Free Martial Law by Bobby Akart Page B

imagine the killer is long gone based on the condition of the body, but I have to make sure. You watch the front and call for me if you see something—but quietly.”
    “Okay, hurry!”
    Drew stepped over the body and quickly returned with a hand-knitted afghan he’d found folded on a sofa. He imagined she had used it to stay warm while watching her favorite television shows. It was difficult for him to keep his composure. So senseless and unnecessary .
    Drew cleared the small two-bedroom, one-story home and found only evidence of looting. The bathroom medicine cabinet was torn off the wall, and the nightstand drawers were ransacked. They were looking for drugs .
    Through the kitchen window, he saw a white sedan, maybe a Buick, parked under a carport roof. Fumbling through the kitchen using his UltraFire flashlight, he found the keys on a hook next to the pantry door. He returned to Abbie, who had stopped crying but was clearly very emotional.
    “It’s clear inside, Abbie. I think the murderer was a looter or looking for drugs, based upon the way the place was torn apart. There’s a car out back, and I’ve got the keys. Here.” Drew handed her a bottle of water out of the pantry. Abbie hesitated to take it at first. Once she did, she looked at it and then towards the now covered dead body. Drew knew what she was thinking. Are we looters too?
    “Abbie, we have to make some tough choices now. The world has changed—at least our part of it. We have to survive. There is a difference between looting and murder—and survival .”
    Abbie rolled the water through her hands. She looked at the body, then at the church burning across the road. The streets were still deserted. She looked up at Drew and opened the bottled water and took a drink.
    “Let’s hope the car has enough gas to get us out of here,” said Abbie.
     

Chapter 18
    September 4, 2016
    5:10 a.m.
    State Road 100
    Lulu, Florida
     
    Drew immediately looked at the fuel gauge and saw that it was full. The white Buick Enclave still had that new-car smell. Drew imagined that the family of the deceased woman insisted on her having reliable transportation. It also contained a Sirius XM radio with a navigation screen. He pulled out of the carport and turned right towards Lulu— former population of one hundred forty-eight .
    As he turned south on Florida 100, he saw a group of men dressed in blue uniforms leaning against the front rails of the ransacked Lulu General Store. He slowed to get a better look, but when the men started running toward the car, Drew sped off toward the southeast. It was only ten miles to Lake Butler, but Drew had had enough of small-town Florida—during the apocalypse.
    “I’m avoiding the town. After what I saw back there, give me some country back roads. Abbie, it will be daylight soon. I’d prefer to be moving under cover of darkness. I can go straight through the center of these towns to the camp’s main gates, or we can work our way through back roads, which may help us avoid detection as we enter this Florida National Guard facility.”
    “I understand,” she replied. “Let’s try through town first. Do we have any southern bailout options?” Drew was glad to see Abbie was getting back to normal. She was a seasoned politician but also a valued member of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Her security clearance was just below that of the President. Her position required an analytical mind. He was glad she was able to help him think through their options.
    “A few. We’ll get our first view of the main drag in just a moment,” replied Drew. The headlights illuminated the railroad tracks that ran parallel to the highway. Groups of men wandered along the tracks. Some wore coats to shield themselves from the rain.
    “What are they doing out in the storm?”
    “I don’t know, but there’s something else I find odd. Did you notice they’re all similarly dressed to the guys in Lulu who chased the car?’
    “Yeah. Maybe