Free The Resistance: Book 5 of the After The Event Series by T.A. Williams Page B

them. As they passed a street corner Ally noticed a man with an armband just above his bicep. The armband was black and a crude red white and blue flag was stitched across it. The man stood at attention watching people walk by and when he caught sight of them his gaze followed. Before Ally could turn away the man saw her staring at him and his face softened and he gave her a wink.
                  “Where are we going?” Ally heard Adam ask Dena. The woman didn’t answer so he repeated the question.
                  Dena turned to him with a wild look in her eye. “Where the hell else are we going? To USC, to our daughter.”
                  Adam looked out at the smoke rising from Los Angeles and turned back toward her. Dena didn’t follow his gaze. “Dena, maybe we should stop and rest for a bit. Ask around to find out the safest way to get there.”
                  Anger flashed on her face. “We’re so close and you want-”
                  “I want to get there safe. This will be a waste if we came all this way to get killed miles from USC.”
                  The anger subsided and Dena looked back out toward the smoke of Los Angeles. “Ok.”
                  “Where did you buy the horses?” The voice was from the man with the armband.
                  “They’re ours,” Adam said quickly.
                  “I figured they were,” the man smiled warmly at them. “I asked where you found them. We’ve been trying to get as many horses from Wyoming as we can but the pickings are slim.”
                  Adam looked to Dena, who just stared at the man suspiciously. “We got them from a farm,” Adam stumbled. “In the Midwest.”
                  “So where are you from?”
                  “Connecticut,” Coby said from behind Dena.
                  The man whistled. “I don’t think I’ve talked to anyone that has traveled that far. Most people that far off have either stuck to the east coast or headed down to Mexico. You mind if I ask why you came so far?” The man asked.
                  Adam looked to Dena again and didn’t say anything.
                  The man noticed his hesitation. “Sorry, of course all I am to you all is a stranger. The name is Eric.” He pointed toward his armband. “I am a peacekeeper. The army is doing the fighting and I’m helping make sure that order is maintained. You don’t have to tell me anything.”
                  Ally looked behind the man and could see a few more people with the armbands mixed throughout the crowds.
                  “We’re looking for our daughter,” Adam said. “She goes to…went to school at USC.”
                  Eric’s face went blank and he wiped his nose with his hand. “You heard from her since it went dark?”
                  Adam shook his head no.
                  “Well, damn,” Eric said, looking over his shoulder. “I’m sure she is fine but USC is a ruin. It was hit during the first invasion.”
                  Ally noticed Dena drop her head and start to shake. The woman shook her head no several times then didn’t move.
                  Adam glanced in her direction but returned his attention on the peacekeeper. “The first invasion? In Louisiana there were Koreans everywhere. Are they the ones who invaded us?”             
                  “We’re mostly Chinese here. I’m not in the army but I heard the Koreans invaded through the Gulf while the Chinese hit us on both coasts. First wave slammed against us like a wall and we managed to fight them back. Second one was a little rougher.” He ran his hand over his face. “They just sat out there in the ocean and shot missiles at us for weeks. We still fought back when their