Page 41 of Blushing Bride

I soon realized that the front wheels were no longer on the ground.

“Do. Not. Move,” I dictated. Her eyes flicked to me, full of questions, but she obeyed. She didn’t even twitch a single muscle as the car rocked threateningly back and forth. I dared a glance out of the windshield, careful not to lean forward. Down beneath us was a deep gully. Much of it was overgrown, but I could see red rock peeking out from between the brush. It went on for miles and I’d almost driven us right off a cliff.

“If we lean backwards, we might be able to stabilize it enough to get out,” she breathed. Her eyes were trained on me. There was a very slight hint of panic in her eyes, but she remained calm nonetheless. She didn’t rush to action, waiting instead to see what I thought the best course might be.

“Good thinking. I want you to reach very slowly to your side and lower your seat backwards.”

“Okay,” she said softly.

At the same time, we both reached down, and the car groaned dangerously loud. I paused, allowing the car to level out before I lifted the handle.

“Keep pressure against the back so the seat doesn’t pop forward,” I warned.

“Got it,” she said quickly.

Slowly, we both lowered our seats back, taking care to pause anytime the car rocked. My heart was practically threatening to beat right out of my chest by the time I lowered it all the way flat.

“We should move into the backseat,” she offered. With trepidation, she looked out the front windshield, watching as the horizon wavered in the distance.

“Slowly. Very, very slowly,” I directed.

Inch by inch, we each slid back on the seat. The car rocked back and forth like a seesaw the entire time. I gritted my teeth, having a hard time keeping myself from grabbing her and just getting out of here as fast as possible.

Eventually, we made it into the backseat and the car swayed a little bit less. Overhead, a tree creaked.

“We need to get out now,” she murmured, looking up.

“When I say, open the door and throw yourself out. Jump as fast as you can, do you understand me?”

“Yes,” she answered quickly.

“Ready?”

She nodded.

“Go!” I roared. At once, we both slammed our door open. Using my legs, I vaulted out of the car. Immediately, I threw myself forward, not wanting to get caught in the door or underneath a wheel in case the vehicle lost balance because of the sudden loss of our weight.

My gaze searched for her, trying to see if she’d cleared the vehicle too.

“Naomi?”

“I’m here,” she shouted. All of a sudden, I noticed that she was at the back of the car. Her hand had closed around the trunk handle, and she swung it open. “Quick. We can save most of this.”

I sprinted over to her.

“It’s not worth it,” I growled.

“We need some of the maps,” she insisted. She grabbed a handle on the oversized crate and yanked it toward her. The car pitched precariously but settled more quickly. I realized that since the trunk opened like a car door, it had probably shifted the center of gravity more on land than before.

She was right. If we acted fast, we could save much of the supplies and maybe even the car if we were lucky.

“Just help me. Grab the other handle. If we work together, we can get everything we need,” she chirped. Without another word, I did as she’d asked. In less than thirty seconds, we emptied the trunk of supplies. Another crack overhead echoed like thunder.

“We need to move,” I said. “Leave everything here on the ground.”

“Where?”

I didn’t say, knowing I had to move fast. Quickly, I grabbed her around the waist and threw her over my shoulder. In an all-out sprint, I raced back the way we had come. Another deafening noise came from overhead in the tree canopy. Without pause, I dove behind a tree and cradled Naomi in my arms as I watched a thick dead tree branch crash down onto the nose of the car. It tipped too far forward to recover. Above us, the canopy turned into a shower of leaves and twigs, and I did my best to cover her with my body so that she wouldn’t be hurt if anything fell on me.

---