Page 13 of Bones

For forgiveness, always. But also for him to listen.

Thankfully, he did.

“Okay, I’ll make sure it’s streaming,” he said distractedly.

I gave a firm nod and watched as he walked away.

A feeling of rightness settled in my heart.

CHAPTER TWO

TIME FOR AN OBSESSIVE WORKOUT ROUTINE

AURORA

Run.

Run in the woods.

Tears filled my eyes at the torturous refrain that made no sense.

Maybe it was some residual brain injury from my accident that’d grown worse.

Maybe it was Satan’s curse doing me in.

Or maybe the solitude had finally gotten to me, and I was losing my mind.

Whatever it was, I hoped it would hurry and finish the job. I couldn’t take it any longer.

It’d been three days since I’d known peace. Three long,louddays.

Like a cruel twist of fate, Ryan’s sermon had ended, and the bizarre thoughts of running had started on a continuous loop until I was out of the patience he’d just preached about. The words wouldn’t stop.

Ever.

Even my dreams were haunted by them. I’d started taking double the dose of both of the sleep aids Ryan had gotten mefrom a doctor in the congregation, but the words still broke through.

I’d tried obeying. I’d run on the treadmill. I’d run outside the house. I’d even convinced Ryan to take me for a run on a trail that bordered some woods nearby. All that’d accomplished was bringing back the memories of waking up scared and alone after my accident, with no memory of who I was.

None of it was enough for the demand in my head. It just continued to grow louder and more frantic until I wanted to rip my hair out.

After another mostly sleepless night, I glared at my mismatched eyes in the bathroom mirror. I clutched the sink and fought the urge to stab something into my ears. It wouldn’t do any good since the insane thoughts were in my head, but I was tempted to try.

Anything for some quiet.

I closed my lids and hung my head, inhaling deeply.

Run.

Woods.

Run.

Woods.

Email.

My lids popped open at the new addition, and my head shot up.

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