Read Wormwood Dawn (Episode III) for Free Online Page A

seeing him waving his hand, pinching his nose shut.
    “What’s up?” Dan asked, just as he walked into a wave of stench. He grabbed his nose, too. “ Oh my god!”
    “That’s rotten milk,” Vicent said. “Smells like straight up shit.”
    “That smells worse than any shit I’ve smelled.”
    Vincent shook his head, opening the cooler door, still holding his nose. Behind the milk splattered glass was a motherlode of the best malt liquor and craft beers they could possibly find in a shit town.
    “Ooh,” Vincent said, smiling. “Kid in a candy sto’.”
    “Sweeeeet!”
    The two of them gathered as much beer as they could carry, shouting to Drew as they passed him at the tobacco counter. “Beer!” Dan said.
    They loaded up every single bottle of beer the pharmacy had, and returned to the tobacco counter. Jake passed them with bags of chips and cereal as they swept cigarettes, cigars, loose tobacco, and half-pints of liquor into their bags. Soon, they had the Hummer loaded with everything that would fit, barely leaving room for themselves.
    They were stocked.
    “Alright,” Dan said. “Let’s get the fuck outta here.”
    The Hummer roared to life, and Dan pulled onto the street. They had the windows down, and enjoyed the October air as they contemplated their score. Dan thought about Vincent, and he and Terry’s plans before the encounter at Rural King.
    “So, Vincent,” he said. “Where were you and Terry heading before you stopped here?”
    Vincent shook his head. “Ain’t sure, man. Nowhere, really. Just kickin’ around, tryin’ to figure shit out.”
    “I hope you didn’t have anything in your car you needed.”
    “Naw,” Vincent said. “We had a few guns in the trunk, and some food and shit, but that’s about it.”
    Dan nodded. “That’s good,” he said. “We’re all set up out in the state forest at my house. It’s pretty well secure, and out in the middle of nowhere. It’s kind of a moot point, but you can crash with us if you want.”
    “Yeah,” Drew said. “Or we can just drop you off back at Rural King.”
    Vincent laughed. “Umm, noooo.”
    “Oh goody,” Jake said. “Now we are officially a sausage posse. We need to get some chicks to join us.”
    “Do you have any good skills?”
    “Wait, wait, wait,” Jake said. “I can guess. You have some good tactical skills, and are good with guns, since you’ve been around them your whole life on the mean streets of Gary.”
    Vincent laughed. Dan looked at Jake in the rear-view mirror with a grin. “C’mon man, that’s kinda racist. Just because he’s black doesn’t mean he’s a gangsta.”
    “I’m sure he’s not wearing that black bandana because it’s cold.” Drew said.
    “Naw,” Vincent said. “He’s right. Me and Terry been rollin’ with thugs since we was old enough to drive. I ain’t trying to hide nothin’. Shit, I can fix cars, weld, do work on guns. Lots of shit. This nigga’s got skills.”
    “Alright, then,” Dan said. “We’ve got a fourth. Welcome to the club, homeboy.”
     
    The rest of the evening was uneventful. They laughed and joked on the way home, seeming in good spirits. Vincent was somewhat quiet most of the time, staring out of his window with sadness. Dan knew it was because of Terry. Hard as he seemed, Vincent would grieve his brother, but would do so in silence. It was best to just carry on and let him do it in his own way.
    Dan’s own mind was occupied with the cop that had pulled them over earlier. He just couldn’t fathom that experience. Why was the cop still a cop? What possessed him to continue his traffic duties? Was he that dedicated to doing his job despite the end of the world, or was he just crazy?
    Fortunately, as they merged back onto 37, there was no sign of the flipped car. Dan knew it was still there somewhere, possibly containing a dead cop, but they would likely not have to go back to Martinsville to find out.
    Still, the situation was mind boggling, and the