Broken Skies: Horizon's End Book 1: (A Post-Apocalyptic Survival Thriller) by Justin Bell & Mike Kraus

Author:Justin Bell & Mike Kraus [Bell, Justin & Kraus, Mike]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Muonic Press Inc
Published: 2024-07-11T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Harbor’s End, Massachusetts

Day 02

2:05 a.m. Eastern

Somewhere in the depths of sleep, a muffled thunk jerked Jodie awake, sucking in breath as she bolted upright. Slumber came in fits and starts in the unfamiliar bed. Her room was on the second floor, the half-built loft area that had once been attic storage but repurposed for her use. Given that neither Shannon nor Mason were home, however, Jodie had decided to sleep in their bed, as close to the two girls as possible.

Her hands clenched the surrounding blanket, bunching it up in half-closed fingers. Blinking the sleep from her gummy eyes, she exhaled, softening the hard edges of her restless anxiety. There had been a noise from somewhere in the house, though in her sleep addled state, she couldn’t tell if that was the real world or whatever dream she was having.

“Mason?” She whispered, swinging her legs from the bed, bare feet touching the cool wood floor. Turning slightly, she held her breath, listening. The house remained silent at that moment, no more thumps or clunks, just her and the girls and the low patter of rain falling on the roof and windows.

Pushing off the bed, she stood, her legs aching and back stiff, mind cloaked in a thick fog of mid-sleep awakening. Almost without thinking, she opened a drawer in the nightstand and removed the taser, clutching it against her palm. She wore flannel pajama pants and a button-up shirt, the fabric swooshing as she stepped out into the adjoining hallway.

Jodie reached the living room in a few long strides, walking to the front door, and double-checked the locks. She tugged back the curtains and peered out into the night, though darkness stared back at her. Somewhere in the distance, a flicker of light danced in an upper level window. Either a neighbor was up late or needed some extra light to sleep. Rain continued to fall steadily, blurring the light in the distance, slapping the glass window with spattered droplets.

There were no figures moving about in the darkness and after she checked the locks once more and checked every window in the house. Both Jameson and Tucker took notice of her movements, lifting their heads from where they slept, thumping the floor with their tails. But neither of them even stood, they studied her as she walked from window to window. Satisfied things were all closed down, she made her way back to the bedroom.

A small sound froze her in her place, halfway down the corridor. It was a whisper of words, almost inaudible against the silence of the surrounding house. After a few seconds of silence, she took another step, the sound hissing again from across the hall. Jodie crept forward and peered into the bedroom that both Lilah and Dory shared. In the darkness, she could barely make out a small figure sitting upright in the far bed, hugging herself with curled arms.

“Mom?” The voice was a whisper, heightened by hope and struck Jodie like a spear to the chest.

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