More Than Human Excerpt Chapter 13 - Warning: foul language

Chapter 13

Pain shot through Jule’s head as she regained consciousness; the effects of the drug that was pumped into her bloodstream still lingering. She strained to open her eyes. The sunrise, with its blinding pink and orange light, peaked over the hill. She struggled to her feet, her body sore from lying on rocks and sticks for hours throughout the night. Still in a haze, she took in her surroundings and tried to piece together her broken memory. She remembered being with William by the fire, and then having to pee.

“Oh no, William!” Panic swept through her again as she wasted no time in rushing back to the house. She burst in through the back door and frantically began searching for a phone.

“The kitchen,” she said to herself as she darted towards it.

A phone hung on the wall just inside the kitchen across from the sink. Jule grabbed the phone and immediately started punching in Loki’s number memorized by heart. Not a single signal came from the phone. Not even the beeps from the buttons on the pad made any response. Irritated, Jule slammed the phone back into its place and began searching for her cell phone. She recalled leaving it on the coffee table in the living room and rushed to it, finding it smashed in pieces on the floor instead.

“There’s got to be another phone in this house!” she cried out in frustration.

Jule frantically searched in every room, but each phone she found was just as dead as the first. She flipped a light switch on the wall of the bedroom but the light gave no response. Angrily, she flipped the switch off and on again, expecting that maybe if she did it enough times, the light would magically respond and turn on. Nothing happened.

“Shit, they must have cut the power to the whole house,” she mumbled to herself. “I’ve got to get out of here!”

Deciding to drive back to town, Jule sped down the stairs out to William’s truck, only to find the tires slashed and the engine wires cut. The truck was going nowhere.

“Fuck!” she shouted and began to cry. What am I going to do? I have no vehicle, no way to contact anyone, and I’m out in the middle of nowhere, she thought dismally to herself. The only thing Jule could think to do was to walk back to town. She quickly ran inside, grabbing her backpack and some water, and then headed out on her long journey.

The early morning sun warmed her chilled bones as she walked with a quick pace down the driveway to the main dirt road. Her body and head still ached as the drugs continued wearing off, but she pushed herself forward regardless. Jule shielded her eyes with her hand as she looked at the position of the sun to get a sense of time, though she was more guessing than anything. I think it’s been a few hours already. She frowned and concentrated back on her task. Racing against time she quickened her pace, fighting through the throbbing pain in her head and aches in her legs to make it back and find William.

As Jule rounded a corner in the road, the rumbling sound of an old truck approached from behind. Jule threw herself into some bushes to the side of the road. Someone from the Order must have still been around William’s house. I wasn’t careful enough, Jule thought punishing herself for her carelessness. The noisy truck slowed as it got nearer to where Jule abandoned the road for cover and pulled over, the brakes screeching as it came to a halt. The exhause rumbled noisily. The foul fumes rose into Jule’s nose, making her gag. She hunkered down lower as she heard the driver’s side door creak open and feet hit the gravel, crunching as they approached. Shit, they saw me. Jule’s heart raced. She balled up her fists and swallowed hard.

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