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But that wouldn’t be the way I ever did things.
I always have to make things hard.
On everyone.
I inwardly cringed as I realized the trouble that I was putting Wade and his family through—all over again. It had been selfish to take off the way I did, and now I was going to have to rely on them to get me out of the mess I was in.
Oh, and I ruined the present that Hazel had gotten me right off the bat.
The guilt was suffocating as I sat there, listening to the rushing water around the car as my own mind threatened to drown me with my own thoughts. Leia had made me feel so much better about everything. In fact, I felt like I could actually have a family—and a good life doing so.
With Wade.
But here I was, messing it all up again.
A snapping sound brought me back to reality, though, and the Tahoe made a violent jerk, moving a good ten to fifteen feet further from the road. My heart leaped in my chest as I leaned out of the window again, trying to figure out what the hell was happening around me. The headlights were dimming and while I had killed the engine, I had left the lights on so they could easily spot me.
But now I wasn’t sure if it was the water—or if the battery was just dying on me.
I couldn’t see behind the Tahoe, though the red lights were illuminating a pink cast out onto the dirty flood waters. There was nothing running into the vehicle causing it to move—it was just the power of moving water.
I rolled the passenger side window down, more rain blowing into the car, as I tried to see what was on the other side of us. As I squinted, my heart sank.
The river.
I hadn’t realized it, but the dam for the river must’ve burst at some point, the flood waters surging well beyond the bank. It was the current that had caught the Tahoe, but that’s where the rest of the floodwaters were draining to.
Oh my god.
Wade, hurry.
My heart was pounding violently in my chest as I considered just making a dive into the waters. The current was really ripping around the car, and I knew that if the current was strong enough to move the Tahoe, it might be strong enough to sweep me right off my feet. I glanced down, just as the headlights flickered...
And then went dark.
No, no, no.
“How is he going to find me now?” I cried out, slamming my fist into the steering wheel. My fist hit the horn, but it sounded weak, as though it was drowning. I shook my head, forcing out a sharp exhale.
Nothing about this was working in my favor.
It was as if Mother Nature was just fucking determined to ruin my life.
Or take it.
I leaned back out the window, staring down at the now-black water. Rain pelted the back of my head, soaking me… but that didn’t stop me. The water was now halfway up the side of the door.
I have to get out of here.
Peering around the car, I made sure there was nothing left in the cab, as I was fairly certain it would be devoured by the river before the storm was over. The Tahoe jerked another foot or so, and I nearly let out a scream, but as I opened my mouth, nothing came out.
Putting my hands on the opening in the door for support, I brought my feet up into the driver’s side seat. Lightning lit up the sky, the rushing waters around me catching my attention.
I can’t swim in that. There’s no way.
It was a devastating realization. There was no next step if I climbed out of the window. I either had to go up onto the roof—which seemed like a bad idea with all the lightning—or I had to go into the rushing water.
Neither was the right answer.
