The McClane Apocalypse Book Six

By Kate Morris

From Amazon’s #1 bestselling apocalypse series comes the next exciting installment of The McClane Apocalypse.

With the return of Robert McClane, the family will soon learn the reasons behind his unexpected homecoming. Naturally, Reagan is leery of her father’s message and harbors a certain amount of distrust toward him, especially since he brought with him a deadly disease. Even Herb McClane’s faith in his son and his motives will be tested in the end.

The McClane’s also discover a problem in their small town, one that is wreaking havoc on the safety of the people and their medical clinic. Could this thief be an innocent person just needing sustenance for the coming winter months or does this new situation foretell something of a greater threat?

As the family prepares to hunker down for the long winter, hearts will be broken, others opened to new possibilities, and even more members will be forced to leave their safe haven.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kate Morris
• Release date: Sep 30, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370037049

Kate Morris

Kate lives in Ohio on a small farm with "John" and is a huge advocate for the U.S. military and promotes the rights of gun owners everywhere.

Book preview

Chapter One

Paige

They need to return to the farm today, but Paige doesn’t see how it’s going to be possible since she and Cory are still scouting for supplies and picking up looted articles around the city. She’d let her brother and Cory sleep most of the day after their long night of fighting with Dave the Mechanic’s group against those bastards at the sex slave camp. She and Sam had gone outside and sat on the porch this morning so that they could sleep undisturbed, although her friend hadn’t talked much. By the time the men had awakened, most of the morning and early afternoon hours were gone. However, Cory still had a list of items he wanted from the city and wasn’t willing to leave without collecting as much as they could. So far today, the trip with just the two of them has proven worth the effort. They’ve even managed to find gasoline and three cans of diesel fuel. The gas was siphoned from a pick-up truck and one tank from a boat moored to a dock on the river. They also found some valves for the gas lines that Doc required.

She’s following him from room to room and wandering the halls of a high school near the outskirts of the city. She’ll just be glad to get back home to the family where it’s safe, where she doesn’t have to look over her shoulder for a while. Paige may have been complacent in surrendering her vegan, city slicker, give-peace-a-chance former lifestyle, but she isn’t willing to give up her safe haven of solace, which has become the McClane farm.

Hey, Red, Cory calls over to her from the other side of the room. At least he isn’t calling her beanpole. Paige glances at him, noting that he’s pointing to a collection of books in a bookcase. She walks over to examine them more closely. He’s smirking.

They are in a science room with tall lab tables and stools in place of the usual classroom desks. He’s pointing to a collection of Anatomy and Physiology books.

Think we should take these books back to the farm? she asks her tall companion who looks like a rugged hunter with his dark flannel shirt and three days’ worth of facial hair.

Sure, he says with an even deeper smirk as he closes in on Paige.

What? You don’t want to take them back to the farm? she asks with a frown and backs up against the bookcase since she has little choice.

This subject matter has proven interesting the last week, he comments with a grin. I was thinking we should explore some anatomy and physiology ourselves.

Of course, he’s referring to the night they spent together at the Belmont Mansion. Then, to further her discomfort, he presses one hand into the wooden frame above her head and leans closer, his shaggy black hair falling across his cheek.

Hey! Paige exclaims and scoots out from under his imposing shadow to march back to the other side of the room.

Cory just chuckles at her.

We made an agreement, and now you’re trying to renege on it, she points out and slings her rifle over her shoulder to rest on her back. Just a few short years ago, if anyone had said she’d be comfortable slinging a rifle on a scouting mission in a post-apocalyptic city, Paige would’ve laughed at them.

He moves across the room like a stalking panther and meets her at the door before she can open it. Then he presses his back to it and smiles broadly.

I’m thinking about renegotiating those terms, he admits with a twinkle in his brown eyes and crosses his arms across his broad chest. I may have decided too abruptly.

I didn’t, she returns and gets a shrug from him.

A thumping sound on the other side of the room where an emergency exit door is located alerts Cory, who whips his head to the side. He jogs to that door and waits, listening. Paige follows in his wake and stands directly behind him. A sharp pang of fear shoots through her stomach as he eases the door slightly but silently open. He expels a breath as they both spot a pigeon flying around, hitting the walls of the hallway and landing on the floor. Cory opens a window for her, and the bird promptly makes a quick escape.

I doubt if there’s anyone left in this city, she says when he returns. I think we’re safe.

Of course, there’re people here, he argues with a confused scowl and shuts the door again.

