Deep Woods

At that second, the bell on the store next to us rang and two cops strolled out, takeout coffees and donuts in hand. They noticed us immediately, shooting me a warning look for being so close to the car, then casting a much more appreciative look at Bethany’s curves. Fuck. I backed away from the car, holding up my hands in apology, and hustled Bethany away. “Walk,” I hissed in her ear. “Don’t run.”

She gulped and nodded, her face pale.

We started walking. I was visualizing the scene behind us. We had maybe five seconds before they reached the car. They’d have to stop to put their coffees on the roof while they opened the doors. Then they’d settle into their seats, see the message that had arrived while they were in the store. A second of shock: that’s the woman we just— And then….

“Hey!” one of the cops yelled. I felt Bethany tense but I tugged at her hand, keeping her walking.

“Stop!” My shoulders tensed but still I kept walking: every second counted.

“You! Black hair, green shirt! Stop and turn around!”

“Run!” I yelled.

We ran.

28

Bethany

JUST A FEW weeks ago, the woods had been the scariest place I could imagine. Now, all I could think of was getting back to them. We sprinted down the street, Rufus racing alongside us.

The cops dived back into their car, figuring they could chase us down on the streets. So when we turned onto the path and raced towards the woods, they were taken by surprise. They had to pull up and jump out of their car again, but that only bought us a few seconds.

We had to climb up out of the valley as we left the town. What had seemed like a gentle slope on the way in was a punishing climb on the way out, especially loaded down by our full backpacks. I was panting by the time we neared the top and then I made the mistake of looking back. The two cops were sprinting up the hill behind us, already horribly close. The cops were unladen and fresh; we were weighed down and tired from a whole morning’s hike. They were easily faster than us.

Cal heaved on my hand, hauling me up the last few feet, and then we were running down the far side, sliding on loose pine needles, our legs almost running away with us. We jumped the creek at the bottom and ran for the forest. The cops were already cresting the hill behind us. I was frantic, now, lungs burning They’re going to catch us!

But then we plunged into the trees and things changed. The cops weren’t used to moving through the wilds: they were like me when I first arrived. I could hear them tripping on branches and cursing, crashing through the forest instead of slipping through it. My legs ached and I was fighting for air but, each minute we kept up the pace, I could hear them falling a few more seconds behind us.

Cal suddenly cut left, away from the course we’d been following, and the noises grew more distant as the cops carried on in a straight line. A moment later, Cal pushed me up against a tree, his finger to my lips. We went motionless, his arms protectively around me, his hard body pinning me to the trunk. Rufus flattened himself to the ground and lay still.

We waited, hearts thumping, straining our ears. Distant footsteps, rustling undergrowth, and a lot of cursing. The footsteps came closer...then retreated. A few moments later, Cal relaxed and stepped back, leaving a fading, warm imprint of his body on mine. “They’re gone.”

The rush of relief only lasted a second. “They have the cops looking for me?!”

He nodded, his face grim. Neither of us had predicted this. We knew the club would monitor the police, watching in case I went to the authorities, but we hadn’t thought they’d be able to use the police to actually search for me. They were a lot more powerful than we’d thought. I wondered what crimes they’d framed me for. Maybe fraud—they could say that they gave me the relocation money and then I ran off. But it didn’t matter. What mattered was, every cop in the state, maybe every cop in the country, was looking for me.

“They’ll get me,” I said in a small voice. “If I go to a city, even a town, they’ll get me.”

“Then don’t go to a town,” he growled. “Stay here with me.”

He’d tried to sound firm, but something else crept into his voice. A need. I looked at him and he looked away. Then met my eyes, defiant. Possessive.

“I can’t stay in the cabin forever,” I said softly. “And they know the area we’re in, now! They know you must live somewhere hiking distance from town. They can sweep the whole woods, find the cabin. Find you and Rufus.”