I bolt.
I explode from the brush, lungs screaming at the sudden burst, tearing through branches and thorns that scratch my skin raw. My mind is a frantic whirl—don’t fall, don’t stop, don’t you dare give up—and the forest becomes a blur of green and brown streaking past.
The ground tilts under my feet. A root catches my ankle. I stumble forward and hit the earth hard—so hard, stars burst behind my eyes. Pain slashes across my forearm as it drags along a jaggededge of rock. For a moment, I can’t breathe. The world narrows into that burning, searing line of pain.
Blood wells fast, warm, and slick, running down my wrist.
No time. No time.
I push myself up, biting back a cry. Dirt cakes my face and mixes with sweat. I wipe at my eyes, my hand shaking violently, and force my legs to move again.
I stagger upright. The forest sways for a heartbeat, but I steady myself, grit my teeth, and run.
My injured arm throbs with each step, sending sharp pulses all the way to my shoulder, but I don’t slow. Behind me, branches snap—he’s coming. He’s close.
I don’t look back.
I can’t afford the luxury of fear. Forward is the only direction I have left. And as long as my feet are hitting the ground, as long as I’m breathing at all, I’m alive.
And I’m not stopping.
Branches snap behind me—loud, closer than they should be. He’s faster than I expected. Bigger. Determined. My chest burns with every breath, the air slicing down my throat like ice. My legs feel too light and too heavy all at once, like they might give out at any second, but I force them to keep moving.
Don’t stop. Don’t look back.
I dart around a fallen log, lungs screaming, vision blurring at the edges. The forest is dense and uneven, roots clawing at my ankles, branches grabbing my hair. I’m half-running, half-falling through it. His footsteps thunder behind me, and then—
“Lucky…” His voice. Drawn out. Mocking. Too close. “You think you can outrun me?”
A shiver rips through me. I push harder.
Up ahead, a cluster of massive rocks juts from the forest floor like a broken spine. Instinct kicks in—I veer toward them. I squeeze between two slabs, scraping my shoulder, and crouch in the narrow shadow. I clamp my hand over my mouth to muffle my breathing.
My pulse won’t slow. My whole body trembles violently, each heartbeat pounding in my ears.
Just one minute. One second. One breath.
I press my back against the cold stone and swallow down the rising panic. Thoughts flood in fast, uncontrollable. I want to survive this. I want a second chance. I want to play again. I want Ethan’svoice in my kitchen. Lily’s smile. I want… more. I’m not ready for this to be the end. The fear in my chest twists into something sharp, desperate, and determined.
But his footsteps crunch over leaves. Closer.
“Come out,” he calls. “It’ll be worse if I have to find you.”
The sound freezes my blood.
No more hiding.
I slip out from the rocks and take off deeper into the forest. I don’t recognize anything—no path, no markers, just endless trees—but I don’t care. I just run.
My foot hits a slick patch of mud. My body tilts—too fast—and I slam down onto the ground. Pain explodes up my arm as it slices against something sharp. A stone. A branch. I don’t know, but warmth gushes down my forearm.
“Shit—” The word tears out of me.
For a moment, I can’t breathe. Shock pins me. My vision sparkles, and it feels like the world is tilting sideways. But the crashing footsteps behind me snap everything back into place.
Move. Move now.
I stagger to my feet. My arm is burning, bleeding, dripping. Dirt sticks to my cheek where it slammed into the ground. I swipe it away with the back of my trembling hand, smearing blood across my skin.
