The Light: The Invasion Trilogy Book 3 Read Free

“We need to move. Back to the trucks.”
    Jacob proceeded to the front of the vehicle and jumped into the cab, pulling the door shut behind him. Looking up, he watched as the bottom of the nearest globe turned to black then fired. Not the way Jacob imagined it would, with lasers or cannons suddenly extending from the top, or maybe missiles launching from holes, twisting toward earth in tiny spirals. None of that. The globes changed color then slowly rotated clockwise, the bottoms opened up revealing a blue light, and then they dropped a tiny seed. He couldn’t take his eyes off the rotating orb.
    “Something is falling out of it,” he uttered.
    Jacob stretched back, holding tight and pressing his head out of the rear window. The truck rocketed forward at high speed close behind James as he acquired the lead in the Blazer, the vehicles whipping through the gates of the unit compound, racing onto a gravel road, tossing loose stone in their wake.
    He watched the seed spiral down, dropping out of view just above the surface of the ground. Then the earth trembled.
    “Look away from it!” Rogers yelled.
    Jacob ducked inside and grasped a hand across his face an instant before a bright flash erupted in the distance. He pulled Laura and Katy down to his legs, shielding them from the light, both of the girls now screaming. Looking over, he saw Rogers’ jaw was clenched, his left hand over his face as he stayed on the throttle and focused on keeping the truck straight on the road.
    After the flash, a blinding cloud of debris crashed and overtook the vehicles. They were now driving through a thick fog of dust, the headlights barely illuminating the way ahead. Blinded, James was forced to slow down while Rogers moved the truck forward, staying in view of the lead vehicle’s taillights.
    “What was that… a nuke?” Laura asked, her voice trembling. Katy was still in her arms, sobbing.
    Rogers shook his head, both hands clutching the wheel tight. “I don’t think so; we’d be dead if it were. Maybe kinetic… electrical? A rail gun firing straight down, fuck… something unknown?”
    Jacob looked back behind them, trying to focus on anything in the cloud of thick dust through the rear window. “I think they hit the airfield.”
    Rogers nodded his head. “Most likely.”
    “You think anyone got out?” Laura asked.
    Rogers clenched his jaw and narrowly shook his head, not taking his eyes off the Blazer in front of him. “There were three of them in our area; the globes probably placed themselves so they would have overlapping blast radiuses. We were five… maybe ten miles away when they hit. You felt the blast and shockwaves yourself. What can you imagine happened closer?”
    Suddenly, the truck ahead stopped, the taillights growing bright. Rogers slapped the truck into park. The girls got very quiet as a spotlight hit the windshield, cutting through the haze. Neither Rogers nor Jacob spoke as a group of men with flashlights patrolled up both sides of the road, rifles aimed at the cab. Rogers lowered his window and leaned out. “Slow your roll, heroes, and get those damn rifles out of my face; I got a kid in here.”
    The lead soldier put up a hand, waving the others off, then approached the driver’s window. He saw the rank on Rogers’ collar. “Sorry, Sergeant, we’re all on edge. What the hell happened?”
    Rogers’ own eyes showed alarm. He looked across at Jacob then back at the soldier. “I don’t know. Do you have contact with the other stations, other gates?”
    “No, Sergeant, the radio fuzzed out just before those things turned red… then the blast… You all are the first vehicle we’ve seen. Are there any more behind you?”
    “I don’t think so. We were already on the road when they attacked. Listen, secure this gate, do what you can to lock it up then get your people out of here. Whatever they did back there, I’d say this position is no longer worth defending.”
    The soldier’s eyes