The Price We Pay

Chapter 33

I brushed my fingers over the car. The paint was so dark, it could disappear in the darkness of night. From the other side of the car, Peter shook his head at me warily. I waved off his look. I tried the handle and to my surprise, the door popped open. "Why don't they lock it?" I wondered aloud.

"Maybe they don't expect anyone to steal from them?" Peter replied hesitantly. I studied the inside of the door, "Or maybe it doesn't lock?" I suggested. The inside of the car was much more complex than I had originally anticipated, The steering wheel was twice the size of my head and a large odd looking lever stuck out of the ground. Several glass circles, big and small covered the front of the car, I tapped my finger on the biggest one. Peter cracked open the passenger door, and peered cautiously into the car, "Get in." I hissed. He glanced towards the police station door, "Do you even know how to drive?" he asked. I fumbled with the key in my hands, trying to find a way to start the car. "It can't be that hard. Are you in or not?"

Peter looked up and muttered what I guessed to be a prayer. He pulled the door shut behind him as he climbed in.

I found a small keyhole and turned to Peter, "There's a blanket in the backseat. Will you hand it to me?" He tilted his head but did as I asked. I tossed my blanket under me, using it to boost me up so I could better see the road. I shoved the key into the keyhole and twisted, Peter leaned across the seat and pulled a small lever out until it clicked. The engine immediately roared to life. I turned to Peter with a triumphant grin.

Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, "Okay, but now what?" he asked. I turned back to the wheel, at my feet were three pedals, I slammed my foot on the largest. Nothing happened. I did the same to the middle one, but had the same result. I kept my foot on the pedal and grabbed the lever next to me, I yanked it to the side. For a second, nothing happened, then we flew forward, spreading down the road. I slammed my foot on the large pedal and we jerked to a stop. I realized I had been holding my breath.

Beside me, Peter was breathing faster than a ticking clock. I gave him a half smile, "Well...we know how to start it now?" I said shyly. I pulled my foot off the large pedal and softly put pressure on the small one. We slowly dragged forward.

"Don't hit anything." Peter advised, "Or anyone." he added. I twisted the wheel, steering us into the center of the road. Bystanders watched quizzically, occasionally stealing glances at our snail-paced car.

Someone shot a gun in our direction. The bullet came from the direction of the police station. It was quickly followed by confused shouting and contradicting orders. Peter put his face in his hands. "You've got to be kidding me." he grumbled.

"Shhh." I snapped, "I need to focus." I pushed down harder on gas, sending us down the street faster than I could process. The world around us flew by, colors mixed with each other, leaving nothing but a blur. It occurred to me that this would probably be the fastest I would ever travel in my lifetime. "They've got another car after us." Peter cried. He was turned around in his seat, watching the scene unfold behind us. At the sight of the car, people jumped out of the way, leaving whatever they had been carrying abandoned in the street.

If only my mother knew what I was doing.

Bullets flew past us and shattered our windshield. "Seriously?" I growled. "It's a nice car!"

"Take that turn!" Peter pointed ahead, I took my foot off the gas and spun the wheel. The car screeched as we turned. "They're on our tail. Take the next right, then go straight." Peter ordered. Since I didn't have any better ideas, I did as he said. We continued down the road, repeatedly swerving around people and objects. I took the right turn and inflicting only minimal damage to the car.

Unfortunately the other car took the turn faster. Orders were being called for us to stop. A bullet flew past my ear, hitting one of the glass circles. "Hit it, Ada." Peter demanded. I didn't need to be told twice. I slammed my foot on the pedal and we flew down the road, leaving a cloud of dust behind us. Trees slowly replaced the buildings around us. I took the risk and ripped my eyes off the road. Behind us, four officers sat in a car that looked nearly identical to ours, minus the bullet holes and shattered windshields. The driver's ears were a cherry shade of red. I recognized the officer beside him. Evil pig man was holding a gun, repeatedly firing at the ground. "They're aiming for the wheels!" I realized. I turned to face the road again, overwhelmed with our speed.

"Turn into the trees." Peter blurted.

"What?" I cried.

"Just do it!"

I shut my eyes and braced as I turned the car into the trees. The car flew over what I assumed to be rocks. "Open your eyes!" Peter screamed. I obeyed him, and immediately swarved the car, nearly missing an odd shaped tree. "Stop the car!" My panicked feet tried to find the brake. Peter jumped from the passenger seat and into mine, smashing against the door. He hit the brakes, which almost sent us flying out of the car. He wrenched the key from the slot and flung open the door. He grabbed my wrist and pulled me from the car, taking us both deeper into the trees, "We need to run from here." he explained. We ran through the trees, jumping over fallen logs and rocks. Back on the road, voices were loudly debating on whether or not they should follow us. More gunshots rang behind us, I recognized the voice as Evil pig man's, "I don't care if they're dead!"I fell to my knees, "I'm slowing us down." I gasped. "They're going to catch up to us." I cringed, my ankle throbbed with fiery pain. The voices grew louder behind us. "Over here!"

Peter lifted me over his shoulders. "Put me down, you'll hurt yourself." I protested. He ignored me and ran forward, every stride making my ankle throb worse. We came to a thick brush. "We can't run though that." I said. His knees buckled under my weight, "I know." He moved me off his shoulders, and got to his knees, "Follow me." He crawled into the bushes and I followed close behind him. "Stay low." He muttered.

Once we were deep into the brush, he stopped and laid flat on his stomach. I caught up to him and did the same. "I heard them by the bushes over here!" Someone announced. I audibly gasped as a bullet grazed the leaves above us. Peter's hand flew over my mouth. He mouthed for me to stay quiet. I slapped his hand away. "I get it." I mouthed back.

Several more bullets were fired into the bushes and trees around us. Two of which only missed us by mere centimeters. The gunfire moved on, and the voices grew further away from us. "I can't believe we survived that." Peter whispered. His knuckles were still white. I pulled off my backpack and I rolled onto my back, "What do you mean? I'm an excellent driver." I joked. He chuckled and rolled onto his back, "You weren't too bad. But next time, I'm driving."

I gave him a lopsided smile, "Then let's both pray there isn't a next time."