Page 32 of Darkness Falls

We make quick work of our escape, and I finally let myself believe this is really happening. The trees begin to thin in front of us, signaling we are nearly to the road, and I see a figure standing there waiting for me.

My heart skips a beat, and I turn to Sebastian to shove the notebook at his chest before sprinting toward the figure in the distance. As the space between us closes, I make out more of his features. His tattoos and the dimples from his smile are the last things I see before launching myself at him and jumping into his arms.

My arms wrap around his neck, and my legs around his waist. Immediately, his arms close around me, and I snuggle my face into his neck. He smells like vanilla, leather, and home. Exactly as I remembered.

He leans down to kiss the top of my head and whispers, "Hey, princess."

Tears well up in my eyes, and I tighten my hold on him. "I missed you so much," I cry into his neck.

He holds me likethat for a few minutes as we let our bodies relax into one another again. When I finally pull my head back to look at him, he crashes his lips onto mine. We get lost in an all-consuming kiss, letting our tongues dance together. He bites my bottom lip, and I pull his into my mouth, sucking on it.

After a few minutes, I'm left breathless and staring right into the green eyes that I love so much. My hands move to cup both of his cheeks, and I say the words I've been holding onto for longer than I ever intended to.

"I love you. I love you so much, and I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to tell you before."

I try to kiss him again, but he stops me. "You never had to tell me, Callie. I already knew how you felt. I love you, too."

"You still love me?" I ask, needing the reassurance of hearing it one more time.

"I've felt nothing but pure misery since you've been gone. Pain felt like pain. There is no pleasure in it without you, princess. The only thing that kept my panic at bay was knowing we would get you back."

"I've been through so much," I tell him, choking on a strangled sob.

"I know. We’ll make it all alright again. I love you so damn much."

My body comes alive at his words. Barrett will know how to take the pain I've endured and turn it into something beautiful. He places one more chaste kiss on my lips before lookingover to Seb, who is now standing next to us. "Let's get the hell out of here and get our girl home."

He drops my feet to the ground, and Barrett slides into the back row of the SUV with Seb as I slide into the middle beside my mother, who is waiting for me. I glance up to the front and see the nurse who helped me with my burn in the passenger seat and Soren in the driver's seat. She gives me a faint smile but doesn’t say anything.

"Soren will drop us off at the airport," Seb says from behind me, and all I do is nod.

I lean my head on my mother’s shoulder and close my eyes as Soren drives us away from Rogue. For the second time in my life, I'm leaving this place in the rearview mirror. The only difference this time is that I'm surrounded by the people I love.

Chapter 15

Kyler

I've been pacing around this damn pool house cell since they told me they got her into the SUV safely. I should've been there with them. The fact that they drugged me and put me down here was complete bullshit. I could have killed both of them when I woke up and realized what they did.

They left me with all the essentials, my meds, a laptop, and a newly stocked mini fridge full of food. It was planned all along. Sebastian was never going to let me go with them. He only went along with it to trick me, and he's lucky it all worked out. If he locked me down here and they weren't able to get her out or something happened to her, I don’t know what I would be capable of doing, but it wouldn’t end well for him.

For now, I'm impatiently waiting for her to get home. The plane should have landed by now, and they should be here soon, but it feels like an eternity. The irony of me pacing around in this cell waiting for her to come see me isn't lost on me. We've come full circle, considering it was her pacing around this very room when she first came into our lives.

Click. I turn around, and my gaze falls on the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. Her hazel eyes stare back at me, and for a moment,we are frozen in place, both incapable of believing that we are back with one another.

She's lost weight, and the bags under her eyes are darker than they used to be. There are faint bruises around one of her wrists that look like fingerprints. The other looks like it’s been rubbed raw by something. It truly looks like she’s been through hell. Seeing her like this breaks my heart.

"Wanderer." Her nickname leaves my lips as a smile takes over my face.

"Ky," she whispers as if she's been waiting for this moment but still doesn't believe it's happening.

I extend my arms, and she runs into them before I secure her tightly in my embrace. I take a few moments to breathe her in, but her familiar grapefruit scent is missing. We're going to have to rectify that. My girl needs to have all of her essentials readily at hand whenever she wants. I squeeze her tighter, making a mental note to never let her go now that she's back in my arms where she belongs.

"Tell me this is real, wanderer. Tell me you're here and that I won't wake up to find that it was another dream."

"I'm here, Ky. And I'm not going anywhere ever again." She pulls back to look up at me, and I bring my hands up to caress her cheeks. I lean in and kiss her tenderly.

This girl is my entire world, and I don't think she has any clue what she really means to me. I grip her chin, and her eyes lock with mine. "You are what kept me fighting. Through every part of the darkness, my thoughtswere only on you. You led me back, Callie."

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