Rise of the Plague (Book 1): Endemic
Page 38
“Phone’s not working, Maggie. There’s no dial tone,” Tommy Joe announced. “Does anybody have a cell phone?”
Maggie lifted her head from John’s face, when she heard something. It sounded as if he were gradually exhaling. Stealing a quick glance at him, he still looked the same. She leaned in further, to listen for breathing, hearing the same sound as before. Confusion fell upon her well-worn face, as she wrinkled her forehead, attempting to decipher this incident with John Thomas. What is that noise? Is he choking? Her expression quickly turned to an agonizing grimace.
Maggie felt a torturous burning sensation in her ear and in the side of her slender face. It was in this moment that she realized that John’s teeth were fastened to the side of her head. She cried out in pain as she slapped her hands on John’s face and head, but his grip would not be loosened.
“John!” Andy shouted, after jumping back, appalled at the sight before him.
Andy leaned in, squeezing John’s shoulder and neck in an effort to get John to release Maggie’s ear. Suddenly, John jerked his head away from Maggie, ripping her ear from the side of her head. He opened his mouth and began chewing the ear, while glaring in the direction of Andy with a feral expression. His eyes were completely black and peeled open, as though in absolute rage. Blood dribbled down his pale chin. Clenching his fists, he hollered painfully through cracked lips, much louder than anything Maggie had ever heard.
Maggie shrieked in terror, gripping her head as blood began to spurt through her fingers. She looked at Tommy Joe who had now dropped the phone and was rushing over to her. Turning her eyes to John, still on the floor, he lunged forward, thrusting himself at Andy, biting down on Andy’s throat with such speed and strength that it remained hard for Maggie to believe this was the same man that sat at her counter just moments before. What has happened to him?
Tommy Joe shouted at John, while yanking on his shoulders, but was unsuccessful at moving him. Tommy Joe backed up, dug out his gun and shot John in the back of the head. John’s body collapsed over Andy.
Maggie pulled her apron up to her face, pressing it tightly against the wound, staring down at John in revulsion. Andy lay on the floor saturated in blood, his eyes fixed open. Maggie tried calling 9-1-1 from her cell with a trembling hand, but she still had no reception. As she dropped the cell, she saw John’s body slide off of Andy’s on to the floor beside him. Andy sat up, teeth snarling, glaring up at Tommy Joe with blackened eyes…
Outside the small diner called Dizzy’s Café, a mixture of screams, growls and gunshots could be heard as the Anderson family fled from the diner. They raced to their hybrid compact car, Misses Anderson holding a bloody towel over her bitten wrist. Mister Anderson pulled the car out of the parking lot and onto the interstate.
A Note from the Author…
Thank you for reading the first installment of The Rise of the Plague Trilogy. The second installment is well underway. More information will be released as it is available, on the websites and through social media.
Writing has always been a passion for me. There is something about submersing yourself into another world that has intrigued me for my entire life. Authors would be nothing without loyal readers, so I extend my deepest appreciation to you for reading this title. It is my hope that you’ve enjoyed reading Endemic: Rise of the Plague, as much as I have enjoyed writing it.
Sincerely,
Jeannie Rae
Jeannie Rae has been writing short stories, poems and book reviews for decades. The last few years have been spent honing her craft and focusing her efforts on novels.
Jeannie Rae is a California native, currently residing in Central California. Having the forest-covered mountains and the sandy shores of the Pacific coast only a few hours from her home, she enjoys the wide range of possible sceneries that her location provides. When not writing, she works full time in the accounting field and spends her time with her husband and daughter, along with their three dogs.
For more titles and upcoming releases by Jeannie Rae visit:
www.riseoftheplague.com
www.jeannierae.com
www.cursedpen.com
Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
CHAPTER THIRTY
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
CHAPTER FORTY
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
CHAPTER FIFTY
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE
CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR
CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE
CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE
CHAPTER SIXTY
CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE
CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO
CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE
CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR
CHAPTER SIXTY-FIVE
CHAPTER SIXTY-SIX
CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER SIXTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER SIXTY-NINE
CHAPTER SEVENTY
CHAPTER SEVENTY-ONE
CHAPTER SEVENTY-TWO
CHAPTER SEVENTY-THREE
CHAPTER SEVENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER SEVENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER SEVENTY-SIX
CHAPTER SEVENTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER SEVENTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER SEVENTY-NINE
CHAPTER EIGHTY
CHAPTER EIGHTY-ONE
CHAPTER EIGHTY-TWO
CHAPTER EIGHTY-THREE
CHAPTER EIGHTY-FOUR
CHAPTER EIGHTY-FIVE
CHAPTER EIGHTY-SIX
CHAPTER EIGHTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER EIGHTY-NINE
CHAPTER NINETY
CHAPTER NINETY-ONE
CHAPTER NINETY-TWO