Page 144 of Kings & Chaos

The other car had moved beside us on the two-lane highway and was accelerating fast. It was early, both lanes of the road clear, but that wouldn’t be true forever.

What the fuck were they trying to do?

Rock hit the breaks, dropping back behind the other car.

But it did the same, and a second later a head emerged from the passenger side window.

I couldn’t make out the face of the person aiming a gun at us, but I heard the shots a few seconds later as they hit the Audi.

“Fuck!” Rock said.

“They’re shooting at us!” I screamed.

“There’s a gun in the glove compartment,” he said. “Give it to me.”

I did and he accelerated again as the black car got closer, another round of gunfire pinging the Audi.

He opened his window and fired the gun, but his aim was off because he was trying to focus on the road too.

“Give it to me,” I shouted. “I’ll shoot.”

“No fucking way. Duck the fuck down and stay there until I tell you to come up.”

“This is insane!” I screamed. “You taught me to fire a gun to protect myself. Give me the fucking gun, Rock!”

He hesitated, then handed me the gun when the Audi took another round of fire. “Keep your head in the car.”

I rolled down my window and aimed the gun, but I didn’t have time to fire it. A split second later, more gunfire hit the Audi, and this time I heard a pop and a crash.

The gun fell out of my hand as the Audi dipped hard to one side in a deafening shriek of metal.

Then we were flying through the air, everything upside down as we flipped over the guardrail.

Chapter57

Willa

The crunch of metal.

The sound of the ocean, washing onto the beach.

Darkness. Bliss.

Then, sirens.

Voices.

“They’re stuck…”

“Get those EMTs over here now!”

Stabbing pain in my right leg.

Rock.Rock.

“How long for the chopper?”

I tried to open my eyes but it was like moving through molasses.

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