Abigail

18 years ago

“Ella you’ll be fine, they’ve done this procedure thousands of times”, Carter assured his wife as they approached the hospital doors. He himself had not slept a wink in days, but was more than willing to keep that from his terrified wife.

“It's not me that I’m worried about”, she shot him a hormonal glare while holding her stomach.

“Don't worry, if she is half as stubborn as you, I'll be the one you'll have to worry about”, he joked behind a plastic smile.

Present Day

Carter hadn’t spoken a word the entirety of the car ride except for the occasional curse at a “grandma” drive. He had been opposed to his daughter, Abigail, attending the California Institute of Technology, but reluctantly gave into her sweet charm. As proud of her as he was, he couldn’t shake the thought of not seeing his baby girl everyday. As she slept beside him, his eyes teared with knowing the many miles that would soon separate them. “Rise and shine, your future awaits”, he gently whispered while he softly shook her awake. Abigail, disheveled, yawned with outstretched arms and mumbled, “we’re here already?” A smile washed over her face at the sight of her new university dorm. “Promise me you'll check in every day!” demanded Carter with a somber tone. She turned to him with a grin stained on her lips, “I'll always have you guys with me”, as she grasped her pendant wrapped around her neck.

It had only been a week since Carter's beloved daughter had left for college, but to him every day felt like eternity. Most days, he found himself fondly reflecting on his memories with her as he drove copious miles for his deliveries. Carter, after being honorably discharged from the military, started driving a truck delivering fuel due to difficulty sleeping through the night from his diagnosed P.T.S.D. The long, lonely nights often brought him into quiet reflection. He chose the name, Abigail, for in Hebrew it means “a father’s joy”. His Joy was the object of every quiet reflection as of late.

11 years previously

“Daddy!” a young Abigail excitedly shouted as she jumped into her father’s arms.

“Oh boy, what have they been feeding you?” he mockingly asked. It had been almost a month since he'd seen his eight year old daughter since she was away at summer camp.

“You have no idea how much I’ve missed you!” Carter held her tighter in his embrace.

“Me too dad, but some girls weren't being very kind”, she uttered with a frown. “They teased me alot”, she continued.

“Why would they tease you?” he asked with a mix of confusion and anger.

Her gaze fell to the ground and with teary eyes she whispered, “they said that mommy didn’t like me because I made her die.”

His heart sank when those words left her innocent mouth. Carter knelt down to meet her gaze, “honey, your mother loved you more than anything. She couldn’t wait to meet you. She would have given you the world. It will never be your fault. She will always be with you right here”, he pointed to her heart.

Carter snapped out of deep thought as the luminescent city lights of Chicago came into view through the windshield. The scattered lights from skyrise rooms, like an unsolved puzzle. From afar it seemed so serene from the suffocating noise of city life. The humming of his eighteen wheeler drowned out any other sound. Just as he was fixated on the endless city lights, each skyscraper, building, and street lamp went black in an instant. Carter might have thought he had passed out had it not been for the glow of his own headlights. The only lights that could be seen were that of the cars that crammed the streets. He was so focused on what had just happened, that he almost didn't notice the car that had come to a complete stop directly ahead. He slammed on the brakes while simultaneously jerking left into oncoming traffic to avoid the still sitting vehicle. He managed to take control and come to a stop on the side of the road. He flung the door open and jumped out. The stopped car barely visible, he yelled at the driver, “what the hell is wrong with you?”

A disheveled, middle aged woman stepped from the car and with a frazzled expression called out, “I don't know what happened! It just shut off completely. Even the reading lights wont work!” He looked around and came to an educated conclusion of what was happening. Immediately, he ran back to his truck without another word. If he was right, he needed to be as far away from the city as possible. Most importantly, he needed to get to Abigail.

2 days earlier

It took Abigail some time to adjust to her new way of life on campus, and she was having trouble with it. She found it most difficult waking up each morning to a room much different than her’s back home. It was cramped even for one person, so sharing the space with another girl didn’t help. Her roommate was shy, which didn’t mesh well with her introverted personality. Her routine of going to classes was the only thing keeping her grounded with her anxiety from being far from home. Home to her was never her house, home was wherever her dad was. She often rode with her dad across the country on his deliveries, they were almost never apart. She was always comforted knowing he was at arms reach. Her mother’s death was a big reason for their inseparable bond. Aside from old, grainy pictures of her mom, they were all that each other had.

