Run: A Novel

Three days earlier, Dee Colclough watches television coverage of an ongoing national crisis from a hotel room with her lover, Kiernan. The president has just addressed the nation, and news channels are reporting widespread chaos, including a mass shooting at a church in Columbia, South Carolina that left 45 dead. Kiernan reveals he's been called up by his National Guard unit and must report the following morning for neighborhood patrol duty.

What begins as an intimate moment between lovers quickly turns ominous as Kiernan exhibits increasingly strange behavior. He speaks cryptically about 'something happening' and claims he can feel a change coming over him. The atmosphere grows tenser when a power outage plunges their ninth-floor hotel room into darkness, leaving only the glow of Kiernan's cigarette visible.

Kiernan's transformation accelerates as he warns Dee to get away from him, claiming that something inside him wants to hurt her. Despite their loving relationship, he violently throws her across the room into a dresser, demonstrating that whatever is affecting him has already begun to take control. His final warning for her to 'get the fuck out while you still can' suggests a larger, more sinister force at work beyond just their personal relationship.

Meanwhile, at an abandoned airfield, an unnamed female protagonist arrives via Beechcraft plane. The setting is desolate, with a tattered wind sock, overgrown runway, and collapsed hangars, suggesting a location that has been long neglected. Upon her arrival, she is greeted by Matt, an enthusiastic young man working on his thesis who attempts to carry her bag and make conversation, but she politely deflects his advances, clearly focused on the task at hand.

The central focus becomes a massive excavation site containing a mass grave. The protagonist observes a team of nine people working in a pit approximately thirty-five by twenty meters in size. The scene is gruesome, with red flags marking human remains, and various professionals conducting detailed archaeological and anthropological work. The protagonist has an emotional moment, crying while observing the scene, though she acknowledges that such displays must be controlled while working.

In a conversation with Sam, the Australian team leader, the horrific nature of the site becomes clear. They have already recovered twenty-nine bodies, with mapping showing approximately 175 more remains still to be excavated. The victims include men, women, and children, all killed with high-velocity gunshots from .223 Remington rifles. Most disturbing is the revelation that the bodies were dismembered, likely with chainsaws, to prevent survivors from escaping. Despite being offered time to acclimate, the protagonist chooses to begin work immediately, activating her professional mindset as a 'cold, indifferent scientist.'

Jack Colclough's family frantically prepares to evacuate their home after hearing their address broadcast on the radio as a target. As they pack water, food, and camping supplies into their Land Rover Discovery, they're confronted by Kiernan in their driveway, covered in blood and wielding a butcher knife. The tense standoff ends with Kiernan retreating into the darkness, allowing the family to escape.

Their escape from the city becomes increasingly dangerous as they encounter a deadly roadblock where armed men attempt to separate the family. Jack manages a desperate escape through vacant lots and fences, sustaining injuries to his ear and hand in the process. They stop briefly to help a disoriented hospital patient before making their way to a gas station to refuel, witnessing signs of widespread violence and chaos throughout the city.

The family eventually makes it out of Albuquerque, encountering a helpful state police officer who warns them about the dangers on the highways. They ultimately find refuge behind some boulders in the desert, where Dee tends to Jack's wounds. The chapter ends with Jack and Dee lying under the stars, addressing their marital problems and Dee's affair with Kiernan, while grappling with their fear of the growing chaos around them.

Continuing north through Colorado after their escape from Albuquerque, the Colclough family witnesses the devastation in Durango where they find a town ablaze and streets littered with bodies. Despite Dee's protests, Jack stops to help a traumatized woman who reveals the horrific nature of the violence - former neighbors turning on each other with guns and axes. Though Jack hears a baby crying, Dee convinces him to leave, reminding him their priority must be their own children.

The family reaches Silverton, where they encounter a group of armed men guarding the mountain passes. These sentries warn them about an approaching convoy and direct them toward Cinnamon Pass as their only escape route. After a brief stop to gather supplies, the convoy arrives in Silverton, forcing the family to flee up the treacherous mountain road. During their escape, they endure gunfire that shatters more of their windows before finally losing their pursuers in the snow and fog at 12,640 feet.

Seeking refuge, the family sets up camp in a secluded grove near a stream, where Jack struggles to establish some semblance of normalcy by setting up their tent and attempting to build a fire. The chapter ends with a disturbing revelation from Cole, who mentions seeing strange lights on the night he stayed at Alex's house, suggesting a possible connection to the ongoing violence. This conversation, coupled with Dee's earlier confrontation about Jack needing to be a stronger presence for his family, highlights the mounting pressure on Jack to protect and lead his family through this crisis.

The Colclough family sleeps late into the following day before continuing their descent from the high mountain elevation. As they navigate the winding roads, they encounter disturbing evidence of violence, including a luxury SUV containing the bodies of an entire murdered family. Jack shields his family from this sight, as Dee and the children sleep through much of the drive through a burned mountain hamlet where they discover a mass of bodies in a soccer field.

The family stops briefly at a reservoir for a moment of relative normalcy, sharing soup and engaging in playful water splashing. Jack demonstrates growing leadership by formulating a plan to head into northwest Colorado's sparsely populated areas. The journey continues through the night, with Jack navigating dark country roads and conserving fuel, though the memory of the baby's cries from Durango still haunts him.

Their relative peace is shattered when they stop for gas in a seemingly empty town. While refueling, they're suddenly pursued by a motorcycle and two vehicles. A high-speed chase ensues, with Jack and Dee working together to defend themselves using their shotgun. The confrontation culminates in Jack deliberately ramming the motorcycle, killing its rider in a graphic collision. The family escapes and hides as two more vehicles pass by, but the violent encounter leaves Cole traumatized and crying for home, while the family grapples with the brutal reality of their survival.

