Then a thought occurred to me. What if he hadn’t sealed the door shut but only damaged the computer controlling the lock? Even if the door wouldn’t automatically open, the physical door handle might still work.
Of course, we were still speeding down a highway. Opening the door would lead to another set of problems.
The screen on my computer blinked, and I read a message, quickly twisting my forearm so my assailant couldn’t see it. I stopped trying to grab the gun and felt around in a search for the door mechanism. When I found the handle, I pulled on it and the door opened. The wind rushed in, filling the vehicle with noise. It was a good thing my hair was tied back, or I wouldn’t have been able to see anything. As it was, a few loose strands of my hair blew around wildly.
“What are you doing?” He didn’t even try to grab me. “Are you crazy?”
“Maybe.” I turned away and jumped out of the moving vehicle into traffic.
Chapter Eight
E MMY
Before I jumped, I evaluated the distance between the two cars. Ven’s message to me said to open the door. There weren’t any additional instructions, but what else could I do except jump? As long as the car next to me kept an even speed, I thought I could make it.
I hoped there weren’t any intersections ahead.
The distance between the two cars was small. The computers allowed them to drift much closer together than a biological driver could. I thought it was about two feet to the next car. Even though I didn’t have far to jump, we were still speeding down the freeway. If I missed, I was as good as dead.
I didn’t stop to think. I took a moment to envision myself landing safely and jumped, sailing through the air. I knew I was moving quickly, but during the time I was airborne everything seemed to slow down. When I tumbled through the open door of the other car, I crashed and fell into a heap.
Ven closed the door behind me immediately and told the car to move in a different direction. The vehicle shifted into another lane and exited the freeway. We were now driving on a road leading back to the spaceport.
It felt good to lie on the bottom of the car floor. I was still trying to make myself believe I was safe. My only regret was not getting to see the look on the blond guy’s face. I missed it because I was focused on staying alive by jumping between two cars racing down a twenty-lane freeway.
“Emmy? Are you all right?” he asked, putting his hands on my shoulders and shaking me a little. His purple stripe seemed darker than before, and I wondered what made it change color.
I nodded, hoping I seemed calm.
All the fear of the past few days hit me at once, and I started to shake uncontrollably. I saw him search my face. It was easy to get lost in his eyes. Without warning, he pulled me into a tight embrace.
I surprised myself when I let him. I had never been held by a man before. My mom raised me. She was an only child, and her friends were all women. I had never had a real boyfriend, except Christopher. He was all about making out, not hugging.
I had no idea it could be such a pleasant experience.
My eyes closed and my arms moved by themselves, wrapping themselves around his waist. I buried my head into his chest and enjoyed the feeling of something bigger than myself.
His chest felt firm under my cheek. I loved how his arms held me closely like he was worried about me. Did he care for me? It seemed impossible because we had just met. I drew in a deep breath and let it out. The stress and tension left my body as his presence comforted me.
It felt good and safe. The sensation was so much like home that it scared me. The memory made my mind begin to function again, and I sat up, pulling away.
I smiled at him. Would he know that meant thank you? I sat back on the seats of the car. Ven turned to look at me directly. “Emmy, what are you doing?”
“Leaving?” I said hopefully.
“Why? We just got married. I wanted to get to know you.” He
Of course, we were still speeding down a highway. Opening the door would lead to another set of problems.
The screen on my computer blinked, and I read a message, quickly twisting my forearm so my assailant couldn’t see it. I stopped trying to grab the gun and felt around in a search for the door mechanism. When I found the handle, I pulled on it and the door opened. The wind rushed in, filling the vehicle with noise. It was a good thing my hair was tied back, or I wouldn’t have been able to see anything. As it was, a few loose strands of my hair blew around wildly.
“What are you doing?” He didn’t even try to grab me. “Are you crazy?”
“Maybe.” I turned away and jumped out of the moving vehicle into traffic.
Chapter Eight
E MMY
Before I jumped, I evaluated the distance between the two cars. Ven’s message to me said to open the door. There weren’t any additional instructions, but what else could I do except jump? As long as the car next to me kept an even speed, I thought I could make it.
I hoped there weren’t any intersections ahead.
The distance between the two cars was small. The computers allowed them to drift much closer together than a biological driver could. I thought it was about two feet to the next car. Even though I didn’t have far to jump, we were still speeding down the freeway. If I missed, I was as good as dead.
I didn’t stop to think. I took a moment to envision myself landing safely and jumped, sailing through the air. I knew I was moving quickly, but during the time I was airborne everything seemed to slow down. When I tumbled through the open door of the other car, I crashed and fell into a heap.
Ven closed the door behind me immediately and told the car to move in a different direction. The vehicle shifted into another lane and exited the freeway. We were now driving on a road leading back to the spaceport.
It felt good to lie on the bottom of the car floor. I was still trying to make myself believe I was safe. My only regret was not getting to see the look on the blond guy’s face. I missed it because I was focused on staying alive by jumping between two cars racing down a twenty-lane freeway.
“Emmy? Are you all right?” he asked, putting his hands on my shoulders and shaking me a little. His purple stripe seemed darker than before, and I wondered what made it change color.
I nodded, hoping I seemed calm.
All the fear of the past few days hit me at once, and I started to shake uncontrollably. I saw him search my face. It was easy to get lost in his eyes. Without warning, he pulled me into a tight embrace.
I surprised myself when I let him. I had never been held by a man before. My mom raised me. She was an only child, and her friends were all women. I had never had a real boyfriend, except Christopher. He was all about making out, not hugging.
I had no idea it could be such a pleasant experience.
My eyes closed and my arms moved by themselves, wrapping themselves around his waist. I buried my head into his chest and enjoyed the feeling of something bigger than myself.
His chest felt firm under my cheek. I loved how his arms held me closely like he was worried about me. Did he care for me? It seemed impossible because we had just met. I drew in a deep breath and let it out. The stress and tension left my body as his presence comforted me.
It felt good and safe. The sensation was so much like home that it scared me. The memory made my mind begin to function again, and I sat up, pulling away.
I smiled at him. Would he know that meant thank you? I sat back on the seats of the car. Ven turned to look at me directly. “Emmy, what are you doing?”
“Leaving?” I said hopefully.
“Why? We just got married. I wanted to get to know you.” He
Similar Books
