Steeling myself, I sling my legs over the wall, bracing against it with my palms so I can get my feet as close to the water as possible. Then I push off.
For one terrifying moment, I feel weightless.
Then the water rushes up to meet me as I plunge toward the ground below.
Even in the summertime, the shaded water of the lake is frigid, and bitter cold daggers bite into my skin as the water swallows me whole.
Lungs burning with the need to scream, I clamp my lips together and swim back toward the light.
I break the surface of the water with a ragged gasp, sucking in oxygen as my body starts to panic and seize from the sudden temperature drop.
But even if I’ve managed to make it off the property unnoticed, I need to stay quiet. So I bite back the pain and start to swim, crossing the still, dark waters of the lake.
I’m shivering as soon as I emerge on the far bank. It would have been nice to switch to my spare set of clothes, but I’m sure they got just as drenched as I did because my backpack’s not waterproof.
Wrapping my arms around my waist, I set my jaw and start walking. I’m pretty sure I’m headed into town, but it’s hard to be certain when I can scarcely see the swiftly setting sun between the trees.
Then finally, after what feels like hours of walking in soggy shoes, when the blisters have already started to rise along the soles of my feet, I hear the sweet sound of traffic.
Despite the secluded feel of the Novikov compound, it’s located not too far from downtown Chicago, and as I step out onto the neighborhood street, I’m relieved to see a bus stop just a few blocks away.
If I take a bus into the city, I’m sure I’ll be able to flag a taxi from there—or perhaps hop a train that will carry me far from Miko before he even knows I’m gone.
It makes my chest ache to think that way.
To realize I’ll never see him again.
Doubt and anxiety rise inside my chest, threatening to strangle me as I realize I miss Miko already.
I miss the warmth of his arms, the strength and safety they provided. I miss the deep, reassuring bass of his voice.
But I can’t go back to him, and even if I wish I could have said goodbye, it’s better this way.
I needed to make a clean break.
Right now, I might be on the run, but Miko’s not here to stop me.
If I’d stayed to explain myself, I don’t doubt he would have tried to make me stay.
And if he didn’t lock me up, he far too easily could have convinced me that I’m overreacting—that I’m projecting my fears onto him based on everything that happened with Pyotr, that I’m not giving him a fair chance.
Maybe he would be right.
My stomach tightens as Svetlana’s voice echoes in my head, driving my feet forward.“Novikov men are born with a poison in their blood. It makes them hurt the ones they love…”
And after seeing Miko put a fist through the wall when he found out he’s a Novikov… I don’t doubt the wisdom in her words.
I made the right decision to leave. Even if my heart’s breaking with every step.
It isn’t hard to catch a bus into town, and while it requires asking a lot of questions—and receiving more than a few odd looks when the bus driver sees my wet clothes—I manage to make it to the train station.
But I have no clue where to go. My instincts tell me to hop on the first train out of here.
But that’s going north to Toronto, and I don’t have my passport. All other trains won’t leave until the morning.
Deciding I’ll find a place to hop off before I reach the border, I step up to the ticket counter and pull out my wad of soggy cash to buy a ticket.
“One train to Toronto,” I say, earning another quizzical glance from the ticket master behind the plexiglass.
