Read Undone: A Dystopian Fiction Novel for Free Online Page B

how long it’s going to take to get there, and if you have supplies there. All our supplies are here. We have some security measures in place. Our safest bet is just hunker down here, avoid going to town, and wait it out. More police will come. The National Guard. They’ll bring tanks and tear gas and whatever else they need to stop this city from tearing itself apart. We’ll be okay here. Okay? Does this make sense?”
    We all nodded. Tyrsa sounded so rational, so in control. I even felt calm enough to call Mom to update her on what’s going on. She picked up the phone after just two rings.
    “I was wondering when you would call,” she said, her tone a little exasperated.
    “Have you been watching the news?”
              “Yes. I’ve been worried!”
    “Sorry.”
    I sat outside on the steps. It had gotten cooler, windier, and felt more like autumn. We had one tree in the yard, and its leaves had very gradually changed from green to red and yellow, from its tips, to where the leaves attached at the branches. It looked like the tree had slowly caught on fire.
    “You weren’t involved in any of this, were you?” Mom asked.
    “God, Mom, of course not.”
    “Well, I didn’t think so, but so many were students.”
    “Yeah. But you know me. I like to stay out of trouble.”
    “That’s true.”
    There was a pause in our conversation. It felt weird, like we both might have had something to say, but were avoiding it. I rubbed my nose.
    “So, we’re not going to try to go anywhere,” I said, finally. “It’s not really safe to travel, and we don’t have a car or anything.”
    “Okay, if you think that’s really the safest option.”
              “Tyrsa said it was, and she’s really the only one who knows what she’s talking about. Her dad is a prepper and taught her a ton.”
    “Oh.”
    Mom sounded surprised. I waited to see if she would say anything about the whole prepping thing, but she didn’t. I sort of wished she would. I don’t know what I expected. Something along the lines of, “You’ll listen to Tyrsa, but you won’t listen to me?” would have made sense, but that was too aggressive for Mom. If she really felt bad about it, she’d just mop around, maybe send a passive-aggressive email. I had never openly rejected her prepping tendencies, but I certainly didn’t encourage them. Besides, what she did wasn’t truly prepping. It was just reading about some new potential epidemic and buying a bunch of surgical masks.
    “If anything changes, I’ll let you know,” I said. “Don’t worry, okay?”
    “Can’t make promises,” Mom replied.
    I could hear her smile in her voice and it softened my heart.
    “I love you, Mom.”
    “I love you, too.”
    I sat outside with the phone in my lap for a little while. The air smelled rich, like warm earth and sweet grass. It was almost like things had gone back to normal, and the town so close by was not swarmed with police officers and jumpy civilians.
    The rest of the day went by slowly, but I didn’t mind. I worked on some homework I would probably not be required to turn in while Beth, Tyrsa, and Rick played cards. Lawrence, who was used to spending his days going on deliveries or watching TV shows on his computer, tried to read but quickly got bored with his book. He watched the card game until he was able to jump in, and then played until the sunlight started to fade. We lit a few candles around the apartment, adding more as the darkness crept in. When we could no longer put off our hunger, we made omelets and fried potatoes. 
    When everyone got tired of playing cards, we started heading to bed, but Tyrsa remained curled up on the couch. She had her feet tucked up under her and leaned against the cushiony arm of the sofa, staring into nothingness. The others retreated to their rooms, but I sat on the opposite end, crossed my legs, and pretended to be occupied with my phone. It was very quiet. Occasionally, we