“When you get out?” I said, instantly panicked.
In a move that was so smooth it seemed choreographed, Jared swerved to the right and jerked the wheel again in a nearly perfect half-circle around the Army truck. As the Tundra spun off the road, Jared opened the door and stepped out, shooting directly at the Army truck’s tires. I heard several popping noises, but I was focused on grabbing the wheel and getting my foot on the break. Although I was terrified, the move was effortless, and before I had time to be afraid, the Tundra had come to a stop on the shoulder.
I peeked over the steering wheel to see the truck skidded to a stop, all of its tires blown. Jared held one of the soldiers in the crook of his arm. The soldier went limp, and Jared lowered him gently to the ground. I counted eleven men on the ground, all of them unconscious.
Jared’s eyes met mine, and then he looked behind him, noticing the other vehicles circling around. He took off in a sprint, pointing behind me. I turned to see two shiny dots in the distance. I squinted, focusing in on the objects, and made out a motorcycle and a black sports car. It was Claire’s Exige, traveling at a speed manageable only to Earth’s most badass Hybrid.
I turned the wheel and stomped on the gas, picking Jared up along the way. My foot was flush against the floorboard as we raced toward our family.
Jared had barely broken a sweat.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“Yes. The shells don’t have the strength of demons because they don’t have the same hold on them that they do when they take the time to possess. I didn’t want to kill them, so I incapacitated them.”
“Will they come after us after they wake up?”
“It’s possible,” Jared said, turning around. “Faster, honey.”
The jeeps and Humvees were gaining ground, and with a quick calculation, I figured if we were lucky we would reach Claire when the Army vehicles caught up to us.
Jared leaned out the window and aimed at the tires of the first Jeep. His gun clicked, and he popped out the clip. He leaned into the back seat and pulled out a bag, dropping it to the passenger floorboard. It was full of ammo and handguns.
“Where the hell did that come from?”
“Claire helped me pack.” He shoved another clip into his gun and flung his top half out the window.
He got off only a few more shots before ducking back inside. The Exige swerved to one side of the road, and Bex’s motorcycle went to the other, creating a clear path for us. I looked to my right, and everything went from hypersonic, to a snail’s pace. Claire came into view, and half of her mouth was pulled up into a smile. She winked. Ryan was in the passenger seat, showing me his fist. His index finger and pinky was up, and his mouth was open, his tongue hanging out.
When they passed, I pulled off to the side of the road and made a wide turn. One of the soldiers manned the Tourette of one of the jeeps, aiming in Bex’s direction.
“What should I do?”
Jared reached over and turned off the ignition. “We wait.”
Claire drove until she was behind the caravan, and then flipped around, pulling alongside one of the Jeeps. Her tiny arm appeared outside her window, gun in hand. She pulled the trigger once, shooting out the front tire. The Jeep swerved out of control, and then cartwheeled toward the Tundra.
“Jared?”
My husband held my hand. “It’s fine.”
The Jeep continued to roll at us, end over end..
“Jared!”
I pulled the keys from his hand and shoved the keys in the ignition, and then paused as I watched the Jeep skid on its side and come to a halt inches away from our bumper. My heart started beating again and a puff of air escaped my lungs.
Gunfire drew my attention down the road. The Exige fell behind what was left of the caravan, driving strangely straight and at a decent speed for a moment before Claire popped out of the passenger side, In the next moment, Bex was next to her on his Ducati. As if they’d practiced the move a million times, Claire jumped onto the back of Bex’s bike — backward — with two guns.
Bex pumped his wrist, and the motorcycle took off like a rocket. Claire’s platinum hair whipped into her face while she took out another Jeep’s tires, but the soldier on the next Jeep began firing on them.
Bex maneuvered close to the Jeep and then he jumped off his bike high in the air, flipped, and landed sure- footed behind the soldier. After a short scuffle, the soldier flew off the Jeep and rolled onto the shoulder. Claire flipped around and drove the bike next to a Humvee, punching through the class and pulling the driver from his seat and into the road. The Humvee fishtailed and then rolled six times, finally slamming into a tree.
Claire skidded the bike to a stop, and then hopped off of it, pulling the remaining soldiers out of the Humvee. She checked each for a pulse, then picked the Ducati off the ground and pushed it to the Tundra. Ryan slowed the Exige to a stop just a few feet away, and then got out.
“Glad this is fun for you,” I said.
Ryan’s eyes immediately fell to my stomach. “Whoa, Nigh, how long were you gone? You look ready to pop.”
I rolled my eyes, and then my eyes drifted behind Ryan, to the Jeep approaching slowly. The Jeep parked, and then Bex stepped out, frowning at Claire. “Did you scratch it?”
Claire shrugged. “It’ll buff out.”
The scene behind them looked like the aftermath of war.
“Should we call an ambulance?” I asked.
“I already did,” Ryan said, crossing his arms across his chest.
Claire fiddled with her hair, knotting it into a bun. “They won’t remember anything, so we should move out before any of them come to.” She handed Jared a set of keys. “The Escalade is good to go. You can pick it up at Mom’s.”
Jared wrapped his arm around Claire’s head, trapping her in the crook of his arm, and then gave her a quick kiss on the head. “Thanks, kid.”
Claire pulled away with a smile, waving him away dismissively. “We were bored, anyway.”
Jared punched Bex in the arm. “Nice moves, little brother.”
Bex lifted his chin and smiled. “I’m a beast. Wait ‘til we get to Jerusalem.”
Jared and I returned to the Tundra, with him back in the driver’s seat. In a caravan of our own, we returned to Providence. The Exige behind us, the Ducati in front, we raced home. Sandwiched between my brother and sister, I felt at ease, completely different from an hour before. I leaned back and took a deep, relaxing breath. Jared smiled and reached his hand across the console. We intertwined our fingers, and I watched the different terrain pass by my window, unfazed by what might be ahead. I knew I was safe, and in that moment, that meant everything.
Just after sunset, we pulled into Lillian’s drive. Bex pulled into the yard, and held the door open for me. Claire was next, and she and Ryan walked together up the sidewalk. They were elbowing each other and smiling, still happy and excited. Ryan didn’t seem affected in the least, and it was at that moment that I knew they were truly meant for each other.
Jared patted Bex on the shoulder as he walked by, and then took my hand, guiding me into the dining room. Lillian was expecting us, and the table was already set. She brought out a large plate of brisket, and placed it in the middle of the table. Claire disappeared into the kitchen, and Bex followed.
Lillian pulled the oven mitts from her hands, and then wrapped her arms around my neck. “Look at you! Darling, you look wonderful! How do you feel?”
“Big,” I said, only half-kidding.
“It doesn’t take long,” she said. Her smile was as warm and bright as the sun.
Lillian had always made me feel so loved and welcome. I was sad that she wouldn’t be there for Bean’s birth.
“Oh,” she said, touching my cheek. “What is it?”
“We’re leaving soon.”
She offered a comforting smile. “I know. But the next time I see you, you won’t just be my favorite daughter-
