Head Rush by Carolyn Crane

Author:Carolyn Crane [Crane, Carolyn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: cookie429, Kat, Extratorrents
ISBN: 9781609286255
Google: Tdu8UutIIi8C
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Published: 2011-12-06T10:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Packard and I squeeze next to each other in the back seat of Shelby’s little car. It’s wonderful to be together again, doing a normalish thing like riding in a car. It might even be romantic if the burly Brick Slinger wasn’t stuffed unconscious on the other side of Packard, head lolling on the window, and if there wasn’t a duffel bag of weapons crushing my feet. And if Shelby and Jordan weren’t up front, telling me about the harrowing existence they’ve led for the past two months.

“We have to talk,” Packard says at one point, low so only I can hear.

I nod, reveling in the press of his thigh against mine, the heat of his breath on my hair, the feel of his thick forearm under his sleeve when I shift against him. Sometimes he catches my eye as Shelby or Jordan tell an anecdote, and we have this secret moment of enjoying each other. It’s as if we’re drawing closer together. It feels good. New, but not.

I even enjoy the way he lowers his voice when he gives directions—still the old, imperious Packard. Like a favorite song I haven’t heard for too long.

Of course, I keep replaying that kiss. And I’m also gratified by how tormented he seemed by the idea of my being anywhere near Otto. I suppose it’s not right to enjoy that. It’s the sort of thing an insecure girl would enjoy.

Most of all, though, I’m feeling worried for him, due to his Brick-Slinger heroics. Out-for-himself Packard played it a lot safer than heroic-gesture Packard. When did he turn over this new leaf?

“Toll booth two miles,” Shelby reads. Jordan scans around for radio stations, settling on a Monkees song. “Hey, Hey, We’re the Monkees”. Not at all fitting.

It’s been over an hour since we knocked out the Brick Slinger—it took a while to wheel him and the guns out of the Tanglelands, and longer for Shelby to sneak back to her place, steal away with her car and come get us. Which means we have another hour to get the Brick Slinger into a projectile-free environment before he wakes up.

I learn they have allies—old friends and cohorts of Packard. And there’s also bespectacled Councilperson Henry Felix, the man who’s leading the charge to bring Otto down legally. Shelby and Jordan met with him to discuss Packard’s case, but Henry Felix can’t do anything without proof. Apparently, he and his comrades, the Felix Five, feel like they’re in danger. Shelby said he was exhausted and distressed.

“They seemed downright paranoid, actually,” Jordan turns around to face us, resting her chin on the seat back. “Worn out. Not right. Of course, any sane person has a reason to be paranoid in the best of circumstances…”

“Then when Carter, Helmut, and Vesuvius disappeared,” Shelby says, “was like horror movie. Then Enrique. Jay. Every time one of us goes out alone, that person does not come back. Is because of curfew—this curfew makes it much too easy for Otto to hunt disillusionists.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.