Chapter 44
M yles
“Did you get any sleep,” Blake asked, holding out a coffee for me as I stretched.
“Naw, I couldn’t sleep a damn wink. As soon as I closed my eyes, all I could see was Snowflake needing me and me not there.” I lunged on my left before switching legs and starting again.
“You do know that out there is not the same thing as what happened in the shop, right?”
Taking the coffee, I nodded, but it didn’t feel that way. “Thanks, mate. You sure you’re good with this,” I asked, sipping the coffee that made me think of Ren. I just wished I knew she was okay.
“Yeah, I can’t run that far or as fast as the two of you on your own,” Blake said, looking over his shoulder as Liam and Theo joined us.
Liam was only wearing a long-sleeved sports shirt as he clipped his hiking pack into place.
Was he crazy? It wasn’t that warm. I didn’t have anything like his pack, but I brought extra food and any other supplies I could jam into the backpack I used to carry my sports crap around in.
“The dean must know she’s gone,” Theo said. He pointed with his thumb over his shoulder. “The guards are being assembled, and Dean Henry doesn’t look happy.”
“Possibly. They could just be doing a training exercise, or on the hunt for Axel,” Blake said.
We all knew the consequences if we were caught, but it had to be done, and I’d kill the fucker a hundred times over for what he did.
“On the plus side, if they are looking for Ren, then there will be more people helping,” Blake offered as a heaviness fell upon us.
He could be right, but I didn’t like it.
I didn’t trust anyone other than us when it came to Ren.
My phone buzzed, and I yanked it out of my pocket so fast that it almost went flying. Please let it be Ren. All the hope dissipated as I stared at Nash’s name.
Annoyed, I unlocked my phone.
N: Stupid question, but did you try using Find My Phone?
M: I did the moment she stopped answering me yesterday, but the last ping is here at the school.
N: Was just a thought.
M: I thought you didn’t care.
N: I don’t. Try not to get killed. It will be really fucking annoying if I have to replace two of my best while they chase after a girl.
I rolled my eyes at the phone.
N: Don’t roll your eyes at me.
I looked around but didn’t see him anywhere. How the fuck did he do that?
N: No, I’m not there. I just know you so well.
M: Stop that, you creepy fucker. Gotta go. I need to conserve my battery.
N: For what it’s worth, I hope you find her alive and not being eaten. Lol!
M: Fuck Off
Nash seriously could stop trying to be comforting any fucking day. He sucked, and his jokes were no better—like I needed to picture a bear attacking her. Powering down my phone, I stuffed it in my pocket and zipped it up.
“I’ll check in every hour so you know where we are,” I said, and Blake and Theo nodded as one.
“I’m ready. Do you think you can keep up,” Liam asked.
“What the hell kind of question is that? Of course, I can,” I said, but I didn’t like that he smirked.
“You better because I’m not going to slow down,” Liam said.
I looked at Theo and Blake as Liam walked toward the path that led to the thicker part of the forest and the only way off the property.
How the hell did she find this anyway? Ren was going in a cage when I got her back.
It could be filled with whatever she wanted, but I was wrapping her ass up in those little puffy bubbles to keep her safe.
My lip twitched at the thought of what choice words she’d have for me if I tried to do that to her. I’d let her spank me.
“Was he serious,” I asked, pointing my thumb over my shoulder. “Does he really have that much stamina?”
Theo laughed. “Oh, he’s serious. You may want to lose a layer. You’re not going to need your jacket,” he said, smiling. The look in his eyes was a lot dirtier than I had expected. “And trust me, you won’t be able to keep up, but good luck trying.”
“Are you coming? You’re already lagging, and I thought this was an emergency?”
“Comin’,” I yelled and took off after him as he disappeared into the forest.
Liam had his boot up on a log and was tying an extra knot when I caught up to him an hour later. “Jesus, feck man, are ya part cheetah?” I panted and bent over to catch my breath. Liam smiled. “And how did I not know yer superhuman?”
“You never asked,” he said and handed me a water bottle.
I greedily chugged down a few mouthfuls before dropping my pack to the ground so I could get my jacket off.
Theo was right. I didn’t need it when we were pushing this hard.
We’d been running nonstop since we left the school, and it felt like Liam was going slow for me while I was running full speed.
