Hard Freak

Hitching a ride was the only way. Hitchhiking in Europe was a lot more accepted than it was at home. I’d totally be able to do it. If I left now, I’d be at the festival grounds bright and early.

I threw some things into a bag. I didn’t need much for one night. Some makeup and a change of underwear.

I had to get out of the hotel without Polly seeing me, but we’d been back from rehearsal for a few hours, and she wouldn’t be watching me so closely with the Freaks out of town. If she did spot me, I could say I was going out to get something to eat. That would totally work.

I quietly closed the hotel room door behind me and crept to the elevator. That part had been easy, but what next? I couldn’t just stick my thumb out to get a ride in the middle of the city.

I got out my phone and checked out a map of the city. I could get an Uber to the highway and go from there.

Polly would kill me; I knew that. And I could understand things from her point of view. But from her point of view, I was still twelve years old, with pigtails and freckles. She’d never see me as older than that. I had to prove myself, and this was the way to do it. If I stayed in Brussels, she’d have won.

I got to the highway without a problem.

“Sure this is the right place?” the Uber driver asked as he pulled over.

“Yep. I’m going to hitch a ride to Paris.”

The driver shook his head. “Be careful.”

I didn’t really grasp the “middle of nowhere” concept until the Uber took off, leaving me there alone. I sure as hell hadn’t considered that this would be a spooky-as-hell industrial area. Some sickly-looking trees grew along the side of the road, and on the other side of them was a bunch of graffiti-covered warehouses.

Maybe, if I was quick, that Uber would still be in the area. Because otherwise it’d take forever for a driver to get out here, and I might be dead by then.

There wasn’t much traffic on the highway. I stood by the side of the road, debating whether I should turn back while I still could. The thought of being safe and warm in my hotel bed appealed to me a lot, but Crow appealed more.

A car came toward me. What kind of people would be driving at this time of night? Weirdos, that’s who.

I put out my thumb, just a little. Part of me panicked. They might be ax murderers or something worse. Did I really want to get in a car with strangers? But I’d committed myself now. I was here, on this highway. The sun would be up in an hour.

This was the stupidest idea I’d ever had. It had seemed to make sense back at the hotel, but now that I was out here on the side of the highway, in the dark and the cold, I wanted to run back to bed.

No, that wasn’t an option. If I wanted Crow, I needed the chance to convince him. I couldn’t wait until Tuesday. I had to see him now.

Still, going back to the hotel...

Before I could keep arguing with myself, a car pulled over on the verge of the road. My heart pounded. Did I want to get in or not? I walked slowly toward it, a big part of me wanting to run.

I could run. It was an option. If I went slow enough, maybe the car would take off, and the decision would be made for me.

Then the driver’s door opened. A girl around my age jumped out.

“Do you want a lift or not?”

I guessed I did. She looked safe, and that was a definite sign that this was the right thing to do.

Chapter 9

CARRIE, THE DRIVER, dropped me off at the hotel. I sat in the foyer, looking all scruffy and dirty. The staff kept side-eying me, but no one said anything. I got out my phone and messaged Crow.

I’m here. I’m in the lobby.

There was nothing to do but wait. I’d thought of not letting him know. I’d be able to get an access pass for the concert from Elijah, and I could just appear backstage, but that idea had so much potential for disaster. I also thought about messaging Polly, but I wanted to talk to Crow first. Also, I didn’t want everyone in the lobby to hear her scream at me over the phone.

I found a sofa to sit on while I waited. I wished I’d gotten something to eat first. My stomach rumbled. I needed some kind of nourishment.

“What are you doing here?”

I stared up at Crow. He wasn’t smiling.

“I needed to see you. I needed to see you without Polly interfering.”