A Shrouded World (Book 2): Atlantis by Tufo Mark & O'Brien John

Author:Tufo, Mark & O'Brien, John [Tufo, Mark & O'Brien, John]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Zombie Apocalypse
Publisher: DevilDog Press LLC
Published: 2015-07-15T04:00:00+00:00

Jack Walker - Chapter 4

With my shoulder holding the glass-paneled door open, I stand at the entrance completely perplexed. I mean, they were just right behind me. One moment they’re there, the next, nowhere to be seen. I study the tracks leading up the steps again, looking closely at the faint imprints left in the thin layers of dust. There are three distinct sets of boots leading upward, and none leading away. The sand to either side is undisturbed, meaning they didn’t head off in another direction. I follow them with my eyes. All three lead to the doorway and then only one set, mine, lead inside.

I step outside and look up, just in case they suddenly encountered an anti-gravity field or became expert mountaineers and scaled the walls on a whim or to keep in practice. There isn’t anyone floating in mid-air or searching for the next finger hold. Mike and Trip just up and vanished, literally into thin air. If it weren’t for the tracks, I would go back to my certainty that this is just a dream; that they only ever existed in my imagination. Of course, I’m not entirely discounting that possibility yet, either.

Perhaps they were taken back to their worlds, as suddenly as we arrived. Maybe their time in this world came to an end—it’s comforting to think that there may be a time limit imposed. I don’t think I ever asked Mike how long they had been here; I assumed that they came at the same time I did. It’s a distinct possibility that they were carried back to their loved ones; well, Mike’s anyway, leaving only me in this forsaken world. If that’s the case, then I’m happy for them. On the other hand, it leaves me extremely envious. The thought of being forever stuck here, alone, tightens my stomach. I have the sense that I have to stay alive here if I’m ever going to see Lynn and the kids again, and the odds of that happening just dropped dramatically.

I would call out for them, to see if maybe they were taken only a short distance, but the thought of my voice echoing down the empty streets, waking or drawing anything in the vicinity, gives me pause. Their disappearance, alarming as it is, also gives me a measure of hope. Perhaps there is a way out of this place, and it’s only a matter of time or happenstance. Now I just have to stay alive until that random event occurs, if that’s actually what it is. The other possibility is that I’ve gone crazy and this is a result of being trapped in crazyland. I mean, I know that I’ve been slowly heading down that path, but for it to arrive so suddenly…well, I would have appreciated a little more warning.

Well, Jack, it is what it is…and there’s nothing more to do except push on.

It was great having the company, even if Trip frustrated me at times. I didn’t know how important that was until it wasn’t there anymore.

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