Ryan Westfield - Getting Out

“Should we help him?” said Mandy. “No one’s doing anything. He could really hurt him.”

Max just shook his head and said nothing.

There was the sound of crashing glass.

The mob had broken the windows of the store. They were rushing inside.

“Didn’t take long,” muttered Max. “And they probably don’t even realize what’s happening.”

“Do you think the police will come?” said Mandy.

“How would they even know? Maybe if someone’s on a patrol, but who knows what’s going on with the cops right now.”

They could hear screaming from inside the store. The light from the flashlights was coming out in random, chaotic spurts.

The night had never seemed so dark.

Max sat there watching the outside of the building perhaps longer than he should have.

The man doing the punching had finally gotten up and rushed into the store.

“Hey,” said Mandy. “There’s someone running out of the store.”

Max looked again.

An overweight man was springing out of the store. It was hard to see him in the darkness with the random occasional illumination from the flashlights.

“Looks like he’s wearing a store uniform or something…” said Mandy.

“Maybe he’s the employee,” muttered Max.

A couple people jumped back through the glass and started chasing the overweight man.

“He’s coming right towards us,” said Mandy, alarmed.

Sure enough, she was right. The fat man was barreling towards them. He was followed by about five men, who were screaming something at him.

Suddenly, their words became clear.

“He’s got the money!”

“Get him!”

“What do they want money for?” muttered Max.

“What are we going to do?” said Mandy.

“Do?” said Max. “We’re leaving. That’s why we’re leaving. We can’t help everyone. That’s the breaks.”

Mandy didn’t say anything. Maybe she knew he was right. Or maybe she thought he was a heartless bastard. Not that it mattered much either way. The important thing now was survival, and Max knew it.

Max pushed in the clutch, put the car into first, and was about to pull away when he looked in the rearview mirror one last time.

The man was close to them, so close that Max suddenly saw his face clearly in the brake lights of the Jeep.

“Chad?” said Max.

“Chad?” said Mandy, confused.

Max didn’t pull away, and the fat man was soon at the driver’s window.

“You’ve got to help me!” he said, panting. He was completely out of breath and already covered in sweat. He couldn’t have been more out of shape.

“Chad?” said Max, stunned.

He would recognize that face anywhere. He’d gone to school with Chad, and they’d been close, until they’d drifted apart. The last he’d heard, Chad was somewhere down in Miami.

“Max?” said Chad, a stunned look coming onto his face.

Shit, there was no way he could leave Chad behind. He could only imagine what that mob of animals would do to him. Chad was practically family. Sure, estranged family, but still…

Georgia couldn’t blame her kids for this one. Sadie and James were trying their best to help, even though they were pretty sure their mom had gone off the deep end and gone completely crazy.

The minutes had stretched to hours, and the hours had gone by. The sun had fallen long ago.

Georgia was out in the garage of their house, with a flashlight, trying to find the last pieces of her camping gear.

It had been a while since she’d actually used the gear. Most of her recent trips had been day trips. She knew James and Sadie could fend for themselves, but now that they were older, she didn’t like leaving them alone. They were more trustworthy when they were younger teens. Now they were interested in drinking, even though they were underage, and throwing parties. Georgia knew that if she left them alone for a long weekend, she’d come back to a house completely destroyed and perhaps overrun with hungover teenagers.

“Damnit,” she muttered, as she tried to push an old kayak out of the way. It toppled down from where it was precariously perched, almost falling on her.

She stepped out of the way just in time. But there on the top shelf was what she’d been looking for—a tent. It was covered in dust that blew into the air around her as she pulled it down. It was in a nylon duffel bag. She dragged it back into the darkened kitchen that was lit with a single candle.

Sadie was at the kitchen table, staring at her dead phone.

“Staring at it won’t make it turn back on,” said Georgia.

“I’m waiting for a text,” said Sadie.

“You’re crazy,” said James, entering the kitchen. “I’m beginning to think Mom’s right. Something’s going on, and your phone isn’t going to come back on, Sadie.”

“I can’t deal with any more adolescent bickering right now,” said Georgia. “James, help me load this into the truck.”

“Here,” said James, taking the tent from her and hoisting it easily over his shoulder.

She heard the front door swinging open as James left the house to drop it in the bed of the truck.

“You’ve got everything you need, Sadie?” said Georgia.

Sadie nodded. “I don’t see why I can’t take my makeup,” said Sadie, pouting.

“If everything calms down, we can come back,” said Georgia. “Hopefully this will just be a short trip.”

“What about school?” said Sadie. “We’re just going to miss two weeks of school?”

Georgia shrugged. “I’ll tell them I’m homeschooling you.”

Georgia was stressed, which was a relatively new feeling for her. She opened the fridge and took out the last cold beer. The rest of the beer was loaded into the truck already. She cracked it open and took a sip, savoring the flavor.

“None of this makes any sense,” said Sadie. “You’re talking about when things calm down, but nothing’s even happened yet.”

It was true, at least in Georgia’s neighborhood. The other houses were completely dark, and no one seemed to be driving on the roads. There was no one out, and it gave the area an eerie feeling, like those abandoned buildings that sit tall on the horizon, rusting and rotting away, mementos to a time long gone.

Another half hour went by, and Georgia had finally gotten everything she thought they might need in the truck. She had an old map tucked between her legs, not that she needed it, since she knew the way to the cabin well. But she figured that she didn’t know what was going to happen with the roads.

Sadie and James were in the truck too. Sadie sat in the front, and James was stretched out as best he could in the cramped backseat. The bed of the truck was laden down with all sorts of food and camping gear, as well as the things that Georgia hadn’t been able to convince Sadie not to take. Georgia may not have taken bullshit from anyone, but she had a soft spot for her kids, and sometimes she felt like she let them get away with too much.

Georgia had just started the engine when a cop car came barreling down the road.

“Damn,” muttered James from the backseat. “It’s flying.”

The sirens were off, but the lights were blasting through the dark night.

The cop car was a strange sight, the only thing moving in the night. Georgia didn’t know where the neighbors were. Maybe they were hiding away in their houses, scared. Who knew. She didn’t have time to worry about them right now.

To her surprise, the cop car skidded to a stop right in front of her house.

Georgia waited, thinking it would be better not to drive away right now. But her instincts were telling her to just drive and not stop. She had to fight those instincts.