Absolute DarknessThe Great Solar Storm Kellee L. Greene Contents Books By Kellee L. Greene Author’s Note 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 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 What’s next? Books By Kellee L. Greene About the Author This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental. Copyright © 2021 Kellee L. Greene All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the express written permission of the author. First Edition May 2021 Books By Kellee L. Greene After The Fires The Water Farmer - Book 1 The Trials Ahead - Book 2 The Measures Taken - Book 3 The Reset Series Flood - Book 1 Sinking - Book 2 Drowned - Book 3 Swamp - Book 4 Torrent - Book 5 Striking - Book 6 What Remains Series Sickness - Book 1 Outpost - Book 2 Infected - Book 3 Evasion - Book 4 Red Sky Series Red Sky - Book 1 Blue Cloud - Book 2 Black Rain - Book 3 White Dust - Book 4 Indigo Ice - Book 5 Yellow Heat - Book 6 Ravaged Land Series (1) Ravaged Land -Book 1 Finding Home - Book 2 Crashing Down - Book 3 Running Away - Book 4 Escaping Fear - Book 5 Fighting Back - Book 6 Ravaged Land: Divided Series (2) The Last Disaster - Book 1 The Last Remnants - Book 2 The Last Struggle - Book 3 Ravaged Land: Eventuality Series (3) The Wall - Book 1 The Outside - Book 2 Falling Darkness Series Unholy - Book 1 Uprising - Book 2 Hunted - Book 3 The Island Series The Island - Book 1 The Fight - Book 2 The Escape - Book 3 The Erased - Book 4 From Below Series Creatures - Book 1 Desolation - Book 2 The Alien Invasion Series The Landing - Book 1 The Aftermath - Book 2 Destined Realms Series Destined - Book 1 Author’s Note Names of towns and locations may have been changed in order to maintain the fictional nature of the story. Any resemblance to actual locations is entirely coincidental. Thank you for your understanding. 1 The twenty-two years I’d been alive had felt as though they had lasted longer than they should have. Over those years, I hadn’t made many choices for myself. Life always had control over me, and for some reason, I just sat back and let it all happen. Sam noisily tossed her suitcase into the back of my rented SUV. “This is going to be so epic.” I held her sparkling blue-eyed gaze, blinking as I tried to figure out what she thought was going to be so great. It seemed as though she’d completely forgotten the reason I was going to Wisconsin. “Well, except for the cleaning the house part,” Sam said, shrugging. “Forgive me for being a little excited about our vacation.” “It’s not a vacation.” “For me, it is,” Sam said, looking away. “Let me remind you that I’ve never been outside of the state.” “I can’t believe you are both deserting me like this,” Olivia whined as she puffed out her lower lip. “I wish I could join you, Mel. I know you need the help, but I can’t leave with exams coming up.” “I completely understand,” I said, giving her a smile. “It’s really not going to be fun. There is a lot to do before I can even think about selling the property.” Olivia forced a thin-lipped smile. “I’m sorry you had to take a break from school to deal with all this.” “I’ll figure it out,” I said, flashing her a warm smile. Olivia chewed on a nail. “It’s so not fair this happened to you. I can’t even imagine life without my mom. Hell, I wouldn’t survive it. We’re practically glued at the hip.” Olivia cleared her throat. “You’re just so strong.” “Um, yeah, thanks,” I said. I’d been close to my mother, but not in the same way others were close to their parents. I moved out the second I turned eighteen, and I didn’t look back. It wasn’t so much my mom as it was that I didn’t much enjoy small-town life. There were too many nosy neighbors and busybodies. Growing up with everyone knowing your business was rather unpleasant. My mom had unexpectedly passed away six weeks ago, and to say I lost my shit would be an understatement. But I didn’t have the choice to let it keep me down for long. Since my father died when I was six and my brother acted as though we didn’t exist, I was left to take care of everything. Not that there was much besides the house to take care of. “Do you have your medicine?” Sam asked. “Yes. I put them in the glove compartment,” I said, stopping to chew my lip. My pulse quickened as I mentally retraced my steps, trying to recall if I had actually put them in there. “I’ll double-check.” “Good idea. We wouldn’t want to forget that.” Sam smiled. “Not that I think it’s possible for you to actually forget them.” Olivia whimpered as she followed me to the passenger door of the SUV. “I’m going to miss you both so much. I’m sorry about what I said a few seconds ago about my mom. That was probably really insensitive, but I don’t do well with any of this death and grieving stuff. No one in my family has ever passed away. My great grandmother is still alive for Pete’s sake.” “It’s okay, Liv,” I said as I opened the car door. I pressed the button and pulled down the glove compartment door. The plastic amber bottle was nestled to the left of all the manuals and paperwork that came with the SUV. I sifted
