Page 74 of Knot Unwanted: Part Two

“Stay down!” I call to Hailey as I push the accelerator to the floor. The vehicle responds, shooting forward into the darkness.

Our pursuers aren’t far behind, their headlights growing in the mirror as they give chase. The narrow road twists through the forest, each curve a test of nerve and skill. Every fiber of my being becomes focused on keeping us alive, keeping us ahead.

“I’m sorry,” I tell Hailey as we hit a particularly rough patch, the vehicle bouncing violently. “Everything will be okay, sweetheart. Just a little longer.”

She makes a noise that might be acknowledgment, might be pain. I can’t spare the attention to check on her properly, not with death on our heels and the road demanding every ounce of my concentration.

We burst out of the forest onto a wider, paved road. A main highway. For a moment, I think we might lose them in the traffic. Blend in with other vehicles. But at this early hour, the road is nearly empty.

The dark van swerves out behind us, still in pursuit, gaining ground on the smoother surface. The familiarity of it all—the chase, the speed, the life-or-death stakes—brings the memories crashing back with devastating clarity.

Rain. Night. The logging truck appearing suddenly. Finn’s voice: “Ren, watch out!” My decision, made in a split second. The choice that nearly killed him.

I think I’m hallucinating when a truck appears ahead, pulling out from a side road, its high beams momentarily blinding me. Just like before. History repeating itself with cruel precision.

But this time is going to be different.

“I’m not making the same choice,” I growl through gritted teeth. “We’re both surviving this. Both of us!”

The idiots behind us are still in hot pursuit, too close, too fast. They don’t see the truck yet. Won’t have time to react.

But I can.

In one fluid motion, I pull the handbrake and wrench the wheel hard, sending us skidding into the lane the truck is pulling out from. We miss its massive grill by inches, the vehicle fishtailing once more before I regain control.

Our pursuers aren’t so lucky. By the time they spot the truck, it’s too late. Their vehicle slams into it at full speed, the impact sending up a shower of glass and twisted metal. The sound of the collision is deafening, even through our closed windows.

I don’t slow down to watch. I accelerate away, putting as much distance between us and the wreckage as possible. My heart pounds against my ribs, adrenaline making my vision sharper, my reflexes faster.

“Ren,” Hailey whimpers from the back seat. There’s fear in her voice, but also relief. She knows we’ve escaped.

I glance in the rearview mirror, meeting her eyes. They’re clearer now, some of the heat-haze receding in the face of our near-death experience.

“It’s alright,” I tell her, and for the first time since this nightmare began, I actually believe it. “Everything will be alright now.”

We still have a long way to go. Heath is still out there. Caldwell might have survived. The heat drugs in Hailey’s system won’t fade for days.

But we’re alive. We’re together. And somehow, I’m driving again.

“Rest,” I tell Hailey softly. “We’ll be home soon.”

Home. The word feels different now. Fuller. It’s not just a place anymore. It’s her. It’s us.

And despite everything, I’m finally, cautiously, allowing myself to hope.

Chapter 16

Hailey

We’ve escaped.

The realization filters through the haze of heat and need that clouds my mind. We made it. We’re alive. The dark van with its guns and threats is gone, reduced to twisted metal behind us. Ren saved us.

Ren.

His scent fills the vehicle—sandalwood and smoke and something distinctly alpha that makes my insides clench with want. I curl tighter into myself on the back seat, pressing my thighs together to stem the ache between them. It doesn’t help. Nothing helps.

The heat is building again, stronger now that the immediate danger has passed. It’s like my body has decided to surrender to the chemicals Heath pumped into me the moment it sensed safety. Slick coats my thighs, pooling beneath me on the leather seats. I should be embarrassed, but I’m beyond that now, beyond anything but this consuming need.

---