Alien Invasion (Book 1): Invasion Read Online Free PDF Page B

whatever he could spare already packed, stowed, and ready to go. Only last-minute items took time, and he was already done. Meyer checked mental boxes in his mind as if on an internal heads-up display.  
    “Are you on your way?” he demanded.  
    “Oh, thank God. We’ve been trying to reach you for hours. Well, not hours. A long time, though. Trevor has.”  
    “So Trevor’s there? You got the kids?”  
    A loud clattering preceded a horn’s ugly bray.  
    Far away, Meyer heard Piper yell, “Brother trucker!” Then: “Sorry, kids.” A nervous laugh followed, not from Piper. Seconds later her voice filled the receiver, out of breath. “I just hope I can make it there.”
    “Where are you?”  
    “Near the park. I just picked up Lila.”  
    Meyer stopped, wrist-deep in a duffel.  
    “You aren’t out at the school?”  
    “I had to pick up Lila.”  
    Another rustling, and something that sounded like Piper might have hit something, run someone over, or driven up onto the sidewalk. All were fine with Meyer as long as the passengers in Piper’s stupid Beetle survived. But she was a shaky driver under the best of circumstances. She’d grown up in the country and had only moved to the city after her campaign on Meyer’s crowdfunding platform had birthed her Quirky Q clothing line — and, eventually, their relationship. She was too tentative for New York streets, and today was no normal rush hour.
    “Jesus, Piper. Put someone else on the phone. Just drive.”  
    “Lila, take the phone.” Then, somewhat near the receiver: “I love you.”  
    “I love you too, baby. Just be—”  
    Trevor’s voice: “Hey, Dad.”  
    “Lila, your voice has gotten so deep.”  
    “Lila doesn’t want to take the phone,” Trevor said. “She doesn’t want you to yell at her for ditching school.”  
    “Lila was ditching school?” He shook the thought away. That was well down the list of things that simply did not fucking matter right now. He had to see them safe, then get to Morristown and the Gulfstream. Things were uncertain until then. Once in the air, they’d be okay. He could worry about FAA rules and where they’d land later. They could fly low and land at the compound if need be. But none of that could happen until the city was behind them.  
    “She was with Raj.”  
    “That doesn’t matter right now,” Meyer said. “Tell me exactly where you are.”  
    “They ditched the whole day so they could go to the park and make out.”  
    Lila’s voice from nearby, probably the back seat: “Give me that phone, you little shit!”  
    “Lila says hi.”  
    “Where are you?” Meyer repeated.  
    “On 77 th . We just picked up Lila and Raj.”  
    “Raj? You have Raj?”  
    “Yeah. They keep making out in the back seat. It’s gross.”  
    “Trevor, you little—!”  
    “Get off , Lila! I’m talking to dad right now.”  
    Piper: “Will you two just … ”  
    There was the squeal of tires, a vintage Piper shriek, and, mercifully, no crash. Meyer realized he’d paused his packing. No matter now that the plan might be changing.  
    “Tell Piper to turn autodrive back on before she gets you all killed.” Meyer had been doing some mental theater since he saw the incoming call, and could imagine every noise paired with ridiculous acrobatics from his adorable but not always street smart wife.  
    “Tried a bit ago,” said Trevor. “The streets aren’t terrible as far as traffic is concerned, but there are a billion people running around, like, kind of everywhere. Pretty sure we saw some guy get wasted earlier. Not by us. The car doesn’t know what to do with them all. It just kind of politely waits for them to pass.”  
    “You’re on the west side?”  
    “Yeah. On 77 th . But Dad, it’s going to be pretty hard to get all the way around the park and home. It’ll take some time.”  
    “Don’t try. We’re headed to Jersey anyway. Cross to Weehawken. I’ll meet you at