Love's Cruel Redemption (The Ghost Bird #12)(53)

The woman had said not to leave. Since this was the last place she knew me to be, I’d stay as long as I could.

I refined my plan as I backtracked through the store. I needed to take more time here. Hopefully go unnoticed by anyone else until someone got here.

Wil was still loading a shelf, but his stack of pasta boxes on a little hand truck was almost gone. He paused when he saw me coming around the corner and stood.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hi.” I hesitated again. I didn't really have a plan beyond just staying near someone I thought I knew. If too much time passed and no one showed up, I’d ask Wil to call a cab for me to take me to the diner. I wasn't totally sure where everyone else was, but the diner was the one place where I could count on at least one Academy person to be.





Abandoned




Nathan

Nathan’s lungs burned to push air out before he’d fully gotten his legs out of the car.

When he surfaced, he sputtered out, inhaled. It was the first moment he realized how freezing cold the water actually was. There was barely a breeze, but the cool air was enough to make him see his breath as he exhaled out.

His next thought was about alligators. How active were they in January? He scanned the area, trying not to go into hyper paranoia about feeling movement around his legs.

The water lapping into his face made it harder to see. Everything around him was shadows, black on black, sometimes barely darker than other places. Rain continued to splash into his face.

He breathed in a sharply, filling his lungs full of air and dove toward what he was pretty sure was land.

It wasn’t far, and he was soon standing on the ramp the car had dove in from. Once he was there, he kept walking. Alligators would follow him onto land for a short while. He’d drawn too much attention. He knew his survival training enough to get away from a body of water when he didn’t know what was in it.

But once he walked through the tree line, all was far too dark and he paused. The lake had indicated his only reference between land and water among the shadows. And now, everything looked the same.

He wrapped his arms tight around his body, the jacket and pants he wore were heavy with water. He wasn’t going to freeze to death, but the clothes were extremely cold and heavy. He wondered if losing at least the jacket would make it easier to be on the move. Rain pelted him through breaks in the trees, some drops much heavier as they collected on branches, combining. There was no chance the clouds would pass and give him enough light to see.

Now what?

And Volto. What a psychotic asshole. He saw Nathan fly into the water. The Jeep was gone now. He’d found his escape.

Nathan hadn’t given him the ability to back off, but he never imagined this. That he’d be this reckless.

Standing still and thinking about it wasn’t going to get him anywhere. No one knew he was out here. He had to get to the road.

Nathan pushed a palm through his wet hair and started to follow the lane forward. He couldn’t see around him well, but he used the lane’s ruts, and walked along one side. He felt brush by his leg. If he went too far, he’d end up in grass and swerve back until he could walk clearly.

Soon, he could see an opening at the end and used that as a guide.

When he caught his breath after the shock, he started to jog. He wiped occasionally at his brow and face to clear what rain he could, keeping his vision clear.

What about after he got back to the road? What was the next step? No phone. It was unlikely Volto called out for help.

He’d have to find his own way back, or maybe risk approaching one of the nearby homes and asking for access to a phone.

But doing so might mean risking those people calling the police. And explaining all of what happened would be complicated.

He’d lost two vehicles now. Who knew where the Jeep would end up? And Victor...The restoration might take ages. They’d have to fish it out first. He wasn’t sure they’d even bother. Was it fixable after all this?

He’d need to remember where it was. The lane had been unmarked. It was highly possible the turnoff wasn’t even on a map.

It seemed to take ages to jog the lane, and his legs were heavy in the wet jeans. He kept his arms tucked around his body the whole time, trying to stay warm. He should have grabbed a phone on his way out. There was a chance it could have still worked, even after being submerged for so long. His case should have been at least water resistant.

It’s not like he could go back for it.

Once he passed the trees, he came by the small parking lot, empty except for one small boat on top of a trailer. Nathan checked it quickly, looking for any type of communication, maybe an onboard radio.

Nothing. A little cooler and an old fishing rod.

Nathan jumped off the trailer, heading toward the main road. Once he got there, he debated turning right or left. Back toward the school, or the opposite way, which might be shorter for reaching a business of some sort. The rain was coming down, not letting up for him. He tried to remember how far in either direction it was, which way might get him to a public phone faster.

A car was coming from the left, the lights on, heading toward him. He debated if it could be Volto, and the possibility he might try to run him over.

The model of the car was different. Not a Jeep.

Nathan readied a story and waved to the vehicle, daring to walk into the road and try to block it to get the driver’s attention. He kept his hands up, showing distress and need of help.