The motorcycle pursuer's death weighs heavily on the Colclough family as they continue north, seeking refuge at an abandoned motel. Their brief respite is interrupted by the sight of a massive convoy passing on the highway—armed men, fuel trucks, and most disturbingly, people trapped in metal cages. This close call reinforces the deadly reality that even minor mistakes could prove fatal.

Desperate for supplies, Jack ventures into a devastated grocery store in a nearby town, encountering horrific scenes of violence and a mortally wounded teenage boy who begs to be put out of his misery. The experience deeply affects Jack, who chooses not to share the full extent of the horror with his family. Their journey continues north, with Jack siphoning gas from abandoned vehicles and carefully tracking a distant convoy's movements to avoid detection.

The family finds temporary refuge in an isolated ranch house with working utilities, only to discover the elderly owners, Ron and Mrs. Schirard, had committed suicide in their bedroom. Using the ham radio equipment in the house, Jack makes contact with Paul Hewson in Belfast, learning crucial information about the crisis: it's limited to the lower forty-eight states and northern Mexico, possibly connected to the aurora event a month prior, and that safety might be found in refugee camps in southern Canada. The chapter ends with the family back on the road, their Land Rover showing signs of mechanical trouble as they approach Rock Springs, Wyoming.

The Colclough family arrives in Rock Springs, Wyoming, where their vehicle's oil leak becomes a critical concern. With less than a quarter tank of gas remaining, they spot an approaching convoy and are forced to seek refuge behind a butte in the desert. Their attempt to hide is complicated when two vehicles - a Jeep and an F-150 - break away from the convoy to investigate their tracks, leading to a violent confrontation where Jack and Dee must defend their family.

The ensuing firefight reveals a disturbing truth about their attackers. Dave, one of the assailants, explains that he and his companions experienced a religious awakening during the aurora event while camping in the Big Horn Mountains. Their encounter with the lights transformed them into zealous killers who target those who haven't shared their experience. The confrontation ends with multiple casualties, including Dave and his companion Heather, though Jack sustains a serious gunshot wound to his shoulder.

With reinforcements from the convoy approaching, the family flees north toward Pinedale, eventually taking refuge in the Wind River Mountains when their fuel runs critically low. The chapter culminates with Dee performing emergency surgery to remove the bullet from Jack's shoulder using only basic tools. Throughout the night, Jack battles fever and blood loss while being cared for by his family, highlighting both their resourcefulness and the strengthening bonds between them despite their desperate circumstances.

Jack's condition has stabilized overnight, though blood loss has left him weakened as the Colclough family awakens in their mountain refuge. Their brief respite is cut short by the reality of their situation - the Land Rover has less than a gallon of gas remaining, and they face difficult choices about their next move. After a tense discussion, they decide to drive further up the canyon until their fuel runs out.

The Land Rover finally dies on a mountain road at 2:49 PM, leaving the family stranded. Despite Jack's weakened condition, he insists on walking forward to search for help, leading to an argument with Dee about their desperate situation. The tension is broken when Naomi spots an unmarked mailbox leading to an overgrown road up the mountainside. Despite Jack's exhaustion and continuing recovery, they make the difficult climb up the winding road through an aspen grove.

Their perseverance is rewarded when they discover an isolated cabin equipped with solar panels. After carefully checking the property, Jack breaks in and discovers a well-stocked pantry full of canned goods and supplies. The family enjoys their first proper meal in days, with each member savoring different canned foods while processing their good fortune. The chapter concludes with the family settling into the relative comfort and safety of the cabin for the night, with Jack and Dee sharing an intimate moment - their first in months - suggesting a renewal of their relationship amid the ongoing crisis.

Jack immediately sets about securing their mountain sanctuary. He retrieves the Land Rover using gasoline found in the shed, then uses a chainsaw to fell a large spruce across the access road, effectively hiding their presence. Despite his injured shoulder, he manages these tasks while being careful not to tear his stitches, demonstrating both his resourcefulness and determination to protect his family.

A thorough inventory of their food supplies reveals a sobering reality - even with strict rationing, they only have enough provisions for thirteen days. To supplement their supplies, Dee suggests utilizing the fly-fishing equipment found in the shed. Despite Jack's initial skepticism about his fishing abilities, having only taken one class two years prior, he makes an attempt at the nearby stream. His first day of fishing yields only a single fingerling, which he releases, though he notices larger fish in the water. The family's dinner consists of shared cans of navy beans and a few pretzels each, highlighting their precarious situation.

In the middle of the night, Jack realizes he forgot to remove the mailbox that led them to the cabin - a potential marker that could guide others to their location. Unable to sleep, he hikes down with the chainsaw at four in the morning to remove this possible threat. After disposing of the mailbox, his return journey brings an unexpected encounter with a massive elk, which he's forced to let pass without action due to not having brought the shotgun. The moment serves as a painful reminder of a missed opportunity to secure substantial food for his family, underscoring the challenges they face in their fight for survival.

Jack successfully restores the cabin's off-grid power system, water supply, and water heater, transforming their mountain refuge into a more livable sanctuary. The family takes precautions by storing water in the freezer and covering windows with blankets to contain heat and hide firelight. Despite skipping lunch due to their limited supplies, they work to make the most of their situation, with Dee and Naomi exploring bread recipes while Jack focuses on providing food through fishing.

Taking Cole fishing with an improvised pole made from an aspen sapling, string, and a ceiling screw hook, Jack's skills show marked improvement from his previous day's single fingerling. He manages to catch two fingerlings and a twelve-inch rainbow trout, marking their first substantial fresh food since arriving at the cabin. The father-son bonding moment over the caught fish provides a brief respite from their dire circumstances, while back at the cabin, Dee and Naomi successfully bake bread and gather firewood.

