American Apocalypse Page 22

  “So I guess that means they won’t be back with anymore free MREs?”

  Again the snorted laugh. “Oh, they will be back . . . yes, indeed.”

  We didn’t talk after that. I took her to the break room and gave her some soup. Ninja’s girlfriend was sitting there watching television. I asked if there was anything on about what had happened earlier. She shook her head. Somehow I doubted if she had even checked. I asked if she had seen Night. She hadn’t seen her either.

  “So what are you doing, then?”

  She looked taken aback. “Why, I am watching television.”

  I went over and turned it off. “Now you’re not. So why don’t you get off your ass and do something other than using up oxygen. I suggest you go down into the basement and find something to do. If you can’t find anything, then you can clean off the body armor we brought in today.”

  She looked as if she really wanted to say something. She even made it as far as opening her mouth before she decided not to. She did slam the door on the way out. I shook my head. I also caught the faint smile that appeared—and then just as quickly disappeared—on Jane’s face.

  “Look, I’m sorry, but I am going to have to leave you here for now. I need to go find some people. Either I will be back or I will send someone to help you get settled in.”

  “Not a problem. I come from the land of hurry up and wait.”

  I felt uneasy about leaving her alone but I didn’t want her tagging along with me. I checked our room, the basement, and the lobby—no Max or Night. I went out front and checked the hill where I knew Max liked to sit sometimes and smoke the cigarette that he denied ever smoking.

  He was there.

  I eased in next to him and sat there silent. We both sat and watched the fires burn. Off in the distance a building exploded in a fireball.

  “Propane?” I asked.

  “Maybe. Or it could have been a Predator strike. As crazy as this shit is getting, it wouldn’t surprise me.”

  I told Max about Jane’s belief that there were drones watching us now, and probably had been for a while.

  “Yeah, I figured as much. My hope was that we would be too small and so obviously nonthreatening that we would never show up as the subject of anyone’s briefing.”

  “I guess that changed today? No, don’t bother replying; I know it changed today. So, how badly are we screwed, Max?” He didn’t say anything. The roar of military jets flying overhead blocked all the other night sounds for a minute or so.

  “Between me and you?”

  I nodded.

  “I can’t make you not tell Night, but I wouldn’t if I were you. She will know soon enough anyway. Let her be as close to happy as she can be for another day or so.”

  “We’re going to die?”

  “More than likely. I am surprised we aren’t already dead. It must be because we are American citizens on U.S. soil that they haven’t taken action. That won’t last long. They just need to go a little higher up the chain of command for approval, and then figure out an operation plan that will give them plausible deniability.”

  I said, “As if anyone will ever know or care.” I wasn’t even bitter. I understood. There was a moment of silence and then I asked Max, “So what are we going to do?”

  “Right now I am going to sit out here and think about it for a bit. I’ll let you know.”

  I was walking back to the house when I heard them: two helicopters headed our way. No lights. I saw them only because of the black holes they created in the backdrop of city lights. Black holes that became illuminated as the pilot of the one on my right released the missiles. My world disappeared in flames and then darkness.

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  Text copyright 2011 © Nova. Design copyright 2011 © Ulysses Press and its licensors. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

  Published in the United States by

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  An earlier version of this book, entitled American Apocalypse:

  The Beginning (Volume 1), was published by Flying Turtles of

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  eISBN : 978-1-569-75949-3

  Library of Congress Catalog Number 2011921430

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