EMP Catastrophe - Hamilton, Grace (best books to read for beginners txt) 📗

had on his shoulder. Dodging a second punch, Max leapt backwards and shoved a display case advertising healthy kale chip options at Eric. Flashlights clattered to the floor. Max snatched one up.

Eric looked thunderous and tried to follow him. “I was trying to be nice to you. What did I get in return? My face smashed in!”

Max backpedaled, and pushed over another display case full of chips. As he did so, he grabbed a package and stuffed it in his bag. It looked like Eric was going to come after him no matter what. If they were going to destroy the store in this fight, he might as well take what he could get. All of his morals had been tossed to the winds, but if Eric got the upper hand, Max would be beaten unconscious and dragged back to prison. He couldn’t let that happen. Stealing food seemed like a drop in the bucket compared to all the bad things he’d done so far. In for a penny, he thought and dodged when Eric lunged for him.

He grabbed a handful of tins displaying salted almonds and threw them at Eric, while stuffing a few in his bag. Eric snarled and tried to ram into him, but Max bolted under his reaching arms and skittered into another aisle. He tried to blind Eric with the flashlight.

“You’re worthless,” Eric shouted as he failed again to grab Max. “Your family must be so ashamed of you.”

That hurt more than Max cared to admit. “I’m sorry I hurt you,” he called out to Eric as they played keep-away around a display of bottled water. “I couldn’t let myself die. The rest of the guards were disappearing. I had to get out.” He threw a bottle of water at Eric and piled some into his backpack.

“It’s no wonder you were in prison. Once I drag your sorry ass back, I hope Colin beats you senseless,” Eric said, nearly grabbing Max’s wrist. “At first I thought you were a good guy who’d gotten in way over his head, but now I see you’re just another deadbeat stabbing everyone in the back.”

Max shoved over another display case. A candle caught and guttered out on a candy wrapping. Other customers cried out in surprise at what he’d done. At this point, his bag was becoming really heavy. He darted into another aisle, and realized he’d danced himself into a trap.

He stood in a corner between a line of refrigerated drinks and a room marked “Employees Only.” The front door seemed miles away. He realized he’d somehow gotten farther into the store instead of closer to the front and freedom. The same feeling of being a dog caught in a too-small cage filled him. Eric gave him a smug smile and lunged for him.

Max whipped around and yanked on the Employees Only door, discovering it was actually a back room exit. He could smell the scents of an alleyway and old garbage. The smells of freedom. He frantically slipped outside even as Eric grabbed at his bag, caught one of the loops, and yanked back hard. Max pulled on his bag for a moment, stuck in a new game of tug-of-war, and then slammed the door against Eric’s wrists. Eric howled in pain. The arm retreated. Max shut the door and tried wedging a metal bar through the handle before taking off into the night.

He ran for dear life. His backpack thumped against his shoulders. His breath came in wheezes. He knew he was fast, but he didn’t know who else could be with Eric or who else might be chasing him. He wanted to put as much space between him and the store as possible.

Max leapt around a series of cars and headed toward the interstate, running until his legs finally gave out. He collapsed against a silver Mazda next to the interstate’s on-ramp. Crouching against the car, he tried to slow his breathing. Fear nearly paralyzed him. He listened hard, dreading to hear someone following him. Soon, his breathing became steadier and his lungs didn’t burn as much. Closing his eyes, he wished he had a drink of water and then remembered all the stolen goods in his bag.

He yanked out one of the plastic bottles and downed half of it in one go. Then he pulled out the map and traced the route he needed to take with his finger. He figured it would be a hundred and fifty miles to walk. Not ideal, but it wasn’t outside the realm of imagination. Max could do it. He’d kept himself fit, and while walking would take him some time, he would be trying to put as much ground as possible between himself, the cartel and the guards.

He looked up into the night sky again and wondered what Kathleen would think when he showed up on her doorstep. She’d been furious at him when she learned about his crimes, but after her last visit, he had started to feel that there was a connection between them again. He almost felt as though he had his sister back. She wouldn’t shun him. This was a special circumstance. He’s be able to explain everything.

His family would welcome him with open arms. That, he would take to the bank.

11

Matthew stood up with a groan and stretched his aching muscles. Placing his hammer and nails on the ground, he tore off the work gloves that he’d found in the cellar and flexed his stiff fingers. He looked back toward the hotel and felt a surge of pride followed by another wave of fatigue.

The last few days had been exhausting as the Riley family fortified their hotel. Matthew had worked from dawn until dusk on a myriad of projects around the property, from reinforcing the existing fence to inspecting moldy wallpaper to rebuilding the front door. Each night, he would collapse in bed next to Kathleen and immediately fall into a dreamless sleep. Then he would wake up disoriented and groggy