Neon Chaos

by Karen Erickson

  “Something’s up,” he said as he glanced in the rearview mirror, neatly dodging an overturned car in the middle of the street with a quick jerk of the steering wheel. “They’re not following us.”

  “Maybe they don’t care about me anymore.” She nibbled on her lower lip, unsure how to approach the subject. How could she tell him what she overheard those strange beings saying? It made no sense. He’d probably laugh if she confessed all.

  “Why? Because you’re pregnant with my baby?” He slid her a glance, his eyes full of fire, his sensual mouth quirked in the cutest smirk before his expression turned serious once more.

  Her mouth dropped open. “What? H-how did you know?”

  “I heard what they said.” He pulled onto the freeway, his foot so heavy on the gas pedal her head jerked back against the seat. “Do you think it’s true?”

  “It can’t be true. How could they even know?” She shook her head. It was almost too absurd to believe.

  “Maybe they have advanced senses or some such shit.” His gaze kept drifting to the rearview mirror, probably looking for a sign of someone following. “They weren’t even interested in you once they realized you were pregnant.”

  She sunk her teeth so deep into her lip she swore she drew blood. “They said they wanted to dispose of me.”

  “Fuckers,” he muttered, shaking his head. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe they are letting us go because they can’t use you like they wanted to.”

  A shiver moved through her at his cryptic words. “Wishful thinking on our parts, I’m sure. Why would they let us go so easily?” She sighed, and stared out the window.

  The bleak skies, the abandoned cityscape, the desolateness of it grated on her nerves, and she clutched her knees tight, wincing when her injured arm tweaked with pain. She didn’t think she could take this much longer.

  “Yeah, probably.” One more glance in the rearview mirror. “There’s still no sign of them.”

  She stared at her wounded hands, afraid to look at him. “Would you be upset, Russ? If it turned out that I was—pregnant with your child?”

  He remained silent for so long she finally chanced a glance at him. He studied the empty road before them, his grip tight about the steering wheel, his gaze narrowed. “How could I be upset about something like that?”

  “I don’t know. We hardly know each other. I was stupid enough not to use protection.”

  “We were both responsible for that.”

  “True.” She didn’t know what else to say.

  Russ reached out and settled his big hand on her shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I’m not upset. Honestly, I don’t know what to think,” he said, his voice soft and rumbling.

  She didn’t mind his honesty, really she didn’t. So why did tears threaten the corner of her eyes? And why did she want him to say he was happy even though everything around them was falling apart?

  “Sweetheart, once we get through—this, and we confirm you’re really pregnant with my baby, I’ll take care of you. I promise.” He stroked her shoulder, filtered his fingers through her hair. “You belong to me…”

  “…and you belong to me,” she finished for him with a little smile.

  “Damn straight. Right now, though, we need to get out of Vegas, and find a safe spot where we can pull over and I can clean up your arm.”

  “It’s okay.” She moved it and winced.

  “It’s not okay but yeah. I’ll take a look at it soon. I promise.” He shook his head, his lips tight. “I don’t like seeing you in so much pain.”

  “I’m fine. Really I am.” She was lying. Her arm hurt like a son of a bitch, and she swore that restraint had cut into her wrist so deep it had felt like her hand was being sliced off.

  A shudder overtook her at the thought.

  “Liar,” he said with a slight chuckle. She appreciated his show of humor during such a bleak moment. She needed it. “It can’t be good.”

  He sounded devastated which she couldn’t help but secretly love to hear. He was kind enough, sweet enough to care so much for her. It made a girl feel good.

  Even during such a scary, uncertain time.

  A flash of light shone high and to the right and she turned, glancing out the passenger side window. But she saw nothing.

  “What’s wrong?” Her most astute driving partner noticed her reaction.

  “Nothing.” She shrugged and wrapped her arms around herself. “I thought I saw some light flash in the sky or something.”

  “Huh.” He peered out through the windshield, focusing on the gray sky above. “I don’t see anything.”

  “I’m sure it was my overactive imagination.” She saw it again. Brighter this time and she turned, glancing out the back window and hoping against hope she’d see the reason for the flash of light.

  But there was nothing.

  “Something’s out there, huh.” It wasn’t a question.

  “I think so, Russ,” she murmured.

  He punched the steering wheel with his fist, a low growl emanating from him. “Fuck. I’m sick of this shit. What are we going to do? Run forever?”

  “I don’t know.” Her voice quivered and she cleared her throat, willing the fear away. “Maybe there really isn’t anything out there.”

  “And maybe there is. Most likely there is. It’s probably another one of those mother fucking alien mother ships or whatever and they’re gonna suck us up in a beam of light, poke and prod at us with their special tools and then they’ll kill us.” He laughed and shook his head. “Sounds crazy, right? Sounds like something straight out of a cheesy movie on the science channel, huh. But yeah, it’s not. It’s our life, take it or leave it.”

  He sped up, the truck hurtling down the freeway at what felt like lightning speed and Samantha clutched the inside door handle, suddenly scared.

  “Slow down, Russ. Please, you’re scaring me,” she whispered, but he shot her a look and she shut up.

