After finally securing the stirrup straps, I head to the gun cabinet in the barn and unlock the door. A satchel sits on the floor, one of my dad’s that he used to carry ammo when he went mustering—intending to shoot brown snakes and the occasional taipan.
“Here.” Jamie passes me the sling as I grab one of the guns.
“Thanks. Take Ridge outside. And grab the water container and make sure it’s full. Throw it in one of the rucksacks.” I focus on gathering ammo, securing the rifle in its sling, and collecting the saddlebag attachment that carries my sister’s shotgun.
I lock the safe back up and look around.
This feels dramatic, reacting this way. Or at least it should.
But deep in my gut, I know something—quite possibly everything—is wrong.
And if what I saw in the distance is real and not my concussed brain freaking me out, getting armed and the hell out of here is simply common sense.
Outside, under the weird sky, Jamie joins me. He passes me a backpack.
“I shoved some jerky and potato chips in there.”
I ignore the way his hand trembles and nod, offering a smile I absolutely don’t feel. Beyond sheer panic, dread, and knowing I need to protect Jamie, there’s little room for anything else.
“Mount up.”
He puts on his own pack, pushes his Akubra firmly onto his head, and mounts Ridge. He does so effortlessly, causing pride to swell in my chest.
How the hell he’s so calm and keeping his shit together is beyond me.
He saw the same thing I did in the distance.
Yet he’s here, kitted out, and looking at me with wide, clear eyes as if I have all the answers.
If only I did.
But for him, I’ll bullshit my way through this. There’s no other choice.
Securing the shotgun to Geralt, I finally glance in the direction I’ve been avoiding.
“What’s the plan?”
As I stare at the monstrous creature speeding towards us, its horns large and purple, I swallow hard.
What the fuck is our plan?
“We’re going to get the hell out of here, head south towards Injune.” It’s where my sister and brother-in-law work. It’s usually a forty-minute drive, so it will take longer than that by horse.
“Do you think it’s still there?”
Jamie’s question freezes my brain.
Slowly, I glance at him, risking taking my eyes off the creature that I mistook for a vehicle. Understandable, since it really does look to be the size of a big SUV.
I see it in Jamie’s worried frown. In the moisture in his eyes. Beyond the familiar red dirt is a land that we both know is not our own.
If we’re right—and I absolutely pray we’re not—it’s likely that town and the world as we know it has gone. Disappeared.
That or it’s been swallowed somehow by the beastly creature who I have no doubt wants to eat our faces off.
Fuck that shit.
“Let’s get the hell out of here.” I mount Geralt, nod at my nephew to take the lead, and together, we ride on out.
