The Hungry (Book 2): The Wrath of God by Steven Booth, Harry Shannon Read Free Book Online Page A

softened. Miller could see that the anger was not directed at her, but the zombies. About the loss of her man.
    "Psycho," said Hanratty in a tired voice. "You can uncuff the Sheriff."
    Miller gave the slightest nod. The large soldier came over to her, unlocked her cuffs. He removed them and then walked away as if she didn't exist.
    Miller recovered her headphones. She took her seat. She looked over at Cochrane and saw that he also was wearing his headset. Miller said, "Cochrane, do you reckon I could get me something to eat?"
    Cochrane looked at Hanratty, who nodded. He waited until the enormous helicopter departed, and then carefully made his way over to where Miller sat. He opened a large sack, and handed Miller a pair of survival bars. "This ain't the Cordon Bleu."
    Miller smiled, tore into one of the meal bars. It tasted of cardboard, but eating almost immediately made her feel better. She finished it in three bites then devoured the second one in similar fashion. One was good, two better. Her hunger abated. The bird tilted and the empty desert slid by below.
    "Major," said Miller over the headset.
    "Save it, Sheriff," Rat said. She stared down at the chopper's metal floor.
    Miller sighed. "I was just going to say I'm sorry for your loss."
    Hanratty looked up. Miller stared back. Rat looked down immediately. The barrier between them fell back into place.

CHAPTER THREE

    7:29pm – 22 hours 31 minutes remaining

    The rest of the flight to the hidden, top-secret base known as Crystal Palace was quiet and uneventful. Hours passed and the day began to wane. Below them was an alien world. The desert rolled by like a satellite view of Mars, endless sand, tiny clumps of sage and cactus, scattered animal skulls, and jagged rocks. The repetitive view went on and on and on. The rotors throbbed dully, and static hissed vague obscenities into Miller's headphones.
    Miller actually wished she had brought one of those God-awful romance novels with her. It would have given her something to do. Something besides worry, anyway. Her poor stomach was a small, tight drum with lightning bugs trapped inside. And she already was hungry all over again.
    In a heartbeat, the Magnificent Seven had become the Magnificent Six. They sat sullenly, somewhat humbled, though they did not seem discouraged. There was no doubt in Miller's mind that these mercenaries had seen death before, but to have been successfully ambushed less than fifteen minutes into a mission was bound to be a tad disheartening. Miller figured maybe it was a good thing, because if they didn't have a clue about what they were up against before, they surely did by now.
    The headphones crackled into life: "Major, we're on approach to TK-508. ETA five minutes."
    "All right, here we go, gentlemen… and lady," Hanratty said, nodding to Miller. "We are deep in hostile territory behind enemy lines. The enemy may be unarmed but as we saw earlier today, he is still a very serious threat. I don't want to speak ill of the dead, but Dale fucked up. People, if you snooze, you lose. Stay focused and do not let them take you by surprise . We should be the only living souls out here, so if it's moving and it isn't one of us, don't wait for orders. This is a free fire zone. Just neutralize the threat."
    Terrill Lee raised his hand. "Major, when are you going to let us have some weapons?"
    "Mr. Miller…"
    "It's actually Doctor, not Mister, and my last name ain't Miller. You can just call me Terrill Lee." Miller thought she actually saw him wink.
    Men.
    "All right, Doctor," Rat said. "The answer is simple. We all have our roles during this mission. Yours is to collect data and materials from the base. Ours is to keep you alive long enough to do that."
    "Then what the hell are we supposed to use against the zombies, lady?" jeered Scratch. "Harsh language?"
    "Relax, Mister Bowen," Rat said. Scratch shot her a look that probably would have killed a few zombies. Rat tried what passed for charm. "Scratch,