road.
They were almost to the highway when the three men stood up, coming into sight from behind some bushes, and leveled rifles. They must have been watching the car from hiding, because they all aimed right at Max's face. Max didn't seem to notice them. He was still dazed from the grazing shot Jim had got against him. And he was still confused, she guessed, by her actions.
Julie twisted the wheel to the left to avoid the men's shots, but it was too late. The bullets crashed through the windshield, leaving webs all over it, and Max's head suddenly exploded like a ripe watermelon. Julie screamed and let go of the wheel.
She was gradually aware of someone standing over the door, looking down at her. When she looked up, she recognized Jed Whorely, her nearest neighbor. He had a rifle in his hands, and she recognized it as the one he had used to go hunting with Jim.
'Are there any more of them in there, Julie?' Whorely asked urgently, and she had the feeling that he had asked it more than once.
'No,' she said. 'They're all dead.'
'Too bad, in a way,' Whorely said, 'I'd like to have got a shot at them. What about…' He paused. 'What about your family?'
'My — Diane. She's in the back.' Just then Diane started to cry. Julie thought that the child must have been dazed when the car stopped so suddenly.
'No one else?' Whorely asked incredulously.
'No. Everyone else is dead.'
Whorely swore and then apologized.
'I wish we could have gotten here sooner,' he said. 'I wish we could have saved everybody. But we didn't even know anything was wrong until those two kids reached my place. I couldn't believe them, at first, but they were so fussed, I figured they must be telling the truth. Well, at least we saved you, Julie. At least you're still alive.'
'Yes,' Julie said numbly. 'I managed to stay alive, didn't I?'
