My heart drops. The freaking apology is like a knife right into my chest.
“Stop. There’s nothing to apologize for. Chad made his own decision to wander off.”
“Yeah, but I was distracted. My focus should have been on getting both of you out of here safely.” He frowns, his shoulders dropping. “I screwed this whole thing up.” A tiny shake of his head before he pulses that jaw, meeting my gaze with a fresh layer of ice. You’d think with the lava pit we’re in, it’d be impossible to layer up his frosty walls so quickly, but his default move shatters the hope and the progress I thought we’d made.
With one more command to stay where I am, he pulls out his gun and silently disappears in the direction of the shriek, leaving me with a dead body around the corner and a bruised heart.
“Well…good thing no one overreacted,” I say to a bushy-eared squirrel.
The squirrel stares back before scampering off, making me envious of his energy and hair volume. I turn my face upwards, scowling at the canyon walls as they glare down at me mockingly. “What do you want from me?” my voice grates out.
I attempt to lift both arms in frustration, but it only irritates my wound, making things worse. Dust and pebbles fly anticlimatically when I stand and kick a stone. Just when things began to feel like they were going my way, something that only happens in the movies threatens to derail my purpose here.
“You were supposed to teach me something!” I continue scowling at the mountainside. “I won’t let you evict me!”
I pace the small area while the heat hoarded by the walls pulses from the ground and assaults me from every direction. Itdoesn’t help my mood or my worry over Jack. He just ran into danger, like it’s no big deal.
My mind tries to form some semblance of meaning from the past four days, desperate for a victory when it feels like the walls are crushing in on me. It seems unfair that after all the drama this freaking crevice has put me through, I should come out of this ordeal with only a small taste of the sexiest man alive and a half-dose of courage. Because let’s be honest, who knows if I’ll continue to beCanyon Willowwhen I get out of here or if I’ll revert to the same old patterns when faced with something remotely challenging.
Maybe I should take my own advice and focus on the things I’m grateful for.
For one, I met Jack—although the only part of him I might leave here with is the beautiful scar on my heart that I’ll carry for the rest of my life.
Secondly, and also thanks to Jack, I’ve realized that I can’t keep doing what others expect me to if I want any sense of purpose.
Three?
Bending with a groan, I pick up a rock and hurl it at the wall with an angry growl. If I can’t come up with anything else, I may as well get some frustration out while nobody is around.
That actually feels quite cathartic, I think at the cracking of stone against stone.
I bend to get another rock, gasping when I straighten and find another hiker standing a few feet away, smiling a sunny grin. What the hell is this, venture off-trail day?
“Jerrica! Frik, you scared me!” I bring a hand to my chest, not sure if the unease is from being surprised or the slightly unhinged gleam in her eyes. “What’re you doing here?”
There’s a serpentine quality to her gait as she approaches, and she forces a smile as she shrugs one shoulder of her slightlydisheveled shirt. “I lost the trail, same as you, I imagine? Got any water?” She points at Jack’s backpack.
“The trail is pretty easy to follow, actually.” I frown, and she tilts her head in an unnatural way that makes me think of a mannequin with its head mounted slightly off center. “Where’s your backpack?” I ask suspiciously.
Uneasiness continues to poke at my nerves when her eyes dart back to Jack’s bag, then up to me, and I move to intercept her path.
She’s definitely in on this whole thing.
How did I not see it?
“Oh, I left it at the campsite and decided to meander a bit. Next thing I know, I’m completely lost.” She lifts her palms in that innocent way.You ain’t foolin’ me, sister.“I’m so glad I ran into you. Who knows how long I would have been out here without water? What’reyoudoing here? Got rid of that bodyguard of yours?”
Possibly,I grumble internally. That man’s ten-foot wall is harder to breach than the security at the Met Gala. My fingers fumble with the clips on Jack’s bag. The last thing I need is Jerrica getting her hands on the artifact, all in the name ofhelping.
I can’t decide if I’m happy or not that Jack left me with his backpack. If he had it, wouldhebe the one in danger now?
Also,crap on a cracker, because he’s going to freak out if he returns to find Jerrica doing anything remotely threatening.
I really need Jack to get back soon, though. It’s late afternoon, and the chances of getting out of here today are growing slimmer by the minute. Hell, the chances of getting out of herealiveare dwindling, too.
My poor mother. I wonder if they’ll bring Beyonsai to my funeral.
Oh, and Giorgio…he’ll miss me so much.
