Author: Jane Blythe

Good.

She was gone. Safe.

Graham stood confidently as he watched a shadowy figure move through the trees towards him. Three of them. There had been seven men originally, and Sasha had already taken out Bobby with the tree branch, that meant here were still another three out here somewhere.

Possibly surrounding him.

At least Sasha was gone, and if he could distract these men long enough then she could get to the car, get herself to safety. He hoped she didn’t waste time coming back for him no matter what he’d told her to get her to leave.

She had to live, that was all he cared about.

Well not ALL he cared about he thought as Dylan himself stepped through the trees, a weapon in his hand.

“You,” Dylan growled.

“Do I know you?” Graham said, aiming for nonchalance. “Oh, right, you’re the guy with the missing sister. What are you doing out here?”

“What are you doing out here?” Dylan countered as one of the other guys held a lead for a snarling doberman, and the other one flanked Dylan’s other side.

“Hiking. Same thing I was doing when I saw you earlier.”

“It’s dark out,” Dylan stated the obvious.

“Which is why I’m heading for my car. Don’t feel like heading back into the city, but I didn’t pack anything to spend the night.”

“Why don’t you come back with us to my cabin,” Dylan suggested exchanging looks with his buddies.

Although he was sure Dylan just wanted an excuse to get information out of him on whether or not he’d seen Sasha and wasn’t sure yet whether Graham could be trusted, but not wanting a body to deal with for no good reason, Graham nodded anyway. Anything to buy Sasha time.

“Sure,” he agreed then turned as he heard what sounded like an approaching vehicle.

Which it was.

It was his car, which meant Sasha had reached it, and she hadn’t left without him, instead she was aiming the vehicle right at her tormentor.

The others heard it too, and all of them turned to see the vehicle bearing down on them. Sasha picked up speed, and Dylan started shooting at her.

But it was too late.

His SUV hit the man with a loud bang and sent the body flying.

She had to pull her own weight.

That’s what Sasha knew with absolute certainty as she located Graham’s car and scrambled into it. So far Graham had to think fast in order to save them both.

This time she wanted to save him.

He came back for her, he’d put his life on the line for her, she wasn’t going to leave him to the wolves. And now she had a better weapon than the tree branch.

She had a whole car.

Hands shaking, cold and yet at the same time numb, Sasha turned on the engine, switched the headlights off automatic so she didn’t broadcast her arrival any more than the sound of the engine already would, and put the car in drive.

It felt weird to be driving again, something so normal, so mundane, but that had been stripped away from her when she was locked up inside Dylan’s cabin.

Now she was free though and she wasn’t going back.

She’d rather die trying to escape.

Turning the car around, she headed right back the way she’d just come. Back towards Graham.

Driving way slower than she wanted to because she wanted the element of surprise, she rolled slowly down the track. She saw them before they saw her. Dylan approaching Graham with a weapon in his hand.

Months of repressed anger burst out of her, and it was like some primal part of herself she hadn’t realised existed took over, and she stomped her foot on the gas, aimed the vehicle at Dylan and braced for impact.

They had to get to his car.

There was no other option.

If they were caught … neither of them would be walking out of this forest alive. They’d get rid of him right away, he was too great a risk, but they’d probably keep Sasha for days at least, maybe weeks or even months. In theory they could keep her here indefinitely, keep going until her body gave out.

No.

He couldn’t let that happen.

Graham was running on pure adrenaline now, how long could he keep moving?

Carrying Sasha’s additional weight was draining his energy, but she couldn’t move on her own and there was no way he was leaving her alone.

They either both got out of here together, or they both got caught.

At least it had been a while since they last heard the dog. They’d been able to outrun it but that didn’t mean that Dylan and the others had disappeared. They couldn’t. Because if Sasha escaped then they would be spending the rest of their lives in prison.

When he hit half a mile off from his vehicle it seemed surreal. Had they really done it? Were they really getting out of here?

