“Probably an animal,” he says, swallowing hard. “But you are right. Let’s go.”
For a while, we power-walk in silence. You can’t really run here, the ground is too uneven. I gradually get used to some of the noises, but I don’t let my guard down, pausing to look back every minute or so to make sure no one is following us. The terrain is very challenging, to say the least, roots and stones trying to trip us every couple of feet, so I can’t exactly walk and keep watch at the same time.
“Why would there be a spike strip here, in the middle of nowhere?” I finally dare to ask, needing something to douse over the nerves swamping me.
Nikolas halts mid-step, his shoulders tensing. But he doesn’t say anything, just stands there and observes the silence as if it will speak up.
Fuck, is it that bad? Now I regret asking. But hey, at least I’m not alone.
Trying to shake off the ramping up fear, I take the lead. My mind races with possibilities. Did we walk into a trap? Is the enemy about to jump at us and rip us to pieces? I shake my head, take a deep breath, speed up my strides. No, no. I shouldn’t be thinking about worst-case scenarios right now. Besides, I’m not on my own anymore. I have Nikolas.The Nikolas, a living legend in the underground world. The two of us will be fine; we are just… temporarily stuck in a scary-ass forest and possibly being tailed. But, hey, it could be a lot worse, right?
“It was probably set up to catch us. If the Crimson Crew figured out their initial attack failed, they’d be on the lookout,” Nikolas says just as I am starting to lean toward the spikes just being terrible luck.
“That quickly?”
It’s a stupid question, considering how many times I got close to dying this past month. The Crew is a formidable enemy you definitely don’t want to piss off.
“The stone you stole… It must really mean a great deal to them.”
I slide my hand into my pocket out of habit and stroke the smooth gem. This little thingisimportant, huh? I know I have an eye for these things, but in this case I wish I didn’t. My life would still be a boring college slog and coding if I didn’t steal this trinket and put a target on my own head.
Sigh. But then again, this is the kind of fucked-up adventure you only see in movies. An honest-to-god crime syndicate is after me because I stole their precious treasure from right under their noses. A total thief newbie. It’s impressive, no?
Could I have returned it, maybe? Gone back the next day and left it somewhere they’d find it? I contemplated that on the first day, during class. Considered swinging by the fancy building the day after even though I was so fucking scared they might catch me and I’d end up like Zac. But then, someone sneaked into my dorm in the middle of the night. To this day, I don’t have the slightest clue how the man managed to get past the CCTV and security, how he bypassed the keycard-controlled entrance, how he got around the lock on my door. The only reason I am even alive is thanks to the fact that I was in the kitchen for some water when the break-in happened, then walked in on the guy looming over my empty bed, ready to strike.
I ran. I ran until I was on the brink of passing out and surrounded by campus security. God, they were so confused and annoyed when I led them to my empty room, no trespasser to be seen. They thought I’d gone crazy because of exam stress.
Pff, what a simple and dull life that would have been! Stressing over exams and coding deadlines and not because bloodthirsty mobsters want to kill me.
“You with me, Tommy?” Nikolas’ big hand comes around my shoulder, squeezing gently.
Sucking in the chilly air, I shiver. “I really shouldn’t have stolen it, huh? Fuck. I’m such an idiot.”
There were a ton of other things to pick from at that party—golden bracelets, rings, necklaces, expensive watches—but I had to go for that red gem. I roll my eyes at myself. It had the most sparkle, looked the most expensive, so the rest of the stuff never stood a chance, did it? My lizard brain knew how to pick. Besides, and I might be rationalizing here but whatever, getting traumatized by witnessing my not-quite-friend’s murder with my own eyesrequires the appropriate compensation, after all. I knew back then, just like I know now, that the red stone was the only thing among all the jewels and gold that fit that bill.
“What’s done is done. Don’t sweat it.”
“I…” I don’t know what to do. Where to go. How to solve this gigantic mess. It’s kind of fun feeling like a vigilante on the run, but also, I’m so fucking terrified. I don’t want to die.
My body acts on instinct, and before I can even consider the consequences of my actions, my arms wrap around Nikolas’ strong midriff. Sucking in air through my nose, I bury my face in his chest.
“You don’t know how scared I’ve been. I’ve barely slept this past month, I just couldn’t. Every time I’d close my eyes, I see the shadows move. And the noises… like thousands of bugs crawling under the floorboards and inside the walls, trying to reach me. So, I had to keep running, no matter how tired I was. I couldn’t tell what was real and not anymore. Finding you was the only thing that kept me going and…Fuck. It was so fucking hard to even find something that looked like it might be your trail. I’m so glad you are real.”
“I’m not gonna lie to you, Tommy. You are in some real deep shit. The deepest I’ve seen,” Nikolas says, chuckling as he gently combs a hand through my hair. “I really wish you’d never come to me. But you did.”
Oh my god, it feels like heaven. He said my name while I’m surrounded by him, by this strong, kind and morally flexible man. The world thinks he’s dead, but I knew better. I didn’t give up, I didn’t take no for an answer, and now this is my reward.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know what else to do.” I bite on the inside of my cheek, breathing him in. He smells likesweat and forest and fabric that’s been sitting in a wardrobe for a long time. It makes my head spin, and I sway a little on my feet. He steadies me, catching me and tucking me closer to his chest without even realizing it.
Heat shoots through me, tingling under my skin. I feel safe for the first time in over a month. Here we are, in the middle of a dark forest at night, but I know, deep down in my bones, that there’s nothing that can get to me. Nikolas won’t let it.
I can’t explain it, but I just know it. It’s in the way he’s clutching me tight, in the soft motion of his fingers still raking through my hair, in the way his chest rises and falls with determination under my ear. He will protect me.
The easiest and most logical solution would be for him to surrender me over along with the stone to the Crew, there is no question about it. Would he do it? Getting rid of me would mean he can go back to being Father Gabriel, to living his life the way he was before I came in like a cannonball and wrecked it all. Literally.
I peek up at his face, my stomach churning at the thought, and find him looking down at me with a sort of gleam in his brown eyes. There’s a strange deepness to it, like there is more than just curiosity there, like he’s resolved to something, but I’m too agitated to decipher what it might be. Still, for some reason, it lights a thousand little fires inside me, tickling my nerve-endings and driving my blood south.
Squeezing my arms tighter around him as my world tilts a little on its axis, I mutter, “Please, don’t hand me over to the Crew. They’ll kill me.”
