yeah. The place with the roadblock, where we got the dynamite and you blew that Bronco to pieces.” Joel’s eyes grew wide.

  “That’s the spot.” Ben couldn’t help but smile. “I was thinking we’d try to camp in the same spot. We know the water’s clean, or at least it was, and we know the bridge is open.”

  “And if not, we still have the keys to that front-end loader.” Joel almost sounded like he hoped the bridge was blocked.

  “Exactly. It’ll be a drive, but I think we can make it,” Ben added.

  “I thought you didn’t want to drive at night?” Joel’s brow wrinkled.

  Ben shrugged. “I don’t really, but if this is the kind of heat we can expect during the day, we may have to reconsider.”

  “But won’t that be dangerous?” Sandy made her way over and joined the conversation.

  “Yes, it will. But if we push the vehicles too hard in the heat of the day, it’s only a matter of time before we have another breakdown.”

  “Maybe the weather will break. It can’t stay this hot forever,” Sandy reasoned.

  “I wouldn’t count on any relief until we see the Rockies,” Ben warned.

  Just then, Allie and Emma appeared on the loading dock, with Bajer at their side. They’d commandeered another garden cart and were towing Sam behind them.

  Sandy headed their way. “Aww. How’s she doing?”

  “She’s okay, I guess. I want to give her something for the pain from the med kit and an antibiotic, too. Allie said Dr. Julia told her which ones were safe for the dogs if they got hurt.” Emma’s voice was more confident than the last time Ben heard her speak. He was glad to see she’d gotten over the dogs being shot, or at least she’d decided to worry about their current situation for the time being.

  Joel gave his dad a hand and they carried Sam from the garden cart to the Blazer, making the dog a spot on the bench seat as per Emma’s instructions. Everyone else started loading up and making preparations to head out. Joel fired up the Jeep, and he and Ben listened to it run for a few seconds.

  “Sounds good as new,” Joel commented.

  “Just keep an eye on your temp,” Ben reminded him.

  “I will.” Joel climbed into the Jeep while Allie sat in the passenger seat with the door open, loading another magazine for the AR-15 she had propped against the dashboard. Brad and Gunner had already disappeared under the soft top and assumed their positions in the back.

  “Once we get down the road a little, you can open it up again.” Ben felt bad for his younger son and Gunner having to be closed up in the back of the Scrambler, but it was the only way to keep prying eyes off their gear. They didn’t need to give the looters any ideas.

  Sandy and Emma worked on getting Bajer loaded up in the back of the Blazer. The dog seemed confused as to why she wasn’t getting her usual spot next to Emma.

  “Let me take another look out front and turn the power off so we can open the gate. I’ll be right back.” Ben left the trucks behind and moved swiftly through the store, making his way up to the front row of plywood-covered windows. He opened the small cutout and peered outside.

  The sun was in a better position than last time. The gutted-out remains of a three-story apartment building across the street did a good job of keeping the direct sunlight out of Ben’s eyes. He could see most of the parking lot and the street beyond, where the Jeep had given up on them. There were several wrecked vehicles and a few scattered buildings. Most of the structures had been gutted by fire, leaving blackened, empty shells, while others stood without so much as a smudge of soot on them.

  The path of scorched earth left behind by the apparent fire that swept through town reached as far as he could see into the surrounding farmland. There weren’t that many places to hide, other than the obvious ones, and Ben wondered if the people waiting to take over the store were even out here anymore. Maybe the heat had driven them to seek shelter until Ben and the others left.

  If it were any other day, he might have hoped for a little luck getting out of here, but not with the way things had gone up until this point. And Ben was willing to bet the quiet, desolate wasteland that lay beyond the hardware store parking lot wouldn’t stay that quiet for long.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  There wasn’t anything else left to do but leave. Ben closed the plywood flap and covered the peep hole before heading back toward the loading dock. He could stand there scanning the street all day. He hadn’t seen a soul moving around out there, but it didn’t make him any less apprehensive about pulling out of here.

  Ben wondered if he was making a mistake by letting Joel get behind the wheel, but there were bigger concerns at the moment. If it wasn’t for the armed looters outside, Ben might have insisted that he and Sandy drive the vehicles.

  Ben stopped when he spotted the ammunition can on the floor. It was the one he’d given to Emmett in exchange for the paint and jerry can. It was hard to believe the circumstances had changed so quickly. One minute, Ben was handing the guy six hundred rounds of .223, and the next, he was putting two bullets in his chest.

  The last thing they needed was more weight in the truck, but Ben couldn’t leave the ammunition behind in good conscience. He might need it in a couple of minutes, after all. Stopping at the panel boxes, he ran through the sequence of breakers and switches once more, turning off the electrical current to the fence. He took a quick look around the empty store and shook his head. What a day.

  When he reached the loading dock, Sandy was buckled in behind the wheel of the Blazer and was already backed out from behind the Jeep. He threw the ammunition can on the floor by the passenger seat.

  “I’ll meet you at the gate.” Ben nodded at Sandy before turning his attention to Emma, who was holding Sam’s head in her lap. “When we pull out of here, I want you ready to get down, just in case.” He waited for confirmation that his daughter understood what they were about to do before heading to the Jeep to give Joel some last-minute advice. “Stay close until we get out of here. Once you hit the street, though, I want you to go as fast as you can, safely. Keep your radio on. And, Brad, keep your head down back there.”

  Allie held up the two-way radio from the passenger seat and shook it. Ben stepped back from the moving Jeep and led the way to the lumber yard exit with his rifle ready. He touched the chain lightly at first, pulling his hand away. He didn’t fully trust that he’d successfully deactivated the power to the fence.

