Read Online Dead Earth: The Green Dawn by Mark Justice - Free Book Online

She’s always
been a best friend to me.”
    “I know, Jubal. We’ll do whatever we
can.”
    Jubal pressed down on the accelerator. He
glanced at the gauge and saw he was going nearly 100 miles per
hour. He’d have activated his siren if he thought it would do any
good, but state highway 285 heading north was barren.
    “This is damn spooky,” Jubal said.
    “What?”
    “The highway. It’s still early, but there
should be at least some semis on the road.”
    “There’s plenty of oncoming traffic.”
    “Yeah, weird.”
    Some of the people in the oncoming cars waved
their arms out their windows, but Jubal was moving too fast to
understand what they wanted. He was in too much of a damned hurry
to care.
    “Why complain? The less traffic heading north,
the faster we get help for your mother.”
    Jubal glanced into the back seat. His mother
didn’t appear to be moving, but it was hard to tell anything
driving this fast.
    “Keep your eyes on the road, please, Mr.
Deputy Sheriff,” Fiona said. “I’ll check on her for you.”
    Jubal drove while Fiona leaned over the back
seat. Soon she was sitting back down and fastening her seat
belt.
    “Her breathing’s erratic and she’s
sleeping.”
    Or unconscious. Or about to die.
    Jubal slapped his palm against the steering
wheel. Fiona shot him a worried glance, but he ignored it. His only
concern right now was for his mother, and if Carlsbad told him
there was no room at the hospital, by God, he’d make some fucking
room. He wished there was a medical facility closer to Serenity,
but all they had was Doc Mitchell, and apparently he was next to
useless in this situation.
    In the distance, something was happening on
the highway.
    Fiona gasped.
    Jubal glanced at her. She had her hand over
her mouth and was looking out her side window. At the green light
of dawn.
    Soon enough, they found out what the
obstruction was in the road.
    Traffic. Cars at a complete standstill.
Several people walked around on the highway, which indicated to
Jubal that this long line of cars wasn’t going to move anytime
soon.
    Up about a hundred yards, alongside the
highway, was a large silver tent that looked like a prop from a
science fiction movie.
    Then Jubal noticed the armed soldiers in
HAZMAT gear. Some stood at attention while others herded citizens
back into their vehicles at gunpoint. Several more stood around the
silver tent.
    Far ahead, the vehicles were being rerouted
over to the southbound lanes. That explained the southbound-only
traffic on the way up here.
    A gunshot cracked. Jubal flinched. Fiona
squealed. Jubal could not see where the shot came from.
    “Stay here with Ma. I’ll be right back.”
    As Jubal slammed the car door shut, two armed
soldiers approached him. He could not see their faces behind their
protective masks, but the weapons were menacing enough.
    “Get back in your vehicle, officer. All
vehicles are restricted beyond this point.”
    Jubal was afraid they were going to say that.
He stood his ground.
    “But I have to get up to Carlsbad on official
police business.”
    “You have no jurisdiction here, sir. Please
turn your vehicle around and go back. It’s for your own good.”
    Jubal felt his face flush and knew if he had a
mirror with which to see his reflection, it would be beet red. He
pointed back at the cruiser.
    “We have a deathly ill woman in that car that
needs to get to the hospital now, or she’ll die. Do you hear me,
soldier?”
    The soldiers turned their heads toward each
other as if conversing in a silent language.
    “If you’d just clear a path...” Jubal
said.
    “We are going to have to take a look at this
sick person,” one of the soldiers said.
    Jubal stepped aside, hoping the soldiers
would see his mother’s condition and let them through. He walked
behind them as they circled the car. As he passed Fiona’s window,
he noticed she pulled up her shirt collar.
    One soldier swung the back door open while
the other stood