Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 85616 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85616 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
“It is. And I’m the one that’s sorry. I don’t want you getting involved in this, at all. I’m just tired of sitting back and waiting for something to happen. I want to try and find whoever this is before they can actually harm me.”
Or the people around me.
It hadn’t gotten to that yet, but I had no doubt that a lovesick psycho wouldn’t stop chasing me down because I found a significant other. If anything, that sounded like an even bigger recipe for disaster. It would be like dumping chum into shark-infested waters—just riling up the thirst for blood.
Dylan reached across the center console and grabbed my hand from my lap. He squeezed it. My fingers laced through his, as natural as a tree’s roots twining through the dirt. My breath hitched. I was grateful there was a dumb pop song playing low on the radio, or I’m sure he would have heard the breath get caught in my throat.
We hadn’t held hands like this before. How funny—we’d done things many would consider peak intimacy, but this right here, holding his hand in mine, it felt more intense and more powerful than anything else we’d done.
“I’m kind of already involved… and besides, I was at home thinking about jerking off for the third time today so you pulled me out of that.”
I laughed at his honesty. I squeezed his hand. “Maybe when we’re done with this we can make it to three together.”
He looked over at me and shook his head, smiling. “You dirty, dirty wolf. Love it.”
Our hands remained linked for the rest of the ride as we talked about other things, random shit, just to get my mind off the importance of what we were on our way to do. Before I knew it, we were arriving at the druid’s home.
It was on a long road at the end of a hilly drive. It appeared to be the only house around for at least a mile, tucked back into a thick wall of tall evergreens. The home itself appeared to be built so that it naturally flowed with the tree line. The walls were coated in a thick layer of dark green ivy, and more of it trailed off the roof that extended above the porch. There was a beat-up Honda parked in the driveway, the rear of it covered in all kinds of bumper stickers, almost all of them saying something about the environment.
“Guess we’re here,” Dyl said as I parked my car behind the Honda.
“If a druid doesn’t live here then I’d be shocked as hell.”
Dylan and I got out of the car. I looked to him, suddenly feeling cautious. There were no sounds or really any signs of life coming from inside the house, but the car told me that someone was likely here. “Are you sure we shouldn’t have called ahead or something? Sent an email?”
Dylan shook his head. “No, we’re good. He should recognize me anyway. Look, he’s got a Ring camera.”
We walked up the creaking steps of his porch. There was a tickle at the back of my neck. Something was off. There was something wrong about this, but I couldn’t quite pinpoint what. I didn’t want to let my guard down but I also wanted to trust Dylan. If he said this was okay, then it was likely okay.
Dylan rang the doorbell. The tickle at the back of my neck became more intense.
“Dyl, I think we should go back to the car.”
“It’s fine. Hello?” He spoke to the camera. “Hey, Hunter, it’s me, Dylan. I brought someone who’s looking for some help.”
I was about to insist to Dylan that we turn around when the tickle behind my neck became a tight snare around my throat. I shot my hands up to grip at the vine that was closing my airway like a boa constrictor trying to snuff out the life of its prey.
“He needs to find someone,” Dylan continued speaking into the camera.
I clawed at my neck. Coughed. Kicked toward the porch. Dylan turned around and his eyes went wide. He launched toward me as more thick vines snapped down from the roof and wrapped themselves around my arms, tight around my torso, continuing to close around my throat.
“No! Stop! Help!” Dylan tore and pulled at the vines but they wouldn’t break. They’d only tighten their grip. As if angry. My vision blurred. Lungs burned. Acid hot.
“Miles!” Dylan’s face was panicked. He tried to break the vines around my neck. I could feel him trying his damndest. Could see him through the pinhole that formed my vision. I wanted to apologize to him. Never should have brought him here. Put him through this.
No words came. No breaths. No help.
A dark curtain fell over my vision as I went limp.
Chapter Fifteen
Powerless
DYLAN
Confusion froze me for a split second before fear spurred me into action. I jumped toward Miles, his eyes already bulging and red from the vines that worked to strangle him. I shouted for help. I tried desperately to pry the vines off but they kept coming, grabbing him by the arms. They began to lift him up. His feet were off the boards of the porch.