The Surge Read online

  "Hurry," she said and stepped aside. "Come in before they see you."

  Mary smiled as she closed the door behind them. Martha and Carl were some of her oldest friends and she hadn't thought she would ever see them again. "How? How did you make it back?"

  "Long story," Martha said and threw herself in Mary's recliner with a deep sigh. "You have anything to drink by chance? I think we all need it right about now."

  Mary went to the cabinet and pulled out a bottle of whiskey. She poured five glasses and handed them out. Mary sipped the drink while she noticed Martha gulped down hers. She put her empty glass on the side table.

  "Boy, I needed that. Now, do you have anything to eat by chance?"

  "How did you get here?" Mary asked. She went to the kitchen and grabbed a bag of bread. She handed it to Martha, who started to stuff herself with it. Carl grabbed a piece of bread too and began to eat. "I mean, there are soldiers everywhere."

  "We drove through the swamps," Carl said.

  "Through the swamps? Mary said. "Is that even possible?"

  "Sure," Martha said. "It wasn't easy, though, but we did it. Not sure the truck will be able to go any further after this. We found Josh and Irene in there and decided to bring them here. Since your house directly borders the swamps, we thought we could avoid the masses that way and hopefully find you here. If anyone knows what is going on, it has to be you, right?"

  Mary shrugged, her fingers toying with the glass between them. "I…I’m not so sure anymore. But I am really happy to see the two of you again," she said and looked at Josh and Irene.

  Martha looked at Mary, then at her son. "Why? Why is that, Mary? Mary?"

  "Well…"

  "Let's just say things haven't exactly been easy around here," Josh interrupted her. "But we are all fine and there is nothing to worry about."

  Nothing to worry about?

  It was so typical Josh. Mary had known him all his life and he had always cared so much about his parents and made it his mission in life to keep them from worrying. Josh took care of everyone and made sure no one was unhappy. Mary had often wondered who made sure Josh was happy.

  "We need to find Marley," Martha said. "Josh said she is at the sheriff’s place, but there is no getting there with all those soldiers out there. We thought you might know what's going on."

  "I don't know how up to date you are, but last thing I heard was that Joanna went to get both girls and get them out of there. I don't know if she succeeded or not."

  Martha stared at Mary without blinking. "What was that?"

  Mary's shoulders slumped. She turned to look at Josh. "You didn't tell them? Josh? You didn't tell them Joanna had come back?"

  "Well…I…it didn't come up…"

  "I think I need another one of those," Martha said and held up her glass. "Make it a double."

  Chapter Seventy-Four

  Ridge Manor, Beneath

  After eating the bread, Arlene told Joanna she wanted to show her something. She followed her to the stairs of the old wooden house. It was a long set of stairs that seemed to go on for longer than a normal staircase leading to a basement would, and there was no light at the end of it, only deep darkness. Joanna stepped into the dark and couldn't even see her own hand until they finally reached the last step and Arlene took Joanna's hand in hers. She pulled her to the side, where a room opened up. Arlene turned on a small light bulb that was hanging from the ceiling and revealed an old TV set in the middle of the room. It looked like one of those from the seventies with wooden sides and an antenna on top.

  "What's this?"

  "You'll see," Arlene said and sat down on the floor. "If you turn it on."

  Joanna looked at the girl, then at the TV. "Okay," she said and turned the big round button. A light came on in the TV, and the screen turned white.

  "There’s nothing there," she said to Arlene.

  Arlene chuckled. "It's old. It needs to warm up first."

  Joanna sat down next to Arlene on the wooden floor.

  "Susan found it. Outside in the swamps. I think it once fell through a hole just like I did. Susan is the one who brought it in here. It only broadcasts once a day. At noon. It takes exactly fifteen minutes, then it turns off. See. Now it's coming."

  Joanna looked at the screen; there was a lot of static before the picture became clearer. It was still staticky like the antenna needed to be adjusted, but she could soon see the people it showed.

  "That's Wayne?" she said.

