Where You Belong

The Hunt

Brittany brought the phone to her ear again, glancing up at Law as the line began to ring dully. Just as before, it rang for a few moments before the automated voice message played again, stating that the number she'd called was not available. Tears pricking at the corners of her eyes, the black-haired woman ended the call again, stuffing it back in her pocket.

"Still nothing." She sighed, and Law turned away to continue searching.

Brittany had tried Lexi's phone over and over, hoping beyond hope that her friend would pick up. It was worth the shot, even though the rational part of her mind knew it was pretty much futile. Most kidnappers knew enough to take away their victim's phone, unfortunately.

"Anything yet, Bepo" The man called to the bear still leading the way ahead. Pausing in his sniffing, the bear shook his head.

"No, Captain. Nothing so far." With a silent nod in understanding, Law sighed as well. Bepo returned his attention to what was in front of him.

The dark sky, once pitch black at the beginning of their search, was beginning to show signs of a lighter blue, an indication that before too long the sun would be coming up.

They'd been searching all night but still no sign of the kidnapper, Lexi, or the red sedan. Feeling hopeless again, Brittany pulled out her phone, redialing the number she'd just called, pressing it to her ear in desperation. Maybe, just maybe, this time would work...

'Just run.' Lexi thought, her heavy breathing the only thing audible over the quickly growing storm. The rain, a trickle just before, was now quite the drizzle, soaking her to the bone and adding weight to the towels around her legs.

She hadn't checked behind her to see how close Logan might be, nor did she particularly want to, though she hadn't heard his screams of anger in awhile. The forest was thick, barely a path to be found in the dense thicket of trees and bushes. With her calves and arms exposed, the already torn-up skin was scratched and poked by stray branches and rocks.

Ignoring these new injuries as much as possible, she pushed past the burning sensation in her lungs. She'd never been very fast in P.E, nor could she boast about her endurance, and those flaws were beginning to show, a rather painful stitch in her side slowing her down with each labored puff of air.

Finally, after running for what seemed to Lexi like days, she dared a glance back, not seeing or hearing anything behind her in the trees. The rain had been a welcome addition, as much as it sucked, because the sound masked any noise she might have made running through the forest. As far as she knew, Logan had given up chasing her complete, though an inkling of doubt remained. He was crazy, probably crazy enough to keep looking for her even in these weather conditions in the middle of the night.

Her pace slowed, ultimately spent from the pain leeching away at her stamina, as well as the need to run. She placed her back to a wide tree, keeping her grip on the filet knife tight, just in case. With Logan, she didn't want to take any risks.

Sucking in huge breaths, she lowered herself to the ground, giving her aching legs a break. The soles of her feet were numb from the constant pounding against the uneven and hazardous forest floor. Unseen rocks and twigs poked out in the darkness, and occasionally, her ankle would land sideway to the dirt. Thankfully she hadn't suffered a fractured, sprained, or broken ankle yet, but with her running full pelt that could change very quickly.

Suddenly, there was several vibrating buzzes in her back pocket, and her eyes widened. Could it be? She hastily dug out her cell phone, turning on the screen. Yes! She'd reached a point where there was cellphone reception. It was weak, wavering between one and two bars, but it was there, and she smiled widely, hugging the device to her chest. She'd never felt so relieved before.