Flames At Midnight

12 | grace yearwood

The road back to Thornhill was mostly straight and scenic. The woods bordered both sides of the road, and tall trees whipped past as we drove.

"Keep your eyes on the road, Porter," I said, for what seemed like the eighth time.

He mumbled another apology. His hands were firmly gripped on the steering wheel, but his eyes kept wandering. It had started to rain as the sun dipped below the horizon. Heavy raindrops bounced off the windshield.

We were nearing the Welcome to Thornhill, Massachusetts sign. Just another ten minutes and I would make it home in one piece.

"You think they're okay?" he asked.

"Quentin is resourceful. He'll be fine."

"I'd be more reassured if it didn't sound like you were trying to convince yourself," he said glumly.

"We have to believe that he can take care of himself too. Plus, Dillon and Kya are there with him."

I didn't mention how uneasy I felt about all of it.

Back at the abandoned house, Quentin asked how the masked guys had found Ava right as we had. It was hard to believe that it was an unfortunate coincidence. I didn't want to admit that I thought there was a mole within the group, but it was possible.

Was it Kya? She was a great liar. She would be able to get away with it. Or maybe it was Dillon. He joked around enough, but could he be hiding something?

Another thought crossed my mind.

Or was it Fiona? She had disappeared last night claiming she needed to get back to her set. She could have gone after Ava the second she left.

I shook the thoughts away. I didn't know enough yet. I had to keep it all to myself until I had more proof.

If there was a spy amongst us, the last thing I wanted was for their guard to go up.

"Hey, a pumpkin patch," Porter said, turning his head as we passed one.

"Porter!" I snapped, making him jump and jerk the wheel.

"I—I'm so sorry."

The rain was falling heavier now.

I sighed. "No, I'm sorry. I'm just really worried, but I shouldn't be taking it out on you. I'm just so stressed out and my head is pounding and I feel sick. With all this going on with Quentin, and now Paige..." My voice trailed off. "Thanks for driving me back."

"Do you know why she called?" he asked.

"She wouldn't say, but it didn't sound good." I tugged on the seat belt. "Not knowing is kind of driving me a crazy."

I tasted bile in the back of my throat. Being in the car made me queasy, and a throbbing headache was beginning to form above my eyebrow. All the stress was starting to hit me at once. I wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed and sleep off everything that's happened these last few weeks.

"We'll be back soon. Hang in there."

We were nearing the edge of town.

"Hey, it's almost your birthday, isn't it?" I said, turning towards him.

He nodded.