Yesterday's Gone: Season One

chopper appeared to be a Uh-60 Blackhawk, which meant it wasn’t likely scouring for people to save. There was room for maybe 11 troops in addition to two pilots and two crew chiefs, so even if they were flying with less troops, they couldn’t be expecting to pick up too many people. Meaning they’d either specifically come for them, or to kill them. Of course, the chopper could be reporting to base or be flying in advance of a transport chopper, but Ed couldn’t take the chance.
    It’s go time.
    “Stay inside. Get whatever you need and get it now. Be ready to go in two minutes.”
    Ed stepped outside as the helicopter descended, raised his rifle and aimed at the cockpit. The pilots saw the threat, spun the chopper sideways, and a soldier stood at the machine gun, taking aim at Ed.
    Ed had one shot before he’d be torn to shreds. While the top rotor made an easier target, it would likely require a few shots. A rear blade hit could bring the bird down quicker, but the shot was next to impossible. He steadied his aim on the rear propeller, held his breath, and took the shot. He managed two shots, both hitting the rear blade, causing the copter to spin violently out of control, nose pointed toward the tree tops as the pilot tried to wrestle the copter to a safe landing.  
    Ed loaded more shells into the rifle, then followed the chopper’s descent to the beach as it crashed into the water. The top propeller, along with the tail of the chopper, split from the body like butter under blade and sent waves of debris flying toward the sand.
    Ed waited for any sign of survivors, rifle ready. Two men emerged from the wreckage, dazed. Ed shot them both, one in the head and the other in the chest. Their bodies went limp then fell to the tide.
    He waited two minutes worth of nothing, as most of the chopper remained underwater.  
    He ran back to Teagan’s house, yelling, “Let’s go!”
    Teagan was outside with two bags in four seconds, tossing them into the back of the SUV, as Ed pulled from the driveway and raced down the street.
    “What happened?”  
    “They’re gone.”
    Teagan’s face was still. He could tell she was trying to work out whether to thank him or scold him for another round of murders. Guilt had a way of silencing criticism, so Teagan said nothing.

    **

    “Are we driving straight to Georgia?” Teagan said as the last of the sun dipped behind the horizon and the world fell into darkness again.
    “Yeah, sooner we get to Georgia, the sooner we’ll know if Jade is okay.”
    Teagan rubbed her belly, then looked up at Ed and said, “Thank you for saving us back there... and at the gas station. You were right.”
    Ed nodded, uncomfortable getting accolades for being a good killer.
    “Do you think we’ll find anyone else? I mean, people who aren’t trying to hurt us?”
    “I’m sure there’s good guys left,” Ed lied, “If we’re careful, maybe we’ll find a few.”
    “What if we don’t?” She asked, tears in her eyes. “What if everyone else is gone? How are we supposed to live?” Then, a hiccup from hysteria: “How am I supposed to raise a child? How am I even supposed to have a child with no doctors, or nurses, or hospitals?”
    “We don’t know if everyone is gone,” Ed said in his calmest voice. “For all we know, this is localized to a few states.”
    “But what is it? What happened? Where did all the people go?”
    “I dunno,” Ed said, “I’ve been trying to figure that out since I realized they were gone. And every time I think I have an idea which might seem plausible, I turn down the path to see where it goes and slam into a dead end.”
    “Maybe God called everyone home?” she said.
    Ed laughed.
    “What?” she asked, offended.
    “You really believe that?”
    “Why not? It would explain why my parents went and I didn’t,” she said putting a hand on her unborn baby. “Maybe this is God’s punishment for my sins.”
    Ed laughed harder, but stopped when he saw her pained look, ready for a fresh batch of tears.
    “I’m not laughing at you,” he said, “It’s just that with all the evil shit going on in the world on a day-to-day basis, an unwed mother is the least of God’s concerns, assuming there is a God. If you were denied entry into Heaven because you’re pregnant, the streets wouldn’t be empty now. They’d be so full to the brim with sinners, you wouldn’t be able to move six inches without bumping into another one. Believe me.”
    She