Sniffers

By Patricia Foster

Yellowstone National Park. For years, a symbol of vacation time for Americans traveling from all the over the country to marvel at its beauty and treasures. But in the new world first explored inComa Wagon, it is now a faint hope of salvation for weary survivors.

Meet Amos, Daniel, Gabe & Reggie, four individuals whose paths would never have crossed before all this happened. Brought together by chance, or fate, they form a bickering crew of hunters. With a familiar loyal dog in tow, they fight back against the beasts Tired of being on the run, they organize traps to rid the land of the Sniffers. They are ferocious, they are restless, and they are hungry for human flesh.

After having hunted down more creatures than they can remember, and seeing no end in sight for their plight, our group needs a new plan. Rumors, stories, urban legends about Yellowstone Risking their lives at every crossroads, they move forward. Sometimes as hunters, sometimes as prey. Each with their own motivations, they walk, hide, dream, killand bleed.

Opening up a new exciting chapter of the Coma Wagon universe, Sniffers shows how the threat to all mankind is slowly revealing its plan.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Dec 16, 2013
• ISBN: 9781491840559

Patricia Foster

Patricia Foster is a true believer in the tenets of minimalism. She was once living in a world where she had to have more than she needed to feel as if she was achieving some goal or was using her earnings to show how much she had. She had the gaudiest house and the fanciest car she could afford. One day she simply came to the realization that she really was stressing herself out more than anything else when she opted to put herself in debt to get all of these things. This is what led Patricia to change and this is what led her to share her journey with others and show them that nothing is wrong with minimalism.

Book preview

CONTENTS

Part One Bait And Tackle

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Part Two Are You Ready For Some Football?

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Part Three Runners Take Your Mark

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Part Four If I Were A Rich Man…

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Part Five Hope And Prey

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Part Six The Dog Days Of Summer

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Part Seven Give Me Shelter

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Thirty

Part Eight Food, Wine And Spirits

Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Three

Chapter Thirty-Four

Chapter Thirty-Five

Chapter Thirty-Six

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Part Nine People Are Strange And Then There’s Those Vampires

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Chapter Forty

Chapter Forty-One

Chapter Forty-Two

Chapter Forty-Three

Chapter Forty-Four

Part Ten Turkey Shoot

Chapter Forty-Five

Chapter Forty-Six

Chapter Forty-Seven

Chapter Forty-Eight

Chapter Forty-Nine

Part Eleven We All Feed On Tragedy

Chapter Fifty

Chapter Fifty-One

Chapter Fifty-Two

Chapter Fifty-Three

Chapter Fifty-Four

Chapter Fifty-Five

Part Twelve The Past Has A Way Of Catching Up

Chapter Fifty-Six

Chapter Fifty-Seven

Chapter Fifty-Eight

Part Thirteen Can’t See The Forest For The Trees

Chapter Fifty-Nine

Chapter Sixty

Chapter Sixty-One

Epilogue

With Love,

For

Carol Blanch, A blessing disguised as a big sister.

For

Jean-Pierre Monette, The sounding board that hangs on for every twist and turn.

For

Roger Alan Burton III, The artwork that brings it all to life.

PART ONE

Bait and Tackle

CHAPTER ONE

D aniel stood in the doorway, rifle at the ready. The big mastiff at his side silently waiting for his command.

Soon, boy.

He spared a quick glance across the street at Gabe and Amos, nodding as his eyes met Gabe’s. They were ready.

It was just a waiting game now. Time seemed to crawl by and he began to worry that their luck had run out. Perhaps Reggie hadn’t been fast enough this time. He felt a tremendous amount of guilt over sending her out like they did, but she insisted.

The mastiff tensed suddenly. And there she was, still a good distance away, but closing fast.

Now. Go.

The big dog moved quickly out and down the street and disappeared between two buildings. This was a clear signal to Gabe and Amos that she was coming.

He felt the sweat roll down his face. His palms also began to become wet with it. From the adrenalin no doubt. There was no time to wipe it away. A few more minutes and they would be in range.

He watched as her legs and arms pumped furiously as she ran. They were close on her heels. Six of them snapping and growling as they tried desperately to overtake her.

He marveled at her speed, as he always did in these moments. Beautiful Regina, college track and field star, training for the Olympics. What a cruel twist of her talents fate had dealt her.

He fired off a round, bits of skull and flesh exploding as he caught one of them with a bullet between the eyes.

This was a cruel fucking twist of fate for all of them.

