Quantum Read Online Free PDF Page B

the supplies we’ve got? Try surviving on nothing . We literally had to catch our food if we wanted to eat.”
    She crossed her arms and leaned down for a closer look. The admiral’s story made her feel a little better. If he could survive conditions like that, surely they could survive a couple of hours until a rescue ship came for them. Plus the ease and naturalness with which he’d related the story spoke of genuine experience…at least it seemed to. A point in the human column? She studied his profile, her head beginning to throb as she once again questioned her sanity over agreeing to this craziness.
    Within a few minutes, the captain admiral had a fire lit and moved to help Jaren shift closer. After he had the younger man settled, he came over to sit on the log next to her.
    “Without those emergency transponders, we’ve got no way of knowing how long it will take a rescue team to find us.” He kept his voice low, probably not wanting Nazari and Jaren to hear the truth of their situation.
    “And before we came down, the ship’s emergency beacon was one of the systems that failed,” she replied.
    Graydon nodded and picked up a stick to poke at a log in the bottom of the fire. “I noticed that, too. There’s a good chance the authorities have no damn clue where we’ve gone down, or that we even crashed in the first place.”
    “The crew of the Swift Brion will know by now that something’s not right. When we don’t arrive, they’ll send out a search team.”
    He glanced at her, his expression grim. “I know they will. But Tocarra isn’t exactly a small planet. Even by calculating our probable trajectory, it leaves a lot of ground to cover.”
    Apprehension tightened across her shoulders. “So what are you saying?”
    The admiral dropped the stick and clasped his hands between his knees. “We’ve got two choices. We either stay here and set up a permanent base camp, prepared for a long stay of possibly a week or more. Or we organize what supplies we have and hike out.”
    She nodded once and then stared into the fire. With Nazari and Jaren both injured, hiking out would be slow going. Plus, what if they left the ship and the rescue team found the crash site sooner than expected? The rescuers would have no way of finding them if they hiked off into the wilderness. On the other hand, sitting around waiting could prove fatal for Jaren, if her suspicions about internal injuries proved to be correct.
    The admiral continued, “We’ll give it tonight and see how things look in the morning.”
    “Yes, sir.”
    He leaned to the side and picked up one of the survival packs. “Now, what’s your favorite MRE? So far I’ve found Samaran beef medley, Mazatlan spiced rice and chicken, or spaghetti with meat sauce.”
    She screwed up her face as she glanced down at the packets of meals ready to eat that the IPC inflicted on their soldiers when food was scarce. Yeah, they had all the required nutrition, and a small amount filled a person up as if they’d eaten a big meal. But… ick . “What’s the point in choosing a flavor when they all taste like stewed boots and five-day-old leftovers? Might as well surprise me.”
    He laughed and tossed her a packet, which had spaghetti meat sauce printed on the front.
    “It’s not all bad.” He held up another packet. “I found some grape jelly.”
    “Tell me there’s peanut butter somewhere, and I won’t complain for at least the next twenty-four hours.”
    He nodded toward the MRE she held. “Eat your dinner and then we’ll find out.”
    She ripped open the packet reluctantly as the admiral stood and brought food and water to Nazari and Jaren. They all settled in silently for a late-afternoon meal…unappetizing as it was.
    A glance up at the surrounding trees and sky showed they probably had a few hours of light left before nightfall. When they’d first climbed out of the shuttle, the forest had been deathly silent—no doubt the local wildlife had been