I stuffed the jacket through the handles of the pack and then stretched to stay warm.
“I guess that’s fair. I just thought that at some point ya woulda mentioned yer a fucking gazelle,” I grumbled, taking another sip of water. Liam didn’t even look like he’d broken a sweat. How was that even possible?
“Did you never wonder what I did when I went away for competitions that lasted days at a time?” Liam pulled a protein bar out of his pack and tossed one to me as he took a bite of his.
“Not really. Why? What were ya doin’?”
“I do extreme races. Picture an Ironman, but cross country with obstacles. They last twenty-four to seventy-two hours.”
“Each fuckin’ race?” My mouth dropped open.
“Yeah.”
“Why the hell would ya want to do that? Sounds terrible.”
Liam chuckled as he looked around. “I spend time doing adventure treks alone and in dangerous areas, so it’s good to have the stamina and extra fitness just in case.
I probably would’ve caught up to her by now if you weren’t slowing me down,” he said, and I glared at him, making Liam smile.
Jerk. “Besides, I like being out on the trail. It’s quiet.
” He looked at me out of the corner of his eye. “Well, it normally is.”
“What the fuck is it with everyone wantin’ to pick on me lately? Did ya all get together and decide ya needed to have a gang up on Myles month?” I handed him back the water bottle, and he stuffed it in his pack.
“You mean there is only one month? I thought it was every month.”
“Yer fuckin’ hysterical.” I shook my head.
“I need to send the first text. What’s the plan for the rest of the way?
” Digging out my phone, I waited for it to power on as Liam looked up at the sky and then the trail we were on.
It wasn’t as slippery as I feared it would be, but it still had snow and ice to maneuver around and mud in other sections.
I shot Blake a message and placed a pin on the digital map before powering back down.
“The weather is holding, so we’ll push until nightfall and then camp,” he said.
“We have to keep going til we find her,” I argued.
“No, we go until we have to stop for the night.” Liam pointed to the boot print in the snow.
“That’s Ren’s boot print, and based on her stride, she is walking at a steady rate, but we are traveling much faster.
My guess is if she keeps this pace, which I’ve calculated to be three miles an hour, then we will catch her before dusk tomorrow, depending on how many hours she walks in a day.
” I ran my hand through my hair and closed my eyes as I tried to keep from having a meltdown.
“Look on the bright side. She isn’t trying to hide, and is sticking to the trail, plus she’ll be stopping for nightfall as well. ”
“I know, I’m just…if anythin’ else happens to her…
.” My voice trailed off as I looked at the long, narrow path in front of us.
I’d wanted to run away from this life so many times, and I’d been born into the chaos.
I couldn’t imagine what she must think being dumped here, let alone all that had happened since.
I rubbed at my leg where her note was tucked inside my pocket. Once I found her, the hard part would be convincing her to come back willingly. Knocking her out was not going to win me any brownie points.
“Tell me something?”
“Hmm?”
“What is it about Ren that has you so tied up like this?”
I shrugged. “I can’t explain it. From the moment I saw Ren, I knew I wanted to be hers. You don’t feel that with Theo?”
Liam lifted his shoulder and let it drop. “We understand each other, but we aren’t exclusive or anything, and we both like girls too, so it’s just different. Anyway, we better go.”
Nodding, I picked up my backpack and put it on before chasing after Liam, his red pack bobbing in front of me.
I really hated the idea of Ren sleeping another night out here alone, but when I found her, I was bringing her back.
If I needed to fucking hang on to her leg until she agreed, I’d do whatever it took.
E very hour, when we stopped and checked in, my panic eased a little. Ren was resourceful, and I didn’t know too many people who would attempt this hike, let alone at the tail end of winter.
Liam suddenly stopped, and all the calm I’d gained ran away as he looked around in a circle.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, just admiring where Ren stopped for the night.” He pointed to a spot where there was no snow and a small lump that I would’ve run by and not noticed at all.
It turned out to be the remnants of her fire.
“This is good. She seems to know what she’s doing out here.
Ms. Davies is full of mysteries. We still have about three hours of light left, so we’ll keep going unless you need to stop.
” I shook my head. “Okay then, I know a spot we can camp for the night.”
Glancing at the cold fire, I smiled. It took a lot to get a compliment out of Liam. That one statement eased the aching in the pit of my stomach.