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“Mrs. Gay!” Mercury shouted as she moved to the passenger side of the truck, holding onto the hood to stay on her feet while the ground pitched and rolled and the trees that still stood swayed ominously and made sounds like gunshots as more of them splintered and broke. “Now or we leave you!”
“Coming! I’m coming!” Karen called while she jogged toward them, but the earth quaked too hard. She stumbled—fell—struggled to her feet and started forward again only to get knocked to her knees once more. Behind her the mountainside began to crumble.
Fuck! She’s not going to make it!
Mercury couldn’t bear to lose any more of them—not even someone who was a major pain in the ass. She bent at the waist and put out her arms to try and help her balance, then sprinted toward the history teacher.
“Shit, Mercury! No!” Stella shouted behind her.
Mercury ignored her friend. I can save her. I have to save her. She reached Mrs. Gay, who had fallen to the grass again. Mercury yanked on her hand, lifted her to her feet, wrapped her arm around the older woman’s round waist and propelled both of them forward.
“Hurry! Shit! Shit! Shit! Hurry!” Stella screamed.
Mercury didn’t look behind them, but she could hear the horrendous ripping sound the earth made as it shook apart and became an avalanche of dirt and trees and snow and rocks. Jenny had the passenger door open, and Mercury half threw, half pushed Mrs. Gay into the cab and then leaped in behind her. Before she’d even closed the door, Stella floored the truck and they fishtailed, throwing gravel everywhere. Mercury stared through the rectangular rear window as they shot out of the turnout and onto the highway in time to see the bench that held what was left of the congealed corpse of their principal get swallowed into nothingness.
