Elements of the Undead: Fire (Book One) Read Online Free PDF Page A

percolating in his gut.
    The fat man fired a short burst into the air. Everyone stopped talking. The woman moved closer, and her fingers sought out his arm. “ Tengo miedo ,” she whispered. I’m scared .
    “It’s okay,” Cesar lied.
    The gunmen turned away and conversed in hushed tones, gesturing repeatedly at Cesar’s terrified group and pointing north.
    Cesar put his hand on the woman’s shoulder. “Get ready to run.” She shook her head vigorously and gestured at the other woman standing to the side with one of the children. “I can’t. That’s my sister and her daughter.” Closing his eyes, Cesar said a quick prayer for the woman and her child.
    He checked his rear, looking for other gunmen. It was clear . He visualized a canyon system they had passed a half-kilometer back where he could hide.
    Miguel took a step forward, got in the slim gunman’s face, and poked him in the chest. The man laughed and nudged his partner in the ribs. Cesar tensed, preparing for the worst. Faster than Cesar would have expected for a man his size, the fat man raised his rifle and leveled it at Miguel’s face.
    One of the children began to cry, calling for his father. Time slowed to a crawl. The gun against Miguel’s head became his everything for an interminable instant, the bridge between the life and death. He couldn’t tear his eyes away.
    Crack! Miguel spun away and fell to the ground. A hawk cried out far above them.
    “Does anyone else have a problem?” the shooter bellowed.
    Cesar swallowed, his throat his own desert. As the murderer trained his gun on the remaining survivors, his partner kneeled beside Miguel’s body and rolled it over. He rifled through the pockets until he found the dead man’s wallet. Flipping it open, he pulled out a handful of pesos and American dollars and dropped them on the corpse’s chest.
    We’re going to die now, Cesar realized with sudden clarity. Right here. My family will never know what happened to me. Like Efrain.
    Behind him, the woman was praying, repeating the same bible verse. “Padre me protege porque he pecado…”
    The man finished his search, and finding nothing of value, got to his feet. He whispered something to his partner.
    With a wave of his gun, the fat man pointed at a towering saguaro. “Okay, everyone. By that cactus! Turn out your pockets!” The time to run had passed. Cesar had no choice but to comply. He cursed his cowardice and went to stand beside the cactus.
    “On your knees!” the gunman screamed, his high-pitched voice sounding like one from a little girl on a playground. Cesar fell to his knees, closed his eyes, and tried to think about his family.
    The men raised their weapons.

Seven
     
    Taos, New Mexico
     
    Jack realized Becka had reached the end of her patience when she hauled herself from the pit and plopped down in the grass. She stripped off her gloves, drew her knees up to her chin, and sighed.
    “Okay, Bob Vila,” she said with a tired grin. “If that’s a fuel-oil tank, then tell me why it’s buried in our front yard.”
    Jack shrugged and gazed at the ground between the house and the barrier, mentally tracing a long-dormant oil supply line to the furnace, which now ran on propane. “I guess that’s how they did things—”
    The phone rang, interrupting him
    Jack scanned the yard, searching for the phone, then spied it on the front porch where he had left it earlier.
    “I’ll get it.” He climbed to his feet. “I need to hit the bathroom anyway.”
    Grabbing the cordless phone from the top step, he answered the call.
    “Jack! Oh, my God! I’m so glad I got you!” his mother cried from the receiver.
    He straightened up, suddenly alert. Something’s wrong with t he girls. Before he could ask, she uttered the magic words, “Don’t worry. Maddie and Ellie are fine.”
    Jack breathed a sigh of relief.
    Her voice reedy with concern, his mother asked, “Have you seen the news this morning?”
    “No. We’ve