Chapter 4 - The Roar of the NightThe trench-coated man's words hung in the air like toxic smoke. “She told you to protect her from you.”
Lucas didn't ask questions. Ten years of living as a quiet mechanic in a forgotten town hadn't dulled the lethal instincts of a man who once led the Sons of Ash. He didn't wait for the man to pull his hand out of his coat.
Slam!
With a lightning-fast motion, Lucas kicked the edge of the lightweight wooden table. It flipped violently, crashing straight into the chest of the man in the trench coat. In the same breath, he grabbed Emily’s wrist, lifting her effortlessly with one arm.
“Run!”
Gunfire erupted. Not one, but two deafening cracks. The man shot right through the tabletop, but Lucas had already thrown himself and the girl behind the heavy counter. Glass shattered as the display cases exploded, showering them in shards. The widow running the diner shrieked and dove under the cash register.
“Hold on to me!” Lucas roared over the chaos.
He shoved Emily through the diner's back exit, bursting into the pitch-black, rain-slicked parking lot. His Harley-Davidson—a 1200cc beast of iron and steel—sat waiting. Lucas shoved the key into the ignition. The engine roared to life, tearing the night apart and drowning out a third gunshot that slammed into a nearby truck tire.
The man in the trench coat stumbled out of the back door. Under the sweep of the Harley’s headlight, his face was fully illuminated: a jagged scar ran from his temple to his jaw, and his eyes carried the cloudy, grey hue of a man without a soul. He didn’t chase them on foot. Instead, he raised a suppressed shotgun, aiming directly at Emily’s back.
Lucas slammed the throttle. The rear tire tore into the wet asphalt, kicking up a blinding wall of water. The bike launched into the black rain just as a slug grazed the shoulder of his leather vest, leaving a smoking, acrid tear.
May you like
The freezing wind and torrential rain whipped ruthlessly against their faces. Emily clung to Lucas's waist, burying her head into his back, her entire body shaking violently. Lucas checked his rearview mirror. Two piercing headlights from a black SUV had materialized in the distance, tearing down the road at breakneck speed.
They wouldn't stop. Helena was dead, and Emily was the only thing left.
Related Stories
