Extinction Machine Read Online Free

explosion seemed to be part of two separate events rather than cause and effect. I was actually flummoxed for a moment. Not sure I’ve ever actually been flummoxed before. Thought it was just an expression.
    The agents jerked open the door. “Go!” yelled Henckhouser, as he pushed Spinlicker before him.
    Bunny was on his knees and he had my Beretta in his hand. “Freeze or I will kill you.”
    They leaped toward the doorway.
    Bunny opened fire. His first bullet hit the metal handrail, the second struck the wall, but the third punched Henckhouser between the shoulder blades and slammed him into the doorjamb.
    “I said freeze!” yelled Bunny.
    Top must have heard the shots because his voice was suddenly bellowing in my ear.
    “Top!” I yelled. “Two hostiles coming your way. Put ’em down.”
    “Hooah,” was Top’s growl of a reply.
    Bunny staggered to his feet, firing, filling the room with new thunder. Rounds punched into the agents as they disappeared. I saw the impacts slew them around, stagger them.
    I pulled the trigger on the clunky pistol. It tok ked again.
    Whatever it was firing hit the metal security door as the agents dove inside the building. The door was instantly wrenched off its hinges and flung against the wall. Big pieces of it flew everywhere. One chunk struck Bunny in the chest and sent him sprawling backward.
    I raced over to him, but he moaned and waved me away. “Get the fuckers,” he said with a wet groan.
    Clutching the weird gun, I ran toward the open door. The frame was smeared with blood, and there was a large pool of it on the floor. Either Bunny or the flying debris had tagged one of the bastards. I quick-looked through the doorway, but the hall was empty.
    “Top—talk to me,” I breathed.
    No answer.
    I ran down the hall, pistol held up and out. There was plenty of blood. Red footprints on the carpet. Red handprints on the wall. A long smear as if one of them had leaned against the wall for support while he ran.
    “Top,” I called again.
    There was a sound. A groan. I slowed to a careful walk a few yards from where the corridor opened out into a small lobby. The lobby was empty, the doors open and smeared with blood. I slammed through the door and there was Top, flat on his back outside, eyes open and blinking, mouth working like a beached trout. An impact injury, not a gunshot wound. Thank God.
    He had his pistol in his hand and waved it toward the side of the building.
    “Go…,” he wheezed.
    In my ear I heard Bunny say, “Out back!” at the same instant I heard gunfire.
    Shit.
    I spun around, reentered the building, ran down the hall, jumped through the open doorway to the loading dock, barrel coming up and out, seeking a target. Bunny was on his knees, firing at the black SUV.
    As I ran past him into the parking lot I squeezed the trigger over and over again, hearing that silly little tok sound each time, seeing bushes explode into fire and a masonry wall detonate into a cloud of dust. I got one good shot at the SUV and the rear window exploded, but the wheels spun on the blacktop; plumes of rubber smoke rose in oily columns behind the SUV as it lurched forward.
    Bunny limped out and a moment later a winded Top staggered around the side of the building.
    The car vanished around a corner and was gone.
    Bunny said, “Jesus Christ, boss … we just got our asses handed to us.”

 
    Chapter Five
    Shelton Aeronautics
Wolf Trap, Virginia
Thursday, October 17, 10:45 a.m.
    Then we turned and looked at the building. At the lights, the open door. The utter silence. The thermal scans had told us that there was a mass of heat signatures on the top floor. Bug had thought there was interference from the structure because the signatures were fading.
    But that wasn’t it and as we stared up at lights we all knew what it was.
    The thermals were fading because body heat diminishes after death.
    Bunny said, “Oh, man…”
    We didn’t want to go inside. We knew what we’d