Page 36 - Unlikely Stories 1

Your Lucky Numbers

At 8:01 p.m. on a hot summer Wednesday evening the phone rang
in Ty Caesar’s kitchen. Her husband usually worked late a couple of
nights a week, and it was his habit to call about this time to tell her he
was coming home from the office.
“Hello, Bernie? Finished for the day?”
“Indeed I am. Now listen carefully, Ty: it’s time to put the muffins
in the oven.”
She was puzzled, pausing. “The muffins—”
“Yes, the muffins in the oven. Now. Do you understand?”
A shock ran up her spine. “You mean—?”
“Yes. I’ll be there very soon.”
She slowly hung up the phone. The phrase was code for “get ready
to leave the house, following the plan.” Why they needed this secret
language was beyond her, but, seeing his earnestness, she had
humored him. They drilled frequently on emergency preparedness
and evacuation. He told her a few minutes could mean life or death,
and that a situation of grave magnitude could easily occur while he
was not at home. They lived near the coast, in earthquake country, at
a low elevation in a high-fire-risk area. Her husband, a methodical
man, had placed all their important papers, including a quantity of
cash she thought was excessive, in a briefcase locked in the garage
cabinet. Rations, including water, were already packed in their old
station wagon—which Bernie kept in mechanically perfect condition
with a full tank of gas. The clothing they would need to ride out such
an expected but unpredictable natural disaster was in a garment bag
in the hall closet. He had timed her collecting these items, stowing
them in the vehicle, opening the garage door and warming up the
engine.
Now that training kicked in, taking over her physical movements
while her brain raced through possibilities. As she quickly followed
the routine, she glanced out the living room plate glass window into
the dusk. No activity on the street: had anyone else gotten the
message? She longed to run outside, knock on neighbors’ doors,
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