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When I grow tired, I straighten my shoulders and lift my chin.
You can do it.
Focusing on the head of the paper target until it feels like I have tunnel vision, I pull the trigger again, firing shot after shot.
When the clip is empty, I lower my arm, sucking in a deep breath of air that smells like gunpowder.
“Jesus. You did it,” Chance murmurs, clearly impressed.
It’s only then I realize I shot the paper targets head to smithereens.
Immense joy bursts in my chest, and turning, I fling myself at Chance with a happy shriek.
“You have a gun!” he laughs, but he still catches me with one arm. My legs are wrapped around his waist, and I look at the gun in my hand, resting on his shoulder.
“I didn’t think.” I drop my legs and slide down his body, but he doesn’t let go of me.
“I like a woman with a gun as much as the next guy,” he jokes, then his mouth brushes over mine. “I’m proud of you, little one.”
Raze gives me a pat on the back. “That was good, but let's see if you can do it again.”
The stress of the past two days falls from my shoulders as I lift a playful eyebrow at Raze. I give her a daring grin. “Challenge accepted.”
Chapter 11
Jai
After a long day in the drill zone, we went to bed early. When I’m woken by Chance shaking my shoulder, I groan.
It can’t possibly be morning already. It feels like I just went to bed.
“Jai, wake up!” he hollers in my ear while yanking me to my feet.
With sleep still floating in my head, I sway. Chance grabs my hand, and we start to run.
“What’s going on?” I ask as I try to clear my mind.
When the sound of people screaming registers, the sleepiness up and vanishes. An ominous-sounding alarm blares through the air.
“We’re under attack,” Chance shouts as he drags me out of the sleeping quarters.
Holy shit.
Adrenaline instantly pours into my veins, and when we make it to the drill zone, there are already people grabbing guns.
I see Mom and Morgan right before Raze shoves two guns at me. I’m glad she’s here and not somewhere we can’t find her.
I tuck one of the weapons behind me, using the waistband of my pants to keep it pinned to my back. Just like I’ve seen Chance do.
“Here’s another.” Raze shoves another one at me.
We grab clips, and I push them into my pockets and even two down the front of my top.
“Good girl,” Chance breathes as he loads his own weapons. He glances from me to Raze. “Stay behind me at all times.”
The metal of the clips is cold against my chest. The chill spread throughout the rest of my body as the screams increase like it’s trying to reach a crescendo.
A loud blast echoes down the tunnel, and I flinch. People scream hysterically around us. Chance runs to the exit with Raze and me right behind him. He takes a quick look into the passageway.
“We’re going to move quickly along the left side of the passage. Stay behind me.” It’s an order.
I nod and run the second he moves, sticking to him like glue.
We slam up against the wall and stay close to it as we keep moving forward. Some people that are trained to fight follow after us. Farther down, I see Morgan with a bunch of women and children. They all look terrified.
I don’t see Mom, and for a second, I worry. Pushing the emotion aside, I focus on the passage ahead of us, unsure of what to expect.
“Where are we going,” I ask.
“Normally, all the soldiers would meet by the dining hall, but seeing as we’re already under attack, we’re retaliating while the women and children get to safety,” Raze explains.
Shit. What about Dawn and Gerald? They aren’t fighters. I hope they get to safety.
I keep searching for them in the crowd of people, but my heart sinks when I can’t find them.
“We’re fucking sitting ducks in here,” Chance growls. “Faster, girls. We need to join the fight and stop the enemy.”
We sprint, putting some distance between us and the rest of the people. My freaking heart is about to beat right out of my chest.
Practicing for war and being caught in an actual attack are two very different things.
We reach the end of the passage, and Chance moves forward but quickly ducks right before there’s a blast ringing in my ears.
The man falling at our feet has a blank stare in his eyes, blood seeping from a hole in his head. He’s dressed in a pale blue shirt and pants.
“Move,” Chance hollers. As we run, he shouts. “Anyone wearing those clothes is an insensate. Shoot to kill.”
When we rush up the stairs toward the exit of the building, Chance shoots another insensate. I hold my weapon in front of me, my hands trembling from the shock and adrenaline.
