CHAPTER 7

“Is that someone in the road?” asked Sarah.

“It can’t be. Who’d be dumb enough to go walking in this mess?” Jason replied, as he moved forward in his seat and squinted.

But as they drew closer, it quickly became evident that the thing in the road was indeed a woman. A woman running with a limp through the pouring rain out in the middle of nowhere.

“Guys. Wake up. Something’s going on out here,” said Jason.

The three in back opened their eyes and stretched as best they could in the cramped quarters. “What’s up, man?” asked Zach. Half a second after he asked, he saw her. She was being chased by three large men who were closing fast. “We gotta help her, Jason! Pull over and I’ll pull her in!”

“What are those guys doing?” cried Sarah, more out of fear than actual curiosity. No one replied, as it was plain to see that their intentions weren’t good, whatever they might be.

Zach switched seats with Rachel who moved onto Rennay’s lap to make room.

The panicked girl running down the road was waving her arms frantically to get them to slow down for her. The whites of her eyes were big and clear as stars in a pitch black sky.

“She’s covered in blood! What the hell is going on here?” Rachel was in tears. Nothing like this ever happened outside of horror movies, and she didn’t like those at all.

“Stay cool everyone,” said Jason. “Almost there…almost there…go, Zach!”

Sarah watched three large, hateful-looking men running toward them as Zach slung his door open to pull the blood-covered girl into the car. He grabbed her arm and jerked so hard he thought it might come off. The screaming girl’s head fell into Rachel’s lap as Zach slammed the door shut behind her and yelled, “Go! Go! Go! Go!” Jason obliged by pushing heavily on the accelerator as the first, and largest, of the three hillbillies reached the car. The grizzly-looking man punched the driver’s side window and smashed it into a million pieces and then tried to get a hold of Jason. But Jason leaned away and soon they were moving too quickly to be caught.

Three gunshots rang out and all heads inside the Explorer ducked down. At least one of the bullets hit the rear of the vehicle, filling it with frightened cries.

“Is everyone alright?” asked Jason, his eyes just peering over the top of the steering wheel. He turned first to Sarah, then scanned the others in the rear-view mirror.

No one responded, so he tried again, “Did anyone get hit?” Stunned faces moved side to side to his relief, and under his breath he muttered, “Thank god.”

Behind them the hillbillies were running back to the gas station, where Jason noticed an old pick-up truck parked. He had no doubts that this was far from over.