Return (End Times Alaska Book 3) by Craig Martelle

Author:Craig Martelle
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Winlock Press
Published: 2016-08-01T06:00:00+00:00

A SINGULAR FOCUS

Lucas and I found a truck not far away. It was parked in the driveway as if they had just returned from the store. It was older, we thought a late 1960s Chevy truck with a small block V8. Lucas was in heaven. He tore into the engine with reckless abandon. I felt useless except to hand him tools from the owner’s garage. I then excused myself to go “shopping” for more food.

I kept a rag wrapped around my face as I went from house to house. Many were unlocked, making it easy to take a look inside. I towed a four-wheeled garden wagon behind me. I had already added my normal shopping tools: a pry bar, a sledgehammer, bolt cutters, and an axe. I found six unopened quarts of oil. I’m sure we could find more if needed. The truck used at least that much.

The best find that I made were two hunting rifles. Both were .308 caliber and there was ammunition with them. We didn’t know what we’d run across by Denali National Park, whether Russians or the grizzly bears. Being well-armed was the best hedge against the unknown.

I circled back to meet up with Lucas. He had the hood closed and was wiping his hands.

“I think she’s good to go, but the battery’s dead,” he said without preamble.

“I don’t know if we can find a good battery, but I’ll start looking. There has to be a garage or gas station where you can buy a battery. We won’t be paying, of course.” I laughed at my own joke.

“No need, Chuck! I topped off the water in the battery. Once we get it started, it can charge itself,” he said. I looked at him oddly, reminded of the chicken and the egg philosophical debate. “It’s a stick,” he added.

Finally it registered. We could push start it, pop the clutch and get it running. I started to climb in to the driver’s seat, but Lucas held me back.

“Come on, Chuck. This is my baby!” He looked confident.

“The last time you kicked me out of the driver’s seat, we ended up in the river, swimming. You push.” I gently removed his hand from my shoulder and got in. I tipped my head toward the back of the truck.

“Fair enough, but once we get going, I drive.”

“Once we get going, we load up everything we need, then you drive,” I made my point firmly. Last time we flew off without any of our stuff, but then again, if we had, it would all be at the bottom of the river.

I pumped the brakes until I felt pressure. I released the emergency brake, the foot pedal type, and waited for the truck to start rolling. I heard Lucas in the back grunting as he pushed. Something snapped and it started rolling forward. I took my foot off the clutch while it was in first gear and it stopped on a dime. I heard Lucas yell.

“What the hell, Chuck!” He was

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.