Our first stop hadn’t been worth the effort of getting out of the car. The shelves were the emptiest I’d seen them, and we’d left with two bags of dry goods. The only detail in our favour was still being able to pay electronically.
Tim turned his phone toward me and shared the shaky Facebook live footage one of his friends was filming. “They’re off and walking.”
I pressed the brake and leaned closer, my throat tightening at the sight. Hundreds and hundreds of people had gathered, chanting and shoving hastily made placards in the air.
Free the People.
No More Lockdowns.
Enough is Enough.
Police were there to monitor the crowd, and a few journalists reported from the sidelines with protective coverings on their faces.
“I don’t know what they’re hoping to achieve,” I said.
It would only take one person to cause an upset, and the anger and fear could become as contagious as the virus.
Tim rested his phone on his thigh with the screen facing upward. “I suppose they just want to feel like they’re doing something,” he said, “like you did when you went on your shopping spree.”
I pulled out of the car park and passed a man in a coat walking a Jack Russell in a matching jacket—one of many people who’d chosen to ignore the new restrictions only a day after they came into effect.
“Literally hundreds of them could have the virus,” I said, thinking out loud. “Or more.” All of them pressed in together, shouting and spraying particles.
“Yep, stay away from crowds, Sadie girl.”
I cruised to the end of the street and stopped at a T-intersection. “Stay away from people in general,” I said. “Apart from you, obviously.”
His mouth quirked. “Obviously.”
With the all-clear to my left and a blind corner on the right, I waited a beat just to be sure. The second I pulled out, a car with a damaged front bumper zipped around the bend like a maniac and raced straight at me.
I swore and hit the brakes with less than a metre to spare, my seatbelt locking across my chest. As we jerked to a stop in the middle of the intersection, the driver swerved and gave a long honk before continuing on his way.
I loosened my grip on the steering wheel and scoffed. “What the hell wasthat?”?
“A fucking idiot.”?
A laugh burst from me, and my racing heart settled a bit. “Hopefully just the one.”?
Tim checked his phone again, then made a low sound in his throat. “Forget about the other supermarkets for now, my love. Today’s not the day. We should be at home.”?
My entire body tensed at his tone. “Okay, just… don’t tell me what’s happening,” I said, taking a right. “I need to focus.”
Ominous clouds gathered overhead, and the first pinpricks of rain dotted the windshield. A couple of riders on e-scooters glided past with bandanas covering their faces, and a woman pushing a stroller waited to cross the road.
I hadn’t seen this many people out in months, and it had such an air of normalcy I almost forgot about the drama unfolding on Tim’s phone.
His eyes stayed locked on the screen, and he tutted at the footage. I still wasn’t in a place where I could concentrate on two things at once. My back straightened, and I frowned at a blockage up ahead that hadn’t been there when we first came through.
Four cars were parked at odd angles, with every driver and passenger outside their vehicles.
“Tim.”?
“What?” He looked up at me, then at the road. “Oh.Oh.”
I slowed and searched for a side street, but there were no turnoffs between here and there, and the telegraph pole and bus stop prevented me from mounting the curb. We’d need to backtrack. “The idiot who nearly crashed into us must have been part of this,” I said.
“Or the cause of it,” he added.
