as it was . joel miller [hbo]

three

Donna tapped her hands on the wheel of her station wagon as she hummed along to the country song playing softly through the radio. It wasn't long til her cabin now, she was basically there. She felt very peaceful as she drove along the empty dirt road, her cabin was her happy place, so far away from civilization that Joel had a hard time finding the place on a map when he and Sarah came to stay for the first time. She wouldn't have it any other way, in her hectic life she needed a place where no one was in sight and she could just relax with nature. 

She smiled as she thought of the books she had brought with her that she was going to add to her already chock-full bookcase, this weekend would be one of rocking chairs and terrible romance novels, every girl's dream.

Suddenly, Donna noticed that her music was stopped and was instead replaced by a repetitive noise blaring from the radio. Furrowing her eyebrows she turned the volume up to see what the issue was, maybe the station was having technical difficulties. 

"Attention, attention, this is not a test, shelter in place immediately. This is not a test, find refuge, lock doors, do not go outside. Call 9-1-1 in event of an abnormality. Attention, shelter in place."

The radio blared the same message over and over again, Donna felt her blood run cold and her heart sped up to an unreasonable pace. She stepped on the gas, abandoning any idea of a relaxing drive as she sped towards her cabin.

Taking sharp turns and almost veering off the road, her cabin finally came into sight. Not taking a moment to be relieved she turned quickly into the dirt patch where she usually parks her car and slams on the breaks. 

"Shit," she whispers to herself as she fights with the key, trying to remove it from the vehicle with her shaky hands. Finally removing the key, she steps out of the vehicle, swinging the back door open and grabbing her large bag that she had packed. As soon as it was secure she slammed the back door and ran towards the entrance of the cabin, slamming the key into the door handle.

"Shit, shit, shit," Donna mumbles as tears fill her eyes, when the door finally opens she turns and begins to use the many locks that Joel had installed when he insisted that there were 'creeps in these woods.'

The young woman then proceeded to run into her bedroom, opening the closet door and reaching behind the many boxes of winter gear to grab the rifle hidden behind them (once again, courtesy of Joel) and swinging it over her shoulder. She also grabbed the sleeping bag from the floor of the closet and the crank radio from the night stand. Then, running into the kitchen, she shoved some food into her bag and grabbed a pack of water. 

As she dragged the water across the floor she spied the round metal handle against the hardwood and reached for it, revealing a set of steep stairs that led into the cellar. Donna proceeded to throw the pack of water down there, followed by the sleeping bag before she began to climb down the stairs herself, holding her very heavy bag in her hand. Just before she reached the bottom she grabbed the handle on the underside of the wood and pulled it closed. 

Everything in the the room went pitch black, all Donna could hear was the sound of her own heart in her ears, frantically she reached around for the hanging cord and as her hand met the cold metal she let out a sigh of relief, pulling down on it. The cellar was lit by a damp light and Donna was met with the sight of the old drywall and shelves of non perishables. She cringed and took a seat on the floor where she had placed the sleeping bag and rummaged around in her bag until she could find her crank radio. She proceeded to spin the crank as much as she could, maybe taking out some of the adrenaline and stress in the process, pressing the power button once she was done.

"bzzt, shelter, bzzt, Attention! bzzt," the radio produced a mixture of noises as Donna attempted to raise the antenna, "Attention, shelter in place, do not go outside. Attent-" she placed the radio in front of her on the floor.

"Attention, shelter in place, do not-" a pause, then a female voice, "This is Amanda Lang reporting, as I'm sure you're aware a pandemic has broken out in Austin and from our reports in many other cities across the world. New orders have come in from the military recommending anyone in the city to evacuate. Military are advising citizens to congregate in newly created bases to take refuge, highways have been closed due to immense traffic. Please steer clear of Police blockades within the city as they attempt to contain infected. If you are unable to leave the city and suspect infected in your area, isolate and shelter in place, military will assist you, stay where you are. Those infected with this pandemic appear to be aggressive and are prone to attack. If you are able, please evacuate the city, once again, highways are closed but refuge stations are set up for you by the military. My team and I will keep you updated as long as it is safe to, take care of yourselves... Attention, evacuate the city, this is an emergency, attention-"

Donna sat frozen in the cellar as the automated voice bounced off the walls. Now that the adrenaline had worn off her mind began to wander to its usual focus, Joel and Sarah. 

She began to cry.