Lost Souls by J. Bishop (the giving tree read aloud txt) 📗

keeping her alive right now. I’ll find Mason and Mikey.” He stood, wiping his bloody hands on his jeans.

“Wait.”

He stopped.

Valerie grabbed her gun and handed it to him. “You’ll need this.”

He took it. “Thank you, Valerie.” He watched Lydia, who moaned softly. “I owe you my life.”

“You just make sure I can collect on the debt. Now go get Bradley.”

He checked the gun. “With pleasure, Valerie. With pleasure.” And he raced out of the house.

**

Mason ran, staying in the cover of the trees and following the narrow dirt road with the rutted tire marks. Hoping Bradley wasn’t too far ahead, he sent out a silent plea that he would get to Mikey in time. His shirt soaked, he held his shoulder, trying to staunch the flow of blood. His adrenaline kept him moving, though, and he pushed harder, moving faster. His vision swum, and he had to stop and hold onto a tree until the dizziness faded. Once he found his balance, he took off again. Gulping in air, he kept looking for the car or anything that would indicate Mikey’s location. Seeing a divergent path, he wondered if Bradley had stayed on the original trail. Had he driven deeper into the woods? He prayed he was on the right road.

Stumbling, he went to his knees, and almost collapsed. His shoulder throbbed, his head pounded, and he struggled to catch his breath, but wouldn’t give up. Holding a fallen tree for support, he pushed up and forced himself to focus when a shot rang out. The sound fueled him, and he ran out onto the road, knowing he wasn’t far.

Cresting a hill, he spotted the car, and ran faster. Nearing it, he saw the open trunk, but there was no sign of Mikey or Bradley.

Mason surveyed the area, looking for any sign of where they went, when another shot rang out to his left, and he heard a scream. He turned and sprinted into the woods.

**

Mikey moved as fast as she could, going deeper and deeper into the foliage, hoping to find a house or someone who could help her. Bradley fired again and she screeched when the bullet smacked the tree beside her, spraying more shards of bark. She diverted then, trying to put some distance between them, and get out of sight of Bradley. Her side ached, and she gasped for air, but kept running. Bradley would slow eventually when his physical conditioning caught up to him, and Mikey trusted her recent running with Rem would keep her moving long enough to outlast Bradley and evade his bullets.

Dodging roots and branches, she ran until she was forced to slow. Her heart was beating so fast, she worried Bradley could hear it, and he’d find her. Seeing an area with thick cover, she squatted beneath it, trying to catch her breath. Bradley had stopped firing and she didn’t hear him behind her. Had she lost him? She couldn’t be sure.

Waiting and listening, she debated what to do and where to go. She had no idea where she was or even what direction she’d come from. She’d darted around so much that she was lost. Mikey figured that was the least of her problems though, and her heart rate slowing, she took a shaky breath, ready to keep moving. Taking another look, she stepped out, ready to run, when a force hit her and knocked her to the ground. The breath left her, and she tried to scream, but hands locked around her throat, cutting off her air, and she saw Bradley on top of her, his face a menacing sneer.

“If I can’t shoot you, then I’ll strangle you.” And he squeezed.

Mikey saw stars when her oxygen flow stopped, and she grabbed at his hands, scratching at his skin, and kicked out with her feet, but Bradley was like dead weight on top of her. Panicking, and her throat burning, she flailed, fighting to breathe, and she thought of marshmallow man, and how her instructor had told her to never give up. Use everything you had to get free. Mikey recalled a tip from the class, and she grabbed at Bradley’s fingers and grabbed one, and pulled on it, yanking hard. Mikey heard a snap and Bradley cursed, pulling back, and allowing her to shift her body weight. She got an arm under his and twisted, getting him off balance. Shoving herself upward, she bucked and kicked, fighting to get out from under him. Recovering fast though, he fought to grab her throat again, and Mikey dug her fingers into the ground looking for anything to use as a weapon. Just as his fingers closed over her again, she grabbed onto something solid and swung it. It was a dead branch with a broken tip, and she slammed it into the side of his head. The blow knocked him back, and he let go of her. Coughing and sputtering, she tried to scream, but nothing emerged except a whisper.

Blood spurted from Bradley’s temple. Mikey wiggled free, and scrambled out from under him, kicking harder with her feet. Making solid contact with his legs and stomach, she prevented him from grabbing her again. He grunted when she drove a heel into his thigh, and she rolled, digging her toes into the dirt, trying to find traction, and almost standing, she lunged. A hand yanked on her ankle, though, and she went down again, and he dragged her toward him. She managed to scream, but her bruised throat muted it. Fighting and determined not to let him win, she thrashed and flailed and he grunted and cursed, but his size and strength gave him the edge. He grabbed her arm, reared back a hand and slapped her, and she went face down in the dirt, her head spinning, and her hands grasping at the leaves and roots. Pulling on her, he turned her back over, and his hands found her throat again, and she knew then that he’d won. She was going