Kiss Me if You Can Novel Completed - Chapter 44

For a moment, no one comprehended what had happened. By the time Mark frantically pulled out his gun, Josh had already started the car. Immediately, the woman pulled a gun from her embrace. The muzzle, aimed directly at them from the front, was clear. Mark hastily rolled down the car window, intending to shoot her, but Josh sharply swerved the steering wheel, obstructing him.

“Agh!”

“Ah, fuck…! You bastard, do you want to die…?”

Chase, sitting in the back seat, let out a low curse. Mark quickly looked at him, but Chase hadn’t fully regained consciousness yet. As Mark watched Chase, who was rubbing his brow as if his head hurt and clenching his teeth, the car body shook violently again.

“What are you doing, Josh!”

Mark, who had slammed into the car door, also shouted. Josh replied quickly without looking back.

“You can’t roll down the window. There’ll be an ambush.”

“What did you say?”

“It’s an obvious trick. To fall for such a shallow scheme.”

Josh gritted his teeth and hastily reversed the car. The car behind them was just as flustered by the sudden situation.

“What, is that lunatic crazy?”

Henry, sitting in the driver’s seat, shouted in confusion. But before he could even move, Josh had already reversed past their car and was far behind them.

“Damn it, what the hell?”

He cursed, frantically looking front and back, but he didn’t have time to do anything. Immediately, several people who had been hiding crouched by the roadside appeared. Henry’s eyes widened in surprise.

“What in the…”

Soon after, they began to fire long rifles. Bullets splattered all over the car, and loud noises echoed from all directions.

“Kyaaak!”

Laura’s scream reverberated inside the car. Isaac hastily rolled down the window and shouted.

“Seth!”

But there was no time to save him. Henry, who quickly looked back, cursed again. Josh had already retreated far into the distance in reverse.

“Open the sunroof.”

Isaac uttered in a rapid tone. Henry pressed the button and immediately attempted to reverse. Isaac, careful not to lose his balance, stuck his head out of the sunroof. In his vision, he saw men firing guns indiscriminately. Following that, loud gunshots began to mix wildly from front and back.

“…Aargh!”

“Ah! Josh, you idiot! Agh!”

Screams erupted one after another from various seats.

“You crazy bastard, how are you… driving?”

Chase gritted his teeth and spat out, his voice still slurred. Ignoring his reaction, Josh violently swerved the wheel, reversing in a zigzag pattern. Thanks to this, they managed to evade the bullets flying from all directions, but they couldn’t run away like this forever.

Fortunately, Henry and Isaac began providing cover fire, giving Josh a brief respite. Just as he was about to slow the car down, a black shadow suddenly lunged from behind.

“Josh!”

A startled Mark shouted. It was the truck that had been standing on the shoulder they had just passed. Without needing to think long, it was part of the same group. The moment the massive truck came into view, Josh slammed on the brakes and simultaneously turned the steering wheel to its limit.

“…!”

A sharp screeching sound, like tearing eardrums, echoed with a scream as the tires scraped the road. The car spun wildly, leaving chaotic skid marks. Despite wearing seatbelts, their bodies violently slammed against the car.

His mind was a blur. But only Josh gritted his teeth, frantically turning the steering wheel this way and that, alternating between the accelerator and the brake. The car, barely balanced, stopped for a moment before changing direction and starting to move.

“Fuck, that bastard’s crazy!”

Henry screamed, seeing the charging vehicle. But there was nothing else he could do now. Henry, seeing the car speeding towards them at an incredible pace, slammed on the brakes and stopped reversing. Immediately, the massive truck came into view. He changed gears again and drove the car forward. Isaac, throwing away an empty magazine, reloaded a new one and shouted.

“Go straight!”

“I know, you son of a bitch!”

Isaac pulled the trigger repeatedly. A man who had been shooting screamed and fell. Two more dropped, and the remaining three also stumbled back. Still, Henry gritted his teeth and sped up towards them, who continued to shoot without giving up.

“I’ll run them all over, you bastards. Avenge Seth!”

Isaac answered from above to Henry’s shout.

“Seth’s not dead yet.”

“If anyone touches him, I’ll kill them, you idiot.”

Henry gritted his teeth and bellowed. Isaac glanced down at the driver’s seat where he was sitting, then looked away again.

Seth was leaning against the side of the car, avoiding the gunfire. He had managed to knock out the couple who had been decoys during the confusion, but it seemed he couldn’t do any more. They had to finish this situation quickly. Deal with the remaining three, and then…

Just as he thought that, a tremendous horn blared. The truck chasing them from behind had honked.

“Agh, fuck!”

