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The only thing Ava did wrong was wait for her before evacuating, and she shouldn’t be punished for that.
Still pressed against Abel’s chest, Hazel can’t see his eyes, but she knows he’s considering it. His heartbeat is steady, a strong, patient rhythm, and she flinches at the unwelcome intimacy.
It means he’s human, and she doesn’t want to acknowledge that fact.
“Hazel, please,” Ava whispers. “Don’t do this.”
“Put your phone on the table,” Abel orders. “And drive carefully. We were shot at earlier.”
He’s going to let her go.
“You have five seconds to leave,” he barks.
“Thank you,” Hazel whispers as relief floods through her. For one delirious moment, she wants to hug him.
“If I even have anideathat someone knows where we are, I’ll make sure this is your final goodbye to her,” he says to Ava coolly.
Hazel doesn’t care about his threat. He’s letting Ava go.
Her friend chokes out a sob, and it makes Hazel tremble.
“Hey, hey,” she says, turning her head to meet Ava’s pained expression. “I’m going to be fine.”
“No, you’re not,” Ava sniffles, her eyes red. She places her phone on the coffee table, and Hazel feels Abel yank her to the side and swing open the door.
“Five seconds,” he barks at Ava.
“I’ll be fine. He won’t hurt me,” Hazel insists.
“He already has.”
“Four seconds.”
“I’ve got this, Ava. Just go.”
“Three seconds.”
“I love you,” her friend sniffles.
“Twoseconds.”
“I love you too. Try to find Connor.”
Ava chokes out a sob. “Yeah. I will.”
“One second.”
Hazel takes one last look at her best friend, then the door slams ominously. It rattles on the hinges and the sound echoes throughout her tiny apartment.
Finally, Abel lets go of her wrist, and she stumbles away from him, backing herself against the opposite wall.
“Thank you,” she murmurs.
He spares her a disinterested look before walking past her and pulling his hood down, exposing a head of messy, wind-swept dark strands that fall just past his ears.
She groans internally, angry that he has the nerve to have perfect hair when he’s a monster.
“Where’s your phone?” he asks simply, striding into her room. She doesn’t want to follow him, so she stays anchored in place, the adrenaline starting to wear off.
