Blair
My body won’t stop trembling.
I’m past the point of exhaustion; I can feel it in every inch of my body. Despite that, my eyes scan the long stretch of road that led me here. Somewhere along the way is the car I’d stolen a few days prior. When that ran out of gas, I walked the rest of the way, making sure to kill every single person who attempted to follow me.
The bodies in the barn behind me, covered in gasoline I syphoned from an old tractor, are just two out of the dozen that found me within the last five days. If I weren’t so tired and desperate to be safe, I’d feel guilty about how many lives I’ve taken since leaving my life back in Colorado. I became a nurse so I could help save lives, not take them.
Taking them was my dad’s job.
With a heavy sigh, I tilt my head back and let it bump gently against the rotted wood of the barn behind me.
I tried hard not to bring trouble to Ledger’s doorstep. I went every which waybuthere, until I had no other choice.I need help. I’m running on fumes. In my haste to escape being killed or captured, I’ve lost everything: my last change of clothes, my phone, and my go-bag that held all my supplies, including cash and ammunition. Finding transportation and sleeping accommodations has been abysmal, leaving me to steal everything from cars to electric scooters, and to sleeping under overpasses and in sewage drains.
Whoever these people are, they’re good. Not only that, but they have a seemingly endless number of resources to hunt me down. Every time I lost them, I was sure that would be the last I saw of them.
Each time I've been wrong.
Which means, once Ledger comes to pick me up, Dad and I are going to have to take off almost at once. Neither of us want Ledger in danger.
I blink slowly, fighting the heavy weights of my eyelids.
It’s been so long since I’ve had to keep my guard up like this or stay on the move. Once I went off to college, I left this life behind me—only returning on short trips here and there with Dad when he really needed an extra hand. While I’m notoutof shape, I’m definitely not in the same place I was back then.
Headlights suddenly swing around the side of the building, startling me. My exhaustion drops away as I grab the gun by my side. Hidden behind a few boards leaning up against the exterior of the barn, my back is safe and I’m covered but I’ve been outmaneuvered before. Fire off one shot, and whoever is in the truck will know exactly where to aim. I’ll need to be careful.
The white truck kicks up dirt and rocks as it barrels onto the property. It barely comes to a complete stop before I hear a door open. My finger slips onto the trigger of the gun, and I wait with bated breath to see what happens next.
“Cinnamon roll!” a familiar voice bellows. “You hear me?Cinnamon roll!”
The relief that pools into every crevice of my being is so intense that it feels like I’m being weighed down with sand. I’m torn between wanting to cry with relief and laughing at the usage of a safeword I haven’t heard in a long time.
“I’m here!” I call back, my voice wobbling. I slip from behind the boards to go to my godfather.
I catch sight of Ledger’s silhouette as he runs across the beams of his headlights but he blends into the darkness as he closes the distance between us. I try to meet him halfway. My feet move, determined to get me to my destination, but my legs aren’t up to the task. They wobble before my knees give out. I stumble, trying to catch myself before I face-plant.
A large hand grabs my forearm to steady me. The moment Ledger’s hand makes contact with me, a jolt of awareness shoots through me, momentarily shaking away the aches and pains from days of running.
“Where are you hurt?” he asks, his voice gruff and strained.
I steal a fugitive glance up at Ledger, feeling the familiar longing and heat fill me like it did every time I was in his presence when I was younger. Unfortunately, with his back to the lights, his face is clouded with shadow, leaving me unable to really see him. Has he changed much? Or is he still the Ledger I used to dream of?
Oh, who am I kidding? Istilldream about Ledger.
“Blair.” Ledger shakes my arm a little.
I blink away my exhausted, half-delirious thoughts.
“I’m fine,” I assure him. The few bumps, bruises, and scrapes aren’t life threatening. “Just beat.”
The sound of the truck’s passenger door opening triggers tears to well up. Dad’s with Ledger, good. I’m relieved to know he’s ok.
“If you’refine,” Ledger growls, dragging me toward the vehicle by my arm. “Then where the fuck have you been? Youshould’ve called me to let me know what was going on and to tell me where you were.”
I stumble along, trying hard to stay upright. “I lost everything trying to make it here in one piece. It took me stealing from some kids camping in the woods to get a phone to reach you. I’ve been tailed so, I was trying to lose them on top of trying to stay safe. Speaking of which,” I point toward the barn. “There are bodies?—”
“I’ll handle them. Where are they?” An unfamiliar voice asks as the second person approaches.
I stop walking instantly, stiffening with alarm. That’s definitelynotDad’s voice. When Ledger tries to drag me toward the stranger, I don’t immediately go with him.
