Caldera Book 7: The End Is Here Read online

  She turned the radio down and stared at Broussard. “What do I do?”

  He reached out and took the radio from her. “How far away are they? We’re almost set up down here.”

  “Two…two and a half blocks. Over.”

  Broussard keyed the radio again. “Notify us when they reach the end of our block. If they don’t turn away, let us know and we’ll take cover. We’ll lay low until they’ve left.”

  “Copy that. Over.”

  He shoved the radio into his pants and hefted his bag again. “I suggest we now put as much distance as we can between us and that building.”

  She glanced around then pointed to a car. “Maybe we can find transportation? Surely somebody left their keys?”

  Broussard raised a brow at her. “This is California. I doubt that anybody would leave their car unlocked much less leave keys in it.”

  “The world ended, remember?” She shrugged. “It can’t hurt to try.”

  Broussard shrugged. “Perhaps, as you say.”

  The pair continued toward the coast, checking doors on various vehicles as they went, doing their best to remain quiet. Carol pulled the handle on a small import and nearly jumped when the door opened and the interior light came on. “I got one!” she whispered excitedly.

  She stuck her head in the car and looked around for the keys. She pulled the visor down to no avail. She lifted the floor mat and even checked the ashtray. She shut the door as quietly as she could. “Maybe the next one.”

  “Maybe we should stick to our feet? We will arouse much less attention that way.” Broussard turned and began walking down the road. Carol fell into step beside him.

  “Come on. Don’t give up on me yet.” She reached out and grabbed at door handles as they walked.

  “I think you are wasting your—”

  Both researchers froze when a car alarm went off, lights flickering and the horn blasting in the evening shadows. Broussard grabbed her by the coat and quickly dragged her across the street and into the darkness of an alley. She stood trembling by the entrance as screams echoed off of the surrounding buildings.

  Broussard pulled her deeper into the shadows, his hand reaching to cup her mouth. “Shhh,” he whispered in her ear.

  The pair turned to make a break for the end of the alley when Broussard came up short, his hand falling from her mouth. “Oh, no…”

  Carol stared at the Zed standing just feet away, his head cocked to the side as he stared at the pair.

  Simon worked the action on the bolt action hunting rifle and peered through the scope at the front of the compound. “…Let my people go you sons of…” He squeezed the trigger and felt the 30.06 rifle jump back into his shoulder again.

  He worked the bolt then bent to peer through the scope. “Come out, come out, wherever you are.” He squeezed the trigger again and watched as one of the wall sentries grasped at his shoulder and spun away from his post. “Bingo, muthafucker.”

  He worked the bolt again and scanned the top of the wall for another target. He placed the crosshairs on his next victim and squeezed the trigger.

  CLICK.

  Simon pulled away from the rifle and stared at it in disbelief. “Son of a BITCH!” He threw the weapon into the bed of the truck and reached into the back seat for the next rifle, pulling out the AR and propping it on the open window sill of his driver’s door. “I’m sure you won’t be as accurate, but we can play spray and pray!” He giggled to himself as he began squeezing the trigger, flinching as hot brass ejected into the front cab of his truck.

  He emptied the magazine and reached for another. He pulled the charging handle, loading another round into the chamber, and took aim. “This is funner than shooting Ragers!” He continued to squeeze the trigger, peppering the front of the compound with as many rounds of hot lead as he could.

  He ejected the spent magazine and reached for another from the bag in the back seat. “Thank god for rednecks!” He slammed the magazine home and jerked the charging handle again. He didn’t notice the first shot in his general direction as it popped a puff of dirt up behind the truck. He continued to fire at the building, praying to hit any of the heads that dared to pop up from behind the wall when something went thunk on the front of his truck.

  He pulled his head away and listened for the sound to repeat itself. He was just about to start firing again when wisps of steam mixed with the sweet taste of antifreeze hit his senses. “Oh, HELL NO!”

  He pulled the AR from the window sill and marched to the front of his truck. He could see the steam rising from the grille of the diesel and he spun to face the compound. “I’m gonna kill ALL you sons of bitches now! This is a brand new truck!”

  The headlight closest to him erupted in a spray of glass and plastic and Simon dove for the dirt. “You bastards!” He dragged his AR around and propped it up on the magazine. He shouldered the rifle and did his best to peer down the scope. “Eat lead you fuckers!” He squeezed the trigger until the carbine stopped firing.

  Scrambling to his feet, Simon crawled to the driver’s side and stuffed his hand into the canvas bag, slapping at the contents in search of a fresh magazine. His hand gripped the cold steel of the military thirty-round mag and he slammed it into the well while trying to hide behind the open door of the truck.

  He propped the rifle along the window sill again and nearly pissed himself when the front tire popped and hissed at him, air escaping as the bullet ripped through the rubber.

  “I ain’t changing that shit!” He leveled the rifle again and began taking pot-shots at the wall. “I’m gonna kill you all and take YOUR truck home!”

  He emptied the magazine and turned to reach into the bag again. He froze when his eyes met the red-eyed gaze of a tall male Rager standing at the rear of the truck.

  “Fuck me…”

  About the Author

  Heath Stallcup was born in Salinas, California and relocated to Tupelo, Oklahoma in his tween years. He joined the US Navy and was stationed in Charleston, SC and Bangor, WA shortly after junior college. After his second tour he attended East Central University where he obtained BS degrees in Biology and Chemistry. He then served ten years with the State of Oklahoma as a Compliance and Enforcement Officer while moonlighting nights and weekends with his local Sheriff's Office. He still lives in the small township of Tupelo, Oklahoma with his wife. He steals time to write between household duties, going to ballgames, being a grandfather and the pet of numerous animals that have taken over his home. Visit him at heathstallcup.com or Facebook.com for news of his upcoming releases.

