My mate comes to my mind again, and I desperately wish he were here with me. I've been worried and anxious in his house, but I haven't been scared.
Grant's presence near me is like a guiding light that keeps everything else at bay. Now, I am the fool who sent him away.
I miss you so much, Grant. I need you here with me.
Grant doesn't magically appear, and my sadness threatens to take over. I fight back tears, trying not to think about the awful time I've had.
I should've gone with him. He tried to take me and I said no. Now, I may never see him again.
The thought of that grips my chest tightly. It's so painful that I let out an audible gasp. Both hunters turn in my direction immediately.
“We know you're here,” Carrie says. “Why are you hiding?”
She shoots her gun, but the bullet hits something else. “Fuck, was that a rabbit?” Jimmy asks. “Don't waste your bullets, we don't have a lot of them.”
I can't stay here, they'll find me.
My wounds are still healing far too slowly to take the hunters on my own. The pain is just as bad, weighing me down.
The fear of not seeing my mate again turns into desperation. I have to be reunited with Grant, even if it's the last thing I ever do.
I erupt from the underbrush when they get close enough. I watch them pull their guns as soon as they see me.
Jimmy and Carrie fire their weapons, missing their target. I land and keep running as fast as I can, making zigzags so I'm harder to hit.
They give chase, surprisingly fast. Part of it is the fact that I can't run as quickly as before. Still, this is much better than hanging from a tree while I wait for death to come.
I have to survive. I have to see Grant.
I repeat the mantra in my head, doing all I can to escape my attackers. The scent of the wolves reappears in front of me.
I quickly move to the side, trying to form a path to the left. I can't be caught between the hunters and the wolves—that's certain death.
This deviation makes the hunters even faster. They get a good line of sight to me and begin to fire again. Bullets whizz past my ears until one lodges into my already injured leg.
I growl in pain, stumbling but trying to continue forward. It gets harder and harder with the amount of blood pooling out of me.
As I try to dodge another bullet, I run myself right into a tree, making contact with full force. I fall to the ground in a heap, getting all the air knocked out of my lungs. I let out a whine that goes nowhere.
The air grows stale as I lie there with my face in the dirt. A sharp feeling travels through my body, numbing the pain for a small second. That bit of time is enough for me to feel the warmth I've been craving all day. The feeling of having Grant close to me.
I can't tell if this is because he's actually close or because my body senses that it's close to death and needs one last bit of hope.
I can smell him.
I turn around, feeling the world start to spin. Even when it stops, my vision is extremely blurry. Carrie and Jimmy stalk me, wearing their terrible smiles once more.
Carries lowers her gun, giving me a good look into the inside of the barrel.
“Any last words?”
Chapter 22
GRANT
Leena, where are you?
I look up at the moon for an answer, but none comes. I practically stare at it, begging silently for an answer. I can smell her all around me, but it's almost like I'm chasing a dream.
