Chapter 11
Tessa leaned closer to the truck’s side mirror, her heart slamming violently against her chest as the headlights pulled closer.
The vehicle behind them was a dark, heavy-duty black pickup truck—the exact model Evan had driven for the past five years.
"Hank, how fast are we going?" Tessa asked, her voice tight with rising panic.
"Cruising at sixty-five, ma'am, speed limit for trucks," Hank replied, glancing at his side mirror with a slight frown.
"Can you go faster? Please," Tessa begged, staring at the approaching vehicle. "That's him."
Hank looked at Tessa's terrified expression, then stepped firmly on the gas pedal, causing the massive diesel engine to roar loudly.
The heavy truck accelerated to seventy-five, the trailer swaying slightly against the high winds buffeting the freeway.
However, the black pickup behind them easily closed the distance, pulling right up onto the semi-truck’s massive rear bumper.
The pickup’s high-beam lights flashed frantically three times—a clear demand for the semi-truck driver to pull over immediately.
"He's crazy," Hank muttered, reaching for his CB radio microphone resting on the dashboard. "This is Unit 44 requesting highway patrol assistance on I-5 South..."
Before Hank could finish his sentence, the black pickup suddenly veered into the left lane and pulled right alongside the cab.
Tessa looked through her passenger window and locked eyes with her husband through the rain-streaked glass.
Evan’s face was unrecognizable—his skin was stained with black ash, his eyes were bloodshot, and a terrifying, desperate frenzy gripped his features.
He jerked his steering wheel violently to the right, slamming the side of his heavy pickup directly into the semi-truck's door.
The loud, metallic CRASH shook the massive vehicle, sending a terrifying jolt through Tessa and Maisie.
"What the hell!" Hank screamed, fighting with both hands to keep the massive tractor-trailer from jackknifing across the highway.
"Pull over, Tessa!" Evan yelled through his open window, his voice barely audible over the roaring wind and engine noise. "You don't understand what she took!"
"Leave us alone, Evan!" Tessa screamed back, pulling Maisie close and shielding her body with her own.
Evan slammed his truck into the side of the cab again, the force of the collision shattering the passenger side mirror into a thousand glass shards.
Hank swore loudly, pulling a heavy metal tire iron from beneath his seat and laying it across his lap.
"I'm taking us off the next exit!" Hank yelled over the noise. "Hold on tight!"
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Hank yanked the steering wheel hard to the right, sending the semi-truck roaring down a dark off-ramp toward an unlit rural gas station.
Evan’s pickup followed right on their tail, its tires screeching loudly against the damp asphalt as they exited the freeway.
