Man Eaters by Linda Kay Silva Read Free Book Online Page A

doesn’t include going anywhere near Bakersfield or L.A. But thank you.”
    “I wish you all the best, Rope. Oh...if you think of it, you might check on old Mrs. Dumfy. She may need some help before you go.”
    “Will do. Good luck, Walt.”
    When he disappeared into the red camper, Dallas turned to Roper, her heart rate only now returning to normal. “Mrs. Dumfy?”
    Roper wiped her sweaty palms before holstering the gun. “She’s in a wheelchair. I’ll check on her before we go, make sure she can reach all her food and water.” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “It’s the least I can do.”
    Dallas watched Roper trudge back up the stairs, her shoulders now heavy with the burden of leaving someone to an indescribable fate.
    For the next hour, Dallas stood watch on the porch. A dog barked in the distance. How long would it be before they came this far inland? And how come the military hadn’t told the living how to protect themselves? Were they afraid the living would turn on each other, so instead, the military turned their weapons on the living? And at what point were they beyond the point of no return?
    Sitting on the top stair, the Glock laying in her lap, Dallas wondered if she would have been safer solo on the Harley. She could travel during the night. She could reach the border to Nevada in an eighth of the time it would take on a horse. She could go a great deal faster with just herself and the bike.
    But she could never live with herself if she left them here. It just wasn’t in her character to turn her back on someone who needed help. That was why being a firefighter had been the perfect job for her—and she’d loved every second of it. It never mattered to what job she was assigned, she attacked it with gusto. From breaking down doors to…
    Dallas slowly rose. There were tools at a fire station that would come in handy. Making a mental note to stop at a fire station when they could so safely, Dallas stood watch until the television came to life once more.
    “Good news for Californians! The military research team has developed a vaccine for this virus and they will be bringing it to your homes. That’s right. Help is on the way! Since they will only inject it into those who are inside their homes, it is imperative you wait there. Behind me, you can see the map of the Bay Area, from San Francisco to the Central Valley. Already, the cities of Oakland, Berkeley, and Alameda are receiving the inoculation, with towns up and down 580 receiving treatment in order. To better facilitate this, the President is asking everyone to paint a number on their house, indicating how many people are inside. No number means no vaccine. If you just caught the tail end of this, it will be a looped recording for the next 24 hours. Should you come in contact with the infected, do not engage, but remove yourself to a safe place. Help will be there shortly.”
    Dallas hit the mute button and almost wet herself when she turned and crashed into Einstein.
    “They’re full of it,” Einstein said. “I don’t know what game they’re at, but they don’t have a vaccine and they sure as hell don’t have the manpower to go door-to-door administering it.”
    Roper stood at the foot of the stairs. “I agree...it’s horse shit. For some reason, they want to keep tabs on the living and keep us indoors.”
    “When they should be out killing the dead.” Dallas shook her head. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”
    “Who was able to sleep?”
    Einstein raised his hand. “I can sleep next to railroad tracks.”
    “Good to know. So, kid, what do you think of this?”
    “Containment. Pure and simple. At this point, based on what we’ve seen so far, the military is every bit our enemy as the man eaters and everything they say and do is suspect.
    Roper turned the television off. “I agree. We need to do the opposite of the bullshit on T.V.”
    “Then I think we best get to packing our gear and be ready so at first light we can