Winchester Undead (Book 2): Winchester: Prey Read Free Page A

them. Stand by, I’m being handed a new report … It reads ‘Remain indoors and avoid contact with all other persons. If a person or family member becomes ill …”
    The transmission faded into static.
    Jake looked at Sara, his brow furrowed. “EMP and some sort of biological or chemical attack. Finish getting dressed while I get the plastic and duct tape. We need to seal up until we can find out more of what’s going on.”
    Sara left for the bedroom to finish getting dressed, while Jake went to their spare bedroom. The locked door was a heavy exterior door with a numeric punch lock. Jake pushed the five-digit key and entered the dark room. The room was lined with shelves of supplies. In the corner sat a large maroon gun safe. Jake spun the dial, quickly unlocked the safe and opened the heavy door. He took a deep breath and let it out with a heavy sigh. He and Sara had prepared for society to collapse, for some natural disaster or attack to disrupt their lives, but if he was honest with himself, deep down he never thought it would actually happen.
    Already on his thick nylon belt was a holster, and in it went the Glock 17 after he loaded it and made ready with a round in the chamber. Jake retrieved his AR-15, loaded it and propped it against the wall next to the safe. He wanted it ready and nearby, but he and his wife needed to tape up and seal the home’s windows and doors.
    The fireplace would remain open for now, as the fire’s heat would most likely destroy any airborne pathogens falling down the fireplace. At least Jake hoped it would, and hoped there wasn’t any nuclear fallout. However, if the attack was a high-altitude detonation to generate an EMP, there shouldn’t be any fallout. An hour after the lights went out in the Sells’ home, they were secure and sheltered in place.
     
    Little Rock, AR
     
    Amanda slowly opened her eyes. She blinked hard and couldn’t remember where she was. She turned to look out her window and saw it was missing with grass and dirt in its place. Slowly her mind caught up to her surroundings and the nightmare crash started to regain focus. Over the sound of her heartbeat booming in her ears, she began to be become aware of someone else talking.
    She looked left and saw Agent Smith leaning into the Tahoe’s interior. “Ma’am, unlatch your seatbelt and take my hand.”
    Complying, she unlatched her seatbelt and stood upright to reach Smith’s hand hanging through the shattered side window. Amanda stood on the inside of the door, the Tahoe having come to a rest on its side. Once outside of the ruined SUV, after having climbed off the top of the upturned Tahoe, she remembered seeing the airplane falling out of the sky just before the crash. Amanda turned to look behind her and saw thick black smoke billowing into the sky a few hundred yards away.
    Smith and Johnson wrestled the rear doors of the Tahoe open and retrieved two large Pelican cases before stripping out of their ruined dark suits. Amanda stood silently, too confused to protest and too uninformed to ask any questions. Everything had happened too fast. Only fifteen minutes ago she was lying comfortably in her warm bed, and now she stood next to a ruined SUV in a ditch watching two men she didn’t know strip to their underwear. Smith and Johnson both began pulling clothing and gear out of the heavy plastic cases. Soon they were dressed in black tactical clothing and began strapping on body armor and holstering weapons. Smith handed Amanda a military-looking backpack that felt like it weighed at least thirty pounds.
    “You’ll need this. Please put it over your shoulders.”
    Smith and Johnson retrieved similar-looking bags from the back of the Tahoe, but both of their bags were considerably larger and appeared to weigh much more than Amanda’s bag.
    Amanda, still in shock although her thoughts were starting to catch up with what she’d just seen, finally spoke. “What … what happened?”
    Smith released the