Present day

Abigail woke up to darkness and panicked. She had fallen asleep shortly after her last class that ended at 4:30 p.m. An uneasy panic filled the air all throughout the dorm rooms and halls. The echoing whispers grew ever louder and this worried her. She hurriedly slid out of bed and stumbled around the pitch black room. She gathered her footing and frantically searched for the light switch. To her dismay, when she finally found it, it was flipped up. She then recalled she had never switched off the lights, leaving the task for her roommate, seeing as she had not yet been ready for bed. Abigail upon waking had assumed her roommate had done so. “Where is the light?” she thought.

Carter's truck strained under its heavy load and was not helped by his forceful driving. He had begun to speculate the reason for the black out and the stranded car was from an E.M.P. This was supported by the fact that his cell phone had lost all power, and the road lamps now had only a slight ominous glow. He was determined to see just how far this blast had effected and in as little time as possible. If this was widespread, the streets may not be safe for long. He feared that was the case and that Abigail could be in serious danger. Carter had to force himself to take it easier on his truck, fearing that he could blow his engine, and find himself in a far worse situation.

With every mile his fears were realized as town after town showed little to no life. The occasional car would pass and ever so often he would happen upon an abandoned vehicle on the road. Carter estimated it could take him anywhere from 35 to 40 hours to make it to California. This was considering he would have to avoid cities and major highways and or stumble across the occasional road block. From earlier research he recalled that an E.M.P blast would shut down all fuel pumps, so he was incredibly grateful that he happened to be hauling fuel. He figured with a little tampering and rigging, he would find a way to fill up his tanks using his cargo. This led him to another concern, his fuel would be a precious commodity and would be highly sought after, possibly even worth killing for it. He would have to decide now whether he was willing to do the same.

Abigail eventually found a flashlight she had stored under her bed as the whispers from the halls turned to a panicked roar. She turned the flashlight on and nothing happened. She was now officially terrified. She rushed into the halls where she found almost every person gathering there. Although she couldn’t see much, the look of fear was painted on every moon-lit face she could see.

24 hours later

As Carter had predicted, looting and violence had already begun to break out. A few people had taken on the kill or be killed mentality after a mear day, and he was sure more would soon follow. He wasn't taking any chances, so he unpacked his concealed pistol from his bag, and now carried it on his hip. As it turned out, travel was longer than he anticipated. He had run into several blocked roads. Cars had shut down and caused car pile ups. This forced him to have to get out and push vehicles out of the way or find a way around, both of which stole valuable time.

Daylight faded as it passed into night and Carter decided to top off his tank before continuing, so as to avoid being outside at night. He had hardly made it a mile when yet another car pile up blocked the road. He slowly pulled closer to it so he could have a better look with his headlights. Cater weighed his options and decided it would take far too much time to turn around. Gun on his hip, he climbed out of his truck and inspected the half crushed Honda that was in the middle of the road. He thought he saw the keys still in the ignition, so he leaned forward for a better look. Just then, a bullet zipped past his ear so close he could feel the heat. Without hesitation he threw himself into the car and out the passenger window, shattering the glass on his way through. He landed in a roll and took cover behind the adjacent car and returned fire. He knew his only chance was to make it back to his truck. He gathered himself and opened fire while sprinting the eight feet between himself and the passenger door to his truck. As he made it to the door his gun’s slide cocked back, indicating it was empty. Quickly he scurried into the driver seat and put the semi in low gear. He crashed into the honda throwing it to the side, striking his potential killer. It was over as fast as it had begun. Only now, Carter was out of ammunition.

The next morning

Carter was now only thirty miles from Pasadena, California. He then spotted a large cluster of people on the highway heading towards his truck. He prepared to face the worst, as he had no ammunition left. As they neared each other, a familiar face leading the group caught his eye. He recognised those eyes anywhere. She appeared weary and tattered. The truck came to a halt, as she recognised her father’s semi immediately. Both shocked and ecstatic, they fell into each other's arms.

Abigail smiled wide and said, “mom lit the way”, as she stretched out her hand holding a faint glowing object. It was her mother’s heart-shaped locket with a photo of her inside. The charm decorating the face of the locket, made of zinc sulfide, glowed brightly in the dark. Carter shed a single tear, “Ella.”