Havoc by Ann Aguirre Read Free Book Online Page A

respected the rules of Perdition, and he didn’t ask personal questions while he spooned down the grub.
    â€œTell me the truth,” Zediah said. “How long before the mercs kill us all? I’m not asking for false promises, mind you. Just an estimate of how long we’ve got.”
    Vix nudged him hard with her elbow. “Stuff the attitude.”
    Whatever Zediah might’ve said was forestalled by the alarm blaring throughout Queensland. “Incoming. Mungo’s mongrels closing fast!”

5
    Enemies at the Gate
    Dred raced for the nearest checkpoint. By the sound of it, they had incoming at three of the four checkpoints. She bit out a curse, and shouted, “Calypso, take some men to the east barricades but be careful of the turrets. They’ll fire through the scrap.”
    â€œOn it,” the other woman called back.
    She opened her mouth to give orders to Jael, but he was already rounding up some Queenslanders. “I’ve got the west. You’re heading north?”
    â€œThat’s the plan. All right, new fish, today you get to fight!” Though she’d told the men who used to belong to Grigor that they’d be on manual labor, no weapons, for a full turn, this was a special circumstance.
    If they were smarter, they’d wonder why I’m letting them arm up.
    Truth was, they needed the battle fodder. The dumb brutes roared with approval and jogged after her. Their path took them past the armory, and they chose some blades, then she sent them toward the checkpoint ahead. Tam didn’t have to be right at her ear, whispering caution, for her to see potential traps and snares; now it was second nature to consider all the ways people could betray her. Shit way to live, but in some regards, each day was an unexpected bonus. If nothing else, Perdition had taught her to exist in the moment and make the most of each opportunity.
    From all over the zone came the staccato fire of the turrets and shrieks of pain. She hoped the sentries had the sense not to get shot. If they ran out of ammo before Mungo ran out of bodies, however—eh, best not to predict the future. When Dred reached the barricades, she saw two guards standing well out of firing range and the towering wall of junk had holes blown through it, all the way to the opposite wall. Dodging the sting of live rounds, she sprinted up and snuck a peek through one of those rents to scope out the situation. Eight big lunks stood behind Mungo himself, eager to mix it up. He was a filthy, hirsute brute with red hair growing wild all over his body, and he bared his yellow, half-rotten teeth in challenge.
    â€œShut it down,” she shouted to the guards.
    We need to conserve ammo.
    In reply, the guns fell quiet and junk tumbled from the top of the blockade as Mungo and his crew shoved. Dred shouted orders, and the new fish stared at her blankly. Apparently, Grigor hadn’t specialized in strategy, just mayhem.
Never mind, then.
The wall came down with a final massive push, and the first of Mungo’s cannibals breached the perimeter. On the other side, bloody corpses assured Dred their measures had helped, but she couldn’t afford to waste bullets on Mungo. They would die easily compared to Silence’s killers or armed mercs.
    As the cannibals charged, Dred slapped her chains into the opposite palm and fell into a fighting stance. The first three were injured so bad that they stumbled forward in a slick of blood and dropped to their knees. Their comrades paid them no heed, scrambling over their dying moans to rush at Dred and her comrades. Drool trickled from their mouths, as if they saw them not as an enemy to be conquered but a potential feast.
    â€œEat this,” one of the new recruits snarled and slammed a blade through the mongrel’s throat.
    Up close, it had never been clearer to Dred how degraded Mungo’s subjects had become. Their coordination was off as they swung in wild lurches,