Chapter 55 #3
“We climb the tree, then what?” he asks, his voice gruff with unspoken emotion.
Right, we’re not out of danger yet. Turning to face them, I brace myself for their reactions.
“Okay,” I start, grimly. “Climbing the tree will be the easiest part of the escape. Once you get to the top step, you’ll notice you’re a great deal above the wall.
Six feet, to be exact. There will be a thick branch marked with an X to your right.
That’s the lowest unhindered branch I could find.
You’ll have to drag yourself onto it, then crawl along it until you see another X.
I, ah, did have rope that I would’ve secured around it so we could’ve climbed down onto the edge of the wall, but it’s in the backpack we don’t have so we’ll have to improvise. Once we all make it onto the ledge?—”
“Wait,” Braum holds up a hand. “Improvise how ?”
There’s no stopping the grimace that twists up my face. “We’re going to have to jump down onto the ledge.”
“From six feet?” He frowns. “How wide is the ledge?”
I consider his question before replying.
“Um, maybe three feet? And we’ll have to be careful because the ledge is slippery from the water that mists over it.
You can’t fall into the water, okay? This wall butts up right against where the waterfall meets the lake.
On the other side is a steep drop into the freezing cold water.
That lake isn’t still water, so beware. There’s a strong current that will drag you toward the wall of the dam.
You’ll eventually get sucked under the closer you get.
From there, you either drown as the water slams you up against the dam over and over again, or you’ll get stuck in the few grates that control the water that moves through it. So yeah, um, don’t slip.”
All eyes, except for my own, look down at the blood soaked socks covering my feet. I swallow. Yeah, trying to land on my feet in this condition won’t be easy, or fun, but I’m pretty sure I can do it. The doubt on their faces, however, tells me they don’t have much faith in my plan.
“Yeah,” Rowan drawls. “That’s going to go just great for you.”
“What happens after the ledge?” Maverick asks, clearly just as skeptical as Rowan is judging by his expression.
If they didn’t like this part of the plan, they’re probably not going to like the rest of it.
“We walk the ledge for about fifty feet. Again, it’s slippery, so be careful. After that, we’re clear of the water and the large drop. The first tree within reach is marked with an X. We’ve got to jump onto the outstretched branch. Then we’ll?—”
“For fuck’s sake!” Rowan throws up his hands in frustration. “Who do you think we are? Tarzan? How the hell did you figure this out? It doesn’t sound like there’s a lot of wiggle room for trial and?—”
The sound of dogs barking cuts off the rest of his sentence. Immediately, Maverick starts herding me over to the trunk of the tree.
“We don’t have time for Plan B,” he says, grimly. Mavie grips my hips and hoists me up, making it easy for me to grab the wooden board. “We’re going to have to just be careful.”
I have to use my upper body strength and my feet—which scrape against the bark of the tree—to pull myself up enough to reach for the next board. I choke on a whimper. After that, it’s a bit easier, given the boards aren’t too far apart and I can just climb them like a ladder.
The tree shakes as the guys follow. My grip on the boards tightens as I climb higher and higher.
My stomach sinks, and there’s a ringing in my head.
The only reason my panic is kept at bay is the knowledge that I’m the only one who can get us out of here.
These guys need me in order to survive. I don’t have time to panic.
The barking grows louder. My heart thunders in my chest as I climb as fast as I can. Someone shouts nearby, “I think he’s got something!”
Below me, one of my guys curses. Another shushes him.
“Fuck you,” is the response.
I get to the branch marked with an X and pull myself onto it. The wood groans but holds, just as I knew it would. The branch itself is almost as thick as I am, which is another reason, other than the shortest distance to the ledge below, that I picked it.
The sound of footsteps and heavy panting causes me to freeze.
Peering down, I watch as a security guard charges into view.
His hound dog huffs and puffs as it sniffs the ground.
My guys are frozen and silent, just like me.
Braum, the lowest on the trunk, pulls himself closer and rests his forehead against it.
With a low woof, the damn dog drags the security guard straight to our tree. My breath catches in my throat as the two of them circle the base.
