What if, Brody and Madison never went to Chipper Ridge HS and met the MC, Part 2

Madison sat in the passenger seat of the station wagon and combed her fingers through Sunny’s hair. The girl sat between her legs and had not moved since they left the cabin. She was still shaking. Madison could only imagine how she felt as she watched her father die. Her brother, Milo, sat in the backseat and had not said a word since they left. Madison was worried about her own family. Were her parents alive? Did her Uncle Nate survive? Would she ever see her family again? At least she had Brody. They didn’t always get along, but she loved him. Together they would outlive this outbreak and return to their life on the other side.

“We should be there soon. I remember the gas station at the last turn. It’s coming up,” Brody said.

They all looked to the left and saw the Shell sign over the pumps and a series of cars in the lot. A handwritten banner hung across the front of the gas station’s store.

ALL FOOD GONE. TAKING TRADE FOR GAS. GOD BLESS.

The windows were boarded and a body lied face down outside the front door. Bloody drag marks drew lines which tracked behind the far corner of the wall and disappeared. Milo murmured from the back seat and began to cry.

Sunny looked back, her face scrunched. “Don’t cry. Everything’s going to be okay. We have to stay strong. Only babies cry.”

“That’s harsh. Your brother has been through a lot,” Brody said.

“She’s not wrong,” Madison said.

Brody shot her a look, and Madison turned away. She didn’t want to get into it with him. Brody didn’t understand. The outbreak may only be a few days old, but it wasn’t going to end anytime soon. Thousands, tens of thousands, maybe millions were dying, and it was all happening fast. She was no, what do you call it? Epidemiologist? But she knew the virus was spreading exponentially. Maybe even greater than that. One infects four, four infects sixteen. If they were going to survive, Brody would have to man up. He’d have to give up on this fallacy of right and wrong. Those concepts were dying just like every living person around them.

“What’s going on up there?” Brody asked and slowed the station wagon to a crawl.

Up ahead, a police SUV blocked the road. Past it, a police officer stood by the shoulder with a shotgun pointed at three people lying in the grass. The officer stood well over six feet, was bald, and had a bushy beard. On the other side of the road sat a minivan with its side door wide open. Items were flying out of it: articles of clothing, shoes, magazines, and newspaper. The back tire was flat, and the bumper was riddled with buckshot holes. Madison leaned forward and stared at the three on the ground: a man, a woman, a teenager.

“Stop the car, turn it around, and get us out of here,” Madison said, her voice fevered.

“Why? They’re the police. They’ll let us through,” he said.

Sunny covered her eyes with her hands. “Bad.”

The officer with the shotgun backed away from the shoulder and waved at the station wagon, flagging it down.

Madison punched her brother in the arm. “Brody Milford, stop this car right now! Make a U-turn and go back the way we came.”

He brought the car to a halt and turned the wheel as far as it would go. The station wagon lurched forward and pitched to the left in a slow arc.

“I’m not good at driving. I don’t know how to make a U-turn. I’ll just back up.”

The car jerked to a stop, and Brody pulled on the stick to shift in reverse. The officer was walking towards them and holding out his hands to tell them to wait. Madison reached for the rifle she had tucked beside the passenger’s seat.

“Sunny, go in the back with your brother. Both of you get under the seats. Don’t say a word, don’t scream.”

The child did as she said.

“They’re cops. You are taking this way too far and scaring—“

The officer aimed the shotgun at the windshield. “Shut off the vehicle!”

Madison looked at her brother, saw the slow buildup of realization. It was already too late. Best case scenario is they got to livey. Worst case? She didn’t want to think about that.

“Maddie, what do I do?”

“He’s too close with that shotgun. Turn off the car. We just have to do what he says and hope.”

“Hope for what?” he asked and turned the ignition key.

The officer took long steps forward and stood to the side of the station wagon. “Roll down the window. Good, now take the keys out and toss them. Good job. Reach out and open the door from the outside. You, next to him, stay inside until I tell you to get out.”

Brody did as the man said and stepped out of the vehicle. The officer was fast, and by the time both of Brody’s feet were on the ground, he had been spun face first against the station wagon and his legs kicked apart.

“Okay kid, no sudden movements. I’m going to cuff you,” he said. He fumbled as he checked his belt and then stepped back from Brody. “Hey hon, got any spare bracelets.”

A woman poked her head out of the minivan. “There are spare zip ties in the back of the SUV. One sec.”

Madison saw her at a distance but could tell she was the type of woman who looked much younger than her age. She wore black police officer pants and shoes with a hoodie. She stepped out of the minivan and over to her car.