  Also by Heath Stallcup

  The Monster Squad Series

  Mankind always suspected that he wasn’t alone at the top of the food chain. Since time immemorial, he has had an innate fear of the dark, a fear of the unfamiliar, a fear that something evil lurked just outside his field of vision. Once the sun set and the moon lit the sky, an unfamiliar snap of a twig or rustling of a bush could make the deadliest of men’s blood run cold. Something was out there.

  Humanity had spent its time enjoying a peace that can only be had through blissful ignorance. For centuries, stories of things that go bump in the night had been told. When creatures of the night proved to be real, the best of America’s military came together to form an elite band of rapid response teams. Their mission: to keep the civilian populace safe from those threats and hide all evidence of their existence.

  Caldera

  For years, the biggest threat Yellowstone was thought to offer was in the form of its semi-dormant super volcano. Little did anyone realize the threat was real and slowly working its way to the surface, but not in the form of magma. Lying deep within the bowels of the earth itself, an ancient virus waited.

  Recently credited with wiping out the Neanderthals, the virus is released within the park and quickly spreads. Can mankind prevent a second mass extinction? Can humanity survive the raging cannibals that erupt from within?

  Whispers

  How does a sheri
ff’s department from a small North Texas community stop a brutal murderer who is already dead and buried?

  When grave robbers disturb the tomb of Sheriff James ‘Two Guns’ Tolbert searching for Old West relics, a vengeful spirit is unleashed, hell bent for blood. Over a hundred years in the making, a vengeful spirit hunts for its killers. If those responsible couldn't be made to pay, then their progeny would.

  Even when aided by a Texas Ranger and UCLA Paranormal Investigators, can modern-day law enforcement stop a spirit destined to fulfill an oath made in death? An oath fueled by passion from a love cut down before its time?

  Forneus Corson

  Nothing comes easy and nothing is ever truly free. When Steve Wilson stumbles upon the best-kept secret of history’s most successful writers, he can’t help but take advantage of it. Little did he know it would come back to haunt him in ways he’d never have dreamt… even in his worst nightmares.

  With his life turned upside down, his name discredited, his friends persecuted, the authorities chasing him for something he didn’t do, Steve finds himself on the run with nothing but his wits and his best friend by his side. When a man finds himself hitting rock bottom, he thinks there’s little else he can do but go up… unless he’s facing an evil willing to dig the hole deeper. An evil in the business of pitting men against odds so great, they risk losing their very souls in the attempt to escape…

  Flags of the Forgotten

  What do you do when you’ve devoted your life to working for the government, then that very same government turns on you?

  You take the fight to them.

  It’s just another day at the office for Bobby Bridger and his cohorts when they are used as scapegoats. Follow along as this rag-tag group of operators attempt to stay one step ahead of their pursuers.

  From the heart of Texas to Pakistan to the very bowels of the CIA, these boys know how to play hard, fast and dirty.

  * * *

  Hunter Trilogy

  * * *

  Born of Viking stock, careered into the Swedish Navy, Sven Ericsson finds himself in the fabled New World. Away from the restraints of society, the young Northman is dragged into long nights of debauchery; nights that lead him into the waiting arms of a dark beauty who will change his very nature forever.

  Fighting his new unnatural status, Sven steers clear of humanity, skulking along the fringe of society, and filling his inhuman need with the blood of the outcasts or the easily forgotten. A shadow among the shadows...until extraordinary events, centuries later, force him to emerge from the dark. A mishap of his own making pits Sven Ericsson into a moral quandary that will remind him what it means to be a warrior.

  He is a killer. A fighter. And a Hunter of his own kind.

  Sinful

  * * *

  Charlie Johnson is your average American teenager. He’s a good student, he’s a good son, his girlfriend is the love of his life. He’s a nice kid. Charlie also murders people for their sins. A serious car accident leaves Charlie comatose and when he comes to, he suffers from visions of unspeakable horror that keep him awake at night. He soon discovers that when he touches people, he can sense their evil and see their greatest sins. Some crimes are too terrible to describe. Some crimes are too terrible to go unanswered. Some crimes can be averted…but only if you’re willing to step into that world.

  For a refreshing change of pace, check out this exciting Young Adult Zombie thriller from JJ Beal.

  Lions & Tigers & Zombies, Oh My!

  The cold war has heated up again. This time the battle will be fought in every street of America.

  Trapped in a major city, hours from their small town country home, a team of young girls find themselves cut off from everyone they know and left to fend for themselves as the world spins out of control.

  With nothing but their wits, their softball equipment and their friendship to hold them together, they face incredible odds as they fight their way across the state. Physical, emotional and psychological challenges meet them at every turn as they struggle to find the family they can’t be sure survived. How much more can they endure before reaching the breaking point?

  Also From DevilDog Press

  www.devildogpress.com

  Zombie Fallout by Mark Tufo

  Caldera Book 1 By Heath Stallcup

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  From The Ash by Dave Heron

  Mossy Creek A Maggie Mercer Mystery By Jill Behe

  The Monster of Selkirk by C.E. Clayton

  Prey: Blood of The Ancients by Tim Majka

  Caldera The Series

  Caldera the Series

  For years, the biggest threat Yellowstone was thought to offer was in the form of its semi-dormant super volcano. Little did anyone realize the threat was real and slowly working its way to the surface, but not in the form of magma. Lying deep within the bowels of the earth itself, an ancient virus waited.

  Recently credited with wiping out the Neanderthals, the virus is released within the park and quickly spreads. A desperate plea for assistance reaches the military, but are they coming to help those battling for their lives or to wipe out every living thing for miles around in an effort to prevent a second mass extinction? Can what’s left of humanity survive the raging cannibals that erupt from within?

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