Page 71 of New Blood

“I can’t stop the car.”

Danielle’s voice was full of panic and fear.

His mind was working overtime as he assessed the terrain around them. A steep downward slope on one side, a tall stone wall on the other. More curves ahead. At one of the next curves, they would have gained too much speed, and the car would flip, rolling over several times. If they hit the wall at this speed, they’d be seriously injured, if not killed. And if they made it safely through the next curves, they would be heading straight for a busy intersection, where the chances of colliding with another car or truck were too high to take that risk. He homed in on the changing landscape to their right and spotted a pond. It was the option with the highest chance of survival.

“Okay, windows down,” he ordered with a calmness he didn’t feel.

“I can’t let go of the steering wheel.”

He took it with one hand to assist her. “Now do it, quickly.”

Because if the car sank too fast and too deeply into the pond, they would have trouble getting the doors open to escape.

When she finally lowered the electric windows and put her left hand back on the steering wheel, he removed his.

“Okay, now see the pond to the right ahead of us? Steer toward it.”

“But we’re too fast.”

He put his hand on the handbrake. Since it wasn’t connected to the hydraulic system that operated the foot brakes, but applied manual pressure onto the rear tires directly, it should slow the car somewhat. But there was a big risk of the car swerving uncontrollably if he applied too much pressure.

“I’ll slow us down with the handbrake.” He lifted the handbrake by a tiny fraction until he could feel some resistance.

“The moment we hit the water, unbuckle your seatbelt. Understood?”

“Yes. Jude, I’m scared.”

“We’ll make it, I promise you, baby.”

39

Despite Jude’s reassuring words, Danielle felt panic engulf her. Her entire body was tense, and she couldn’t even feel her hands—they were clutching the steering wheel so tightly. She was lucky that Jude was with her, because if she’d been alone in the car, she wouldn’t have known what to do. She would most likely already have crashed into the tall wall or rolled over the car in a curve.

Jude’s instructions were clear and concise. She could feel the car slowing a little bit as Jude applied the handbrake. She’d always thought that if the foot brake didn’t work, the handbrake wouldn’t either.

“Now. Turn slowly to the right.”

As she did so, she felt the car trying to resist her, the tires locking. Fear slammed into her, and she held her breath.

Jude released the handbrake again, and the tires turned. She’d overcompensated with the steering wheel when the tires had locked, and now the car was jolted to the right, nearly lifting off the road. She swerved as they drove over uneven ground, rocks and stones sounding as if they were ripping the car’s chassis open like a tuna can. Despite the downhill slope, the uneven terrain helped slow the car, but she knew they were still too fast to come to a stop before reaching the pond.

“Remember,” Jude said, “unbuckle your seatbelt the second we hit the water.”

She couldn’t answer, her throat too dry to form any words.

A couple of seconds later, the car lost the ground beneath its wheels, and they plunged into the water. The power with which they hit the water made her jerk forward, while the seatbelt tightened and the airbags deployed. It knocked the wind out of her, stunning her for a moment. She was unable to think, let alone act.

“The seatbelt,” Jude cried out next to her.

His words jolted her into action. She pressed the release button, but nothing happened. In panic, she pulled on the belt, but it had tightened over her torso, not leaving her a single inch of movement.

Water was already filling the car, covering her legs. Before she knew what was happening, the seatbelt loosened, and she realized that Jude had used his claws to cut her free. She willed her fingers into claws, knowing what to do now, and sliced through the airbag to make enough space so she could move.

She reached for the window and dove through it. Just as she thought she was stuck, she felt Jude’s hands on her backside, giving her a forceful shove.

She landed face down in the water and kicked her legs against the car door, and lifted her head out of the water. Treading water, she turned around and saw the car diving into the water at an almost 90-degree angle, its trunk in the air. A moment later, the water swallowed it completely.

“Jude!” she screamed. She swam toward where he should have come up and reached into the water, trying to find him. Taking a deep breath, she dove beneath the surface, but it was too murky to see anything.