Hardwired by Trisha Leaver

deeper into the pockets of my sweatshirt. “It would be warmer in the woods.”
    â€œIf we leave the road, the chances of us being found are slim to none, and I didn’t crawl my way out of that van only to freeze to death in the woods,” Chris said.
    â€œBeing found may be the last thing we want,” I replied. We’d survived an accident that had killed everybody else in our van, it was butt-ass cold and snowing, and we hadn’t passed a car, a search party, or even so much as a dead animal since we’d climbed back up the side of that mountain. Hiking back to the testing facility was one thing—I knew the guards there, could gauge their reactions and adjust mine in turn. It was people out hunting deer or trapping foxes that I didn’t want to run into. Most people considered us dangerous, and … well, they’d have rifles to back up their prejudice.
    â€œTrust me, there’s nobody out here worth running into,” I went on. “I say we find a hole and crawl into it, wait out the storm, and hike back to the Bake Shop tomorrow morning.”

nine
    We ended up taking shelter on the side of the road, hidden behind the trees but still close enough to see the road. The sky had cleared, bringing with it a searing cold. I huddled into myself and closed my eyes, never once contemplating sleep. Since I was dressed only in a sweatshirt and jeans, sleep was my enemy. Had I given in to my exhaustion, I might very well have frozen to death.
    Looking for something to keep my mind alert, I started listening to the sounds around me, isolating each one. A screech owl in the distance calling out to his mate. The gentle howl of the wind as it tore through the tops of the pitch pines. The crunching of snow underfoot.
    The crunching of snow underfoot?
    That last sound had my eyes flashing wide, and I scanned the area as my mind cycled through a crapload of disturbing possibilities.
    Chris had heard it too, his gaze lost in the dark tangle of trees surrounding us. “There,” he said, pointing to an outcropping of rocks in the distance. “Person.”
    It took me a second to see the person; the faded jeans and dirty gray jacket blended perfectly with the wall of rock behind them. It wasn’t until they finally broke the stillness by standing up that I finally realized who it was.
    A girl. And from the looks of it, she was scared shitless. Of me.
    I held up my hands, hoping she’d realize I was unarmed and had no intention of harming her. Her eyes trailed to Chris, and she took a tiny step backward as if somehow she perceived him to be the bigger threat.
    â€œHe won’t hurt you either,” I said as I stood up and took a tentative step toward her.
    Chris stood up too, his eyes now furiously scanning the area for others. He went to speak, but I held up my hand for him to stop. The girl was clearly spooked, and I doubted us crowding her space was going to help.
    â€œAre you hurt?” I asked. From what I could see, she looked relatively unharmed. Her knuckles were bloody, her coat was torn, and her hair was a mess of dirt and pine needles. I didn’t see any gaping wounds or insane amounts of blood. But she was alone. In the woods. At night. And as far as I knew, there was never a good reason for that.
    â€œI’m Lucas, and this is Chris,” I said, motioning for Chris to stop moving. He’d been taking tiny steps towards her the entire time, forcing her farther from the outcropping of rocks she’d been hiding behind and out into the open road.
    â€œWhat’s your name?” I asked.
    â€œCarly.” It came out barely as a whisper. “Carly Denton.”
    Tyler’s face suddenly flashed across my mind, the image of his girlfriend’s quickly following on its heels. Denton? Tyler’s girlfriend’s name was Olivia. Olivia Denton.
    I closed the space between us in four giant steps. I hadn’t seen the resemblance at first,