AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Yes, well, I refuse to let these monsters kill you and that young lady too. We need to get you out of here now. I made contact with your cousin, Diego. His men will know where to find you in the woods, if we can get you out of here.” He continues to slip the socks on June’s feet, and I start on mine. He brought us thick wool socks, and my feet instantly feel warmer. I slip the first pair on and then double them with the second pair like he’s doing to June.
She’s groggy, shifting on the bed, moaning, and calling my name. “I’m here, June. We need to get you up, so we can get out of here.”
“Out?” Her voice barely above a whisper, sounding weak and confused.
“Yeah, love. We are getting out of here. Doc gave you some meds and drugged the guards. We need to move now.” I move over to her side, helping her swing her legs to the side of the bed. I use my hand underneath her shoulder to lift her into a sitting position. She reaches out and grabs my shirt to steady herself.
“We need to go now. Help me get her up.” Doc takes her other side, and we lift her off the bed and onto shaking legs. She barely weighs anything; she’s so thin. Once her legs are as steady as they are going to get. Doc lets go of her side and shifts back towards the door, making sure the coast is clear before we leave the room.
We make it out to a large open cabin space. The walls are made of timber, and a large stone fireplace takes up a massive wall. Sloan is hunched over in a chair at a round wood kitchen table; a beer still clutched in his hand. My eyes search the rest of the space; doc said there were three here. Where are the other two? As I’m about to ask, doc comes back and helps me with June, directing us toward the large cabin door.
As we step outside of it, I find the other two; Francis is hunched over in a wood balcony chair, drool making its way down his ugly mug, and the other fucker, Stoe, is on his ass on the steps, leaning against the railing. “How much did you give them? I question.
“Double the dosage; I couldn’t risk them waking too soon.” We make our way quietly down the front steps and onto the dirt driveway.
“Where’s your car?” I look around, but I don’t see any vehicle waiting for us, just miles and miles of trees and mountain terrain.
“No car, one of them always drives me up here and takes me back to where they hold me. The fourth man went to get supplies; he has the vehicle. We have to hurry before he returns from the neighboring town.” Doc leads us onto a path, heading into the wooded area. The temperature has dropped since I have been confined to this hell. The biting wind can be felt through our thin barrier of clothes.
June’s body shivers and little whimpers escape her lips as we stumble over fallen tree limbs and rocks. I wrap my arm across her back, taking more of her weight and hoping she doesn’t go down. I’m not sure if I would be able to carry her at this point. My heart is pounding in my ears, and my limbs feel like they are on fire.
“You need to keep going that way.” Doc points to the left. “Try to hide your tracks and make your way quickly to a large stone hill. You can’t miss it; it’s huge.” Doc releases his hold on June and steps back. “There will be a small river next to it. Your cousin’s men will be there waiting for you.”
“You’re not coming with us?” I brace June against my body, wrapping her more securely in my arms, even though she releases a small gasp of pain. One of her ribs is broken, and even though the doc wrapped them, I know she’s still in a lot of pain.
“No, I need to buy you time in case the other one comes back. I’m going back to set the cabin on fire and make sure those three perish so they can never do this to anyone else.” He gives June one last glance, compassion and sorrow across his features. “Be safe young lady. May your protector always keep you safe.”
“Doc!” I call out, but he turns his back and starts walking in the direction we just came from. If those fuckers regain consciousness before he can set the fire or if the other asshole returns before he can get away, he’s a dead man. He’s walking himself into his own grave. I stare for a moment until he’s out of our sightline. I don’t even know his real name, he’s saving us, and all I’ve been calling him is “doc.”That feels so wrong now. I want to race back after him and force him to go with us, but I need to get June out of here. I turn my sight back in the direction he said we needed to go.
Doc said he got word to Diego and that his men would know where to find us. I look around at all the dense trees surrounding us; it would be so easy to get lost in there. How are they going to find us in such a large area?Never fucking mind, get moving!My mind yells at me.
“June, we got to keep moving. We have to put some distance between them and us.” I watch as she nods, acknowledging my words, but in the next instant, she’s lurching forward and vomiting. Her hands braced against her thighs, and her body swaying.Fuck, we are not going to make it like this, and there is no way I can carry her.
I wait till her body has stopped heaving, then use the bottom of my shirt to wipe her mouth. “We gotta go, June. It’s our only chance.” I wrap my arm around her back again and force us both to walk in the direction that doc indicated.
“Mateo, leave me. I’m too weak.” Her voice comes out breathy, her hand clenching in my shirt.
“No way, June. I will never leave you behind. We’re getting out of here, you and me. Together.” We stumble along, both of us struggling to stay standing. My legs feel like two twigs that could snap at any second. Sweat slickens my back, making the thin shirt stick to me. I have the urge to vomit, but I force myself to keep going. We can’t stop now. I can’t be weak. I have to get June out of here before they wake up and come looking for us.
“I need to stop….” Her breath is coming in short pants that are visible in the cold air.
“No, we have to keep going, June.” I keep pushing us forward. “Just a little further, please. Then I will try to find somewhere to stop, okay? We need to make it further away from the cabin.”
We walk for what feels like hours. The sun overhead starts to dwindle, and the air feels colder. It must be late afternoon at this point. It won’t take long before it’s dark and the temperature drops further. Shit, I hope this hill and river aren’t too much farther up ahead, but right now, I can’t hear the sound of any water.
Have I gone the wrong way? Are we not headed in the direction the doctor indicated? My legs feel like they won’t hold me up much longer with mine and June’s combined weight. I found a branch a while back for her to use as a walking stick, but even with that, we are both dragging our asses.
“Mateo…please.”
“Okay, June, let’s get over to that section there, the trees are denser, and we can stop for a few minutes. We can’t stay here though, June, we will either freeze to death, or they will find us.”
She nods, and we struggle for the next bit to get over to the dense area. The scent of smoke reaches my nostrils, and I raise my head, looking around us. Fuck is that the cabin burning? How far are we from there? Far enough that if the trees surrounding it catch fire, we won’t get caught in it?
“Smoke.” June stops at a fallen tree. I release my grip on her, helping her to sit down. She’s so painfully thin and fragile that even the slightest wind could knock her down. I get a good look at her. She has a little bit more color in her cheeks, but she’s still pale as fuck. Her eyes look too big for her face. Despite the doc washing her, her skin is smudged with dirt, and her dark hair is limp against her head. The clothes that doc brought her are oversized on her slight frame, making her look even smaller than she is.
“Yeah, I think doc set fire to the cabin. We need to keep moving, June. The fire could spread, and we don’t want to get trapped in it.”
I help her to stand, and we shuffle forward, climbing over forest debris and trying not to fall on our faces. We keep going until the smell of smoke disappears, but most of the remaining light dissipates through the trees. June’s teeth are shattering loudly, and her whole body is shaking from the temperature drop. My head is starting to spin, the lack of food and water catching up to the amount of energy I’m expending.
