"You know where we're going," Elias says flatly.
Nolan takes a right turn toward the bridge.
"Hey," Dax says. I don't realize he's speaking to me until his hand covers mine, and I jump just a little. "It's all right. You're going to be okay, Ripley." He rubs the top of my hand with his thumb. "It wasn't your fault."
I realize that's all I've wanted to hear this entire time, even if it isn't the truth. If he were almost anyone else, I would sink into him for comfort. I look at him, tears welling in my eyes, and my lower lip quivers.
Dax places his other hand on my cheek. "Hewasa bad guy, Saige. You won't have to worry about him anymore, okay?"
I nod. "Okay."
"You don't have to be nice to her just because she sucked your dick," Elias says before turning up the volume.
I turn back toward the window, and Dax leans in next to my ear and says, "I think he's a little jealous. You sucked me so good, Saige; I think you liked it, too. I can't wait to feel your lips wrapped around my dick again. You know what I was thinking when you shuffled toward me on your knees and opened your mouth? That you're like a little doll…a fuck doll. I'm going to have so much fun with you."
Bile rises in my throat. I refuse to react, staying still and quiet for the rest of the drive.
"Home sweet home," Elias says as the Maserati comes to a stop at the end of the gravel drive. He and Nolan climb out of the car, pushing the front seats forward, but I just sit there, my limbs heavy, a sinking feeling in my gut. "Get out of the fucking car, Saige."
My eyes meet his, my lips parting, but I can't form words. I can't make my body move.
"Get out. Now!"
He's screaming at me, but the words sound muffled, like we're underwater.
"She's in shock. Sometimes, it takes a while for it to set in," Nolan says from somewhere outside the vehicle. I recognize his low register, although I've only heard his voice a few times. I remember the first time I heard him speak was in my kitchen when they were still in high school, and I thought his tone was so low, I could feel it in my bones. "Just leave her there. She can't help, anyway."
"No," Elias says firmly. "She doesn't get to just sit here—she's getting out. Get the fuck out of the car, Saige."
"Hey, Saige?" Dax appears in front of him. He reaches for me, taking me by the hand. "Time to get out ofthe car, baby."
Something about the physical contact cuts through the mental fog, pulling me back into my body. I look at him, nodding, and let him help me out of the vehicle.
Gravel crunches beneath my Vans; the scent of salt hangs thick and heavy in the air as I look up at the familiar, dilapidated cabin on the far end of our property. I haven't seen it since the night I made the egregious mistake of allowing Elias to be vulnerable with me, and I haven't wanted to. I don't want the reminder, and if the way his eyes penetrate me now is any indication, neither does he.
I avert my gaze, staring instead through one of the cabin's broken windows. I've tried so hard not to think about that night, but it comes back to me now. I see stars through the hole in the ceiling. I remember how Elias's light brown locks, shorter back then than they are now, felt between my fingers; I can feel his teeth sinking into my flesh. Without realizing I'm doing it, I bring two fingers to that spot on my chest and press down.
Elias steps around me, throwing his elbow into me as he passes. Already standing on weak knees, I stumble much more than I should, barely steadying myself on the side of the car to prevent myself from falling.
"Put him down here," Elias instructs Nolan, and the two drop Miles's body unceremoniously at my feet. I turn, vomiting down the side of Dax's car.
"Aww, come on," he bemoans. "Not the car, Ripley."
"Any day now, Saige. The sun will be up soon."
"What are you talking about?"
"You still have to throw him over."
"Elias, I can't lift him."
"I can't do everything for you. That's not teaching—it's enabling. You'll never learn that way."
I look to Dax, my eyes pleading with him for help, but I can tell it won't work.
"Remember that sense of urgency I was talking about, Saige?" he asks.
I bend down, grabbing Miles under his armpits, and begin backpedaling toward the side of the cabin. Although he's thin, it isn't easy and becomes next to impossible once I get him off the gravel and onto the uneven forest floor.
