Read Tremor: If your world was falling apart, how far would you go to save it? (The Tremor Cycle) for Free Online Page A

‘You shouldn’t be out.’
    But William kept running.
    Who was that guy?
    What did he want?
    And where was his mother?
    William slowed. Should he just leave, or maybe go back and see if Victor knew anything? The guard was decent enough.
    No, William shook his head. Bad idea. Even if someone had his mother, what could he do? They’d just send him home, and home wasn’t safe. There was only one place safe enough: Althea’s house.
    He pushed on, holding his pocket tightly, gaining comfort from the street pass. He looked to his right and headed down another tight space, trying to keep to the back streets, away from any Enforcer who might not take too kindly to a boy being out at night, even if there was a good reason for it.
    The cobbles blended together as he ran and soon that was all he could see – a greyish brown smear of dark colour. The old biscuit-tin cottages that lined the ancient backstreets leading off the town centre crumbled against each other, making the space close in on him. Considering the way William felt, the houses could fall on him and he’d welcome it.
    A loose stone tripped him up and his knee buckled. Falling into the nearest doorway, William sank down and tears fell yet again. His mother’s face flashed in front of him, urging him to carry on; telling him it wasn’t safe to be outside, in town, at night. Standing again, William told himself to man up.
    How could he help his mother if he turned into a blubbering, useless mess?
    Or worse still, if he was caught by whoever had taken her.
    As he moved further down the tiny road, the buildings became more oppressive, as though he’d been locked in a dusty cupboard. The walls felt as if they were pushing his ribs right into his lungs. The thick air tugged at his windpipe, wrapping itself around him as though it were trying to stop him from getting away from the danger.
    And just as it seemed his luck couldn’t get any worse, rain started to lash down, and not the kind of rain that just dribbled down your face, but the kind that bounced off it like small pebbles, leaving horrible bruises. It was a Wrecker Storm. The tremors weren’t the only things that had been caused by the war.
    The Wreckers were another concoction, some clever scientist’s idea of turning the weather into a weapon to use against enemies. William buried his head in his arms and ran into a doorway, clinging tightly to the soggy bricks.
    The storm soon passed over, but the noise of it still pounded in his ears. He crept out of his hiding place and started off again.
    What was that? Did something move? William squinted. ‘Flippin’ hell, you’ve got to be kidding me!’ he said. This wasn’t his night.
    Someone was hiding in one of the doorways just off to the left.
    There was no way he’d go unnoticed now, but he couldn’t turn back, could he? The person with the knife could be watching; might even be following him. Nothing for it but to keep moving forward.
    William walked quickly, but try as he might he couldn’t help glancing into the alcove as he passed. A small group of filthy people huddled in the doorway, one of them rutting around in the broken down porch, a small space that would once have been used for storing shoes and umbrellas. He looked more closely. The man had raggedy hair, which covered most of his grubby face, but his eyes shone with life. William looked down at the rest: a woman and two children probably not over the age of five.
    Scavengers!
    Crap.
    A hand gripped his shoulder.
    ‘Please don’t hurt me,’ William whispered. This couldn’t be happening to him, he thought. These were the people who Terrafall said were responsible for the disappearances. He tried to step back, air shooting in and out of his lungs.
    ‘You alright, lad? Been a long time since we’ve run into anyone after dark who’s not a Peace Enforcer.’ The voice was rough and gritty. ‘You a Scavenger? No one but Enforcers and pass holders are allowed on the streets after dark,