  Arlene nodded. "Yes. I see him in there every day. Lately, I have seen you too. When you were with him. I also see my town, Ridge Manor. Look, there’s Daddy now." Arlene pointed, her voice cracking slightly.

  Joanna watched, her heart in her throat. Wayne was in his house, but he wasn't alone. Joanna held her breath when she realized who he was with.

  "Ellie Mae!"

  "That's your daughter, right?" Arlene asked.

  Joanna couldn't speak; if she did, she would just start crying. Instead, she nodded, holding back the tears. Suddenly, she regretted having jumped into the hole. It wasn't thought properly through. She had wanted to save Arlene, but Arlene had ended up saving her instead. How was she supposed to get back?

  "What are they doing?" Arlene asked.

  Joanna looked at the screen, at her daughter who was running now across Wayne's yard, Wayne yelling at her to stop."

  "Oh, dear God, she's going to jump," Joanna said. She sat up on her knees, feeling so helpless, reaching out her hand towards the screen. "She probably realized that I jumped and now she's going after me. Don't jump, Ellie Mae, don't jump."

  And that was when the picture cut to someone else. It was showing the face of the major general. She shot out her tongue, fast enough to grab the girl around the waist and pull her away from the hole.

  At first, Joanna breathed a sigh of relief, but then realized that the major general wasn't letting go of Ellie Mae. She was still wrapped in the tongue and soon her face started to change color.

  "She's strangling her. Let go of her, you beast!" Joanna cried, both her hands to her head. "Let go!"

  But she didn't. Right there on the old TV screen, Joanna watched her daughter breathe her last breath before she was put lifelessly onto the ground. That was when the broadcast ended and there was nothing but static left.

  Chapter Seventy-Five

  Ridge Manor, Above

  Martha finished her third whiskey and the room started to spin. The alcohol made her nerves calmer, at least she thought it did. Still, she could hardly breathe because of her deep agitation.

  Could it be? Could it really be? Had Joanna come back?

  "I am sorry, Mom," Josh said, looking at her anxiously. "I meant to tell you, I really did. I just didn't really have…well, everything went so fast in the swamps…I didn't…I am sorry. I didn't mean to…"

  A hand landed on his shoulder. It belonged to Irene. "It's okay, sweetie," she whispered.

  But it wasn't okay. At least not inside Martha. Everything was stirred up, literally, and she had a hard time thinking straight.

  "So, you're telling me that Joanna…came back?"

  "Just before the invasion, yes," Mary said when no one else said anything.

  Josh looked like he was terrified. He found a piece of paper from the dresser and started to shred it. It was Mary's grocery list, but it wasn't like she was gonna need it anytime soon. Meanwhile, Carl stayed a few steps behind Martha's chair, keeping himself completely out of everything, as usual.

  "She came here with her little girl. What was her name again?" Mary continued. "Ellie something. Ellie Mae, I think it was."

  Martha held a hand to her chest. "It's a girl? Oh, my word, did you hear that, Carl? It's a girl. Ellie Mae?"

  Martha wrinkled her nose at the sound of the name. It wasn't a name she would have picked, but that didn't matter now. Martha felt tears coming to her eyes thinking of Joanna and the girl.

  "They came back you say? And we weren't here? Now, how about that
? We don't go on a vacation for twenty years and when we finally do, that's when she decides to come back?"

  "The important thing is she did come back," Mary said.

  "And where is she now?"

  Mary shrugged. "I don't know. The last thing I heard was that the Chinese major general went with Sheriff Wayne to his house. I don't know if Joanna and the two girls made it out of there in time or if they're also still there."

  "Oh, my word," Martha said again, leaning forward. She wasn't feeling too well. Her stomach never did very good with alcohol, especially not if it wasn't somehow covered in a soda pop or something. She looked up and her eyes met Mary's. She couldn't believe it. They were so close to actually getting to see their granddaughter for the first time and now they couldn't go there because of all those Chinese soldiers, or whatever they were. Were the girls even still alive?

  So close.

  Martha shook her head. "You said the major general went to Wayne's house?"