I doubt it, she repeats. You’ve killed everyone.

Not everyone, he says, lifts his brows, and smiles.

Paige mumbles, Probably.

They go through the room again, passing by a display case of floating animal parts in glass jars filled with formaldehyde. She tries not to cringe. There’s even a fetal pig in one. Cobwebs cling to the jars and hang loosely between them. Dust covers the shelves and textbooks lining them. It’s as if a horror film is about to be shot in this abandoned location, only it’s all too real. She wishes that it wasn’t so real, that it was just all staging and props to make the movie-goer believe the story. She manages not to cringe but does shiver.

Cory leads her to the nurse’s office where they loot the metal cabinets and shelves. Surprisingly after all this time, there’s still medicine- even though it’s mostly all expired- some bandaging, salves, and needles, a few bottles of headache medicine. Doc and Reagan will have to determine whether or not the meds are still viable. Their clinic is about to become busier with the addition of treating Dave’s people when they require care. Paige has no idea how they’ll manage, but she’s sure that her brother is already planning on picking herbs in the forest to compound into medicines with Doc to make new solutions that taste disgusting but work effectively enough.

They search the school’s kitchen and don’t find anything but a few bottles of spices, which they leave. Cory does stuff some towels into his pack and grabs another bundle to place in hers. They go through a lot of rags and towels back at the farm and the clinic.

Professor to Death Stalker, her brother says over the radio.

Cory unclips it from his belt and presses the button on the side. Go ahead, Professor.

The Old McDonald just called in. They need us back there. Got some new guests.

Paige watches with marvel as Cory’s dark eyes, which had just been smoldering with unconcealed desire for her, turn icy cold and malevolent.

We’ll be there in a few hours, he tells Simon since it will take that long to travel back to the cabin in the woods.

No, we’ll pick you up at the rendezvous point, Simon corrects. We need to move out. Be there in an hour.

Got it. Out, Cory replies and replaces the radio to his belt.

Paige follows after him as he picks up the pace with a new purpose.

Who do you think he means? New guests? she asks him as they leave the school building and cross the overgrown grounds of a former football field. No cheerleaders perform tricks and call out their rousing chants for victory. No players run practice routes down the once green field toward the end zone. The black-topped trail that skirts the perimeter of the home team’s field meant for their track and field runners is now nearly completely engulfed with grass and weeds and dead leaves with the absence of weekly manicures from the groundskeeper.

I don’t know, he answers curtly and continues on, ducking under the stadium where the seats have begun to rust, and the pillars holding up the structure no longer seem as safe to support it. We’re not taking any chances, though. I’m not sure if they’re friendly or not, but I want to get back to the farm as soon as possible.

I’m sure it’s nothing bad or they would’ve told us to hurry back and that they were under attack, she says, trying to reassure him. Then Paige pulls her hood up to ward off the crisp wind whipping through the corridor.

Can’t be too sure of that, he argues and climbs over a cement wall.

Cory lands on his feet after he drops about four feet down. Then he reaches up and helps her by placing his hands at Paige’s waist. She appreciates the help. She’d twisted an ankle a few years ago by jumping over a similar wall and landing awkwardly on it. She’d been in the middle of running away from a group of people who’d seemed up to no good. She knew they were up to no good because she’d spied them robbing some other people. The sprained ankle had made her escape difficult and stressful. However, she’d finally made it back to her friends and little Maddie, just a lot later than she’d planned. They’d been worried out of their minds about her, too. But she’d brought a box of rice and two cans of black beans she’d found on the floor of a small corner store. It had made a wonderful meal that night. Unfortunately, she’d been laid up a few days with that ankle and had more than once wished for some Epsom salt and a hot bath. The most she got was two aspirin and a hot compress. It was better than nothing. At least she’d gotten away safely and was still alive.

He takes a second to pull her back against him, which Paige doesn’t appreciate as much as the help down from the high wall. When she tries to move away, Cory pulls closer and even presses his mouth against her neck, knocking her hood down.

Cory! she hisses. He just chuckles against the skin below her ear, causing a ripple of pleasure to shoot through her. What the hell? We’re on a mission.

I know, he says and steps away abruptly, causing her to lose balance. Good grief. Get your head in the game already and quit hitting on me.

Paige just scowls up at him. She can’t help her smile from peeking out, though.

Let’s keep going, he says. Gotta make the rendezvous point.

Where are we meeting? Paige asks.

