Page 141 of Break The Ice

I try to break free of the river of people, but they have me caught, and there is no escape. I end up outside in the car park, being jostled, as I desperately search back and forth for my pack.

Callan appears out of thin air, looking strong, healthy, and furious. I call for him. His head snaps in my direction.

“Raider!”

He turns away. But, in seconds, he’s rushing towards me. Kit runs after him, but Kit looks awful, his face is swollen like he’s been hit, and he’s been crying.

“What happened?” I manage to get out.

It’s getting easier to hold the drugs at bay, but my head still feels slow and woozy. My balance isn’t great either, and I keep getting these waves of heat.

Callan grabs me, and I realise just how bad I was listing, but I keep my eyes on Kit and his bloody lip.

“What happened?” I whisper and reach out, touching his lip so gently, yet he still winces.

“It doesn’t matter, it’s done,” Kit says.

“Where’s Ryann?” Callan asks.

That stumps me for a whole five seconds.

“I don’t know. They shot me full of…” I stop, hunting for the word, but it’s elusive. “Something. I haven’t seen Wren either.”

I grab at my head and let out a distressed whine.

Callan and Kit exchange a long look. “She wouldn’t abandon us, not if she thought we were inside.”

“We go back in?” Callan asks.

Kit nods. “We have to find her. He’s here.”

“Yes!” I say too loud. “Wesley!” I snarl. “How can he be Wesley?”

Callan and Kit whip their heads in my direction.

“What?”

“It’s Wesley. He’s the one. It all makes sense. He knew our trap. He was here to fuck up my skates. Wesley is new to the team. He knew where she was and who she was with, and he was there with us at the pub.”

I nod my head three times, but the Earth keeps rolling. I vomit, hard.

“We need to find you some help, Raider,” Kit murmurs and brushes my hair back.

“No, we need to help Ryann. She needs us.”

“All right, let’s go, then,” Kit murmurs.

Callan helps me turn. It’s a mammoth task fighting the crowd, and I’m jostled more than once, closing my eyes in agony, but we make it inside. Just in time, too, because I can see the police and security rushing towards us as we speak.

“Where would she go?” Kit says with a gasp.

Someone turns and apologizes to him but keeps running for the exit. Kit holds his ribs and looks in both directions.

“Where’s Wren? The last I saw, he was on the ice?” I whisper and swallow my nausea.

Callan jerks Kit behind him to avoid him getting hit again, but the movement almost dislodges me, and I stumble, almost falling.

“Fuck, Raider, what did they give you?” Callan mutters. “Okay, Kit, take my phone to see if you can work out where she is.”