<span style="font-style: italic">"Go! Now!" <br/><br/>"Get us the fuck out of here, man!"</span><br/><br/>There was a ringing in Miguel's ears as the woman next to him and his brother shouted at him. The cries were warranted - they were getting overwhelmed, and fast. The window next to his passenger was in bad shape, and more shambling forms were heading for it, not to mention the ones crowding around the back of the pickup. But the man in the other vehicle still hadn't jumped over.<br/><br/>Unbidden, Miguel watched in his mind's eye as two people were blasted into flecks of blood and flying limbs outside the exploding garage, and he gritted his teeth as he fought with the possibility of abandoning yet another person to their fate. This wasn't right. This wasn't him.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">I can't do this.</span><br/><br/>The desperation in his brother's voice came back to him, a delayed echo dripping with fear and a myriad of other emotions. How long did this man expect them to wait for him? The truck was going to be overrun, and lives would be lost if he didn't make a move. And then, teetering on the brink of a decision he knew he needed to make, Miguel saw the faces of his children.<br/><br/>"I'm sorry," he whispered, and then his foot connected with the accelerator.<br/><br/>They were gone, flying down the long, empty stretch of road, and Miguel seized the phone he'd been granted from the back of the truck. He didn't recognize it, but he didn't much care as the dusty, bloody vehicle continued its frenzied journey home.<br/><br/>"Pick up," he barked impatiently as the phone rang, the sound alarmingly staticky in his ear. "Pick up right f-"<br/><br/>"Hello?"<br/><br/>Bella's voice was strained; she was worried, or uncertain, and her tone made a knot form in Miguel's stomach and tighten painfully as he made the first of the last five turns remaining between them and Julian's house. "Isabella, are you okay? Where's your brother?"<br/><br/>"We're both fine, Dad, what's going on? Whose number are y-"<br/><br/>"Listen, just stay where you are, alright? I'll be there soon. And don't open the door for<span style="font-style: italic">anyone</span>."<br/><br/>He had no idea what they were going to do, or where they would go, but those details were profoundly unimportant. There was danger behind them, and ahead too, in all likelihood, but if he could get to his kids, everything else would be fine. It had to be.<br/><br/>"Okay, Dad." He could hear Daniel in the background, sounding very frightened, and the boy's voice was intermingled with the sounds of the television playing. The news, of course, probably scaring both of them out of their wits. He increased the truck's speed as he said a quick goodbye and hung up.<br/><br/>"Everyone alright back there?" he asked as he put the phone back down behind him. "I don't know what the fuck we're supposed to do right now, but I think me and my brother-"<br/><br/>The foot that was so determinedly locked onto the accelerator switched to the brakes, and the air was filled with the sound of screeching tires as the truck skidded to a halt. The Humvee in front of them was wide, but it wasn't the girth of the vehicle that prompted the sudden stop.<br/><br/>Miguel stared up at the trio of rifles being aimed at his face. Another two soldiers were on the street, walking around the truck with quick, efficient steps. "Got five," one of them said loudly, and the only man still on top of the military vehicle who wasn't currently aiming a weapon at them nodded.<br/><br/>"Is anyone currently inside your vehicle sick?"<br/><br/>Miguel shook his head, inwardly marveling at how dry his mouth was. In the distance, there was the sound of gunshots interspersed with screaming, and he found himself wondering if they were any safer here than in town. More shots rang out, automatic fire this time, and the man grunted.<br/><br/>"Get indoors. Now. Curfew is in effect, and anyone caught breaking it will be detained. If they're lucky."<br/><br/>He wanted to reply, but he settled for an awkward kind of nod as the two soldiers on the street moved away from the vehicle, having confirmed that no one on board was visibly ill. The truck started forward again, keeping to the far right to avoid the Humvee, and then it was only one more intersection before they were finally pulling into Julian's driveway.<br/><br/>Miguel wasted no time in opening the door, and then he had both his kids in his arms almost immediately. The television was still on, and they both had working eardrums - the sounds of violence nearby had definitely reached them, and they were afraid. Danny was shaking, and Bella's face was even paler than usual as they clung to him.<br/><br/>"It's okay," he whispered, mindful of the others walking in behind him. Introductions were probably in order - he didn't even know some of their names. "Dad's here now. Nothing's going to happen to you."<br/><br/>He straightened up and addressed the others while the children made a beeline for their uncle. The guns, which were more plentiful than he'd expected, were brought inside - it seemed strange that the soldiers hadn't cared about them - and if there was any uncertainty he aimed to get out in front of it as fast as possible.<br/><br/>"You may have your own families to get home to, and you may have plans of your own, but it doesn't look like we have much choice in the short term. Unless my brother objects," he glanced at Julian, who shook his head, "you are all welcome to stay here while this thing blows over. My name's Miguel, by the way."