Free United States Of Apocalypse by Mark Tufo, Armand Rosamilia Page B

that was about to befall her. Fear of the Sawyer family and what they were capable of doing. She sobbed for Herbert and Pheebz, who had taken her in and were too kind to have to deal with this at this point in their lives.
    Darlene wanted to scream and throw things around the room and wail until her throat was raw. If she was home alone she might have given in, but she willed herself to relax.
    She turned onto her back and stared at the dark ceiling again, knowing this would be a nightly thing while she tried to sleep, that this would likely be the last bedroom she was ever in, since the home her parents had built was probably gone.
    Their American Dream was over. Looted and/or burned to the ground. Every last nickel her mom and dad had saved to build the house so Darlene could have a better life was gone.
    Darlene rolled over and buried her face in the pillow again as another wave of sobbing began.

Chapter Eleven
Day 3 I-70
    S omeone was knocking on the front door. Darlene rose with a start and gripped her Desert Eagle. At some point, she’d fallen asleep, but it felt like she’d only closed her eyes a minute ago.
    She went into the hallway. Why hadn’t Herbert awakened her to take a shift to watch for trouble? She didn’t know what time it was, but it was still dark outside. She wondered if this night was ever going to end.
    Pheebz was standing in the kitchen with a cup of coffee, trying her best to smile. “Rosemary and the boys are here. I just made another pot of coffee.”
    She looked like she’d also cried herself to sleep last night. Darlene glanced at the clock on the wall. It was closing in on six a.m., and she knew she’d only slept for a couple of hours.
    Herbert led two young boys, perhaps ten years old, into the kitchen. He pointed at the kitchen table without a word, but the look on his face told everyone he wasn’t playing.
    “Can I get you boys something to eat?” Pheebz asked.
    They both stared at Darlene. Both boys looked tired and half-asleep.
    “Who do we have here?”
    Darlene couldn’t help but see Rosemary, who was wearing a bright purple jumpsuit with a large, red-rimmed sunhat. Her pink reading glasses were hanging from her neon yellow chain, and she wore pink house slippers on her feet.
    The woman laughed. “Holy Mother of God, she looks just like Susie,” Rosemary said.
    “Sis, I am warning you. Shut up,” Herbert said.
    Rosemary waved a hand at her brother but continued to stare. “What’s your name, darling?”
    “Darlene.”
    “Darlene—darling. How cute is that?” Rosemary glanced at her two boys sitting quietly at the table. “I hope you two are going to be well-behaved, unlike last time.” She looked back up at Darlene. “There was a little incident.”
    “They tried to burn down my barn,” Herbert said, anger in his voice. “You swore you’d pay me for the damages, too.”
    Rosemary shrugged. “It’s too late now. Besides, I stuffed my car with food and jugs of rainwater. That should be payment enough.”
    “Rainwater?” Pheebz asked.
    “I’m not going to use the tap in my house. The government fills it with all kinds of bad things. Lead and poisons. I’m not going to be controlled by them, so I collect my own water and purify it myself,” Rosemary said.
    Pheebz took down a box of Cheerios from the cabinet.
    “Oh, the boys can’t eat any of that poisonous processed garbage. I brought them a container with their breakfast.”
    “More for me,” Herbert said.
    Darlene could see how uncomfortable he was having his sister in the house. Although so far, she just seemed eccentric, her kids too exhausted to be the handful Darlene knew they were going to be.
    “The boys and I are on a regimented eating structure. I’ll need three shelves in the refrigerator for my things,” Rosemary said.
    “No. There isn’t enough room already. I told you to bring canned goods and bottled water, not prepare food for the weekend. Unless you’re planning on going home