“What the hell am I doing!” The driver shouted at himself as he sped his van away from the gas station. Despite his very loud inner conflict, he kept his eyes on the helicopters, now mere dots over the horizon. Sure, he was essentially throwing his chances of escape out the window and risking his life for people he didn’t really know, but something inside him just wouldn’t let up. Maybe it was the voice of his dearly departed mother smacking him with the TV guide, saying, “Now I don’t wanna see you letting no girls come to harm, understand? You gonna be a proper gentleman!” Or perhaps he felt obligated to that Cailin girl for saving his life back there. Of all of them, she seemed like the most sensible. None of the others even came armed!
And the way she had stood up for him, taking charge and facing down that crazy Asian girl like some avenging angel, her pale blue eyes flashing, her long white hair billowing in the wind. Her porcelain breasts heaving within her frilly short-skirted Japanese costume…
The black man slapped himself. “Nuh-uh, no way! You don’t even know the girl! This ain’t some Hollywood movie where folks just meet and start risking their asses for each other! Well, maybe her, but she crazy! Nah, the only reason you’re doing this is cuz this whole world’s gone to sh*t and they’re the first sign of civilization you seen! Sure, they wanna kill you, but you dead out here anyway! They got choppers, they got armies. That means they got food! Supplies! Maybe a jeep!”
Suddenly, his tirade cut off as a roar filled the sky. Faster than anything he had ever seen, a long range ballistic missile streaked through the air and hit the gas station he had just left. Before the explosion even had time to mushroom, another one hit. Then another.
Two seconds later, a shockwave rocked the van, putting a crack in one of the windows.
“WHAAA-FUUUUUUUUUUGJDKSPTLQ-!” The driver yelled, ducking instinctively behind the dash. Looking back, he could see fireballs curling their way into the stratosphere. The gas station had become an instant crater. Mei had not been lying about this company not wanting to leave witnesses.
All at once, his wacky rescue attempt had lost some of its steam. Still, he kept going, maybe letting his quarry get further ahead for now. Just a bit.
“Think of the jeep, man,” he muttered to himself, his knuckles white against the wheel. “Think of the jeep.”