Read Online The Oasis by Janette Osemwota - Free Book Online Page B

underwear. They were an exotic shade of green with purple and blue stripes running across them. Although her bra said “yes, ma’am,” her underwear screamed “party.” It was silly of her, but something she’d coveted. She took the baby wipes and cleaned her body quickly. She would kill for a long hot shower; it had been so long since she had one. Baths were easier, but it still took time to heat water. Regardless, she had time for neither.
    Her makeshift bath wiped away the grime of spending the night in a dusty cabin and spending the day in a truck. She’d told herself long ago that she would not take the small luxuries she had for granted. Reaching into her bag, she grabbed a change of clothes. The new slacks were a comfortable dark green linen. Shaking her head, she wondered if Jasper would care what she wore. She pulled on the new pair of pants and reached in for a shirt.
    Lena jerked her head up. She heard shuffling in the store.
    She hoped that it was Jasper, having finished with the gas, but she knew better than to assume it was him. The sounds got louder as she reached over and turned off the flashlight. Her hand went to her throat and she suddenly wished she had her shirt on, but there wasn’t time.
    More importantly, she realized her pistol wasn’t in the waistband of her slacks, but still in the jeans she’d taken off. Panic crept up her throat as she quickly felt around for the gun. The shuffling got closer to the bathroom but Lena could not find her gun. Quickly she pushed her foot up against the door trying to block anyone from entering. The stall was one that required a key to lock, and she hadn’t thought to get the key since the door was already unlocked when she entered.
    Cursing herself, she pressed her ear silently against the door and tried to listen for any more movement. The silence was deafening and for a moment Lena hoped she had imagined the whole thing.
    Suddenly the door came crashing open, sending her sprawling across the floor. Her head slammed into the porcelain sink and her vision blurred momentarily. A silhouette stood above her in the darkened room. It was a giant of a man whose hand came grasping down on Lena’s throat.
    She struggled against his grasp, but he held her so tightly she couldn’t catch her breath. She tried to scream for Jasper, but only a whimper escaped. She couldn’t make out the man’s face or anything about him except that he towered over her. He was truly a giant.
    With a grunt he smashed her against the mirror, breaking the glass. He had superhuman strength and with every second he held her she felt like she was going to passing out. The struggle left her body as she felt him lift her again. He slammed her against the sink once more, and Lena could only watch silently as her vision faded into blackness.
     
    * * * * *
     
     
    Jasper finished filling the tank with gas. The task had taken him longer than he had planned. It didn’t matter. What he was grateful for was that there had been no movement. No one seemed to be aware that they were there. Silently thanking God that Lena had remained quiet, he stepped to the car to tell her so. Opening the door, he noticed right away that she wasn’t there.
    “What the fuck?” he cursed, looking around quickly. She wasn’t anywhere. He scanned the area quickly. Nothing. Her bag was missing, making him hope that she had merely stepped out to pee. God he hoped she had just stupidly gone to the bathroom.
    He had no idea why in the world she would do something so dumb. Although the area seemed clear and quiet, he wasn’t convinced it was safe enough that they could separate. Trying to remember the last time he had seen her, he scolded himself. He had nodded at her. Did she think that had meant everything was okay?
    Shutting the car door, he grabbed the rifle off his back and cursed himself for his ignorance. He shouldn’t have been so cocky.
    Approaching the convenience store, he knew right away that something