Page 27 of Entangled

beat on someone else instead.

The coals are toasty, and orange shards still glow between piles of dusty ash.Finally. I close my eyes, taking a shuddery breath as relief crashes through me. Hard.

Jayk straightens, then starts checking the surrounds for exit tracks.

It’s been over a week since Eden was taken, and we’ve had setback after setback—the slow start before Lucky woke up, the day it took to find the trail, the rain that washed away their tracks, and the additional day it took to find them again.

It’s killing me.

We’ve been travelling through the night, hardly stopping, and tonight is no different. We can’t stop. Not yet. Each wasted step is another spear of guilt, another gut twist of fear, another moment where any goddamned thing could be happening to her. No matter how hard we’ve pushed, we’ve been stuck behind—too far behind.

But not anymore.

This camp isfresh.

Jasper finally catches up and stops beside us. He’s sweaty and bent at the waist, supporting himself on his knees as he breathes hard. It’s odd seeing him in a Ranger kit—it looks like a costume—but I’m glad he’s on our short radio comms. There are tired rings around his eyes. Probably around mine too. None of us have had more than one hour recharge naps since the battle for Bristlebrook.

“The fuck are you waiting for? Let’s move,” Jayk snaps at us, then stalks into the trees.

Not again.

I shove up out of my crouch. “Stop, Jayk. God damn it. We need a plan first.”

Jayk flips me off from behind. “Fuck shit up, get the girl. Plan done.”

Jasper and I exchange a long look, and he grimaces as he stands. We need to jog to catch up to Jayk.

The bastard has been on a warpath since we realized Eden was gone—the kind that has him charging ahead recklessly and taking hits at us whenever he loses his shit. The kind that will get us killed and no closer to saving Eden if he doesn’t pull his damn head out of his ass. They could be anywhere in these woods.

It’s probably not even an Eden thing—she’s not his type and it’s not like him to get attached anyway. This is probably bringing up old shit from when he lost his brother. He can’t deal with losing people he feels responsible for.

I get that.

“Stop, idiot.” I grab his shoulder, and he shoves me back.

“Dominic is right,” Jasper says firmly. “We should take a moment to plan.”

“Youtake a moment, old man. Sit your ass down if you can’t keep up.” Sneering, Jayk unslings his gun from around his shoulder, either not seeing or not caring how Jasper’s face ices over. Then he looks me up and down. “And you’ve already lost her once. Neither one of you can protect her for shit.”

That one catches me under the ribs, and I take the hit hard.

Ididn’tprotect her. I let Eden back out into the woods for all the wolves to find. She was my responsibility, and I failed her, just like I failed our first group of civilians. All my shitty protection gotthemwas a dead kid and an attempted coup. They were right to walk out.

I remember Eden’s slow, shy smile and the flick of her hair as she left to get more ammunition for us. Forme. And I let hergo.

Jaykob smirks, and I’ve had it with this shit. Before I’ve even stopped to think about it, my fist is crashing into his jaw, and I’m tackling him to the ground. Jayk wraps his legs through mine, then snaps me over onto my back, rolling on top of me with a hard, practiced flip as he bares his bloodied teeth. He shoves his forearm into my throat, and I punch his ribs with hard pointed knuckles until he grunts.

“You should have watched her. You had one job, and if you gave two shits about her, you would have fucking done it,” he snarls at me, and he grabs my fist when I go to punch him again. It throws his balance out, and I flip us again so we’re grappling in the dirt.

Jayk knees me in the thigh. “You don’t deserve totouchher.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jasper sigh, then sit heavily in the grass. “Projecting,” he mutters.

Ignoring him, I pull back and shove my knee into Jaykob’s solar plexus. “And you do?” I snap. “You think throwing her around and tying her to your bed is going to keep her safe? Keep herhappy? You’re lucky you have us around for damage control.”

Jasper takes a drink from his canteen. “Classicdefensive aggression.”

Jayk grabs the front of my shirt, then flips me over his shoulder. I hit the ground hard.Fuck. He’s the only one who can pull moves on me like this. He fights like a cornered street rat.

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