Read August Burning (Book 2): Survival for Free Online Page A

demanded.
    Liam saw Jaxton bristle. “I did.”
    “Which I have done.” Terrence said, gesturing to the twenty or so men and women that had now gathered. “And I had to risk my life to do it. I had to kill six of those fuckers, our there, beyond these walls. So if I want my team to have the best drugs, so what?”
    “Everyone does their part,” Liam snapped as he massaged his neck.
    Terrence chuckled. “Some more than others! Why shouldn’t those who risk their flesh outside this citadel get the better share of the spoils?!”
    The crowd responded. Those who fought outside with Terrence jeered their approval. Others, whom he had stolen from, leered at, or attacked remained silent or grimaced.
    “That’s not for you to decide,” Harley growled.
    “Then who is it for to decide?”
    Bennett, who had been wavering on the fringes, now dove in. “This is the kind of thing that’s going to get us all killed. We can barely govern ourselves, let alone fight the infected.” The crowd jeered again with an even mixture of approval and displeasure.
    “How far out are they? This other group.” Jaxton queried intensely.
    Bennett stared straight ahead. “Two days, now.”
    Without thinking, Terrence snatched up his assault rifle, one of the few in their care. “You again. Your eye looks a little messed up. You need a woman to fix you up.”
    “I think it looks good on me,” Bennett countered, drawing the laughs of several in the boisterous crowd.
    “Ahhh, I had forgotten. I hear you had a woman, and then our king Jax took him from you.” Terrence spat. “I don’t blame him. You’re weak.”
    Terrence shoved his way through the onlookers, taking six or seven others with him. The rest of the crowd remained silent, taut as a bowstring, their eyes flipping between Bennett and Jaxton.
    “If you don’t do something about him, I will.” Bennett sputtered, his face ruby red.
     
    …
     
    “I thought I’d find you in here.” The beauty stalked in, one foot placed lightly over the other, like a cat.
    Jaxton didn’t turn, but smiled appreciatively, already anticipating the warm touch of dancing fingers. “I did ask you to find me, didn’t I?”
    Miniature pillars of black smoke hustled skywards from the flickering wax columns. His map spread to each corner of the heavy wooden table. Adira laid her long fingers down on the heavy art-paper, stitched together meticulously. Here were the ridges of the valley, protecting the town on all sides like earthen walls. He had drawn out every street, every unique building. Certain areas were marked with green tape, where she knew teams had already searched for food and supplies. Red areas were untouched.
    “May I enter the lord’s chamber?”
    He smiled, his chiseled face newly shaven. “You may.”
    “How does it feel? Playing King of the Castle?”
    Jaxton chuckled. “I suppose I should say something like, it’s overrated, right? Isn’t that what would I should say?”
    She inhaled the smoke in the room, and felt a dozen memories of summer bonfires sweep into her.
    “You should say what you feel,” she said seriously.
    He frowned. “Well, I love it.”
    She nodded, approvingly. “Go on.”
    “Do you know how many miles it is from the Western Ridge, to the Eastern one?” He continued, gesturing over his map. “Twelve miles. And we exist as we decide. We are bound by no one’s laws but our own.”
    “So you enjoy the power? I like that you do, but you have some work to do. Terrence. Bennett. They threaten the Kingdom.” Her dark eyes smiled, teasing.
    “You know I wasn’t always Superman.”
    “No? How could that be?”
    He taped another green tab to the map, just under The Cathedral . “When I was still in high school, in these halls, I was obsessed with making sure people didn’t think I was a coward. That’s where my boldness came from, I think. It was born of my being frightened. Fear of shame. Rather than be paralyzed by inaction, I trained myself to do