by Mark Mathews
EMP: Dangerous Decisions
Mark Mathews
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Copyright © 2017 by Mark Mathews
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Chapter One
A tall woman was walking through the flooded streets at the outskirts of a town, clutching the hand of a small child. She had long, brown hair that hung in wet clumps down her back and over her shoulders. Her features were too far apart to be stunning, but she was attractive enough, and her hazel eyes could flash like fire when she was crossed. The little girl looked like an angel. Blonde hair and blue eyes, in an innocent, childish face stared at everything around her. Both of them were walking on eggshells, jumping at the slightest noise of water dripping from the abandoned houses that they’d found. The torrential downpour of the last week finally had slowed to an annoying drip, and the two of them had been out looking for anything they could use, or any people to talk to. The town they just had investigated, however, was abandoned, and could have been a ghost town back in the time of the California Gold Rush. The woman caught herself looking at the little girl, beginning to wonder how they had made it to where they were now, when her eyes lit up. Her heart started to race, thinking the girl had seen some people, but when she followed her gaze, she saw only a dog.
“Stay back, Emily. We don’t know if he’s friendly or not. I don’t want you to get bit.” The woman was trained in these sorts of situations because she had been a police officer until very recently. A detective to be exact. Sarah Blackman was a thirty-seven-year-old woman who had dreamed of becoming a police officer ever since she could remember. She was the kind of person who had a bleeding heart and wanted to protect the world. Friends and family often had told her to abandon her dream of becoming a law enforcement officer because they thought she was too soft. Well, she’d showed them. It was a point of pride for her, but also a painful stab to the heart. She loved her job, but in the end, she’d been so married to it so much that her marriage to the man she loved had suffered. They’d divorced not long after they’d married, and she still hadn’t gotten over it.
“Can I pet it?” Emily’s voice was pleading, but Sarah’s hackles were raised. Something didn’t feel right. Rather than answering the little girl, she pulled the seven-year-old behind her, assuming a protective stance. Her feet were planted in the dirt of the road, and her weight was evenly distributed over them, in case the animal charged at her, so she wouldn’t fall back on top of the child. The grim expression on her face told the dog that she didn’t trust it at all.
“I don’t think so. Something’s not right.”
The wheels in her head were turning, trying to churn out a reason why this dog was staring at them, and what it still was doing here when the people must have left a long time ago. Almost as if the dog had understood her, it also planted itself in the road, lowering its head and baring its teeth. The bloodshot eyes were focused on them, and it sent a chill down Sarah’s spine. A low rumbling growl escaped the dog’s throat, and Sarah recognized it as a growl of hunger. The dog was starving and hadn’t had the sense to leave the town when no one was there to feed it. Now the dog thought it would eat her and Emily. Well, that was something that Sarah wasn’t going to let happen. Using her peripheral vision, Sarah searched for a place to hide. Unfortunately, they just had cleared the last building on the very edge of town, and she wasn’t sure the two of them could outrun the dog to make it back to safety. She needed to come up with another plan, and quickly. The dog wasn’t attacking them, yet, but why, she didn’t know. She didn’t want to risk the dog losing patience and charging them, so she needed to come up with a course of action immediately. Sarah wracked her brain for an answer, and she could feel Emily trembling behind her.
For some reason that Sarah couldn’t explain, the little girl had a sort of sixth sense. If Emily was shaking this much, she was afraid of something. Something told Sarah that it wasn’t just this one little dog that was frightening her. Movement caught her attention out of the corner of her eye, and she slowly turned her head in that direction. A second chill chased the first one down her spine. Another dog was coming out of an alley, and this one’s fur was matted with blood and dirt, a fresh gash across its muzzle still oozing blood. Sarah tried to take a tentative step backward, but a new growl from behind her made her freeze in place. Turning slightly, she saw a German Sheperd with a ratty collar behind them, licking its lips as if it had found a tasty treat on the ground in front of it. Then it hit her. This was a feral pack, and they were looking at Sarah and Emily as their meal. That must have been what Emily had been feeling.
There were five of them now, and Sarah wasn’t too thrilled with the odds. Trying to inch back closer to the building was out of the question now that they were surrounded, and Sarah was getting mad at herself for not taking the chance when there had been only one dog. To the left was an open field that had held some sort of crops, but had stood empty for months. Behind them was the open road out of town, and that wasn’t going to do them any good, either. The dogs might have looked sick and weak, but there were more of them than Sarah could handle, and she didn’t want Emily to get hurt. Trying to outrun them on the road or the field wasn’t an option. To the right, there was a steep embankment that led into a little wooded area. That might be a way out, if they could slide down and possibly climb a tree or something to get away. It was their only chance.
