Chapter 39 Elijah
Elijah
“Please can you drive faster?” I beg. My foot digs into the floor of the car as if I’m the one driving.
“Elijah, my foot is nearly touching the gravel right now. I promise you.” Gwen palms the back of my neck, giving it a firm squeeze. “I need you to breathe for me. Can you do that?”
My eyes pinch shut as I try to breathe in and out.
It’s not working. Every time I try, I can’t help but think about Tobias being alone with Derrick.
He’d never go anywhere with him willingly so I just know he’s in trouble.
I can feel it. It’s like we’re tethered together and the string binding us is strained.
“We’re nearly there. Just focus on the cop lights.” Gwen urges.
The cops behind us opted out of sirens to try and not spook Derrick, and let him know we’re coming.
But, I sure hope he knows we are. I hope he’s scared out of his mind right now.
Although, the thoughts of being scared only reminds me of Tobias and how he must be feeling right now. The thoughts twist my stomach, making me heave over, hugging my body.
“Ugh, Gwen! Please drive faster.” I groan. I think I may be sick.
Gwen’s quiet as we slow down the car.
I shoot my head up. “What? Why are we stopping? Why—” My breath catches halfway as my eyes land on what has her silent.
Pushing the window button down, the car is immediately filled with the sound of sirens, as the sight of big grey smoke clouds bellows into the air. Flakes of soot drift past the windshield like black snow.
Every sound is suddenly too loud. The air in the car is too thick. I feel cold and numb at the same time.
I can’t even hear Gwen as I open the car door and make a run for it.
Stuck behind beeping parked cars along the usual quiet backroad, I sprint for the lake house.
My feet can’t move fast enough as my chest threatens to cave in. It’s cold out here and the road is slick from the snow but I don’t care. My boots keep me upright which is all I need.
I don’t think, I just move.
The only thought in my head is Tobias.
Is Tobias okay?
Where’s Tobias?
I make it to the house in less than five minutes. Sweat slicks to the side of my temple as I push through the crowd of firemen. One grabs ahold of my arms, stopping me from going inside.
A sudden wave of Deja vu hits me. It wasn’t long ago that this was the restaurant that was on fire. Derrick tried and failed to bring us down then. Will he get his chance now?
“Son, you can’t go in there!” He grips my arms hard, smoke clinging to his gear.
I point to the house. “Is anyone in there?” I rush out. “Is there anyone in there!?” I repeat, more forcefully this time.
Breathe, just breathe. The words loop uselessly in my head.
The firefighter turns his attention to the chief, who I actually know as our closest neighbor down the lane.
“Elijah, you okay?” He asks, rushing over to me.
I shake my head, trying to catch my breath so I can explain. “I need to know if anyone was inside. Did you find anyone? Tobias?”
His eyebrows pinch. “No, we didn’t. No one was in there.”
A wave of relief washes over me knowing he’s not in there. But just as fast as that relief comes, the fear of his absence comes right in.
He’s not here.
“Elijah, what’s going on?” The chief tries to hold me up, even though my knees threaten to cave in.
He’s not fucking here.
“This is Derrick Voss. He did this.” I mutter out, feeling the tears pour down my face.
I feel the rush of policemen join the crowd around us as they begin to inspect the area. I could care less about the fucking house.
Houses can be re-built. There’s only one Tobias.
And he’s gone.
Gwen rushes over to me, taking me from the firefighter. She holds me tightly as my whole body is moments away from collapse. “We’re too fucking late.” I whimper. “Too fucking late.”
My brain is so loud, flipping through the many possibilities. “We can put out an alert or something? People do that, right? Call the news stations. Contact the border patrol or something.” I sniff, trying to brainstorm. “They couldn’t have gotten far. We have time.” I sniff, looking around.
Gwen nods her head, grooming her fingers through my hair. I can tell she’s crying too but trying to remain strong. “Yes, we can do it all. Everything. We won’t stop until we find him.”
“I’ll burn the fucking world down.” I clench my fists so hard I think I may draw blood.
Suddenly, we hear a sharp crack that bursts through the air, startling all of us.
It’s undeniable. That was a gun shot.
My heart drops as soon as I hear it.
“The lake.” I whisper, letting go of Gwen. My feet move before I even realize what I’m doing.
Running towards a gun fire. Probably not the smartest thing to do.
But fuck, of all times to be rational, this isn’t it. Right now, Tobias is in trouble. If he’s that close, I need to be there.
Running out back, I slip on some snow, but quickly pick myself up.
Police follow close behind, as we head to the backyard and down the hill.
My eyes immediately focus on to small figures in the distance on the ice. It’s dark out here so I have to strain my eyes, but I can see it. I see Tobias. And he’s fighting for his life on top of Derrick and what looks like a spiderweb crack in the ice shooting out from under them.
They’re too close to the middle. It’s too thin there!
“Tobias!” I can’t help but shout out. They need to move!
His fist in the air stutters as soon as he hears my voice. I see his head pick up, following the sound. My heart skips as soon as we lock eyes from across the lake. It’s like it’s slow motion.
One second, I feel that precious tug of my heart.
And the next, the ice splits open, and Tobias and Derrick fall through, taking my heart with them.