We turn reflexively, scrambling down a deep bank. Mud and pebbles squelch beneath my shoes, slipping on moss, icy water like knives through my clothes. Then the bottom drops out. A river that’s barely a river at all, more like a chasm, water fast and unrelenting, pushing me under, like a twig caught in a tidal wave.
Rocks bite into me, the current too fast to give me purchase. Bodies slam against each other, white water gushing, rolling, throwing me up. “August!”
I fling out a hand for him, pain screaming up my arm when he takes hold, just about pulling it out of its socket. I gasp deep breaths, head finally above the water long enough to breathe or think.
August’s got me. One hand in mine, the other clinging to thick roots dug deep in the muddy underside of the bank. His strong arm flexes against the current. A body slams into me. Amber. We all shift, but only an inch. August’s got us.
“Climb!” I yell at her, trying to help her keep her head above water.
Two legs squeezing around me, her hand clinging on, she has only one thought. “Shashi!”
Another body slams into us, and we’re down, all of us beneath the water. August’s grip on me doesn’t falter, even as we turn like tumbleweed in the current. Impossible bursts of sun,the deafening roar of water, desperate gasps of air, every one of which might be the last.
Another sharp wrench of my arm. Another thick root, August’s hand weak and slipping. I take Amber’s arm, pull her up and shove her towards the bank. She grips on, pulling Shashi with her. I find another root, taking August’s hand with me, helping him feel out what looks like a strong one, until we’re all clinging on, legs torn downstream.
“Here!” A voice from above. A hand. Jon’s hand, with his billions of bracelets. He pulls Amber up first, as another hand reaches down for Shashi. Asshole August.
A moment later, August and I are lying in the mud of the bank, sopping wet. He rolls onto his back, reaching out a hand for me that falls icy on my cheek. It’s the best feeling I’ve ever experienced, knowing he’s safe next to me. That we’re not dead. I take his hand to my hard-beating heart, while he gasps out between deep breaths, “Please tell me… we made it… to the other side… away from the dogs.”
Jon stands tall, hands on his hips to assess the landscape.
He isn’t wet at all! Barely a drop on him. And his hair’s still bloody perfect too. “The important thing is we’re all together.”
August sits bolt upright. “No, the important thing is we can’t be tracked by killer dogs. Didn’t you even get in?”
“It looked cold!”
“It is fucking cold!” August yells back. “And we’re still in danger!”
“Fuck!” Shashi’s already up, mascara streaming down her face, dragging Amber along with her.
We run, waterlogged, freezing, down the riverside, searching and failing to find a way across, until finally, we hit a tall fence. One by one, we scramble over, dropping down into the sunshine of… a rather pleasant meadow?
“Horses!” Asshole August whispers. “Look at them!”
Indeed, there are horses. Grazing in the sun, placid, like there aren’t bloodthirsty hounds just on the other side of this fence.
“They’re lovely,” Shashi deadpans. “Now, if we could get back to not dying…”
He lets out a slightly frustrated huff. “No, I meant, if there are horses, there are probably stables. Isn’t that the sort of thing we’ve been looking for?”
“Oh,” I mutter. Yeah, that’s smart. Shelter. Warmth. Good plan.
But, “Oh,” August responds, and his tone draws my gaze. His eyes are lit as if there were a fire glowing within, that irresistible smile about his lips.
“Oh…” I manage.
That’s right. There was a reason we wanted a bit of privacy.
August climbs to his feet, then holds out a hand for me. “Ready to make a portal?”
Damn sexy August.
He’s bloody enjoying this.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
GOOD AUGUST
