Sneak Peak - Earth Abounds (Book 3 - Last Mile Series)

When mankind faces insurmountable odds, mankind will rise to the occasion.

After eighty percent of the world’s population is destroyed by a plague delivered by an alien race, a group of survivors build the ultimate underground civilization known as So-Cal. They wait and prepare for the impending war against the invaders.

What they are not prepared for is the arrival of the crew from the Galaxy, a ship long lost in space. Galaxy’s joyful arrival is thwarted by a last second alien attack at the gates of So-Cal. The not only leaves members of the crew seriously injured, but one is missing. Vanished into thin air.

While the crew of the Galaxy struggles against life threatening injuries and trying to understand what has happened to their world in their absence, Robi Pierce, leader, recants to them how So-Cal came to be and the hardships they endured in getting there.

Available Amazon - May 2013

<><><><>

Chapter One

NV 5 (Nevada Section 5)

There was a spot of blood on the screen of the cell phone, and Colonel Reese Gray wiped it away with his thumb.

            David Hawk’s blood.

          The desert air whipped against him, a forceful air, hot and dry, taking a bit of his breath away; then again, it could have come from emotion.

        Reese was confused. Internally he suffered a potpourri of feelings that he was trying so hard to decipher.

            Reese was a strong man both physically and emotionally, but he was close to breaking.

Keep it in check, he kept telling himself. Keep it in check.

Standing in the middle of the Nevada desert, he knew that alone he wasn’t going to make heads or tails out of the situation, nor would he find his friend. Although only a couple of weeks earlier, David Hawk wasn’t a friend. He was a coworker, a crewmember on the Galaxy with Reese. The Galaxy was a spacecraft, sent to orbit Earth carrying not only a skeleton crew from NASA, but also four civilians who won a space lottery.

            Four days in space.

            That was it, but when they returned they not only caught some sort of wormhole, they landed five years later on a desolate Earth, a planet void of hydration and life. Void of people … that they knew of. A trek across the country, following the trail of family member, brought them to Nevada. They were in search of a survivor complex known to them as So-Cal or SC.

            During this trek, he lost two crewmembers, but the six of them that remained bonded and became friends. Now they were torn apart by tragedy and circumstances just inches from the victory destination of SC.

            They discovered the entrance, and then they were attacked. Reese tried to recall the details, but they were vague. He hoped they came back. He wanted to remember every single second.

            Driving full speed across the plains to the entrance, something from the sky fired at them. The people of SC came to their rescue, but it was too late. Even the residents of SC hadn’t a clue what attacked them. It was a new kind of attack.

         They tried, they battled, but the crew of the Galaxy lost. The vehicle was struck, thrown, and crashed.

            Reese walked away with minor scratches, but his crew wasn’t so lucky.

            Two of them were seriously injured, two fatally injured, and one, David Hawk, was gone. Not dead. Injured for sure, but gone. Vanished into thin air.

            All that remained was one of the five cell phones he brought with him to test in space.

            Ironically, it was the only phone that powered up after they landed in what once was the Atlantic Ocean.

            As if he were some sort of tourist in the apocalypse, David Hawk took pictures with that phone, and Reese was grateful.

            He looked and would forever look at the pictures, not for the scenery, but for the images of Ken, Paul, Thad, Kip, David, Gene, and … Lucy.

            A polite clearing of the throat snapped Reese to attention. He turned to see Tate Hoyt, one of the warriors, survivors, or soldiers, he didn’t know. Reese assumed he was someone in authority, at least in a security capacity. The man stood armed and stared compassionately at Reese.

            The was something young about him, but Reese knew he wasn’t. Tate spoke rough; he had lines around his eyes and scars on his face.

            “We’ll find him,” Tate said. “No one just vanishes. But right now, we can’t leave the entrance open, and it’s too dangerous to be out here too long.”

            “I understand. And …” Reese inhaled. “I want to see my crew.”

            Tate nodded.

            “Any word on them?” Reese asked.

            “No updates since we came out. Then again, we try to keep radio signals out here to a minimum, but it’s a fifteen-minute trip to the main hub of SC, so we need to go now. I’ll order a tube transport. Shouldn’t take long.”

            “Tube transport,” Reese mused as he followed Tate. “I thought we were in SC.”

            “Not at all, we’re at one of the five survivor/salvage entrances. SC is quite a distance. We take the tubes, sort of like super high-speed trains to SC.”

            Reese paused at the entrance; it was a solid rock cliff that just slid to the side. “How can you be so high tech?”

            “Long story. We’ll tell that when we fill you in. Knowing who you guys are, I know I would want answers.”

            “I do,” Reese replied. He watched Tate secure the door as he looked around. The other man wasn’t there, Tate’s brother Jeb. Complete contrast to Tate, except in attitude. “Where’s your brother?”

            “He went back. He’ll meet us there.” Tate then spoke into his radio about returning and then faced Reese again. “Tube is there already.”

            They moved from an entrance down a long cave-like corridor that emerged into what looked like the platform of a train station. Earlier a portion was triage; now it was empty. The tube transport awaited them.

            “You okay?” Tate asked. “Other than injured, I mean.”

            “No, this is just very surreal to me.”

            Tate cracked an ornery smile and released a short laugh. “Yeah, well, I bet. This is just the beginning. I guess to me it’s normal. It’s our way of life.”

            “In my memory, two weeks ago, my way of life was coming home from work, cracking open a beer, and watching reruns of Roseanne.”

            “We still have comedy around here, just not what you’re familiar with,” Tate said as the door to the tube slid open. “But, man, are you in for some culture shock.”

            Reese mumbled, “That’s an understatement,” as he followed Tate onto the tube. The doors slid closed.