Page 26 of Love Bleeds Red
It had to have been Leon.
I’m thinking about saying something to him. Except, I have no idea how to bring it up. He’s not like any of the guys I’ve talked to and that scares me more than I’d ever admit to anyone.
I wish I had someone to go to for advice, but all my friends are busy doing amazing things this summer. Chloe is backpacking through Europe with her family. Rachel is road-tripping across the country to go to her cousin’s wedding in California. And anyone else is either happily coupled or we’re not close enough to talk guy stuff with. They don’t need me to bother them.
Which is probably why I’ve been using this journal like a lovesick eleven-year-old with a crush. It’s helping though… getting my thoughts on paper.
I guess I’ll write again if I ever get up the nerve to really talk to him.
CHAPTER TEN
BAILEY - BEFORE
Shriveledleaves crunch beneath my feet as I run faster than I’d thought possible. Arms pumping, I sprint, weaving through tree trunks, and for the first time in forever, I feel alive. My chest heaves but I manage to suck in enough air to keep going—clean air, forest air, free air. I’m so close. The road is right there… if only I can run faster.
My limbs feel lighter than ever before, like I could float away from all this. Or maybe that’s just the knowledge that I’ve finally escaped. Only a few more feet and I’ll be free. I can hug Mom and Dad… Jasper. Damon. Leon. If he’ll still have me once he finds out what they did to me. How they used me.
Dawn creeps through the canopy, painting everything golden. Almost there.
Almost—
“Bailey!”
My name slices through the morning air like a blade. I whip my head around, stumbling. No. No. No. I’m so close. That voice—it follows me even into sleep. King’s voice.
“You can’t get away from me, pet! I own you!”
When I turn back, the trees have moved. Impossibly and silently, they’ve shifted closer, their branches reaching for me like twisted fingers. The golden dawn light dies, swallowed by shadows that seem to breathe.
“Bailey, I’m here. Run to me!”
It’s Leon’s voice that drifts through the darkness now, so close I could almost touch him.
Two voices… one of my dreams and one of my nightmares.
I reach toward his familiar cadence, trying to show him where I am. That I’m so close. But bark bites into my palms. The trees have become a cage, the branches weaving tighter as I desperately push against them. I writhe free, the sound of his voice giving me strength even with needle-sharp limbs piercing my skin, and warm blood dripping down my arms.
“Leon!” I scream from deep within my chest, but it’s no more than a whisper. “I’m right here. Can’t you see me?”
He’s calling my name, over and over, but I can’t reach him. I can never reach him. I can’t help the hot tears that stream down my cheeks.
The branches wrap around me like coarse, skin-tearing rope, like gnarled hands, squeezing and choking until there’s nothing left but King’s laughter echoing against my lifeless, blood-streaked body.
“I own you. I will always own you.”
My eyes snap open to darkness. Real darkness. Familiar darkness. I hold my hands up, checking for scratches, but of course, there’s nothing there but my dry, chafing knuckles. Just another dream. But it felt so real… and Leon, his voice was so close.
Could it mean he’s searching for me? It’s silly to hope at this point. It’s been so long now. But imagining that they’ve given up on me—my family, my friends… him. It’s too painful to bear.
Cat snores softly in the bed beside me, anchoring me back to the present. We’ve been allowed to share a room. A small comfort since they brought us to this new house.
Hours go by while I toss and turn, picturing that dark wood. When the morning sun shines through the dirty glass, I finally get up, and pad to the window as quietly as I can.
The trees must span miles. Bare like dark spines crowding the vast landscape. I’m grateful for the view anyway. It’s something external to focus on in this nightmare.
We’ve been in this house for a few months now. Or at least I think. I haven’t been able to keep track of time as much as I’d like. After the last party, Yuri and a few of his guys moved us here. Cat heard whispers about a suspicious neighbor tipping off the cops, but that could have been wishful thinking. Though I swear I saw the same dark sedan parked across the street three times the week before we were moved. The windows were tinted, but there had to be a person sitting inside—watching, waiting.
I knew from the start that first house was somewhere to keep us short-term. I guess I never thought about what would happen next beyond my small hope that I’d be able to escape… or be rescued.
