Chapter 8
Silas
I took the curve too fast.
Gravel spat under the tires as I gunned it past the turnoff for the county line, heart hammering in time with the rise and fall of her chest—if I could even call it that.
June’s breathing was shallow, wet around the edges.
I could feel her burning up in my lap, her bare skin slick with sweat, her pulse fluttering beneath my fingertips like a caged bird.
“C’mon, baby,” I muttered, voice breaking. “Stay with me. Just a little longer.”
The dashboard clock said 8:43. It was forty-five minutes to Perry if the road stayed clear and the truck didn’t give out. That was all I had to work with.
Forty-five goddamn minutes and no goddamn backup.
I grabbed my phone—which I’d thankfully left in the truck in my haste to get June into bed. I fumbled to unlock it, nearly driving into a ditch when the screen blurred. Somehow, I managed to jab the call icon beside Rhett’s name at the top of my contact list.
He picked up after one ring. “Hey—”
“Put Willow on,” I demanded.
There was a pause, then his voice sharpened. “Silas? What’s wrong?”
“Put her on,” I barked, the words scraping my throat raw.
I heard scrambling, a muffled exchange, then her voice—calm, cautious. “Silas?”
“She’s been bit,” I said. “June…a rattlesnake fuckin’ bit her. She’s burnin’ up, can barely breathe, I don’t know what the hell to do—”
“You need to get her to the clinic in Perry,” Willow said, cutting me off. “Where did it bite her?”
“Wrist, left wrist,” I said. “It’s swellin’ up fast…she’s goin’ in and out, talkin’ nonsense. Said she deserved it, like she thinks God sent it.”
“Silas, listen to me,” Willow said firmly. “You’re doing the right thing; just drive as safely as you can and don’t panic. I’m calling ahead now. If, God forbid, you get pulled over…explain what’s happening and they may have antivenom. Ask for CroFab.”
I took a shaky breath. My hand was clenched so tight on the wheel I thought my knuckles might split. I glanced down at June—pale, curled against me, that limb swelling…
I remembered Amelia.
I remembered the pictures, the bite wound, her wide open eyes. The ranger who’d found her said she must’ve tried to walk back to the truck, but she didn’t make it. There was no time.
There was no time.
“Silas,” Willow said. “You hear me?”
“Yeah,” I rasped. “I hear you.”
“I’m going to pass the phone off to Rhett so I can call everyone and we can meet you there,” Willow said. “Just…stay calm, okay?”
“Okay,” I whispered. “Okay…”
The line clicked once, hushed voices in the background, then Rhett’s voice came back. “Hey little brother.”
I didn’t answer. Couldn’t speak. My throat was too tight, words lost.
“You’re not gonna lose her,” Rhett said.
My jaw clenched. I blinked hard, trying to focus on the road, not the slick heat of June’s skin, not the rising panic. “You don’t know that.”
“I know you,” Rhett said. “I know the sound of your voice when you think death’s already won. I heard it the day Amelia died. And I’m telling you…this ain’t that.”
“She looks the same,” I choked out. “Rhett, it’s the same. And I know…I know this is what happened to her out there, but she was alone. Fuck, I can’t imagine—”
“Hey,” he cut in, firm. “Listen to me. You’re with her, you’re already on top of it. June has you right there.”
I pressed my palm flat against her sternum, feeling the rise and fall. It was too shallow, too slow. “It’s the fucking curse, Rhett. It’s still got us in its grip and she’s gonna die because of it.”
“No,” Rhett snapped. “You don’t get to say that. Not tonight.”
I gritted my teeth, eyes stinging as the headlights caught the edge of a deer crossing sign. “You didn’t see her, Rhett. You didn’t see how it happened. She was in my bed, what the fuck was a snake even doing in my bed? Why do these freak accidents keep happening?!”
A sharp inhale broke my panic—not mine, hers.
June stirred in my lap, and I nearly drove us into the ditch again, swerving to steady the truck. I glanced down to find her lips parted, eyes squeezed shut.
“June?” I whispered, panic hitching my breath. “Baby, hey—hey, stay with me—”
“It’s you,” she rasped. “You again. So bright…”
I tightened my grip on the wheel and on her, blinking fast. Fuck me…I was fucking crying and I didn’t have time for this right now, I needed to drive. “No, June. Hey, you’re here. You’re here with me, alright?”
Her mouth moved but no sound came out.
“I don’t care who you think you’re seein’ right now,” I said, voice cracking. “Don’t fucking follow them.”
“Silas?” Rhett’s voice was distant, desperate. “What’s going on?”
I couldn’t speak at first; my throat wouldn’t cooperate.
“She was talkin’,” I finally managed. “Just now. Said she saw someone bright and I’m…isn’t this what people do right before they die? Isn’t this what Grandma Hazel did, sayin’ she saw Mom out by the sundial—”
“That doesn’t matter right now, Silas,” Rhett answered. “Just keep drivin’. You’ve gotta be gettin’ close to the clinic.”
I nodded, more to reassure myself than anything else. My eyes darted up into the distance, searching for the lights of Perry. He was right…it had been just about long enough, June was still here. We were gonna make it.
And then, over the horizon—lights.
“I see it,” I wrenched out. “Fuck, Rhett—I see it.”
“Good,” Rhett said, voice firm. “We’re getting in the car with Hazel. We’ll be right there.”
“You don’t have to,” I started, but he cut me off.
“We’re family, Silas. We’re coming. End of story.”
Then he hung up.
My tires screamed as I tore off the highway and into the parking lot. The clinic looked small, barely bigger than a post office—but the parking lot lights were blinding and two nurses were already running out the double doors, one of them holding what looked like a cooler and an oxygen tank.
I didn’t even stop the truck.
Just threw it into park and hauled June into my arms, cradling her close to my chest. She made a low, pained sound, her head lolling toward the crook of my shoulder.
“I’ve got you,” I whispered. “You’re safe. You’re safe now.”
The doors flew open as I staggered toward the entrance, and someone caught my elbow, guiding me inside. Voices barked orders—names, dosages, vitals. A stretcher appeared. I laid her down and stepped back only when someone physically moved me, her hand limp in mine.
Until that moment, it hadn’t even occurred to me that we were both half-naked, but now I felt this need to cover her up, to make sure she was safe and that her privacy was protected.
“Make sure—make sure she gets some clothes,” I rasped to one of the nurses. “She’s gonna be cold when she wakes up. She needs somethin’ soft, okay? She—”
I stopped dead, words forgotten.
Because…holy fuck.
There was something there.
On the other side of the partition, following the stretcher down the hall, was a woman…or the shape of a woman. Not a nurse, not a doctor, not anyone really. A woman all in white, with long, dark hair cascading down her back.
Time seemed to stand still for a second, then she turned her head to look over her shoulder—
“Mr. Ward?” a nurse was asking, gently touching my elbow. “Are you alright? Did the snake bite you too?”
I sucked in a breath, dizzy, gripping the edge of the intake counter like I would fall right over if I let go.
“No,” I said, voice raw. “No, I’m not—I’m not hurt.”
The nurse gave me a once-over anyway, eyes catching on the state of me: bare chest, blood on my hands. I was a fucking mess. I should’ve told Rhett to bring me a shirt.
“Someone will bring you a blanket,” the nurse said quietly. “And a shirt, if you want. You should sit down.”
I nodded, but didn’t move. My gaze was still fixed on the hallway.
Because maybe I was just having a shitty night…maybe I was still in shock.
But I could have sworn that woman was Amelia.