The Corner Store

Chapter 35 - When is it ever the time?

Axel's POV Cont'd:

The drive there was weird. I was in and out of consciousness, and for the little time I was awake, my vision was blurry. Thankfully, They left my car and crammed us all into two black SUVs. They took the girls in one and left me, Spencer, and Landon, in one, knowing they'd need to keep an eye on us more than the already knocked-out girls. At least they did the human thing and restrained them with seatbelts. Spencer and Landon were relatively unharmed, minus a few scratches, bruises, and a dangerous shade of hatred in their eyes.

We drove over an hour from Sophia's house, passing by places I didn't recognize, but I knew Spencer did. It looked like he was making a mental map in his head. We passed the last stretch of houses over a half hour ago, and now we were on a sketchy back road surrounded by trees.

Of course my father would have a remote cabin. What other place would be perfect for making people disappear? The road was rough and uneven, making us jolt from side to side. Landon's head and mine butted on several occassions.

"Hey, can you morons maybe drive like normal human beings? We're being tossed around like cesar salad back here."

The man driving glared at him from the rear view mirror, the scar on his cheek decoarting his already horrednous face, and continued driving worse than he did.

"How long?" Asked the driver.

"Half an hour." Replied Kristoff, staring at his watch.

The driver sneered. "Good. I can't take these kids anymore. The one in the middle smells like a drunk sardine." Landon smirked at him, even though he doesn't smell at all.

"Easy. Boss wants them alive, and unharmed." said Kristoff.

Alive - for now. The words gnawed at my brain, especially that it was crystal clear that there was no turning back now. We're in this situation, and there's no way out of it. My cousin, my best friend, the girl of my dreams, and our friends -- I can't protect them anymore, not when we don't know what we're dealing with. So now, it's time to think about how I can get them out of here safely.

The stretch of asphalt road quickly gave way to a more bumpy, gravel road and this idiot's amateur driving turned into a nightmare.

"Unbelievable." Yelled Landon, his his hitting Spencer's. "Ow. Did you get your license at the back of a cereal box? Huh?"

"Hey, mate. This isn't the time." Whispered Spencer, trying not to let the magnitude of the head injury show.

"When is it ever the time?" Asked back Landon, sulking down in his place.

Spencer gave me a look, like he would sacrifice Landon in a heartbeat.

They continued driving on gravel for another twenty minutes or so, the sound of the tires scrunching was the only audible thing for miles.

"We're here, we're just waiting for your car to show." came a voice from Kristoff's radio.

"Copy that. We're a few mintues out." He replied, his hand subconsciously touching his holstered gun. He turned back to look at me with a daring smirk, as if saying that he won't hesitate to shoot any of us if I make one wrong move. I stared him down, not daring to show him any weakness. He eventually turned around to focus more on the road.

I looked out my window trying to see any identifying landmarks but it was pitch black. We were in the middle of nowhere outside of LA, driving in complete darkness, the only illumination coming from the dim moonlight and the car headlights.

The SUV stopped a few minutes later on a clearing. There stood an eerie cabin that could very well be a mental asylum straight out of the 1600's. Spencer and I shared a look, Landon joining in. There was an unsaid oath between us, that whatever shitshow we were about to walk in to; we're in it together. No games. No betrayals.