A faded highway sign indicated the next exit. Long before he reached it, he could see the ramp was packed with dead cars, dead people in most of them. He was forced to walk, pushing the bicycle alongside. He tried to mount it when he reached the top, but his legs had picked up a tremor and it seemed prudent to go on foot awhile, using the handlebars to keep himself steady.
He trudged up a low hill, nursing a little fantasy about finding an untouched home pantry full of canned ravioli and beef stew. His head buzzed with exhaustion, and the sound of his own pulse was loud in his ears. Underneath the internal noise, he thought he heard a voice, thought for a moment he was hallucinating. He kept moving, shaking his head to clear it like a dog that’s taken an unexpected swim.
Then he heard it again. Even louder this time, from up in the trees.
“HEY, YOU. I SAID FAR ENOUGH.”
TO THE READER
Thank you for reading SHADOW ROAD: AFTER THE PRETTY POX BOOK TWO. ♥
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Until next time:
Make peace, share love, read books.
Also from August Anseclass="underline"
AFTER THE PRETTY POX: THE ATTIC
A searing act of bioterrorism. A catastrophic plague they call the Pretty Pox.
Most of the human race is dead. For two years, Arie McInnis has been alone, riding out the aftermath of the Pretty Pox, waiting for her own inevitable end.
Hidden in the attic of her ruined home, Arie survives by wit and skill, ritual and habit. Convinced that humans are a dangerous fluke, a problematic species best allowed to expire, she chooses solitude… even in matters of life and death.
Arie’s precarious world is upended when her youngest brother—a man she’s never met—appears out of nowhere with a badly injured woman. Their presence in the attic draws the attention of a dark watcher in the woods, and Arie is soon forced to choose between the narrow beliefs that have sustained her and the stubborn instinct to love and protect.
In Book One of August Ansel’s captivating post-apocalyptic series, After the Pretty Pox casts an unwavering eye on what it means to be human in a world where nature has the upper hand, and the only rules left to live by – for good or ill – are the ones written on our hearts.
Available online at Amazon and other retailers!
And…
SOJOURNERS:
After the Pretty Pox Book Three
Don’t miss the final installment of the Pretty Pox trilogy, coming in Fall 2020!
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
My biggest thanks go to the readers who loved the first Pretty Pox book and then waited… and waited… and waited for book two. I’m completely humbled by your kind persistence.
Hugs to Allen Chamberlain, Christina Gillen, David Lowe, and Sarah Snow for being enthusiastic and careful early readers. Your input adds the final twinkle.
Lori Byrd entered my newsletter contest to name a character in Shadow Road, and she loaned me the name of her dear son: Kory! I hope Lori’s happy with the wonderful character who joined Arie’s family—I have definitely fallen in love with that kid.
Thank you to a certain friend (who shall remain nameless) and his stepson (ditto) who may know a little something about harvesting a road-killed bear in the dark of night. Yes, when skinned it looked like a person. Yes, it made the best stew I’ve ever tasted.
If you want to see the Rightful Inheritors using a fallen tree as a natural bridge, treat yourself to the YouTube video: The Log Movie. It’s a real treat!
Cover designer Dominika Hlinková with Inspired Cover Designs magically turns vague ideas into actual book covers, and she’s just a straight-up nice person.
The Bodacious Vanguard go out of their way to post honest early reviews in places where other readers look for a good read. I can’t thank them enough for empowering my reach as an author.
Mr. B, every day you hold my heart. I know it’s really squishy, so thanks for always being careful.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
August Ansel is the pen name (and alter ego) of author Carla Baku. It’s August who is forever wedging beloved dog-eared novels by Shirley Jackson, Peter Straub, and Joe Hill in among the works of Toni Morrison and Tobias Wolff. Working from a tiny garret overlooking the lovely Myrtle Grove Cemetery, August prefers to write novels longhand while sipping bitterly strong tea and wearing an atrocious pair of bedroom slippers.
Readers are most welcome to peruse all August Ansel (and Carla Baku) books at www.carlabaku.com, and to follow on Facebook: @CarlaBaku/AugustAnsel.
Copyright
Copyright © 2020, August Ansel
All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Look Ma No Hands Publishing, Eureka. No portion of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without express written permission of the publisher. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
ISBN-13: 978-0-9861717-5-8
ISBN-10: 0-9861717-5-8
Shadow Road: After the Pretty Pox Book Two is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents, including those of a historical nature, are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
The following lyric excerpt is from a work in the public domain:
Come All Ye Fair and Tender Maidens.
Traditional American Appalachian folk ballad.
Cover by Inspired Cover Designs
Copyright © 2020 Dominika Hlinková
Look Ma No Hands Publishing
11923 NE Sumner St
STE 794726
Portland, Oregon, 97220, USA
For news and upcoming books from August Ansel, subscribe to the newsletter: www.carlabaku.com