12 Seconds (#1 in Military series)

Chapter 25

Chapter 25

“Come on, you piece of sh-” Marcus grunted just as the truck finally took fourth gear after plenty of grinding metal, “-Ah, finally!”

Hitting the accelerator once more, Marcus found himself wishing he was at the wheel of a Humvee rather than a truck that looked, and felt, older than he was.

With thoughts about Julia, base and the showers waiting for him, Marcus looked in his side mirror only to have all of his hopes dashed.

Unable to do anything but watch, Marcus found his fingers gripping the steering wheel with vigour as he watched Julia swerve her truck, blocking the jeeps that had passed them on their way out.

Marcus wanted to spin around and help but there was nowhere they could turn, they were blocked on both sides by mountain and he had to think about the dozens of children they had on board.

The same children that were whimpering with fear as they heard the bullets over the rumble of the truck engines once again.

As soon as they got back to base, Marcus was demanding two weeks of hot tubs, sunbathing and relaxation.

“Come on,” Marcus willed Julia as he watched her block another jeep on the opposite side, his stomach churning as he could barely make out the outline of her body behind the wheel through the sand-ridden window.

If they could make it to the end of this strip then Marcus and Carlos could spin around and help them but even as he thought it, he knew that the odds of them surviving were growing less and less by the minutes.

Trying to keep his truck straight, Marcus turned his head and looked in his opposite mirror when he saw the two-vehicle column that had crept up Julia’s right hand side.

“Shit!” Marcus cursed under his breath as he knew he could do nothing to help her.

He was trapped and he hated it.

Marcus reminded himself that Julia had Kazeem with her, but it did nothing to aid his worries. He wouldn’t be satisfied she was safe until they were both back at base with his arms around her.

But that would have to wait as he watched Kazeem leaning out through his door, something bulky on his shoulder.

Marcus squinted at the mirror, the golden horizon flying past his window, and cheered when he recognised the RPG.

“Yes!” Marcus screamed when the RPG hit, blowing up the cars in a plume of smoke, “Whoo!”

The detonation rang out in the wind, shaking everybody to the core as he heard Twitch calling from the back of the truck.

“What the hell was that!?” Twitch shouted with concern.

“Kazeem blew up the jeeps!” Marc called back, hitting the steering wheel in joy as Twitch shouted Kazeem’s name with excitement, no doubt scaring the children.

Marcus let out a deep breath as he saw the end of the strip coming up. All they had to do now was hang in there for a few more minutes-

Marcus’s thoughts were cut off as a second, smaller, explosion hit their ears.

Looking in his mirrors, Marcus felt ten years get taken off his life as he watched the back wheel of Julia’s truck get blown off, right before the cab drove head on into the mountainside at speed.

His body froze, unable to comprehend anything, as he kept his eyes glued to Julia’s truck, praying for a sign of movement from the cab.

It felt like an eternity had passed when, in reality, it was probably only a few minutes, but there was still no movement from the truck.