Arrival: A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller

22

“Stop,” Jack said. “We have to stop.”

After what felt like a much longer distance, they’d made it a half-mile down the road from where the beating had taken place. Maya and Reno, each with one of Jack’s arms around their neck, walked off the side of the road and helped him down. Maya put her hands on her hips and caught her breath.

“Man, what were you doing out here?” Reno asked Jack. “I thought you were heading home?”

Jack shrugged, but even this small movement stretched his stomach muscles and caused him to grimace. “I wasn’t going to be able to make it all the way back alone, so I was trying to recruit people. Guess they didn’t want to believe the truth about the dome.”

“Yeah, I figured it was that conspiracy theory shit that got you in trouble,” said Reno.

“You can’t go around talking about an alien invasion,” said Maya. “People are going to think you’ve lost your mind.”

Jack grimaced. He opened his mouth and then shut it quickly.

“I understand.”

Maya sat down next to Jack, and he smiled at her.

“Thanks. I owe you.”

“I would’ve stood up for anyone in that situation. It wasn’t a fair fight.”

“Well, I appreciate it. And you’ve proven yourself to be a good person, so I’d like to share something with you. Something that could get us out of here.”

Jack reached into his pocket and pulled out a small journal of handwritten pages. The bookmark in the middle was a folded piece of paper, which he looked at and then handed to Maya.

“What is this? How can you get us out from under the dome?” Maya asked, accepting the paper and unfolding it.

Maya reached for Sean’s Zippo, which she had shoved into her pocket after setting his couch on fire. She flicked it on and looked at the sheet of paper Jack had handed her.

“It’s a map,” she said, glancing up to Reno.

It was a map of Nashville. Other than some red lines drawn with marker and a few random notes, though, it didn’t appear to be anything she hadn’t seen before.

“It’s Nashville,” Reno said, sitting down on the other side of Maya and looking at the paper. “So what?”

“It’s not just the streets of Nashville,” Jack said, pointing at the crumpled map. “Those red lines—they’re tunnels. They run underneath the city. I found out about them a few years ago and started doing my own research.”

“Tunnels?” Maya asked. “I’ve never heard of any tunnels beneath Nashville.”

“That’s because they don’t exist,” Reno said.

“You can believe that if you want,” Jack said, leaning forward to make eye contact with Reno before looking at the map again. “I know you think I’m some lunatic prepper. But, I can assure you that those tunnels are there. And they might be your ticket out of the city.” He focused on Maya now. “To your family.”

Maya studied the map. Aliens still seemed like a stretch, but tunnels felt much more believable.

“How likely is it that the dome is only covering the surface?” Maya asked. “Do you think we’d be able to go under it through one of these tunnels?”

“There’s only one way to find out,” Jack said. “Some folks started digging at the base of the dome early on, but they gave up when they realized it extended down into the ground. But the tunnels are deeper and I don’t think we can assume the dome goes that deep.”

Maya looked at Reno. “What if these are really here? This could be my chance at getting to Aiden and Laura.”

Reno drew in a deep breath, adding a sigh. Then he shrugged. “It’s not like things are safe on the surface. I guess it’s worth a shot.”

Maya looked at the map again, smiling as her eyes traced over the lines Jack had drawn.

“Where can we enter the tunnels?” Reno asked.

Jack leaned in, pointed to a star he’d drawn on the map and describing the tunnel entrance as best as he could remember. They could get there within the hour, assuming they didn’t run into any more gangs.

“Thank you so much for this,” Maya said, smiling at Jack.

“You saved my life. Twice. It’s the least I can do.”

“Are you coming with us?”

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “I plan on heading down into those tunnels eventually, but I’ve got a few things to take care of first.”

Maya waited for a more specific explanation, but Jack didn’t provide one.

“I’ve got that map memorized, so don’t worry about taking it. You need it, but I don’t.”

“Are you sure you don’t need us?” Reno asked. “You took some shots.”

Jack smirked and then turned to Maya. “Get to your kids. Get through those tunnels if you can.”

Maya looked at the map once more before folding it up and putting it into her pocket.

“Thanks, Jack.”

“You’re welcome. Now, go.”