Just when I think the guard’s going to look up, an erratic cackling erupts nearby. The dog jumps in surprise, and the security guard reaches for his taser just as a Rookwell patient comes charging past them and takes off toward campus.
“Just spotted an escapee. He’s headed east!” the security guard shouts into his walkie-talkie. The dog barks and lunges after the patient. “Come on, DeDe, after them!”
Both the dog and the guard take off after the Rookwell patient without a backward glance.
I don’t bother letting go of the breath I’m holding. Instead, I continue to hold it as I immediately start moving again. Scooting down the branch, I send up a prayer that I make this landing.
When I get to the second X carved into the wood, I stop to look down again. Directly below me is the ledge. My throat squeezes shut as I sit up and adjust my position, allowing both my legs to dangle over one side.
“Evie.”
I look back at Maverick who’s just finished the climb up the trunk.
“Just so you know, if you fall, I’m going in after you,” he promises.
I shake my head, horror filling my veins. “No, you won’t. I don’t want that, Mavie.”
“I told you, I’ll follow you to the end of time. If that means our time ends here, then so be it.” The absolute steely resolve in his voice tells me arguing with him is pointless.
“This isn’t the end,” I promise him. “This is the start of our new beginning.”
He starts to pull himself onto the branch, but with his added weight the wood groans dangerously loud and the branch dips. He pulls back instantly.
“Just one person at a time. Tell the others, okay?” I warn. With a nod of encouragement aimed at myself, I look back down at the ledge. “Here, let me move for you.”
“Everly, wait! Be care?—”
I push off and let myself fall. Time slows as I do.
My stomach clenches and my throat tightens.
For a split second, my heart stops. This is it.
I either land this, or I’m screwed. I take in my surroundings, taking a mental picture of what could possibly be my last few moments of life, and savor it.
On my left, the cascading crystal-blue water that falls over the edge of the waterfall glitters in the sunlight.
The lake reflects the blue skies, and the occasional puffy white cloud.
On my right, a wood of trees and greenery.
It’s beautiful.
Time speeds up just as my feet hit the cement ledge.
The pain that radiates up my legs then my spine is enough to make me cry out in agony. But even as I suffer, I force myself not to topple left or right. My core tightens, my arms fly out for balance, and my chin drops to my chest as I will myself not to fail in this.
I don’t fall.
With a sharp inhale, I relax and stand. When I look up, I find three pairs of eyes wide and scared.
“Easy peasy!” I call up, trying to give them a smile. It feels weak even to me.
Moving out of the way, I wait for the others. Maverick climbs out onto the branch next, not hesitating to jump down. Rowan comes after him, but he moves much slower than Maverick. When he jumps, he sticks the landing.
“Easy peasy my ass,” he says as he straightens.
He takes a step toward us. As he does his back foot slips.
I watch in horror as Rowan begins to topple over the edge.
I open my mouth to scream, not caring who hears us if Rowan dies, but it catches in my throat as Maverick’s hand shoots out and grabs hold of his shirt.
With a yank, Maverick pulls Rowan back and helps steady him.
The two of them pant, attempting to catch their breath and possibly settle their racing hearts. I know I am. When they relax, Rowan gives Maverick a shallow nod.
“Thanks.”
“Don’t mention it,” Maverick mutters.
When Braum jumps, there’s no drama. He lands like a cat, graceful and with ease. When he straightens, he looks up at me.
“Ready when you are.”
I turn and we carefully make the treacherous trek over the slick surface. When we get to the tree I marked, I can almost hear the sigh of relief coming from Rowan.
“That’s not a jump, princess, that’s a step,” he calls out.
“Shut up, we’re not in the clear yet,” Maverick whispers over his shoulder.
I ignore the two of them and carefully step out onto the thick, gnarly branch.
It’s even wider and sturdier than the one we jumped from.
Reaching up, I use the next branch up to steady myself and walk toward the trunk of the tree.
There, a rope is attached to the base of the branch and hangs all the way to the ground, knotted every foot or so.
The climb down is hard.
By the time my feet touch the ground, I’m sweating and my feet are screaming in protest. With a heavy sigh, I collapse against a nearby tree and watch as the guys descend the rope one by one.
