After the Fall: A Post Apocalyptic EMP Thriller (Surviving the EMP Book 2) Read online

  His primary concern was Candice.

  He’d spent the whole day searching for her. First, chasing after her train before she left for home. Then scouring the wreckage of the crashed trains. He’d made his way to her Aunt Jean’s, who he’d watched die, and only gone and adopted the weirdest frigging cat in the process, Mrs Fuzzles.

  And now he was travelling with a girl called Bella who didn’t seem to have anywhere else to go. Who was by his side. Helping him.

  “We’re going to have to take a break at some point,” she said.

  Wayne sighed when she said those words. He had to admit his legs were aching and his throat was dry. They had a couple of bottles of water between them which they’d picked up from an abandoned, mostly raided shop on the way, but they’d been mostly used by now.

  And Wayne knew the importance of rest. He knew how crucial it was to gather supplies and to find a proper base for the night—and beyond.

  He remembered the stories his dad taught him. The tricks he’d tried to make him learn. Outside of the box thinking, things that had stayed with him for years. One of the things that stuck with him most was how to make an insulated shelter in the wild. Dad advised him to make sure he built something that’d be just big enough to accommodate his body with body heat being his main source of warmth. The framework could be built using a sturdy branch against a tree. To make the sides, sticks were to be stacked against one another. And after that, it was just a case of covering the sides with leaves, bark, and moss to insulate it.

  He remembered the day he’d gone out with his dad into the woods and learned how to make that shelter. The fun they’d had together. The thrill he’d felt.

  How things had changed.

  He realised he was slowing down.

  But every moment he slowed down was a moment wasted.

  It was a moment where Candice could break even further ahead.

  “We’ll take a break at some stage,” Wayne said. “I just want to get to Stoke first. And at least then we can—”

  “You said that about Wolverhampton. Glasgow’s a few days’ walk away at least. You’re going to have to take a break eventually, Wayne. We both are.”

  “Then feel free to.”

  “What?”

  “Take your break if you want to. I’m not stopping. Not now. Time’s of the essence.”

  “I agree with you on that,” Bella said. “Which is why I’m worried. If this problem really is as bad as you think it might be, then isn’t it important we start thinking about our own survival? About the supplies we might need to stock up on? The things we might need?”

  “You were the one who told me to keep on going.”

  “But not at the expense of everything else.”

  Wayne stopped, then. Just for a moment.

  He didn’t want to think about Candice. About the note she’d written him telling him not to follow. About how far she may be ahead or how close she might be.

  It was that sense of the unknown that worried Wayne more than anything—and spurred him on more than anything.

  “Mrs Fuzzles doesn’t look too happy about all this ‘no break’ stuff either.”

  Wayne looked at Mrs Fuzzles. He saw the way she sat there, on the end of that lead, eyes closed, growling. “I’d say she’s sick of all this talk. Probably just wants to get on with things.”

  “Nah,” Bella said. “Definitely a cat who wants some cuddles if ever I’ve seen one.”

  Wayne sighed, then, unconvinced. He sat down by the side of this field they were walking through. They’d passed by a lot of people on their journey. The roads were still full, and amazingly, most people were still just by their cars, seeing how things progressed and waiting for help.

  They’d been past a few service stations and places like that, and they were the same. It felt like the world was in limbo.

  But Wayne knew human nature. He knew the stories his dad had taught him.

  And if there was one thing he was sure of, it was that it wouldn’t be long before that limbo lifted and everything descended into chaos.

  Just had to hope things didn’t come to that.

  Even if he wasn’t so hopeful.

  He thought of his dad. The last time he’d seen him. How he’d sat and watched Wayne on his Xbox, then told him he had to go somewhere.

  He remembered seeing him by his bedroom door. Sadness in his eyes. Asking him if he was okay.

  Dad had smiled and nodded. “I love you, kid. Don’t you forget that.”

  Wayne hadn’t seen him again.

  He wondered where his dad was out there. How he was doing. He thought about his mum, too. She’d still be at home no doubt—which despite everything, was probably the safest place for her to be.

  He’d barely even had time to think about her.

  But when he found Candice, he’d find her.

  One step at a time.

  “Okay,” Wayne said. “Half an hour,” he said. “Tops. Take a breather and… and then we set off again. We get moving. Because we can’t afford to stay still. We have to move forward.”

  Bella opened her mouth. For a second, she looked like she was going to protest. Like she wasn’t content with Wayne’s offer.

  But then she just sighed and nodded. “Half an hour.”

  “Tops,” Wayne said.

  They sat down underneath a tree and watched the orange glow of the sun shimmer as it descended closer to the horizon.

  “Do you not think about your family?” Wayne asked.

  Bella looked at him. Blushed a little. “What?”

  “Your family. Your friends. All this time, and you’ve barely mentioned them.”

  She looked into his eyes. And there was that same look in her eyes like she wanted to say something. Like she was masking something.

  And then she just smiled. “I’m fine. At least we’re together, anyway. Right?”

  Wayne saw Bella’s eyes twinkle. He saw her rolling her lips. Glancing at his mouth, then back to his eyes.

