Earth: Population 2 (Paradise Lost Book 1)

by Aubrie Dionne

  He shook his head in disbelief. “I had no idea.”

  “Yeah, well I don’t walk around with a sign on my neck that says homeless, will work for food. I have a job, you know. We’re doing fine.”

  “You have a real job?”

  I traced the fancy pattern in the leather seat. “Yeah, I’m a cashier at Save ’n Shop.”

  He tilted his head and gave me the same look Jay Dovetail had when his first mate had found him a better ship. “Wow, that’s really neat.”

  I couldn’t believe my ears. He sounded like he’d genuinely prefer working at Save ’n Shop to starring in movies. There was no doubt about it now. He was crazy.

  “It’s not all it’s cracked up to be. I mean, all I do is stand in one spot and ring groceries.”

  “Yeah, but you have a job that’s helping the world. You’re an integral member of your community. Do you know what would happen if I tried to work at Save ’n Shop?”

  I knew exactly what would happen. Paparazzi, girls, and moms with no shame would flood the register until no one could buy groceries at all. The store would be a chaotic madhouse. “Um. Not really.”

  “Let’s just say I wouldn’t make it through my first day.”

  “But that’s okay because you make your money doing movies, right?” A lot more than I would ever make. “You don’t ever have to worry about making your cash drawer balance or having an old woman yell at you because you broke her eggs.”

  He shook his head. “I’m sorry, Julie. Here I am taking you to this decked-out mansion and complaining about doing movies for a living. You must think I’m some rich prick.”

  Actually, I didn’t. I felt bad for him. He was just as stuck in his life as I was in mine. “Naw. You can’t be too rich if you eat SpaghettiOs for dinner.”

  We both laughed, which lightened the moment. He rounded the corner, and our laughter stopped. Sparkies patrolled the highway, the white light from their tails shining like flashlights on the road up ahead.

  “Turn off your headlights.” I whispered, ducking down behind the glove compartment.

  Gale shut off the car and the lights. He sighed, running a hand through his thick hair. “What do we do now?”

  “Can we go around them?”

  “No. There’s only one road that leads to the beach.”

  “How far a walk is it?”

  “With those things running around? Too far. Unless you’re good at cross country.”

  Scrap that. I glanced over the dashboard. Three Sparkies headed our way. I touched the glove compartment. “How fast can this thing go?”

  His eyes sparkled with mischief. “Are you kidding me? It’s a Jaguar. We could easily break ninety before those guys know what’s coming.”

  I grabbed onto my seat belt, glad I’d found the keys. I loved Ellen’s car, but it would never have pulled a stunt like this. “Run ’em down.”

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  TARGET AUDIENCE

  Gale nodded solemnly then turned the key in the ignition. The Sparkies perked up their heads and their tails, turning in our direction. They lit up in the headlights like demon ghosts on the road.

  I clutched the armrest. “If you’re gonna go, you’d better go now.”

  Gale hit the gas, and we sprang forward. “Hold on.”

  We accelerated, and the force pushed me back into the seat. I braced myself for the thuds that would come if we ran any of them over. Not that I would mourn their deaths. But the ride stayed smooth. The Sparkies jumped out of our way, and the road lay clear ahead.

  We ripped down the highway, swerving around the abandoned cars. I pumped my fist in the air as adrenaline rushed through me. “Woohoo!” I turned around to look out the rear window. “We lost them.”

  “For now.” Gale seemed less than impressed. “But they’ll follow us. We’ll only have about twenty minutes once we get to the beach.

  “Let’s hope that’s enough time to commandeer the shuttle.” Did I just say commandeer? I wanted to slap my hand over my mouth. That was Jay Dovetail’s favorite word. I might as well spell out his name on my forehead with a big heart around it and stare at Gale with giant puppy dog eyes.

  Gale glanced over at me and raised an eyebrow then returned to driving. Maybe I’d overreacted. So what if I used seventeenth century words now and then. That didn’t mean I’d watched all his movies a thousand times. I could have learned the jargon from history class.