He heard the reports from Gabe and Amos as she lithely slipped into the doorway beside him and bent to catch her breath. She was safe once more.

As he cycled the bolt, chambering the next round, the mastiff stealthily snuck up behind one of the dog-like creatures and brought it to the ground. Jaws clamping tightly around its throat and shaking its head back and forth furiously until its neck snapped.

He sighted on one of the remaining two that were left and managed to catch it in the side of the head. Gabe or Amos, he wasn’t sure which, got off a good shot on the last one.

He left the doorway and went out to check the remains in the street. He found one still alive, but barely. A yellow substance, he assumed to be blood, running freely from a large chest wound and pooling on the ground beneath it. As he knelt down and pulled a long, bladed knife from a sheath hooked to his belt, its green eyes locked with his. Full of fury and defiance even now, as the once bright color was starting to dim. In an attempt to intimidate him, it gave a low series of growls. Still quite menacing in sound, though far too weak to have any real effect.

Daniel placed one hand just below the mouth, on the chin and shoved the head up and back to expose the neck. Although he kept the knife blade expertly sharpened, he was unable to simply slit the throat. The dense, course fur and the tough, leather like skin beneath prevented this. After pushing its hair out of the way as best as he could with his knuckles, he began a slow and deliberate series of saw like movements with the blade. It took about ten good times of back and forth motion before he felt the flesh give and saw the golden liquid stream out and over the knife.

Letting go of the beast’s muzzle he brought his hand up near his face. Dirt, grass, asphalt… Just outdoors. The smell was always the same. They were obviously alive. They had bone, blood, and tissue. Not machines. How is it that they appeared to have no real odor of their own? A defense perhaps? Hunters to blend in and go undetected? Did they change scents to match their surroundings? Was this a natural ability?

Sighing, he knew he would probably never know the answers. It didn’t stop him from asking himself though. It was fascinating stuff really when one thought about it.

He caught sight of the rainbow hue out of the corner of his eye. Just a slight shimmer in the distance. He swiveled his head bringing it into clear view. It would not advance on them. They never did… Though he had not figured out why. As far as he knew they had no way to defend themselves against the damn things. They had wasted countless rounds in the beginning taking pot shots at these beings and it didn’t seem to have any effect on them. It was almost as if they were able to absorb the damn things.

He stared at the swirling prisms of light and gave a half assed salute. We win again, you bastard.

Funny, it seemed almost a hollow victory, as it chose to leave him there among the corpses and retreat.

He pulled a rag from his pocket and began to wipe the knife blade. Almost compulsively he touched his tongue to the tip. Much like his own blood in taste and texture. But not quite. There was a sweet under the familiar saltiness.

The metal in his hand flashed in the light of the sun. Wiping the rag over it, he took a deep breath. What the hell was he doing?

Daniel… Class Clown, Juvenile Delinquent and general fuck-up a sniffer hunter. Who could have ever foreseen it?

He felt her soft hand come to rest on his shoulder.

Danny? Are you okay?

Yeah, I’m alright. Just finishing up here.

CHAPTER TWO

T hey sat around the campfire that night laughing and joking. Still high off the day’s victory.

Daniel wished he could fully share in their jovial mood. Something about the shimmering shape today left him uneasy.

He reached down and stroked the fur of the mastiff at his side.

Good thing you found that dog, Danny. He’s definitely been a big help the last few weeks. Gabe remarked.

Yeah. He’s a good dog.

A snort from Amos. Damn thing still won’t let me near it.

Guess it’s not too fond of Crackers.

Screw you, Gabe! I ain’t no Cracker.

Uh huh. Gabe nodded his head in mock agreement.

Amos ignored him. You ever going to give that dog a name, Danny?

According to the tag on his collar he already has one. Rufus.

Strange name for a dog. I’d have named him Killer or Chopper or something.

Yep. Definitely Cracker.

Daniel couldn’t help but laugh.

Amos scowled and then started on his favorite subject. How come we had to find a dog? Why couldn’t it have been a woman?

Here we go again. Gabe muttered shaking his head.

What? It’s been a long damn time. Nothing wrong with me wanting a woman. I get awful tired of running off into the woods to spank my monkey in private.

Oh Lord, Amos. That is a visual I did not need.

Yeah, Reggie? Well if you weren’t gay I might not need to be playing with it.

I’m not gay, you dolt. Bi-sexual. There is a difference.

Well okay then, you like guys and… I’m a guy. So, there you go. Amos stood there looking for all the world like he’d just solved the problem.

Reggie laughed and then