Read The Line of Departure: A Postapocalyptic Novel (The New World Series Book 4) for Free Online Page B

easy.”
    “Obviously,” Gordon replied with a smile then continued, “I brought a friend.”
    Sebastian walked in right on cue with a smile stretched across his face.
    “Holy shit, Corporal Van Zandt!” Gunny exclaimed upon seeing Sebastian. He looked at Gordon and then replied, “I’m so glad you both found each other. There’s nothing I love more than a happy ending.”
    The men shared small talk then sat down to discuss Gunny’s unexpected arrival in McCall. Trusting Gordon, Rainey allowed him and Sebastian to talk privately before he interjected his own line of questioning.
    “Well, I know you know what I’m going to ask, so go ahead,” Gordon put forth.
    “Gordon, all hell has broken loose in Coos. The colonel has totally fucked everything up.”
    The jovial mood created by the reunion melted away after Gunny’s statement.
    “What do you mean?” Gordon asked.
    “Not a week after you left, the Colonel massacred hundreds of unarmed civilians in the streets. We’re talking men, women, and children. The lunatic bastard even had the children shot.”
    “Oh my God,” Gordon gasped.
    “I told you, Gordo, the old man had gone a bit loopy,” Sebastian chimed in.
    “Unfortunately, your brother’s right. I didn’t always agree with him on everything. The mutiny, I could live with, but this move? Nope, I can’t understand it, nor will I go along with it.”
    “So, you left and came here?” Gordon asked.
    “Not right away. Many Marines and sailors joined those civilians who rose up to oppose Colonel Barone. We fought back, but what the colonel lacks in couth he makes up for in resilience. For every step we gained, he’d hit us back so hard, we took two steps back.”
    Gordon was flabbergasted by this. He leaned back in his chair as if to rest from the heavy news. His thoughts soon raced to Brittany and Tyler.
    “The woman and her son?” Gordon asked with concern.
    “I don’t know. The last I saw of them was well over a month ago. She had joined in the resistance, but I lost track of her, sorry.”
    “Brittany was fighting against Barone?”
    “Who’s Brittany?” Sebastian asked curiously.
    A bit annoyed by Sebastian’s lack of memory, Gordon reminded his brother, “The woman who I saved, remember?”
    “She’s quite a looker too,” Gunny joked.
    Ignoring Gunny’s comment, Gordon pressed on, “What else?”
    “The colonel has taken a firm grip on Coos Bay. No one is allowed in and it’s tough as hell to get out . . .”
    “Not about that. Brittany,” Gordon interrupted.
    “Afraid I don’t know anything else. I saw her at a meeting. She left and that’s the last I saw of her. I’m sorry, Van Zandt; I wish I had more info for ya.”
    Gordon’s mind was racing. In some ways he couldn’t help but feel responsible for Brittany’s fate. Had he known Barone would’ve been capable of such brutality, he wouldn’t have convinced her to come with him. She stayed in Coos Bay because it promised to be a safe haven. Now, in an instant, Barone had turned it upside down. He couldn’t imagine why she’d get involved with resistance efforts, though. He knew she was a capable person; she had proven those skills time and time again in their travels. But now she was facing a force of well-trained and heavily armed men. Anger began to rise in him.
    “Hey, Van Zandt!” Gunny barked.
    “Um, what?” Gordon answered.
    “Sorry to interrupt your daydreaming, but can you tell the police chief we’re good to go?”
    “Ah, yeah, of course. How many men do you have?”
    “It was a fucking miracle, but we managed to get out of Coos with four Hummers, a shitload of weapons, and a dozen people.”
    “Should be easy to house a group of jarheads somewhere around here. I can attest to how having the Marines can be helpful for our security.”
    “Well, we have seven Marines, two sailors, and three civilians.”
    “We’ll make it work. I promise,” Gordon pledged, his thoughts still swimming with