Survive The Fall | Book 4 | Total Collapse

Sarah appeared. Russell frowned from the sadness weighing on him. He swiped to the next photo of Sarah, their deceased daughter, Jess, and him standing in front of a Christmas tree wearing tacky green and red holiday sweaters. They all had big, bright smiles and looked happy. Russell missed and longed for those happy memories.
“Wife and kid?” Clyde asked, shifting his attention from the road ahead back to the phone.
“Yeah.” Russell nodded, turned the phone toward Clyde, then pointed at the screen. “This was taken about three years ago, I think, at a Christmas party we went to. I hated that sweater, but the girls thought it would be cute if we all dressed alike.”
Clyde studied the picture for a moment, then cracked a warm smile. “You don’t seem to mind from that smile you have in the picture.”
Russell shrugged. “One does what one must when the wife and kid ask you to do or wear something you’re not fond of.”
“They’ve trained you well from the sounds of it,” Clyde replied, smirking.
“They had me wrapped around their fingers. No question about that.” Russell gazed at the picture of his once happy life.
“I imagine you’re ready to get back to them, aren’t you?” Clyde asked.
Russell swiped to the next photo, then shut his phone off a second later. He set it in his lap, pressed his elbow to the door with his knuckles resting against his mouth, and stared out of the window. His mind drifted back a year to when their daughter, Jess, had been murdered during the home invasion that tore his family apart and strained his relationship with Sarah.
“Did I say something to offend or upset you?” Clyde asked, his warm smile gone.
“No, you didn’t.” Russell took in a deep breath and released it slowly. He watched the trees lining the far side of the road flash by in a blur of green and brown. A bird hovered above the canopy, then darted up into the cloudy sky. “The past is hard to look at sometimes is all. Especially when things are bleak and dire.”
“I got you, but you’ll see them soon enough,” Clyde said, offering a bit of reassurance to a situation he knew nothing about.
Russell contemplated responding with a snide remark, but held his tongue. Insulting or snapping at Clyde for an ignorant statement he had no knowledge of would be in poor form. Clyde didn’t deserve that. “Yeah. Soon enough.”
Cathy stirred in the backseat, the crunching of the leather sounding under her. A groan broke from her mouth.
Max lifted his head from her shin and yawned. He licked around his maw and looked at Russell with sleepy eyes.
“Welcome back to the land of the living,” Russell said, turning in the seat to look at Cathy.
“Thanks.” She shook her head, jammed her thumb and index finger into both sockets, and rubbed. “I feel like death warmed over. A zombie even.”
“Not that bad. Could be worse,” Russell replied, glancing at her.
Cathy pressed her hands to the seat and sat up straight. “That it could be. I didn’t plan on going on this trip with a hole in my leg. It isn’t helping matters any.”
“True, but you’re still here and mobile,” Russell shot back, glancing at her injured thigh. “All things considered, you’re getting around pretty well, and soon, you’ll have your daughter with you.”
“Not soon enough.” Cathy placed her forearm on the armrest of the door and rubbed the top of Max’s head. He closed his eyes and relished her loving touch. “How far out are we?”
“We’re coming up on it right now,” Clyde answered, pointing out of the windshield.
Cathy leaned toward Max and craned her neck.
Russell faced forward in his seat.
The skyline of Philadelphia was thick with haze and smoke. No fires could be seen, but the amount of smoke in the air around the city of brotherly love didn’t ease anyone’s nerves.
“That doesn’t look good,” Clyde said, pointing to the smoky horizon. “I wonder what all has happened? This is the first big city I’ve seen since the grid went down.”
Russell gulped, wondering if Boston’s skyline looked just as bleak and if Sarah was safe, but voicing any of his worries would only elevate Cathy’s anxiety. “It could be like that for a number of reasons. Let’s just focus on finding Amber. That’s why we’re here.”
Clyde glanced at Russell, then pointed at the smoke with his wrist resting on the top of the steering wheel. “With that much smoke clouding the skyline, there has to be a number of buildings or what not burning down there.”
Russell cleared his throat, then nodded toward Cathy. “It’ll be fine. We’re not worried about the smoke and what’s happening. Just her daughter.”
Cathy pulled her phone from the pocket of her jeans, and thumbed the screen. “Damn it.”
“She’s okay. I bet she’s hunkered down in her place as we speak,” Russell said, trying to calm her. “We’re close and will be there soon.”
“It’s frustrating seeing how the city looks from here and not being able to reach her.” Cathy dropped the phone to her lap, then rubbed her face. “I just feel so helpless right now. I’ve been worried about her since the power went out, and now, seeing this, it hasn’t helped my nerves. She’s the only family I’ve got left and–”
“I know, but she’ll be fine,” Russell said in a soft and reassuring tone. “From the way you’ve spoken about her, she’ll be smart about things and will be safe. I promise.”
Cathy’s eyes grew shiny. She looked away, then pressed her index finger to her lips, fighting to keep the flood of tears from breaking through and streaming down her face.
Russell reached over the seat, took her hand, squeezed, and gave a warm smile.
“Where am I heading?” Clyde asked, entering the outskirts of