𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐀𝐃𝐔𝐋𝐓 𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐒𝐎𝐅𝐓 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐒
Newly engaged couple Sierra and Nick were eager to graduate college and move in together-finally starting their happily ever after.
But life isn't...
Tw // this chapter contains content of suicide. Please more forward carefully.
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My limbs shake from the adrenaline as I sprint toward a horrified Ariella rooted to the spot next to my dog. "Where?" I ask breathlessly as we halt in front of her.
I hurry to pull up the FindMyFriends app on my phone, and Ari opens and closes her mouth, unable to articulate words.
"Where?!"
Her eyes widen and she jabs her finger in the southern direction. "Thanks," I say, tossing Eric my phone while dragging in a lungful of air. "They're not far," I say to him and Chris.
My dad called Eric as soon as Sierra vanished, and Ari called me. In the five minutes it took me to run over here with Eric, screaming sirens pierced through the air as Chris Rollins careened his police cruiser into the parking lot.
"Mike, Luke, stay with Ari!" I yell while backpedaling.
Debris and mud fly as I weave through trees at breakneck speed, yelling for Sierra as we continue through the woods. "Keep going straight up the hill!" Eric calls.
My lungs threaten to burst and hot pain shoots through my legs and hips, but I refuse to quit as we race up the hill and the woods thin out. Eric grabs my arms before I can get through the trees. "Wait!" He says through clenched teeth. "Keeping her alive depends on you staying cool."
Bright red scratches glare at me from Doug's neck, and the girl in his arms sports a thick cut on her lip. It's clear her face took a beating.
They stand perched near a car on the hilltop overlooking my neighborhood. Highway traffic on the other side breezes past as people carry on with their everyday lives like mine isn't flashing before me.
This is a nightmare. Sierra, in Doug's grip, while he points a gun at my dad. Without a doubt, either one of them will sacrifice themselves to save the other without hesitation.
My two best friends. Huge parts of my world are on the precipice of shattered pieces.
Her eyes are glassy, and her tone raspy. "Dad, please go."
All he does is advance a couple of steps, ignoring her plea. "Can't leave you, Bug."
"Nobody's getting shot," Sierra says, carefully stepping toward the car with his arm clutched around her. "We're getting in the car."
"Yeah, see? We're leaving."
My dad takes a gigantic step forward, extending his arms. "Stop right there. I need my daughter here safe." I curse as he steps forward again. "You can't leave."
I psych myself up to run out there, yanking out of Eric's grip, but he rips me back again. "Rollins has a body cam. Let Chris get out there."
"That's—that's my wife, man," I say, my voice unable to go above a whisper. My whole being aches to pull her into my arms and away from that monster. "I need to get out there."
