The once busy downtown Main Street of local shops, coffee houses, and diners had become virtually deserted. Cars lined the streets, long abandoned—some with their doors hanging open. The normally idyllic town was absent its residents, who had simply fled in droves. The streets were deserted and the sounds of vehicles, leaf blowers, and lawn mowers had been replaced with silence. Stray dogs roamed in packs. Shops along Main Street stood vandalized with their windows smashed in and shelves pillaged and emptied. Shattered glass was strewn across the sidewalks in a layer of tiny broken pieces. The sky was as desolate gray, much like the town below it. Only a few of months ago, the streets were bustling in this modest cornerstone of Rockland County. And in one brief second, everything had changed. That morning, a small group of outsiders passing through were on a desperate search for supplies. The five men, two women, and three children were far from home and hoping to reach their destination before nightfall.
