One Second After [44]
Half a dozen men and women milled about in the corridor. The door into the conference room was closed.
"I'd like to see the mayor," John said to one of the cops standing by the door.
"There's a meeting on in there, sir." "I know, but this is urgent." "I think, sir, you'll have to wait." "This can't wait," John said loudly. "Sir, please just go outside and wait."
The memory of the vet, begging for a drink of water, pushed John forward.
"I think I'll see her now," John said sharply. "Now step aside." "Sir, don't force me to stop you."
He could see that the cop, not much more than a kid, was still out of his league. A week ago he was most likely the junior kid on the force, the biggest challenge ever faced a drunk on a Saturday night.
John reached past him, grabbed the doorknob, and pushed the door open.
"Sir! Please step back."
Charlie, Kate, and Tom were in the room, along with Doc Kellor and, interestingly, Washington Parker and an elderly couple who looked vaguely familiar.
"It's OK, Gene. That's Professor Matherson. Come on in, John."
John gave a curt nod to the young policeman and walked in. Everyone was gazing at John, and he suddenly felt a touch of embarrassment for barging in thus, but the memory of what he had seen in the nursing home stilled that.
"What is it, John, that's got you all fired up?" Charlie asked. "I was just up at Miller's Nursing Home. My God, it's a hellhole up there."
"We know all about it, John," Kate said. "Mr. Parker here is sending a bunch of kids, volunteers from the college, to help out with some food and water. Kellor's canvassing the refugees for nurses to go help as well."
"I think it's going to take more than some kids and a few nurses," John replied, "but thanks, Washington."
"You know they were robbed? Some punks stole all the morphine and painkillers?"
"We're on that, too, John," Tom said softly. Now John did feel embarrassed.
Charlie hesitated, made eye contact with Kate, and she nodded. "John, actually, I should have invited you to this meeting," Charlie said softly. "We're talking some things over. Maybe you can give us some input. "Do you know the Barbers?"
John looked over at the elderly couple. In fact, he did know them. They had a summer home, actually more of a mansion, up in the Cove, just up the road from his in-laws.
They looked haggard, Mrs. Barber pale, struggling, it seemed, to stay awake.
"They just got through from Charlotte." Don Barber nodded slowly. "Go on, please," Kate said.
"Well, as I was saying," Don continued. "By yesterday morning it was out of control. And what I was just telling you, absolute utter stupidity. A couple of helicopters flew in from Fort Bragg the morning after the power went off, landed near town hall, a dozen armed troopers got out, some ass of a major goes in, comes out twenty minutes later, they take off, and then someone comes running out saying we're at war."
No one spoke.
"War with who?" Tom asked.
"I don't know; nobody knows. That one idiot, running out, shouting we were at war, that we were hit with nuclear weapons and had already lost, set everything off. Just one loudmouth bastard."
He paused and looked over at his wife.
"Sorry, Wendy."
"Well, he was a stupid bastard," she whispered, barely keeping her eyes open, and John smiled.
"Look, I'm old enough to remember 1941. Kennedy in 1963, when Reagan was shot, 2001 of course. Always we at least had radios, television. Someone to tell us what was going on, what to do, offering leadership, and that rallied us together.
"This time it's a vacuum. Just that one idiot running out, and of course a crowd had gathered because of the helicopters landing, then taking off.
"I got down to the street and rumor was building on rumor; you could hear it. People talking about nukes, someone starts shouting about fallout killing them all, and that was it. Within an hour downtown was in chaos. People looting, fighting with each other, and impossible to control.
"The police were caught completely