Last Stand: Surviving America's Collapse Read Online Free PDF

this, John.”
    In the distance, John spotted a trickle of people in business suits mixed with truck driver types and folks in casual clothing. This was the first wave descending from the raised interstate. He would have to hurry before the trickle became a flood and they blocked the street altogether.
    John backed up five meters and then accelerated to build up some speed. Betsy hit the Corvette and stopped, throwing John and Diane forward in their seats. Distance wasn’t what was needed. John brought Betsy right up to the Corvette’s bumper and then slowly pressed the pedal. There was a groaning sound as the truck climbed and then rose up at a thirty-degree angle. Gravity kept Diane pinned to the passenger door.
    “Hold on , honey, we’re almost there.” But the worst was about to come. The Blazer had to make it over the Corvette’s roof. Now he really pushed Betsy forward, steering back and forth to keep the truck from tipping over. A moment later they were over and Betsy’s back wheel touched pavement, rattling them both.
    Diane gave him a nervous grin. “John, tell me you’ll never do that again.”
    “I promise,” he replied, squeezing her hand. It was true that he’d taken a chance, but a calculated one.
    Up ahead was the stream of refugees from the interstate. John honked as he slowed down to cut through them. A few threw their hands in the air, as if to say, ‘What about us?’ John simply laid on the horn and inched forward. He’d seen similar crowds after football and hockey games let out in big cities. It didn’t matter if the light was red, pedestrians would surge across the street anyway. These people were on their way home as well, but the main difference was they were getting there on foot. And judging by the looks on their faces, home was the only thing they cared about. The fear hadn’t quite materialized just yet. For some it was an adventure. For others, simply an annoyance. Once they realized the nightmare was real and they weren’t going to wake up from it, the real fear would settle in.
    As John and Diane reached Tobler Lane, they saw West High School and the throngs of school kids out on the football field. Many of them were sitting in small groups. A few had wandered off to congregate away from the masses only to be chased down by the teachers, eager to maintain control.
    John turned the wheel, avoiding a stalled car and bringing Betsy up onto school property. They were about to make one hell of an entrance, but following school policy wasn’t at the top of John’s list. He needed to get his kids and bring them to safety.
    He drove right up to the football goal post and stopped. The S&W was still tucked into his waistband, but now he pulled his shirt down to block it from view. There was little to no chance he’d need it here. It just didn’t make sense to head into a potentially dangerous situation without it. Diane came with him, locking the truck behind them.
    The school principal Pamela Walters was already coming their way, holding a megaphone and waving at Betsy with her free hand. “I’m sorry, Mr. Mack, but you’re gonna need to move your truck.”
    “ I will, as soon as I get my son and daughter,” John explained.
    Mrs. Walters glanced at the crowd of kids behind her and made an expression that said, ‘Good luck finding them in all this.’ Children were already starting to come forward.
    “I believe that something terrible has happened,” he told Mrs. Walters. “There’s a good chance this wasn’t some freak accident.”
    “What do you mean?” she asked, dropping her chin slightly to get a better look at him over her spectacles.
    “Everything electronic has stopped working. Cars, cell phones, computers. There may very well be a natural explanation, but no matter what the effects are going to devastate the country. A stampede like you’ve never seen before is descending from the off-ramp of Interstate 40. People who are confused and looking for a quick way