Page 108 of Turn the Tide
Chapter 7
Sarah held tight to Marco’s back as they raced through the mud. His calm competence and steady presence eased her worry for Donny, if not her misery. Even with the poncho, the water seemed to be everywhere, running down her neck, soaking her legs, making her shiver. She tried not to jump every time a clap of thunder sounded, but she couldn’t seem to help it. Wind whipped the trees, and more than one sapling blew down as they sped past.
Marco stopped again to consult the ziplock bag in which he’d secured Mama T’s handwritten map. “Shouldn’t be too much farther.”
Sarah nodded and held on, her head tucked behind his shoulder to block the driving rain, her medical bag strapped on behind her. She wouldn’t close her eyes. Every time she did, horrific images of what Freddie might be doing to Donny made her want to throw up. She had to believe he wouldn’t hurt his own son, or she wouldn’t be able to keep it together.
Marco picked up the pace, and she wrapped her arms more securely around his middle, wrists locked together. She’d given up trying to hold on to the slippery poncho. Besides, right now, he was the only solid and true thing in the midst of Mother Nature’s fury and a world suddenly gone crazy.
The bike started leaning to one side and she followed Marco’s lead, having learned to follow his body’s movements into the turns. They raced through a huge puddle in the dirt road, and she braced herself to be hit with another wall of water. Suddenly, the bike slammed into something below the surface. As they were thrown forward, Sarah was sure they were about to fly over the handlebars. Instead, the bike went airborne and flipped end over end and the world flew by in a dizzying whirl. She locked her arms tighter around Marco’s middle right as he shouted, “Hold on!”
As they spun crazily, the seconds separated into what felt like super-slow motion. Sarah felt the rain in her face, Marco’s muscles tightening under her locked arms, the pounding of her heart. She braced for impact as the bike crashed into the muddy ground.
Marco jerked them sharply to the side at the last second and kicked his legs out, trying to keep the bike from landing on them. They hit the mud with a thump and then slid across the ground before slamming into a huge tree.
Sarah heard a pop, and then the world went black.
