Another jet buzzed us, making us all jump. Ibram said, “That was not a U.S. military jet.”
Someone asked, “Do you know what country it comes from?”
“If I had to guess, I’d say it’s from the Saudi Royal Air Force.”
Devon shook his head. “That doesn’t make any sense. Why would they attack us?”
Ibram pointed to the left where two different jets were flying in. “Those are ours.”
I could see the moment the two enemy pairs engaged each other. It was like some crazy fast dance in the sky, with twists and loops as the four jets tested defense and offense.
Alex pointed. “That jet’s coming in low. I think it’s going to shoot a missile at the city.”
“No way,” I mumbled. And then it did. Another trail of smoke and light guided my sight as the weapon shot straight and gradually turned downward.
Alex shoved me. “Iggy. Don’t just stand there. Do something!”
My eyes went wide. “What? What the hell do you think I can do? It’s a missile!”
“It’s no different than moving the elevator or the birds or anything else you do.”
How did Alex know what my tests in Jensen’s labs were about?
“She’s right!” Brodie said, excitement making his face light up. “You can stop it.”
Could I? I looked at Cael. He nodded and mouthed the word try. I took a deep breath and focused on the missile that was nearly at the end of its trajectory.
“Come on, Iggy!” Alex yelled. “Thousands of people are going to die!”
I bit my lip and squeezed my fingers into such tight fists that my nails drew blood. I wanted to scream or cry. I didn’t want this burden. In my head, I screamed at the missile to stop…to turn away…anything but keep going. Alex and Brodie were yelling at me. Wesley started yelling at them. Pippa started screaming and Ibram’s deep voice added to the argument. But nothing compared to the death of the people in that town. I’d done so much already. I could do this. I could. I had to.
Do what I’m telling you, I screamed silently.
“Hurry!” Alex hollered.
“Stop, Iggy!” Wesley shouted.
I blocked them out. I was sick of hearing it.
And then there was no sound. My body relaxed, and I just knew. It was done. I held up a hand and made a sweeping motion to the left. The missile pulled up and continued past the city….beyond…and into an empty mountainside where it exploded without killing anyone.
I stood there staring. Breathing.
Then Cael swept me up in his arms, laughing. He swung me around. “You did it!” When he put me back on my feet, Pippa hugged me. I felt like I was coming out of a daze. People were clapping, jumping, laughing. Wesley looked pissed. He just couldn’t be happy about a damn thing.
But then I realized he wasn’t looking at me, and I turned around to see what had captured his attention. Alex drew a gun from behind her back, pointed it at the sky, and fired. A flare shot up, leaving an orange wake as it arced. Wesley ran past me and straight at Alex like he was going to run her over.
“Too late!” she cackled.
I gave Cael a puzzled look, a rush of adrenaline telling me something was wrong. “What’s going on?”
His eyes went wide and he reached for me.
“Great job, Iggy! You did it!” Alex was all grins when I spun around again to look at her. Wesley was on the ground, unconscious. Then she darted me in the stomach. I turned to Cael, finding him unconscious.
“What are you doing?” I shouted at Alex and stumbled to face the opposite direction, intending to ask Pippa and Ibram for help. But they were also passed out on the ground. Brodie was holding a tranq gun, and he shot Shayla and Brian. Krish had already taken out Val and Devon.
After the initial shock, my body flooded with anger.
Alex shouted over the sound of a helicopter approaching, “You just saved twelve thousand people! You’re going to win this war for us, Iggy!” And she hit me with another dart. She, Brodie, and Krish laughed and gave each other high fives before waving at the helicopter coming in from the right.
I was holding onto consciousness by sheer will, fueled by hate. I looked down at Cael and back up at Alex. I stiffened my legs and locked my knees. I raised my right hand and curled my fingers, smiling when she screamed in agony. Brodie and Krish shot me with every dart they had left. I crashed to my knees.
Yes. There is a war. And I’m going to win it.
-The End-
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Check out my website
https://andreaalexanderauthor.wordpress.com/
for the release date and exciting snippets from USED — the second book in this series.
About the author…
I’ve written everything from poetry to newspaper articles, but young adult and new adult fiction are my favorite genres. Writing has been my passion since elementary school. I’m even picky about my pens and pencils — the lead has to be dark and the ink has to be thick. While I will always love the smell of a new book, the digital age has captured my attention in the form of eBooks.
I’ve lived in seventeen states (Georgia right now) and two countries, so I don’t claim to have a home town. I will always love traveling, and if I can’t get there physically, I can always get there in my mind. My imagination always keeps me company, but so do my readers when they contact me…so please feel free to write and visit me online!
My website: https://andreaalexanderauthor.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Author_AndreaM
Make every day an adventure!
…Andrea
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