Free Ragnarok Rising: The Crossing (The Ragnarok Rising Saga) by D.A. Roberts

said, smilin g. “We can try to get into the cache in the morning.”
    We covered all the windows with black plastic trash bags that we found in the little office and sealed it tight with duct tape. I wanted to be certain that no light escaped so we wouldn’t attract any unwanted attention. I only wished that there had been a place to park the Humvees out of the line of sight. If the Stalkers came sniffing around, then the Humvees shouldn’t hold their attention. If there was anyone living around, then the Humvees would stand out like a beacon.
    We had no way to know if any survivors in the area would be hostile. However, by the same logic, we had no way of knowing if they were friendly either. After our encounters with the Freemen, I thought it was safer to err on the side of caution. Being cautious would keep us alive. I would rather apologize for being suspicious of someone than watch them kill my friends.
    Since there were four bedrooms and five of us, I decided that we’d take turns on guard duty all night and everyone would have a chance to get some sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a very busy day and we would all need our rest. After a quiet meal of MREs and bottled water, we all took our turn in the shower. It was amazing. I felt like a new man.
    Then we broke out our camping gear and everyone headed for bed. I decided to take first watch, so I let the others have the bed. Once everyone bedded down for the night, I turned off all of the lights except a light in the bathroom and a small lamp on the desk in the office. I sat in the office chair and leaned back, placing my boots on the desk. I wasn’t even remotely tired so I just sat in silence, lost in my own thoughts. I wasn’t sure how long I sat there before I noticed the noise.
    I knew it had to be well after dark when I realized I was hearing a very soft noise that seemed to be coming from outside. I made certain not to move or to make any noise, but began to listen very carefully. It was very faint, but distinct. There was something moving outside the building. Whatever it was, it was very stealthy. I think I felt it more than actually heard it.
    Slowly, I leaned forward in the chair. Careful so I didn’t make any noise, I slipped out of the chair and turned off the light. I picked up my M-4 and slipped out into the hallway. I could clearly hear the soft breathing of my sleeping companions. C losing my eyes, I strained to hear even the slightest noise. That’s when I heard the soft metallic click. I cocked my head and listened. A few seconds later, I heard it again. It was coming from the door.
    I crept slowly to the door and held my breath. In the dim light from the bathroom behind me, I could clearly see that someone or something was slowly turning the doorknob. The click came as they turned it back and forth, trying to open it. When it stopped moving, I could hear something walking away.
    “That’s got to be a person out there,” I thought.
    Slipping quickly back into the office, I shut the door behind me to cut off the light from the hallway. With the office plunged into complete darkness, I peeled the edge of the duct tape back and lifted the black plastic. In the moonlight outside, I could just make out the shapes of several figures moving around. I held my breath to keep from making the slightest noise. Part of me was thinking we had other survivors outside, but the instinctive part of my brain was screaming a warning.
    When one of the figures turned towards me, I could see the dead face illuminated in the moonlight. The glassy eyes reflected the pale moonlight with no warmth to them. They were the eyes of a predator…the eyes of the hungry dead. The Stalkers were worse than I thought. They were showing signs of intelligence. The turning of the doorknob, the systematic way they checked around the Humvees. They weren’t just wandering around their environment. They were reacting to it. I felt like someone had poured ice water down my