Total pages in book: 111
Estimated words: 106092 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 530(@200wpm)___ 424(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106092 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 530(@200wpm)___ 424(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Light bursts across my vision and all the hairs on my arms stand on end. The subsequent, deafening boom has me stumbling, falling face first hard to the dirt.
“Holy shit, that was close,” Aaron barks out. “That strike was right there—”
He’s cut off by another strike not fifty feet from the one that almost took me out. Lightning is now zapping down from the heavens as though it’s trying to extinguish us one by one. There’s no rhyme or reason to our running. We’re all just hoping to get the hell through this desert and into the car Jesse got before we’re electrocuted to death.
We’re nearly back to the main road, the car with Kyle’s dead body coming into view. Before we reach it, another massive lightning strike hits the vehicle.
Boom!
Shrinking away from the explosion, I stare in stunned disbelief. The car is on fire now and the lightning is stalking us—playing with us like a cat with a terrified mouse.
We zig and zag in an effort to avoid the strikes, but it’s impossible to predict where they’ll hit.
Up ahead, headlights bounce toward us.
“It’s Jesse,” Tyler calls out over the thunder and harsh winds. “We’re almost there!”
The large SUV charges for us and then screeches to a halt on the asphalt.
“Get in!” Jesse yells. “Hurry up!”
I rush over to one of the back doors closest to me and fling it open. Grabbing Tyler’s arm, I shove him into the SUV. Then I grab the next person—Hope—and toss her inside next. Dan and his family are on the other side, also climbing in. Wayne, the largest man in our group, has taken the front seat beside Jesse.
Aaron forces me into the vehicle next and he scrambles in after me. When he turns around to help Gerry, a brilliant flash of light blinds me.
Boom!
The SUV rocks violently and everyone screams in response. Something catches fire near the SUV and the scent of burned human flesh and hair permeates my senses. It takes half a second to realize it’s Gerry.
He’s been hit.
And now he’s on fire.
Oh God.
Aaron leaps out of the vehicle with me on his heels. We manage to roll Gerry until the flames on his coat and hair are extinguished. He’s not moving and reeks of sickly charred skin. I’m barely able to suppress a gag.
Together, we hoist him into the vehicle, where Dan is able to drag him toward the back. Aaron and I both make it inside unscathed.
“Everyone in?” Jesse yells. “We’ve got company!”
I don’t manage to get the door closed before Jesse pulls a sharp U-turn, nearly sending me tumbling out of the vehicle. Aaron grabs me by my backpack before I hurtle to the asphalt. I yank the door closed.
The SUV is a nice size, but we’re all crammed in, sitting on top of one another and smashed in uncomfortably.
Pop!
The rear window bursts into a million pieces. What the hell? People are shooting at us. In a motherfucking lightning storm. Jesse guns it, sending all of us careening into each other. Grunts and curses can be heard over the shots, thunder, and squealing of tires.
“Come on, Gerry,” Hope cries out. “It’s okay. You’re safe now. Breathe, honey. Breathe.”
Bile crawls up my throat. The smell of Gerry’s burned flesh is nauseating. Knowing he’s not breathing is even worse.
Why can’t we catch a break?
Jesse drives like he’s the main character in Grand Theft Auto, weaving around stalled out cars and other debris while trying to outrun the people we stole the SUV from.
Another shot ricochets off the side mirror, too close for comfort. We could probably shoot back, but I’m practically sitting in Aaron’s lap. There’s no room to do anything except hold on and pray we make it through.
If only Knox could see me now…
The abrupt thought of my brother almost brings a hysterical laugh out of me. Would he think of me as brave or wonder how the hell I got myself in such a situation? I can almost visualize the two of us sharing a beer on the front porch of my father’s house, telling all our war stories of the time Earth tried to take us out.
I’ll never see him again.
The thought is sobering. I’m beginning to understand that my life will never be the same. The people I’m trying to survive with are my whole world these days. Finding my brother alive seems about as foreign as the idea that a week ago I was comfortable in my boring, predictable life in a San Francisco high-rise.
A body pushes against mine and I grunt. It’s Tyler. He’s trying to open his bag to search for his first aid kit. I don’t dare tell him there’s nothing that kit will do for Gerry.
Crash!
We’re all slung forward as something impacts the back of the SUV. Hard. Hailey cries out and Pretzel howls.