Page 80 of The Secret Girl (Adamson All-Boys Academy 1)
It would only take me a second to get in there and escape to safety.
The sound of bushes rustling brings my attention around, and I see a second figure in a black hoodie approaching.
What … the …
The second figure takes off toward me, and my instincts just kick in. My feet are moving before I can even give them a conscious command. The damn heels I'm wearing sink into the moist earth, and I kick them off as I go, scrambling up the small hill toward the lights of the cabin.
One of my pursuers grabs me from behind, wrapping their arm around my waist and yanking me back as a hand clamps over my mouth. I'm kicking now, nailing the asshole in the shins as I dig my fingernails into the thick fabric sleeves of the hoodie looking for purchase.
I'm dragged away from the safety of the dance hall and toward the woods to the left of the back door, the other hoodie wearing asshole moving forward to help contain me.
My heart is racing, and I'm cold with fear, thinking suddenly of Jenica Woodruff and wondering if she was this scared, if she fought this hard … because if she did, then I guess it doesn’t matter because I'm still going to die here tonight.
We end up in the true darkness of the forest, the thick foliage keeping the moonlight from penetrating the earthy blackness.
I'm still struggling, but it's an effort. The two people holding me are strong, and I'm not exactly an experienced martial artist. They drag me forcibly through the undergrowth, until I see it there in a small sliver of silver moonlight.
A rope.
It's hanging from a thick branch above our heads, swaying slightly in the breeze.
No. No, no, no! The boys were right: Jenica didn't commit suicide. No, she was murdered.
My struggling amps up a notch, fueled by adrenaline, and I end up slamming the attacker behind me so hard in the ribs that they grunt and briefly loosen their grip. That grunt did not sound like a man, I think, but then I'm fighting for my life here, so I don't exactly have time to analyze that right now.
There's another rustling sound from the bushes, and my heart drops. I can't fend off a third freaking attacker! But then Ranger pushes out of the bushes, and hope flares bright inside me.
He doesn't even hesitate, just throws himself at the guy in the front of me, tackling the bastard to the ground. With my renewed burst of energy, I manage to get free of the person holding me, spinning around so I have an easier time defending myself.
We grapple and end up on the forest floor, rolling around in the leaves as I struggle to keep whoever this is from getting a strong hold on me again. Grunts and cursing echo from the opposite side of the clearing, the rope swaying menacingly in the center of it all.
Finally, I manage to get my foot in the stomach of the asshole on top of me, pushing as hard as I can and sending them flying backward. They hit the ground hard, their accomplice grabbing their arm as blood drips from his face. He lifts the other person—who I'm pretty sure is a woman—up off the ground, and the two of them take off into the woods.
Ranger stands up, cursing and bleeding from a deep gash across the chest. For the briefest moment, I forget all about my secret identity and race over to him, leaving the wig on the ground behind me.
“Are you okay?” I ask, panting hard and shaking so furiously that I feel like I might just come apart at the seams and collapse. My hands touch the bloody wound in Ranger's chest, but he seems less concerned with that, and more concerned with me.
His hand comes up, and he grips my chin hard, lifting my gaze from his chest to his face. His eyes widen, and he starts cursing again.
“I knew it! I fucking knew it!” He releases me, and my face flushes red. “Holy shit, Carson, what the hell is wrong with you?” Ranger turns away from me, pausing when he sees the rope swinging there. I'm not sure he even noticed it before. The hot, high color in his cheeks drains away, leaving him as white as a ghost. “Jesus, what the hell is all this?”
“I don't know,” I whisper, heart racing. It hasn't escaped me that Ranger Woodruff might've just saved my life. “I came outside to get some air, saw a girl bleeding on the ground … Shit!” Grabbing Ranger's hand, I yank him back through the woods and find the blue-haired chick still lying where I left her. “Get a teacher,” I bark out, and Ranger pauses, just staring down at me like he can't believe what he's seeing.
