Yesterday's Gone: Season One by Sean Platt, David Wright Page B

OLSON

    Desmond was a fun neighborhood mystery. Everyone loved to guess where he got his money. No one knew what he did, but everyone knew he had to be one of the best. His house, directly across the street from Mary’s, wasn’t larger than hers. But it was just as big and ten times as impressive. You could tell that she was someone who was struggling to stay in such a grand home; he was likely living beneath his means.
    Desmond rarely wore anything other than jeans and a simple shirt, but on him, everything looked custom tailored. Even jeans and tees. He always had new toys, including cars. And new women, or so rumor went. And the one time Mary had been inside his house, she left thinking it was the most beautiful interior she’d ever seen. And his garden inspired jealousy from everyone in the neighborhood. She’d dreamt of the garden more than once.  
    Mary had known a few guys who could mint money, all of them assholes. Desmond wasn’t. He was a good guy with a great sense of humor, though he spent most of the time quiet, at least at the neighborhood gatherings. He had honest eyes and was a great listener; rarely broke eye contact and usually waited his turn to speak. When he spoke, people listened.  
    “What do you mean the world is dead?”   John asked.  
    “Exactly that. May not be the entire world, but St. Louis is gone for sure. If there’s a rest of the world , we need to get to it now.”
    “People are missing, or do you mean the town itself?”
    “A little of both,” Desmond said. “All the people, definitely. But a lot of the town , too.”
    “How do you know?” John’s bottom lip started to dance.  
    “Because I’ve been driving the city since 3:30 this morning. It’s a ghost town, and I can’t get a signal from anywhere in the world. If I can’t get a signal, no one in this city can.”
    Jimmy lost his tongue for the first time in years.  
    Mary said, “What do you think we should do?”
    “Pack some supplies; we’re gonna head southwest to Fort Leonard Wood. If the world’s gone to shit, you can bet the Army base is the best place to be.”
    Jimmy’s tongue came back. “What if the Army is gone?”
    John stepped in front of Jimmy. “I’m not going. I’m waiting for Jenny here.”
    Desmond said, “Jenny’s gone.”
    “She’ll be back.”  
    A sadness shuddered through the tiny circle. Desmond put his hand on John’s shoulder. “We’ll be safer together. And have a better chance at finding Jenny.”
    Jimmy agreed. “Yeah man, better together.”
    Mary turned to John. “I know how you feel. But right now, we don’t know what’s happened or what that means for tomorrow. All we know is, yesterday’s gone. Whatever happened, we were hit hard. If our numbers were cut, then every number matters. We need to stick together and figure out what’s going on.”
    John was silent. Desmond thanked Mary with his eyes then opened his mouth. “I suggest we’re packed and ready to hit the road hard in 30. Take only what you know you need. No computers or large items. I only have so much room in the cargo van for our supplies. We can also use the Escalade.”
    John said, “I’ll go. We can take my Suburban. Just cleaned it yesterday.”
    Desmond smiled. “Okay then, let’s hustle. Everyone back here in 30.”
    “Why the hurry?” Jimmy wasn’t being flip, just wanted to know. “Looks like we’ve got all the time in the world.”  
    A shadow smudged Desmond’s face. “Time might not mean what it used to. But if the sky is falling, every minute matters.”  
    Mary and Paola went back into the house. Paola ran upstairs to pack clothes; Mary stayed downstairs in the kitchen tossing a medley of foods into two 30 gallon trash bags. She packed all the dries, then made a cooler of perishables and set it by the front door beside the two plastic bags.  
    Paola met her mom at the front door with two suitcases, stuffed with Mary’s favorite jeans, cammies, and sweaters with 15