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

“Moving? Where the hell to? Why would you do a thing like that at a time like this?”

Sandy elbowed him and looked at Luke with a pained sympathy. “Is it too painful at the cabin without Sierra? Too many memories?”

“No, that’s not it. It’s not safe here anymore. Not with that damn cult so close. They’re dangerous. I won’t lose anyone else to their madness. And that includes you two,” Luke said.

“I hear you, son. But we’ve had this cabin for thirty years. There’s no way we’re leaving. Where are you thinking of going, anyway?”

“Derek?” Luke raised his eyebrows at the man, urging him to tell the Wrights about the bunker. Derek sighed and shook his head before he spoke.

“There’s an old bunker not too far from here. It was built during the Cold War to withstand a nuclear winter. I heard about it in the service. I thought it was just an old wives’ tale until I found it a couple of days ago. It’s still in decent shape. It’s got a bunch of supplies, a generator with a decent store of fuel, and enough bunks to house all of us comfortably. It’s even got some old computers and radios we might be able to use for something. Maybe we’ll be able to find out what’s going on out there.”

Edwin’s eyes lit up at the mention of radios, but his expression quickly returned to one of defiance.

“It sounds great, fellas. It really does. But I’m not going anywhere. This cabin is my home, and I aim to stay in it for better or for worse.”

Sandy gave him a wide-eyed look that said she wasn’t entirely on board with his plan, but he didn’t seem to care.

“To be perfectly honest, we debated coming to get you. I like you guys, and I’m all for you coming back to the bunker with us, but Liz is the one who made us come here,” Luke said.

“She is a fiery one, that wife of yours. I always liked her.” Sandy chuckled.

“That she is. And you know what, she was right to insist. The more I think about it, the more I realize we need each other. We’re going to need your farming knowledge and supplies if we expect to survive long-term. And, no offense, I think you guys will need our protection to survive the short-term. Those cult bastards are only going to get bolder and more violent as time goes on.”

Edwin’s face remained skeptical. The man was almost as stubborn as Liz, but Luke figured he had a convincing argument, so he addressed him directly.

“Listen, Ed. We need you. There’s a bunch of old radio equipment in that bunker, and we don’t have the slightest idea of how to use it. We need your help to find out what’s going on in the world. We don’t know how many people are left. We don’t know who dropped the bombs or why. We need intel, and you’re our best bet for getting it.”

“You know how to work an old man, don’t you?” He looked up at his wife, who nodded her head and smiled down at him. “Well, shoot. I guess a bunker’s as good a place as any to be holed up when the radioactive zombies and mutants come knocking, ain’t it? And I’d like to get a look at that radio equipment.”

Luke waited while Edwin and Sandy packed. They could always come back for more stuff tomorrow. He wanted to get back to the bunker before the sun went down.

15

Kyle stalked around the bunker, still seething over the way his parents had reacted to him killing one of the crazy cult members. Derek had returned with the Wrights, but even they seemed to be looking at him differently. Kyle complained aloud to himself, grumbling under his breath as he rifled through some of the boxes in the large main room.

“Don’t understand why they’re so mad. They should be thanking me. Jerks have it coming for what they did to Sierra. If I could, I’d make them all pay.”

He found an old, faded green button-down and a matching cap in one of the boxes and put them on. He considered his hazy reflection in one of the blank monitors. He felt like a real military man, like his dad or Derek. The shirt was too big, but he liked it. He rolled the sleeves up like he’d seen his dad do when he was working in the yard. He pulled the hat low over his eyes and tested out a serious, intimidating expression. He looked pretty tough.

He wandered into the gym and picked up two big dumbbells. He watched himself in the mirror as he strained to lift the heavy weights. His arms shook with the effort, but he finally managed to raise the dumbbells all the way to his shoulders. When he let his hands fall back down to his sides, one of them clattered to the floor, missing his foot by a few inches. He decided that was enough of a workout and went to check out one of the main storage rooms.

The huge room was full of survival supplies. Boxes of bandages and disposable gloves, bottles of alcohol, and other antiseptics lined the shelves. There were several lockers full of handguns, rifles, and ammunition that he wanted to check out. But they were locked tight. Derek probably had the keys.

Kyle figured he could convince his dad to teach him how to use one of the gleaming black pistols. Then he could carry it in a holster on his thigh just like his dad and Derek did.

He scanned the shelves that held radios, batteries, and other miscellaneous supplies. He stopped when he came across a thin, black fabric case. He unzipped it and spread it open, revealing a dozen or so thin metal objects with strange curved and jagged tips. He held one up curiously, contemplating its purpose. Then