Latest: Oasis: Chapter 32

[note: As you can see, we're a long way into Oasis. If you're just arriving here, you should start with Chapter 1: The Last Shift]

Betrayal Pains

The blow caught me in right in the stomach. Air exploded out my mouth and my diaphragm refused to take in more.

I dropped to my knees.

It hurt bad.

In the dim light, I could make out Carl’s form hovering over me. He was holding an aluminum baseball bat.

He had misjudged the distance in the dark and had hit me with his hands when he swung.

It still hurt, though.

One of Carl’s boys lit an oil lamp.

Another hurt was welling up inside me. I looked up at Beth’s sobbing face. She had betrayed [...]