Read Canyon: A Post Apocalyptic/Dystopian Adventure (The Traveler Book 2) for Free Online Page B

here while I think of the best way to deal with Mad Max. In a second here, I’ll be at a boil.”
     

CHAPTER 7
    JANUARY 3, 2020, 4:45 PM
    SCOURGE -12 YEARS, 9 MONTHS
    ALEPPO, SYRIA
     
    “This is already a bad idea,” Buck protested.
    Battle helped him inch down the concrete embankment into the track valley. They were exposed in the orange light illuminating the rails.
    Battle didn’t answer him. He was too focused on each step. If they slipped on the steep decline, they’d make too much noise, Buck could aggravate his injury, they could lose their weapons.
    “Did you hear me?” Buck pressed. He was hopping more than walking. His bad leg was useless.
    “Shut up, Buck,” Battle said, sliding his boot downward. “Focus.”
    Buck grunted and adjusted his grip on Battle. They were halfway down the slope when they took fire.
    Pop! Pop! Pop!
    The shooter missed to their left. The bullets smacked into the concrete mere feet from them.
    Pop! Pop! Pop!
    Another volley was closer to them. The shooter was finding his aim. Battle knew the next round of slugs would hit them. He yanked on Buck, eliciting a howl from the sergeant, and pulled him flat to the concrete.
    “Roll!” he said and cradled his HK against his chest. He turned his body sideways and began rolling down the embankment to the tracks, Buck’s body slapping against his. He knew the sergeant was rolling with him. Each time he spun, he could see Buck right behind him.
    Pop! Pop! Pop!
    Battle heard the rifle cracks and felt a punch to his lower back as he slowed near the bottom of the slope. He rolled to a stop near the first of the four sets of tracks, got to his feet, and grabbed the back collar of Buck’s Kevlar vest. He crouched low and dragged the sergeant behind one of the two series of train cars. They were flatcars, absent walls or a roof, so they weren’t the best protection, but they were enough to stop the incoming fire for the moment.
    “You okay?” Battle scrambled to his knees and shuffled over to Buck, who was lying on his back.
    Buck nodded. His eyes were squeezed shut and he was holding his breath.
    “We’re okay here for the moment,” Battle said. He reached around to his back and felt where a bullet had embedded itself into his vest.
    Buck exhaled. “I lost the sidearm,” he said. “I dropped it somewhere.”
    “Don’t worry about it,” Battle said. “I’m good. I’ve got plenty of ammo. Lie there until I find us a path out of here.”
    Battle grasped his HK at its sling and let the front hand guard rest on his forearm. Keeping the muzzle off of the ground and dragging the butt, he dropped to a low crawl position. He pushed his arms forward underneath the flatcar in front of him and then pulled his firing-side leg forward. He pulled again with his arms and pushed with his leg until his body was entirely under the car on the tracks.
    The rock ballast was digging into his legs, and his thighs were draped uncomfortably across one of the rails. He was hidden. Battle pulled his rifle around to his front and set it into a firing position, the butt against his shoulder. He peeked out from underneath the flatcar and scanned the opposite end of the valley for the sniper. He didn’t see anything.
    He inched forward, trying to see up the incline on the far side of the tracks. On the edge of the orange glow, against the fence, he caught a slight flicker of light. It looked like a reflection off of a mirror.
    Battle kept his eyes on the spot and waited. Again, there was a quick flash of reflected light. The sniper was there. The flashes of light were from his scope.
    Battle tried to figure if he could accurately hit the sniper from his position. The HK416 had a short barrel and the velocity of its 5.56x45mm NATO rounds were relatively low.
    He knew within fifty yards, maybe seventy-five, he could unleash a tight pattern. Beyond that, without the hollow-point bullets he wished he carried, he’d be taking a huge chance. If he missed or