Page 15 of Claimed by the Fallen
I flail and twist, trying any tactic to free myself. Glass digs into my skin, but I ignore it. Despite my efforts, nothing works. My panic escalates, and I have to plant my feet firmly apart to keep myself from being pulled out of thewindow.
What kind of beast am I dealing with? It definitely isn’t human, but I’m unable to think of a single a creature who has such dexterity in its limbs and fingers. The closest thing I can come up with is an ape or monkey, but those animals don’t live in Texas. They, also, don’t have gross, black, scaly skin. I gag when its scent fills my nostrils. It smells like both burnt and rottenfood.
I’m thrown toward the driver’s side as Joey jerks the wheel to the right. My rib hits the middle console painfully, but I don’t have time to dwell on my pain. The creature still has a hold of me. Though, it feels looser thanbefore.
Joey straightens out the vehicle, cursing obscenities andshouting.
I attempt to pry the fingers off again. I succeed with one, but it immediately presses back against my arm. I throw my body from side to side, forcing it to adjust, then re-adjust, itsgrip.
I holler in triumph when I manage to force all of the bony fingers off of my arm. I wrap both of my hands around the creature’s wrist and lock my elbows to hold the limb as far from me aspossible.
I hear a loud, guttural sound coming from outside the window. The creature ispissed.
Bile rises in my throat as I feel the muscles in the arm move beneath my fingers. The texture is eerie andfrightening.
A hornhonks.
I look away from the arm and see a large truck heading right towardsus.
I don’t have time to scream before Joey turns the wheel. This time, however, he isn’t able to correct themove.
The Corolla spins out, and I release the creature’s wrist to brace myself against the sides of the car. We drive off the road, sliding down the hillside. I’m unable to make out the scenery until the back of the car crashes into a concrete barricade, preventing us from driving into the ditch at the bottom of thehill.
My head whips forward, but I’m forced backwards by the deployment of theairbags.
I see stars, and my vision blurs. I think I see a large mass fly off the roof and into a nearby field. Before I can confirm the sight, my mind loses its battle withconsciousness.
Six
The smellof pine trees and lemon tickles my nostrils. Recognizing the aroma of the air freshener, I scrunch my face and try to lift my hand to scratch my nose. But I can’t. My limbs feel like an iron anchor. They’re impossible to move without help. My head is pounding, and my throat and chest feel like they’ve been hit by atruck.
The memory of the oncoming truck jolts my memory. My eyes fly open and I lean forward, but I immediately regret the act. My eyes are sore, and it’s a struggle to keep them from falling closed again. The back of my head lands on the headrest. I stare up at the visor in front of my seat, trying to breathe through my pain. I will myself to not pass out again. No doubt, I have a concussion, and rule number one about concussions is to not fallasleep.
Movement on the other side of the cracked window draws my attention. I squint, doing my best to ignore my throbbing skull. Through the webbed glass, I see a shadow slink towards the vehicle. The person seems to be limping. It’s not until the shadow creeps five feet closer that I realize it is the creature that had jumped on theroof.
I shriek on instinct. Forgetting my aching body and powering through my heavy limbs, I struggle to unbuckle my seatbelt. In the process, my eyes fly to the driver’s seat. I see Joey slumped over the wheel. His airbag had deployed, but there is a trail of blood running down his temple where he must have hit thewindow.
“Joey?” I croak. My windpipe sounds like its crushed. I reach over and shake his arm. He doesn’t react. His body is totallylimp.
I look back and see the slinking beast has drawn evencloser.
Terrified, I search the car for anything that might help me fight off the creature. I refuse to be a sitting duck, but I’m frustrated to see there is nothing for me to use. Other than my cell phone, which is surprisingly still connected to the auxiliary cable, the floorboards are bare of everything except broken glass. I’m cursing the fact the car is brand-new when I spot a palm-sized shard underneath theglovebox.
I snatch the glass, hissing when it slices into my hand, but I don’t put it down. Right now, it’s all I have to defend us from whatever monster is responsible for this mess in the firstplace.
When I look back at the creature, it is nowhere to be seen. My pulse spikes. My breathing is ragged, and I frantically search all around the car. I don’t see anything other than the grassy hill and surroundingtrees.
The passenger door is ripped off its hinges. I scream. I’m yanked out of the car, and it feels like my right shoulder dislocates. I cry out in agony, and I drop the shard of glass. But that doesn’t stop me from winding my left arm back and swinging it forward to punch the monster’sface.
A sickening crunch fills the air, but I can’t tell if the sound came from its face or my knuckles. Normally, I wear boxing gloves and only punch wall pads or punching bags. I’m not used to hitting actual skin andbone.
The creature bellows. I don’t know if he’s hurt or justirritated.
My eyes grow wide and my mouth opens in a scream when I see two rows of sharp teeth. The creature snaps at me, but I rear back in time to avoid being bitten. I use my weight to try and throw it off balance. It doesn’t work. I’mscrewed.
“Help,” I croak. Then, I shout, “HELP!” There is no one around to hear me, and I don’t hear any cars on the roadabove.
The creature yanks my arm and I grit my teeth against the pain. It pulls me to its chest, and I gag when I smell its gross, burnt flesh. I stare at its face and note an ugly, flat nose and bulging red eyes. Four, short horns extend from its skull. Whatever I’m looking at, I’ve never seenbefore.