Henry cursed and his foot slipped off the accelerator. Laura also screamed, covering her ears and cowering. In an instant, the car’s speed decreased, and Isaac slipped, slumping into the seat.

That wasn’t the end of it. Suddenly, Henry’s vision turned bright, as if headlights had been turned on.

“Henry?”

Isaac urgently called his name. But Henry seemed to have completely lost his mind. He was still gripping the steering wheel, but it didn’t mean much.

Startled by the swaying car, Isaac hastily tried to move to the front passenger seat. At that moment, Henry suddenly turned his head and began to strangle Isaac. Laura screamed, seeing the scene.

“…!”

The situation was even worse for the car Josh was driving. The tremendous noise echoing right behind them made his brain reel.

Mark, startled, covered his ears and gasped. Josh, who had to expose his hearing helplessly because he was holding the steering wheel, almost stepped on the brake.

Fortunately, he didn’t take his foot off the accelerator, but Henry seemed to have been affected. He almost collided with the car in front, which had suddenly slowed down. Josh sharply swerved the wheel, barely avoiding an accident, but the bumper grazed it precariously.

“…n’t… that just…”

Mark’s voice echoed and scattered in his ears. Again, the horn blared. This time, it was endlessly long. The decoy vehicle came into view. At this rate, they would collide head-on. But if they changed lanes, Henry’s car was in the way.

“What are those bastards doing?”

Mark cursed, seeing the car swaying back and forth. He frowned, trying to assess the situation inside the car, when Laura suddenly called him.

[Mark, it’s serious! Henry’s acting strange, now he and Isaac, aah!]

With a scream, she dropped her phone. Immediately, shouts and thumping sounds followed. Mark was furious, but this was not the time to scold. The truck was right on their tail.

Josh gritted his teeth and sharply swerved the wheel. He didn’t miss the slight gap created as Henry’s car, which had significantly slowed down, fell back, and he squeezed in. He barely managed to escape past the parked decoy vehicle, but there was no time to sigh in relief.

“Oh, fuck…”

Mark cursed again. A huge vehicle, the same size as the truck coming from behind, was approaching from the opposite direction. At this rate, they would surely be trapped or flattened between the two trucks.

Mark hastily tried to inform him of the situation. But Josh’s ears were filled with tinnitus, and he couldn’t hear anything. Mark, desperate, gestured and shouted anxiously. When the car parked ahead was almost in front of them, Josh roared.

“Everyone hold on tight!”

At the same time, he turned the steering wheel all the way in one go. The car, making a wide turn, flew into the air for a moment. Mark embraced Chase and cowered. Josh gripped the steering wheel tightly and floored the accelerator.

The wheels spun wildly in the air, pushing the heavy car forward. A few seconds of flight felt infinitely long. And then, after a moment, the car landed on the ground with a heavy thud.

Sand dust swirled and flew in all directions. Josh continued to drive wildly on the unpaved road. Behind him, the truck rattled and gave chase.

His mind was a mess from the violently shaking car. Josh gritted his teeth and frantically changed gears, speeding away. He had to lose them somehow.

How?

Just then, one of the truck’s doors opened, and a man leaned out from the passenger seat. The moment Josh saw the machine gun in his hand, intending to warn him, the man began firing indiscriminately.

With a loud noise, the armored car shook violently. Josh sharply swerved the wheel, but it wasn’t easy to change direction as smoothly as on a paved road, so it had little effect.

“Think, think.”

Josh repeated the same words, as if whipping himself. There wasn’t much time. At this rate, they would be caught and rear-ended. If that happened…

“Josh, C’s acting strange!”

Mark shouted from behind. It took a while for the sound to reach his ears, which were still ringing. Soon, Josh made a decision and roared.

“Duck your heads!”

He pulled out his gun and unhesitatingly shot the rear window. The glass shattered from successive bullets, raining down on the cowering Mark and Chase. Josh immediately turned the steering wheel to the opposite side. The car, swaying in a wide circle, momentarily avoided the barrage of gunfire. Josh shouted again.

“Mark!”

“Got it.”

He immediately stood up and aimed his gun. Taking advantage of the moment the chasing car also swayed while changing direction, Mark aimed precisely at the truck’s tire. He didn’t know which of the six successive gunshots hit, but it was certain that the tire burst with a sound as eerie as the gunshots themselves.

With a scream, the man who had been half-leaning out and firing was flung away. The driver frantically tried to turn the steering wheel this way and that, but there was no way. Leaving the violently overturning truck behind, Josh sped away from the spot as quickly as possible.

“…Damn it, goddammit!”