The chapter concludes with a deeply troubling conversation between Jack and Dee about Cole's potential vulnerability to the violence affecting others. They discuss the revelation from their previous attacker about the aurora's connection to the violence, noting that while they and Naomi slept through it, Cole had watched it with Alex's family. Jack shares his concern about Cole's strange behavior, including an incident of prolonged mirror-staring, leading to a heart-wrenching discussion about what they would do if Cole became violent. Both parents ultimately agree they would rather die than harm their son, pledging to stay together as a family regardless of what happens.

Dawn breaks at the mountain cabin as Jack begins his day with quiet reflection, contemplating memories of his past life while watching for elk from the tree line. He spends the morning felling aspen trees, careful not to tear his stitches, then successfully catches four fish from a productive stretch of stream upstream, showing his growing competence at providing for his family in their new circumstances.

In a pivotal moment, Jack has a careful conversation with Cole about the aurora event, trying to gauge whether his son has been affected by the phenomenon that has caused widespread violence. Cole's response is unsettling but ambiguous - he expresses wishes that his family had seen the lights too, describing them as 'very pretty,' but doesn't directly indicate any violent tendencies.

The chapter culminates in a devastating conversation between Jack and Dee as they watch the distant fires of what they believe to be Jackson Hole burning. After sharing beers on the porch, Jack confesses to a month-long affair from two years ago, attempting to start their new life without secrets. The confession shatters their momentary peace, with Dee reacting with anger and pain, especially at his timing. The revelation creates new tension in their recently rekindled relationship, ending with Dee crying alone in the meadow while Jack watches the distant fires.

Jack channels his emotional turmoil into providing for his family when he spots the same massive bull elk he had encountered days before. Drawing on hunting skills from his college days with his father in Montana, Jack successfully shoots the elk and undertakes the grueling task of field dressing the animal. Despite his injured shoulder and torn stitches, he works methodically through the complex process of breaking down the massive creature.

The thirteen-hour ordeal of processing the elk becomes a transformative experience for the family dynamics. While Cole and Naomi watch with a mixture of horror and fascination, Jack demonstrates practical survival skills by properly butchering the animal, ultimately securing approximately two hundred pounds of meat. Throughout the day, Dee remains notably absent, sleeping through the entire process, highlighting the lingering tension from Jack's recent confession.

The chapter concludes with a moment of reconciliation between Jack and Dee. After cleaning himself up from the day's work, Jack chooses to sleep in the second upstairs bedroom, still giving Dee space. However, she seeks him out, praising his actions and revealing how his accomplishment has elevated him in their children's eyes, particularly Naomi's. The intimate moment ends with Dee inviting Jack back to their shared bed, suggesting the beginning of healing in their relationship.

The morning after Jack's successful elk hunt brings a light dusting of snow and a rare sense of peace to the mountain refuge. Dee carefully replaces Jack's torn shoulder stitches before he begins preparing elk steaks from the tenderloins, creating a special dry rub from the cabin's available spices.

The family discovers a wiffle ball set in the shed and transforms the meadow into an impromptu baseball field using milk jugs as bases. They divide into teams of boys versus girls for a seven-game series, culminating in Cole's winning hit that brings Jack home. The afternoon unfolds in peaceful moments, with Jack observing his family from the porch, consciously focusing on the present rather than dwelling on past troubles or future uncertainties.

The day concludes with a celebratory dinner that marks their most peaceful moment since the crisis began. Jack grills both elk steaks and rainbow trout, elevating the occasion by producing a hidden bottle of 1994 Silver Oak wine he discovered in the cabin. The family shares this special meal by candlelight, with even Cole receiving a small taste of wine in a shot glass. In an emotional toast, Jack expresses his love for his family and declares this day the finest of his life, suggesting a profound appreciation for their survival and unity amid the ongoing chaos beyond their mountain sanctuary.

The family's peaceful respite shatters when Dee reveals she heard chainsaw sounds while Jack was fishing - sounds he confirms he didn't make. This revelation forces Jack to confront the possibility that others have discovered their mountain refuge, leading him to carefully orchestrate an emergency evacuation plan while maintaining a facade of normalcy to avoid alerting potential watchers outside their windows.

Their escape attempt begins with methodical preparation - gathering essential supplies, dressing warmly in the dark, and exiting through a bedroom window. Progress halts when Jack discovers vehicles blocking their escape route down the driveway, forcing them to attempt a forest escape instead. When Jack enters the shed to retrieve their packs, he encounters a bearded man with a chainsaw, resulting in a violent confrontation that ends in the intruder's death.

The situation escalates into a full-scale assault as multiple attackers emerge from the darkness, forcing Jack to defend himself against both armed individuals and attack dogs. Separated from his family in the chaos, Jack finds himself alone in the woods, desperately trying to locate Dee and the children while evading multiple pursuers. The chapter ends with Jack running blindly uphill through the darkness, his family's fate unknown, armed with only six shotgun shells against overwhelming odds.

Jack awakens alone at dawn, having lost track of his family during the violent attack at their cabin. After thirty minutes of hiking upstream along the mountain, he discovers Dee, Naomi, and Cole huddled together on the opposite bank of the stream. Their emotional reunion is tempered by the harsh reality that they cannot return to their sanctuary, as Jack explains that the eight armed intruders are unlikely to leave given the valuable resources at the cabin.

With limited supplies salvaged during their escape - including a tent, sleeping bags, water filter, camp stove, and map - the family begins a grueling day-long hike through the Wind River Mountains. The journey takes them through changing terrain, from aspen groves to evergreen forests, as they climb to higher elevations. Dee struggles with the uncertainty of their situation, particularly Jack's plan to reach a highway fifteen to twenty miles away with no clear destination afterward. The strain of their circumstances begins to show as Dee breaks down, highlighting the emotional toll of their continued displacement.

The family makes camp near a small mountain lake at nine thousand feet, backed by a towering cliff. Despite Jack's attempts to maintain optimism by reminding himself they could be in worse situations, the weight of their circumstances dampens even the natural beauty surrounding them. The night brings its own challenges as Cole wakes frightened by the sounds of rockfall and jumping fish, seeking reassurance from his father. Jack's late-night reflections reveal how their priorities have shifted from mundane concerns to basic survival, though exhaustion makes even these life-and-death worries secondary to the need for rest.

