“Where do you think Elijah went?” I ask River, who’s in the seat next to me.
“I have no idea,” River says as he fastens his seatbelt. “I was hiding behind the counter of a burger place that’s in the food court. I had to pay the cashier a hundred bucks to let me do it.”
“He has to still be around. He wouldn’t just leave without us.” I turn away from the window. “Although, how did he even know we were here?”
River shrugs. “I have my phone off, and yours can’t be traced, so someone had to have tipped him off.”
“Unless James sent him here to see if we were trying to do pretty much what we are doing.” Sylas reaches for his seatbelt. “That we’re getting on a plane in northside to stay as undetected as possible.”
River grimaces at that. “Hopefully, he didn’t see us.”
“I doubt he did, or else he would’ve chased us down. He had at least two bodyguards with him.” My phone buzzes with a message, and while I’d been ignoring it before, after what just happened, I decide to check it.
Everyone is boarded now, and the plane is preparing for takeoff as I retrieve my phone from my pocket to read the message.
Mom: Wherever you are, please stay hidden. James has put a bounty on your head. A notification about this will be sent to the public. They’re going to make it look like you and River murdered his mother, so that you’ll be brought in. Then he plans on holding River hostage until he can get him married off. He wants to get rid of you, though, Noah, and I can’t stop. He’s too powerful. So please, please don’t come home. Get as far away from the city as you can and never come back.
My breathing has grown shallow as I clutch the phone in my hand.
“What is it?” River asks worriedly.
Unable to form words, I show him the message on my phone.
Sylas leans over and reads it as well. “He’s lost his damn mind,” he mutters, shaking his head.
The color drains from River’s face as he reads it, then he rigidly glances around at the people sitting in the chairs around us. “Do you think the message has been sent out yet?”
“No. I would’ve gotten it.” I stare at my phone. “If we take off quickly enough, everyone will have their phones off, since this flight requires that, and there’s no internet option. That should buy us some time.”
“We’ll have to keep a low profile until we get out of the airport we land in and into the rental car, but if we’re careful, we should be able to do it.” Sylas rests his arms on the armrests as the plan rolls forward.
We hold our breaths as it prepares for takeoff.
We barely move as the plane speeds up.
We only breathe again when the flight attendant comes onto the speaker to inform everyone to turn off their phones.
I’d be relieved, but this is one step in a very long walk along a cracking bridge.
CHAPTER 30
FINN
I should be sleeping.I’m so sleep deprived at this point that I’m starting to forget every thought that crosses my mind. But despite this, I can’t sleep. I’m too fixated with watching Maddy asleep in my arms. Her lips are slightly parted, and she has her chest pressed against my side. My arm is tucked under her head, and her long, wavy brown hair falls around her face and down her shoulders. She’s so, so pretty and so fragile, even if she won’t admit it.
What my father did to her…
What he made me do to her…
I open and flex my hands as rage scorches under my flesh. I’ve never been an angry sort of guy, but that changed the moment my father took us.
One day, I’ll get revenge for her.
She suddenly whimpers, as if in pain, and her muscles spasm. But she doesn’t wake, more than likely stuck in a nightmare.
“Shh…” I stroke her cheek soothingly. “It’s okay. I’ve got you.” I’m unsure if she can hear me, but the tension unravels from her body.
She breathes softly again, the rhythm steady.
