Page 66 of One Merciful Moment

Panicking, she swung her arms out as her body lifted off the ground, going faster down the street. There were others beside her, but she couldn't make out who they were with all the rain coming down.

"Boone!" she screamed as the veil sucked her in.

Chapter 38

Ashley

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Blue.

A soft, endless stretch of sky. Big white clouds drifted lazily across it, fluffy and harmless.

Ashley gasped.

Her body jerked upright. She stared all around her. She sat in the grass. Her mind scrambled, replaying what happened. She reached for Boone, then got pulled into the veil.

But none of it was here. The grass cushioned her palms. The sun warmed her skin. Her heartbeat slammed against her ribs.

This wasn't Everstill.

She twisted around, searching for Boone, but the field was empty except for her truck.

Oh God, my truck.

Flipped on its side in the ditch, metal crumpled, dirt packed into the wheel wells. The sight brought back the moment her tire had gone off the edge of the road, and she lost control.

Everything was real. The truck, the ditch, the sky.

Everstill was gone.

A car screeched to a stop on the road. The passenger door flew open, and a man jumped out and sprinted toward her.

"Hey! Hey, are you okay?" he shouted, jumping into the ditch.

She stared at him and tried to speak, but nothing came out. Her throat closed around the desire to scream Boone's name. The ground tilted. She grabbed her forehead, suddenly woozy.

Okay? How could she be okay? Her heart wasn't here. Her life wasn't here. Boone wasn't here.

The man reached her, hands hovering near her shoulders, ready to steady her. "You're shaking. Did you hit your head? Do you know your name?"

She swallowed hard, tears burning her eyes. "I got in an accident."

"I can see that." He took out his phone. "Do you need an ambulance?"

"No." She inhaled deeper. "I'm fine. My truck... my phone is in there. If I could get it, I can call a tow truck."

She walked closer to the vehicle. The first thing she wanted to do was call Boone, but there were no phones in Everstill.

"Here, let me call one for you." The man stopped her from getting closer. "Once they get your rig out of the ditch and on the flatbed, I'm sure they'll let you get your phone. It's too dangerous to climb in there now. It could tip."

Her chin chattered. She hugged her middle, unable to stop the shakes.

"Your adrenaline is falling," the man said gently. "It'll give you the shakes, for sure. Why don't you sit down? I'll wait with you until the tow truck gets here."

"Thank you," she said, unsure if her voice made it past her lips.

All she wanted was Boone. She'd even take being back in Everstill.