Extinction Read Online Free

mother once told me that you shouldn’t waist
time trying to change what you can’t, but you had to try to change the things
you can.” 
    “She sounds like a wise woman.”
    “She was.” I didn’t want to think about her right
now or the ache in my heart for her. I needed to stay focused on the danger in
front of me. I couldn’t let myself trust him.
    Chai rose and strode to the foliage, retrieving his
knives from between the bulky leaves. That was my cue; I wasn’t going to wait
for him to use the knives on me. I scrambled to my feet and sprinted as fast as
my feeble legs could move towards the darkness of the jungle next to road. I
didn’t know where I was going, but anywhere was better than here with him,
waiting for the angel of death to come and fetch me. I could try to hide from
him in the dense undergrowth. 
    A pair of arms circled me from behind and my back slammed
into his solid chest. I didn’t know how he got to me this fast. Adrenaline
pumped through my veins. I kicked backward and thrashed wildly with my arms. I
wasn’t going down without a fight. It was useless, the more I struggled the
tighter he held me against him. I writhed and twisted until I was too weak to
move, hanging limply in his arms. He loosened his grip and spun me around.
    “Stop struggling!”  
     I wasn’t done yet and swung my fist towards his
jaw. Chai easily blocked my arm and I lost my footing and stumbled backward. My
back hit the ground and I winced. He was on top of me in seconds, straddling me
and pinning my arms to my sides.
    “Stop struggling, you’re going to hurt yourself.” Tears
streamed down my cheeks and he frowned. 
    “Get it over with!  Kill me!” I clenched my teeth. It
was no use fighting him anymore. He was faster and stronger than me. The sooner
it was over, the better.
    “I’m not going to hurt you,” he said quietly. I
didn’t know if I should believe him. There was no reason for him to let me
live.
    “You’re letting the daughter of the Prime Minister
live?” It didn’t make any sense. He reached for my face and gently wiped away a
tear from my cheek with his thumb.
    “I can think of a lot more pleasant things to do with
you.” He gave me a lopsided smile. “But unfortunately we’ll have to do it some
other time.” He echoed my words from earlier and I exhaled slowly, my tensed body
relaxing under his weight.
    “That’s better.” He leaned forward and pressed his
lips on my forehead. I was stunned. He stood and I stared at him, jaw open. Did
he just kiss me? He held out his hand and I took it warily. 
    He pulled me to my feet and I nervously rubbed my
hands over my clothes. I must look like a mess. Strands of hair escaped from my
ponytail and I was covered in dirt. My eyes were probably red and puffy from
crying.
    “It’ll be dark soon and the jungle at night is no place
for a little girl. You must go back to the city.” He walked to the truck,
scooping my backpack from the ground and handed it to me. He reached for my gun
on the roof of the truck and held it toward me. I hesitantly took it, the metal
cool in my hand. 
    “Never point a gun at me again if you don’t intend
to use it. Lesson 1 – never take your finger off the trigger,” Chai said. 
     “Oh.” He knew I took my finger of the trigger. I
must be the worse armed robber in the history of the world.
    “You’re letting me go?” I asked. He wasn’t going to
kill me and now he was letting me go. I was wrong about the rebels. They weren’t
ruthless or murderers. He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, his warm eyes
resting on my face. Again I felt an incomprehensible connection to him. 
    “Don’t look so disappointed. I’ll be seeing you
soon, little one.” He grinned wickedly. I flushed and reluctantly stepped onto
the road, heading in the direction of the city.
    He was right; I didn’t want to be in the jungle
after sunset. Palasium wasn’t very far from the jungle and I could reach it
before dark.