Page 71 of Fade With Me

He turned to Izzy, and in that instant, they understood each other without a word.

Zeke leaned forward slightly, his shoulders squaring as he shot Izzy a sharp look. His voice dropped, low and urgent. “Just buy us a few minutes.”

Izzy nodded, chin lifting in a subtle but decisive motion, his spine straightening as resolve settled through him like iron sinking into bone. “Done.”

Then Zeke’s hand shot out, his fingers wrapping around the back of Izzy’s neck in a firm, deliberate grip. He pulled him close, his expression a blend of pride and something deeper, something that burned quietly in the space between them. The hold was steady, but the touch stayed gentle. Grounding. “You’ve got this.”

Izzy leaned in, their foreheads pressing together in a brief, powerful moment. His eyes said more than his voice ever could. But when he spoke, the words were clear, stripped of sentiment and full of resolve. “I won’t let you down. Be careful, and get her out.”

The last part came softer, heavier. “I’ll see you on the other side. Goodbye, brother.”

A lump rose in my throat, sharp and choking. Izzy was walking into danger, for me. For us. My hands trembledas I fought the tears, the collision of gratitude and fear hitting like a wave.

Zeke’s voice cracked, just barely, and a flicker of emotion reached his eyes, but his stance didn’t falter. His hand lingered a moment longer before he pulled back, the tightness in his shoulders betraying everything he was holding back.

“Goodbye, brother.”

Izzy planted his feet, grounding himself as a deep breath expanded his chest. Then his arms shot skyward.

The air shifted instantly. It thickened, buzzing with raw energy that crackled across my skin. Sunlight vanished, swallowed whole, plunging everything into an unnatural dark. Wind tore through the clearing, whipping my hair into my face and yanking at my clothes like the fingers of something unseen.

Lightning carved through the sky, each jagged burst illuminating Izzy in stark, white flashes. A split-second later, a deafening crack shattered the air, making me flinch.

His focus didn’t waver. Eyes fixed on something beyond us, he thrust his arms again, and the world responded. The atmosphere twisted violently. A tornado snapped into being, its funnel crashing to the ground with a roar that shook the earth. Trees tore free from their roots, the sound of splintering wood sharp and relentless.

Zeke’s hand found mine, grounding me against the chaos. “Let’s go!” he shouted, his voice cutting clean through the storm.

There was no time to think. I let him pull me, my feet stumbling to keep up as we plunged into the forest, Izzy’s raw power still thundering behind us. My heart slammed against my ribs, each frantic beat propelling me forward.

Darkness pressed in from all sides, thick and disorienting. We hadn’t taken a trail. There wasn’t one. I tripped over roots and low branches, my palms scraping against unseen bark and stone. But Zeke never let go. His grip stayed firm, his steady pull the only thing keeping me moving.

“We can get out this way, but it won’t be easy,” he said, eyes scanning the dense undergrowth. His voice was low but controlled. “If we push through far enough, we can lose him. Just make it to the car, then we’re home free.”

I swallowed hard, breath shallow as I tried to adjust to the dark. My fingers skimmed trees and rocks as I stumbled forward. “How much farther to the car?”

He glanced over, his face mostly shadow. “Maybe two hours. Less if we move fast.”

His pace never slowed. Every line of his body was coiled, focused. Ready.

As the storm raged around us, rain pelted our skin and wind shrieked through the trees. Every sound andshadow sent my mind spinning through worst-case scenarios. “But it’s so dark,” I murmured, voice taut with panic. “What if we walk off a cliff or something?”

Zeke glanced back, a flash of a grin cutting through the gloom. “We won’t,” he said. “I can see perfectly in the dark.”

Something about his certainty lit a tiny flame in me, just enough to keep my feet moving.

I let out a shaky laugh, brushing my fingers against a tree for balance. “You’re so full of yourself, even now.”

“Would you expect anything less?” he returned, that faint edge of humor softening the moment. Despite the fear twisting in my gut, I smiled.

But it didn’t last. His expression sobered, the tension creeping back into his voice. “We need to keep moving,” he said, tugging me forward again.

We ran until my legs screamed in protest and my lungs burned with every ragged breath. The ground shook beneath us, trembling from the winds tearing through the trees. Somewhere in the distance, violent cyclones roared, their unearthly sound like a monster growling just out of sight. The gusts built with each step, howling louder, as if the world behind us were unraveling in real time.

Finally, I couldn’t take another step. I stumbled to a halt, bent over with my hands on my knees, gasping. “Sorry,” I panted, wiping my drenched face with one hand. “I need a break.”

Zeke stood beside me, unmoved by the chaos. His breath stayed even, his posture loose, like the storm was background noise. Water streamed from his hair and clung to his clothes, making him look like a rain-soaked action figure, annoyingly composed, as if he’d walked through a summer drizzle instead of a hurricane. He glanced over at me, the corner of his mouth lifting in a faint, amused smile.

“For someone who fades everywhere, you’re in crazy good shape,” I muttered, struggling to catch my breath. Each inhale came sharp and uneven. Zeke, though, just stood there, completely unfazed.

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