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I took a careful step toward the restroom, then another, and another. It was hard work propelling myself forward. Every step was difficult, and by the time I reached the restroom door, I was out of breath. I had to throw my weight against the door to get it to open, and I stumbled into the restroom.
I walked to the mirror and looked at myself. My blond hair was a tangled mess, and I had dark circles under my eyes. Those hadn’t been there earlier. I looked worn out and thin. I lifted a trembling hand to my sallow cheeks and traced my cheekbone that protruded from a hollowed face.
The door opened, and another woman came in. She looked at me wearily before she hurried past and locked herself in a cubicle. I waited for her to come out and wash her hands next to me.
I opened my mouth to ask her for help, but no sound came out. I sawed my mouth open and shut, but produced no words. She avoided eye contact, dried her hands on her jeans, and left the restroom again in a hurry.
Tears stung my eyes. Was no one going to help me?
This was when I knew I should make a break for it—I should climb out of the back window. If I ran now, I could still get away. But I just didn’t have the strength to do it. It had taken me so long just to get to the restroom. There was nowhere for me to go but back out there, where the two brutes waited to take me… I didn’t know where they were planning on taking me. I didn’t know anything anymore. Since the night Oscar had sold me, my life hadn’t belonged to me anymore.
I wished Ash was here. I ached for him. I needed him to come save me. How long would it take before he realized I was gone?
I looked at myself in the mirror again. My cheeks were stained with tears I hadn’t realized had fallen. I scrubbed my cheeks and took a deep, shuddering breath.
I finished in the restroom and opened the door again. Thing Two waited for me.
“What took you so long?” he demanded, but he didn’t wait for an answer. He grabbed my wrist, and I winced in pain.
He dragged me toward the car, moving faster than I could move my legs to keep up. I stumbled twice, nearly falling. I should have been able to walk properly, but my legs just wouldn’t work with me.
Thing One opened the door, and Thing Two all but shoved me into the car.
I was relieved I could lie down again. Going to the restroom had taken every bit of energy I’d had left.
The two guys climbed into the front seats again and started the car. I lay down as I had before. Thing Two drove this time, and Thing One looked over his shoulder at me, offering a menacing grin.
“Just like he said,” he told Thing Two. “She’s getting weaker and weaker.”
What was happening to me?
ChapterTwenty-Eight
Ash
Istood on the porch, hands balled into fists, my magic searching further and further than the vale went. My magic could only reach so far. Druses were protectors of the forest, and Lorraine was beyond that now.
My head spun. Where the fuck was she? I could feel her, which meant she was still alive, but I couldn’t feel where she was.
Panic had taken over. I struggled to breathe. My chest was tight, and my breath came too fast.
“Someone sold her out,” I said when Philotes appeared on the porch behind me.
“How do you know?” Philotes asked.
“They came back looking for her. There’s no fucking way they knew where to find her unless someone told them. They weren’t close. They were getting further and further away, and for some reason, they doubled back.”
Philotes shook her head, her lips pursed. “No one in the vale would do something like that, Ash. Who would do something like that?”
“I don’t know,” I said, shaking my head. “But I’ll be damned if I let this go.”
I stepped off the porch and marched toward the trees.
“Rowan!” I shouted as soon as I stepped between the trees where the druses made their homes. “Come out, come out, wherever you are, fucker!”
I walked through the trees, my magic turned to the vale again to find Rowan. Finally, I found him. He leaned against the tree, talking to a dryad. She was naked, her green skin shimmering, her long green hair only partially covering her up.
Right. Rowan had told me he was interested in Clea. Usually, she was at the lake with her friends, but clearly, she and Rowan were starting to spend alone time together.
