Struggle (The Hibernia Strain) (6 page)

5

I wake up to the sound of a loud boom. It takes a second to remember my surroundings. Night time hasn’t quite fallen but it’s late enough.

There it is again, boom, boom, boom. The earth itself shudders with each frightening decibel.

Emma is sitting upright in the bed. Frozen in place and listening hard.

“What is that?” she asks panicky, detecting that I’ve woken.

“I’m not sure. Sounds like explosions,” I whisper as quietly as I can and stating the obvious.

Whatever it is, i
t certainly sounds like trouble.

“Everybody out, everybody
get the fuck out of the house,” comes the roar of Shawn’s voice from elsewhere in the house.

He means business
, so without a moment’s hesitation I’m man handling Emma out of the bed and forcing her towards the bedroom door.

We never make it however as another deafening boom bellows from right outside the house
. A cascading force rips the outside wall and bedroom window asunder.

I’m sent flying forward by the blast
, and banging into Emma I take her with me.

I must have lost consciousness briefly because now
I’m in a heap on the floor, surrounded by debris. The side of the room where the bed was has practically been annihilated.

As I’m lying
here, my lungs struggle to fill themselves. My ears are ringing, meaning I can’t quite make out what Emma, who is now kneeling over me, is saying.

She has several gashes on her face and body
, but seems ok otherwise. I’m guessing my body must have shielded her from the worst of the blast.

Our eyes form an un
breakable connection, that is, until I lose focus and everything starts going blurry.

I don
’t need proper hearing to know she’s hysterical. I suppose why she wouldn’t be. My battered body must be a grim sight. I can tell there are countless internal and external injuries.

The pain
riddling my body means I’m dying.

I’m dying. Who could have imagined I’d go out like this?

Strangely I’m not anxious. What’s the point, it won’t change anything. I’m strangely accepting of my fate. I never would have thought I’d be so composed, me of all people.

What the hell happened anyhow?
Was it a gas explosion? No there was more to it than that. An attack of some sort?

My gasps for
air are getting slower and shorter. My body is twitchy from misfiring nerves. My times nearly up.

Why did I take our time together for granted? God fucking damn it
!

No point
in being selfish now. I manage to muster up what I’m sure is a feeble looking smile. I try to speak but I’m unable. My eyes are getting heavy and my vision is starting to fade.

I lip th
e words, “Thank you”, to her.

It
would be unfair to burden her with the words,
“I love you
,” despite the fact that I’m madly in love with her.

Before my eyes
close I blurrily see Shawn over her shoulder, barging into the room.

Good
he’s safe too. What weren’t you guys telling me? What happened with you?

He knows I
’m done for. It’s easy to tell. His usual cool facade is crumbling. He’s just standing there and nodding, tears streaming down his dismayed face.

We both know
they have to go now otherwise they run the risk of getting caught up in more potential blasts.

This isn’
t the time or place for sentimentality. I close my heavy eyelids.

I won’t hold you up any longer
.

My life doesn’t race before my e
yes as I’ve often heard depicted in stories of dying people who managed to come back from the brink.

My only conscious thought is how I regret not realising sooner that life is too short to live burdened down with fears and insecuri
ties. Life is too short and death is too permanent. That’s the kick in the teeth. If you don’t get it right the first time, there’s no second chance. I fear I’ve squandered mine and didn’t even know it.

I feel
Emma’s lips on mine, as soft as ever. The pain begins melting away to eventual numbness, as does everything else to silence, a subdued peaceful quiet.

Hello Mum, Dad...

To be continued...