Read Online Three Days in April by Edward Ashton - Free Book Online

replies. I have also tried to contact both local and national government agencies, so far without success.”
    The feed cuts to an older man in a suit. He’s sitting on a porch in a glider chair.
    â€œStrange goings-­on in Hagerstown,” he says. “I’ve tried to patch to a number of civilian drones that should be in the area, but they all appear to have been taken offline between one and two hours ago. So have the local ground-­based cameras and security systems. Whatever is happening there, someone with a very long reach does not want us to know—­”
    He pauses, and his left eye starts twitching. He’s downloading something through an ocular. After a dozen seconds, his eyes refocus. “We’re going to patch through to a national feed. Those with weak stomachs may want to drop off now.”
    The screen cuts to a static view of the interior of a McDonald’s. There are probably fifteen ­people in the frame—­in booths, on the floor, slumped over tables. None of them are moving, and most of them look like they’ve been puking up blood.
    â€œScenes like this are repeated throughout Hagerstown at this hour,” says the voice-­over. The POV jumps to a traffic cam at a downtown intersection showing a four-­car pileup. The driver of one of the cars is hanging halfway out of his open door, a puddle of something vile on the pavement under his open mouth. It jumps again to what looks like an office, and again to a park, where eighteen or twenty guys apparently dropped dead in the middle of a soccer game.
    â€œAuthorities continue to review all available data sources,” says the voice-­over, “but as of this time, no evidence of survivors has been found.”
    â€œOh, Jesus,” Terry whispers.
    â€œHave you got ­people there?” I ask.
    â€œMy sister,” she says. She’s crying now. I need to get Anders.
    By the time I get to the top of the stairs, I’ve got feeds coming into my ocular—­from my peeps, not the sheeple on the wallscreen downstairs. I get a twenty-­second loop from what looks like low earth orbit that shows cars on a city street moving normally, then swerving out of control and smashing into each other. Nobody gets out to exchange insurance cards. That switches to a view from an air breather of the soccer field I saw in the living room, except that the players are still alive. Then one slows to a stop, clutches his belly, and drops to his knees. It’s not more than five seconds before they’re all down. A few are still thrashing when the POV spins crazily and cuts out.
    â€œGary?” Anders is standing in front of me. He snaps his fingers in my face. “You there, man? For shit’s sake, it’s Sunday afternoon. What are you on?”
    I cut the feed and shake my head.
    â€œNothing. Well, not much. I had a ­couple of Bump-­n-­Dumps, but I’m fine. You need to come downstairs.”
    â€œThat’s where I was headed. What’s going on?”
    â€œYou’ve got a visitor. Also, it looks like Hagerstown just got whacked. Also, your visitor’s sister lives in Hagerstown, so she’s not too happy. Also, something weird is going on with my feeds . . .”
    â€œStop.” He holds up one hand. “What do you mean, ‘Hagerstown just got whacked’? You mean bombed? Like a terrorist thing? What kind of a dipshit terrorist would go after freaking Hagerstown?”
    â€œNo,” I say. “Not bombed. Just whacked. Killed. Looks like everybody in town just keeled over dead.”
    He blinks, slowly.
    â€œYou mean, all at once?”
    I shrug.
    â€œYeah, pretty much.”
    â€œHow do you do that?”
    â€œFuck if I know. I was just starting to get some feeds from my boys when you got all snappy with me.”
    He rubs his face with both hands.
    â€œOkay. You said I had a visitor?”
    â€œYeah. It’s your