Read A Glimpse Of Decay (Book 1): Red Storm) for Free Online Page B

towards his tank.  They were coming out into a clearing and he saw from their clothing that they were civilians.  He aligned the sights of the turret mounted machine gun and opened up.  The sudden and brilliant flash from the weapon flooded his night vision with a white light.  When he let up off of the trigger, he could see several bodies scattered in front of his gun sights.
    The survivors began to wave and scream at him.  One chubby man in particular managed to make his way to the edge of the road, jumping up and down and flailing his arms frantically.  A well placed burst from one of the carriers cut him in half.  Kozlov could see his intestines as they exploded from out of his large belly.
    As the captain fixed his sights on another group, he realized that they weren’t charging anymore.  They were simply jumping up and down and they were whirling about.  Some of them had actually turned and were retreating back into the woods.  That’s when he saw one woman who was down on her bent knees, hands clasped together.  It looked like she was begging.
    Suddenly, it dawned on Kozlov what was taking place.  Oh my God, these aren’t infected people! “Cease firing!” Kozlov screamed into his headset.  They were murdering innocents!  “Cease fire!  These people aren’t infected!  All units stop and turn on your lights!”  He looked down at his driver and yelled at him to bring the tank to a halt.  The guns immediately fell silent as all the vehicles came to a stop, kicking up dirt and grass into the air.
    Kozlov unplugged the communication wire from his headset and frantically climbed out of his hatch, jumping down onto the rear deck.  Through his night optics he could see some of the people taking refuge at the edge of the trees.  He tried not to look at the bodies that were strewn over the clearing.  He cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled, “Don’t be afraid!  Come out and we will take care of you!”  He was trying to choke back his tears of guilt and shame as he called out into the darkness.
    “Please don’t shoot anymore!” cried a voice from the tree line.  “For God’s sake, we’re not sick!  Please help us!”
    Kozlov reached into the hatch and plugged himself back into the radio.  “I want the infantry to dismount and bring the wounded and survivors back to the column.  Now!”
    “But sir,” questioned Kuzma, “won’t that expose the men?”
    “We just slaughtered a bunch of helpless people.  Would you have me leave them here?  Besides, that’s the least we can do for them.”
    The driver lowered his head, embarrassed.  The captain climbed back down into the hatch and swung the machine gun around to cover the dismounting troops as they cautiously maneuvered away from the safety of their carriers.  Moans and whimpering could be heard from all around.  Unplugging himself again, Kozlov grabbed his rifle and sprung from his hatch, jumping down onto the hull.  His heavy boots thudded on the steel of the tank.
    A tall and lanky soldier was sprinting by the tank when Kozlov called down to him.  “Sergeant Lebedev, we need to work as fast as we can.  The longer we stay here, the more likely the infected will find us.  He leapt down to the ground and unfolded the wire stock of his rifle.
    “What about those who don’t look like they’re going to make it?” Lebedev asked.
    “We’re not a surgical unit.  If someone looks terminal, we leave them behind.”  Kozlov couldn’t believe that he had just actually issued such an awful order, but he knew that he had to choose between the living and the dying.  “Put the wounded and the elderly inside of the carriers.  Everyone else rides on top, including us.  Now hurry up and pass that on to the others.”
    Lebedev trotted out towards the rest of the dismounted troops and relayed Kozlov’s orders.  Several of the soldiers looked back at the captain with disbelief.  With the spot lights crisscrossing on both