Red Sands Read Online Free PDF Page A

removed all surface water from the planet and moved on, traveling through the solar system and beyond before coming to Earth. But a part of him wasn’t sure if he was right. He was operating on faith.
    The chirp from the display on his monitor pulled him from his thoughts. A message was coming through. He swiped the monitor.
    Robert Bailey’s chubby face emerged on the display. His forehead glistened with sweat. “Sir,” the man said, “Lolo has captured some images of Edwards Air Force Base in California. I think you need to see them.”
    â€œPatch them through,” Hoffman replied.
    Robert nodded and the transmission ended. Seconds later the display filled with hundreds of tiny images. Hoffman enlarged the first one and the desert landscape that surrounded Edwards Air Force Base spilled across the screen. He moved to the next picture. The first few images were of the flight control tower, dozens of hangars, and the tarmac. He moved through them quickly until he found the four-tier barbed wire fence that surrounded the abandoned missile silo where they’d built the biosphere under the base. He could see only the western edge, and quickly flicked to the next image.
    Hovering over the facility was a large black ship. A mass of blue, spiderlike creatures disappeared into one of the hidden entrances to the biosphere.
    â€œHow . . .” Hoffman mumbled, squinting in pure awe. “How did they find it?”
    He flinched at a rap on his door and grunted. “It’s open.”
    The smell of Amy’s perfume filled the room. Hoffman didn’t look up from the screen. The next frame revealed more aliens. He couldn’t believe his eyes. If they found Edwards, then they could find the other biospheres. He’d hand-selected each facility and the one at the air force base was supposed to be the most secure.
    â€œShit,” he muttered. “Have you seen these, Amy?”
    She strolled over to his desk and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Yes. I’m sorry, Doctor.”
    Hoffman sat back in his chair, shaking his head. He simply didn’t understand. How could the aliens have found the biospheres? Could they detect life? Could they sense there were people hiding there?
    â€œTell Robert I want a visual from every biosphere on the planet. I want updates on the hour. If more have been compromised I want to know the moment it happens.”
    Amy removed her hand. “Understood, sir.”
    â€œOh, and Amy.”
    She glanced down at him.
    â€œTell Burns I want him on the alert for alien ships. If they can find the biospheres, then they can find us.”
    After she left, Hoffman turned back to the monitor and skipped to the last image. The shot showed the sloped hill on the backside of the buried silo, where several old storm drains jetted out of the ground. Someone or something was sliding down the hill. He zoomed in for a better look.
    â€œMy god,” he said, staring at the frozen shot of a soldier in a black NTC armored suit. A member of the team had escaped out the backside of the biosphere. Hoffman felt a deep dread tugging at his gut. Had he underestimated the Organics?

CHAPTER 5
    J EFF and David huddled next to each other until dark. They didn’t sleep. They didn’t eat, and they only drank enough water to keep their throats from going dry.
    The gunfire had stopped minutes after the boys had pushed a desk and chair against the door, but neither of them was brave enough to see if the coast was clear.
    Wiping the salty tears away with his forearm Jeff finally forced himself off the floor. The time for self-pity was over. He was tired of being scared, and tired of feeling helpless. His dad was gone, and so was everyone he’d ever known, but he couldn’t cry anymore. If this was what the world had become, then he wasn’t going to be some baby hiding in a shed.
    He was going to get revenge. His dad would want him to be strong.
    Jeff