’Bout a forty-five-minute hike on foot.

Lead the way, she retorts and looks at his shoes before meeting his gaze. Cory grins and pushes his hair back behind his ear.

They jog and walk intermittently. Somewhere in the city, a fire is burning because she can see long tendrils of smoke reaching high above the buildings. She looks nervously to Cory for confirmation.

I see it, he acknowledges but keeps going at a fast walk.

Dave’s men down at the river? she asks, knowing they went back this morning for a final round of battle with anyone who was still there or any other men who came back.

No, wrong area, he says. That’s coming from the direction we need to go.

Should we radio Simon and ask him to pick us up somewhere else?

No, we need to get out of the city and back to the farm. We’ll check it out. We’ll avoid it if I think it’s going to be a problem.

Paige swallows hard and tries not to worry. The last few days have been a pressure cooker on her nerves. She just wants to get back to the farm. She’s sick of being afraid and needs a serious detox and destress back in her cabin. Before all of this when she was still in college and had too much stress in her life, Paige would go for a run, maybe catch a movie with her friends, or go to a spa at her mother’s insistence with the gift cards she used to send her. Now the decompression is hanging out in the kitchen with Hannah or curling up on her favorite window seat in the music room with one of the family’s books. She also needs to get away from Cory for a while. She has to sort out her feelings for him, feelings she doesn’t want to address. They’d agreed that the other night was going to be a one-night stand, a strictly platonic fling. It doesn’t appear that he wants it to be such a thing, even though he’d acted so strangely the morning after. It hadn’t lasted long, though, and now he’s acting like he wants something more, something she’s not willing to give.

They creep down a narrow alley, passing the remains of an animal skeleton, or what she hopes are animal bones. They trample through weeds and a flooded area that is too wide to avoid, making her even more thankful for the new waterproof boots he found her. Moss has grown up the side of the building, and ivy has managed to take hold on the fire escape and the metal stairs leading to the floors above. The windows of the building are so dirty she can barely see in. The sun is gone, hiding behind a low lying cloud cover hanging just above the crests of the tall buildings. She wishes the clouds would float away to reveal the sun and warm her skin. This morning there was a light dusting of snow on the ground around the cabin before they left. Cory had seemed oblivious, but she was freezing.

Need a hand? he asks, breaking her trance.

They are forced to climb over a bulldozer that has been at some point tipped onto its side by a city bus, whose front end is completely smashed into a twisted, gnarled structure that resembles some sort of bizarre new modern art exhibit of destroyed metal. She’s not sure why either of these large vehicles was trying to squeeze through this narrow alley, but it was likely that they were in a hurry to get away from someone or many someones at the beginning of the end. She is sure that most of the people involved in this accident were killed. Paige doesn’t look too hard for the victims’ bodies. Some things are better left unseen.

I got it, she tells him and climbs up after Cory has done so. She follows his lead and grabs hold of the same pieces of metal and bars that he does since they are strong enough to hold him. Her new boots are sturdy, and the lug soles give her safer footing than her old, worn out ones.

You’re quite the spider monkey, he observes from his position on the ground on the other side waiting for her.

She slides to the ground, as well, and lands in a deep puddle. Her jeans get splashed. It’s more of a small pond that mirrors so many others in the middle of streets that she’s seen over the years. She’s learned to walk carefully in these city puddles. Sometimes they are actually small sink holes that are deeper than she is tall. Luckily she landed in the shallow end. The dirty water just comes over the toes of her boots and not high enough to seep down inside the tops. Nothing is worse than wet feet and the blisters that come soon after.

Graceful, too! Paige scoffs. And don’t mention monkeys. That was creepy as hell the other day. Hoping not to run into any more weird ass monkeys while we’re here.

Yeah…

A shrill whistle, one made from a human calling to another, echoes down the intersecting street and filters its way into their alley. Paige startles and her companion grabs her arm.

Back, he whispers fiercely. Get back over.

She scrambles with speed over the heavy equipment again and lands quietly on her feet. Cory is right on her heels.

Not enough cover, he says. We need to breach this building.

She tries two doors, finds the one locked and the other blocked by something on the other side too heavy to move.

Here! he calls quietly as he shoves a window upward. Climb through first.

He squats and cups his hands together for her. Paige wastes no time and steps into his hand. He boosts her up and through the window in a flash. Then Cory comes through right after her. He slides the window shut again. Then they wait in silence, the only noise coming from her own rapid breathing.