  We parked between two abandoned RVs so the Sparkies wouldn’t notice our car. Not that they could tell the difference between a luxury vehicle and the common cars people usually take to the beach. But they might remember our black Jaguar ripping down the road.

  I shook my head. Me riding in a black Jaguar with Gale Williams at the end of the world. Boy, had everything turned upside down.

  Holding our rifles, we snuck out and climbed the grassy dunes leading to the ocean. The smell of tangy seaweed and brine filled the air. The ocean roared in rhythmic waves in the darkness beyond the dunes.

  I’d only been to the beach a few times in my childhood before Mom lost her leg. Vague memories of a crab crawling inside a red bucket and shoveling sand on top of Mom’s belly surfaced. A wave of nostalgia hit me. I’d find her. Even if it meant climbing inside that large spaceship up to my neck in Sparkies.

  We crested the last dune, and the massive ship loomed before us, glowing iridescent green and red. The gear I’d seen from the mansion stood above us. A low hum resonated deep in my gut.

  “Look! They’re draining water from the ocean.” I pointed to a tube coming right from the water. Because of the transparent nature of the ship, I could see right through the tube, watching the water travel up the pipe and into the ship. “Is that what they want? Our seawater?” Images of the oceans all dried up, leaving fish flopping around on bare sand, darted through my mind.

  “I don’t think so.” Gale nodded to the right side of the ship. “Look over there.”

  Water sprayed from a tube, draining back into the ocean. I shook my head. “What are they using the salt water for?”

  Gale shrugged and looked over his shoulder. “Who knows. We don’t have time to postulate new scientific theories. Let’s look for that shuttle.”

  I shone my flashlight down the beach. Waves lapped on the shore, the water catching the moonlight every now and then. I remembered the dunes in the sunlight with their green grasses and golden sand. In the pitch dark, they looked more like a haunted graveyard.

  I stumbled forward on uneven ground and caught myself before I fell on my face. The sand had been churned up, like little kids had dug a hole in the ground to syphon water from the ocean into a small pool. When was the last time kids played on this beach?

  “Gale, I think I found something.” I stepped out of the hole and followed swirls in the sand. They ended a few meters away, tapering off like the shuttle had lifted off.

  Gale ran up beside me and shone his flashlight on my findings. “Looks like we missed our ride.”

  Static echoed over the dunes behind us, and my pulse leapt into a frenzy. “They’ve found us.”

  Gale took my arm and led me to the dunes. “Not yet, they haven’t.”

  A dull glow emanated from behind the dunes. I backed into a wave, the water rolling around my boot. “You’re going right for them.”

  “That’s the whole idea,” Gale whispered as he pulled me under a dune and into the long grass. I plopped down beside him, hoping there weren’t any spiders, mice, or snakes on the beach. The grasses covered us from head to toe, and we huddled together, my right side pressed against his left. He draped his arm across my shoulders and pulled me closer. He emanated warmth, smelling of woodsy aftershave.

  His lips brushed my ear. “Shhhh.”

  The static noise increased like a hundred broken radios all tuned to the same bizarre frequency as the Sparkies weaved down through the dunes. Their tails caught a stray grass here and there, setting off sparks that lit up the night. I cringed, trying not to r
emember the pain of their sting. I held my breath and focused on Gale’s warmth and the solidity of his body against mine. He’d always been a part of my world, but, in that moment, he was more real than ever. I couldn’t deny my urge to cuddle up against him, using fear as an excuse.

  Gale hugged me tightly in response to my nuzzling closer, eliciting all sorts of crazy emotions. Was he afraid, too? Or was there something more between us?

  I had no time to explore these new sensations. Sparkies flooded the area in a relentless buzz of activity.

  He’d been right to hide. There were too many of them to shoot with two rifles. We would have killed the first wave just as the second bowled us over. How many of them had infiltrated planet Earth? Thousands? Millions? I didn’t want to know.

  The white bodies passed us like ants around a tree, spreading out onto the beach below the dunes. Some of them headed in either direction down the beach, while the others rode the waves out to sea, their wispy haired heads reflecting the moon and bobbing with the tide. Good thing we didn’t make a swim for it.

