Chapter 44
Seph
I woke up in the mud.
It covered me from head to toe. I struggled to my feet and tried to walk, but the drug was still in my system and my legs wobbled beneath me.
Above the bank, I could see vehicles on the road. Bright red lights flashed through the trees, bathing the forest in bursts of colour.
Maybe Kieran’s back.
My stomach twisted violently. I bent over and retched.
When there was nothing left, I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and started climbing the bank. I slid down twice before finally reaching the road.
That was when I saw the symbol of the Sun.
Soldiers of Light had taken over the compound.
Fuck.
I stumbled backward and turned to run. I managed a few hundred metres before a voice rang out behind me.
“There! That’s the Quinn girl! Stop her!”
My legs felt like they belonged to a newborn colt. I tripped over roots and branches, scrambling deeper into the woods.
They were gaining on me. At least five of them, dressed in white with reflective helmets.
I slipped down a muddy bank and splashed into a freezing creek. The cold shocked through my body as I struggled across.
“Stop! We will shoot you!”
A gun cracked behind me.
I ducked instinctively and ran blindly, gasping for air.
“Help!” I tried to scream. “Kieran!”
But my throat was raw. All that came out were broken gasps.
“Kieran!”
I clawed my way up the far bank, but the mud was too thick. My boots slid uselessly, dragging me back down.
Below me, the soldiers spread out along the creek.
“We aren’t here to hurt you, Miss Quinn,” one of them called. “We just want to take you home.”
Home.
Where was home?
I thought of Ash.
Dev.
Kieran.
