Grip of Deceit: A Post-Apocalyptic EMP Survival Thriller (After the End Book 1) by Sam J Fires

Author:Sam J Fires [Fires, Sam J]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Fire & Brimstone Press
Published: 2023-06-21T16:00:00+00:00

“I’ll be back at three.” Her mom had told her as she dropped her off.

She could still remember the feeling of triumph that morning as she’d slipped from the car to enter the school gates. It had felt so right to be there. Like she was finally gaining some control over her life. Four more years and her life would fully be hers. She’d be at college, studying criminal justice and living on her own. Without her parents or sister to boss her about.

Her steps had carried her into the school’s gym, where the secretary had smiled brightly at her whilst checking her in, handing her a folder of papers and directing her toward a group.

Holly couldn’t remember when she’d first seen him or if she’d even noticed him at all. She’d been too lost in the excitement.

“You look ready to learn.” He’d said to her with a wink she’d thought nothing of.

She’d smiled at him with barely a glance in his direction, clutching the folder they’d given her to her chest. She’d nodded politely, her eyes momentarily catching on his badge. Then they whisked her away, all thoughts of him falling from her mind.

It was less than thirty seconds that she had spent in his company. With nothing more than a distracted nod, she had scarcely acknowledged him. In the days, weeks, and years to come, she would comb over this moment searching for any signs of what was to come. Of what he would do to her in just a few hours. Of how he would destroy her life. But there were no clues, no matter how hard she looked, no matter from what angle she examined the facts. Nothing stood out to her.

She was wearing faded jeans shorts and a baggy t-shirt. The top had been her sister’s and was still too big on Holly’s thin frame. Her converse shoes were scuffed and covered in dirt and her hair had been pulled into a braid that hung down her back. She looked younger than her fourteen years.

She remembered his smile as he asked her if she could help him with something. Thinking nothing of it, she followed him.

Callused hands on her shoulders led her away from the others. His pine scent, sharp and overwhelming, lingered in the air. He took her to a dark closet, dusty and forgotten, with old gym mats that let up a cloud of dust when he forced her down. Tears in her eyes as his hand smothered her mouth, cutting off her sobs and cries.

Then came the pain. A never-ending, biting pain. A heaviness unlike anything she’d ever felt. That feeling of wrongness as his hot breath had dampened the hair next to her ear.

If he’d said anything, she couldn’t remember. From the moment his heavy hands had landed on her shoulders in the hallway, her mind had panicked. She remembered his fingers digging into her shoulder, that left bruises she would stare at for the days to come.

He was an officer of the law.

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