  I didn’t want to move, but Gale sprang up and pulled me with him. “Come on. Now’s our chance.”

  We scurried up the incline and slid down the dunes toward the car. Gale had the key ready. The car beeped, and I cringed as I reached for my door. I collapsed inside and slammed the door behind me. Gale followed and started the engine. The dunes glowed with white light as the Sparkies changed direction, coming back for us.

  “Get us out of here!”

  “I’m trying.” Gale backed up just as a Sparkie flung itself at the windshield. It snapped pin-like teeth, fingers crawling up and down the glass. Gale swerved as he backed up. The Sparkie held on, jabbing its tail at the glass.

  Gale stopped the car, and the Sparkie flew forward and hit the ground. “Guess he wasn’t wearing his seat belt.” Gale breathed with relief.

  He hit the gas, and we jumped forward and ran over it with a thud, speeding away like we’d just robbed a bank.

  But we hadn’t stolen anything. We’d failed. I watched the beach recede, feeling foolish for thinking we could beat them. A million of them versus two of us? Besides, even if we got a ship, we couldn’t fly it. I was a cashier at Save ’n Shop, and he was an actor. Heck, I hadn’t even flown in a plane. The whole plan was ludicrous, and I’d almost gotten both of us killed.

  “You okay?” Gale glanced over.

  “No. I shouldn’t have asked you to help me. It was a bad plan.”

  “Hey, it wasn’t a bad plan at all. Risky, yes. But that doesn’t make it bad.”

  I crossed my arms over my chest, cheeks burning in shame. “We almost got ourselves killed. And who are we kidding? Like we’d be able to fly it anyway.”

  Gale shrugged. “I’d like a chance to try. I took some flying lessons as a kid, and some for one of the movies I had to make recently. I know it’s not a Cessna, but how hard could it be? It’s not like these Sparkies are rocket scientists. Well, probably some of them are, but not the grunts. I mean, come on. The thing whipped its tail at the windshield like the stinger would go right through the thick glass. They have a lot to learn about our world.”

  I nodded, feeling somewhat better. “And us.”

  “It’s a good idea. All we have to do is keep trying.”

  My hopes rose just a bit. “You mean you want to go out hunting again?”

  “It’s not like you have to be back for your shift. And why should I rehearse lines for a movie no one will watch.”

  “You mean the Sparkies don’t like spy movies?” Oops. Had he told me what kind of film he was shooting? I think I learned it from Hailey at the party. I bit my lip. Would he notice?

  “Let’s just say I’m not sure they’re my target audience.” He laughed.

  I laughed with him, breathing a sigh of relief. Somehow, in the bizarreness of what my world had become, imagining the Sparkies like bubblegum-chewing teenyboppers was monumentally hilarious.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  BROKEN EGGS

  I plopped onto Pete’s rich leather couch. Exhaustion weighed me down, and I slumped back, still sore where the Sparkies had stung. I still wondered if the electric shock rattled my brain enough I’d dreamed this whole thing up. But, Gale was as real as ever as he coaxed a fire from the wood in the fireplace.

  I grabbed the quilt from the back of the couch and draped it over my legs, watching the way the smooth muscles in his back moved as he poked the wood. A bright ember crackled into a flame, and the smoky scent filled the room. I remembered the campfire the night of the meteor. It seemed like so long ago—another world, where another Julie lay dreaming with Hailey about dreamy Jay Dovetail. Part of me wished that night had never happened. But, if it hadn’t, I would never have met Gale.

  Guilt overtook me. I would have given almost anything to meet him, but an entire world of people, including my mom and my best friend, was too high a price.

  Gale slumped beside me, almost touching my shoulder. “There’s a whole bunch of guest rooms in this place. You can take any one you want.”

  The image of me alone in a gaudy bedroom summoned all of the 1980s horror movies I’d seen in the past. “No, thanks. With all those Sparkies running around outside, I think I’ll stay right here.”

  “Me, too.” He must have seen a look of surprise pass my face because he froze. “If you don’t mind.”

