AARON I fumbled for my phone. My hands were shaking. I pulled it out and accessed the drive system. I ordered the car to accelerate, to push beyond its safe limit. "The current speed limit is thirty-five miles per hour in urban areas," the car’s voice stated, calm and firm. "This vehicle cannot exceed the speed limit set by local and federal law." "I don't care about the law!" I yelled into the silence of the cabin. "I don't care if I get a ticket!" Then the world shifted. A pressure wave hit us. My skin prickled, burning like it was about to catch fire. The back window shattered inward, a storm of glass filling the space. The rear of the car lifted, clear off the ground, hovering several feet in the air for a terrifying moment.I reached for Lucas, my fingers also clawing at the headrest for support. I got a solid grip on the leather headrest. My other hand closed on the fabric of Lucas’s shirt. Then he was ripped from my grasp as the shirt tore under the strain. He landed in a heap on the floor, right on top of Ronan. Ronan let out a sharp cry of pain as Lucas’s weight pressed into him. The car fell back to earth with a jarring crunch. My teeth clacked together hard. The car’s system began an automated emergency stop, the brakes whining. "No!" I shouted. "Keep driving! Now!" Elena moved. She tore her seatbelt loose and threw herself to the floor, pulling Lucas in toward her, shielding his small body with her own. I twisted to look out the rear. The window was gone, just a jagged frame. What I saw was hell.The drone was gone. In its place were fountains of flame and churned earth, blooming in the distance. This was it. This was how we would all die. Nothing could survive that devastation, and our small car was sitting in the center of the maelstrom, a man-made eye of death. If I was going to die, it would be with them. I turned from the window, unbuckled my own belt, and left the seat. I only had to move a few steps to reach Elena and Lucas. A hand shot out. Ronan grasped my arm. His grip was intense, like steel. The force pulled me down to one knee. I tried to pull away, my focus on my family. I could see his mouth moving, shaping words I couldn’t hear over the relentless barrage of noise from outside. I leaned in close, my ear nearly touching his lips. I felt his breath, shallow and hot. "The code word," he rasped. "It is Blackreach… Blackreach. Tell them Blackreach." I pulled back slightly, my mind scrambling. "Blackreach?" His vision became distant, looking through me. His arm raised just a little, his wrist gave a faint, deliberate flick toward the front of the car. An instant later, the vehicle shot forward. The electric motors unleashed a deep, resonant whine, delivering vast power to the wheels. The car rocketed down the Interlink Highway, pushing past all speed limits. I didn't understand how, but I knew Ronan was responsible. This was our only chance. I reached for him again, grasping his shoulders. This man had thought that code word important enough to use his last few seconds. I had to understand. "What the hell is Blackreach?" I shouted into his face. His eyes widened, focusing on something beyond me. A small, tired smile tugged at the corner of his lips. He uttered one final word. Then it was over. The life left his eyes, just like that. His chest was still. I watched him for a second, the reality settling in. I lowered myself onto my side, laying down on the floor next to Elena and Lucas. Explosions continued to flash and rumble around us. I wasn't sure we would live. I pressed my lips to Lucas’s mop of hair, inhaling his scent. I kissed my boy. I closed my eyes and prayed, a desperate, wordless plea for deliverance. **** We drove for a full hour. We kept going until we were far enough from the bombardment that the explosions faded into a deep, unsettling silence. I didn't know if the attack had finished or if we had simply outrun the sound. In that quiet, hollow time, I studied the navigation display. Our original course to Ravenport was gone. The route had been altered, permanently rerouted. Ronan must have done it in that final moment when he broke the lock on the car’s governor. We were now headed to a place hours away from our intended destination. I tried everything. I used my limited computer skills to access the system. I punched at the touchscreen controls in sheer frustration. The destination was locked. Wherever Ronan had wanted us to go, he had made sure we couldn’t turn back. My stomach tightened. I had to trust that he was right. I discovered one thing. While I couldn’t change where we were going, I could command the car to stop.I scanned the map on the side of the freeway, looking for a decent place. I finally picked a location where the grass looked greener under the gray sky. The vehicle rolled to a gentle stop on the shoulder. I opened the door. The world outside was eerily quiet. I walked to the passenger side and pulled Ronan’s body from the car. It was heavy, awkward. I carried him to a patch of grass under a broad tree. Kudzu hung from its branches like a ragged curtain. I went back to the car and got the gray tarp from the front trunk. The rear trunk was dented and sealed shut from the blast damage. It would need a pry bar and time to open. I unfolded the tarp and covered him. It wasn’t a shroud, just a practical, waterproof sheet. I stood over the shape, unsure of what to do or say. I had no idea what religion he followed, if any. From his appearance, he might have been Hindu. But people were complicated. For all I knew, he was an atheist, or something else entirely. It felt wrong, presumptuous, to say a prayer meant for my own faith. So I just knelt in the damp grass beside him. I placed my hand on the tarp, over where I thought his forehead would be. I closed my own eyes. "Thank you," I whispered, my voice rough. "Thank you for saving my family. For saving my boy." I stayed there for a minute, my head bowed, listening to the distant hum of the Interlink.