Run
1286 Words
Avery
I bit my nail down to the quick. The need to retrieve my bag gnawed at me. The list pounded in my skull. Phone, charger, passport, money, toothbrush, clothes. Trainers, this time, I would run in shoes.
Cordelia, the other pack doctor, buzzed around me as I sat still on the bed, wringing my hands in my lap. Quinn left a short time ago. Every noise she made jarred me. Sweat beaded on my top lip. I rubbed it away, mentally shaking myself.
Run, flee, get away from here.
“Are you sure you don’t want a sedative, Avery?” Cordelia's voice grated on my nerves, and her question made me jump.
I shook my head. I didn’t trust my voice. I couldn’t allow myself to be drugged.
Run.
I stood, my legs restless.
“Would you like me to take you to your room?” she asked.
I closed my eyes and shook my head again. I wasn’t sure how much time had passed since I found those roses. The message was designed to terrify me. It had done its job well. Cordelia didn’t stop me as I returned to my room.
I plunged into the single wardrobe and groped towards the back, feeling for my backpack. This was the reason I left it packed, no matter how much time had passed. I grasped tops and trousers, stuffing them in along with a sweater. Who knew whether it would be warm where I end up.
I powered up the phone I hardly used and dialled the number I knew off by heart. It rang and rang. I prayed. He needed to pick up now. I needed a new passport and flights somewhere safe. How would I get those if I couldn't reach him?
I’d have to gamble that I could get hold of him once I got on the road. I gathered my things. There was one more item I wouldn’t leave without. Once it went dark, I’d retrieve it. A thickness formed in my throat, and tears pooled in my eyes. I’d miss the pack. It had become my home.
I hardened my resolve. I refused to sit and wait in dread for him.
I changed into jeans and a top with a jacket, then I stashed a small black zip pouch with two loaded syringes inside into my coat pocket. My insurance policy, my last resort. I hung my white coat on the back of the door. Sadness swamped me. It had been a dream while it lasted.
The number rang out again. No dice.
Think, Avery, think.
A shadow flickered past the window, and I jumped back, grasping my bag strap, my heart beating out of my chest. Calm down.
Agitated, I plucked at the sheets while I waited. Maybe I should write a note? They wouldn’t miss me long; they had Cordelia now. Maybe a note for Alec. Tears welled in my eyes.
“Dearest Alec, thank you for your friendship. It’s meant more to me than you can know. Tell Irina and Quinn thank you. I will miss the pack, but I must leave for all our safety. Yours sincerely, Avery xx.”
A single tear splashed the edge of the note. Sadness blistered through me again, consuming every part of me. I curled over, letting it take me. Like all strong emotions, eventually it burnt itself out after a while, and I realised it was fully dark now.
Time to go.
Once inside my office, my eyes were drawn to the dark training fields. My heart squeezed. My nerves rattled as I rounded the desk. The flowers were gone. I retrieved the dragon statue from my desk drawer, and I drew strength from it. Wrapping it carefully in a cloth, I placed it on top of my clothes in my backpack. I grabbed a few protein bars and a bottle of water from the drawer. Ideally, I would take more food if I could, but I didn’t have time.
You could exist on the fat stores from your thunder thighs.
A shift in the darkness caught my eye. I jumped and groped for the back of the chair. My insides quivered. Shrouded in the darkness of the corner of my office, head to toe in her signature black, sat Irina, Quinn’s mate.
“Jesus, Irina!” I clutched my chest.
“I knew you would run.” Her voice was calm compared to mine.
I tried to bring my body back under control. “How?”
“Makes sense, flight, fight, freeze.” She shrugged. “We will protect you; you know?”
I shook my head. They couldn’t protect me, and I couldn’t live with myself if someone got hurt.
“Not from this.”
Irina scoffed. “O ye, of little faith.” She leaned forward, bringing her face into a patch of moonlight. “My brother won’t be happy if you run off.”
I shivered. “Because he couldn’t lock me up first?”
“Probably. Men are stupid sometimes.”
It was my turn to scoff. “Understatement of the year.” I steeled my spine. “Are you planning to lock me up?”
She raised an eyebrow at me. “Where are you going?”
No idea. Away from here. I said nothing, just shrugged.
“Okay, I’ll rephrase. How are you going to get there?”
“I’ll work it out.” I prayed she wouldn’t try to stop me.
She could. She was strong enough, and I stood no chance against her. Irina was the best supernatural hunter out there. She was feared and respected by all the supernatural community. My mouth became dry.
She smiled. “You really are perfect for him. Both stubborn as fuck.”
She stood and held out her hand, from which a set of keys dangled. “Take this from the main garage.” She handed me a piece of paper. “Drive here. It’s Zee’s airstrip. He gifted me the plane after he grew sick of me asking to borrow it.”
I didn’t know Ezekiel James well. I’d only heard mention of him in passing. He was big in human finance, but I didn’t know what kind of supernatural he was. Aside from being a rich one.
I clutched the chair tighter. A private jet would get me away from here though, while I sorted out getting in touch with the person I needed.
“Why are you helping me? Won’t your brother be mad?” My voice shook.
“Him, I can handle. He deserves to be out of the loop. We can protect you and help you, but only if you ask. I do not take hostages. I’ve never needed to.” She flashed me a dangerous smile, reminding me why they called her The Huntress.
I shivered.
“If you need to run. I’ll help you run. I presume you have someone you trust to help you?’
I nodded. Hopefully.
“He will come after you, though,” she said.
“He can join the club.”
A pang went through me. Could I stay? Ask for their help? Let my mate help, even after what he did? No, he would lock me up again and then I’d wait alone in that ‘safe room’ for my worst nightmare to come back through the door, just like he did night after night when I slept.
My fingers touched the syringe pouches. Never again. I promised myself that a long time ago. I walked forward and grasped the keys Irina offered me.
“Thank you.” Emotion choked my throat.
Time to run.
- Writer
