Exodus (Mark of the Beast Book 1) by M. R. Parsons

Author:M. R. Parsons [Parsons, M. R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: M. R. Parsons Books, LLC.
Published: 2023-11-24T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter seventeen

CRASH

Berto had seen enough films to realize he was in a time loop. He didn’t know how many iterations of his parents’ last hours he had gone through. Years, probably. But he didn’t know—he didn’t even remember if there was a time before the time loop.

The only thing that mattered was getting out of the loop. In the films, there was always something off in the protagonist’s life—something wrong. And the day was repeated until the hero set it right. For Berto, the thing that was off was easy to determine—his parents’ deaths.

The only problem was—I can never save them.

He thought if only he could stop them from driving to the park. Stop them from taking Scenic Drive; maybe they would live.

But nothing Berto did accomplished that. No amount of persuasion was enough to dissuade their path. No begging could prevent his mother from carrying him to the car and buckling him into the booster seat. No kicking or screaming could turn the car around.

A few iterations prior, Berto had thought he was on the right track; he’d sensed a presence—somebody who didn’t belong in this place. When the red-haired Syndroid was delayed in killing his mother, Berto’s heart leaped.

But she showed up, same as always, only a minute postponed. And, as usual, she crushed Berto’s mother’s head, turned to him, and nearly killed him before a glowing yellow crater appeared in the redhead’s face. As with every other iteration, Berto had just enough time to see the aging Viking goddess that killed his attacker seconds too late to save his mother.

The next time, the Syndroid was on time.

And the time after that.

And a couple more times.

Now he was starting over again. It always started the same. Not upon waking and opening his eyes to the morning sunshine. Not at some breaking point throughout the day. But midbite into a bowl of Frosted Flakes—on more than one occasion, he had nearly choked when the loop reset.

Berto always finished the bowl now. His body felt smaller than it should be, like he was ready to explode out of it. But he had a massive appetite and found if he didn’t eat, he’d be even hungrier on the next iteration. Plus, his mom scolded him if he refused to eat.

“You finished that quickly!” his mother said, scooping the empty bowl off the table.

It was the best part of his day—the hours before the drive his mother always spent with him. It brought joy to his heart yet was always overshadowed by her upcoming death. Many iterations ago, he’d cherished that his mother would rise again with each loop, but now he just wanted the pain to stop.

“Thanks; I was famished.”

“Famished? That’s a big word. Did you learn it from Sesame Street?”

Oops. Berto had forgotten that he needed to limit his vocabulary so as not to freak out his parents. He nodded and mumbled. “Big Bird.”

“What do you want to do today?”

“Can we go to the zoo?” It was a question he’d asked a hundred times, but he hoped against hope the answer would be different this time.

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