Chapter Seven ~ Cory
Early to work, early to leave…that was Cory’s motto, as he wrote 6:45 am on his time slip. He really enjoyed spending afternoons with his kids; he was usually home in time to take his kids to the pool as he did most afternoons. It was nice to be in Cory’s position, as VP of his little company. His boss had pretty much handed the day to day running of the company off to Cory, and just checked in to make sure that everything was running smoothly.
First Cory checked on e-mails, checked on repair orders for the day, checked on new orders and then headed down the stairs to the workshop to see how things were going. The workers were just arriving, so he could spend a few minutes talking with them, before they got down to work. The guys soon got to work, Cory walking around checking on progress of the work orders.
Once done, he headed back upstairs; the managers would be in soon, as would the administrative assistants. He wanted to see what the plans for the day were. The office was going to be installing a new phone system and he wanted to make sure that the office manager and the receptionist were ready for the meeting that they would be going to. His secretary was working on a project to make the work order easier to follow. She was a wiz at several programs and had really done a great job. He wanted to see how far along she was and maybe how long until the project would be finished.
A few people had arrived. One of the managers was just sitting down at his desk. Cory talked with him for a few minutes. He had a possible new work order, but he had to do some follow up work and have a proposal written up. Once that was done, he would bring the proposal to Cory for him to take a look at. His secretary was in, she thought it would take her another day or so, and she would be finished…providing that she was able to work on the project full time. He didn’t think that would be a problem, so he left her to her work.
Cory returned to his office and called home. His wife, Alyssa answered, she was just making the kids their breakfast, and then they were going to head off to the park for playgroup. He talked with her for a few minutes, told her that he would be home around 3 or so and, if the weather held, he would take the boys to the pool, so she can get some work done around the house. Hanging up the phone, he sat back and looked out the window. He then set to work on some of the orders that he was personally responsible for. Looking over the papers,
Cory didn’t know how much time had passed, when the ground shook a little. He swore under his breath…”what had the guys downstairs done?” He headed to the workshop to survey the damage. None of the guys knew what had happened, though they had thought that someone had run the forklift into the wall, as well. But the forklift sat in its usual spot, untouched. With a slight shy of relief, he headed back upstairs. Within minutes though, his wife called from her cell phone, she was at the park and she too had felt the ground shudder. There was one TV in the place, but it was not hooked up to cable, he went to see if there was anything on the news.
It took a few minutes to find a channel that was a little more than static. The normal talk shows had been preempted, but the news people didn’t know anymore than anyone else. He sat and watched, a small crowd gathering around him. It soon became evident that something big had happened. No one could get a signal from New York City. Within minutes, other reports of a wave started hitting the coast line. Washington DC went offline, then stations in North Carolina reported the wave, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida.
Cory couldn’t say how long he was sitting there; he couldn’t remember ever looking at the time. He told everyone that they could go home; no work was going to get done anyway. He went to his office, grabbed a couple things that he thought he should have, and drove home.
Most of the day was a blur. He couldn’t remember much, which he thought was probably for the best. He just wanted to be with his family, no matter what happened. He needed to be with them
Alyssa was home when he pulled his car into the driveway. He was glad for that. Cory spend the next few days with his boys, watching TV only when they were not around. They had plenty of DVD’s to keep the boys occupied.
Cory did remember seeing the clouds. They seemed to move in within two or three days. The temperature dropped, and they needed to turn on the heat to stay warm at night. July seemed to have turned into October without any warning. Going to the pool was no longer possible. He was just happy to be with his family.
He did go back to work, as did his employees, but they didn’t know how long that would last or if the work they were doing would even be worth anything when they were done. He encouraged his employees to work; he wanted them to have money, just in case. And he wanted to keep things as normal as possible for as long as possible.
For a while everything seemed ok. The area planned for a winter that was colder than normal. Winter seemed like it was already upon them when September started. Cory wondered if it would warm up in the spring. Within days, he was sure things were not going to get better, anytime soon.
The earth shook. Cory had actually stayed home that day. He had decided to give his employees the day off. They worked so hard these days, but they still didn’t know if any of it was worth it. Cory was in the yard, splitting wood for the winter. He seemed to be spending most of his time doing that lately, but he knew his family would be warm. The first sign was the log toppling over, and then the ground really shook. He stumbled to the house and was able to open the door and call for Alyssa and his boys. They all came as fast as they could, holding onto the walls for support. Once outside they moved away from the house.
The ground stopped moving and Cory took a breath. He hadn’t realized that he was holding it. He looked at his family and was happy that they were all safe, but scared of what had happened. He checked the house out while his family waited outside. There were a couple cracks in the walls and a couple windows blew out, but other than that, nothing major. Calling his family in, he turned on the TV, power was still on, and that was a relief. News spread more quickly this time. He heard, “Harmonic Tremors…volcano…out west…more news as soon as it was available.” From watching different programs on TV, he knew that they were not good. Cory quickly called his wife and they talked quickly. Both decided it was time to leave and go south.
Alyssa and Cory quickly gathered the boys, told them to pick toys that they wanted to take on a trip. They packed clothes, camping gear, food, and even fire wood. Cory worried about what they were doing, but knew that if they stayed there it would not be good. Their only hope was to get as far south as they could as fast as they could. By the next day, they were ready…and it was just as well, as the ash had started falling. Checking the News just one more time, it was now thought that Yellowstone might have blown its top. He now knew that they had to go
They headed to a gas station, filled up the tank and a couple gas cans that Cory had thrown in for good measure. They were not alone in their migration; the road was packed with many who had the same idea. But at least the traffic was moving at a good pace. They made it as far as Kentucky when the ash became to much for the car and they were not able to drive any further. They found a little mall area and an open store. Cory asked if there was any more news on what had happened. They only knew what he had already learned. He asked if there was anyplace that they could stay, and was told that the hotel was just down the street, but he might want to stay for a bit, as news of a group of people moving someplace safer would be arriving soon. Cory and his family stayed, bought some snacks and waited.
It didn’t take long. Several people came in and shared the news. A group would be gathering together and hiking a little east to a cave. The cave was about an hours drive away, so it would be a hike, but many felt that the cave would be their best bet. Cory didn’t have any other plans, so after speaking with Alyssa, they decided to go with the group. One of the group said that they had a sled that Cory’s family could use to carry the boys and their things. He was grateful. Cory got his family packed up and ready to go. They didn’t take much with them, as they couldn’t carry as much as they would have hoped. They let the boys take two toys each, the food, clothes and bedding that they would use. Then covering the sled with a blanket, he told the boys to play quietly, and then they set off.
It wasn’t long until the sled was to difficult to pull, and they had to carry the boys. More things had to be left, but it was all right as long as they made it to safety. The next day, the cave loomed into sight. Once inside they shook the ash off and started to settle in as best they could. The boys fit in well; it amazed Cory how well they had dealt with all the chaos. Days seemed to melt together. He was thankful that his family didn’t get sick when so many others did. And the boys grew. Alyssa did her best to teach the boys, as they would have been taught in school. And she did her best to help with the group, but mostly that was a job for Cory. He did his part to help the survivors. He went often to find food and other things that the group needed. He even helped to build the wall that kept the snow and ash out of the cave.
Now as he looked back, he was grateful. So many things happened, and his family had survived. Now he wished that his boys could spend time in the sunshine, but he didn’t have any idea when or if that would ever happen.
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