Mute (Muted Trilogy Book 1) Read Free

husband, then nodded firmly, rising and leaving the room.
    Jemma sat back down on the sofa, pulling up her phone’s internet browser. The news outlets were all reporting the same things. CNN’s headline read, “MUTE: Voices Silenced.” Reports of violence and chaos were spreading. She ran her fingers through her hair, looking up as her mother returned, a pile of board games in hand. She set them on the coffee table triumphantly, and Jemma smiled.
    They sorted through the games, quickly and silently eliminating Yahtzee! and Taboo. Matt held up Monopoly, raising an eyebrow questioningly. Everyone nodded, and they sat down around the table. Jill silenced her phone when it wouldn’t stop vibrating, focusing on the game. Jemma and her mother, positioned best to see the television, glanced at the screen periodically.
    When the game finished, hours later, there was nothing new to report. Jemma tried flipping through the stations. She went past stations voicelessly proclaiming the end of the world, past stations that showed a blank screen or an empty desk, until she finally reached a local news station that had set laptops in front of each anchor.
    The female anchor typed, and text appeared in a square on-screen beside her head.
    Theories regarding this being a terrorist attack appear unfounded.
    The male anchor chimed in similarly, watching the camera when he finished typing.
    The event seems to be worldwide. No city or country has been spared.
    Reports of looting and rioting are already coming in from some of the larger cities , typed the woman.
    These reports range from Chicago to Tokyo to New York.
    The female anchor typed again, followed by the male.
    We’ll bring you updates as we receive them. From News Station 5, this is Gina…
    …and Rob. Thanks for watching.
    ***
    Jemma woke, stretching to ease the ache in her back before pulling her knees to her chest. Sleeping on the love seat had been a bad idea, but when it became clear her mother wasn’t okay with everybody retreating to their own rooms for the night—the possibility of Jemma driving to her own home quickly erased from the board—she’d decided it would be best to let her parents share the wide couch. Jill had sprawled out on the floor, cell phone in hand, and was still asleep.
    The television was turned off, and the couch was empty. Jemma sat up, yawning, pausing at the muted sound.
    It wasn’t that she had forgotten the events of the previous night, but she’d sort of wondered whether she’d remembered it wrong, or whether it had passed. The muted sound of her yawn had dashed those half-formed theories fairly effectively.
    She got up and wandered into the dining room, where her parents sat next to each other with cups of coffee still mostly full. Carolyn looked up as Jemma entered, opening her mouth to speak before closing it again. She frowned, then forced a smile, holding up her cup of coffee and nodding toward the kitchen.
    Jemma retrieved a cup of coffee and joined her parents. She sat across from her mother, sipping the warm liquid slowly. She pulled out her cell phone with her free hand, pulling up various news reports again.
    Many world governments, including that of the United States, have confirmed the loss of voice that seems to be apparent in each and every citizen. Japan is yet to confirm or deny…
    There is no evidence at this time as to what caused the event…
    Rioting in New York, Miami, and Detroit has lessened, but in Chicago…
    She thumbed over to a local news page.
    County police recommend no travel except in emergency. If you are without food supplies, please text the number at the bottom of this article. Emergency personnel have gathered Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) and are distributing them to those without food. No area power outages have been reported, so this will remain on an as-needed basis until the travel restrictions have been lifted.
    Jemma slid her phone to her parents, showing them the article, and they nodded.
    We’re