Promise Me Darkness (13 page)

I couldn’t leave. I had to find Ryder. And Eva. I couldn’t leave without them.
Using all my strength, I wrenched my hand away. Severe pain, unlike anything I’ve felt before, shot through my fingers.

Suddenly, Ben wasn’t beside me anymore. The crowd had swept him along, heading toward the exit.

Pandemonium reined around me as I turned around, confused. The paralyzing fear and the pain in my fingers was making it impossible to think straight.

I knew I needed to find Ryder and Eva. I couldn’t leave until I found them.
Stay together!
Stay together!
I started to push my way against the mass of panicked people shoving and pushing to get to the exit.

The darkness made me blind to my surroundings. The screams and cries echoed around me, making the scene horrific. Nightmarish.

I tried to concentrate on where I was going and ignore the pounding of my heart. I had made it a few steps when someone shoved me backwards. Somehow, I stayed on my feet despite the jostling of the crowd.

My lungs worked harder. It seemed the terror was sucking all the oxygen out of the room. Without air conditioning, the club was becoming hot quickly. With the press of so many bodies trying to get out, the heat was suddenly unbearable.

I pushed forward but was propelled backward almost immediately. A new kind of panic began to bubble up inside of me. I was too short to fight this crowd, most of who towered over me, but I had to get back to Ryder and Eva.

Someone hit my shoulder roughly. Another person bumped my side painfully. I wobbled on my feet, trying to maintain my balance against the surge of people running by me.

“Ryder!” I screamed, struggling to fight the crowd. The only answer was screams and the sound of running feet.

I cried out when someone shoved me hard. The force sent me down. I put my hands out to stop my fall but it was no use. My head smacked against a chair with a sickening thud. Pain exploded behind my eyes, making me feel as if I was hit with a brick. I fell flat to the floor as stars twinkled across my vision.

Get up! Get up! The pain in my head didn’t matter right now. Later. I would deal with it later. For now, I had to get up.

Suddenly, a heavy boot slammed down on my hand. When I felt bones crunch underneath the weight, I screamed a blood–curdling scream that could wake the dead.

Before I could recover, a sharp high–heel stepped on my back, right on top of my ribs. The pain was excruciating but only one thought raced through my head;
oh, God! I was going to be trampled to death!

NO! NO! Dammit, I wasn’t dying today!
Despite the agony, I forced myself to my feet. When I was standing upright, the first thing I did was kick off my heels. They would get me killed. My life was more important than a pair of shoes.

My ribs were on fire and my head throbbed with the smallest movement. Instinctually, I clutched my injured hand to my chest. If someone brushed against it, I was afraid I might pass out from the pain.

Hysteria bubbled up but I pushed it back down. I had to think rationally. It was the only way I could make it out of this alive.

I took a few steps forward when someone slammed against me. My ribs screamed in pain but I was determined to get out of the stampede of people. They would kill me if I didn’t.

A woman not much bigger than myself fell against my back, propelling me toward the bathroom doors. It was just the momentum I needed.

I cowered in the doorway of the women’s restroom, safe for the moment. By now, my eyes had adjusted to the darkness but I could barely discern one person from the next as they rushed past me.

It had now been, what, five minutes?
It felt like an hour. I prayed that Ryder and Eva were okay, that they had gotten out.

Now that I was safe, I stifled a cry.
What was happening?
The shouting and wailing continued around the club.
Why was it still dark? Don’t they have generators in this place or at least some emergency lights?

If it had been an earthquake, I knew I needed to get out of the building but I was terrified of being trampled. I wasn’t strong enough to fight my way out and I was injured. My hand was possibly broken and I was having trouble breathing, either from a cracked rib or because of utter terror, I didn’t know. All I knew was that I had to leave.
Okay, I could do this! Suck it up and get out of here!

I was just about to take a step into the madness when I heard my name called.

“MADDIE!”

A sob broke from me.
Ryder!
The uncontrollable shaking started. First my hands, then my whole body.

“MADDIE!”

He couldn’t see me yet.

“RYDER!” Yelling for him took all my energy and hurt like hell.

