Edge of Fear: An EMP Post-Apocalyptic Survival Prepper Series (American Fallout Book 3)

by Alex Gunwick

  “It’s still too risky,” Liz said.

  “Do you really want those crazy guys to get their hands on the Kevlar vests I had stashed away for you and Kyle?”

  “What Kevlar vests?” Liz asked. “I don’t remember seeing those.”

  “They’re in the secondary stash,” Luke said.

  “Don’t forget about the grenades,” Derek chimed in. Luke shot him a dirty look, but Derek only smiled back and raised his mug in a sarcastic ‘cheers’ gesture.

  “Grenades? Secondary stash?” Liz narrowed her gaze.

  “I, uh, may have stashed a few emergency grenades in the shed. And I have a second stash of weapons and supplies I never told you about.” Luke glanced down sheepishly.

  Liz groaned, throwing her hands up in frustration.

  “Now do you see why we have to go get our stuff? The cult may have raided the cabin looking for their men, but they probably haven’t found the stuff I buried in the secondary stash location in the woods. It should be safe for now, but we can’t risk them finding it,” Luke said.

  “Fine. I’m coming with you.” She crossed her arms, staring him down.

  “No, you’re not.” He returned her gaze. Stubborn as she was, he refused to budge on this issue. “You’re staying here with Kyle. He needs you.”

  She opened her mouth to object, but he cut her off with a whisper in case his son was nearby. “I’m worried about him. One of us needs to watch him to make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid. He’s not thinking right. Ever since Sierra died, he’s been so angry. I’m afraid he’ll try to sneak out again.”

  Liz glared at him doubtfully for a moment, but then her face softened. “Fine, but please be more careful this time. Don’t hang around. Obviously, it’s not safe out there. Just grab the stuff and come right back here, promise?”

  “I promise, babe. We’ll be back before you know it.” Luke kissed her cheek before following Derek toward the entrance to the bunker.

  As they headed into the forest, the wound on Luke’s abdomen burned and itched. He tried to ignore it, but the need to scratch the wound nearly overwhelmed him. He couldn’t risk it getting infected, so he shoved his hands in his pockets.

  When they reached the edge of the trees overlooking Luke’s cabin, they crouched down. Luke scanned the windows, looking for movement.

  “I thought we were just going to grab the stuff from the secondary location and get back,” Derek said.

  “I lied. I didn’t want to worry her, but I got to see what those fuckers did to my cabin.”

  “I get it. Lead the way,” Derek said.

  The cabin was a mess inside. Furniture was overturned, and all the drawers had been ripped out and dumped on the ground. Anything worth taking was gone from the kitchen, including most of the pots and pans and, ominously, all the knives. The bodies of the cult people that had attacked them were also gone. Dried blood stains were the only remaining evidence of the carnage.

  “Jesus, they did a number on the place, huh?” Derek whistled as they surveyed the damage.

  “Well, shit!” Luke cursed when he saw the empty place in the couch where his crossbow and arrows had been.

  “What is it?”

  “Oh, nothing. I just had my crossbow stashed in there,” he said sarcastically.

  “Just what we need, another crazy bastard running around with a crossbow.” Derek shook his head. “I’ve got to say, watching Sandy and Edwin take the arrow out last night didn’t look pleasant.”

  “I assure you, it was not. You know how sometimes things look worse than they really are? That was definitely not one of those times. Getting shot with an arrow might sound cool, but after experiencing it, I wouldn’t recommend it.”

  “I’ll take your word for it. It sucks that they took your crossbow, but at least they didn’t get the grenades.”

  “We don’t know that for sure yet. We have to check the stash. Let’s get out of here. If we linger too long, Liz will tear me a new one. Don’t tell her we came into the cabin.”

  “I’ll do my best, but that wife of yours is tough as nails. I can’t promise I’ll hold up under interrogation.”

  Luke laughed. “Fair enough. Come on, let’s go grab the stuff.”

