The Toll by W. .J. Hegarty
Author:W. .J. Hegarty [Hegarty, W. .J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Zombies
Published: 2019-10-23T04:00:00+00:00
CHAPTER TEN
Adrift
Vanessa awoke to suffocating smoke filling the cabin. Lillian lay beside her, seemingly unfazed by the putrid cloud as some others scurried by in a mad dash for the exit. Fumes stung her eyes. The stench of burning plastic and chemicals filled her lungs. She could hear Miller from somewhere across the cabin near the exit, calling out for everyone to come toward the sound of his voice. Lillian began choking. The small fit forced her awake as Vanessa helped her to her feet. They stumbled toward Miller, the sun barely visible behind him, a dim beacon of hope. As they approached the exit, Miller grabbed Vanessa by the arm and yanked the pair to safety, flinging them out onto the sun-drenched deck and into Sorayaâs waiting arms. Soraya led them toward the front of the boat, away from the smoke and out of the way of those frantically searching for the fireâs source.
âI canât breathe,â Lillian choked out, panic-stricken.
âWeâre okay. Come on.â Vanessa led the frightened girl away from the fumes and to the relatively clear deck of the boat. She caressed the girlâs back. The rhythm of her hands gave the illusion of air circulating in Lillianâs lungs. Vanessaâs grandfather taught her that when she was a child. When she was only seven years old, she hit her head while jumping into a pool and swallowed what felt like half the water. For nearly thirty minutes afterward, her grandfather rubbed her back, magically pushing air back into the little girlâs lungs. It was a simple lesson, but it was one Vanessa never forgot. Mind over matter. A psychological hoodwink, as it were. She used the same technique on Lillian, and within a few minutes, the girlâs hysteria had passed.
Ryan tumbled out of the darkness, in the process nearly bowling over Ayn, who leaned back, coughing hard into her clenched fist. Each fit doubled her over in pain.
âJust breathe. Youâre alright.â Ryan helped steady the girl.
âDammit, I was finally asleep, too.â She coughed. âBeen feeling like crap for days. Now this?â
âI know what you mean. I was finally alone in the bathroom, just me and my thoughts, when the place filled with smoke.â
âGross.â
âThat may be the case, but I got you to stop coughing, didnât I?â
Bernie emerged from the smoke-filled cabin. He wore a wet shirt around his head, a makeshift filter from the acrid fumes. He coughed and waved the cloud from his face. As he approached Miller, he threw the damp shirt to the deck to better take in the fresh air. âFucking thick in there, boys,â he said while clearing his throat. âFireâs out. Wasnât as bad as it looked to be honest.â
âYou sure about that?â Miller referenced the thick white smoke still pouring from the cabin. âIt doesnât look like the fireâs out from where Iâm standing.â
âPositive. The smokeâs making it look worse than it really is.â Bernie plopped down on the deck, spent. âItâll dissipate shortly. Lots of rubber and plastic down there putting off all that shit.
Download
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.
Sita - Warrior of Mithila (Book 2 of the Ram Chandra Series) by Amish(53813)
The Crystal Crypt by Dick Philip K(36429)
Cat's cradle by Kurt Vonnegut(14756)
Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han(14465)
Ready Player One by Cline Ernest(13975)
The Last by Hanna Jameson(9797)
Year One by Nora Roberts(9297)
Persepolis Rising by James S. A. Corey(8965)
The remains of the day by Kazuo Ishiguro(8379)
Never let me go by Kazuo Ishiguro(8309)
Red Rising by Pierce Brown(8255)
Dark Space: The Second Trilogy (Books 4-6) (Dark Space Trilogies Book 2) by Jasper T. Scott(7904)
The handmaid's tale by Margaret Atwood(7445)
The Circle by Dave Eggers(6829)
Frank Herbert's Dune Saga Collection: Books 1 - 6 by Frank Herbert(6710)
The Testaments by Margaret Atwood(6490)
Legacy by Ellery Kane(6387)
Pandemic (The Extinction Files Book 1) by A.G. Riddle(6180)
Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty(5824)
