lost? Worse, maybe I’ll get lost. Maybe Chloe accidentally took a lethal U-turn, and she’s dead for good this time right here at the base of Devil’s Peak. How would that be for irony?
Logan appears by my side, slightly out of breath, and walks shoulder to shoulder with me as we enter the dark canopy of stalwart pines.
The absolute blackness of the dense forest drowns out the paper moon. It tones down the puff of visceral fog that blankets our world, and heightens our senses to a perfumed eucalyptus nearby.
“You mind if I come along?”
“Sort of,” I say.
“OK then.” He turns to go.
I snatch his hand before I can even process the fact I’m still mad at him—that I really shouldn’t care if he leaves.
“Stay.” I let his fingers drip off slow like honey.
He gives an impish grin. The smooth unblemished side of his face that I didn’t graffiti with a shard of glass seems a stark contrast to the scarred rougher version. He’s like two people in one. It seems almost representative of who he’s become to me. Old Logan and new Logan—the before and after of our demise. He reaches over and takes a hold of my hand.
“You mind? I’m afraid of the dark.” His words whistle past me in a swirl of lies.
“Just this once.”
The forest floor hums with the thunder of bass from car doors swung open so the speakers can unleash their fury into the virginal night.
The clamor starts to dissipate as we delve deeper into the thicket, until all that’s left to fill our ears is the sound of our own hushed breathing.
Logan?
Yes? His eyes glint into mine a haunting shade of glowing embers.
You think Gage has feelings for Chloe? I guess in the middle of an inky dark forest with its arms raised high like an impenetrable membrane, it feels safe to fess up to the fact that maybe this was a possibility.
Nope. Not one, I promise. He gives my hand a gentle squeeze as if to annunciate the fact.
I’m not sure if Logan’s promises are worth much anymore. I still don’t know if he’s ever been true to me, or if he’s been working with Chloe the entire time.
Hey. He stops and tugs at me gently. Skyla, I love you more than I’ve ever loved anybody. I’ve never been anything but genuine, I swear to you. And if it weren’t for the fact I put you in danger, I would never have let you go. I meant what I said about waiting for the faction war to end. There has to be hope for us because it will drive me insane to think there’s not.
I try not to consume his words—reciprocate them. Instead I try to let my mind filter through any other topic, my lit paper due next Thursday, Marshall and his prehensile tongue, but I can’t fight it, Logan drifts to the surface like a cork each time. So I address it head on.
I don’t know why it feels like there should be hope. I’m madly in love with Gage, and I’m destined to marry him. But, I feel it, too. Shame consumes me upon my admission.
The soft crush of leaves disrupts the silence.
A crackle emits, the distinct sound of something stirring to life ignites a steady stream of pops and whines until it becomes apparent we’re not alone.
“Gage?” God—what if Chloe sent an invitation, and he accepted? What if Logan and I are walking in on some private moment between the two of them? I’d rather be eaten by Fems or captured by Ezrina or—
The ground shifts beneath us. Something brushes up against my back, and instinctively I jump towards Logan.
“What was that?” I hiss.
“I think you’re getting your wish.”
A slither of something thin and frail wraps itself around my ankle.
“Snake!” I try and shake it loose, but my other foot is being wrapped as well. In a moment that defies logic and reason, the evergreens bow down and secure their fur-lined arms around us.
“Fems,” Logan says, trying to struggle free. The branches retract and pull us into the air, slowly, as though we were being strung onto a stealth hunter’s
Logan appears by my side, slightly out of breath, and walks shoulder to shoulder with me as we enter the dark canopy of stalwart pines.
The absolute blackness of the dense forest drowns out the paper moon. It tones down the puff of visceral fog that blankets our world, and heightens our senses to a perfumed eucalyptus nearby.
“You mind if I come along?”
“Sort of,” I say.
“OK then.” He turns to go.
I snatch his hand before I can even process the fact I’m still mad at him—that I really shouldn’t care if he leaves.
“Stay.” I let his fingers drip off slow like honey.
He gives an impish grin. The smooth unblemished side of his face that I didn’t graffiti with a shard of glass seems a stark contrast to the scarred rougher version. He’s like two people in one. It seems almost representative of who he’s become to me. Old Logan and new Logan—the before and after of our demise. He reaches over and takes a hold of my hand.
“You mind? I’m afraid of the dark.” His words whistle past me in a swirl of lies.
“Just this once.”
The forest floor hums with the thunder of bass from car doors swung open so the speakers can unleash their fury into the virginal night.
The clamor starts to dissipate as we delve deeper into the thicket, until all that’s left to fill our ears is the sound of our own hushed breathing.
Logan?
Yes? His eyes glint into mine a haunting shade of glowing embers.
You think Gage has feelings for Chloe? I guess in the middle of an inky dark forest with its arms raised high like an impenetrable membrane, it feels safe to fess up to the fact that maybe this was a possibility.
Nope. Not one, I promise. He gives my hand a gentle squeeze as if to annunciate the fact.
I’m not sure if Logan’s promises are worth much anymore. I still don’t know if he’s ever been true to me, or if he’s been working with Chloe the entire time.
Hey. He stops and tugs at me gently. Skyla, I love you more than I’ve ever loved anybody. I’ve never been anything but genuine, I swear to you. And if it weren’t for the fact I put you in danger, I would never have let you go. I meant what I said about waiting for the faction war to end. There has to be hope for us because it will drive me insane to think there’s not.
I try not to consume his words—reciprocate them. Instead I try to let my mind filter through any other topic, my lit paper due next Thursday, Marshall and his prehensile tongue, but I can’t fight it, Logan drifts to the surface like a cork each time. So I address it head on.
I don’t know why it feels like there should be hope. I’m madly in love with Gage, and I’m destined to marry him. But, I feel it, too. Shame consumes me upon my admission.
The soft crush of leaves disrupts the silence.
A crackle emits, the distinct sound of something stirring to life ignites a steady stream of pops and whines until it becomes apparent we’re not alone.
“Gage?” God—what if Chloe sent an invitation, and he accepted? What if Logan and I are walking in on some private moment between the two of them? I’d rather be eaten by Fems or captured by Ezrina or—
The ground shifts beneath us. Something brushes up against my back, and instinctively I jump towards Logan.
“What was that?” I hiss.
“I think you’re getting your wish.”
A slither of something thin and frail wraps itself around my ankle.
“Snake!” I try and shake it loose, but my other foot is being wrapped as well. In a moment that defies logic and reason, the evergreens bow down and secure their fur-lined arms around us.
“Fems,” Logan says, trying to struggle free. The branches retract and pull us into the air, slowly, as though we were being strung onto a stealth hunter’s
Similar Books
