Read Online Trying to Survive (Part 2) by C.J. Crowley - Free Book Online Page B

first.”
       When they went to leave, before I had the chance to say it, Walt looked back at me, smiled and said “Don’t worry, I’ll be careful.”
       Jessie added “Might be a good idea if one of you posts up on the second floor. You’ll be able to see a lot farther.”
       Jenny left the front window, and as she passed by me she said “You watch down here and I’ll go upstairs.” When she turned into the kitchen, Melanie and Clara blocked her path.
       Melanie said “Clara was in the hall listening earlier.” She looked down at her. “Tell Jenny what you told me. You need to speak for yourself from now on.”
       Jenny wasn’t much taller than Clara so she didn’t have to lean down very far. “How old are you?”
       She swallowed and slightly raised her brow. “Twelve.”
       “My father taught me how to shoot a gun when I was thirteen.” Jenny put on a comforting smile. “And I was a whole lot smaller than you are too… If you’re ready, I’ll be happy to show you.”
       I could tell Clara was scared, but she hid it well as she confidently said “I’m ready.”
       Jenny asked me to go catch Walt and the others before they left so the shots wouldn’t alarm them. “We’re going to do this upstairs so if it attracts any attention they’ll be far from harm’s way.”
       “Hopefully some do wander up, I would be an opportunity for them to shoot at moving targets.” I remarked as I headed out to let the others know to ignore the shots.
       Once I made it back inside, Jenny had already taken them upstairs. The house was completely silent, and the dozens of large windows allowed the quickly intensifying sun to fill the room with a soft, glowing light. The tranquility of it urged me to lie down on the couch and try to get some sleep… Until I glanced over and was painfully reminded that the couch was stained with Anthony’s blood…
       A few minutes after I pulled up a chair by the front bay and starting keeping watch, the first gunshot rang out and one of the windows across the street shattered… Melanie must be going first with the M4…
       I heard another shot, but none of the windows broke. She fired again, and one of the many small panes of glass in the garage door shattered… She’s having her aim at even smaller targets. Maybe I should be up there too… After Melanie hit three more panes of glass, the shooting stopped.
       It wasn’t long before I became bored with sitting around and waiting for windows to break, and there were no shredders in sight, so I got up and started looking at all the books scattered around the tables.
       Most of them were about interior decorating, poetry or modern art, and had very stylish and noticeable covers – just to show off for the customer. I was relieved when I came across a large, leather-bound book titled “The History of the Civil War”. It was small, but thicker than a textbook – the perfect size to keep me busy while I acted as a glorified sentry.
      When I made it back to my seat, I said to myself – After every page, I take a look around for a minute. I can’t slack…
       I looked down the road, just in time to see Jessie kicking open the front door of the house with the car in the driveway. When I saw they had Walt stand outside to keep watch, a good portion of my worry began to fade. I listened for any gunshots that would signal they ran into something (or someone), but the only ones I heard were coming from upstairs.
       A metallic ping followed the next shot and caused me to glance up from the book. I heard it again and saw sparks shoot off the side of the mailbox… Clara’s turn with the 9mm…
       I was perfectly content to read about the Civil War. I’d always been so fascinated by WWII that I never got around to learning much about it. It was actually difficult to abide by my own rule of looking up for a while after every page.
       The next time I did, I could see Walt, Jessie