Sarah grabbed Emily’s hand even tighter, then took two running steps before throwing herself down the embankment, Emily in tow. The dogs’ angry barking seemed as though it was coming from every direction, but Sarah couldn’t help that now, she had to protect Emily. The dogs paused on the top of the steep cliff, but after a short hesitation, the first one hurtled down it. The rest of the pack followed. It had been too long since their last meal, and they weren’t going to let this much food get away from them. The hardened pads of their paws were sliding every which way as they came clamoring down the hill, and it didn’t take long for the whole group to begin tumbling. They knocked into each other and finally landed in a heap at the bottom of the embankment, but by that time, Sarah and Emily already were running into the woods, trying to find a tree that would be easy enough for them to climb, and sturdy enough to hold them for a long enough time that the dogs hopefully would give up. By this time, Emily’s feet were barely touching the ground because Sarah’s pace was so quick, and she was wailing and whimpering that her arm hurt. Sarah knew that she wasn’t being gentle, but
this was no time to quit. If they wanted to get out of this alive, she had to keep up the pace. There would be time to rest and heal later, when they were safe.
The trees to Sarah’s right and left were too small and flimsy to hold them, and all they had to look forward to in front of them was another open area. The dogs had been discombobulated when they landed, but now they were organized again and gaining on them. Sarah’s heart was in her throat. She felt like her muscles were going to tear from the exertion she was forcing on them, but she knew she couldn’t stop. Emily had done nothing in her life to deserve being torn apart by a group of savage dogs, and Sarah was going to make sure it didn’t happen. Even if it cost her everything. That had been why she’d joined the police force to begin with, and she’d be damned if she didn’t follow through on that now. To serve and protect, everyone that needed it. That had been her vow. Now this little girl needed her, and she was going to make sure she saved her.
Out of nowhere, the ground fell away from under their feet, and Emily squealed in fear as they were ripped up into the sky. Once the motion stopped, and the girls were able to look around them, Sarah saw they were in a net trap. So there was someone else still in the area. There had to be. Somebody had made this net. Probably to trap food, but it had caught the girls instead, and there had to be someone around to check it, right? She really hoped it wasn’t a trap left behind by people who finally had realized there was nothing left here…
A cowbell was clanging, and it had brought the pack of dogs right to them. Since they were quite a ways off the ground, the dogs couldn’t reach them, but it didn’t stop them from jumping as high as they could to try tearing a chunk out of them. Sarah was glad they were in relative safety for the moment, because it gave her a chance to rest her aching leg muscles, as well as try coming up with another plan to get them out of this alive.
“The net’s cutting into my leg.” Emily was whimpering, and Sarah immediately looked down to where the little girl was pointing.
Her leg was trapped beneath Sarah and was being pressed into the netting pretty hard. A trickle or two of blood already was starting to well up under the skin, and Sarah did her best to get as much of her weight off of Emily as she could. Emily pulled her leg back and started massaging it vigorously, trying not to cry. Sarah admired that the little girl was trying so hard to be brave.
“Hold on, honey, I’m going to try to move a little so we can get more comfortable.” Slowly, Sarah started to move her body so Emily could free her leg.
Ten agonizing minutes later, both of them were a little more comfortable, yet still trapped. The staccato sound of a gunshot cracked through the woods, and a dog who had been in mid-jump yelped as he fell back to Earth. Sarah watched as he twisted up onto his feet, then tore off in the direction from which they had come. Two more shots rang out as the pack retreated, and whimpers of pain tore the silence. Emily was shaking in fear again, and Sarah held her close. Even though the dogs had been terrifying, Sarah now was more worried about the person who had the gun. They were sitting ducks, and if the shooter didn’t feel like saving them, they were as good as dead.
Ever since the world had gone downhill, mercenaries went around trying to make people hire them for protection, paying them in food and supplies. People were running around with all kinds of weapons, not following any protocols, and doing whatever they wanted, now that there was no law to make them honor human life. When things first had started going wrong, there had been a lot of senseless murder, and some of the gruesome deaths she’d seen still haunted her when she managed to get some sleep. The bushes rustled to their left, and Sarah watched with growing apprehension as a man in a plaid, red flannel shirt and jeans stepped out. He raised an eyebrow and grinned up at the girls.
“Well, well, well. I don’t think you’ll fit in my stewpot.” There was a teasing lilt to his voice, and Sarah only could hope that he was joking, and not really a cannibal.
He had lightly tanned skin, and it made Sarah think he must have been a farmer, spending a lot of time outdoors. His blue eyes twinkled at them merrily, making her want to smile back, but she fought the urge. It was still too soon to tell if he was trouble. He was tall, well-muscled, and had shaggy brown hair that fell into his eyes. It was endearing, but she didn’t want to be lulled into a false sense of security just because his demeanor was disarming. Emily was smiling at him, and that made Sarah feel a little better, just because of Emily’s sixth sense, but she wasn’t going to open her arms for a hug anytime soon. Sarah was pretty good at judging people, but with the world being the way it was now, it was hard to tell because people could change at the drop of a hat.
