Page 35 of Deadly Hacker

That was all the push she needed to keep going. Emma Jean coaxed the car back to life and tried again. This time, the vehicle purred along with her commands. With every gear shift, her confidence grew. She remembered what her father had taught her, the drive feeling more natural all the while. Before long, the car was peeling out at top speed. She glanced in the overhead mirror and saw their attacker shrinking away into the golden haze behind them until he was invisible, just a horrible nightmare.

The car plowed through the sand and dust as Emma Jean tried to find the road again. She simply drove the car in the direction they had come from the night before, though the desert landscape looked totally different to her in the light of day. She could only hope she was heading the right way, back to the city where hope still flickered like a beacon for Rad. The car tore across the shifting sands, and Emma Jean let out a squeal of pure relief when she saw the dusty road appear before her. The tires hummed on the asphalt and she bounced with excitement, looking over at Rad.

He looked worse than before with both eyes shut and his breaths quick and shallow. Her smile quickly faded, replaced by a look of pure horror. She reached over to pat his cheek and he was stone-cold.

“No, no, no,” she whispered. “Rad, hang on. We’re almost there. I promise.”

Emma Jean floored the gas, flying along at speeds way above the limit. She almost hoped that a lone cop might see them and pull them over, so that he could call for help. She was simply going to drive until she couldn’t anymore, until she found safety. Finally, she could see the glimmering vision of Las Vegas up ahead, the signs indicating she was on the outskirts of town. Hope was so close.

And then she heard the engine whine and start to sputter out.

“What? No,” she muttered, looking at the fuel gauge. Her stomach dropped.

The needle pointed to that big, ugly E. That bastard had come out here without even filling his tank all the way, blinded by pure hatred. He could never have transported his two hostages out of the desert in the first place. The car was malfunctioning, skipping and chugging as it slowed down. The tires squealed, the engine roared, but it was no use. No amount of coaxing from Emma Jean could push the vehicle any farther. Finally, it shuddered to a halt, with a curl of smoke issuing from the front.

“No, please, no!” Emma Jean yelped. “Come on!”

But there was nothing left to do. They were out of fuel, right on the edge of town.

She turned to Rad, all but climbing over the center console to be closer to him. He was so cold now, and she curled her body around him to conserve warmth even in the blazing sun. She stroked his face and clung to his chest, listening desperately for the thump of his heart. It was shallow and quiet.

“Rad, I’m so sorry. I tried to get us out of there, but I failed. I-I didn’t do enough.” She wept bitterly.

She used her arm to try to wipe the blood from his face, but there was so much. She rested her face against his chest and draped his arms around her. Emma Jean sobbed, her whole body quaking in his limp arms. It was the last embrace he could ever give her. The only thing she could do now was caress his face as the light left his body.

Through the puffing engine and her violent sobs, the world was almost blotted out. Until she heard a bizarre whining noise behind the rest. She thought it might be a coyote giving its mournful call before stalking in to await their death. She imagined the wild dogs trying to tear Rad away from her, gnashing their teeth and snarling at her. But it dawned on her that the sound was too… uniform. There was something unnatural about it.

Her head popped up, her eyes scanning the horizon desperately. Could it be?

Sirens.

She wasn’t losing her mind. There were dozens of sirens wailing in eerie discordance. Flashing lights appeared in the dusty red distance ahead. Emma Jean began to hyperventilate again. She pushed open the passenger-side door to scream for help, using her arm to make broad gestures and catch their attention.

Emma Jean was in shock, utterly confused as to how and why an entire caravan of squad cars and ambulances were converging around them out here in the middle of nowhere. Their tires screeched as they pulled hasty stops. Sand was worked up into the air, creating a golden screen that kept Emma Jean guessing in the fray. Then, uniformed people began pouring out of their vehicles to surround the car.

In a panic of activity, a stretcher appeared next to the car, along with several big, strong men. Gloved hands reached into the car from all angles, pushing, pulling, and lifting the couple. All the while, Emma Jean clung to Rad, never letting go for a moment. Even as they put him on a stretcher and rolled him up into the back of the ambulance, she held tight.

EMTs rushed around them, hooking Rad up to cords and wires and IVs. They tried to extricate Emma Jean while a kindly nurse asked her simple questions, but she was too overwhelmed to answer. All she could think about was Rad’s heartbeat, and how she had to listen to every single thump, just in case it might be his last.

* * *

Hours later,Emma Jean was sitting straight up in a hospital bed with her arms crossed over her chest. She glared at the two nurses flitting around the small room amid the beeps and ticks of diagnostic equipment. In the distance, outside the hospital, she could hear the far-off echo of fireworks going off. It was the Fourth of July, though Emma Jean was hardly interested in celebrating.

Her eyes darted to the door for the millionth time in a few minutes, wishing she could burst out of here and track down Rad. She knew he was somewhere in the hospital, possibly even the same floor, judging by how many big, bulky men in black had passed by the little glass window in the door. She tapped her fingers impatiently.

“Please, I need to go check on my… my boyfriend,” Emma Jean insisted.

She had never called him that before. They hadn’t exactly gotten a chance to discuss the details of their relationship. Emma Jean felt like he was already more than just a boyfriend, though. He was her soulmate, and she was desperate to be with him.

The elder nurse sighed, “We’re almost done here. The doctor just wants to make sure you’re okay.”

“I’m fine,” she replied. “It was just a little scuffle.”

“You were tased at close range,” the younger nurse reminded her gently.

“Your vitalsdolook very good, considering all you’ve been through,” said the other.

“So I can leave now?” Emma Jean perked up.

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