  "Yes, along with all her officers and thousands of soldiers."

  "Why? Why did they go to Wayne's house?"

  Mary bit her lip. "Because of the hole."

  Martha laughed. "Because of his what?"

  "The hole. You know, the one in his backyard."

  Martha looked at Carl behind her, then at Josh and Irene. None of them seemed to find this amusing. Was it just her? "The hole?" she repeated. "The same hole he claimed swallowed his daughter?"

  "Yes," Mary said.

  "The same daughter he claims calls every night and tells him the future?"

  "Yes," Mary said again. "That same hole. How did you know it was his daughter that called?"

  "Wayne told me once, a long time ago."

  Martha shook her head in disbelief. Was she just too drunk to comprehend this or what was really going on here?

  "So, let me get this straight. They all went to Wayne's house to look at his hole in his backyard? Am I the only one who finds that a tiny bit odd?"

  "It's real, Martha," Mary said. "The hole is there and he really does get those phone calls. Now, admittedly, I didn't believe it at first, but it's the truth. He knew about the Chinese coming. She told him. And I have seen the hole myself. I believe him. I really do. And so do the Chinese. They knew it was here and I have a feeling it was what they’ve been looking for all this time. That's why they have all their soldiers here now, why they're coming from all over, trampling everything down out there. And, somehow, I think they're now waiting for orders or something since they're all just standing out there like they're in the world's longest line to the bathroom."

  Martha leaned forward in her chair. Her eyes met Mary's again. She swallowed hard and suddenly felt sober, well almost at least.

  "You said they seemed to be looking for this hole?" she asked.

  "Yes. I know it’s strange, but I think they believe it's a gateway to another world or something. A parallel universe. Somehow, they must have figured out that it was here, in Ridge Manor."

  "Oh, dear."

  Martha sensed how the blood rushed from her face. The others in the room saw it too.

  "Mom? What's wrong?" Josh asked nervously. He was always so worried about his mother. It was sweet, but usually not necessary. She had never found a way to make him stop thinking he had to take care of her. A pile of shredded paper had gathered by his feet. What a mess.

  "Mom?"

  "I…I…think I might know the answer to that," Martha said. "I think I know how they found out."

  Chapter Seventy-Six

  Ridge Manor, Beneath

  "No. Turn it on again. Turn it on!"

  Joanna was shaking the TV briskly while yelling. Arlene came up to her and put her hand on her arm.

  "It doesn't come on again until tomorrow."

  Joanna sniffled and looked at the young girl. Why on earth had she been so stupid as to jump inside the hole? Why would she leave her daughter like that? In the hands - or tongues - of those beasts? Why? To be some sort of hero? To make amends for not being able to save Jack?

  "The phone," she said and wiped her face with her hand. "What we saw here doesn't happen until twelve hours from now. You usually call and tell your dad, am I right?"

  Arlene nodded. "At first, I thought I could use the phone to call home, so my parents could pick me up, but I couldn't explain where I was and they couldn't find me, my dad said. No matter how much they searched, and they did look everywhere, he said. It wasn't until later when I told him I had seen stuff about him and told him about it, then he realized that I was talking about stuff in the future."

  "The phone," Joanna said. "Where is it?"

  "Upstairs," Arlene said and pointed. "In the kitchen. It's hanging on the wall. Just like the one my dad has. That's how I knew how to work it because my dad showed me."

  "Can you show me, please?" Joanna said. "Then I can call and warn them and maybe they can stop it from happening, stop them from killing…" Joanna swallowed the lump growing in her throat to keep herself calm enough to speak before she continued, "…killing Ellie Mae."

  Arlene nodded. "Sure."

  Joanna followed her up the stairs and they rushed into the kitchen. Just like Arlene had said, the phone was hanging on the wall by the door. The name Stromberg-Carlson was engraved on a metal plate by the bottom. Joanna approached it and reached out for the earpiece, but then stopped.

  "How do you work this thing?"

