Wild Sky 2 by Suzanne Brockmann, Melanie Brockmann Read Free Book Online Page B

green plastic water gun zoomed over to the man with the real gun and smacked him in the face.
    “What the hell…?” He fumbled his weapon as he turned to see me standing there—me and that collection of water guns—and his eyes widened.
    “Holy shit, Sky!” With the noise from the assault weapon silenced, I could hear Garrett shouting, and I winced inwardly because he’d used my name.
    But whatever he said next was muffled, and Cal’s voice rang out instead. “Hoshitski, look out!”
    It was an intentional misdirect, and I tried to stand like a Hoshitski might, no doubt surly from years of being teased. I pitched my voice lower and ordered, “Drop it! Now!”
    The gunman’s wide eyes narrowed, and we both knew he wasn’t going to drop his weapon, so before he could turn and kill me, I let loose my TK and blasted him. All of those plastic guns shot water from their barrels with the intensity of sixteen narrow but powerful fire hoses, and it sent the man down onto the ground so hard that I heard his head as it smacked against the pavement.
    The gun he’d been holding clattered to the ground.
    All of my weapons ceased water-fire and dropped onto the pavement in front of the unconscious shooter.
    The silence that followed was eerie. I felt a little dazed, standing there with a single, silly-looking pink water gun still in my hand, staring at the downed man and his big real gun, and then over at the bullet-riddled storefront of the Sav’A’Buck.
    “Hey!” Calvin bellowed. “Get back in the frickin’ car!”
    But I wasn’t done yet.
    Part of my relentless training with Dana had been in the safe handling of real weapons, and I dashed over to that ginormous military assault thing (clearly I’d slept through the chapter on identification of make and model) and carefully picked it up. I knew enough to remove the magazine, and I tossed it as far as I could across the parking lot. I unloaded the round that was chambered and ready to fire, too. It sprang out and clattered onto the pavement. I kicked it under a nearby car.
    I could see the frightened faces of the little girl’s family as they finally dared to emerge from the Sav’A’Buck, and I shouted to them. “You’re safe, she’s safe, your daughter’s safe. Take this weapon, you can sell it.” I could tell with just a glance that these people—mother, father, older brother, and an infant—had next to nothing. They were skinny and shivering in the brisk morning air. “His car keys are probably in the front pocket of his jeans, you should take his car, too. Use it to get out of here.”
    The nearly kidnapped girl’s brother was on the ball—his parents were still stunned. But he was maybe twelve, and he didn’t hesitate; he just reached in and found Gun Man’s key ring. I spoke directly to him. “Have your mom and dad drive north. All the way to Boston, or, once you’re out of Florida, head west, out to California. There are people there who can help you. But above all, make sure your sister hides her powers, do you understand me?”
    The mother had started to cry as she dumped her baby into her husband’s arms in order to scoop up her almost-abducted daughter from the front seat of that Bimmer and cradle her in her arms.
    “He didn’t hurt her too badly,” I reassured them. “He needed her alive. Now, go. Don’t stop, at least not until you get up to Orlando. There are places there you can sell a car like this for cash, too. No questions asked. But then get another car, a cheaper one, and keep going. Boston. Or California.”
    The boy nodded, and I knew at least he was paying attention.
    “Come on, Hoshitski!” Cal called out, still desperately trying to keep my anonymity. “We need to go !”
    “Keep her safe,” I told the boy again.
    I didn’t want to leave my arsenal behind, but there was no water left in any of the plastic guns, so moving them with my TK was a no-go. I scooped up as many as I could, holding out my shirt and using it