The building around them is cold and dark, two things she finds undesirable in a hiding place, especially the darkness. At least it appears to be empty. Jumping through the window of an unsearched building can be bad. They could’ve landed in the middle of a room full of people who would want to rob or kill them.

This way, Cory whispers.

They step over and around debris, careful not to knock into any of it and alert the people from the street out front. Paige heads around one side of a fallen chandelier, a delicate, yet decadent crystal piece of lighting. It’s a shame to Paige that it has fallen and been discarded and broken in many places, mirroring the collapse of their country. She’s pretty sure this once-lovely building was an arts center, either a stage theater or museum of some sort. The red carpeting is covered in a heavy film of dust. The crown moulding, intricate plaster work, and scrolled brass wall sconces lend more weight to her theory. These dilapidated buildings always make her melancholy, but today she’s too worried about who was just whistling down the street to dwell on it.

He’s leading her toward the front of the old, brick building that faces the main road. Some of the windows are broken. Cory squats near one and following his lead, Paige drops down onto her haunches. Cory rises again and presses his back tightly to the wall where he peeks furtively through the glass. Paige hears a man speaking in the distance. She’s entirely too frightened to risk a glance for herself and stays low.

…I agree with Marla, a man says as they draw near the window.

Paige’s eyes flit to Cory’s. He holds a finger to his lips. She’d like to inform him that it isn’t necessary to tell her to be silent.

Don’t be naïve. You know we can’t trust people, a woman says next.

She’s really sick, sis, he tells his apparent sister.

The woman interjects, It doesn’t matter. We just need to keep looking. There’s bound to be medicine still around here somewhere.

We’ve been looking for two days, he argues. She’s running high fevers according to the doc.

Paige passes a glance to Cory, who shakes his head quickly. He clearly doesn’t want to offer these people or whatever group with whom they belong any assistance. She’s not sure if that’s the right decision. Their voices from the street fade away after another moment.

Come on, he says and extends a hand to help her up.

Where are we going?

Slight detour to the pickup spot.

Paige pulls on his hand to slow him down. Shouldn’t we offer them help, Cory? We have medicine. They sounded… safe.

I know, he agrees, looking down at her. That’s why we’re gonna follow them. See where they go. Then we’ll meet with your brother. He’s the one carrying the medicine bag.

Sounds like they have a doctor in their group. That’s good. Might be a group we could make an alliance with. Maybe.

Right. Maybe, he emphasizes.

They follow the two young people through the streets for a short while until Cory deems them safe to approach. Paige agrees with the decision. She many times wished that someone would’ve offered such a kindness to her and her friends. She’s learned so much about Cory during this trip. He has surprised her at every turn with his selflessness, kindness and complete and total lack of fear. His attraction to her had probably been the biggest surprise, though.

The people they are following don’t connect with anyone else, nor do they call out to anyone. They are simply foraging stores, drugstores and the occasional home for medicine. When they come out of an historic Georgian-style house through the open front doors, Cory approaches them cautiously. They don’t want to get shot by these people. As soon as the man sees Cory, he shoves the woman behind him and holds out an arm in a defensive manner. They are much younger than Paige would’ve guessed. They both look like teenagers.

You need medicine? Cory calls when he’s within earshot.

The young man doesn’t say anything but looks at his partner. She nods. Then the boy does so, too.

Yes… yes, sir, he says nervously.

Cory casually rubs at his right eye and lowers his rifle at the same time. You armed?

Yes, sir, the young man admits with surprising honesty.

Don’t shoot me, kid, Cory demands.

No, sir, the boy replies and holds up both hands in front of him.

We’ve got meds, Cory tells them.

The girl immediately skirts around her partner and chirps up. You do? That’s awesome. Our mom’s sick. She’s been sick for a few weeks. Doc said it’s some kind of flu. He’s not totally sure.

Where’s your place? Cory asks.

This sets them instantly on edge. Their eyes dart to each other.

Look, we’re not gonna rob you, Cory admits. We just want to help. We’re not from this area. We’re on our way back with our family to our place. But we’ve got meds. Plus we’ve got a doctor with us, too. He might be able to take a look at your mother.

The girl shakes her head, tossing wisps of pale blonde hair around her face. We can’t say. It’s one of our rules. We don’t tell anyone where we live. We’re not allowed.

Paige nods and steps forward. I get it. We don’t either. We never tell anyone about our place. That’s smart, but my brother’s a doctor. He might be able to look at your mom. We’ve had sicknesses run through our community, too.

