Not wasting any time, Theo rattled off a location and told me to get there as quickly as possible because Zeek needed me and that he would be there as soon as he could. Before I could even ask what was going on, the line disconnected.
Confused and terrified by his cryptic words, my body moved of its own accord. Quickly throwing on a jacket, I shoved my feet into a pair of flip-flops, grabbed the car keys and locked the door behind me as I rushed from the house.
Plugging the location into my phone, I noticed that it was just up the road from my apartment. Thankfully, it would only take me mere minutes to get there. Something about the location seemed vaguely familiar, I just couldn’t place it. Suddenly, my heart sank, a feeling of impending doom filling every cell in my body as realization struck.
He can’t possibly be thinking…he wouldn’t––Shaking the thoughts from my head, I cranked the engine, doing my best to focus on the task at hand.
Gripping the steering wheel tightly, my knuckles turned white as I threw the car into gear and dared to press the gas pedal just a bit harder. My body tensed, fear filling me as I silently willed things to not end up the way they had for so many others who’d been rescued.
Heart beating a million miles a minute in my chest, my entire body vibrated as I pressed harder on the gas pedal, urging the small car to go faster. Thankfully, there wasn’t a soul in sight at this hour, which afforded me the opportunity to speed as fast as I dared.
After what felt like an eternity, Zeek’s motorcycle came into view one hundred yards or so ahead. Pedal to the floor, I raced toward him, the brakes protesting as I skid to a halt where he’d parked along the side of the road. I didn’t even bother turning off the engine before throwing the car door open and rushing out onto on the empty highway.
Only a few feet in front of me, at the edge of the bridge, Zeek stood with his back toward me. It had been a fairly dry month, so there wasn’t a lot of water below. However, there were a bunch of rocks and branches on the way down. If by some miracle he managed to survive the fall, he’d never survive the landing.
“Go home, Kid.” Zeek’s voice was rough. I could tell he’d been crying. In the blink of an eye one of my worst fears had reared its ugly head.
Zeek had given up.
“No.” I watched by the light of the moon as he dropped his chin to his chest, his shoulders slumping in defeat.
What could have possibly happened to make him want to end it all now? It couldn’t possibly have anything to do with me going away with Eli. Could it?As much as I wanted to believe Zeek wouldn’t follow through, I couldn’t be sure. I never would have expected to find him here. Yet, here we were.
“Zeek,” I pled, my voice no more than a whisper in the wind. “Please––I can’t lose you.” My words were choked and filled with emotion. “If you jump, I jump.” I took a tentative step forward, one foot in front of the other.
“That would make you stupid,” he snorted.
“You’re certainly one to talk,” I countered, edging another step closer, as if approaching a frightened animal. Though, I suppose, in a way, he was.
“Just go. Leave me alone, okay?”
“I can’t let you do this, Zeek. I won’t let you give up. Not now, not ever. I won’t allow you to leave me here to deal with life by myself.”
“You’ll forget me…in time.”
His words were like a dagger to the heart.How could he possibly think that? After everything we’d been through, did he truly not see that he was one of the most important people in my life?
“No, I won’t. Not ever.” By this time, I was standing right beside him.
Zeek remained unmoving as he stood on the ledge, his body towering a few feet taller than my own. I wasn’t sure if I should touch him or not. The last thing I wanted to do was spook him and send him careening over the edge to his death.
“Trust me, you will. I won’t be someone you need to worry over ever again. Just go. Get out of here, Kid. While you still can.”
“I can’t,” I choked, tears welling in my eyes.
Zeek sighed before turning to look at me. Even though it was dark, I could see all of the pain, misery and self-loathing reflected in his eyes. He genuinely wanted to give up.
“Please, Zeek,” I begged. “I need you. Your family needs you. And what about your nephew you mentioned? You can’t leave him. He needs his uncle.” If I wasn’t enough for him to stay here, I needed to find out what was. There had to be something. One simple thing. Regardless, I wasn’t going to let him go willingly.
Tears slipped from his eyes and fell onto his shirt, soaking into the soft fabric. He acted as if he were completely oblivious to them, like he didn’t care. And I guess in some way, he didn’t. If he had, he wouldn’t have been standing on the edge of a bridge contemplating ending his life.
Don’t get me wrong, I understood the darkness that was consuming him. I had experienced it on more than one occasion since my escape. I still did. The difference was that I’d found a way to cope. I had my therapist and Eli to help keep me grounded when times got tough.
“I care, Zeek. Can’t you see that I care so damn much.” My voice cracked as I dared to wrap an arm around his shaking body.
Almost instantaneously, his tears turned into giant sobs. After a moment, he managed to compose himself enough to shake his head before turning his eyes back to the dark horizon-line.
“I care,” I repeated, letting my own tears fall. “Please, Zeek. Don’t do this. Don’t give up. I need you.” I was barely able to make out his next words as gut-wrenching sobs wracked his entire body.
