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Chapter 11
Addie
“It was probably just a prank, right? It had to be just a prank.”
No matter how many times I repeated it, the boys refused to agree with me. They were uncharacteristically tense as we trudged down the stretch of road. We had chosen - well, Fallon had chosen - not to take the highway back. Between the army flying overhead and the Ragers, we unanimously agreed to take the back roads.
It was eerie, to say the least. We had been walking for over an hour, and we had yet to see another human being or vehicle. The houses were all dark, the driveways were empty, and the only sounds were the animals scurrying through the bushes.
“A prank?” Tommy snorted in disbelief. “Yes, because it’s completely normal and fucking hilarious to sneak into a house - that they didn’t even know was fucking occupied - and write an ominous warning with blood. Ha. Ha. Ha.”
“You’re a sarcastic smartass, aren’t you?” I asked innocently, and Tommy glared.
“Fuck off.”
“Language!” Fallon scolded, and Tommy rolled his eyes. He was less than impressed by my friends, and he made sure to bring that little fact up every other minute.
Sidling up to me, he leaned forward to whisper, “I still vote we leave the assholes. We can easily survive without them. So they’re big and have guns? We’re badasses.”
He made a point to “whisper” loud enough for the others to hear. Ronan made a face, and Calax rolled his eyes. I noticed that Ryder didn’t make any comment, which seemed entirely unlike him. That would’ve been a perfect opportunity for him to talk about his “big gun” if you know what I mean.
Choosing to ignore his odd behavior for now - I would address it when we were alone - I said, “Anyway, it’s not like anyone had hurt me. If they wanted to murder me, they had the perfect opportunity, right? So it was just a prank.”
Tommy huffed out his chest.
“I probably scared him off.”
Ronan gave Tommy a less than impressed once-over.
“Sure you did, kid.”
Before Tommy could retort, Fallon cut in.
“It’s better to be safe than sorry.”
“Yeah. Yeah. Yeah,” I said, waving my hand dismissively. “Save the fortune cookie crap for later, and let’s find a car. The sooner we find a car, the sooner we can get to Atlanta.”
I hadn’t allowed myself to think about Nik since we left. To be fair, I haven’t had a lot of time. The last few days had been a hectic whirlwind that have left me struggling to breathe. I was drowning, pushed under by consistent waves. When I managed to find a pocket of fresh air, all I could think about was my brother.
I missed him something furiously. My chest tightened at the mere thought of him. Was he still with Nancy? Was he alone? Did he miss me as well? It may have been selfish to think the latter, but I couldn’t ignore the doubt nagging me. What if, when I got there, he didn’t want to go with me?
I wouldn’t be able to handle his rejection. That would completely destroy me.
I knew for a fact he wasn’t dead. No, I had a spidery sixth sense when it came to my brother, and I most definitely would be able to tell if something bad had happened to him.
I had to hold onto hope, though feeble, that my brother would be alive and well.
“A penny for your thoughts?” Asher asked, coming to stand beside me. He had a backpack over his shoulders and a duffle bag slung over his arm. I had offered to carry more than the one backpack they gave me, but the guys insisted that it wasn’t necessary.
Their macho act didn’t fool me.
“My thoughts are worth at least a dollar,” I joked. “Though you guys have been getting them for free recently.”
He smiled good-naturedly. “It’s not my fault you like to speak your mind.”
“Involuntarily speak my mind. There’s a difference.”
Asher lightly hit my shoulder with his own.