The Colclough family begins another arduous day of travel through the Wind River Mountains, starting early with a meager breakfast of oatmeal boiled with filtered lake water before breaking camp while frost still covers the ground. Using his compass, Jack identifies a distant cirque of granite spires as their eastern goal, leading his family through spruce forests and onto broad meadows with grazing cattle.

The journey takes a physical toll on everyone, particularly the children. Cole's legs begin to fail him in the early afternoon, forcing Jack to carry his son on his shoulders while Dee takes over Jack's pack. The high altitude and intense sun quickly deplete their morning water intake, leading to severe dehydration. Naomi pushes through despite developing painful blisters on her feet, maintaining her determination to reach their next water source.

By evening, the family reaches another lake, where they desperately rehydrate using their water filter. The combination of dehydration and altitude sickness affects them all severely, with Jack becoming delirious and struggling even to set up their tent. Despite her own exhaustion, Dee takes charge of their care, insisting everyone eat from cans of food and take Tylenol before sleeping. While his family manages to rest, Jack's severe headache drives him out of the tent after midnight, seeking relief by submerging his head through the lake's icy surface.

Despite their grueling journey and altitude sickness from the previous day, the Colclough family awakens by the mountain lake with improved conditions, though they get a late start. A sobering inventory reveals they're down to just eight cans of food, highlighting their increasingly desperate situation. Despite Dee's insistence that they need substantial nutrition for the challenging terrain, Jack expresses concern about their dwindling supplies.

The family continues their eastward trek, finally breaking above the timberline to reach a knoll offering views of four lakes and imposing granite spires piercing through low clouds. As weather conditions deteriorate, bringing cold mist and eventually snow, they push on to the farthest lake at the foot of the cirque. Setting up camp in one of the few level grass patches, the family takes shelter in their tent, where Naomi and Dee share a moment of dark humor acknowledging how much their situation 'fucking sucks.'

Jack undertakes the essential task of providing water for his family, making multiple trips to the lake to fill and filter water for each family member. During his final trip, overwhelmed by their circumstances, he allows himself a private moment to break down and cry. The chapter concludes with an intimate family moment in the tent, where Cole voices his fears about dying, prompting Jack to firmly assure his son of his commitment to protect them. The exchange ends with a glimpse of Naomi's old personality emerging through a sarcastic response to Jack's expression of love, providing a brief moment of levity in their dire circumstances.

A thin layer of snow covers the Colclough family's tent when they awaken by the mountain lake. Jack faces the daunting challenge of getting his family over the imposing cirque that looms before them, knowing the difficulty that lies ahead, particularly for seven-year-old Cole. After Dee removes Jack's shoulder stitches and the family drinks as much water as possible, they begin their ascent, first traversing a field of massive boulders before starting the actual climb.

The climb proves brutally challenging, with the family ascending roughly a thousand feet above the lake by mid-afternoon. Cole reaches his breaking point first, followed closely by Naomi, but the family continues pushing forward with frequent stops. Jack and Dee resort to telling desperate lies about being 'almost there' to keep the children moving. Eventually, Jack is forced to carry Cole on his shoulders while Dee takes his pack, but by 4:30 PM, it becomes clear they won't reach the summit before nightfall.

With no suitable terrain for their tent, the family is forced to spend the night exposed on the mountainside, taking shelter against the largest stable boulder they can find. They share their last four cans of food while watching darkness fall, using their spare clothes as pillows and huddling together under two sleeping bags for warmth. Despite the harsh conditions and their precarious position on the mountain, they find a moment of peace under a spectacular display of stars before falling asleep.

Cold and stiff after their exposed night on the mountainside, the Colclough family awakens to their most desperate situation yet - no food, no water, and stranded at twelve thousand feet. Jack fights back panic as the family briefly escapes their reality by sharing fantasies about breakfast foods they miss, from Froot Loops to bacon and eggs, before tackling the final push to the summit.

The remaining climb proves the most treacherous yet, with the steepest pitch forcing Jack to make the difficult decision to abandon their pack containing the tent and sleeping bags to navigate a particularly narrow crack in the rock face. The family faces a series of harrowing moments, including Naomi nearly falling and requiring Jack to catch her, and Dee's intense fear of heights threatening to paralyze her progress. Through careful coaching and determination, they manage to help each other up the most dangerous section.

After reaching the summit ridge, they finally spot their destination - a highway running north to south several miles away and one vertical mile below. The family begins their descent down the eastern slope, moving through boulder fields and eventually reaching the tree line by evening. Exhausted and desperately thirsty, they take shelter under a large spruce tree for the night, breaking off lower branches for minimal protection. Despite the discomfort and their extreme thirst, the family finds some solace in having conquered the mountain together, though Jack falls asleep before he can express his pride in their accomplishment.

The Colclough family's physical condition deteriorates rapidly as they navigate the treacherous descent from the summit ridge, with no food or water to sustain them at twelve thousand feet. Jack struggles with dizziness and leg cramps while carrying Cole on his shoulders, the family's desperation mounting with each difficult step down the eastern slope.

Salvation arrives when Cole spots a small spring trickling down a boulder face in the afternoon. After testing the water himself, Jack allows each family member to drink their fill, carefully monitoring Cole's intake before letting the others have their turn. The discovery of the spring leads them to a suitable camping spot beneath a nearby rock overhang, where Jack creates makeshift bedding from moss to provide some comfort for his exhausted family.

As night falls and temperatures drop, the family's wet clothes begin to freeze, forcing Jack to gather pine branches for additional cover. While his family shivers beneath the makeshift shelter, Jack experiences a profound moment of self-realization. Standing in the moonlight, looking back at the mountain they conquered, he acknowledges a deep satisfaction in his role as protector and provider, recognizing that the extreme circumstances have awakened something primal within him - a willingness and even desire to do whatever necessary to keep his family alive, including killing if required.