The young girl bites her lower lip. Her partner shakes his head again.

Sorry, we can’t take the chance.

Paige is frustrated but concedes to their wishes.

Look, we have to meet our family at a rendezvous point very soon. Come with us. We’ll give you some meds.

They still seem hesitant, so Paige adds, No strings attached. You don’t have to tell us where you have a base camp. It’s fine. We understand, but let us try to help you.

Cory adds, It’s the best offer you’re gonna get today.

The kids look at each other again, turn their backs to Cory and Paige- which she’d like to tell them is not a good idea, not in this day and age- and have a quick pow-wow. Then they turn back around and both nod.

Good, Cory says and extends his hand to shake the young man’s. My name’s Cory and this beanpole here is Paige.

The boy smirks unsurely and nods. Nice to meet you both. It’s hard to know who to trust. Been robbed a few times.

I’m Vivienne, and this is my brother Ty, the young woman says.

Cory and Paige lead them to the rendezvous point, and she’s not surprised to find her brother and Sam already waiting there. They explain the situation to their family, and naturally, Simon wants to help their sick mother. Again the suggestion of leading them back to their community is rebuked, but they do take the medicine that Simon is finally willing to give over.

You have a doctor in your community? Paige asks.

Vivienne answers with a nod and says, Yeah, he’s really good, but we just don’t have much anymore for meds. We ran out a long time ago, and he just does the best he can.

What did he say the sickness is? Simon asks the girl.

Paige notices that her brother’s hair is getting shaggy because it sticks out below his black stocking cap. Sam is glued to his side. She hasn’t talked all that much since yesterday when she’d stabbed that creep to death. That same melancholy which Paige sometimes sees in her brilliant blue eyes has returned. This time, she isn’t so clever at concealing it, and perhaps she doesn’t even care to.

Again, Vivienne answers for them, He thinks it’s some kind of flu or something like that. He’s not sure. He said that so many sicknesses have mutated since the fall that he’s not a hundred percent sure what’s wrong with her.

Yes, we’ve seen a lot of new sicknesses, as well, Simon concurs. Plus, there’s been a resurgence of old diseases like plagues. I’ll give you a jar of our homemade antibiotic solution, too. Your doctor should know what to do with it. The homemade aspirin and the antibiotics should help her.

Thanks, Ty says and takes the jar of medicine.

We’re trying to get ready for winter and the doc says he’s worried that this sickness will spread through our camp, Vivienne informs them, pushing a fallen blonde lock behind her ear. Paige notices that her tan cheeks are wind whipped and rosy red.

Same at our community, Cory says. Everyone’s trying to prep for the cold season.

If you run into trouble, we’re over in Pleasant View, not far from here, Simon tells them.

Or if your doctor has difficulty with the sick woman, tell someone to come and get me, Cory says. We work with some other doctors, too. We have a small clinic. Don’t hesitate to ask for help.

The kids look at each other with clear uncertainty etched on their worried features.

Paige adds, It’s safe. Our town is safe. There aren’t any… creeps there. You’ll be safe there.

Right, but you’ll have to be vetted in order to be allowed in. We don’t just let anyone into the town, Simon confirms. Come to our clinic if you need more help.

We need to roll, brother, Cory interjects. You kids want a ride somewhere?

Ty immediately rejects the offer, No, we’ve got a motorcycle. Stashed it in a warehouse close by.

Great, Cory says and shakes the young man’s hand again. Take care of yourselves out here. There’s been a lot of trouble in the area lately.

No kidding, Vivienne agrees with wide, blue eyes.

They leave the siblings and pile into the Suburban, and when Paige looks back to wave at the two kids, they are already gone. Sam sits beside her in the back seat staring out her window while Cory drives and Simon keeps his rifle at his side and his eyes on their surroundings. He’s been shaken to his core by the last week’s events. Paige has, too, and has decided not to leave the farm again for a while on a long, overnight run again. Maybe ever.

Simon tells them that the new guests on the farm that he’d mentioned on the radio happen to be Doctor McClane’s son and his new family according to Kelly. They want them back because Herb is calling a family meeting for which he wants everyone present. Paige doesn’t ever want to leave the farm again, but she may be forced out soon because of the return of Doc’s son. And that thought makes her stomach twist into stress-filled knots of apprehension. Their stay on the McClane farm is not guaranteed.