“RYDER!” I screamed again, growing scared that he would walk right past me. Tears raced down my face, blurring my vision.
Oh, Jesus, what if he couldn’t find me!

A sob caught in my throat when a hand touched my face and I felt him beside me.

“Maddie! Thank God!” His thumb lightly wiped the tears from my cheeks as he shielded my body from the danger.

“I thought I lost you,” he said hoarsely as his hands threaded through my hair. Leaning down, he kissed me with desperation.

With my good hand, I reached up to grip his shirt as his lips turned gentle on mine. I thought I would never see him again. I thought my last words to him would be in frustration.

He broke the kiss off to shout loudly over the screaming. “I’m not going to let go of you, okay?”

“Okay…Okay,” I stammered with fright.

He grabbed my good hand and tucked me in close to him. We moved into the crowd with only one purpose. Escape.

When we finally cleared the heavy front doors, a blast of summer heat hit us with vengefulness. But the scene outside the club didn’t hit me; it smacked me hard, making my legs lose all power of motion and my feet become lead.

Groups of people stood together, huddled in shock. People were crying and wailing all around us. A few were lying in nearby patches of grass while people bent over them, tending to injuries. The worse was the sound of screaming from inside.

Ryder tugged on my hand, reminding me to move and make my legs work again. We quickly weaved between the cars, heading for Eva’s truck.

The pavement was hot on my bare feet but I ran anyway. My breathing was forced and ragged, each breath causing pain. Something was wrong but I didn’t notice. All I noticed was the darkness.

A cloud passed across the full moon, obscuring all moonlight. The streetlights above us and the storefront windows around us were dark, dead.

There was no light anywhere.

We were yards from the truck when a loud screeching filled the sky. The sound was so ear–piercing and high–pitched that it threatened to bust my ear drums. I let go of Ryder’s hand to cover my ears, cringing at the noise. Looking up, I gasped in alarm.

An airplane was flying very low above our heads. So low, I could see each individual window. The 747 had its nose down and was soaring toward the ground rapidly.
No, it wasn’t flying. It was falling.

Silence descended around me. There were no more cries from the crowd. Everyone was watching the plane.

The large buildings around us blocked the view as the plane flew out of sight. Seconds later, there was a loud boom that shook the ground. The earth vibrated underneath me. Ryder grabbed my arm to keep me from falling.

“Oh, shit!” he said, looking up at the sky.

A huge bloom of smoke rose in the distance, grey against the dark sky.
Did…did that plane just crash?
I felt all the blood drain from my body.
What was happening?

Ryder tugged on my arm, urging me to run.

I tore my gaze away from the horror to follow him through the parking lot. We were feet away from the truck when I saw Eva and Brody. My tears started falling faster as I let go of Ryder’s hand and ran to them.

Eva grabbed me tightly, throwing her arms around me as tears fell down her face.

“We didn’t know where you were! Oh my God, Maddie, I thought you were dead!”

Despite the pain in my side and hand, I squeezed her hard, never wanting to let go.

“We need to go! NOW!” Ryder said, glancing around us. The urgency behind his words was frightening.

"I’m going with ya’ll!" Brody yelled, grabbing Eva’s hand and running with her over to the passenger side.

"Fine! Just get in!" Ryder shouted.

He pushed me into the truck as Eva and Brody climbed in. I tried to hold back a wince when I scooted across the seat. My ribs were on fire, my head was pounding, and it was impossible to use my injured hand but I moved as quickly as I could.

Eva started crying hysterically from beside me, reminding me that I wasn’t the only one scared.

“What the hell is happening? Was that a freakin’ plane that crashed?” Brody shouted.

No one answered. We couldn’t.

Ryder’s crisp black shirt rubbed up against my quivering arm. The shaking was worse now and I couldn’t control it. It was as if I had no control of my muscles. I just wanted to curl up in a little ball and close my eyes to the absolute terror but my instincts were telling me to run and run fast.

Ryder took a deep breath and turned the key in the ignition. The truck roared to life. He floored it and the wheels screeched in protest before taking off.

He drove through the parking lot at breakneck speed. We passed people sitting in vehicles, not going anywhere. A few had their hoods popped up, as if their cars weren’t working.

