The Cage (Book 2) ✔️

Gas Station

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Gas Station

I tried not to let my annoyance with Aiden show -after he'd stopped us for the third time since we'd hit the road to answer nature's call- but clearly, I was failing. If only it were his bathroom breaks that had my nerves frazzled. Halfway to our destination, we had taken a wrong turn that cost us the day because we realized our mistake too late, and now darkness had fallen.

Seeing my annoyance written across my face, Aiden turned to me, his voice tinged with guilt.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have drunk so much water." His cheeks were flushed with embarrassment, and I instantly felt like an asshole.

I exhaled sharply, releasing the tension coiled in my muscles, and reminded myself for the hundredth time to relax. Forcing a smile, I shook my head. "Don't be. I need to go too." Since we were stopping, I might as well empty my own tank. We still had about two hours before reaching our destination, if the car's navigation system was to be believed.

At Aiden's behest, Schneizel pulled the car into a gas station that looked like it hadn't seen a fresh coat of paint in twenty years.

As soon as the car stopped, Aiden shot out of the car and made a bee line for the station's store. I decided to stay behind and wait; most gas stations only had one unisex bathroom, and I doubted this rundown place would be any different.

I stood by the ancient fuel pumps, eyes scanning the area while I tried to distract myself from the irritation gnawing at the back of my mind. This lonely station was the first structure we'd seen since our last pit stop at a small town some two hours ago. The road stretched endlessly on either side of it. Aiden's voice echoed faintly from inside the store as he asked the clerk where the restroom was, while Schneizel and Cade had exited the car and were leaning against it, deep in conversation, their voices low and muffled by the thrum of the nearby highway. They didn't even notice when I took a step away from the gas pumps.

I wasn't about to wander too far. I just needed a minute, a break from the tension and the road. And besides, the station was deserted enough, and I didn't feel like being cooped up inside the small, stuffy convenience store with Aiden, or listening to Cade's incessant excuses about where we'd gone wrong after trusting him with directions.

But the moment I stepped beyond the reach of the flickering station lights, I couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.

I paused, glancing back at the group. They were still preoccupied, but there was an odd quiet settling in around me now, one that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I told myself that it was nothing. Maybe it was just the isolation of the place -too many years of neglected maintenance made everything seem a little... off.

Then, the click of a boot on gravel broke the silence behind me. It was too precise, too deliberate to be an accident. I spun around, my body tensing in instinctive alertness, but saw nothing. The shadows beyond the edge of the station were too thick, and the area around me was empty. No moon illuminated the darkness tonight; I was at the mercy of what few lights illuminated the station.

My mind raced. I was being paranoid. I told myself to breathe, to focus, to get a grip. Yet, something about the moment didn't feel right. It was too quiet now -too still.

I couldn't shake the sensation that I wasn't alone.

I needed to go back. Now.

I took a step back toward the others, but as I turned, something cold pressed against the side of my neck—a sharp sting, then the unmistakable pinch of metal.