Overload Read online

  “Some people just ask for it more than others.” She looked around, seeing nothing but empty desks and blank computer screens. “Where’s the break room?”

  “This way.” He led her down a dark interior hallway and opened the last door on the right.

  The room had two windows, so it wasn’t dark. A variety of vending machines lined one wall, offering soft drinks, coffee, juice and snacks. A microwave oven sat on a counter, and a silent refrigerator stood at another wall. There was a vinyl sofa with splits in the cushions that allowed the stuffing to show, and a number of folding chairs shoved haphazardly around two cafeteria tables.

  “Check the refrigerator while I open the machines,” Quinlan said. “See if there’s any ice. We don’t need it now, but it would be nice to know that it’s there just in case. Do it as fast as you can, to keep the cold air in.”

  “I do know about refrigerators and power failures,” she said pointedly. Swiftly she opened the freezer compartment, and vapor poured out as cold air met warm. There were six ice trays there, all of them full. She shut the door just as fast as she had opened it. “We have ice.”

  “Good.” He had the snack machine open and was removing packs of crackers.

  Elizabeth opened the main refrigerator door but was disappointed with the contents. A brown paper bag sat in lone splendor, with several translucent greasy spots decorating it. She had no interest in investigating its contents. There was an apple, though, and she took it. The shelves in the door were lined with various condiments, nothing that tempted her. The thought of putting ketchup on the honey bun was revolting.

  “Just an apple here,” she said.

  He finished loading his booty into the leather bag. “Okay, we have cakes, crackers and candy bars, plus the stuff you got from Chickie’s desk. My best guess is we’ll get out of here sometime tomorrow morning, so this should be more than enough. Do you want a soft drink, or juice? There’s water downstairs, so we don’t need to raid the drink machines. It’s strictly a matter of preference.”

  She thought about it, then shook her head. “Water will be enough.”

  He zipped the bag. “That’s it, then. Let’s make ourselves comfy downstairs.”

  “Should we leave a note?” she asked.

  “No need. I’ll take care of things when the power comes on and everything gets back to normal.”

  The trip downstairs was considerably easier with the aid of one of the flashlights, and soon they reentered the lobby, which was noticeably cooler because of the two-story ceiling. She looked out through the dark glass of the double entrance; the street was oddly deserted, with only the occasional car passing by. A patrol car crawled past as she watched. “It looks weird,” she murmured. “As if everyone has been evacuated.”

  “If the power doesn’t come back on,” Quinlan said in a grim tone, “it will probably get a lot busier once the sun goes down and things cool off a little. By the way, I tried to call out from my office, just to see what was going on and let someone know where we were, but I couldn’t get a call to go through. If there’s a city-wide blackout, which I suspect, the circuits will be jammed with calls. But I did find a battery-operated radio, so we’ll be able to listen to the news.”

  “Turn it on now,” she suggested, walking over to a sofa to dump her load on it. “Let’s find out what’s going on.”

  He opened the leather bag and took out a small radio, not even as big as her hand. After switching it on and getting only static, he began running through the frequencies, looking for a station. Abruptly a voice jumped out at them, astonishingly clear for such a small radio. “—the National Guard has been called out in several states to help prevent looting—”

  “Damn,” Quinlan muttered. “This sounds bad.”

  “Information is sketchy,” the announcer continued, “but more reports are coming in, and it looks as if there has been a massive loss of electrical power across the Southeast and most of Texas.”

  “I’m not an expert,” a second voice said, “but the southern tier of the country has been suffering under this heat wave for two weeks, and I imagine the demands for electricity overloaded the system. Have we had any word yet from the governor?”

  “Nothing yet, but the phone lines are tied up. Please, people, don’t use the telephones unless it’s an emergency. Folks can’t get through to 911 if you’re on the phone to your friends telling them that your power’s out, too. Believe me, they know.”

  The second announcer chimed in, “Remember the safety precautions the Health Department has been telling us for two weeks. It’s especially critical without electricity for air conditioning and fans. Stay out of the sun if possible. With the power off, open your windows for ventilation, and drink plenty of liquids. Don’t move around any more than you have to. Conserve your energy.”

  “We’ll be on the air all night long,” said the first announcer, “operating on emergency power. If anything happens you’ll hear it first here on—”

  Quinlan switched off the radio. “Well, now we know what happened,” he said calmly. “We’ll save the batteries as much as we can.”

  She gave him a mock incredulous look. “What? You mean you don’t have replacement batteries?”

  “It isn’t my radio.”

  It wasn’t necessary for him to add that if it had been, of course he would have had extra batteries. She wished it were his radio. And while she was wishing, she wished she had left the building on time, though she wasn’t certain she wouldn’t be in a worse situation at her condo. Certainly she was safer here, inside a sealed building.

  The magnitude of the problem was stunning. This wasn’t something that was going to be corrected in a couple of hours. It was possible they would still be locked in at this time tomorrow.

  She looked at Quinlan. “Are you sure it won’t get dangerously hot in here?”

  “Not absolutely positive, but reasonably sure. We’ll be okay. We have water, and that’s the most important thing. Actually, we’re probably as comfortable as anyone in this city is, except for those places that have emergency generators. If we start getting too warm, we’ll just take off some clothes.”

  Her heart literally jumped, sending her pulse rate soaring, and immediately she began to feel uncomfortably warm. Her stomach muscles clenched at the thought of lying naked in the darkness with him, but it was the tightness of desire. While her mind was wary, her body remembered the intense pleasure of his lovemaking.She turned back to the windows to keep him from reading her expression. Staring at the glass made her think of something else, and gratefully she seized on it.

  “When it gets dark, will anyone on the outside be able to see us in here when we turn on a flashlight? Does the privacy glazing work at night?”

  “Anyone who looked closely would be able to tell that there’s a light in here, I suppose,” he said thoughtfully. “But no one will be able to actually see us.”

  Just the possibility was enough. She had been about to arrange their supplies in the seating area closest to the entrance, but now she moved farther away. The lobby had several comfortable seating areas, and she chose one that was close to the middle. It was at least semiprivate, with a long, waist-high planter that created the sense of a small alcove. It was also closer to the bathrooms, making it a better choice all the way around.

  She arranged their food supplies on a low table, while Quinlan shoved the chairs around to make more room. Then he collected cushions from the other chairs and stacked them close to hand, ready to make into beds when they decided to sleep. Elizabeth gave the cushions a sidelong glance. She wasn’t sure she would be able to close her eyes with Quinlan so close by, or that it would be smart to sleep, even if she could.

  She looked at him and started when she found him watching her. He didn’t look away as he unknotted his tie and stripped it off, then unbuttoned his shirt down to his waist and rolled up his sleeves. His actions were practical, but the sight of his muscled, hairy chest and hard belly aroused a reaction i