Chapter 6: An Act of God

"Are we going to make it?" Erika jogged along behind me.

"We'll be fine." I grabbed a bag from my mother. "We just need to get to the high point."

She kept looking back at either the water or our home. Erika and I had been brought home from the hospital to that house. We had spent our entire lives there, and now it was gone. We reached the top of a small hill where a crowd had gathered. I led my mother and sister to the front, and my shoulders dropped. Water covered the road that led to the highest spot in the city.

"What now?" asked Erika. "Do we try crossing it?"

I looked across the 200 yard stretch. Some people were climbed out on the other side. A few others were in the process of swimming or wading through the shallower spots.

A rumble came from beneath our feet. Screams filled the area as everyone dropped to the round and braced themselves. I pulled my mother and sister close to me. The buildings around us shook, but none of them looked like they were going to collapse. I was more concerned with the rate the water was rising.

The area grew still.

"Mom." Erika clung to our mother. "Look." She pointed at the waves that were creeping closer.

"Dear god." My mother hid her face. "It's happening again. Please god." She started to whisper a prayer.

"Stay with mom." I stood.

In desperation, people were starting to swim across. The distance was growing with every passing second. I didn't know if we'd be able to make it. I hurried up the stairs to a home and check the door. It was locked. I peeked inside and saw the house was practically empty except for some furniture. Some of us had been smart enough to get out early. There might still be something left behind that we could float on at least.

I walked down the front steps and started gathering rocks. I threw one as hard as I could at the window next to the door. It fractured but the glass remained intact. I grabbed a bigger stone and hurled it at the window. It shattered, drawing the attention of the people around us. I threw a few more and went to my bag to get some of my shirts to cover the edge with. Hurrying up the steps, I kicked bigger shards out of the way and laid the shirts out.

"Zale?" said my mother, looking rather confused.

"It's fine. They're gone." I climbed into the house.

There was only a couch in their sitting room. I went the kitchen and tried yanking off the cupboard doors. They weren't going to do much. For being this close to the waterline, I would think we'd be more prepare for potential flooding. It was frustrating that we didn't think this would ever happen. I went upstairs and almost started crying from the sense of relief. An air mattress was sitting in the master bedroom.

I grabbed it and dragged it out of the room and down the stairs. I glanced outside to see the majority of people were gone or trying to break into some of the other homes. Unlocking the door, I motioned for my sister.

"Come and help me with this."

She stood. "Are you serious? How did you find it?"

"Luck," I replied plainly. There was no other way to explain it.

Erika helped me maneuver it out. My mother came to help. We carried it down to the waterline.

I held it in place. "Get the bags and let's go before someone comes."

My mom and sister snatched our things off the ground and ran down the small incline. The hill was nearly completely covered. They both climbed on.

"Lay down." I swung the mattress around and laid down on the bottom so I could kick with my feet.

Pushing off the submerged road, I started across. A wave washed over the mattress and I struggled to keep it from flipping. Erika was nearly in tears as she clung to the front.

My mother grabbed her hand. "We're almost there. It'll be okay."

Waves hit my back. I looked over my shoulder to see the hill covered. Bricks from a building toppled into the water as a bigger wave rolled over the hill and slammed into us. We didn't have anything blocking the sea now.

"Zale," whispered Erika.

"It's fine. I got it." I kicked my legs harder.

I was slammed into again and water rushed over the mattress, causing a bag to be thrown off. Erika reached for it.

"Leave it!" I snapped.

"Zale," breathed my sister.

I glanced back to see a wave rising up in the air. "Oh shit."

It reached high above my head and slammed down on top of us. The mattress was forced under the water. I was yanked off when it popped back up to the surface. I swam to the top and spotted my mother helping my sister back onto the mattress fifty feet away from me.

I waved at them. "Keep going."

The girls moved to the bottom and kicked their legs. We were nearly there. I swam after them. Reaching the other side, they grabbed the bags. I touched solid ground and took a moment to catch my breath.

"Zale!" Erika waved her hand overhead.

The city started to shake as a rumbled grew closer to where we were standing. I saw the tidal wave begin to grow and crash into the buildings.

"Run!" I waved my arms overhead. "Run!"

The girls raced up the hillside. I fought my way out of the water and took off after them. I wasn't going to make it.

"Zale." My mother looked back. "Zale!"

"Keep going!"

I broke off the path and tried a house. The door was locked. I jumped through the planter boxes to their next door neighbor. Closing my eyes, I tried the handle. It turned. I hurried inside and slammed the door. I was midway up the stairs when the wave hit. It shattered the windows in the sitting room and swirled around the room. I clung to the banister as the water tried to suck me out. The water pushed forward again, and I was able to make it to the upstairs landing. Water spilled over through the banister railing.

"Shit." I clambered to my feet.

I spotted an attic hatch and pull the string to bring down the stairs. Climbing up them, I yanked the stairs back up and shoved the different boxes out of the way as I made my way to the one window. It didn't want to open. I yanked it up an inch at a time. Finally, it was wide enough that I could fit through. I climbed out and used the window sill to stand on so I could get onto the roof. Pulling myself up, I army crawled toward the chimney as another massive wave shook the house. I wrapped my arms around the metal pipe and hung on for my life.

My eyes were burning. The fact that I was going to cry over something so stupid was pissing me off, which only made the burning worse. I didn't want to die, but at the moment, it was up to God whether or not I survived.