Through the Storm(3)
“Could you fill my thermos with coffee?”
“Sure.” She retrieved a pot. “I’m guessing you don’t want decaf.”
“No.” Neal shook his head. “I’ll be driving all night.”
“Where’re you headed?” She twisted on the lid.
“Washington state.”
“Really?” Her eyes widened. “Are you driving that far because of the sun storm thing?”
He nodded.
She giggled. “I’m thinking this is a bunch of hype like Y2K. Do you think anything will actually happen?”
Embarrassed by his worries, Neal shrugged. “I’ve got two boys in Washington state. I want to be home or close to it anyway.” After paying her, he stepped away and then stopped. “Where is the nearest gas station?”
She pointed. “Just down the road. Good luck. I hope you make it home safe.”
“Thanks.” Neal’s gut churned. Too much coffee on an empty stomach, or was it worry about the end of the world? He would eat at his next stop.
Cars idled in line from the gas station pumps back onto the road. It seemed like a town meeting with people out of their cars as they talked and argued while waiting in line to top off their gas tanks.
Should he leave or get in line? He let out a frustrated sigh and pulled in behind the last car. As he waited, he checked his watch, recalculated the drive for the fifteenth time, and tried to call home and Conner’s cell. Why couldn’t he reach his sons? He set the alarm on his phone for one minute before the predicted arrival of the CME.
Over the next fifteen minutes, he edged forward until his car pulled to the pump. Minutes later he continued on his way with a full tank of gasoline, a hot thermos of coffee, and high spirits. He had even filled the gas can in the trunk.
Traffic continued to be light and he remained ahead of schedule. He would be home before the CME slammed the Earth. Not wanting to be pulled over by the police, Neal struggled to reduce his speed to the posted limit, or just a little above. As he neared the town of Adin, flashing red-and-blue lights ahead caught his attention.
A state patrol vehicle blocked the way.
Neal checked his GPS and determined that the wide spot in the road must be Jupiter Junction. He had passed through it going to the conference but had taken little notice. On the right stood a small motel, and then his lights caught a strange teepee-like structure on the left. He thought the giant badminton birdie was actually some sort of industrial burner, but he didn’t have the time or inclination to investigate. Whatever the thing was, he knew of only one along the route so easily determined his exact location.
Two officers stood on opposite sides of the road just beyond the junction with Highway 299.
Neal tapped his brakes to slow the car.
One officer approached as he pulled to a stop. “We’re encouraging people to stay home tonight. Where are you headed?”
“Home. Washington state.” Immediately Neal wished he had said Adin, a small town just up the road, but the Washington plates on the car would have made that a tough sell.
“I’m pleased you’re headed home, but there’s been an accident up ahead. A tanker truck and car hit head-on. The highway is closed to all but local traffic.” The officer pointed to Highway 299 that disappeared into the darkness to the west. “Probably best that you keep to the main roads tonight anyway.”
“Why?” Neal asked, although he knew the reason.
“Perhaps you’ve heard about the storm on the sun. If it causes electrical and communication problems, it might be best to be near other people.”
Neal thought the opposite might be true but nodded to the officer as he tapped the information into his GPS. “That’ll reroute me southwest—over a hundred miles.”
“But then you can get on the interstate and shoot straight north. This road is going to be closed for hours. If the sun storm causes car problems, like some are saying, help can find you much easier along the freeway.”
If his car failed when the CME hit, Neal wondered why the highway patrol thought their vehicles would be spared. He stared longingly down the deserted highway ahead. If civilization crashed back to a pre-industrial era tonight, he would have preferred to be on a quiet backcountry road. However, the officer didn’t seem inclined to let him pass. If he hurried, sped, he might at least be near home before the solar storm hit.
Neal headed down the directed road. After several moments he glanced at his watch. Less than six hours until … he didn’t know, and that scared him.
*
Even though traffic had remained light, and he had made good time, Neal’s gut churned with anxiety. In the city of Redding, he merged onto Interstate 5 and pressed the gas pedal. Now five hours into his trip, how long would it take to reach home? A few taps on the GPS screen revealed still more than seven hours of driving ahead. He glanced at his watch; less than four hours remained until the CME would hit Earth.
Neal chugged coffee, turned up the radio, and tried to gain time as he sped north. For many minutes, he was distracted as he listened to the all-night conspiracy program on the radio.
“This is the vanguard of an alien invasion,” a caller named Doyle proclaimed. “They want to destroy our technology and let millions of us die. Then they’ll come in and mop up the survivors.”
A few argued that the CME was natural, but most thought aliens, the government, communists, or terrorists were somehow involved.