Page 63 of Fighting the Darkness

“Oh, you can’t leave your bike on the side of the road.” Her eyes blink rapidly, clarity there and then gone in a flash, worrying me.

“It’ll be fine. You’re in no shape to drive or ride on the back of my bike. I’ll have someone drop me here later so I can pick it up.” I hesitate for a moment. “Do you know where your phone is?”

She shrugs, her eyes scanning the area up front before popping open the glove box and holding it up triumphantly. “Got it.”

“Good. Call your mom. Tell her you’re fine, and that you went on a hike. Tell her you needed to clear your mind or something—whatever you have to do to convince her not to send cops to my place.”

Her lips turn up at the corner for a moment before it falls away and she nods. “I will.”

Shutting the door and walking away from her is one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. All I want to do is pull her into my arms and hold her close. Tell her that everything will be okay—even when I don’t know what’s wrong.

But I need to get her somewhere she feels safe—which is apparently my house. I don’t deserve for her to feel safe there considering how I treated her the last time I saw her, but I’ll do whatever I can to help her. And in order to do that, I need to make sure my bike is safe.

I wince as I see the way I dropped her on the ground. I carefully pull it upright and pull the keys from the ignition where I left them. I roll it further from the road, putting down the kickstand this time.

“I’m sorry for the way I treated you, beauty,” I whisper, running my hand along the bike. “But her life is more important than anything else in the world. I hope you understand.”

I head for the SUV and climb inside just as Freya is hanging up the phone.

“How did that go?”

She scoffs. “About as well as you think it did, but she believed me. She calmed down a lot when I told her we were heading to your place. She trusts you.”

She probably shouldn’t, and I’m sure she wouldn’t if she even knew half of the thoughts I’ve had about Freya. But that’s neither here nor there.

Starting the SUV, I turn back to Freya. “Do you think you can tell me what happened?”

“I guess,” she sighs. “But can I tell you while you’re driving?”

“Whatever makes you most comfortable.” I flip the SUV around and head back toward my house as I listen to her. She tells me what happened with Griffin and what happened when Soren walked in on them. How hurt she was and how jumbled her thoughts were. The pain. The panic. The voices.

With every word, my heart beats faster. All it would’ve taken was me being a minute later, and I would’ve lost her. She would’ve lost the chance to live just when she realized how much she wanted to live. Panic and rage war within me as she falls silent once her story is complete.

I glance at her, finding her staring out the window, expressionless. “Freya?”

No answer.

I lean over, placing my hand on her thigh and shaking her. “Freya?”

Again, nothing.

Fuck. What am I supposed to do?

I connect my phone to the SUV and dial Griffin.

“Wilder? Did you find her?”

I grunt. “I did, and she told me what happened. We’re heading to my house. I expect you there when we get there. She stopped responding to me after telling me what happened. It’s like she’s here but not. I’m afraid of where her mind is slipping too right now.”

“Then bring her to a goddamn hospital!”

“No, she wanted to go to my house, so that’s where I’m taking her. Meet me there. If I have to hunt the two of you down, you won’t like it.”

“Fuck.” Griffin sighs. “We’ll be there. Just get her there safely.”

“Of course I will, dick.”

Disconnecting the call, I shake my head. Glancing over at Freya once more, she still hasn’t moved.

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