The Smog Storm (Discontinued)

Chapter Four

After I asked the religious women if she wanted me to get help for her, she had swiftly refused. She claimed that I wouldn't find any help, only destruction. I thought of those men who had chased me earlier and took her advice into consideration.

I talked a bit with her and found out that she had lost two sons as well as a husband. I also found out her name was Helen Rodriguez and that she was retired. Before the smog came she had been enjoying a family get together and then suddenly the dark fog had rolled in and suffocated everyone inside of her house, but her.

Tears formed in my eyes when I heard her talk about her family dying. It was just so sad and I definitely felt for her. While I may have come across Bertha's and Mrs. MacAdams' bodies, Helen had to witness the death of her family. I couldn't imagine anything worse then watching the people you love die in front of you and not being able to do a thing about it.

I didn't have a family. My parents had decided they didn't want a kid, so they gave me away when I was just a baby. I had never met them and honestly hoped not to. I had been from one foster home to the next, never truly belonging until I had met Bertha. We became friends almost instantly and having my last moments with her to have been me yelling at her didn't sit well in my stomach.

I guess I just never stopped to appreciate Bertha and just always considered that she would be around. I felt bad that towards the end of her life we had argued and fought over things that seemed so minor and insignificant now. I shook my head and brought myself back to the present. Dwelling on the past was not going to help me at the moment.

I was currently stuck in a smog invaded city, with dangerous people on the prowl. Not to mention I was lost and my feet were bruised and bloody from running without shoes. I was fortunate to have happened upon Helen for she knew what part of the city we were in and she offered to take me to her house to bandage my feet.

I took her up on her offer because come on, what was I supposed to do, continue on with probably sprained ankles and bloody feet? Besides her house was a short walk away from where we were. Though I might've cringed at least a million times walking to her house, the pain finally setting in since the adrenaline had worn off.

As far as I could make out in the smog, Helen's house was a cute, little, yellow Victorian with a rose garden. Helen's steps slowed as she made her way up the porch stairs and I understood that she was reluctant to go inside her house, since it was still filled with her dead family. As I realized this I immediately felt guilty for making her go inside. Just as she was about to turn the knob on the front door, I stopped her.

"Hey Helen, if you don't want to go inside, I can just go by myself. I know how hard this must be for you," I said gently.

She looked at me with sad eyes and said: "No, I need to face this eventually. I can't hide forever and uh.. the reason I was out in the streets in the first place is because after I tried calling for help, I found out that the phone lines weren't working. So then I went outside to try to get help and that's when I discovered that the whole city is covered in this awful fog. So I just sat there because I was too much of a coward to try to find someone to help me or go back and face my dead loved ones. Seeing how determined you are has given me hope that things will be okay and I'm grateful to you for getting me out of that alleyway."

Helen smiled a sad smile at me and then opened the door. We both walked in and headed down the hallway to what looked like the kitchen. Helen walked in front of me and choked back a sob when she entered the kitchen. I looked around her and understood her cries of distress. An older man close to the same age as Helen, was sprawled on the tiled floor, dead.

Also two younger men were slumped over the kitchen table, both deceased as well. There were half empty wine glasses on the table next to the boys and chips with dip. I held back the tears that threatened to fall. Helen needed me to be strong for her, if I started crying it wouldn't help things at all. I pulled her into a hug as she cried softly into my shoulder.