It made the air inside the cabin smell like decomposing feet.
Thankfully, the cabin was well-stocked with necessities, so I had been able to brush my teeth for the first time in what felt like a week. The two of us retreated to our separate corners. Judeoffered a grunt that translated to “You sleep in the bed. I’ll sleep on the couch.”
I didn’t argue and simply closed my eyes. There was no use in fighting it, and I was too tired to form a plan.Yet.
Saturday, May 24 | 8:20 a.m.
I never realizedhow loud New Haven was until I was dropped in the middle of the Appalachian Mountains without warning.
It wassilent.
Silent like a horror movie, where every snap of a twig sounds like a gunshot. Silent like when you think you’re by yourself, then realize you’re not.
Or silent when you think someone is with you, and then you realize you’re all alone.
When I awoke the next morning, Jude was gone.
My first thought was to run. My second thought was to panic.
What happened to him? Where did he go? Had someone else shown up? Were we in danger?
And why did I care if he’s in danger? I should be worrying about myself.
I should be running. I should have shoved that nightstand aside, slipped into the cellar, barred the door, and run down the tunnel like my life depended on it.
He had told me exactly how to escape him.
But he trusted me not to.
That’s when I realized the wood board Jude had put over the door yesterday was now propped up against the wall.
Whatever happened, he had either removed it himself and left or trusted whoever was on the other side to open the door.
Wait . . . The only other person Jude trusted to know about the safe house was Cole.
And Cole had Joel.
Had Jude gone to get my brother?
Before I could decide whether to stay or run, I heard the rumble of a diesel engine. My heart jumped into my throat as fear-induced paralysis hit me in a landslide.
Running definitely isn’t an option now.
The rush of anxiety that stopped my heart restarted it just as fast. Adrenaline flooded my nervous system like a tidal wave. My pulse raced as fast as my mind.
Run. Hide. Fight.
Run.
Run.
Run.
The doorknob turned and Jude slipped in, carrying grocery bags.
He immediately clocked my startled expression. “What’s wrong?”
The adrenaline leached from my body, and I felt the free fall that would inevitably lead to an exhausted crash. It was the same cycle I had experienced over and over again since I had come home from work to find my brother beaten and bloody.
