Read Online Codename: Night Witch by Cary Caffrey - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Cary Caffrey
Tags: Fiction, Science-Fiction
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shells, but nothing happened. The two Thunderhawks kept going until they disappeared into the swirling blizzard.
"It's all right. They're gone now," Jaffer said unnecessarily. Probably for his own benefit.
Sigrid stared after the gunships. They were gone, but they would be back. After six years, her captors were not about to give up the hunt so easily.
And Sigrid didn't doubt that hunt was only just beginning.
CHAPTER SIX
Highwaymen
Despite her worries, the two Thunderhawksnever returned, and Jaffer drove his train of cargo carriers steadily north. For Sigrid it was a sobering journey, as she was constantly reminded of the changes around her.
Jaffer was right. This wasn't the same Earth of six years ago. The markings of war were everywhere. Some of the telltales were subtle, things only a professional warrior might spot: strings of abandoned houses, fallen power lines, cars left to rust in ditches. Other signs were more blatant: entire townships flattened and laid to waste. Where houses and structures had once stood, only blackened beams remained. They looked like stick figures on the horizon, burnt and crumbling.
The few people they passed looked dazed and lost, milling about, as if wondering what had happened to their homes and their miserable lives. What few belongings they had—scraps of clothing, bits of tableware, framed photographs; anything that might prove practical or simply remind them of what they lost—they carried on their backs or pulled along in carts. Where they thought they were going, Sigrid didn't know.
And where was she going?
Lost and alone, with no money, no friends and fewer prospects, Sigrid supposed she wasn't that different from these refugees. Except they weren't being hunted by every faction in the Federation.
It stopped snowing sometime around five in the morning, and the snow gave way to the mist and fog of predawn. The road swung further east. There were more patches of green by the side of the road and less and less white. Not far to the east, she caught her first glimpse of the sea as the rising swells of the southern Atlantic breakers smashed against the shore.
The rain hit sometime before noon. At least that hadn't changed. On Earth, the rain always came. It came suddenly, a torrential downpour that threatened to swamp the road and wash the entire train of cargo carriers away. It made for a nail-biting ride, but Jaffer was the perfect stoic, and his foot never let off the throttle.
Twice, she glanced out her window in time to see the wrecks of two cargo haulers. They were piled along the side of the road, bent and mangled. The last one was still in flames. Each of its containers had been scavenged and picked clean, like meat torn from a carcass. Perhaps this was the work of the "jackers," the highwaymen Jaffer had warned her about.
The further north they went, the more isolated things felt. The roads were silent. There were no trucks. No cars. No people at all. Highways that were normally stacked with vehicles were all but empty. The road was theirs and theirs alone, leaving Sigrid feeling even more exposed.
In time, the shadows grew longer. The sun set behind the hilltops to the west, and evening stretched into night. It was well dark when Jaffer finally stopped for the night. There were no rest stops or lodgings to be found, not this far out in the wilderness. Instead, Jaffer pulled up next to a line of transports that sat parked and idling at the side of the road. There, they stayed huddled together like some giant herd of buffalos, guarding each other against the night.
Exhausted from nearly eighteen hours of driving, Jaffer crawled into the sleeping compartment to the rear of the cab, where he fell promptly into a rumbling, snoring sleep. Sigrid, however, remained fully awake, staring into the darkness.
The rain let up some hours later and even the clouds made way. The moon hadn't yet risen, and Sigrid stared up at the star-filled sky. She knew exactly where to
"It's all right. They're gone now," Jaffer said unnecessarily. Probably for his own benefit.
Sigrid stared after the gunships. They were gone, but they would be back. After six years, her captors were not about to give up the hunt so easily.
And Sigrid didn't doubt that hunt was only just beginning.
CHAPTER SIX
Highwaymen
Despite her worries, the two Thunderhawksnever returned, and Jaffer drove his train of cargo carriers steadily north. For Sigrid it was a sobering journey, as she was constantly reminded of the changes around her.
Jaffer was right. This wasn't the same Earth of six years ago. The markings of war were everywhere. Some of the telltales were subtle, things only a professional warrior might spot: strings of abandoned houses, fallen power lines, cars left to rust in ditches. Other signs were more blatant: entire townships flattened and laid to waste. Where houses and structures had once stood, only blackened beams remained. They looked like stick figures on the horizon, burnt and crumbling.
The few people they passed looked dazed and lost, milling about, as if wondering what had happened to their homes and their miserable lives. What few belongings they had—scraps of clothing, bits of tableware, framed photographs; anything that might prove practical or simply remind them of what they lost—they carried on their backs or pulled along in carts. Where they thought they were going, Sigrid didn't know.
And where was she going?
Lost and alone, with no money, no friends and fewer prospects, Sigrid supposed she wasn't that different from these refugees. Except they weren't being hunted by every faction in the Federation.
It stopped snowing sometime around five in the morning, and the snow gave way to the mist and fog of predawn. The road swung further east. There were more patches of green by the side of the road and less and less white. Not far to the east, she caught her first glimpse of the sea as the rising swells of the southern Atlantic breakers smashed against the shore.
The rain hit sometime before noon. At least that hadn't changed. On Earth, the rain always came. It came suddenly, a torrential downpour that threatened to swamp the road and wash the entire train of cargo carriers away. It made for a nail-biting ride, but Jaffer was the perfect stoic, and his foot never let off the throttle.
Twice, she glanced out her window in time to see the wrecks of two cargo haulers. They were piled along the side of the road, bent and mangled. The last one was still in flames. Each of its containers had been scavenged and picked clean, like meat torn from a carcass. Perhaps this was the work of the "jackers," the highwaymen Jaffer had warned her about.
The further north they went, the more isolated things felt. The roads were silent. There were no trucks. No cars. No people at all. Highways that were normally stacked with vehicles were all but empty. The road was theirs and theirs alone, leaving Sigrid feeling even more exposed.
In time, the shadows grew longer. The sun set behind the hilltops to the west, and evening stretched into night. It was well dark when Jaffer finally stopped for the night. There were no rest stops or lodgings to be found, not this far out in the wilderness. Instead, Jaffer pulled up next to a line of transports that sat parked and idling at the side of the road. There, they stayed huddled together like some giant herd of buffalos, guarding each other against the night.
Exhausted from nearly eighteen hours of driving, Jaffer crawled into the sleeping compartment to the rear of the cab, where he fell promptly into a rumbling, snoring sleep. Sigrid, however, remained fully awake, staring into the darkness.
The rain let up some hours later and even the clouds made way. The moon hadn't yet risen, and Sigrid stared up at the star-filled sky. She knew exactly where to
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