Her Striker by Charlene Raquel

His Revenge

 

Gwen Mason had just fallen asleep in the back seat of Jeff “Tech” Edwards’s 4Runner when her world tumbled out of control. Literally. The vehicle rolled over and over, picking up speed as it flew off the curve in the country lane. Their bags and things flying everywhere as it slid down the incline next to the road. The vehicle finally came to a rocking halt on its roof.

Glass littered the entire inside of the SUV, as an eerie silence settled all around. Gwen was suspended upside-down in the center seat between her best friend, Samantha Leventis, and her boyfriend, Drew Maxwell.

Disoriented, she tried to clear her head. Somehow, they had gotten into a car accident. Powder from the airbags filled the air, causing her to cough as she tried to fill her restricted lungs. Her body ached from being banged around the SUV.

A moan from her right made her turn toward Sam. Her best friend had blood dripping from a slash on her forehead near her hairline. “Sam!”

Gwen’s voice cracked as she tried to speak. Her chest ached from the tight belt. She turned to Drew, reaching out to him. “Drew?”

Drew stirred. “Gwen! Baby, are you okay?”

“I think so. Sam’s hurt. She must have slammed against the passenger side door as we rolled.”

Glancing toward the front, the airbags covered their friend, Dean, and his brother, Jeff, neither of them moving.

“We have to get everyone out of this car.” Drew struggled to release his seatbelt, knowing that he would fall on his head. He didn’t want to worry Gwen, but he saw the large jacked up black truck barrel into the passenger side of their SUV. It happened so fast that he couldn’t even warn Jeff.

“Be careful.” Gwen watched as Drew held onto the belt, trying to provide a little slack to be able to unlatch it. Clinging to the strap, he attempted to slow his fall, but managed to land hard on the ceiling.

He spun around and knelt under Gwen, taking her weight off the seatbelt. “Here. Let me help you and then I’ll get Sam.

Gwen clicked the button and settled in Drew’s arms. He tightened his hold briefly before kissing her forehead and letting her go.

She gave him a partial smile. “Thanks.”

Drew steadied her. “Can you check on Dean and Jeff, while I get Sam down?”

Gwen climbed toward the front, pushing the airbags back. Jeff’s face was covered in blood, causing Gwen to stifle a scream. His chest moved as he took a breath and she sagged with relief. It looked like most of the blood was coming from his nose.

She moved over to Dean just as he stirred. “Dean? Are you alright?”

Dean groaned, cuts bleeding on the side of his face. “What the hell happened? That truck came out of nowhere.” He glanced over at his older brother. “Jeff!”

Gwen placed her hand on his shoulder as he struggled to get out of his seatbelt. “He’s breathing. I think his nose might be broken. That’s where all the blood is coming from.”

Dean slipped from his harness scrambling to his brother.

“What happened?” Sam held a hand to her head.

Drew motioned to the two girls. “See if you can slide out through the window.”

Gwen helped Sam crawl her way out.

Drew slipped through his side window to see if he could get Jeff’s door open. “It won’t open Dean.”

“Okay. Help me try to get him down. We can pull him out the back.” Dean wiped his brother’s face with the edge of his t-shirt.

Gwen sat on the slope with Sam a few feet away from the crunched vehicle, waiting for the guys to get Jeff out. She wanted to help but the inside was too small for all of them to move around in. “How’s your head? Are you dizzy?”

Sam shrugged. “It hurts, but I’ll be okay. I’m worried about Jeff.”

“Me too.” Gwen was relieved to see Drew crawl out on the other side of the vehicle supporting Jeff. He was awake and moving around, which was a good sign.

Sam got up and rushed over to Dean. She wanted to make sure he was okay.

Gwen couldn’t believe they had been in an accident. It had been an awful 24-hours. She wrapped her arms around herself, wondering what else was going to happen. She should have known better than to wonder that.

Something hard jammed her in the back of the head and a voice called out. “You’re coming with me.”