Just as he thought they had barely escaped the crisis, Josh cursed and slammed his fist on the steering wheel. Mark, surprised by his unusual behavior, looked at him.

“The fuel is leaking. We won’t last long.”

The navigation also wasn’t working. It was a miracle the car was even moving, but that wouldn’t last long either. Before long, a warning sound began to blare, indicating low fuel. And then, the car truly stopped.

In the desolate wasteland, where grass grew sparsely, there were also not a few areas where trees grew, but they were too small to be called forests. Since it hadn’t rained properly for several years, wildfires occurred frequently, and it was not uncommon to see firefighting helicopters.

But not today.

“Damn it!”

Josh couldn’t suppress his anger and kicked the innocent tire. Of course, it didn’t change anything. Looking around, he felt no sign of human presence whatsoever.

“Shit…”

“Hey, calm down.”

It was when Mark comforted Josh, who was cursing with a sigh. Chase, staggering, opened the door and leaned against the car. Just as he thought his pale face was unusual, he suddenly bent at the waist and began to retch.

“Ugh, ugh.”

Groans of agony continued to flow out, but nothing came up. Josh watched him with pity as he repeatedly spat out only saliva mixed with bitter stomach acid.

After a long while, Chase finally seemed to calm down, but this time he felt dizzy and closed his eyes, unable to move, leaning against the door. Josh felt a little sorry. Instead of apologizing or comforting him, he silently opened the car’s refrigerator door and took out a bottle of water.

He powerfully twisted open the cap and offered it, and Chase, who had been gasping for breath until then, half-opened his eyes. His tired, pale face looking down at him still captivated his gaze, regardless of his own suffering. Moreover, his wet eyes, brimming with tears, increased Josh’s guilt several times over.

Josh silently offered only the water again. Chase, who would normally have cursed and fumed, just quietly looked down at him this time. As if he didn’t even have the energy for that. The fact that he let out a short sigh and accepted the water was proof.

Josh silently watched him tilt his head back, his Adam’s apple moving up and down as he gulped down the water. Only after emptying the entire bottle did Chase finally take the bottle from his mouth with a sigh.

He wiped his wet lips with the back of his hand and, as if it were natural, held out the empty bottle. Josh took it and carelessly tossed it into the car. Only then did Chase seem to have regained some of his senses. Just as Josh felt a strange mix of regret and relief, Mark spoke.

“We can’t go any further.”

“I know, you idiot.”

Chase was definitely back to his usual self. The curses he spat out, gritting his teeth without fail, thankfully made Josh’s guilt disappear at once. Mark continued calmly.

“Since you know, I’ll tell you that there are two choices now. Either wait here until someone comes to rescue us, or try to find our way to the road.”

Mark glanced at Josh. Josh replied in a businesslike manner.

“We have enough water to last about a day.”

He was planning to suggest resting in the car overnight and moving when it got light. Of course, that was if Chase decided to walk to the road. Of course, his choice was only one.

“Are you telling me to just walk aimlessly now when I don’t even know the way? You crazy son of a bitch?”

Mark and Josh simultaneously fell silent. Chase cursed again as if in pain, then rubbed his eyes with one hand.

Watching him silently, he let out a low groan and pulled out a black cigarette case from his inner jacket pocket. The two watched his back as he walked a few steps away and lit a cigarette, then silently turned their heads. Looking around, they felt no sign of human presence whatsoever. Mark sighed.

“What do we do about this?”

Suddenly, Josh looked at him with a puzzled expression as he frowned. Mark raised a hand, as if to say he was fine.

“I guess it’s motion sickness. It’s been a really long time since it was this bad.”

“Wow,” he exclaimed with exaggerated admiration, then continued seriously.

“Anyway, we can’t just stay here, can we? We have to try to find the road and get out.”

“It’ll be quite a walk.”

“But what else can we do? Someone has to go call for rescue.”

Since there was no other way, Josh could only urge, “Be careful.” Mark nodded and spoke.

“C’s manager probably tried something since they can’t reach us by now. They might have sent a search party… For now, you stay here and watch over C. He’s probably still under the influence of the drug. …Will you be okay?”

Mark looked back at Chase with a puzzled expression. He was still standing alone, just smoking. Josh mumbled, “Well,” in response. Mark shrugged.

“Even if not, there’s nothing we can do.”

After discussing the direction of the road, the time it would take to get there, and other simple matters, Mark opened the car’s refrigerator and packed water and some simple snacks. Of course, he left some for Josh and Chase as well.

“Then, you should be careful too.”

“Yes, you too.”

After wishing each other safety, Mark turned first. After that, Josh was left alone with Chase.