“Where are you two headed? Got anything good in your car? Gear, guns, food?” the officer asked. He examined the back of the station wagon like he had x-ray vision.

“What the heck are you doing? We haven’t broken any laws, and I doubt those people over there did either. This is wrong,” Brody said.

The officer poked the small of his back with the tip of the shotgun. “I’m asking questions. What kind of stuff you got in there?”

“Benny, you coming for these ties?” the woman shouted from the back of the SUV.

“I’m getting ready to check out this car. Can’t you walk them over?”

“I’m not done with the minivan. You want me to walk all the way over there just to hand you something that you can grab yourself. Now get your ass over here,” she shouted.

Benny leaned forward and said to Brody, “Is that your girlfriend? Never get married.” He turned to the woman. “Coming, hon.”

“You bet your ass you are.”

He patted Brody’s shoulder. “Kneel on the ground by the side shoulder. Don’t move.” He knocked on the top of the station wagon and then motioned towards Madison. “Out of the station wagon. Come around here.”

Madison felt the rifle on the ground. With her brother outside and the kids in the back, she couldn’t jeopardize their lives with a shootout. She may be able to kill one of them, but she couldn’t guarantee a second kill. Not that she had ever killed anyone before. It was a lot easier shooting at bottles and cans on a log at fifty meters.

She opened the door and stepped out with her hands raised and empty. She left the door open. Maybe the kids could escape. She needed to draw their attention away from the vehicle. If she saw a break, she may be able to run for it. There were trees thirty meters away and the field next to it took a dip that could provide cover. Brody would follow, and the two of them could run fast. But these were real police officers. They looked like they had no problem in shooting both of them in the back.

“Go stand next to your boyfriend,” Benny said as he walked towards the SUV.

“Brother.”

Then he stopped. “Come again?”

“He’s my brother, not my boyfriend,” Madison said. She took up a spot next to Brody and faced forward.

Benny shrugged and continued walking. “Whatever. Stay there. I’ll be right back.”

As he made his way to the police vehicle, Madison considered the predicament. If officer Benny got back with those zip ties, they were in more serious trouble. They had no fighting chance once bound. There’s no telling what the cops would do. She glanced over at the three people on the ground by the side of the road. Why hadn’t they moved? Why had they not made a break for it? They were dead. That’s how this was going to end for her and her brother. Maybe even the children. She couldn’t let that happen.

“Sunny, can you hear me? I want you to reach by the seat where we were and take that rifle. Slide it all the way around to the front seat where Brody was sitting and hand it to me. Can you do that for me?”

She heard movement from the back of the station wagon but kept her eyes on the two officers. The woman was handing him zip ties, and they were talking close, smiling at each other. Partners in crime. Maybe they were officers of the law a few days ago, but now they were nothing more than bandits.

“What are you doing?” Brody asked. “Maddie, they’re cops.”

Madison spotted the glint of metal poking from the open driver’s side door. While the two officers were busy by the car, she reached down and grabbed the rifle. “Brody, shut your mouth and listen. When I tell you, run to the back of the car. Try to get the kids out and make a break for those trees. “

As she brought the rifle up, Benny was starting back to the station wagon. His eyes went wide and he raised the shotgun, using it as a pointer.

“Hey! What the hell are you doing?” he yelled.

“Brody, run!” Madison shouted. She saw her brother bolt to the rear of the SUV. In the same moment she brought the rifle through the open car door window and leveled it towards Officer Benny. He saw the barrel of her gun and gripped the shotgun in both hands. Madison put her hand on the trigger and lined up a shot. When the first round of buckshot hit the hood of the station wagon, she screamed and dove into the car. The rifle fell from her hands and hit the ground.

“Out of the vehicle, now!” Officer Benny shouted.

Madison peeked over the dashboard and saw him striding forward with the shotgun raised. His female partner was running now with a service revolver held out.

“Out of the car. Get out,” she shouted.

Madison dropped her head back down and covered it with her arms. She had messed up. Maybe Brody was running away. Maybe the kids were out, and all three of them had made it to the tree-line. It was okay if they got her. Maybe they’d kill her quick. At least the other three would be alive and safe. Maybe—

The sound of a high-powered rifle rang out, once then twice. Silence. Madison blinked. She uncovered her arms and peeked over the dashboard again. She saw no one. She sat up taller and peered over the front of the station wagon. Two bodies lie across the road. She didn’t recognize them at first, because her brain couldn’t believe it. Benny and his partner. Blood ran from their heads. In the distance she saw someone running at them. Not running, more like hobbling.

“Uncle Nate!”

She heard her brother from the back of the car and saw him running to meet her uncle. They were safe. Somehow there were safe. She wanted to cry. But only babies cry.