Abby was tugging at me, Bret was pulling me, and I was desperately trying to elude the merchandise that had gone from being inane to dangerous and deadly. I thrust Abby at Bret before we reached the backdoor.
Mom! Abby was still yelling but I could barely hear her over the crashing bangs resounding throughout the store.
I know.
I turned away, struggling to get back to our mother, fighting to keep my balance in a rapidly unraveling world. Aiden grabbed hold of my arm as a resounding crash rocked the store. We tumbled to the side, slamming off a set of rattling shelves. A silver elephant toppled off the shelf striking Aiden in the shoulder. He winced, darting away from the shelf as it began to rock treacherously back and forth. It was a heavy shelf, large, and if it fell on us we would be trapped, pinned within this store at the mercy of the monsters outside.
For a moment I was frozen as my terror over being trapped anywhere flared to hot, vivid life. I couldnt move; my panic was too strong, too intense, and all consuming.
Aiden threw himself away from the shelf. He wrapped his arm around my waist as he dove forward. We fell to the floor in a tumbled heap; the breath was knocked out of me, my tailbone screamed in protest as we bounced across the hard ground. The shelf toppled, spilling its contents upon the floor, and us. I was able to breathe again, but not very well.
A huge crack fissured across the ceiling, a resounding bang rocked every wall of the building. Debris began to rain down on us, plaster coated the floor, covered our clothes, stuck to our hair and skin. Hands seized hold of me, lifting me roughly up. Brets deep green eyes were kind, worried, and terrified. He hauled me to my feet as the front of the store suddenly crumpled. I stared in wide eyed horror as plaster, wood, and nails toppled as if they were no more than tooth picks.
Bret was pulling me forward, dragging me toward the open backdoor. Aiden was behind us, limping slightly as we stumbled forward. Cade appeared suddenly, striding purposely toward us through the store. He took hold of my other arm, hurrying me forward as we fell into the warm night air. I inhaled the fresh air greedily, trying hard not to cry, trying hard not to panic as I spun rapidly back around. I pulled free of Brets grasp, stumbling back toward the store. Peter! My mother!
Lights flashed throughout the night, illuminating the crumbling buildings around us as it flared hotly. The awful screeching noise seemed to be moving away, but the building was continuing to crumple before us. Two by fours cracked, heavy roof beams caved like toothpicks. My heart plummeted; I fell limply to my knees, my hands clasped before me as I stared in horror at the back wall, the only piece of the store that remained.
The rest of it was gone. It was nothing but a pile of rubble.
How could we possibly dig them out of there?
I knew the answer to that question before I even answered it. We couldnt. We simply couldnt.
My heart was aching; my whole body was trembling, shaking. Broken. I was so broken. My father had died because I had failed to get out of that car, because I had failed him . And now my mother was dead because I had failed once again. I had left her in there, and she was gone.
I was shaking, numb with horror and grief. Aiden shushed Abby softly, as she began to weep openly, and loudly. I turned to look at my siblings, my gaze landed upon Aidens wide, distraught eyes. I saw the answering hopelessness in his eyes, the tears that rimmed them.
In his gaze I saw the truth. We were now orphans.
***
Abby was crying silently, her head bowed, her dark hair falling around her slender shoulders. I couldnt comfort her, not now, that had fallen to Jenna. She had her arm around Abbys shoulders; her head was bent over Abby as she tried to ease her sorrow. It was impossible, we all knew that. Jenna herself was struggling with the likelihood that she would never see her parents again. The only difference was that Jenna had not received the violent confirmation that they were dead that we just had.
Even Aiden had shed a few tears, hed tried to keep them hidden from us, but I had seen them. I had not cried. I was fairly certain that I would not cry, not now, not in front of my siblings. Someone had to stay strong, and just like with my father, it would be me. I didnt meet Cades gaze, I could feel it on me, burning into my back, but I would not look at him. Bret kept his arm around me, seeking to give me comfort even though I didnt want it. He didnt seem to understand that though, and I had given up shrugging his arm off. What was the point?
Why did the building collapse like that? Abby moaned. What caused it?
A muscle in my cheek jumped, my jaw ached from clenching it so tightly. I didnt know what had caused it, but it had been big, it had been brutal, and it was going to come for us. Of that much I was certain. It
would continue to hunt for survivors. It would be unrelenting and ruthless in its pursuit. It apparently hadnt known that we were in the store, but I was certain that once it got a bead on us, it was not going to stop in its desire for blood, in its desire to drain us dry.