Dawn breaks on the Colclough family's most physically deteriorated state yet. Their conversation reveals the toll their mountain ordeal has taken - they're dirty, sunburned, and developing dreadlocks, yet Jack and Dee share a tender moment discussing the importance of staying together and maintaining hope. Despite their exhaustion and hunger, they finally emerge from the mountains to find Highway 287, which Jack identifies as their route toward Montana and ultimately Canada.

The family's journey along the highway proves challenging, especially after months of walking on rough terrain. With only nine bullets remaining in their Glock and no food, they walk for several hours until rain forces them to seek shelter. Jack discovers an abandoned stable with a partially intact tin roof, where the family takes refuge from the worsening weather. The physical toll of their journey becomes evident as Jack notices his swollen knees and painful shins from walking on pavement.

During their night in the stable, Cole makes a disturbing revelation about his connection to the aurora event, explaining that he can see a white light around his own head and shoulders - but not around his family members. This confession creates tension, with Naomi expressing fear about sleeping near her brother, though Jack and Dee defend Cole, suggesting that children might be affected differently due to their innocence. The chapter ends with Cole developing a high fever and chills in the middle of the night, adding a new layer of concern to their already desperate situation.

Cole's fever worsens dramatically in the stable, forcing the Colclough family to abandon their shelter despite Dee's concerns about dehydration. With no choice but to continue their search for water and better refuge, Jack carries his severely ill son through increasingly treacherous terrain as Cole's condition deteriorates rapidly—his eyes becoming milky and unfocused while fever-induced delirium sets in.

The journey becomes a grueling test of endurance as they climb higher into snow-covered elevations. Jack struggles with carrying Cole's fifty-four pound weight, forcing frequent stops along the switchbacks. The family resorts to eating snow to quench their thirst, though this only serves to make them colder, and Jack attempts to keep Cole hydrated with handfuls of slush. As the day progresses, their rest periods grow longer while their walking intervals become shorter, highlighting their increasing exhaustion.

Their desperate search for shelter leads them to an abandoned construction site, where hopes of finding usable vehicles are quickly dashed. They take refuge for the night inside a sixty-foot length of corrugated steel drainage pipe, with Jack maintaining watch at the opening as snow continues to fall. Despite his determination to stay awake and guard his family, exhaustion eventually overwhelms him, while Dee tends to their delirious son inside the pipe.

Jack ventures out from the drainage pipe to explore the area and discovers a military encampment at Togwotee Pass. The site includes various military vehicles, civilian cars, and a Red Cross refugee relief truck. Initially hopeful upon encountering armed soldiers, Jack's relief turns to horror when the redheaded commander violently attacks him, breaking his nose and snapping his ring finger to extract information about his family's whereabouts. Despite Jack's lies about his family being dead, he is captured and dragged toward a semi-trailer.

Dee, awakened by engine sounds, follows Jack's trail and witnesses him being loaded into the trailer by soldiers. Despite having the Glock, she makes the heart-wrenching decision to stay hidden rather than attempt a rescue, knowing she must protect their children. She watches helplessly as the military convoy departs with Jack, taking him down the western side of the pass while she returns to their children at the construction site.

The aftermath of Jack's capture devastates the family in different ways. Naomi retreats into a drainage pipe for hours, overwhelmed with grief, while Cole processes the loss with unsettling questions about becoming 'in charge.' Dee leads the family to search the abandoned lodge and cabins at the pass, finding minimal supplies but securing shelter for the night. The chapter concludes with Dee's emotional moment at sunset, offering a prayer-like declaration of love to Jack across the distance, before joining her children in their cold refuge for the night.

Dee rouses her children from their hiding place in the drainage pipe, forcing herself to focus on survival despite the devastating loss of Jack to the military forces. The morning starts late, with Dee struggling to get Naomi out of bed, reminiscent of typical school mornings from their past life. They begin their descent down the western side of Togwotee Pass, their physical condition deteriorating rapidly from hunger and exhaustion as they resort to eating snow to sustain themselves along the mostly dry pavement, their perception of colors and sounds becoming distorted as their bodies weaken.

The family's journey reaches a critical point when Naomi collapses in the middle of the road, expressing a desire to die rather than continue their seemingly hopeless trek. This leads to an intense confrontation between mother and daughter, culminating in Dee slapping Naomi and delivering a fierce reminder about not giving up. The moment reveals both Dee's determination to keep her family alive and the extreme psychological toll their situation has taken on Naomi, who had earlier noticed the Glock in her mother's waistband and suggested ending their suffering.

By evening, the family manages to cover only a mile before seeking shelter in a boulder-strewn meadow away from the road. Their situation becomes increasingly desperate as they find neither snow nor running water in the area. Dee torments herself with regrets about not collecting snow from earlier in the day or taking containers from the pass restaurant, highlighting how even small oversights can have serious consequences in their fight for survival. The family falls asleep quickly in their hidden position, exhausted and dehydrated, but at least temporarily safe from view of the road.

Dee and the children spend a full day immobilized by exhaustion and dehydration in their boulder-strewn meadow refuge. Their physical condition deteriorates severely, with Naomi and Dee having a haunting conversation about death and dying. The family's desperation reaches new depths as they contemplate eating grass, while Dee struggles with both her hope that Jack is still alive and her responsibility to keep their children alive.

Their salvation arrives in the unexpected form of Ed Abernathy, a National Park Service ranger driving a Jeep Cherokee at night. After a tense confrontation where Dee holds him at gunpoint and uses Cole to verify he isn't affected by the aurora, Ed shares his food and water with the desperate family. The encounter highlights Dee's moral struggle when she briefly considers killing Ed for his supplies but ultimately cannot bring herself to harm an innocent person.