It seemed to good to be true, and it turned out it was, because the dog was suddenly barking somewhere close by and then he could hear the shouts of the men’s voices.

Bending his knees he set Sasha on her feet, her eyes were wide with fear and she clung to him.

“We’re almost there, go,” he said nudging her towards his vehicle.

“Together,” she begged.

“I’ll be right behind you. If you keep running straight you’ll get to it in ten minutes or less. Get in, drive back this way, pick me up, then we’re out of here.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. Positive,” Graham added because he knew she needed the reassurance. For him nothing had changed, he’d put her back in this mess it was up to him to get her out of it. She’d stayed for him, saved him, given him more than he was owed, now she had to go, get safe.

“I’m holding you to that,” she warned.

“You do that, honey,” he said, then impulsively leaned in and pressed a light kiss to her lips.

For a second she went still, and he thought he’d way overstepped, but then she moaned, tightened her grip on his shirt, and pulled him closer, deepening the kiss, before abruptly releasing him and taking off at a dead run, him carrying her for a while allowing her to regain her strength, and he had to hope that she could make it to his car.

“Could be police dogs,” Graham suggested, but they both knew it was a lie.

“Did you call the cops?” she asked him, she had no idea what he’d had time to do once he realised she was in trouble.

“No reception,” he replied tightly.

“Then I don’t think it’s help,” Sasha said, although she wished it was.

“We have to run,” he said, tugging on the hand he still held.

“Freddy has a dog,” she said, unable to make her feet move. “He’s not a very nice dog, they like to taunt me with him, letting me run and having him hunt me.”

“I won’t let them or the dog touch you,” Graham vowed, and somehow when he said it she almost believed it.

“I hate that we just can’t get a break,” she said as they both started to run.

“Me too, honey. All we have to do though is get to my car. Once we do we’re safe. You’re safe.”

Safe.

The word had lost all meaning to her over these last several months. It felt like it had become an unreachable goal, like a dream, something always shimmering just out of reach. Would she ever really feel safe again?

They ran until Sasha couldn’t breathe, until her bare feet felt like they were one giant, throbbing bruise, and she had a stitch in her side that made her want to curl up in a ball. But she didn’t stop. Couldn’t. Because it was no longer just her life on the line.

So she ran until her body gave out on her and she stumbled, falling, knowing once she hit the ground she wouldn’t be getting back up.

Only she didn’t hit the ground.

Graham caught her, swept her up into his arms, tossed her over his shoulder, his arm banded around her thighs, and kept going. He’d come back for her, risked his life for her, and he might be the only thing that got her out of this mess alive.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Graham growled. His heart was hammering so hard and fast in his chest he was pretty sure he was having a heart attack, he had never in his life ben so scared as when he saw Sasha step out from the trees, wielding a branch like she’d been doing it all her life.

Golden brown eyes crinkled in confusion, Sasha looked up at him. “Saving you?”

“Didn’t I tell you to run?” he demanded as he stepped closer.

“I couldn’t. They were going to kill you.”

“Is that your problem?” It wasn’t like he wanted to die, of course he didn’t, he was way too young to die but he also didn’t want Sasha putting herself back in harm’s way.

“Well … I mean yes?” she stammered. “You saved me, I couldn’t leave you here. With them.”

“I sent you back there,” he growled, low and dangerous, his anger at himself feeling like a tangible thing.

Gaze softening, Sasha nodded. “You did, but he’s convincing, he tricked me too. And you came back for me, I can’t ever thank you enough for that.”

“It wasn’t enough,” he whispered. “He whipped you.”

“He did,” she agreed. “It wasn’t the first time, but thanks to you it can be the last.”

She was letting him off the hook way too easily, but now wasn’t the time to stand here beating himself up about it, he could do that later, once Sasha was safe.

“We have to go,” he said reaching out and taking her hand. If we can get to my car then we can get back into town, so to the cops.”

“I like that plan,” she agreed, curling her fingers around his.

All of a sudden they hear dogs barking, and he knew their chance of escape had just gotten a whole lot lower.