  “We need to get away, Sam. I need to outrun them. How else am I going to outrun them?” He sounded panicked, enraged and completely out of control. He’d reached his breaking point, she could see it in his eyes, could hear it in his voice and she didn’t know what to do, didn’t know what to say. Didn’t know how to comfort him.

  “Russ…” she started, but he cut her off.

  “Looks like I really need to outrun them now. Another mother ship just pulled in.” He jerked his thumb and gestured behind them. “And they’re following us. What do you want me to do?”

  Slowly she turned around, saw nothing but bright lights sweeping back and forth, as if in search of them. She couldn’t make out the size of the…thing flying above but she could certainly hear it.

  And it sounded like a helicopter.

  Russ didn’t know what to do. Despair filled him, knowing a spacecraft from another world was chasing them down, gaining on them and he couldn’t do a blessed thing about it. If he were smart, he’d crash the truck. Just run at full speed toward a tree or building and let them have it. End it right here and now so they wouldn’t have to go through whatever form of torture the aliens had in store for them.

  He couldn’t stand the thought of them hurting Samantha. It filled him with a seething rage just thinking about it.

  It also broke his heart.

  “Russ.” Reaching out, she gripped his thigh tight. “I think it’s a helicopter behind us. A helicopter.”

  He looked at her, saw her wide eyes, full of anxiousness and excitement. If she was right and it really was a helicopter, it meant one thing.

  People. There were other people alive.

  Rolling down his window, he heard the unmistakable chop of the blades whistling through the air, vibrating the truck. He lessened the pressure on the gas pedal, slowing down and then he heard a man’s voice over a megaphone.

  “This is the United States Navy, please pull over. We want to help you. Please pull over.”

  “Oh, my God.” Tears streamed down her face and Samantha pr
actically bounced in her seat. “There are people in the helicopter. And they want to help us.”

  “Should I pull over?” Damn it, he was in the Navy but doubt filled him. What if… What if they were faking them out? What if it was a trick, a ruse to get them to pull over and then they would be captured once more?

  “Yes, yes, pull over.” She clapped her hands like a little kid and immediately groaned in agony.

  He frowned. She really needed to get that injury looked over.

  Hitting the brake, he pulled over on the side of the freeway and the helicopter lowered, circling closer and closer until it landed in the middle of the lanes, about fifty feet away from their parked truck. Two men dressed in fatigues and armed within an inch of their lives hopped out of the wide open door of the giant military helicopter.

  Relief flooded Russ and he thrust the gear into park, turning to look at Samantha who was already taking off her seat belt. “Should we do this? Abandon everything and go with them?” He wanted, needed her input. This was a major decision, and one they couldn’t make lightly.

  “Of course we should.” She reached for him, her good hand cupping his face and bringing him close so she could give him a soft kiss. “They’re one of you, right? We need to be with others, Russ. We can’t go this alone forever.”

  She was right. He knew she was right. Pressing a lingering kiss to her lips, he leaned his forehead against hers. “Ready?”

  “Ready.” She smiled.

  They exited the truck to find the two men approaching, grim expressions on their haggard faces. “You two okay?” one of them yelled over the helicopter’s engine.

  “She’s injured. Badly.” Russ gently guided Samantha closer to the men. One of them rushed to her, and she held out her arm for his inspection.

  The other man sidled up next to Russ, dipping his head close so they could communicate easier. “Did you find her after…”

  “She was with me. We met the night it happened.” Russ smoothed his hand over his jaw, weariness settling over him like a blanket. He was suddenly so damn tired he could hardly keep his eyes open. “We’ve been together ever since.”

  “Have you seen anyone else?”

  Russ shook his head. “Only the other…things.”

  The man nodded, his mouth thinned into a flat line. “And you got away from them?”

  “Yep. Though they’re around, we just ditched them a few minutes ago at a casino.”

  “Vegas was one of the cities hit. They seemed to focus on only major cities. Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle. The list is endless. It’s bad.”

  “Where’d you guys come from?” Russ turned to find the other man leading Samantha to the helicopter. They fell into step behind them.

  “Reno. We weren’t hit. Finally got communication up a few hours ago, and the power is finally back on though I believe on a temporary basis. It’s going to be a long haul.” The man paused for a long, heavy moment as they drew closer to the copter. “They believe approximately sixty-five percent of the world’s population was hit.”

  “No kidding.” Russ shook his head, disbelief filling him. It was awful, terrible, but he couldn’t help but feel lucky.

  He was alive. And so was Samantha.

  Quite possibly, so was their baby.

  They climbed into the helicopter but when Russ went to sit in the seat opposite her, Samantha called his name, reaching for him. He went to her, bending close so she could whisper in his ear.

  “I want you with me. I don’t want you sitting anywhere else but beside me.” She pressed a kiss to his cheek. “I need you, Russ.”

  Hell, how could he resist that? He settled in next to her, watched with quiet horror as a medic came forward with an extensive first aid kit and went to work on cleaning her wrist. It was a horrible wound, the gash deep and still oozing blood. She flinched every time the medic swabbed it with a disinfectant, hiding her face against Russ’s chest and dampening his sweatshirt with her tears.