  After checking to be sure the coast was clear, they jogged back into the tree line. Luke glanced back on the cabin, wondering if this would be the last time he would visit it. Liz and he had made so many memories there, with and without the kids. He could picture Sierra and Kyle playing outside together in the grass. He would have given anything at that moment to go back to that time, just so he could see his daughter once more.

  Choking up, he turned his back on the cabin. He forced the memory from his mind. He couldn’t look weak in front of Derek. So far, the younger man respected Luke. He didn’t want to mess that up. He wanted to stay in control of the situation, and a power struggle could destabilize his plans.

  Luke led Derek to the secondary stash, about fifty yards into the woods. After removing snow and other debris, Luke lifted the camouflage blanket. He pulled open the trap door to the large metal container he’d buried underground. He hauled up the bags and gun cases.

  “Damn, this is going to help a lot with our defenses,” Derek said.

  “I never told anyone about this stash, not even Liz.”

  “Smart OPSEC. As much as we want to be able to trust family. We can’t always do it.”

  They both grunted and grimaced as they hoisted their loads. They moved carefully, trying to avoid popping any stitches. Sandy would be pissed if she had to patch them up again.

  “Ready to move out?” Luke asked.

  “Yes, sir!”

  “Let’s go.”

  As they started back toward the bunker, Luke watched for any threats in the woods. Grabbing the stuff had been easy. Getting it back to the bunker might be another story.

  Liz sat near the radio, turned down low, with Sandy, both women holding steaming mugs of tea in their hands. They could still only manage to pick up the emergency broadcast. The same message was playing on repeat, but just hearing something comforted them.

  “Why do you think Russia did this?” Sandy stared blankly at the radio. It was the question on everyone’s mind since they’d learned about the suspected source of the attack.

  “Hell if I know. I can’t imagine why anyone would do this, least of all Russia. Luke always thought an attack would come from either the Middle East or China. Or North Korea, maybe. If they ever got their program up and running. I thought we were making progress with Russia.”

  “I know. It seemed like we’d come so far since the Cold War days. The people who built this place?” She swept her arm around, gesturing at the walls. “They probably figured it had all been for nothing. Just paranoia. I bet they never dreamed we’d actually need it. Not after the Soviet Union collapsed.”

  “God, I was just a kid back then, but even I knew that those were crazy times.” Liz shook her head, thinking of all the stories she heard of people in Russia paying insane prices for smuggled pairs of American blue jeans and rock and roll cassettes.

  “You know, I remember doing those ‘duck and cover’ drills in school when I was really young. How stupid was that?” Sandy chuckled. “As if our desks could have protected us from a nuke.”

  “That’s crazy. I remember watching that video in school when we learned about Cold War history. I highly doubt hiding under your desks would’ve saved you.”

  “Hell, no! They figured that out not too long after. It became a running joke when I was growing up. It doesn’t seem so funny now, though.”

  They both fell quiet. Millions of people had died when the bombs dropped, many of them children. The thought brought tears to Liz’s eyes. Sandy was misty-eyed as well. Liz sniffled, wiping her eyes with the back of her sleeve.

  “Maybe we’ve listened to that enough.” She reached over to turn off the radio, but Sandy stopped her.

  “Leave it on. I know it’s hard, but I want to hear i
t if they have any more news.”

  The front door of the bunker clattered open. Luke and Derek’s voices echoed down the hall. Liz jumped up, worried that Derek was going to be dragging her half-dead husband back to her again.

  Relief bloomed in her chest when they strolled into the room and dropped their loads onto the ground. They seemed unharmed. Well, they didn’t seem to have acquired any new injuries. But they were both pale and sweaty and looked like they needed to rest.

  “Thank God, you made it back okay.” She walked over to Luke and wrapped him in a gentle hug, careful not to squeeze his bad shoulder.

  He returned the weak hug and kissed her forehead. “Of course we did, baby. We were cautious, weren’t we?” He looked over at Derek.

  “Sure were. We grabbed the stuff and came right back, just like we said. No problems, smooth as butter.” The smile he gave Liz seemed forced. She suspected they weren’t telling her everything, but she was happy to have her husband safe with her again. She decided not to press the issue.

