(Getting Away)
"Quickly! The gates are open and here come the hounds."
Penny untied the rope from the dock cleat and leaped into the cockpit. Her gaze was drawn to the shore. A torrent of people were flowing down the docks, wild-eyed and screaming incoherently. Many staggered and fell as once again the ground beneath their feet shook.
This time the tremor went on and on. The wood of the dock splintered and broke in places, spilling some of the frantic refugees into the water. But others were coming on, consumed by panic and looking for any way out. Donna fed power to the engine but Penny realized that at least the first members of the mob would reach them before they cleared the dock.
The leader of the group, or at least the first in line, was waving a piece of what looked to be steel or lead pipe in his hand. As he came level with Penny he screamed. "Give me that boat or I'll kill you!" And Penny knew that he meant exactly that.
He raised the pipe over his head. Apparently he wasn't going to wait for the party in the boat to voluntarily surrender it. Then all the noise was split by two loud crashes practically in Penny's ear.
Boom! Boom!
The man stopped in his tracks and lowered the pipe, moving as if in slow motion. The look of rage and fear on his face changed to one of shock and surprise. The pipe fell to the dock and he pawed at two bright red holes that had appeared in the middle of his chest. He fell and the people behind him ran.
In shock Penny looked at Donna.
"Penny take the wheel," her cousin shouted.
Penny scrambled behind the tiller. She had one eye on the bow of the boat as it pulled away, aiming their course for the harbor mouth. The other was riveted on Donna and the heavy pistol in her hand. The Coast Guardswoman jammed it back in the holster by her side and opened a long rigid plastic case beside her, exposing a dully finished black rifle Penny recognized as an M16. Bracing herself against the motion of the boat Donna lifted it and fired a spray of bullets over the heads of the now scattering crowd. She fired again, this time dispersing the group swarming over the stern of the next boat. Then everyone was staggering as the boat tossed wildly.
"We're being drawn back in!" Leonard shouted.
Donna leaped back to her station. She opened the engine full. Bit by bit the boat pulled away from the dock even as Penny saw the entire hillside behind the marina start to slide irresistibly towards them. Then they were surging forward as it seemed as though the entire world was rising and forcing them towards the open sea.
Penny looked back in horror as the landslide swept people under. Boats and cars and the marina buildings were hurled in the air or crushed and swallowed. She bit back a scream as her eyes locked onto a woman leaping from one exploding section of the dock to another, heedless of her safety. Desperately she hoped somehow the woman might make it to their boat or the other but she knew she wouldn't.
The woman knew it as well. With one last despairing surge of strength she threw something through the air to the boat. Instinctively Penny reached her arms out and caught that something; which turned out to be a little girl Penny guessed to be about five.
For an instant her eyes met those of the other woman. That was enough time for Penny nod, to promise that mother that she would try her best to save her child. Then the boat was thrust forward at a frightening pace and the dock, with the woman, was engulfed by the landslide.
"What's happening?" yelled Howard.
"The landslide is pushing us out to sea," responded Donna who amazingly had throttled back on the engine. Seeing the engineer's look of surprise she went on. "I just need the motor to give us steering way. The surge is carrying us out faster than the engine could. In fact right now it's not making any difference in our speed."
"Leonard?" she called. "Could you and Sheldon get a satellite hookup going to a computer? We need to see what's happening on the coast."
From inside the cabin came a wail. "Leonard we can't use my computer! The salt air isn't good for it. Why can't we use yours?"
The reply was muffled. Leonard stuck his head out of the hatchway, an object in his hand that looked like a metal flower that she knew was a satellite receiver. He positioned it and called back down into the cabin for Sheldon to start the search. He looked at his wife and his eyes opened wide.
"Guess what Leonard," Donna called to him. "You're parents now. And if you want to stay that way than find out what the hell is going on so I can plot a course. Right now I'm just letting the surge from the landslides carry us straight out from the coast but there may be cross current or giant waves or whatever coming from other coasts and undersea activities. Find out!"
"Penny? You might better take your new daughter below. Get mine to help you soothe her and check her for cuts and bruises. And please send Howard and Bernadette up here. The wind is strengthening and I think it's about time to cut the engine and start depending on the sails."
Donna must have been heard for the forward hatch opened and the Jewish-Catholic couple emerged. Howard worked his way to the main sail while Bernadette took the cover off the jib. Both looked at Penny in amazement even as she ducked into the main cabin where she found everyone clustered around Sheldon's computer.
"Should be coming up NOW," announced Leonard.
The group stared at the screen. "Sweet gentle Jesus," Sheldon whispered with all the reverence his mother could have ever wished for. Penny had been intending to work her way over to Tiffany and Daniel, Donna's twins but Sheldon's near prayer and wrenched her attention to the screen. Once she saw what it was displaying she could not take her eyes from it.
"What in God's name?" she asked softly.
