Chapter 16
Carmen's POV
I leaned back into the soft cushiony pillow, breathing slowly. My head was still pounding from the previous screaming. They were long gone by now thanks to my mother, and no doubt, their little scuffle was being continued at the house. I was getting a little fed up with Cody. No matter what the situation is, he always seems to get jealous of Eli. Me and Eli have been best friends since ever, there's nothing going on, and there won't ever be. But he just can't seem to get that through his thick head.
I sighed and picked up the nearest pamphlet on the desk flipping through the pages.
Cody's POV
The wind whipped past my face as I pressed the gas harder. I couldn't seem to go fast enough. Usually the speed of the motorcycle would make me forget everything that was going wrong, but it wasn't working. The highway was empty, something that would usually make the ride much more enjoyable, but today I felt like something was wrong. I sighed and took my foot of the breaks slightly. A moment passed before I noticed that I wasn't going any slower, in fact it was going faster. My heart quickened as I pressed the breaks hard. Nothing happening. I looked around for help, but by now I was moving too quickly to make anything out of the blur of passing trees and buildings. I tried the breaks again, knowing that they wouldn't work. I knew that it wouldn't stop. There would be no getting off this bike. Carmen's smile flashed through my mind. Then her laugh. And finally Eli. Anger flushed through me. If I didn't make it, Carmen would never know the truth. She would never know what the scumbag did to her.
My fists clenched the wheel. I was not going to die today.
The bike came to a shuddered stop in front of an abandoned gas station. I felt slightly proud of myself. I had done it. I was alive. I smiled and wheeled the burned out bike behind the old building, hiding it behind some trash cans. I made sure you couldn't see it, before taking off in a jog to the nearest phone. Eli had enough time to think it over. Carmen was going to know now.
My breath grew rigid as I neared the Lazy Days Hotel. It was a small building, obviously made just so the road wouldn't look quite so empty, but if anything, it made it look emptier. I pushed the door open, the smell of cleaning supplies hitting me. The lobby was tiny with a small desk in the corner. A balding man with a sharp nose looked up at me, scowling at my dust-covered clothes."yes?" He asked, pushing his small glasses up.
"Um, yeah, can I use you're phone? I had a bit of an accident on my bike.."
"Right this way." He said, his voice on the edge of what I thought was boredom. As I followed him, a thought rang through my mind. Eli had been in the garage. Before he went in there, my bike was completely fine. A new wave of anger shot through me. He had tried to kill me!
The car came to a stop in front of the house. "thanks for the ride!" She nodded.
"I just feel horrible about your bike Cody, that's such an awful thing to happen!" She said before I could get out.
"Oh it's nothing I can't fix."
"Oh, well in that case... You go and get yourself fixed up, I need to go pick up Carmen from the hospital, we'll be home in about fifteen minutes." I opened the door and got out, wavin politely as she drove off. I had fifteen minutes. Fifteen minutes alone with Eli. And that was all I needed.
