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    Heaven for Us
    Heaven for Us
    Heaven for Us
    Ebook95 pages1 hour

    Heaven for Us

    By Beth D. Carter

    ()

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    About this ebook

    The world has been devastated by a virus...

    Jo was one of the lucky ones. She survived. Now she searches for a sanctuary in a ruined world. She trusts no one, keeping to herself, until she meets Luke and his daughter, Casey.

    Suddenly she’s involved, and emotions she thought she had iced over long ago invade her self-imposed isolation. The more time she spends with Luke, the more she wants him, leaving her conflicted. Does she stay with him? Or will she continue her trek to find a heaven among the apocalypse?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherEvernight
    Release dateJun 27, 2022
    ISBN9780369506597
    Heaven for Us
    Author

    Beth D. Carter

    I like writing about the very ordinary girl thrust into extrordinary circumstances, so my heroines will probably never be lawyers, doctors or corporate highrollers. I try to write characters who aren't cookie cutters and push myself to write complicated situations that I have no idea how to resolve, forcing me to think outside the box. I love to hear from readers so I’ve made it really easy to find me on Facebook or Twitter. To subscribe to my newsletter, please visit my website: www.writtenbutterfly.com

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      Book preview

      Heaven for Us - Beth D. Carter

      Published by EVERNIGHT PUBLISHING ® at Smashwords

      www.evernightpublishing.com

      Copyright© 2022 Beth D. Carter

      ISBN: 978-0-3695-0659-7

      Cover Artist: Jay Aheer

      Editor: Lisa Petrocelli

      ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

      WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

      This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

      DEDICATION

      With love and thanks to Stacey at Evernight for agreeing to have this a free read.

      To my husband, Mike. My hero.

      HEAVEN FOR US

      Those Who Survived, prequel

      Beth D. Carter

      Copyright © 2022

      Prologue

      Jo honked her horn once more, although she knew it was a useless gesture. Stuck in the middle of three lanes going nowhere fast, all she could do was pray that something happened soon to open up a way for her to get to work. Road construction complicated the commute, forcing the multilane freeway down to two. Her cell phone rang, and the caller ID showed it was her boss, Heather.

      Hello, she answered, trying to keep the irritation out of her voice, but knew she failed. I’m stuck in traffic. I swear it.

      Are you on the Twenty?

      Yeah.

      The Center for Disease Control has that shut down. They’ve got tents and people in biological hazard suits swarming all over the place.

      Jo’s brows drew together. Well, that’s not good. You think anthrax?

      I don’t know what to think, her boss said. Be careful but get here as soon as you can.

      Jo hung up and pursed her lips. The first break in the traffic line came about an hour later when the cars began moving, and she discovered the Jersey walls had been moved. Cops directed vehicles to turn around and head westbound, taking her away from her work, but that was better than being stuck in traffic.

      She finally walked into the hospital, several hours late, and made her way to the triage station in ER.

      Thank God you’re here, Heather said. We’ve got some type of viral epidemic, six cases right now, but it’s bad.

      Jo frowned. Bad how?

      Heather gave her a chart. Blood pouring out of ears, noses, and in some cases, vaginal and anal discharge. The swabs we’re collecting aren’t showing the typical known viruses.

      Jo looked over the notes. Flu?

      Heather shook her head. None that we know. The pathologist is calling it a lentivirus, something only found in primates, but so far, we’ve gotten zilch from the CDC. I find it highly suspicious that there’s one hell of an accident they’re involved in, and we’re seeing some type of unknown disease we don’t know how to treat.

      What the hell?

      Jo didn’t have much time to ponder the unusual symptoms when three more cases were brought in via ambulance. She’d never seen such a troubling sight of people losing blood when no wounds were present on the body. Soon, beds were saturated and Housekeeping was having a difficult time keeping up with disinfecting the hallways and rooms, as more and more people came into the emergency room.

      She worked tirelessly, pushing through a double shift, running around and helping people where she could. Doctors were equally baffled but just as concerned as ten people turned into twenty and then spiraled out of control. She was covered in blood, and the hospital soon ran out of replacement scrubs. All she could do was wash her hands over and over until they dried out and her cuticles began to crack.

      Jo! Heather motioned her over from a doorway. Come here and listen to this!

      Pulling off her disposable apron, she joined Heather in the break room where the news was on the small television.

      "Doctor Amanda Tasker died today in an accident which caused the Twenty Freeway to be shut down for the past twenty-four hours. Authorities have no idea when the freeway will reopen, and side streets are being flooded as people seek alternative routes…"

      Jo shrugged. Now they talk about alternative routes. I’ve learned my lesson.

      No, not that, Heather said. My friend works at the CDC, and she told me that Amanda Tasker was part of the department testing new biological containments. She was the one responsible for overseeing biological warfare against the human race.

      Jo frowned. You think what we’re seeing here is a result of her crash? That something … escaped?

      Heather shrugged. I don’t know. But one person has died after being admitted twenty-four hours ago.

      Something red caught Jo’s attention, and she reached up to turn Heather’s head. A streak of blood rolled out of her friend’s ear.

      Oh, shit, Jo muttered. It’s blood.

      Heather reached up to feel it, her eyes going wide with horror as her fingers came back stained red. Fear blanketed her face.

      Oh my God. No.

      Come on, let’s get you to a room.

      Jo, does this mean—

      Stop it, Jo said firmly. It’s going to be fine. We’ve just got to run some tests. Why don’t you get me the phone number of your friend so I can find out what the fuck is going on?

      Chapter One

      Jo held out her arm at the border gate and waited for the sentry to check her blood. When it registered negative, he flipped the lock to allow her through the first heavily fenced portal. She waved her thanks and proceeded to the next checkpoint, where she waited patiently. Another guard flashed a bright light into the eyes of people wanting entrance to the haven point, which was nothing more than a glorified trading post where prices were inflated. This setup had resurrected the lost art of haggling.

      Once it was her turn, she braced herself for the effects of the blinding test, which proved she had no ruptured blood vessels. As she blinked rapidly to stem tears the light had caused, the last gate opened, allowing her and the others entry into the hustle and bustle of the vendors and shoppers.

      Jo hefted her backpack higher

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