I can’t stop my head from spinning or the panic whizzing through my mind.
I’m petrified.
I see a red, a black, and maybe three green brands closing in on me. My heart pounds in my throat at the thought of them killing me. Should I plead for them to make it quick or will that just make it worse? I’m about to scream when one smiles. His eyes linger a little too long.
Oh please, no!
“Where do you think you’re going?” asks the tallest man.
Laughter erupts behind him. “What are you waiting for, Sarge? Get her,” another says.
I clench my fists, unsure whether I should fight to my last breath or give in to their demands. The ending seems inevitable either way. My eyes flood and the men become blurry. I squeeze them shut, rub, and pry them open.
“Hello, dear,” Sarge says with a smile, stepping closer.
There’s a gap where his two front teeth used to be, and his tongue protrudes, resting on his lower lip. He loosens his belt, yanks it off, and holds it like a whip.
He’s going to publicly humiliate me.
As if I haven’t already been branded.
My legs buckle and I plunge to the ground. Blood rushes through my veins like a rapid river, and I’m drowning in fear.
I’m frantic.
“Leave me alone! Please. Leave me alone.” I place my hands defensively in front of me, backing myself up as far as I can.
He pushes me to my back and leans over me. I kick at his chest.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Spit flies out of his mouth, landing on my cheek. “It will only make me angry. And trust me, you don’t want me angry.” He slaps his belt into his opposite hand and lets it unravel for the full effect. “This is what loose women deserve.”
I don’t move.
I won’t move.
I can’t move.
But this is my only chance.
I shove my thigh into his groin, causing him to fall over on his side.
I jump to my feet and at the same time, he grabs my ankle. “Help!” I scream, hoping someone will rescue me, but they stand there with blank faces. “Somebody help me!” I shake my leg as hard as I possibly can, but he never loosens his grip.
“You stupid twit.” Sarge grabs my other leg from underneath me and pulls, slamming my body onto the ground and instantly knocking the wind from my lungs. “Now I’m going to cut your throat.”
He sits on top of my chest and startles me to my senses.
I gasp.
His knees hold down my arms and he flips out his blade.
I’m pinned.
I’m horrified and frozen under his control. I close my eyes and hold my breath. Make it quick… Make it quick.
“Sarge, get up, man! Now!” someone screams.
My eyes snap open.
The crowd scatters.
Sarge looks up. “Oh my G—”
Out of nowhere, Zeus flies through the air, plowing him over while wrapping his mouth around his throat. Sarge swings his arms and kicks his legs to no avail. Zeus jolts his neck.
I hear a snap.
Instantly, Sarge’s body hangs limp.
Just as I’m about to scream, Cole plants himself beside me.
“Go. Now!”
Cole pushes me down just as a bullet flies past my head. He grabs my arm and drags me along behind him. My ankle screams at me to stop, but I keep running forward. The sound of feet pounding the dirt gets louder, the chanting gets closer, and the firing of weapons in rapid succession makes my brain feel like it’s hemorrhaging. I know this has to do with us.
“Why are they after us?” I shout between breaths.
Cole doesn’t respond. He just keeps running. I look over my shoulder and see people bolting to shelter and screaming, leaping away from the men who rush toward us as they pistol whip the ones who refuse to move.
Cole yanks me away from the main street and heads toward the hospital down another alleyway. Every building has boarded-up windows. The doors hang off their rusty hinges and glass crunches under our feet as we run. It screams death.
Cole turns abruptly.
“They’re after you!” He exhales.
“Then why are they trying to kill you?”
“I’m in their way.”
“But you’re a guard—”
He yanks my arms and we’re running again.
I guess they don’t care about that either. Psychos.
We dart down all the alleys we come across, going up one, down the next, and across the other. I’m guessing Cole’s trying to throw them off course or confuse them as much as he possibly can.
My ankle burns and I feel it pop. “Cole!”
He comes to a complete halt, turns to me, and meets me on the ground.
“What’s wrong?” He looks behind me.
I gasp for air and Cole pulls me behind an overflowing dumpster. His breathing is unlabored, but he drips buckets of sweat.
“My ankle…” is all I can muster.
He puts his fingers under my chin and tilts my head back until we’re eye to eye.
“I want you to trust me. Can you do that?”
“I already do,” I say.
I can’t believe I just said that. I don’t trust anyone.
Cole grabs my waist and flips me into his arms, taking off down the same alley we just traversed. His arms are strong, secure, and wrapped around my small frame, and I’m glued to his torso. I tuck my face into his neck, hiding from this sick world.
“Wrap your arms around my neck.” And I do as he says. “Tighter.”
I squeeze.
“Too tight.” He chokes.
I relax. He boosts me higher, closer, and my forehead rests against his ear.
I close my eyes.
He runs.
I hold on.
A new anxiety overwhelms me.
I don’t want them to hurt Cole—not because of me.
“Just leave me,” I whisper into his ear. “I won’t let you die trying to save me. I’m a sinner. Let them have me.”
“Never,” he says in a short gasp.
The gunshots come from behind, but I can tell they’re far from us now. Cole seems to know this place by heart because he never second-guesses his next step. I wonder if he ever had to do this for anyone else.
Or am I his first?
“Hide here.” He drops me to my feet in front of a cellar door. “I’ll be right back.”
And just like that, he disappears, sprinting farther and farther away. I creep into the cellar and close the door behind me. Zeus decides to stay with me, and I’m okay with that. He’s proved his loyalty.
I listen for movement where Zeus and I hide, but I hear nothing.
Before I know it, the door swings open, but with the lighting, I can’t make out who the person is. I hyperventilate.
“Lexi. It’s me,” Cole says, his voice low as he approaches. “I want you to keep breathing, just like I am.” He grabs my hands and beckons me to inhale and exhale when he does. I hear the voices getting closer again. His sweaty hands drop mine and I can tell that his attention is directed toward the alley we just ran down. “We have to move.” He throws me onto his back. “Wrap your legs and arms around me. It’s the easiest way to hold you.” I cling to his neck, locking my ankles together above his hips. “Now, hold on.” He sprints down the alley.
He comes to a sudden halt and drops me to my feet. In front of us stands a chain-link fence. “Can you climb this?”
“I’ll try.” I climb, ignoring the constant throbbing in my ankle as I make my way to the top. I swing my leg over at the bar and start my descent, letting myself drop the last foot to the ground, and land on one leg to spare my opposite ankle any more damage. I look up, but Cole’s nowhere to be found. My heart races.
“I’m right here.” I turn and he stands parallel to me.