Page 74 of Waves of Fury

Holy shit.

He did it.

“Someone’s driving after curfew,” a man yells from close by. “We might have an escapee! Stop that vehicle!”

As much as I want to hang around to help my brother, I stick with the plan. Turning on my heel, I hightail it back the way I came, racing back toward our group.

Stovepipe Wells is a trap, and if we don’t get the hell out of here, we’ll no doubt meet the same fate as Kyle.

As for our women?

Something tells me these men won’t make the mistake of killing them and putting them out of their misery. They’ll keep them. And whatever that entails may be worse than death.

We have to get the hell out of here.

Kellen

Astorm 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?

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