Deluge: A Post-Apocalyptic Disaster Thriller by Harley Tate

Author:Harley Tate [Tate, Harley]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-08-29T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

DAPHNE

The relief tent loomed ahead, a white beacon in an otherwise destroyed world. Sludge left behind from the tsunami squelched and squerched between Daphne’s toes as she walked and a breeze sent a shiver down her spine.

Without the wool blanket from the boat, the cool air combined with her wet clothes dropped her core temperature. Her teeth began to chatter. She reached the tent at last and eased up behind an older woman, clutching a small, wet dog to her chest. The poor thing’s fur clumped and matted around its face and fear popped its eyes wide open.

Ten paces away, a bedraggled man with a dirt-stained T-shirt sat on a folding chair. A woman in scrubs hovered over his right arm, applying what appeared to be sutures of some form. Daphne glanced past them to where a group of other survivors huddled in conversation. One held a plastic solo cup in both hands, another clutched a thin blanket around her shoulders. Everywhere she looked, people were injured and exhausted, wet and hungry.

The sound of a throat clearing caught her off guard and Daphne blinked. Somehow, she’d reached the front of the line without noticing. Three people, two men and one woman, sat in folding chairs behind a table. Each of them palming a clipboard and pen.

“Ma’am?” The man on the left beckoned her forward with a wave. A lack of sleep turned the skin beneath his eyes as dark as if he’d been punched and the three-day old beard suggested he’d been out here, helping people, as long as she’d been stranded.

The whole time she’d been staring at his face, he’d been talking, but she hadn’t processed a word of it. She shook her head to clear it. “I’m sorry, what were you saying?”

His expression was sympathetic, but firm. “I asked your name, please.”

“Daphne.” She slid an arm around her middle. “Daphne Redshaw.”

The man jotted something down on the paper attached to his clipboard. She swallowed hard and licked her lips, shifted one foot to the other.

“Alright, and where are you coming from today?” He lifted his head and gazed at her expectantly, as if he was interviewing her and this was normal protocol. Maybe it was. Maybe he was so accustomed to this situation by now that it was just second nature. Or maybe they had so many people to help that he had learned somehow to shove his emotions aside.

Daphne released a heavy sigh, trying to gather her mental bearings. “Downtown Bellevue.”

“Okay.” He went back to scribbling on the paper. “And can you tell me what it was like in that area?”

Daphne started. “Is that—do you really—”

He smiled at her with sympathy. “I know this can be difficult, but we’re required to obtain eyewitness accounts, if possible. It helps us determine where to send rescue crews as they come in.”

She swallowed and tried to keep her voice even. “Everything was underwater.” Her voice cracked on the last word despite her efforts and she wrapped her other arm around her middle to slow her shivers.

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