Tribulation Road: A Red Hot Treats Story Read Online Free

choose.”
    Her
gut twisted. He wasn’t going to let this go. From the minute she’d been born
and the years rolled by with no other females, her future had been set in
stone. The prophecy had hovered above the heads of women born to Noble for
centuries. “I understand, sir.” The words were a
noxious concoction she was forced to chew and swallow.
    “Good. Hurry home. I don’t
like having you out there with so much uncertainty in the air. I can feel the
tides changing.”
    They disconnected and she
shifted in her seat, wishing she could slow down time and stretch out her last
moments of freedom. She’d been raised to live and die for the cause. Not
because she was a thoughtless soldier, but because she believed in it. People
deserved to have someone out there protecting them from the evil that stalked
while they remained unaware. A world without Noble fell prey to the darkness
always lurking just out on the outskirts. They’d seen it time and time again in
history. Every time Noble disbanded, a plague of darkness crept over the world.
It’s why they took their jobs, their legacy, and their numbers so seriously.
They’d taken a lot of hits this century.
    When a person turned
twenty-one, they were given the option to continue and swear their allegiance,
or leave. More had been choosing the latter. She couldn’t blame them. It was a
hard life. You lived in the shadows, lied to almost everyone you met, and constantly
sacrificed for the elusive greater good. Some days the mantra was a
record you wanted to smash to smithereens.
      Damn you, Jag. You ruined
everything.
    Facing the ancient words
written down in their archaic book of history hadn’t been nearly as scary when
she had her best friend by her side. Born a few months after him, they were reared
up together. When they turned thirteen, the boy who used to turn everything
into a competition started making her blush. The memory of butterflies in her
belly almost made her forget his betrayal.
    She knew he had
reservations about dedicating his life to something that was pretty much a
thankless necessity, but she’d never thought he’d turn his back on her, on
them. Her vision blurred and her throat grew tight. She shoved away the
emotions, locking them in the vault along with her other inner demons chomping
at the bit as they waited for a chance to escape. Feelings were the enemy. They
made you hesitate, distracted you at every turn. She liked to deal with them,
or rather, not deal with them with a healthy dose of sarcasm, alcohol,
and work. The minute someone stopped laughing in this business, they went crazy
or left the game altogether.
    The wind picked up
outside, rocking the small sedan. Goose bumps broke out over her flesh. She
scanned the road and found nothing amiss. Still, the sensation of being watched
prickled across her skin like a warning. She
hit the accelerator and gunned it. It was back roads of the Midwest. She’d take
her chances with the local police if her scanner failed her. A few tears and a
sob story and she’d be on her way with stern wag of the finger.
    A loud boom of thunder
cracked in the near distance. Thick, gray clouds rolled in and blotted out the
sun. Lightning lit up the sky, damn near blinding her. This is not normal. It
was coming in too fast and too fierce from nowhere. Lightning struck the ground
three feet from the narrow road to her right. She jerked the wheel. The smell
of burning ozone crept in through her vents. Her muscles tensed. Another crack
ripped the air. This one sounded like it was on top of her. She reached across
the car and opened the glove box, struggling to get the wooden, satin-lined box
the size of her fist.
    The wind increased.
    She tugged the wheel to
keep the wind from taking her off the road. The box fell onto the seat next to
her. The sky unleashed hell. Rain battered her vehicle, hitting the exterior so
hard she thought it might be hail. Her fingers fumbled with the latch. It gave
with a loud pop. She