I looked down at the heavy piece dangling from my wrist, wishing I was brave enough to throw it off a mountain—followed by my brother.
Ridding myself of Blake once and for all.
5
The cabin was not as bad as my first impression. It had a couch slash bed that was reasonably comfortable. There was no shower, but it did have a toilet, and if I had to choose between the two, a working toilet would always win. There wasn’t a single Christmas decoration in sight so far, which was almost a little disappointing. Then again, I hadn’t had a real Christmas since my parents died, so why would this be any different?
After a few hours, I went to sleep hungry and fully dressed because I hadn't missed the unsubtle warning from Matthew. Unluckily for him, I was used to sleeping with "one eye open," which was why, a few hours later, I heard him sneak in through the front door. Closing my eyes, I blocked my ears, expecting a megaphone to wake me. Only it was a bucket of icy water, and at this elevation, with winter mountain breezes streaming through the front door, the chill literally stole my breath away as I choked and coughed. It would have been much worse if I’d still been dead asleep, so I was at least thankful for that.
"Get your ass out of bed, scum!" a deep male voice bellowed. I kicked off my blanket, making sure the soaked material slammed right into the fuck of a human standing over me. I was pretty sure it wasn’t Matthew, but whoever it was was clearly cut from the same make-my-life-hell-for-fun cloth.
I heard a low grunt and cynical chuckle. "You'll pay for that, bitch."
Already on my feet, I sucked down a groan at the agony shooting through my busted and bruised body. The key when injured is to move slowly until the blood started to flow. I didn't get that luxury today. "I have no doubt I will. Lead the way, asshole."
I was ready and mostly dry, the water having soaked into the thick blanket and my hair. The asshole spun on his heel, the movement only just visible in the very low light from some outside illumination. I had no idea what that illumination would be since we were on a mountain in the middle of nowhere, but who cared as long as I didn't fall down the stairs and break my neck following the long-legged dude.
A multitude of other guys joined us on the path, most of them grumbling, soaked, and half-asleep. Clearly this was the male contingent who had signed up for this survival bullshit. Ten to one they were already regretting that decision.
Keeping my arms wrapped tightly around myself, I’d already lost sight of the asshole who’d woken me, but it didn’t matter since everyone was heading in the same direction. The light source became obvious as we made our way down a gully that eventually leveled into a large, flat piece of land.
In the center was a bonfire large enough to cast those small flickers of light across the campgrounds. As we moved closer, it was growing more obvious how many of these guys had not expected this predawn awakening. Some were in boxers, others naked, all of them looking a little wet around the edges as they cupped their dicks to keep them from flapping in the icy breezes.
At these temperatures, they’d probably be in real danger if exposed for too long, so it would be interesting to see what occurred when we finally arrived at the bonfire.
Reaching into my jacket pocket, I pulled out a wool cap and yanked it down over my hair. These bastards had completely underestimated me—I would not be freezing my "balls" off today like so many of the others.
When I arrived at the meeting place, the warmth of the fire slapped me in the face, but it was a sweet, enjoyable sort of slap as it thawed my exposed skin.
"Hurry up!" a deep voice bit out, the man behind it hidden behind the flames. "Anyone not standing at attention in thirty seconds will remain naked."
I paused at the harshly barked threat because there was something familiar about the tone. Was it one of my brother's men? Did this camp have something to do with the Lawson company after all? I couldn’t see any familiar faces in my vicinity, not even Jonnie’s. Not that it was a surprise he wasn’t here—dude wouldn't be dragging his ass out in the freezing cold to keep an eye on me, especially since Blake's bracelet was still firmly attached to my wrist, no doubt tracking my location.
When I was surrounded by a dozen or so naked and half-naked guys, the man who’d been behind the fire stepped forward with six other beefed-up guys. They remained in the dark, so it was hard to make out their faces, but they looked impressive.
"Welcome to your first day of survival training." This time Matthew was doing the talking. "Hope you enjoyed your sleep because tonight you'll be in the forest. Grab a backpack and be grateful for the shit you have in it. Also, if you fall behind, you'll probably die. This mountain, especially during snow season, takes no prisoners. Buckle up."
Dammit, this wasn't good.
The six guides stepped aside, and nestled behind them was a bunch of bags, mostly hidden in the shadow of a nearby tree. Everyone around me started pushing and shoving to get to a bag, and worried about missing out, I did the same, wincing as my ribs got smashed more than once.
Being smaller could be an asset, but in a test like this, it wasn't. Thankfully, there were enough bags for everyone, and as I held mine close to my chest, I backed up a few steps before I checked out the top part of the contents.
There was a thermal jacket, a down sleeping bag, and some food and water provisions. Zipping it up again, I shrugged the bag on and tried to ignore my discomforts. I was starving, having skipped food last night. I also needed to pee, badly, but all in all, I thought I was in okay shape for this current torture.
I'd been through worse.
6
As we got further from the fire, it grew more obvious why it was so important to keep up. There was no light and none of the guides carried anything to illuminate the path, which meant we were vulnerable to every rock, hole in the ground, and loose stick.
The guides knew this path pretty well, and staying right behind them assured me of the safest journey. But they also moved inhumanly fast. Like, what sort of fucking marathon bullshit was this? Eventually my speed lagged, and I fell farther and farther behind. Before long, I was all alone in the darkness, and a deep chill ran through me.
I was fine, though. I wasn't afraid of the dark, and I wasn't afraid of the cold. I might not have the most impressive survival skills on the planet—I couldn't start a fire from two sticks, that was for damn sure—but I knew what my body could handle. A night out in the wilderness? Easy. I'd suffered more than a night in the cold with no clothes plenty of times.
A laugh bubbled out of me, dissipating quickly in the empty night. It felt so wrong to actually feel thankful to Blake foranything,but apparently his mistreatment of me in the years since our parents died was actually paying off.
Now that I'd already lost the guides, I slowed down and took my time. It paid off several times when I lost the trail and needed to double back again to find it, which then led me to wonder what would happen to the guys who did lose the trail completely. Despite Matthew's ominous warning, I seriously doubted they'd just chuck a bunch of rich, spoiled brats out into the wilderness and let them die. It'd be a shitty way to make money, if nothing else.
