Page 88 of Trusting Skulls

Eventually, I hear footsteps behind me. I keep running, but I turn to look. Oh thank god, it’s Ash.

He catches up, and I see he’s got a bag over his shoulder. “Come on. We can’t slow down.” He touches my back lightly as he moves in front of me, so he can lead the way.

I can’t believe this is happening. Graham has never been this unhinged.

As I got older, he seemed to get bored with me, and that’s when he started making me do things. Like hiding in my house from him in the middle of the night. It wasn’t like we saw each other all that often. It wasn’t until he started taking me out into the country and making me run that I began avoiding him. Things between us were just getting more and more intense … but this … I never saw this coming.

Ash pulls me behind a tree and puts his finger over his mouth. He listens for a few seconds, and then we start running again.

He manages to keep us ahead of Graham all day, something I never could have done on my own.

As the day wears on, so do I, but Ash doesn’t let us stop until the sun slips behind the horizon. Finally, he slows down.

“It’s pretty dark, but I don’t think we should stop yet. Can you give me a little more?”

I nod, tears burning my eyes, because I know I hit my limit hours ago. My vision blurs, and that’s when it happens. A twig snaps beneath my feet, or was that my ankle?

I fall to the ground, covering my mouth so I don’t scream. Ash turns around and rushes back to me.

“What is it?” he whispers.

“My ankle,” I grit out. “I think it’s broken.”

He pushes my hand away from my foot and carefully rolls my sock down. “Fuck,” he whispers.

“Just leave me,” I tell him.

“Never. Stay right here. I’m going to go see where he is.”

I grab his arm. “Ash, no.”

“I need to see how far behind us he is. He’s probably set up camp for the night. If this is a new area for him, he’ll stop. Don’t worry; he won’t hear me.” He drops the strange looking bag on the ground. “It’s a bag for hauling wood,” he tells me.

It falls open, and I see he’s filled it with rope, a lighter, and a few other tools. “Where did you get all this?”

“Back at the house. That was what I was doing when I sent you on ahead.”

My eyes tear up again. This man is so much more than I deserve. I got us into this mess, and he is the one who has to get us out.

“I’m going to move you behind this rock, so it keeps the wind off you.”

He grabs me under my arms and drags me. I bite my tongue. I don’t want to let him know how much pain I’m really in.

He kisses me quickly on the cheek. “I promise I’ll be back soon.” And then he’s off without another word.

I pull my shoe and sock off. Oh my god, it’s already swelling. I’ll never be able to continue on.

Tears fall freely as I rest my head against the rock. I’ve really messed up this time. I close my eyes and play all of my bad decisions over and over again in my mind.

I must doze off, because when I wake there’s a fire burning a few feet away from me. My ankle is wrapped, and there is a pile of wild berries by my side. Ash is nowhere to be seen.

Hours go by before he finally appears. He crouches down beside me. “How are you feeling?”

“Okay. Where have you been?”

“I’ve been working on a plan.”

“Is he far behind?”

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