Chapter Two

Reagan

Earlier she rose in the afternoon and was confused until she remembered that she’d fallen asleep with her son in the basement. He was long gone, as were the other children. Now she’s sitting in the kitchen at the island with Hannah and Sue discussing their father and his shiny new family. It makes her sick. He disgusts her on every possible level, and she wishes desperately that she could throw him out, make him leave the farm. So far, that hasn’t happened.

Reagan takes a sip of her strong, hot tea and answers Sue, I’m not sure what the meeting is going to be about, either. I’m assuming Grandpa just wants to lecture us about being gracious hosts to our father figure and his family.

Well, Hannah starts as she dices carrots, I think we should be kind to his family. They seem relieved to be here.

Yes, that they do, Sue agrees.

Aunt Reagan, Arianna blurts into their conversation as she enters the room. Can you braid my hair?

Sure, brat, Reagan says in accord and takes the brush and rubber band from her ornery niece. She is, no doubt, on a mission to head out to the barns to engage the boys in a foot race. She will likely win because being beaten by them would be devastating and completely unthinkable.

As Reagan twists the three thick strands, Sue says, He’s staying out in the cabin, and I think that’s weird. Why not stay in the big house? Now we have to move the kids around.

Perhaps he feels unwelcome… Hannah comments.

"He is unwelcome in my opinion," Reagan cuts in. Grandpa told her that he saw her new step-sister, Gretchen, smoking. If her father stays too long, Reagan may take her up on one.

We know that much, Sue mocks and slices potatoes.

Thanks, Aunt Reagan! Ari yells and takes off at a fast sprint through the back door, letting the screen slam.

Sue groans and comments, Lord help us. That one’s too much like you.

Reagan looks up to notice her sisters grinning. Hannah?

Sue laughs and says, No, dear, not Hannie.

Reagan smirks and stretches her arms over her head. Her back is sore from sleeping on the bunk bed. They work on food prep for a while, each commenting and all three of them contemplating their father’s arrival.

What do you think’s going on out there? Sue asks before dumping her pile of potatoes into the cast iron pot. Sounds pretty bad, wherever they came from.

Reagan nods and replies, I know. Doesn’t sound like the west is any better than here. Hey, I forgot to mention something G said to me this morning. She said something about living in a bunker or something to that extent. I wonder if they’ve been living in a bunker type of compound with other people.

Hannah furrows her brow. Not sure. That’s unusual. I thought they were in Portland.

Sue shakes her head and says, I don’t believe so. I think he meant that they stayed up there for a while before they went somewhere else.

She said that there wasn’t any daylight in the bunker, Reagan tells them. Oh, and that they didn’t know of our existence until a few days ago.

Yeah, I got that impression, Sue admits before tying Reagan’s little bouquet of herbs together with string and placing it down in the pot of vegetables.

Kelly comes in the back door and greets them. Then he takes Hannah by the shoulders and plants a kiss on her cheek.

Hear from the kids? Sue asks after their family.

He nods before gnawing on a raw carrot. Yep, talked to Cory a little bit ago. They’ll be home soon. Got delayed ‘cuz they had to help some young people.

Is everything all right? They’re safe? Hannah asks with her usual sense of concern and worry. She’s slid into the role of Grams so easily, and nobody questions it. This was the role she was meant to play.

Yeah, baby, Kelly tells her, pressing a kiss to her pale forehead. He leaves a smudge of dirt there since he’s covered in it. Then he tries to wipe it away only to cause more to smear there. Crap, sorry.

Let me help, Sue offers and wipes a hand towel across Hannah’s brow.

Reagan can’t help but smile. Everyone looks after her sister. She’s just too delicate for this world. Reagan’s even seen the little kids helping Hannah down a set of stairs or taking her hand to show her what she can’t see.

They’ll be home soon, and everyone’s safe and unharmed. Guess they had a successful trip and found a lot of things.

Reagan answers Kelly while Sue continues to wipe the dirt from Hannah’s forehead, That’s good. Just coming back safe is the most important thing.

Your grandpa wants to have a meeting with all of us as soon as they get here, Kelly tells them as he washes his hands in the wide ceramic sink.

Really? I thought he just wanted us girls there, Sue says.

Nope, Kelly rebuts. He wants you girls and the husbands and the older kids.

Interesting, Sue remarks as she punches down dough and turns it out onto the counter to be kneaded again.

Must be about Robert, Reagan says, referring to her father.