  He slipped an arm around her slender shoulders and held her as close as he could. He hated to see her suffer, but it was necessary to get her to heal.

  And she would heal. Safely.

  Hopefully.

  Once the medic left, Russ let her in on everything he learned and she listened with rapt attention, her eyes filling with tears when he was finished. Drawing her close for another hug, he tried to soothe her, smoothing his hands up and down her back, letting her get it all out.

  “My family. They’re in Los Angeles,” she sobbed, sniffing loudly. “And my friends. Everything’s gone.”

  “I’ve got you,” he reassured her, squeezing her close. “And as long as you’re with me, nothing is going to happen to you.”

  She gazed up at him, eyes bright with unshed tears, cheeks blotchy and red. He’d never seen a more beautiful sight. “Do you mean it?”

  He brushed the stray tendrils of hair away from her forehead, then leaned in and kissed her temple. A wave of possessiveness washed over him, so strong it nearly overwhelmed him. “I promise, baby. You’re stuck with me.”

  Samantha smiled even through her tears. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  Chapter Nine

  Six months later

  Samantha stood at the window, gazing out at the city lights spread before her. Feeling wistful, she sighed, pressing her hand against the cool glass of the windowpane. It was June. It should’ve been hot in Reno this time of year but the seasons had been mangled for some reason.

  It was blamed on the Others, as everyone referred to them. Their thorough decimation of the planet had left things in complete turmoil, including the weather. Not much made sense anymore but the cities and small towns that were left were slowly working on restructuring. And they were also preparing to do battle once again with the Others.

  She frowned, couldn’t stand the thought of going into battle once again. Russ had already left once, but he’d come back. If he didn’t come back after this round when she needed him most…

  “Hey.” He appeared from behind, wrapping his arms around her. “How’s my baby?” His big hands splayed across her distended stomach, caressing her gently. Her skin tingled, and a shiver moved through her.

  How she loved it when he touched her so possessively. She never thought she’d be the sort of woman who would like a man to take over so completely but Russ owned her, body and soul.

  “He’s fine.” They were having a boy. She wanted to name him Russell so badly but Russ wouldn’t hear of it. “He’s kicked a lot today.”

  “Restless like his daddy.” He pulled her close. “Come to bed with me, baby.”

  “I’m not tired,” she teased, giggling when he nuzzled against her neck with his nose.

  “I’m not talking about going to sleep.” His hands moved up to cup her breasts, fingers splaying. “I want you,” he whispered close to her ear.

  She leaned into him, turning her head so she could press a kiss to his jaw. He slipped his hands beneath her loose shirt, gliding them over her growing belly until they settled upon her braless breasts. “Mmm, I want you too.”

  “Then let’s go to bed.” He cupped her again and seemed to test the weight of her breasts in his palms. “You’ve gotten bigger.”

  “And I’m sure you approve?” Her breasts had grown—her entire body blossomed as she’d progressed with her pregnancy. And Russ seemed to revel in her abundant curves.

  “Always. You can do no wrong, not with a body like this.” He slowly withdrew from her and hooked her hand in his, leading her to the bed. She followed willingly, let him strip her completely naked before she settled into bed and watched as he removed his clothes.

  When he joined her, he hauled her close, kissing her until she was breathless. “I’m going to miss you when I’m gone,” he murmured once he broke away.

  She rested her hand against his chest, felt the steady beat of his heart beneath her palm. “Promise me you’ll come back.”

  “Of course I’ll come b
ack.” He leaned in for another kiss but she held him off, her hand still against his chest.

  “Swear it. I need you to come home, Russ.” She gazed into his eyes, her tone serious, her heart heavy. “I don’t want you to leave, but I know you have to do what’s best.”

  “This is my last mission, I swear it.” The Others had come back to Earth, taking over the ravaged remains of New York City this time and Russ was going in with a team in two days’ time to do battle. Last time he left, he had gone to Chicago and fought them there.

  Luckily enough, they’d won. But the Others were strong and getting stronger.

  Unfortunately for the Others, so were the Americans. And the other countries who fought against them too.

  The world was rebuilding itself but it was going to take years to get back to what it once was, if ever.

  “Our baby will be born soon. I can’t—go this alone. I don’t want to do this without you.” They’d grown so close, were so in love with each other she couldn’t imagine her life without him. They’d married four months ago, so sure of their love it didn’t matter they’d only known each other a short time. They just…knew.

  They belonged together.

  “You won’t do this without me, I promise.” He kissed her, his tongue tangling with hers, his hands blazing a trail of heat all over her body. She wound herself around him, her belly getting in the way, but she wouldn’t let it stop her.

  She needed to show him how she felt. How much he meant to her.

  “Are you sure you can do this?” he asked as he slipped his hand between her legs.

  “You’re the one getting me all hot and bothered and now you ask?” She spread her legs wider, giving him better access.

  “I just don’t want to hurt you or the baby.” He was working her up into a fever pitch.

  “You’ll hurt me more if you don’t get inside me and soon,” she said on a gasp.

  Slowly he pushed inside her, and she whimpered when he settled deep. On his knees before her, he thrust carefully, not laying on top of her with her belly in the way.