Read Online Well Fed - 05 by Keith C. Blackmore - Free Book Online Page A

sympathy at the attempt. He turned around, taking in the far wall of glass, and one feature grabbed his attention.
    A set of double doors marked each end of the glass, leading nowhere as the metal shutters beyond forbade any escape outside.
    Gus chugged toward a pair, anxious and not believing for a second he’d escaped the snow-camo archer. Crossing the living room floor, he saw the doors opened inside and immediately craned his neck up to the overhang and walkway above. He opened both doors and threw the closest one wide open, as far as possible, and stopped it below the edge of the overhang. Gus eyed the doorknob.
    A foothold if he ever saw one.
    He sheathed his bat and staggered toward a heavy-looking sofa chair. A second later, he manhandled the furniture piece into position against the door. He climbed onto the chair, got one boot on the nearby doorknob, and swung his other boot to the knob on the other side, straddling it like a pogo stick. It worked for all of a split second before Gus fell back, unable to keep his hands gripped to the doorframe. He eyed the glass for a moment before punching the pane, shattering the glass with a combat-gloved fist. Then he stepped back onto the knobs and looped an arm through the wrecked frame of the door.
    Gus reached up…
    And his fingertips touched the closest wooden post. Close but no cigar.
    Never easy. He bent his knees, prepping himself for––
    He jumped four inches, clasping onto the post for dear life. His bruised shoulder quivered with pain, cranky as a rusty winch, but he held on and slowly hauled himself up, wishing he’d done more chin-ups in his life. He wheezed. Squealed. His boots scrabbled against the door. He snaked an arm between two posts above and swung his left leg––wincing at the charley horse still in his thigh. Taking a quick breath, he opted for his right leg, feeling it drag against the door below.
    “ Fuck ,” Gus gasped, spittle spurting from his lips. Leave it to him to do it the hard way.
    Panic gave him precious strength, and he pulled his head up to where he could rest his chin on the second level if there was room. But then he burned through whatever strength he had, straining, sucking down huge gulps of air while gravity dug in and pulled him back down.
    A set of hands latched onto his forearms.
    Shock dropped Gus’s mouth wide open.
    “Fuckin’ work , willya!” Talbert grated, covered in body armor and grimacing as he struggled to pull Gus up. He grabbed the Nomex by the loose folds covering Gus’s thigh and flipped him over the railing like a heavy sack of fertilizer.
    Both men collapsed on the walkway, staring at each other.
    “The fuck you come from?” a dazed Gus puffed at the missing man.
    “The fuck you come from?” Talbert shot back, stooping low behind the railing.
    “The fuck you mean ‘you’? Adam sent me to look for your missing ass.”
    “Yeah, well, y’took your goddamn time.”
    “I just fuckin’ got here!”
    “I heard you come in a couple of fuckin’ hours ago! The fuck you doin’ down there? Makin’ a sandwich? Tourin’ the goddamn grounds?”
    “Hey, dicksmack! There’s a fuckin’ army of shitbags down there, in case you haven’t noticed. And a Snow White bitch shootin’ arrows into my fireproofed ass.”
    “Yeah, I know all about that afterbirth,” Talbert said, becoming serious. He wore no helmet. The black plates and scales of his armor looked intact, but the creepy part in his hair had been tussled.
    “You know him?” Gus barked.
    “Jesus Christ, I’ve been holed up here for fuckin’ half a week ––course I know about him.”
    Something puzzled Gus. “Where’s the rest of your knob gobblers?”
    “Hey, they’re assholes to you. They’re dead.”
    That one word took the wind out of Gus.
    Talbert shook his head and was about to speak when he looked to the first floor. His eyes narrowed. “Holy fuckin’ shit .”
    The Korean mask archer stepped through the door beneath, bow