Desolation

Plan on More Upheaval

Even when you think that you have everything figured out, there will be more upheaval than you can imagine. Unfortunately, this will come to you at the worst time. It may be the death of someone close, the disruption of a plan, or even something like a natural disaster.

You will not be able to plan for upheaval; you can only plan for how you might deal with it. Assume it will come, like a thief in the night. He will prey on you when you are most vulnerable. Count on it.

38. Free Fallin’

Rocky Point, Mexico

First the ladder shook a little bit, making Bill think that he was the cause. Then the ground beneath him rumbled, then the house, and then seemingly the whole world shook. Bill held on for dear life, trying not to fall off the ladder, which bounced on the cracking tile like a giant pogo-stick. The house’s windows shattered as the sandy ground of Rocky Point lurched and quavered. A deep thrumming echoed throughout the house, and then it just stopped. There was silence, only partially interrupted by a shard of glass falling from an already devastated bedroom window. Then the top edge of the ladder slipped out of the skylight well, dropping it and Bill ten feet. For just a moment, which felt to him more like a minute, he slowly fell through the air. During this slow-motion couple of seconds, he laughed at the thought going through his mind. It wasn’t fear that his life was coming to an end. It was Tom Petty.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were appearing in his hometown and he and his high school buddies had tickets. He played their music every day until the day of the concert. On that day, Bill was jumping on a trampoline when his favorite song came over the loud speakers outside. Then he jumped wrong and tumbled through the air. Like today, he remembered then Tom bellowing out the chorus, “Yeah, I’m free… free fallin’—” and then he hit hard.

His feet crashed into the kitchen’s island first, jack-knifing his shoulder and arm into the Saltillo tile, which was already cracked from the earthquake. Thud-crack! His right arm absorbed most of the impact with a noise loud enough that everyone heard it.

Lisa ran to him and knelt. “Bill! Oh my God, are you all right?”

Bill was cradling his arm, afraid to see how bad it was. “Holy crap, was that just an earthquake?

“Si, Señor Bill, but dat was da worst I feel before,” Miguel said, hugging his wife and child.

There was yelling outside, and a couple of gun shots. Bill recognized the distinctive sound of an AK-47.

“We don’t have time, let’s get out of here.” Bill leapt to his feet and jogged, holding his right arm close to his chest. It throbbed pain with each breath. With his good arm he reached into the top shelf of Max’s bookshelf, finding the latch after searching a bit. Then, he found the other one on the last shelf; the bookcase clanked and slid open slightly.

“Señor King, this is Danny Diablo Diaz.” A loud voice, just outside the broken glass of their patio door, startled them.

Bill swung the bookshelf door open completely. Reaching into his shirt, he grasped Max’s key and lanyard, pulling it out and over his head. Smoothly he fed it into the steel door behind the bookshelf. Miguel and Maria were mesmerized, having been to his house before. They had no idea this doorway was here.

“Come out and surrender Señor Thompson’s house, and we will let you live. You have my word on it.”

They slipped through the opening, first closing the bookcase behind them and then the steel door, engaging both locks. Two sounds welcomed them: the weak hum of the flickering fluorescents, and the characteristic sound of a pistol’s slide engaging a round. All heads spun around to see an outline of someone in the dark, walking towards them, pistol pointed in their direction. Everyone held their breath, not saying a word.

“Dad? Mom? Is that you?”

“Sally!” Bill and Lisa screamed in unison, not with fear but relief.

A muffled voice outside made more unintelligible demands.

The lights flickered off and back on again.

“I think the batteries are running down, since we haven’t been able to reconnect to the solar panels yet. We’re going to lose power soon enough,” Sally stated, very matter-of-fact.

“But how do we get out of here before Clyde or those other men burn this house down?” Lisa was frantic, her words squeaky.

Bill was about to answer, but Sally beat him to it. “I actually know the answer to that one. Follow me.”

39. Earthquake!

Laramie, Wyoming