Earth: Population 2 (Paradise Lost Book 1) by Aubrie Dionne

working for the Black Blade, pushed by him.
    But, you couldn’t pull one past Jay Dovetail. He whipped out his scabbard and stuck the tip in front of the cartload. I spoke with him, “Is it, now? Seems to me the queen doesn’t drink rum.”
    I glanced up from the laptop. Lights illuminated the drapes. The Aurora Borealis. Now I’d know if I’d gotten any closer to the invisible ship. I closed the laptop then snuck to the window and pulled back the corner of the fabric. A vibrant green burned in the sky. Brighter than the previous night, the lights filled the entire window.
    Through the fluorescence, the lines of a torpedo-shaped ship emerged. Spanning at least three football fields across, it stretched from the edge of town to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean. Before, I’d thought I’d seen the bottom, but, this time, the ship continued right into the land on the horizon. Had it lowered toward Earth?
    A shiver crept across my shoulders, and I shrugged it off. Underneath the fear, hard determination emerged. That ship was my single destination. They might have Mom.
    I pictured her tied up or behind bars, without her wheelchair, and my stomach turned to SpaghettiOs mush. She’d be so scared and worried about me.
    I turned off Pirate Crusader as Captain Dovetail jumped onto the railing mid-fight. I had no time for foolish dreams. I had to get sleep. The world, and everyone in it, waited to be saved.
     
    Ruddy light filtered through dark-red floral curtains. They hadn’t looked that hideous last night. I’d tried to stay awake, keeping an eye on the lights from the ship, but exhaustion must have overtaken me. Rubbing my eyes, I pulled them back, and sunlight streamed in. The torpedo ship had disappeared, but I’d seen it, and I had traveled closer to my target. Hope stirred inside me, making my arms and legs anxious.
    I jumped from the sheets, ready to find some answers. Not knowing the next chance I’d get to wash up, I decided to try the shower. Cold water spurted all over me, and I shrieked, covering my mouth with my hand. The sound echoed off the linoleum, so loud I thought anyone in the building could have heard it. After my previous experience with the gunshot, I’d learned my lesson with making noise. Chided, I waited under the cold water for several minutes. Hands shaking, I peered around the floral shower curtain.
    Ivory tiles, an empty sink, and a countertop so clean, I wondered if anyone had ever brushed their teeth with it. No Sparkies. I had to be more careful.
    Goose bumps pricked all over my body as I used the Hilton’s fluffy white towels and changed into new clothes. I wolfed down two granola bars and a can of Mountain Dew. When the world was at an end, healthy breakfasts seemed frivolous. Checking my guns, I left the room and took the stairs down to the lobby.
    Sunlight streamed in from the glass doors, illuminating the circular driveway. I froze in my tracks.
    Two Sparkies stood on the hood of my car, and a third stared through the windshield. Their tails rode the air currents like jellyfish in the ocean waves, swerving back and forth as if listening.
    Dammit. I ducked behind the reception desk, knocking over a box of pens and keycards. I should have been more careful. I should have hidden the car in the parking garage or left it one street away.
    Should I give the car up and go out the back? I had my backpack with the rock. But, the car had all of my supplies. Sure, I could find another one—with the keys in it—fill it with gas, and raid another grocery store, but how much danger would that put me in compared to getting this one back?
    Anger coated my fear. You don’t know the person inside of you until fate pulls all the stops, and then, bam, someone you never knew comes out. The Sparkies had taken so much from me. Time to take something back. I straightened, cocked the shotgun, and walked toward the glass doors.
    “Looking for something?” I aimed the shotgun at the closest Sparkie’s