Free Heart of Annihilation by C.R. Asay

and stared down at my open palms. My nerves pulled taut. Tingling voltage raced into my fingers. I suppose I could go to the police. There was a certain amount of security at the thought. They were the heroes of our urban world, the ones you went to when you had a problem such as this. And Justet was delusional.
    That shivery, electrical feeling crawled through my hands. A delicate blue thread of light leapt between my finger and thumb. I shoved my hands between my knees.
    I was delusional too.
    “What about the commander?” Thurmond suggested.
    My stomach twisted, remembering Justet calling someone “ma’am” on the phone.
    Before my thought could come full circle Thurmond jerked his head to look in the side mirror. I looked in my own mirror. An enormous Deuce and a Half military transport truck bore down on us.
    Thurmond mashed his foot on the accelerator. The Deuce smashed the Hummer from behind, flinging me into the dashboard. I caught myself with my hands and shoulder. Thurmond swore.
    “What—?”
    “Get down!” Thurmond shoved me to the floorboards.
    The Deuce struck us again and the Hummer slewed recklessly to the side, lifting for an instant on two wheels before it slammed back on all four. The back passenger wheel dipped into the ditch, jarring everything to a violent stop.
    Dust rolled through the air in hot, sun-streaked clouds. The world seemed too still, the quiet too long. The smell of motor oil and gasoline fill the air. I turned my head, trying to bring coherency to the moment, and found Thurmond’s face. His mouth moved and the world sped up with a rushing sound, focusing into a distant echo of words.
    “Rose, did you hear me? Get outta here!” Thurmond held his side with one hand, crushing his uniform into little mountains and valleys. He shoved at my shoulder with his other hand. “Get out! Don’t let them see you!”
    I fumbled with the latch. The door fell open, exposing the dirt in the ditch. I tumbled out, my hands hitting the ground first. The rest of my body followed, landing with an unsightly flump and sliding down the incline a few inches. One foot caught in the Hummer, halting my descent. The strap of the M-16 hooked around my ankle, the rifle itself wedged against the floorboard and seat. I twisted to get free. Desperation clouded my reason.
    A vehicle door slammed.
    I closed my eyes, took a frantic breath, and with abrupt efficiency, pulled the muzzle of the rifle up and away from the seat. I yanked my leg out of the Hummer, dragging the M-16 with me.
    I braved one more glance at Thurmond. He hunched over the steering wheel, hand clutching his side, frantic eyes on me.
    “Don’t let them see you. You hear me, Rose?” he whispered.
    I nodded. He scrunched his eyes shut and pressed his lips together. I wanted to go to him and call for help. Instead, feeling like a coward, I untangled the strap from my ankle and kicked the door shut.
    Voices lilted over the top of the Hummer. “Should’ve been on our way to Air Guard base by now to load the C-130. She’s not going to like it if we’re late.”
    From the way the Hummer was slanted in the ditch I could see only the soles of several pairs of boots on the other side. I pressed my back against the slope and wormed my way upward until I was beside the back wheel.
    “She’ll like it even less if she finds out you didn’t take care of this.” Sergeant Sanderford’s gruff voice brought a peculiar mixture of exultation and terror trilling through me. He wasn’t dead. But on the other hand—he wasn’t dead. “We’ve got time anyway. Wheels up at twenty-three-hundred hours.”
    “He doesn’t know anything.” Justet this time. “We’re wasting time, not to mention that now we have to do something about him.”
    “He knows something all right. Thick as thieves, those two. We’d have to take care of him anyway.”
    My thumb found the safety switch of the rifle and flipped it to the off position. I wondered if I’d be able to