Warfare Season: An Apocalyptic Thriller Read Online Free PDF

Thomas suggested. “We need to get off
the main street. There are military vehicles patrolling this area
like you wouldn't believe.”
    Austin turned right.
    “ No, this way,”
Thomas insisted.
    Austin turned and walked
onto a one-way side street, directed by Thomas.
    Austin grabbed a pack of
pop tarts and handed it to Thomas.
    “ Can I get a water
bottle?” Thomas asked, looking inside Austin's bug-out bag.
    Austin handed him a water
bottle.
    Thomas opened the cap and
started drinking the water right away. “It's been crazy.”
    Austin nodded. “It's
been too crazy for me. I'm actually thinking about going to one of
those emergency camps.”
    “ Don't go to any of
those.”
    “ Well, pretty soon I
might not have much choice.”
    “ I just came from
there. That's the last place you wanna go.”
    “ How did you get
out?”
    “ It's not that
complicated to get out; not the one I was in, anyway.”
    “ So I guess the
complicated part is staying out, because they'll throw you right back
in with serious consequences if you get caught,” Austin said.
    “ Can I get some
more?” Thomas asked. “What else you got?”
    Austin handed him a can of
beef ravioli and a plastic spoon. “I've gotta get going.”
    “ Wait, can I get
something for the road?”
    “ I already gave you
something for the road,” Austin responded. He was trying to
sound as polite as possible while trying to be firm at the same time.
    “ I could still use
some more.”
    Austin went on his way.
    “ Get him!”
Thomas shouted. “Get him!”
    Austin heard two different
sets of footsteps racing up to him from behind. He turned around just
in time to see a stranger getting ready to charge into him.
    Austin had now put it
together. Thomas had an accomplice all along. The plan was to pretend
to be at least halfway nice so that Austin would let his guard down.
It was an elementary plan at best; sounded like SOCIOPATH 101, in
fact. Yet, Austin still fell for it, but not because he was
unintelligent; it was because he was too nice in a world full of
sadistic cruelty. Still, perhaps he should have known better. When
someone had to convince you against your intuition that they weren't
going to rob you, it usually meant they most certainly were going to
rob you.
    The accomplice grabbed at
the bag, trying to pull it away from Austin. He hit Austin in the
face with one hand and grabbed at the bag with the other.
    Austin held on to the
bug-out bag like his life literally depended on it, because in many
ways, it did. He held on to it with both hands, taking the hits and
not retaliating with any hits of his own. It was better to not risk
losing his upper hand on the bug-out bag.
    Now Thomas had caught up to
them, grabbing at the bag and landing some hits of his own.
    Austin couldn't remember
where he had placed his switchblade. He either put it in his pocket
or in the bug-out bag. If he reached for his pocket now, that would
only leave one of his hands on the bug-out bag. Whenever he put it in
his pocket, he would usually clip it on so that it wouldn't fall out.
He briefly looked down at his front pockets, trying to spot the clip
hanging on to his outer pocket, but his long shirt covered the area.
    He managed to kick Thomas
in the shin, causing him to fall back and lose his grip on the bag.
Austin immediately reached down into his right pocket, frantically
reaching around for the knife. He couldn't find it. He was about to
give up when he decided to dig deeper. He found it. The switchblade
had been resting on the other side of his pocket, sunken deep to the
bottom. The clip had not been attached. He drew the blade promptly.
    Thomas and his accomplice
backed off.
    “ Alright,”
Thomas pleaded. He was walking backwards with his hands in front of
him. “We're sorry.”
    Just as they were acting
like they were going to walk away, they each picked up a broken tree
branch from the grassy area to their right. The broken tree branches
were the size of baseball bats