Kelly nods before leaving to go to his room down the hallway. Grandpa still won’t sleep in his own bedroom, so Hannah and Kelly have that whole wing of the house to themselves. Of course, Mary sleeps back there with them most of the time. Reagan’s pretty sure that Kelly would be glad to have her sleep in their room until she turns twenty. He’s beyond protective of his only daughter.

Either of you see John? Reagan asks after her husband.

Sue answers, They were supposed to be cutting field corn in the top pasture. That’s probably where Kelly just came from. Derek’s out in the shed working on that CNG gas compressor thingy.

Thanks, Reagan tells her sister and pulls on her black rubber mud boots. The farm has become muddy and soggy in places, especially anywhere the animals have been grazing.

She leaves her sisters to finish their meal prep and heads out into the cold to find her husband. First, she checks in on the horses, the injured and pregnant ones in the barn. She also finds her new step-siblings and Huntley hanging out together there. Reagan’s glad that he’s being hospitable. Huntley has never been anything but good and kind, albeit a little withdrawn because of what happened to his family members and being taken in by her family. He’s a quiet boy, but fiercely loyal to the family. His dark hair is braided perfectly and hangs on either side of his face down to the middle of his chest. There is a feather behind his left ear, stuck in his braid. He also wears the small, silver dreamcatcher necklace that he told her once came from his grandfather, who was full-blooded Navaho and an elder in their tribe.

As she’s smearing salve onto the forearm of a gelding who’d apparently cut himself on a nail sticking out of the side of the barn that Derek thankfully located, John walks in. The medicine stinks. It’s from a jar of one of Grandpa’s homemade concoctions to treat livestock wounds, but the smell is noxious. The gelding doesn’t care for the smell either because he keeps tossing his head in protest of the event.

Hey, sexy woman, John states brightly.

Reagan rolls her eyes at him. She’s hardly anything that resembles sexy right now. She only caught a few hours of sleep, her hair is piled into a messy, haphazard ponytail, and now she’s going to smell like Grandpa’s gross salve. She didn’t even bother looking in the mirror when she rolled out of her son’s bed. She couldn’t face the two dark circles she knew would be staring back at her from beneath her green eyes.

That’s the best lie I’ve heard all day, she returns and exits the horse stall. John promptly hands her a tattered rag to clean her hands. Then he slips an arm around her back and pulls her close.

Not a lie, he murmurs against her neck.

Reagan pulls free of his grasp, mostly because he’s covered in dirt and dried mud. What the hell were you guys working on? You and Kelly are both filthy.

Sorry, sweetie, he apologizes needlessly.

As if she could be angry with him. Unfortunately, he also knows this about her and often uses his charm against her. Reagan presses a kiss to his mouth and steps back.

We were up on the ridge trying to get the last of the corn finished, John informs her.

Good, we’re going to need it, Reagan says as she leads him from the barn.

Get enough rest, babe? John asks.

He’s wearing a thermal undershirt and flannel jacket to keep out the wind and cold. Last night turned wicked, and they were all worried about the kids. The weather wasn’t their only concern for Cory and Simon. She, Kelly and John had pulled all-nighters first worrying about them and then patching up the men who were in the battle with them. They were just relieved when they knew that Cory and Simon were back at the cabin with the girls and safe.

Sure, she answers her husband. Grandpa already left without me for the clinic. Pisses me off.

It’s ok, babe, John says, trying to assuage her anger. He wanted to go. Chet came over and picked him up. Said he had to run to town anyway.

He was up just as late as me. He needs more sleep than me, John. I don’t want him working like that anymore. I worry about him.

John wraps an arm around her shoulders and pulls her close as they walk toward the hog barn.

He’ll be fine. He’s as bull-headed as you, so it’s not like he’s going to listen. If he needs a break, he’ll take it. At least he knows he’s got you and Simon to pick up the slack.

Reagan nods but still wishes that her grandfather would’ve waited for her.

Besides, he’ll be back soon. Said he wants all of us present for that meeting, so he’ll come home early.

She nods again. Wonder what this is about?

John takes her hand and places a kiss to the back of it. Then he opens the door to one of the goat pens in the hog barn.

Not sure. Probably something about his son, he says what she’s already guessed.

Yeah, Reagan whispers.

She watches as he ties a goat in the milking stall and pulls over a stool. It causes her to grin.

Boy, do I love milking goats, he remarks with great sarcasm. Makes me smell awesome.