I didn’t ask what was happening. The fear threatened to choke me. Pain and shock made words impossible.

The truck jumped over a curb to hit the main road. Ryder was driving so fast that the buildings we passed were nothing but a dark blur in the night.

I expected to hear fire trucks or police sirens but there was only silence.
If an earthquake large enough to shake buildings and blow all the electricity just occurred, shouldn’t emergency vehicles be on their way? Shouldn’t the area be ablaze with red and blue police lights?

Something wasn’t right. I started to feel woozy. Tired. Lifeless. My eyes started to lose focus, turning everything into a blur.

A sharp curve appeared in the road ahead. Ryder didn’t slow down but instead hit the gas. As the truck took the corner too fast, I was thrown against him. I tried not to cry out but the pain was too much.

Ryder looked down at me sharply. “What’s wrong? Are you hurt?" he asked with panic.

I felt something wet run down my face. Reaching a hand up, I smeared the wetness away from my cheek.
What was that?

“Answer me, Maddie!” Ryder shouted.

I winced, his loud voice hurting my head.

“I fell in the club. Was trampled,” I said, drowsily.

I suddenly felt the need to lay my head down.
Must be from the adrenaline rush leaving my system.
I leaned against Ryder.
I needed to rest my head for just a second. That is all I needed. A second.
My eyes drooped heavily.

“Maddie! Maddie!” He nudged me with his arm, forcing me to lift my head.

I just want to rest, I thought with annoyance. I closed my eyes, hoping to sleep.

“SHIT! SHIT!” Ryder shouted as he watched the road. “EVA!” he shouted, glancing over at Eva who continued to cry hysterically.

I jerked my head back up when I heard the panic in his voice.

“EVA! Snap out of it. Maddie’s hurt!” Ryder yelled as both his hands gripped the steering wheel tightly.

“What?” Eva asked in a daze.

“Maddie’s hurt,” he said, sounding upset. He glanced over at me quickly before his eyes darted back to the road. “Fuck! She’s covered in blood!”

He yanked the wheel hard to the right, swinging the pickup over to the side of the road. Throwing it into park, he turned to face me. His hands started roaming over me with urgency, making me wince.

Eva had stopped crying by that point and I could hear her rummaging in the glove compartment. A second later, a small beam of light bounced around me.

“Shit! Where is all this goddamn blood coming from?” Ryder shouted as his hands cupped my head and his eyes searched my face.

“Shut the hell up, Ryder!” Eva yelled as she pushed his hands away from me. “Calm down and let me look at her.”

“Where are you hurt, Maddie?” she asked.

"Jesus Christ, she’s blacking out," Ryder said, sounding far away.

“MADDIE!” Eva shook me and I opened my eyes, not realizing I had shut them again.
How long were they closed?

“Where are you hurt?” she repeated frantically, shining the penlight over me.

I thought for a moment.
Where was I hurt? All over, pretty much.

“I hit my head,” I weakly said, reaching up to touch my forehead. My fingertips came away sticky and wet.

“I’m bleeding,” I said, numbly. I heard Ryder swear as Eva shined the light on my forehead.

“Look at me, Maddie,” she said, the nurse in her taking over. She aimed the flashlight at my pupils, leaving me blind for a few seconds.

“You’ve got a nasty gash on your head,” she whispered.

“How bad?” Ryder asked, gravely.

“It looks like a minor head wound. They can bleed a lot. It probably needs stitches but I don’t think she has a concussion. Her pupils dilate just fine.”

“Shit,” Ryder muttered softly.

“Brody, in the glove compartment are some napkins. Can you get them for me?” she asked as her fingertips pushed around gently on my head. I could feel the blood start to trickle down my face and with it, pain.

She took the fast food napkins from Brody and pressed them to my forehead.

“Hold the napkins there to staunch the blood. It should stop soon, I hope.”

“YOU HOPE? Do you even know what you’re doing?” Ryder snapped, all patience gone.

“Hey! Back off man!” Brody shouted.

My eyelids started to close again, wanting the peacefulness that sleep would bring.

“Both of you stop it!” Eva hissed. She shined the light over my body. “Where else, Maddie?” she asked in a quieter voice.