A barely perceivable flicker of relief flashes in his eyes, and he says, “Grab what you need. We move now.”
I waste no time tearing out the pages of the notebook I’d made use of last night, shoving them in my purse, and it over my shoulder. When I’m done, Savage and Adam are gone and Adrian waits for me at the exit. My belly clenches with the tug of war between us and I close the space between me and him.
Once I’m right in front of him, I expect him to move, to motion me out of the cave, but for long moments, he just stares down at me. There is something he wants to say, something that hangs and cuts and bleeds between us. Finally, when the pulse of tension between us cuts too deep, when I can’t take it another moment, he breaks the silence.
“Deleon knows we went into the woods. He won’t know if we came out or not. He’s also not a fool. He’ll be watching. He’ll have men waiting.”
“I assumed as much,” I say, my throat dry, voice raspy.
“Once we’re out there, silence is golden,” he says. “You stay with me, by my side. Hold onto me if you need to, Pri.”
Somehow it feels as if he’s talking about more than our escape from the woods, but I don’t know. I just don’t know right now. “Without hesitation,” I say. “I trust you. Remember?”
“Do you?”
“Yes,” I insist, but I think of his reaction to me asking if Deleon was dead. He doubts my trust and now isn’t the time for that conversation. I know that. “I do.”
He doesn’t respond but I feel the cut of his attention as he steps away and motions to the exit.Chapter TwelvePRI
I exit the cave to find Savage and Adam waiting on us, the sun just piercing the horizon, dampness from the rain now gone, lingering on the ground and in the air. Adrian is quickly by my side, and despite all that is a mixed-up, ripe eruption of confusing emotion between us, there is a comfort to the protectiveness that radiates from him. Every part of me knows that this man would die for me, but I also know he’ll walk away from me and hurt me.
Wordlessly, he motions to Savage.
Savage responds by taking the lead position, setting out on a forward march, claiming the conductor role in this little train, though I have a sense that Adrian is in control. As if proving this to be true, Adrian signals to me to follow Savage, but rather than stepping to my rear, he remains by my side. Adam instead claims the tail end of our little train, the man who ensures no one kills us from behind.
The sun inches into view, a dull orange glow, ready to blast us with Texas heat, and plenty of sunlight. It’s only now, watching it rise, in our exit formation, that I wonder why we didn’t leave under the cover of darkness, but I don’t ask questions. Now is not the time for conversation, and I’m confident enough in this group to know they have good reasons. They are the experts at survival, while it’s on me to be an expert in the courtroom when I face Waters. And I will, in a few short weeks.
We maneuver down the smooth rocks of the cavern that had been our shelter. Once we reach the clearing that Adrian and I had raced across the night before, Savage halts and holds up a hand.
We pause and wait as he scans our surroundings. My pulse kicks up a beat, with the idea that he might know of a threat we do not. The courtroom, not the forest, is my safe place, the zone where I excel, where I easily spot trouble, but as I visually hunt for it now, I find nothing. He must not either, as he waves us forward. My pulse slows and Adrian captures my hand, the mere act creating the collision of our stares he’s clearly intended. He lifts his chin toward the clearing. Savage shoots into action, running forward, and Adrian follows, leading me along with him, through mud and too much open space for comfort. Adrenaline is my friend and enemy, blurring my surroundings, and thus my ability to spy an enemy, but it also leaves me with nothing but a forward movement. Finally, in what is likely only a minute but feels like a year, we’re in the forest, and branches and foliage offer the coverage the new day has stolen.
There’s no dilly-dallying around either. We’re already moving again, our path rugged and filled with obstacles. In the light of day, and the downpour over, snakes are probably less of a problem than flying bullets, but still worthy of creating caution.