Waves of Fury (Surviving Earth Chronicles)

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Kellen

A storm is coming.

I’m still traumatized by the last horrendous storm that took my city, business, and God only knows how many people. With every rumble of thunder, my anxiety spikes just a little bit more.

It also doesn’t help that both Tyler and Jesse went on a dangerous mission without backup.

I squint in the darkness, flinching when prickles of grit sting my chilled, exposed flesh. They’ll turn up soon. I just have to be patient.

Aaron, equally amped up, paces beside me.

“It’s taking too long,” he mutters. “Why is it taking so long?”

Since I don’t have an answer, I keep my mouth shut, trying to make out any sort of moving figure in the inky night. A flash of light in the sky spiderwebs and an epic boom follows the spectacle. It’s dark again, but I’m pretty sure I saw a figure moving toward us.

“I think I see them,” I say, nudging Aaron.

“I saw it too. One person, though.”

A sinking feeling settles in my gut. I wait for the lightning to illuminate the world around me. This time, I’m sure I see someone.

I think they’re running.

“Everyone,” I call after another deafening boom of thunder, “get ready to move. Now, people!”

Our exhausted group scrambles to their feet and starts gathering their bags. Another cacophony of thunder rattles the ground beneath us, making my heart rate ratchet up another notch.

It was just thunder.

Not an earthquake.

The figure running toward us comes into view the next time the light splinters across the sky.

It’s Tyler.

The relief I feel at seeing him alive and unharmed is squashed once I realize Jesse isn’t with him. But that’s good, right? Maybe he secured a vehicle.

There’s something frantic about Tyler, though.

I have the urge to start running too.

From what? To where?

Before I can contemplate the answers to any of those questions, Tyler’s voice carries over the wind that’s threatening to knock me off my feet.

“He got one! Jesse got one!”

Relief floods through me. He secured a vehicle, which means we’re getting the hell out of here. At the very least, we’ll be somewhat protected by the elements.

“Let’s gooo,” Tyler hollers as he nears us, snagging my bicep. “They’re in pursuit!”

He’s panting heavily but doesn’t stop running, this time damn near dragging me along. I pick up my feet to match his pace so he doesn’t have to haul me along. Chancing a quick look over my shoulder, I notice the bouncing flashlights of everyone in our group as they rush to keep up.

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.

“They hit us,” Judy hollers. “They’re going to—”

Jesse guns it hard and the car behind us merely bumps us. He swerves to the left and then to the right, attempting to lose the people giving chase, and damn near knocking my ass out when my head bangs against the window.

Boom!

Another explosion rocks the vehicle and a blinding light flashes around us. Jesse hoots in victory.

“Lightning got one of the cars!” Jesse yells. “Hang on. I’m going to lose the other one.”

I’m able to look between the front two seats and out the windshield. More abandoned cars litter the road ahead. They’re seemingly strategically placed. Those Stovepipe Wells pricks probably did it to slow down anyone who tries to pass by. Luckily for us, we have Jesse, and he’s surprisingly good at dodging obstacles in the large vehicle.

“Whoa!”

Jesse’s stunned voice has me scanning the road ahead in search of what has his attention. Ahead, the road has collapsed in a mini sinkhole probably fifty feet wide in diameter.

What are we going to do?

Instead of slowing down, Jesse guns it, thrusting us all back once more.

“Hang on,” Jesse yells.

I watch in abject horror as the sinkhole rapidly approaches. When we’re too close for comfort, Jesse brakes hard and jerks the wheel to the right.

And now we’re spinning.

Everything becomes disoriented as we spin around what feels like a hundred times but is realistically more like four or five times before screeching to a halt. My ears are ringing and it takes a moment before sound comes rushing back in.

Cheers.

The group is cheering even as thunder booms all around us.

Twisting around, I attempt to figure out what they’re all looking at. Then I see it. The car that had been in pursuit is now on fire, having not stopped quick enough to avoid the sinkhole. They crashed headfirst into the other side of the sinkhole.

Jesse starts driving again, everyone bouncing wildly as he maneuvers over rocky desert terrain until he makes it around the sinkhole and back onto the road again.

The adrenaline that was surging through me finally crashes once we’re out of immediate danger. I shift so I’m half-squatting on the floorboard, slumping against the back of Wayne’s seat. A wave of exhaustion has my lids drooping heavily.

I wake to the sound of a car door slamming. Before I can make out my surroundings, the door behind me opens and Wayne starts pulling us from the vehicle one by one. Shakily, I step away from the SUV to survey my surroundings. It’s no longer storming, or we’ve moved past the worst of it. The rain is chilly, but not the most terrible thing we’ve encountered thus far.

Squinting, I try to figure out where it is we’ve stopped. A rest area. Just beyond the parking lot, a small building sits, beckoning to me like a lighthouse. I start clomping along toward it, dizzied and still trying to shake away my daze. When I turn around, I see Wayne carrying a body.

Gerry’s body.

I don’t even make it to the building before I’m doubled over, dry heaving. Gerry was my friend. He was a good guy. I hate that he died so brutally. Everyone I know keeps getting taken away from me.

Tyler hands me a bottle of water, cap already removed. I take it from him and chug it down, washing away the acid on my tongue before muttering out my thanks.

“Come on,” Tyler grunts. “Let’s try to get some rest.”

He leads me into the dark building, his flashlight bouncing in front of us. There’s not much to the building aside from a set of restrooms that don’t appear to be working. But, to our surprise, there’s a row of untouched vending machines.

Finally, something’s going our way.

Dan and Jesse manage to break into the one with food first and divvy up the snacks they find. I’m grateful for a package of powdered donuts and some peanut butter crackers. Tyler chooses a package of cherry PopTarts that he clutches to his chest with a happy grin on his lips. Unable to stop myself, I lean forward and peck his lips.

“Sorry,” I mutter. “I just needed something good after the hell of a day this has been.”

Tyler leans his head on my shoulder. “I’m sorry about Gerry.”

A ball of emotion clogs my throat. “He was a good guy.”

“Yeah, he was.”

“Ty,” I say with a heavy sigh. “I’m tired.”

“I know, Kell, me too. This can’t last forever. We’ll go to Vegas and find some help. The whole world can’t be this way. It can’t.”

His voice sounds so small.

The whole world can’t be this way. It can’t.

I don’t dare squash what little hope he has left, but I don’t find much comfort in his words. They’ve only been harping about this our entire lives. That what Gerty did decades ago to the moon would eventually wreak havoc on Earth. It was always a hurry up and wait game.

The wait is certainly over.