Though Ed initially leaves them behind, he returns minutes later, reluctantly agreeing to take the family with him in his Jeep. They arrange the vehicle to accommodate everyone, with Naomi and Cole in the back seat and Dee riding shotgun. As they drive through the night, descending from the pass with views of the Teton mountains, Ed reveals his self-proclaimed selfish nature while simultaneously demonstrating his humanity through his actions. The chapter ends with Ed planning to find shelter for the daylight hours, establishing a new alliance that could prove crucial to the family's survival.

Ed's reluctant decision to help the family leads them to the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone, where they find temporary refuge in the empty historic building. The familiar surroundings bring back memories for Dee of visiting sixteen years ago with Jack during happier times, when they were newlyweds moving from Montana to New Mexico. While at the inn, Ed reveals his past as a commercial pilot and proposes a new plan to reach Canada by stealing a plane from the Bozeman airfield, though he admits he hasn't flown in over two decades.

The group sets out at night toward Bozeman, traveling through abandoned Montana towns. Their journey is violently interrupted on a dirt road when they encounter an armed group that kills Ed and surrounds the vehicle. Cole makes the disturbing observation that their attackers have the same light around their heads that he sees around himself, suggesting a connection to the aurora phenomenon. The situation becomes dire when the group's leader, Max, orders Dee and the children back into the vehicle, which is now leaking fuel, intending to burn them alive.

Just as all hope seems lost, a group led by a woman named Liz launches a surprise attack on Max's forces, killing most of them and saving Dee and her children. The survivors are taken to a secured compound in the woods, complete with razor wire perimeter and guard towers. They're given shelter in a cabin, where Dee and her children finally have a chance to clean up and eat. The chapter ends with a heartbreaking conversation between Dee and Naomi about Jack's fate, now missing for four days, highlighting the emotional toll of their separation.

Rescued from Max's group by Liz, Dee and her children are brought to Mathias's secured compound, home to around sixty-seven people. The fortified settlement features electrified razor wire, guard towers, and regular patrols, along with amenities like a school, greenhouse, and medical facilities. Mathias recruits Dee to serve as the community's doctor, particularly to care for two pregnant women, but maintains an underlying threat of violence should she prove disloyal.

The situation grows tense when Mathias wakes Dee in the middle of the night to treat Max, now their captured prisoner being tortured for information. During the interrogation, it's revealed that Max saw a light around Cole's head, leading Mathias to believe Cole is affected by the aurora phenomenon. This discovery prompts Mathias to essentially hold the family hostage, declaring they cannot leave due to knowing too much about the compound, while simultaneously viewing Cole as a potential threat.

The chapter climaxes with an attack on the compound when multiple intruders cut through the perimeter fence. As chaos erupts, Dee seizes the opportunity to escape with her children, first killing Liz who was guarding their cabin. They manage to find shelter in a depression in the woods, where they hide under leaves while listening to an extended firefight throughout the night. The battle concludes at dawn with what appears to be an execution, indicated by twenty-five synchronized gunshots following sounds of pleading and weeping.

Following their escape from their cabin during the compound attack, Dee and her children spend the day hidden in a depression in the woods, witnessing the aftermath of the battle. From their vantage point, they observe at least twenty soldiers methodically confirming kills across the clearing, including a row of executed women and children near the mess hall. The day's horror escalates when they witness Mathias's capture, torture, and eventual execution, culminating in his body being burned on a pyre while soldiers celebrate around the bonfire.

The situation grows even more horrific as soldiers begin setting fire to occupied cabins, trapping people inside while taunting their victims. Despite Naomi's desperate plea to help the people trapped in the burning buildings, Dee forces her children to continue their escape, knowing intervention would mean certain death. They make their way to the checkpoint where Ed's Jeep still stands, and after removing Ed's decomposing body from the driver's seat, they manage to get the vehicle running despite its bullet-damaged windshield.

Dee drives through the night, first reaching an interstate and then turning north onto Highway 89. After covering significant distance, she stops at a reservoir to rest while her children sleep in the car. Studying a map, she determines they are approximately 275 miles from the Canadian border, with Great Falls being the only major city in their path. The chapter ends with Dee's emotional reflection on Jack's absence - though it's been six days since his capture, she maintains a deep conviction that he is still alive somewhere under the same night sky.

Jack awakens to find himself imprisoned in a semitrailer with numerous other captives, including a crying baby and an elderly woman who comforts him during moments of despair. His capture at Togwotee Pass has led to this horrific situation, where the trailer reeks of death and bodily waste. His mutilated hand, missing the ring finger that was violently removed during his capture, causes him intense pain as they travel through mountain roads.

After an undetermined period of travel, the trailer stops at what appears to be an airfield. The prisoners - approximately two hundred from multiple trailers - are herded toward a collection of tents with promises of hot food and beds. However, this proves to be a cruel deception as the soldiers line up the prisoners along a freshly dug pit. The situation transforms into a mass execution, with soldiers opening fire on the crowd using AR-15s. Jack survives the initial volley by falling into the pit and pulling dead bodies over himself for protection.

In the aftermath of the massacre, soldiers with chainsaws move through the pit, ensuring no survivors remain by dismembering anyone still moving. Jack remains motionless under a headless corpse until darkness falls, then manages to crawl out of the pit and into the nearby forest. Despite being shot in the shoulder, he reaches the safety of the trees, where he witnesses a bulldozer filling in the mass grave, crushing the bones of the victims. His survival of this horrific event comes at great psychological cost, as he experiences a profound sense of detachment while processing the trauma of what he has witnessed.

Jack awakens under a tree, suffering from severe stomach cramps and disoriented by the bright sunlight. His physical condition is deteriorating rapidly, with significant blood loss from both his gunshot wound to the shoulder and the exposed bone where his ring finger was forcibly removed during his capture. The immediate danger hasn't passed, as he finds himself surrounded by soldiers conducting sweeps of the meadow, some with dogs, forcing him to move despite his weakened state.

