EMP Catastrophe , Hamilton, Grace [crime books to read txt] 📗

a fight not too long ago, and I’ve been on my own ever since. Better that way. I would’ve split anyway. Not on good terms, her and me.”

“Today has been crazy, hasn’t it?” Matthew said, wondering at the nonchalant way she mentioned her mother, about being alone in a world that had gone upside down.

“Wild,” she said, giving him a small genuine smile. “The power is out all over. Everything is wrong. People have been wandering around like chickens with their heads cut off. It’s like they have no idea what to do when they don’t have their cars.” She chuckled and then immediately ducked her head, looking at the ground as if ready to be admonished for laughing at the misfortune of others. “I helped a couple people find their way to the right road, but man, they most likely have gotten lost again, bet you ten bucks.”

David huffed. “I believe it. You should’ve seen the things we’ve encountered coming from Madison.”

“You guys seem smart,” Jade said. “Not lost at all. Where you headed?”

“Galena,” Matthew said. “Still have quite a way to go, but hopefully the power will kick back on before that and we can hitch a ride.”

“Unlikely,” Jade said and then looked abashed at her sudden confidence. “Sorry. I didn’t mean it that way. I just meant, I’ve been hitchhiking and doing odd jobs around this area for a while now. People aren’t too nice when it comes to asking for help.”

“Not a lot of good people in general,” David noted, warmth in his voice, and Jade laughed in agreement. “It feels as if the power is out over the whole country. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if it were,” David finished.

Matthew rolled his eyes internally. He wanted to turn on his father for his negativity, point out that Jade didn’t partake in his cynicism, when Jade nodded along, saying, “Totally. I believe we’re in it for the long haul. Whatever it is. This whole outage isn’t an anomaly or an accident. It feels real. Something that will last. Not like that power bar you gave me.” She chuckled at her own joke. Matthew returned her grin out of habit and felt his heart warm. Jade seemed like a lost soul with a hearty attitude. Maybe they’d been put in her path by fate to help her out.

“I don’t know about you,” David said, edging past Matthew. “But this old man needs a moment.” He opened the unisex bathroom door and shut it slowly, calling out from behind the closed door. “Don’t you dare listen, you two.”

Jade threw her head back and laughed. The rest of the tension eased away as Matthew joined in, as if the three of them were companions on the same road, newfound friends in a time of crisis.

14

After Matthew took his turn in the restroom, he emerged to see David and Jade sitting propped against the gas station’s wall in the shade, deep in conversation. David’s furrowed brow paired with his circling hands tipped Matthew off that he was in mid-explanation. Jade leaned in close, nodding as if in agreement, fingering the fringe of her jacket. Matthew approached with purpose, shoving his hands into his pockets, and listened intently as David’s voice filtered to his ears.

“…the EMP interferes with everything electrical, which is why I think the cars are fried.” David pointed over his shoulder at the stranded herd of vehicles.

“Why are the cars fried, Dad?” Matthew asked. “I’m surprised I haven’t heard this theory yet.”

David glared up at Matthew, and Matthew responded with an open, innocent expression.

“David was telling me about electromagnetic pulses,” Jade supplied. “EMPs. I didn’t know much about them.”

“I don’t either, actually,” Matthew said and gave David a pointed look. “I’d love to learn more.”

“Well,” David huffed, eyes sliding away from Matthew. “An EMP—”

“—is an electromagnetic pulse,” Matthew cut in.

“Yes. Do you want to repeat it one more time to remember?”

“Nope.” Matthew tapped his temple. “I think I’ll remember it this time.”

Jade stifled a laugh. David uttered an irritated sigh and continued. “There are two types: natural and manmade.”

“Like most things,” Matthew said.

“Would you like to explain what they are, Matthew? Sounds like you have quite the background in them.”

“Nope. Carry on.”

David called Matthew an unkind name under his breath. “As I was saying, there are two types of EMPs. Generally, the natural variety comes from solar flares. Solar flares are actually great bursts of energy that shoot charged particles into space. Since we’re so far away from the sun, we don’t usually feel the effects, but once in a while, the flares can be so strong that they disrupt Earth’s magnetic field. Historically, one occurred in 1859 called the Carrington Event. A massive solar flare hit Earth, that had observable effects from China to Europe to the poles. It didn’t cause many problems, but then again, 1859 wasn’t as dependent on electricity as we are now.”

“So the EMP is like throwing a rock into a pond,” Jade explained.

“Somewhat. This burst of energy can essentially fry electronics. You’ve seen a transformer blow, right?”

Matthew nodded, somewhat taken aback at David’s knowledge in the subject and miffed David hadn’t talked this openly about it in the first place. Then again, Matthew probably would have made fun of him, but that wasn’t the point.

Jade shook her head in negation. David bit his lip, looking for a new example. “You’ve felt static electricity though, right? Gotten a shock before?”

“Oh yeah,” Jade said. “I shocked my front tooth on a dare once and oh god, it hurt so bad.”

“Okay, so think of the shock as the EMP and your skin or,” he paused, “tooth as the earth. The EMP is a powerful force that doesn’t last long, like the static shock, but it leaves your skin tingling. It surprises you because it's an overwhelming release of energy. It makes you jump. The EMP is like that. It overwhelms the electrical wires that make up our whole civilization—the skin of our modern society—until