Counting Down by Lilah Boone Page A

cheated and they split up less than a week ago. Abby doesn’t have many friends, so I guess s he’s sort of hanging on to him.”
    Kyle nodded, pushed his sunglasses up on his nose . “So they’re not together then?”
    “N ot anymore. A nyway, a re you going to answer my questions?”
    Kyle blinked and tried to clear the little blonde from his mind. “Um… I have no idea what the glow is all about. Apparently Abby and I are the only ones who see it. When she looks at me she sees it and when I look at her I see the same.”
    Jim took a step back, cocked his head to consider the information. “Wow man. This just keeps getting weirder by the minute. It’s got to mean something.”
    “Yeah, I just haven’t figured that detail out yet. As for the shelter, remember when you went to Topeka for a week to visit that girl you were dating?”
    Surprise came over Jim’s face. “Really? You said the town came by to work on a pipe and tore up the lawn. Who do you get to upgrade an old bomb shelter anyway?”
    “ Twenty-first Century Bomb Shelters dot com.” Kyle smirked. “As I said, I was trying to hide the crazy going on in my head.”
    Jim sighed heavily. Kyle realized his friend was a simple guy who liked a simple life. All this doomsday stuff, with weird dreams and shining people, was probably a little much for him to take.
    Both of the men turned their heads as the sound of voices came up from the country road that crossed through the farm. They walked up to the front of the house together to watch a trail of families, marching like a caravan minus the horses and wagons. It was like something most people only witnessed on the nightly news. They were refugees migrating from their homeland.
    “Where could they be going ? A nd where are their cars?” Jim kept his voice low.
    Kyle shook his head, eyed the scene solemnly. “Something must have pushed them from their homes. Maybe they ran out of gas. Or maybe there was so much traffic on the highway they decided to hoof it off the main roads.”
    Kyle was gripped by a sudden urge to save them. His eyes fell on the women carrying babies and toddlers in their arms and his heart clenched into a knot. Someone had to help them. They would never make it alone.
    As Kyle weighed the situation he saw Jim from the corner of his eye, staring at him knowingly. Kyle flinched, his body wanting to go to the travelers on the road and offer them safety.
    “Don’t Kyle.” Jim gripped a hold of his friend’s arm. “We can’t save them all without killing ourselves in the process.”
    Kyle looked over at him, feeling the outrage scream through his chest. He slumped down to lean on the bumper of Abby’s Jeep and tried to hold himself together. The faces of those children haunted him. They had no idea what was coming and no way to survive it. He rested his head in his hands, feeling his strength slip away.
    “ Damn it,” Kyle finally said, his frustration getting the best of him.
    Jim joined Kyle against the Jeep, stared off into the odd sky. “I know you feel like this is all on you man, but it’s not. You might be a human night light, but I’m your right hand and I will help in any way you need me to. You’re not alone in this.”
    “Thanks. I appreciate that.” He stood straight and ran one hand through his hair. Kyle was on the verge of saying something inspirational to his friend, but figured it would only sound forced.
    He was saved from that awkwardness as Abby came out the front door. Thankfully she hadn’t heard the people walking and they were far enough down the road now to be over a hill and out of sight.
    “Hey guys. What’s on the agenda for today?” Abby greeted them with a smile that didn’t register in her eyes as she plodded down the front steps.
    Seeing Abby immediately improved Kyle’s mood. Her glow was faded in the sun, but it didn’t stop her from making everything seem brighter. She wore an old pair of paint splattered blue jeans, brown boots with