Xenome: A Science Fiction Thriller (Standalone Book) by Vivek Pravat

Author:Vivek Pravat [Pravat, Vivek]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-08-04T16:00:00+00:00

18. David

The adrenaline high that had carried her so far was wearing off, leaving her shaking like a leaf in the wind. Her ribs ached from the beating they had received. Holly sat down on the footsteps of a building—a different one—and waited for the shivers to go away.

Who was that man, and why had he come here? Did he have a family? Kids? He spoke so casually about killing her. Still, she felt relieved that it wasn’t she who had to pull the trigger. She didn’t believe she could shoot someone in cold blood, even if that someone had tried to kill her moments ago.

I’m not cut out for this. The incident at Alotau should have been warning enough. I’m an academic, not Indiana Jones. To think David and I were almost gone from this place when—

David!

The thought of him spurred her into action. Holly rose, stretched her limbs, and set off at a brisk trot. To her astonishment, her watch said it was 8:50 am. Had it been just two hours since she woke up?

Holly was walking past the water tank when she glimpsed a car in the distance. It was coming from the village. She stopped. Perhaps it was David. Please, please, let it be David.

Or it could be someone else.

Quickly turning around, she ran back and ducked into an opening between two buildings. The narrow space was littered with empty plastic barrels. She crouched behind them and eyed the road through the gaps. If it was friend, she was close enough to run and hail the car, and if it was foe…

How would she even know? She realized she recognized no more than a handful of faces in Adrian’s crew.

Better safe than sorry.

The sound of the engine drew closer. However, instead of speeding by, the car slowed down and then stopped just before it entered her field of view.

Crap.

A door opened and closed shut. Someone had climbed out and was standing no more than a few feet from her, concealed by the building on her left. A man, judging by the shadow his torso cast on the road. He let out a soft cough.

She tensed, preparing herself for whatever was coming next. Then a voice laced with amusement said, “Dr. Truong, as much as I’d like to play hide and seek with you, now is not the time.”

Shaw.

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