  Stay cool. It’s not like we we’re sleeping in the same bed. A couch is a couch, meant for watching TV, and a bed is a bed, meant for.... “Not at all.”

  “Good.” Gale crossed his arms over his chest and closed his eyes. “Because I’m too tired to climb the stairs.”

  Was there something more to it than that? Did he feel safer around me like I did around him? The urge to ask him welled up inside me, and I turned away, on my side, propping my head on a satin pillow.

  Gale lay on the opposite side of the couch, his legs touching mine, emanating warmth. He kicked me gently. “Nighty night, ship hunter.”

  “You, too.” I blushed, waiting for him to move his legs away, but he stayed against me and me against him. It was the two of us against the entire world.

  I closed my eyes trying to think of a witty name to call him in return, but all I could think of was pirate. My mind drifted off to sleep.

  “How much do I owe you, kiddo?” Mr. Harrisburg stared at me through his thick-rimmed square glasses. He wore his usual oil-stained overalls and plaid redneck shirt. Ever since I broke his eggs last year, he’s looked at me with narrow-eyed suspicion, like I had it out for him. And his eggs.

  I looked down at my cash register. How come I didn’t remember ringing up the bags of groceries sitting on the belt? “Ummm. Fourteen thirty-two.”

  “Right.” He dug in his wallet and pulled out a wrinkled twenty.

  I counted the change and handed it back to him. I’d made change a million times, yet the gesture seemed strange, as though I acted as a character in a play. The money in my hand somehow seemed artificial and useless.

  I grabbed the paper bag to hand to the aging mechanic, and the sides almost tore. The bag weighed a ton. What did he buy? I glanced over the top. Cans and cans of SpaghettiOs lay stacked on top of each other. Just SpaghettiOs. Where were his usual eggs and tater tots?

  Mr. Harrisburg took the bag and shuffled off, and I glanced back to see a massive line forming. I had to get my butt in gear.

  I turned on my belt, and more cans of SpaghettiOs glided toward me. Why was everyone buying SpaghettiOs? Was there a shortage? I glanced at the customer, and my mouth dropped open.

  “Mom? What are you doing here?” Not only was she shopping by herself, but she was standing upright. A long skirt covered her legs.

  “Just picking up some last minute items, hon.”

  “But you hate SpaghettiOs.”

  She laughed. “Who do you think they’re for?”

  A sheepish burn filled my cheeks. At the same time, a warm feeling came over me. “Me, of course.” I rang
them through. Gertrude came up to my register and started bagging them one by one in plastic, examining each can like it was different than the last.

  Hailey came next, buying a single can of guess what…SpaghettiOs.

  “Hiya, Julie. Aren’t you going to ask me if I have any coupons?”

  My stomach dropped, and I glanced around for the shift leader. Thank goodness no one was here to witness my forgetfulness. I turned back to Hailey. “Don’t you have to leave soon?”

  “Soon, but not yet.” She smiled and handed me a five.

  I counted the change and dropped it in her hand along with her receipt. Hailey joined Mom and Mr. Harrisburg milling in the front of the store below a sale sign for milk.

  The next customer cleared his throat and I turned around. I gasped. It couldn’t be.

  “Gale.” Two universes that couldn’t possibly be together collided. “What are you doing here?”

  “What does it look like?” He gave me the type of grin that made my heart melt to sludge and pushed two cans of SpaghettiOs toward me. “One for me, one for you.”

  I whirled around to Hailey, expecting her to make some sort of shocked face. She talked with Mom in a normal conversation as if Gale Williams always visited Save ’n Shop and bought SpaghettiOs. A current of unease ran through my gut.

  I rang the cans through. “For dinner?”

  “That’s right.” He handed me a hundred dollar bill.

  The linoleum floor shook below me, and I clutched the cash register to keep from falling. Gale stumbled back, and the floor cracked open between us.

  “Julie, come on! Come with us.” Hailey and Mom shouted, and I turned around. Another crack widened every second, separating me from them. I turned back to Gale, and the crack between us widened as well.

  “You’re going to have to choose.” Gale spoke in a strange, calm voice.

  Panic seized my chest and I could barely breathe. “I can’t.”