Exodus

by Brian P. White

The tunnel doors rumbled their way open, and the treacherous open road awaited.

  Didi faced Cody, who smiled at her as he grasped her insensate hand. She smiled back, even though she felt a little sad being unable to feel his touch. She had long accepted that she would never be able to give him all the big, wet, sloppy kisses she always wanted to give him in all the right places. She knew she would never be able to give him children or even a warm bed to share—unless she stocked it with a lot of blankets. But he was a light in her life she truly believed God had sent to her. She just had to do her part to keep him safe.

  “We’re off,” Cody said, then shifted gears and peeled rubber.

  In passing the two platforms near the exit, she spotted a few blurry figures waving them out. One of them looked like the President; another like that stiff general, who didn’t wave. A smaller frame with two fuzzy hands waved at her as well, which as she closed in became a certain Marine and a perky little five-year-old-to-be. All Didi could do was wave back through the glass, not wanting to spoil a happy moment by having her truck mates bitch at her about letting the cold air in.

  And, then, they were past the defensive mounds of excavated earth, on the winding road away from the air base, and heading down the mountain toward the interstate. The whole way, Didi couldn’t help but think of Moses, a man who gave all he had to serve God and His people, even when he had blown it for himself in a brief act of faithlessness. Her fate was no different, and she had accepted that, but she prayed her efforts would be as fruitful—and that her people would learn well enough not to blow it like his did.

  But first, she had to defeat a Pharaoh.

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  I have never set foot inside NORAD, so its layout and descriptions in this novel are complete fiction. Google Maps gave me all the ideas I had for how to describe that and the locales of Fort Carson.

  Also, I’d like to apologize to the winners of Miss Nobles County 2017 (whose name I could not find), Brianna Drevlow (Miss Minnesota 2017), and Courtney Igbo Obgonna (Miss Central Minnesota 2017). I wrote the first book of this series in 2014 and published it two years later (while writing this one), following a master timeline I had constructed in between for the sake of series continuity. Neither my character Clarissa nor her diatribes against the fictional winners in this story represent any opinions or feelings I have toward any of you.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  Well, I managed to write another book, and I couldn’t get it all done alone.

  As always, my first and foremost gratitude to God, and many prayers that I continue to do Your Word justice in this series.

  Thanks again to Google for all those online maps and the ability to plan this dangerous route.

  Thanks to Ryan McGaughey of the Worthington Daily Globe for trying to help me find out who to properly apologize to in my above Author’s Note.

  Thanks to Amy Regalado for letting me use the Pepper Pod Restaurant & Grille in this story, and for helping me with my research.

  Big thanks to my beta-readers: fellow authors Michael Hammor and S.K. Gregory, Amy, Thomas, Brenda, Edward and Bella (no, not those two!), Sarah, Katie, and the Reading the Dream Book Club (special thanks to my helpful Angel).

  Thanks to Irina Celice for her incredible work on my novel cover, and for putting up with my nitpicking.

  Lastly and by no means leastly (yes, I know that’s not a word), thank you, Gail, for all your patience, hard work, and love. You call me your rock, but you remain my Star.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Brian P. White is currently retiring from the United States Army.

  He lives with his wife, Gail, and four of his five children. They all have to grow up sometime!

  Hungry for more chilling post-pandemic mayhem? Check out Samantha Gregory’s YA horror series…

  The dead walked. The world fell apart. But what happened after? Jenna Deluise is just trying to survive in this broken world, but after her father's apparent suicide she discovers that she didn't really know him at all. How was he connected to the zombies? Why is his former boss so sure he is alive? What else was he hiding?

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