The Last Peak (Book 2): The Darwin Collapse Read Online Free PDF

incalculable simply because none of them had ventured further than the front yard in a week.  
    “Elio, we have no idea what the situation is in the larger city. We can expect that it’s not safe. You and I have healed enough to move around, but we’re in no condition for a lengthy expedition into danger.”
    “I know,” he replied, “but it’s my mother. And she’s got no one else in the world but me.” Elio’s eyes lifted to connect with Mason’s.
    A dull pain stabbed at Mason’s chest. Elio knew the truth now. The boy’s eyes didn’t accuse or blame him. They simply stated they truth. She was alone.
    “I agree we need to check on her,” Mason said, “but we need another day or two to get stronger and shore up our situation here. A shorter expedition is the way to start.”
    Elio breathed out heavily and shook his head. “I can’t wait much longer. She may already be in trouble and need me.”
    “You going out and getting yourself in trouble isn’t going to help your mother. Give me another day or two here and I promise we’ll go together.”
    “Whatever. You just want to sit around here until we all die,” Elio said as he dropped his eyes to the last bite on his plate.
    Mason didn’t like the delay either, but he knew better than most that recklessly putting yourself in danger in order to save another usually ended up with both people dead. He’d seen how quickly death could come for you when you lived at the boundaries; out on the edge where seemingly simple decisions could unleash devastating consequences.
    Death lingered just beyond the edge.
    And the virus had thrust all of humanity closer to an unexpected rendezvous.

CHAPTER SEVEN

    “Theresa and I will go on a supply run tonight,” Mason said.  
    Theresa looked to Beth for confirmation.
    She nodded. “Your father and I discussed it this morning. We don’t have a choice.”
    “Can I go?” Iridia asked.
    “No,” Mason and Beth answered in unison.
    He sometimes wondered how they somehow ended up with three teenagers under their roof. Iridia was technically twenty-five, but her immaturity and selfishness brought her emotional intelligence right in line with the other two actual teenagers sitting at the table.
    “I’ve rationed out our food and, plus or minus a day, we have eighteen days remaining.”
    Mason chewed the inside of his lip as his words settled into the minds of everyone present. Two additional unexpected mouths to feed didn’t help the situation, but still, he was furious with himself for not laying in a larger reserve. They had the resources. He always knew it was a good idea. The options were there. But he never had time. It never quite made it high enough on the priority list.  
    It wasn’t that he was totally unprepared.
    They had a reasonable amount of canned and dried goods in the pantry and even had a month’s worth of freeze-dried Mountain House #10 cans. Drinking water wasn’t a problem in the near future as he’d drained the old eighty gallon hot water tank in the first twenty-four hours of the emergency. They’d been waffling on about tearing it out and replacing it with a modern tankless system for years and never got around to it. Thank God they hadn’t.
    Who knew being lazy could be so productive?
    He also filled a WaterBOB collapsible bladder in the bathtub, which stored another hundred gallons. Add the four fifty-five gallon drums in the garage and a package of six sealed LifeStraws, and they were set for many months.
    That was the drinking water. They gathered water for other uses from a neighbor’s pool two houses down. Mason had torn down the two backyard fence lines in between and created a path that kept them from being visible from the street. Things had gone quiet over the last few days and he had no intention of attracting unwanted attention.
    They’d done their best to keep their bodies, clothes, and house clean. So far, it was generally working. It helped that the Mrs., Dr. West,