Run Bad Boy Run

Chapter 41

I sprint towards the door, hoping the figures will move out of my way if I do it hard enough. It isn't the case.

A figure lunges in front of the door and I back pedal into Hayden, watching the intruders stand in a loose circle around us, some calling out for me to try again for the sake of a good laugh.

But there's nowhere to run. These people, all menacingly tall and built like boulders, surround us. We only have two lawn chairs and our fists for protection. Hayden and I are pressed against each other, back to back, both with the same awful thought in mind. It's ten of them and two of us. We're screwed.

Where is Abigail?

The realization that our friend might be in danger is overshadowed by the crippling thought that Derek knew we were coming. Maybe Abigail set this up. It can't be that easy to fall out of love with someone, right? I don't have much time to contemplate my chaotic thoughts. As I struggle to break free, a fist comes in contact with my stomach. I don't even have a chance to fight back. Fireworks dance in front of my eyes, as a whole new level of physical pain possesses me. Rough arms latch onto mine to twist them painfully behind my back, causing me to choke back a scream.

"Ember!" Hayden roars, thrashing in the arms over the giant man holding him by the neck. Hayden tries to fight back, already sporting fresh bruises and scraped knuckles, when something hard comes in contact with his back. Hayden drops to the ground, his mouth twisting in a silent scream that is matched by my sobs.

"Hayden!" I fight through the stars. I fight through the pain that tears into me. As long as it gives me a chance to tear that man's throat out with my teeth. "Hayden! Are you okay?"

He scrambles to his feet and throws himself at the man who had once been holding him, punching him across the jaw. The man staggers back and I hope the force was enough to make him stagger right off the roof. Unfortunately, one of his men catches him, while another punches Hayden in the stomach hard enough to make him fall to his knees.

"Hayden!"

"I'm okay," he wheezes. At his words, the man hauls his boot into Hayden's ribs harder, and harder, until all that echoes over the quiet street is the sound of my sobs and Hayden's labored breathing. Hayden shudders a breath and turns to look at me, his eyes furious, his consciousness lapsing. I beg for him to hold on, but he can't. Mouthing words I can't understand, he fades into unconsciousness.

"Who are you?" I ask the men. My sobs turn into rage-filled howls. "What the fuck do you want?"

"You don't understand how much of a pain in the ass you've been to me, Ember," a voice growls.

It's not Derek, but I've heard this voice somewhere before.

"Really? 'Cause I think I could be a lot worse!" I spit. "Come on! Let me go! I'll show you!"

The speaker doesn't look at me and rolls his shoulders, a loud popping sound making my skin crawl. "You've shown me enough, Ember. Too much. And here I thought Hayden Cross would be my biggest obstacle when I got back. But it had to be you. Your bitch of a mother."

"My mom had nothing to do with this!"

That's it! When I get my hands on him!

"Oh, no," the stranger continues. "She had everything to do with it. She was involved with a pretty awful guy. The poor man fed into her addiction. He told her everything about Derek's plan and she thought it would be a perfect cash grab. So what did she do? She exploited her daughter. Used her to get close to Derek to steal his assets from under his nose."

"You're a liar!"

"And then, there's me. A humble member of the Establishment. I found out, I tried to stop you. I am going to stop you. But first, I'm going to deliver you to him so that you can tell him your evil little plan face-to-face."

"Are you fucking insane?"

"Yes."

I suck in a breath.

I open my mouth to say something when a ray of light hits his head. I see one green eye. A green eye that had me fascinated beyond belief. The realization that dawns on me is the last straw. A gasp catches in my throat from the feeling of betrayal that runs through me. It's like being smacked in the face with a hot iron grate. There is no more confusion falling. I've hit the canyon floor. Someone has taken a match to my body.

But how the hell could this happen? Why? I thought he meant something to me. And it was all an act.

"Why are you doing this?" I ask in a low voice, half-snarling. The figure turns and I can sense the annoyance coming off in heated waves. But he doesn't answer and turns to walk towards the doors.

Red flashes across my vision. He's going to walk away just like that!

"Nate Lincoln you better get your fucking ass over here and give me some answers!" I shout out in a strangled cry, each word stabbing a knife deeper into my chest. Nate freezes, turning slowly.

Nate pulls down his hood and looks at me with a coldness I never would have thought to exist in such a person. All I ever saw was friendly warmth. He had me fooled for so long that he was a really good guy. Us hanging out and becoming friends was all a lie. Nate stands in front of me, nostrils flared.

"I can't believe you! You—you traitor!"

He returns my angry gaze with a leveled stare. "How am I a traitor when I wasn't loyal in the first place?" He looks at Hayden crumpled on the ground beside us, smugness melting into his expression. "We're done here."

"No! No!"

Something is pressed tightly against my mouth and nose. The world begins to spin uncontrollably. Heaviness weighs on my limbs. My mind slows into nothingness.

Stay awake! Get help...get... help...help...

Hayden's limp body being dragged across the rooftop is the last thing I see before I slip into a darkness I never knew existed until now.

* * *