Mercy (The Last Army Book 1) by John Freeter Read Free Book Online Page A

seem to hear her and kept on crying, but Mr. Jenkins rushed up to the girl.
    “Are you sure? Where?” he asked.
    She pointed at a heap of crushed bricks a few yards ahead. Even from a distance, I could see the bricks jostling rhythmically, as if someone really was trying to get out from under the wreckage.
    This time none of the other teachers seemed too eager to become impromptu rescuers. The buildings left standing around the hospital loomed over the ruins. I couldn’t blame them. The speed at which our school collapsed proved that there would be no time to run away if those buildings finally toppled over. Only Mr. Jenkins ran toward the brick mound. Loose bits of building material detached from the pile and rolled downhill. Once he reached the site, Mr. Jenkins pushed back the debris with his bare hands. His black hair stuck to his sweaty forehead.
    “Can you hear me? Stay calm. We’re gonna get you out of there!” he yelled.
    Several of the men who’d joined us in the park rushed to aid him in his rescue attempt. They tossed aside bricks and hunks of rubble, kicking up a broad cloud and raising a terrible racket as they yelled words of encouragement at the trapped survivor.
    “I think I see someone in there!” one of the rescuers shouted.
    A collective gasp swept through the crowd. Many of them mumbled prayers with teary eyes—Karla among them—hoping to finally get some good news after so much suffering. The rescuers redoubled their efforts to get the survivor out, kicking up even more dust. Mr. Jenkins finally seemed to have reached whoever was trapped under the rubble.
    “Okay, I think I can… Jesus Christ! What—?”
    He screamed. Fear and pain were tangible in that high-pitched shriek, so powerful that it sapped the warmth from my body. The men who were with him ran out of the haze, screaming, their eyes wide open with fear.
    “Run! Run! Come on, get the hell out of here!” one of them managed to yell as he elbowed his way through the bewildered crowd.
    Karla shrieked and grabbed my arm with an icy hand, making me turn my eyes back to the ruins. Now it was my turn to scream. Mr. Jenkins crawled away from the dust cloud, leaving behind a bright-red blood trail.
    His right leg was gone.
    It’d been ripped apart at the knee, and his shredded grey trousers were sodden with blood. I ran toward him, unable to just stand by as he dragged himself through the wreckage.
    “No, Rebecca, don’t! Get out of here! Now!” Mr. Jenkins screamed.
    I stopped right at the edge of the mountain of debris that had been the hospital, swaying on my weakened legs. I stared at Mr. Jenkins in a catatonic stupor as he desperately crawled toward me on his bloodied hands. He clenched his teeth and grunted with every inch he advanced, his eyes alight with terror.
    I didn’t snap out of my trance until I heard the blood-curdling shrieks behind me. The cries that rang throughout the crowd were unlike anything I’d ever heard, the unhinged panic in them bordering on madness.
    Of course, none of us had ever come face-to-face with a demon before.

Chapter 10
    Three pairs of glowing red eyes stared at me from within the fading dirt cloud. All of them belonged to the same creature.
    The beast’s long black snout emerged from the dusty veil as it paced toward me on its massive paws. Grey ram-like horns curved out of its head. Its vast jaws were rimmed with long fangs, stained bright red. Strips of grey fabric were stuck between them. Saliva and blood dripped from the thick black fur around the demon’s mouth and onto Mr. Jenkins’s back. He closed his eyes and covered his head as he whimpered, accepting his fate. The creature glared at me, challenging me to rescue its helpless victim.
    I slumped on the pavement and couldn’t get up, my leaden legs sprawled uselessly under me, as if I’d been hypnotized by the creature’s demonic gaze. The beast pinned Mr. Jenkins down with its vicious claws. The teacher wailed and squirmed under