Page 64 of Catching Fire

Sanders probably knew the area well. She didn't. He had every advantage, but she had every will to live. Seline stumbled, stubbing her big toe on a thick root, but didn't care. Her feet sank into muddy spots, slipped over mossy patches, and took nicks and cuts as she ran. She barely felt any of it as she pushed forward, knowing that if he caught her, she was as good as dead.

“You bitch!”he bellowed, as if any of this was her fault.

Seline kept running. She heard him behind her, his heavy footsteps pounding in time to her thumping heart.

She heard the chirping of birds, as though they didn’t understand what was happening on the ground. She heard twigs snap beneath her feet, and branches slapping and scraping at her clothes. She heard the car in the distance behind her.

Her feet kept moving as though with a mind of their own. She took a hard right, ducking between trees, hoping to get out of his line of sight. Why hadn’t she worn a color that would blend better into the forest today? She didn't know. Surely her feet were cut by now, but she couldn't feel it. Her adrenaline was far too high, her breath soughing in and out of her lungs as she ran.

She could have thrown the shoes, but they were the only weapon she had. So she clutched them tight. Maggie said she'd used one of her heels against Geller. So Seline—whose brain was racing at sixty miles a minute—decided she could do the same.

She bolted forward, ducking between trees, listening as she plowed through the underbrush and, behind her, the heavy beat of Sanders’ boots came closer and closer.

She looked again to the right.Why could she hear the car?

She could hear it because it wason!He had left the keys in the ignition!

If she got there first, she could get away. She cut to the right again, hoping to make a triangle back to where she’d started, but immediately she ducked left again. If she turned too sharply, she would give Sanders the advantage of realizing what she was doing and cutting her off. She couldn't afford any wrong moves. She had to lead him in a wide enough circle that he followed her.

Merde!Despite the adrenaline, she could feel her body tiring. How far had she come? But it didn’t matter, she wasn’t a runner. She might be getting tired, but she had to keep going.

Seline was confident she could hear him right behind her. Her own skin felt tight, her blood bitter with terror.But surely he wasn't, she told herself. She’d gotten a reasonable lead. She couldn't afford to turn around and look back, so she told herself she was far enough in front and she ran further, faster. She put on an extra burst of speed, leaping over fallen trees, and diving through bushes.

She stubbed her toe again and didn’t even feel it, but gravity did. She tumbled forward, hands hitting the ground, the heels of the shoes she was somehow still gripping digging into the dirt because she refused to let go.

She tucked her shoulder and rolled gain. But though she stood back up and started running as quickly as she could, in that short time she'd seen him. William Treat Sanders was behind her, and far too close.

She couldn't outrun him. She didn’t have the skills or the stamina. He was faster, in better shape, and that fucker had boots! It was not fair. But she didn’t have to outrun him for long. If she could just get back to the car...

She followed the path, or what she thought was a path and was dumped onto the gravel road. This time, the car was just on her right and she turned to make her final bid for safety. But she almost stopped dead, realizing it washer own carwaiting in the road. Door open, engine running. This asshole had kidnapped her inher owncar.

How would they find her? How would they even know she was gone?

Her car wasn’t abandoned somewhere. He’d cleaned up and made it look as if she’d simply left to run errands. Help wouldn’t be coming until it was far too late.

Seline was going to have to save herself. Putting on an extra burst of speed, she pushed as fast as she could. Even as she heard the heavy thud of his boots, getting closer and closer behind her, she didn't bother to take the time to look back.

So it was a complete surprise when she was tackled to the ground. Her face was pressed into the gravel as he rolled, taking her with him. Heavy arms held her close, pulling her tightly against his chest. She couldn’t see him, but she knew who and what he was, so Seline fought with everything she had. She screamed her loudest, fiercest shriek to the sky. She kicked with her legs, slapped with the shoes, as he grabbed each one and tossed it into the woods.

“Nooooo!”Now her scream was a word. He’d taken her only weapons. She was in a stupid pantsuit and the heels had been the only things he had left her.

“Get up, bitch.” He dragged her up with him, her arms pinned at her side in his vicelike hug. Though she kicked with everything she had, her bruised heels did nothing against the thick fabric of his jeans. At best, she’d bruised him.

She leaned forward and slammed her head backward in a sudden burst of speed. But he must have seen it coming. Her blow didn't connect.

In her ear she could feel his warm breath as he laughed at her, the sound just making her furious. She couldn't even get a hold of him to dig her nails in anywhere. Sanders stood upright, hauling her backward as he headed toward the car.

In a last ditch effort, she let go of every bit of muscle tone. Dead weight was harder to carry. It worked! He grunted as she nearly slipped from his hands.Yes!she thought.

But he ducked down, the quick move wrapping his arms tighter and hauled her up even closer to him. His grip not only pinned her arms to her side now, but plausibly cracked her ribs, as he whispered, “You're not getting away, you little bitch.”

He hauled her back to her own car. Though she fought like a hellcat, her blows did nothing while Sanders managed to grab her clothing and haul her around with it. It took a few moments and gave her a few fleeting shots of hope, before he managed a solid grip on the front of her suit and used it to slam her backward.

Seline’s head smacked against the warm metal of the car and a wave of dizziness and nausea overtook her, as everything spun. She fought to surface into the real world. But even as she did, she felt the needle go into her neck again.

Chapter Forty

Seline woke slowly. Her pounding skull was the driving force pulling her out of the blackness.

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