Black Sun by Clifford Beck - HTML preview

Chapter 70

Her familiarity with the area had failed her and, having mistakenly bypassed the lake as well as the pond, Abby soon found herself lost. The snow was getting heavier, falling in large irregular flakes accompanied by an ever-growing wind. The storm was now upon her, forcing its disorientation that flooded her mind and toyed with her senses. Those who would soon feast on the bodies of Emma and Ryan could no longer be heard and having fallen behind a large tree, Abby peered deeply into the woods. Seeing nothing but stillness, she turned and sat with her back against its cold bark. For now, she was safe but for how long? The snow was beginning to deepen, and Abby realized that going back to the cabin meant leaving tracks in the snow. With two armed men wandering the woods looking for human prey, Abby refused to take the risk of being murdered for nothing more than a meal, and her unborn child would likely become desert.

Taking rest behind the tree, Abby grief began to surface but there was no time for tears and clearing her head, she considered other options. Unfortunately, there was only one—to keep going. After catching her breath and wiping the tears from her face, she felt strong enough to continue. Rising to her feet, Abby maintained her aimless route through the woods. As she had never been in this part of the woods, a feeling of the unknown crept into her soul. It was an experience she was not accustomed to and lent itself to something new—hopelessness. Trudging through the fresh snow, Abby was left with the grim fear that she would never find her way to safety and would likely die curled up on the ground—a heavy layer of snow blanketing her body.

Throughout her experience, Abby had become a stronger person and had developed a survivor’s edge that, she hoped, would get her through what seemed unrecoverable. As the sun drifted into late afternoon, she finally stumbled out of the woods onto a dirt road. She knew that roads and streams ultimately lead to civilization but the question was which direction to take. Abby’s continued fear had led to exhaustion and, having lost her sense of direction, veered right. Walking a considerable distance, she felt a consuming hunger set in and with the cold taking over her body looked for a place along the to sit for a while. She needed to regain her strength and perhaps search for water. If it could not be found, Abby would become dehydrated. It would then only be a matter of two or three days before her mind faded away into a terminal sleep.

Crouching on the edge of the road, Abby began to feel the effects of exhaustion and with her eyes slowly closing she brought her head to her knees, let herself drift off slightly. The next time she opened her eyes, the sun was hovering near the horizon, casting long shadows across the ground. Shaking off what had been a lengthy sleep, Abby turned her attention to the road. To the right, there was nothing but dark emptiness, leaving her mind devoid of any thoughts for a plan of how she would survive with a five-month pregnancy. Focusing to the left, she saw two glowing spots of light. Perhaps it was an animal wandering the road toward her, the fading sunlight reflecting off its eyes. Walking out to the middle of the road, she concentrated on what she could not yet identify, but as the strange lights got closer, Abby heard the faint sound of an engine. A million thoughts raced through her mind as the familiar sound slowly grew louder. ‘How could this be’, she wondered. ‘The solar storm had destroyed anything that stored electricity—batteries, power grids and transformers’. Perhaps the effects of her ordeal left her hallucinating, unable to distinguish reality from imagination.

It was only minutes before the odd lights grew close enough to blind her, Abby was forced to quickly step to the side of the road. Slowing to a stop was a dull red pickup truck. The oncoming night made it impossible to see into the cab, hiding the faces of those inside. Certainly, Abby would come to an untimely and brutal end and backing up towards the woods pleaded for her life. “Please, I’m pregnant! I’m pregnant!” As the passenger door opened, Abby reached behind her and, picking up a small fallen branch, wielded it at the as yet unidentifiable individual. Her panic was suddenly broken by the sound of a woman’s voice.

“It’s okay,” she said. “We just want to help.” Although her panic had taken flight, Abby still felt the consuming fear of falling victim to a gruesome demise at the hands of complete strangers. As she brought her hands up in a defensive position, she was stunned by the glare of a flashlight.

The dark figure drifted towards her, continuing with soft reassurance.

“We want to take you someplace safe.” Still suspicious, Abby approached the woman, who now held out an open blanket.

“It’s okay,” she continued. “Are you hungry? You look like you could use something to eat.”

In her escape, Abby had expended a great deal of energy and was, in fact, very hungry and beginning to feel the effects of dehydration. Mustering her dwindling strength, she managed only a single word.

“Yeah.”

Turning back momentarily, she asked the driver to turn on the cab light. Its illumination provided Abby a better view of those who seemed to be offering a way out of what she believed would soon become fatal circumstances. Going with them was a risk she had to take. After all, it was better than wandering the alone waiting for death.

Getting into the truck, Abby sat between the two strangers—a man and a woman. She knew that from the beginning all sources of power had been destroyed, including batteries, and was left wondering how these people managed to have a working vehicle. “How did you do this?” she asked.

“Oh, you mean the truck?” the woman replied. “You’ll find out. I think you’re going to be surprised at what you’re about to see.” The driver let up on the brake and touching the gas set the truck into motion. Throughout her ordeal, Abby had developed a strong distrust, having seen what people are truly capable of. Now, the sight of Ryan and Emma being murdered at the hands of what she thought of as human animals jumped into her mind. And as she sat between the two strangers, Abby began to tear up. This was shortly followed by weeping, getting the attention of both driver and passenger.

“You’re going to be okay,” she said. “No one’s going to hurt you.”

“It’s not that,” she said. “My boyfriend was killed by hunters, and I’m pregnant. I lost another friend at the same time. They were shot with arrows, and I’ve been walking around the woods ever since.”

The woman looked at her with great sympathy and taking her hand again reassured her that everything would be okay.

Abby went on to tell them of the events that took place since the power went out—meeting Ryan and Emma, the assault, acquiring weapons as well as the threatening situations they encountered. The woman was shocked, realizing that Abby had somehow managed to survive and was able to find her way out of the woods. She also noticed Abby’s pale complexion and reaching down to the floor board retrieved a bottle of water. Dehydration can kill in a matter of only a couple of days.

“Here,” she said. “Drink all you want. But not too fast—I don’t want you getting sick.”

The woman then realized that introductions were in order. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m being so rude. I’m Sharon and this is my husband, Randy. We’re from Gloversville, and we found our way out here after hearing about someone who still had power.” Unscrewing the cap, the woman handed the bottle to Abby, who furiously drank the cool clear liquid. Leaving the bottle half full, she placed it between her knees and inquired as to where they were going.

“Well,” the woman began. “We’ve got a ways to go, but have you ever heard of Bleeker Mountain?”

This was a place she had never heard of and assumed that the drive there would be time-consuming. It was not long after that Abby began to doze off and drifted into a deep sleep. Studying her face, Sharon remarked on Abby’s appearance. “Randy,” she began. “She looks terrible.”

“I know,” he replied. “We’ll take of her.”