Page 152 of Maddox
They’re caught up in some prank that I don’t have time to enjoy, and a shiver racks my spine when a gust of wind blows between the trees.
I could suck it up and go home. Ishouldgo home but what awaits me there?
My throat hurts as it is from swallowing my mom’s lies. How much more can I take before I drown?
Either way, I shouldn’t be here. If what I suspect is true then Maddox’s hatred for me will only amplify and I’m not ready to drive that final nail into the coffin, assuming it’s not already there.
Resolved, I make my way back to my car only to pause when Josh emerges from between two vehicles.
“Delaney,” he says with a wide grin, and I muster a feeble smile.
“Hey,” I mumble.
“Where you been? Micah’s been a total ass since you left school.”
Micah? For a moment I can’t process his words because who the fuck cares about Micah?
Finally, I wave my hand and say, “Um, I was sick. I have to go.”
My thoughts return to the shit storm I’m in until I move to step past him, and he grabs my arm, saying, “Delaney, whatever Micah said about me, he lied. You have to believe me.”
Huh? I have no idea what he’s talking about and once again, I don’t care. I’m teetering on the precipice of hysteria, and I just want to go…hell, I don’t even know where but it’s not here with Josh.
“Okay,” I say, pulling away. “I gotta go, though.”
“I knew it,” he growls. “You believe him. He’s an asshole, Delaney. He’s never treated you right.”
“Josh,” I sigh, meeting his gaze, but the intensity behind his eyes makes me falter.
What’s going on?
When a kernel of awareness slides down my spine, I step back. His mouth curls into a grimace and he splays his hands, but something isn’t right.
“Look,” I say, easing back another step. Unfortunately, this puts me farther away from my car. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I haven’t spoken to Micah.”
“No?” he says, cocking his head and I don’t know what inspires me to do it, but I spin on my heels and take off just as he reaches for me again.
Call it instinct if you want but as I race away, I don’t have time to fumble with my phone and maneuvering between the parked vehicles only slows me down, which is why I divert into the trees, hoping to lose him in the darkness.
“Stop! Fuck,” Josh says and when I look back, he’s too close for comfort.
The branches tear at my skin and I stumble over the thick foliage but I’m immune to anything but the pulse of my heart telling me not to fucking stop.
Despite the thick covering of trees, the path is still slick with snow, and I mutter a curse every time my feet slip out from under me.
Through the frigid air of my breath, I glance to the side, where I’ve kept the track in sight. I don’t want to get lost out here, especially when I’m alone.
This is my fatal error because I’m not paying attention to what’s in front of me and I trip over something before tumbling to my hands and knees.
Sweat stings my eyes as I turn my head to glare at the culprit, an ancient log, moldering beneath another tree. Except, I’mdrawn to something that gleams in the small sliver of moon peeking through the boughs and I freeze.
The milky white orbs don’t belong and when my brain catches up to what I’m seeing, I crab walk backward with my heart in my throat. Those fucking eyes, blind to anything but darkness now, stare into mine and I drop to my ass before glancing around.
However, there’s nothing here to make this nightmare go away and I’m alone with the woman who just a few weeks ago…was a beautiful, if sassy, flirt who didn’t deserve this, whatever it is.
Beneath the fine layer of foliage, my fingers squish into the mud and a sob wells in my throat, as I whisper, “Darcy?”
She’s so still, so pale. Her fingers, the skin blackened, curl into the dead leaves as though she’s reaching for me and bile races up my throat before I push to my knees.
