Page 70 of Not Your Hero

“She’s like them.”

“I’m always up for a hunt.” Gary smiles. Gannix unhooks my ankles before standing up and facing me, blocking my view of Gary. His eyes are as dark as I’ve ever seen them.

“Run, Em. Run hard and fast. You know how much I love chasing you,” he tells me. Tears slide down my cheeks before he nods his head. I don’t bother looking at Gary; I just take off running from the room.

I don’t know where to go. I don’t know where they won’t find me. This is Gannix’s house. He knows every fucking spot to hide in here.

I rush down the stairs and have to make a decision. I creep toward the back door and sneak out before running toward the maze. Surely he’ll think I’m inside and look there, right? I’ll come up with a new plan, one that will get me off this property.

I run through the maze as far back as I can and crouch down in the corner as tears fall down my cheeks. How did this all go so wrong? How did I ever think he had something good in him? He clearly doesn’t. He never cared about me like I thought he did.

My chest aches. What we had was strange and not normal, but it felt right. It felt like I finally found someone who knew me, who cared about me, who didn’t look at me like I was a joke.

I reach up and wipe my face as I glance around. There’s nothing out here, just the hedges. There’s nothing to use as a weapon.There’s nowhere to go. The only exit is actually the entrance. The maze makes a full circle when you think about it.

I shouldn’t have come in here. I shouldn’t have run into the maze. There’s no way out.

Chapter 35

Gannix

The pain in my head is almost more than I can take. I want so badly to lie down, but I can’t. Not when she’s out there. How the fuck did this happen to me now? Why?

“You ready to hunt?” Gary asks as I smirk at him.

“Born ready.” He laughs as he collects the bow and arrows from the garage, passing me one. We head back inside, ready to fire at a moment's notice. I’m so fucking dizzy I don’t know if I’d hit my mark even if I tried.

We creep through the house and I watch as Gary moves into one of the bedrooms first. I follow him inside just as an arrow whizzes through the room. My attention snaps to the middle of the room just to see the arrow coming my way. It slams into my shoulder as I howl in pain.

“What the fuck?” I roar as I reach up and pull it free, tossing it to the floor.

“You think I believe you, Nix? That you want to kill her after you stole her?” He asks, aiming at me once more.

“I made a mistake,” I yell at him.

“No. You’re lying to me,” he screams. I watch him pull the arrow back before I quickly dip out of the room and rush as fast as I can down the hall and into another room. I stand back, arrow ready if he opens that door.

Emerson. Fuck, my Emerson. She’s out there somewhere. If she were smart, she wouldn’t still be inside because that’s where he thinks she is.

When the door doesn’t open, I sneak toward it, pull it open, and peek my head out. I don’t see him but I know he isn’t far. I slip out of the room and creep down the hall, using my senses the best I can, but with this headache, it’s harder than it usually is.

I check the other rooms and reach for the closet door when I hear him scream behind me. I spin around as he comes racing toward me with an arrow in his hand, ready to stab it through my chest. Even with shaky hands, I fire.

The arrow hits Gary, and he stumbles back as I ready another. I fire it off next, and this time, he falls to the floor. I pull another and have it in my hand the same way he did as I make my way toward him.

“You bastard! Dad would be … be so disappointed in you,” he snarls, blood spraying from his lips.

“Dad ruined us. He fucked us over and then left us to fend for ourselves. We’re fucking sick, Gary!”

“No. You’re … sick. You chose her … over family,” he says as he watches me.

“I can’t keep doing this, Gary. Don’t you get that? I don’t want this!”

“You do! You’re a fucking Nelson.” He tries to growl through the pain. I shake my head as I raise the arrow over his heart. “Don’t,” he pleads with me.

“She means more to me. Her life means more than yours,” I scream at him as I bring the arrow down and plunge it into his chest.

I blink rapidly as I look at what I’ve done. I’m no good for her. I know that much. I’m not what she needs, no matter how much I’ve tried to convince myself that I am.

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