Armed with her father’s handgun—a Kel-Tec PF-9—she quietly moved through the forest like a soldier behind enemy lines. Strapped loosely on her belt was the I290 that dangled like the dream catcher over her bed.
When the prison came into view—as well as the recognizable guards—she prepared the gun, filling it with the ammunition from her pocket, and then cocked it. Butterflies swarmed in her stomach; she had only seen such valiant acts in action movies, and she’d never believed she was capable of doing such a thing herself. Yet there she stood—putting her life in jeopardy to save someone she had never even met in person, ignorantly assuming that he was alive. However, this assumption was soon validated upon hearing his voice whisper through the I290.
“Claire,” he whispered, “is that you?”
She knelt behind a tree. “Yes, it’s me. Where have you been? You promised you’d talk to me again.”
“They’ve been hurting me—they heard me talking to you and decided I’m becoming too dangerous.”
“Judas, I’m … I’m here to get you out.”
“Are you armed?”
“Yes.”
“With?”
“A gun.”
“You won’t need it. That I290 has more power than you think. How close are you to the entrance?”
“Not too far, why?”
“Throw it,” he said earnestly. “Throw it as close to them as you can.”
His request seemed like way too big a risk to Claire. You can trust him, she reminded herself. Closing her eyes tightly as if she had stared directly into the sun, she threw it like a baseball toward them; it landed at their feet, alarming them and causing them to draw their weapons. Hoisting them outward, their arms as steady as skyscrapers, they progressed forward in pursuit of whoever had thrown the I290; and they would’ve been successful had it not been for the volts of electricity the device released. Claire was unsure of whether the shocks were lethal or not, for the guards fell and laid unmoving, like corpses.
Thank you for reading this excerpt from my short story, Our Terminal Heart. An audiobook rendition of the story, narrated by Dave Hull, is now available on Audible and iTunes! Get it here: https://www.audible.com/pd/B07MXRWRJ1/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWT-BK-ACX0-139700&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_139700_rh_us
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What a cliffhanger! I can’t believe it took me until now to stumble upon your profile, but I’m glad I did. This is really entertaining.