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For one wild and wonderful and totally illogical moment, I thought it might be Kurt coming to rescue me.
But then I remembered, and panic made my head spin.
I hadn’t even talked to Kurt before Lance grabbed my phone and hurled it into the water. Kurt had absolutely no idea I was here...
And then a light shone in my face, and Lance was there, panting and triumphant to have found me at last.
‘I suppose you thought I’d gone when I stopped calling for you,’ he said coldly, reaching for my arm and pulling me up. ‘But I wasn’t going to leave you in the dark in the middle of nowhere. I’m not that cruel. Not like you.’
‘I’m not cruel, either. I’m really not. Look, Lance, we need to talk and work all this out.’ My words came out in a rush, tumbling over each other in my desperation. He was dragging me in the direction of the waterfall again and I knew that this time, he wasn’t going to let me escape.
My foot got caught in some brambles and I stumbled and fell down hard. And then I was being pulled on my bottom over rough grasses and thorns that tore at my hands. We were on a slope, moving down, and I panicked, thinking he was about to push me into the water.
But suddenly we stopped and Lance hauled me to my feet. The water was roaring so loudly in my ears now that I could barely hear what he was shouting. But I knew with a shock of realisation exactly where he’d brought us.
We were standing on the narrowest of ledges beneath the crest of the waterfall. The ground beneath my feet was treacherous here... wet and slippery with moss... and fear and panic buzzed loudly in my head like angry bees trapped in a honey jar.
There was no doubting it. One false move and we’d be over the edge, crashing onto the jagged-edged rocks way below us.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
He took my wrist in a vice-like grip. ‘You know, Rori, I’ve imagined what this moment would be like – you and me, alone together at last.’ He gave a harsh laugh. ‘I never thought it would be like this.’
‘Look, we’re cold and wet,’ I urged gently. ‘This isn’t the place for a proper chat. So why don’t we go back down to the car and drive to a cosy pub with a roaring fire and then we can – ’
‘Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!’ he ordered, and I shrank back. ‘I need to think. And anyway, it’s too late for all that. Stop trying to pretend you think we could work, because I know for a fact you’re just lying to get away from me.’ His nails were digging painfully into my wrist. ‘Once I let you go, you’ll never want to see me again.’
I swallowed. ‘That’s not true, Lance. Really, it’s not.’
‘Stop. Lying.’ He yelled so loudly in my ear that I flinched, lost my balance and stumbled forwards. And for a horrifying few seconds, as the tumbling water crashed in my ears and my feet slid on the mossy ledge, I knew with terrible certainty that I was going to fall and pull Lance over with me.
My heart was pounding so hard, I thought it would burst out of my chest.
Then I felt him yank me back... back to safety... and I flattened myself against the wall of rock behind us, trying to steady my breathing.
‘We could do it, Rori,’ Lance shouted above the roar of the water. ‘We could do it together.’
‘Do what?’ I stared at him. His eyes, as he gazed at me, were burning with a conviction that seemed almost joyous, and terror shot through me.
‘We’ll go over the edge together,’ he said calmly, smiling now. ‘Then all the chaos inhere’ – he knocked the side of his head hard with his knuckles – ‘will disappear.’
He took a firmer hold of my wrist and pulled me forward, forcing me to stand next to him, on the very edge. Gazing down into the darkness, I swayed a little, feeling dangerously light-headed. And the thought crossed my mind that if I were to faint, it would be a good thing. Because then I’d feel nothing as we were falling...
I heard a shout in the distance. But I knew I was just imagining it because Blossom was in London and no one knew I was here.
Then I heard it again, and this time I knew it was real because I could see a powerful beam of light off to my left. Lance’s beatific smile had vanished. ‘Who thehell?’ he shouted angrily, letting go of my wrist as he stumbled to the side of the ledge, staring over at the light.
My legs were trembling so much, I wondered if I’d even be able to move. But adrenaline was pumping through my system and I knew this was my chance to escape, so with a superhuman effort, I followed Lance, pushing past him and clambering up the slope in the direction of the light which was coming closer all the time.
‘Rori? Over here!’ It was Ada and she was scrambling down the slope on her bottom to get to me. ‘Quick! Take my hand!’
Relief at seeing her was surging through me. But when I tried to grab her hand, I missed and found myself sliding back down the slope.
‘Rori!’ Ada sounded terrified, and I realised why next moment when I was grabbed from behind. Lance had me firmly in his grip, his hands round my abdomen, pulling me back down to the ledge, and in those terrifying few seconds, I saw Ada’s face – apicture of helpless fear – as I was dragged out of her reach, back down to the ledge.
‘Oh, no, you don’t!’ screamed another voice.
Skye?
