When he awakened, Wiley was no longer in his bed. There was only the indention where her head had lain upon his pillow which had been right beside his. Her scent lingered in his room; distinct yet swiftly fading. Adam let out a deep, heavy sigh. Where had she gone? He did not know.

He sat up in bed as he slowly left his sanctuary, the place where he had lain with her all night long, feeling so much bliss. But now... all that was gone. The peaceful feeling that had filled up his chest; it had left with Wiley.

Finally he stood and walked over to his desk. It was then that he discovered a scrawled note upon his laptop. It was from Wiley.

Adam,

Sorry, but I had to go. There are a few important things I need to take care of before we can leave Pretty Lake. Thanks for the cheeseburger and last night.

I'll see you soon.

Wiley

Important things?! What sort of important things was Wiley speaking of in her message? Was she going after the baby?! He could only hope that she was returning to her childhood home so she could pick up her child and then they could make necessary arrangements for their escape from Pretty Lake. He knew in his heart that was the way it was supposed to be - a parent shouldn't leave his or her child. The three of them had to find a way out of a decaying town. Desperation was setting in. Soon there wouldn't be enough food to go around. People would starve. They HAD to escape. There was no other choice. It was a matter of survival.

~*~o~*~

Melissa Day had her hands full. She had set up the town's orphanage in the church's nursery. She had well over two dozen children in her care, including her newborn nephew who yet remained nameless. It was Gord that had taken it upon himself to help her. He brought his eleven year old sister over to help Melissa with the little ones. "Frannie is wonderful with the kids," Melissa told Gord as she held the baby in her arms. Her little nephew had seemed so unsettled. He wasn't used to all the noise of the other children. It had taken her a long while to rock him to sleep.

Gord looked over at his little sister Francis who was reading as story to a group of small children. "She's very grown up for her age," he said with a smile. "She's a great kid."

"It's wonderful that she has you... after the loss of your grandfather and your dad."

"Frannie never really had a mom. Our mother died when she was only two. Dad raised us on his own. We miss him, but now we are all without our parents here in Pretty Lake. It sucks, but it looks like we are on our own."

"Gord, I honestly don't know what I'd do without you. Wiley has deserted me... AND her son. She took off with Adam. Lord knows where they have gone," Melissa said as she looked down at her sleeping nephew who was snuggled in her arms. "Thank you for bringing over the canned food for the children. I- I... don't know what will happen ... once we run out of food... and formula for this little guy."

Gord knew Melissa was worried but he did his best to reassure her. "I am not going to desert you. I have milk on the farm... plenty of fresh milk. And more canned goods. I will bring you everything you and the children need. That's a promise."

Staring into her eyes, Gord gently kissed Melissa's lips. As their lips touched, a spark dashed through Melissa. Her heart swelled and expanded. She felt safe in the knowledge that Gord and his little sister were going to help her with the orphanage. None of the little kids would starve. They'd all be cared for and protected.

Her eyes were locked to Gord's when a little voice said, "Miss Melissa, I want a hamburger."

It was Sarah, the youngest child in the nursery besides Wiley's baby. Sarah was three years old and had gorgeous, unruly red hair.

Sarah's brother, Jeremy said he'd take Sarah to the grocery store around the corner. "They're giving out free burgers!" Sarah said happily.

Despite the canned goods Gord had brought them, the children remained hungry. There just hadn't been enough to go around. "Alright," Melissa said a bit reluctantly to Jeremy. "But hold Sarah's hand... and come right back."

"I will," ten-year-old Jeremy promised.

Sarah had a huge smile on her face as she walked out of the nursery with her brother. Sadly, it would be the last time that Melissa would ever see them both alive...

~*~o~*~

Wiley arrived at the home of Charles Lott's attorney. Charles had promised her a huge sum of money if she kept the paternity of her baby a secret. Also, as per the deal, she was to give up the child upon his birth. Wiley wanted that money. She NEEDED that money. It was hers ... and she needed it to start out her new life once she escaped Pretty Lake with Adam.

As she sneaked into the attorney's office, she never expected to be held up at gunpoint by the attorney's eleven year old child. "What are you doing in my daddy's office?" the boy asked suspiciously.

"Chill out!" said Wiley as the boy waved the gun in her face.. "I knew your dad..."

"My dad is dead," the attorney's son said coldly.

"I am sorry. My parents are dead, too. You see, your dad left something in his safe for me. It's an envelope with my name on it - Wiley Day. If you can help me open the safe, I'll show you," Wiley promised.

The little boy kept his eye on Wiley as he walked over to his father's safe. He had the combination memorized after years of helping out his dad in the office. It was a matter of a couple of minutes before Wiley had the envelope in her hand. "Why did my dad have that envelope in his safe for you?" the boy asked as he carefully closed the safe.

"It's a long story, but thanks, kid. You're been a great help," Wiley said as she stuffed the thick envelope full of one hundred dollar bills into her duffel bag.

~*~o~*~

Sarah and Jeremy arrived at the grocery store and waited in the long line. They were swimming in a sea of hungry faces. Children were now without parents and desperate for a way to feed themselves. All the convenience stores had been looted by teenagers and there just wasn't enough to go around. When they finally made it to the front of the line, Jeremy said to the grocer, "Two free burgers please!"

