A chill hung over Los Angeles early one morning the following week. Dew gave grass and plants its nourishment. People woke up to get ready for another day at school or work. Nervous dogs barked, skittish cats yowled, and fidgety birds flew off from trees and utility pole wires.
Somewhere within the San Fernando Valley, nine and a half miles beneath the earth’s surface, tectonic plates struggled for space as they pressed and pushed against one another. At exactly 6:11 a.m., a violent shift occurred along a strike-slip fault. A sharp jolt ensued and intense, vertical vibrations of incomprehensible energy grew in momentum by the second. The disturbed ground rumbled audibly and vibrated with incredible intensity as shock waves pulsed and rippled outward in concentric circles. The ground then gave way to a strong, rolling motion.
The walls of the white two-story house shook. Doors swung, windows rattled, and cabinet doors flew open with force. Dishes fell out as if shoved by unseen hands. They crashed and shattered on the kitchen counter, in the stainless-steel sink, and on the floor. Macramés swung, as did the crystal chandelier in the foyer. Several wall pictures ended up awry and askew as they jiggled, bounced, and clattered against the walls. Some fell to the floor with a clamor. Table lamps of various sizes, styles, shapes, and colors wobbled then keeled over and crashed to the floor and splintered to pieces upon impact. Shards of glass, ceramic, and porcelain wiggled as the ground shook.
The loud rumbling of the earth preceded the creaking and cracking of the foundation as it continued to shake.
Colognes, perfume bottles, toiletries, and other bathroom accessories fell from the medicine cabinet into the sink and onto the floor, then burst upon impact. Bottles of shampoo and hair conditioner moved precariously from their respective places and fell in the bathtub.
Vivian scrambled out of bed and crawled on all fours. She screamed in fright when objects fell around her. Most of the items were small, such as plastic bottles of hand lotions, facial creams, headache medicine, and chewable vitamins.
“W-what the h-hell?” Christine said. She hid under the bed in the guest room and observed the wild, insane movements in the room as walls moved in ways she had never seen before. The bedroom door swung to and fro, the vanity table shook, and the dresser bureau wobbled. A crystal lamp fell over the nightstand and missed her head by inches. Airborne pieces of broken glass nearly scratched her face.
“Vivian!” Christine screamed.
“Christine! Just stay where you are!”
Flowers in Vivian’s garden fluttered, waves lapped in the pool and sloshed over the edge, and one of the gazebo’s porticoes cracked in the middle, giving its cupola a slanted angle. The two Greco-Roman statues teetered. One fell over while the other rocked and swayed. Terracotta pots overturned. The large fountain in the semi-circular drive tumbled and stagnant water spilled onto the lawn.
Part of the ceiling in the sealed room caved in and a huge brown object fell through the hole in the ceiling. A tremendous thud boomed when a corner of the object punctured the hardwood floor. Debris scattered and dust drifted everywhere.
The small house which Julia had rented for Dolph swayed. He stood at the threshold between the bedroom and the hallway as the ground shook. A picture window shattered. Chimney cinderblocks broke apart and disintegrated into smaller pieces when they struck the ground.
The quake was felt in La Jolla, located approximately 120 miles south of Los Angeles. Energy waves, which had been felt all the way down to Tijuana and Ensenada, traversed through the town.
Julia lay still on her bed as she listened to walls and floors creak at her main residence. Iris stood in the doorway between her room and the bathroom. Peter squatted on his haunches in one corner in his room, away from windows
The ground’s movements eventually slowed to a standstill.