Survive by Todd Sprague

“You did good today, Sara. Real good. I am so proud of you. You know that, right? That what Doug said isn’t true, about you being a stupid girl?”
    Sara kissed her husband’s bearded chin. “Of course I know, John, You’re not so bad yourself, big guy,” she said, smiling up at him.
     
    That night before bed, John went down to the cabin’s basement. He pulled a dusty cover off from a little table. A short wave radio sat on the table. The radio was plugged into the wall, though a small car battery sat ready next to the table, on the floor.
    John switched the radio on, tured the dial to a certain frequency, and spoke. It took several tries, but finally, someone answered. John picked up a pencil and began writing on a little notepad.
    He listened to every voice, strangers all, as they spoke, seeking help, advice, or just another living soul to talk to. Important bits of news made it to John’s notepad.
    Soldiers seen at Cheyenne. Groups of survivors in Omaha, Chattanooga, Reno, Houston, a few other places. Isolated individuals in some places as well. Alaska safe. Europe and Africa gone. Men in camouflage seen executing the living as well as the dead.
    John frowned at this last bit of information, but did not respond. Not yet , he thought to himself.
    He shared the news of other groups of survivors with Sara as they lay in bed, but said nothing about the camouflaged men. He frowned, wondering why Jcon14 hadn’t answered his calls.
    That night, the nightmares were of his father.
     

Chapter 8
     
    September 24, 2010
    Brattleboro, Vermont.
     
    John woke to the sounds of pots and pans rattling in the kitchen. The smell of coffee and frying bacon permeated the air and brought a smile to his face. He swung his feet out of bed and stood up, pulling on his shorts and stepping into his slippers. He headed out to the kitchen and found Sara putting plates of bacon and eggs on the table. Sneaking up behind her he wrapped his arms around her and squeezed.
    Sara giggled. “I heard you coming. You don’t exactly exude stealth, you know.”
    “What are you talking about, I’m a friggin’ ninja!” John exclaimed indignantly.
    “Okay dear. Whatever you say.” She rolled her eyes and poured steaming hot coffee into two cups. They sat down at the table, ate their breakfast and talked about the past day’s events. John avoided the subject of his father as much as he could, and Sara didn’t press the issue. When they were finished, Sara picked up the dirty plates and carried them to the little sink. As she began washing them, she turned back to John.
    “What are you going to do today, hon?”
    “Well, we got a lot of supplies yesterday, we’ll need to take an inventory and see about the best way to store them. Nothing in that truck needs to be refrigerated, but it shouldn’t be left out to bake in the sun either,” John sipped at his coffee. “Also, we managed to get quite a few guns that I’d like to see divvied up, and then everyone should practice a little. We have enough ammo to spare a little for training.”
    “That sounds good. I’d like to plan something for tonight, if you think everyone would go for it.”
    “Oh? What did you have in mind?” John raised his eyebrows as he smiled at Sara.
    “I thought we could have a big party and use up some of the fresh food and the stuff that needs to be refrigerated before we lose the electricity. I think people need it. Yesterday was bad, and not just because of your dad. I could use some distraction to take my mind off of things, John.”
    He nodded to her. “I know. I didn’t help anything by going off on Doug like that. He’s an asshole, but he’s family, and right now, that’s all we have. And I am trying not to hold a grudge against everyone who listened to him yesterday. We’re going to have to learn from yesterday, and then put it behind us.”
    “Speaking of family, when can we go get Mom, Dad, and Jose?” Sara faced away from John, trying not to let