Free Angered Seasons: The Worst Birthday Ever (Volume One) by Mireille Chester Page B

smiled my thanks and flopped myself down
beside Lane.
    “What do you think we should do about
Lizzy?”
    “Do I sound like an uncaring ass if I say I
don’t want to deal with it right now? My brain is fried, Gabs. I
just want to go to sleep and wake up in my own bed at home.” He lay
down and watched as I slipped off my boots before lying down beside
him.
    “What day would it be when you woke up?” I
asked.
    “Yesterday morning.”
    I looked back at him. “What? Why in god’s
name would you go back to yesterday morning? That’s when all this
shit started to fly!”
    I felt him shrug. “That coffee from Timmie’s
I got on our way to work was fantastic.” I felt him smile as I
started to laugh.
    “Oh, my god, you are such a geek!”
    “I know,” he relented before turning serious.
“We’ll have a talk with Lizzy in the morning.”
    I nodded. “I’m worried about Max. I haven’t
seen him like this for a long time.”
    “Yeah. But you know what? He’s a strong kid
and he’s got a lot of people here that love him.”
    “Yeah, he does.” I let myself relax and
started dreaming of waking up in my own bed.
     
    ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
     
    I opened my eyes and stretched then blinked.
What the hell? I glanced around and tried to figure out which room
I was in. It looked like my room. I frowned. When had I painted it
red? I hated red. I glanced down at my comforter. Red. I rubbed my
hands over my face and quickly pulled them away, wet and slick. My
heart kicked in my chest and I glanced around the room again. The
paint wasn’t dry, so why was I sitting in the room? My stomach
heaved at the familiar smell that suddenly overwhelmed me. That
wasn’t paint. I stumbled out of bed and tripped on something large
on the floor, my scream echoing in the room as I turned to see what
it was.
    Maxy lay on the floor in a pool of dark
blood, his eyes staring, lifeless, into mine. There wasn’t a part
of his body that didn’t have damage to it. His eyes had been gouged
out, most of the skin on his face had been ripped away.
    “ Max?” My whisper stuck in my throat and a
sob raked through me. “Maxy.”
    I started to crawl backwards and stopped
short as my hand fell on something else behind me. I closed my eyes
and turned, scared to look. I took a deep breath and forced myself
to see what I had touched.
    “ No. Oh, god, please no.” Johnny lay on
his stomach, his face turned away from me, his hair black with
blood.
    A whimper startled me and I jumped to my
feet. Marie had plastered herself into the far corner of my room,
little Ashley shielded in her arms. Pete lay at her feet, his chest
ripped apart.
    “ Marie!” I took a step toward her and
paused at her scream. “Marie, we have to leave!” I started to move
again then froze. There was nothing quite like the sound of a rifle
being loaded.
    “ Don’t do it Gabby.” Lane’s voice
shook.
    I turned slowly, shocked by the mix of
emotions in his words. Anger, fear, complete devastation.
    “ Lane?”
    He was covered in blood and bruises, he had a
cut under his left eye, and his lip was split. The gun was aimed at
me. He blinked and the tears left streaks down his cheeks.
    “ Lane, what happened?”
    He shook his head and swallowed hard. I
caught some movement in the mirror and my stomach heaved. It took a
second to register that the woman looking back at me was me. My
hair clung in mats, my clothes were ripped, and I was covered in
blood. I looked myself in the eyes and doubled over to throw up a
thick stream of red.
    “ No, no, no, no…” I shook my head and
leaned against the wall.
    Lane choked on a sob as my yellow eyes met
his.
    “ I’m sorry, Gabby.”
    He pulled the trigger and I screamed and
jerked in pain. My face hit the floor with an amazing smack and
everything started to go black.
    “Gabby!” Lane’s hands were rolling me over.
“Gabs. God, I’m sorry.” The sound of feet running to where I lay
sounded muffled. “Shit. Jason, can you get me a cloth?