Escape

2

"Run, run" Nate is shouting as he turn around towards me. But I'm more preoccupied about knowing if James is following us.

He is a few meters behind me, Nate leading in front. We are running in the woods without even knowing where we are going. Our only goal is to run away form these men.

We run for five strong minutes before I realize James isn't following anymore. He is not behind me anymore. I stop abruptly in my race.

"Nelly, Nelly!" someone is screaming far away.

"James? James!" I shout back. "James?" and I turn back around to run in the opposite direction toward him. I have to go find him, I can't escape without him. But Nate catches me sooner and shuts me up by pressing his hand against my mouth to prevent me from shouting again.

"Stop screaming or they're going to find us"

I face him "James is not here anymore, I need to go back and find him. I-" I turn my head to look at where he was screaming at me from moments ago, in panic. But our companion grabs my shoulders to make me look at him.

"You can't go back there, you don't know what they're capable of."

"But James, he's-" I stop talking when I hear steps moving toward where James was "N-" my eyes open wide and I'm about to shout and run to catch them up but Nate presses his hand against my mouth again and circles my waist with his arm so that I won't be able to move. I try to fight him uselessly as he holds me firmly and makes us back up and hide behind a big tree to so we won't be seen.

James and the men who have now found him have their backs turn at us. I know they caught him when he start screaming and beg for them to release him. I fight and try my best to release myself from Nate's hold as well but he won't let me go and is much stronger than me so it's useless. I scream in his palm, but it's muffled.

"You! Go and find the two others!" One of the men commands "I'm bringing this one back to the truck."

"If I release you, you have to promise me you won't do something stupid." Nate whispers in my hear when I've calmed down, "no shouting, no running after your boyfriend, complete silence." He says.

I can feel the tears leaving my eyes to end up on his fingers. It's impossible for me to find it in me to answer. I can't leave James with them, I can't abandon him. I have to go save him or they're going to hurt him.

"You have to promise me Nelly, over wise we're dead." he insists looking me dead in the eyes.

I'm crying even more now because if them catching us means we're dead, then what is waiting for James now? They are coming closer and closer to where we are so I have to make a decision, I have to accept and promise. I barely start nodding that Nate releases me and grabs my arm to lead us to a bigger tree.

"I need you to calm down and focus" he says and gives me a few seconds to collect myself. I sniff, wipe the tears away and nod even though there is a huge bulge in my throat, a sob threatening to come out any moment now and I don't trust myself in not running away to go found James. "There's a cave right underneath us," he says, "if we manage to get to it we'll be able to hide until they leave." I nod and wipe the tears that just fell down my cheeks.

I take a deep breath and look for the cave and finally find it. It's entrance is right underneath us, in order to get there we'll have to jump from where we are and the distance is considerably high which isn't reassuring at all.

"You'll jump first and I'll create a diversion alright?" His face turns toward me the very moment when one of the men appears in my field of vision. By reflect I tip us over on the overside of the tree, thankfully the man's back was facing us. After checking that our kidnappers can't see us, Nate looks at me again.