Page 5 of Demise

The only thing is, I have no idea what caused Trig to do this. I’m clueless as to why the man has betrayed us this way. I’ve known him for many years, and never once has he told me his story. The reason why he is who he is.

I know about the girls. I know about the violence he sometimes tries to contain, but hell, who am I to judge? I have my own shit. However, this… what he’s done? It can’t be forgiven. He’ll visit the butcher for it.

I take notice of the birds escaping the forest surrounding me when the high-pitched sound travels far and wide once again. My feet press

forward, and the mingled snow and gravel fly up behind me.

Chapter Five

Bexley

I squint as the piercing ring consumes my hearing. Tears spring to my eyes and my hand, trembling, covers my mouth. The gun meets the floor with a loud clank. Dark wood is now crimson as blood spills from his chest. I shot more than once. I made sure he couldn’t hurt us. I made sure he could never hurt us again.

The sound of gravel crunching demands my attention. Worry freezes my shoulders and my eyes look back to Danny lying on the floor. I leave the gun where it lies, knowing it’s empty of bullets.

My knees protest when I hit the floor next to Danny. I place my hand on his forehead.

“God, you’re burning up.” My eyes go back to Carson. “I did it, Danny. I did just what you would have. I did it for us…for Samuel,” I murmur. “I did it.” I blink, fixating on his stomach as the sound of a car grows closer. My vision blurs, and I wipe under my nose with my sleeve. “I…I gotta leave you here for just a little bit, okay?”

I wish I could stop the shake in my hands, and I wish I didn’t sound so afraid, but I am. I don’t know what I’ll do if he dies. I…I just can’t think about that right now. I won’t think about that.

I lean, cupping his face with my hands, worrying if they’re too cold. His lips are chilly, but they warm every part of me. I look at his closed lids, his dark eyelashes. My tears wet his skin, and I swallow, trying not to let my emotions overcome me. “I have to get you some help,” I breathe. “I’m going to get you some help.”

I bolt for the door and head down the porch steps, gasping when I trip over my feet.

I groan once I hit the ground, inhaling the air that was knocked from my chest as I turn over, coughing out a choked breath. I push up, wincing. Blood paints the snow and glistens off a jagged rock as my hand throbs.

Fresh blood mingles with Danny’s dried. My head whips toward a snapping branch in the woods. I narrow my eyes toward the sound. The hairs on the back of my neck stand and chills run down my arms. An uneasy feeling washes over me when the car comes speeding toward the cabin.

The snow is dense. Flakes get trapped on my eyelashes and I pick myself up, grimacing when my ankle throbs. Swaying a bit, I reach for the porch railing to steady myself.

The car has halted. I blink, adjusting to the thickness of the snow mingling with the sun’s rays. I shield my eyes as a dark figure approaches me.

“Bexley.”

A shriek-like cry tumbles from my mouth and I push away from the porch, limping. I attempt to speak, but I’m unable, choking instead, noticing the spit, feeling the drip of my nose. My chest burns, my eyes unclear. That familiar voice showers relief over me, resembling a blanket of fresh snow.

Maybe we’re out of this. Maybe this will be okay after all. Johnny grasps me by the arms.

“Jesus,” he says. His eyes dance over my face. “Are you okay? Where’s Bones?”

I gain some control of myself. “Cabin,” I blubber.

Johnny points to the porch step. “Sit down. I’m going to get him.”

I do as he says. My vision isn’t well, my mind resembling a foggy tunnel, dark with cracks, reality slipping through them. I lean my head against the railing, shutting my eyes for a moment. Is it hours or only minutes when I hear footsteps behind me?

I twist to look. “Danny?” I say, jumping up. “You’re…”

Chapter Six

Trig

Surrounded by impenetrable blackthorn, I hide well in the Barrens, my head throbbing from the cold sweeping over it. I watch as Bexley bolts from the cabin, tripping over the steps, falling face-first onto the ground. I make a move to go after her, but remember the oncoming vehicle speeding this way.

“Fuck,” I mutter, stepping back. My foot connects with a departed limb, snapping it in two. I freeze when her head snaps my way. With curious eyes that are also unfocused, she scans the supposedly empty forest, not knowing an evil lurks behind thorns and dead foliage.

I study her. Cheeks sunken in, white as the snow she lies on. Eyes wide, mouth agape. The coat she wears swallows her. It was a good deed I’d done, giving them something warm to cover their bones while they nearly starved to death.

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