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I park the car right on the other side of the building, because I can’t risk being here for more than a few moments. It was impossible to sneak past the guards my grandfather has now posted around the house, so they insisted on following me. They’ll arrive any second, and I just need a few fucking moments to myself to think. And to remember. Remember what it was like to share this place with Isabella. Before everything changed.
Branches rustle as I push them aside while striding towards the pond. Apart from that, the only sound comes from the nocturnal insects humming and chirping in the foliage.
At last, I can see the dark blue water through the trees.
It both makes a sigh of relief escape my throat and sends a pang of pain through my chest. This time, I don’t try to block it out. Instead, I feel it all as I walk out of the trees and onto the stretch of grass before the pond.
My heart lurches in my throat.
A person lies slumped on the grass halfway to the water.
My first instinct is that it’s some kind of trap, so I let my hand drift to my gun as I carefully move closer.
But then I realizewhoit is.
And my stomach bottoms out.
“Isabella,” I blurt out.
Rushing forward, I close the final distance between us in a few quick strides and then drop to my knees next to her.
A terrible clanging echoes inside my skull as I stare at her limp form. She’s unconscious, her shirt is missing, and she’s covered in blood. There are several cuts across her chest and stomach, and bruises on her jaw and face.
“Isabella,” I say, my voice coming out raw, as I place my hands on her cheek and turn her face fully to me.
She doesn’t stir.
There is a black duffel bag on the ground next to her. I gently move the strap away from her body and then sling the bag over my shoulder instead.
With my heart pounding, I slide my arms underneath Isabella’s unmoving body and lift her up. Holding her to my chest, I spin around and run back out of the park.
My grandfather’s guards are waiting outside when I emerge, and they lurch into motion when they see me.
“What happened?”
“Who is she?”
“She’s…” I begin while heading straight for my car. “A friend,” is what I finish with at last, because I can’t exactly tell them who she really is.
“We’ll take her to a hospital.”
“No,” I immediately reply.
If I take her to a normal hospital, they will have a lot of questions for her when she wakes up. And that will draw attention to her, which will compromise her chances of survival.
“Drive ahead and get the university doctors,” I order. “Bring them to our house immediately.”
I don’t give the guards any other explanation. They don’t need to know my reasons. They only need to obey my commands.
And they do.
After inclining their heads, they dart back to their own cars and drive back towards Blackwater.
I carefully place Isabella in the backseat so that she’s lying across it. Then I yank open the driver’s side door and toss the duffel bag into the passenger seat before I leap inside. The car roars as I speed away.
My hands are shaking slightly, so I grip the steering wheel hard as I drive us back to Blackwater. And every few seconds, my gaze darts up to the rearview mirror to check on Isabella. She’s just lying there, her eyes closed.
I squeeze the steering wheel harder.
