Counting Down by Lilah Boone Read Free Book Online Page A

to be honest. There’s been way too much of the strange and unusual going on for me lately. You and the human light show will just be added to a growing list of things covered in crazy-sauce .”
    Kyle grinned, gestured for the two of them to sit on the swing suspended from the ceiling of the porch. After they were comfortable Kyle started talking again.
    “Considering we both appear to be glowing, I’m guessing that everything I’m about to say is going to sound like a rerun.” Kyle took a breath and turned in the bench to face her. “Lately I’ve been having dreams about the end of the world.”
    When Abby said nothing he continued. “After the dreams started I began storing water, food, and all kinds of miscellaneous survival type stuff in the barn, my shed, and just about every empty space I could find. I don’t know why, but I knew I had to do it. That lives, mine included, depended on it. I even had that old bomb shelter upgraded while Jim was away in Topeka.”
    Kyle took a breath and blew it out as though he had been waiting his whole life to get that secret off his chest. “This is all old news to you right? It happened to you too?”
    Abby nodded. She felt a kind of elation at knowing there was someone she could share her unusual world with, someone who could understand and not look at her as though she had three heads every time she opened her mouth. “I started having the dreams last week and I’ve been in hyper survival mode ever since. I even painted the dreams in extreme detail. I probably filled at least fifteen large scale canvases.”
    “Paintings huh?” He thought for a moment, continuing only when Abby leaned in expectantly. “That’s interesting because I wrote them down, told the story from the dreams in the best way I knew how. I felt like I had to keep a record of what I saw. And you’re a painter by profession right?”
    “Yeah, I paint, illustrate, and all that..” She shrugged, took a sip of her tea. “It usually pays the bills.”
    “ Huh, that sort of makes sense then. ” He paused for a breath. “I’m a writer when I’m not working the farm. Well, I’ve only been published a few times in small magazines, but I was an English major in college and I’ve been writing stories and poetry all my life.”
    Before they could talk any further on the subject Alex came running out the front door and slid to a stop on the porch, startling Abby, Kyle, and the sleeping hound dogs in the process.
    “It’s happened.” He was out of breath with a frantic, wide eyed looked on his unusually pale face. “It happened just like you said it would Abby. I can’t believe it’s all gone.”
    Abby jumped out of her skin and stood up from the swing. “What Alex? What happened?”
    “The City.” He brought his hands up to grip his head, obviously struggling with the news he was about to deliver. “New York just got swallowed up by a tidal wave.”
    “Oh my god.” Abby gasped and covered her mouth in horror. She had been praying that her vision was just a delusion and now the reality of it struck her hard in the chest, taking her breath away.
    “It’s been wiped from the map. California was hit too. They think Hollywood has been sunk under the sea like Atlantis. Your uncle is still watching the news, trying to learn what he can. I am pretty sure he doesn’t think you’re nuts anymore.”
    Abby nearly collapsed on her feet. She heard Kyle move behind her, but Alex was the first one to catch her. She wanted to sob against his chest, but couldn’t seem to find the tears. She simply closed her eyes, leaned against him, and let his arms give her strength. All of their friends, everyone they saw on a daily basis, were gone. There was nothing left.
    “If it weren’t for you we’d still be there.” Alex rubbed her back absently as he held her. “We wouldn’t have made it out. Not if you hadn’t saved us.”
    Kyle stood awkwardly behind them, cleared his throat politely to get their