Read Echoes of Tomorrow Season One: Episode Two (Echoes of Tomorrow: Season One Book 2) Online
Authors: Douglas Wayne
Echoes of Tomorrow Season One: Episode Two (Echoes of Tomorrow: Season One Book 2) (4 page)
Then the realization of his situation slammed into him. Not only did he not have his phone, his wallet was missing too. Unless he had a way to call the office or back home, he was stuck in Mobile without a way back.
He hated feeling so helpless. Even knowing none of it was his fault, he didn't like being in the hospital so far away from home.
The one shining light was that he'd found a new friend. If Marcy hadn't helped get him this far, he might have passed out or died long before making it this far. He owed her more than she could ever imagine and he intended to make it up to her the second he was back on his feet.
Marcy stood up, adjusting the long blue dress she wore when she did. "I should tell the doctor you're awake. He'll want to come check on you."
The lights flickered in the room a few times before going so bright Tyler was sure the bulbs would blow before settling back to normal.
"What was that?" Tyler asked, sitting up in his bed to take a look around.
"Power surge. It started doing that yesterday."
Tyler's heart beat out of its chest as he struggled to calm himself down. He'd been through dozens of power outages in his life, but something about this one disturbed him. The way the power surged, nearly blinding him with the extreme light, was unnatural. Something had to be going wrong around here if a hospital couldn't control the power. People inside were reliant on regular electricity just to survive. If something like that happened at the wrong time, it could cost someone their life. At least, that's what he'd heard.
He sat up on the edge of the bed, legs dangling to the floor. Before he could try to stand on his own, Marcy rushed over and held him back.
"You shouldn't try to walk yet. Not until the doctor comes to see you."
"I need to know what's going on outside." It wasn't so much as a need as it was a primal desire. The scene outside when they got here had been a madhouse. Now, with the phone lines down and unreliable electricity things had to be nuts. But if things were still half as bad as they were then, he expected to hear the chaos from the room. Unless they spent top dollar to make the walls soundproof, which he doubted. It wasn't an expense most business owners would make.
"Let me get the doctor and you can see for yourself."
Tyler wasn't willing to wait for the answer. He waited until Marcy was halfway across the room before making his move. The first few steps were painful, but once he regained his sense of balance he made it to the window in moments.
Staring out the window, Tyler was amazed at what he saw. Where there had been thousands of people, all gathered outside the hospital when they arrived, those people were replaced with a smattering of people in camouflage gear scattered across the parking lot. The lot full of cars replaced with seven or eight Humvees and even a tank. The perimeter of the hospital was lined with red perimeter fence lined with what looked to be barbed wire along the base. Across the street, Tyler noticed the missing crowds from the parking lot. For the most part, the they stayed well away from the barrier, though in a few spots people stood next to the barrier talking to a patrolling guardsman.
Tyler wondered why the security was necessary. Why wouldn't the hospital at least try to take as many people as it could? Sure, his room had been filled well beyond its normal capacity, but it seemed to work. Why couldn't they use the hallways and other rooms to do the same thing?
In the center of the perimeter, he noticed a group of people approaching the fence. Each of the men held weapons in their hand as they approached the construction barrier. The guardsman patrolling that section of the wall turned towards the hospital and held his hand to his mouth then turned around with his gun leveled at the approaching group. Five soldiers ran up behind the lone guardsman, bringing their guns to bear.
Is the city under martial law? Or was something else going on?
Each second he watched the scene below, more questions filled his already cluttered head. He tried to tell himself he was watching a war zone on TV instead of the reality below. It was hard to believe Mobile had degenerated like this in three days.
"I thought we had a deal?" Marcy said, entering the room.
Tyler glanced over his shoulder to see if anyone followed her in, but she was alone.
"Be honest with me. What's going on out there?"
Marcy sighed as she walked across the room and took a seat in the chair she was sitting in when he woke up. "Nobody's sure. All I know is that power is out to most of the city along with the phone. Water and sewer service is still working like normal, but probably not for long."
"What about them?" he said, motioning to the crowd below.
"The hospital is one of the few places with electricity. Most of them are just looking for shelter or for help searching for loved ones."
Tyler tore his attention away from the scene unfolding below to glare at Marcy. "Why would they come here for that?"
She shrugged. "People are missing all over the city. Lots of them."
"How many is a lot?" He studied her face, hoping she was just pulling his chain. But if she was lying, she was very good at it. Good enough to make a great living playing poker.
"Before the news stations went down, the count was over sixty-thousand verified. There's no telling how many more there were now?"
Tyler felt like he'd been punched in the gut. Over sixty-thousand people missing, just here in Mobile? How the hell could that many people go missing without a trace? There had to be a logical explanation for it. Aliens perhaps, or something even more dire. But while his mind struggled to piece together what Marcy had told him, something else stood in front of his mind. Was this the only place where this was happening, or was it more widespread?
"Is this happening anywhere else?"
She nodded, face going flush as she did. "It's like this worldwide."
Tyler felt the blood rushing from his head; his legs grew weak. He braced his back against the wall and slid to the floor, struggling to hold his emotions together. Is my family at home safe and sound, or were they part of the missing? He cursed himself for not remembering the number to his house, though if the situation outside was any sign, they wouldn't be able to answer if he called.
"You going to be OK?" Marcy walked over and knelt at his side and took his hands in hers.
"I need to get home." He pulled a hand free and wiped the corner of his eye before the tear could push its way through. "I need to know they're OK."
"We can drive that way once the doctors clear you to leave."
Tyler looked her in the eyes and gave her an appreciative smile. "You don't have to do that."
"My job was all I had. No offense, but they couldn't pay me enough to go back in there now."
Tyler laughed. "Yeah, I wouldn't go back in there either." His laughter stopped when he realized why she was working alone the day they met. "The people you were supposed to work with. Are they missing?"
She turned to her right, breaking her gaze. "As far as I know. Nobody is answering their phones."
"I'm sorry," Tyler said, feeling sad for her loss. They might not have been related, but the sense of companionship was the same. Even though he hated his job, there were people he was concerned about, but none more than his family. The hardest part of the situation for him was not knowing at all. He held hope that his wife and kids were sitting around the house, waiting for him to come home. While they didn't have enough supplies put away to last for a long term problem, there was more than enough to get them a few months as long as Carrie maintained the stash. That meant they should still be at the house as long as it didn't take him long to get home.
"There's nothing left for me here."
"Just so you know, I live in Arizona. Nowhere close to here."
"I can deal with that."
He didn't care to return home with a woman his wife didn't know, but it was better than making the trip on foot. As long as the roadways were at least a little better than they were in Mobile, he could be home in a few days by car. Faster if they didn't stop to sleep. Once he explained the situation she had to understand.
Tyler pulled himself up, using the windowsill for support. His headache had subsided since he woke up, but was still pounding out of control. He realized it would be best to stick around the hospital a few days before making the trip. Walking and standing was troublesome enough without adding driving to the mix. While he hated the prospect of waiting a few days before leaving, it was for the best. Maybe whatever shit was happening outside would blow over, making their trip easier.
There was a knock at the door. Tyler and Marcy's heads both turned with the noise, focused on the door.
"Come in," Tyler said, sitting in the bed. He watched the door expected a doctor to walk in wearing a white lab coat. What he didn't expect to see was the gun.
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