“Holy shit…” Maverick says as he moves out of the way for the others. He looks up at the wall. “We did it. We broke out of Serenity Falls. We actually fucking did it!”
The sound he makes is somewhere between a laugh and a sob of relief. His hands, hanging by his sides, begin to tremble. When he looks at me, his face has turned pink and his eyes are watering.
“ You did this,” he adds softly, his voice warm and full of awe. “You saved me.”
“I told you I would,” I tease weakly. “I keep my promises.”
He frowns suddenly, his brows slowly pinching together. With four long strides, he closes the distance between us and crouches down directly in front of me.
“You okay?” he asks.
Reaching up, I cup his cheek. My thumb slides just beneath his eye, catching the small drop of water that escapes before he can blink it away. The deep, unfettered love in those steel gray eyes that stare into mine shakes me to my core.
My nod is lazy. “Yeah, just exhausted. What about you?”
Rather than respond verbally, Maverick leans in and kisses me lightly. I shiver, the rush of excitement in my veins giving me a small jolt of energy. When he pulls away, he reaches for my hand.
“I’m fucking perfect, Evie.”
He’s careful as he helps me to my feet. Suddenly, Braum’s there. He steps in front of Maverick to wrap his arms around me, then lifts me off my feet. My soft cry of surprise turns into a tired giggle as he spins me around.
“You saved us all,” Braum says when he finally places me down onto my feet. “We owe you.”
My hands land gently on his chest as I regard him curiously. “Owe me?”
“Whatever you want, it’s yours,” he promises.
I make a face. “That’s kind of hard to promise when we’re about to start running for our lives.”
“‘About to?” Rowan repeats incredulously a few feet away. “We’ve crossed the starting line, princess. The race has already begun.”
“I can make it happen,” Braum says, his smile falling. “Whatever you want.”
“Then I want you to live up to your promise,” I reply instantly.
Braum looks down at me quizzically. “What did I promise?”
“That you wanted to be at my side after we escaped.” Anxiously, I search his expression, looking for signs I may have been duped. “Do you still mean that? You’ll stay with me?”
Braum’s expression relaxes as he grins. “Like I said, that’s where I belong.”
My shoulders slump in relief. With a chuckle, he bends down to kiss my forehead.
“Come on, Little Evie,” Maverick says, offering me his hand. “I know your feet are bothering you. Let’s get you off them.”
Relieved, I hobble over to him. When he bends down, I gratefully climb up onto his back.
“When you get tired, I’ll take her,” Braum offers, watching us closely.
“I can manage the whole way,” Maverick objects quickly. Braum shakes his head in frustration and opens his mouth to argue, but I beat him to it.
“You don’t want to be completely beat, Mavie. We still have to drive after this walk. So conserve energy when you can and take a break.”
Maverick grunts but otherwise doesn’t respond. I take that as confirmation I’m right and let it go.
Braum steps closer to us, his eyes trailing over my skin. “What I wouldn’t give to know what The Universe is saying now.”
I adjust my hold around Maverick’s neck so I’m hanging on with one arm while I reach out for Braum’s hand. His dark eyes light up as he takes hold of it.
“Better?” I ask him.
His answering grin is breathtaking. “Yes.”
“Alright, can we go already?” Rowan whines.
“Yes!” I nod. “We need to go that way.” I jerk my head, indicating straight ahead. I’ve made this trek enough times the landscape is familiar.
Rowan stands there and waits as we approach him then falls in step as we progress.
Reaching up, he rests his hand on my lower back.
My thin, wet hospital gown is hardly a barrier between his skin and mine.
The warmth of his hand settles me, as if I’d been anxiously waiting for his touch this whole time.
We’re silent as we walk, deep in our own thoughts.
As I guide us, I sneak peeks of the guys on either side of me. This is so surreal I can hardly wrap my head around the fact we’re free.
It’s hard to fathom what life will be like now, surrounded by tainted love from three psychopaths.
It probably won’t be easy. Especially given that we’re on the run.
At times I’ll probably get overwhelmed. But I know in my heart there’s no other life I’d want to live than the one unfolding before me with these three guys by my side.