Chapter 10 - The Drone in the Night Sky
The high-pitched, metallic whir of rotor blades cut sharply through the evening air, growing rapidly louder as a tactical surveillance drone hovered directly above the dry creek bed. A harsh, blinding beam of white LED light snapped on from the underside of the hovering machine, sweeping back and forth across the muddy ground like an accusing finger searching out its prey.
“Get under the culvert! Move, move!” Arthur hissed, grabbing Sarah’s arm and dragging her and Lily underneath a thick concrete drainage pipe that spanned the width of the creek bed.
They huddled tightly together in the cramped, shadowy recess of the concrete structure just as the drone’s overhead beam washed blindingly across the mouth of the culvert. The machine hovered stationary for several agonizing seconds, its onboard thermal imaging cameras undoubtedly scanning the heat signatures bouncing off the damp concrete walls. Arthur held his breath, pressing his hand gently over Lily’s mouth to keep the trembling little girl from sobbing out loud.
Above them, the distinct click-whir of a motorized payload bay opening echoed through the metal chassis of the drone.
“Hold your breath,” Arthur whispered against Sarah’s ear, his heart hammering violently against his ribs as he braced for an explosive impact.
Instead of a missile, a small cylindrical canister dropped from the drone’s belly, hitting the soft mud just ten feet outside the mouth of the culvert with a dull thud. A thick, billowing cloud of grey tear gas instantly erupted, hissing furiously as it spread outward, wind-driven plumes creeping rapidly toward their hiding spot.
“Gas! Cover your faces!” Arthur coughed, ripping the sleeve of his torn white shirt and pressing it over Lily’s nose and mouth while Sarah did the same with her blouse.
The acrid, stinging fumes began to fill the culvert, burning their eyes and tearing at their throats. The burning sensation made it nearly impossible to keep quiet, but they endured the agony in agonizing silence as the drone hovered above for another long minute before finally turning its rotors and buzzing away toward the burning house in the distance.
As the gas slowly dissipated in the night breeze, Arthur gasped for fresh air, his eyes watering profusely as he looked at Sarah and Lily.
“Are you two alright?” Arthur asked, his voice raw from the chemical exposure.
Sarah nodded weakly, wiping burning tears from her cheeks, but the look in her eyes was colder and more resolute than ever.
“We survived the drone, David, but how long before they track us to Marcus’s cabin?” Sarah demanded, coughing softly into her sleeve. “If we’re going to run into the wilderness, we need supplies, and we need a vehicle that doesn’t have a digital tracking transponder.”
Arthur’s eyes lit up with a sudden realization.
“My old motorcycle,” Arthur said quickly. “I kept it hidden in an abandoned storage locker down by the old freight yard five miles from here. It’s pre-digital—no GPS, no smart telemetry. They can’t track it.”
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They emerged from the culvert into the cool night air, moving swiftly along the shadowed perimeter of the railway line. But as they crested the gravel embankment, the headlights of an idling black SUV cut through the darkness directly ahead of them, blocking their path.
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