Life and Death: Twilight Reimagined (Twilight #5)(117)

“Are you doing drugs, Beau?” he demanded.

“No!”

“Slow down. I don’t understand. Tell me what happened.”

He had a tight grip on the strap. I could leave it, but that would put a hole in my story. I was going to have to do this the hard way.

I turned to look at him, hoping the red in my eyes looked like anger.

“I’ll tell you what happened,” I said in the hardest voice I could manage. “I had a great night with the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen—and we talked about the future. The way she sees it—it’s just like you. She’s going to stay here the rest of her life. She’s going to get married and have kids and never leave. And for a second, that all actually made sense to me. I’m losing myself here—I’m getting sucked in. If I don’t run now, I’ll never get out!”

“Beau, you can’t leave now,” he whispered. “It’s nighttime.”

“I’ll sleep in the truck if I get tired.”

“Just wait another week,” he pleaded, looking shell-shocked. “Renée will be back by then.”

This completely derailed me. “What?”

Relief flashed across Charlie’s face when I hesitated. “She called while you were out. Things aren’t going so well in Florida, and if Phil doesn’t get signed by the end of the week, they’re going back to Arizona. The assistant coach of the Sidewinders said they might have a spot for another shortstop.”

I shook my head, trying to get back on track. Every passing second put Charlie in more danger.

“I have a key,” I muttered, turning the knob. He was too close, one hand still locked on my bag, his face dazed. I couldn’t lose any more time arguing with him. I was going to have to hurt him further.

“Just let me go, Charlie,” I said through my teeth. I threw the door open. “It didn’t work out, okay? I really, really hate Forks!”

The cruel words did their job—Charlie’s hand dropped from my bag. His mouth fell open with surprise while a deep pain surfaced in his eyes. I turned my back on him and stalked out the door. I couldn’t let him see my face now.

I tried to keep my walk angry, but I wanted to sprint. The dark yard seemed full of extra shadows that I was pretty sure were just my imagination. But not totally positive. I hurled my bag into the bed of the truck and wrenched the door open. The key was waiting in the ignition.

“I’ll call you tomorrow!” I yelled.

I would never be able to explain this to him, never be able to make it right again. I gunned the engine and peeled out.

Edythe reached for my hand.

“Pull over,” she said as Charlie and the house disappeared behind us.

I kept my eyes on the road, trying to control my face. “I can drive.”

Suddenly she was sliding over my lap, her hands on the wheel and her foot pushing mine off the gas. She moved into the space between my leg and the door, then shoved me over with her hip. The truck didn’t swerve an inch and she was in the driver’s seat.

“You wouldn’t be able to find the house,” she explained.

Lights flared behind us. I jumped, and stared out the back window.

“It’s just Archie,” she said. She took my hand again.

When I closed my eyes, all I could see was Charlie standing in the doorway.

“The tracker?”

“She caught the end of your performance. She’s running behind us now—about a mile back.”

My body felt cold. “Can we outrun her?”

“No.” But she sped up as she spoke. The truck’s engine whined.

My plan wasn’t feeling so brilliant anymore.

I was staring back at Archie’s headlights when the truck shuddered and a dark shadow sprang up outside the window.

“E—!”

Her hand clamped over my mouth before I could finish shouting the warning.

“It’s Eleanor!”

She dropped her hand to my knee.

“It’s okay, Beau,” she promised.

We raced out of town, headed north.

“I didn’t realize you were still so bored with small-town life,” she said conversationally, and I knew she was trying to distract me. “It seemed like you were adjusting fairly well—especially recently. Maybe I was just flattering myself that I was making life more interesting for you.”

“That was below the belt,” I confessed, staring at my knees. “Those were the last words my mother said to him when she left. It would have done less damage if I’d punched him.”

“He’ll forgive you,” she promised.

I closed my eyes.

“Beau, it’s going to be all right.”

I looked down at her. “It won’t be all right when we’re not together.”

“It’s only a few days. Don’t forget this was your idea.”

“That makes it worse. Why did this happen? I don’t understand.”

She stared at the road ahead, her eyebrows pulling low over her eyes. “It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have exposed you like that.”

I grabbed her hand. “No, that’s not what I’m talking about. Okay, I was there. Big deal. It didn’t bother the other two. Why did Joss decide to kill me? There are people all over the place—people who are a lot easier to get to.” I glanced over my shoulder at Eleanor’s shadow. “Why am I worth all this trouble?”