Page 37 of Property of Hayride
Thad finally opens his eyes. They’re bloodshot. It’s then that I see the ligature marks and several small slashes around his neck. “Cut it,” he rasps.
Huh?
Thad points to the ground. When I look, I see a bloody knife and a tiny section of rope.
“Cut it,” he repeats, slumping over as I catch him. “Up.”
I frown as I look up and see the frayed edges of a long length of rope. He fucking cut himself free with a pocketknife. Thad never would have survived if he hadn’t had that knife. It saved his life.
He fucking saved himself.
“You’re my fucking hero,” I joke as he coughs, then winces. “Help is on the way. I need to get you closer to the ambulance. Do you think you can stand?”
“I’ll try.”
I heave him up as Charles rushes to help. There’s nothing we can do for the body, and we leave it, supporting Thad as we hobble away from the crime scene. I know it’s reckless to do that, but Thad is alive, and I’m keeping him that way.
I hear the sirens before we reach the edge of the forest. Voices call out, and I answer, practically carrying Thad as I rush toward the paramedics. He’s weak and dehydrated. I don’t know how long he’s been out here.
I hand him off to the care team and huff out a breath as I hunch over. I’m tired. Charles sinks to his ass on the grass beside me, breathing heavily. We rushed through at least a mile of brush, pine needles, tightly cloistered trees, low-hanging branches, and fallen logs.
It was brutal, but worth it.
I straighten as I see Thad on a stretcher. They’re giving him oxygen and fluids through an IV. He’s going to be fine, I’m sure of it.
Nat screams his name and rushes toward the stretcher. I watch as she collapses on top of him, sobbing with relief. Hank touches his son’s arm and then grips his hand. No words have to be said. It’s a miracle Thad made it. None of them is taking that for granted.
Thad is loaded into the back of the ambulance. Nat and Hank climb in. It’s crowded, but the EMT lets them both ride in the cramped space.
Nat turns to me as the doors begin to shut. Her palm lifts and rests over her heart. “Thank you.”
I copy the gesture, hand over my heart.
When they drive away, I watch until the ambulance turns the corner and disappears. I’m conflicted. This means that Nat doesn’t have a reason to stay in Raven’s Crest. She probably won’t now. Their family is going to be focused on Thad’s recovery. As they should.
It takes a minute for me to realize I’m not alone. My thoughts and emotions are almost volatile. I don’t want to lose the only woman I’ve ever come this close to loving.
Sure, I’ve fucked a lot of women. I’ve had relationshits. And I stress the shit part. But I want to make this work with Natalya.
I think I’m already falling for her, and that’s scary as fuck.
Phantom grips my shoulder. “She won’t leave you.”
“How do you know?”
“I’ve seen the way you look at each other. It’s the same as Scythe and Lottie. Even Mountain and Cami. The real fucking deal, brother.”
I tap my chest over the organ beating inside it. “I never thought I’d feel like this. It’s so fucking intense.”
“Yeah, well, she’s the one. If you believe in that sort of thing.”
“Until now, no.”
“Then I guess you need to go to her and make sure she knows how you feel, Hayride. Don’t let her leave town without making it clear. Then, if it doesn’t work out, you can say you gave it your best shot.”
Sound advice. “Damn, that’s beautiful, Phantom.”
He chuckles. “Seeing the three of you find an ol’ lady makes me itch for the same thing.”
