Toward the Brink (Book 3) by Craig A. McDonough Read Free Book Online

country and others may not be aware of how deep the tentacles of this beast stretch. Indeed, the cabinet members and senior staffs may be untouched. But it’s their staffs, advisers, and of course, the captains of private enterprise who are so corrupt that we—yes, I include myself—pander to their every whim because their money gets us re-elected. That’s how they have infiltrated every aspect of American life, and through our military superiority, the lives of every other major country, too.”
    A cold silence went through the room. Some glanced at the soldiers on the other side of the room, but most stared at Etheridge and Holmes.
    The Tall Man looked at his watch: This was taking too long.
    “We can spend hours, if not days, on this but we need to get moving. I don’t want to spend another night here.” The Tall Man added more pressure.
    “Do we get to have a say in our defense?” Etheridge asked, much to Holmes’s chagrin.
    “Are you serious?” the pilot of the Global Express that had brought the president and his party to Prince George roared. He was still shaken from the scene at the airport, and now the details presented showed it was no accident. To say he was enraged would be too light a description.
    “What do we do?” Kath whispered in the Tall Man’s ear.
    “About these two?”
    She nodded as Elliot joined them.
    “I know what I’d like to do, but we just don’t have the time. We have to get out—we can’t spend another night here.”
    “You’re right about that.” One of the soldiers, whose name was Chess, joined them. “We had a dozen troops with full-auto M4s, and they were wiped out by those things. And we have less to defend ourselves now.”
    The soldier turned and looked back at the creators of the plague that gave the world the foamers. “You know, if these two are responsible, as you say, I’ll gladly shoot ‘em for you.”
    At that moment, Kath realized what the whole “trial” had been about. It wasn’t about guilt or innocence, or about presenting the evidence to those not fully aware of the impact these two had on the downfall of mankind. It was about easing one’s conscience before the execution.
    Can we do this? She asked herself. She knew the group from Twin Falls hadn’t survived without their share of killing, and not just foamers, she assumed. But these two looked so pitiful. And they were unarmed.
    “We can’t shoot unarmed people. We just—”
    “Kath, these two, and their kind, have destroyed the entire planet! And you want to show pity on them?” The Tall Man’s distaste was clear.
    The president joined the conversation. “For better or worse, we’re the law now. And we have to make tough decisions. There is no tougher decision for anyone who values life than to adjudicate on whether another shall live or die. However, if we grant these two mercy, then our very survival could be in jeopardy.”
    “And the longer we dither with this, the more danger we’ll be in if we have to stay the night,” the Tall Man said.
    “After all we witnessed at the airport, I can assure you, Charles, I’m for getting out of here as soon as we can.” The president agreed with the Tall Man but understood Kath’s apprehension. “While we discuss our evacuation, why don’t we lock them in the cellar until we come to a conclusion?”
    “Yes. We can do that!” Kath jumped at the proposal. “I can padlock the outer door, and there’s a lock on the inside one.”
    “Fine. I don’t have the time for this. Let’s just move along, shall we?” The Tall Man couldn’t allow his anger toward Holmes to interfere with their survival plans.
    Kath, gave him— her Chuck— an affectionate squeeze on the arm. It was a small expression of gratitude, certainly, but his gesture of compromise meant a lot to her. He did it for her, she knew, but remained as tough as old boots in the process.
    Men.

4
    W ith two of the main culprits in the destruction of mankind safely secured