Page 2 of Sage

Troy nodded his head back and forth, repeating her name. She assumed he was just trying to make sure he wouldn't forget it, but at the same time it made him appear a little more off kilter and she found herself growing more concerned by the minute.

"So, where's this friend of yours live?"

"The apartments right down the street." Sage wasn't good at answering questions off the top of her head, let alone giving directions. She couldn't remember the name of the of the streets she needed. On the bright side, they were the only apartments on this side of Acadia, and only about seven minutes away.

The rest of the drive was silent. Sage spent the last few minutes in the car trying to devise a plan that would help her get out of her current situation, but no matter how hard she thought, there was nothing that made enough sense. Shegrasped the locket tighter, changing her mindset to thewhat if? What if Hans had already made it back to his apartment and here she was showing up?

She had to be prepared.

As they pulled into the apartment complex, Sage noticed that the crime scene tape had finally been pulled from around the late Mrs. Jones' patio. "I didn't mean to kill her," she whispered.

"What was that?" a look of concern crossed Troy's face.

"Oh,nothing." Sage offered up an innocent smile, shocked that he was able to hear her. She looked up towards Hans' apartment and noticed that it was dark inside.Whew, I beat him, she thought, letting out a deep sigh of relief.

Troy parked his car and told her she needed to be quick. Sage knew that time was precious because Hans would surely return soon. Deep down her nerves were on fire, much like her home. She was unsure what was going to happen after she left the apartment. Sage closed the door of Troy's beater and hoped that she looked confident walking up the stairs, like she wassupposedto be there.

Once inside, Sage turned on the living room light, and quickly glanced around, searching for a sign if Hans had been home yet.

Nothing.

She did a quick once over, trying to decide where she was going to leave his gift. The box on the kitchen counter caught her eye, that was it, she reached in her pocket pulling out the locket. Sage found a piece of paper and pen in what appeared to be a junk drawer and wrote a quick message to let him know that he hadn't won.

In this moment, Sage hated him, yet, through the hurt she still loved him deeply. "It isn't over.Wearen't over." She slammed her fist down onto the countertop.

She kissed the paper, leaving the perfect black lip print on it, placing it on the counter next to the locket. Before closing the drawer, something caught Sage's eye.It's perfect. She pulled a pocket knife from the drawer and slipped it into her own pocket hoping she wouldn't have to use it, but it created a sense of security knowing it was there.

"Goodbye, for now, my love." Sage shut off the light and pulled the door closed behind her as she exited the apartment, wishing she could see the look on Hans' face as soon as he got home and realized his plan had failed.

He'd be coming for her, soon enough.

Chapter Two

Just Keep Moving

Walking down the stairs outside of Han’s apartment, Sage kept patting her pocket and double-checking that the knife was still there, hoping it wouldn't fall out for Troy to see. She didn't want him getting any ideas. As she got back into the car he leaned forward looking up through his windshield in the direction she had just come from. "So, was that like, an ex-boyfriend's apartment or…?"

"No," Sage quickly interrupted. "Just a friend, or so I thought." She sat back, pulling the sticky seat belt across her once more.

"Alright sugar, let's boogie," Troy announced, pulling out of the parking spot and heading down the road. Sage didn't know where they were going, nor was she sure that Troy knew either, but anywhere far from Acadia was fine with her.

Troy reached into the pocket of his button-up shirt and pulled out a pack of smokes, holding it in Sage's direction, offering one to her. "Gross, no thanks." She waved her hand, pushing them back in his direction. "That's going to kill you one day, you know."

"I don't have a reason to live anyways." Troy shrugged, putting one into his mouth, lighting it up and taking a long drag.

"That's no way to think." Sage couldn't help but see the sadness behind Troy's eyes while he kept his focus on the road. He exhaled and the smoke took over the car once more, sending Sage into another coughing fit.

"Shit, I'm sorry." Troy quickly rolled the window back down.

"Yeah, thanks. I’m not interested in being hot-boxed by cigarette smoke." Sarcasm escaped through Sage's lips unintentionally. "So… where are we headed?" She made an attempt to change the subject.

Troy shrugged. "Nowhere in particular. I was just going to keep on driving," his tone changed, "you have other plans?" Their eyes met and the kind stranger who had offered to give her a ride now looked like the devil himself, ready to devour her with his evil tongue. Sage broke eye contact, throwing her head back against the seat, staring up towards the universe once more, silently asking for help to get her out of this one. Unfortunately, unlike the forest, there was no way out this time.

Sage felt a touch on her upper thigh, a bit too close for comfort. She did her best to remain calm but she could feel herself slowly slipping back into her dark place. There was no way of stopping it this time.

"There, there, just relax." Troy’s words were quiet. "I'll be gentle." The car came to a stop as he pulled over to the side of the road and Sage felt her heart begin to race.

Sage looked around, searching for something familiar, but there was nothing. No buildings. No cars in sight. Nothing but darkness. She looked over to see Troy wrestling with his belt buckle.Damn, he's just getting right down to business.

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