Free Affliction Z: Abandoned Hope (Post Apocalyptic Thriller) by L.T. Ryan Page B

mother. He took a step toward Marcus. They were within arm’s reach of each
other.
    “I asked you a question, Marcus.”
    Marcus licked his lips and smiled. “Just messin’ around,
bro. That’s all.”
    Turk took another step. He was close enough to smell the
garlic on his brother’s breath. “Why’s Layla crying?”
    “You know kids, man.”
    “I’m going to make this as clear as I can. I don’t want any
trouble in here. We’re all inside this building for a common purpose. Nobody
needs an asshole to screw this up. First one that goes will be you.” He held up
a finger as Marcus opened his mouth. “I know what you’re gonna say. Forget
about it. I don’t care what Mom made me promise. The moment you endanger my family
is the moment I have no use for you. That clear?”
    “Crystal,” Marcus said through his clenched teeth.
    Both men remained still, staring at each other. Turk felt
beads of sweat on his forehead, and trickling down his chest and back. His
muscles stayed tense, waiting for an attack.
    Finally, Marcus let his shoulders slump and he took a step
back, turned, and left the kitchen. Turk blocked the door for a minute
afterward. He felt Layla grab hold of his hand. He wished his other daughter,
Becky, had hold of the other. But she wasn’t there, and Turk knew he had to
come to grips with the fact that he might not ever see her again.
    “What did he say?” Turk asked Elana.
    “It was nothing.”
    Turk looked at her and lifted an eyebrow. “Nothing? Why was
she in tears?”
    “Because I yelled at him.” She paused and looked up at the
ceiling. “Just let it go, Turk. Okay? Can you do that for me?”
    He took a deep breath. He didn’t want to let it go. If there
was a serious issue, he wanted it resolved then and there. Not three months down
the road when the team was so tight that the loss of one person destroyed their
odds.
    “Please?” she asked.
    He nodded. “I’ll leave you two to your cookies.”
     

Chapter 11
    The overwhelming feeling of fatigue led Kathy to take exit
133. She stopped at the end of the cloverleaf ramp, removed her helmet and took
out her phone. The cool night air penetrated her sweat-soaked hair and raised
the flesh on her scalp and the back of her neck. Gas vapors overwhelmed her
nose.
    She searched for the exit on her map and realized she was
only three miles away from the Highway 20 exit. That was the road she planned
to use to take her from West Virginia into Virginia. Though she was only forty
miles from home, she knew from experience that the road that traveled through mountains,
and it was full of jagged switchbacks. The trip would take a good two hours,
and she’d need to be on top of her game for it. And at the moment, she was in
danger of falling asleep at the handlebars.
    She secured her phone and placed the helmet back on her
head. Then she turned right onto Pluto Road and made the first left. The narrow
road dead-ended into a dirt trail. She walked the bike onto the trail and
around a cropping of trees. The area on the other side was a deserted lot,
shielded from the road and the interstate. The closest home stood a
quarter-mile away. They probably heard her pass, if they were home, but being
so close to the highway, she doubted they’d bother to investigate.
    Kathy cut the headlight and rested the motorcycle on its
kickstand. Moonlight lit up the area, revealing no more than her artificial
light did. She stripped off her jacket, shirt and pants and let the night air
wash over her body. It wasn’t a jetted tub, but it was still better than
nothing.
    Sufficiently cooled, she put her clothes back on, balling
the jacket up and placing it on the ground. She lay down and rested her head
against the makeshift pillow. The engine of the motorcycle ticked, and gas
fumes lingered heavy in the air. She didn’t care. Every muscle in her body
fought against moving, so she stayed where she lay.
    She imagined the occasional vehicle passing by on the
interstate