We're Still Alive(Book1)BEING REWRITTEN

Eighteen

Pocatello, ID

          Everyone was gathered in the main building. After bringing Jared and Casey in, Renee walked over to stand between Tom and the woman who'd met them at the gate. No one said anything, aside from a little bit of whispering. They just stood quietly until Joe addressed the group. There was a woman standing next to him holding a shotgun. When the whispering died down, she spoke.

          "I've found a plane that's in good shape and should be able to fly. It's not too big, so it should be easier to manuever and make an emergency landing if we have to. I think it'll get us there without any problems." She was British, with an almost Irish accent mixed in, although it was hard to tell.
          "Where are we going?" Jared whispered to Renee.
          Casey leaned in to hear her answer. "Ohio, apparently. It's supposed to be safe there."
          "Good thing we're going by plane then." Casey whispered. "It's not exactly a neighboring state. They may as well have had us go to Australia." Jared smiled, then turned his attention back to Joe, who was talking again.
          "It's probably best that we get going now. Better sooner than later." Jared heard the murmurs of agreement  from the group. Twenty people. There were 20 people here just hours ago. Now it was just 16 with Jared's group added in. How could something like this happen? Something that could kill so many people so quickly. And to escape it, he was going to fly across the country with a bunch of strangers and a woman who may or may not be a licensed pilot.
          Jared was pulled from his trance by Renee, who was pushing a pistol into his hands.
          "What are you doing?" He backed up and pushed it away. "I can't shoot that!"
          Ranai grabbed his hands and wrapped them around the handle of the gun. "It's an m22. It's got no recoil, and aiming is simple. Just line up the three dots and aim the middle dot at your target." Then she just walked away. She had other guns, and Jared guessed she was passing them to the people who didn't already have one. She'd also given one to Casey, who was holding the gun in front of her and looking down the sights.
          "Be careful, you're gonna shoot someone with that." He backed up a step as he said it.
          Casey smiled. "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. Plus, I shot..." She trailed off and dropped her hands to her sides. Jared saw her eyes watering up, and he awkwardly wrapped an arm around her.
          "It's okay." He said softly. Looking around, he saw the little group gathering whatever possessions they had for the trip to Ohio. "It's gonna be okay."