Until Lexi

17

LEXI

“Where’s Hope?”

I double check to make sure Riley has Mercy distracted before I answer Penny’s whispered question. “She got pissed off and stormed off. I don’t know where she went.”

“She’s got the goddamn keys.”

We’re quiet while we wait outside the restaurant for Riley’s ride—and Hope—to show up.

We don’t talk about what happened. It’s something that we’ll all need to address later, but not when Mercy’s with us. We’re going to have to have a conversation and decide where to go from here, because it’s become blatantly clear that things aren’t going to get better, at least not any time soon. Hope may be our sister, but she’s creating a toxic environment for the rest of us, especially Mercy. We can’t keep living like this, and the DNA test results have the potential to make things even worse.

At least fifteen minutes pass, and there’s still no sign of Hope, but Riley’s ride pulls up, so we help her load the bags into the car before waving her off. We sit outside for another ten minutes or so before Mercy grows restless.

“I guess we should head to the car and see if she’s there,” Penny says, sounding exhausted.

“Come on, Mercy,” I say, taking her hand.

Hope appears out of nowhere, pulling up in Penny’s car as we make it to the curb.

“Where have you been? Penny asks, not hiding her irritation.

“I went to get the car so not everyone had to walk all the way the hell back over there,” Hope replies with a huff. She says something else under her breath that sounds a lot like, “You’d think you’d be a bit more appreciative.”

Penny and I choose to ignore it, knowing good and damn well that it doesn’t take that long to walk to where the car was parked. She was gone for at least thirty minutes. Instead of pressing, Penny climbs into the back seat with Mercy, getting both of them buckled in. Not wanting to squish in the back seat, I sit up front with Hope and do the same.

“Where’s Riley?” Hope asks, finally noticing her absence.

“She got her own ride.”

“Oh, good,” she says snidely.

“Don’t start, Hope,” I tell her quietly. “Let’s just go home.”

She scoffs, navigating through the parking lot before whipping out onto the main road. I sigh, wishing I would have gone with Riley. I’m starting to think she had the right idea, because being in this car with emotions running so high is damn near suffocating.

Penny and Mercy don’t make a peep from the back seat, and I have no desire to talk to Hope right now, so I keep my mouth closed. I’m still pissed off, even more so since Hope doesn’t seem to give a fuck about anything Riley and I said to her back there. Her attitude fucking sucks.

Unfortunately, I don’t stay quiet for long because Hope stupidly gets in the turning lane to get on I-24 instead of taking the faster way home, which we desperately need. None of us want to be in this car for longer than we have to be.

“Why are you taking the interstate? It’s gonna take longer.”

“Because I’m driving, and this is the way I’m choosing to go.”

I breathe slow and deep through my nose, trying to keep myself calm, but her attitude is plucking my last nerve. Crossing my arms over my chest, I stare out the window and zip my lips. One of us has to be the bigger person, and I guess today it’s going to be me.

About halfway down the highway, I notice the car swerving slightly. Nothing too significant, but Hope seems like she’s having a hard time staying in our lane. I glance over, eyes locking on the way her hands are white knuckling the steering wheel.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah, why?” she asks, eyes not leaving the road in front of her.

“Just checking,” I say, a little unsure. “Thought the car was acting up or something.”

“No.”

I don’t appreciate the dismissal, but to keep the peace, I let it go.

A couple more miles pass, and the longer we’re on the road, the more my concern grows. Hope’s still not maintaining good control of the car, and from the corner of my eye, I can see she’s kinda shaky, twitchy even.

“You sure you’re good?” I ask her quietly, not wanting to make Penny nervous in the back.

“I’m fucking fine, Lexi!” she snaps. “Jesus. I’m just trying to get us home!”

I stiffen in my seat, and from the corner of my eye, I see Penny do the same.

Something isn’t right.

I can’t put my finger on it, but I can fucking feel it.

A sense of dread washes over me.

“Maybe you should pull over, Hope. Let someone else drive,” I suggest calmly as we approach the exit we need to take.

“Maybe you should shut the hell up and let me concentrate on the road.”

Mercy whimpers in the back seat, putting me even more on edge. I vaguely hear Penny try to comfort her, but my attention is locked on Hope.

She takes the exit, pressing her foot harder onto the gas, accelerating around the loop instead of slowing down like she should.

“Hope…”

I can hear the tremor in my own voice.

“Jesus Christ, Lexi. What the fuck do you want from me?” She shouts, finally glancing over at me. Her eyes are wild, crazed. “You want me to pull over? Fine! I’ll fucking pull over!”

Barely slowing down, she grabs the steering wheel and yanks it to the right.

The next few seconds pass in slow motion.

Hope curses.

Penny screams.

Mercy is oddly silent.

Frozen, I watch in horror as the car flies down the embankment, heading straight toward the busy highway we exited. Hope tries to slam on the brakes, but she’s too late, too fucking slow. The car doesn’t stop. Not until it plows straight into a utility pole.

A single moment happens in broken fragments.

Terrified screams.

The sickening crunch on impact.

The force of the seatbelt pulling against my chest.

The screeching whine of twisting metal.

Glass splintering and shattering.

The deafening bang of the airbags as they deploy, filling the car with a smoky, chalky odor.

The nauseating crack as my head snaps to the side, smashing against the window.

My vision blurs, pain spiking through my skull as my pulse pounds in my ears.

Mercy’s gut-wrenching tears are the last thing I hear before everything goes black.