BooksBarbecue
Back The Utopia Experiment Save as PDF
Chapters (84)
  1. Title Page
  2. Welcome
  3. Prologue
  4. 1
  5. 2
  6. 3
  7. 4
  8. 5
  9. 6
  10. 7
  11. 8
  12. 9
  13. 10
  14. 11
  15. 12
  16. 13
  17. 14
  18. 15
  19. 16
  20. 17
  21. 18
  22. 19
  23. 20
  24. 21
  25. 22
  26. 23
  27. 24
  28. 25
  29. 26
  30. 27
  31. 28
  32. 29
  33. 30
  34. 31
  35. 32
  36. 33
  37. 34
  38. 35
  39. 36
  40. 37
  41. 38
  42. 39
  43. 40
  44. 41
  45. 42
  46. 43
  47. 44
  48. 45
  49. 46
  50. 47
  51. 48
  52. 49
  53. 50
  54. 51
  55. 52
  56. 53
  57. 54
  58. 55
  59. 56
  60. 57
  61. 58
  62. 59
  63. 60
  64. 61
  65. 62
  66. 63
  67. 64
  68. 65
  69. 66
  70. 67
  71. 68
  72. 69
  73. 70
  74. 71
  75. 72
  76. 73
  77. 74
  78. 75
  79. 76
  80. Epilogue
  81. About the Authors
  82. The Covert-One Novels
  83. Newsletters
  84. Copyright

It turned out to be larger than she expected and they took multiple turns as they inched along. At first, there was nothing but their quiet footfalls for her senses to key in on, but then she caught of whiff of rotting flesh.

“You getting that?” she said.

“What?”

“You mean that thing doesn’t smell for you?”

“Oh, wait. Yeah. Now I’m getting it.”

Another two sharp bends and he came to a stop sudden enough to cause her to run into the back of him.

“What?” she whispered in his ear.

“I’m picking up something on heat. Range is twelve meters.”

“Human?” she said, gripping her pistol a bit tighter.

“No. It’s barely above background temp. Can’t really get a shape.”

The stench was fairly strong now, suggesting a possibility. “Bacteria create a little heat when they’re breaking down flesh. Any chance it’s our pile of heads?”

She felt him shrug and then start creeping forward. After a few seconds, he stopped again. “That’s them. We’ve found your goddamn heads.”

Randi slipped the flashlight from her pocket and held it up, knowing he’d be able to see it. “If I use this, is it going to screw up your vision?”

“Pull yourself into the—”

“Twenty-first century. I know, I know,” Randi said, switching it on.

She was no expert on head piles, but to her calibrated eyeball it looked like all seventy or so adult male inhabitants of Sarabat. The skin of the visible ones had been dried into leather by the mountain air. She knelt, looking into the empty eye sockets of a heavily bearded face staring up at her. The smell and heat must have been coming from deeper in the pile where moisture still existed.

“Come on, Randi. Let’s get out of here. It’s just a bunch of heads.”

She grabbed one by its long hair and shone the flashlight on it. Why were they here? And who paid those mercs to wipe out Kot’eh?

She set the head back down but then saw a strange glint in the hair. When she leaned in for a closer look, her breath caught in her chest.

“Randi, seriously,” Deuce said. “I’m leaving before I throw up. If you’re this desperate for a souvenir, why don’t you just take one?”

She slipped off her pack and opened the top to dump her non-essential gear.

“Jesus,” Deuce whined as she shoved the decaying head inside. “I wasn’t serious…”

28

28

Military Operation
East of the Walapai Test Center

JON SMITH CREPT ALONG the dirt road, eyes moving smoothly from side to side. Ancient-looking mud-brick buildings rose up on either side, most showing signs of years of fighting: arcing bullet holes, gaping RPG hits, and hastily stacked debris from collapses. The people in the street seemed uninterested in the destruction, preferring to focus their suspicious gazes and muttered Dari comments on him and his men.