Page 212 of Hold Me Until Morning

I finally turned and jogged back down the sidewalk that cut through the middle of their yard to my Durango that was parked at the curb.

I was quick to hop in, started it, and whipped a U-turn in the middle of the street. I wound back out of the neighborhood and hit the road that led back to Hendrickson.

My heart was lodged in my throat as I traveled.

The beat of my heart palpable there.

Anticipation and dread thick.

The forest grew up on all sides.

Dense and deep.

The rays of the rising sun blipped through the leaves of the trees, flashing above me as I drove beneath.

I wound through the desolate woods, anxiety gripping me in a vise as I raced to get back to my house.

Suddenly, I was hit with that sense again. The creepy vibe that slithered over my skin as I took the curves of the deserted, winding road.

Alarm pooled and sweat slicked my flesh.

On instinct, I glanced in the rearview mirror.

The car behind me had come from out of nowhere, trailing me at a distance.

Flashes of metallic black and the glimmering of glass striking in the rays that speared through the leaves.

The same car that had freaked me out all those weeks ago.

The same car Pruitt had been driving when he’d followed us to the gas station this last weekend.

Panic surged, my throat closing off, and I pushed down on the accelerator.

Though this time, it didn’t stay back and match my speed.

It increased, gaining on me so fast it made me dizzy.

I pushed my SUV harder, flying around the corners, heart hammering out of my chest as I drove as fast as I could.

I took a sharp curve.

And the car behind me?

It flew around me, taking it sharper and cutting me off.

A scream ripped out of me as I slammed on my brakes.

My SUV went into a skid, and my back tire hit the dirt shoulder of the road.

And I couldn’t control it.

Couldn’t stop my car from fishtailing one direction then the other.

Couldn’t stop its slide as it careened off the steep embankment on the side.

My eyes were frozen wide as fear tore through my spirit as my SUV flew through the underbrush.

Bouncing and jarring and out of control, heading directly for a giant tree.

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