  “So, did you get the grenades?” Liz asked.

  “Yep. We can cross ‘crazed cultists wielding grenades’ off our very long list of concerns.” Luke grinned. It amazed her that he could maintain his sense of humor at a time like this. She couldn’t decide if it was an indication of his impressive courage or his confounding stupidity.

  “That’s good,” she said flatly.

  “Well, we don’t have to worry about the cult members running around with your grenades. We have no way of knowing if they’ve got any of their own.”

  Liz groaned while Luke scowled at Derek.

  “What?” Derek raised his eyebrows innocently. “I’m just saying; they could have them. I mean, they probably don’t, but we shouldn’t rule it out as a possibility. A good soldier prepares for anything.” His voice took on a sarcastically rigid military tone. He straightened his posture and snapped his hand up to his forehead in a crisp salute. “Isn’t that right, sir?”

  “At ease, soldier.” Luke chuckled.

  Liz had to admit that they made a good pair.

  “For real, though.” Derek’s tone grew serious. “This stuff will come in handy when we take these fuckers on.” He gestured at the bags full of gear and Luke’s gun case.

  Luke nodded gravely.

  “I don’t know. I keep going back and forth about engaging with them. What if we just stayed here all winter? They probably won’t survive. And will they even be able to find this place?” Liz was hesitant to endorse taking on the Children of the Bomb. She couldn’t bear any more loss.

  “Honey, we’ve been through this.” Luke’s tone was gentle. “None of us are safe while they’re still out there. There won’t be peace. They already tried to kill me at the cabin. They killed Sierra. We have to take them out before they get us.”

  “You’re making my point for me. We’ve already lost Sierra. I almost lost you, too. It’s too great a risk. I can’t lose you or Kyle. I can’t take any more loss.” Tears welled in her eyes. Luke put his big hand on her thigh, squeezing it gently and fixing her with an intense gaze.

  “That’s exactly why we have get rid of them. These people aren’t rational. They’re fanatics. I dealt with people like them overseas. Different god, maybe, but the same story. There’s no reasoning with them. No negotiating. There is only blood. The only question is, will it be ours or theirs?”

  Liz sighed. He was right. She hated putting her family at risk, but what choice did she have? If the cult found the bunker, Liz and what was left of her family would be screwed. They still hadn’t found a second way in and out of the bunker, but there had to be one.

  Taking out the cult members one by one was the right thing to do. Sitting around hoping they wouldn’t be found was foolish, and she was smarter than that. She slowly nodded her head, steeling her resolve and silently vowing to do everything in her power to take down the cult once and for all.

  20

  Derek lay prone on the ridge above the bunker. He searched the clearing below through his binoculars. Liz had reported seeing several dozen people down there the previous night, but he didn’t see anyone now.

  He could, however, make out the ashes from a few fires, so he had no reason to doubt they’d been there. But there was one question nagging at him. Were those people members of the cult, or were they innocent people passing through the area?

  It seemed highly unlikely that such a large group of people would be on this part of the mountain unless they were connected to the Children of the Bomb. With winter coming on fast, most people wouldn’t be foolish enough to travel through the mountains without the assurance of a safe destination. Were the COB bastards recruiting more people to their cause?

  The COB already had them outnumbered, and Derek didn’t like the idea of those odds tipping even further. Though, when it came to actually fighting them, he was pretty sure that he and Luke could take on the whole cult.

  They could have picked up a few ex-military along the way. Derek had known a few unbalanced soldiers, but he doubted they’d be amenable to the particular brand of crazy these people were selling. Even if there were soldiers in their ranks, there couldn’t be more than one or two in a group that size.

  Ultimately, it was pointless to theorize about it. He’d have to get a closer look at their base of operations if he and Luke were going to formulate an effective combat strategy. He carefully scanned the clearing and the surrounding woods again through his binoculars. There was no sign of human activity.

  Satisfied that the area was deserted, at least for the time being, he made his way back down the ridge and hobbled down the slope toward the clearing.