The man now was scanning the clearing, presumably checking to make sure the dogs weren’t coming back, and Sarah took that time to study him. He had a hatchet in his belt, as well as a pistol holster. The gunshots they’d heard must have come from the .45 that he wore. Sarah couldn’t help but be impressed. The .45 was a pretty heavy weapon to handle, and the recoil was no joke. Her father had taught her how to use one before she’d gone to the police academy, and now it made her give the man some grudging respect.
Chapter Two
Sarah’s heart skipped a beat as the man pulled a large hunting knife from his belt. Would he really gut them like animals, right here in the woods? He looked like he’d been hunting for food, and in the world they lived in now, meat was meat…no matter where it came from. If Sarah just could convince him to let Emily go, she could make a sacrifice and stay behind to protect the little girl. She took a deep breath, then opened her mouth to tell him just that, when the knife sliced through the netting at the top. Sarah and Emily spilled out onto the forest floor again, and Sarah came down hard on her elbow. She muffled a cry, trying to make herself look tougher than she was. Emily, on the other hand, shrieked like a banshee when she landed on a sharp rock. The man moved immediately. At first, Sarah thought he was going to try taking Emily from her, but instead, she was shocked to see he offered Emily his hand and pulled her to her feet.
“Where does it hurt?” He was now down on one knee, trying to get on her level, and looking at her with kind eyes. Sarah was a little confused. No one was this nice anymore. He was either weak or crazy, and neither one of those was a good thing. Emily peeked out from under her lashes, trying to decide if she should trust him or not. Apparently, her sixth sense wasn’t giving her any negative information about this man. Giving him a small smile, she pointed to her elbow. He gently took her arm and prodded the elbow a little. She winced, but she stayed quiet, and didn’t flinch away. Leaning in very slowly, almost like Emily was a wild animal that he was trying to tame, he kissed the elbow where she’d pointed.
“All better?” Emily grinned at him and nodded. “That’s good. It’s far from your heart, so I think you’re going to live.” She giggled, and Sarah looked at him like he was crazy. That was the dumbest thing she thought she’d ever heard. Even if a wound was far from your heart, you still could die from it. In her experience, it didn’t matter where it was, if it was bad enough it could kill. Still, she grudgingly had to admit she was thankful that the man had made Emily smile.
“Excuse me. What exactly do you plan on doing with us?” Sarah was happy to hear that her voice was strong, confident, and steely. She wasn’t just a weak female that couldn’t take care of herself, and if this moron thought she was, well, then he had another thing coming. He drew away from them, and Sarah could see he was wary of them, too. Whether it was because he didn’t want to compete with someone else in his territory for food, or if it was simply the unpredictability of meeting people now, she wasn’t sure, but she slowly moved sideways until she was between the two of them.
“Thank you for saving us from the dogs. We weren’t going to make it.” The conviction in Emily’s voice made Sarah tremble, and she reached behind her for Emily’s hand. The little girl took it, and a sort of relief washed over her. Since she had met Emily, the little girl had turned into a talisman for her. Almost like a
beacon of hope that everything was going to be alright in the end. The man stepped slowly around Sarah, until he was standing back at the net that just had dumped the girls unceremoniously on the forest floor. She noticed that even though he’d cut them down, he’d done it in a way that didn’t mutilate the net. He took the two cut pieces and tied them back together easily with a square knot. Sarah was proud of herself for remembering what kind of knot it was from her Girl Scout days. He stretched the net back out, tamped it down gently with his foot, and then started throwing leaves on it. By the time he was done, Sarah never would have known the net was there.
“So, who are you? And what exactly are you doing here?” His voice was pleasant, and it seemed like he simply was making conversation. As a detective, Sarah recognized an interview when she heard one, and there was no way she was going to tell him anything about them. She didn’t trust him at all.
“How did you make that net? Were you using it to protect yourself from other people or to catch animals for food?” She turned the questions back on him, hoping he would be compelled to answer instead of repeating his own questions. He finished what he was doing and turned around to face her again. He put his fingers on the bridge of his nose and laughed. Sarah crossed her arms over her chest, wanting to know what was so funny, but she held her tongue.
“You were a cop, weren’t you?” Sarah froze. How could he have known that? There was no part of her uniform that she was wearing, and she hadn’t said anything at all. Her astonishment must have shown on her face because he laughed again.
“I was, too. A long, long time ago.” His tone had turned wistful, and she wondered what he was thinking about that tugged at his heart so much. Maybe she could go out on a limb and see if he possibly could be trustworthy.
“Yes, I was.” She told him her rank, and he told her his. Now she was rankled again. He easily would have outranked her had the world still been normal.
