The World's End Series Book One: Dymond's World Read Online Free

dressed, outside and ready to go in ten.
    Victor Hammel looked them over before climbing behind the wheel of their Kawasaki Mule four wheel drive utility vehicle.  It was set up with two bench seats so the kids had plenty of room.  In the back, their bug out bags were stowed, bulging with enough supplies to last them for three days.  He checked to make sure they hadn't been opened since their last bug out -- with any luck, they would never be used, but you had to be ready, just in case.
    He looked towards the house.  It was locked and the loud alarm was set.  His Dodge Ram pickup and Mary's Golf were locked in the barn, out of sight.  It had an alarm too.
    He slid into the driver's seat of the Mule.  At six two, it was a bit of a tight fit, but he was used to it as he'd spent many hours hauling supplies up to their bug out cabin.  "Everyone ready?  Think now, did we forget anything?"
    Zoe hugged her blanket close.  It was all she needed to remember.  Mary smiled at her and then transferred her smile to Vic.
    ***
    The problem with bugging out was that your bug out place had to be somewhere else other than your home.  Normally, that meant you had to drive to it.  If you lived in the city, you might have to drive quite a long distance.  A prepper who lived near New York would have to be able to get to Vermont or the Poconos or somewhere with less population.  It was quite a problem because there were many SHTF scenarios where the highways would be clogged with fleeing or dying people.
    When Victor left the army, he solved that problem by buying a house just south of Arlee, Montana.  It was in a secluded location, about a quarter mile off the paved US 93 highway.  The only flat part of their land was where the house and barn had been built.  The rest was mountain.
    He put the Mule in gear and drove out of his back yard and into the woods.
    Almost immediately upon entering the woods, it looked like the trail was blocked by two tall trees that had fallen beside a large boulder.  It was impossible to avoid having a visible trail after having driven the Mule up here dozens of times, but that didn't mean the trail had to be obvious.
    He continued driving towards the boulder.  The trail was quite steep at this point - probably at least fifteen degrees.  Victor figured that anyone who was curious about the trail would give up.  Few people wanted to walk up steep grades and no vehicle short of a tank could get over those trees and that large rock.
    He slowed as he approached what appeared to be the end of the trail.  From close up, he could see the small space between the downed trees and the boulder.  It was just big enough for the Mule.  He turned sharply right, continuing slowly behind the rock.  If anyone had been watching, it would look like the Mule had disappeared.
    Hidden by the forest, he continued downhill to the end of the fallen tree and then turned left to continue uphill.  The overall route was just over a mile with a rise of almost four hundred feet.
    With the stream crossings and switchbacks, it took almost fifteen minutes to cover that mile.  As they approached the cabin, the ground leveled.  The top of the small mountain was so rounded as to be close to flat, but it was still covered by forest.
    Victor surveyed the area carefully.  It was highly unlikely anyone would make a long uphill hike and stumble upon their cabin, but he always left a few "tells" that would indicate if they'd had a visitor.  One was the horseshoe that was loosely nailed above the door - if it was opened, the horseshoe would spin so that it was upside down.
    Today everything was in order.  "I've got a surprise for you," Victor said as he brought the Mule to a stop.  He looked at Mary and smiled.  The kids waited until he told them it was okay to leave the vehicle.  "Let's go," he said.  In two seconds, Zack and Zoe were running towards the porch.  "Wait for us!  The surprise is for all of you, but mostly for