Gears of War: Jacinto’s Remnant (56 page)

His guess was confirmed when a window flew open and a woman leaned out.

“Get a grip, for goodness’ sake,” she called out. The Pelruan civilians looked up to the window. “Whatever it is, it’s got to get past every Gear in the COG. What’s
wrong
with you people?”

The locals stared up at the window long after the woman had slammed it shut. Dom decided not to get involved, and climbed back into the ’Dill.

“Our civvies believe in us,” he said. “It’s kind of cute.”

Cole grinned. “That’s ’cause we’re so damn
good
, baby.”

Marcus switched the comms over to the ’Dill’s radio and listened to Control while they waited. Anya was back in CIC. Three ’Dills and a very old fire truck rolled up behind them. It was just like old times. The gates opened, and Marcus drove out in the direction of the farm.

“You know this guy?” Cole asked.

“Yeah. Met him the other day. Poor bastard lives alone.”

There was no traffic to speak of on Vectes, and it was a fast run out to Jonty’s farm. Dom could see the reddish glow in the distance long before they reached the place. Where were the nearest neighbors ? There was no fire service and no ambulance. It was now down to Gears and any locals who managed to get there to tackle the blaze and sweep the area—if the locals knew about it, of course. When the ’Dill turned the corner into the long tirerutted lane up to the house, the buildings were well alight. The barn was a ball of flame, and the roof of the farmhouse was gone. Given the distance between the two, it had to be arson.

Marcus jumped out to direct the squads.

“Dom, Cole, Baird—with me,” he said. “Everyone else—find the assholes who did this.”

The fire crew ran hoses and pumps from the farmyard supply and concentrated on the house. There was no sign of the farmer. If he’d been in the house when it went up, then they weren’t going to find any remains until the blaze died down and the debris cooled.

“He’s got dogs,” Marcus said. “Three big black dogs. Where are they?”

The blaze lit up a large area around the farmhouse, but it was still hard to pick out shapes in the hard contrast between shadow and the fierce yellow light. The ground was a mix of short grass and poured concrete. Dom was poking around the hedges at the back of the farmhouse when he heard Cole call out.

“Got ’em,” he yelled. “Shit, I’m losin’ my faith in human beings, I swear I am.”

Dom went running in the direction of his voice, toward the north side of the yard. Marcus and Baird were already there, staring down at something in the beam of Cole’s flashlight. Dom could guess what it was before he got there.

“Assholes,” Baird muttered. “But at least we get to shoot to kill now.”

Dillond Jonty was dead, laid out flat on his back in a pool of black blood that looked like lube oil in the light from the fire. His three dogs were laid out beside him. Dom could see that someone had intended them to be found and the message to be clear.

Marcus squatted down. “Shot, and throat cut. The dogs too. Shit.”

“I’d take a guess that our displaced Stranded just moved inland,” Dom said. “But if more have come ashore, then we’ve got a different problem.”

“Any bets as to how they’re going to take this in Pelruan?” Baird asked.

“We’ll worry about that later,” Marcus said. “Looks like we’re going to have to guard every isolated farm now.”

It wasn’t just about protecting citizens. It was about the threat to the food supply. Thoughts started racing through Dom’s mind about who was going to sort out the farm and if there were animals to take care of. If the Stranded were looking to cause disruption, they’d found some soft but effective targets.

“At least we’re not dealing with grubs,” Baird said. “The fight’s going to be a lot more equal.”

Cole looked at the bodies and shook his head. “Great start to New Jacinto,” he said. “Excuse me, gentlemen. I’m goin’ asshole hunting.”

Dom paused for a moment to watch the arcs of water playing on the burning farmhouse. He wondered if grubs ever did anything like this to their own kind. It didn’t matter now; humans did, and this was the new war, one that few Gears had fought before.

Somehow, it was the dogs that troubled Dom most.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

KAREN T RAVISS is the author of four
Star Wars:
Republic Commando novels,
Hard Contact, Triple Zero, True
Colors
, and
Order 66;
three
Star Wars:
Legacy of the Force novels,
Bloodlines, Revelation
, and
Sacrifice;
two
Star Wars:
The Clone Wars novels,
The Clone Wars
and
No Prisoners; Gears of War: Aspho Fields;
and her award-nominated Wess’har Wars series,
City of Pearl, Crossing the Line, The World Before, Matriarch, Ally
, and
Judge
. A former defense correspondent and TV and newspaper journalist, Traviss lives in Devizes, England.
Gears of War: Jacinto’s Remnant
is a work of fiction. Names, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Copyright © 2009 by Epic Games Inc.

All Rights Reserved. Used Under Authorization.

Published in the United States by Del Rey, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.

DEL REY is a registered trademark and the Del Rey colophon is a trademark of Random House, Inc. Gears of War, Marcus Fenix, and the Crimson Omen logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Epic Games, Inc. in the United States of America and elsewhere.

www.epicgames.com

www.delreybooks.com

• Cover
  
• Other Books By This Author
  
• Title Page
  
• Dedication
  
• Acknowledgments
  
• Prologue
  
• Chapter 1
  
• Chapter 2
  
• Chapter 3
  
• Chapter 4
  
• Chapter 5
  
• Chapter 6
  
• Chapter 7
  
• Chapter 8
  
• Chapter 9
  
• Chapter 10
  
• Chapter 11
  
• Chapter 12
  
• Chapter 13
  
• Chapter 14
  
• Chapter 15
  
• Chapter 16
  
• Chapter 17
  
• Chapter 18
  
• About the Author
  
• Copyright