Deeper than the Night - By Amanda Ashley Page 0,80
tossed the gun on the seat.
She heard him groan softly, heard the rattle of the chain, as he reached under the dash to hot wire the car. Moments later, the engine coughed to life. He didn't turn the lights on until they were well away from the lab.
In a haze, she watched the faint white line in the center of the road. This was a nightmare. That was the only explanation. In a few minutes, she'd wake to the sound of Nana's voice scolding her for sleeping so late, then Gail would come running in, begging to go to a movie with Cherise, or to McDonald's for dinner when Kara got home from work. Ordinary things. Everyday things . . .
They passed a small wooden sign.
LEAVING SILVERDALE, it read.DRIVE SAFELY.
Silverdale. She had no idea where it was.
After a time, she became aware that the truck was slowing down. She glanced at Alex, felt the pain of his wounds as if they were her own, and knew he was on the verge of losing consciousness.
A moment later, she grabbed the wheel as he slumped toward her.
Chapter Twenty-three
Kara pulled the truck off the road. Putting the gear shift in park, she slipped out of her gown, wondering how she'd turn the engine off without the key. Tearing the flimsy garment into strips, she bandaged Alex's arm, then made a thick pad and pressed it over the wound in his shoulder, tying it in place with another strip of cloth. That done, she removed the heavy collar and chain from his neck and tossed them out the window.
She felt Alex's forehead, wondering if it felt hotter than usual. Fumbling on the dash, she turned on the heater, then put the truck in gear and pulled onto the narrow two-lane road once more. She drove with no destination in mind. She didn't know where they were, didn't know where to go for help. She couldn't go home, even if she knew which direction to go, couldn't check Alex into a hospital even if she could find one. The road was deserted. Not so much as a gas station or a telephone.
She imagined pulling into a gas station and asking for help, grimacing as she pictured the reception they'd get.
She considered turning around. Maybe there was a town behind her. Maybe she should try and find a cop. Too bad she didn't know where to find a donut shop, or a police station. She felt a bubble of hysterical laughter rise in her throat as she pictured herself walking into some small-town precinct, stark naked, and telling them that she had escaped from a mad doctor who wanted to get rich selling alien blood to wealthy sick people.
She tried to rouse Alex, but he was unconscious. Or dead.
No! She put her hand over his heart, relieved by the faint but steady rise and fall of his chest. He was alive, thank God. Not knowing where else to turn, she murmured a prayer, begging for help, for a place to hide until Alex was better. She was hungry and tired and afraid, so afraid.
And then, as if in answer to her prayer, she saw a rustic cabin off the side of the road. In the moonlight, it looked like a fairy-tale cottage. Snow White's house, she thought, or maybe Piglet's. It was a pretty little place, located on the edge of a small lake.
"Thank you, Lord." She whispered the words over and over again as she pulled off the road, put the truck in park, and set the brake.
Opening the door, she slipped out of the truck and went to look in one of the windows. Shivering with the cold, she walked around the cabin. She found a note on the front door. Ripping it free, she carried it back to the truck, squinting to read it in the headlights.
Lucy, Tried to get hold of you, but you'd already left. Something came up at work and I had to go back to the city. Stay if you want. Will call you next weekend. Randy.
Below that, was another scrawl.
Randy, Sorry we missed each other. Call me at work next Friday. Phil's getting suspicious. Will call you before then if I can. Love, Lucy.
Crumpling the note in her hand, Karatried the door. It was locked. She frowned for a moment, then ran her hand over the ledge above the door. Nothing. She glanced at the flower pot sitting on the porch, then grinnedas she lifted it and found