  He paused in the woods at the edge of the clearing, scanning his surroundings and listening intently for movement. He saw nothing out of the ordinary and heard only the familiar bird-sounds of the forest.

  He crept into the campsite, seeking some clue as to the intentions of those who’d been here. He found a few crushed beer cans, energy bar wrappers, and dozens of cigarette butts. Sifting through the ashes of the fires with the toe of his boot, he uncovered a few half-burned beer cans and some charred animal bones.

  Based on the little evidence available to him, he felt confident that whoever these people were, they weren’t military. Any significant military training would probably have taught them not to leave behind such a mess.

  It was encouraging. The sloppy campsite spoke to a lack of discipline, which he could’ve already predicted from the shoddy assault they’d mounted on Luke’s cabin. Based on what he’d seen of them so far, he figured there wasn’t a single soldier in the bunch.

  After poking around the campsite, he spotted crushed vegetation at one edge. He located a narrow path that had been trampled by a dozen or more boots and tennis shoes.

  He followed the path through the woods, moving carefully and quietly. No sentries appeared to be posted around the camp, but he had to be careful. He wanted to avoid conflict until his gashed leg and the stitches in his side had time to heal. He cringed at the thought of Sandy re-stitching him without any anesthetic. He sure as hell didn’t want to go through that again.

  Farther down the path, he came across a few scattered cigarette butts and a couple of energy bar wrappers.

  “Savages.” He muttered, annoyed by their lack of respect for the pristine mountain environment.

  He continued to follow their tracks. As disgusted as he was by their trail of trash, he was also thankful for their careless actions. Following the slobs was easy. It wouldn’t be long before he located them.

  He reached a hill that overlooked an alpine lake. Situated next to the lake was a large stone building that looked like an old park ranger station. About two dozen people milled around outside the building.

  Derek dropped to his stomach and crawled the top of the hill, partially concealing himself behind several large rocks. Using his binoculars, he studied the group.

  They were mostly men, ranging in age from about sixteen to fift
y. Several of them carried rifles. A few had pistols holstered on their hips. One younger man held a loaded crossbow. Derek shuddered at the memory of Sandy and Edwin pulling the arrow out of Luke’s shoulder. Luke’s eyes had rolled back in his head as he nearly passed out from the pain. It was disgusting.

  During his time in the military, Derek had been shot twice, stabbed three times, had his jaw broken by a rifle butt, and he’d taken shrapnel from an IED. The shrapnel missed his spine by two inches. He’d lucked the fuck out when he’d survived that blast. He refused to add ‘shot by a crossbow’ to his list of misfortunes.

  Sunlight glinted off the savage-looking broad-tips on the end of the kid’s arrows. Derek shuddered. Having seen what the relatively tame field-tip had done to Luke’s shoulder, he decided that avoiding an arrow from that crossbow was among his primary mission objectives. Sure, the semi-automatic rifles might take strategic priority, but he’d take a few bullets over one of those vicious arrows any day.

  He turned his attention away from the crossbow and spotted a few women kneeling by the lake, washing clothes in the icy water. He wondered about their status within the cult. From what he’d seen, they probably weren’t treated all that well. They’d most likely joined the group for protection. Not a bad strategy in the post-bomb world.

  He really didn’t care about their beliefs or their social structures. He just wanted to stop them from terrorizing others. They shouldn’t be allowed to force their beliefs on other people or use people’s fear to keep them enslaved. That was where he drew the line.

  Luke was right when he’d said, “It was kill or be killed.” Derek had survived so much shit. He wasn’t going to let undisciplined, wannabe soldiers of the apocalypse taken him down.

  Although he wanted to dart back to the bunker to report that he’d located their base of operations, he decided to stick around and watch them for a while. From what he could tell, they didn’t run any regularly scheduled patrols. If he and Luke were going to mount a proper assault on these disorderly amateurs, he wanted to have as much intel as possible. With some solid reconnaissance, he was confident that he and Luke could make easy work of the ragtag disciples.