Chapter Twenty-One
Sergio
“What do you want to do?” Finley’s voice sounded from beside me, raw with panic. His eyes darted between me and the chaos unraveling in front of us while he waited for me to give him his orders.
My breath had caught in my throat as I watched Seraphina burst from inside the house, naked, barefoot, and wild-eyed. She didn’t look back. She just vanished into the thick forest, swallowed by the darkness.
I couldn’t move. It was like my blood had turned to ice. My limbs were locked in place as dread crawled its way up my spine.
Finley grabbed my arm, snapping me out of it. “I’ll find Dorian,” he said, already turning toward the house. “You go after her.”
I nodded, though my legs felt like they might collapse beneath me. The forest loomed ahead, dense, and challenging. It was going to be hell finding her in there.
I hesitated at the edge of the tree line as my heart hammered inside my chest. Then I walked in trying my best to follow whatever trail she had left behind. Seraphina couldn’t have gotten too far, especially without shoes or clothes.
Branches clawed at my arms as I pushed deeper into the forest chasing someone who looked like the Devil himself was chasing her. The forest floor was a treacherous maze of roots and dips in the uneven soil that threatened to twist my ankles with every step.
I moved fast, but not recklessly, each stride a balance between speed and not busting my ass. I couldn’t afford to fall. Not with Seraphina still running for her life.
“Seraphina!” I called out, not too loud but loud enough were the sound wouldn’t get swallowed up by the dense, dark forest.
No response. All I heard was the frantic drumming of my heart in my ears and the rustling of a bird’s wings as it darted between branches.
I froze mid-step just so I could listen again. My breath was stuck inside my chest. It was hard to breathe. But I didn’t want to move and miss something.
The forest seemed alive. The air hung thick and damp with the smell of rotten vegetation and animals. Branches groaned overhead and leaves rustled in the light breeze.
“Seraphina!” I called out again.
However, this time other than silence I heard a whimper. It was low, but the sound of fear was clear.
I turned toward what I believed was her voice as my heart hammered against my ribs. Then the sound of a gunshot followed by another echoed through the forest. I panicked. Finley could be in trouble, but I couldn’t be concerned with him. I needed to focus on getting to her.
Taking a deep breath, I centered myself and concentrated on finding her.
“Seraphina!” I shouted again, my voice raw and cracking with panic.
She didn’t have any fucking clothes on, and it felt like the temperature had dropped at least ten degrees while I’d been looking for her. She had to be fucking freezing.
“Fuck, I can’t see shit.”
I pushed forward, a little faster now. Twigs snapped under my feet. My heart thundered in my ears, louder than the breeze around me.
I ducked under a low branch, almost tripping over a root, but kept moving in the direction I thought I heard her voice even though now I wasn’t sure if I’d imagined it.
The trees blurred past, and the cold bit at my skin, but I didn’t stop.
Then, I saw it. A flicker of movement. I veered toward it, stumbling into a small clearing.
“Seraphina? It’s Sergio.”
I called for her softer this time, afraid I might scare her off. When she didn’t respond, I just rushed to where I saw movement.
“You’re okay.” She didn’t move. “You’re okay.”
She was huddled behind a tree, her knees drawn to her chest, with her arms wrapped tight around them.
Her face was streaked with blood and tears.
Relief crashed over me so hard I almost dropped to my knees.
Her eyes were wide and glassy with fear.
She didn’t speak, just stared at me like she wasn’t sure if it was me.
I kneeled beside her, hands trembling as I reached out. She flinched at first.
“It’s me, Seraphina. It’s Sergio.”
When I said my name the second time, it finally registered to her who I was then her shaking body collapsed into me.
“Sergio.”
Relief surged through me that she even spoke, despite what she’d been through.
“I thought I lost you,” I whispered into her hair, holding her like I’d never let go. “I’ve got you. I promise, he’ll fucking die for this. If it’s the last thing I do.”
“I’m cold,” she whispered, her body trembling against mine.
I shifted, cradling her with one arm as I yanked off my blazer with the other. Her skin was cold as ice. The fabric snagged on a branch, but I tore it free, then wrapped it around her shoulders, and pulled her back to my chest.
“This should warm you up some. Do you think you can walk?” I asked, my voice soft, so I didn’t spook her.
I wanted to carry her, but I didn’t know where Dorian was. He could be wounded. Dead. Or worse—still hunting her down. I needed my hands free.
She nodded. So, I helped her to stand on shaky legs. I kept one arm around her, then grabbing my gun from my waistband.
We moved slowly because she was barefoot and not to alert Dorian if he was still around. The forest was too quiet so, every rustle made me tense. I scanned the trees for any movement or for shadows that didn’t belong.
“Stay close,” I whispered. “If I stop, you stop. No sound unless I speak.”
She nodded again, clutching the blazer tighter around her.
We weaved through the underbrush, ducking low when the terrain narrowed.
I kept her behind me when the path grew tight, shielding her with my body.
My ears strained for footsteps, breathing, anything out of the ordinary.
A branch snapped somewhere to our left. We froze and I aimed it in that direction.
Nothing.
I started moving again, as I scanned the woods with every step we took. Seraphina followed without a word, her footsteps light and unsteady behind me.
Branches creaked overhead then silence.
We walked for what felt like hours, though it couldn’t have been more than a few minutes. The trees thinned, and a pale wash of light filtered through the canopy ahead. I raised a hand so she would slow down and, crouched as we approached the tree line.
The house. Its outline loomed but there was no movement. No lights other than a faint glow from one of the windows. No sign of anyone.
I didn’t like it.
I motioned for Seraphina to stay behind me and stepped forward. My eyes swept back and forth, looking for any signs of Dorian or Finley.
Then I saw him.
Finley.
He was sprawled on the ground near the front of the house. One arm was twisted at an odd angle beneath him. Blood soaked through his shirt, a dark stain spreading across his side.
I rushed to him and dropped to my knees. His chest rose but barely. His breaths were ragged and shallow.
“Shot,” he rasped. “Dorian…”
I looked back at Seraphina, who stood frozen at the edge of the trees, her eyes wide with horror.
“Stay there,” I told her, voice tight. I turned back to Finley, scanning the woods again. If Dorian was still out here, we were too exposed.
I needed to get them both out of here. Fast.
But first, I had to keep Finley breathing.