I snapped as I got in her face, my spit flying all over the place. “What I want is that man dead, Theresa! THAT IS WHAT I WANT!”
“Then, I guess you and Fangs are two peas in a pod,” Theresa said as she slowly wiped her face off.
Her words were like a dagger to my heart, but life didn’t give me much time to dwell on the feeling because another sound caught my ear. A faint sound. A distant sound.
A sound that gave me hope.
“That’s an engine,” I whispered.
Tee took my hand. “Julia, don’t.”
I yanked away from her and took a few steps back. “You’ve made your choice. Now, give me room to make mine. Hey!”
Theresa lunged for my wrist again, barely catching it in her palm. “What the fuck are you doing?”
“Hey!” I shrieked as the sound of the engine grew closer. “Hey! I’m out here!”
My sister fought against me, trying to tug me back into the house. “Get inside. Fangs was very specific on—”
I shoved her off me and took off toward the sound. “Somebody! Help me! I’m trapped out here!”
“Juliaaaaaaa!”
As my sister’s screams fell behind me, I picked up as much speed as possible. My legs clamored against the scorched, cracked earth as cacti passed me by in droves. The sound of the whirring engine grew closer, and I held out hope that Fangs had changed his mind. That he had seen the error of his ways and had come back to get me. At the very least, though, I’d settle for some adventurer wanting a joyous off-roading experience.
“Julia! Stop!” my sister’s voice echoed behind me.
I turned around and cupped my hands over my mouth. “I’m not losing anyone else!”
Julia cupped her hands back. “You can’t lose me if I’m safe here!”
“I’m not talking about you!”
The engine revved, almost as if to beckon to me, and I hoped my sister forgave me for the decision I was about to make. I needed her safe, yes, but I also needed Fangs safe. That man had crawled his way beneath my skin and decided to make his home there, and I wanted him alive long enough to figure out why.
No, Ineededhim alive long enough to figure out why.
“Come on, where are you, car?” I grunted as I panted for air.
I wanted a chance to figure out why in the world I had become to drawn to the man in such a short span of time, and I couldn’t do that if Bullet killed him. At least if I went with them, Fangs would do his best to make sure I didn’t have to watch him die. Which meant he might be more careful than if I weren’t there.
And that alone was enough to push me onward.
The longer I ran, and the further away the house fell behind me, the closer the sound of that engine got. Sand kicked up in the distance, alerting me to something moving at high speed as hope blossomed in my chest. That had to be Fangs. There was no other explanation for it. The vehicle made a beeline for the house, not weaving around in circles or crisscross patterns like I would have expected from an off-roader.
The second I inhaled the exhaust fumes from the vehicle, a smile pulled across my face. Sweat dripped aimlessly down my brow as the sun sizzled my skin and evaporated the sweat right off me before it reached down into my clothing. And as I waved my hand in the air, I screamed at the top of my lungs to try and get their attention.
“Hey!” I bellowed. “Hey! I need a ride! Help me!”
I screamed until my voice grew hoarse. I paused to catch my breath as I watched the wall of dust continue to creep closer to me. Holy fuck, had they heard me? Was that Fangs on his way back to furiously apologize before scooping me into his arms? It didn’t matter. Not to me, anyway. So long as I got to my final destination, I didn’t care how in the hell I got there.
All I wanted was to be at Fangs’s side.
All I wanted was to help him see this through.
However, once the van approached me, I froze.
“No,” I murmured.
