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As I watched it see the eency vehicles, Jared had taken out the ao about our journey My ht up with the events, but ht you said not to kill theun back in the seat and peered into the rearview mirror "I hope they’re not dead"

He picked up his phone and held it to his ear "Claire They’re shel ing I need backup" He snapped the phone shut, and then pushed the phone under his thigh

"Is she co?"

He nodded once "They all are We just have to get to theas The speedohty-five, then ninety-five The engine screaet us closer to his sister

"Maybe we lost them," I said, more to comfort myself than to convince my husband

Jared reached his hand across the console and gripped it around mine We were vulnerable, and he knew it Any huhter, and all color left his face

"I can’t decide if I should turn off the highway to a road that’s less traveled, or stay and cut down on time"

"This particular stretch didn’t seeet lucky It’s the cities I’m worried about"

We passed only a car or two over the next tenin the distance, I tensed and waited Each time the car would pass without so much as a wave, and the adrenaline would absorb back intoto feel sick and dizzy after an hour, but I knee couldn’t stop

"They’re up to so to focus as far out as he could to see any i before we meet Claire?"

"I don’t knohen they left I’ the time of the cal and how fast Claire drives, I would say less than an hour

Maybe half that"

I nodded quickly, trying to make myself feel better "Thirty minutes We can hold on for thirty minutes What could they possible throw at us that we couldn’t handle for that long?"

Jared didn’t speak for a solid minute while he studied the road ahead When he final y focused on a tiny dot in the distance, his face fel , and his breath caught "Oh, my God"

I knew my human eyes wouldn’t have been able to ave , dark blots on the road, dancing against the heat off the asphalt, barreled toward us

It wasn’t until I tried to for open "What do we do?"

Jared released my hand and reached under the seat He offered un, and then put both hands on the wheel

A caravan of Are supply truck moved toward us at ful speed The back of the truck reed tarp

"You’ve got to be kidding," I said, breathless

"They’re probably on their way to Fort Story," Jared said

"I don’t care where they’re going This is why things have been so quiet, Jared Hel knew about that caravan and planned to shel them the second they crossed our path You have to leave the road"

"They’l just fol ow"

I sighed in frustration, and then looked down at my watch "Maybe they aren’t armed"

"That FMTV transport has an aret close enough"

I turned to him and tried a nervous smile "Please don’t"

Jared returnedthe wheel He pressed on the gas I wasn’t sure what he had decided, but he had a plan It was possible that the drivers of those trucks wouldn’t shel at allWe could pass them without a problem like we had the previous ten or so vehicles

That, of course, was just e deep inside my bones Every one of those soldiers had already turned

Chapter Fourteen

The Most I

The jeep passed first, and then the Humvees I was just about to all ow myself hope when the transport truck jerked into our lane Jared didn’t twitch; he just drove faster The needle on the speedoripped the door handle so tight that my knuckles turned white under the pressure I trusted that Jared had a plan, but at the sa down the road to meet an arood idea toon, sweetheart," Jared said, his voice low "When I get out, take the wheel"

"When you get out?" I said, instantly panicked

In a raphed, 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 Ar noises, but I was focused on grabbing the wheel and getting h 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 arently to the ground I counted eleven round, all of them unconscious

Jared’s eyesthe 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 e, traveling at a speed eable only to Earth’s most badass Hybrid

I turned the wheel and sto 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 shel s 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"

"Wil they come after us after they wake up?"

"It’s possible," Jared said, turning around "Faster, honey"

The jeeps and Huured if ere lucky ould reach Claire when the Arht up to us

Jared leaned out theand aiun clicked, and he popped out the clip He leaned into the back seat and pul ed out a bag, dropping it to the passenger floorboard It was ful of auns

"Where the hel did that come from?"

"Claire helpedhis top half out the