Chasing Tides

Chapter 15

CHASE...
I woke up in a dead panic. My head throbbed, and I could taste blood in my mouth. My neck was screaming, but the physical pain did not compare to what I saw when I looked at the passenger seat. The roof was caved in above the passenger seat, leaving only a bit of room, and an array of dried blood and broken glass peppered the gray leather seat. But what was most terrifying was the absent figure that had once resided to my right. Taylor was gone.
Though every part of my body protested I wrenched the, luckily, un-mangled door open and stumbled out of the car. The road had turned to pure mud, but amongst the wet dirt was the fresh track of a motorcycle. Rage consumed me, my mind quickly jumping to the worst conclusions. Clearly someone had gotten a hold of her, and there was only one person who wanted her.
Before I could even comprehend my actions, I had already begun the long descent down the mountain. Each stride was followed by the difficult wrenching of my shoes from the mud. She had become my responsibility and I hadn't kept her safe. Furthermore, I had let her get involved in the dangers of my life and I'm not sure I could forgive myself for that. After what seemed like an eternity I reached the beginnings of a paved road, the area was deserted with no hopes of catching ride. I knew where I needed to go, I knew what I had to do to get Taylor back. I had to go back to a place I vowed to never go again.

Taylor:
I had woken up to a loud crash, followed by some violent yanking against my arms. Before I could regain my senses I had been pulled out of the crumpled truck, and gagged with a thick piece of fabric. It was then I realized that I was being not being rescued, but rather taken against my will. I attempted to run, but a pair of arms around my waist, that I had yet to noticed, tightened their hold. I thrashed against the restraint but was too weak, it was then my eyes shifted back to the truck. What I saw broke my heart just a bit, Chase lay there unconscious with a steady stream of blood running down his cheek and dripping onto his reddened chest. I wanted more than anything to rush to him, to wake him up, to make sure he was ok. But I was being dragged further and further away by a strange man. When I saw a white cloth coming towards my nose, I reverted my attention back to the severity of the situation at hand. I knew what this meant, I had seen enough crime shows to know that if I took a breath anywhere near that rag, that I would be as good as dead. So I did the only logical thing, I held my breath, and started acting. I made my chest rise and fall, to mimic a deep breath, and slowly let my head hang, and allowed my body to go limp. The man bought my act, and lugged me onto the back of his motorcycle. I internally panicked, how would I stay on the back of a motorcycle and maintain my mock state of unconsciousness. The man tied me to the bike in a unique, but surprisingly steady(and uncomfortable) fashion.
We drove down the muddy mountain roads, getting stuck here and there. When we approached more populated areas, the roads were deserted. Not a single sign of life, other than the flashing tsunami lights. I internally panicked, wondering if perhaps the tsunami was still coming and we would be helplessly washed away. I would die tied to the back of man I hadn't even really gotten a look at, and most certainly did not know. My mind wandered back to Chase. Was he awake? Had he been badly hurt? Would he even be able to get out of the car? Would he find me?

Chase:
After what seemed like hours of endlessly battling the muddy roads on foot, I finally reached a paved road. I wasted no time, and began to sprint, internally thanking my Dad for all the years he forced me to get out and run with him.
My Dad I thought. What would he have done?
I should have known they would have found me, and I should have known they would use her. I was, once again, the reason she was in danger. There was a reason I have been alone all these years, contrary to the belief of those who didn't know me before, I'm not a recluse. I was protecting them, protecting my family. But there was something about her, Taylor, I couldn't shake her.