"It's a new broadcast we picked up from a CNN satellite. It's maybe an hour old. Looks like we got out just in time."
Indeed they had. For what they were watching was the complete and utter destruction of Los Angeles, and obviously Pasadena and every where else nearby. Penny stood with her mouth open in shock as she watched towering buildings collapse; elevated highways tumble over and huge cracks in the ground swallow everything and everyone in sight.
They watched a small twin engine plane apparently flown by the craziest pilot the world had ever seen fly down UNDER a subway train that was falling into an enormous hole. That same plane stood on one wing and actually flew between two skyscrapers that had fallen against each other, each supporting the other just long enough for the plane to make its escape before falling in mutual ruin.
There was no place for the terrified people to run, no safety to be found. Penny realized dazedly that she was seeing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people and only the foresight of her husband and their friends had enabled them to survive. So far. The final sight before the picture was lost was of the entire coastal areas of the city toppling into the Pacific Ocean.
"That explains the wave that pushed us out this far this fast," commented Raj.
"By the time that wave reaches the other side of the Pacific it will be enormous," Leslie added as she fiddled with another computer also linked to the antenna. "And trying to go inland wouldn't have worked. The Yellowstone Cauldron is beginning to erupt. The reports from the Geological Survey are fragmentary but it s possible, probable even, that the explosion will wipe out the middle of the US and Canada."
"Can you get anything from NOAA?" Donna called down. "Especially any of the satellites watching the Pacific?"
Leonard and Sheldon went into conference mood. Penny was happy to see that for once Sheldon was not only acting like a grown up but was acting like a grown up who was neither stuck-up or demanding to be the center of the universe. She supposed that would come later.
"The whole West Coast is collapsing and spreading inland. There's increased volcanic activity throughout the entire Pacific rim. In Hawaii the Kilauea volcano has begun a major eruption and Mauna Loa is showing signs of building pressure not seen in living memory. People are trying to flee but one tsunami has already hit the Big Island and most of the boats there have been destroyed."
Raj jumped in. "This has nothing to do with us but Europe is as bad as the West Coast. Half of the British Isles have sunk. The White Cliffs of Dover collapsed and indeed created a mega tsunami that swamped the whole Northern French Coastline. Dikes in the low country have collapsed. Not just some, pretty much all. Earthquakes are raging across previously unknown fault lines."
"The US government is trying to evacuate the Eastern Seaboard. The waves are coming. But the shocks there have already destroyed airports and railroads and highways. Oh and there seem to be an number of key figures missing although the President is still in DC."
Penny pulled her attention away from the conversation as the little girl in her arms whimpered. She made her way to Tiffany and Daniel, who immediately surrounded their "Aunt Penny" and the new arrival.
"Shhhhhhh," Penny comforted the blonde girl. "What's your name sweetie?"
"My name is Michelle," she replied. "Where's my mommy? I want my mommy."
"Michelle your mommy," Penny faltered summoned her courage and carried on. "You mommy can't be here but she gave you to me to take care of you. And I will. I promised her and I promise you."
"Okay," Michelle sounded uncertain but willing to trust this unexpected new woman who held her.
"Sweetheart can you sit here with Tiffany and Daniel while I do some things?" The blonde girl looked unsure again but the warm smiles the two slightly older children gave her along with outstretched welcoming hands sealed the deal. She nodded. "You two look after her okay?"
"Yes Aunt Penny."
Penny went out to assist Donna at the tiller.
"Thanks. My arms are killing me."
She looked around. The sails were drawing and the boat was dancing across the water even with the engine shut down. Howard and Bernadette were keeping a close eye on the sails, ready to adjust them if need be.
"Where are we headed?"
"We've been going due west so far. I wanted to reach deep water where we'll be safer. There's nearly a thousand feet under us now," Donna nodded at the depth finder mounted at the front of the cockpit. "Based on what the guys have found out so far I'm going to start running south now. But keep an eye on the radar. If anything comes at us it probably will be from the east.
"I need to eat something and rest. I hope we can continue on through the night. If so I need to be alert and awake."
She disappeared into the cabin. Shortly Leonard came out and joined her.
"How's it look?" she asked him.
"It's all getting worse. Everywhere. The US is basically toast. The good news is that the western coast of South America seems to be holding its own, particularly the line of the Andes mountains. We're making good speed. Believe it or not we're almost even with San Diego. But to get that far south will take weeks."
They sailed the rest of the day. The concentrated food rations they had packed were filling although not particularly tasty. Everyone ignored Sheldon's complaints, although Amy finally suggested if her boyfriend wanted Chinese he could swim back to Pasadena.
Night came and Donna returned to the tiller. Howard and Bernadette shortened sail. Penny joined Leonard and the two them cuddled Michelle between them. Exhausted they fell asleep in short order. Leslie manned the computers at first but it was Raj's voice that woke them in the middle of the night.
"Donna. Something's wrong."
(To be continued)