Final Collapse | Book 2 | Breaking Night by Downs KD & Kraus Mike

Author:Downs, KD & Kraus, Mike [Downs, KD]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Post-Apocalyptic | Survival
Publisher: Muonic Press Inc
Published: 2021-11-26T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

Deering, Vermont

Isobel slouched against the car door with her arms folded and a scowl on her tear-streaked face. On the other side of the back seat, Abby kicked her bare feet and yowled like she was on the verge of starvation. Still, their combined anger didn’t compare to what raged behind them in Anne’s rearview.

Ten miles north of Bennington, the Firebird Trans Am still tailgated so close only the tips of the gold bird’s wings on the hood reflected in the mirror. Behind the windshield, sweat streamed down Mac Hailey’s aneurism-red face. His greasy, white-knuckled grip on the wheel threatened to reach out and grab them.

“Get away.” Anne spoke softly. It was easier to ignore the girls’ anger than it would have been to ignore their fear. If they’d been afraid, resisting the need to soothe them on the endless low-speed chase would have killed her. It was hard enough turning a deaf ear to Abby’s hunger.

The farther she drove, the clearer it was the Fiesta wouldn’t outrun the Trans Am. It might have won a fuel-efficiency marathon, but God only knew what remote corner of Vermont they’d be in when the stronger car finally ran out. With the disasters creeping closer to the state line, the odds were against her finding a gas station to replace all that wasted fuel.

Low-speed or not, the chase put the girls at risk, and watching her four-year-old bounce with every dip in the road increased Anne’s anxiety. “Izzy, do you know how to buckle up?”

“No.”

“I see.” Of course she didn’t. And she wasn’t in a car seat because Anne hadn’t wanted to deal with the fit she would have pitched about being woken up. Back in Bob’s RV, on the border of Maine and New Hampshire, Sister Jackie had accused Anne of trying to be the perfect wife, but that wasn’t the problem, and the problem wasn’t limited to her ‘marriage.’ What started out as strategic appeasement to avoid Ed’s wrath had become a universal coping mechanism that had her jumping in a river to get Abby medical attention and telling Izzy to “Hold onto the door so you don’t go flying if we crash.”

Her avoidance was putting them all at risk for no good reason. Xavier had double armed her with two powerful handguns. She was ready for anything Mac Hailey tried, but to avoid that confrontation, she drove north when she needed south and burned precious fuel. As Abby wailed and Izzy gripped the back door, Anne’s nagging conscience grew impossible to ignore.

Ahead on the left, a sprawling log-cabin-style building sat along the highway with “Regent’s Country Trader” scrawled across the side. A sign by the road announced they were open and had flashlights and batteries in stock. The parking lot was a mess of cars and trucks, worse than Big Paul’s had been when they stopped for snacks and water back in Maine, with customers bumping into each other as they streamed in and out. If the inside was as crowded as the outside, she should be able to slip away without a violent confrontation.

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