Alien Hunter: Underworld by Whitley Strieber Read Free Book Online Page A

better, he started the car and began driving, lights out, watching the faint line of the road ahead, letting the car creep as silently as possible. As he descended the steep track, the trees on both sides became thicker and the fog more dense. Still, he didn’t turn on the lights. On the road, fine, but he didn’t want anyone noticing a car leaving the Miller place this late.
    There were a couple of sharp turns, which he negotiated slowly, keeping close watch on the nearly invisible line of the road. When he reached a straight stretch about three hundred yards long, he immediately increased his speed.
    He reached the end of the Miller’s road at last, and drove on, his mind a whirl of confused thoughts. Was this finished? Had he killed the last of them?
    He had not killed Morris, and while that monster remained at large, nothing was finished. He would go on, deep into the night, looking, waiting, a spider more dangerous than the one the aliens had tried to frighten him with, patient and lethal.

 
    CHAPTER FIVE
    HE TURNED on his cell phone. The moment it went online, it rang.
    â€œYou killed them all,” Diana said.
    â€œHow would you know that?”
    â€œFlynn, I have to tell you, Aeon is really, really pissed off.”
    â€œOkay.”
    â€œThey want you stopped once and for all.”
    â€œSay again?”
    â€œThey are demanding this, Flynn, and we’re not sure exactly what they mean. They might want you killed in return.”
    â€œYou tell them that we lost twenty-eight living human beings to their seven damn robots or whatever they are, and if they want us to capture these creatures, either send us instructions or send us help.”
    â€œFlynn?”
    He heard tears in her voice, which concentrated his attention. “Are they coming after me?”
    Silence.
    â€œHey, this is me, Diana. Am I in trouble, here?”
    â€œI don’t know.”
    He controlled it. “Look, I’ve got the bodies in the trunk of my car.”
    â€œWhat happened to the civilian?”
    â€œThey’re fine.”
    â€œThey?”
    â€œThe wife has a lover. The sheriff. Look, there’s a lot going on here. We’re dealing with a whole new level of mind control, for one thing. I’ve seen things—oh, Christ, Diana, I’m telling you—”
    â€œI want you off the roads. They could grab you.”
    â€œWhat do I do with these bodies? I can’t just leave them in a Dumpster.”
    â€œOkay, get them to Wright-Pat. Get rid of them. Then come back here, Flynn. Stay close to home.”
    He wasn’t sure he was going to do that. In fact, he had no idea what he was going to do, but he was certainly going to get rid of these bodies. He considered flying them to the containment, but thought better of it. He had no idea if he was more vulnerable in the air or on the ground, but he had absolutely no hope of escape in a plane, so he decided to stay on the highway.
    Even so, he had never felt more exposed in his life. He’d never been scared like this. He was used to feeling invulnerable, and now he felt anything but. Why in hell would Aeon care so much about these damn things? They were machines made of flesh and blood, nothing more, so why be so concerned about them?
    Perhaps Aeon’s intentions were being misinterpreted. Maybe they were on the right side of this thing after all. Our knowledge of their language was flawed at best.
    He gripped the wheel, pushing the car as fast as he dared to go. He sure as hell didn’t want some state cop looking in that trunk.
    As he drove, he found himself compulsively tonguing the cyanide capsule. He’d planned on following his usual routine and returning it to its container, but not now, no way.
    He just could not believe that Aeon was angry. If they wanted contact to develop, they should be elated. Not only that, why should he be afraid of them? They had no major presence here. No ships, no personnel.