The Last Revenant (Book 1): The Crash Read Online Free PDF Page B

thought he was wrong. “Thanks for helping me.” Hopefully that was good enough.
    He nodded.  “So what did you do?” He waved a hand through the air. “Before all this, I mean.”
    I played with the piece of plastic in my hands, listening to it crinkle instead of talking. For some reason I almost felt embarrassed about my past, not even because I regretted doing anything, but because I felt like I could have done more. “School...” I smiled, not really sure of what else to say. I hadn't even known what I went to study for. “I worked retail, but...” I shrugged. “I wanted to be a writer.” I peered up at him sheepishly and was surprised to see him smile.
    He knocked on the table. “You make it through the next few years, Jessica, and I’m sure you’re gonna have a lot to write about.”
    He actually had a point. I had never thought about it that way before. Too bad I wasn't any good at it. “What about you?”
    “Nothing terribly worthwhile, I’m afraid.” He shrugged the question off and handed me an apple. “Still hungry?”
    I grabbed it, not entirely sure if I wanted to eat or if I just felt sick, but my hand stopped with it half way to my mouth. I slowly lowered it back down and the familiar knot in my stomach followed it like a shadow, my eyes setting back onto Ryan. “Where’d you get this?”
    He locked his fingers together and rested his hands, his ring clinking against the wood. “I’m sure you knew we aren’t the only ones out here.”
    I looked at the piece of fruit in my hand. It seemed perfect. It was completely smooth and the only vivid source of vibrant color that I’d seen for miles, but it wasn’t just food that I would be able to taste. It was like I was holding onto a piece of something bigger. For the past few days, it was a sign of life, of water, of food and maybe even of other people. As long as someone I knew had a chance of finding the round piece of life in-between my fingers, then I couldn’t give up on them. Not yet. Even if it was just a chance. If Zach...
    I had to try.
    I slid the apple back over to Ryan and stood up. “Look, thank you—for everything—but I have to go. I’m sorry.” I turned without looking back and starting making my way to the entrance.
    Zach had to be alive. What if he was still out there, barely strong enough to move? I pushed that reality aside. It was almost overwhelming. I couldn’t bear to think about the possibilities, but my mind started racing. Every motion that I would have to go through to find him started rearranging itself in my head like a giant jigsaw puzzle, though I didn’t need to see the whole picture. I only needed to get to him. Yet just as fast as it had manifested itself, the loose pieces were torn apart and thrown about into an unrecognizable mess.
    “Jessica...”
    I froze. I had stopped just in front of the entrance when a familiar pounding started to race through my neck. Would he try to stop me if I made a run for it? I slowly turned back to look at Ryan and saw that he hadn't moved an inch. It didn't help to calm me down.
    “How long do you think you'll last out there by yourself?”
    I opened my mouth and he immediately cut me off.
    “You know what I think?”
    I barely shook my head. I wasn't sure if I would be able to answer him even if I wanted to.
    “I think you don't have a choice...”
    I had barely turned around by the time I ran into a chest. I craned my neck up to see a man wider than the entrance with a rifle slung behind his back. I tried to squeeze past and he grabbed me by the waist. I fought against his grip and screamed for help as loud as I could, but nobody came.
    Or nobody cared.
    He shoved a hand over my mouth and I bit into the flesh of his palm, forcing him to curse and throw me back into the center. I scrambled to my feet and brought my head back up just in time to catch a fist with my skull, the world quickly crashing back down to meet me until it ended in a dizzying blur. My face