  Wayne looked away, then. He’d stared into Bella’s eyes a little too long. It’d grown uncomfortable.

  He closed his eyes and leaned back against the tree, wrapping his arms around his chest. “Thirty minutes.”

  “Tops,” Bella said.

  Somewhere near Wayne’s side, Mrs Fuzzles growled.

  Chapter Four

  Susan stared down the gridlocked road as darkness descended, and with it a sense of dread.

  A strange silence had set on the road. Right the way down, as far as the eye could see, there were cars. People standing by their cars. This place had been set up by Doctor Khalil, who was determined to look after people while they waited for help to come to them.

  Only Doctor Khalil had died, and darkness had fallen, which changed things.

  Some of the people here had walked away after the incident with the phoney troops. Some of them had lost faith in this place, decided to roll the dice and make their own push onwards.

  But some were still here. Still keeping faith in this place. Still helping people out. Still watching those in need.

  Living Doctor Khalil’s legacy.

  And that’s where Susan was at, too.

  She knew this place couldn’t last forever. Eventually, they were going to run out of the limited supplies they had left. Without outside help and hospital assistance, people were going to die.

  But she had to keep on trying her best for this place—for Doctor Khalil.

  That was his final wish.

  It had been a wild day; a nightmare that Susan kept expecting to wake up from. First, there was the plane crash. The death of all her friends. Surviving it unscathed, somehow, which was a miracle in itself, she knew.

  And then there was getting to the road. Finding out that this power outage, whatever it actually was, was widespread. How far widespread? She dreaded to think. Only she hadn’t seen a single plane or helicopter since she’d fallen from the sky.

  And then there had been the arrival of t
he troops. Only they weren’t troops. They were lunatics masquerading as troops.

  Doctor Khalil had died trying to help. Trying to save lives.

  And she had to live by his standards.

  She heard footsteps to her left.

  She turned, a little on edge with every movement.

  She saw Tommy.

  Her heart sank when she saw this kid. Only nine years old. Susan found him in the back of a coach, his dead mother beside him.

  And then he’d barely had a chance to grieve when he was dragged right into the middle of a showdown with those escaped convicts.

  She thought she had it bad. But it was nothing compared to this poor lad.

  “Hey, Tommy,” Susan said. “I thought you were getting some rest?”

  He walked over to Susan’s side. Sat on the hood of the car beside her. “Can’t sleep.”

  She kept quiet. She always gave him the chance to talk first. Therapy was something she was interested in going into, in all truth. She’d always been interested in trying to listen to other people’s problems—at least before she’d become so self-absorbed in her quest for approval that all of it got muddied.

  There were other things, too. Other things in her past that sparked that desire for knowledge; for empathy.

  But she didn’t want to think about those.

  Not now.

  Not when she had other people to think about.

  When Tommy didn’t say anything else, she decided to prompt him. She knew she had to be careful with everything she said.

  “Thinking about anything in particular?”

  Tommy turned and looked at her. There was something different in his eyes. A darkness that wasn’t there before.

  He shook his head.

  Susan cleared her throat and looked down the dark road once more. She saw the slight movement of people around the cars. Some of them were settling down, resting for the night, hoping that tomorrow, everything would be back to normal—even if that didn’t seem likely or even possible.

  “You know, it’s okay to talk,” Susan said. “I was always one who bottled things up. Who kept things to myself. But sometimes… sometimes you just need to get things off your chest. It helps. Okay?”

  He looked at her again. She could tell there was something on his mind.

  “It’s just… my mum. The blood on her face. The way she was all… still. Warm but still. Like she was… half alive. I can’t forget it. I can’t get it out.”

  She knew what this kid had gone through was bound to screw him up, but this was different. This was deeper than she was expecting. Darker than she was expecting.

  She didn’t know what to say.

  Only she felt it resonating.

  “Those thoughts,” she said, tearing up—but trying not to show it. “Those memories. They’ll be hard to deal with, for a while. But they’ll fade. In time, they’ll fade. You’ll remember the good things. You’ll remember the positives. But you need to talk, Tommy. Whenever you have these thoughts, you need to get them off your chest. Promise me?”

  He looked at her, uncertain, distant.

  “Promise,” he said.

  But he didn’t sound convincing.

  She could tell there was still something else. Something he wanted to say. And as much as it bothered her, as much as she needed to get away from it, in a sense, she knew she had to hear him out. Especially after she’d made him promise to speak to her.

  “Is there something else, Tommy?”

  He looked back at her. “That man,” he said.

  Susan frowned. “Which—”

  “The bad man. Logan.”

  Susan felt the hairs on her arms stand on end again. She thought of how Logan Butcher of all people had saved her. How he’d saved all of them.

  And despite all the bad things he’d done… how she’d brought him here for medical attention.

  She looked over at the car he was in. Guarded.

  “What about him?” she asked.

  Tommy looked like he was struggling with his words. But eventually, he found them: “How do we know he’s not still bad?”

  Susan stared over at that car.