Jack's attempt to escape through the dense pine forest becomes an increasingly desperate journey as the day progresses. Without any sense of direction or landmarks to guide him, he pushes deeper into the wilderness, finding neither roads nor water sources that could help him orient himself or sustain his failing body. The complete isolation of his surroundings suggests he's moving further from any chance of civilization or rescue.

As daylight begins to fade, Jack finds himself climbing higher into increasingly difficult terrain, eventually reaching a steep, wooded hillside as twilight sets in. His physical and mental resources completely depleted, he can no longer continue forward, sitting down in defeat as shivers wrack his body. The chapter ends with Jack at his lowest point, having nothing left to give in his fight for survival.

Jack awakens covered in frost on the steep hillside, experiencing the coldest temperatures of his life. He spends two agonizing hours waiting for the sun to reach him, finally feeling its warmth thaw his frozen clothes before forcing himself to continue climbing. His journey becomes an endless ordeal of crawling on hands and knees, with time losing all meaning as he pushes his body beyond its limits.

In a moment of near surrender, Jack realizes he's reaching a critical point where if he doesn't continue moving, he'll likely never get up again. His perseverance is rewarded when he stumbles into a clearing during the night, discovering he's on a ski slope at a resort. He identifies the run as 'Emigrant' from a sign with a black diamond marker, and spots a lodge halfway up the mountainside, complete with ski lift terminals and cables.

Desperate for water after his ordeal, Jack makes his way to the lodge, so weak he must crawl up the steps. Finding the doors locked, he breaks in through a window using a rock, entering a moonlit cafeteria. His search for water becomes increasingly frantic as he finds all drink dispensers non-functional and other areas locked. In a final desperate act, Jack locates a bathroom in the darkness and, finding no running water from the taps, resorts to drinking from a toilet bowl, too dehydrated to care about sanitation.

Jack awakens on the bathroom floor of the ski lodge, slowly piecing together his survival after desperately consuming toilet water. Though severely weakened and injured, he discovers a vending machine in the lodge's lobby, breaking it open to access a wealth of packaged snacks. This unexpected bounty provides his first real sustenance since his capture, though the food is stale from being leftover from the previous ski season.

Jack's fortune continues to improve when he discovers an abandoned mountain bike outside the lodge. Despite his injuries and exhaustion, he manages to cycle down from the mountains, covering significant distance as the terrain changes from alpine forest to sage-filled foothills. The bicycle proves to be a crucial find, allowing him to travel much faster than his blistered feet would have permitted, eventually reaching Highway 89.

By evening, Jack arrives at a reservoir about thirty miles north of Bozeman, where he finally has access to clean water and can rest. In an emotionally charged moment, he attempts to connect with Dee by speaking into his dead phone, sharing his location and intentions to head toward Great Falls. His decision to continue north rather than backtrack south to search for his family reflects both practical necessity and hope that Dee will make similar choices, remembering their shared history in Great Falls.

Jack awakens late the next morning beside the reservoir, his body stiff and sore under the bright sun. The vast highway stretches endlessly in both directions, emphasizing his complete isolation in the empty landscape. No vehicles or signs of life are visible anywhere, reinforcing the desolate nature of his situation.

Seizing the opportunity provided by the reservoir's presence, Jack strips off his clothes and immerses himself in the freezing water, using this chance to clean both himself and his bloodied clothing. This moment of cleansing serves as both a practical necessity and a symbolic washing away of the horrors he's endured, particularly the trauma of the mass grave escape. The cold water provides a stark contrast to his recent experiences, momentarily shocking him back to a more present state of mind.

Continuing his journey north on the mountain bike, Jack rides for hours until his clothes dry completely and his energy is thoroughly depleted. The day passes without him encountering a single vehicle or building, emphasizing the desolate nature of his situation. As evening approaches, he finds himself surrounded by high desert under an expansive sky, feeling diminished and utterly alone in the vast landscape, yet still pushing forward toward his hope of reuniting with his family.

While cycling north on Highway 89, Jack discovers an abandoned minivan containing the murdered bodies of a family. Upon investigating, he finds the vehicle belongs to Donald Massey from Utah, whose family - including his wife, teenage twin sons, and young daughter - have been brutally killed. After respectfully moving the bodies, Jack takes the functional vehicle and continues north, eventually encountering Donald himself walking alone on the highway in a traumatized state.

Jack attempts to help the deeply traumatized Donald, getting him into the van and trying to provide food and water, though Donald remains nearly catatonic. As they travel through the mountains, Jack discovers through the vehicle registration that the minivan belongs to Donald's family, realizing he had unknowingly buried the man's murdered loved ones hours earlier. Rather than share this devastating truth, Jack simply holds Donald's hand as they drive, offering silent companionship until Donald quietly passes away during their journey.

Upon reaching Great Falls, Jack encounters a heavily armed checkpoint where he undergoes a disturbing test - being assessed by 'Benny,' a chained and tortured affected person who acts as a detector for other affected individuals. After passing the test, Jack learns the city houses 10-15,000 survivors and remains safe due to having been cloudy during the aurora event. His search for Dee and the children at a local shelter proves fruitless, though he learns the city is struggling with limited resources. After respectfully leaving Donald's body in a park, Jack makes his way to a familiar plaza from his past life with Dee, where he parks the van to rest, overwhelmed by exhaustion and the day's events.

Jack awakens in Donald Massey's minivan at the familiar plaza in Great Falls, surrounded by the remnants of his past life in the city. The autumn weather and empty streets create a stark contrast to his memories of the place from eighteen years ago, particularly the remembered aroma of a nearby coffeehouse that no longer exists. The city shows signs of recent violence and looting, with broken glass littering the sidewalks of Central Avenue.

