Page 65 of Serpent King's Revenge

"Shit," I muttered, feeling Abby shiver against my back. I wanted to wrap her up, keep her warm, but there was no time. We had to get to whatever hideout Knuckles had set up for us.

We followed his directions to a T. But when we rolled to a stop at the coordinates, nothing. Just rain, the roar of distant waves, and a sense of being completely and utterly alone.

"Knuckles better not be messing with us," Abby said through chattering teeth, her voice barely rising above the storm.

"He's not." I tried to sound confident, but doubt was creeping in, cold and slippery like the rain down my neck.

"Then where is this place?" She peered through the rain, trying to make sense of the deserted landscape.

"Let's give it a minute." I killed the engine and listened, the silence telling me nothing. The rain kept coming down, and the ocean sent up a constant roar as we searched for whatever sign Knuckles left us.

Then, like a shadow in the night, I caught sight of a lighthouse standing tall on a cape, an old warehouse squatting beneath it. The place looked abandoned, forgotten by time.

"Look," Abby nudged me, her finger pointing at a flicker of light from the lighthouse window.

I squinted against the rain, watching the light blink on and off. "Morse code," she said. "H…E…R…E…"

"You think we can trust it?" I asked, gripping the handlebars tighter.

She shrugged, water dripping off her hair onto her shoulders. "Got a better idea?"

"Actually, yeah." I paused, looking at her. "We could skip town, head north to Canada and just keep going. I know people."

Her eyes searched mine, looking for the truth. She stared like she thought I was crazy. Maybe I was, but I had just gotten her back; I didn’t want to lose her again.

"Would you do that? Leave all this behind?"

"Absolutely."

My heart pounded with the thought of it, the freedom, the life we could have away from all this mess. She was quiet for a beat, water beading on her lashes as she looked out at the rain-soaked world. A decision hung between us, heavy as the storm clouds above.

"But what about your brothers and sister?" she finally said, voice steady despite the shivers that racked her body from the cold. "And my dad…I can't leave them. Not like this."

"Abby, we could—"

"No." She cut me off, firm, resolved. "We owe it to them to see this through. We can't just bail."

I didn’t entirely agree, but I knew I wasn’t going to be able to convince her.

"Okay." I nodded, clenching my jaw. "We're doing this."

"Damn right we are," she said, pulling her jacket tighter around her.

There was no turning back now.

I kicked the bike to life and we shot off once again, the engine's growl slicing through the cliffside quiet. The sea air was thick with salt as we hugged the curve of the road, the warehouse looming closer with every second. Rain spat at us sideways, but I barely felt it; all my senses were tuned to Abby behind me, her arms tight around my waist.

We rolled to a stop in front of the place, gravel crunching under us. The warehouse stood there like a dead thing, silent and waiting. Knuckles was out front, just a shadow in his hoodie until he lifted his head. His hands came out of his pockets to wave us over, a silent nod that said all it needed to.

"Looks like we're expected," I said, cutting the engine.

"Good," Abby replied, her voice steady as she swung her leg over the bike.

I reached for her hand and our fingers locked together—flesh and bone, nothing fancy about it, just two people hanging on to each other because it's all they've got. We walked towards Knuckles, the entrance gaping wide like a dark mouth.

"Ready for whatever lies ahead?" I asked, though the question was more for me than her.

"Ready," she answered, a small smile playing on her lips, tough as nails even when the world was trying to chew us up and spit us out.

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