Reset

From what she could see the yard was not that big, there was a pool. But the patio and what little yard there was, was completely overgrown except for… three small white crosses. Or they used to be white. The weather had worn them, causing most of the color to be gone, and the wood eroded. All of her breath escaped her. For a moment, a split moment, Nora had been drawn into optimism, and that was crushed when she went outside. As she arrived Jason had dropped to his knees and began to frantically pull the grass and the weeds that had grown around the white crosses.

“No.” Jason said sadly. “No.”

Quietly and softly Nora walked to him. She folded her arms to her body. Her voice was whispering, “Jason.”

He pounded his fist hard to the ground, shoulders bounced and then he looked over his shoulder at her with a devastating expression on his face. “They’re gone.” Jason indicated to the crosses. Each had a name deeply engraved on it. Three female names. Candy, Melissa and Daisy. “Whoever that man was, he is not in one of these graves,” Jason said with sadness. “He was the one that probably buried my family.”

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They were useless. That was what Meredith told John and Grant as the reason that she left the documentation behind. Pages upon pages of names and numbers. None of them were from the area so the chances of their family being on that list were slim to none. Other than the color-coded flags and a few dates, the information was a waste of time.

John was glad to hear some information. That perhaps some people had survived. But it couldn’t be proven by him. The one thing he was certain of was, there was no way, no how, that they were making it to Washington DC by the end of the day.

Just as the sun began to set, and the vehicle cranked out the last of its power, John pulled over to the side of the road a mere twenty miles from Washington DC.

“This is bullshit,” Grant blasted. “I don’t understand why we’re going to Washington DC anyhow.”

John explained, “Because if we’re going to find any answers, if by chance your family is not around, then DC offers us an opportunity to learn something.”

“It was the nation’s capital.” Meredith said. “I know that sounds cheesy, but if anything happened as far as war, it happened there. If anything happened in the plan for trying to save the world, it happened there.”

John added, “Plus their records, and the Smithsonian Institute is there.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Grant asked.

“I don’t know about you, but I would like a little bit of history from when I was on this earth. When I lived my full life. If we are in the future, then we should secure some of the past. “John said.

“I agree,” said Meredith.

“There’s something wrong with both of you,” Grant complained, “I just want to get home. And it’s not a good idea to set up camp here.”

John tossed out his hands. “What do you expect us to do? Where do you expect this to go? The buggy is done for today.”

“Then, as long as it’s still light out, we should walk to a safer location spend the night.” Suggested Grant. “Maybe even hide the buggy if we can.”

“Are you nuts?” John left already Joe. “Hide the buggy? Walk to a safer location?”

Grant nodded. “Yeah, look around, something is not right.”

Again, John laughed. Almost scoffing.

“John,” Meredith called his name softly. “He’s right.”

“You too?”

“Seriously, John,” Meredith said. “Take a look around.”

Up went John’s hands and they fell against his thighs with a slap. “I’m looking.”

“What do you see?” Meredith asked.

“Nothing,” answered John. “What am I missing?”

Grant spoke up, “what don’t you see? It’s something we saw everywhere.”

Meredith answered. “John, life. There’s no life.”

John chuckled. “No shit. The virus wiped out the world. We’re pretty much extinct.”

“No.” Meredith said softly. “Human beings aren’t the only life. Again, look around, where is the life?”

John was at his wits end. He thought they had gone mad. Was he missing something? Apparently he was and when he looked around ready to ridicule them once more. He saw they were right. There was no life. Life, meaning trees, grass, even weeds. It was something so visually commonplace that John grew used to it. But right there outside of Washington DC, there was nothing. For the first time in the journey. Anything green with life that surrounded them up to that point, was no longer there. The grass the trees, everything… Was dead

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