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“Sometimes I think he just likes hurting them. He pushed her, Summer.” Darcy squeezes her eyes shut, and I hear Melody’s sharp intake of breath.
“So I heard.” My voice is flat. Even. “Did you know he has Kinsley now? And Liza too, judging by the inside of her cabin.” Saying their names makes panic jump in my chest, but I push it down with the rest of my emotions so I can focus on getting through this with the least amount of damage done possible.
Her nod is jerky. “He said he won’t hurt them, though,” she promises quickly. “It’s not about them. It never was.”
“And you believe him?” This time I’m quick to take the stairs down to her, and before Darcy can run away, I reach out and grip the front of her shirt to drag her to me. “You fucking believed him, Darcy? After he pushed Emily off a cliff? After what happened with the knife in his room? I’m willing to bet that wasn’t an accident, either.”
When she starts to reply, I cut her off. “No, I don’t care. I don’t give a damn about your reasons, or whatever you think of him. Where the fuck is Shawn?!” I’m louder than I intend to be, and I jerk her hard, throwing Darcy off balance.
“I’m sorry!” She breaks into sobs, her shoulders trembling, and falls into me. Any other time, I would try to be supportive. I’d attempt to be the better person.
But nearly drowning has taken that ability away from me. At least for now. I step back, a sneer on my face as Darcy crumples to the ground.
“I didn’t ask,” I snap coldly. “I don’t want your apologies. All I want is my friends. Where the fuck are they, Darcy?”
“If I tell you, you can’t tell him,” she gasps, still sobbing with her face in her hands. “I’m afraid of him, Summer. I didn’t used to be. But after Emily, I confronted him. I asked?—”
I don’t mean to do it. Not really. But I just don’t care about her explanations, and I need to find my friends. Swiftly, I shove my foot against her shoulder, pushing her back onto her elbows and getting a startled, wide-eyed look in response.
“Where are they?” My voice is cold, and when she shivers, I realize I sound much more like Kayde than myself.
And maybe that should worry me a little. But I don’t have time for worry right now. Or the brain capacity for it.
“North of Dormouse cabin,” Darcy whispers finally, eyes trained on mine and wide with fear. “You know that tree you like? The one you always climb?”
Of course he’s at one of my five favorite trees. My third favorite, to be precise.
“Great. Wonderful.” I don't thank her. I set off past her, my strides long and quick. “If Daniel hasn’t called the police and Fink, then you’d better make sure it gets done,” I snap, barely looking at her as I speak. “Or so help me, Darcy, I’ll drown you just like Shawn tried to drown me. Only, there isn’t a serial killer in the woods to stop me from finishing the job.”
I’m not sure if I’ll regret the threat, but I can’t bring myself to care, either. Not when Darcy is part of what caused this, and certainly she could’ve prevented it.
All she had to do was tell me sooner than this.
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
Thankfully, I have the forethought to slow down from my dead run a good fifty feet from the tree Shawn might be at. I come to a stop, panting, my hands on my knees as I gasp for air. My lungs are still sore from the river, along with the rest of me, so I wince when I gulp air and wish Kayde would do that thing where he just appears at my side.
But maybe his superpowers are broken tonight.
“Melody.” I gasp her name as she slows beside me, her eyes sharp and missing nothing. It’s still not completely dark in the camp, but I know when I step into the trees, that will change quickly.
“Yeah?” Her voice is tinged with trepidation, like I’m about to tell her to go back to Otter Hall. Which, realistically, I should absolutely do. But I’d be lying if I didn’t admit having her helps my mental state, at least a little.
Melody is surprisingly cool in a crisis.
“If we find them there…” I trail off, thinking, and wonder if what I’m doing is right. Maybe I should tell her to go back or go somewhere else where she’ll be safe.
But I have a feeling if Shawn is here, I’m going to need Kayde as backup. Even though the knife sits heavily at my back, and I’ve definitely never felt this murder-y before. Is this how Kayde feels all the time? With the simmer of anger just under his skin and something like nausea in his stomach? Surely not. That would be rather uncomfortable.
“If we find them there, I need you to run. I need you to find Kayde.” Especially since I know how little phone service this end of the camp gets. “He’s checking the perimeter for Shawn. That’s the best I can do.”
“I can find him for you, Summer,” Melody promises, her voice flat and free from anxiety or nerves.
I dip my head in a nod and straighten, finally able to breathe, and wish my lungs would stop burning from the oxygen I sorely need. My steps are long, and my stride is quick as I make my way toward my third favorite tree, taking a path that will get me there the fastest. But unfortunately, that also means if Shawn is there, he’ll see me coming.
Not that I can avoid that tonight.
My steps crunch on the twigs and leaves littering the path, and it doesn’t take long before the upper branches of the huge, climbable tree loom into sight.
