Read Online Alone, Book 3: The Journey by Darrell Maloney - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Darrell Maloney
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water.
Or, just jumping into the car and driving down the street for a hamburger.
Or, being able to listen to music when he drove.
In the absence of music, he sang the songs he knew the words to, and whistled some of the ones he didn’t.
It was as good a way as any to keep from dying of boredom.
This part of Texas, although flatter than the hill country a couple of hundred miles to the west, did have an occasional rise and fall of the terrain.
About five miles south of Austin, Dave happened over a hill and was greeted by an unobstructed view of the roadway ahead. His view went on for at least two miles, and he was startled by what he saw.
There, in the distance, at least a mile and a half away, was a brilliant white light.
Dave’s eyes, accustomed to the greenish-gray glow of the night vision goggles, weren’t used to the harsh light. It was almost painful to look at.
He coasted to a dead stop and wondered.
“What in heck is that?”
He looked around, and saw no signs of life in any direction.
Then he took off the goggles and propped them atop his head.
Night vision goggles amplify available light, and made the light appear brighter than it actually was.
But even without the goggles, it appeared brilliant.
It could have been someone in another vehicle approaching him with their headlights on high beams.
At least, in another time, before the blackout, it could have been.
But he sincerely doubted that was the case.
He had no other explanation, though.
So he placed the goggles back over his eyes and pressed on.
Slower this time, and more cautiously.
He tried not to focus directly on the light, even after his pupils adjusted to it. An occasional glance, just to see if it had changed in any way. He spent much of his time scanning his peripherals, for he was worried now.
Dave was not a man who liked being presented with a problem, or a threat, he knew nothing about.
He had to know what he was dealing with before he could conquer something.
It wasn’t until he was half a mile away that Dave could finally make out what lay ahead of him.
It was two dozen flaming torches, stuck into the ground at regular intervals a few feet apart.
Behind the torches were three wide, squat vehicles that looked suspiciously like the Humvees he drove in the Corps.
Again, he stopped dead in his tracks.
It was a roadblock.
Chapter 16
Dave’s mind raced as he sat in the darkened vehicle, studying the scene before him and considering his options.
Oddly enough, although his present situation was far from similar, his mind went back to his Marine Corps days. When he and his platoon patrolled the burning sands north of Fallujah, scanning the horizon for insurgents with fast moving Range Rovers and RPGs.
The common link between the two, of course, was his knowing he had to keep a clear head. His survival, or at least his chance to keep his vehicle and all the treasures it contained, depended on it.
He weighed his options.
They obviously were able to get the Hummers running after the blackout. They weren’t sitting there, lined up nice and pretty in a neat little row, when the EMPs bombarded the earth a year before.
Dave had long wondered if the government knew ahead of time what the Mayans knew, and took the time and effort to protect its own resources. Perhaps that’s what was really in Area 51, or all those other secret bases, all along.
Maybe it wasn’t UFOs or top secret aircraft under development.
Maybe it was massive equipment stockpiles. Tanks, choppers and Hummers by the thousands, stored in
Or, just jumping into the car and driving down the street for a hamburger.
Or, being able to listen to music when he drove.
In the absence of music, he sang the songs he knew the words to, and whistled some of the ones he didn’t.
It was as good a way as any to keep from dying of boredom.
This part of Texas, although flatter than the hill country a couple of hundred miles to the west, did have an occasional rise and fall of the terrain.
About five miles south of Austin, Dave happened over a hill and was greeted by an unobstructed view of the roadway ahead. His view went on for at least two miles, and he was startled by what he saw.
There, in the distance, at least a mile and a half away, was a brilliant white light.
Dave’s eyes, accustomed to the greenish-gray glow of the night vision goggles, weren’t used to the harsh light. It was almost painful to look at.
He coasted to a dead stop and wondered.
“What in heck is that?”
He looked around, and saw no signs of life in any direction.
Then he took off the goggles and propped them atop his head.
Night vision goggles amplify available light, and made the light appear brighter than it actually was.
But even without the goggles, it appeared brilliant.
It could have been someone in another vehicle approaching him with their headlights on high beams.
At least, in another time, before the blackout, it could have been.
But he sincerely doubted that was the case.
He had no other explanation, though.
So he placed the goggles back over his eyes and pressed on.
Slower this time, and more cautiously.
He tried not to focus directly on the light, even after his pupils adjusted to it. An occasional glance, just to see if it had changed in any way. He spent much of his time scanning his peripherals, for he was worried now.
Dave was not a man who liked being presented with a problem, or a threat, he knew nothing about.
He had to know what he was dealing with before he could conquer something.
It wasn’t until he was half a mile away that Dave could finally make out what lay ahead of him.
It was two dozen flaming torches, stuck into the ground at regular intervals a few feet apart.
Behind the torches were three wide, squat vehicles that looked suspiciously like the Humvees he drove in the Corps.
Again, he stopped dead in his tracks.
It was a roadblock.
Chapter 16
Dave’s mind raced as he sat in the darkened vehicle, studying the scene before him and considering his options.
Oddly enough, although his present situation was far from similar, his mind went back to his Marine Corps days. When he and his platoon patrolled the burning sands north of Fallujah, scanning the horizon for insurgents with fast moving Range Rovers and RPGs.
The common link between the two, of course, was his knowing he had to keep a clear head. His survival, or at least his chance to keep his vehicle and all the treasures it contained, depended on it.
He weighed his options.
They obviously were able to get the Hummers running after the blackout. They weren’t sitting there, lined up nice and pretty in a neat little row, when the EMPs bombarded the earth a year before.
Dave had long wondered if the government knew ahead of time what the Mayans knew, and took the time and effort to protect its own resources. Perhaps that’s what was really in Area 51, or all those other secret bases, all along.
Maybe it wasn’t UFOs or top secret aircraft under development.
Maybe it was massive equipment stockpiles. Tanks, choppers and Hummers by the thousands, stored in
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