Page 83 of Through The Woods

Clint patted my hair, ignoring Axel’s question. “Neve, we’re going to get you out of here, I promise. I was strung out on some bad shit the last time and I got paranoid. I’m done—no more playing Blade’s games.”

Axel looked between us, clearly puzzled by Clint’s confession. “You know what? It doesn’t matter—surely Doc has Narcan lying around. We just need to get enough in you to reverse this shit.” He remained calm and lifted me up gently in his arms, my head lolling back onto his shoulder, while Clint grabbed my legs as they carried me toward the back door.

The two of them navigated the porch steps two at a time, doing their best not to jar my body.

I wanted to remind Axel that Doc kept everything in the basement, but it was getting harder and harder to stay conscious. We moved unevenly across the gravel, as the frigid mountain breeze blew directly into my face, like nature’s own oxygen mask.

“I’ll get you into the truck and then I’ll grab the—” Axel stumbled, but recovered and took another step before I heard the popping sound again and then he fell forward, forcing me out of Clint’s grasp and crushing me under his weight.

He exhaled and blood ran from the corner of his mouth like tears. He forced himself onto his arms before rolling off of me. “Run, Neve. Run and don’t stop.” He wheezed as he inhaled, expelling more blood when he let it out.

The footsteps grew closer, but I couldn’t move any part of my body. Clint tried to untangle himself from the both of us and I wasn’t sure whether it was to offer aid or flee. I also didn’t know what exactly was on that coffee table, but I was willing to bet my left leg it was more than just blow.

Axel held my gaze and I watched, horrified as the life drained from his eyes, until he was staring beyond to something I couldn’t see. He let out a small exhale, but didn’t draw another breath. I wanted to cry out—to scream—anything, but my body remained frozen.

My friend had just been murdered right in front of me.

The footsteps stopped at our feet and then Axel’s body was yanked off of me and thrown aside before Blade fired another two rounds into his skull. “I always hated that fucker.”

If there were any doubts at all, I was now absolutely certain that he was the man who’d been in Clint’s house that night as he leaned down toward me with a menacing smirk. “Not such a high and mighty bitch now that your bodyguard’s gone, are ya?”

Without Axel obscuring my view, I quickly realized why Clint hadn’t run. Blade held the gun on him, keeping him rooted to the spot. I silently willed him to make a break for it, pleading with my eyes. Instead of taking the hint, Clint cried out, “What the fuck did you give her?”

Blade rolled his eyes, but never once lowered his weapon. “I had to force it into her, Clint. She was fighting like a wildcat—you never mentioned how feisty she was. I thought she’d be more willing to tell us where the money was with a little snow in her veins.”

Surprisingly, Clint didn’t back down as he spat, “I’ve told you she doesn’t know where it is.”

Blade ground his teeth together, his jaw popping out as he did it. “And you’ll forgive me if I don’t buy a fucking thing you say right now. We had a deal, you fucked me over. Now, we do things my way.”

Clint held both hands out in front of him, as if he thought it would placate him. “I hear you and I will get you the money, but you fucked the plan when you dosed her with that coke. It’s laced.”

Blade lowered the gun. “What did you just fucking say?”

If I had use of my limbs, I would’ve chosen now to run as both men were completely distracted. As it was, I was forced to lie on the cold hard ground and fight for my next breath.

Clint ran his hands through his hair in frustration. Despite the freezing air, sweat ran down the sides of his face. “Uh, the coke—it was laced with fentanyl.”

Blade’s voice remained calm, but his stance revealed his rage. “Why would my blow be laced, Clint?”

Clint began walking toward him. “You swore to me that we’d get the money and nobody would get hurt—you said you were just going to scare her. You fucking stabbed her, Blade. I finally quit letting you do the thinking and laced your shit. That coke was a one-way ticket to Hell for you, fucker. We need to get Narcan in her. Now.”

Blade’s eyes widened in surprise. “I didn’t know you had it in you. Thing is, I don’t deal with you anymore.” He calmly fired a round right between Clint’s eyes and I tried with all my might to squeeze my eyes shut, but found that it was just one more part of my body no longer under my control.

Clint didn’t have a chance to react—he was dead before he even hit the ground, leaving me completely defenseless against Blade.

All this time, I’d thought that he was after Clint. It had always been me though. And Clint’s plan, while brilliant, didn’t exactly give me a sense of hope that I was going to make it out alive.

The sound of bikes carried through the trees and Blade tugged me up off the ground, dragging me along behind him like a rag doll. “Where’s the money, Neve? Oh, that’s right—you can’t fucking tell me, because he laced the coke with fentanyl. Goddamnit!” He roared the last word and dropped me onto the gravel.

I felt nothing, even as the toe of his boot connected with my abdomen repeatedly. Vomit was forced up again and Blade stopped kicking me long enough to turn me onto my side.

“You fucking bitch—you’re not checking out until I get the money. I’ve been crossed one too many times—Charm ever tell you about how his old man encroached on our territory?

“Dirt bags that had used me for years, suddenly got a better deal with Luck. He’d get ‘em hooked on his shit and off they’d go. He took something of mine, so I destroyed something of his—Rae was already strung out. Lacing her H with Apache was the easiest damn thing I’ve ever done. That fucker knew it was me too; he pulled out and then got himself dead. Guess he never bothered to fill Charm in on that though—dumbass came looking for a fucking partnership before Luck’s body was even cold. It’s funny—guess he’s gonna lose you to Apache too.”

I struggled to piece it all together. The thoughts floated around in the air above me along with a few snow flurries; the words looping together into one long strand of gibberish. I opened my mouth. “Prmmm…”

That wasn’t right.

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