Upon examining the minivan more closely, Jack discovers heartbreaking evidence of the Massey family's final moments, particularly in the third row where Donald's youngest daughter had made her space. Her unfinished sketch of the Montana landscape where Jack had found the van reveals both artistic talent and the abrupt nature of the family's murder, with an incomplete mountain line and an uncapped marker speaking to the sudden violence that ended her life. A cigar box containing her art supplies and a silver locket proves too emotionally challenging for Jack to fully explore.

Determined to leave a message for his family, Jack spends the entire morning writing Dee's name in large block letters on the minivan's sliding door, using up three markers in the process. He extends this effort by painting her name on surrounding building windows, ensuring its visibility from a distance. As weather conditions deteriorate into rain, Jack takes shelter in the van, eventually settling into the young girl's seat for the night. Despite his dwindling food supply of only twelve packages remaining, he finds momentary comfort in the sound of rainfall and the lingering scent of the girl's blanket, though thoughts of his own family prove too painful to dwell on.

Thunder-like sounds awaken Jack, but the distant explosions beyond Great Falls reveal a more ominous reality than any storm. The bombing prompts his urgent search for water, leading him to explore the abandoned Wells Fargo bank, where he finds all water sources non-functional except for toilet water, which he's not yet desperate enough to drink.

Determined to find clean water, Jack breaks into the Davidson Building using an improvised battering ram made from a concrete planter. Once inside, he creates a makeshift torch using strips of his shirt soaked in the minivan's oil and makes his way to the fourth floor. In a financial advisor's office, he finally discovers a working water cooler, where he drinks until his stomach aches. During this respite, he takes a moment to examine the abandoned office's personal effects - photos of families, soccer teams, and golf outings that serve as poignant reminders of the lost normal world.

The relative peace of his water-finding mission is shattered by increasingly frequent explosions, with black smoke visible rising from the prairie south of town. As night falls, the situation escalates with the sound of gunfire within the city limits and artillery shells lighting up the snow-filled sky. Jack's position in the minivan becomes increasingly precarious as the conflict draws closer to his location, suggesting that even Great Falls' status as a safe haven may be coming to an end.

Jack maintains his vigil in the plaza, continuing to write Dee's name as a signal while watching the escalating military conflict consume Great Falls. His wait is interrupted when Kiernan, now a violent zealot leading a military unit, discovers him. Their tense confrontation reveals the depths of Kiernan's transformation, as he confesses to murdering his own family and threatens to torture Jack for information about Dee's whereabouts.

The confrontation takes an unexpected turn when Dee appears in the plaza and shoots Kiernan through the eye. The reunion between Jack and Dee is deeply emotional, heightened by memories of their first meeting in the same plaza eighteen years earlier. After their reunion, they make their way to the library where Cole and Naomi are hiding, leading to another emotional reunion as the family comes back together. Dee tends to Jack's wounds, including his infected gunshot wound and the missing ring finger, while the sounds of war grow closer.

The family's reunion is cut short when the library comes under bombardment. They escape in Dee's Jeep Cherokee, with Jack driving and Dee serving as gunner. Their desperate flight through Great Falls becomes increasingly horrific as they navigate through military forces, tanks, and crowds of burning civilians fleeing a bombed elementary school. The chapter ends with the family finally breaking free of the city, driving north toward the Canadian border at high speed, with the glow of the burning city visible in their rearview mirror and the first hints of dawn appearing on the eastern horizon.

The Colclough family's flight north proves treacherous as their Jeep's failing engine forces them to stop every mile to let it cool. As they approach within a few miles of the Canadian border, their progress is halted when Dee is struck by a sniper's bullet, severing her femoral artery. Jack manages to apply a makeshift tourniquet using his shirt sleeve while defending his family from approaching attackers.

The situation becomes dire when they spot three trucks carrying eight heavily armed pursuers approaching their position. With limited ammunition and a disabled vehicle, Dee makes the devastating decision to sacrifice herself by driving the failing Jeep as a decoy, allowing Jack and the children to escape on foot. After an emotional goodbye with her family, Dee drives away, successfully drawing the pursuit vehicles after her.

In a shocking turn of events, Cole reveals that his connection to the aurora's influence has suddenly disappeared while they were running away. This prompts Jack to return to find Dee, discovering a scene of carnage where seven of their pursuers lie dead from headshots, with the eighth begging to be killed after apparently turning on his own group. Jack retrieves Dee, who is unconscious and bleeding heavily, and steals one of the pursuers' trucks. The chapter ends with Jack racing toward the Canadian border, desperately hoping Dee will survive long enough to reach medical help.

Nineteen years after the aurora crisis, Naomi works as part of an archaeological team excavating the mass grave where her father Jack nearly died. The dramatic time jump reveals that despite the apparent sacrifice in the previous chapter, the family has somehow survived and rebuilt their lives. When Jack arrives by plane to visit the site, their emotional reunion is followed by his recognition of the location where he survived the mass execution. Walking the grounds, Jack recounts the horrific details of that day, identifying where the trucks and tents were positioned, and how approximately two hundred people were lined up at the edge of the already-dug grave.

During the evening, the archaeological team gathers around a bonfire, where Jack and the Australian team leader Sam engage in a deep discussion about the Great Auroral Storm's significance. Sam presents his theory that the event served as a form of natural selection, suggesting that the true survivors were people like Cole who witnessed the aurora but resisted its violent influence. Jack shares an alternative perspective from his priest colleague who views the aurora as a divine test, while Sam argues for its role in genetic purification of humanity.

The chapter concludes with an intimate family moment as Naomi rests her head in her father's lap by the fire. Jack receives a phone call from Dee—revealing her survival against all odds from the previous chapter—confirming their plans to meet the following evening, and passes along her love to their daughter. This peaceful scene, juxtaposed against the grim work of excavating the mass grave, highlights how the family has managed to build a life in the aftermath of their traumatic experiences while still honoring and processing their past.