Ragnarok Rising: The Crossing (The Ragnarok Rising Saga) by D.A. Roberts

retraced our route back to the Humvees. We took our time and listened for any sounds or movement along the way. It was still as quiet as the proverbial tomb. Only the sound of the wind in the t rees broke the eerie stillness.
    Southard was outside the Humvee when we arrived. I whistled like a whippoorwill as we approached, to let him know who we were. He still brought his weapon up to his shoulder as we approached. He looked nervous until we emerged from the bushes. Then he visibly relaxed and lowered his weapon.
    I could tell that the stillness was taking its toll on Chuck, too. He was a deer hunter, just like me. He knew that it wasn’t natural for the woods to be this quiet. The silence only meant one thing. There was some kind of predator around. The only question was…what was it?
    “Find anything?” he asked, keeping his voice low.
    “Not a fucking thing,” I said, glancing around the area. “Why aren’t you in the Humvee?”
    “I had to stretch my legs and take a leak,” he replied. “Besides that, the silence was really bugging me. I didn’t want to make everyone else nervous, so I decided to wait out here.”
    “Stay on your toes, Chuck,” I said, meeting his gaze. “I don’t know what it is, but something is very wrong here.”
    “My gut’s telling me the same thing,” he replied, nodding.
    “Looks like the water's over the bridge,” he said, gesturing down at the water. “We gonna try to cross?”
    “I’d guess it to be three feet or less,” I said. “I’m pretty sure we can handle it. I’ve taken Humvees through worse.”
    “I wouldn’t try it if we weren’t above the spring,” said Spec-4. “At least the water isn’t moving very fast.”
    “Just wait until you see where the spring hits the Niangua,” I said. “The water is going to be rolling.”
    “Let’s find the cache and get the hell out of here,” said Southard. “I don’t like this place.”
    “I’m with you there,” I replied. “I’ll take the crossing first. You drive across, next. I don’t think Elliott is quite ready to drive through floodwaters. Stick to the right side of the road.”
    “Copy that,” said Southard, heading for his vehicle.
    Spec-4 and I returned to ours and climbed back inside. Becca was shook up but seemed to be holding it together. She just looked at me and smiled tightly. I gave her a reassuring smile and started the engine. I let it idle while I studied the water in front of us. It wasn’t moving much, so I wasn’t overly worried about the water sweeping us off of the slab. However it was murky and dark, so I was concerned about anything that might be on the bridge that I couldn’t see.
    “You guys might want to hang on,” I said. “This might get a little bumpy before we’re through.”
    Slipping into gear, I started slowly towards the edge of the water. Just as I reached it, I stopped completely. I thought I had seen movement out of the corner of my eye.
    “Wilder,” I said, “hand me the binoculars.”
    “What did you see?” she asked, handing them over.
    “I’m not sure,” I replied. “I just caught a glimpse of something moving.”
    I took the binoculars and started sweeping the area where I had seen it. It was right near the restrooms, so I focused in and swept slowly from left to right and then back again. I still didn’t see anything, but the knot in my stomach had doubled in size. It was still and quiet, with no sign of movement whatsoever. Not even so much as a squirrel.
    Handing the binoculars back to Spec-4, I turned back to the water ahead of me. It looked no more inviting than it had before, but now I was looking for anything at all that might be out of place. Nothing seemed wrong and nothing was moving. With a heavy sigh, I took my foot off the brake and started into the water.
    I felt my way in, slowly. Water was coming steadily up the sides of the Humvee and starting to splash up onto the hood. I knew we would be fine so long as I didn’t let off of