Glimmer of Hope (Land of Tomorrow Book 1)

Part I, Chapter 2

Nathan looked out the grimy window at a dingy snowy wasteland. Joshua was right about the bodies attracting the wild dogs, but that was not all bad. He worried less about someone sneaking up on them with several dozen ravenous, desperate dogs roaming the area. Being forced to stay put for five days also allowed Bethany time to recover and gain strength.

There were no signs of the dogs this morning though. Four bodies only fed them for so long. Maybe we should move on, he thought. We’re almost out of food anyway. Never in his life had cold, hunger and fear been such constant and faithful companions, but reality had shrunk to a small world of fundamental and basic necessities. Warmth, sleep, food, life.

He wondered at how quickly everything came apart. Nathan wasn’t exactly certain what led to the end of the world. It was possible this phrase was even an exaggeration. After all, lots of people were still alive and the world kept turning, but Nathan couldn’t help thinking of it in those terms. The 'end of the world' seemed apt and had arrived without fanfare or warning.

Three months ago, Nathan woke early in the morning to the worried whine of their shepherd Daisy in their home on Fort Meade Army Post in Maryland. She stared at him pensively like she needed to go outside. Strange light cast eerily moving shadows through the curtains and he thought he must have overslept. The alarm clock flashed a red 12:00 over and over. Nathan sat up and swung his feet out of the covers putting his hand comfortingly on Daisy’s head, but she crawled under the bed. He bent over to peer after her as a giant blast rocked the house knocking him to the floor. Glass shattered, shelves lost their contents, and car alarms sounded up and down the street. He lay still on the floor before climbing to the window and was stunned by the nightmarish scene.

He counted the expanding tops of three bright mushroom clouds rising over what must be D.C. in the southeast and two over Baltimore in the northeast. From deep in his subconscious, his brain retrieved a distant memory of a military class on what to do in the event of a nuclear attack. He continued to stare outside for a few moments as that clinical information briefing replayed in his mind along with visions of blind Hiroshima survivors. He returned to himself jerking his head away to prevent frying his retinas. Even so, he could see the outlines of those hellish clouds everywhere he looked. At least I'm not blind, he thought.

He checked his watch to mark the time and then started yelling for Beth and the boys to get up while he got dressed quickly. Bethany, ever the deep sleeper, peered at him confused and groggily rubbing her eyes. He’d told her countless times in jest that she could sleep through an earthquake.

“Honey, you have to get up now! We don’t have much time!” explained Nathan nearly frantic. “Get dressed and start filling up anything you can find with water and put it in the basement.”

“What?” she said confused but smiling in anticipation of a punch-line. Nathan took a moment to notice how beautiful she was, even at a time like this. The malignant light outside highlighted her long dark hair, olive skin, and deep brown eyes.

“Just do it, baby! Please!” yelled Nathan as he ran down the hall. Another series of quakes shook the house knocking him to the floor and he heard a crash downstairs. He struggled up off the carpet and burst into his sons’ room.

The boys were standing together looking out the window. “Don’t look!” Nathan screamed as he grabbed their shoulders pulling them back. They stared at him with wide eyes. “Help you mother get food and water into the basement," he told them. "Also grab pillows and blankets. We’re going to be there awhile. Move! Fast!”

Nathan ran to the hallway gun case which was leaning precariously and grabbed everything he could carry downstairs into the basement. Once there, he picked up several pieces of luggage and took them back upstairs to find the boys and Beth at the window again. Nathan thought he was going to lose his mind.