Crossing Bedlam by Charles E. Yallowitz Read Free Book Online Page A

These people will even murder children who get too close, which means our situation is rather sensitive. We have no way of knowing if this Guardian is sane or unhinged. The smartest move is to wait for the rhinos to leave the area. Even if they get off the road, us driving in their general direction might be mistaken for poaching.”
    “What if we dressed up in red and blue spandex then shot silly string at them?”
    “I’m disappointed that I understood that reference. Still no.”
    “Then we can just watch and see what kind of Guardian we’re dealing with.”
    Cassidy cranes her neck to look over the dashboard and sees the trio of Wilders nearing the rhinos. The group of two women and one man are foraging in the grass at the side of the road, none of them showing interest in the beasts. One of the large animals turns to face the humans and yawns before shaking several flies off its head. Watching the scene continue without violence, Cassidy breathes a sigh of relief and is ready to fix her seat. The crack of a distant gunshot rings out at the same time the male Wilder is killed by a bullet to the head. Retreating toward the trees, the women are taken down swiftly even though they are obviously not a threat to the rhinos. For their part, the beasts jog to the other side of the road and return to their grazing as if the sniping is a natural part of their day.
    “This Guardian isn’t as bad as others, but we need to get out of here,” Cassidy whispers while turning the jeep on and putting it in reverse. Shifting down her seat, she grabs the wheel and stretches toward the gas pedal, her boot barely touching the metal. “Stay down and we’ll blindly go backwards. I can work with the mirrors to avoid getting us killed and then we’ll find another way. Welcome to the future, old man. Bet you wish you were still in jail.”
    “Only if it’s a women’s jail,” Lloyd responds with a grin. Peeking around his seat, he prepares to give her directions when a new noise rumbles toward them. “If you’re going to move then you need to do it now. Maybe even go off the road because I think we have a big problem heading our way.”
    “You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me.”
    There is no time for Cassidy to move the jeep before they see the front of a tractor trailer come around the far bend. The semi’s horn blares in an attempt to urge them out of the way, the driver unaware of the danger he has stumbled into. Another gunshot rings out and the driver’s side window explodes, a baseball cap flying out with the glass shards. The truck moves from side to side and at one point gives the illusion that it is about to turn around. With the dead driver leaning on the wheel, the large vehicle swerves and violently rolls toward the jeep. The cab skids across several lanes while the trailer finally stops several yards behind the smaller vehicle, preventing it from escaping. While still registering what has happened, Cassidy puts them in park and turns off the ignition to save gas. Through all of the noise and chaos, the rhinos continue to graze and wander around the onramp.
    “What just happened?” Cassidy asks, examining at the carnage through the rearview mirror.
    “That Guardian sniped a truck driver. Now we’re trapped between the wreckage and a pair of rhinos,” Lloyd answers while reaching back to grab a beer out of a cooler. He frowns at the cheap brand, which he has always thought tasted like somebody peed in seltzer and topped it off with shaving cream. “Maybe this is deus ex machina. Then again, I’m not really sure this solves a problem, which is what that phrase should be used for. This is why people shouldn’t drink and write.”
    “I think you mean drink and drive.”
    “Pretty sure the bullet didn’t care if he was sober or drunk.”
    “You lost me, Lloyd.”
    “Yeah, I’m confused too. What do we do now?”
    “Wait for an opportunity.”
    Lloyd nods his head even though the prospect of being trapped in