World War III by Heath Jannusch Read Free Book Online Page A

you and Clyde get as much water from the well as you can and then cover the opening with wooden planks and plastic! The rest of ya should cover all of the event hall openings as quickly as you can.” Sam’s instructions and Mason’s confidence was enough to inspire everyone to snap out of the shock they were in and immediately take action.
    Mason reached into the saddlebags on his horse and withdrew several rolls of duct tape, which he’d taken from his Hummer before leaving Clearview. “Here,” he said, as he handed them out to the crowd, “use this.”
    Mason handed the reins of his horse to Sam and turned abruptly, leaving the Mayor and the rest of the townsfolk to carry out his instructions. He quickly patrolled the hidden village, offering assistance and advice wherever it was needed, as the people prepared for the black rain headed their way. When he was satisfied that everything was well under way and going according to plan, Mason ascended a nearby hill which offered a wide open view of the valley below.
    From up on the hill he could see the townsfolk as they scurried back and forth, hurrying to complete the fallout preparations in time. He was watching Jeff and Clyde nail boards into place on top of the stone well, when he noticed a flock of seagulls fly by. They were headed northeast on a course that would take them away from the nuclear explosions.
    Mason scanned the skies in every direction and immediately noticed a large cluster of dark, ominous clouds approaching from the south. He quickly turned and descended the hill in a stumbling run, shouting and waving his hands in warning. When he reached the bottom of the hill he sprinted towards the event hall where he’d seen Sam lead his horse, along with a majority of the townsfolk.
    Mason burst into the event hall, designed to look like a Swiss Alps Mountain Resort and quickly closed the door behind him. He immediately scanned the room, ensuring that all of the windows and doors were safely secured. The event hall had been designed in an octagon shape and had windows on all eight sides. A lot of duct tape was going to be needed to cover all of the cracks.
    With beads of sweat glistening on his forehead, Mason walked to the nearest window and peered up at the sky. Storm clouds caused by the nuclear explosions had already begun to form. The question was, how fast would they get here? “Hurry,” shouted Mason, “we don’t have much time!”
    It took a while but they were finally able to get all of the vents, door cracks and the edges around the windows covered with tape and just in the nick of time. Mason was finishing taping the last window when large, black rain drops began to fall from the dark clouds above. He stood there looking out the window as the storm rolled in and was about to turn away when he felt his heart skip a beat. Across the grass courtyard was a small, Irish looking cottage with smoke coming up out of the chimney.
    Mason immediately ripped the tape from the front door and swung it open. “Close the door behind me!” he shouted, before running out into the radioactive storm. Once outside, he quickly darted across the courtyard towards the Irish cottage and hammered on the door. He could hear the sound of someone removing tape from the other side of the door, as he waited impatiently. The door swung open and standing in the doorway was a young girl about sixteen years old.
    “Can I help you?” she asked, as Mason barged in closing the door behind him.
    “You can help yourself,” hissed Mason, as he quickly set about distinguishing the fire in the fireplace. Black droplets of rain sizzled as they fell down the chimney and landed on the flaming logs. Mason grabbed the roll of duct tape from the young girls hand and quickly began covering the opening to the fireplace with plastic trash bags. “What’s your name young lady?”
    “Dakota,” she answered defiantly, “Dakota Jennings.”
    Suddenly the bathroom door opened and a man