We drove in silence for over an hour. I drifted in and out, but woke when Finnr veered to the side of the road and slammed on the brakes. My heart leapt out of my chest. For a split second I thought he was going to pull out a gun and force me out of the car, but he sat there, staring straight ahead. It wasn’t until I noticed what he was staring at that gave me pause.
It was a caravan. Far enough away that I second guessed myself, but every moment that passed, the clearer it became. Finnr must have felt uneasy because he got out of the car and motioned for me to follow him. He walked around to the back of the car and popped the trunk. He was moving faster than I’d ever seen him move before, but it wasn’t frantic. He had an air of calm surrounding him that put me at ease. It wasn’t until he opened up a large canvas bag and pulled out a hunting rifle that I resumed shock. I had never seen it at the house and didn’t even realize he owned one.
I was staring in disbelief when he grabbed my arm and pulled me behind a mossy outcrop of rocks. As we sat there, a thought entered my mind, that I pushed out. “Was he going to kill me?”
The caravan was almost on top of us. We could hear the sound of squealing brakes as it slowed. The lead car came to a stop. I peaked out from behind the moss and watched as a man exited his vehicle and walked toward our car. Finnr moved out from behind the rock, holding the gun to his shoulder. I tried to grab him, but he was too quick. The exchange became heated at once, but I couldn’t understand anything they were saying. A woman got out of one of the vehicles and approach Finnr. His demeanor changed and he lowered his gun. She came forward and embraced him.
Finnr and the woman talked for a bit before he beckoned me over. I crept out from behind the rock, still uneasy. The woman approached me, shook my hand, and introduced herself as Anna.
We started to discuss my plans to return home but she interrupted me. There was nothing in Reykjavik. At least nothing we would want. The airports were shut down. Shipping ports abandoned. The city had turned to chaos within a week. It was the reason they left.
For the second time that day, I sat down on a rock and cried. I looked up and could see faces staring at me, but couldn’t make out any features. Tears had blurred my vision. My head was spinning. A few of them helped me to my feet and brought me back to the car. I couldn’t object. The caravan started back up and as the last car passed, Finnr turned his car around and fell in line.
When we got back to the junction, the caravan stopped. A few people got out and hugged each other, said their goodbyes and headed east. The three cars that remained, including Finnr’s, turned down the dirt road back toward town.