Edge of Fear: An EMP Post-Apocalyptic Survival Prepper Series (American Fallout Book 3) Alex Gunwick (free reads .txt) 📖

“How could you be so stupid?”

“I wanted to help. You guys were arguing about what to do, but I knew what we needed to do. We needed to kill the cult members. We need to kill them. I’m sick of worrying about them. We can’t stay here if they’re out there. And they killed Sierra. They have to pay for what they did to her.”

“You could have been killed. You can’t do stupid shit like that, Kyle!”

“I’m sorry, mom.” Kyle hugged her. “I just wanted to help.”

“Come on.” Luke wrapped an arm around each of them. “Let’s get back inside. I don’t think we were followed, but I don’t know for sure.”

Liz couldn’t let go of her fury. As much as she wanted to stay angry at Kyle, she couldn’t. He was right. They couldn’t coexist with the Children of the Bomb. They’d have to kill them all if they wanted to survive winter.

14

Early the following day, the Wrights, Derek, and what remained of Liz’s family gathered in the chilly air to lay Sierra to rest. Edwin read a few passages from his Bible. Liz tried to focus on them, but the words were meaningless platitudes that did nothing to assuage the pain in her heart. She leaned heavily against Luke and occasionally sniffled as the service continued. Kyle clung to her hand. He remained silent even as tears ran down his face.

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Edwin’s voice had a slight tremble, though Liz wasn’t sure if it was from grief, the cold, or some combination of the two. “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Edwin’s shaky hands turned the thin pages of the tome he held. He cleared his throat and continued.

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”

Several folks spoke “amen” at the end of the sermon, but Liz couldn’t bring herself to do so. Burying her child seemed so wrong. What loving and kind God would visit such suffering upon her family? What had they ever done to deserve his wrath?

Liz and Luke continued to hold each other as the others gradually meandered away from Sierra’s grave. She couldn’t stop staring at the disrupted earth. She tried clinging to denial but couldn’t. Her daughter was dead. Liz would never see her again.

“We’re moving to the bunker. Just us and Derek,” Luke said softly.

She lifted her head from his shoulder and stared at him with tear-streaked eyes. “But what about the Wrights?”

“They’re not coming. Not right now. I like them, but they don’t have what it takes to protect the compound. They don’t want to fight the Children of the Bomb. We do. I don’t trust anyone but you, me, and Kyle. Derek found the place, so he’s coming too. The Wrights don’t know about the bunker, and you can’t tell them. You can’t tell any of the other families in the valley either. Not until we figure out what to do next.”

“They’re all going to die,” she whispered. “We can’t do that to them.”

“If we’re going to survive, we need to think carefully about who we bring into the bunker.”

Liz opened her mouth to protest, but he cut her off.

“You have to trust me on this.” Luke broke from the embrace and strode stiffly away. White puffs of air floated in his wake. Liz sighed and decided to let him be. In his current state of mind, Luke wouldn’t be able to hear her arguments, anyway.

She turned back to where her daughter lay beneath the frozen ground, held her face in her hands, and wept alone.

Derek waited patiently outside the cabin while Liz, Luke, and Kyle gathered their things. His pack sat neatly at his feet, his pistol holstered at his hip and his rifle slung across his back. The Wrights had left earlier and didn’t suspect a thing. He figured they could always bring the older couple to the compound later after they got situated. More people weren’t always a bad thing. They could be useful for labor.

The clouds overhead emphasized the melancholy note of the day. It had been an emotional morning due to the impromptu service for Sierra. He felt terrible about what happened to the poor girl but watching the grief overwhelm her parents was the worst part.

Grief was a burden he was all too familiar with. He wished his own experiences with loss had better prepared him to console the bereaved, but he never seemed to come up with the right words to say. He found it was better to remain silent and offer simple condolences. Words had never been his strong suit.

Luke, Liz, and Kyle came filing out of the cabin, their faces grave. They all carried full packs on their backs and rifles on their shoulders. Derek glanced at the pistol holstered on Luke’s thigh, more out of instinct than actual concern. Even so, he found himself working out how fast Luke could draw with his pack and rifle slowing him down. He considered the distance between them, locating the nearest adequate cover to break for in a pinch while debating whether he could get to Luke before he aimed and fired. His trained mind ran through dozens of combat variables out of habit before he even realized what he was doing. He shook off the grim thoughts, forcing himself to focus. Luke already knew where the shelter was located. If he’d wanted to kill Derek, he would have done it already.

“Let’s go,” Luke said.

“All right. I’ll take point. Luke, you