Page 147 of Ruthless Legacy

It’s a long shot, but it’s all we’ve got. Finn’s already at the door. “Meet you back here in ten.”

“Where are you going?”

“To change into my camis.” He scrunches his nose up at me. “I suggest you change, too. That outfit makes you stick out like a sore thumb.”

I glance over at Holden. “You staying here?”

“It’ll go faster if we’re all out there, and I’m the one who knows how Thea thinks in the woods, so I’m the best one to track her.”

“How do you-”

He gives me an exasperated look. “I made good use of the time when we were following her. And the few times I’ve chased her, has given me clues about how she reacts when she’s evading capture.”

He gets to his feet. “I suggest you do as Finn suggests, and change your clothes. If she is on a challenge, it’s one we’re not supposed to know about, so we don’t want to be too conspicuous.”

“Do you really think camouflage clothing is going to keep us out of trouble if we get caught somewhere we’re not supposed to be?”

“No, but it gives us an excuse. We can say we followed someone else, hoping they were leading us to one of their challenge items.”

That’s a good story. It’s a believable story. And we’ve relieved many groups of theirs. Never close to The Tomb. But we should only be there long enough to verify Thea’s car is still in the parking lot and look for another set of tracks leading to a hidden road.

I’m hoping whoever tasked her with a challenge, if thisisa challenge, isn’t making her walk out of there on foot.

Chapter59

Thea

Go back to the dorm. Meet me at Finn’s. I mimic after Pax drives away. He’s so in love with hearing himself talk that he never listens to anybody else.

I can’t go back to the dorms. The instructions I received before I came here tonight were clear about that, and only that. I would have mentioned it, if he hadn’t of dragged me out of the building.

I ignore the looks I get as I make my way back to The Tomb, pretending not to hear them whispering about who I matched with. I’d be happy to trade.

As soon as I reach the first landing of the stairs that lead to the common room of The Tomb, the lights go out, plunging me into darkness. A bag is shoved over my head, and I’m hauled off my feet. I force myself not to panic. I’ve been here before. Done this before. The people running indoctrination never let us see where we were going.

I’m being carried along. Someone holding my arms, the other my feet. It’s an effort not to fight back. When we finally come to a stop, they wrap something around my ankle. Before I can register what’s happening, I’m hurtling through the air.

The frigid water that breaks my fall sends sharp pricks through my skin. I swallow water as I submerge. I kick my feet. The weight of whatever is clamped around my ankle slows my ascent to the surface. I finally break my head above the water, gasping for air, and coughing up the water I swallowed.

Did the fuckers throw me off a cliff? I pull the hood off, my gaze darting left and right, searching for the shoreline. There’s a small flicker of light to my left.

My hip strains, and my legs burn, from the effort to tread water. I pull my knee to my chest, reaching for whatever’s around my ankle. The corded rope leads to a weight.

What the fuck? I’ll tire quickly if I keep fighting against the weight. Flipping over onto my back, I hold the weight with both hands, letting the water keep me afloat while I catch my breath. The stars wink down at me. The twinkly fuckers are laughing at me.

The end of the dumbbell moves as I shift my hold on it. I turn back over, treading water again, to get a better look at it. The end is loose. I screw it off. When I turn it over, sand comes rushing out, along with piece of paper.

Water droplets land on the paper, smudging the ink. I commit the address and words to memory. There’s no way it’ll survive the swim. I don’t want to waste any time fighting with a wet rope out here. At least with the weight empty, I’m no longer at risk of drowning.

I slice through the water towards the light I saw. My arms burn when I finally reach the beach. I free my ankle as I try to get my bearings. I don’t know what side of the cliff I’m on. Looking up, I find my center, my star, then make my way west on the beach. The sand gives way to rocks and dirt and the path inclines. I’m already tired from my swim, but I force my legs to keep moving.

My skin itches as it dries, the denim from my jeans sticks to my skin. I don’t know how I’m going to get back. My car is in the public high school parking lot on the edge of town.

I keep walking, determined to at least get to a road. If I can find a street, a highway,somethingwith a sign, I have a better chance of figuring out where I’m going.

My body aches as I make my way back up to the top of the cliff. I’ll figure out how I’m getting to the starting point of my challenge afterwards.

I finally crest the top of the path and bend over to catch my breath. The entrance to The Tomb is yards away. I’m not going anywhere without my phone. I knock on the security door and wait for someone to come unlock the room where my phone is.

---