  She thought about all the crimes Logan Butcher was responsible for.

  The murders.

  That family.

  And she thought about whether someone like that really could change. Whether someone like that ever deserved a second chance.

  She remembered her childhood. The way he’d sat at the edge of her bed. Said those words.

  But the way he apologised, too.

  “I still love you, no matter what.”

  She shut her eyes. Forced the memory away.

  Looked back at Tommy.

  “We’ll keep an eye on Logan. You don’t have to worry yourself about him.”

  “Promise?” Tommy asked.

  Susan took a moment. Then she nodded. “Promise.”

  The road grew quieter.

  The darkness grew thicker.

  Chapter Five

  Emma sat around the campfire in the middle of the woods, and she didn’t say a word.

  It was dark. Considering it had been such a nice day, it was really cold now. So much that she was shivering. Or maybe that was just everything she’d been through. The bus accident. The stabbing.

  And Logan Butcher.

  She looked through the trees, back in the direction they’d walked from, the fire crackling just feet away. She could see movement in those trees. Part of her wanted to believe it was Logan. That he was okay.

  But then she’d seen him fall. She’d seen him throw himself at that man and wrestle him to the ground to save some other people—a woman and a child.

  She knew his chances weren’t good.

  She just hoped he was okay.

  “How you doing, Emma?”

  Emma flinched when she heard the voice. She turned around and saw Candice standing over her, half-smile on her face, fidgeting with her ring-finger like something was missing.

  Candice was a pretty girl. Blonde hair. Bright blue eyes. Always looked like she was smiling.

  Considering everything that had happened, she still looked so pretty. Even her hair looked nice.

  Emma wondered how long it’d stay that way if the power stayed out.

  She looked at her shoulder where the knife had hit her, and she felt dizzy. She was tempted to run her fingers against the wound, but she didn’t want to risk anything. The boy who was with them, Calvin. He was a medical student, and he’d used the contents of a stranger’s first aid kit to stitch her up and ease the bleeding. Said he couldn’t promise he could ward off the infection, but it should be enough to get her by—for now. That the stab wound wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been, and it was more the shock to her system that had left her feeling unwell.

  And then they’d got back to their walk. A walk towards somewhere… well. Somewhere Emma still wasn’t sure about.

  Only they seemed to know exactly where they were going.

  And it also seemed like they were staying well off the roads—the woods and the fields their preferred routes.

  Emma took a deep breath and nodded. “I’m okay,” she said.

  Candice smiled back at her. “Remember to just give us a shout if you’re struggling. I know… I know it must be hard. Going through whatever you’ve gone through. Being stuck out here. But we’re going to get you to somewhere safe. I promise.”

  Emma looked back at this girl. Then at the three others. Calvin. His mate, Mitch, who was greasy-haired, and one eye pointed in a slightly different direction to the other. And then the other girl, covered in tattoos, with jet black hair and thick eyeliner, Jean.

  “How do you all know each other?” Emma asked.

  Candice sighed. “I was… I was in an incident. When the power went out. I was on a train. Battled my way out of the wreckage, tried to get back to my uni accommodation. But then I stumbled on these guys. All heading in the same direction. And Mitch here. He has an idea about
what’s happening. Which comes in handy.”

  Emma looked at Mitch again. Saw the way his eyes darted off in different directions as they made contact.

  “What is happening?” Emma asked.

  Mitch sighed. “It’s an electromagnetic pulse,” he said. “Or—or a coronal mass ejection, or some other equivalent kind of solar event which—”

  “Mitch,” Jean said, sipping a beer. “Seriously. She’s a kid. She doesn’t give a shit about these corneal ass injections or whatever you want to call them.”

  She looked around, right at Emma. Smirked.

  “Truth is, kid, we’re screwed. The power’s gone. Batteries are gone. Every damned thing is gone. So now we’re left stranded in a world where people are still searching for some kind of new order; some kind of meaning.”

  Emma gulped. She thought about the way Logan and the other prisoners had escaped; the way that mob tried to exact their own kind of justice on Logan. The rules were changing. It wouldn’t be long before everyone found their own new ways of living, too.

  “So—so where are you going?”

  It was Calvin who responded this time. He was handsome, good-looking, and seemed a lot calmer than the others. The clear leader of this group. “We’re all from up north of here. Figured we’d head up there together. Stick together, for now at least. Because we’re going to need each other. The longer the power is out, the more people are going to start losing their minds—and fast.”

  Emma nodded. She didn’t want to engage too much with these people. She didn’t trust other people. Found it difficult to get used to them.

  But she had her own ideas in mind. Getting back home to Mum.

  She just wanted some familiarity.

  She just wanted some comforts.

  “You’ve still not told us where it is you want to go,” Candice said.

  Emma looked at her. She went to open her mouth, to respond. But then she found herself looking back into the woods, over from where they’d walked. She hoped Logan was okay, wherever he was. She knew he was a bad man, once upon a time.

  But what if he’d changed?

  People deserved a chance to change.

  Right?

  She took a deep breath and sighed. “I’m from… I live in Stafford.”