  "Let me," Arlene said and took the earpiece out of her hand. She grabbed the handle on the side and swung it and said into the mouthpiece: "9-1-9-8-1-0-9-9-5-5, please."

  Joanna stared at her, wondering who was on the other end, and couldn't help picturing some old lady sitting by an ancient switchboard like in those old World War II movies, connecting people to one another across the world.

  Arlene smiled. "It's ringing."

  Joanna sighed with relief. She wasn't in the clear yet, but they were getting close. If only she could warn Wayne, he would be able to stop Ellie Mae. Wouldn't he? Maybe she should ask to talk to Ellie Mae herself? Make sure she understood that she wasn't to go into the yard no matter what happened. That it was a matter of life and death?

  What do you tell her when she asks where you are? Or when you're coming home? What do you plan on telling her?

  "It usually takes a while," Arlene said. "I think it's because it has to go all the way up through the hole that I fell down. At least that's how I picture it."

  Joanna smiled, slightly anxiously. She bit her nails. It wasn't something she did often, but when things were really bad, like when they had been in the doctor's office waiting for the doctor to come in and give them the latest results of Jack's tests.

  "That's okay."

  "Pick up, Dad. Pick up," Arlene said, tapping her foot impatiently. There was a click sound loud enough for Joanna to hear it and, at first, she thought it came from the phone being picked up at the other end and a smile spread across her face. But less than a second later, the smile froze when she realized the sound hadn't come from the phone, but from right behind her. Quickly, she turned her head and looked into a set of eyes she could have sworn belonged to the Devil himself.

  Chapter Seventy-Seven

  Ridge Manor, Above

  "What do you mean?"

  Mary approached Martha, who was now leaned back in the recliner, holding onto the armrests like she was afraid the chair might take off or fall into a pit so deep, she would only have the armrests to hold on to.

  "Martha?"

  "I…I don't know how to tell you this," she said.

  "Tell us what, Martha?" Mary asked, getting slightly annoyed with her old friend. Martha had always been annoying, but this time was different, this time it was serious. "Did you do something?"

  Martha looked at her, her eyes torn in fear. "I think this…might all be my fault."

  "What is?"

  "This, them coming here, them being at Wayne's house. Mrs. Kilcommons' death; oh, dear lord, Josh told me how they killed her in the stre
et. It's all my fault. I killed Mrs. Kilcommons."

  Martha had a dramatic side and always had a way of making everything about her, but this was taking it to another level, even for Martha.

  "Why would you say that, Martha?"

  "Because I told them about the hole."

  "What are you talking about?"

  Martha groaned. "In the Bahamas. I was drunk. One evening, the first one after we arrived. Carl was so boring, all he wanted to do was to watch TV in the room, so I went to a bar. I was so sad because this was supposed to be our big trip and all; we were supposed to be together and still, it felt like he didn't want to spend any time with me…"

  "We’ve been over this, Martha," Carl said.

  "I know," Martha said. "But this is part of the story, all right? I have to explain myself."

  "What did you do?" Mary asked.

  "I…I was at the bar, drinking my drink when this woman came up next to me and ordered a drink. She looked lonely and so was I, so we started to talk. She wasn't very chatty, so I just babbled on and drank more and more of those drinks, I don't even remember the name of them, but anyway, I was tipsy, you could say that, and I spoke about Carl and our marriage and then about Joanna and Josh and, finally, I might have mentioned our crazy sheriff and his weird hole in the backyard and how he believed his dead daughter fell into it and kept calling him around midnight, telling him things about the future. And…well, the woman, as you might guess, was Chinese, or at least she was Asian - I never can tell them apart if they're from one part or the other, but I guess they feel the same way about us, right?"

  All eyes stared at Martha in Mary's living room. Not a soul moved; no one coughed or even cleared their throat. She wasn't even certain they blinked. Mary did the same. Simply stared at her old friend, completely at a loss for words. No, that wasn't true, she had many words, so many things she would have liked to say to Martha in this moment, but none of them were very nice and she still cared deeply for her old friend after all, even though the woman was a complete idiot.