"Sorry, kid," said the young man at the counter. "We ran out of free burgers a half hour ago. We can get you a bologna sandwich though... or how about a strawberry poptart?"

Jeremy looked crestfallen. They had waited a REALLY long time in the line... and all they wanted was a burger - at that point, anything else sounded tasteless. "We only wanted burgers," he said, taking Sarah's hand and leading her back out of the store.

"Next!" called out the grocer.

No sooner had the young man at the counter served the next child when he heard a terrible crashing sound, followed by a piercing scream. The grocer ran outside to see what might have happened. To his shock and dismay, he saw a thirteen year old had crashed his car on the way to get some groceries for his younger siblings. Sadly, he had hit a pedestrian and the boy lying in the street happened to be ten-year-old Jeremy.

"I didn't even see him," said the crying teen who had been behind the wheel.

Sarah stood looking down at her lifeless brother. Jeremy! He was all she had left. Her mommy and daddy had died like all the other grown-ups. She was all alone in the world. How would she make it without her best friend, her older brother?

"What happened?" someone asked the little girl.

"A car ranned over Jeremy," Sarah said in a sad little whisper.

~*~o~*~

Gord and Frannie were on their way back to the farm when they saw a little person perched on the curb near the grocery store. It was Sarah. Her little white dress was smeared in bright-red blood. Gord jumped out of his truck and rushed over to her. "What happened? Where's Jeremy?" he asked.

"He died," Sarah replied, her voice calm and matter-of fact despite the tear-stains which stained her little face. "A car ranned over him."

Gord wrapped the child up in his arms. "I am gonna take you back to Melissa. You're going to be alright, sweetheart."

"Not without Jeremy," the child responded.

Gord knew that Melissa would take excellent care of little Sarah. Melissa loved kids and since the deaths in Pretty Lake, she had become a surrogate mother to a nursery full of youngsters. She wasn't the biological mom of any of them, but she treated them like her own.

~*~o~*~

Adam was cleaning up the kitchen. He was washing his dishes when Wiley returned, her duffel bag flung over her arm. "I'm ready to escape Pretty Lake," she told him. "Let's go."

"What?" he said as he turned to look at her. "Wait. What about the baby?"

"What about him? I'm not meant to be a mother."

"Wiley, how can you say that to me... ME - a man who was deserted by my own father when I was only seven years old?"

They stared at each other as his words sunk in. During that time, no words were spoken.

"He's better off with Melissa. Come on... Let's go," Wylie urged. "Do you have your bags packed... or not?"

"I do, but..."

"Then let's not waste any time. I have everything ready. Let's go."

Adam wanted to argue, but he couldn't. Wiley was so determined. He knew there was pandemonium on the streets. Kids were going hungry. There wasn't enough food. It was just a matter of time before the starvation lead to extreme violence. He and Wiley had to leave. They had to give it their best shot.

"Okay," he agreed, but as he said the words, he gave Wiley a look that said, *I don't like this at all. I don't like this ONE little bit.*

~*~o~*~

Melissa cried in Gord's arms when he returned with Sarah and quietly explained to her what had happened to Jeremy. "It's all my fault," she said as she stood near her nephew's bassinet.

She had been watching over the newborn baby, hoping his mother would return. Where was Wiley? HOW could she take care of ALL these kids on her own?!

"No, it's not. It was an accident... just a horrible accident," Gord soothed, kissing her hair as he held her against his strong, muscular chest.

"But Gord... I need to be taking better care of these kids... and I need some help. I can't do it on my own."

"I'll leave Fran here to help," Gord offered. "Right now, I gotta get back to the farm. I need to milk the cows. I will be by in the morning and I'll bring fresh eggs and milk."

"You're a life saver," she said as she looked up into his rich dark eyes. Once again, they tenderly kissed.

"So are you," he said as he looked around at all the precious little kids. Melissa Day was a remarkable woman... .and someday soon, he hoped to ask her to be his wife.

~*~o~*~

Adam and Wiley arrived at the barbed wire fence just at the edge of Pretty Lake. The government had constructed the fence to keep the quarantined residents within the small town. "We can get over it easily,' Wiley said. "This escape is going to be a piece of cake."

She was about ready to throw her duffel bag over and climb the fence. "Wait!" Adam called out.

"What?" she said as she turned to look at him, a bit annoyed.

"Just one more time, Wiley. The baby..."

"Adam, please! Listen to me. We CAN'T take him."

"You're talking to a guy who was deserted by his own father. Doing this... leaving him... it just doesn't feel RIGHT to me."

"Then don't go with me then!" she exclaimed.

She sighed heavily. "Are you going to go with me... or not?"

She saw the pain in Adam's eyes. The hunger. His dad had left him... and he never got over that. NOT ever. It still hurt ... and it had been eleven years since his dad's sudden disappearance.

"Adam, is there ever a time when it's alright?" she asked as the pain rose up in her chest. Her voice trembled as she asked the question.

He shook his head. He didn't want to tell her it was okay. It wasn't okay, was it?!

Dammit! She was making a big mistake! He wanted to tell her she'd regret her decision, but she was already climbing over the fence, soon to escape Pretty Lake. And in the process, she was leaving her newborn son behind.

He had no choice. He followed her. With each step they took after getting passed the fence, he felt an increasing sense of danger. Their escape was just too easy. Adam suddenly realized, they weren't getting out alive; it was a TRAP!