Hearing footsteps near the door again, Adrian looked up with a frown. One of the new men, Seth Daniels, appeared, green eyes much more excited than his even tone.
"We think something's happening outside. It sounds wrong."
Adrian immediately got up, reaching for his jacket.
Seth moved aside to let him through. "I guess you know I was an undercover cop, before. I'd make a good Eagle."
Adrian met his eye as they went up the dim hall. "I'll get back to you on that."
Seth nodded, dropped back to allow him the lead. "I'll be here."
As they neared the front, glass doors of the alley, Adrian stopped, listening to the noises growing louder, closer.
Crunch...Snap!
Recognizing the sound, his eyes widened, and he waved to Kenn and Kyle, "Get them all in the hall, bring the heaters! Perimeter men too!"
The next three minutes were total panic and chaos as a hundred sheep ran for the cover of the windowless hallway. Adrian watched with worried eyes, hoping the generators wouldn't freeze, but there wasn't time to bring them inside.
Heavy tree limbs were snapping off, slamming into banks of ashy, black snow, and when the windows in the mall across the street began to shatter, the din of fear increased. Adrian moved the Eagles to the front and rear of the terrified crowd, keeping his herd together.
Not as severe as in other places, the wave of freeze didn't take out all of the bowling alley's glass. Layers of plastic and mats were sealed over drafty doorways, and the temperature inside continued to climb despite the below zero winds that forced the guards to watch from the few trucks that hadn't frozen. Because of Kenn and Adrian, more than a hundred people were saved, and the camp relaxed quickly, went back to enjoying the light and heat when Adrian led them out.
5
The noise in the 34 lane alley was almost deafening, awful, and totally beautiful to those making it. Pins fell, balls thumped and rolled, voices talked, laughed, argued. Arcades dinged wildly, music blared from the speakers, and outside, snow fell in heavy sheets, blanketing everything. Other than the guards now watching from snow-covered trucks and the plastic hanging all over the inside of the alley, it was as if the crisis hadn't happened. Adrian was pleased that they had handled it so well.
Chris, Daryl, and Jeremy were the only Eagles on guard outside, all Level Two, and very uneasy as they kept the rest of those on duty alert. The noise was loud even through the muffling effect of the snow storm, and the lights glared out in the darkness. If anyone was still around here, they were hearing and seeing it too.