My phone is thrown on the ground, and I'm the next one there, pushed by two of the men.
"Your payback is not about hurting you," Eugene says as the three stand above me. "It's about finally getting my son to behave. You played your part beautifully, Nyx. I'm proud of you."
I shake my head. "I didn't want to play any part."
"That's something you'll have to explain to him, not us. But don't worry, he's not so innocent either."
I shake my head. "I don't care. I don't care what he did. No one deserves what you put him through, or whatever your plan is."
As I sit up, still on the ground, pine needles stab into the skin of my palms.
I eye my phone not far and don’t wait one more second. Heart beating out of my chest, I jump on the device, picking it up as I take off into a run.
I read what they sent to Achilles and cancel the location sharing as I keep running. I try to type a text telling him not to come and hope for the best as I send it. But all that means I'm not running fast enough, and I get tackled to the forest floor before making it very far.
It's the third guy. I have no idea who he is, just that he's much stronger than the others.
He barely feels the way I attempt to fight him as he pulls me back up.
"Now," Eugene says politely as he dusts off my skirt, then my t-shirt. I'm trembling from the cold and fear, but I left my jacket in my car. "Let me run you past what happens when my son gets here."
How do you come back from betraying the man you love? Not only him, but the people he loves and cares for. The daughter he keeps safe.
You don't.
All I can do is hope with all my might that backtracking and sacrificing myself instead will save him. But I know that it won't saveus. Not the love we share, not the trust we built. Nothing will bring me back to Achilles once this is over.
I'm running faster than I ever have through the forest. It cuts through the North Shore, and if I manage to outrun them, I'll come out on the other side, eventually. This is my home. If I scream for help down the street, someone will come out and find me. But not in the middle of the woods.
I scream when a hand comes close to me. He almost caught me, and as I'm reeling from that, another manages to grab my arm. I fight back with all my might, tasting blood in my mouth from how out of breath I am. Managing to get away, I keep sprinting.
I don't see the real threat coming. He approaches too fast, with the kind of power that takes me to the ground and steals my breath.
I'm frozen, face down in the dirt, my ears ringing.
"Caught you, traitor." Achilles's voice is a death sentence that sends a chill down my spine.
One of his hands wraps around the front of my throat while another presses on my mouth and nose to stop me from screaming.
Scratch that, he's not stopping me from screaming; he's stopping me frombreathing. I get dizzy as his grip on my neck tightens. My limbs flail, attempting to throw him off, shoes digging into the ground. He's too heavy on my back, too strong in his touch.
If Achilles kills me, he won't have a Hera. He won't initiate. Maybe that's how he's going to get out of it?
Those are my last thoughts as my eyelids grow heavy, my lungs tightening from the need for oxygen. Then everything goes dark.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Nyx
BLEED – Chri$tian Gate$
My whole body aches. That's the first thing I feel as I regain consciousness. I'm thirsty, cold, and something around my throat is making it hard to breathe.
I blink my eyes open, unsure for a second if I've gone blind since the room around me is pitch black. How big is it? Am I in a coffin or something?
Panic grips me, and I kick my legs to see how far I can move. Pretty far, apparently. I'm not touching anything but the cold floor I'm lying on. I sit up, still dizzy from everything that happened earlier…or whenever we were in the forest. It's hard to tell in complete darkness.
"Achilles?" I croak. That thing around my neck feels like a collar. I skim it with my fingers. It has a pendant, and when I reach the back of my neck, I realize it's locked with a small padlock.
