Primeval (Werewolf Apocalypse Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page A

the ground, but as the shape emerged into the glow of one of the emergency lights, he saw a halo surrounding an old, bewhiskered man and his raggedy little dog. The old man’s face cinched into a toothless smile, and the dog wagged its tail as it recognized Michael.
    He let out the breath he had been holding, then said, “Oh, it’s you, Jones. You and Jake.”
    Jones cackled until he coughed up phlegm, which he spit on the railings. His dog Jake, a mutt of uncertain breeding, rushed up to Michael. He leaned down to give the filthy animal a pat on its quivering head.
    “Who’d you think it was?” Jones asked. “One of them rat things?”
    “Maybe,” Michael admitted. “Although, I haven’t actually seen one of them yet, only heard the tales.”
    “Consider yourself lucky then. Them things are mean as hell. One tried to drag poor Jake away from me. Still got the bite marks on his leg.”
    Michael peered down at the dog and saw the half-inch patches where the mongrel had lost its fur. The bites were big and red and there was some swelling. They looked infected, but they didn’t seem to be bothering Jake in any manner. The little mutt wagged its tail at all the attention it was receiving.
    “You going up top?” Jones asked.
    “Yeah. I have an interview with a reporter about my fall from grace into the seventh circle of hell – the New York tunnel system.”
    “You gonna tell him all about us?”
    “Not all about you, but some. I want the people up there to know that there are people down here, people who need help.”
    “They gonna flush us out,” the old man snorted. “They tried a couple of times, sending cops and such down here. They never found us all, but they always get some of us.”
    “That’s not why I am doing this interview.”
    “But that’s what’ll happen ’cause of it.”
    “Well,” Michael said, running a hand through his thick hair, “I’ll just have to make sure it doesn’t. This reporter’s supposed to be good. His boss told me he’s serious and dedicated, that he wants to help change the world for the better. Maybe he can help some of us get out of the tunnels.”
    The old man shook his head, and his dog whined, scratching at his pant leg. He said, “Nobody’s that kind. And a lot of the moles – me included – don’t really wanna get back up there. The real world’s a nasty place. Scary. I never used to be scared, but least we got us some protection down here. It’s safe.”
    “You keep telling yourself that, Jones,” Michael said. “But we both know better. There isn’t a safe place left on this planet. Least, not for people like us.”
    “Amen, brother. But you’re preachin’ to the choir here. Go on topside and tell the reporter about your life in the dark, the scruffs you call your friends down here. Then you can come back to us, and we’ll welcome you into the blessed fold like we always do. God knows, we’ll take just about anybody.”
    “I’m going to be late,” Michael said, reflexively looking at his wrist where he’d once worn a gold Rolex. Nothing there now but some grime and a few hairs.
    The old man made a derogatory noise, turned, and started fading back into the darkness of the subway tunnel, walking to the other side of the partition through a wide hole. The dog followed closely on his heels, its toenails clicking on the floor. In moments, Michael lost sight of him, although he could still hear Jake’s toenails. The dog probably needed them trimmed, but that would never get done on the mole-man’s budget. Shaking his head, he turned and hurried to the ladder that led to the subway platform.

Chapter 5
     
     
    11:40 a.m.
     
    Matt Schwartz was already sick of watching the baby, and his wife had left the apartment only a half hour ago. The damn kid always wanted something. What had at first seemed like a miracle, a beautiful baby girl, had slowly morphed into a bottomless pit that shrieked like a pterodactyl every time it wanted something.