The soft rumble of the tire treads on the poorly paved roads of Louisiana is all that can be heard over the silence that has fallen between father and I. I would normally expect to be making some plans, discussing a course of action. But now, neither of us was in a talking mood. As I sat in the passenger seat of the Jeep, holding the 45. In my hands, the end of its broad barrel gently warming my fingers after the two shots just fired. I would occasionally look up at the sound of small arms fire in the distance, only to see the scattered cars and smoke clouds, miles away. I pulled my phone out of my jeans and sent a few texts to my closest friends. The First to Jack, telling him to sit tight, were coming to him, A few more texts to friends, And the last to Jordan, asking her if she was safe.
The long, wide strip of highway leading to Shreveport was seemingly abandoned, with only a few cars and trucks here and there. As we drove under the highway bridge, signs could be seen hanging from the overpass, all displaying messages of despair, sorrow, and religious repenting. A few told of sanctuary, a place where survivors would gather. However, my gut told me these last efforts would be in vain. Suddenly the silence was broken by a short honk from Mother behind us. Pulling over into the grassy median, father and I got out of the jeep, handguns at the ready. Granted, his 9mm had more gadgets and ammo capacity, but something about a classic revolver made me feel cooler. I would soon realize that cool didn’t matter any more. With this being said, I had to take off my duster coat due to the heat and sun.
“Murphy and Lilly need to go potty” mother said a bit louder than I thought was necessary. I could see Father roll his eyes, as this was an obvious waste of time. Nonetheless, both dogs disembarked from the back of the SUV, mother holding on tightly to both leashes. I could see father waving me over. As I neared, he put an arm around my shoulder and said in a slightly hushed voice;
“I haven’t told your mother yet, but the jeep is running out of gas, I meant to get it filled up on my way back from work yesterday, but instead of doing that I came to pick you up. Were running on fumes at this point"
“the gas station isn’t too far away, do we have enough to make it there?” I asked
“I don’t know, maybe” he replied, proceeding to walk over to mother, so he can tell her the bad news. I decided to walk to the back of the SUV to get some breakfast. It seems mother had raided our entire pantry, leaving the dogs with little to no room. Boxes of cereal, canned goods, two large coolers full of milk, water, juice, frozen food, and a few bottles of very fancy wine and champagne. All I had an appetite for was a pack of Ritz, and even then I couldn’t finish it. Grabbing a bottle of water, I placed the 45. in one of the large pockets of my duster coat. Walking back to the jeep, I stopped short, almost choking on the water I saw that the back hatch to the jeep was standing open, and the contents of the jeep were gone!
All the guns, weapons, camping gear, survival supplies, and my Archery stuff, GONE!
I capped the water and placed it on the pavement next to me. I grabbed the 45. Back out and pulled the hammer back, preparing to fire. I looked into the tree line on the right side of the highway. Squinting through the blinding brightness of the midday sun, I tried to see if my theory was correct. Someone has stolen our gear while my back was turned.
“HEY!” I heard my father yell in outrage. He and Mother had returned with the dogs. He was staring into the back of the jeep, wide eyed. He turned to look at me with angry eyes, “What the…” he started angrily, but I cut him off with a sharp hand motion and a loud SHHHHHHH
It took him a moment, but then the scowl of confusion on his brow went away. He Looked down at the revolver I had drawn, and was now brandishing toward the forest, and he understood. Without missing a beat, he drew his own pistol, and gestured quietly for me to get back behind the SUV. If our thieves had stolen our weapons, what was to stop them from taking the food and clothes as well? Mother was sitting inside the SUV, trying in vain to keep the dogs still and quiet. Holding her handgun.
