Thirty-One and a Half Regrets
Page 84

Mason gave me a long look before he started down.
The other side of the hill was the steepest yet. One glance convinced me to give up any hope of trying to go down gracefully. I tried to grab trees on the way down to slow my descent, but after I crashed into two, I sat on my butt and slid down, just like I used to do with Violet. But when I reached the bottom, I questioned the wisdom of my plan. The entire back side of my jeans was wet and muddy. But at least I didn’t have any broken bones and I’d descended the fastest way possible.
My joy was short-lived when I realized we needed to mount another steep hill. We spent the next half hour climbing and descending hills until we finally came into a flat area.
“I think this is a good place for us to start changing direction.”
“Okay.” I leaned into a tree. I was winded and my hands and feet were freezing again.
“I haven’t heard voices for at least fifteen minutes,” Mason said. “I think we can rest for a few minutes.” He moved next to me. “Do you want to sit?”
I shook my head. “Just let me catch my breath.”
He opened his bag and handed me the half-full bottle of now-melted snow. After taking a big swig, I gave it back to him. He drained the rest, then bent down and scooped more snow into the container.
“Do you think we lost Crocker?” I asked as he scanned our surroundings.
“I don’t know, but we have slowed them down.”
“Not that Crocker would let that stop him.”
Mason didn’t respond, pulling me to his chest instead. His body heat seeped into mine and we stood together for a long moment. “We need to get going,” he finally said in a soft voice.
I made myself step away from him. “You’re right, but at least I’m warmer now.”
He laughed. “I’ll add transferring body heat to my résumé as one of my special skills.”
We started north through the narrow valley, dodging the thick growth of trees. Snow dusted the ground, but there wasn’t nearly as much as there’d been in the other valley.
“At least there’s hardly any snow here,” I said, grateful that we weren’t leaving behind an easy trail anymore.
“The foliage is too thick overhead. That’s one of the reasons it’s good to be this deep in the woods.”
After we traveled for another hour or so, the narrow valley began to spread out and the trees started to thin. We stayed in the denser trees for cover.
We trudged on another half an hour before Mason stopped and looked around. “Let me get our bearings and make sure we’re headed in the right direction.”
I squatted and leaned over my legs, trying to stifle my disappointment over the thought that we might be going the wrong way. But we were following the valley and I doubted it pointed to true north. It was inevitable that we would be slightly off course.
After a few moments, he squatted next to me and brushed a few stray hairs out of my eyes.
“How bad is it?” I asked.
“We’re actually we’re heading slightly northeast. Not bad at all.” He paused. “Do you want to take a break?”
“Just a few more minutes.”
We didn’t talk, but it was a comfortable silence. We drank the bottle of melted snow, then I stood and reached down to give Mason a boost. When he grabbed my hand, my head started to tingle and my peripheral vision faded to black.
It was dark all around me, and I could hear heavy panting, which I quickly realized was my own. My hands were bound behind my back and a searing pain was shooting through my right ankle and up my leg.
I heard Daniel Crocker’s voice. “I’ve been waiting a long time for this, Rose.”
A woman’s scream shot through my head.
The vision faded and I staggered as I said, “He’s gonna catch us.”
Mason grabbed my elbow to help me remain upright. “Did you just have a vision?”
I nodded, still in shock.
“What did you see?”
I shook my head, unable to find the words.
His grip tightened as panic filled his eyes. “Rose!”
I swallowed, my body shaking. “You were in the dark, and your hands were tied behind your back.” I fought to take a breath, squatting again to fight the feeling of lightheadedness.
Mason sank down next to me. “What else?”
“I heard Daniel Crocker’s voice. He was talking to me, and then I heard a scream.”
“What did he say?”
I closed my eyes, trying to get the sound of the scream out of my head. “He’d been waiting for a long time for this.” I swallowed. “And he called me by name.”
Mason stood and jogged several feet into the valley, spinning around as he took in the terrain. “Do you know where we were?”
“No.” My tears won and slid down my cheeks. “It was dark.”
“Was I sitting or standing?”
“Sitting. Your back was against a wall.”
“Was the floor wood? Carpet? Dirt?”
I shook my head, crying harder. “I don’t know.”
He knelt in front of me and took my hands. “Yes, you do. Just think about it.”
I focused on what I’d felt in my vision. “It was hard. I think it was wood. And the room had strange smell. Like fish and animals.”
He nodded. “That’s good. Anything else?”
“It was a small space. There was light at the bottom of a door. I think you were shut in a closet.” I shook my head and stood. “That doesn’t tell us anything.” I glanced at the bag slung over his shoulder. “I want to start carrying a gun again.”