Maybe we can con one of Robert’s kids or his wife into this chore, Reagan hints and leans back against the wooden stall to watch her ex-military, warrior, and all around badass husband milk a dairy goat.

I didn’t get the impression that they had much experience with any of this, he comments.

No? Why’s that? We only interacted with them for a few hours last night.

He shrugs and replies, Just a hunch. The kids seem to find the farm more of a novelty than a necessity. Same way me and Kel felt when we first arrived, just kind of lost and overwhelmed by it all.

G told me that they lived in some sort of bunker, but she didn’t say where, she supplies.

John chews the inside of his cheek and squints his eyes thinking about her statement but refrains from saying anything.

Where is your dad? he finally asks. Haven’t seen him around today. Day’s half over, but I sure haven’t seen him or his wife anywhere on the grounds.

Reagan furrows her brow. Me neither. Of course, I just came out for the first time just a few minutes before you found me in the horse barn.

He looked pretty tired last night, John says with sympathy. They could just be resting.

Reagan scoffs. She has no empathy left for her father. He took that along with any other feelings she could’ve had for him when he left her and her sisters at the farm so many years ago. She figured him out a long time before he even did that dastardly deed. Sometimes, her intelligence has been a curse in life. Floating around, head in the clouds and not a care in the world would’ve been nice sometimes, too. Knowing for damn sure that one’s father just dumped them on his own, elderly parents to finish raising and caring for was obvious the minute he told them to pack their things and that they were going for a ‘visit’ with their grandparents. When they’d arrived with their bags, Reagan had her hunch confirmed when she looked at her grandfather’s face. She’d crept down the stairs that first night and heard Robert arguing with his parents over the matter. Grams had reamed him pretty hard about his responsibilities to her and her sisters. Grandpa had pleaded with him in a calmer voice to rethink his decision and the possible detrimental outcome of his actions. She knew in her heart it wasn’t because their grandparents didn’t want them because Reagan had always only ever known love from them, but that what they were saying was true, and their son needed a dose of cold, hard reality splashed in his face. He was shirking his responsibilities as a father. He abandoned them. She knew it then; she still knows it. People don’t change. This man that has reappeared into their lives like an apparition from a Charles Dickens novel has not changed and will not change. He’s the same Robert she’s always known, a selfish, uncaring man who dumps his children on other people and leaves.

Got a radio call from town, John says, interrupting her reverie from the past.

Who called? she asks, knowing full well that her husband has changed the topic on purpose.

Wayne Reynolds, he answers about their neighbor. Said he stopped in to check on your patients from last night.

How are they? I want to get in there as soon as possible, Reagan says with concern. One of the young women from the raid on the sex slave camp in Nashville was in pretty bad shape.

A few are doing better. The girl’s still not awake.

Yeah, I was worried about that. I’m gonna have to go in tomorrow.

I’ll take you, he complies and hands her the pail of milk.

Reagan watches as John releases the nanny and brings another into the milking shed. Their son runs into the barn, climbs onto the bale of hay beside Reagan and grins a most toothy grin up at her.

Hey, Momma, he greets and holds her hand.

Reagan suppresses a grin and bumps her shoulder against his. He gets his open affection and lack of restraint in showing it from John. His love is unconditional. Also like John. Her love is unyielding, and she sometimes feels overwhelmed and suffocated by her feelings for John and Jacob, but she is just not as good at expressing it as her husband. She can hear Justin, Arianna and Huntley talking just outside of the goat area.

What’s going on, kid? she asks.

Uncle Kelly said to come get you. Uncle Cory’s back. They’re waiting for Great-Grandpa to get home.

Sounds like we’d better get going, John says and releases the goat again. Comin’, squirt?

Piggy-back! Jacob yells.

Of course, because he never says no to anything concerning their adopted son, he complies and hefts Jake onto his back. By the time they reach the house, everyone else is also filing in, including the kids who were in the city. Paige even reaches out and hugs her.

That bad, huh? Reagan asks with a frown.

Simon’s sister pulls away and sighs. I’m not going out again anytime soon. That sucked.

Hey! Cory says and ruffles the red hair on top of Paige’s head, surprising Reagan that he’d be so bold since they can’t stand each other. It wasn’t all bad.

Paige doesn’t respond but barges past him into the house and offers a back-handed swat to

Reviews for The McClane Apocalypse Book Six

[Michael G Williams · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Well written, Full of action and suspense. XXX XXX XXX