  As soon as he was sure he wasn’t going to get shocked, Ben unwrapped the chain and kicked the wobbly chain-link gate wide open with his good leg. Joel steered the Jeep through the opening first and pulled to the side, where he waited for Sandy. Ben hopped into the Blazer as she pulled out of the lumber yard but kept the door ajar in case he needed to stand up and get a better angle with the rifle.

  “Let’s go. Over.” Ben used the two-way to let Joel know it was all right to move out. Sandy stayed tight to Joel’s bumper until they reached the sidewalk. Ben kept his eyes peeled, searching the shadows for movement.

  Looking back at the hardware store as Sandy followed the Jeep out onto the road, he noticed that the garden cart and dead dogs he’d stacked on it were missing from the parking lot. He expected the place to be swarmed the moment they left, but so far, there was no activity at all. That was just as well with him, although it was hard to believe they were going to roll right out of here without a hiccup. Ben watched the Scrambler pick up speed, the barrel of Allie’s AR-15 bouncing along with the bumps in the road as it stuck out of the passenger-side window.

  He pulled his door closed all the way, listening to the ever-increasing hum of the Blazer’s tires. He was still having a hard time accepting that their departure was going so well. Maybe the survivors who remained in this battered little town were as tired as they were. The fact that the hardware store and all it held would be up for grabs after they left probably didn’t hurt.

  Ben’s pulse quickened when he saw the Jeep’s brake lights flash, but he soon realized Joel was only slowing down to avoid an overturned bus blocking the right lane. As they made their way around the obstacle, Ben turned to look behind them and saw a large group of people flood out into the streets.

  The crowd gravitated toward the hardware store, but a small group remained in the middle of the road, waving rifles and firing shots into the air. Ben could hear the shouting well enough to recognize that a few threats were aimed at them. Bajer’s ears stood up and she scurried to the back of the Blazer, where she proceeded to curl up in a tight ball of quivering fur. Emma glanced out the back window, but as soon as she saw what was happening, she sank down in her seat and pulled Sam closer.

  “It’s all right. They can’t do anything to us.” Ben told a little bit of a lie, trying to put Emma at ease. They weren’t completely safe from the mob. Not yet. All it took was one bullet, and they weren’t out of range just yet. Those people were shouting threats for now, but there was no promise they wouldn’t act on them.

  “Whoa. I guess we left at a good time.” Sandy’s eyes darted from the rearview mirror back to the road in front of them.

  Ben held the foregrip of his rifle tightly. The scene behind them reminded him of a Third World country in the throes of a regime change. It was hard to believe they were currently in Illinois, let alone the United States of America; the scene behind them seemed more suited for the evening news in a place far away.

  A hot bead of sweat turned cold by the rush of air through the window sent a chill down his back. He contemplated what could have happened had they not escaped when they did. There was no way they could have held off a crowd that size. If Ben had any idea just how many people they would have been up against, he would have gotten them out of there a lot quicker.

  In hindsight, he felt foolish for wasting time retrieving the jerry can and heat-reflective paint, but most of all for moving the bodies.

  Joel’s voice crackled over the radio. “Did you guys see that? Over.”

  Ben was still watching the small riot unfold. There was sure to be a bloody power struggle for control of the hardware store and its contents. He wanted to be ready to fire back, if need be, so he let Sandy take the call.

  “Yeah, we’re keeping an eye on it. Thank God we left when we did. Over.” Sandy hung on to the radio.

  There was a short pause before Joel said anything else. “When can we open the side panels? Over.”

  Ben nodded at Sandy. “Your dad says go ahead. Over.”

  “Thanks. Over.” Joel signed off.

  Normally, Ben was one for saving the batteries in the radios, but today, he didn’t care. Today, he thought quick, clear communication was worth burning up a few triple A’s. They had full tanks of fuel, plenty of water, and everything they needed to cover some miles. There was no reason to stop until they needed gas again, and by that point, they’d be well along I-70 West.

  Ben had decided that they wouldn’t stop for any reason. He didn’t care about anything but getting them all home. The rest of the world be damned, they would get to Colorado in the next couple of days or die trying. Life on the road was getting worse, and he felt like they’d just about used up all their luck.

  The mob of looters they left in the dust a few miles back had struck a nerve. Ben wasn’t sure why. These days, people shouting in the streets and shooting a few rounds skyward hardly qualified as an event worth mentioning. But a new sense of urgency swelled in his chest. It was unsettling yet uplifting at the same time. He suddenly felt like camping near the Mississippi might actually be possible, like he’d mentioned to Joel earlier.

  The waterfowl conservation area on the west side of the Mississippi was just outside the town of Alton, and he wasn’t sure they’d get that far. It was where Joel had bagged two ducks and where they’d run into the giant roadblock made of cars. Ben figured the distance to be around 150 miles, a big ask when it was already late afternoon. But he was determined to get there tonight, even if it meant driving after the sun went down.

  “Look.” Sandy leaned forward over the wheel.

  “I see it.” Ben hadn’t noticed the overcast skies a minute ago. A massive dark gray cloud bank was moving in from the west. The thought of rain and cooler temperatures was enough to make him forget everything else for a minute. The imposing storm front had appeared out of nowhere, or so it seemed.

  He stuck his hand out the window and surfed the air with his open palm. He could already feel the change in temperature. Distant flashes of light from deep within the blackened cloud formation brought back memories of Allie’s close call under the billboard. And as pleasing as it was to think about their dusty, dry world getting a much-needed shower, Ben hoped the looming storm wouldn’t cause them any trouble.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  With each passing mile, they drew closer to I-70 West and the impending storm. Ben had initially welcomed the thought of a rain shower, but the closer they got, the more concerned he became. The storm might turn into much more than a drizzle.